Alonn looked at the tiger's corpse and wondered how he could find it's core.
'Hmm?' Alonn suddenly saw something strange, the eyes of the dead beast were glowing faintly.
Roaarrr
An unwilling roar sounded in Alonn's mind, but the corpse's mouth didn't move an inch.
'Wtf?' Alonn was very surprised, wasn't it the same state of Long? Dead-but-not-dead or Alive-but-not-alive?
After extremely complex calculations too complex to be writen, Alonn came up with two hypotheses.
First, the whole cave system had this 'magic' of keeping things half-dead. (70% probability)
Second, something that is with him is doing this. (30% probability)
Sincerely, Alone hope very much that the first hypothesis is the correct one, but luck is never...
"...on my side, damn it," Alonn said and started walk to a close cave tunnel.
Once there he was happy, for he found both of the mosses he needed to stay alive.
After eating for a while and meditating away from the extreme heat and toxic air of the lava chamber, Alonn began to recover from the constant injuries he suffered.
Patiently, he daily cultivated and circulated his True Qi to increase the recovery rate. What surprised him the most was the fact that his cultivation finally seemed to have reached the peak of his Realm.
His True Qi was now several times more abundant than before, completely filling his Dantian.
It bugged him at first, but after some time he figure out the reason for it. The constant pressure he suffered the last days made his mind get much stronger, and even the extreme actions he had to take tempered his whole body.
The extreme use of the poisons and the constant wounds and threats to his life made his two internal energies sound to the heavens.
Furthermore, the mosses really played a big role in all of this. It's clearly poison even for cultivators, but for him it was a very good cultivation resource.
After a week of patient healing and cultivation, Alonn decided to breakthought only after returning to the lake chamber.
After taking a deep breath, he got up from the place where he spent most of the week and went to the tiger's corpse.
Incredible as it may seem, the corpse still had no signs of decomposition and the strange glow in the tiger's eyes means that it's soul is still alive.
Alonn couldn't pierce it's tick and resistant skin without hands or tools, but he could do something.
Alonn started to drag the corpse to the cave tunnel. After that, he looked into the tiger's eyes with a big evil smile.
He then started to stuff the creature with moonlight and sunlight moss, using his arm to push the moss down it's throat.
"Big cat, big cat, I don't wish to see your face.
Today is the day I see you go ~to ~space" Alonn sang while stuffing the corpse with more moss.
After feeling that there was no more space in it's stomach, Alonn looked at the tiger with a look of pity.
Roaarrr
The tiger's roar sounded in Alonn's mind again.
"Don't worry, it will all be over soon. Soon you will be in the paradise of the big cats," Alonn said with a smile.
After that, Alonn started making a line on the ground with moss up to several meters away. After thinking it would be safe, Alonn lit the wick with his True Qi.
In an instant, half of his True Qi was consumed, and the blue lightining went from the beginning of the wick to the corpse.
"Byebye, little kitty," Alonn said with teary eyes.
BANG!!!!
Burning blood and flesh were thrown everywhere with the explosion.
The shock wave was so strong that it echoed through much of the cave system.
Alonn hissed as if impressed.
"Hell, I never imagined the explosion would be so big."
"I feel like I could get addicted to it," Alonn liked the sensation of blowing things up... more specifically other livi- half-living beings.
'Hmmm' Suddenly, Alonn saw something white falling towards him at high speed.
Instinctively Alonn caught it... or tried, he somewhat forgot he was a cripple.
The thing fell right in the middle of his face.
"Arrgghhh" Alonn screamed an looked at the thing that fell on the ground.
Roaaarrr
"Holy tree, it's still alive?" Alonn said with wide eyes.
It was the tiger's white horn... and it seems that it's soul was within the horn, since a black glow radiated from within it.
"I never thought such an resilient being could exist..." Alonn murmured, forgetting the elf called himself.
After searching everywhere for something like a core, Alonn finally had to accept the fact that the horn is actually the core.
'Damn it, should I just trow it in the lava?' Alonn clenched his teeth, he still hated the tiger.
He then used his mouth to grasp the horn and placed it below his armpit.
'Forger about it, I should focus in finding my way back...' Alonn thought and started to explore the cave tunnel.
'If I could find that intersection... It would be easy to return.'
The cave tunnels' scenery is very monotonous, if Alonn doesn't pay attention he may think he's been to certain places.
Time from time he drank the water dripping from the stalactites.
When he was bored he played with the horn, teasing the soul within it.
After a day of constant walking, he finally found an intersection, but it wasn't the one he was looking for.
"Right, now that I have the time to think... From where this damn tiger came? How did it get here if I closed the mine's entrance?" Alonn murmured and tried to get a answer from the tiger, but to no avail.
Alonn then choose the cave tunnel of the right without hesitation, since he once was right-handed...
"Unn? It was pretty fast," Alonn said after walking for a while, he reached another intersection. Luck seemed to look at Alonn this time.
'It's that intersection! Then the lake chamber should be in this way' Alonn was relivied to find the right path.
He wasn't in a hurry so he didn't run. Besides, he wants to take revenge on the damn Long, Alonn is sure the skeleton is partly to blame for blocking Alonn's entrance.
He walked slowly while trying to plan something... But he was unsuccessful, all plans seemed useless, the difference in powers was simply too great.
When he finally reached the fake wall, Alonn took a deep breath and tried to cross it, this time he succeeded.
'I know it, it should be the work of that bastard,' Alonn thought with bloodshot eyes.
When he arrived at the lake, he looked at the skeleton with clenched teeth.
"Hey Hey, how did you survive?" Long's voice sounded in Alonn's mind.
"You son of a fucking bitch!" Alonn couldn't resist and cursed.
"Hah? What are you talking about? Why are you cursing my mother?" Long seemed angry.
"You fucking bastard, did you know what I had to go through because you blocked the fake wall?"
"Huh? What are you talking about?" Long asked with a confused voice.
"I'm talking about the fact you blocked the fake wall outside the lake chamber, and it almost killed me!" Alonn shouted.
"...I didn't do this, you are accusing me unfairly."
"Ah yes, how unfair," Alonn said with an rage strong enough to make water boil.
"Calm down, pointed-ear. I really didn't do it. Think, if I really wanted you dead you would already be," Long said with an eloquent voice.
After taking several deep breaths, Alonn finally came to his senses.
'It's true, if he wanted me dead I would already be. But then, why the fake wall suddenly...'
"Did you finally believe in me?" Long asked.
"Sigh... yes. I'm sorry for accusing you," Alonn said with a dejected look.
After some time of silence, Long suddenly started to laugh out loud.
"Ku-hahhahahhah, you stupid fool. It's obvious it was me, did you really believe in the nonsense I just said?"
"..."
"What, are you angry? are you angry?"
"...."
"Come on, let's fight. Wait, I forgot you are a cripple. But it should be alright, an cripple and an dead are at the same level after all, I promise I won't use my arms."
"Very funny..." Alonn suddenly said.
"Hmm? Aren't you a bit too calm?" Long suddenly felt an change in Alonn's aura.
"Hoo? Do you want to kill me? Did you just released killing intent?" Long said with an amused voice.
"Yes, I really want to kill you. It's a pity I can't," Alonn said with a plain voice.
"You've got some balls out there," Long suddenly released an enormous pressure.
Alonn fell on his knees without being able to resist.
"Huh? You could actually stay on his knees? You did improve a lot those days."
The pressure suddenly increased by several folds, making Alonn's face touch the ground.
"Listen, pointed-ear. The only reason I helped you was for my own amusement. Sometimes I felt like helping poor beings like you, and sometimes I felt like playing with them."
"I have been in deep sleep for a long time, and I was somewhat lonely, then I decided to make you my amusement"
"You should never consider me a friend again, I'm not your friend."
"Did you understand?"
"Just kill me then, you fucking bastard! Do you want me to admit defeat? Never!" Alonn shouted in fury.
The pressure then increased again, Alonn was almost losing conciousness.
"I admite your courage, really. But you should know when to bow down!" Long said
"Why should I bow down to you? Just because you are strong?" Alonn shouted.
"Exactly, I'm stronger than you. If you want to live, you should admit defeat."
'This fucker... is he a child?' Alonn thought.
"I can read your mind, you fool!" Long said and increased the pressure again.
"All right, I admit defeat, you are stronger than me, are you satisfied?" Alonn shouted.
"...Yes," the pressure suddenly vanished.
'This guy is just like a child,' Alonn thought.
"...Are you dumb? I can read your mind," Long then released his pressure again.
"Do you think I can fully control my thoughts?" Alonn shouted.
"This is because you didn't train enough! It's your fault," Long said.
The poor elf was really in an precarious situation.
Long seemed to have a double personality, sometimes he helped Alonn, sometimes he humiliated him.
Alonn tried to run away, but Long never permited it.
'Shit, I shouldn't have come back' Alonn thought as he ate moss.
It had been a month since he returned to the lake chamber, but he still didn't breakthought to the Plexus Realm.
After explaining what he saw outside the hole, Long said it's probably a half-dead being like him. But it's soul is probably extremely damaged.
Long also confirmed that the horn was the spiritual beast core of the tiger and that the tiger's soul was still alive because of something within Alonn, the pearls.
He said that the moment Alonn left the lake chamber, he felt the effect of soul-keeping at the chamber expired. The only reason his soul didn't dissipated was his own enormous life span.
'Do it means that the pearls are something like soul artifacts? Are they connected to my soul?' Alonn thought.
"You will only be able to visualize your soul and control soul energy when you open the spirit crown gate," Long said.
'Then... Can they kept my soul intact if I die?'
"It is trying to kill you, pointed-ear..."
'...I need to worry more about opening the sacral gate,' Alonn thought and started another cultivation section.
"...This age is really poor," Long suddenly said
'Why are you so chatty today?'
"I just can't keep seeing you cultivating withhou a proper cultivation technique."
'But I do have a cultivation technique'
"That seven books only explained the basics of the basics of cultivation, that's not a proper cultivation technique."
'A lost person just needs to walk,' Alonn smiled.
"This is a loser line of thought," Long sneered and raised it's bone hand.
Suddenly, from one of the empty chests a book appeared.
"Read it, it's an low-level cultivation technique, but it's complete and better than that crap," The book landed at Alonn's side.
'Thanks for the good intention, but I can only refuse'
"Afe you stupid? Why are you refusing?" Long said with a confused voice.
"The crap I'm following can make me open the last gate, and that's all I need to know. Too much distractions will weaken my focus and will power. Since I started mu cultivation with it, why not go until the end?" Alonn said wtih an calm voice.
"Bullshit! You just don't want to owe me a favor," Long sneered.
"Think whatever you want," Alonn said and resumed his cultivation.
'This fool dao heart is really stronger than what I thought, he has a bit of talent,' Long secretly thought.
After a while, strong winds emerged in the chamber and made Alonn slowly levitate. In the region of Alonn's navel a strong white glow appeared.
Alonn finally felt the turning point he needed to open his second gate! He channeled all the True Qi he had towards the gate, which is located close to the navel.
Blood began to seep through the elf's body, his body was changing fast along the breakthought.
BANGG!
A strong rumble could be heard throughout the chamber, Alonn finally opened the sacral gate and entered the third realm, the Plexus Realm!
Spiritual Qi was absorbed in droves by Alonn and his Dantian expanded his previous capacity several times.
But it didn't stop there, the spiritual qi was being converted into True Qi at an extremely fast rate. However, Alonn forcefully stopped it.
"...Why did you stop? You could even reach the peak of your current realm," Long asked.
"Isn't obvious? I still need to slowly adapt to my new realm before trying to breakthought again," Alonn said with an calm voice.
He could feel his changes, his body was several times stronger than before and his True Qi also increased several times along with his dantian.
However, what surprised him most was the fact that the pearls seem to have increased the rate of absorption of True Qi and vitality.
'I really can't be happy about anything without being sad/angry just after.'
"Congratulations, now you can finally start to learn the on how you could use True qi to make a fake hand," Long said.