The cave was vast, filled with a suffocating aura.
This was the natural radiation emitted by a Morning Star–level creature.
And the space within the mountain's belly was even more expansive. Remains of countless creatures had been carelessly discarded to one side, the residual fluctuations emanating from them making even Leilin feel suffocated.
On the central platform, various animal livers lay strewn about, and a pitch-black cauldron continuously bubbled with white foam, giving Leilin the distinct impression of a shaman's lair.
On banners and totems nearby, dark brown symbols had been painted in blood.
The entire cavern looked like a crude laboratory, but one that had already developed a rudimentary research capability — that was Leilin's assessment.
The enormous Multi-Armed Tribe member tossed Leilin onto a central altar, and the surrounding blood-red magical banners immediately began emitting a hazy glow.
Leilin suddenly felt his surroundings cut off entirely. He couldn't even self-destruct now.
"A foreign magical array? Interesting!"
Being captured by the other party, the worst-case scenario was losing this seed, so Leilin didn't appear particularly afraid.
"A… spiritual power seed… from another world?"
At that moment, the Multi-Armed Tribe member spoke, using the Ancient Byron Language. Though halting, Leilin could understand him well enough.
"Yes! Respected sir! I am a traveler through time and space, accidentally stranded here!"
Leilin was overjoyed — communication meant the possibility of a deal.
"Do you know the Ancient Byron Language?"
"Yes! Though our Quark people have endured three annihilations, the transmission of our civilization has never been broken!" The towering Multi-Armed Tribe member seemed quite proud.
Leilin nodded. In such primitive tribes, the leaders — chieftains, shamans, and the like — were almost always the intellectual class as well. This was a universal truth, applicable across virtually any world.
"As you can see, I am now merely a spiritual power seed, on the verge of dissipating, and pose absolutely no threat. I wonder whether we might strike some kind of deal?"
Leilin stated his needs.
Spiritual power seeds could only be replenished by the main body's own spiritual power. At this point, it was essentially on a countdown to annihilation. Even if the other party had methods, they could at most delay the process — the fundamental outcome could not be changed.
Moreover, his arrival in the Black Rain World had been entirely accidental. There was no way to replicate the spatial route, so he had to acquire something of value immediately.
And in Leilin's eyes, this Multi-Armed Tribe member who had reached Morning Star strength was a perfect match for his needs.
"You truly only wish to trade?" The Multi-Armed Tribe member's eyes were filled with deep distrust — and even more wariness. The blood-red runes on the banners flashed rhythmically, emitting waves that resembled a lie-detection technique.
"Of course!" Leilin answered without hesitation, so convincingly he almost deceived even himself.
"You have only a sliver of spiritual power remaining. I doubt there is much for us to discuss. Besides — the great catastrophes of the past were all brought by outsiders like you…"
The towering Multi-Armed Tribe member clearly did not trust Leilin. The entire altar began operating, nearly grinding his spiritual power seed into nothingness.
"Damn it — which bastard came before me and spoiled things for the rest of us…"
Leilin cursed inwardly, then immediately called out: "Wait! You may not need what I have to offer, but your people certainly will. I possess a great deal of excellent extradimensional knowledge, encompassing extensive institutional experience, agricultural practices, smelting, alloys, and even potionology and alchemy. I believe this would be of great use to both you and your tribe…"
"I can simply extract all of that directly from you…"
The towering Multi-Armed Tribe member sneered, and thin blood-red threads materialized across the altar, attempting to burrow into the spiritual power seed.
"So it's a soul-searching technique!" Leilin's spiritual power seed trembled violently, releasing a burst of dark golden radiance.
The blood-red spiritual threads were immediately melted by the dark golden light, but after that single exchange, Leilin's spiritual power seed appeared even more ethereal — as though it might be forcibly annihilated at any moment.
"As you can see, this approach is useless against me. Employing even more forceful methods will only result in neither of us gaining anything…"
Leilin secretly rejoiced. This Morning Star–level Multi-Armed Tribe member had broken through to the Morning Star realm purely through physical constitution and brute force — just like the scorpion man from the Ice World. They were titans of raw power, and their exploration of the spiritual realm was still exceedingly primitive.
Such a creature could crush Leilin into dust with its overwhelming strength, but performing something as intricate as soul-searching was beyond its capabilities.
If Leilin's spiritual power seed had fallen into the hands of a Morning Star wizard who had also condensed their spiritual power into a crystalline core, self-annihilation would have been his only option — and even then, the other party might have pried loose a great deal of his memories.
But against a brute who had reached Morning Star strength through physical means alone, Leilin at the third rank of crystalization could still put up a forced resistance. At the very worst, he could order the seed to self-destruct, leaving the other party with nothing.
"What exactly do you want?" The Multi-Armed Tribe member's expression turned ugly.
"Simple — equitable exchange. We both provide valuable information. And as the outsider, I'm willing to make the first contribution!"