Chương 110: 107. Green Jade Crab

Adolin stared at the plant withering in his hand. A mere alchemical ingredient had defeated him.

"Why do you have to be so irritating?" he muttered. It had been the seventh plant he tried to harvest after he managed to get the others to leave. All of his experiments had withered, and two had even disintegrated. After whining for a few moments, he focused on the Watchful Eye he had placed on Clay before they left. They were getting close to the creatures that resided in the third room, and in just a minute or two, he would have to watch the battle. It was time to give up on harvesting the plant for now.

If he continued at this pace, there would be nothing left to harvest when he found the right way to do it. He had tried most of the methods that usually worked on most of the complicated plants. Flooding the plant with mana and slowly extracting it from the ground inside a bubble of mana was one of them. That method usually worked just fine. At worst, the plant would wither and lose its life force. But this one… had somehow disintegrated during the process.

The other ways had worked much better, but it didn't really matter since the plant still ended up unusable. That most got him thinking. The stupid plant required some kind of ritual to harvest, yet the blessing hadn't mentioned anything about it. It really wasn't as helpful as he initially thought. The information he got from Clay would put him on the same path. The path of finding a way to harvest the damned plant. The blessing had only given him the information a few seconds earlier.

So, he really wasn't sure why it had given him the remark and the hint. After his thoughts spiraled for a few moments, he decided to let it go. It wasn't like he was going to figure out the truth of the matter. He was just going to waste his precious time. Or… was there something in the hint that was supposed to help him with the ritual? Could that be it? A plant capable of surviving the most barren lands... He recalled the way the blessing had described it.

Well, it probably wasn't the exact wording that blessing used, but it was close enough. Still, that didn't really help him. It had nothing to do with harvesting the plant. The next words had something to do with the plant being capable of surviving in the most hostile environment…

"Fuck," he muttered as he focused on the Watchful Eye. If there was something inside the remark or the hint, he wasn't going to find it. It wasn't like he was good with words. His vision switched, and he saw the room a few hundred meters away from him. Well, it was what Clay saw. The eye he had placed was suspended just a few inches above the boy's head, held there by a mana construct. The room was the same, just without the Barren Green Lilly. Eurynomos walked a few steps ahead of Clay, gathering the larger rocks.

Even though his party and Clay had already informed him that jade wasn't particularly valuable or rare, the Demon King was still collecting everything. Adolin had an inkling that the jade would become some kind of souvenir that people could buy after visiting the dungeon. Or perhaps even in the town. Eury did look like he was serious about becoming the richest man in town. After a few seconds, the group came close to the first monster. It was a… green crab that looked like it was made from jade.

In the bright sunlight, parts of the creature looked translucent, especially the edge of its sharp cutting claw. The creature looked more like a statue he would find in a noble's home than a monster. There wasn't anything scary about it as he studied it. Eury's party didn't seem to see it the same way. They had already drawn their weapons, an inkling of fear on their faces. It wasn't that bad… was it? He couldn't see Clay, so he wasn't sure if the boy was scared as well.

But looking at everyone besides him, there was a good chance he was. Since he wasn't getting anywhere with the plants, Adolin cast Flight and flew toward the group. Watching through the Watchful Eye was useful, but his eyes would do a much better job. The group had stopped just outside the creature's gaze and were discussing how to take it down.

"I can try to hold it for a few moments, while you will have to cut… or break it down," Xenia said. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. The swordsman glanced over the boulder they were hiding behind.

"I don't think I can cut it. The thing looks like it's made from stone. Even breaking its carapace looks like it's going to be a problem."

"I agree," came from the spearman.

"My skill could probably pierce it, but I'm not quite sure how much damage it would do." Adolin still didn't see what the problem was, but he didn't say anything. He just waited to see what Clay was going to do. He was still a few moments away from them anyway. He released the mana construct that held the eye above Clay and pushed it a few meters away. Giving him a perfect view of Clay. Clay looked deep in thought, while his hand rested on the hilt of his sword. After a moment, he spoke.

"I think I can break it, but you'll have to keep it occupied for a few moments until I get ready." Xenia kept glancing at Eury every few moments, while Adolin floated above them, invisible. Eury avoided Xenia's gaze, while he kept glancing at Adolin. It really was awkward, but it was mostly for them since no one, except Eury, could actually see him. As they continued making their plan, Adolin floated above the creature. Taking it all in from above. It didn't take him too long to see why they were afraid of it.

The creature had a jade carapace, and it looked incredibly durable. It wasn't really a problem for him, or even Revel, to take it out. But for the group… well, their swords and spears weren't really the best weapons to fight against it. On second thought, maybe even Revel would struggle. Her shadow and darkness magic wasn't that good at destroying stone. She was more of a control mage with some spells that were good at slicing enemies, and this one was a stone creature.

The only way he saw possible for them to defeat the creature was with strong blunt force or a skill that was strong enough to cut through stone. Or, there was another way. To chip at it slowly over a longer duration and get through its carapace before striking the flesh underneath. He had no idea what kind of mage Xenia was, but from the little snippets he caught from their conversation, he guessed that she was a control mage. Or maybe her spells weren't strong enough to cut through the creature's jade carapace.

He floated a bit higher and watched. He would only get involved if something went wrong. A few moments later, the group had made their plan and started moving toward the creature. Clay slipped away from them, circling the area while moving behind the boulders that concealed him. The creature noticed the group approaching it and started moving toward them, its claws extended forward. Xenia stopped a few meters before the crab, while the spearman and the swordsman pushed toward it.

Eury was busy searching for pieces of jade, but he also had a spell watching the fight. The Demon King really was too greedy. Just before the creature reached the front line, Xenia chanted, large water chains erupted from the ground around it. They slid toward the creature, wrapping around its claws before freezing and holding them in place. The frontline fighters moved to either side of the creature and started attacking it with everything they had. The spearman pushed his spear forward with all of his weight.

The spearhead hit the green carapace and slid harmlessly off it. The swordsman attacked as well. His attack connected better with a loud clang, yet his sword didn't even leave a scratch on the tough carapace. The attacks continued raining down on the creature until suddenly the ice cracked and shattered. The ice chains only managed to hold the creature for less than three seconds. Before the creature could retaliate, Adolin felt both men use movement skills as they retreated beyond the reach of its claws.

Xenia stood still, watching the creature. The creature charged toward the spearman as he continued distancing himself from it. The swordsman attacked while the creature was focused on the spearman. Adolin had to admit that they were good at hit-and-run tactics. While they hadn't managed to leave a single scratch on the creature's carapace, they were good at keeping it occupied. He quickly got bored and turned his gaze toward Clay. The boy was moving behind the creature, constantly moving in its blind spot.

When he was just a few meters away, he stopped, and Adolin felt mana ignite in the boy's core. It was the same skill or technique the boy had used in the corrupted dungeon.

"Xenia, now!" the spearman shouted as soon as he noticed Clay standing behind the creature. Xenia started her chant as Clay's sword lit ablaze. The creature felt the mana building up behind it, and just as it was beginning to turn, the spearman used a skill and threw his spear. The spear pierced the carapace shallowly, but it was enough. The creature charged toward him, leaving Clay enough time to complete his preparations. As the spearman ran from the giant crab, Xenia completed her chant, and a spell took form.

Water erupted from all sides of the creature and crashed toward it. Xenia was already chanting another one. Adolin guessed what they were trying to accomplish, but wasn't sure if it would be enough. Too much of the water would already have slid off the creature before Xenia could finish her chant. It would work against a creature this weak, but if they faced something stronger, the same strategy wouldn't be enough.

Five seconds later, the chant was complete, and all the water around the creature froze, forming a thin layer of ice over its carapace.

"Now!" Xenia shouted. As soon as she did, Clay took action. Adolin felt the mana inside the boy's core travel through his channels and into his sword. The blade took on a faint white hue before Clay swung it toward the creature's back. A large arc of fire flew toward the creature. The arc struck the crab, and a loud crack echoed through the area. Adolin chuckled. The rapid change in temperature had weakened the jade carapace.

The flames shattered it where they struck, leaving a jagged hole, revealing the unprotected flesh underneath. The creature let out a painful groan, its claw clattering through the empty air. Clay followed with two more arcs, and as soon as the last one landed, both the swordsman and the spearman charged. Within moments, the fight was over. Well, the little fight had revealed what Clay lacked: a strong enough skill that could shatter or cut through stone. And Adolin had quite a few of those.

The biggest problem he was faced with was finding the right one for the boy. The group faced four more of the same creatures in the next two hours. The fights were quicker and much easier than the first, as they had found the perfect strategy for dealing with the creatures. Adolin joined in during the last fight when things started getting too boring for him. His thoughts kept circling back to the Barren Green Lily, or the holy grail of alchemy, as Clay had called it.

There was a good chance that the plant would be his answer for crafting the purest health potion he dreamed of making. But before he could even try, he had to find a way to harvest it. He wasn't sure how soon that would happen. He would need to find every book that mentioned the plant, or perhaps the blessing would become less stingy and provide him with an answer. Soon, they found the entrance to the next room. This time, they didn't even waste a second studying it. They simply passed through.

On the other side, on the ground lay a girl surrounded by dozens of creatures, their claws descending toward her.