Skinwalker Belle – Chapter 284 – The Truth About Raising Gu

The last rays of the setting sun sank completely below the horizon, and the night wind of the plateau swept by with a bone-chilling cold.

Zhou Ming lay sprawled on the gravel ground in a star shape, utterly devoid of grace. His chest heaved violently like a bellows, and his combat suit was soaked through with sweat, making him look as if he had just been fished out of the water.

A fair, slender hand reached out before him.

Zhou Ming froze for a moment. Following the hand with his eyes, he saw Lin Fan looking down at him. Her rainbow-colored eyes reflected his wretched state, yet they held not a trace of disgust.

“Can you still move?”

Her voice was as nonchalant and lazy as ever, but Zhou Ming detected a hint of concern that was not easily noticed.

“I’m alright…” Zhou Ming grinned, using the force from Lin Fan’s pull to struggle into a sitting position. “I just feel… completely drained. A little weak.”

“Weak is right.”

Lin Fan let go of his hand and retrieved several crystals pulsing with terrifying energy from her System Space, tossing them casually into Zhou Ming’s lap.

They were five Level 5 Crystal Cores.

“Take them.”

Zhou Ming fumbled to catch them. Feeling the abyssal, ocean-like energy within the Crystal Cores, his eyes instantly widened. “Li… Lily, this is too valuable! I haven’t even finished digesting that bottle of Holy Water essence, and this…”

“That water was to save your life and restore your stamina. These things are for you to level up.”

Lin Fan cut him off, her tone leaving no room for argument.

She tucked her hands into the wide sleeves of her priestess robes, her gaze sweeping over the soldiers who were busy reinforcing the fortifications nearby.

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“My current Energy Potions are a divine medicine for anyone below level four. But for someone like you, who’s already touching level four, it’s not enough.”

Zhou Ming tightened his grip on the Crystal Cores in his hand, their scorching heat spreading from his palm throughout his body.

Level 5 Crystal Cores.

In this apocalypse where most Evolved beings were still at level two or three, each one of these was a priceless treasure, yet Lin Fan had tossed them to him like they were candy.

“Stop getting all emotional,” Lin Fan glanced at him, seemingly seeing through his thoughts. “You’re my asset now, understand? A human portal. If you die, or if your level can’t keep up, where am I supposed to find another space-element coolie?”

“Coolie…” The corner of Zhou Ming’s mouth twitched, and half of the romantic notions in his heart instantly dissipated, but the smile in his eyes grew wider. “Alright, to be a good coolie, I’ll definitely rush to level five as soon as possible.”

“Not just level five.”

Lin Fan turned to look at Chu Chen, who was walking over with two large, dark circles under his eyes.

“I need you to extend the opening time of this portal to one hour and increase the number of people who can pass through by tenfold, in the shortest time possible.”

Zhou Ming took a deep breath and nodded heavily. “I’ll get it done even if it kills me!”

Chu Chen, clutching a half-eaten chocolate bar, staggered over with unsteady steps. His gaze lingered for a second on the Crystal Cores in Zhou Ming’s lap.

“How generous,” Chu Chen said indistinctly, taking a bite of chocolate.

“A workman must first sharpen his tools if he is to do his work well,” Lin Fan said faintly.

“True,” Chu Chen shrugged. “Sending those three batches of people over just now caused quite a stir. Is everything… alright on Azurewood City’s side?”

“As long as I’m there, it’s safe,” Lin Fan replied with supreme confidence. “That’s my territory.”

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Chu Chen’s chewing paused, and he took a deep look at the mysterious woman before him.

She was clearly once a native of this planet, yet now she had the Dragon horns of the Dragon Clan.

If anyone else had claimed a city from another world as their own territory, Chu Chen would have thought them a lunatic. But coming from her mouth, it was strangely convincing.

“What’s next?” Chu Chen swallowed the last bite of chocolate and dusted the crumbs from his hands. “According to your plan, you’re going to transport all tens of thousands of these people over in batches?”

“Correct.”

“Why the rush?” Chu Chen frowned. “Although the conditions at the Chuanxi Base are a bit harsh, with our current defensive strength, plus your… uh, energy liquid, holding out for a year or so shouldn’t be a big problem. A large-scale migration is too risky.”

Lin Fan was silent for a moment.

She raised her head, looking up at the pitch-black night sky.

In the distant depths of the starry expanse, perhaps pairs of greedy eyes were watching this azure planet.

“Chu Chen, have you ever dissected the corpse of an Evolved being?” Lin Fan suddenly asked an unrelated question.

“Huh?” Chu Chen was taken aback. “I have. Why?”

“Then have you noticed that the bones of the more powerful Evolved beings are somewhat different after death?”

Chu Chen’s eyes narrowed as several autopsy reports from the research department flashed through his mind.

“Are you talking about… crystallization?” Chu Chen’s voice grew heavy. “The research department did find that for Evolved beings above level three, bone density increases significantly, and fine crystal particles appear in the bone marrow. We thought it was a normal phenomenon of energy assimilation.”

“A normal phenomenon?” Lin Fan sneered, the sound particularly chilling in the night wind. “That’s the sign of the ‘fruit’ ripening.”

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Chu Chen’s expression changed in an instant.

As a genius with extraordinary intelligence, he almost immediately grasped the horrifying meaning behind Lin Fan’s words.

“You mean…”

“Crystal Bones.”

Lin Fan slowly uttered these two words.

“In the eyes of the Dragon Clan, Crystals are just appetizers, snacks at best.

What truly makes them drool is the Crystal Bones that grow in humans after they evolve.”

Lin Fan turned around and looked directly into Chu Chen’s eyes, her voice low and cruel.

“This stuff is the product of the Perfect Fusion of Crystals and biological bones. To the Dragon Clan, it’s a great tonic. Absorbing Crystal Bones not only strengthens their bodies but also purifies their Bloodline.”

“Do you know what that means?”

Chu Chen felt a chill shoot up from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, and even his fingertips began to grow cold.

“It means…” Chu Chen spoke with difficulty, “what we thought was survival in the apocalypse, evolving and growing stronger, was actually…”

“Fattening ourselves up for them.”

Lin Fan finished his sentence, a mocking curve playing on her lips.

“This planet is just a giant farm. They release Demonic Creatures and pour down Spirit Energy not to destroy humanity, but to ripen us. They want us to evolve, to become stronger, so that when our bones are filled with sparkling crystals…”

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Lin Fan reached out and made a grasping motion in the air, as if holding an invisible scythe.

“They will descend and begin the harvest.”

A dead silence fell.

Sitting on the ground, Zhou Ming almost dropped the Level 5 Crystal Cores in his hands, completely stunned.

Chu Chen stared intently at Lin Fan, his breathing becoming rapid.

He prided himself on being able to plan for every contingency, seeing through the Federation’s conspiracies and the ugliness of human nature, but he had never dared to think on this level.

This was too despairing.

“So, the Chuanxi Base cannot be defended.”

Lin Fan broke the silence, her tone returning to calm.

“If we don’t leave, once the people here have evolved to level four, level five, or even higher, this place will become a ‘premium buffet’ in the eyes of the Dragon Clan.

The ones who come then won’t be some low-level Demonic Creatures, but a true army of the Pureblood Dragon Clan.”

“The only way is to go to Azurewood City.”

Lin Fan looked towards the now-closed spatial node, a sharp light glinting in her eyes.

“The most dangerous place is the safest place. By hiding people right under their noses, using the principle of hiding in the darkest spot under the lamp, we can buy ourselves time to develop.”