1099 What do you think, senior?



Liam patiently heard everything the elf was explaining but he had a feeling that he was being given only half truth. As to why, he couldn't exactly put a finger on it. 

The elf's every move seemed as if he was trying to figure him out. Either he was extremely shrewd or extremely stupid.

But explanations aside, he was currently in a big predicament. He had no idea what to do with the blood drops or whatever these were.

He had already tried to store them inside his spatial artifact but that did not happen. It was as if these blood essences belonged here and they couldn't be moved.

"If the elder doesn't mind, I can gather the blood essences for you." The chubby elf offered with another smile. 

Without Liam even giving him a green signal, he took out a crystal from his ring and the next second, all of the swirling blood essences gathered inside the crystal as if they were attracted to a magnet.

The chubby elf held the crystal up to show Liam. The crimson droplets swirled inside, their movements bizarrely hypnotic.

"This crystal," the elf began, "is made of Starshard. It has the ability to store and stabilize energy such as these blood essences. It's a rare material and, unfortunately, a relatively scarce one. Not many people are fortunate enough to possess it."

He then held out the crystal to Liam.

"I can give you this one, elder. Consider it a token of my gratitude for your help with the soul blood beasts."

Liam looked at the crystal, then back at the elf. He was still on guard, but he took the crystal from the elf's hand, feeling the smooth, cool surface beneath his fingers. 

He brought the crystal closer to his eyes to inspect it. The crystal, while seemingly ordinary in appearance, was filled with the swirling blood essence

He kept the crystal in his own storage ring, He looked at the elf and said, "Let's continue. Lead the way to the sword scar."

Liam knew that things were not going well. 

The blood essences were the remnants of these mysterious beasts so why would the elf offer it willingly to him if not for the fact that he could take it back at any time he wants.

He needed to run. He needed to run fast. Unlike earth, this place had no limiters and probably it was an already evolved world so it had to be full of monsters.

And right now, he was pretty sure that he was standing with one.

Liam prepared to leave, but the elf abruptly stopped him. "Just a moment, elder. Don't you find it a little unusual that there are so many soul blood beasts in this region? So far from the sword scar?"

Liam paused. The elf was right. There had to be something here.

While Liam was trying to get a sense of the cavern, the elf lit up a big old torch of fire that instantly illuminated the surrounding area.

The light pierced through the mist, revealing hidden corners that the darkness had concealed. The elf waved the torch around, its fiery light casting long, looming shadows.

Shockingly, this revealed a huge fissure or rather chasm that ran right through the solid ground underneath them.

It was a yawning chasm, stretching out in a line that seemed to run endlessly into the darkness. Its depth was impossible to fathom, its breadth a terrifying spectacle to behold. 

In the flickering torchlight, it appeared like a monstrous maw ready to swallow anyone who dared to come too close.

"This," the elf murmured, his voice echoing in the cavernous expanse, "is likely the cause of the soul blood beast activity. They're attracted to places with high energy concentrations, and this fissure is emanating a substantial amount of it."

He stepped towards the edge of the chasm, the light from the torch dancing in his wide eyes. "It is possible that there is something inside," he said, turning back to look at Liam. "What do you think, senior?" There was a smug sarcastic smile tugging on his lips as he said that.

Liam knew for sure that his time was up. The elf no longer needed him and there was something valuable within hand's reach.

The next moment, something huge emerged out of the chasm and Liam instantly made a split second decision.

His heart pounded in his chest as he heard a deafening roar, the creature fully emerging from the chasm. 

The echoes bounced off the walls of the cavern, giving an illusion of multiple beasts roaring in unison. The sound was so intense, it felt like the very ground beneath him was shaking.

The sight of the beast was even more terrifying. It was a monstrous figure, an amalgamation of shadows and scales, claws and teeth, massive wings flapping, stirring up a gale. Its eyes were as red as the swirling blood essences, radiating malevolence.

He had never seen anything like it, but the dreadful aura it emitted confirmed that it was much more powerful than the soul blood beasts he had faced earlier.

Liam did not wait around to see where the beast started and ended. The moment the beast appeared, he used the chance to blast out of the cavern.

However, the very second, the elf's voice rang loudly. "Don't even think about it. You are not my equal. You are someone I could crush whenever I want so don't push me."

Liam had a feeling that the elf was not joking.

More importantly, his eyes widened as he watched the elf materialize a spear in his hand. The elf moved and the spear dripped in blood.

And just like that, the massive beast was dead.

Liam couldn't even follow the elf's movement as everything was a blur. It only took a moment for the chubby elf to deal with the beast and in the blink of an eye, he was standing in front of Liam.

"Look here, human. Let me propose a deal."