1569 Mining The Nokksino's Ingots.
A few days later...
Upon the desolate surface of planet Vorxara, winds howl across barren landscapes, carrying whispers of ancient secrets and untold riches buried deep within its crust, Felix could be seen emerging from a void rift with the darkins, Nimo, and Candace.
At a short distance over the horizon, an astronomical mountain was protruding proudly, having its summit completely hidden in clouds.
There was a giant cave at the bottom of the mountain with a small overpopulated town, packed with mercenaries and fighters from all races.
"Let's go." Felix stepped once into the air and he appeared instantly in front of the cave without causing an ounce of disturbance.
'The mine is closed for maintenance, everyone out.'
Felix sent this message into everyone's minds, using a mental ability to tamper with them. His spiritual prowess was so ahead, that he didn't even need to utilize his illusion abilities to control someone mentally.
Confusion sets in among the mercenaries. Their mission was clear, but the sight before them contradicted their expectations. They exchanged glances, trying to make sense of the information. Another checked their device for any missed communications about this unexpected closure.
"How weird, the mine is never closed for maintenance. Meh, whatever, I needed to take a break anyway."
"d.a.m.n, I have just arrived yesterday."
"I guess this is a hint to not get greedy and bail off with a few ingots in my possession."
But in the end, they still listened to the mental command as they couldn't go against it.
'This will make it easier to mine the ingots without getting interrupted.' Felix said while watching the mercenaries leaving the mine in waves.
'Selphie, how is it going?' He asked.
In the depths of Vorxara's perilous mines, a fierce battle unfolds, casting a stark contrast between the dark, subterranean world and the flashes of combat.
Selphie, Noah, Bodidi, and Olivia found themselves pitted against the Nokksino's guardians.
These guardians, resembling colossal centipedes, were a nightmarish sight. Their ma.s.sive bodies, segmented and writhing, were covered in sh.e.l.ls as hard as the Nokksino ingots themselves, reflecting the dim light of the miners' lanterns with a menacing sheen.
Their powerful jaws snap and clack, capable of crus.h.i.+ng stone and bone alike, while their innate ability to manipulate the earth element made them masters of their subterranean domain.
However, before Felix's squad, their menacing dread was no use...Selphie easily froze them in time with her time spells while Bodidi sliced them off with spatial blades.
As for Noah? He froze them with absolute zero before following it with an ice pillar straight into their brain.
Olivia was responsible for watching their back and mining the Nokksino's ingots by using an army of her plant-based summons.
'It's going well.' Selphie asked, 'Have you arrived?'
'I am at the cave's entrance. Are there too many Nokksino's guardians?'
'Their numbers are kind of infinite.' Selphie replied with a solemn tone, 'We have killed more than one thousand ever since we stepped in the mine and the deeper we go, the larger their numbers get.'
'I see.' Felix thought about it for a moment before requesting, 'You can come out. Bring with you one of the corpses.'
Without asking too many questions, Selphie relayed the news to the others...They canceled their abilities and went through a spatial portal, connecting to the cave's mouth.
Their sudden emergence had raised some chatter from the mercenaries, but Felix handled it easily by using his mind control again.
"How much did you mine?" Felix inquired.
"not a lot, most of the bars are deep underground." Olivia anwsered while showing Felix a couple of small dirty golden rocks on her palms.
"That's where the centipedes' nest is believed to exist. We didn't want to rush there." Selphie added.
"Good call." Felix remarked calmly, "Let me handle them."
There was no way Felix was going to waste his time mining those bars personally...He had much more important matters to settle.
The easiest way to mine those ingots without needing to enter the mine was by cleansing it entirely from those centipedes!
Thus...
Felix extended his hand and touched the corpse of the fallen guardian. At his touch, a subtle mark glowed briefly on the creature's sh.e.l.l, a sigil that pulsated with a dark energy.
With the mark set, Felix began an extraordinary transformation. His arm started to expand and grow, its size magnifying until it matched the vastness of the cavernous s.p.a.ce around him!
From his enlarged arm, Felix releases a dense, crimson mist. Unlike any ordinary vapor, this destruction mist was imbued with a singular purpose - to seek and eradicate the Nokksino's guardians!
As it billowed out from his arm, it filled the mine, creeping into every crevice, every tunnel, spreading hundreds of kilometers through the underground labyrinth!
"What the h.e.l.l is this?!!"
"Run!!"
The mercenaries still within, witnessing this eerie and otherworldly phenomenon, felt a primal urge to flee.
As the crimson mist enveloped the area, they scrambled towards the exit, a unanimous decision born of survival instinct even though the mist did nothing to them!
lightsvel.cm Meanwhile, the crimson mist found its way to the deepest recesses, where the heart of the guardians' nest lies.
There, the mother of the centipedes, a creature of immense size and power, also fell victim to Felix's sinister creation.
The mist, like a silent a.s.sa.s.sin, extinguished her life force, ensuring the end of the centipede lineage and terror over this planet.
A few moments later, Felix opened his eyes and uttered calmly, "It's done, all protectors have been erased."
The scene was one of calculated efficiency and ruthless intent.
As the crimson mist began to evaporate through the caverns, a palpable sense of awe and disbelief gripped Selphie, Noah, Bodidi, and Olivia...They stood frozen, their eyes wide as they witnessed the surreal display of Felix's power.
They knew that Felix was powerful beyond measure, but still, to see it with their own eyes after such a long time was something else.
Yet, Felix wasn't close to being done.
Whoos.h.!.+
With a sweep of his arms, Felix began to channel his gemstone elemental powers.
Slowly, the ground began to tremble, and from the very rocks and crystals of the cavern walls, figures started to emerge!
One by one, crystallized miners, sculpted from the minerals of Vorxara itself, rose to stand before Felix.
Each miner was equipped with a pickaxe, their crystalline blades honed to perfection. Carts, also crafted from the same sparkling crystal, materialize beside them, ready to carry the mined Nokksino ingots.
Other tools, from shovels to drills, all s.h.i.+mmering with an inner light, appear in the hands of the crystal miners, creating an a.r.s.enal fit for the task ahead.
The crystal miners, a manifestation of Felix's will and power, stand in silent ranks, awaiting his command.
"Go."
With a simple gesture, he set them to work.
In a couple of minutes, the crystal miners' army moved as one, their pickaxes striking the rock with precision and strength...The sound of their labor echoes through the caverns, a symphony of progress and power.
"Why are we even here..." Bodidi murmured speechlessly.
"You can help out with the mining." Felix gave him a side glance, "They are tireless workers but a bit dumb and need guidance."
"I will handle it!" Olivia volunteered with a chirpy tone.n.)In
Selphie and Noah also decided to join in and continue extracting the ingots, wanting to help out Felix in any shape or form within their powers.
After they set out, Felix eyed the bits of bars in his hand given to him by Olivia and frowned deeply, "Even with my efforts, it will take a long while to collect the necessary elemental minerals."
Unlike natural treasures, elemental minerals weren't as numbered since they could only be mined.
There was no crossbreeding or flesh-based minerals or such...Just gemstones, metals, rocks, and such minerals.
Even with Meriam's a.s.sistance in getting decent quant.i.ties from the dwarven empire, it was not enough to satisfy him.
"You should check with the primogenitors." Thor suggested, "We have been living for far too long and our empires have harvested a significant amount of the rarest minerals ever created. I believe most of my peers still hold onto them in their treasures after Cyclope retired from forgery."
"I already thought about doing this with natural treasures too. But, to get something, you have to offer something." Felix knitted his eyebrows deeply, "What do I have to offer to move the primogenitors into giving me their everything?"
In less than a split second, Felix's eyes widened as it clicked in his mind at last that he possessed the one thing that all primogenitors desired but couldn't obtain!
"You sneaky devil, you will bankrupt them while at the same time making their lives h.e.l.l." Thor chuckled, "Are you sure about it?"
"Why not? I am already being generous by not gunning for their purities." Felix smirked, "Plus, it's their lifelong purpose, not my fault if they didn't like the truth."