While Orakha had a mental breakdown, Gannala finished reading through all his memories. She then walked away and climbed onto Inala's back, getting a piggyback ride.
By the time Orakha realised what was up, it was too late, "You…fooled me!"
"Nope," Inala shook his head, "I just used the truth to my convenience. Everything in that bone slip is the truth, you know."
"Since this is for me, let me collect it," Inala said and scooped out all the tusk bone powder from the two floors of Orakha's Storage Lantern. Gannala had already confirmed that the tusk bone powder hadn't been tampered with. So, it was safe to be used for constructing his body.
'Good, now there's enough for both me and Asaeya.' He thought and stared at Orakha, "Do you feel disgusted to be schemed against?"
"Well, that's what I felt too when you made a move on Asaeya, even if your intentions weren't to harm her." Inala said and extended his hand towards Orakha, "The two of us haven't talked before. So, let's patch up for now, shall we?"
"Fine, you won." Orakha wiped his tears and got up, groaning as he stretched his aching body, "Now it's clear that I'm not good at schemes when compared to pieces of shit like you and Virala."
"Bro, don't go there." Inala waved his hands, "I'm a saint compared to Virala. That one is a messed-up fucker."
'You're no different.' Orakha didn't voice his thoughts. His attention fell on Sumara Canon and felt his Mystic Eater stirring up in response, 'There's an unrivalled mineral present in that object. No, there's some of it in three objects.'
"Anyway, my task here is done." Orakha turned around and intended to leave, "I'm not going to help you in finding Asaeya. Have fun locating her in the Guna Caves. If you take more than a month, you'll miss the chance to quickly reach the Mammoth Clan. They'll resume their journey after gathering some Centinger eggs."
"Do you truly need the Attribute that badly?" Inala let out a long breath and got to the point, "You want it?"
"Isn't that obvious?" Orakha laughed, "My strength will be elevated to a whole other level once I come in possession of the Attribute."
"Alright, have fun being a loser." Inala flashed his middle finger towards Orakha, "The Attribute's mine anyway."
"Don't act like your name's written on it." Orakha snorted.
"Personal property of Sir Inala," Inala said, "This sentence is clearly carved on it. You'll know when you get there."
After the two exchanged verbal bullshit in the name of abusing each other, Orakha ran away. Inala remained standing in his place as once Orakha was out of sight, he emitted Prana radially to scour through his surroundings. Even after ensuring there were no Mystic Eaters hiding underground to spy on his conversation, he communicated with Gannala through a Bone Slip.
[Has he been accepted as part of your immune system?]
[Yes, Dad. And as I surfed through his thoughts, I found out that he truly wasn't planning on harming us. He only wanted to ensure you wasted your time, but not at the cost of sacrificing your strength. Which is why he brought in the tusk bone powder necessary for you to build your strength.]
'So basically, he's conflicted.' Inala now understood the full picture. Orakha had exceptional street smarts and was the quickest among the reincarnates to react and adapt to a situation.
Currently, his mindset was to win the race but not at the cost of compromising the growth of the other reincarnates, for his end goal was for everyone to join hands and kill the Boar King. It was why his actions were so tame in comparison to the extent of power he possessed.
'Had Virala been in his place, he would have killed both Asaeya and Gannala to fuel his growth and shatter my mental state.' Inala thought, coming to the conclusion that if the situation ever becomes dire, he could seek Orakha's help.
Orakha was closer to Grehha in terms of disposition—constructively greedy.
[Dad, Orakha wasn't lying about anything. We can rejoin with the herd if we were to set sail on the Red-Draft River now. What do you plan to do?]
[We'll find Asaeya first. But if we were to return to the Mammoth Clan now, your growth would be halted. They'll pressure you to transform into an Empyrean tusk. We can't have that.]
Soon, Inala arrived at the cave and stared at the tunnel entrance on the ground before him, "Gannala, what's with Asaeya's mental state?"
"Are the withdrawal symptoms catching up to her?"
"Nope," Gannala shook her head, "A Mammoth Clansman experiences withdrawal symptoms if they stay away from their Deity, but it's not anything serious to the extent it'll interfere with their mental faculties."
"Moreover," She continued, "I can temporarily take the place of her Deity. So, as long as I touch her from time to time, she wouldn't exhibit any withdrawal symptoms."
"Then what's exactly the reason?" He asked.
"It's the same thing you're experiencing, Dad." Gannala said, "Asaeya is being influenced by her two Natures."
"That's it?" Inala frowned, "She's not even using it much, right?"
"It doesn't work like in your case," Gannala said, "When she uses Akashic Transfer on more than two targets at a time, there's an exponential increase in the Secondary Nature's influence on her. At that moment, she feels as if she's a Grim Knell. This sensation is akin to a drug for her mind. And when she deactivates, that massive rush vanishes, causing her to feel hollow."
"As this continues to happen, her mental state is getting weaker, causing her to become more prone to its influence and, as a result experiencing mood swings." She continued, "Based on Earth terminology, she's a drug addict now."
"If she continues to use Akashic Transfer on large hordes of Pranic Beasts simultaneously, she'll go insane quickly." Gannala said, "This is why no Grim Knells are sane."
"I see, so that's the issue." Inala nodded and leaped into the tunnel, "Guess it's decided then."
As Gannala hung onto his back, she accessed his thoughts and exclaimed in surprise, "Dad, don't you think this idea is too dangerous?"
"It's indeed dangerous," Inala nodded, "But the Cooter Clan produces valuable medicines that will help in your growth too. So, I was planning to bring us there anyway. Now, Asaeya's state just gives us one more reason to head there."
"Dad, the Cooter Clan is on par with our Mammoth Clan in terms of strength. If the Empyrean Snapper senses my existence, it'll ask for a death match to prove which of our two races is superior." Gannala expressed nervously.
"The Cooter Clan is the only place with the resources necessary for your growth," Inala said, his voice stern, "No matter what, it's a must for you to obtain the Tertiary Nature of Cultivator."
"I understand," Saying so, she turned silent, sighing mentally, 'The medicine necessary to heal Asaeya is also available only there.'
She disliked facing an Empyrean Snapper.
Sumatra Continent's Biggest Pranic Beast—Empyrean Tusk!
Sumatra Continent's Largest Pranic Beast—Empyrean Snapper!
The Mammoth Clan and the Cooter Clan were the two strongest forces on Sumatra Continent. And their respective Deities were dubbed the strongest under the Mystic Grade. As a result, whenever the two sides came into contact, a battle ensued, both between Pranic Beasts and Clansmen.
As an Empyrean Tusk, Gannala wanted to be superior to an Empyrean Snapper on all fronts. Hence, she disliked hearing that she had to rely on one for her needs.
"Urgh!"