Ye Chenshan moved closer to read the device, before he spoke up with a disappointed look, “I’m afraid we don’t know what this is. Maybe it’s valuable, maybe not. I’d say it’s just a cluster of random metals.”
Such things were everywhere in space ruptures. Settlers who discovered them could bring them back to the Federation for inspection and earn a fortune if they proved to be of great use. Otherwise, it would only be a waste of their time.
“We should get a sample and bring it back then,” Luo Guxue suggested.
This was a logical decision and no one had a problem agreeing to it. They could learn the nature of the unknown mineral this way and come back to get more later.
Su Ping didn’t want his energy points to go down the drain because he had already spent 100 points to identify the mineral. The Federation was going to take everything at this rate; he might earn some compensation for the discovery but that wouldn’t be worth it.
“Can I have it?” His words attracted everyone’s attention.
He basically told the others that the unknown mineral was in fact, useful in some way. But he didn’t have a choice. Since the specialized device failed to tell what this was, he believed that not even the Federation would have an idea about what the material was, which meant people might let him keep it.
“Do you know this thing?” asked Fan Ganglie, curious.
Su Ping shook his head. “No. But my Astral Pet detected Undead energy from it, which means I can use it to feed my pet. If it’s okay, can we remain here for a few days so Little Skeleton can fully absorb the energy?”
That was partially a lie. As long as he played dumb, the Federation would not blame him even if they later recognized the true value of the material.
His excuse went through because Little Skeleton was undeniably the only Astral Pet present who could use Undead energy. Still, people weren’t precisely eager to stay in this place any longer than necessary just to keep Su Ping company. They had gone pretty far into this space rupture and already encountered that eighth-rank Magical Corpse Beast. Nobody knew what else could make an appearance.
Without minding their attitude, Su Ping simply told Little Skeleton to start “eating.” He didn’t actually plan to remain behind until the energy was fully taken. It was just that, he didn’t want anyone to get suspicious.
His act worked out just fine. Seeing Little Skeleton drawing energy from the strange stone, the last bit of doubt vanished from the group.
All things said, they still didn’t understand why Su Ping would tarry in this dangerous area for days. They saw Su Ping pretty keen on keeping this stone for himself and couldn’t help wondering what else was hidden inside it. Usually, they’d trust the Federation’s device. If the device failed to tell anything, it was unlikely for a common shopkeeper to know more. However, Su Ping had shown them too many secrets for them to have this lingering belief.
Still, they had nothing concrete to stop Little Skeleton from feeding. They couldn’t make any use of the Undead energy anyway. While materials helpful with pet growth could earn them some merit should they bring them back, they had no reason to take this one from Su Ping after what he did.
“So this is just an element stone full of Undead-type energy, right?” asked Luo Guxue.
Fan Ganglie put a hand on it and nodded. “I think so. Though element stones are usually smooth and good to look at. This crude one is just a raw element ore.”
“I have no objections about Mister Su keeping it,” Fan Yujing claimed.
Fan Ganglie nodded again. “Same here. Mister Su helped us reach our destination after all.”
Ye Chenshan also spoke up with a smile, “Then it’s decided. I’ll let Mister Su make the decision. Just a piece of advice though, taking several days here can be risky. Since you have that puppet to help, shall we carry the stone back first?”
“Yeah… We’d better get out of here,” Fan Ganglie agreed.
Su Ping saw all the others thinking along those lines and nodded as well. “All right.”
Fan Ganglie sighed in relief and told his earthworm to enlarge the tunnel so they could carry the Nether Ore back to the surface. Then they found some ropes to bind it onto the Magical Corpse Beast.
After making sure the fox came following, the group retreated. Just like before, Li Ying moved farther ahead as a scout. Meanwhile, Ye Chenshan summoned another pet good at detecting danger as an extra layer of safety.
On their way, they would evade everything that looked strong and kill all other easier prey. The most dangerous enemy they ran into was a lower, eighth-rank bug monster, which was easily maimed by Little Skeleton, the Magical Corpse Beast and the Flame Bird working together.
The ranks of their foes began dropping as they approached the outer edge of the space fracture zone. But they still remained highly cautious because high-rank Astral Pets could well hide among weaker ones to ambush them.
They finally felt their tension ease when looking at the exit just up ahead.
There were other settler teams gathering there, who were spooked for good when they saw the Magical Corpse Beast running in their direction.
The ruckus lasted until the beast disappeared into the fracture.
“I’m not seeing things, right, guys?” a settler wondered out aloud, “That’s a Magical Corpse Beast of the eighth rank.”
“Someone’s riding it! Who are those people?”
“I think I saw Ye Chenshan up there.”
“Ye Chenshan from Team Polaris? Maybe that’s their leader’s pet?”
…
The appearance of the Magical Corpse Beast aroused more panic at the temporary campsite.
Seeing so many people giving them odd looks, the others in the group all grew embarrassed. Though this was to be expected since the Magical Corpse Beast was way larger than common mounts used by average settlers. Besides, it sure looked dangerous.
Several guards hurried to the scene, then returned to their posts when they saw who were riding the beast.
“Let’s go.” Without waiting, Su Ping told the beast to move on, causing many settlers in their way to quickly back off in either fear or respect.
Most people recognized Fan Ganglie and Ye Chenshan. Soon, they started exchanging gossip.
On heavy but fast steps, the Magical Corpse Beast soon moved out of the camp area.
The group was once again on guard because it was still possible to run into powerful Astral Pets in this Class B barren area. They picked the shortest route so they could reach the base as soon as possible. Since most settlers used this path, wild Astral Pets all knew to stay away, apart from a few ferocious ones that were always looking for trouble.
After eliminating a few more fourth or fifth-rank ferals, they finally saw the lights of the settlers’ base welcoming their successful return.