Bab 177: Chapter – 177 - The Yellow Hondana Baktulae's Eggs
The group landed on a very narrow ledge, and the suddenness of this momentum shift made their body slightly unbalanced. They could only cling to the flat cliff wall before their faces till they regained the stability of their footing.
One by one, they all turned to look around their surroundings.
They were currently standing in a single file on a narrow ledge circling around a large mountain cliff. There was another similar mountain in front of them. But the two mountains were separated by a bottomless pit. The cliff wall seemed to run downwards endlessly, disappearing into a black cavity at the bottom. Even staring down could make one dizzy.
Looking around, Rihanna noticed that the mountain itself was made of a silverish-grey stone, and a fine layer of silver dust coated their hands where they touched the cliff-wall. Though the stone was not slippery, the cliff face was too smooth to climb up. The only way to the top was up this narrow ledge.
"Don't look down for too long. If you become dizzy, you might lose your footing and fall."
Uncle Ranaba was at the front, followed by Artreya, then Uncle He, Rihanna, Ye Luo and finally Uncle Yaoi.
"This ledge is too narrow. Keep moving sideways whilst holding onto the cliff wall in a single file. Keep space between each other."
Uncle Yaoi was trying spell, but not getting any response, he frowned.
"It seems like we cannot fly?"
"Hmmm.....spells are not working. I think flying beasts are the only ones who can fly here."
"Then, does this dimension have a special physical law?"
"Maybe. Or maybe there is some barrier restricting spells here. We should find a wider space before figuring out what other restrictions are binding this place."
Though there was not much wind, it was difficult talking as everyone was trying to focus on moving forward without losing their footing. Thus slowly the chitchat quietened, and in silence the group made their way towards the top of the cliff.
However, this smooth-faced cliff was also home to multiple herbs and plants which had excellent medicinal properties. Problem was.....they were either high above the ledge, or way below it.
Going up was still feasible. The uncles would stand at the bottom whilst one of the boys or Rihanna would climb on their shoulders to reach for these plants growing in crevasses, cracks or even holes on the mountain wall.
Going down was more precarious. They would have to rely on the strength of the rope to hang down in mid-air as they chipped around the stone where the herbs were growing.
"Do we have any eggs in our mission list?"
"Eggs?.....Hmmm.....yes. Yellow Hondana Baktulae eggs. And also Red Scalanumori Eggs. Why, do you see one?"
"Look there. Are those yellow eggs? Are those the ones we want?"
Ye Luo had been hanging from the rope, as he dug around a deep crevasse, trying to gently uproot a Crystal Light Essence Plant without tearing its roots. Since he was at a much lower height than the others, none of them could see what exactly he was pointing at.
Finally Uncle He shimmied down another rope, hanging next to Ye Luo whilst checking the area he was pointing to.
The place Ye Luo was pointing to was at a much lower level, and was partially hidden behind a jagged piece of rock jutting out from the mountain wall.
There was a large circular hole, with four smaller circular holes in an arc just above the large hole. When Rihanna finally saw it, it looked like the pug mark of a beast...the pug could make holes onto the stone wall.
And deep inside this large hole, three yellow eggs could barely be seen. The eggs were huge in size, at least five times the size of ostrich eggs. Even the eggs she had eaten in Poison Swamp were way smaller than this.
"If the eggs are here, then the beast must be nearby."
"Shouldn't there be two beasts? Mother and father?"
"No....these beasts do not need to breed to give birth. They can lay eggs themselves. And they lay eggs only once in their lifetime. After the eggs are hatched, and the children grow up, the children eat up their mother for gaining the needed nutrition and elemental powers."
Rihanna felt her lips twitching again. Every time she felt there was nothing more left to shock her.....something inevitably cropped up!
"Then, why do these beasts give birth if that will only lead to such pathetic endings?"
"Because they can't control it. The eggs they produce is created and nurtured within their body through all the elemental energy they absorb for their cultivation. Once the eggs become full of elemental energy, they have to lay the eggs."
"I do think they don't need to remain after laying the eggs, but I guess that is a part of their greed."
Rihanna and Artreya lifted their eyebrows in curiosity at Uncle He, who seemed to be enjoying this story-telling session.
"While they are hatching the eggs, the eggs keep absorbing all the surrounding elemental energy, and then passing it into their mother's body. This is possibly nature's way of making sure that the mother has enough energy and nutrition for when the baby's hatch and need to eat their parent. And due to this, the mother's are unable to leave the eggs."
"Hmmm.....they probably feel that if they absorb enough energy, they'll become powerful enough to kill the babies and escape their fate."
"But then.....how do they die? Surely the newly hatched babies are hardly strong enough to take down such a grown up and powerful beast?"
"That's because, each of these beasts are born with a unique poison. And as soon as the eggs start forming within their bodies, the poison gets activated. The more energy they absorb, the more the energy too starts flowing through the body. Since they absorb a large amount of energy during the hatching process, by the time the kids are hatched, the poison starts taking effect, paralysing their bodies and minds. Even with such large bodies and so much power, they end up becoming nutritious meals for their own children."
Rihanna looked at the eggs again, feeling a shudder passing through her body. What was man before the ruthlessness of nature. Every step was pre-planned....like a well-prepared game!
"But that means.....even if they do realize the trap, and manage to escape after laying the eggs....the poison will still kill them in a short while?"
"Hmmm....this is the fate they are born with. If they want to cultivate, then they have to die."
Everyone shuddered, both in reaction to the scary ending of these creatures...and also in sympathy to their pathetic fates.
"But no matter what happens to them, we still have to stay alert. They are at least high-grade beasts, if not supreme-grade. Not at all easy to handle. All of us together might not be able to take it down. And we need to avoid getting any serious injuries. So it is best if we can steal and run before it senses our existence."
Everyone agreed wordlessly. After a quick look-over, it was decided that Rihanna would go down with Uncle Ranaba and Uncle Yaoi. Uncle He was as powerful as Uncle Ranaba, and so he was tasked to stay back and protect the two boys.
Rihanna pursed her lips in thought, then quickly made a decision. Reaching into her storage space, she brought out the neatly segregated piles of pills and elixir bottles she had made early on. Swiftly, she stuffed them into the hands of her three Uncles.
"I am not exactly very adept in this, but I can make some low level medicines. However, my poison skills are pretty good. Keep them. It might come in handy. And don't worry. I made plenty for all of us."
Uncle Yaoi had already become immune to her sudden wide-balls, especially after what he himself witnessed inside Dark Forest. However, Uncle Ranaba and Uncle He were both pretty shocked to find out that not only could she cultivate, but also had some talent in medicine and poison! She was barely 13. When in the world did she get time to dabble in so many directions?!
Uncle Yaoi turned his head away to hide his smirk. Hah! You still don't know she is also a mental ability user. Wait for the next level shock!
After moving onwards following the path of the ledge for a while longer, they finally reached a point which was closest to the cave just below them. Attaching their ropes to deep crevasses on the rock wall, like a pro-mountaineer, Uncle Ranaba swiftly went down till he was hanging in the air, just over the cave opening.
Rihanna went down next, followed closely by Uncle Yaoi. Hanging around the entrance, they inspected the space behind the cave. Letting out her sensory perception, Rihanna realised that the beast was no where within the vicinity. Was this supposed to be strange? Or had the beast gone to catch itself some meal?
Once all three were certain that there was no danger within the cave, Uncle Yaoi helped Rihanna to land on the rough edged opening of the cave. Uncle Ranaba still hung above the cave, keeping a watch around.
PERTIMBANGAN PENCIPTA 
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