Chapter 166 - 117: Frost Giant Dragon’s Core (2)
At the camp, the squad members sat in a circle, surrounding Yuan Xiaobo.
Having spent nearly three days exploring the Frost Giant Dragon’s corpse alone, Yuan Xiaobo looked somewhat haggard.
"Did you get the Energy Core?"
"No!"
"Was there a problem?"
"The Energy Core is a little too big, and the passage out isn’t wide enough. I couldn’t carry it through."
"The Space Backpack..."
"The Space Backpack couldn’t hold it, either. Didn’t you notice my pack is gone? I tried to stuff it in, and the Space Backpack just burst."
...
Everyone fell silent. Retrieving the Energy Core from the Frost Giant Dragon’s corpse was going to be much more difficult than they had imagined.
"I think I could give it a try."
Breaking the silence, Lin Kong spoke up.
As Lin Yu’s clone, he had access to a personal storage space. It was the same one Lin Yu used; they were interconnected.
This was why he could repeatedly produce items no one else had. After Lin Kong sent a message, Lin Yu would place them into the shared storage space from their territory.
"My Space Backpack is a little different from yours. I can give it a try."
Everyone’s faces lit up in surprise. It was a light at the end of the tunnel. It seemed having someone with connections wasn’t always a bad thing, after all.
"Alright then. I’ll rest for a bit, then I’ll take you inside. Let’s hope it works. I really don’t want to crawl through there again. That passage is a nightmare to navigate."
Lin Kong didn’t look too happy either. He had figured out yesterday what that "hole" was—it was the dragon’s excretory opening.
The thought of entering the dragon’s body through its excretory opening grossed him out. But then he remembered that Dragon’s Saliva Fragrance was also an excretion, which made him feel slightly better.
Yuan Xiaobo ate something and rested for a bit. Once his energy was restored, he led Lin Kong and crawled back into the dragon’s excretory opening.
The narrow passage could only fit one person at a time, so Yuan Xiaobo led the way with Lin Kong following behind.
"Be careful. Some monsters have sprung up inside this corpse. They’re no threat to me, but you probably can’t beat them. Yell for help if you get into trouble!" Yuan Xiaobo warned.
"Got it!"
...
Following Yuan Xiaobo, they arrived where the dragon’s Energy Core was located.
"We’re here. See that cavity up ahead? The dragon’s Energy Core should be in there."
Lin Kong trotted to the end of the passage and stood at the entrance, looking into the cavity.
It opened into a large space. Inside, a diamond-shaped Ice Elemental Energy Core as tall as three men lay tilted on the ground. Not far from it was a broken support platform.
Sensing the intense energy fluctuations around the Energy Core, Lin Kong couldn’t help but marvel at the dragon’s power when it was alive.
"The energy fluctuations are so intense!" ’Compared to the energy pouring from the core, my own is like the glow of a firefly—barely perceptible.’
"Is that your stuff?" Lin Kong asked, pointing to a scattered mess of equipment on the ground inside the cavity, completely out of place with its surroundings.
"Yeah. I stuffed the Energy Core into the Space Backpack, and... the pack burst," Yuan Xiaobo said with a hint of resignation.
"Don’t worry. I’ll pack it up for you and bring it back later."
"Now, I’m going to try and store this Energy Core."
With that, Lin Kong stepped into the cavity.
Just then, the Energy Core suddenly erupted with a wave of energy, which rapidly spread in all directions.
"FU—!!!"
Caught off guard, Lin Kong was hit head-on by the wave.
In an instant, a massive surge of Ice Energy flooded his body, forcing his own energy into a corner and immediately taking control.
Lin Kong’s body immediately began to transform. His skin toughened and scales began to emerge. His coccyx started to extend, as if forming a tail, and his teeth sharpened into fangs.
At the same time, a savage impulse surged through him. His eyes turned crimson as his rationality began to slip away.
Just then, a protective shield appeared around Lin Kong, blocking any more Ice Energy from invading. Simultaneously, a stream of Spiritual Energy rushed into his body to help him expel the Ice Energy.
The two energies began a fierce clash inside his body.
The Spiritual Energy first aided Lin Kong’s own power, driving the Ice Energy from his brain. Regaining a sliver of consciousness and sensing the danger, Lin Kong immediately marshalled his own energy to shield his mind.
Once his mind was clear, the Spiritual Energy launched an attack on the remaining Ice Energy in his body. The fluctuations from their battle constantly battered his physical body. Luckily, both energies were also reinforcing his physique, preventing his body from being torn apart.
With the shield in place, the Ice Energy was cut off from its external source. It gradually lost ground in the clash and was ultimately expelled completely from Lin Kong’s body. The physical mutations vanished, and he returned to normal.
"Whew... Thanks, Captain Yuan!" Lin Kong opened his eyes, turning to look at Yuan Xiaobo behind him and offering his sincere gratitude.
"Heh. You’re my squadmate. It’s my job to keep you safe," Yuan Xiaobo said, wiping sweat from his forehead. He sounded weak; the effort had cost him a great deal of energy and concentration.
First, he had to maintain a shield to protect them both from the external Ice Energy fluctuations. They were so close to the Energy Core, and the waves of energy were exceptionally powerful.
Furthermore, he also had to channel Spiritual Energy into Lin Kong. This required a delicate balance: he had to use some of that energy to protect Lin Kong’s body from being damaged by the sheer power, while simultaneously infusing enough to combat the invasive energy within.