Chapter 775: Witch Egg and Mutant Seed

“When a Witch Egg is laid, its surface is covered by a ‘membranous sac.’ This sac will only detach completely from the mother’s body once the egg is in a suitable hatching environment. This requires a female of the Witch Race to personally enter a planet’s interior to lay the egg.

“Ordinary planets are one thing, but the descendants of an Ancestral God must all be hatched inside a star. The extreme temperatures inside a star are more than a Star God can endure. Even with various defensive Divine Artifacts, she would have to leave the artifact’s protection during childbirth. It’s impossible to complete the process while remaining inside the defensive shield projected by the artifact.

“A Witch Egg from an Ancestral God’s lineage is incredibly gifted; its shell and outer sac ensure it remains unharmed in the extreme heat. But a female Star God of the Witch Race could be instantly vaporized by even a moment of contact with the high temperatures of a star’s core.

“Therefore, a female of the Witch Race carrying the child of an Ancestral God faces a high probability of death during childbirth. Only those who have specifically mastered high-temperature resistance skills have a chance of survival.”

Su Ze was at a loss for words, but then a thought struck him:

“So, you’re saying the woman from the Witch Race who laid the Witch Egg inside the Super Star is definitely dead?”

Even Su Ze himself struggled to get close to the Super Star, let alone a Star God from the Witch Race. He figured she must have relied on the protection of a powerful Divine Artifact just to get inside and lay the egg.

“That’s right.” The Pope nodded. “Laying an egg in an ordinary star is already a near-certain death sentence. In a Super Star, there’s absolutely no chance of survival.”

“But that doesn’t prove it’s safe for us to have stolen this egg. After all, the powerful one is the father, not the mother.”

“First, this Witch Egg is protected by a membranous sac that converts the violent ambient energy into a gentle form for the egg to absorb. During incubation, the Witch Egg will absorb all the energy inside this sac. Not even an Ancestral God could leave a mark within the sac without destroying it. Furthermore, any tracking sigil is fundamentally a form of energy. Even if one were left, it would just be absorbed by the egg.

“Only the mother, after gestating for a million years, would form a faint connection with the Witch Egg. But this egg’s mother is most likely dead, so that’s not a concern.

“Second, I suspect the father of this Witch Egg has most likely run into some trouble as well.”

“What makes you say that?” Su Ze asked.

He was relieved to hear that the Witch Egg likely couldn’t be tracked. But if the Pope was right and the father was also out of the picture, he would feel even more secure.

The Pope waved his hand, conjuring a Star Map. “This is where we found the Witch Egg,” he said. “It’s a barren, remote region that isn’t under any race’s jurisdiction.

“The nearest Dominator Race isn’t the Witch Race, but the Primordial Race. And while they aren’t exactly close either, the Witch Race and the Primordial Race are enemies.

“The Witch Race would never choose a location so far from their own territory and so close to an enemy’s to serve as a ‘Hatching Box.’ The reason is that this area used to be Witch Race territory, or at least occupied by one of their Vassal Races. It would be perfectly logical for them to pick a sparsely populated, hidden spot near their domain for a Hatching Box. The Witch Race has such Hatching Boxes scattered across the universe, often spread out in concealed, top-secret locations to avoid discovery by their enemies.

“But a few hundred years ago, the Witch Race and the Primordial Race fought a major war, which ended with both sides losing territory. That particular ‘Hatching Box’ was likely abandoned by the Witch Race back then.”

Su Ze frowned. “That still doesn’t add up. A being stronger than an Ancestral God could have easily taken the Super Star with them. Why leave it here?”

The Pope shrugged. “That’s why I said the being stronger than an Ancestral God probably ran into some trouble, too. If he were fine, he would have moved this Super Star long ago.”

Su Ze…

‘The Pope’s analysis made some sense,’ Su Ze thought, ‘but it still feels too risky.’

‘Then again, if “the father” were still around and well, would he have done nothing while we stole the Witch Egg? There hasn’t been any reaction at all.’

He couldn’t be one hundred percent certain, but the thought of throwing away the Super Star just because of a small, potential risk… Su Ze couldn’t bear to do it.

“Forget it. We’ll leave it as is for now!” Su Ze said, gritting his teeth.

The Super Star was too critical for Zexing at this stage. If he got rid of it, Su Ze had no idea where he could find another.

As for buying one, first, no one was selling them. Second, he couldn’t afford it anyway. Just purchasing the Giant Spatial Artifact to hold the Super Star had nearly bankrupted him.

But Su Ze still faced a problem: what should he do with the Witch Egg inside the Super Star?

‘Let it grow and hatch?’

‘That would cause the Super Star to decay prematurely, drastically shortening its lifespan.’

‘Besides, a normal Witch Egg hatches into a Star God. This one is the offspring of a being who surpasses an Ancestral God, and it’s incubating by absorbing a Super Star… Who knows what kind of monster it will turn into!’

The Pope offered his opinion on the matter. “You could hatch it. This member of the Witch Race will have limitless potential. If you can control it, you’ll have an enforcer on the level of a Dominator Race!”

“Give me a break. I’ve figured it out—the Witch Race are nothing but Gold-devouring Beasts! Who knows how many resources it would take to raise it after it hatches? With all those resources, wouldn’t I be better off investing in myself?” Su Ze rejected the suggestion.

Mage, who had been silent the entire time, spoke up. “The Witch Race… they’re even more peculiar and more worthy of study than the Hui Race. Why not hand it over to me for research? I might be able to produce some extremely valuable results.”