Chapter 332 - 289: The Frogman Race’s Goodies (Part 2)

"This is not your fault, outsiders. On the contrary," the Frogman Clan Leader said, waving his hand, "this is the ultimate fate of our clan, croak."

He saw the questioning looks in Shire and Pazani's eyes, so without waiting for them to ask, he raised a finger and pointed outside the building. "Our Frogman Race has always lived here in this underground world, for who knows how long. We originally relied on the various creatures in the pool outside to fill our bellies, croak."

The Clan Leader gently patted his own round, bulging white belly. "The algae, fish, and the eggs and larvae laid by insects in there—they were all our food. Unfortunately, the water temperature in the pool is too low and not very suitable for hatching our clan's eggs. So, our clan has only managed to barely sustain itself, croak."

"Then why do you say you're dying out?"

"Perhaps it was the malice of a Divine Being," the Clan Leader said, sighing as he stroked his white belly. "I don't know when it started, but a monster fish appeared in the pool. It's enormous, and it attacks and eats us. This has caused heavy casualties among our clansmen who enter the water to fish and hunt. More critically, we can only lay our eggs in the water. With this monster fish around, we can't hatch the next generation at all, croak."

"A monster fish?" Shire recalled what Wa Er San Wu Qi Yi had said before. That murky pool was called the Lake of Darkness, and that fellow had indeed mentioned some kind of big fish.

"But now, you are truly our saviors," the Clan Leader said. He sat upright on the white stone platform, hands braced on either side as he leaned forward and lowered his head slightly. It was clear his round, bulging white belly made the movement somewhat difficult. "We can finally leave this underground space and find a new body of water to live in, croak."

"Can you tell me about that monster fish?" Shire asked, waiting until the Clan Leader had settled back into his seat.

"It's a large, extremely ugly fish with three vertically aligned eyes and four strong tentacles. It's always lurking at the bottom of the lake, but as soon as any creature enters the water, it senses them," the Frogman Clan Leader said slowly. "Furthermore, it seems to have some strange Ability that makes its enemies unconsciously submit to its influence and swim continuously toward the bottom, croak."

As Shire's brows furrowed, the Clan Leader continued, "We've tried to organize our clansmen to attack it before, but unfortunately, those warriors seemed to fall into a strange Illusion Realm. They just dove straight into the deep water and never reappeared. They must have all been eaten by that monster fish, croak."

"I don't know if this is the monster fish's power or if it's caused by the four strange stone carvings at the bottom of the lake. But our clan has been unable to defeat it, even after paying a great price, croak."

'The monster fish's power... strange stone carvings?' Shire repeated the Clan Leader's words. The part that caught his attention was the phrase "stone carvings." "What kind of stone carvings are they?"

The Clan Leader thought for a long moment before raising his hand and gesturing in the air. "I saw them back when I was young, when I dove into the water, croak."

Shire watched the other's webbed fingers wave through the air, but he couldn't make out the pattern at all. After a moment's thought, he excused himself and walked out of the black, egg-shaped building. He returned shortly after. "Take a look. Does it look like this?"

He handed over a leather belt engraved with Rune Language: Mind, pointing to the pattern on it as he asked.

The Clan Leader took the belt, staring at it with the two cloudy eyes on top of his head. After nearly a minute, he returned it to Shire. "It's very similar, but it's not the same as the pattern on here, croak."

"I understand." Shire nodded. 'It seems there's a new Rune Speech at the bottom of the lake. I don't know what it does specifically. Is it related to that monster fish? But its effect seems quite powerful—this ability to Control the minds of other creatures. I don't know if it's the monster fish's Ability or an Ability from the Rune Speech.'

'Unfortunately, if I want to go into the water to see for myself, I'll have to kill that monster fish. Otherwise, rushing in would guarantee an attack.'

"I assume that since you've always lived in this underground cavern, you've probably never been to the surface," Shire said. After some thought, he had decided to continue gathering information for now.

"It's not that we've never been out," the Clan Leader said, slapping the stone platform with a desolate tone. "There are two outlets in the pool that connect to an outside river, providing a way out. But the entrance is very narrow, only allowing one Frogman to pass through at a time, and the river is extremely long. In the past, only a few of our ancestral warriors managed to get out that way to learn about the outside world. But ever since the monster fish appeared, that only passage has been blocked, croak."

"So, we really are here to lead you away from this place," Shire said with a smile, pointing to the silent Pazani beside him. "He is the king of the Naga Race. You may not have heard of the Naga, but they are also a very ancient Race, once known as the 'Shepherds of the Sea.' They now live in a lake not too far from here. I think if you're willing, you could move in and live with them."

"The Naga Race? Croak." The Frogman Clan Leader turned his head to size up Pazani, who offered a faint smile. The leader did not make an immediate decision.

"Then, you'll be able to hatch your eggs in the lake, and you won't have to live in these cramped little stone houses anymore," Shire said, glancing at the black wall beside him as he continued to persuade the leader.

"These little huts were built by us Frogmen. They are our homes, not just some stone houses, croak," the Clan Leader slowly corrected Shire.

"You built them?" Shire was surprised. 'These Frogmen can build structures like this? With just those crooked Stone Spears?'

"Yes," the Frogman Clan Leader said, straightening his back slightly. "We just have to mix the mucus from our bodies with algae from the water, then add in small stones and soil to build houses like these."

"Mucus?" Shire frowned. He recalled the layer of mucus on Wa Er San Wu Qi Yi's body. 'The Frogman Clan Leader before me is probably old and doesn't secrete much of it. No wonder he doesn't look as glossy as the other Frogmen.'

He stood up, approached the wall, and reached out to touch its black surface. He could feel it was pitted and uneven, with many small stones making it rough to the touch. "Are you saying your Frogman Race mixed mucus and algae, added soil and gravel, and then let it harden into this shape?"

The Frogman Clan Leader said nothing, simply nodding with a smile. It was clear he was very proud that his Race could achieve such a feat.

"Do you still have any of this material," Shire asked, turning to stare at the Frogman Clan Leader, "or rather, can you still produce it?"

"Of course we can," the Frogman Clan Leader nodded. "After all, it's mixed using the mucus from our own bodies. We just have to scrape it off and then drink water to replenish it. The only issue is that the algae needs time to grow, and now that the pool is occupied by the monster fish, we can't cultivate it anymore, croak."

"In that case, I'll find a way to help you kill that monster fish," Shire said earnestly. Beside him, the silent Pazani nudged him with his tail and then gave him a look, signaling for him to come outside and talk.

The two of them quickly went outside the black, egg-shaped building. "Are you really going to help them kill that monster fish?" Pazani asked.

"Yes."

"Why? Just because that monster fish ate a lot of Frogmen? Isn't it enough to just lead them out of here?"

"No, you don't understand," Shire said, waving his hand dismissively. "First, I want to go into the lake to check out those new Rune Speech, and that requires killing the monster fish. But more importantly, the Frogmen's mucus, when mixed with algae, can be made into a powerful building material."

"Its name is cement."