Card Apprentice Daily Log

Chapter 3047: Insatiable Ink

Date: Unspecified

Time: Unspecified

Location: Myriad Realms, Card World, Five Regions, Southern Region, Blossom District, Sky Blossom City, Ocean World Domain

The intertwined ball of snakes rapidly grew in size, expanding with every passing second as dense black and silver mist continuously poured from the writhing mass. The two colossal serpentine bodies twisted and coiled around one another in a blur of motion, their bodies weaving together so tightly that it was impossible to tell where one ended and the other began, like a knitted ball.

From within the roiling sphere came a constant shower of sparks.

Maworm’s crimson root-like black thorns repeatedly scraped and slammed against Lil’ Baem’s pristine white scales, each collision producing a metallic screech followed by a burst of dazzling light. The thorns were sharp enough to rend mountains, yet they couldn’t leave so much as a scratch on Lil’ Baem’s scales. Likewise, Lil’ Baem’s powerful coils failed to pin Maworm for more than a fleeting instant before the latter slipped free with uncanny agility.

Rather than a graceful duel, the two serpentine creatures looked like a pair of apex predators chasing one another in an endless spiral. One moment Maworm would dart through the tangled coils with Lil’ Baem close behind, jaws snapping shut inches from her tail. The next, their positions would reverse as Maworm’s thorn-covered body whipped around, relentlessly pursuing Lil’ Baem through the ever-tightening maze of intertwined coils.

The black and silver mist billowed outward with every violent twist, concealing their movements until only flashes of white scales, crimson-black thorns, and showers of sparks could be seen within the swirling cloud. It resembled a living hurricane, one with two primordial creatures at its heart, each refusing to yield even an inch to the other.

“Wyatt… is that a Maworm?” Corey blurted out, her eyes widening in astonishment. “I never thought I’d actually get to see one.”

She recognized it immediately from Park’s memories.

Back when Park had been searching countless bestiaries and ancient records to trace Lil’ Baem’s origins, Maworms had appeared repeatedly in the oldest texts.

Unlike Lil’ Baem, whose existence was shrouded in mystery, Maworms were one of the few primordial creatures whose names had survived into the modern era. They had gone extinct only within the last several millennia. Not because they were the strongest of the primordial species. But because they were among the most versatile and virtually impossible to kill.

“Look!” Corey pointed excitedly at the writhing ball of serpents. “They’re already getting along. My baby finally has a friend to play with.”

I stared at her in disbelief.

“What?” I deadpanned. “They’re clearly trying to eat each other.”

The battlefield before us made that abundantly obvious.

Lil’ Baem’s Vapor Venom was helpless against Maworm’s Insatiable Ink. The vice versa was true too. Like steam meeting fog.

Yet, the Vapor Venom continuously washing over Lil Beam body erased the Maworm’s Insatiable Ink tainting her scales.

How?

Lil’ Baem’s pristine white scales possessed an almost absolute impermeability.

Whenever Maworm attempted to stain those scales with the Insatiable Ink and swallow her into one of her stomachs, the Vapor Venom immediately erased every trace of ink before it could take hold with help from the scale’s impermeability.

Under normal circumstances, the venom would have directly affected Maworm herself. However, the Ink cloaking Maworm’s body acted as the first layer of protection against the vapour venom.

The result was a bizarre stalemate. One primordial ability continuously erased the other’s influence. Neither creature could gain a decisive advantage and could only wrestle. Trying to gain the upper hand.

However, Lil’ Baem began to relentlessly sink her fangs into Maworm’s thick hind, each bite effortlessly piercing flesh that would have resisted nearly any other predator. Chunks of black flesh were torn away, and her primordial Vapor Venom surged into the wounds like a living tide, seeking to erase everything it touched.

Yet the injuries lasted only moments. The shredded flesh squirmed and reconnected. Torn muscles knitted themselves together. Fresh thrones erupted from beneath the ruined ones.

As the wounds closed, the lingering Vapor Venom was forcibly expelled alongside ribbons of insatiable ink before vanishing into the surrounding mist. Within a heartbeat. It was as though Maworm had never been injured at all.

Under ordinary circumstances, the battle would have ended long ago. Any other Maworm caught in Lil’ Baem’s jaws would have gradually succumbed to the relentless accumulation of her venom. Even if they survived the bites, they would eventually be overwhelmed as the poison continuously erased their defenses and vitality.

Maworm, however, was no ordinary primordial creature. After becoming my Bloodkin, her already terrifying racial abilities had undergone another transformation. The cursed primordial bloodline flowing through her body had elevated every innate ability she possessed to an entirely different level.

Her regeneration was no longer merely absurd. It bordered on immortality. Every wound became fuel for her evolution. Every failed attempt to kill her only demonstrated how difficult she had become to put down.

And that wasn’t even the most frightening part. The cursed primordial bloodline was only one piece of her newfound strength. As a Bloodkin tier Calamity Daughter Core, Maworm possessed a host of additional abilities that no pure-blooded Maworm had ever wielded.

She was no longer the extinct primordial predator recorded in ancient bestiaries. She was something entirely new.

A cursed primordial existence whose racial gifts had been amplified beyond their natural limits, creating a creature that even other primordial beings would struggle to comprehend.

“Corey, call off Lil’ Baem,” I said before turning my attention to Maworm. “That’s enough, come back.”

Upon receiving my order, Maworm immediately tried to disengage, her body loosening from the tangled coils as she attempted to retreat toward me.

Unfortunately, Lil’ Baem had no intention of letting her prey escape. The snake tightened her coils and lunged after Maworm with relentless enthusiasm, repeatedly trying to drag her back into their wrestling match or tear her flesh with her fangs. Despite Maworm’s efforts to obey my command, she simply couldn’t shake Lil’ Baem off cleanly.

“Wyatt, don’t you dare!” Corey protested, throwing herself between me and the battling creatures as though protecting a pair of mischievous children. “Let them play!”

I looked from Corey to the two primordial creatures that were quite literally trying to devour one another. Then back at Corey, adding, “What are you smoking? Friends don’t try to poison or eat each other.”

“That’s how you make friends,” Corey declared confidently. “First you fight. In the process you get to know each other. Then, you become the best of friends.”

She folded her arms with a satisfied nod before flashing me a bright smile. “So don’t get in their way. Just sit back and watch a beautiful new friendship blossom.”

She pointed at the two intertwined serpentine bodies still trying to devour one another, adding, “Just like ours.”