Chapter 572: Overarching Sunset
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Finally, Li Du saw the opal.
Without needing his instructions, Crispy Noodles climbed down and picked it up using his claws before handing it over to Li Du.
Over the course of the day, Crispy Noodles had figured out that Li Du was seeking similar red gemstones. At times, when digging for the preserved fruit, he would also intuitively dig out an opal along the way and hand it over to Li Du.
The gemstone in his hand, Li Du could feel its heaviness and was elated.
He used his s.h.i.+rt to wipe the gemstone clean and looked at it using the light from his flashlight.
After one glance at it, he was stunned.
Earlier, he"d only noticed the gemstone"s size and purity and had not looked in detail at the pattern inside as it had been stained with dirt, making it hard to see. After wiping it clean, he finally understood how precious the gemstone that he found was!
Overall, the fist-sized opal was oval shaped and pure enough for the light from the flashlight to effortlessly s.h.i.+ne through it.
The top of the gemstone was orange-red and clear while the bottom was blood red from the wispy scarlet inclusions.
Situated in the middle was a piece of semicircle inclusion. As the top was orange-red and the bottom was blood red, the inclusion appeared as a reddish mixture of both colors.
Putting everything together, the inside of the gemstone, which resembled a beautiful sunset, was a scenery of orange-red skies, an admixture of a red semicircular sun, and blood red clouds.
Li Du was shocked. It was his first time seeing such a magnificent and unbelievable natural spectacle.
When he saw it clearly he could not help but rub his eyes, thinking that he was in a daze or what he saw was an illusion.
However, when he reopened his eyes, he still saw the same miniaturized scenery of a sunset.
He was not in a daze, nor was it an illusion. He had really found this breathtakingly beautiful gemstone.
All of a sudden, he realized that he"d obtained a priceless treasure, which could genuinely be called "the fire opal worth many cities."
The scenery of a sunset in the gemstone was so realistic and beautiful that it did not seem like it was naturally produced. Instead, it seemed like the masterpiece of an artist who had poured his heart into creating it.
Anyone who saw the spectacle of this gemstone would be in awe. Nature was indeed a divine craftsman to have had created such an opal.
It really was a miracle!
What was even more astonis.h.i.+ng was that under the light of the flashlight, the blood red clouds in the center seemed to s.h.i.+ft as Li Du slowly turned the gemstone.
When seen from a certain angle, the bottom of the stone had a few black spots that would be considered a blemish in an ordinary opal. Instead, the black spots helped add the finis.h.i.+ng touches to the scenery of the sunset.
The black spots reminded Li Du of the homebound birds that he and Sophie had seen during yesterday"s sunset.
"Thank the heavens for bestowing such a harvest!" Li Du could not help but groan.
Although he did not know how Bian He from the Chu kingdom had felt when he"d found the jade, He s.h.i.+ Bi, he was certain it was no different from how he felt at the moment.
A fire opal was already a precious gemstone. Furthermore, with the flawless size and purity of this particular, Li Du estimated that, without the sunset inside, it was worth upwards of tens of millions of US dollars.
However, with the sunset, the opal was now a priceless treasure. He could only describe it as "worthy of many cities" if a price had to be placed on it.
After obtaining the opal, the usually easy-going Li Du became paranoid.
He hurriedly put the opal away and looked at his surroundings anxiously.
If such a gemstone was discovered by others in the barren land, it could result in murder!
Luckily, the surroundings were quiet as usual, with only the sound of wind blowing across the forest and G.o.dzilla, who was focused on roasting sausages next to the bonfire.
He recalled the little bug and used its ability to rewind time on the gemstone.
Although he knew that the gemstone was natural, he could not help fear that it was man-made and that all of this would be for naught.
As the surroundings changed, the opal appeared inside a stack of crushed rocks. It was the same later on, remaining inside the crushed rock the whole time, until the moment Crispy Noodles dug it out.
Li Du was now sure it was indeed natural.
He went back to the pickup truck, found a box, and placed the gemstone inside. He then proceeded to place the box in a bag and decided that regardless of what happened, he would not open the bag for the remainder of their stay in the National Park.
He"d already thought of a name for the gemstone. He named it the "Overarching Sunset," as this is what had come to mind the moment he"d first seen the gemstone.
Having obtained the Overarching Sunset, Li Du was even more energized to search for opals.
The little bug continued to fly among the cracked rocks in the ground, finding an opal from time to time. He quickly found five opals. However, the opals were all very small, only the size of his thumb.
Instead of being disappointed, Li Du was even more elated as these opals further validated the Overarching Sunset"s rarity.
He was still in the midst of excitement from finding the Overarching Sunset and was controlling the little bug to search for opals. All of a sudden, a shocked voice could be heard ahead of him. "G.o.d, Li. what happened to you?"
Li Du raised his head blankly and said, "Ah? What about me?"
It was Sophie who was in front of him. She came up to Li Du, touched his face, and ma.s.saged his body, before saying in a stern voice, "Go rest! You need to rest!"
Speaking of which, she looked toward G.o.dzilla and instructed, "Go get a bottle of glucose liquid. Hurry!"
Li Du asked curiously, "What"s the matter?"
Sophie took out her phone and pointed the screen at him. What Li Du saw was an extremely tired face, which was pale with dull, swollen eyes, bags and droopy eyebrows.
"That"s me?" he asked in astonishment. He tried to get up before nearly falling down when exerting his strength. It was at this moment he realized how tired he was. He did not even have the strength to stand up!
G.o.dzilla swiftly brought back the glucose liquid. Sophie consecutively gave Li Du two bottles to gulp down. G.o.dzilla then proceeded to lift him up, sent him back to the tent, and said, "Sleep! You must sleep today!"
Li Du also noticed something was wrong and recalled the little bug. Suddenly, he felt a wave of crus.h.i.+ng fatigue throughout his body.
He did not even have time to comprehend what had happened before closing his eyes and falling into a deep sleep.
When he awoke, he opened his eyes and saw a large, ferocious mouth and sharp teeth.
He was taken aback. However, when the mouth closed, he realized that it was actually Ah Meow who happened to be yawning.
Seeing that he"d woken up, Ah Meow was extremely delighted. He jumped onto his body and started meowing.
Li Du pushed him aside and searched frantically for the bag that was fortunately by his side. He opened the bag and took out the box where the Overarching Sunset sat undamaged.
He let out a sigh of relief after seeing it and muttered to himself, "I must have been possessed!"
The tent was opened and Sophie"s delicate silhouette appeared in front of him. She asked, "What did you say just now?"
Li Du put the box away. "Nothing much. I said that the gemstones sent me into a daze."
Sophie responded in an annoyed manner, "You were nearly catatonic, did you know that? If we hadn"t found you in time, you could have suffered a heart failure."