Chapter 179: Euphoric Death

Leonel involuntarily held his breath. 

This description… It was the simplest he had ever seen. It was also the most vague he had ever seen. The only description he had seen that carried this level of vagueness was his own. His own only became more detailed after he began using the dictionary to document his ability, which is why it now had a breakdown of all his abilities from Dream World to Dream Clone. But initially…

[ Calcualtive Mind: An ability capable of simplifying the complex. ]

This was what the dictionary had first told him about his ability. It never said anything about his Dream World, Dream Sculpt or Dream Clone ability. Aside from himself, he had never seen an ability as simply explained as the little mink's Shadow World. 

But, what also shocked Leonel was the 'state' of the little mink. Not only did it say 'Evolved' but it also said 'Evolving'. 

The little mink's ability was already classified with the Elite Tier 9 Black level. If it evolved, wouldn't it cross over into the Bronze level just like Leonel? 

Leonel took a deep breath to steady his beating heart. 

Unlike him, the Little Mink's ability seemed exceptional for combat. Leonel couldn't even touch it despite the fact it was sleeping right in front of him. How was it even possible to do anything to this little guy?

Just with this ability alone, the little mink was untouchable in Fourth Dimensional Worlds. Only under the suppression of a Fifth Dimensional World would its ability begin to show some weaknesses. But, considering it was currently evolving into the Bronze tiers, it seemed that this wouldn't be true for long…

Leonel decided to leave his darts in place. He didn't dare to approach the little mink too closely anymore. But, he also knew that it was simply impossible for them to just leave now. Their success would decide the life and death of tens of people. 

"How long will it take this little thing to finish evolving?" Leonel asked. 

[ *Ping* ] 

[ Replying to Seed, 3:21:51:05 ] 

'3 days, 21 hours, 51 minutes and 5 seconds huh… Hopefully that's enough.'

Leonel chose to go with the assumption that the little mink would stay asleep for as long as it was evolving. In that case, maybe they would have enough time to help the Force Crystal Mine mature. 

"Let's hurry." Leonel said, receiving the agreement of the others. 

The four youths turned their attention toward the raging tempest of white, gushing Force toward the center of the wide space. 

The mine was over a kilometer in width and length. Of that space, the geyser took up barely 20 meters of width. But, its presence was imposing. 

It was an odd feeling. Unlike geysers of water, this Force Eruption hadn't made a single sound after its initial burst. It bore a hole through the network of tunnels above it and remained completely silent, even to the point the youths could easily chat. 

"Alright, Roaring Black Lion, you'll have to protect Flowing Wind. You all know what to do, right?"

The youths nodded. 

Thunderous Clap had a Force cultivating technique and had formed four Nodes. So, his ability to keep up his Force Skin was relatively better. But, Flowing Wind had yet to do so for whatever reason, so she needed the protection of Roaring Black Lion. This was definitely a testament to how great her ability was. 

"We just pour our Force Strengthening Deviations in, right? Sounds simple enough…" Flowing Wind mumbled. But, it was clear that she wasn't very confident. 

Steeling their wills, the youths moved forward, approaching the geyser of white from different angles. 

The moment they crossed the barrier, they realized that things were completely out of their expectations. Let alone the towering danger they expected, it almost felt as though they were walking through a spray of sparkling water on the hottest of summer days. 

However, instead of making him feel more relaxed, Leonel's heart clenched as he pushed his way toward the Core. 

Though he disparaged the dictionary sometimes, how could he not trust something his father had left for him? His father was the one person who he trusted with his everything. Even if the things he left behind would sometimes tease him in unexpected ways, they wouldn't ever truly put him in danger. 

Since his father's dictionary put so much emphasis on how dangerous Force Eruptions were, how could Leonel ever take them lightly? The fact things seemed so calm and even relaxing made his hair stand on end. 

They say that there were forms of death where one would feel incomparably relaxed near the end. Some said that there was no better euphoria than drowning…

Something about this Force Eruption reminded Leonel of such things…

Soon, Leonel had made it to the Force Crystal Core. Without a better descriptor, he could only say that it was beautiful. 

It was the most perfect sphere Leonel had ever seen. It stood amidst an array of Force Crystals that looked like the petals of a blooming flower. Despite the fact it was the cause of such a shocking event, it was completely still. It was almost impossible to tell that it was the source of all of this at all. 

It radiated an assortment of colors, shimmering a resplendent rainbow. However, if one looked closely, it was possible to see golden lines being slowly drawn just beneath its surface. These lines seemed to exude an ancient mystery and were even somewhat more resplendent than even the rainbow colors of the Force Crystal Core. If it wasn't hidden beneath the Core's surface, it would definitely easily outshine its radiance. 

'Those must be the Natural Force Arts…'

Leonel looked up to see three pairs of eyes looking toward him solemnly. It seemed that they felt this matter shouldn't be so simple either. 

Leonel narrowed his eyes and took a step forward, lightly touching the core with a finger. 

Immediately, his expression changed as he quickly retracted his hand. But, it was still too late. 

The Force Skin protecting his hand burst. Soon after it, the skin on his left hand splintered and shattered into a rain of blood. Even the bones of his fingers were visible to see. 

Leonel's Force quickly surged, pushing the torrent of Force rampaging around within him out with brute force. 

By the time his heart settled down and he looked toward the Force Crystal Core with a solemn expression, all he could feel was a spine tingling pain from his hand.