Chapter 656: Chapter 224: Sacrificial Energy Source, Stone Province’s Turning Point! "Extraordinary Seed... Extraordinary Talent..."
Cheng Ye murmured to himself, suddenly realizing, "So the Heart-Protecting Fire is just the ’bridge’ connecting me and the Scorching Eagle, not the Scorching Eagle itself?"
Previously, he had subconsciously assumed the Heart-Protecting Fire was equivalent to the Scorching Eagle, but now after unloading the skill, he finally understood that the seed of the Scorching Eagle had long taken permanent root within him, and the Heart-Protecting Fire was merely a tool to maintain the mental link between the two.
This made things simpler. According to the panel’s hint, as long as the progress of the Scorching Eagle didn’t catch up with the Heart-Protecting Fire, this skill could be freely unloaded without worrying about damaging the Extraordinary Creatures themselves.
The only question was, after re-equipping the Heart-Protecting Fire, could the cognition twisted by the Magic Conch be restored?
With no worries about the skill, Cheng Ye didn’t rush to explore the outside world but instead re-entered the information space of the "Commanding Silk Pattern."
It was here he previously collected the aura of the Ten Thousand Orders Land Conch. At that time, as the Ghost Water Cave Crab approached the lake, the conch seemed to be transmitting some kind of information, but he was not yet contaminated and couldn’t understand its meaning at all.
The information screen flickered a few times and quickly switched to the scene where the Ghost Water Cave Crab was bound by the silk pattern and arrived in front of the lake.
As the conch began to emit purple mist, Cheng Ye held his breath, focused, and zoomed in on the conch in the picture.
Following an inaudible wave emanating from the image.
The wave had no specific sound, yet like the previous contamination, it directly imprinted the meaning into his mind, clearly revealing two complete sentences:
[Bring back more sacrifices, bring back stronger sacrifices!]
[The deity gives you, bestows you, strengthens you!]
"Sacrifices?"
"Deity?"
Cheng Ye’s pupils suddenly constricted as a terrifying thought instantly formed in his mind.
Could it be that the Demon Eye Sponge’s captured sources of infection and the crafted Crab-men were all sacrifices offered to the Ten Thousand Orders Land Conch?
And the purple mist released by the conch was a reward for the Demon Eye Sponge?
Wait... Earth Element Cotton Pattern, Water Element Cotton Pattern?
As he pondered, the information screen shattered before his eyes, leaving only one last replay opportunity.
Cheng Ye turned to look toward the endless Crab-men by the lake, suddenly understanding why the cave environment was so bizarrely vibrant.
The Ten Thousand Orders Land Conch was originally an immortal object created by the Extraordinary in Antarctica for environmental transformation.
Now, having drifted to the caves of White Water River, it had unexpectedly developed intelligence and formed a partnership with the Demon Eye Sponge.
The Demon Eye Sponge was responsible for capturing sacrifices to provide energy to the conch, which in turn released energy back to the Demon Eye Sponge, while transforming the cave environment, continuing its "original intention" when it was made.
If this process continued, perhaps the entire Stone Province would gradually be transformed into a place teeming with life.
Yet at the same time, would the ever-capturing-sacrifices Demon Eye Sponge continue to grow, eventually breaking through to the Destruction Level and becoming a terrifying Destruction-Level source of infection?
The connection between the source of infection and the immortal objects surprised Cheng Ye for a moment, but then he found it terrifying upon reflection.
How many years has the Demon Eye Sponge been stationed beneath the White Water River?
How many sacrifices have been captured for the Ten Thousand Orders Land Conch?
If no one noticed Dapo Town, if no one discovered the Demon Eye Sponge and this immortal object, years later, when the transformation range of the conch expands from the cave to surrounding areas, the cost of containment then would certainly be a hundredfold, a thousandfold more terrifying than now.
After all, with a glance, the Crab-men around the lake numbered no less than a hundred thousand, densely packed to an endless horizon.
If using human lives to counter the conch’s energy, even throwing in three to five hundred thousand people wouldn’t offset the offerings of these Crab-men, let alone the massive Demon Eye Sponge and other hidden sources of infection deep within the cave.
"These creatures... they’re still alive! Just controlled by the spiritual contamination of the immortal objects!"
Luokuke explored around the area and walked back with trembling legs.
With over a hundred thousand Crab-men, even dragging it to every winter, could create a disaster-level infection tide, causing significant trouble for Happiness City.
"There’s no turning back, we must first find a way to reduce the conch’s energy levels, otherwise there’s no way to contain it."
With an ugly expression, he suddenly seemed to think of something and quickly added, "Fortunately, the Crab-men do have a weakness. They’re revived by the Death Language Tentacles, and once they realize they’re already dead, we won’t have to do anything—they’ll disband on their own."
"It’s not that simple."
Cheng Ye gently shook his head, his tone grave: "Have you forgotten that we’re still within the spiritual contamination of the immortal objects? I tested this during the battle. Have you seen them speak?"
"Even if they can hear us, they will instinctively ignore information harmful to themselves. Even if you directly tell them ’you’re already dead,’ these words won’t reach their cognition and will have no effect."
The weakness of the Death Language Tentacles is cognition, but the current spiritual contamination is like a shield, blocking this weakness firmly behind it.
"So we consume energy? Are we supposed to kill all these Crab-men one by one?"
"Don’t be hasty, let me think..."
Cheng Ye took a deep breath, lifted his head, and scanned the entire cave environment.
Now, it’s no longer about finding ways to protect participating residents during the assessment; it’s about survival for everyone involved.
With thousands or ten thousand Crab-men, he could still activate the Sea Star Superhero and directly suppress them.
But when a hundred thousand Crab-men pour out, even a massive shelter city like Happiness City has to treat it seriously.