Famine 116: The Spirit of the Vein

Let us set aside the new players for now, how they had scrambled to the front and devoured their meals ravenously in the dining hall…

As for Si Zhiyan, he landed within the newly formed terrain of the farm.

The lava terrain lay on the southwestern edge of the farm, merging gradually from the lush green meadows into a stretch of crimson rock. Molten magma flowed slowly in the crevices between the stones.

This area was not large, situated close to the industrial zone and still carrying a certain degree of danger. Si Zhiyan erected a circle of walls around it, effectively sealing it off to prevent any accidents.

Walking through this place, he could almost feel the heat waves scorching around him.

But that being said, the forest had birds and beasts, the hot springs themselves were a fortune—how, then, could this lava region be put to use?

Si Zhiyan wandered slowly amidst the rocks, when suddenly his steps halted.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a volcanic stone, seven or eight people in height, with a faint star-like gleam shining beneath the crimson boulders.

Si Zhiyan drew his knife and scraped away the outer layer of rock, revealing a small, translucent, gleaming gemstone before him.

—Ore.

[Crimson Crystal (Uncut)]
A gem of solid crimson; if observed closely, luminous golden magma seemed to flow within. This was a Crimson Crystal.
It brimmed with explosive, blazing fire-attribute magic. Once cut and forged, it could enhance the wearer’s strength and offensive power.

[First-Tier Forging Unlocked: Attack Power +10%]

A fine thing! Si Zhiyan’s eyes lit up.

It was widely known that accessories that increased attack by percentage were exceedingly rare. Previously, Si Zhiyan bought a dress from Liang Qingshuang, dismantled it to obtain several gems with 10% bonus each, forged them into jewelry—and each sold for as much as 30,000 points, hotly contested and in short supply.

Looking out across the rocks, faint glints shimmered beneath their skins—suggesting not only Crimson Crystals, but also a multitude of other gems lay buried beneath.

If these ores could truly be mined in bulk, it would undoubtedly amount to a tremendous fortune.

Perhaps he could even arm an entire army, substantially boosting the farm’s combat capabilities to a new level.

However, at present, the info panel for this Crimson Crystal was gray. A tag stuck stubbornly to its surface, like an ugly scab, obscuring all additional details.

[Restriction: Mining is forbidden without the permission of the Spirit of the Vein; all special bonuses are void.]

In the lava of Tianman Paradise, rare treasures once abounded. From each kind of ore, a powerful magical being would appear, known as the [Spirit of the Vein].
The [Spirit of the Vein] was an extraordinarily powerful and terrifying beast, its body infused with elemental force no man could challenge—yet it possessed innate wisdom and was willing to communicate with humans.
The people who once lived in the lava region were called the Lava Folk, and for generations coexisted with the Spirits of the Vein.
Amongst the Lava Folk were unique craftsmen with the Fate of Forging, and guardians bearing the Name of Stone. The former mined ores, while the latter worshipped and provided for the Spirits of the Vein, nurturing the mountains together.
For thousands of years, the lava-dwellers and the Spirit-Mountains survived side by side, their prosperity unbroken.
After the descent of the Main God, under grim pressure to survive, the mountain guardians betrayed the Spirits of the Vein. The ores were mined at breakneck speed. They disappeared completely, leaving nothing behind.

Now, the lava field was nothing but a wasteland, the Spirits of the Vein vanished, the Lava Folk extinct—their bloodline broken, never to return.

Only the angry wailing of the Spirits of the Vein remained, sandstorm winds echoing above the volcano.

Now, they had come to his farm.

…

Weighing the Crimson Crystal in his hand, Si Zhiyan nodded thoughtfully.

So, the billowing dust that never settled in the lava region was born of this.

This Spirit of the Vein was rather like an earth god or a guardian deity.

Without their permission, ore could not be mined—such beings of immense and terrible power…

“The Spirit of the Vein who governs Crimson Crystal… are you here?” Si Zhiyan asked, his fingertips gently touching the unmined gem.

Whoosh—

A searing squall of dust struck from behind. Si Zhiyan instinctively raised his arm to block the howling wind and grit. He drew a deep, silent breath, turned around, and prepared to face this legendary and fearsome beast.

Within the tumult of sand and wind, the sound of swirling dust scraped together—fragmentary, whispering, slowly coalescing into scattered words—

[…Human…traitor…]

The gale raged; a sickly yellow tornado whirled.

“Don’t worry, I’m not one of them,” Si Zhiyan reached out his hand to the center of the whirlwind, speaking softly, “…Shall we talk?”

The dust and wind gradually abated.

Holding his breath, Si Zhiyan lifted his gaze to behold the wrathful, earth-god of the lava, a beast of astounding power, a magical creature born of heaven and earth…

…And found nothing there.

Hm?

He blinked and looked down, eyes narrowing to focus.

—At the center of the storm stood—

Fur bristling, upright, it glared at Si Zhiyan with livid eyes.

Si Zhiyan: “…”
…”

A fearsome beast, was it.

[Insolent knave!]

The tiny orange hamster seemed incensed by his reaction, furiously thumping its hind legs. All at once, a mighty sandstorm swept up, a torrent of yellow sand erupting like a waterfall and bearing down on him!

“Cough…!” Si Zhiyan realized he had lost composure and was about to apologize—but before he could, the gale slammed into him. His avatar hadn’t even had time to dissipate before he was smashed against the mountainside.

With a deafening crash, the ground shook.

…

Well, perhaps “fearsome” was debatable—but there was no doubt it was a powerful hamster.

“Forgive me, I meant no offense on their behalf. The Lava Folk were driven to despair and made a grave mistake—though it wasn’t their intent, the harm to this land was irreparable…”

Si Zhiyan made no attempt to disperse into mist. Leaning against the rock, he forced himself to keep breathing.

“I know that against such undeniable facts, words ring hollow… So, Spirit of the Vein, let’s discuss something practical.”

“What is it you want?”

At these words, the storm of sand paused for a beat.

[Such familiar words…]

From within the shrieking dust, the voice of the world seeped in—by turns faint and thunderous, like anger and…

Sorrow.

[Humans… are always… foolish… idiots…]

[Ten thousand years ago, the first little man to gather stones said almost the same thing.]

[They make friends, they live, they reproduce and create even more interesting little people—then they die… Their children live happily, then they die… Their grandchildren do the same…]

[In the end… one by one… they entered the blooded altar… all of them died.]

[There was simply no stopping it.]

Whoosh…

The dust slowly scattered.

The hamster lay on the ground, a fluffy little bundle, its soft body shivering faintly, its beady black eyes drooping.

[You are always like this.]

[When you set your mind on something, you hear nothing else.]

[When all the stones are gathered, new ones can grow; but once you are gone, you will not return.]

Si Zhiyan paused, surprised.

Then he realized he had fallen into a familiar trap—the error of preconception.

The Spirits of the Vein were earth gods, guardian deities born from the land. For generations, they received human offerings and provided lifelong protection for all their people, embracing birth and death alike.

Even if their people migrated, as long as ancestral faith and offerings endured, the earth god would continue to protect them.

The “betrayal” of which the Spirit of the Vein spoke, was not mere reckless mining, but that the Lava Folk themselves had chosen—of their own will—to follow the fate carved by the Child of Heaven, the decree of sacrifice, and one after another, marched into the dance of death.

—“When all the stones are gathered, new ones can grow; but once you are gone, you will not return.”

The guardian fought alongside his people, yet when he turned to look back, they had chosen death by their own hands.

The hamsters had raged and screamed, their sandstorm tempests full of grief and unwillingness, but it was in vain.

Those bright smiles, the ones who wiped sweat from their brows as they gathered stones and made offerings, one by one entered the sacrificial altar; their blood-stained smiles ground into mud, never to be seen again.

Si Zhiyan sat with it, cross-legged on the ground.

He reached out and, tentatively, stroked the hamster’s soft, furry back.

“…I’m sorry,” Si Zhiyan whispered, “You must be very sad.”

“I promise you, nothing like that will ever happen again under my care.”

The Spirit of the Vein did not resist; as he gently kneaded it, it slowly collapsed into a limp, dejected pancake.

After a long moment, it stirred, letting out a faint [hmph].

[Words alone… count for nothing.]

[South of the lava lands lies a dark abyss. It is bottomless, devoid of light or day.]

[That abyss was once a land of death.]
[But recently, I seem to sense… living spirits moving within.]

[And among them… I feel a trace of the Lava Folk’s presence.]

[If you can investigate this matter, and bring those Lava Folk back… it will prove you possess strength and a will to survive even greater than the Lava Folk themselves.]

[When that day comes, not only I—but all Spirits of the Vein here—will accept your people’s offerings, and let you gather stones.]

Squeak squeak.

The hamster straightened up, twitching its moist little nose.

Squeak! Squeak! Squeak! Squeak!

Across the broad lava land, hamsters of all colors peeked out from behind rocks, from between lava flows, from every nook and cranny—dozens upon dozens of furry little heads appearing.

They all looked like hamsters, but on closer inspection, there were subtle differences: some shimmered with flowing magma, some had frosty tufts on their fur, while others crackled with stray sparks of electricity…

Their chirping calls converged into one, drowning out all Si Zhiyan’s senses.

Buzz!

In that instant, it was as if Si Zhiyan’s perceptions merged with the world itself.

Before his eyes, the surface of the lava field was stripped away, inch by inch, revealing a dazzling trove of gems below. Stones of all shapes and magical power, radiant with every color, shone brilliantly; the crystal-clear gems merged and flowed with the lava.

Among them were gems even mightier and more beautiful than Crimson Crystal, rare treasures of myriad forms.

—This was the lava region at its peak.

Or in the ancient records of Tianman Paradise, it went by another name…

[Gemmoria].