Black Hearted Mage

Chapter 275 Black Pearl

The ruins of the Elven King's City lie just over a hundred miles from Nethergarde. This area already belonged to the ancestral domain. Dark green vines crawled over the crumbling elven stone pillars, and broken archways lay half-buried in the earth. The former splendor was now only a whisper whimpering in the wind. A strange scent of decay and rebirth hung in the air, as if this land were still trying to awaken dormant memories.

A man and a dog walked through the forest. Caesars's slender fingers brushed the mottled bark, his silver-gray cloak sweeping across the damp moss. In a glass bottle hanging from his waist, a few fluorescent grasses swayed gently with his steps, emitting a faint blue light. The puppy suddenly pricked up its ears, its wet nose twitching, and its front paws restlessly scratched the soft humus.

"Be quiet, you greedy dog!"

Kaisas scolded him softly as he dug out a cluster of emerald green magic grass from the roots of a fallen yew tree. This rare medicinal herb could be exchanged for an elemental crystal in the crater, and it was the main ingredient for refining powerful mana potions.

The forest gradually opened up, the towering, ancient trees growing farther apart. Sunlight finally penetrated the dense canopy, casting dappled shadows on the ground. But what was disturbing was that this area was unusually clean—no fallen leaves, no mushrooms, even the most common ferns had vanished. In the distance, the ground was covered with a strange white substance that shimmered like pearls in the sunlight.

"Damn it, there are no herbs here!"

Caesars frowned, his fingertips unconsciously stroking the magic blade at his waist. As an experienced magician, he was all too familiar with the meaning of such abnormal signs. He quickly stepped forward, knelt on one knee, and carefully examined the white substance on the ground.

When he saw that the white substance was actually tens of thousands of interwoven spider silks, Caesar's pupils suddenly contracted. He quickly unfolded the ancient map tanned with earth dragon leather. The magical patterns on the map glowed slightly after coming into contact with the air, showing the detailed markings of the area.

"Damn dog, I know what's waiting for us!"

Kaisas' voice deepened, and he pointed his finger at a skull mark on the map. "It's the magical beast raised by our ancestors—the Dark Spider!"

The pup tilted its furry head, its scarlet eyes filled with curiosity. This young hellhound had clearly never encountered the dark spiders that terrified even the bravest adventurers. Its mouth opened wide in excitement, its crimson tongue dangling from its fangs, its tail lashing the air like a whip.

Caesars didn't explain, but quietly placed his palm on the Frost Crown emblem on his chest. As he injected a trace of magic power into it, fine ice crystals immediately condensed on the surface of the emblem, emitting a biting chill. This was a treasure left by his ancestors, and it could be sensed by the dark spider.

"Listen, you stupid dog." Caesars lowered his voice and looked around vigilantly, "We have just triggered the warning spider silk, and those servant spiders will appear soon!"

Before he could finish his words, a subtle rustling sound suddenly echoed overhead. A fist-sized white spider slowly descended along the nearly transparent silk. The gray patterns on its back formed an eerie human face. Its eight compound eyes refracted a rainbow-like light in the sunlight, and the end of its abdomen continuously secreted sticky silk threads.

The puppy's fur instantly stood up, and a low growl emanated from its throat. Just as it was about to pounce, Kaesas's mage hand held it down like an invisible cage.

"Squeak!"

The servant spider emits a high-pitched scream, causing specialized glands in its abdomen to vibrate violently. This ultrasonic signal can spread throughout the forest within seconds, awakening any sleeping members of the same species.

Caesars felt a cold sweat trickle down his spine. He knew all too well what was coming—thousands of servant spiders would surge from every direction like a white tide. Their venom, while not lethal, could transform even the strongest warriors into helpless puppets. Even more terrifying, these servant spiders were merely the vanguard of something even more terrifying.

"You damn dog, run! One servant spider is nothing, but tens of thousands of them are dangerous. Their venom isn't lethal, but it's more dangerous than deadly venom!"

Caesars snatched up the still-grimacing puppy and sprinted back in the direction they'd come from. Behind him, the forest floor began to rise abnormally, as if something was moving swiftly beneath the ground. From the tall treetops, a large number of white servant spiders dangled.

The white servant spiders emerged like a tide, so many that it made people's scalps tingle and goose bumps appeared all over their bodies.

A low chirping sound, carrying a special message, came from the distance of the forest. The newly emerged servant spiders, like a receding tide, turned and retreated. Some servant spiders burrowed under the spider silk on the ground, while others crawled along the rough, mottled bark into the dense canopy of branches and leaves.

Thousands of terrifying servant spiders completely disappeared in the forest in less than two minutes.

A rustling sound came from afar, and a huge figure quickly approached from the forest. The greedy puppy hid behind Caesars, trembling.

The dark spider revealed its true form and quickly arrived in front of Caesar. The other party was eight meters tall, and he had to look up to see it clearly.

The Dark Spider possessed twelve compound eyes, large and small, and its long legs were covered in thorn-like bristles. It was gazing at the Frost Crown emblem. Its enormous fangs curved downward, occasionally rubbing against each other like two dark golden claws.

"Black Pearl!"

Caesars bravely called out.

"Son of Raven, what are you doing in the Spider Jungle?"

A low voice suddenly appeared in Caesar's soul, which scared him. Black Pearl could actually communicate with him through the soul.

"I'm going to the territory of our ancestors - Watchtower!" Kaisas answered nervously.

"Next time, don't go directly through the spider jungle. Go through the outer ground where there is no spider silk. I don't always arrive in time!" Black Pearl warned Caesars, who knew nothing about this place, in its low voice.

"I see!"

"Follow me, there are not only servant spiders here, but also my personal guards - the Scarlet Spiders!"

Black Pearl hissed, and not far behind it, space seemed to distort. Dozens of red spiders, taller than Caesars, emerged from stealth. Their carapaces were sleek, their bodies a blood-red, and their eight compound eyes surveyed the outsider.

A massive dark spider entered the forest, and Caesars hurriedly trotted after it, with the puppy following closely behind in fear. Dozens of scarlet spiders were at the rear, but they had already entered stealth mode.

The Dark Spider's racial talents include stealth, web spray, dark breath, and a physical attack - pounce. Pounce is similar to a warrior's brutal charge, but given the Dark Spider's size, being hit by it is bound to break bones and tendons.

As we went deeper into the spider jungle, the scene before us turned white. Towering trees were wrapped in spider silk, and spider silk curtains stretched between the trees. In this vast space, white servant spiders bustled back and forth, like a group of hardworking servants, carrying a kind of snow-white mushroom.

"Black Pearl, what is the servant spider doing?"

Caesars was a little curious. A large number of servant spiders were busy in an orderly manner. He didn't know what the mushrooms were used for.

"They grow mushrooms, keep some for food, and use the extra to make wine!"

This time, a low voice appeared in his ears, and Caesars was shocked again. Black Pearl could actually use magic to imitate sounds.

"Is this mushroom poisonous?"

"Toxic to humans, but not to us!"

“Is wine made from mushrooms good?”

"It's far inferior to Fire Maple Wine!"

Caesars had read the expedition records written by his ancestors. Black Pearl had always followed Riven back then, and the records mentioned many times that Black Pearl was a bit of a drunkard.

"To thank you for taking me through the Spider Jungle, I'll give you twenty barrels of Fire Maple Wine!"

"..."

When Black Pearl heard the Fire Maple Wine, it suddenly stopped, turned its huge body, and a light flashed in its twelve compound eyes.

"Trading for Fire Maple Wine and Monster Meat! Over the past ten thousand years, I've captured all the people and elves who ventured into the Spider Jungle, and I've amassed a fortune!"

Caesar nodded slightly. He was also very surprised that a dark spider actually knew how to trade.

Suddenly, the Dark Spider's chest cracked, and its gray-black chitinous armor slowly opened, as if to display its treasures. As the armor opened, over a hundred storage rings and several space rings rained down, scattering on the ground with a crisp sound.

These storage rings clearly belonged to human mercenaries, while the space rings were likely owned by elemental elves. After all, Black Pearl was a legendary beast, its power far exceeding that of the average elven grand mage. All of its achievements were thanks to the help of its ancestors.

"Lord Black Pearl, how much Fire Maple Wine and Monster Meat do you want to exchange for?" Kaisas asked cautiously, with a hint of awe in his voice.

Black Pearl's voice was deep and powerful, as if it came from the depths of hell: "Five storage rings, and everything inside!"

This voice echoed in the forest, sending a chill down one's spine. After hearing this, Caesar's expression darkened. He quickly said, "That's too much, Lord Black Pearl! I don't have that much Fire Maple Wine and Monster Meat!"

Black Pearl seemed unsatisfied with Caesar's answer. It continued, "Twenty thousand kilograms of monster meat and ten barrels of fire maple wine are barely enough for a meal!"

Cold sweat began to break out on Kaisas's forehead. He gritted his teeth and said, "I can only trade 50,000 kilograms of monster meat at most. This is all I have in stock!"

As Caesar spoke, he pulled large chunks of monster meat from his space ring and piled them on the spiderweb-strewn ground. The meat was a deep red, with distinct veins, clearly fresh. This was the barbarian beef he had previously acquired through trade with the northerners. This beef was delicious and a rare ingredient.

Immediately afterwards, Caesars brought out another thirty barrels of fire maple wine. These barrels were neatly arranged in front of Black Pearl, emitting bursts of rich wine aroma.

"This is beef. I used to eat it often!" said Black Pearl.

However, before he could finish his words, suddenly, a spider leg as black as ink and as sharp as a spear stretched out and pierced straight into a piece of beef with bones at lightning speed.

This spider leg is not an ordinary spider leg, but a forelimb used by the dark spider to assist in feeding. Although it is not as eye-catching as those thick walking legs with spikes, it is extremely flexible and powerful.

The dark spider quickly pulled the beef into its mouth, chewing it bone and meat together. Its chewing speed was so fast that in less than half a minute, it had devoured the 300-400-pound beef leg completely, leaving not even a scrap.

Then, the Dark Spider seemed unsatisfied. Its two forelimbs, like arms, easily lifted a barrel of Fire Maple Wine and brought it to its massive fangs. With two gentle "puffs," two holes were easily pierced in the barrel by its fangs.

Kaisas stared at the scene in front of him with wide eyes, secretly amazed in his heart: This huge dark spider not only has an amazing appetite, but also drinks so skillfully, just like an experienced old drunkard!

"The aged fire maple wine tastes really good!"

The Dark Spider consumed a mere half a minute, consuming the entire barrel of precious, century-old Fire Maple Wine. Afterward, it gazed contentedly at Caesars, then deftly retrieved two storage rings with its nimble forelimbs and gently placed them in his hands.

Caesars carefully accepted the two storage rings, secretly marveling at the Dark Spider's agility. He looked down at the rings in his hands, wondering what goodies might be inside.

At this time, the Dark Spider spoke with magical mimetics: "One storage ring is the item for our transaction, and the other is the deposit. I need the meat of a high-level magical beast, preferably a super-class one. If you can get that, it would be even better. As for the Fire Maple Wine, it doesn't have to be too good, anything over ten years old will do. Also, get me some puff pastry and cheese, it has to be the kind produced in Blackrock!"

Caesars listened carefully to the Dark Spider's request, nodding his head from time to time to show his understanding. He couldn't help but be surprised by the spider's taste. Not only did the spider enjoy drinking, but it also had such high standards for food, even knowing how to enjoy life better than humans.

About half an hour later, Black Pearl led Caesars slowly out of the spider jungle. Before leaving, Black Pearl gave Caesars a large ball of spider silk as a gift. The silk was soft and tough, obviously its own.

"Weave it into a robe and wear it. Then when you go in and out of the Spider Jungle, the servant spiders won't attack you!"

"Okay, I understand. By the way, Ancestor Raven should be back in hundreds of years!"

"real!"

Black Pearl was a little excited. It ignored Caesar and skipped back.

With a resounding "bang," the massive dark spider slammed into a towering tree. Its legs reared up, piercing the tree at lightning speed. In less than two breaths, the unfortunate tree collapsed.