The cave was enormous, filled with an oppressive aura.
This was the natural radiation emanated by creatures that had reached the Morning Star rank.
The space within the mountain was even more expansive. Remains of countless creatures had been casually discarded to one side, and the lingering fluctuations from them made even Leilin feel suffocated.
On the raised platform in the center, various animal livers lay strewn about haphazardly. A pitch-black cauldron continuously bubbled with white foam, giving Leilin a strong sense of déjà vu — it looked like something a witch doctor would use.
The banners and totems nearby bore dark brown symbols stained with blood.
The entire interior of the mountain looked like a crude laboratory, yet it already possessed a degree of research capability — that was Leilin's assessment.
The enormous Multi-Armed tribesman tossed Leilin onto an altar in the center, and the blood-red witch banners surrounding it immediately began to emanate a hazy glow.
Leilin suddenly felt his surroundings become completely isolated — he couldn't even self-destruct if he wanted to.
"A foreign witch formation? How interesting!"
Falling into their hands, the worst that could happen was losing this seed, so Leilin didn't appear particularly frightened.
"A... foreign world's... Spiritual Power seed?"
At this moment, the Multi-Armed tribesman spoke, using ancient Byronese. Though his speech was halting and stuttered, Leilin could still understand him.
"Yes! Respected sir! I am a traveler of time and space who accidentally ended up here!"
Leilin was overjoyed internally. As long as communication was possible, there was hope for a deal.
"You know ancient Byronese?"
"Yes! Although our Quark tribe has gone through three annihilations, the inheritance of our civilization has never been broken!" The towering Multi-Armed tribesman seemed very proud.
Leilin nodded. In such savage tribes, the leaders — clan chiefs and witch doctors — were invariably the educated class as well. This was a near-universal law that held true across almost every world.
"As you can see, I'm merely a Spiritual Power seed right now — nearly dissipated, posing absolutely no threat. I was wondering whether we might arrange some form of trade?"
Leilin stated his needs.
The Seed of Spiritual Power could only be replenished by the spiritual energy of its true body. Right now, one could say the countdown to its annihilation had already begun. Even if the other party had methods, they could at best delay it. Fundamentally, nothing could be changed.
Moreover, this trip to the Black Rain World was completely accidental. It was impossible to replicate the spatial route. Therefore, he had to obtain something valuable immediately.
And in Leilin's view, this multi-armed clansman who had already reached Morning Star strength perfectly matched his needs.
"Is trade truly your only purpose?" The multi-armed tribesman's eyes were filled with deep distrust, even more so with vigilance. The blood-red runes on the banner flashed rhythmically, emitting a wave similar to truth detection.
"Of course!" Leilin answered without hesitation, almost deceiving himself.
"You only have a scrap of spiritual energy left. I fear we have nothing to discuss. Furthermore, the previous great disasters were all brought by outsiders like you..."
The tall multi-armed tribesman was obviously distrustful of Leilin. The entire altar activated, seemingly on the verge of grinding Leilin's Seed of Spiritual Power to complete annihilation.
*Damn it, which bastard got here first and messed things up for us latecomers...* Leilin cursed inwardly, but immediately shouted aloud: "Wait! You may not need my things, but your clansmen certainly will. I possess a great deal of excellent extra-planar knowledge, containing vast experience in organizational systems, as well as agriculture, iron smelting, alloys, even Potionology and Alchemy. I'm certain it will be of use to you and your tribe..."
"These things, I can simply take from you..."
The tall multi-armed tribesman let out a cold laugh. Threads of blood-red lines appeared on the altar, even attempting to pierce into the Seed of Spiritual Power.
"So it's this kind of soul-searching technique!" Leilin's Seed of Spiritual Power suddenly trembled violently, releasing a torrent of dark-golden light.
Those blood-red spiritual threads were instantly melted by the dark-golden glow. But just after this exchange, Leilin's Seed of Spiritual Power appeared even more ethereal, as if it might be forcibly annihilated at any moment.
"You see, this method is ineffective against me. More forceful measures will only ensure neither of us gains anything..."
Leilin secretly rejoiced. This multi-armed tribesman with Morning Star strength had only brute-forced his way into that realm through physique and power, just like the scorpion man from the Frost World—both were embodiments of raw strength. Their exploration of the spiritual world was still extremely primitive.
This kind of being could crush Leilin into dust with their own formidable power, but for complex tasks like soul-searching, they were quite out of their depth.
If Leilin's Seed of Spiritual Power had fallen into the hands of a Morning Star
But against a barbarian who only possessed Morning Star strength, at Leilin's own level of Third-Stage Crystallization, he could still forcibly resist. At the very worst, he could order the Seed of Spiritual Power to self-destruct, denying the other anything.
"Then what exactly do you want?" The multi-armed tribesman's expression turned ugly.
"Simple. Equivalent exchange. We both provide valuable information. And as the outsider, I am willing to pay upfront first!"
Leilin's Seed of Spiritual Power trembled and sent several documents written in ancient Byronese over to the other party.
They were mostly introductions to primitive institutional systems, along with rudimentary farming and alchemical techniques. Although these wouldn't be of much use to multi-armed tribe members who were at least first-stage after reaching adulthood, they were still worth referencing.
Moreover, at the end of the materials, Leilin had specifically included some common body-refining wizard formations found on the Central Continent, as well as training methods for Knights and Great Knights. Though only the introductory portions, they were still items of considerable value.
The multi-armed tribe, a race that focused on physical strength, would certainly be interested in this kind of material.
Sure enough, the towering multi-armed tribesman dismissed the institutional and farming information Leilin had provided earlier with disdain, but showed great interest in the combat and killing techniques included at the very end.
"Interesting material!"
The tall multi-armed tribesman nodded. "These body-refining wizard formations in here are enough to help our young ones gain some strength. As for these killing techniques that follow, even though the underlying structure is different, they can still offer some ideas. I need the rest of it!"
"Then may I ask what you have to offer in exchange?" Leilin was in no hurry now. He had already proven his value; now it was time for the other party to pay up.
"You..." The massive multi-armed tribesman let out a roar. Unfortunately, Leilin was completely indifferent to it.
If his true body were here, he would naturally be extremely respectful toward the other party in order to preserve his life. But the worst outcome right now was simply losing a single Seed of Spiritual Power — hardly anything to worry about. So he felt no urgency at all.
"What do you want?"
Clearly, this multi-armed tribesman also knew that Leilin was not the least bit afraid of him right now and would not accept any threats. If he wanted those materials, compromise was his only option.
"I'm also very interested in your training methods. I was wondering..." Leilin tried asking.
He had come here to find new paths of power. Anything related to gaining strength naturally multiplied in value several times over.
From these multi-armed tribe members, he seemed to glimpse the possibility that his physique could continue advancing stage by stage.
"Our Kwaak tribe are born warriors! Our strength is not something acquired through training — it is inborn!" the towering multi-armed tribesman declared proudly.
Leilin rolled his eyes. "Then why is there such an enormous difference in power between you and your kin?"
Any creature that reached Morning Star upon reaching adulthood would be an extraordinarily terrifying species, and this multi-armed tribe — or the Kwaak tribe, as they called themselves — did not qualify.
At most, they were high-energy creatures who had hopes of breaking through to Morning Star, which still gave Leilin plenty of research interest.
In truth, these multi-armed tribesmen were also bloodline creatures, yet they could advance progressively. The fact that there was even a monster among them who had reached Morning Star-strength greatly excited Leilin.
If he studied their path of power, could he find a way to break through the shackles of bloodline?
"That is the supreme secret of our Kwaak tribe—how could it possibly leak out?" The tall multi-armed tribesman refused immediately, without the slightest hesitation.
"I don't need the advanced parts—just the simplest and most basic information, what do you say? As long as you give me this data, the incomplete portions of the magic formation from earlier and the follow-up to the Knight techniques—I can give you all of it!"
Leilin tried his utmost to entice them.
For the Chip, these most fundamental aspects were the most important, because they represented the foundation of this entire power system! As long as the foundation was complete, relying on the Chip's deductive capabilities, the day would come when all the secrets of the multi-armed tribe would be laid bare before Leilin.
"You give it to me first!" said the tall multi-armed tribesman.
"Given the current situation, neither of us trusts the other. So how about we exchange at the same time—both parties send the data simultaneously?"
Leilin thought for a moment and made a suggestion.
"Fine!" The tall multi-armed tribesman agreed with some reluctance.
A massive wave of information emanated from its horn-like appendage, plunging into the interior of Leilin's spiritual power seed.
"Spiritual Power data interface detected. Receive?"
"Accept!" Following Leilin's command, an extraordinary evolutionary path began to slowly unfurl before his eyes.
And Leilin did not go back on his word—while receiving the information, a massive amount of data was simultaneously transmitted outward.
Once the exchange was complete, both sides were quite satisfied with their gains.
"Wonderful, visitor from another world—you didn't deceive me!" The tall multi-armed tribesman appeared extremely pleased.
"Of course. This exchange is the beginning of our mutual trust. I hope we can continue to—Oh! Damn it!"
Leilin's tone suddenly turned frantic and exasperated mid-sentence.
The spiritual power seed representing his existence suddenly wavered, becoming ethereal, then exploded into a shower of light particles that scattered without a trace…