The instructor was an elite. Cultivators at the Body Stage were referred to as an elite in their Clan. Elites were in charge of the overall security of the herd. As a result, they worked tirelessly.
The fact that he spent ten minutes of his time watching a play was a statement enough.
As he thought about it, Inala understood the instructor's nod at the end, 'He expressed that his time spent watching the play was worth it. That's a good sign.'
That was enough to boost his confidence as Inala packed up the stall and returned to his room.
Staring at the mess he made on the floor, he groaned, 'I'm never going to clean this. My bones healed only recently. They'll fracture if I bother scraping off all the hardened mud and clay.'
Knock! Knock!
It was nighttime already. He knew who the visitor was. Followed by a sigh, he infused his Prana into two Spirit Weapons. Immediately, the false mud doors he had installed in the room moved, covering most of the room.
Inala opened the door and greeted Grehha, "You're right on the dot as usual."
"Let's get this done with." Saying so, Grehha dragged in two unconscious Mud Vipers, "Be careful. Don't damage them."
"I know," Rolling his eyes at the words he had heard a dozen times by now, Inala gently inserted a Spirit Weapon into the mouth of the Mud Viper and activated his Toxin Refinement Skill. He was careful to not harm it, gasping in exhaustion a couple of minutes later.
He wiped his sweat and brought out the Spirit Weapon, causing it to pour out the refined Mud Viper Tonic into a vial. Ten millilitres of the tonic had been created.
"Onto the second one," Grehha patted the second Mud Viper hurriedly.
"Let me take a breather." After ten minutes, he used the Toxin Refinement Skill to create another ten millilitres of Mud Viper Tonic.
Observing the twenty millilitres of the tonic excitedly, Grehha commented nonchalantly, "You know, even if you provide me twenty millilitres every day, we'll still be short of a litre after a year. Isn't our deal eight litres?"
"That's your issue," Inala snorted, "If you want more, bring more Mud Vipers. Besides, I'm only doing this out of the fairness of my heart. We haven't notarised our deal or anything, so I'm not legally accountable. Don't expect me to create it out of thin air."
"And I definitely won't share the tonic I make from mine."
"I know, I know, sheesh." Raising his hand, Grehha intended to leave. He then stared at the mud walls blocking most of the room, displaying an area the same as the rooms of the rest of the students in the dorm. 'He's hiding everything he's been up to. Well, if I gave it my all, I can defeat him and pry open his secrets. But I might sustain damage too. Damn, this disease. It'll push back my plans and make me spend more resources on recovery. The other bastards might overtake me using the chance.'
"Don't even bother," Inala snorted upon observing Grehha's intentions, "I'll beat you up if you try."
"Can you?" Grehha laughed mockingly and unleashed his Prana.
'T-Twenty Seven Prana?' Inala was shocked. Grehha had been gaining one Prana every two days. That was the fastest speed after the regressor.
"I'm double yours." Grehha spoke calmly, "If we fight, I have enough means to defeat you. Well, the only reason I don't is because any injury I face might cause the Prana I built up to collapse."
"It's not worth it." He slowly closed the door, "But the day I get the cure…"
It needn't be said. There only existed one cure. The one that obtains it will soar in strength. To avoid any potential threat to their future rise, they'll purge the rest of the reincarnates, including the regressor.
Even the regressor will be fighting for the same cure. So, the upcoming bloodbath was unavoidable.
The door shut slowly, but it felt like a loud slam in his mind, causing Inala's mood to worsen, 'You think your plan is superior?'
"Let's see about that." Snorting in response, he pushed aside the false mud doors and began to work on his mini theatre. Based on the feedback he received from the audience, he worked on improving the experience.
He also restocked the toxins within the bone containers and even carved out a large plaque to make his stall stand out more.
Inala's Comedy Troupe!
The name was simple and it showed what his stall was about. Just as he was working on the finishing touches, there was a knock on the door once again, 'Who the heck is visiting now?'
Grehha was his only visitor over the past month. So, he was curious. Once he sealed the room with the false mud doors, Inala opened the door, surprised to see the visitor, "Virala?"
The acting coward had arrived, his expression smug. And wrapped around his arm like a koala was Ruvva. It seemed she had fallen hard for him.
'He's the playboy kind, huh?' Inala thought and asked, "Why are you here?"
"I came to trade," Saying so, he made way as Ruvva dragged a tub inside.
At the familiar sight, Inala shook his head spontaneously, "I refuse."
There were twenty litres of Mud Viper toxin in the tub. It was obvious Virala was asking him to refine it. To refine twenty litres would use up all his Prana and a bit more. He would have to take breaks to recover some Prana.
Since the toxin wasn't in a Mud Viper, at most a litre of Mud Viper Tonic would be created. And, a litre of the tonic, when consumed, only netted in a growth of 10 Prana.
Moreover, if Inala wished to recover the expended Prana through food, it would take him a few days. That meant his plans for the event tomorrow would be messed up. Virala arrived at the perfect time to mess things up for him.
"Give it to him," As Virala said, Ruvva extended a basket to Inala.
"This is…" He stared at the berry-like fruit within, sporting a creamy white colour. It was a Parute fruit, the only source of pure Prana in Sumatra. There were hundreds in the basket.
A group of Parute trees grew within the Empyrean Tusk's stomach, producing Parute fruits. Consuming a hundred Parute fruits raised a cultivator's Prana by one unit, not just in terms of recovering expended Prana, but also in its growth.
The fastest way to cultivate is to consume Parute fruits. But they were a protected resource and only sparingly distributed, for they doubled down as a currency. With a year's shelf life, they were an expendable currency resource.
"400 Parute," Virala said, watching Inala's eyes light up in desire, "This is just the advance. If you refine the twenty litres before daybreak, you'll receive another 400."
"Whether or not you wish to take up the task is your choice." Virala smiled smugly, 'But, can you afford to pass this up?'