Interstellar Farming: I Make Potions and Climb to the Top

The Earth Fire Flame Heart Lotus, a special Spirit Plant that only grows in lava, has always been exceedingly rare.

The lotus seeds of the Earth Fire Flame Heart Lotus were a special Spirit Plant that could help a Fire Companion Spirit advance. They were also one of the ingredients used to concoct the Fire Element Energy Genetic Correction Potion.

All seven of these Earth Fire Flame Heart Lotuses had already produced mature seeds. Judging by their appearance, the quality of these plants was excellent.

Besides the Earth Fire Flame Heart Lotuses, the densely packed Earth Fire Crystals were also incredibly rare. Earth Fire Crystals contained potent Earth Fire Energy. These fist-sized crystals were gradually formed under the immense pressure of the earth’s core, repeatedly scorched by lava. No one knew how many eons they had been buried underground to form such limpid, crystalline stones.

Earth Fire Crystals of this size were light and compact, yet they contained immense energy. They were perfect as a power source for personal weapons. A personal weapon equipped with an Earth Fire Crystal would have a killing power on par with heavy ordnance like an Energy Cannon.

Moreover, Earth Fire Crystals could also be installed on a Mecha’s integrated weapons. A single crystal could drastically increase a Mecha’s destructive power.

In short, as a high-end energy source, Earth Fire Crystals were exceedingly scarce and precious. And yet, there were so many of them here. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Lin Mo watched Ning Xuan fly to the center of the pit and broke out in a cold sweat. He channeled his Bloodline Energy to form a Protective Shield under his feet and began walking along the crater’s edge in her direction.

"Hiss... so hot." Even with the Protective Shield, Lin Mo could feel a wave of heat from below that felt like it could melt the flesh from his bones.

Lan Xin and the Little Fox both stood on the outskirts, looking up at Ning Xuan with worry.

Only Di Youlin and Qinghe were unafraid of the lava’s heat. Di Youlin flapped his wings and flew to Ning Xuan’s side. "Master, I’ll go gather Earth Fire Crystals for you. Do you want to get on my back?" He had already plucked the few feathers that had been corroded. Luckily, he had so many that losing a few wasn’t noticeable.

Qinghe had already entered the crater to gather Earth Fire Crystals, with Yun Han joining her.

The Flying Disc under Ning Xuan’s feet was made of transparent Flying Elephant Ant Wings, rendering it completely invisible. As a result, when Ning Xuan hovered in the air on the disc, she appeared to be levitating on her own power. This left Tang Xue and the others astonished by her strength.

Normally, a Spirit Controller could only hover for a short time after their spiritual power reached SSS-level. Di Youlin could fly because he had wings.

"There’s no need. Just focus on gathering the Earth Fire Crystals. I’ll be fine," Ning Xuan replied, knowing he was worried about her safety.

Ning Xuan rode the Flying Disc into the crater. With a wave of her hand, hundreds of vines shot forth. The tip of each vine split into three prongs, forking like a trident into the crevices between the crystals. Then, with a single pull, she harvested the Earth Fire Crystals.

Yun Han, Qinghe, and Di Youlin watched as the vines Ning Xuan had summoned rapidly harvested the Earth Fire Crystals. All three were inwardly amazed.

’These vines are actually expert miners.’

The three of them then threw themselves into the urgent work of mining as well.

As for the others, once they confirmed the crater was safe, they equipped themselves with heat-resistant suits and other gear, then bravely entered to mine the Earth Fire Crystals.

Although this part of the forest was vast, there were no other large Exotic Beasts aside from the Earth Fire Lava Python. Ning Xuan and her team mined the Earth Fire Crystals while simultaneously exploring the surrounding area. In just three days, they had finished both mining the crystals and surveying the region.

After Ning Xuan’s group stored all the Earth Fire Crystals in their Space Artifacts, the temperature of the lava field dropped.

The massive crater left from excavating the Earth Fire Crystals became their temporary camp.

「Three days later.」

They continued their advance deeper into the Dark Forest.

The deeper part of the Dark Forest was not much different from the section they had already traversed. There were still trees that could spray poisonous mist, inexplicable black rifts in space, and Exotic Beasts hiding in the darkness, ready to launch a surprise attack at any moment.

Even beyond the Dark Forest, in the normal regions not shrouded in darkness, danger lurked. She still felt a lingering fear from an assassination attempt she had faced there, one from a creature whose power was no less than the Earth Fire Lava Python’s.

Ning Xuan looked at the map in her hand, comparing it with the one on the table.

Of the two maps, one had been drawn by Lan Xin and the other by Zhang Nan. Though their artistic styles differed, the maps they produced and the events they recorded along the way were both accurate.

"Contractor, you must be tired. You’re amazing! You mined at least half of these crystals yourself, didn’t you?" Lin Mo, still in his heat-resistant suit, sidled up to Ning Xuan and said fawningly.

His Mecha was only equipped with Third-class Energy, whereas Earth Fire Crystals were Super Energy. ’If Ning Xuan just gives me a few,’ he thought, ’my Mecha’s destructive power will skyrocket.’

"If you have something to say, just say it. Don’t make idle chatter," Ning Xuan said, seeing how he was staring unblinkingly at the ring that held the Earth Fire Crystals. She knew exactly what he was after.

"These are Earth Fire Crystals. They’ll be distributed to you all later. Now, get back to work." Ning Xuan waved her hand dismissively.

Exploring this Dark Forest had taken a full twenty-seven days. It had been a long time, but Ning Xuan had successfully led her team to complete the map of the Dark Forest, and they had reaped many rewards along the way.

Ning Xuan checked the countdown on her locator. There were still twenty-three days until the end of the assessment. Before it was over, she needed to upload the map of the Dark Forest to the terminal, accumulate more Merit Points, and sell off the Exotic Beast Materials she had gathered to exchange for supplies.

The closest safe zone to the Dark Forest was still Zone 13.

"Master, we’ve worked so hard and finally finished the mission. We’ll probably have to go back soon. Why don’t I take you out for another flight? You can get a good look at this world," Di Youlin said to Ning Xuan. He wanted to earn some more brownie points with her before they had to return.

Although Ning Xuan’s Flying Disc allowed her to hover and even fly for short distances, she couldn’t manage sustained flight or fly at high altitudes.

The thought of the beautiful scenery she had once seen from high in the sky filled her with a sense of longing.

Just as Ning Xuan was hesitating, the locator on her wrist suddenly buzzed and a holographic projection automatically unfolded.

A dark red totem appeared, marking the location of the extraction zone. Countless points of light flared to life, projecting a massive three-dimensional star map over the area. The location indicated by the star map was the exact coordinates for the rendezvous point after the assessment concluded.