Chapter Eighty-Two: The Sapling of the World Tree and the Ice Silkworm

Two days later.

In the same cave of the Froststorm Bear, Lin Fan sat cross-legged, turning the grill in his hand. A large thigh was roasting over the flames, its surface golden and tempting.

Sizzle!

The golden roast, with its mouthwatering aroma and glistening fat, dripped in beads down the crispy skin and fell onto the fire, making a sizzling sound.

Beside Lin Fan sat a bone flowerpot, no larger than the ones found in ordinary households. Within it grew a sapling, just one foot tall, its trunk twisted and gnarled like a coiled dragon, exuding a certain majesty. Yet, its tiny stature left Lin Fan somewhat helpless.

Two days ago, he suddenly remembered that he had once drawn a sapling of the World Tree, which required vast energy to nurture before it could grow into the World Tree itself. The World Tree, when fed enough energy, could bear World Fruits, and these fruits held tremendous vital energy, accelerating one’s cultivation. However, the amount of energy contained in the fruit depended on how much power the World Tree absorbed.

The moment Lin Fan found the Frostwind Tiger, he immediately removed its core, then summoned the World Tree sapling and planted it onto the beast. The sapling, just a foot tall, revealed its devouring ability the instant it touched the giant creature—so much so that Lin Fan was shocked.

As soon as the World Tree sapling landed on the Frostwind Tiger’s massive body—over ten meters long and four or five meters tall—the beast shriveled at an astonishing speed. In less than a breath’s time, its vast form, flesh, skin, and bones vanished completely, leaving not even a single hair behind. The disappearance was absolute, with only the World Tree sapling remaining.

Had Lin Fan not witnessed it himself, he could hardly have imagined that a sapling so small could instantly devour a creature so enormous.

Fortunately, the sapling belonged to him. Otherwise, had such a terrifying thing existed outside his control, he might have destroyed it out of fear. If, one day, the sapling grew sentient and its devouring power became truly overwhelming, it wouldn’t take long for it to consume the entire world.

Yet Lin Fan’s frustration mounted, for despite devouring the Frostwind Tiger, the sapling showed no signs of growth—not even a change in color. This was, after all, a fourth-tier monster! Even though he’d taken its core, the remaining flesh still held incredible energy. If a peak third-tier beast had found it, simply consuming the meat would have been enough to advance to the fourth tier.

But now, the World Tree sapling remained unchanged, prompting Lin Fan to consider shelving it away. He simply couldn’t afford to feed it! Fourth-tier monsters were akin to Pulse Realm experts, strong enough that even their flesh was extraordinary. If the sapling showed no response after such a meal, didn’t that mean it needed at least Pulse Realm beings—or a great many of them—to even react?

Above Pulse Realm was Stream Realm, the pinnacle of the Frost Kingdom’s power. In Lin Fan’s current state, a single gesture from such a person would end him instantly.

So killing one for the sapling to devour was utterly impossible—a thought he dared not even entertain.

To say nothing of fifth-tier monsters, equivalent to the Stream Realm. Even among monsters of the same tier, they were far stronger than humans. Lin Fan wouldn’t dare to hunt one, even with a hundred times his current courage! Using fourth-tier monsters to feed the sapling was impossible as well. His strength wasn’t enough to face them. Unlike humans, who sometimes died due to carelessness or underestimating their opponents—like the demise of Po Jun—beasts always fought with full force, never letting their guard down.

Given all these reasons, Lin Fan decided to shelve the World Tree sapling for now. When he became stronger, he’d feed this voracious creature.

Still, Lin Fan couldn’t help but look forward to the future: if the sapling required so much energy, then once it became the World Tree, it would need even more to bear fruit. Under such immense nourishment, the power of its fruit would be unimaginable.

“Hiss—!”

A faint hiss snapped Lin Fan back to reality. He looked down at his chest, where something seemed to be wriggling. Surprised, he smiled.

“So you’ve completed your rebirth so quickly? This must be your first nirvana.”

Lin Fan murmured softly. As he spoke, a tiny snake, about as thick as a pinky and as long as an index finger, emerged from his embrace.

Indeed, there was a reason it was called an Ice Silkworm. During its evolution, it spun a cocoon, and now, despite its small size, its plump body made its head barely distinguishable, resembling a silkworm larva.

The Ice Silkworm sniffed around, then quickly crawled onto Lin Fan’s ear, rubbing affectionately—a sign of the blood bond, a feeling akin to kinship.

Unbeknownst to the creature, while it underwent nirvana, Lin Fan had seized the opportunity to sign a blood contract with it.

Seeing the Ice Silkworm’s appearance and feeling the tickle by his ear, Lin Fan nearly laughed aloud. The terrifying existence that once stirred chaos in his previous life was now so cute in its infancy.

“Little one, go and see the gift I prepared for you!”

Lin Fan stabbed the grill into the ground, then gently removed the Ice Silkworm from his ear and walked toward the Froststorm Bear.

Moments later, he stood before the beast’s corpse, the heavy scent of blood wafting over him.

“Hiss—!”

The plump Ice Silkworm, upon smelling the blood, stiffened in Lin Fan’s palm, its body standing upright like a chopstick—though not even a third as tall.

“Go on, this is your feast.”

Lin Fan stroked the silkworm’s snowy white body, observing the crimson line running from its head to its tail, and smiled.

“Hiss—!”

Perhaps Lin Fan’s words weren’t necessary; the Ice Silkworm was already eager. Its hiss, though youthful, carried an undeniable sense of majesty—like a young lion’s roar, tender yet exuding the aura of a king.

Hissing, Lin Fan felt his palm tingle as the Ice Silkworm leapt like an arrow straight into the corpse of the Froststorm Bear.

“Little fellow, you’re quite strong!”

Lin Fan shook his hand. The silkworm’s sudden leap generated a surprising recoil, even with his physical strength, leaving his hand slightly numb.

Of course, his lack of preparation played a role. Much like a world-class fighter caught off guard by a punch from a seven-year-old—painful, though mild. But should he take the child seriously, the gap in fighting ability would be immense.

Still, it showed that the newly reborn Ice Silkworm was already formidable. By Lin Fan’s estimation, its physical strength alone rivaled that of a perfect tenth-tier body-refiner.

Crack, crack, crack!

Suddenly, the sound of tearing bone echoed. Lin Fan looked up, stunned by what he saw.

From the spot where the Ice Silkworm entered, the Froststorm Bear’s body began to turn to bone, layer by layer, at an astonishing speed. It resembled a scene from “Tom and Jerry,” where the mouse devours a chicken, stripping it down to the bones in circles.

But a mouse’s size compared to a chicken is no more than a few dozen times. Here, the silkworm’s size versus the thirty-meter bear was thousands—perhaps tens of thousands—of times smaller.

Lin Fan knew the Ice Silkworm was frightening. His plan was to let it devour the bear’s essence to speed its growth. But he underestimated its devouring ability; it was consuming the entire bear at a rapid pace.

“Another voracious eater!”

Lin Fan scratched his head helplessly and laughed. He’d just resolved to shelve the World Tree sapling, and now he had another glutton on his hands.

He foresaw a future where he’d have to work hard just to make ends meet—otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to support either the World Tree sapling or the Ice Silkworm.

They ate far too much...

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