At least if they had captured Asaeya and baby Gannala, the Ganrimb Kingdom could have acted ignorant about Inala’s existence if the Mammoth Clan were to arrive in the future. 𝗈𝗏𝑙xt.𝗇et
But they had escaped. It meant that the truth would eventually reach the Mammoth Clan. When that happens, they would be fucked, without given any chance to plead for forgiveness.
“Shit!” Gudora stomped in anger and returned to a region of rubble at the centre of which were Fhoong and Hanya. He subtly shook his head, signalling that they failed to capture Asaeya and baby Gannala.
“You needn’t act secretive.” Inala teased, “They’ve already left this region. It’s impossible for you to cover the traces of my existence. So,”
“What will you do now?”
‘Damn, this fucker is completely relaxed.’ Gudora was nervous upon staring at Inala. But suddenly, he thought of something and asked, “If you’re truly an Empyrean Tusk, then your actions make no sense.”
“First of all, you created a business here.” He said, feeling more confident the longer he spoke, “You amassed a lot of wealth, uncharacteristic of an Empyrean Tusk that has no materialistic need. Secondly, you were raising an army of Zingers.”
“That makes no sense.”
“Oh, you’re finally using your brain,” Inala eyed Hanya for a moment, “Unlike someone that acts based on gut feeling here.”
“I’ll let you figure it yourself.” Grinning in response, Inala uttered, “Gather a team of experts with detection prowess. Head to the Rooster Tribe settlement and find a cracked region among the walls. Dig the ground at the foot of the wall and do your best to sense the lifeforce present there.”
“Come here when you do so,” Saying so, Inala closed his eyes and daringly fell asleep.
“Send a team immediately,” Fhoong took a seat next to Inala, “I’ll keep watch here.”
“Make the trip personally.”
“Yes,” Nodding in response, Gudora gathered his best team of scouts and rushed to the Rooster Tribe Settlement. As Inala had said, there was a damaged portion among the settlement walls. Even though it had been mended, it looked too damaged as compared to the rest.
“Dig here,” He said and pointed at the foot of the wall, watching his team do so immediately. Soon, when they reached a depth of forty metres, they noticed faint traces of a fluid that had mixed with the soil there, surprisingly maintained as such.
And the deeper they dug, the more the mysterious fluid appeared. The best scout among the team scooped out a millilitre of the fluid and activated his Human Avatar, sensing faint traces of Lifeforce within the fluid, exclaiming, “Such a rich Lifeforce!”
“Is this even possible?”
“Anything else?” Gudora asked, frowning at the result, ‘Is high-quality Lifeforce meant to imply something?’
“Let me take over,” A young scout who hailed from a prestigious family line of scouts grabbed the fluid and activated his power, “I’ll try to manifest any innate traces remaining within it.”
The scout’s Prana surged and seeped into the fluid, causing the image of a Pranic Beast with wings to appear for an instant before collapsing. But a moment later, the projection of a ravenous boar head appeared, expressing bottomless avarice.
Goosebumps formed on the scout’s limbs as he dropped the fluid, muttering like a broken record, “B-B-Bo-Bo-Boar…”
“BOAR KING!”
“Are you serious?” Gudora’s expression turned solemn as he ordered the team, “Double-check it! Did the Boar King really come here?”
Back at Ellora City, after a short nap, Inala opened his eyes upon hearing a screech. “They have returned.”
The majority of the Empyrean Zingers left the region with Asaeya and baby Gannala. But the Empyrean Zinger Queen was worried. Hence, she left behind an Empyrean Zinger King along with a dozen Empyrean Zinger Scouts.
Currently, they remained in the forest outskirts of Ellora City to inform Inala of whatever happened outside through their shrieks. Their blatantly obvious presence kept pressure on the people in Ellora City, preventing any drastic measures from being taken against Inala.
And it had worked wonders, for Inala had even safely taken a nap.
At his words, Fhoong Brimgan stared to the side and noticed Gudora arrive with a depressing expression, “What did you find out?”
“The Boar King visited this place three years ago.” Gudora iterated his findings. “He spent a month here. We were unable to find out anything else.”
“There you have it,” Inala said, “I came here after learning of the Boar King’s arrival.”
“To do what?” Fhoong asked solemnly.
“The Boar King will return,” Inala said with assurance, “The sole Mudropper of Sumatra exists here. In two years, it’ll lay its eggs. The Boar King will return to consume it then. Hence, I’ve been raising an army of Zingers to trap him in the Sandy-Grey Void.”
“That’s pretty much it.” He concluded, “I have no relation to the Centingers. Rather, the lot of you are foolish to live right in the centre of their mating bed.”
“We know this is their mating bed.” Fhoong snorted, “We were able to defend our Kingdom against the Centingers successfully until now. And we’ll continue to do so.”
“Good for you. It’s not my concern.” Inala shrugged and reverted to his male self, “Well, since my plans have been revealed, I’ll ask it formally. You don’t mind me doing my thing here, right?”
“Oh, absolutely, I do mind.” Suddenly, Fhoong Brimgan revealed a grin and grabbed Inala, “The Mammoth Clan is terrifying, yes. The Empyrean Tusks are even more terrifying. That is even more obvious.”
“But, if the Boar King will return in two years, I can’t ask for better news myself.” He commanded Gudora, “Imprison him.”
“When the Boar King arrives, we’ll bribe him with an Empyrean Tusk. He’ll love it dearly.” Fhoong spoke, seeing Inala’s face turn ashen in response as he grinned, “The Mammoth Clan will not dare come anywhere near here after the Boar King’s arrival. In the meantime,”
He stared at Hanya, “Interrogate this Empyrean Tusk for all its information. Each one is a treasure trove of information. We’ll benefit tremendously through this and might even surpass the Brimgan Empire.”
“Treasure Trove of Information,” Gudora’s eyes lit up as he stared at Inala, “I now understand how you turned the City Councillor’s son into a genius. You used your vast seat of knowledge to equip him with Skills perfect for his cultivation technique.”
“Everything’s crystal clear now.” Gudora saluted in excitement at Fhoong, “We’ll extract everything, Father.”
“Good,” Fhoong nodded, “I’ll send a team of experts to aid you in this. They’ll record and analyse everything you find out.”
He stared at the fear-struck expression of Inala, “This Empyrean Tusk came at the right time. Once we gain everything from it, we’ll offer it up to the Boar King on a golden platter.”
He left after leaving behind a statement, “I’ll go speak to the Mudropper and tell it to widen the Sandy-Grey Void. As long as I supply it with enough resources, it can make the Sandy-Grey Void large and deep enough that even the Empyrean Tusks would refrain from entering it.”
“You…you’ll regret this!” Inala shouted.
“Oh, shut up!” Hanya slapped Inala, “We’ll benefit a lot by selling you to the Boar King and also seek his protection. No one in Sumatra can go against him.”
“So, give up!”