Chapter 526: My Little Snake Slithered into the Dragon’s Nest?

Marquis Tergu was caught in a dilemma.

Should he fully devote himself to developing blood testing magic, in exchange for transfusion technology?

Or should he use the unique magic of the bloodline to negotiate with the council?

The former, though it had a low success rate and required more effort, could potentially offer high rewards if his tribe could monopolize it, even dreaming of a dukedom in 200 years.

As for the latter, it had a high success rate and was less mentally taxing. It would benefit the entire bloodline, lifting all boats. However, the share falling to his own head would be rather small.

Risk, reward? Reward, risk?

Marquis Tergu brooded with a grim face, lost in thought. As for Garrett, after tossing out his tasks and responsibilities, he was off having fun.

"Row hard—Row!"

"Against the current—Charge!"

The sailors shouted their usual chant, straining at the oars.

Garrett had just saved dozens of them, including their beloved lieutenant. Now, he and the beautiful elven lady wanted to explore the caves. What more was there to say?

Brothers, row hard!

Braving the surging tide at ebb, they rowed to the "Singing Cave" and halted their boat. The bawling sailor leader jumped into the shallow water, tied the rope, and courteously guided:

"Sir, Miss, from here on, you can walk. Please make sure to return before the tide rises—"

"Got it, thanks!"

Garrett responded, busily casting supportive spells on himself. Cat’s Grace, Glimmering Vision, Aquatic Breathing... Before he could finish, Seraina with a splash, jumped off the ship’s rail, reaching out to him:

"Garrett, let’s go!"

"Oho~~~"

Amidst the sailors’ laughter, whistles, and the roar of the waves, noise filled the cave.

Inside the cave, many were busy. Scooping water, chiseling stones, scraping algae and shells off the rocks, all in a flurry. The leading mage kept shouting:

"Be careful! Be careful!"

"Don’t hurt your hands! This place is home to a poison dragon!"

Illuminate spells bobbed up and down in the cave. The tide had receded, revealing a path lined with dark hexagonal columns leading deep into the cave.

Garrett carefully navigated past the bustling crowd, pulling Seraina along, responding to her barrage of questions:

"Garrett, why isn’t the cave singing anymore?"

"Maybe the outside got blasted? The singing of the cave is a resonance between the waves and the cave. If something’s damaged, it won’t sing..."

"Garrett, why are these columns hexagonal?"

"Probably because they were originally magma... After erupting from the earth’s crust, they cooled down into this shape..."

"Garrett, why are they prying off these shells?"

"Maybe they’re studying the living environment of the poison dragon? Or perhaps the dragon’s saliva on the rocks forms some special substance they want to study?"

"Garrett, the tops of these columns are all rough, isn’t it tiring to walk?"

"I... Oh!" Almost slipped!

The deeper into the dragon’s lair they went, the wider and deeper the waterways became. At the entrance, the bottom was visible, but a few steps further, it was pitch black, unfathomable.

Garrett kept close to the cave walls, high-stepping, low-stepping. As they progressed, shouts came from ahead:

"Don’t come over!"

"There’s a whirlpool ahead!"

Garrett immediately halted. He rechecked himself, refreshing Cat’s Grace and Ocean’s Touch, preparing Living Rope...

Right, Aquatic Breathing as well, in case he fell into the water and choked before Seraina could pull him up.

He wasn’t done preparing when the silver dragoness had already bypassed him, taking three steps at a time, rushing forward. Then, Garrett heard Seraina’s clear, excited voice echoing from the cave:

"Garrett! Look! The dragon’s nest! It’s right below!"

"So, are you planning to fish out a dragon egg? Just so you know, if you do, you’re raising it, not me!"

Still not done disinfecting it!

"Garrett, aren’t you going to take a look?" Seraina stopped smilingly. She leaned back against the stone wall, clearing the way for Garrett, pointing forward:

"I can take you down! The energy down there is rich, definitely some good stuff! Want to go? Don’t worry, I’ll keep you safe~~~"

Garrett shook his head furiously. He pressed his back against the stone wall, shoulder to shoulder with Seraina, peeking slightly downward:

Under the bright white light, a whirlpool over five meters in diameter roared,

greedily sucking in seawater. The deeper it went, the darker it became, with the core area being pitch black, mixed with strange, dense green and gray-white foam constantly bubbling up.

Garrett took just one glance before involuntarily stepping back two paces, pressing even closer to the stone wall. I definitely don’t want to go down there! It’s so dirty, who knows what I might encounter!

Just as he retreated two steps, Garrett’s chest suddenly throbbed intensely. It was like a fervent heartbeat, or as if something had been startled awake, fiercely pounding—

He reflexively reached out to his chest—no, to the oak staff, and the Endless Ink Pen wrapped around it. As his hand touched, a semi-transparent shadow shot out from between his fingers:

"Little snake!"

Garrett exclaimed.

His contracted spirit, that semi-transparent, half-foot-long shadow with a white background and black stripes, turned into a dim light and shot straight towards the surface.

Garrett didn’t even have time to react. Seraina reached out and grabbed it, but the spirit twisted agilely, brushing past her palm, and plunged into the water. Swimming rapidly along the whirlpool, it dove into the depths, disappearing without a trace.

"Uh..."

What are you going down there for!

Is there something down there that’s attracting you!

Do you still want to fetch a dragon egg up?!

Garrett scrambled, trying to communicate with his spirit, to see what was happening down there through its eyes, but the little snake ignored him. In his consciousness, feelings of joy, urgency, and eagerness came in waves, but there was not a hint of an image.

Clearly, his contracted spirit was impatient, with no time to spare for him. Helpless, Garrett reached for the spatial pouch, intending to retrieve the Ring of Arcane Eye:

At least let me see what’s down there!

As his fingers closed around the hard ring, Seraina reached out and tapped it, sending a magical eye flying into the water. Carried by the current, it stirred and stirred, disappearing into the center, towards the depths—

With a pop, like a soap bubble bursting, it vanished without a trace.

The two looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Or, should we go down and take a look?"

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