But soon another problem cropped up. Figuring out how to actually obtain the Native-Soil Crystal was a headache in itself. After a careful inspection, Evan Frost realized that the swirling mass of powerful earth element energy seemed to be wrapped in some kind of barrier—his divine sense couldn’t touch it at all.
"Don’t tell me I have to flatten this whole mountain just to get it? It can’t be that simple!" Evan muttered to himself, feeling a surge of frustration. Tom Frost at his side looked completely baffled.
"Big Brother, is this really the entrance? I heard you say something about leveling the mountain—what’s going on here?" Tom Frost asked urgently, worry creasing his brow.
"Tom, this is the entrance all right. But right at the entrance there’s a huge mass of earth element energy. I need to get that earth element power, so I thought about flattening the mountain. I just don’t know if it’s even possible," Evan explained, his tone serious.
"That’s easy! Why should you bother, Big Brother? Just leave it to me! Flattening a mountain is nothing—watch me help you out!" Tom Frost grinned, puffing out his chest in excitement.
"Evan, don’t let him mess around. Getting the Native-Soil Crystal isn’t nearly that simple. You have to handle this yourself. Still, it should be easier than getting the Glassfire Crystal—at least there’s no real danger," Luna—the Sword Spirit—interjected, her voice firm and slightly amused.
"Tom, I’d better handle this myself. If you mess up the entrance, that’d be a disaster. Just wait here—if I need your help, I’ll call you," Evan said, determination in his eyes.
With that, Evan activated Earthshift, merging his body into the mountain stone and slowly tunneling toward the earth element energy. The earth energy was actually several kilometers inside the mountain, which explained why the energy fluctuations felt so faint. Evan moved slowly, taking nearly half an hour just to reach a spot fifty meters away from the core, sweat beading on his brow.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to move faster—the deeper he went, the greater the pressure became. He hadn’t expected such intense gravity here, and it caught him totally off guard. The pressure over those fifty meters weighed tens of thousands of jin, nearly suffocating him, his body trembling from the strain.
"You’ve got to be kidding! Luna said there’s no danger, but this feels deadly! If fifty meters is this bad, what’s it going to be like at ten or five meters—am I just going to get crushed flat? Looks like getting this Native-Soil Crystal is way harder than I thought," Evan grumbled, bitterness and indignation welling up as he realized he’d celebrated way too soon.
Heh, of course it’s not that easy. Still, you can have Tom help you out. His energy shield might not be as strong as Jade’s, but at least it’ll protect you up to five meters from the Native-Soil Crystal. After that, getting the crystal will depend on you." Luna reminded him again.
Evan, are you saying you can’t get it? Why don’t we just smash the whole mountain and see what happens? I bet the entrance will show up automatically." Tom suggested, worry in his voice.
No, that won’t work. There’s a Native-Soil Crystal in here, condensed from pure earth element. The closer you get, the stronger the pressure. So I need you to shield me so I can get close. This time, it might be tough, so give it all you’ve got." Evan explained seriously.
Don’t worry, Evan! I know what to do. If I can’t hold out, I’ll let you know. You don’t have to worry about me." Tom said, then entered Evan’s storage ring, and a yellow shield appeared around Evan.
With Tom’s protection, Evan’s speed increased dramatically. Only when he got within ten meters of the earth-element core did he feel the shield straining. "Tom, how are you holding up? Can you keep going?" he asked.
No problem, Evan—keep going, I can still hold out! But at five meters, that’s my absolute limit. If you go any closer, the shield might break and you’ll be in real danger. At this pressure, I can only hold out for half an hour, so make it quick." Tom warned.
Just as Luna said, Tom’s shield could only hold at five meters. If it were Jade’s, he might get even closer. Still, at this distance, Evan could finally see the Native-Soil Crystal’s true form.
Five meters ahead, a swirling mass of gray energy flickered, and at its center, a chicken-egg-sized gray crystal slowly spun. Evan knew this was the Native-Soil Crystal, but it was clear getting it would be no easy feat.
Evan tried every method he could think of, but nothing worked. Finally, thick-skinned, he asked Luna, "Big Sis Luna, do you have any way to get the Native-Soil Crystal? I’m out of ideas."
Getting the Native-Soil Crystal depends on you. The mountain is saturated with earth element. You can resonate with the basic earth essence, but your Earthshift is only at the lowest tier. You can’t harmonize with the mid-tier particles in the crystal, so you feel this crushing pressure." Luna explained, her tone instructive.
Elemental particles have ranks—the higher the rank, the greater the energy. Right now, you only know how to communicate with low-tier particles. Mid-tier and high-tier are out of reach. The Native-Soil Crystal is made of mid-tier particles. Do you get it now?" Luna said.
I don’t get it! What does this have to do with mid-tier particles? What I need is a way to get the Native-Soil Crystal—just tell me directly!" Evan grumbled, exasperated that Luna was lecturing him at a time like this.
Use your Woodshift. Release wood-element particles into the earth here. With your current ability, you can make grass or small trees appear. Let them quickly absorb the earth particles, and you’ll know what to do next." Luna instructed.
Evan felt his head spinning. How could that work—making trees appear out of thin air? With no seeds, it sounded impossible. But he had no other choice, so he poured all his wood element into his hands and activated Woodshift.
But as soon as the wood element appeared, it was instantly neutralized by the earth element. Not a single blade of grass or tree sprouted, leaving Evan speechless.
This isn’t working! Is there another way?" Evan asked anxiously, feeling time running out and that all his efforts were wasted.
Are you an idiot? Didn’t you notice the earth element around you is thinning? You need to keep using Woodshift to neutralize the earth element within a few meters. Then go out, find seeds from big trees, and plant them here. You’ll see a miracle then. Otherwise, why would I tell you to use Woodshift at all?
If your Woodshift was at the second tier, you could grow rootless trees directly and the earth element would be absorbed. Even an idiot would get it now—don’t tell me you still don’t understand," Luna snapped.