Chrysalis Chapter 1721 - That’s Not A Thing

Returning to the nest is always a relief. It provides a much-needed opportunity to rest my weary limbs and catch up on some sleep. Additionally, I managed to persuade Solant to provide further reinforcements for the upcoming phase of the plan, which is a pleasant development.

In truth, I simply approached several battalions and commanded them to fall in line behind me, but I am confident it will work out. If she didn't anticipate me taking that kind of initiative, then I’d have to question her strategic foresight. Alongside the ants, I have the human priests contributing their beneficial aura buffs to the group.

“WE ARE NOT WORTHY OF YOUR RADIANCE, OH GREAT ONE!”

It would be far more pleasant if they weren’t so incredibly loud. Beyn’s behavior seems to deteriorate as time passes rather than improve. He is difficult enough to deal with on his own, but he is never solitary. He is accompanied by a full chorus of followers, complete with garish robes, burning incense, wooden mandible clackers, and disturbingly fervent expressions.

I am just trying to get some sleep over here!

“We prostrate ourselves in humble supplication!” the priests proclaim in a rhythmic, resonant chant.

“THE PATH OF TRUTH IS ILLUMINATED BY YOUR MAGNIFICENCE! WE WEEP WITH GLADNESS TO WALK UPON IT!”

“Eternal joy! Eternal joy!”

This has been going on for hours. I cannot fathom how their vocal cords haven't given out yet. It’s just another disadvantage of inefficient, vocal-based communication. The superiority of Pheromones has never been more obvious to me.

Since I’m stuck ignoring them anyway, I’ve decided to dedicate some focus to the second of my mysterious new organs. "The Everflowing Well of Living Waters" is quite a dramatic name for an organ. I’ve been hesitant to experiment with it because the concept of "Living Water" makes me a bit uneasy. Is it actually safe to have a substance like that inside my physical form?

It is better to test it here within the safety of the nest.

Blocking out the relentless and uncomfortable display of worship happening nearby, I shift my internal focus toward the new organ.

It isn't particularly impressive to look at, appearing as a ring of bluish, porous material that looks almost like a sponge. It resembles a type of volcanic rock. In terms of size, it’s roughly large enough for a human to wear as a very ugly hat. Given the massive amount of evolutionary energy required to create it, I expected something much more imposing.

Cautiously, I extend a small thread of mana from my core toward it. I’m not entirely sure what the reaction will be when they touch, but... here goes nothing!

Flinching internally, I watch as the mana enters the Well and... disappears. No matter how hard I strain to detect activity from the ring, nothing happens. I can’t even track the mana I just injected! Where on earth did it go?

Feeling suspicious, I flick another wisp of mana at the organ, only to witness it vanish into the void as well.

Dammit!

The whole point of this thing is to generate more mana than it consumes, not to swallow everything I give it and make it vanish! Where is it stashing my precious mana?

Getting annoyed, I feed it a larger burst of mana. Perhaps I was being too stingy and a mere whiff of energy wasn't enough to jumpstart the process. A more substantial, yet still cautious, amount of mana touches the organ and... is swallowed just as fast as the previous attempts.

Fine... alright. FINE!

Evidently, the organ is either broken or it requires a specific threshold of mana before it begins to output anything. I can work with that. I had hoped to avoid this by testing with tiny increments to stay safe, but it seems that isn't an option.

Accepting my circumstances, I begin to pull a constant stream of mana from my core, funneling it directly into the Well while watching intently. According to my mana sense, every bit of energy I shove into the organ simply ceases to exist. Even when my core is half depleted, I still see no sign of a return on my investment.

Instead of continuing to drain my own reserves—which I need to keep topped off since I’m constantly leaking mana in the fourth—I look to external sources. I’ve been drawing in ambient energy at a steady pace already, but I intensify my efforts and channel a significant portion of that mana into the new organ.

More and more mana is devoured by the ring, yet nothing comes out. I am moments away from giving up and trekking back to complain to Granin about this defective purchase when I finally feel a reaction.

It is incredibly faint, a mere whisper in my mana sense, but something is finally emanating from the organ. It continues its intake of mana, and that tiny response begins to grow, accelerating as the seconds pass. Before long, I can clearly perceive what is happening inside.

Coating the surface of the Everflowing Well is an impossibly thin film of incredibly dense energy. Liquid mana. I can feel the organ physically heating up inside me as it begins to discharge more of the substance.

And it is powerful. Trying to grip it with my mind is a struggle; it feels ten times more difficult to manipulate than standard mana. When I guide it into my core, the core greedily absorbs it, refilling my energy reserves at a rapid pace.

And there is even more coming!

Much like the regeneration network, this organ appears to function on an exponential scale, increasing its output the longer it remains active. But that isn't the only catch. As the minutes go by, I feel the internal reaction within the well starting to lose momentum. It begins to sputter, as if it requires a higher intake of mana to maintain the rising level of production.

Instead of feeding it more, I shut off the flow entirely and watch the organ begin to cool. It continues to generate liquid mana for a short time, though in quickly diminishing amounts, until it eventually goes dormant. Now coated in a layer of liquid mana about a centimeter thick, the ring has successfully produced significantly more energy than I put in. I realize that if I had kept feeding it and pushed the reaction further, the output would have been astronomical.

Well, this is fascinating. The output scales up, but so do the requirements. I have to supply it with progressively more energy to keep the reaction going, and in exchange, it provides even more mana. Naturally, the liquid mana it creates can be cycled back into the organ, so I won't always need to rely on my core or external mana.

This... I think this is borderline broken. And I haven't even started mutating it yet!

The more I analyze it, the more I'm convinced there has to be a hidden catch. Otherwise, this thing is essentially a source of infinite mana.