157 Hereditary Variation

The world is littered with ancient battlefields, so—shh, be careful not to awaken those slumbering ancient spirits...
――Excerpt from Theresa's Alchemical Notes

Little Imp and Little Fox did not sense Theresa’s speechlessness mixed with a hint of embarrassment. Once reunited, the two little fellows lunged directly onto the blue-winged demon bats, starting to tear into them with ravenous bites. They ate with immense joy, as if they had been starved for centuries, using both mouths and paws to devour everything greedily, showing no fear of choking at all.

Seeing this, Theresa felt her temper flare up even more. Ignoring everything else, she gave a spring and leaped to the ground, marched straight over, and grabbed one by the neck in each hand, launching into a lecture right off the bat: "Hey, hey, hey! Have you two been starving for hundreds of days or hundreds of years? You have absolutely no table manners!"

Torn away from their food, Little Imp and Little Fox immediately panicked, squeaking loudly as they flailing all four limbs. Pulling back their sharp little blades of claws, they hugged Theresa's hands, rubbing and scratching affectionately while putting on all sorts of endearing displays. At the same time, they hurriedly tried to explain the reason for their urgency.

However, because the two little fellows were far too eager, the mental impulses they transmitted came across as chaotic and disordered. Theresa felt her head swell just trying to sense them, leaving her with no choice but to follow their intent and examine that flock of blue-winged demon bats. Upon closer inspection, she actually managed to spot something unusual—

The dead blue-winged demon bats looked as if they had suddenly suffered severe dehydration; their entire bodies were a size smaller than they had been during the combat. Both their wing membranes and torsos appeared extremely shrunken and withered. Moreover, the corpses of the blue-winged demon bats whose flesh had already been partially devoured by Little Imp and Little Fox presented a thoroughly abnormal phenomenon: the interiors of the bodies, laid bare by the ruptured skin, did not consist of normal muscle, bone, blood, or other bodily tissues at all. Instead, they were filled with clumps of bizarre, black substances that kept squirming incessantly. Upon contact with the air, these semi-gelatinous matters would also emit a faint dark-greenish smoke. However, because there was a wind blowing through this place, the smoke was swept away by the omnipresent breeze the moment it emerged, making it completely invisible unless one leaned in close for a careful observation.

"What is this?" Lambert appeared by Theresa's side once again, his arrival untracked as he leaned in together with her to observe the carcasses of the blue-winged demon bats.

Theresa had long since grown used to Lambert's uncanny ability to appear and vanish out of nowhere. Therefore, upon hearing his question, she responded with utmost calmness: "Preliminary estimate: it looks like something existing in a state somewhere between material and semi-material. When you guys killed the blue-winged demon bats earlier, didn't you notice this condition?"

While answering Lambert, Theresa had already released Little Imp and Little Fox, letting them resume their feast. These bizarre substances saturating the bodies of the blue-winged demon bats carried a faint aura of items from the "Void Realm," which explained why Little Imp and Little Fox could not resist their temptation. After all, to the little imp foxes who were indigenous to the Void Realm, anything carrying the scent of their "homeland" was supreme nectar.

Lambert was also well aware of the existence of the "Void Realm" and the characteristics of the "little imp foxes." Hence, even though Theresa had spoken cryptically, he understood her perfectly. He squatted down, flipped his palm, and conjured a dagger. With it, he sliced off a piece of the still gently squirming black matter, brought it up before his eyes, and proceeded to inspect it with his eyes, nose, and fingers—stopping just short of actually tasting it with his mouth...

"Hmm, these blue-winged demon bats have been demonized, but it should be hereditary rather than a sudden recent demonization."

Hearing Lambert's verdict, Theresa leaned in with considerable interest, staring intently at the substance as it slowly hardened and faded from black to gray, her expression carrying an eager, try-it-out-for-myself sort of vibe—

"What, want to give it a try?" Lambert asked, holding out the dagger with a half-smile as if encouraging her. However, after hesitating for a few seconds, Theresa ultimately shook her head—

"Forget it. I'm not as tough as you to dare touch it directly—getting afflicted with 'Yin Poison' would be troublesome."

The so-called "Yin Poison" was not actually a type of toxic poison, but rather a frigid, negative energy that conflicted with the positive energy within normal living organisms. If invaded by such negative energy, it would not directly cause death, but it would slowly drain a person's vitality, leaving them to drag out an ignoble existence amidst all sorts of weakness, pain, and discomfort.

"A wise choice." Only then did Lambert offer a genuine word of praise. With a flick of his wrist, utilizing some mysterious force, he directly shattered that chunk of black substance into fine dust.

Having finished identifying the mutated blue-winged demon bats, the two of them stood up and waited for Little Imp and Little Fox to finish their meal. Meanwhile, Theresa cast a puzzled look around the massive black rock cavern, attempting to find something that might satisfy her curiosity—

Staring here and looking there, Theresa suddenly froze as her gaze locked onto a patch of the black rock ceiling directly above her. She stood in a trance, as if her soul had been sucked away by something. Noticing this, Lambert knitted his thick brows together and called out, "Theresa?"

"Huh?" Theresa snapped back to her senses with a start, turning her gaze toward Lambert. Yet judging by her expression, her mind was still clearly somewhat dazed.

"What are you thinking about?" Lambert asked, his hand already slowly clenching into a fist as if standing on guard against something.

"I wasn't thinking about anything," Theresa replied, her expression suddenly snapping back to alertness and turning lively. "Well, I was just pondering a moment ago: since the mutation of these blue-winged demon bats is hereditary, does that imply that during some historical period in the past, these blue-winged demon bats were corroded by demonic energy and gradually mutated? But for some reason, they weren't wiped out; instead, they fled here and have survived all the way down to the present?"

As she spoke these words, Theresa gazed intently at Lambert, studying his expression. Lambert's expression remained completely unchanged, looking just as calm as if he hadn't heard a word she said... Or rather, so calm as if her statement were nothing more than some sort of basic, common-sense knowledge...

For a moment, a silent atmosphere drifted quietly between the two of them...

After a short while, Lambert suddenly moved. He slowly walked toward Theresa, stepping closer, and closer still... Then, he bent down, and with just one hand, easily hoisted up the two little imp foxes whose bellies were now swollen round like balls—

"Let's go, it's time for us to hit the road."

Hearing this, Theresa stood in a daze for a moment, pouted her lips, but ultimately followed behind him back to the rock wall without saying a word—

Clinging back onto Lambert's back once more, driven by some unknown psychological impulse, Theresa instinctively tightened her arms particularly hard around his neck, pressing firmly and tightly against the side of his neck...

...

The rest of the journey proceeded smoothly. Although they still periodically faced wild, bone-chilling hurricanes, no one was caught in the blast or injured this time. Halfway through, however, Flora the hunter-turned-half-elf finally failed to withstand the force of the wind, becoming the second person in the team to be carried on someone else's back—of course, the one carrying her was Habata. This outcome secretly amused Theresa a little; after all, she now had someone to "keep her company"~

After journeying for nearly two hours, a natural glint of light finally pierced through the dark cavern. This instantly lifted the spirits of the entire party, who had been feeling utterly depressed by the grim, icy glow of the magic lamps all the way. Even the exhaustion of the journey vanished away unawares, and their pacing naturally quickened significantly—(To be continued)