077 The Minodalen School (4)
Xiu Nan stepped forward and glanced casually.
“Bai Sheng’s speculation reminds me of the theory of the food chain, from which perhaps we can extrapolate to the gods themselves.
If the god in question truly exists...
Sheep eat grass, humans eat sheep. What about gods? Do they eat humans? Yes, but perhaps not entirely. Then what is it?
The most fundamental thing in the world is life! When a life is born, it marks a notch in the ring of fate; when it dies, another notch is carved. Everything between these two marks is the entirety of that life, its whole purpose of existence.
And perhaps this is what the gods truly desire.
Life? Eating them one by one would be too slow...
So, what gods prefer most is the rise and fall of civilizations. From birth, through transformation, to extinction, a civilization, too, carves two marks in the ring of fate. The gap between those marks is an entire era, containing countless brilliant living beings.
Swallowing all of this in one gulp, even a god would feel joy, delight, and even satisfaction.
I cannot write any further; if this is truly the case, it is too terrifying. Today’s essay ends here…”
Xiu Nan frowned, not quite understanding.
He continued flipping through a few more pages, finding only draft-like notes—fragmented keywords recorded here and there.
Turning another page, he came across another essay.
“Today, I chatted idly with Bai Sheng, who told me something: people exist to live for their desires.
Even sages feel hunger and desire food. Even saints, facing death, desire survival. To be born human, how could one be without desire? Desire is the driving force behind all human actions.
It is the origin of progress, reform, and ascent.
Eating is a desire, breathing is a desire, procreation is a desire, existence is a desire. Without desire, one might as well not exist…
Desirelessness, from beginning to end, is a state of pure reason.
And viewed from another angle, the desire for desirelessness is itself a tremendous desire…”
“This Bai Sheng… is he a sage? He sounds more like a philosopher, spouting all these grand theories.” Xiu Nan continued flipping upward, the pages rustling ceaselessly.
Finally, he stopped at the front leaf: Original Sin and Fall, Sacrifice and Redemption, Victory and Eternity, Arrogance and Ignorance.
These four phrases were arranged vertically in gilded letters.
Xiu Nan pinched the cover, sensing something was off. Opening it, he found a thin booklet.
On it was written: “The Minodalen School.”
Foreword: This is the collection of materials gathered throughout my life and that of my disciples. The Minodalen School is dedicated to seeking, protecting, and researching all extreme ring beasts, mutant ring beasts, ancient ring beasts, rare ring beasts, and mythical species…
Xiu Nan noticed the paper was incredibly light—thin as a cicada’s wing. Though the booklet seemed barely thick, it contained hundreds of pages; he wondered what material it was made of.
Turning to the content, he was greeted by a large image.
A translucent blue butterfly, with powdery specks below, apparently representing toxic dust.
Below was a series of textual introductions.
“Crystal Butterfly, One Ring—common throughout the southern part of the Printon Forest. Quite weak, essentially without means of attack. Among thousands, we once found a unique extreme specimen…”
‘Extreme’ means the species has evolved to the limits of its own genetic capacity. This is nearly impossible in nature, facing environmental and predator challenges…
It also requires sufficient intelligence and effort, as creatures are instinctively lazy, seeking convenience…
Extreme Crystal Butterfly Special Ability: Illusion Dust. Its powder can bypass the power of the ring and forcibly affect living beings. Nearly all One-Ring extraordinary species, and some Two-Ring extraordinary species, will be drawn into hallucinations by the dust…
Active Habitat: Most temperate forest peripheries
Active Season: June to September
Ring Beast Capture Difficulty: Rather difficult
Rune Creation Difficulty: D+
Xiu Nan flipped the page; the reverse was blank.
He immediately sensed something unusual, pressing his finger to the page as power from the White Bone Secret Ring surged forth.
In an instant, a rune model appeared before his eyes—a model of the Extreme Crystal Butterfly. With a thought, the model began to spin rapidly.
Shifting perspective, he saw flat schematic diagrams—cross-sections of the Extreme Crystal Butterfly.
Below were numerous instructional notes.
Releasing his finger, Xiu Nan’s face lit up with delight as he continued flipping. Next came mutant ring beasts, including the variant Electric Charge Vulture derived from the Blue-Eyed Vulture.
A note followed: Blue-Eyed Vulture is a mid- to low-level One-Ring extraordinary species with considerable genetic flaws, producing many variants. Among them are Dead-Eye Vulture, Mountain Shield Vulture, Sword Strike Vulture, and so on…
Next came some ancient and rare species.
These ring beasts generally possessed formidable talents, ranging from the earliest One-Ring Bronze Wood to Four-Ring White Mercury.
This indicated that some ancient and rare species could evolve from One Ring all the way to Four Rings, constantly improving.
Their model diagrams, however, were often incomplete; many Four-Ring species had only a description, no diagrams.
Sometimes, there were models for the first and third rings, but not the second. The author noted below that this was a regret of their school, hoping future generations would fill in the gaps.
Flipping to the end, mythical species appeared one by one.
Most had only descriptions, species conjectures, and a possible evolutionary trajectory—after all, they were legendary creatures.
“One Ring: Slime Monster, commonly found in marshy, damp areas, abundant in number, preying on small animals.”
“Two Ring: Rock Monster, leaves the marshes to roam on land, strong defense and notable strength.”
“Three Ring: Rushing Demon, six meters tall, able to wield various weapons. Great vitality, terrifying strength. At full power, can damage rune city walls…”
“Four Ring: Earth Giant, seventy meters tall. Can commune with the mysterious ring to cause earth tides, destroying all ground structures within a kilometer. Left unchecked, it could easily demolish a medium-sized city…”
“Five Ring: Zenith Giant! The true earth deity of myth, mindless and thoughtless, intent only on running. It carries mountains on its back, forever chasing the sun and moon without rest. The aftershocks of its stride bring endless earth tides; wherever it passes, the land cracks and mountains topple…”
As Xiu Nan read, his imagination soared, as if he journeyed back to ancient times, gazing upon that mythic era.
“Rumble… rumble…”
Suddenly, he looked up at the ceiling as dust rained down. Cracks appeared one after another, the ground shaking.
“Could it be… this place is about to collapse?!”
Xiu Nan dashed out the door, finding the entire corridor shaking, fissures spreading across the rock walls.
“Run!!!”