Magic Organ

Chen Yu had long been curious about how Moss Monsters secreted acid. While digesting one, he had studied the Acid-Erosion Gland inside its body and discovered strange patterns within it.

These patterns scarcely seemed to qualify as organ tissue, much less possess any special meaning. They were formed from gases that emitted a mysterious glow.

Or perhaps they should be called...

Mana?

With only a little simple nourishment and complex catalysis, the "magic organ," the Acid-Erosion Gland, could secrete copious amounts of acid, giving a decomposer an aggression that utterly belied its appearance.

He had once tried carving mana patterns into jade in his thatched cottage in Xuxuantian, but even after infusing them with spiritual power, the patterns had shown no response. He had not investigated further afterward.

After all, Zeyarila was a magical world. Any unreasonable thing could be explained away with magic here.

It was perfectly normal for a Moss Monster to possess a magic organ.

Even if someone told him Slimes and humans were the same species now, he would believe it without question.

After fumbling around for half a day without reaching any conclusion, Chen Yu slipped out of the nest and quietly poked his head out of the swamp mud.

All he heard was a scalp-numbing, high-pitched buzzing from the swamp trees. From time to time, Moss Monsters and Mud Swamp Worms were stung by venomous stingers, then carried back to the Stinger Bee Hive as nourishment.

It was as though the ground beneath the tree was their breeding ground. Once the demonic beasts on the ground had grown into a fresh crop, they would descend to feed.

And what he had done earlier, hunting Moss Monsters, was no different from a wild wolf sneaking into a farmer's sheepfold to steal lambs.

No wonder those Stinger Bees had insisted on attacking him first.

Looking at the Twisted Oak before him, its trunk covered in knotted burls and moss, then at the Stinger Bees foraging around it, Chen Yu thought:

Even if he became a wolf, he had to become the greatest wolf king.

One day, he would ascend to the highest point of this forest and become the Swamp Overlord.

He would eat one Stinger Bee at a time as dessert.

And when he had the time, he would go out and see the vast magical world beyond...

A faint glimmer flickered in Chen Yu's mung-bean-sized eyes. This thought was like a stone tossed into still slime, gradually sending ripples called "desire" spreading through his gelatinous body.

He imagined himself standing atop a towering cliff, gazing upon strange sights beyond the forest that he had never seen before—floating islands, rivers flowing with starlight, or mage towers soaring into the clouds...

The more he thought about it, the more heroic passion surged within his chest, as though he could already feel the brilliant sunlight of the heights shining upon his slime body.

However, this surging high spirit lasted less than three seconds—Stinger Bees discovered him hiding in the shadows and chased after him, firing venomous stingers.

Chen Yu hastily ducked into the mud. His lofty feeling of looking down upon all living things deflated with a puff like a punctured balloon.

Ideals were plump, but reality was bony.

Before becoming the great Swamp Overlord, he first had to find a way past the tiny stepping stone outside his front door.

Otherwise, it would be far too embarrassing for a Swamp Overlord to be blocked at his own doorstep by a few Stinger Bees.

After returning to the Slime Nest, Chen Yu got up from the hardwood bed in Xuxuantian and stretched his limbs.

He pushed open the creaking wooden window and propped it up with a bamboo pole. Outside the thatched cottage, the rain had just cleared. Warm afternoon sunlight pierced through the bamboo tips, illuminating the droplets rolling from the leaf tips until they gleamed crystal-clear, making the whole bamboo grove seem even more lush and verdant.

Such a scene could not help but lift one's spirits.

But no matter how good one's mood was, it could not fill one's stomach.

Chen Yu rubbed his belly. It grumbled in mild protest, reminding him that it was time to eat.

Even a future great cultivator and Slime Demon King could be stumped by his next meal in his humble beginnings.

"Time to go out and find work."

He reached out and picked up the Rosewood Sword leaning against the bedside.

The sword's spiritual radiance was restrained within it. It was a fine treasure, but it was far too new. It seemed not to have slain even a single demon, more like an accessory for his travels and training.

But that was not the important part. The important part was that, from the corner of his eye, he spotted a pattern appearing in his palm.

It was exactly the same as the magic pattern on a Slime's body.

This was bad.

Could it be that before he had even cultivated into an immortal, he had already practiced himself into some crooked and evil path?

Fortunately, when he touched it, there was no wound in his palm. It remained warm and fleshy, as though the mana pattern did not exist at all.

"Good thing I haven't mutated. It would be troublesome if I were mistaken for a Demonic Cultivator."

Curiously, Chen Yu fetched a porcelain bottle. Following his instincts, he pressed his left hand against the pattern on his right palm. The "mana" in his palm was drawn out strand by strand, and drops of acid condensed from thin air, sliding from his fingertips into the bottle.

Immediately afterward, an intense thirst washed over him, and his stomach rumbled loudly.

He seemed even hungrier.

As he moved the porcelain bottle away, he accidentally let several drops of acid fall onto the stone bricks. They hissed and sent up wisps of green smoke.

Bending down for a closer look, he saw that the hard stone bricks had actually been corroded through with several small holes.

"How terrifying..."

He had not expected the acid he could casually touch with his palm to be so corrosive.

No wonder he had not seen any corrosion-resistant shell inside Moss Monsters. It turned out the acid did not affect its original owner.

He instinctively voiced his question. "But why? Could it be that the mana condensed into acid recognizes its own kind?"

It all felt so complicated.

Chen Yu could not help sinking into thought.

But the more he thought, the itchier the top of his head became.

It felt as though a brain was about to grow out.

A few seconds later, he gave up anyway.

Sure enough, he was not scholar material. Being the Swamp Overlord suited him better.

Chen Yu took out two or three drops of acid for testing and discovered that Slime Acid was slightly less corrosive than Moss Monster acid.

It was probably because the level of Acid Secretion was different.

Raising a talent's level would not be easier than obtaining the talent itself. Rather than think about how to upgrade his talent, he might as well sell the Slime Acid in his hands first.

There should be cultivators in the sect market who needed it. If he could sell it, then his next meal would be settled.

With that thought, Chen Yu forcibly roused his spirits and spent some effort condensing two more bottles of acid.

This time, he was completely drained, so weak that his face had gone a shade paler.

Fortunately, he was not exhausted to the point of collapse. As long as he could still walk, it was fine.

After putting away the Celadon Ceramic Bottles, Chen Yu picked up the Rosewood Sword, left the thatched cottage, and stepped onto the winding stone path leading to North Peak in the Green Bamboo Forest.

His destination was Nanqiao Market on North Peak.

Above the cliffs of Three Origins Sect's North Peak stretched a Cold Iron Chain Bridge. Its iron chains were as thick as bowls, heavy and black, reaching straight into the cloud-wreathed inner mountain region of the Three Origins Sect. This bridge was the main route and gateway for Inner Sect Disciples traveling back and forth.

Thus, many Outer Sect Disciples had spontaneously gathered in the open ground by the cliff at the bridgehead. They erected crude bamboo-and-wood stalls or spread out coarse hemp mats, selling talismans, Dan Sha, Spiritual Plants, ores, and even demonic beast materials.

Over time, the bridgehead became a bustling marketplace—Nanqiao Market.

Whether Inner Sect Disciples or Outer Sect Disciples, whenever they went down the mountain for training or returned from completing missions, they would always stop for a moment at the crowded Nanqiao Market when passing this bridge, either to purchase supplies or inquire after news.

Chen Yu also intended to take advantage of the afternoon bustle to set up a small stall there and sell the Slime Acid in his hands.

Step by step, he followed the winding stone path, passed through Qiaopai Gate and the bustling crowds, and only after much difficulty found an unclaimed spot in a corner of Nanqiao Market. He sat directly on the ground, spread out a piece of Coarse Cloth, and set out the porcelain bottles.

He then borrowed a Wooden Token and brush and ink from a cultivator nearby, writing several large, crooked characters:

"Corrosive medicinal liquid, broad uses, ten Spirit Shards per bottle."

Hmm...

He did not know what Slime Acid could be used for either, so he could only claim that it had broad uses.

As for the price of ten Spirit Shards, it was just enough to buy two taels of Spirit Rice. Mixed with ordinary rice to make porridge or meals, it would last him several days.

In the Swamp Forest, he was an anomaly among demonic beasts, a Slime that hunted with a flying sword.

And in the Three Origins Sect, he was different from these immortal cultivators too. He cultivated through dietary supplements.

It did not matter if he went three days without meditating in quiet cultivation, but he could not go even one day without food.

So attaining the Dao and becoming an immortal was far too vague and distant for him right now.

Eating his fill was what mattered most.