Lian looked up at the white lizard, unease plainly visible in his expression.
"So… how is this actually going to work?"
His voice hesitated slightly before continuing.
"I'm not going to be in danger, right?"
Lizarius ignored him completely.
Instead—
the white lizard simply drifted downward and landed atop Lian's head once again, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
Lian stiffened immediately.
"…You know, every time you do that, it becomes more concerning."
Before he could say anything else—
the earth beneath his feet began to pulse.
A strange force spread outward through the ground in silent waves.
Lian's expression changed instantly.
"…Wait."
He carefully stepped backward.
Then froze.
"How is this going to work exactly?"
His voice rose slightly.
"I'm not going to be in danger, right? Right?"
Lizarius still did not answer.
Lian's mouth twitched.
"Hey—don't ignore me when I'm asking something important—"
Then—
the earth element activated.
A heavy, invisible pressure wrapped around Lian's entire body.
His legs sank first.
Then his knees.
Then his waist.
"W-Wait—!"
Lian's eyes widened in shock.
"MASTER LIZARIUS?!"
His mother rushed forward immediately.
"Lian!"
The soil beneath him rippled like water.
His body continued sinking deeper.
"W-Whoa—hey, hold on—!"
His hands shot upward instinctively as panic flashed across his face.
But it was already too late.
The courtyard…
the sunlight…
his home…
all of it slowly began rising farther and farther above him.
"LIAN!"
His mother hurried forward again, fear overtaking her expression.
But the earth had already swallowed most of his body.
It did not look violent.
It did not look destructive.
It was simply as though the ground itself had accepted him.
Lian quickly turned his head toward her.
For a brief moment—
despite the panic in his eyes—
he forced out a grin.
A shaky one.
"Bye, mother!"
He lifted one hand and waved awkwardly.
"I'll be fine!"
His voice cracked slightly near the end.
"…Probably!"
"Lian—!"
Her voice trembled.
Then slowly faded away as darkness closed around him.
The last thing Lian saw was his mother reaching toward him helplessly.
Then—
the earth sealed shut above his head.
Silence followed.
Complete silence.
Lian continued sinking deeper underground.
The pressure surrounding him felt strange.
Dense.
Heavy.
Yet oddly gentle.
It was not suffocation.
It felt more like being submerged beneath deep water.
His body moved effortlessly through the earth itself, as though the soil had become liquid around him.
His expression tightened slightly.
*I'm underground…*
The realization felt surreal.
*Just like the lake… I can still breathe.*
The air itself carried traces of spiritual energy.
Cold.
Ancient.
Still—
there was one major problem.
He could not see anything.
Absolute darkness pressed in from every direction.
Lian frowned.
"…This is useless."
He focused spiritual energy toward his eyes.
His circulation pathways activated immediately.
Energy flowed upward.
But—
nothing changed.
Still darkness.
Still empty.
"…Seriously?"
He stared harder into the void.
Then—
far ahead in the darkness—
a faint blue glow appeared.
Lian's eyes widened instantly.
"…Huh?"
The light slowly brightened.
At first it resembled a distant star buried beneath the earth.
Then it expanded further.
Larger.
Clearer.
Until finally—
an enormous underground chamber gradually revealed itself before him.
Lian's breathing slowed slightly.
The sight was unbelievable.
And at the center—
the giant clam rested quietly beneath the earth.
Its shell was already open.
Soft blue light spilled from within like moonlight beneath the ocean.
Lizarius stood nearby calmly, as though opening colossal ancient spirit beasts underground was nothing more than a casual task.
Without warning—
the force carrying Lian vanished.
"—!"
He dropped straight downward.
His body landed against something strangely soft.
Not dirt.
Not stone.
Flesh.
Lian stumbled forward awkwardly before catching himself.
"…Ugh…"
He looked around slowly.
The interior resembled a living cavern.
Massive walls of clam flesh stretched outward endlessly in every direction.
Pearls the size of fists lay scattered across the ground, glowing softly with pale blue radiance.
Water Essence Crystals rolled faintly near his feet, releasing pure spiritual energy into the air.
The atmosphere itself felt thick with vitality.
Every breath entered his lungs like cool water.
Lian slowly raised his head.
Above him—
Lizarius hovered silently in the dim blue glow.
Lian blinked several times.
"…So…"
He gestured vaguely around himself.
"…What exactly am I supposed to do?"
A brief silence followed.
Then Lizarius answered flatly.
"Remain here."
Lian stared.
"…That's it?"
"You will absorb the clam's essence."
Lian pointed at the enormous surroundings.
"But how?"
He looked around again.
"What am I supposed to eat?"
He pointed toward the pearls.
"The pearls?"
"Yes."
He pointed toward the crystals.
"The crystals too?"
"Yes."
Lian slowly turned toward the massive flesh walls surrounding him.
"…The meat?"
A short pause.
Then—
"Yes."
Lian's expression froze completely.
"…I have to eat the whole room."
Silence.
Lizarius did not deny it.
That silence alone answered everything.
Lian slowly rubbed his face.
"…This thing is enormous."
His eyes traveled across the gigantic interior space again.
"It's literally the size of a house…"
The more he looked—
the more horrifying the task became.
There was enough flesh here to feed an entire village for months.
And apparently—
he was expected to consume all of it himself.
Lian exhaled deeply.
"…How long is this supposed to take?"
No answer.
He frowned harder.
"…A few days?"
Silence.
"…A month?"
Still nothing.
Lian's eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"…A year?"
Lizarius remained quiet.
Lian slowly pointed at him.
"You don't actually know, do you?"
The white lizard finally spoke.
"You will know when it is complete."
Lian stared blankly.
"…That's not comforting."
He looked around once more.
The glowing chamber suddenly felt much larger than before.
And much more isolated.
Then another realization struck him.
"Wait."
His eyes widened slightly.
"I'm staying here alone?"
He looked upward immediately.
"How am I supposed to breathe if something happens?"
"What if the clam closes completely?"
"What if I get trapped?"
"What if I accidentally poison myself eating spirit beast meat?"
"What if I die in here and nobody even notices—"
Lizarius blinked once.
Slowly.
"…Your worries are necessary."
Lian immediately pointed at himself.
"Because I'm the one getting buried underground inside a giant clam!"
The white lizard turned away slightly.
Then—
the clam began moving.
Lian froze.
"…Wait."
The massive shell slowly started closing.
"WAIT—!"
Lian rushed forward instantly.
But the giant clam sealed shut with a deep, heavy *THOOM*.
The sound echoed through the chamber like a mountain closing.
Complete.
Perfect.
Not even a single grain of dirt entered from outside.
The chamber trembled faintly before becoming still again.
For a brief moment—
darkness consumed everything.
Then the clam's strange internal glow returned once more.
Soft blue radiance illuminated the chamber.
Quiet.
Still.
Empty.
Lian looked upward slowly.
Lizarius was gone.
Just like that.
Lian stood motionless for several seconds.
"…So I'm actually trapped in here."
Silence answered him.
He turned slowly in a circle.
Pearls.
Essence crystals.
Endless glowing clam flesh.
No doors.
No visible exit.
Nothing but spiritual energy and silence.
Realization finally settled fully onto his face.
"…Oh no."
He stared at the gigantic chamber again.
Then sighed deeply enough to shake his shoulders.
"…This is going to be a very long few days."
Outside the clam—
deep beneath the earth—
Lizarius hovered silently beside the buried structure.
His golden eyes shifted slightly.
Then—
he stepped forward.
The earth immediately obeyed.
Invisible force wrapped around the enormous clam.
Despite its colossal size—
it rose effortlessly beneath his control.
No violent shaking.
No destruction.
Only perfect precision.
The ground shifted smoothly as the massive structure moved through the underground layers like an object drifting through water.
Inside—
Lian noticed absolutely nothing.
He had already seated himself cross-legged beside several Water Essence Crystals, reluctantly beginning cultivation.
The outside world no longer existed to him.
Lizarius guided the clam farther away from the house.
Farther from wandering villagers.
Farther from unnecessary attention.
Finally—
the giant clam settled beneath a quiet cluster of trees several dozen meters away from the village path.
Hidden.
Undisturbed.
Safe.
The white lizard lingered silently above the buried structure for a moment.
Then sank back into the earth once more.
Beneath the roots of one of the nearby trees—
the soil shifted.
Roots trembled faintly as the ground parted beneath them.
Lizarius examined the underground structure carefully.
Then—
with deliberate control—
he began creating a tunnel.
The earth separated cleanly before him.
A narrow underground passage slowly extended downward through the soil.
Stable.
Reinforced.
Perfectly concealed.
No surface disturbance appeared above.
No signs remained for ordinary people to notice.
The tunnel stretched deeper and deeper until it finally reached the clam's new location underground.
Lizarius paused.
Then adjusted the structure further.
The surrounding earth hardened under spiritual pressure, becoming compact and durable enough to endure for long periods without collapse.
Finally—
the tunnel connected directly to the clam's outer shell.
A hidden pathway.
Completely concealed beneath roots and stone.
Impossible for ordinary perception to detect.
Lizarius tilted his head slightly.
Then—
his tail tapped once against the clam.
Tiny punctures formed across several portions of the shell.
Small.
Precise.
Not enough to weaken the structure.
But sufficient for controlled airflow and spiritual circulation.
Inside the clam—
Lian remained completely unaware.
His cultivation had already deepened.
Spiritual energy drifted around him in visible currents while the Water Essence Crystals slowly dimmed from absorption.
Lizarius observed quietly for several moments longer.
Then his expression returned to its usual calm emptiness.
"…Sufficient."
Without another word—
the white lizard turned away.
His body dissolved back into the earth.
And disappeared completely.
Back at the house—
the courtyard had become quiet once more.
Only the sound of distant village chatter and soft afternoon wind remained.
Lian's mother still stood exactly where he had vanished.
The three Water Essence Crystals remained clutched tightly in her trembling hands.
Their soft blue glow reflected faintly across tear-filled eyes.
She continued staring at the patch of earth where her son had disappeared.
Even now—
part of her still struggled to believe what had happened.
One moment—
he had been standing in front of her.
The next—
he had vanished beneath the earth alongside an immortal creature beyond mortal understanding.
Her fingers tightened around the crystals.
"…Lian…"
His name escaped her lips softly.
Almost helplessly.
Memories slowly surfaced in her mind.
Ever since he was young—
her son had always tried to smile first.
Even during hunger.
Even during hardship.
Even after his sister disappeared years ago.
He always worried about others before himself.
Always acted stronger than he truly was.
And now—
he had stepped into a world far beyond anything she could understand.
Spirit beasts.
Cultivation.
Immortals.
Hidden places beneath the earth.
None of it belonged to the ordinary life she once knew.
Fear tightened painfully inside her chest.
Because what mother would not be afraid?
What mother could calmly watch her child disappear underground into the hands of a mysterious immortal creature?
And yet—
slowly—
her expression softened.
Not because the fear disappeared.
But because she understood something important.
Lian was moving forward now.
Toward something greater than this village.
Greater than poverty.
Greater than the fragile life they had struggled through for years.
And no matter how desperately she wanted to keep him safe—
she could no longer pull him back.
Because if she became the chain holding him in place…
then one day—
he would only regret staying behind.
Tears finally slipped down her face quietly.
Yet despite them—
a faint smile still appeared.
Weak.
Shaking.
But real.
"…Just come back safely."
She whispered the words softly toward the empty courtyard.
The afternoon wind carried them away.
Then—
slowly—
she turned around and walked back into the house alone.