Chapter 177: Hoarding

Words : 1234 Updated : Sep 21st, 2025

Chapter 177: Hoarding Luca couldn’t believe their luck! Not only did they find Jade Vine, but there was also this enormous gift that kept on giving! D-29 was not kidding when he mentioned several top-grade materials. When the Purifier managed to melt off the corruption that had stuck like barnacles, they were all surprised to see something akin to an ecosystem in there. While there weren’t any live animals, there were certainly mineral deposits, remains, and some tough plant life that managed to survive being fully corroded. And Luca was planning on getting all of it! The little money grubber couldn’t help but wonder just how old this tortoise had to be for such a place to grow like this. If anything, it was probably even more lively before it got contaminated. Oh, to have such a tortoise! Luca sighed as he thought about the beauty of having such a pet. The others watched as their guild leader disappeared inside the remnants of what used to be a lush forest. "Luca, what are you looking for?" Xavier had to ask as he tried to follow the little chipmunk around. The Prince watched as Luca punctured a few of the standing trees with a resin tap and had to wonder just what he was collecting when the slow dripping sap suddenly disappeared. Huh?! "What exactly are you collecting? And do you need help?" Asked the bewildered Husband, who felt like he had to block Luca’s path just so he would hear him. "Luca!" Xavier called again, and this time, Luca’s mecha actually stopped. "Oh! I’m sorry, I got so distracted!" And he really was because he’s got prompts from D-29 everywhere and was torn about where to go as he wanted to check everything out. "I can see that. But is there a way we could help? If you can tell us just what you’re collecting, then—" Xavier didn’t have to elaborate more as, apparently, that was enough to get Luca talking. "Have you rested enough?" asked the little chipmunk who would’ve really wanted the help but was afraid of overworking the three who had been working on the Tortoise for the past two hours. "I’m fine. I drank a lot of the spiritual water. And that pill... that pill seems to be working well." More than well, actually. While he felt like dying and vomiting his guts several times over, he didn’t get to the point where he could be taken over by contamination. The regeneration rate was so fast that he practically scared himself into using more of his abilities, afraid that he would have too much stored and explode instead. Because Xavier could feel it and wondered if this was what Luca and their ancestors experienced in abundance. But before he could focus on the intricacies of spiritual energy levels, he was surprised to see Luca handing over what looked like power cutters. "It’s for the Titanroot Fibers. Ideally, we should be cutting near the core so they don’t regenerate instantly..." Luca trailed off, knowing that he would sound insane for doing this. But they just couldn’t let the opportunity pass! "However, I was hoping you could cut away from the core so that it would regenerate and we could get more..." Then, from over the comms came the screeching voice of one overly eager mechanic, "Wait! Brother! Did you just say Titanroot fibers?!" "Ah yes, brother! There are a few mother plants, and I was hoping we could either bring the whole plant or just take some first before uprooting it." Luca thought about it, and for something like this material that regenerates almost instantly, then he’d rather not take his chances. Just in case. It was one thing to harvest from the plant, but another to ball out or marcot it with full expectations that it’ll adapt and survive. So, what began as a resource-gathering segment involving a few regenerating plants evolved into a full-blown factory dictatorship. If anything, Jax was actually very interested in what he was tasked to do. The guy was rather pleased to be touching anything other than the corruption. And when he realized that such a plant could turn into top-grade mecha joints, the redhead decided to cut as many as the plant regenerated. But while one giant was enjoying, the two other giants were followed around by shorties who just wouldn’t stop. Xavier was lucky that they were in a different mecha and Luca could only explain how he wanted the materials dealt with. But Kyle immediately faced karma for teasing the little mop as he had to contend with a mechanic who wanted the materials cut in a very particular manner. Not to mention those blasted Obsidian Core Fragments that had to be hit precisely to prevent shattering. They were mecha pilots who had been trained in offense and defense, not surgical finesse. And so that one time Kyle almost cracked an Obsidian Core Fragment in the wrong way, he could immediately feel the incoming death threat. So much for the little mop fearing for his life earlier! He thought as he began tapping on the shell’s outer layers like a good little miner. The treatment was like night and day, and it also felt like too much time had passed, even though it hadn’t taken that long to gather the resources. Because Luca took everything that the inventory would accept, it didn’t matter if it was a small bark or the shell of some beast. The little hoarder took it all. And this scared the onlookers who noticed the sudden change in the guardian’s shell! But if there was something that should scare them more, then it would have to be the eventual disappearance of the guardian beast. Yes. Because Luca asked for permission. And his husband said yes. But only under the condition that it would be confirmed free of corruption. To be fair, they didn’t come here thinking this way, and had Ollie not lamented on how sad it would be to have to get rid of the contaminated guardian, then no one would’ve thought of it. Okay, well, frankly, no one other than Luca would be able to think about it. Because the idea was too insane. And too unreal. But not for one determined little chipmunk. While they knew that Luca could purify the land and what remained of it from the contamination, they weren’t privy to the fact that the current Purifier should be able to do the same for live beasts and plants. Or, really, anything that could probably take a cannon to the face. Which was understandable because all they’ve done so far was to target the back of the tortoise. But D-29 said it should be possible and should be given a try. Because what other answer would anyone expect from an equally crazy system? It was something that Sid would want to comment on but decided to swallow the indignation, for the mecha knew of the system’s nefarious plans. So, when Luca mentioned purifying the guardian beast, one mecha decided to stay silent as another guardian was about to be taken. And their success story? An hour of drilling through the ice, then firing multiple cannon shots straight into the shell, then into the unwilling mouth of the once magnificent Sludgeborn Tortoise. And Sid could only sympathize as the glorified shuttle bus.

Chapter 177: Hoarding

Comments (0)