The Alchemist's Guide to Flesh and Blood Ascension

That murmur was the echo of Zehrhalan, the creatures that did not survive when the Morse Desert was dried up by the scorching sun.

The sea-drying worms survived the catastrophe by feeding on the remains of those creatures.

Therefore, it is also a container that carries the dregs of the old era, and has lived on to this day in a despicable way, carrying the desire of those creatures for water.

"Those black things... they've tightened their grip even more," Iseria frowned, still staring intently at the mutated Sea Drought Worm.

The primordial magical energy veins on the calamity insect's body quickly turned pitch black, as if ink had stained clear water. The blood that had been torn from the vent had stopped flowing out and instead began to gush out wave after wave of dense, dark purple mist.

The faces of those who died from the famine appeared and disappeared in the mist, howling, struggling, and expressing their longing for life.

Yunevo's expression was somewhat grave. If this thing were to completely complete its second-stage transformation...

This dried-up sea, located at a branch of the golden trade route, is likely to become a true "death zone".

He looked at the still spreading purple mist, unsure whether to advance or retreat... until a flash of inspiration struck him.

Yes, this thing hides underground all day long, and its so-called hearing and perception have long been adapted to low-frequency vibrations—specialized for sensing and ambushing prey.

The carapace is incredibly hard, but the soft tissues that encase it are a different story.

The winding roots of the 【Roots of the Sand Sea】 are still buried beneath the yellow sand, outlining half of the calamity worm's shape... What he needs to do is to firmly attach those "roots" to the calamity worm's body, sending the energy as "vibration" through its carapace...

It causes resonance in the internal organs of the pests!

"Iseria! Do you remember what I told you about...resonance?" Yunevo shouted, then closed his eyes and focused on feeling the subtle pulsations within the calamity insect's body.

The girl understood and erected a sky-blue barrier to protect the two of them, buying as much time as possible for Yunefu.

The aura of the plague insect grew increasingly solid, and a suffocating feeling swept over us. It was time for it to "break out of its cocoon"—also the time when the plague insect was most vulnerable.

Just the right time!

The crystallized sand layer structure means it doesn't possess the same shock-absorbing properties as common sand layers, and what Yonevo needs to do is to repeatedly decompose the force of the [slam]...

Until the tremors are strong enough to shatter the very liver and gallbladder of that scourge!

Yunefu bit his fingertip and quickly sketched a disintegration array on the ground. The sandstorm that blocked out the sun was preventing the blood from evaporating, and the crystallized sand also ensured that the array would not dissipate immediately!

[Strike!]

He slammed his fist into the ground, and the powerful impact immediately passed through the decomposition array that acted as a "sieve," transforming into energy vibrations attached to the [Root of the Sand Sea] that headed towards the calamity insects!

A heart-wrenching roar rang out!

Dark green blood with a pungent odor seeped from the gaps in the insect's still-unhardened carapace!

It writhed in agony on the ground, its foul-smelling mouth spewing out rotten liquid mixed with fragments of its organs. After struggling for a short while, it breathed its last!

"Yonev!" Iselia exclaimed.

Even though the etheric elements under Iseria's command surrounded the two of them early on...

However, the vibrations that traveled along the [Root of the Sand Sea] naturally spread to both ends, and as the vibration frequency continued to decrease, it naturally reached a level that could damage human internal organs...

The black-robed alchemist who was the epicenter eventually couldn't hold on any longer and knelt on the ground, spitting out a mouthful of blood!

"Don't worry about me," Yunevo said, stopping the anxious Iserlia. "Let's check if that thing is really dead..."

With a determined look, Iseria grabbed Yunevo and pulled him toward the gradually calming sandstorm.

The sea-dried worm lay dead in the very center of the deep pit, its mouthparts still gushing blood, but it had already lost all life.

"Thank goodness..." Yunefu breathed a sigh of relief, gently freeing himself from Iseria, and pointed to the sand worm's abdomen. "Iseria, could you... cut it open here?"

The girl did as instructed.

Yunefu then staggered toward that place, first making a small opening in the soft armor, and after expelling the poisonous blood and gas from the calamity insect's body, he then attached his hands to [Rubber Skin] and tore open that small wound with [Strike].

"Iseria... In fact, our current reputation is enough to protect us from being cursed by those hiding in the shadows."

"I know..." Iseria nodded, ran to Yunevo's side, and whispered, "I believe you won't do those meaningless things."

Yonivore coughed twice and then laughed: "Remember what I told you about... isotope labeling?"

"The history of the Morse Desert is severely fragmented, and the accounts of those ancient inhabitants are highly subjective."

"If we want to obtain an objective historical truth... the best option is to find the original memories of this land."

"And the stomach of the calamity worm, to be precise... the ancient demonic source remaining in its stomach, is exactly the sample we need."

The Sea-Dried Worm is indeed a creature that has existed since ancient times, with a very long life span and a long period of dormancy... its energy cycle is extremely slow.

It was only in recent years, with its increasingly intense activity, that this branch of the golden trade route gradually ceased to be used.

Yonivore now understands why this thing is so active.

In short, once this thing is full and has enough energy, it should try to make its surroundings quieter so it can pupate and evolve.

We have the church and the "royal family" of Zehrharan to thank for feeding us; the pure magical energy they possess is a delicacy for the scourge.

However, Yunevo also had to thank them; it wasn't them who had been causing trouble for this insect every now and then...

The pests wouldn't enter their pupation preparation period at this time. They would be forced to pupate on the spot during the battle, and then be ambushed by Yunevo, losing their lives there.

"Pinching her nose, Iseria... this stomach really stinks," Yunefu pulled out the entire stomach of the calamity worm, wrapped it two or three times with anti-corrosion cloth from Tus Academy, and then put it into her storage bag with peace of mind.

Then, he sighed again, looked at the enormous sandworm head, and decided to just break off one of its teeth and take a picture in front of it...

Go back and give those guys who might still have ulterior motives a warning.