"Uh... Elder Chen, didn't you leave? Why are you back?"
Seeing Chen Changan return, everyone was taken aback. Then they noticed the black, grimy thing in his hand.
"What's that?"
Everyone stared at Chen Changan in confusion, their eyes full of bewilderment.
"Do... none of you recognize this?" Chen Changan asked helplessly.
"No. Where'd you get it?"
"Aren't there Earth Eater Beasts in Dongming Palace?"
"This thing comes from inside an Earth Eater Beast."
"I almost forgot about it just now."
"You really don't know?"
Earth Eater Beast?
Everyone knew Earth Eater Beasts existed, but no one had known there was something like this inside them.
"I've never paid attention to them. What's this thing for?"
"It does seem to have energy fluctuations, but this energy feels unfamiliar."
"Could the Earth Eater Beast's body contain resources that can be used for cultivation too?"
"But... how are you supposed to use this thing? And what does it do?"
Everyone stared at the stone-like, pitch-black object in Chen Changan's hand and began analyzing it seriously.
Chen Changan had only hoped to get lucky. Maybe someone among them would know what the thing was for. But he'd clearly overestimated them; they truly had no idea.
"Can you eat it?"
Eat it?
Who in their right mind would look at this black, grimy stone and wonder if it was edible?
"No, seriously, you'd eat this?"
"I'm just exploring the possibilities."
"Then couldn't you come up with something constructive?"
"What counts as constructive? Go on, give us an idea."
"Tch. Listen up. This thing was formed inside an Earth Eater Beast. What's special about Earth Eater Beasts?"
"They're hard, with extremely strong defenses."
"This thing is the essence of an Earth Eater Beast. Could it have the same properties?"
At that, everyone began to think