Chapter 1367 - 802: The Hermit Tree (Part 3)

"What if we have extra capacity?"

"Then we can come back and dig later."

"For now, forget it. Let's not waste time."

"What a pity."

"Such good stuff, and we can't take it out."

"Remember this place. When the year is up, we'll see... "

The four insects discussed for a while.

Dragon Cypress activated the Sand Leech ability, shoving the gemstone back into the depths of the earth.

A simple calculation,

According to the plan, Four-Number and Summer Oak stayed to dig.

The Semi-Ant Artist transported Dragon Cypress and Iron Areca onward to continue their search.

...

The Red Qu Star is indeed full of treasures.

Not far into the journey, Iron Areca unearthed a Primordial Gemstone from within a mountain, and estimates suggested there should be a plethora along the mountain range.

However, the pieces here are much bigger and significantly heavier, with each large bag only able to carry a dozen or so.

These items, priced at 1.5 to 2 billion each outside, became the least cost-effective here, even less so than Chaos Origin Stones.

...

They carefully searched along the mountain range.

Soon, they found another area producing System Blue Flash Stones.

This one's unit price was high!

Four-Number and Summer Oak's digging speed couldn't keep up with the searching.

Dragon Cypress and Iron Areca dug with their own claws.

...

Days and nights cycled,

Red, blue, and yellow suns alternated for 10 cycles.

On the Star Network account, 30 days had passed.

The four insects gathered to sort and count.

A rough estimate showed that a month's harvest exceeded 600 billion Primordial Crystals.

Divided into eight small Spider Silk Bags.

One bag for each of the Elemental Seven Systems.

Life and Strength System World Gemstones were rare, and combined into one bag.

The eight small Spider Silk Bags were then put into an Oversized Silk Bag, stored in the ant-shaped Artist's cabin.

...

After a short break, they continued their work.

Another month passed.

The four insects gathered again to sort, organize, and appraise.

This month's harvest exceeded 800 billion.

...

"Great Leader Dragon Cypress, head over there, 80 kilometers."

"Great Leader Dragon Cypress, let's go that way, about 50 kilometers."

"Great Leader Dragon Cypress, let's check out that side, a 30-kilometer walk..."

Iron Areca, with extraordinary talent, quickly grasped the distribution rules of the World Gemstones, changing the way of searching and trekking; a simple glance gave a sense of the numbers, no longer searching closely but covering long distances.

The efficiency was incredibly high, every search yielded accurate results.

Four-Number and Summer Oak couldn't keep up.

Most of the time, Dragon Cypress and Iron Areca were also gathering.

In the third month,

The harvest exceeded a trillion.

In the fourth month...

"Great Leader Dragon Cypress, over there, due north, 50 kilometers, take a look!"

Iron Areca surveyed the environment, guiding the way.

"Alright—"

Dragon Cypress habitually agreed, hesitating.

"What's wrong?"

Iron Areca inquired.

"On that path, there's something strange~"

Dragon Cypress explained: "Earlier, when I used the Soul-Setting Ability to scan for perception, I faintly perceived, there was a tree-shaped soul, and around it, over a dozen Saint Butterfly Warrior souls, motionless, as if trapped."

"The scouting perception was fleeting; when I tried to discern it more, the tree and butterfly soul traces were gone, hidden and concealed."

"Oh—"

Iron Areca asked curiously: "A tree?"

Dragon Cypress: "That's how it felt in the perception."

Iron Areca: "On Red Qu Star, aren't Origin Force Plants supposed to settle in clusters?"

Dragon Cypress: "So far, all other trees I've found are settled in communities."

Iron Areca further questioned: "Over a dozen Saint Butterfly Warriors? Given there are just about 400 warriors scattered over a mega planet of 500 billion square kilometers, if everyone buries their heads in scanning, searching, and gathering World Gemstones, what's the probability of encountering each other? How did over a dozen Saint Butterfly Warriors gather at one spot? Isn't that a bit too unusual?"

"I'm puzzled as well..."

Dragon Cypress analyzed: "Two possibilities: First, an exceedingly malevolent tree, rejected by other trees, used some method to lure Saint Butterfly Warriors close, then captured them; second, it's a unique tree, offering some benefits, known by certain Saint Butterfly Warriors, who went directly towards it."

"If it's the first possibility, we better keep our distance."

"If it's the second possibility..."

"Firstly, Four-Number and Summer Oak obviously don't know; each of them has an Overlord Realm teacher familiar with Red Qu Star. If there were benefits, they wouldn't keep it unmentioned, right? Most likely, it's not worth the time and effort."

"Secondly, with our current income efficiency, acting cautiously and maintaining this till the event ends ensures we all make a fortune, no need to create unexpected complications."

Dragon Cypress concluded: "Comprehensively analyzed, my suggestion is to ignore it, maintain a 1500-kilometer safe distance. Iron Areca Leader, let's change direction."

"That's right... but..."

Iron Areca, with a reserved nature and few words, but a strong curiosity, swung its tentacle pointing backward, asked:

"Not far from Chairman Four-Number and Chairman Summer Oak, let's go back and ask them? Maybe they know something."

Dragon Cypress, also quite curious, hesitated for two seconds, then agreed: "Let's ask."