I created the myth of the Great Old Ones.

It definitely smells like bedbugs.

He reaffirmed it.

Then, Lu Ban took a bite.

"Ok?"

To his complete surprise, the taste was like seafood that had been dead for several days, fermented and rotten, then thrown into a pot, boiled, and then dipped in wasabi soy sauce before being eaten.

The flavor is truly indescribable by words like "delicious" or any of its synonyms.

Especially when the meat went down his throat, Lu Ban could even feel it throbbing.

In fact, even when roasted over a fire, the insect flesh continued to wriggle, as if it felt it could still be saved.

When Xi Ya saw Lu Ban's ashen face, she subconsciously stopped the meat skewer she was about to put into her mouth.

"What's wrong? You won't have any energy tomorrow if you don't eat your fill."

The big shot urged him on.

Under his eager gaze, Sia swallowed and gently bit off a piece of the worm meat.

Puff puff puff—

As she bit into it, the worm suddenly struggled violently, like a carp trying to escape from a fish tank.

"Ha, this piece of meat looks very fresh. You're in luck. Fresh meat always tastes good."

"I'm quite envious," the giant said.

It took the female mage a bit of effort to get the meat completely into her mouth, and Lu Ban could even see the meat twitching in her cheeks while she was chewing.

"……tasty!"

However, when Xia swallowed the piece of meat completely, the expression on her face suddenly lit up.

"?"

Lu Ban was puzzled.

He saw Xia's delighted expression as she savored the taste of the insect meat, as if it were some kind of tomahawk steak or high-end roast meat.

Could this person be the kind of person who pretends to eat something that tastes bad in order to trick others into continuing to eat it?

Lu Ban pondered.

Xia took another bite of the bouncy insect meat, and in less than three minutes, she finished the whole piece.

"The taste is really good, it makes me feel full of life, it's just like my mother's cooking."

The mage girl patted her belly...the armor on her belly, and said contentedly.

"Haha, looks like you're someone who can enjoy this meat. You're so lucky!"

The giant hand laughed heartily, then tore off another piece of worm meat. Without grilling it, it chewed it dry, making a crisp chewing sound.

"Could it be... really delicious?"

Lu Ban put the piece in his hand aside, then specially picked out a clump of lively insect meat, glanced at it, closed his eyes, and took a bite.

With a glug, Lu Ban swallowed the piece of meat.

"...Our sense of taste, or yours, is definitely afflicted with a serious illness."

This is how he described Sia.

As the campfire burned, Lu Ban and Xi Ya volunteered to keep watch. The two sat by the fire, while the three wilderness hunters slept separately, wrapped in blankets, as if they could wake up at any moment. Their camel-like riding vehicles were tethered near their luggage.

This was Lu Ban's first time spending the night in the desert. He looked up at the starry sky and found that the star map of this world was very different from that of Earth. He tried to find Aldebaran, but he found nothing.

At that moment, Sia, who had been resting with her eyes closed, suddenly opened them.

"It's a new day."

She said this, and then took an old book out of her bosom.

Turning to one of the pages of the book, Sia began to slowly murmur something, as if she were praying.

"What are you doing?"

Lu Ban asked a question.

Xia didn't answer. Instead, she waited several minutes to finish reading before closing the book and looking at him.

"I am praying for the spell I will use today."

Chapter 177 Your Belief is Your Magic

"Pray for a spell?"

Lu Ban has seen many movies with magic themes, but most fantasy movies do not show the details of the magic settings of that world in detail.

Or he might chant a spell and his staff would start glowing, capable of collapsing a bridge with a single blow.

Or they'll shout "Avada Kedavra" and devour a giant melon, and a flash of green light will kill you.

Or perhaps you simply wear some kind of pendant and strike some strange poses to turn back time.

As for how magic works and how it is cast, that's all subjective.

Of course, your belief is your magic, and magic is inherently a matter of the mind.

He was a little curious.

"Do you need to pray when you use magic where you're from?"

"Yes, we need to pray to the gods for spells after midnight every day, and then the gods will grant us spells that we can use. These spells can be used infinitely throughout the day."

Xia nodded slightly.

"However, this other world is very far from my world, and the gods' response is somewhat slow. I can only exert about 70% of my strength."

She raised her armored hand and snapped her fingers.

A kind of invisible ripple spread through the space, and he only felt a gentle breeze, not knowing what was happening.

“I just used a detection spell that can detect threats within a hundred meters... Hmm, something seems to be sleeping beneath the desert. Hopefully, we won't disturb it.”

"Amazing!"

Lu Ban clapped softly, then asked a question.

"So, can you knead bread now?"

"...I...I did not pray for the creation of food."

Sia said, as if she were very apologetic.

"Can't you use the corresponding magic without praying? Is magic really such an inconvenient thing?"

Lu Ban found it very strange.

"Magic is not something that humans can easily access. Only gods can bestow extraordinary powers. Before the Gray Tower was built, we suffered greatly from the magical tides of the Black Forest. Under the leadership of the founder of the Gray Tower, humans gradually came into contact with miracles, turning magic, which was originally only usable by a few chosen ones, into a miracle that mortals could also touch."

Shea spoke with great reverence, suggesting that the founder of the Gray Tower and his actions had indeed improved the living environment of the Night Kingdom.

"So what spell did you pray for?"

Lu Ban asked another question.

"That's a secret."

Xia did not answer.

"In the Kingdom of Night, what spells a mage can pray for, and what spells they pray for each day, is an absolute secret. Because if you know what spells a mage can use today, you can target their weaknesses. So even my teacher, I will not tell him what spells I prayed for today!"

She explained it very carefully.

"Alright, hopefully you have some combat spells."

Lu Ban didn't inquire in detail. Ultimate science and magic are no different, and vice versa. So-called magic is probably just changing things in a way that transcends common sense. He thought that what Xia had mastered was probably just spells like fireballs and blizzards, like rocket launchers and mortars, which could just grind enemies to dust and that was it.

"Speaking of which, can someone from your world, like me, pray to your gods to obtain magic?"

He was somewhat eager to try it out.

"I haven't tried that before..."

Sia seemed stumped by the question. She pondered for a moment, then turned the pages of the book, intently searching for something.

The firelight illuminated her profile, revealing her emerald green eyes that shone brightly—a color Lu Ban had never seen before.

He waited for a long time, maybe half an hour, but the girl in armor was still flipping through the books.

Lu Ban felt he might not be able to wait any longer, so he stood up and looked at the scenery at the edge of the sand dune.

Even when the people around her disappeared, Xia didn't react at all, seemingly immersed in the joy of reading.

Lu Ban pinched a handful of sand. The sand was silvery and finer than the sand on the beach. It flowed easily through his fingers without sticking to his skin.

Curious, he pinched some more and tasted it with his tongue.

"It tastes like sand."

Spitting out the sand, Lu Ban looked at the wasteland under the starlight.

There was no moon or city lights in this world, which made the stars shine even brighter. Only then did he realize that there were no clouds in the sky. Looking into the distance, the entire night sky was like obsidian, pure and dazzling.

However, beyond the horizon, there was nothing but sand, endless dunes forming a monotonous landscape that contrasted sharply with the colorful starry sky.

"Do the people of this strange land live in this desert? But how do they ensure their water and food supply? Do they really all eat insects? I saw water reserves in the camel packs, so it seems there must be other terrain besides the desert, maybe even an oasis."

He was thinking.

However, none of this is relevant to his mission. The nameless city, a treasure-filled ruin, is definitely in the desert. Considering the mission, he just needs to avoid encountering other wasteland hunters.

Back by the campfire, Lu Ban saw that Xia was still flipping through a book.

"...Actually, I'm not that obsessed with using magic, so you don't need to look for it anymore."

He patted Sia on the shoulder.

The girl is reading.

Nothing happens.