Larvitar was shaken until its eyes turned into spirals, letting out dissatisfied "Larvitar" protest cries, its little claws flailing randomly but its mouth remained tightly shut.
It was over!
It had really swallowed it!
Lin Xia's heart sank into an endless abyss, cold to the bone.
Fear surged over him like a tangible tide, drowning him completely.
Run!
He had to run immediately!
He didn't even have time to pack anything. He grabbed Larvitar and was about to stuff it into his arms, his mind reduced to a single thought.
Get out!
Take Zhu Zhuqing!
Now!
Immediately!
Escape from Star Luo City at top speed!
Only escape! Hide deep within the mineral veins like a rat!. Survive by relying on Larvitar's ability to consume ores!
Cultivate! Become stronger!
Strong enough to ignore the entire Star Luo Empire before coming back.
What kind of endless dark years would that be?
What about Zhu Zhuqing?
Just as Lin Xia's thoughts were about to be completely swallowed by the fear of fleeing for his life and his foot had already moved half a step.
"Hic~!"
A clear, long burp, even carrying a faint sense of satisfaction, came from Larvitar's throat while it was still tightly held in his arms.
The sound was like thunder in the dead silent workshop!
Lin Xia froze instantly. He lowered his head and stared at the little creature in disbelief.
Larvitar was also looking up at him. Where was any sign of discomfort in those crimson eyes?
Instead, there was an inexplicable hint of pride?
Even a faint "don't panic, leave it to me" reassurance?
It patted its round, magma-armored belly with its little claw, producing crisp "dong dong" sounds, then began to call out "Larvitar" again. The rhythm was calm and steady, almost like some unknown melody only it understood.
Lin Xia's heartbeat thundered violently. Terror and a faint, absurd shred of hope intertwined, almost suffocating him. He forced himself to calm down and stared at Larvitar, trying to interpret those simple sounds.
"…Youwhat did you say? Energy? Transformation? Distribution?"
His voice trembled uncontrollably, every word squeezed out through clenched teeth.
Larvitar nodded vigorously, its crimson eyes shining with confidence as if to say: Leave it to me.
It pointed its little claw toward the cut piece of Phantom Star Glass on the workbench.
Lin Xia, almost mechanically like a puppet, handed it over while holding his breath.
Larvitar took it. It did not eat it immediately. Instead, it tapped it with its claw and sniffed it carefully, as if evaluating quality with a picky "craftsman's eye."
Then, under Lin Xia's increasingly tense gaze, it opened its mouth.
"Ahm!"
And swallowed it whole in one bite!
"Gulp."
A clear swallowing sound.
Lin Xia felt his heart sink along with it, then hover in mid-air.
He stared at Larvitar's round belly without blinking, forgetting even to breathe.
One minute, two minutes, five minutes…
Time had never felt so long.
Every second stretched like a century.
Cold sweat formed on Lin Xia's forehead. His back was already soaked, the fabric clinging to his skin.
He could even hear the roaring of his own blood in his ears.
Meanwhile, Larvitar looked busy.
It closed its eyes. A strange glow began to faintly emanate from within its small body, a mixture of earthy yellow and faint blue starlight.
The dragon and phoenix-like marks on its chest dimly lit up, as if coordinating some internal process.
A faint "gurgling" sound echoed from inside its body, like grinding and smelting at the same time.
Just as Lin Xia's nerves were stretched to their absolute limit.
Larvitar suddenly opened its eyes!
Its crimson gaze was dazzling!
Its belly rippled strangely like water.
Then it opened its mouth.
"Puff!"
A soft glow shot out and landed precisely on the velvet tray with a clear "ding."
Lin Xia's pupils contracted sharply!
It was a gemstone!
Deep midnight blue!
Before he could even fully process it.
Larvitar opened its mouth again.
"Puff!"
A second glow shot out, landing cleanly on the tray beside the first gemstone!
The light faded.
On the velvet tray at the center of the workbench, two gemstones lay quietly side by side almost identical!
Lin Xia stood frozen as if struck by a petrification spell, staring at them without even blinking.
A massive shock surged through him like a tsunami, shattering every barrier of his thoughts, leaving only blankness and roaring noise.
Trembling, he practically threw himself onto the workbench. Hastily grabbing the soul-guiding lens, he adjusted it to maximum brightness and brought it close, examining the two gemstones inch by inch, strand by strand, in a frantic comparison.
The midnight-blue base color was identical in both!
The countless tiny starlight specks inside were now flowing with near-perfect dynamic rhythm!
No longer the scattered randomness of Phantom Star Glass, but instead a deep, profound, and mysterious sense of order!
It was like two living miniature galaxy vortexes unfolding simultaneously!
No matter the angle, the size of the points, their density, the flow patterns, and the speed of rotation all were completely identical!
As if carved from the same mold!
Lin Xia carefully released a trace of spiritual energy to probe them.
Boom!
A pure, vast, ancient surge of starlight energy carrying spatial resonance instantly fed back!
The left gemstone exuded an overwhelming, majestic aura, like a slumbering star deity.
The right gemstone carried the same purity and ancient majesty! Although its total energy seemed to be only about half of the original upon closer inspection, its frequency, its star-origin characteristics, and even the faint but real spatial distortion were all perfectly replicated!
It felt as if it were the same star shining at a different moment!
Lin Xia's heart pounded wildly. He carefully injected a thread of Soul Power into the right "new" gemstone.
Buzz!
The starlight inside accelerated instantly, and a gentle, pure star energy fed back into his Soul Power circulation, carrying a familiar refining effect!
Although far weaker than the original gemstone's full resonance, the core trait of "communicating with the stars" had been perfectly simulated!
It would absolutely pass under any inspection that did not involve full activation or deep secret probing!
Gulp.
Lin Xia clearly heard himself swallow, his throat dry as if scorched by fire.
He suddenly looked up at Larvitar, who was proudly patting its round belly with its little claws, wearing an expression that clearly said: Praise me.
A tremendous wave of relief and exhilaration, like molten lava, erupted from the depths of his heart, instantly sweeping away all fear and despair, almost drowning him completely!
"Larvitar…"
Lin Xia's voice was hoarse, trembling uncontrollably, filled with awe that bordered on reverence.
"Your stomach, what kind of divine treasure vault is that?!"
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