Endless Evolution: Last Star Chapter 1899: The Unheard Voice and the Giant Oyster

~4 minute read · 1,118 words
Previously on Endless Evolution: Last Star...
Adam encounters a giant serpent, Prasyx, guarding a grove of Lucent Pears. After a misunderstanding, they discover a shared goal: reaching the Grand Abyss. Prasyx identifies a critical flaw in Adam's Obsidian Compass, revealing its danger analyzer is broken.

The Obsidian Compass didn’t just point the way to a passage. It was also capable of indicating just how dangerous a particular passage was.

This was a crucial feature, especially for those who had never been to the Grand Abyss before and didn’t possess enough power to make it irrelevant.

But, unfortunately for Adam, this feature was no longer working on his compass, as a huge serpent guarding the glowing pears growing amid the grim sea had told him.

"Agh. Well, I figured something might have gone wrong. I sensed that its aura had changed." Adam sighed heavily.

Prasyx nodded, returning the compass to Adam.

"Unfortunately, there’s no way I can fix it. But I can give you some advice instead."

"Hmm?" Adam looked up as a gleam appeared in his eyes.

"When you reach a passage, if it looks unremarkable and peaceful, don’t go there under any circumstances. If you had a fully functional Obsidian Compass and saw the blue light, that would be a different story, but for now, you’d be best off sticking to this strategy."

"Hmm?"

Adam tilted his head in confusion.

"Are you suggesting I avoid the safest-looking options? Which passages should I go through, then?"

Prasyx grinned widely as, for a moment, his true aura shone through, the aura of a serpent that had lived in this world for nearly two thousand years. Well, he had more important things to do right now, he was growing pears.

"The most dangerous ones, the ones that look as if an ancient dragon is sitting there, ready to devour you the moment you cross the border. No, seriously, that’s the best advice I can give you."

Prasyx straightened up, his massive body towering over the island.

"Others always avoid these passages. It can take decades before someone decides to go in there, only to discover that the passage hasn’t been dangerous for a long time, or never was at all.

He swished his tail, its tip pointing at Adam, trembling slightly.

"At the same time, many take advantage of inexperienced newcomers like you."

"What do you mean? Do you think I can’t handle a few sea monsters?" Adam frowned as he crossed his arms over his chest. "As long as there aren’t two serpents like you, I’ll be fine."

"True." Prasyx waved his tail nonchalantly.

He knew far more about this place than Adam did. After all, Prasyx had lived here for the past several decades, or even longer.

"But I’m talking about those bastards who deliberately hide near the safe-looking passages. You’re pretty quick on your feet, Adam, but against someone stronger than a Viscount, you don’t stand a chance."

Adam stared ahead for a moment. He hadn’t given it much thought.

"Tsk. I should’ve guessed something like this was here. They’re just hunting down those who don’t even suspect the threat in the passages, right?"

"Yeah. By the way, you’re close to creating the Third Grand Star, aren’t you?" Prasyx asked suddenly.

Adam raised an eyebrow, looking at the great serpent suspiciously.

"Did you figure that out just from my aura?"

"Something like that. Also, your eyes are full of a desire to fight and move forward. Most K4-Phantoms with an aura at your level have completely different, empty, and emotionless stares. They’ve realized they’ll likely never be able to break through the barrier to the Second Circle."

Prasyx smirked as a glint flashed across his large green eyes.

"You still haven’t reached the barrier, right?"

"Pffft! That won’t happen to me! I’m definitely going to be the next Second Rank Phantom!"

"Good for you. When you reach the passage, I advise you to listen to your Path Construct. You must go where your Third Grand Star leads you. If I were in your shoes, that’s exactly what I’d do."

Perhaps if Adam’s Obsidian Compass hadn’t been damaged, this wouldn’t have been the best advice, but in his situation, it was worth listening to Prasyx.

"I see." Adam nodded, a bitter smile appearing on his face. "This was an unexpected encounter, but thank you for your advice. And... if I can, I’ll come back here to try your Lucent Pears."

"Just one!" Prasyx exclaimed as if Adam were trying to rob him.

Adam scratched the back of his head.

"Sure. I wasn’t going to take any more. Judging by how you react every time, you’ve put a lot of effort into each of these pears."

"Pffft! Of course!" Prasyx exclaimed proudly, tilting his head back.

Then, Prasyx looked at Adam, then at his island, and back at Adam.

"Hmm... You know, maybe I can help you with more than just advice."

"What do you mean?"

"Speed. You’re pretty slow, aren’t you?" Prasyx asked, pointing at Adam with his tip.

Adam’s eye twitched. He’d always thought he didn’t have a problem with that, but there was some truth to Prasyx’s words.

"Traveling between islands takes you quite a long time. I can help you with that, so you can reach more of the passages."

"I assume this service isn’t free?"

Prasyx smirked.

"No pressure, but if you happen to come across the Abyss Pearl at the Abyss, I’d like you to bring me one."

Adam gave Prasyx a long look before taking a deep breath.

"Fine, but I’m not promising anything."

"Sure, and as a bonus, I’ll show you something else. Since you’re new to places like this, I don’t think you’ve seen it yet."

"Hmm?"

Adam gave him a questioning look, while Prasyx just smirked in response.

Then, Prasyx parted its jaws as its pupils slowly narrowed.

Ripple. Ripple. Ripple.

A slight tremor rippled through the air, but for some reason, it sent a shiver down Adam’s spine.

’What? What is this strange feeling?’

Adam felt as though Prasyx was saying something, but he couldn’t hear it. It wasn’t a situation where he didn’t understand the other language. He simply couldn’t hear what Prasyx was saying, even though he understood what was happening.

Tremble!

The surface of the water quivered as a massive oyster rose to the surface. It was the size of a ship and could move even faster.

"That little one can take you anywhere. Just don’t forget to feed it."

"Huh..." Adam smiled as he looked at the oyster. "Well, maybe things aren’t so bad after all. I’ve never ridden a giant oyster before."