The Rich Cultivator-Chapter 321. ’That Thing’

Tyler sprinted through the ancient village, gripping a copper pot upside down in one hand while the copper ladle is inside.

The Silver Honey Hard Candies poured out endlessly, cascading across the ground like a river of shimmering sweets.

"Yeah... fill me with all your white stuff... aahnn..." a deep, ancient voice moaned in pleasure.

Tyler nearly tripped. His face twitched.

"Can you shut your damn mouth?" he snapped.

"You mean the village entrance?" Vale, the village itself, asked innocently.

"That Ladle makes things easier." Mana muttered.

Everytime Tyler asked Mana to make copies before the Ladle. But now with the Ladle inside he can pour out copies without stopping. Mana felt that the Ladle took her job.

Far away, Mathilda, Misra, Astrid, and the others abruptly turned toward the direction of the village.

"Did I just hear a moan?" Mathilda tilted her head, her brow furrowing in confusion.

Back in the village, the eerie, colorless atmosphere seemed far less intimidating now, mostly thanks to Vale’s downright embarrassing voice.

The candies that had fallen to the ground were being absorbed little by little, vanishing as the village greedily took them in.

Tyler sighed, trying to push aside the awkwardness. "Half the village is already covered in these candies. Now, tell me what’s happening."

Tyler threw the Copper Pot and Ladle to Mana and asked her to continue.

Mana happily took it, she even gave a smug look to the ladle. Thankfully Tyler didn’t see her silly reaction.

Vale’s massive voice shifted, as if considering the request. Then his voice, deep and rumbling, filled the air.

"If you see any souls, just ignore them," Vale warned. "They won’t harm you. Those pitiful things can’t reincarnate... but whatever you do, don’t try to destroy them. It might only strengthen that thing." frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓

Tyler’s eyes narrowed. "That thing?"

Vale hesitated, as if struggling to hold onto the thought before his memories could be wiped again. Meanwhile, the Silver Honey Hard Candies were depleting even faster—the village was absorbing them desperately, as if clinging to its fleeting consciousness.

"Actually..." Vale’s voice took on a nostalgic tone. "These fruits that enhances... they were carried by one of the outsiders long ago. I collected them. I planted them. I hoped someone would use them to regain their memories... to escape this cursed place..." It began to speak little gibberish as if lost in thought "Then those Bees sucked sap from those flowers came out from those fruit trees and mutated..."

The ancient village seemed to tremble.

"Wow... even my old memories are coming together..." Vale muttered, his voice growing fainter, yet filled with revelation.

Mana circling in the village, making sure more candies fell onto the ground. If Vale was finally remembering things, then he had to keep this up.

Vale’s voice deepened, filled with something between realization and sorrow.

"Long ago... something fell here. It wanted to rest in peace ... but it failed... The day that thing fell here, it was overflowing power. Even Half - Gods and Half - Devils from the deepest Abyss Floor got interested in it..... "

Tyler asked. "What was it?"

A heavy silence.

Then Vale’s voice dropped into a whisper.

"...A Pinky Finger."

Tyler was dumbfounded.

A Pinky Finger?...

"A Pinky Finger?" Mana asked loudly.

The air grew heavy as Vale hesitated, his voice strained as if something were resisting him.

"Yeah... Don’t underestimate that thing..." he warned. "That... Pinky Finger fell into this Abyss Floor. It took control of everything. The Half-Gods couldn’t descend to the top floor, so they sent Celestial Immortals instead... but they were all absorbed by the Pinky."

Tyler’s mind raced. His thoughts flickered to Adam—the one who had saved him before. Even Adam, as powerful as he was, would seem insignificant compared to this pinky’s owner, right?

"Where is it now?" Tyler asked.

Vale’s voice suddenly broke, static-like distortions crackling through the air. It was as if something—or someone—was trying to silence him.

Then—

CRACK!

The entire village trembled. The ground lurched violently, nearly throwing Tyler off balance. Buildings warped, twisting into unnatural shapes, as if reality itself were distorting.

"Shit—what’s happening now?!" Tyler shouted, bracing himself.

Vale groaned, his voice carrying an eerie, echoing resonance. "It’s not happy... it knows what I’m trying to do..."

Tyler’s eyes narrowed. It?

His heart pounded as he realized the truth.

The Pinky Finger...

It was aware of them.

Before he could question further, a deafening howl erupted from deep within the village.

A massive shadow rippled across the ground.

Something was coming.

Mathilda, Misra, and the others, still standing at a distance, felt the air shift.

"That’s not normal," one of Grandmaster muttered, gripping his weapon tightly.

"Tyler’s in trouble," Astrid said, already stepping forward.

Back in the village, the dark shadow expanded, covering the entire area in a suffocating pressure.

Tyler instinctively braced himself.

Then—

It emerged.

A colossal, twisting mass of darkness clawed its way up from the very center of the village.

Its shape was ever-changing, shifting between a monstrous figure and a writhing storm of black tendrils. Deep within it, thousands of souls flickered like dying embers—trapped, imprisoned, screaming in silence.

Tyler’s breath caught in his throat.

"...Those are the trapped souls?" he asked, eyes locked onto the monstrous entity before him.

Vale’s fading voice rumbled, barely audible.

"The Pinky is inside those... Please... don’t... destroy... the souls..."

Then, silence.

The entity loomed over Tyler, its sheer presence crushing down like an overwhelming tide.

Then, without warning—

It lunged.

Tyler barely managed to dodge, rolling to the side as one of its massive tendrils smashed into the ground where he had just stood. The impact sent a shockwave through the village, shattering the already fragile ruins into dust and rubble.

"How the hell am I supposed to beat this thing without my Aura or Prana?" Tyler muttered, frustration creeping into his voice. "And how do I get the Pinky Finger without killing these souls?"

A strange, familiar voice called out.

"Huh... Tyler..."

Tyler’s eyes widened as he turned toward the Soul Monster. His heart nearly stopped when he saw a familiar figure inside the writhing mass.

Mana!

She floated among the other trapped souls, her expression oddly calm despite the chaotic storm of spirits swirling around her.

"Are you trapped?!" Tyler asked, raising his trident in alarm.

Mana simply waved, completely unfazed. "Ah... don’t worry. Mana is safe."

To prove her point, she swam through the entity’s mass like it was water, weaving effortlessly between the other lost souls.

Tyler’s brows furrowed. "So... you can move freely?"

Mana nodded. "Looks like the other souls could do the same, but they don’t have awareness like me."

Tyler exhaled, still tense but slightly relieved.

"See if you can reach the finger inside it," he called, dodging another tendril strike.

Suddenly, the creature’s movements became faster. The tendrils lashed out wildly, nearly nailing Tyler to the ground.

He braced for impact—

But the ground beneath him shifted.

The earth itself moved like waves, carrying Tyler away from danger just in time.

Tyler’s eyes widened in realization. "Thanks, Vale... You still alive?"

No response.

The air was thick with an unsettling silence.

"It seems like you can’t answer," Tyler muttered. His grip on the trident tightened. "Fine. Let’s just buy some time until Mana reaches the finger."

As if understanding his intent, the ground beneath him moved again.

The entire village shifted.

Buildings creaked and twisted unnaturally. The land reshaped itself, rubble merging together in an impossible reconstruction.

Then, before Tyler’s eyes—

A massive giant formed.

It was made of stone and earth, towering as high as the Soul Monster. Its glowing, hollow eyes mirrored the shape of Vale’s, yet its body was composed of the very village itself.

Tyler stood at its peak, gazing down at the battlefield below.

A grin tugged at his lips. "Now that is cool."

He gave the giant a solid pat, as if reassuring a friend.

The Soul Monster screeched, its wailing voices overlapping in a cacophony of rage and sorrow.

Tyler’s gaze hardened. "Alright, big guy. Let’s do this."

The earth giant responded with a deep rumbling noise before raising one of its enormous fists.

Then, with a force that shattered the air—

It swung.

The impact sent a shockwave through the entire village. Dust and debris exploded outward as the Soul Monster reeled back, its form distorting from the sheer force of the blow.

Tyler held his ground, watching closely.

The creature was staggering, but it wasn’t weakening. If anything... it was reforming.

"Damn it," he muttered. "Just as I thought. Physical attacks won’t work on this thing."

Then the monster attacked, but the village didn’t fight back—it simply endured the assault.

"Oh, right... You wouldn’t have attacked if physical attacks actually worked," Tyler muttered as realization dawned on him. "You don’t want to destroy those souls."

Tyler’s mind raced, quickly deciding on his next move.

Suddenly, Mana reappeared and tossed his copper pot and ladle back to him. Catching them, a plan formed in Tyler’s mind.

He pointed the ladle toward the soul monster.