After Qin Niu¡¯s pest control skill improved to the small achievement level, his thought process became wider and bolder, and his technical means became more abundant.
¡°We need to find their source and eradicate thempletely¡ªthat¡¯s the best solution,¡± he thought.
He pondered the methods to exterminate the locusts in his mind.
Unfortunately, his Termite Army was not yet sizable enough; otherwise, dealing with these locusts would be like a game.
Once the locusts matured, they would soony arge number of eggs in the ground.
Just half a month to twenty dayster, they would hatch into nymphs and then start eating nts¡¯ tender leaves along with the adults, rapidly growing bigger.
Therefore, to eradicate them, one had to find a way to destroy the eggs and pupae.
That was the real solution.
¡°I¡¯ll take some time tomorrow to look for the source, there might be more methods,¡± he thought.
Qin Niu packed the harvested corn into baskets, then nced at Xiao Nui, who stilly on the ground refusing to get up.
¡°Youzy thing, all you do is eat without working. Wait until I fatten you up, I¡¯ll ughter you for meat!¡± he scolded.
Spurred by Qin Niu¡¯s scolding, Xiao Nui quickly rolled over and stood up, obediently walking over to his side.
¡°Carry these two baskets back!¡± hemanded.
With the two baskets on the ox¡¯s back, he also lifted a load on his own.
This year promised a great harvest, and he estimated that just the output from the first half of the year would not be less than nine hundred pounds.
Especially the small area where he had piled cow dung, the corn cobs were notably heavy in hand.
Each one was full of plump kernels.
This indicated that the effect of cow dung was even better than his self-made mountain fertilizer.
Qin Niu thus reevaluated the value of Xiao Niu.
Despite beingzy and eating excessively, the manure it produced daily was equally significant.
He had also used ordinary cow dung before.
Before we knew how to use bonemeal as fertilizer, we often followed Old Man Liu to collect dog feces and cow dung from the roads to use as fertilizer.
But their effects were nowhere near as good.
¡°When I have time, I should really study Xiao Nui¡¯s dung; it seems iparable to ordinary cow dung.¡±
Qin Niu used the cow dung to fertilize the medicinal herbs in his backyard, and they too thrived.
At first, he thought it was the result of the Evesting Spring Technique.
But now he had his doubts; it was very likely that both the nourishment from the Evesting Spring Technique and the contribution of the cow dung yed a part.
Having transported all the corn back home, Xiao Qing was incredibly busyying them out to dry.
¡°Xiao Qing, you must be tired! Take a break. The corn doesn¡¯t need to be dried in one day; it¡¯s okay to do it over several days,¡±
Qin Niu said to her.
Now they not only had a brand-new granary but also a special drying yard for the corn.
His new house was expected to be basicallypleted in about half a month.
The main part was gradually getting finished, and they had started building the walls andying tiles.
In any world, having money meant livingfortably.
Qin Niu spent a great deal of Silver Money, and his shabby mud house was transformed into a stylish brick-and-tile house.
Spacious and bright, it would be veryfortable to live inter on.
Privacy, security, and resistance to harsh weather like rain, snow, and gales were greatly improved.
Following him, Xiao Qing wouldn¡¯t have to worry about the cold this winter.
¡°Master Qin, may I see you now if it¡¯s convenient?¡±
Xu Zhenchang hade to visit.
¡°Pleasee in, Vige Chief!¡±
Qin Niu, busy drying corn in the shed, didn¡¯t really have much time.
¡°After you bought more than five thousand ducks from outside the region, you sessfully stopped the locust gue from ravaging our vige. The locusts in my fields are fewer with each one caught. However, as you know, I have rented over a hundred acres ofnd from the Yan Family and simply can¡¯t manage all of it. Could I ask for your help to exterminate the pests? Name your price.¡±
In the past few days, Xu Zhenchang had visibly lost a lot of weight.
Dark circles ringed his eyes, and his face was gaunt.
His hair appeared slightly disheveled.
And his clothes were covered in dirt.
These days, he had been continuously fighting against the locusts and was probably exhausted.
¡°How many acres ofnd do you have sown in the vige?¡±
¡°I have eleven acres of my own, and I have leased seventy-nine acres from the Yan Family. I also have over twenty acres in Daoyuan Vige, but I can¡¯t keep up with that. Right now, I only hope to save the crops on these acres here in the vige.¡±
Xu Zhenchang, a man in his forties, was choked with emotion as he spoke.
If the crops on all hundred acres were destroyed by locusts, he would definitely be reduced back to his former state, to the days before liberation.
Then, he would not only have to pay the Yan Family¡¯snd rent but also the wages for the workers, as well as the costs of fertilizer, seeds, plowing, and irrigation fees, which added up to a hefty sum.
¡°How many acres in the vige still need to be rid of locusts?¡±
¡°About eighty-five acres or so. These despicable creatures are too numerous; it¡¯s impossible to catch them all by human power alone. I¡¯ve hired quite a few people to help me catch and kill the locusts in the fields, but it¡¯s not very effective. Fortunately, in thest two days, we have managed to cut off the source of the locusts entering the vige, and that has finally offered a glimmer of hope.¡±
Xu Zhenchang¡¯s legs had gotten thinner from the fatigue.
¡°I¡¯ll help you exterminate the pests; how much can you pay per acre? Just give me a reasonable price.¡±
Qin Niu had bought three thousand ducks, spending arge sum of money.
He would need to wait a while longer to cash in on that investment.
With the considerable expense of building the house, earning some extra cash would be quite nice.
¡°Seventy wen per acre, is that okay?¡±
Xu Zhenchang clenched his teeth and quoted a price.
¡°It¡¯s a bit low, but considering we¡¯re all vigers here, I¡¯ll take the job. Let me be clear upfront, my ability to exterminate pests is limited; I can only do as much as possible, one acre at a time. Once I¡¯ve cleaned up an acre, I¡¯ll call you to inspect it.¡±
Because the locusts kept moving.
After clearing them, new ones would soon cross the border.
Fortunately, his special Termite Army was growing by nearly a hundred termites a day, so the efficiency of pest control should get higher and higher..
Chapter 138 - 133: Competing Visitors_i
138 Chapter 133: Competing Visitors_i
Trantor: 549690339 I
Charging seventy wen money to exterminate pests from an acre ofnd once, this business was actually quite good.
Moreover, Qin Niu provided top-quality service.
He could eradicate eggs, pupae, adult insects, andrvae all at once.
He dealt with not only locusts but also other pests.
Xu Zhenchang hired adult men to catch insects for him, paying eight wen money per person per day. Hiring twelve men to work for a day didn¡¯t actually clear all the locusts from an acre ofnd.
It may look like child¡¯s y for Qin Niu to catch bugs and locate their eggs, but that¡¯s because his pest extermination skills, bug catching skills, and insect trace identification skills had all reached a considerably high level.
For others, being proficient in one of these skills would be awesome.
He had three, and one could imagine how formidable he was.
By dusk, he had brought back more than six hundred termites from the mountain, the weakest of which were above grade two.
There were also quite a few grade three termites among them.
He deliberately started exterminating pests from a field that backed onto a mountain.
Releasing all six hundred or so termites, Fourth acted as the marshal, with several grade three tiger-striped iron armor ghost ants serving as generals. They divided into groups and began their efficient operation.
In just over an hour, all the pests in that acre werepletely eliminated.
This efficiency was very high indeed.
Qin Niu also harvested quite a few insect eggs.
He was looking forward to the day when the Ant Queen¡¯s breeding skill would level up again, reaching over a thousand eggsid per day; that would be wonderful.
However, being able to add a hundred termites a day was already quite good, enough to get some work done at least.
Xu Zhenchang was called over for inspection.
Carrying an oilmp, he went down to the field for a careful examination and saw the ground littered with insect corpses and pupae that had been bitten to death.
Even the eggs had been crushed.
And they didn¡¯t just exterminate locusts, but also leaf rollers, various noctuids, and other pests.
This carpet-style pest extermination was what he had always dreamed of but never achieved.
¡°Vige chief, are you satisfied with the pest extermination effect?¡± Qin Niu asked as he saw himing over.
¡°Extremely satisfied! It¡¯s hundreds to thousands of times better than hiring someone to do the job. The efficiency is both fast and good.¡±
The worry that had been guing Xu Zhenchang for days was considerably alleviated.
The locusts were kept out of the vige, nipping the problem in the bud. Now with Qin Niu¡¯s thorough pest extermination, it also meant that his crops had a chance of being saved.
After that, Qin Niu stayed busy all night long.
In total, he exterminated pests from eight acres ofnd.
Each acre underwent carpet-style extermination, from flying adults to eggs, sweeping them all clean.
The six hundred or more termites became braver as the battle went on, seemingly tireless.
The endurance of insects was much stronger than that of humans.
Termites, being omnivorous creatures, also took the opportunity to replenish their energy during the extermination process; thus, they didn¡¯t feel any fatigue at all.
This was only the first day. Qin Niu was somewhat worried. Moreover, many of the termites were working across fields for the first time, so he watched over them.
Tomorrow, they could carry out the work on their own.
Qin Niu just needed to show Fourth the fields once, and it could then lead the termite army to exterminate pests.
For eight acres ofnd, at seventy wen per acre, that was a total of five hundred and sixty wen money.
Nearly six pieces of silver money in ie.
This was equivalent to amon farmer¡¯s sry for two months.
Earning money through expertise was much easier than through hardbor.
For six consecutive days, Qin Niu helped Xu Zhenchang exterminate pests in the fields.
Over the course of six days, the number of his special termites increased from over seven hundred to more than thirteen hundred.
The number of grade three termites grew to thirty-four.
This explosive growth in strength made the entire termite army even more formidable.
Their pest extermination efficiency also greatly increased.
Initially, more than six hundred termites took over an hour to eliminate all the pests from an acre ofnd. Now, he could deploy over a thousand grade two and grade three termites to clear an acre in less than half an hour.
As they continued to engage in actualbat, their teamwork became more tacit, their experience richer, and their efficiency continually improved.
Each time he brought the termites down the mountain to exterminate pests, he would leave at least seventy or eighty special termites behind to maintain the operation and security of the entire Ant Nest.
He couldn¡¯t afford to be preupied with sideline gains while other insects took advantage of the situation and destroyed his Ant Nest.
In the area around thatrge camphor tree, seventy or eighty special termites were fully capable of securing the Ant Nest. If enemies like centipedes or scorpions dared to invade, they would be reduced to food within minutes.
Especially those ferocious tiger-striped soldier ants, which were like bloodthirsty demons in existence.
Termites were defensive insects, but that didn¡¯t mean they were docile or easy to bully.
They belonged to that typical type who didn¡¯t start trouble but weren¡¯t afraid of it either.
asionally, army ants discovered their nests andunched attacks. Still, the ferocious army ants usually came off worse in confrontations. Sometimes, even the Army Ant Queen might be counter-killed by the termites.
That morning, as Qin Niu was having breakfast, Xu Zhenchang came to seek an audience outside.
¡°Master Qin, this is your payment for helping with the pest extermination. A total of eighty-six acres were handled, amounting to 6020 wen money, which trantes to six silver money and an additional twenty wen. I¡¯m truly grateful. You have saved the livelihood of my entire family,¡± Xu Zhenchang said, his forehead creased much deeper than before.
This is all due to urgency.
¡°Twenty Wen Money will do, this year hasn¡¯t been easy for you either.¡±
Qin Niu had collected six taels of Silver Money, and had cut off the tail end.
He gave Xu Zhenchang a bit of a discount as well.
In a total of seven days, he had earned six taels of Silver Money, which was the benefit the termites had created for him with their increased strength.
Their usefulness was far greater than just that.
This time, by taking the opportunity of pest control, not only had they received very good practical training, but they had also truly solved a difficulty for the vigers.
Thergest grower in the vige was Xu Zhenchang.
By cleaning up the pests in Xu Zhenchang¡¯s fields, it was as if they had eliminated the Locust Army within the vige on arge scale. The other fields benefited as well.
Otherwise, the locusts in those more than eighty acres would breed like crazy and migrate everywhere, which the vigers were incapable of dealing with.
¡°Thankyou, Master Qin!¡±
Xu Zhenchang, who must have been a bit strapped for cash recently, did not refuse and took the twenty Wen Money.
During hard times, even a single Wen Money can be difficult for a hero toe by.
Most of his fields in other viges were likely not saved, which was a considerable loss. On top of that, arge amount of extra expenses for pest control and the resulting reduced harvest meant he had to tighten his belt for the year.
¡°Right, there are two more things I¡¯d like to discuss with you. The three neighboring viges all want to borrow our ducks, but I didn¡¯t dare agree and told them to discuss it with you and Brother Wang. Additionally, the Yan Family has also requested your help with pest control. These past few days, seeing that our vige¡¯s pest troubles haven¡¯t settled, the Yan Family didn¡¯t send anyone over. If you agree, I¡¯ll reply to the Yan Family and they will send someone to negotiate with you.¡±
Xu Zhenchang had a rather close rtionship with the Yan Family.
Qin Niu¡¯s pest control efforts for Xu Zhenchang had been effective.
Xu Zhenchang, in order to please the Yan Family, would definitely reveal this to them.
But the Yan Family had some decorum in their actions.
Clearly as anxious as ants on a hot pan, they did note over to grab the benefits of the ordinary vigers of Shuangfeng Vige.
The decisionmakers of the Yan Family possessed great wisdom.
Perhaps in the eyes of the Yan Family, Qin Niu could at most treat ten or so acres a day, and even if they snatched him away, it wouldn¡¯t solve much of the problem. Bing enemies with the entire vige over such small benefits wasn¡¯t worth it.
Besides, Qin Niu might not agree.
Every viger from any vige has a sense of vige protectionism.
Any good opportunity usually prioritizes the local vige first.
¡°Master Qin, is it convenient to see you now?¡±
The voice of Wang Furen came from outside.
¡°Uncle Wang, pleasee in!¡±
Qin Niu found Wang Furen and Xu Zhenchang quite interesting, as they often acted in concert with a certain tacit understanding, moving together.
¡°Oh, the vige chief is here too!¡±
Wang Furen¡¯s words were somewhat insincere, as he must have known Xu Zhenchang was there.
Everyone typically said these pleasantries.
¡°Thesest few days, I asked Master Qin to help me with pest control, and now everything¡¯s been taken care of. I¡¯ve brought his wages to him.¡±
Xu Zhenchang said with a smile.
¡°Speaking of this, I just want to p myself on the cheeks. You younger folks really have agile minds. I live right next to Master Qin, how did I not think of this method? Vige chief, I¡¯m always half a step behind you in everything. You must give me more pointers in the future.¡±
Wang Furen expressed his frustration.
¡°Haha, Brother Wang, you¡¯re too modest! I should be learning from you.¡±
Xu Zhenchang would not dare to ept such high praise.
¡°Master Qin, now that you¡¯ve finished helping the vige chief with the pests, could you please help me? The reward will follow the rate you set. Seeing those incessant locusts in my fields, I¡¯m just so anxious! I dream about catching pests at night.¡±
Wang Furen¡¯s fields were not extensive, covering just over ten acres.
However, they were goodnds, and during normal years with sufficient rainfall, the yield was extremely high.
¡°Uncle Wang, didn¡¯t you buy a bunch of ducks to release into your fields for pest control? Was the effect not good?¡±
Qin Niu asked curiously.
¡°All, let¡¯s not talk about it. Those ducks indeed help get rid of some pests, but locusts perching on high stalks that can fly are out of the ducks¡¯ reach! Only those locusts that fall to the ground can be preyed upon by them. It¡¯s better than nothing, I suppose!¡±
Wang Furen sighed.
The ducks couldn¡¯t deal with locusts on the stalks, so they could only watch helplessly as the locusts nibbled on the leaves of crops like corn and wheat.
¡°I see! We¡¯re all friendly neighbors, Uncle Wang, if you have this need, I should certainly lend a hand. Clear the ducks away, I¡¯ll take care of the pests for you tonight. Just show me the areas that need pest control, and that will do.¡±
Qin Niu readily took on the job.
There was money to be made, so of course, he would take it!
¡°I¡¯ll have Wan Yan take you there! I¡¯m getting on in years, not as spry as I used to be, really old!¡±
Wang Furen once would not let his daughter meet Qin Niu.
Now, on the contrary, he was actively pushing his daughter towards Qin Niu.
A businessman is a businessman.
Pursuit of profit is always their nature.
Qin Niu certainly had no objections and happily agreed.
Wang Wanyan apanied him around the fields for a tour, and with a beautifulpanion, there was a different kind of scenery.
It was clear to see, she seemed very happy walking in the fields with Qin Niu, asionallyughing like silver bells, both engaged in delightful conversation.
Chapter 139 - 134 Miss Wang Wants to be a Beast Tamer i
139 Chapter 134 Miss Wang Wants to be a Beast Tamer i
Trantor: 549690339 |
Between people, there still needs to be some emotional foundation.
When Qin Niu was destitute, she asionally looked after him, providing food and even attempting to give him silver money to spend. She clearly noticed Qin Niu eating chaff and swallowing grass, yet she never exposed him, preserving his dignity and face.
Those little moments from the past built a solid foundation for their rtionship.
Without Wang Furen¡¯s interference, they might even have be childhood sweethearts.
¡°By the way, the silver money you used to help me buy the three Tempering Elixirs, I¡¯m afraid it will take some time before I can repay you,¡±
Wang Wanyan took the initiative to speak up.
¡°Why bother repaying me? When I was down and out, you often helped me out, showing kindness that¡¯s worth much more than three Tempering Elixirs. If you really consider me a friend, then stop bringing this up.¡±
Now, with a strong earning ability, he didn¡¯t really care about those nine taels of silver.
The elixirs were something he willingly gave her.
¡°Then consider it a debt I owe you, and when you¡¯re in need and I¡¯m capable, I will repay you.¡± She looked at Qin Niu with a somber gaze, carrying her own pride and self-respect.
She was not willing to easily ept Qin Niu¡¯s gifts.
Her pursuit of love, unlike Tang Caixian¡¯s bold approach, was much more reserved, though she was brave too.
Between her and Qin Niu, their love was hazy.
They were both very green.
¡°Why speak so formally, as if we are strangers to each other! By the way, what level has your cultivation reached now? Tell me if you need anything. As long as it¡¯s within my abilities, I am willing to help you with all my might.¡±
Qin Niu spoke very sincerely.
¡°I have reached the fivefold level of a mortal. Of course, there are needs, but I want to acquire those cultivation resources through my own efforts.¡± She was not the kind of woman who thought about relying on powerful men every day.
She had her own pride and integrity.
¡°Being independent and strong, that¡¯s good. Have you thought about how you n to earn money?¡±
¡°For now, the only thing I can think of is to find a bodyguard job. However, with my little cultivation, I can only work as a nurse for big families like the Yan Family in the countryside, but my father would definitely not agree. I n to go to the city and see what I can find after Ie of age. Actually, I envy people like you the most, who can make a lot of money while living in the countryside.¡±
She turned her head to look at Qin Niu again.
Her bright eyes sparkled with glimmers of light.
Filled with admiration, envy, and longing.
¡°Be an Insect Master like me?¡±
Qin Niu should have the ability to help her achieve this wish.
With his current experience in raising insects and the superb resources he had in hand, it would be no difficult task to cultivate a Grade Three insect.
One could say that he could help her achieve this with ease.
¡°To tell you the truth, I actually prefer bing a nting Master. I have some flowers and nts in my attic. Whenever I¡¯m feeling upset, I always feel much happier when I see them.¡±
She, like most girls, did not enjoy raising insects but loved nurturing flowers and nts.
Girls are naturally fond of romance and colorful beauty.
¡°Actually, my favorite is also nting. However, my family was penniless, so I thought I¡¯d first be an Insect Master to ensure a full belly, and then study nting techniques. If you don¡¯t want to rely too much on your family, you could also consider a simr path. Once you have the identity of an Insect Master, not only will you exempt your household from ten acres of field taxes, but you¡¯ll also have a stable ie.¡±
Qin Niu offered her advice.
¡°I¡ I¡¯m just a bit scared of little bugs, afraid they¡¯ll bite me. Even an ant crawling on me makes my skin crawl involuntarily. Is bing a Beast Tamer much more difficult? I¡¯ve recently bought some books on animal taming and read that even if you just raise amon livestock or poultry well, you could still be a formidable Beast Tamer.¡±
She was a smart and decisive girl.
Young as she was, once she had an idea, she was able to implement it diligently.
¡°I¡¯m not too familiar with being a Beast Tamer, but I believe that with your intelligence and perseverance, as long as it¡¯s something you want to do, you¡¯ll definitely seed. Have you decided on what kind of pet you want to tame?¡±
¡°I want to start with raising a cat. It¡¯s the only animal I can afford right now.¡±
¡°How about I go to the mountains and catch a wolf cub for you? I¡¯m worried that a house cat¡¯s growth potential might be a bit limited.¡±
Qin Niu said enthusiastically.
¡°Thank you, Alt Niu! A wolf needs to eat meat every day, and I¡¯m a bit worried I won¡¯t be able to afford it! Besides, catching a wolf cub is very dangerous, and I wouldn¡¯t want you to take that risk.¡±
She declined.
¡°That¡¯s fine too! You can start with a cat then. Do you know how to use a Contractual Talisman?¡±
¡°I¡¯ve never used or bought one before. I read in a book that you just need to prick your fingertip, drop the blood on the activation zone, and that should trigger the talisman. I¡¯m nning to go to the city tomorrow to buy a Contractual Talisman; do you know which store has good talismans?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll give you one! This is a Low-grade Contract Charm, used for subduing pets with weak resistance. Otherwise, the contract might fail. If you¡¯re raising a cat, you can feed it for a while, and when it¡¯s familiar with you, then you can use the Contract Charm to establish a servant-master rtionship with it.¡±
Qin Niu had a bunch of Low-grade Contract Charms.
Offering one to a beautifuldy didn¡¯t even make him blink.
¡°I can¡¯t let you give away something so valuable for free. Isn¡¯t it one tael of silver per charm?¡±
She reached for the silver money on her waist.
Knowing the price so well, she must have looked into it beforehand.
¡°Just take it! If you really want to give something, wait until you¡¯ve be a Beast Tamer and can earn money, then you can pay me back.¡±
Qin Niu ced the talisman in her hands.
Her touch was soft and gentle, and they both felt a bit unusual.
¡°Thanks! Ah, I owe you so much now; I¡¯m not sure when I¡¯ll be able to pay it all back!¡±
¡°I hope you never pay it back in a lifetime!¡±
Qin Niu joked with a grin.
That was the boldest thing he¡¯d ever said.
She was quick-witted and immediately understood the implication, her pretty face involuntarily blushing.
¡°Alright, I¡¯m going to head back now! I¡¯ll try to see if I can contract my house cat. Seeing you improve by leaps and bounds every day, I should work hard too.¡±
She waved her hand and said goodbye to Qin Niu.
As for Qin Niu¡¯s implicit offer of himself, she neither refused nor agreed.
Girls are generally shy, and being well-read from a young age, she knew the importance of propriety and decency. It wasn¡¯t something she could easily agree to¡ªusually, it would involve Qin Niu formally proposing, followed by her coyly epting.
Moreover, with Tang Caixian from the neighboring vige actively pursuing Qin Niu and having already sent a matchmaker to propose, it was even less likely for her to agree readily.
The next day, as soon as Qin Niu got up early in the morning, he sensed some activity in the broken water jar.
By now, the main structure of his house was basicallyplete, and the construction of walls, flowerbeds, and fish ponds was underway. It was estimated that it would all be finished in about ten more days.
The little turtle had been motionless all this while, but now that there was a strange noise, it was likely that its evolution wasplete.
He was very much looking forward to this.
If insects could evolve special abilities after consuming Banyan Tree Blood, the little turtle¡¯s prolonged evolution should make it even stronger.
Once the fish pond was ready, keeping it there would be perfect.
Chapter 140 - 135 Diamond InkTurtle_i
Chapter 140 Chapter 135 Diamond InkTurtle_i
Trantor: 549690339 |
Qin Niu came to the broken water tank, only to see that the small turtle, which was originally only the size of a chicken egg, had now grown to the size of a fist. Its shell looked three times thicker than before, if not more.
Each segment of its shell gleamed with a dark yellow light.
It seemed that its tail had be much shorter.
Still the same timid and fearful creature, shrinking back into itself.
¡°Come out!¡±
Qin Niumanded it.
It slowly crawled out of the water, neck retracted, its small green bean-like eyes fixed on its master.
¡°You¡¯ve evolved for over a month, and this is all the ability you¡¯ve developed?¡± Seeing its slow movements and the way it cowered, Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but get angry.
Feeling the displeasure in its master¡¯s tone, the turtle got so scared that it immediately retracted its head into its shell. At the same time, a faint, invisible ripple appeared around its body, encasing it like a transparent cover.
Upon seeing this, a surprised look shed across Qin Niu¡¯s eyes.
He tried to touch the cover.
As soon as he made contact, he felt an invisible resistance.
About an inch away from the turtle¡¯s shell.
Pressing down a bit harder, he found that this transparent energy cover had a certain sticity. Quite magical.
¡°Not bad!¡±
Qin Niu praised it, then checked its attributes.
Male Diamond Ink Turtle
Grade: Grade Three turtle of longevity from the order of Testudines. Level-up experience 1000/10000
Lifespan: 657 years.
Energy: 7000
Skills: Swimming Grade Two 31.4/100, Hibernation Grade One 0/10, Qi Wave
Defense Grade One 0.01/10.
Talent: Timidity, Defense
After checking its attributes, Qin Niu felt almost envious to tears.
Its lifespan had increased by a whole six hundred years; the phrase ¡°turtle longevity¡± was indeed not an empty boast.
In many people¡¯s minds, the longest-lived creatures are turtles.
The actual lifespan of a normal turtle is just thirty to fifty years, not as exaggerated as the legendary thousand years.
Turtles that live two to three hundred years are extremely rare.
Those over a hundred years can be called long-lived turtles.
The ones that truly live for a thousand years are divine turtles.
After Qin Niu fed it the Banyan Tree Blood, its lifespan increased by an entire six hundred years, which made Qin Niu himself want to drink some.
But he didn¡¯t have the courage to do so yet.
Unless one day he drank three kilograms of fake wine or ate a few bear hearts and leopard galldders, that might lead him to do something crazy.
The little turtle had also evolved a new skill, Qi Wave Defense.
That must be the thinyer of aura around its body.
Its talent also had new changes; apart from the embarrassing timidity, it had developed a defense talent as well.
¡°I¡¯ll get you a chunk of meat,¡± Qin Niu said.
He cut a piece of wild boar meat to feed it.
The silly thing actually stuck out its head and sniffed at the meat with its sharp nose, then looked at Qin Niu.
¡°Damn it, eat if you want, forget it if you don¡¯t. Can I possibly harm you?¡± Qin Niu eximed.
Qin Niu found that the thinking of beast pets was much moreplex.
Last time, after feeding it Banyan Tree Blood, the turtle suffered a lot and even nearly died. Worried that Qin Niu was feeding it ¡®special food¡¯ again, the turtle hesitated to eat despite being very hungry.
But Termite would not hesitate.
When Qin Niu raised the Termite, they also went through life-and-death struggles and suffered greatly.
But when fed again, they would quickly eat without any hesitation.
It seemed that this little turtle had the most cunning mind.
After being scolded by Qin Niu, the little turtle, whether out of fear or because it found no issues with the wild boar meat, began to eat quickly.
When it ate, it was not only quick but also exceptionally ferocious,pletely different from its usual timid behavior.
Qin Niu had glimpsed a side of it unknown to others.
¡°Once the fish pond is ready, and we move it there, perhaps it¡¯s worth considering feeding it some live prey to maintain its wild nature.¡±
Qin Niu was well aware that maintaining wildness would keep them always alert and striving to improve their survival abilities. Such beast pets would be morepetitive.
Seeing the great benefits the little turtle received from evolving, he couldn¡¯t help but think about Xiao Nui¡¯s potential.
The blood of the Ancient Banyan Tree must contain extremely powerful energy, its effects possibly exceeding ordinary elixirs.
If Xiao Nui ate it, as long as it survived the life-and-death challenge, it would at least advance one grade.
The little turtle had jumped directly from Grade One to Grade Three, which was a huge leap.
Any beast pet¡¯s advancement in grade is extremely difficult.
For a Beast Tamer to raise a Grade One pet to Grade Two involves tremendous amounts of time, effort, and money. Even with such investments, sess is not guaranteed.
Qin Niu had managed to advance the little turtle two grades with just a bit of Banyan Tree Blood, which was quite terrifying.
If he were willing to sell the Banyan Tree Blood, it would undoubtedly lead to a bloody storm, as countless powerhouses would fight over it.
Approaching the shed, Xiao Nui was stillzily lying there, chewing on corn leaves.
As expected, there was arge pile of cow dung in the corner.
Its fertilizer-making skill was improving every day, whereas its brute strength skill had hardly increased at all.
The main reason was that it was just toozy.
¡°Moo~!¡±
Seeing Qin Niue over, Xiao Nui affectionately stretched out its neck and bellowed.
¡°Xiao Nui, I am prepared to offer you a great opportunity. But if you can¡¯t handle it, you might die. Do you want to try?¡±
The bond between Qin Niu and Xiao Nui was quite deep.
He was actually somewhat conflicted about letting it take this risk.
Deep down, he knew that it would have to take the risk sooner orter.
Unless it was content with mediocrity for life.
In reality, that was impossible. Qin Niu¡¯s cultivation was improving by leaps and bounds, and his power in all aspects was steadily increasing. If his pets couldn¡¯t grow stronger alongside him, they would eventually be eliminated. ¡°Moo~!¡±
It actually nodded its head, which took Qin Niu by surprise.
The cow¡¯s intelligence should be a bit higher than that of the little turtle, and it was well aware of what death meant.
¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid of dying?¡±
Qin Niu asked it.
¡°Moo~!¡±
Since he had not yet grasped beastnguage,municating with Xiao Nui was rtively difficult.
Qin Niu could issuemands to it or convey his thoughts using voice and spiritual power. Xiao Nui could understand but was unable tomunicate with Qin Niu using humannguage or spiritual power.
Their current status was essentially a one-waymand system.
Most Insect Masters and Beast Tamers operated in this state.
Those with the skills of insectnguage or beastnguage were few.
¡°Since you¡¯ve made your choice, I will naturally help you.¡±
Qin Niu himself faced various risks while training to be stronger.
Whether master or beast pet, one must walk their own path and face the challenges themselves.
He made repeated calctions of Xiao Nui¡¯s weight and physique, then carefully prepared a safe dose of Banyan Tree Blood for it.
This ¡®safe¡¯ wasn¡¯t absolutely safe.
It was only somewhat safe.
¡°Drink all this green liquid at once, and you can be stronger. But there¡¯s also a chance you won¡¯t survive and will die from your body exploding.¡±
After hearing this, Xiao Nui didn¡¯t hesitate and immediately lowered its head to drink all the water in the trough.
There was no reaction right after it drank.
Qin Niu watched beside it, feeling anxious.
Of all his pets, he had the deepest affection for the Termite and Xiao Nui.
He certainly hoped that Xiao Nui would safely make it through.
Time passed steadily, and half an hour went by with Xiao Nui still showing no reaction; it appearedpletely leisurely and content.
Chapter 141 - 136 Insect Master Hard to Find_i
Chapter 141 Chapter 136 Insect Master Hard to Find_i
Trantor: 549690339 |
Qin Niu was secretly puzzled in his heart. It didn¡¯t make sense!
Even if the dosage wasn¡¯t enough for aplete transformation, there should have been some reaction at least.
Whether it was termites or bees, after consuming Banyan Tree Blood, even just a little, there would still be a very painful transformation process.
Xiao Niu had a substantial dosage, so why was there no reaction whatsoever?
Where was the problem?
The feeding of Termite with Thousand Eyes Tree Blood was very safe, but feeding it to bees meant certain death. He did not dare to casually feed Thousand Eyes Tree Blood to the small turtle and Xiao Niu.
Banyan Tree Blood had already been experimented with on various insects and the small turtle, and was proven effective.
Why then was there not even the slightest effect on Xiao Niu?
Qin Niu was utterly baffled.
¡°Master Qin, may I ask if you¡¯re at home?¡±
A somewhat familiar young man¡¯s voice came from outside the house.
Qin Niu went out to check and found Tang Bin and Tang Caixian, the siblings, along with an authoritative-looking old man he did not recognize.
Ever since theirst visit to propose marriage, the siblings hadn¡¯te again.
This made Qin Niu think that Tang Caixian had slowly forgotten about the matter.
The piece of Ink Jade she had given him he always carried with him because wearing it constantly increased his spiritual power.
Extremely magical.
Moreover, when he was practicing the Medicine King Sutra ormunicating with insects and his spiritual power was exhausted, the Ink Jade helped him recover quickly.
This jade was definitely a treasure.
Not to mention for ordinary citizens, even for an existence like the Yan Family, it was a rare and precious treasure.
Tang Caixian gave him such a valuable item, and she would not ept it back.
In Qin Niu¡¯s view, she was like a deer caught in the headlights of love.
He thought that after she had calmed down for a while, he would either return the Ink Jade to her or provide appropriatepensation.
¡°It¡¯s Tang Bin and Cai Xian, pleasee in!¡±
Qin Niu had a good impression of the siblings, and given the rtionship between himself and Cai Xian, he was naturally very enthusiastic and did not put on any airs of the Insect Master.
¡°Master Qin, this is our Tang Family Patriarch, and also the vige chief of Daoyuan Vige. This time we¡¯ve suffered a locust disaster, and hearing that Master Qin is quite effective in disaster management, he specially came to seek advice,¡± Tang Bin introduced the identity of the authoritative old man.
The man was over sixty years old, with white hair and beard, dressed in a dark red robe with ck dots. Such a robe could also be referred to as brocade.
However, there was a significant gappared to the brocade worn by real figures of great power.
¡°I am Tang Jingyuan, and I¡¯ve had the honor to meet Master Qin! I apologize for the intrusion and hope for your understanding,¡± said the old man as he bowed with his hands folded in front of him.
He did not kneel.
This indicated that the old man had a certain status.
The Tang surname in Daoyuan Vige was a prominent one. Now brimming with descendants, having produced officials with considerable status like Tang Yan, the Tang Family¡¯s status in the vige had be even more solidified.
When Qin Niu was very young, he had heard people say that nine out of ten people in Daoyuan Vige had the surname Tang.
It might be an exaggeration, but it was enough to prove how prosperous the Tang Family was.
Tang Jingyuan was wearing brocade, and because it was also a long robe, his status was at least that of a Grade One Insect Master or a mid-level farmer.
Abovemoners, but half a grade lower than Qin Niu.
His greeting with a bow was proper in etiquette.
¡°Chief Tang, you¡¯re too polite, pleasee inside and have a seat!¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s main residence was nowpleted, though the decoration was not yet finished. At least there was a ce to sit when weing guests.
This kind of green brick and tile house generally doesn¡¯t require much decoration.
Because exposing the green bricks themselves is a disy of luxury.
At most, hang some famous calligraphy and paintings on the wall, and nt a few pots of elegant flowers and nts in the room. Then, the furniture is the main event, especially the exquisite furniture made of redwood, which is the pursuit of wealthy families.
For example, Wang Furen¡¯s neighboring house is furnished with redwood furniture.
Beautiful and generous, durable.
It is also a disy of wealth.
¡°We have not yet added new furniture to the home, I ask Chief Tang to make do! Brother Tang Bin, Cai Xian, please have a seat, howe you¡¯ve be estranged after not seeing each other for a while?¡±
Qin Niu greeted the three to sit down with a smile.
Xiao Qing, being sensible, served tea to the three guests.
Qin Niu had not yet invested in those costly and exquisite Sancai lid cups.
The umtion of a wealthy family often requires more than three generations to be considered to have some heritage.
Nouveaux riches, to put it unpleasantly, might not even understand the intricacies of eating and dressing.
Empty of silver money, their daily life and behavior still resemble that of poor people.
It takes at least three generations to cultivate a true noble.
¡°Last time we came over to propose marriage, we didn¡¯t know Master Qin had be an Insect Master; we were indeed too rash, please don¡¯t take offense, Master Qin.¡±
Tang Bin stood up and gave a deep bow, apologizing to Qin Niu.
Tang Caixian also followed her brother in apologizing with a bow.
However, Qin Niu calling Cai Xian intimately by her name brought her much joy.
¡°Not knowing only made your intentions appear all the more sincere! Do not be so formal anymore; I like things simple and to act freely. In the future, you and your sister are wee to visit me here in Shuangfeng Vige anytime. Once the manor is restored, it should be much more elegant. However, when ites toyout and such, I know nothing and might still end up turning it into a simple dwelling fit for a rough man.¡±
Qin Niu said self-deprecatingly.
¡°When ites to decoration, I know a little and cane over to help you out when the timees,¡± Tang Caixian said with a smile.
¡°Little sister, don¡¯t be presumptuous; Master Qin is just being modest, how could he truly not know?¡±
Being two years older, Tang Bin was after all a bit more mature.
¡°With you two siblings, I truly speak my mind without deceit. Cai Xian, thank you for your kind intentions.¡±
Actually, Qin Niu wanted to marry Wang Wanyan from next door.
As for Cai Xian, if judged solely from a man¡¯s pleasure, bringing her home would undoubtedly be blissful.
Moreover, she wasn¡¯t just a pretty face; she was talented, beautiful, and skilled in song and dance, the type of woman countless powerful men dreamed of.
¡°By the way, is the locust disaster in your vige very severe?¡±
He proactively brought up the important issue.
The Tang Family Patriarch personally seeking an audience must be for something crucial concerning foodstuff, toe in such a way.
¡°We had just suffered a flood not long ago, and after renting the second season¡¯s crop, the seedlings had just started growing when the locust disaster struck us again. Disasters have been unending this year; it has been very hard on everyone.¡±
Tang Jingyuan spoke of Daoyuan Vige¡¯s misfortune, his head shaking continuously in despair.
¡°Haven¡¯t you thought of asking an Insect Master from the city to help exterminate the pests?¡±
Qin Niu felt that with a high-ranking official in the Tang family, it shouldn¡¯t be too difficult to enlist the help of an Insect Master.
¡°Don¡¯t even mention it, the disaster has not only befallen us. More than half of the territories governed by the ck Tiger Gang have been struck by the locust gue, and their numbers are still growing. Even the government offices are at a loss. Each vige and town, anyone with connections, has been spending a fortune to hire Insect Masters to help eliminate or drive away the pests. When our Daoyuan Vige sought to hire an Insect Master, only some with ordinary abilities were left.
Some of these apprentice Insect Masters, although they have read a few books, their pest control skills are not evenparable to our experienced old farmers in the n.
Even if we hired them, it would be useless, yet we¡¯d end up wasting silver money.¡±
The Chief Tang nearly shook his head off talking about this matter.
Daoyuan Vige encountered the locust disasterter, and by then it was impossible to hire any powerful Insect Master.
Chapter 142 - 142Chapter 137: Forming a Good Connection (Part 1)
142Chapter 137: Forming a Good Connection (Part 1)
Trantor: 549690339????????????? ¡®
¡°Master Qin came up with the idea of using ducks tobat the locusts, which is excellent. However, the chickens and ducks raised in our vige are limited; even whenbined, there are only a few hundred, which is utterly insufficient against the massive swarms of locusts. If possible, we would like to rent or purchase Master Qin¡¯s flock of ducks. As long as our Daoyuan Vige stops this locust gue, it would essentially cut off the locusts¡¯ path into Shuangfeng Vige, and your vige would no longer need the ducks.¡±
Tang Jingyuan had clearly done his homework beforeing.
¡°Aren¡¯t ducks avable for purchase everywhere? Chief Tang doesn¡¯t need to buy mine, right?¡±
This was Qin Niu deliberately probing.
Because they had started purchasing ducks early, the supply was plentiful and the price was very low at the time.
The three thousand ducks they had acquired fed well these past few days on the nutritious locusts, growing rapidly day by day.
Now that Shuangfeng Vige¡¯s locust problem was almost under control, it was time to move the flock of ducks elsewhere to find food.
However, since they were still only half-grown, it would be difficult to sell them at a high price.
Qin Niu was in no hurry to sell.
Renting them out to earn provisions and silver money was quite suitable.
¡°Alt, don¡¯t even mention it! Our vigecks a wise person like Master Qin. Only after seeing you bring back so many ducks did we reluctantly gather the vige¡¯s chickens and ducks tobat the locusts, to little effect. As a result, no one is willing to spend arge amount of silver money to buy ducks.
A few dayster, upon witnessing your sess in using arge number of ducks to stop the locusts and effectively putting an end to the gue, we btedly thought of following suit. But by then, it was toote to act.¡±
Pingshui is well-known for its ducks.
Located in ake region with t terrain and abundant water sources, many locals raise hundreds or even thousands of ducks.
Yet, when we sent someone yesterday at full speed, not a single duck or even a goose was avable for purchase.
They had all been bought out.
After asking severalrge breeders, they all said it would be at least over a month before ducklings were avable for sale. As for half-grown ducks, it would be at least three monthster.¡±
Chief Tang felt that, due to outdated concepts and insufficient wisdom, he wasgging behind others in this matter.
This was a great loss.
And very frustrating.
¡°I deeply sympathize with Daoyuan Vige¡¯s plight and understand your current difficulty. I hadn¡¯t nned to sell this batch of ducks; they were originally purchased to help Shuangfeng Vige eliminate the locust disaster My connection with Tang Family from Daoyuan Vige is quite significant, as the Tang brothers built this house for me, and I am well acquainted with the Tang Bin siblings. Since you¡¯vee to me for help, it¡¯s only right that I lend a hand.
I m willing to rent these three thousand ducks to Daoyuan Vige.
Qin Niu was indeed happy to help Daoyuan Vige.
If Daoyuan Vige¡¯s locust gue didn¡¯t stop, Shuangfeng Vige would never have peace.
A fire at the city gates indeed spells disaster for the fish in the moat.
¡°Thank you, thank you! I really appreciate it, Master Qin! How exactly will the ducks be rented?¡±
Chief Tang was very pleased to hear Qin Niu was willing to rent the ducks to Daoyuan Vige.
With such arge duck army, they would undoubtedly be a formidable weapon against the locusts.
¡°Well¡ this¡¡±
Qin Niu hesitated, slightly struggling to make an excessive demand given the situation.
¡°Master Qin is kind to rent the ducks to Daoyuan Vige, so whatever the charge should be, just name it without any reservations,¡± Tang Jingyuan said. ¡°Ten ducks rented out for one day at the cost of one Wen Money, does that seem fair to you, Chief Tang?¡±
Qin Niu gave his price.
This was also considering the rtionships with Tang Caixian and the Tang brothers.
After all, one inevitably cannot escape the nuances of personal rtionships. That¡¯s totally eptable. Thank you for your consideration, Master Qin.¡±
Tang Jingyuan was also worried about Qin Niu demanding a high price.
The price Qin Niu quoted was not high at all.
The daily rental for three thousand ducks came to three hundred Wen Money. In normal times, surely no one would rent them, but in this crisis, even if the rental were one tael of silver money per day, people would still rent them.
¡°Since Chief Tang agrees, I will rify some matters in advance to protect both our interests.¡±
¡°Please speak, Master Qin!¡±
The ducks are being rented to you, but I reserve the right to take them back at any time. Of course, before doing so, I will certainly notify you in advance to discuss it properly. However, I must make it clear that I have the right to reim them whenever I wish. Simrly, you also have the right to return them at anytime.¡±
¡°No problem.¡±
Tang Jingyuan nodded in agreement.
¡°Second, if you¡¯re renting the ducks, you must take good care of them. If they die or get lost,pensation will be required at their current market rate, which changes daily and can only be calcted based on the prices of that day.¡± ¡°Completely reasonable.¡±
¡°Those are my only two conditions; nothing more. You can send someone to take the ducks away right now.¡±
Qin Niu had onlyid out the most basic terms.
¡°Tang Bin, go back to the vige immediately and bring some people with cages to fetch the ducks.¡± Tang Jingyuan, an old fox, didn¡¯t ask Tang Caixian to leave.
He knew very well that the smooth progress of their negotiation with Qin Niu owed a great deal to Tang Caixian¡¯s presence.
She didn¡¯t need to say anything; her mere presence beside him naturally earned a few favors from him.
¡°Master Qin, here¡¯s a modest gift from me; I would like to ask for your guidance on how best to utilize these three thousand ducks.¡±
¡°There¡¯s no need for money; consider it a good deed between our viges. I¡¯ve observed the terrain of your vige; the locusts are sweeping in from the north, and Daoyuan Vige is shaped like a long pocket. There¡¯s a mountain pass where it borders Shanghe Vige, with a river to the right, following the mountain, and farnd and a road to the left. Locusts are afraid of water, so they won¡¯t cross the river.
Creating a buffer zone simr to what we have in Shuangfeng Vige at that location should be very effective.
Additionally, you have a great advantage as you can divert river water to flood the fields at the entrance of the vige, turning them into a vast expanse of water. However, you¡¯ll need to leave a patch ofnd in the middle for the locusts tond on.
Ducks are agile in the water and will be more efficient at catching locusts.
Flooding some low-lying areas to divert water will also help to effectively reduce the width of the ducks¡¯ defense line.¡±
Qin Niu spoke at length, and his strategy earned great admiration from Chief Tang.
This young man was extraordinary.
¡°Thank you, Master Qin, for your advice! If our Daoyuan Vige manages to halt the locust gue, we surely won¡¯t forget your kindness.¡±
Chief Tang expressed his gratitude with a bow.
You¡¯re too kind,¡± Qin Niu said, waving his hand indifferently.
¡°Then I won¡¯t disturb you any longer, Master Qin. I take my leave!¡±
Having achieved his mission, Tang Jingyuan rose to say goodbye.
However, Tang Caixian remained seated.
¡°Cai Xian, it¡¯s rare for you to visit; it¡¯s good for you to talk more with Master Qin. I¡¯ll be on my way.¡± The seasoned chief, noticing she didn¡¯t rise to leave with him, understood her intentions perfectly.
He would, in fact, be very pleased if Tang Caixian and Qin Niu could start a romantic story of their own.
¡± I¡¯H g¡ã
back t0 the vi¡ê
e with mY brotherter; you go ahead with your tasks Chief!¡±
After sending off Chief Tang, her sparkling eyes turned to Qin Niu.
¡°Master Qin, I¡¯ve missed you in the days we haven¡¯t seen each other. But knowing that your status has changed from before, I didn¡¯t dare toe and disturb you.¡±
¡°In the eyes of others, my status might have changed, but Miss Cai Xian is no ordinary person. Why care about such empty titles? You¡¯re wee to visit often if you¡¯d like. I¡¯m usually quite busy and rarely at home, but Xiao Qing is always here.¡±
Qin Niu replied to her with a friendly demeanor.
Heh, you¡¯re still the same young man I set my sights on back then. When your new residence is ready, I¡¯ll bring some flowers and nts over to help add to its charm!¡±
She turned her gaze towards Xiao Qing, who was busy outside.
But she said nothing more.
By the way, what do you think about the matter I mentionedst time?¡±
She was referring to the matter of her proposal.
¡°I won¡¯t consider entering into a marriage!¡±
When Qin Niu had said this before, the Tang Family might have thought it was just his impoverished arrogance.
But saying it now was entirely different.
It was an assertion of absolute strength.
¡°I could marry into your family instead!¡±
Her face blushed, and she said with her head lowered.
¡°Miss Cai Xian, if I speak harshly, please don¡¯t take it to heart,¡± Qin Niu said, looking at her solemnly.
Her lovely face turned somewhat pale, anticipating Qin Niu¡¯s possible rejection.
At that moment, she felt humiliated and crestfallen.
Chapter 143 - 143Chapter 138 Three Wives and Four Concubines i
143Chapter 138 Three Wives and Four Concubines i
Trantor: 549690339 |
¡°This is the second time I have met you. When I saw you standing outside the yuemen just now, my heart was pleased, which shows that I don¡¯t dislike you. Moreover, you are a particrly brave girl, especially brave for love, something that ordinary girls cannot achieve, and that has made me look at you differently. However, you have not yet understood me. Marriage is a lifetime shared by two people, the more understanding beforehand, the less you will regret it in the future.¡±
Qin Niu decided to have an honest talk with her.
He couldn¡¯t lead her on, otherwise he would be wronging her and making her miss the best years to get married, a sin too grave to bear.
Her face regained its rosy glow upon hearing Qin Niu¡¯s words.
Her expression also became more normal.
She lifted her head to meet Qin Niu¡¯s eyes.
¡°Then do you like me?¡±
¡°I like both your appearance and your personality, and I feel veryfortable with you. However, I believe there is a difference between liking someone and being in love.¡±
¡°What kind of life does Master Qin wish to lead? Could you share it with Cai Xian?¡±
¡°Of course,¡± Qin Niu nodded. ¡°I aspire to pursue this idle and free pastoral life, to marry, have children, farm thend, keep pets, and live with my family forever. There is just one point where you don¡¯t meet my criteria for a spouse.¡±
Ever since he was young, Qin Niu had yearned for a tranquil and peaceful rural life.
Unconstrained.
No need to engage in scheming or fighting with others.
To live peacefully in a quiet corner of the world, cultivating and farming with a loved one, and raising pets.
He could also have a few cute children.
¡°Which point don¡¯t I meet?¡±
She asked with a forced smile.
¡°Life is short, as ephemeral as autumn grass. Our lifespans are truly fleeting. I want to extend my life through cultivation, in hopes of one day sharing eternity with my loved one, always together. If you only want to be an ordinary person, your lifespan will be at most sixty or seventy years. I¡¯m afraid I would feel immense pain to fall in love with you, only to watch you gradually grow old and leave. Having experienced the pain of a loved one¡¯s departure once, I don¡¯t wish to go through it a second time in my life.¡±
He was referring to Old Man Liu¡¯s death.
That time, he had felt pain as if his heart was being sliced with knives.
In the end, he was so overwhelmed with grief that he became numb, and it took him a very long time to recover from the pain.
Even now, whenever he thought of Old Man Liu, his heart would still ache.
His memories were filled with all the moments he had spent with Old Man Liu.
¡°You want me to cultivate, right?¡±
She showed a contemtive expression after listening, with a touch of tenderness.
Because when she saw Qin Niu¡¯s pained expression, she really wanted tofort him.
¡°It¡¯s not that I want you to cultivate, but rather I hope the partner I choose can live longer than ordinary people,¡± Qin Niu corrected her.
¡°Then how far must I cultivate before I¡¯m worthy to join hands with you for life?¡±
¡°It¡¯s not a fixed amount. At least beyond the tenfold of ordinary people,¡± Qin Niu thought for a moment and said earnestly.
¡°Understood. The next time Ie to see you, I hope to reach the level you mentioned,¡± Tang Caixian said, showing no sign of giving up.
On the contrary, determination and resolve were visible in her eyes.
This girl, so infatuated with love, truly iprehensible which aspect of Qin Niu appealed so much to her to the point of ¡®marrying none but him¡¯.
¡°Wait, there is something more I want to rify. I shouldn¡¯t wait until you have made an effort to tell you,¡± Qin Niu called out to her.
¡°Speak,¡± she said.
¡°I¡ in fact, before getting to knowyou, I had a certain affection with my neighbor, Wang Wanyan. She took good care of me when I was down and out. I still don¡¯t know how she feels now. If she is willing to marry me, I think I would not refuse her. There can only be one true wife, and if you insist on marrying me, you must be prepared to share a husband with another woman and be the junior wife.
¡°With your merits, marrying a young master in much better standing than myself would not be an issue at all, you¡¡±
Before Qin Niu could finish, she interrupted him.
¡°I¡¯ve long been aware of your rtionship with Miss Wang, and I don¡¯t mind it at all. I have also admired her for a long time, and if I have the chance to be sisters with her and attend to you together, I am perfectly fine with that. The fact that you¡¯re willing to tell me these things shows that you are extremely honest with me,¡± she said.
Perhaps having been brought up among the singing and dancing courtesans of the city since childhood, she did not object to the idea of a man having multiple wives and concubines.
But she could ept it quite naturally.
This left Qin Niu, who had intended to persuade her to back out, at a loss for words.
¡°Miss Cai Xian, this matter concerns your lifelong happiness. You must think it through carefully!¡±
¡°Mhm, I am very clear-headed!¡±
She turned her head and shed Qin Niu a smile.
Qin Niu watched her slender figure leave, his face a picture of helplessness.
¡°Master, Xiao Nui seems a bit ufortable.¡±
Xiao Qing came over to remind Qin Niu at this time.
She hadn¡¯t dared to interrupt because there were guests earlier.
¡°Let me have a look.¡±
A thought crossed Qin Niu¡¯s mind; Xiao Nui had eaten Banyan Tree Blood and hadn¡¯t shown any reaction so far.
Now, nearly an hourter, was there finally a response?
Approaching the cattle shed, he saw Xiao Nui¡¯s eyes were bloodshot, which was quite frightening.
Its body was noticeably plumper than just a short while ago.
At the moment, it was busily butting the wooden fence with its horns.
¡°Xiao Nui, do you want toe out?¡±
Qin Niu immediately opened the door of the cattle shed, letting Xiao Nui out.
¡°Moo-!¡±
It bellowed wildly and galloped outside.
¡°Xiao Qing, keep an eye on the house. If I¡¯m not back by evening, don¡¯te looking for me.¡±
After giving these instructions and without waiting for Xiao Qing to respond, Qin Niu hastily chased after Xiao Nui.
It ran along the vige path towards the mountains.
It felt as if it were a crazed bull that had lost all sense, drunk on alcohol.
Along the way, it charged at any pedestrians it encountered.
This caused vigers to hastily dodge out of the way.
¡°My apologies!¡±
Qin Niu could only apologize to the frightened vigers in Xiao Nui¡¯s wake.
The vigers were all curious about what could be wrong with the young ox raised by Master Qin.
Qin Niu followed it into the depths of the mountains.
At this moment, it was running blindly on instinct, hoping to alleviate the pain in its body.
Banyan Tree Blood must contain terrifyingly potent energy.
Before long, the man and the ox ventured deep into the mountains.
Xiao Nui, in its state of confusion, caused amotion near the familiar Ant Nest, and then headed towards the area where the beehive was located.
Seeing this, Qin Niu, worried Xiao Nui might run into the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze, hurriedly took Fourth to follow.
¡°Xiao Nui,e back!¡±
The usually obedient Xiao Nui, nowpletely ignored his master¡¯smands.
In its frenzy, it indeed charged straight into the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze.
Almost every creature that enters this area is easily trapped.
Luckily, Qin Niu now had the ability toe and go freely within the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze, so he wasn¡¯t too rmed.
He followed it in.
Perhaps it was good for Xiao Nui to expend the savage energy inside of it within the maze.
Letting it run wild in the mountains also posed the risk that it might continue deeper into the forest, potentially arousing some dreadful entities, which would be troublesome.
Although Qin Niu¡¯s strength wasn¡¯t weak by ordinary human standards,
should he encounter any formidable beings in the mountains, he could be instantly killed.
Chapter 144 - 139 Demon Ant 1
144 Chapter 139 Demon Ant 1
Trantor: 549690339 |
Upon entering the range of the great banyan tree, Xiao Niu continued to dash around uncontrobly.
But it couldn¡¯t get out anymore.
It could only run amok inside, like hitting a ghost wall, always returning to the same spot.
Qin Niu sat under the banyan tree watching, and didn¡¯t intervene.
At this moment, Xiao Niu needed to vent frantically. Once it exhausted the energy within its body, it would be able to return to normal.
After termite, bees, and little turtles consumed the Banyan Tree Blood, they ally motionless, yet Xiao Niu could still run wildly, which showed its exceptional nature.
After watching for a while and seeing that it wasn¡¯t in any danger, Qin Niu closed his eyes to cultivate.
His cultivation was shallow, and to pursue immortality, he had to seize every opportunity to enhance his cultivation level.
Compared to those with gifted fortunes and talents, he could only narrow the gap between them with diligence and wisdom.
Time slowly passed, and Xiao Niu kept roaring, tireless in its running beneath the banyan tree.
It seemed frightening, but in fact, it was safe.
The violent energy could be vented, and with something to consume, it could avoid the fate of exploding and dying.
It wasn¡¯t until near dusk that Qin Niu opened his eyes from cultivation.
His Medicine King Sutra cultivation had risen by one level, reaching the Sixfold level of a mortal.
Meanwhile, his Evesting Spring Technique had broken through to the Ninefold level of a mortal.
Even without any background connections, he could join the ck Armored Army on merit alone, bing a candidate soldier.
Of course, he didn¡¯t have any immediate intention of joining the ck Armored Army.
ustomed to idleness, he really didn¡¯t want to be restrained by others.
For someone as proud to the core as him, he wasn¡¯t born to be a ve or servant. To bend the knee and fawn over others was simply beyond him.
There were many benefits to joining the ck Armored Army, but they could be summarized into three main points.
First, having a soldier¡¯s identity was akin to holding an official rank, entering into the privileged ss. Upon retirement, one could enjoy certain benefits, such as exemption from a certain amount of taxes, minor transgressions being pardoned, and exemption from kneeling before officials, and so on.
Second, one could exchange military achievements for cultivation techniques and martial skills, and there was also a chance to obtain elixirs as rewards.
Third, there were opportunities for advancement within the army. One could even reach the upper echelons of the ck Tiger Gang.
For example, the deputy gang leader Bai, who joined the army with the lowest grade Barbarian Bull Technique, was a typical representative of this.
Qin Niu already had the status of a noble.
An Insect Master¡¯s position was not low.
Moreover, as long as he could improve his strength, he could also advance higher up.
As for cultivation techniques and martial skills, he could earn money to buy them himself.
Therefore, joining the ck Armored Army held no attraction for him.
In case of war, there was even a chance of bing cannon fodder.
No joke. Someone like Wang Yue, a reserve soldier for the ck Armored Army, might appear imposing in the vige, but in the army, his status was quite low. In the event of conflict, he was likely to be sent to charge into battle.
With his low cultivation level, shing with the enemy¡¯s experts, the chances of survival were slim.
Now that Qin Niu¡¯s Medicine King Sutra cultivation had reached the Sixfold level of a mortal, he had a clearer sense of the medicinal energy, the energy contained within nts, and the nature of that energy.
He could even sense the cirction of energy within the nts.
This was greatly beneficial for his understanding of the Evesting Spring Technique¡¯s cultivation methods.
Because the primary cultivation methods of the Evesting Spring Technique involved imitating nt cultivation.
Currently, he had only grasped two kinds: one was imitating nts absorbing the Moonlight Power. The other was imitating nts absorbing the moisture in the rainwater.
In the future, he was sure toprehend even more cultivation methods.
He stood up, looking around for Xiao Niu.
After some effort, he finally found it.
The creature¡¯s strength was depleted, and ity powerless on the ground. The nts around it were in disarray, arge swathe had copsed.
It must have been rolling on the ground.
The ground was a mess.
¡°Can you get up and walk?¡± Qin Niu asked, patting it.
Xiao Niu opened its eyes feebly, its bodyx like it hade apart, unmoving.
From the looks of it, clearly, it couldn¡¯t walk.
Fortunately, Qin Niu now possessed the Ninefold strength of a mortal, over nine hundred jin. He grabbed Xiao Niu by its two front legs, hoisted it onto his back, and then carried it out.
It waspletely out of strength, allowing Qin Niu to carry it. Its hind legs dangled helplessly, dragging along the ground as they moved.
As they passed the Ant Nest, he put down Xiao Niu and returned Fourth to the nest.
¡°While it¡¯s still not dark, I¡¯ve got to cultivate the one hundred new termite that emerged today.¡±
Previously, he was too busy chasing Xiao Niu to care about this.
He summoned today¡¯s newly emerged termites and those that required secondary cultivation.
He took out two small jars hidden under the tree.
One contained Banyan Tree Blood, and the other had ¡®Thousand Eyes Tree¡¯ Blood.
¡°Eh, this winged fellow looks like a Breeder Ant, doesn¡¯t it?¡± Qin Niu observed closely and found among the ant colony a rtively small, pale green termite with wings.
It looked unremarkable.
But upon closer inspection, he realized this termite was the breeder ant he had cultivated a few days ago.
It had finallypleted its evolution.
It seemed that the evolution time of the breeder ant far exceeded that of a regr termite.
Female Mutated Milky Termite (Breeder Ant)
Level: Grade Two Isoptera, leveling experience 4/1000
Lifespan: 70 years
Energy: 171
Skill: Breeding First Order 0/10
Talent: Can breed Grade Two strong termites and Grade Two poisonous ants, with a very low probability of breeding Grade Two demon ants.
Looking at this newly evolved breeder ant, Qin Niu felt joy, but more than that, he was deep in thought.
Without a doubt, this breeder ant had inherited some of the Ant Queen¡¯s special abilities.
It could produce special strong termites and poisonous ants that were Grade Two right from birth.
This was rted to its own level.
If nothing unexpected happened, after it mated andid eggs, it would automatically advance to a Grade Three termite.
What excited Qin Niu most was its very low probability to breed Grade Two demon ants.
He felt this was definitely a very special and badass ant species.
The Fourth, born from the Ant Queen, was now a Grade Three War Demon Ant.
He wondered if the demon ants bred by this breeder ant would be of the same species as the Fourth.
If they were the same species, then it meant that the Ant Queen also had the ability to breed demon ants.
He had not yet made up his mind to use the Banyan Tree Blood to cultivate the Ant Queen.
But now, he was eager to help the Ant Queen level up.
Because if the Ant Queen could advance to Grade Three, the weakest termites it produced would be Grade Two.
There were still many aspects worth exploring.
This breeder ant could bemanded by Qin Niu, but could its offspring also be under his control?
The Green Demon Bee Rearing Technique mentioned that kinship doesn¡¯t extend beyond three generations.
Although it wasn¡¯t exined in detail, one could infer that this contract power might be somewhat simr to blood rtions.
Within three generations, one is within direct lineage, and by the time it reaches grandchildren, the connection is typically not as close.
As for great-grandchildren or even further removed rtions, the bond bes even more tenuous.
Many things can only be known after one has personally experienced them. After Qin Niu finished cultivating all the termites, he summoned the Ant Queen. Its body had be even more bloated, resembling a wriggling white grub, especially around the abdomen, which had grown long and wide.
¡°Master, are you ready to make me as strong as them? I¡¯ve been waiting for this day for a long time.¡±
The Ant Queen actually took the initiative to speak to Qin Niu.
Its intelligence seemed to have improved!
And its determination was very strong.
The Fourth, seeing other termites be incredibly strong one after another, eventually couldn¡¯t resist pleading with Qin Niu to make it stronger.
But the Ant Queen had been quietly waiting.
It wanted to be strong, yet it also had a deep understanding of its master.
It knew the master would definitely not forget it.
¡°Although you¡¯re just an insect, you understand me well. Now that you¡¯re prepared, let¡¯s start!¡±
Qin Niu didn¡¯t waste words.
He even felt toozy to mention the risks.
The Ant Queen was linked to his soul; if it died, Qin Niu would suffer great harm.
¡°Fourth, you will feed the Ant Queen.¡±
Qin Niu summoned his most capable subordinate.
After many appraisals and assessments of the Ant Queen, he finally concocted the appropriate dosage of Banyan Tree Blood for the Fourth to feed to the Ant Queen.
The Fourth had eaten Banyan Tree Blood once before, but now, eating it again, it showed no reaction at all.
This stuff seemed to be effective only the first time it was consumed.
Soon, the feeding of the Ant Queen waspleted.
Qin Niu patiently waited. A force of powerful soldier ants stood guard around the Ant Queen.
At this moment, if that nest of ck smelly ants dared toe half a step closer, they would be instantly eradicated without a trace left.
Currently, with over thirty Grade Three termites and thousands of Grade Two termites, the ant colony already possessed non-negligible strength in the outskirts of the forest.
Let alone ants, even insects known as killers like the Golden Ringed Wasp and the praying mantis, or even snakes and rodents that were powerful enemies, the ant colony could easily ughter them.
There were two new breeder ants today, and Qin Niu had already cultivated them.
Both sessfully endured the life-or-death challenge.
This also indicated that his proficiency in using Banyan Tree Blood to cultivate termites had be extremely high.
The current survival rate had reached over 99%.
Mass cultivating regr worker and soldier ants was about quantity; a slightly higher mortality rate was normal for such non-detailed cultivation.
Chapter 145 - 145Chapter 140 Pig King_i
145Chapter 140 Pig King_i
Trantor: 549690339 |
After consuming the Banyan Tree Blood, Qin Niu felt an unprecedented level of nervousness.
This was the first pet he had sessfully nurtured, and also the one that helped him change his fate.
Without this nest of termites, he could never be an Insect Master, let alone enter the maze of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
He would not have survived.
Trapped beneath the banyan tree in the beginning, he had tried every possible method but had failed to break out.
In the end, it was the spiritual connection he established with the Ant Queen that allowed him to beg for its help.
It led the ant swarm through numerous obstacles and finally managed to rescue Qin Niu.
In terms of affection, he held deep feelings for this nest of termites.
Especially Fourth and the Ant Queen, whom he regarded as dear as his own heart.
The Banyan Tree Blood that the Ant Queen consumed was slowly taking effect, and its body was undergoing changes.
Its plump, white body gradually took on a faint green color.
The body continued to swell and growrger.
Based on experience, as long as the body stopped swelling and stabilized, it would have survived the life-and-death threshold.
As time went by, the sky began to darken.
In the sky, the moon shone brightly with sparse stars.
Xiao Niuy on the ground, ¡®drunk as a lord
1.
Qin Niu was now fearless due to his prowess, and he was not afraid in the shallow areas of the mountains.
On the contrary, he was looking forward to predatorsing to seek their doom.
With the Treasured Sword and his increasingly powerful sh Martial Skill, his favorite thing to do now was ¡°fishingw enforcement.¡±
He used himself as bait to lure those powerful carnivorous animals to hunt him. The Ant Queen¡¯s body swelled to a certain extent and then began toy eggs. It was truly a bit of aughable situation.
The Queen Beest time had even defecated due to the swelling; the Ant Queen was even more peculiar, directly expelling the offspring from its belly.
Every time itid an egg, a worker ant would transport the egg back to the nest. They were certainly moving them into the nursery room.
The Ant Nest today might have been dug even moreplexly than a maze.
After all, both the Ant Queen and Fourth possessed considerable intelligence.
Even a cunning rabbit has three burrows; they surely would have made the Ant Nestplicated and concealed.
At crucial moments, it could save lives.
Qin Niu stood by the Ant Nest, waiting patiently.
The Ant Queen enjoyed much better treatment than Xiao Niu. Fortunately, Xiao Niu was out of it now, or it might have been envious of the Ant Queen.
At that moment, Qin Niu heard the sounds of panting getting closer. Approaching this location.
With some hunting experience, he immediately recognized that it might be wild boarsing.
He remained silent immediately, waiting for the wild boars to appear. Listening to the sound, there was definitely more than one wild boar.
Recently, with the hot weather, lush vegetation, wild boars wouldn¡¯te out much during the day but began to move around in the forests at dusk.
At this moment, they roamed the mountains like patrolling emissaries, searching everywhere for delicious food.
Rotten meat and the roots and tubers of nts were their favorites.
If there really wasn¡¯t much to eat, they would even dare to eat mice and poisonous snakes.
¡°One, two, three¡¡±
Qin Niu silently counted the wild boars entering his field of vision, illuminated by the moonlight.
There were already more than thirty, of various sizes.
The smallest wild boar was only the size of a rabbit, following behind therger boars, learning the skills of foraging and survival.
Just as his domestic supply of wild boar was running low, Qin Niu¡¯s heart surged with excitement; today was a day for profit.
By killing one or tworge wild boars, he and Xiao Qing would not have to worry about meat for the next month.
For primary cultivators like them, they must supplement their diet with blood- rich food.
The energy and nutrients contained in wild game were richer, making them one of the ideal food sources for cultivators.
¡°What arge troop of wild boars, there must be more than a hundred of them.¡±
Qin Niu, watching the continuously appearing wild boars, truly understood the abundance of resources in the mountains.
¡°My God, what is that? The Pig King?¡±
He saw an exceptionally huge wild boar among them, surrounded by five or six equally fierce-lookingrge wild boars.
They were like loyal guards, firmly protecting the Pig King by its side.
This formation, this aura, was like an emperor on an inspection tour, undoubtedly the Pig King.
Qin Niu carefully observed the Pig King and saw that its tusks were particrly sharp and long, like two fearsome curved swords. Even if it encountered lions or tigers, it would have the strength to fight.
Its coat was a deep brown color, faintly exuding a dark, bronze sheen.
Qin Niu remembered the owner of the Armor Shop telling him that Pig King hide was premium material for making armor. Firm, lightweight, and somewhat flexible. They would constantly rub against pine trees, allowing the resin to seep into their skin as if they were wearing a special suit of armor.
¡°Today, I will ughter this Wild Boar King.¡±
He believed that the meat and blood of the Wild Boar King should be even more nourishing than that of ordinary wild boars.
Without any superfluous words, when the Wild Boar King passed by nearby, Qin Niu shot forth like an arrow released from its bow, charging directly at it.
He didn¡¯t rush to show his weapon because he worried it would scare the Wild Boar King away.
Sensing the abnormality, the Wild Boar King looked over warily with its muscles tensed, ready to flee for its life at any moment.
A few Pig Guards that were protecting the Wild Boar King were ferociously confronting Qin Niu.
Wanting to kill the Wild Boar King really wasn¡¯t an easy task.
The two Cultivation Techniques he practiced were not suitable forbat, which made his actual fighting strength far lower than that of a Ninefold ¡¯moner.
Facing these powerful wild boars, he dared not be careless.
A moment of inattention, and it might be him eaten by the boars, instead of him eating pork.
¡°Die!¡±
He targeted a big pig, and directly shed at its neck with his sword.
Althoughst time he had bought books on basic de Techniques, with such a short time to practice, it was not easy to achieve any significant results.
Basic de Technique consisted of eleven forms.
Flutter, chop, sh, sweep, and so on.
Currently, the only de Technique he had mastered was the sh Martial Skill.
Pff!
A sh to the wild boar¡¯s neck, it¡¯s half neck was cut open, with blood sttering everywhere.
The Treasured Sword, having tasted blood, seemed extremely excited.
A soft humming sound could faintly be heard from it.
This wild boar must have weighed over four hundred pounds, a veritable giant Pig-
With Qin Niu¡¯s current cultivation, plus the sh Martial Skill and the Treasured Sword, the fact that he didn¡¯t manage to sever its neck in one strike, cutting only arge part of it, showed that the boar¡¯s hide was incredibly tough.
Its muscles were also very solid.
Under pain, the boar would instinctively contract its muscles, which increased the resistance against the sword¡¯s sh.
¡°Augh¡¡±
The wild boar let out a piercing squeal, like that of a pig being butchered.
Afternding a hit, Qin Niu paid it no heed. He swiftly pulled out his sword and charged through the breach in the defense to his actual target.
His target was clear, going straight for the Wild Boar King.
Seeing the human killing his way towards it, the Wild Boar King appeared neither panicked nor fearful.
Like a sovereign used to the tumult of the storm, it remained incrediblyposed, its presence extremely powerful.
¡°Ho ho!¡±
It made a series of short, strange calls.
Seemingly directing the other wild boars to work together against the enemy. The several Pig Guards guarding it quickly turned their heads and then charged towards Qin Niu.
Cold gleams shot from the Wild Boar King¡¯s eyes as it observed Qin Niu¡¯s reactions, and unlike the other wild boars, it didn¡¯t lower its head to charge at Qin Niu.
¡°Look how capable you are!¡±
Qin Niu, to his irritation, found himself ¡®sized up¡¯ by a pig; naturally, he wouldn¡¯t show any mercy.
Ignoring the several big wild boars charging from behind, he proceeded, unstoppable in his assault on the Wild Boar King.
When he was only about four or five meters away from the Wild Boar King, a vicious glint shed in its eyes.
Finally, it lowered its head and initiated a charge towards Qin Niu.
This was to mount a joint attack with the several Pig Guards, nning to crush him to death.
The Wild Boar King, weighing at the very least seven to eight hundred pounds, had two sharp and long tusks protruding from its long snout, which would be enough to pierce Qin Niu¡¯s body through and send him flying to the sky if it managed to gore him with just one thrust.
¡°Die!¡±
Without any fancy moves, it was another sh.
Brilliant de Qi burst forth from the de, its ear-piercing howl echoing like the wails of ghosts in the dead of night.
Bang!
A shnded on the Wild Boar King¡¯s head.
Its tusks blocked the blow.
Bang!
Hitting its tusks, Qin Niu¡¯s hand protested with pain.
The rebound force was substantial.
A crack could be seen where the boar¡¯s tusk was struck by the de.
In pain, the Wild Boar King grunted and squealed.
As the malevolent wind of the charging Pig Guards reached him from behind, swerving to the left or right would surely result in him being catapulted into flie sky. The Pig Guards might not be as strong as the Wild Boar King, but they were more than capable of severely wounding, or even killing, Qin Niu.
In the face of danger, he was well-prepared.
Chapter 146 - 146Chapter 141 Second Martial Skill i
146Chapter 141 Second Martial Skill i
Trantor: 549690339 |
He vaulted onto the back of the Pig King with a leap.
Since he was charging head-on at the Pig King, he ended up riding backwards on its back.
The Pig King stood only as tall as his chest, but its body length was close to ten feet, at least eight or nine feet long. Broad as a door.
Once he mounted its back, the beast immediately tried to bite him, but with such a short neck and limited mobility, it couldn¡¯t reach him at all.
So, it began to twist its body frantically, trying to throw him off.
Qin Niu watched as five or six Pig Guards rushed past him. He didn¡¯t hurry to deal with the Pig King. Instead, he mped his legs tight on the Pig King¡¯s waist and swung his sword at the Pig Guards brushing past the beast.
[You haveprehended the Sweeping Strike martial skill! This is a Group Killing Martial Skill that can attack enemies in a straight line.]
Three Pig Guards were struck by his Treasured Sword on their buttocks or waists and ran off screaming in pain. However, after charging some distance away, they quickly turned around to prepare for a second collective charge at the powerful human.
The injured wild boars became even more ferocious.
By this time, Qin Niu was free to strike at the Pig King.
He mercilessly chopped at the left hind leg of the Pig King.
Puh!
With one strike, he achieved an Explosive sh Effect.
The pig¡¯s leg was almostpletely severed, hanging by just ayer of skin.
Qin Niu dealt with the ck Bear in the same way.
Facing creatures with four legs, he aimed to render them legless, and they would be subdued.
During the chop, he distinctly felt the pig¡¯s skin was extremely tough and stic, like sturdy leather. A portion of the attack rebounded off the de.
That made his heart leap with joy.
The pig¡¯s teeth were hard, and its skin was unexpectedly firm.
After ughtering this Pig King, at least a full set of superior leather armor could be crafted. Given its enormous size, the excess hide could even be used to make a set for Xiao Qing as well.
When one of the Pig King¡¯s legs was cut-off, half of its body immediately copsed.
It let out a painful pig scream.
Taking advantage of its agony and inability to thrash or jump around, Qin Niu quickly shifted his position.
Now, he was properly seated atop the Pig King.
The beast¡¯s head, neck, front limbs, and heart were all within his striking range.
Faced with such an opportunity, he showed no mercy.
He thrust his sword directly and fiercely towards the Pig King¡¯s heart.
To his surprise, it barely pierced about half an inch.
He encountered strong resistance.
Even though it was a difficult spot to strike, with his level of skill,bined with the power of the Treasured Sword, he should have been able to impale it through.
¡°Such tough skin, an absolute treasure!¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s unsessful strike actually made him even happier.
However, thest strike pained the wild pig so much that it cried out like it was being ughtered. It turned its head trying to bite at him.
Maimed on its left hind leg and unable to support its weight, it sat down on the ground.
¡°I¡¯ll sever another one of your limbs!¡±
As the words fell, so did the sword.
A sh of cold light streaked through the air as the Treasured Sword, trailed by dazzling de Qi, struck the Pig King¡¯s right front leg.
No other reason than that it just felt more natural to do so.
Almost everyone¡¯s right hand is stronger and more agile than their left.
Puh!
¡°Ao¡¡±
The Pig King let out another pitiful cry.
Its right front limb was severed, causing it topletely lose its bnce and copse to the ground.
At that point, it sensed death and overwhelming fear.
It struggled to push off the ground with its long snout in an attempt to stand up.
But Qin Niu did not give it any chance to live.
Another ruthless chop targeted its neck.
The pig¡¯s skin was so tough that the sword only cut an inch or so deep.
It might have been an illusion, but there seemed to be a faint dark yellow glow emanating from the ce where the de struck its neck.
Qin Niu had long anticipated that it would not be killed with a single blow.
He withdrew the sword quickly, shifting his stance, then savagely struck again. The entire ughter of the Pig King was as swift as lightning, as fierce as a tiger.
The second strikended precisely where the first had hit.
And it triggered the Explosive sh Effect again.
With the Treasured Sword growing stronger, the chance for Explosive sh seemed to have increased slightly.
Crack!
The neck was cleanly severed, including the entire spine, snapped in two.
Blood spurted, the beast could no longer make a sound.
It might have been because the nerves had been severed.
Qin Niu was like a killing god, his gaze fixed on the Pig Guards charging towards him.
All these were indeed silver money, and he did not mind ughtering a few more.
To his surprise, as soon as the Pig King fell, they immediately turned tail and scattered. It was truly a case of ¡°when the tree falls, the monkeys scatter.¡±
It was good that they ran.
Hey on the ground, drinking the Pig King¡¯s blood inrge gulps. It was somewhat sweet and fishy, with a hint of saltiness.
It was chiefly because drinking the blood of that old wolf for the first time had brought him tremendous benefits.
That had made him particrly fond of beast blood.
After he had his fill, he quickly ran back to the camphor tree where the Ant Nest was, dug out an empty jar, and collected some pig blood.
This was from a Pig King, after all; its beast blood couldn¡¯t be too bad.
He nned to use it to nurture the bees and termites.
He felt that nurturing the Queen Bee was much more difficult.
Termites were not picky eaters, they could eat almost anything, and their conversion effect was also very good.
Feeding them bear blood in the beginning and nurturing the powerful Worker and Soldier Ants, to this day, still amazed Qin Niu.
The fresh blood of the Pig King had almost stopped flowing.
Qin Niu, holding the jar, returned to the entrance of the Ant Nest, only to find the Ant Queen had already survived the most difficult hurdle.
She must haveid quite a few eggs, which saved her from bursting and dying.
Her survival also allowed Qin Niu, her master, to heave a sigh of relief.
Although he had great confidence when nurturing the Ant Queen, he still feared something might go wrong.
Fortunately, the most difficult hurdle was finally ovee.
¡± Fourth, summon all the Worker Ants.¡±
He called out Fourth and the other Worker Ants and fed them some of the Pig King¡¯s blood.
He did not expect these mature Worker Ants to evolve, but after eating it, they would definitely feed the young ants.
This could potentially cause the young ants to mutate or evolve.
Unfortunately, the Ant Queen could not be fed for the time being.
In his eyes, the ultimate goal of nurturing all the termites was to strengthen the Ant Queen.
By nurturing other termites, he could gain experience in cultivation.
And he could afford a lower cost of trial and error.
Like with nurturing the Ant Queen this time, he first experimented with various termites to ensure safety, yet he was still worried.
Only after experimenting with the Queen Bee and then with a Breeder Ant, and seeding with both, did he decide to nurture the Ant Queen.
It seemed casual, but he was actually extremely cautious and careful at every step.
Qin Niu instructed Fourth and the rest of the Worker Ants to carefully transport the Ant Queen back to the depths of the nest. He also reminded Fourth to strengthen the defense in the next few days, until the Ant Queenpleted her evolution.
After taking care of the termite matters, Qin Niu looked at Xiao Nui, who was still sound asleep, and the two wild pigs that had been ughtered.
The Pig King probably weighed over eight hundred jin, while therge wild pig weighed more than four hundred jin.
Transporting these two huge fattened pigs and a small water buffalo back home in one trip was nearly impossible.
Qin Niu made a decision.
He would drag them in turns.
First, he carried the immobile Xiao Nui, and then he dragged the four- hundred-jin wild pig forward.
After covering some distance, he¡¯d set them down and go back for the Pig King.
So, step by step, he made his way out of the mountains.
Because he had specifically told Xiao Qing not to enter the mountain to look for him before leaving, he did not see her looking for her master this time.
Qin Niu was somewhat relieved.
Children act on impulse without considering the consequences, which could easily lead to danger.
Although she now had the cultivation of a mortal at the Twofold peak and was about to break through to Threefold, her strength was still weak.
In the sky, the moon was bright amidst sparse stars.
The vige was tranquil.
Qin Niu could see a light flickering in front of Xie Laizi¡¯s house from afar.
As he got closer, the light beamed towards him.
¡°Is that the master?¡±
Xiao Qing¡¯s youthful voice carried a tinge of nervousness and anticipation.
¡°It¡¯s me! Xiao Qing!¡±
Qin Niu felt a warm glow in his heart, the feeling of being cared for and being missed was truly wonderful.
On the surface, he seemed to be basking in endless glory, having be the person with the highest status in Shuangfeng Vige.
But he too needed kinship, friendship, and love; he did not relish loneliness and coldness.
¡°Master, it really is you! That¡¯s great!¡±
Hearing that it was indeed his voice, Xiao Qing was overjoyed.
She dashed towards Qin Niu at full speed.
Chapter 147 - 147Chapter 142 Beast Core l
147Chapter 142 Beast Core l
Trantor: 549690339 |
¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you not toe looking for me?¡±
Qin Niu, however, couldn¡¯t bear to reprimand her.
¡°I was worried I¡¯d make you angry, so I didn¡¯t go up the mountain this time. But when it got sote and you still hadn¡¯t returned home, I just couldn¡¯t help but worry. I couldn¡¯t sit still at home, so I brought an oilmp and waited for you at the foot of the mountain.¡±
Her response struck a particrly tender spot in the depths of Qin Niu¡¯s heart.
¡°Can you carry this little calf on your back?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll try!¡±
Xiao Qing¡¯s small frame possessed more strength than that of a full-grown, sturdy man.
With Cultivation Technique that could reach the peak of the human Twofold realm, even as a child, she could take on ten strong men as if she were ying.
She could easily lift a person and throw them flying.
At the human Twofold realm one could lift up to two hundred kilograms with bare hands.
An adult, strong man, particrly tall and robust, might weigh around one hundred and seventy to eighty kilograms.
Xiao Qing carried the little water buffalo on her back, not seeming particrly strained.
Qin Niu dragged tworge wild boars back home, and along the way, the vigers looked on with envy.
Since the pigskin fromst time wasn¡¯t worth much, Qin Niu this time only nned to skin the skin of the boar king. The otherrge wild boar would be scalded to remove its hair, and then its meat would be consumed.
In the courtyard, he skillfully scalded off the boar¡¯s hair, then opened the carcass.
Xiao Qing was overjoyed seeing the two big wild boars her master had brought back.
The little water buffalo had been tossed into the cowshed, where it slept soundly, not moving an inch.
The little turtle took more than a month to evolve.
It¡¯s unimown how long it would take for the water buffalo to evolve.
Anyway, there was no rush.
Qin Niu didn¡¯t expect thiszy creature to do any work anyway.
¡°Master, with so much pork, we can eat for a month or two,¡±
¡°Isn¡¯t that great? You¡¯re at the age where you need to grow, so you should eat more.¡±
While carefully skinning the boar king, Qin Niuughed without looking up and said to Xiao Qing.
¡°It¡¯s truly a blessing to be with master! Every day I have meat to eat and a new house to live in.¡±
¡°Haha, think this is bliss? The good days are still toe!¡±
He skilfully peeled the boar king¡¯s skin little by little.
It felt much thicker than that of a regr wild boar, and the texture was different as well.
It felt somewhat heavy in hand.
It looked extraordinarily dense and sturdy.
¡°Xiao Qing, spread out this pigskin, smooth it out, and nail it onto those two door nks.¡±
¡°It¡¯s so big! It could make arge quilt.¡±
She took it and mented in amazement at the size of the boar king¡¯s skin.
¡°Making it into a quilt would be a waste, I¡¯ll give you a little surprise in a couple of days.¡±
Qin Niu nned to go to the city in a few days, sell some bugs, get some money, and then turn the skin of the boar king into armor.
Leather armor not only keeps one warm but can also save a life at critical moments.
This boar king¡¯s skin had a defensive strength even stronger than ordinary iron armor, making it a rare and invaluable treasure.
After skinning the boar, he proceeded to open up the carcass.
Upon cutting open the boar king¡¯s belly, something at the heart¡¯s location emitted a faint, dark yellow glow.
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but recall the moment he had in the boar king, when a dark yellow glow had also shone around its neck.
Back then, he had thought it was either an illusion or a reflection of the light from his treasured sword.
He hadn¡¯t had the time to think too much about it.
Now that he witnessed this strange phenomenon, he immediately understood he might have hit the jackpot ande across a treasure.
Carefully opening up its heart, he found a small bead near the back of the heart, which was only slightlyrger than a soybean.
It was quite heavy for its size, and it felt incredibly peculiar to the touch.
When he pinched it, it was as though he was holding a highlypressed ball of gas.
After washing away the blood on its surface, the dark yellow glow it emitted became even brighter.
¡°But wild boars aren¡¯t known to have Luminous Pearls inside them!¡±
Holding it in his hand, Qin Niu examined the strange bead.
¡°It must be a Beast Core. I¡¯ve heard from Grandfather that some wild beasts in the mountains can cultivate just like humans. It¡¯s just that their intelligence is limited and they don¡¯t understand cultivation techniques, so very few beasts can sessfully cultivate.
Only those who have lived for many years, drawing on the essence of the sun and the moon, might stumble upon some methods of cultivation.
Or perhaps, if they¡¯re lucky enough to discover spiritual fruits or herbs in the mountains and consume them, they can undergo a transformation.
There are also fierce and ferocious beasts that evolve by preying on other cultivated beasts and birds.¡±
All in all, the cultivation of wild beasts is a hundred times harder than that of humans.
But once they achieve some sess in their cultivation, the energy within their bodies slowlypresses and ultimately condenses into a Beast Core. This is the foundation of their cultivation, as well as the first step towards bing demons. If they transform into demons in the future, their Beast Core will turn into a Demon Core, also known as a Demon Pearl. It is the source of their magical powers and cultivation.¡±
Xiao Qing knew much more about these matters of cultivation than her master Qin Niu.
She had ess to much more information living in the city.
Qin Niu, living a secluded rural life, enjoyed a peaceful existence butcked opportunities to interact with the outside world.
¡°So it¡¯s a Beast Core; is it valuable?¡±
Qin Niu had gained some knowledge.
¡°Of course, it¡¯s valuable! Even the worst Beast Cores, the size of a sesame seed, can sell for a good amount of money. This Beast Core is asrge as a soybean, which indicates that the boar king had attained some level of Dao. Theoretically, with your current cultivation level, you shouldn¡¯t have been able to harm it. You managed to kill it, perhaps because it was already injured and in a weakened state, or maybe there was some other reason.¡±
Xiao Qing had her suspicions that Qin Niu possessed some sort of divine weapon, but she didn¡¯t say it outright.
Despite her young age, having adventured through the Jianghu with her grandfather, she knew well how treacherous the human heart could be.
For a servant to pry into the secrets of their master was a serious taboo.
¡°Wild boars have a very diverse diet; they like to eat snakes, insects, rodents, and ants, and also enjoy searching for various nt roots to chew on in the mountains. Some powerful wild boars specialize in digging up wild ginseng to eat. Grandfather and I once encountered such a situation where, within nearly a hundred miles of that forest, not a single ginseng nt could be found. They¡¯d all been eaten up. It¡¯s highly probable that this boar king consumed some kind of spiritual medicine from nature, which allowed it to have such arge Beast Core.¡±
Xiao Qing analyzed the possible reasons for the formation of the Beast Core within the boar king.
¡°Wiry don¡¯t you think it¡¯s possible that it lived many years and cultivated to form the Beast Core?¡± Qin Niu asked.
¡°That possibility is very small. Because the lifespan of wild boars isn¡¯t particrly long, it¡¯s about the same as humans. It¡¯s very rare to hear about a wild boar that has cultivated to form a Beast Core. They mostly get lucky by consuming treasures of heaven and earth, which eventually allows them to condense a Beast Core and set foot on the path to bing a demon.
Furthermore, if this boar king really cultivated such arge Beast Core through its own efforts, even the Gang Leader of the ck Tiger Gang might not be its match.¡±
Xiao Qing didn¡¯t directly say so, but she implied to Qin Niu that,
With Qin Niu¡¯s current level of cultivation, it would be impossible for him to defeat a boar king that had cultivated a Beast Core.
Like humans, beasts also have twofolds of cultivation.
One type increases their cultivation through arduous practice ¡ª these are capable of fighting well.
The other is like hitting the jackpot, consuming heavenly materials and earthly treasures, or by chance eating the corpse of another demon beast, and condensing a Beast Core. This is simr to humans who enhance their cultivation by consuming elixirs; it¡¯s considered ¡®faux fat.¡¯
Their strength is much weaker.
¡°If the Beast Core is the source of a wild beast¡¯s cultivation, then if I eat it, I should be able to obtain its cultivation, right?¡±
Qin Niu asked with great interest.
Chapter 148 - 143 Acquired Realm_i
148 Chapter 143 Acquired Realm_i
Trantor: 549690339 |
Like all cultivators, he was particrly obsessed with the improvement of his
cultivation.
Cultivation is the foundation of all strength and also the key to prolonging life.
Bing a powerful Beast Tamer requires a strong cultivation as support. To be a powerful Insect Master, even more formidable cultivation is needed. Tomand formidable weapons and armor, cultivation is equally necessary.
It can be said that if one wishes to be a strong person, without
cultivation, it is all an illusion.
Take Insect Masters for instance, Qin Niu is currently at the Ninefold mortal level and can control second or third-grade insects without a problem. But if he wants to control those more powerful insects, it is basically a fool¡¯s dream.
If a pet¡¯s level is too much higher than its master¡¯s, it will surely turn on its
master.
Not to mention making them obedient.
¡°Master must never eat this, it¡¯s extremely dangerous! The bodies of beasts are naturally stronger than humans, and their methods of cultivation are very crude. The various energies they absorb might be bearable for their bodies, but our human bodies cannot withstand it. Eating it can easily lead to ruptured meridians, shattered organs, and in the worst case, direct explosion and death.¡±
Xiao Qing hurriedly advised.
Qin Niu was actually just speaking hypothetically; how could he really recklessly consume the Beast Core?
¡°If the Beast Core is not for human consumption, can it only be used to nurture
beast pets?¡±
Qin Niu currently had two beast pets, one was Xiao Niu, and the other was a
little turtle.
To be exact, the little turtle was no longer a little one, but a Grade Three
Diamond Ink Turtle.
To use the Beast Core to nurture them was something Qin Niu truly hesitated
to do.
The ultimate goal of taming pets is to help their master be stronger.
Having cultivation resources, one must prioritize their master.
¡°Directly nurturing beast pets is one use. If we humans want to consume it, we can find an alchemist to refine the Beast Core, adding some herbs as supplementary ingredients to make the energy within the Beast Core milder. That way, it will be much safer to consume.¡±
¡°When I get to the city, 1 will ask at Miaodan Pavilion.
Qin Niu nodded after hearing this.
He found a box and carefully stored the Beast Core in it.
He continued to deal with the pork.
Gradually, he began to feel his body getting hotter, as if he had drunk over a dozen jugs of liquor.
¡°Master, why is your face red?¡±
Xiao Qing noticed the abnormality in her master.
¡°It might be because I drank the blood of this Pig King.¡± He felt his body filled with endless strength.
¡°Oh no, beast blood that could morph into demons should not be recklessly consumed. I¡¯ve heard my grandfather say once that the blood of demonic beasts contains powerful demonic energy, and drinking it often can lead to mental instability, making one bloodthirsty and violent. You mustn¡¯t drink it again next time.¡±
Xiao Qing stomped her feet in anxiety after hearing this.
It¡¯s okay to drink a bit of regr beast blood, but too much demonic beast blood can cause serious problems.
¡°What should we do now?¡±
Qin Niu regretted his ignorance.
Now that he could earn money, once he entered the city, he must buy more
books rted to cultivation to read.
The scariest thing for a person is ignorance.
The first time he drank the blood of an old wolf, he benefitted greatly and thought that drinking the Pig King¡¯s blood would be even better.
He didn¡¯t realize that demonic beast blood should not be consumed.
¡°Try to practice your technique; you should be able to neutralize and absorb the demonic energy inside your body. If it really doesn¡¯t work, I¡¯m afraid we will have to seek medical help in the city.¡±
Xiao Qing said, filled with worry.
Realizing the severity of the issue, Qin Niu went to the backyard and sat down cross-legged.
Fortunately, there was soft moonlight tonight.
Allowing him to practice the Evesting Spring Technique.
Trying to rotate the Evesting Spring Technique, he discovered that the cool energy absorbed into his body was continuously neutralizing the savage and furious demonic energy, eventually being absorbed by his body.
Through his relentless efforts, the violent demonic energy in his body was
decreasing.
His body also didn¡¯t feel as ufortable.
By the next morning when the moonlight had faded, Qin Niu had sessfully resolved some of the demonic energy. His cultivation had also grown tremendously, skyrocketing directly from the Ninefold mortal level to the Tenfold mortal level.
At this point, all the organs of his entire body were reinforced and nourished
by the power of the Evesting Spring Technique.
He now possessed a prolonged breath, a strong and powerful heartbeat, astonishing digestive and absorption capabilities¡ The Tenfold mortal level also didn¡¯t seem as amazing as he had imagined!
At most, he could lift a thousand pounds, his stamina while running could match that of a galloping horse, his eyes were sharp, his hearing keen, and his movements agile and swift.
Compared to ordinary people, these abilities were more than ten times
stronger.
But they were nowhere near the prowess of the exceptional warriors he had imagined.
Perhaps, the Tenfold mortal level is just the first step in the eyes of a true master.
ording to his understanding, surpassing the tenfold of mortal strength would let a person undergo aplete transformation, as if reborn.
He was unclear about the specifics.
At this moment, the demonic power inside him was still rampaging, and a trace of irritability and ferocity rose in his heart.
This was unprecedented.
Pig King and the corpse of the giant wild pig had been taken care of by Xiao
Qing.
She must have been busy for most of the night; usually up early to clean and train, today she was still asleep.
Qin Niu did not wake her up.
Upon entering his own room, he lifted two floor tiles under the bed to reveal a
stone trough.
This was a pool he specifically used for nourishing his sword.
As expected, the Banyan Tree Blood in the stone trough had turned back into clear water.
The Treasured Sword¡¯s absorption rate of the Banyan Tree Blood had be even more terrifying.
It must have reached the critical moment of transformation.
When he took it out, the sword¡¯s body trembled and emitted a humming sound. The green patterns within the sword¡¯s body were slowly converging, as if trying to form an ancient rune.
Qin Niu was able to y the Pig King yesterday, all thanks to this sword. Otherwise, ording to Xiao Qing, Qin Niu would not have been able to breach the Pig King¡¯s defenses.
¡°Come, I¡¯ll take you to the mountain to get blood!¡±
He took the Treasured Sword and a basket on his back and left the house.
Once in the mountains, the violent emotion in his mind grew a bit stronger.
Monster blood really shouldn¡¯t be consumed recklessly.
It could easily turn a person into a killing maniac.
He needed to quickly find a way to eliminate all the demonic power within his body.
Ignoring the newly born Termites, he took Fourth and went directly to the Ancient Banyan Tree. After collecting the tree blood, he started to cultivate ording to the old rules, sitting under the tree.
The speed of cultivation here was twenty times faster than outside, and the demonic power in his body was rapidly being neutralized, ultimately transforming into his cultivation strength.
As time trickled by, his cultivation became stronger and stronger, slowly reaching the peak of the tenfold mortal strength.
When the power of the Evesting Spring Technique inside him reached its limit.
Boom!
He felt as if his body had exploded.
It hadn¡¯t, in fact, but the Evesting Spring Technique¡¯s power that was originally confined within his organs was now like a flood breaking a dam, furiously surging into every part of his body that it could reach.
His muscles, bones, and skin were endowed with a much greater capacity.
Originally, the cultivation of the Evesting Spring Technique progressed from the inside out.
First to strengthen the organs, and then break the confinement of the organs to fortify the body¡¯s trunk and limbs.
The cultivation principle of the Medicine King Sutra was somewhat simr.
It is said that mainstream cultivation techniques can be divided into two major categories. One is External Cultivation, which first tempers muscles, bones, and skin, and then nurtures the organs. Like Iron Cloth Technique and Barbarian Bull Technique, these should all fall under this category.
Basically, all External Cultivation techniques are very powerful.
Especially in the early stages of training, thebat power is overwhelming. The other category is Inner Strength, progressing from the inside out. First to enhance the organs, and then to toughen the muscles, bones, and skin. The downside of this kind of technique is slow improvement, with early stages being weak. The advantage is that it can greatly extend life expectancy from an early stage.
And it can dy aging.
Inner Strength techniques are the choice of most people.
Because the lifespan of ordinary people is limited, sixty years old is already considered a long life.
Practicing External Cultivation might bring about some minor aplishments, but by then one¡¯s life may havee to an end. In the end, all glory and effort turn to dust.
At this moment, Qin Niu felt like a valve in his body had opened, allowing him to freely absorb the energy from outside into his body.
He could clearly feel his skin, muscles, and bones being strengthened.
The growth in strength was iparable to before.
It seems that even with Life-Nurturing Techniques, as long as one¡¯s cultivation is high enough, one could still fight.
Worried that his realm was not stable, he did not practice the Medicine King Sutra today.
Instead, he continued cultivating the Evesting Spring Technique, and the demonic power within him waspletely neutralized bit by bit.
Its impact on his mind was noticeably weakening.
The ferocity in his heart was fading away bit by bit.
Next time, he would never dare to drink monster blood recklessly again..
Chapter 149 - 144: Rain and Dew are Shared Equally i
149 Chapter 144: Rain and Dew are Shared Equally i
Trantor: 549690339 |
He cultivated until dusk and then finally stopped his practice.
Upon standing up, he was startled to find a metallic clinkinging from his skin and a crackling sound from his muscles and bones.
Upon closer inspection, he discovered ayer of stinky ck grime on the surface of his arm¡¯s skin. His body felt sticky, and when he touched it, the ck odoriferous grime was present all over.
It seemed that the impurities within his body had been expelled.
Feeling an itch in his throat, he actually coughed up a clot of bloody phlegm.
He truly understood what it meant to undergo a rebirth, to be rejuvenated.
Every movement felt lighter and more agile.
In the past, lifting his arms would feel constrained.
But now, it became exceptionally easy, with the sensation of being pulled and tugged by his skin, muscles, and tendons greatly diminished.
These were the benefits brought about by the enhancement of his skin, muscles, and tendons.
Also, when breathing, not only did the breaths be deeper and longer, but the muscles throughout his body, even every single cell, seemed to contract and rx in rhythm. It was as if his entire body could breathe.
In fact, this was due to his body and lungs bing more coordinated and attuned.
This was beneficial in enhancing his explosive power and endurance.
He checked his current cultivation level.
Qin Niu
Cultivation: Evesting Spring Technique Acquired Realm level 124/1000 (Medicine King Sutra Mortal Realm Sixfold 591/600), Intermediate Farmer 117.1/1000, Insect Master Low Rank 48/100, Beast Tamer Low Rank 3/100
Lifespan: 108 years
Cultivation Techniques: Evesting Spring Technique level 2 541/1000, Medicine King Sutra level 2 222/1000
After checking his cultivation, he felt satisfied.
He was already an intermediate farmer; although still weak,pared to before, it was a tremendous improvement.
His cultivation had even made a breakthrough to the Acquired Realm.
Based on his feelings, the soldiers of the ck Armored Army standing guard at the gates of ck Tiger City were probably at this realm.
When he was Mortal Realm Sevenfold or Eightfold, he thought he was pretty strong.
Now he understood that someone in the Mortal Realm was just an ordinary person, not even a martial artist.
Only by stepping into the Acquired Realm could one understand what it truly meant to be a martial artist.
Theirbat power was simply iparable to those in the Mortal Realm.
Now, even though he was only a neer who had just entered the first level of the Acquired Realm and practiced a Life-Nurturing Technique not specialized inbat, he was still confident he could defeat five Tenfold Mortal Realm individuals single-handedly.
And he could win decisively.
Of course, that was provided everyone¡¯s martial skills and weapons were of a simr level.
Otherwise, there were too many factors that could affectbat power.
Mental strength, martial skills, weapons, armor,bat experience, etc., any of these could affect the oue of a battle.
Cultivation was just the most important foundation among them.
¡°Back home!¡±
He collected the Banyan Tree Blood, shouldered his basket, and left the maze formed by the banyan tree.
He felt the air was exceptionally fresh.
The only thing that bothered him was the sticky ck grime on his body, which was very ufortable.
Despite his eagerness to return home, he certainly wouldn¡¯t neglect his beekeeping and termite rearing activities.
With the current insect cmities ravaging thend, the more formidable insects he had in his possession, the more effective they could be at crucial moments.
The Ant Queen was still evolving, and it was uncertain when the evolution would beplete.
Having passed the most dangerous phase, it was now merely a matter of time.
He fished out a crumpled leaf from his pocket, which belonged to the broad- leafed herb. He had dug it up and brought it home to grow in the backyard, and he would practice his Evesting Spring Technique daily to aid its growth.
He also used the manure from Xiao Nui to fertilize it.
Every time he went to the mountain, he made sure to tear off a small piece of the herb¡¯s leaf to feed the three termites.
However, these three termites had yet to show any changes.
After eating it, the Worker Ant would feed the young ants through trophaxis.
Qin Niu wanted to see if the broad-leafed herb, which he felt was special, could enable the termites to undergo a new evolution.
Coming down from the mountain, he was returning home earlier today; it was not yet dark.
Along the way, the vigers, seeing his darkened skin, gossiped about him behind his back.
Qin Niu ignored these criticisms, turning a deaf ear.
¡°Master, you¡¯re back! Quite early today, aren¡¯t you!¡±
Xiao Qing saw Qin Niu return and, delighted, dropped the broom in her hands and ran to the entrance to greet him.
¡°Hehe, you came home early to save me the trouble of carrying antern down to the foot of the mountain to meet you.¡±
Qin Niu patted her head.
¡°Oh, Master Tang, you all haven¡¯t finished work for the day yet!¡±
He saw inside the courtyard, the Tang Fang brothers and their workers were working overtime, busy with tasks like building walls andying floor tiles.
¡°Didn¡¯t you lend us your ducks? And you also gave our Tang Family¡¯s patriarch some advice which, after setting up the buffer zone, really seeded in stopping most of the locusts from entering the vige. Everyone is especially grateful to you, so we wanted to help finish your new house as soon as possible. It¡¯s estimated that it can bepletely finished the day after tomorrow!¡±
Tang Fang turned his head and smiled as he exined.
¡°Thank you so much! Later, each person can take home a piece of wild boar meat!¡±
Qin Niu didn¡¯t wait for their consent and, taking Xiao Qing with him, entered the house.
The four hundred pound wild boar yielded nearly three hundred pounds of meat.
Qin Niu had Xiao Qing distribute five pounds of meat to each worker.
The Tang Fang brothers were the foremen and had put in the most effort, so they received ten pounds of meat each.
This made the workers beam with joy, and they repeatedly thanked Qin Niu.
Even if a pound of wild boar meat sold for only three Wen Money, five pounds were fifteen Wen Money.
It wasn¡¯t much money, but Qin Niu¡¯s gesture made the workers veryfortable and filled them with gratitude.
Qin Niu personally cut a piece of meat from the boar king, about ten pounds in weight.
¡°Master Tang, please give this piece of meat to Tang Caixian and ask her to eat more of it.¡±
Qin Niu didn¡¯t openly say that eating this meat would aid in cultivation.
One must always guard against others.
After all, Tang Fang might secretly switch it out.
The difference between the boar king¡¯s meat and regr wild boar meat was too great.
To know, that boar king had cultivated a Beast Core and was considered a magical beast.
Tang Caixian was a good girl and had also given Qin Niu an extremely valuable jade pendant. Naturally, if capable, he would take care of her in every possible way.
After sending the workers off and looking at the newly taking shape house, Qin Niu was quite satisfied.
He cut another piece of the boar king¡¯s meat, also around ten pounds.
¡°Xiao Qing, go give it to Miss Wang next door. Remind Miss Wang that she can eat more of it.¡±
¡°Hehe, I knew the master wouldn¡¯t forget Sister Wanyan.¡±
Xiao Qing seemed young, but she was quite the little devil.
Having tasted the meat buns that Miss Wang had given, her fondness for Miss Wang was quite obvious.
¡°You¡¯re a little imp, now hurry and go!¡±
Qin Niu scolded her with augh, gave her the meat, and then went into the house to take a bath and changed into clean clothes.
Xiao Qing had already returned after delivering the meat.
¡°Sister Wanyan says thank you and asks that you visit her for tea when you have time. Actually, she came to look for you twice in the past two days, but since you were not home, she left.¡±
¡°I¡¯ve been so busy every day recently; I really haven¡¯t had much time. Next time shees, tell her toe find me in the evening.¡±
Qin Niu had intended to say, let here find him at night.
But then he thought that might be inappropriate.
After all, how would it look for a young unmarried woman to go to a man¡¯s house at night?
Unless one day he married her or they were engaged, that would be a different matter.
¡°Oh right, Steward Yan Qi from the Yan Family also came looking for you. Learning that you had gone into the mountains, he sat at Wang Furen¡¯s ce for a while and then left.¡±
¡°Did he mention what for?¡±
¡°No, he didn¡¯t say. He just bought the two thousand ducks from Wang Furen.¡±
¡°Do you know how much he paid for each one?¡±
¡°I really don¡¯t know that.¡±
Xiao Qing had limited information she could inquire about, and people wouldn¡¯t tell an outsider like her the price of the transaction.
Qin Niu decided to ask Wang Furen about it the next time he saw him.
He felt like selling the ducks now was a bit premature.
The scale of the insect disaster was sorge, it definitely wouldn¡¯t stop within a day or two.
With over seven months left until winter, if the locust gue was not dealt with by human effort, it would at least continue to ravage for over six months.
Moreover, their breeding speed would get faster and faster, and it would only get more terrifying over time.
Chapter 150 - 145 Steady Fishing Platform i
Chapter 145 Steady Fishing tform i
Trantor: 549690339 |
The scorching summer, abundant rainfall, and rising temperatures facilitated the rapid hatching of insect eggs.
Under cooler temperatures, it took over twenty days for eggs to hatch into nymphs. Now, with the high heat, the process could be shortened to twelve or thirteen days. This also meant their reproduction cycle was reduced by a whole seven or eight days.
It was bound to make the locusts gue even more ferocious.
It was known that for each day the breeding cycle was shortened, their numbers would increase exponentially.
The three thousand ducks Qin Niu held could definitely fetch more profit if soldter.
Currently, just by renting them out, he could three hundred Wen Money a day.
This was still considering the connection he had with the Tang Family.
Otherwise, the price would surely be higher.
¡°Master Qin, may I ask if it¡¯s convenient to disturb you now?¡±
¡°Is that you, Uncle Wang? Pleasee in!¡±
Qin Niu had just delivered the pork when Wang Furen arrived.
He hadn¡¯t mentioned that it was the meat of a magical beast!
Ten pounds of wild boar meat was only worth about thirty Wen, hardly a reason for Wang Furen to rush over to express thanks.
¡°Oh, Master Qin, your residence ising along nicely! Who would have thought, in just a few months¡¯ time, you would develop your family business to this extent. If Old Man Liu knew about this from beyond, he would be smiling in his grave.¡±
Wang Furen admired Qin Niu¡¯s new residence with envy.
This was a government official¡¯s house with three rooms and seven bays, not an ordinary civilian dwelling. It looked particrly majestic.
That imposing aura was also overwhelming.
Without grandeur, there can be no profound authority.
Although seven bays were only two more than five, the impression it left waspletely different.
¡°It¡¯s a pity that old Father Liu passed away early; otherwise, he could have enjoyed some peace andfort too.¡±
Qin Niu also felt endless regret.
If Old Man Liu were still alive, he would surely let him experience unprecedented glory.
¡°The dead cannot be brought back to life, but your filial piety is seen by everyone. Old Man Liu did not foster a son in vain.¡±
¡°Uncle Wang must have something important to discuss, so let¡¯s speak inside the house!¡±
Qin Niu invited Wang Furen into the house.
The house was now in possession, and it was indeed arge and imposing mansion with green tiles and grey bricks, epitomizing luxury.
Only, the furniture inside the house was still the old and crude pieces from before, shing with the new home.
Normally, high-grade furniture would serve as the perfect finishing touch, further elevating the house¡¯s ss and showcasing the owner¡¯s status and wealth.
Now it had be a significant w.
It made it obvious at a nce that the house¡¯s owner put up a facade.
Wang Furen nced over the simple furniture and said nothing further.
¡°Master Qin, Steward Yan Qi from the Yan Family came to see you today, but you weren¡¯t home. The Yan Family owns nearly seven hundred acres of farnd and this time encountered an unprecedented locust disaster. Although many methods have been tried, they were simply unable to hold off the invasion. The two Insect Masters they invited from the city could only protect a little over a hundred acres of farnd, and nearly six hundred acres are currently being ravaged by locusts.
The entire Yan Family is so distressed by this that they can neither eat nor sleep in peace.
I have already sold my two thousand ducks to the Yan Family. Steward Yan Qi would like to ask through me if your three thousand ducks could also be sold to the Yan Family?¡±
The Yan Family was thergestndlord, owning over a thousand acres of farnd.
They leased out four or five hundred acres, with seven hundred remaining for their use.
The current locust disaster had a significant impact on ordinary people, but because they cultivated lessnd, even aplete crop failure resulted in limited losses.
The Yan Family was different; like Xu Zhenchang, they had bet too much on theirnd.
If several hundred acres yielded no crops and were devoured by locusts, it would be a massive and crippling loss.
Great assets bring great expenses.
While the loss of a few hundred acres this year wouldn¡¯t bankrupt the Yan Family, it would certainly hurt their vitality and might even cause turmoil.
¡°I have no intention of selling at the moment,¡± Qin Niu replied curtly.
¡°Won¡¯t you ask what price the Yan Family is willing to pay?¡±
¡°If Uncle Wang is willing to speak, he will tell me even if I don¡¯t ask at all.¡±
¡°Haha, it seems Mr. Wang ispletely transparent to Master Qin! Although my ducks are still only half-grown, the Yan Family offered as high as twenty- five Wen per duck. I bought them for six Wen each, and these days, with plenty of locusts for them to feed on, there was no need to provide food. Now, after deducting the cost of transport, the profit is at least eighteen Wen per duck.
This is the easiest and most substantial profit I¡¯ve ever made in my life.¡±
No wonder Wang Furen had a beaming face.
He had made such arge sum of Silver Money.
At least a profit of more than thirty-six silver ingots, a sum others might struggle for ten or eleven years in the fields to earn.
¡°Had I known I could make so much, I should have bought more at the start.¡±
Wang Furen regretted not buying more.
¡± What about now, Master Qin? Are you willing to sell now?¡±
¡°Let¡¯s wait and see! I¡¯m not in a hurry to sell my batch of ducks just yet.¡±
Qin Niu had his ns.
Wang Furen¡¯s expression tensed slightly, ¡°Does Master Qin think the price of the ducks will rise further?¡±
¡°Hard to say. Uncle Wang has sold them and the Silver Money is secured, which is good enough, so there¡¯s no need for regrets now.¡±
¡°It does make sense. I¡¯ve made a good sum by selling those ducks, and I¡¯m content. Master Qin is farsighted, possessing a vision and insight not found in ordinary people. If there are more opportunities to make a fortune in the future, I hope you can lend a hand to Wang. I¡¯ve already reached the age of knowing my fate and I don¡¯t know how many years I have left. When the timees, all my possessions will go to Wan Yan. By the way, if Master Qin is free, pleasee to my house for tea, Wan Yan has many things she¡¯d like to ask you.¡±
Wang Furen was cunning and shrewd.
He deliberately mentioned making money and that everything would go to his daughter after a hundred years.
Then he took the initiative to invite Qin Niu to his home for tea, even a fool could understand what that meant.
However, now that Wang Furen was keen on pushing for the marriage between the two, and Qin Niu and Wang Wanyan themselves had feelings for each other, there was a good chance this could happen.
Now it mainly depended on the wishes of the two young people.
¡°Sure, I will visit when I have time.¡±
Qin Niu readily agreed.
¡°Then I won¡¯t bother Master Qin any longer. Thank you for bringing my family the wild boar meat. I have already instructed Wu Ma to cook it all for Yan¡¯er. She has been diligently cultivating recently, it truly tugs at the heartstrings to watch her.¡±
Wasn¡¯t all this a result of your own doing, Wang Furen?
Although Wang Wanyan had also been secretly cultivating before, she was never as diligent and hardworking as now.
Sometimes a little bit of hardship is good for people, putting them under pressure can force them to progress.
After sending off Wang Furen, Qin Niu turned his attention to Xiao Qing.
¡°Xiao Qing, have you not yet broken through to the Third Realm of mortals?¡±
¡°I¡¯m just a little short.¡±
¡°Is it because we have too few medicinal herbs in the backyard?¡±
Qin Niu had no ns to take her to cultivate under the banyan tree for the time being.
The two had already established a fairly deep master-servant rtionship, but he did not know enough about Xiao Qing yet. He would never casually reveal such vital resources rted to his life and property to anyone.
¡°It¡¯s not so much that the number of herbs is too small, but that their medicinal qi is too scant. I can deplete their medicinal qi in about an hour of cultivation. Only the Broadleaf Gentian you dug up has a bit richer medicinal qi.¡±
In the end, it all came down to the scarcity of high-grade medicinal herbs.
There were countless medicinal herbs in the mountains, but the high-grade ones with age on them had long been dug up by people.
Aside from human harvesting, the beasts, birds, and insects of the mountain knew their goods as well.
Many spiritual grasses and exotic fruits were guarded by powerful beasts.
Like the Boar King that Qin Niu had in, it led hundreds of wild boars patrolling the mountains daily. As soon as it found any herbs of considerable age, it would immediately root them out and eat them.
It was estimated that only deep within the mountains might there be some chance of finding high-grade medicinal herbs with age.
¡°I¡¯ll go into the mountains tomorrow to see if I can dig up a few more nts,¡± Qin Niu told her.
That night, the two of them prepared a few pounds of Boar King meat for consumption.
Xiao Qing ate more than two pounds, her appetite was quite substantial.
Qin Niu was even more exaggerated, his digestive capacity had been strengthened, allowing him to eat five pounds of meat in one go.
After the master and servant had finished eating, it wasn¡¯t long before they felt something unusual.
¡°Master, this Boar King meat is powerful. I feel a warm current rising in my belly, flowing through my entire body.¡±
¡°Of course, this is the meat of a demon boar,¡± Qin Niu replied with a smile.
Compared to the violent demonic energy contained in the boar¡¯s blood, the energy in the Boar King¡¯s meat was milder and within the tolerance range of the human body.
Its nourishing effect on the body was gradual and silent, strengthening the consumer¡¯s body without them noticing.
In terms of effects, even if it¡¯s slightly less than a Tempering Elixir, it wouldn¡¯t be by much.
Such a treasure was not something easily encountered.
The Boar King weighed over eight hundred pounds, yielding roughly six hundred pounds of meat. This was enough for the master and servant to enjoy for quite some time.
In the blink of an eye, two days had passed.
Three high-grade medicinal herbs had been added to his backyard, and Xiao Qing¡¯s cultivation had sessfully broken through to the Third Realm.
Qin Niu¡¯s new residence was finallypleted thanks to the efforts of the Tang Fang brothers and numerous workers.
ording to tradition, thepletion of a new home required a celebration with friends and neighbors.
Qin Niu, who preferred to keep a low profile and make a fortune quietly, had no intention of doing so.
Over the past two days, he had been cultivating Golden Ring Bumblebees.
Tomorrow, he nned to enter the city and deliver a Green Giant Bumblebee using the address provided by that old manst time. After selling it for silver money, he intended to purchase a batch of furniture.
The house at least had to look presentable.
Otherwise, he would be looked down upon, and his local prestige would suffer.
The Boar King¡¯s skin had been removed three or four days ago, so he nned to take it into the city and have two suits of leather armor made.
One for himself and one for Xiao Qing.
Such arge piece of pigskin was more than enough to make a suit of leather armor for each of them.
Qin Niu entered his bedroom and retrieved the Treasured Sword from the knife-sanctifying pool.
ng, ng!
It actually emitted a series of clear ringing sounds.
On the de, there were faint streaks of dark green sparks shing.
Chapter 151 - 146 Ink Blade, Eldest Young Master of the Yan Family Arrives to Congratulate
Chapter 146 Ink de, Eldest Young Master of the Yan Family Arrives to Congratte
Trantor: 549690339
Seeing this scene, his heart surged with great joy.
If he hadn¡¯t guessed wrong, the Treasured Sword had already begun its initial nurturing.
It chose quite a day to do so, coinciding exactly with thepletion of Qin Niu¡¯s new residence.
Had it gained sentience and deliberately chosen this day to present Qin Niu with a congrattory gift?
Holding the Treasured Sword in hand, there was a new and different kind of feelingpared to before.
In the past, when he held it, it felt extremelyfortable and handy, as if it had been tailor-made for him. Now, holding it felt like holding a ¡®living¡¯ creature. It seemed as if it had life and hade alive.
He tried gripping it tightly and raising it.
Shick!
Brilliant, cohesive de Qi burst forth from the de. It seemed to sense its master¡¯s intentions, resonating with his mind.
¡°Have you evolved sentience?¡±
Qin Niu looked at the Treasured Sword and asked.
Zing zing~!
It trembled, issuing its sword hum once more.
¡°That¡¯s wonderful. Since you¡¯ve gained sentience, I¡¯ll grant you a name. When I drew you just now, you sparked with dark green electric light, so I¡¯ll name you Ink de. The name isn¡¯t overbearing, but it suits you well. With sharpness concealed and an unremarkable exterior, you actually possess the might to annihte formidable foes. With time, I believe you¡¯ll be powerful enough to split the heavens and cleave the earth.¡±
Qin Niu gently caressed the de, and his touch unexpectedly felt a faint trace of deste death.
Cold, dark, and full of demonic nature.
Upon closer inspection, one could see that a dark green rune within the de was already formed. It seemed alive, constantly shifting.
¡°They say that to im ownership of a Treasured Sword after nurturing, one must drip fresh blood on it. Let¡¯s give it a try.¡±
Qin Niu tried cutting his fingertip with the Treasured Sword and dripped fresh blood onto the de.
As the blood gradually got absorbed by the de, he could clearly see strands of blood flowing into that dark green rune.
His connection with the Treasured Sword grew increasingly intimate.
He could even sense some of Ink de¡¯s thoughts.
It wanted to drink Banyan Tree Blood, a lot of it.
That was the idea it conveyed to its master.
¡°There¡¯s only so much Banyan Tree Blood we can take each day, with your appetite, I¡¯m afraid we simply couldn¡¯t keep up!¡±
Qin Niu said helplessly.
The cultivation of the Treasured Sword filled him with joy.
But it was like a greedy child, constantly needing to consume Banyan Tree Blood, which was quite troublesome.
The power of that Ancient Banyan Tree was unfathomably deep.
Qin Niu, taking just a bit of its blood each day, or sitting underneath it to absorb its medicinal essence for cultivation, might still be eptable to the tree.
But if he truly threatened its safety, he believed it would definitely retaliate.
Even though Qin Niu was now an expert of the Acquired Realm¡¯s first level, he probably wouldn¡¯t have any chance of fighting back against the Ancient Banyan Tree.
Because through energyparison, the Ancient Banyan Tree was like a vast ocean, while the strength he had cultivated was merely a drop or two of water.
There was no basis forparison between the two.
Thus, he dared not recklessly take actions that might enrage the Ancient Banyan Tree.
The tree was simply ignoring him for now.
If he truly angered the Ancient Banyan Tree and forced it to eradicate him like a pest, that would truly be courting death.
He had conducted an experiment once.
He tied a chicken under the Ancient Banyan Tree, and when he went back the next day, the cloth band used to bind the chicken was still there, but not a trace of the chicken could be seen.
It was as if it had never existed.
This made him shiver with dread.
If he angered the Ancient Banyan Tree, his death might be even more miserable than that of the chicken.
¡°I need to take Xiao Qing with me to the city today, so it¡¯s perfect for self-protection.¡±
Qin Niu tucked the Treasured Sword into his bosom.
He secretly spected that the Treasured Sword might not only have evolved a spirit, with its de Qi bing more condensed. It was very likely it already possessed special abilities.
To know what special abilities it had, one had to try it out in battle.
Now that he had this Treasured Sword, even if he encountered a member of the City Defense Army d in Hundred-Tempering ck Armor, he could kill them with one chop. It was even possible to cleave both armor and man in two.
He had nowprehended two martial skills, Critical Chop, which possessed incredible explosive power in one-on-onebat.
He frequently unleashed the Explosive sh Effect, enough to strike terror into the hearts of his enemies just by the rumor of it.
Sweeping Strike, this was a Group Killing Martial Skill.
Currently, he had only just grasped the skill, but with time and practice, it wouldn¡¯t be impossible to take on a hundred foes alone.
With one Sweeping Strike, he could easily harvest multiple lives.
For martial skills, he believed it was not about quantity, but about mastery.
Now that he had both a dueling skill and a groupbat skill, what remained was diligent practice to increase their proficiency.
In time, he could be unmatched, the envy of all.
¡°Master, someone outside has brought a congrattory gift for you!¡±
Xiao Qing reported from outside the room.
¡°Oh, let¡¯s have a look!¡±
Qin Niu was quite surprised.
As his status rose, the number of peopleing to curry favor with gifts had increased.
Stepping outside, he saw an unfamiliar middle-aged man, square-headed and big-eared, with fair skin and rather handsome features. The man was dressed in brocade, clearly no ordinary individual.
By his side, Steward Yan Qi stood respectfully.
Behind them were more than a dozen servants carrying furniture.
¡°I didn¡¯t know we had distinguished guests. Please forgive me for not weing you from afar,¡± Qin Niu said as he quickly stepped forward and sped his hands in a formal greeting.
The person who could make Steward Yan Qi stand by his side like this must be a high-ranking member of the Yan Family.
The Yan Family taking the initiative to send a congrattory gift was slightly beyond Qin Niu¡¯s expectations.
¡°Master Qin, this is the Young Master of our Yan Family,¡± Steward Yan Qi introduced to Qin Niu.
¡°So it is Young Master Yan! Pleasee inside and have a seat!¡±
Qin Niu was quietly astounded. The Yan Family surely didn¡¯t skimp.
They had sent the Young Master himself to personally deliver the gift, a grand gesture indeed!
Amon Insect Master, while greatly valued, was certainly not feared by a local heavyweight like the Yan Family.
When he first became an Insect Master, the Yan Family had made no overtures.
This was because the Family needed to maintain its dignity and pride.
Now, using thepletion of his new residence as an asion, with the Young Master personally delivering a generous gift, that was quite a different matter.
It preserved the dignity of the Yan Family while giving great face to Qin Niu.
The actions of a major family were indeed clever.
¡°I heard about thepletion of Master Qin¡¯s new residence, and my father specifically ordered me to bring a set of furniture as a gift to Master Qin. Please do not look down upon it. While the items are not particrly exceptional, they are made from redwood that is over a hundred years old and crafted by artisans from the City Jade Workshop, including four beds and a full set of living room furniture. We hope it can add splendor to the Qin Residence and wish Master Qin great luck and prosperity, both personally and financially,¡± the Young Master of the Yan Family said with refined and affable manners.
He bore no airs typical of the Young Master of Yan Family.
It was said that the Yan Family was preparing him to take over the position of head from Yan Ruohai, but with many contenders within the Family, the struggle for power was fierce.
So the matter had yet to be decided.
Any carelessness might provoke internal conflict.
It was like when a nation crowns a new emperor, and other princes dissent, potentially leading to rebellion.
This was something Yan Ruohai would never wish to see.
¡°Receiving such a generous gift from the Yan Family, I am honored and overwhelmed. My thanks to Young Master Yan, and please convey my gratitude to your father as well. I shall pay a visit another day to thank him in person,¡± Qin Niu said.
He had long admired the great renown of Yan Ruohai.
This was a figure worthy of respect.
Chapter 152 - 147: Many Congratulate - Part 1
Chapter 147: Many Congratte ¨C Part 1
Trantor: 549690339
Before, he was just a nobody, and even if he wanted to see Yan Ruohai, he wouldn¡¯t have had the chance.
Moreover, he wasn¡¯t the type to fawn over the rich and powerful, wagging his tail for pity.
Now that the Yan Family had taken the initiative to extend an olive branch by sending a gift, it would be somewhat rude for him not to pay a visit in return. It would appear conceited and make others think he was arrogant and difficult to deal with.
It was like when an elder visited one¡¯s home, and as their junior, sitting idly by would be quite impolite.
After weing Yan Family¡¯s eldest son and others into the house and seating them ording to rank, he served them tea.
Xiao Qing, though young, was very sensible and served tea to the guests.
The cups were very clean, but when Yan Family¡¯s eldest son picked up his cup to drink, his brows furrowed slightly.
The tea cup was old and the quality was poor.
It couldn¡¯t even be described as smooth-zed, as even ordinary poor people used unzed pottery cups like these.
These were rtively cheap.
For the poor, it was already good enough to have a cup to use.
Even poorer families would just use adle or bamboo tube to scoop water to drink.
Qin Niu had juste into wealth recently and stillcked the time to umte belongings; he was far fromparing to a prominent family.
It was already quite an achievement to have built this residence.
As for furniture, tea cups, and the like, he could only gradually acquire and rece them with higher-end items.
In truth, he had little attachment to materialforts.
Of course, if he could live a better life, he would be willing.
No one wished for a worse life.
Yan Family¡¯s eldest son probably drank the tea while holding his nose. Whether it was the cup or the tea, both were far from what he enjoyed on a regr basis.
Not to drink would be impolite.
It would make Qin Niu feel regarded with disdain.
Sipping lightly, Yan Family¡¯s eldest son set the tea cup back on the table.
He chatted with Qin Niu about household matters for a while.
Then he got to the point.
Master Qin Niu, recently, locusts have been causing havoc and ravaging thend. I¡¯ve heard you have quite the knack for exterminating locusts. I wonder if you have the time to help our Yan Familybat this locust gue? The matter of payment is negotiable.¡±
Yan Family¡¯s eldest son seemed to know Qin Niu was not easily persuaded and did not dare to name a price lightly.
In the face of disaster, we humans need to unite to fight against the insect gue. I empathize with the losses your Yan Family is currently suffering. I am more than willing to help protect your family¡¯s crops from being harmed. However, my method of pest control is quite unique and my abilities are limited. I need to stop the locusts from migrating in first, then eliminate them in order to achieve a good extermination result.
Otherwise, if I get rid of them today and a new swarmes tomorrow, there will be no end to it.¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s fee was not low, seventy copper coins per mu.
Exterminating pests once a day, unless the Yan Family¡¯s fields were growing crops that bore gold, they simply couldn¡¯t afford such heavy expenses.
What Master Qin says is very true. My Yan Family has already invited two Insect Masters from the city to help fend off the insect disaster. They have found ways to block the locusts¡¯ migratory paths. While it may notpletely stop new locusts froming in, at least ny percent are being kept out. Right now, what¡¯s most critical for my Yan Family is the tea ntations, mulberry fields, cotton and sesame fields, and over four hundred mu of sorghum and wheat that are approaching the critical time for harvest.¡±
As far as I know, Master Qin is very thorough in eliminating pests.
You can remove the pests, their eggs, and theirrvae all in one go.
If Master Qin has the time, I would like to ask you to help our Yan Family clear the locusts from our fields. With this century¡¯s rare locust disaster upon us, we can only aim to save as much as we can.¡±
The Yan Family had vast fields and nted a great variety of crops.
Apart from grain, they also nted many economic crops.
Tea leaves need no mention; the profits are astonishingly high.
Mulberry leaves are mainly used for silkworm breeding.
The brocades and silks worn by the powerful are all woven from silk.
Lustrous silk, gauze, and damask are all high-end fabrics that are quite expensive.
Qin Niu¡¯s Insect Master Robe was made of damask, but it was one of the poorer kinds within that category. The truly top-grade materials were enjoyed by the high ranks of the ck Tiger Gang and even higher-ss nobles.
I need to go into town to take care of some business today. I wille over to help with pest control at your residence tomorrow. Is that okay?¡±
Haha, that¡¯s perfectly fine. I was worried when I came here that Master Qin would be too busy to agree! Now that¡¯s great, having persuaded Master Qin, I can go back and report to my father. Since Master Qin needs to go into the city, I won¡¯t impose any further and will take my leave. Tomorrow, I¡¯ll have Steward Qie to pick you up.¡±
Having achieved his objective, Yan Family¡¯s eldest son stood up to say goodbye.
Qin Niu stood to see him off.
When sending off a guest, one usually only went as far as the living room door, but in the case of Yan Family¡¯s eldest son, Qin Niu escorted him all the way outside the gate.
With his social status, he certainly deserved such treatment.
No sooner had he sent Yan Family¡¯s eldest son away than Qin Niu, looking at the many high-end pieces of furniture that the Yan Family had sent, was very clear that epting these gifts meant he now had a personal rtionship with the Yan Family.
These many pieces of hardwood furniture were worth at least sixty or seventy taels of Silver Money, which was almost equal to the value of his whole house.
The Yan Family really did things in a grand way.
If they merely wanted to hire Qin Niu for pest control, there would have been no need to send such a generous gift.
The Yan Family, with their deep schemes and foresight as the local hegemon, had a solid foundation with their family business prospering for over a hundred years. Such a grand gift must have a profound significance.
Qin Niu could not fathom their intentions at the moment.
No matter, he would find out in due course.
Master Qin, congrattions!
Wang Furen also arrived with people to deliver gifts.
Looking at the hardwood furniture that the Yan Family had given, Wang Furen was not only envious but also shocked.
This Qin Niu was far more formidable than he had imagined!
Even though Xu Zhenchang had a very close rtionship with the Yan Family, when Xu Zhenchang¡¯s new house waspleted, the Yan Family had merely sent a junior steward to convey their congrattions. The gift they presented was a hardwood bed.
It was said that Xu Zhenchang treasured it like a precious pearl, cing it as the bed of honor in the master bedroom.
And he bragged about it to everyone.
Now, looking at the furniture sent to Qin Niu, not only was it made of hardwood, but it also used solid wood throughout.
Redwood is extremely difficult to mature.
The materials used are whole woods, implying that each piece of redwood is at least a hundred years old.
Then there¡¯s the craftsmanship, even though the outside is wrapped in palm bark, the sturdy and clever mortise and tenon technique, as well as the exquisite carvings, can¡¯t be concealed. With Wang Furen¡¯s experience, he could tell at a nce that these were of a much higher quality than those marriage beds made by Xu Zhenchang.
The Yan Family really went all out this time.
Their willingness to spend so much proves Qin Niu¡¯s worth.
Otherwise, the Yan Family would never have gone through so much trouble.
The crafting of these pieces of furniture couldn¡¯t have been done in a day or two; they had to be preordered in advance.
This indicates that the Yan Family might have begun ordering these redwood pieces of furniture when Qin Niu was justying the foundation of his house.
To win over Qin Niu, the Yan Family was truly painstaking in their efforts!
This is a rosewood folding screen that I had made, along with several brocade quilts. It¡¯s a humble gift, not much of a token, but I hope Master Qin will ept them with a smile!¡±
Wang Furen was quite generous as well.
He couldn¡¯t present gifts like the Yan Family, whose set furniture was worth sixty to seventy taels of Silver Money.
Screens are indispensable and elegant items in a living room.
They involve the privacy of the host and also have implications in geomancy.
The modern foyer is actually an extension of the screen.
Chairs, beds, tables, and other pieces of furniture are expected to be sturdy and durable; heavy and appealing redwood is the preferred material.
But screens often need to be moved around.
What¡¯s sought after is not heaviness, but rather ingenuity, elegance, and beauty.
Many encounters between youngdies and gentlemen are particrly interesting, as thedies don¡¯te out to meet the men directly. Instead, they hide behind screens to sneak peeks at the men.
This also fits in with the modest beauty of women.
Wang Uncle, you¡¯re too generous! Pleasee inside for some tea!
Qin Niu also epted the congrattory gifts.
These items were custom-made with a lot of thought, and it would be inappropriate to refuse.
Social interactions are about give and take.
In future celebrations at the Yan Family or Wang Furen¡¯s, Qin Niu would naturally offer substantial gifts in return.
Wang Brother, my dear elder brother, you are always one step ahead of me! Last time when buying ducks, I regretted not buying with you and missed out on a great opportunity to make money. Your eye for opportunities impresses me, as well as Master Qin.¡±
Xu Zhenchang also arrived with his entourage, carrying gifts.
Master Qin, congrattions on thepletion of your new residence, may you be blessed with endless prosperity. These are a few sets of tableware I had fired, as well as two sets of tea sets, please don¡¯t look down upon them, Master Qin!¡±
Giving gifts is a technical matter.
Otherwise, you might spend money and still fail to win the homeowner¡¯s gratitude.
Xu Zhenchang and Wang Furen, these people, each one a sly fox, knew exactly what Qin Niu needed most.
Because they too came up from poor folks, one step at a time.
Fine quilts, good tableware, and tea sets are precisely what Qin Niucks.
As for those high-end redwood pieces of furniture, families of their modest wealth truly couldn¡¯t afford to give those as gifts.
Thank you, thank you! Mayor, you shouldn¡¯t have spent so much! Pleasee in for some tea!¡±
Qin Niu ushered the two men inside.
Xu Zhenchang looked at the redwood furniture sent by the Yan Family and felt a pang of sourness in his heart.
Simply having good rtions with the Yan Family wasn¡¯t enough, one also needed real strength.
Otherwise, knowing people wouldn¡¯t matter.
Look at Master Qin, who normally didn¡¯t interact much with the Yan Family, yet the magnitude of the Yan Family¡¯s congrattory gifts was truly shocking.
While he was entertaining the two guests, more people came with congrattory gifts.
Tang Caixian and her brother Tang Bin came together.
She was dressed particrly brightly and charmingly today.
Master Qin, congrattions on your joyous housewarming. These are a few pots of flowers and nts that my sister has carefully tended, and also two sets of calligraphy and paintings, please ept them with kindness!¡±
Thank you! Cai Xian, you¡¯ve gone to so much trouble!
After thanking Tang Bin, Qin Niu then turned to Tang Caixian with a smile to express his gratitude.
I was always worried you wouldn¡¯t like them. I didn¡¯t know what to pick!
Tang Caixian lightly brushed the hair from her forehead, revealing a clean and radiant forehead, as she responded.
As long as it¡¯s your choice, I¡¯ll like it!
Qin Niu said and then felt that he might have been a bit too forward.
To his surprise, Tang Caixian responded with a pleased and bashful smile.
Hehe, you always know how to say ttering things! This ¡®Seeking the Way Painting,¡¯ I especially requested a master in the city to paint. This ¡®Bright Hall of Eternal Spring Painting,¡¯ signifies the hope that your future will be as splendid and bright as springtime, with prospects as colorful as a road of blooming flowers.¡±
The two paintings she chose were the result of a lot of thought and effort.
The ¡®Seeking the Way Painting¡¯ depicts an elder sitting under a pine tree on a cliff, apanied by a waterfall, with the hidden presence of cranes dancing in the valley, full of an immortal-like atmosphere.
You have such a way with words! An educated girl speaks differently, just a few sentences and you¡¯ve charmed someone senseless!¡± Qin Niu¡¯s remark made both siblingsugh. ¡°Pleasee in and have some tea.¡±
Just as the Tang siblings entered, more guests arrived outside.
It was the Tang Fang brothers.
Beyond that, a horse-drawn carriage was slowly approaching.
After stopping outside the door, a man in histe twenties, quite young, descended from the carriage. Dressed in official attire, his chest sported a red patch, his head was adorned with a ck hat, and he wore ck court shoes.
This was a real official, at least much senior to any Official Liu or Wang Yue whom Qin Niu had encountered.
Chapter 153 - 148 Official Tang Yan i
Chapter 148 Official Tang Yan i
Trantor: 549690339 |
Officials were divided into three types.
One type was the workers who handled various tasks for the government offices; these were known as menial workers and belonged to the lowest stratum. They could also be called helpers.
Some officials with slightly more power oversaw more matters and might employ twenty or thirty helpers and menial workers. These people did not receive a sry and relied on assisting with government affairs to scrape together some extra benefits.
A popr ancient saying was, ¡°When the government office opens its doors,e in if you have rice but not if you have no money.¡¯
1
Ordinary people, without strong backgrounds, were essentially left to be exploited.
Those officials all had sries.
The sries of the officials were partly disbursed by the higher authorities in the form of silver money and partly borne by the branches of the government offices themselves.
For instance, under normal circumstances, a Historian was only allotted four official positions.
These four officials were on the payroll, with wages provided by the government office, and the rest had to be taken care of by the Historian himself.
In reality, to conduct work normally, a Historian would find four subordinates insufficient; not to mention ten might still not be enough.
In those days, without advanced technology, there were only two types of transportation: either ride horses or walk.
Most of the time, these officials and menial workers had to walk to fulfill their duties.
Then, all sorts of data required manualption, necessitating face-to-facemunication with themon folk, you can imagine how low the efficiency was.
It had be amon phenomenon for officials to support arge number of subordinates, who in turn supported an evenrger number of helpers.
The second type were clerks, divided into those with positions on the official staff and those without. They were of higher status than the errand runners.
The number of clerks under an official would not be particrlyrge.
For example, if the higher-ups allotted four positions and they recruited seven or eight additional people, the total would only be around twelve at most.
Therefore, the status of a clerk wasn¡¯t low, as they were considered to have one foot in the officialdom.
The third type were the officials, ranging from Grade Nine to Grade One high- rank officers.
Even the lowest rank official at Grade Nine, dismissed as a nonentity on the official scene, was counted as a person of significance locally.
The young man who alighted from the carriage wore an official robe with an empty red patch on the chest area, devoid of any design.
This had a particr significance.
It was referred to as waitlisted.
This meant he had entered the waitlist of formal officials, and when the time came for a promotion or a formal appointment, the patch on his chest would be adorned with a corresponding pattern.
¡°Master Qin, we brothers don¡¯t have any valuable gifts, so please don¡¯t disdain these tworge jars,¡±
The money earned by the Tang brothers was hard-earned.
They were somewhat less affluentpared to Wang Furen and Xu Zhenchang.
The tworge water jars they carried were high-temperature fired and ze-colored. They certainly weren¡¯t cheap in the market, worth at least three or four silver coins.
For the Tang brothers, this was already a most generous gift.
The extent of their rtionship with Qin Niu was the construction of this house.
They had only made some wage earnings from it.
With regards to purchasing materials, they had put in great effort and diligently ensured the quality, without making a single copper coin in profit.
Presumably, they noticed that the water jar Qin Niu had been using to raise his turtles was broken and thus decided to gift him two superior quality water jars.
¡°Thank you, thank you! It was hard work for you brothers to build my house, and now you¡¯ve brought me such a heavy gift, really, how can I ept this with good grace!¡±
After Qin Niu finished speaking, he invited the brothers inside for tea.
However, they did not rush in.
¡°This is our youngest brother, Tang Yan, who hurried back home especially to congratte Master Qin on thepletion of his residence,¡±
Tang Fang introduced his brother¡¯s identity.
It was clear that the three brothers were very united.
In this world, it is only through unity that one can be stronger and live better.
¡°I have long admired the great reputation of Master Qin Niu; hearing it a hundred times is not as good as seeing it once, and finally today, I have met the true genius!¡±
Tang Yan had a way with words.
Officials generally possess excellent eloquence and high emotional intelligence.
Otherwise, they would hardly be able to climb to high positions.
¡°Master Tang, too much praise! Your distinguished visit truly honors and overwhelms me, and it brings brilliance to my humble abode. Please,e inside and have a seat!¡±
Qin Niu did not know Tang Yan¡¯s true identity.
He felt it should be at the Historian¡¯s level.
However, the patch on his chest was still empty, which puzzled him further.
The ck Tiger Gang¡¯s officials are divided into two types: Civil Officials and Military Officials.
Civil Officials manage affairs, while Military Officialsmand troops, responsible for patrolling and defense.
Tang Yan appeared to belong to the Civil Officials.
It was not that Civil Officials were necessarily weak.
Some Civil Officials¡¯ cultivation was extremely high, with formidable strength.
No matter Civil or Military Officials, they all could gain ess to the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s advanced cultivation resources.
They could even rise to the upper echelons of the ck Tiger Gang.
¡°I have heard that Master Qin is fond of controlling insects, so I have specially selected some Insect Control Books as a gift. Many of them are ancient texts that are difficult to find on the market. I hope they can help Master Qin reach a new height, and promote to a Middle-rank Insect Master, or even a high-rank Insect Master sooner rather thanter.¡±
Different people give different gifts.
The congrattory gift from Tang Yan was rather unconventional.
It was actually a box of Insect Control Books.
¡°Thank you, I really couldn¡¯t be more grateful! With these Insect Control Books from Master Tang, I¡¯d be loath not to put in the effort!¡±
¡°Haha, the sea of study is endless and arduous as a boat, the mountain of books has a path made diligent as a way indeed! Master Qin is one of the rare Insect Masters in Jade Stream Town, with heavy responsibilities resting on your shoulders. If you can rise, the local people will all benefit from it. Take the current pestilence, for instance, I¡¯ve heard praise from our hometown elders about you! They say you¡¯ve already sessfully helped Shuangfeng Vige stop the locust disaster and now you¡¯ve helped stabilize the situation in Daoyuan Vige, which is situated in our area. This is an act of great merit for the state and a monumental endeavor concerned with people¡¯s well-being.¡±
Tang Yan was extraordinarily skilled in delivering such formalities.
An official¡¯s heart lies with the people.
His words never strayed from the welfare and governance of the state.
He invited these people in to sit down and have tea.
One after another, more people came to deliver congrattory gifts.
They were mostly vigers from the same vige.
Compared to the wealthy and the nobles, the ordinary vigers¡¯ gifts were much humbler.
Even Qin Niu¡¯s next-door neighbor, Sister Mo, whom he had dealt with before, brought over a basket of eggs.
In this period of locust gues, the chickens and ducks ate their fill daily, enjoying an excellent diet.
Their eggs, both chicken and duck, wereid frequently.
People offered congrattory gifts voluntarily, and Qin Niu naturally responded with polite courtesies.
It is better to reconcile with an adversary than to persist in conflict.
The dispute with Sister Mo¡¯ s family was merely over them stealthily encroaching on some of his homesteadnd. Now that he had reimed thend and vented his anger, Qin Niu had no desire to hold a grudge against such a petty individual.
Nevertheless, there were those who did not bring Qin Niu any gifts.
For instance, Wang Haikun and Xie Laizi.
Xie Laizi was now living worse than a dog, moving around crawling all day, naturally without the means to give Qin Niu a gift.
As for Wang Haikun, he probably harbored hatred for Qin Niu in his heart.
It was only because his brother pressed him down and he was less capable than Qin Niu that he swallowed the grudge of his severed arm.
That is how it is with people; if you offend someone untouchable, you either endure it or die.
If Wang Yue hadn¡¯t been sensible, Wang Haikun would probably be dead by now.
After seeing all the guests off, Qin Niu locked the main gate and hurried into the city with Xiao Qing.
They had already been dyed quite a bit, and whether they could return overnight was uncertain.
Chapter 154 - 149 Unveiling the Notice 1
Chapter 149 Unveiling the Notice 1
Trantor: 549690339 I
Fortunately, both master and servant had a certain level of cultivation, which allowed them to travel much faster than the average person.
Especially Qin Niu, who had already reached the firstyer of the Acquired Realm, trod as lightly as if he were flying. If he were to run at full speed, he reckoned he wouldn¡¯t be much slower than an ordinary horse.
This time entering the city, he was only nning on selling one insect, namely the Green Demon giant bee he had cultivated.
Given his current limited strength, revealing too many special insects at once could easily draw unwanted attention.
He had learned multiple ways to make money from Xiao Qingst time.
For instance, helping others heal their sickly herbs.
If the opportunity arose, Qin Niu wouldn¡¯t mind taking on a job to earn some extra money.
With that Ancient Banyan Tree, he could enjoy a cultivation speed more than twenty times faster than normal and had virtually no need for elixirs at present. As for weapons, the Treasured Sword had been preliminarily nurtured by him and was sufficient to handle most dangers.
In terms of armor, the King Pig Leather he brought with him would be made into two sets of armor which would be adequate for his use.
At least, with his current strength, hiding in a ce like Shuangfeng Vige, nestled in the mountains, one set of King Pig Leather Armor waspletely sufficient.
The Yan Family was thergest in Jade Stream Town.
For now, his rtionship with the Yan Family was quite good. As long as he continued to keep a low profile, they probably wouldn¡¯t make a move against him.
About having offended the brothers Wang Yue and Wang Haikun, he had no fear whatsoever.
With his current level of cultivation, he could crush Wang Yue with one hand.
So, he had almost no demands concerning cultivation resources for now.
The only thing he wanted to buy for the time being was books rted to cultivation. During his conversation with Xiao Qing, he had clearly felt that his knowledge of cultivation was shallow, almost equivalent to that of an unlearned man.
That certainly wouldn¡¯t do.
He must read more books and enrich himself.
He also nned to make some purchases in the aspects of insect control, beast taming, and nting.
Tang Yan had given him a box of Insect Control Books, so he could save money in that area.
The rest would be books on beast taming and nting.
If there were suitable ones, he would buy some to take back.
For beast taming, he only nned to get some books on basic knowledge. Such books weren¡¯t expensive.
If he found any specific books on taming turtles and water buffalos that were reasonably priced, he might consider acquiring them as well.
Books on specific types of beast taming were usually expensive, but they were filled with useful practical knowledge.
Like the book on Green Demon beekeeping he had bought which contained a lot of valuable insights.
When the master and servant were about to arrive at ck Tiger City, Xiao Qing frequently nced in one direction. Therey her grandfather¡¯s grave.
However, seeing Qin Niu not slowing down, she kept silent and followed behind him.
All along the way, locusts could be seen in swarms.
They were crazily gnawing at anything that could fill their bellies.
The market outside ck Tiger City was noticeably quieter than usual.
Qin Niu noticed that many of the vegetables sold by the farmers bore wormholes.
¡°Auntie, how much for this cabbage?¡±
¡°Wen Money for two catties.¡±
¡°To sell it so expensively after it¡¯s been bitten by insects?¡±
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but internallyment on the price the farmer had quoted.
It had increased at least five-fold.
In the past, Wen Money could get you ten catties.
The least valuable were cabbages and radishes because they had high yields, short growth periods, and required minimal nting techniques¡ªalmost every household could grow them.
¡°Young man, this one is rtively good! Look at what the others¡¯ cabbages look like after being nibbled! If you like eating it, best to buy some more now to take back home because in a few days, the price will rise even further. Those damn locusts are swarming everywhere, unending like a dark cloud, and we just can¡¯t drive them away. We can¡¯t even nt crops anymore. If it keeps on like this, let alone Wen Money for two catties, even a tael of silver won¡¯t buy you any.¡±
The auntie cursed the despicable locusts.
¡°If that¡¯s really the case, we¡¯re in for a worry. I can live without cabbage but not without grains. In two or three days we¡¯d starve. I¡¯ll look elsewhere, your price is too expensive.¡±
Qin Niu continued walking with Xiao Qing.
On both sides of the official road, various peddlers were hawking their wares. There were vendors selling firewood, vegetables, fish¡ªalmost anything one could think of.
¡°Fishings, fine mesh fishings! Half a meter for Wen Money, just Wen Money for half a meter¡ª a magic tool against locusts, a helpful aid to protect your crops,e and buy them!¡±
A middle-aged man with tanned skin was energetically selling woven fishings.
Half a meter for Wen Money was practically daylight robbery.
But indeed, such a thing could effectively fend off locusts, so it was no surprise to see their prices skyrocket.
¡°Medicinal wine, distilled from a secret family recipe¡ªparticrly effective against locusts. Just a sprinkle can ward off locusts for over twelve hours. Selling for just three Wen Money per catty, and if it doesn¡¯t work, you don¡¯t have to pay.¡±
Well, that¡¯s even more expensive.
At three Wen Money per catty for insect-repellent medicinal wine, ordinary families probably couldn¡¯t afford it.
Landlords would do their calctions carefully and were unlikely to purchase it in bulk.
At most, they¡¯d buy some to protect their important crops, flowers, and herbs.
The problem was, many valuable nts and herbs were particrly delicate. If sprayed with insect-repellent medicinal wine, the insects might be deterred, but the nts would likely wither swiftly.
As they walked, Qin Niu quietly observed that the prices of goods had generally increased.
Especially vegetables, fishings, insect-repellent medicinal wine, and ils, for which the prices had risen sharply.
The higher-ups of the ck Tiger Gang must be under tremendous pressure now.
If the locust gue can¡¯t be stopped and themon people are ruined, the ck Tiger Gang, who would have lost their foundation, would be doomed as well.
People are like water, and officials are like boats.
Without the water, the ck Tiger Gang would be like having the firewood pulled out from under their cauldron, and it wouldn¡¯t take long for them to fall apart.
Where did the sries for officials and soldierse from?
They all came from the tributes of the people under the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s control.
Without the people, where would they levy taxes?
The Gang Leader of the ck Tiger Gang would probably have to farm thend himself to have something to eat.
Qin Niu wasn¡¯t in a hurry to enter the city.
This timeing to ck Tiger City, whether it was status or strength, both were significantly different from before. He had also be much moreposed and calm.
The change in a person¡¯s mindset is truly wondrous.
The city was still the same, and the people were the same, but he no longer felt the nervousness and timidity he had the first time he entered the city.
A cultivation at the first level of the Acquired Realm was not considered very high, but it was enough for him to face the mighty ck Armored Soldiers with a calm and undisturbed heart.
Because, should a fight truly break out, one-on-one, he now possessed the strength to ughter ordinary ck Armored Soldiers.
The Hundred-Tempering ck Armor on the bodies of the ck Armored Soldiers was as vulnerable as paper in front of his Ink de.
He looked toward the thick city walls behind the ck Armored Army, where many notices were posted.
Those with a red official seal belonged to official announcements.
They were mostly reward notices for capturing wanted criminals.
Within the territory of the ck Tiger Gang, there was a poption of over a million, and incidents of murder or lethal brawls urred from time to time.
There were also some formidable thieves who, for silver money, might steal from money exchanges or official treasury silver.
These people, if not caught on the spot, could potentially flee far and wide, or go into hiding in the countryside and such ces.
Capturing them was no easy task.
Hence, the number of official notices on the city walls had increased over time.
Besides the government notices, there were also private notices posted.
They were densely packed and very numerous.
Those who had the status to post their private notices in the same area as the official announcements were either wealthy or noble.
Otherwise, tearing your notice was the least of your worries; you could be directly used of the crime of lese-majeste, arrested, and imprisoned. That was also a possibility.
¡°Xiao Qing, see if there is any notice offering a reward for reviving a precious herb!¡±
Qin Niu called out to Xiao Qing to help him search.
Unexpectedly, there really was one.
After some effort, he found one.
¡°I have a herb that is over a hundred years old which recently contracted a mysterious illness, causing its leaves to wilt and ck spots to appear on its stem. Having tried numerous methods to no avail, I am seeking a folk expert to save my precious herb. If it can be revived, a hefty reward of at least ten gold will be given. Address: 17 Longwang Alley, Western part of the city, respectfully posted by Wang Sheng.¡±
At first nce, the content of this notice was exhrating.
The reward was at least ten gold pieces.
One gold piece was equivalent to ten taels of silver, so ten gold meant a hundred taels of silver money.
This was no small sum.
However, after reading it, Qin Niu appeared somewhat hesitant.
¡°Master, isn¡¯t this notice quite good? Why not take it down?¡±
Xiao Qing asked, puzzled.
¡°There are some illogical points in it, and I¡¯m worried about falling into a trap.¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s Evesting Spring Technique was extremely powerful, and curing amon herb was no problem at all.
Moreover, he had now cultivated to the first level of the Acquired Realm, with quite profound power; curing a herb should be a piece of cake for him.
The key was whether the reward could be collected after reviving the herb.
¡°A hundred-year-old herb, if valuable, could be worth about ten taels of silver, and that¡¯s if it¡¯s a high-grade herb like ginseng or Lingzhi. Think about it, after curing a hundred-year-old herb, the minimum reward is a hundred taels of silver money. Are there such herbs in this world?¡±
Qin Niu was analyzing the irrational parts of the notice for her.
He certainly wasn¡¯t a fish.
Fish see the bait but not the hook, yet he was cautious and careful with every step, never losing his wits over substantial benefits.
¡°That does seem to make some sense. However, if the herb is extremely rare, it really could be worth more than a hundred taels of silver. Ginseng and Lingzhi can only be considered ordinary high-grade herbs. There are some that can significantly enhance cultivation, or help a beast pet advance or even herbs that can continuously produce special fruits or leaves, all of which could be worth far more than a hundred taels of silver.¡±
Xiao Qing thought for a moment and presented her view.
¡°Then look at this address: The western part of the city is home to the poor. Although I¡¯m not familiar with Longwang Alley, it¡¯s unlikely that any extremely wealthy or noble person lives there. Anyone who could afford to pay a hundred taels of silver as a reward would have moved to the wealthy circles in the eastern part of the city long ago.¡±
Qin Niu raised a second point of suspicion.
The east has always been a symbol of nobility, and since ancient times there has been the saying ¡°auspicious qies from the east.¡±
Even with ordinary residences, the owner lives on the eastern side, and guests or servants upy the western rooms.
This was nearly the same in ck Tiger City.
Those with any power or status in the city, or the very wealthy merchants, would find ways to buy houses in the east, crowding into the circles of the privileged.
¡°How about I go and make some inquiriester? If there¡¯s a problem, we¡¯ll look for other work then.¡±
Xiao Qing had lived in the city for many years; despite her young age, she possessed strong survival skills.
She was familiar with the situation inside ck Tiger City.
¡°That¡¯s fine.¡±
Qin Niu searched around and found over a dozen notices seeking aid to cure herbs and flowers; it was this notice that offered the highest reward.
The others were only offering a few coins or one to two taels of silver.
He found them too insignificant and unappealing.
He wouldn¡¯t be bothered unless he could earn at least ten taels from one endeavor.
After all, the fewer people who knew about this special ability, the better.
It wasn¡¯t that there was great danger if people knew about his special ability; he just didn¡¯t want the trouble. Today one person would find him to treat a herb, tomorrow another woulde knocking.
It would be unbearably annoying over time.
To refuse would easily offend people.
If he agreed, it would interfere with his cultivation.
And if he encountered someone unreasonable, they might even force him to stay at their residence.
So, it was better for as few people as possible to know about this special ability.
He took down the illogical notice and headed into the city with Xiao Qing.
¡°Stop, queue up to pay the entrance fee. This road is not for you to use freely,¡±
A gang loafer blocked their way, berating them with a cold voice.
Qin Niu did not waste words and simply shed his waist badge.
Chapter 155 - 150 The Boss Has Gone Mad_1
Chapter 150 The Boss Has Gone Mad_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
¡°It turns out to be the Insect Master. My apologies for any offense. Please, doe in.¡±
Seeing the Bronze Fish Talisman in the idler¡¯s hands, after scrutinizing it carefully and confirming it was genuine, he immediately pulled a one hundred and eighty-degree about-face.
The status of an idler was even lower than a petty official¡¯s.
Even Tang Yan, who was half a step into the official hierarchy, sought to curry favor with Qin Niu, so how could an idler dare to act boldly in front of him?
To truly anger Qin Niu and pull in the Insect Master Association behind him, let¡¯s not even talk about the idler, even the small officials above him would be dealt with. Attract trouble for the higher-ups? Don¡¯t even joke about it.
If he didn¡¯t even have that much sense of survival, he would have been dismissed by his superiors long ago.
Qin Niu, followed by Xiao Qing, swaggered into ck Tiger City.
No need to queue, no need to pay the entrance fee.
It¡¯s really nice to be a person of privilege.
Even Xiao Qing, the servant, had her moment of unting authority, with no one daring to ask her for the city entrance fee.
Those ck Armored Soldiers stood ramrod straight, looking neither left nor right.
They wouldn¡¯t possibly get into a squabble with Qin Niu over such a trivial matter.
The entrance fees they collected didn¡¯t end up in their pockets anyway.
That¡¯s pretty much the gist of working for the state.
As long as it doesn¡¯t affect their own interests, turn a blind eye.
¡°I was almost scared to death just now, those ck Armored Soldiers are so cool!¡± Xiao Qing said, pounding her chest with fear.
¡°Ha ha, they are also human, and they have cultivated step by step from ordinary people. It won¡¯t take you two years, and your cultivation will definitely surpass theirs,¡± Qin Niu said with augh.
¡°Hmm¡¡± She shook her head like a rattle-drum. ¡°Master, you have too high expectations of me! My grandfather never broke through to the Fivefold ordinary realm in his life, and it would be a great achievement for me to reach my grandfather¡¯s level.¡±
The thought of being more formidable than the ck Armored Soldiers was simply inconceivable to her.
¡°You are different from your grandfather. Have you heard the saying, ¡®When one person attains the Dao, his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven¡¯? Since you¡¯re with me, I¡¯ll naturally help you elevate your cultivation,¡± Qin Niu said confidently with a smile.
¡°It¡¯s true that Master treats me very well. However, the Medicine King Sutra I¡¯m cultivating is very difficult to advance in, so it would be better if Master doesn¡¯t waste too many resources on me. Otherwise, I would feel guilty. I¡¯m even more afraid of disappointing you if my cultivation hits a snag and doesn¡¯t progress,¡± she said seriously, expressing her thoughts.
To this, Qin Niu just smiled and didn¡¯t dwell on the topic any longer.
¡°Let¡¯s go to the True True Armor Shop at the shoe and garment market first!¡±
He took Xiao Qing with him to the Armor Shop.
Upon entering, they were greeted by the same shop assistant who liked to look down on people.
He nced at Qin Niu and Xiao Qing without much of a smile on his face.
¡°I would like to see your shopkeeper,¡± said Qin Niu, who now spoke with a very different tone due to his changed status.
At these words, the shop assistant bristled.
This country bumpkin, bringing his sister over today, dared to speak to him with such tone, who did he think he was?
Just as the assistant was about to get angry, the shopkeeper came out from the back.
¡°Oh, young man, it¡¯s you! Are you in town buying things again today?¡± the owner greeted with a smile, exuding warmth. ¡°And what a pretty girl!¡± he added,plimenting Xiao Qing standing behind Qin Niu.
¡°Boss, could you take a look and see if this pigskin can be made into armor?¡± Qin Niu took out the pig king¡¯s skin.
Seeing the sizable and seemingly sturdy pigskin, the shopkeeper looked somewhat surprised.
¡°Hmm, this pigskin is muchrger than the one you sold mest time, and it looks even thicker,¡± the ownermented as he took it, preparing toy it out on the ground to check it.
As soon as he held it in his hands, his expression turned odd.
Looking closely at the pigskin in his hands, the shopkeeper¡¯s surprise kept increasing.
He hurried to the assistant at the back and said, ¡°Don¡¯t just stand there, move that table over here.¡±
¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be just fine to ce the pigskin on the ground?¡±
The assistant somewhat reluctantly moved the table over.
The shopkeeper ced the pigskin on the table and spread it out.
Since the table wasn¡¯t wide enough, the pigskin hung down on both sides.
The length of the table was just barely sufficient, though.
The shopkeeper excitedly stretched out his hand and caressed the pigskin, even closing his eyes to finely feel the sensation at his fingertips and palm.
His hands were trembling nonstop.
¡°What fine hide! This, this is not only a king¡¯s hide but also imbued with demonic energy throughout. Incredible, truly incredible.¡±
The shopkeeper muttered to himself.
Even having seen many high-grade beast hides before, he was still extraordinarily excited at this moment.
¡°Shopkeeper, can you make armor out of this hide for me?¡±
¡°Yes, yes! I will personally tailor and craft it for you. This fine King Hide, I only saw it once when I was very young, learning to identify beast hides with my grandfather. Over forty years have blinked by since then, and I never thought I¡¯d see it once more in my lifetime. It truly must be fate! With that beast hide back then, my grandfather crafted a set of armor for a customer, which earned him the honorific title of a true master.
My father never got to see such an opportunity until his dying day.
I thought that I would be just like my father, but to think, young brother, that you¡¯ve bestowed upon me this grand opportunity. I¡¯m truly too excited.¡±
The shopkeeper was ecstatic.
Qin Niu, not being from this line of work, didn¡¯t understand how tough it was for an armorsmith to advance.
Without good materials, even the most skilled artisan couldn¡¯t craft fine armor.
Magical beasts were already rare, and hunting them was exceedingly difficult.
And it wasn¡¯t the only Armor Shop, there were many.
If someone else hunted a magical beast, either the skin was too small, unsuitable for making armor, or even if the skin wasrge enough, they might not choose him to do the job.
¡°Shopkeeper, could the armor made from this pigskin possess half the defense of the Hundred-Tempering ck Armor?¡±
Qin Niu felt that the defense of the beast hide would surely not match that of metal.
Hence his question.
¡°Oh boy, asking like that, you¡¯repletely insulting this King Hide! Truly fine armor isn¡¯t forged from metal. This is what my grandfather taught me. He told me that no matter how exceptional an artisan¡¯s skills are, metal-made armorsck spirit and are merely cobbled together. The most ideal armor is made from materials like beast hides, entire beast bones, and special insect silk.
¡°Wearing it not only provides flexibility and lightness, but also an essence that metal armor doesn¡¯t have.
Many people only know that weapons can choose their owners, yet don¡¯t realize that a fine piece of armor can do the same.
I will pour all my lifelong learning into making this armor for you, young man.
I dare not say it will surely satisfy you, but at least it will be the masterpiece of my career.¡±
The shopkeeper spoke with a dedicated and confident tone.
¡°Then how much would the crafting fee be?¡±
¡°Free! As long as you¡¯re willing to entrust its making to me, I won¡¯t ask for a single copper coin in payment, and I will be grateful to you for a lifetime. If youe to my shop to buy armor or protective gear in the future, I will sell it to you at cost.¡±
The shopkeeper was beyond excited.
Not only was he offering to make it for free, but he also promised to sell other armors to Qin Niu at cost price in the future.
The assistant waspletely dumbfounded.
¡°Here¡¯s the thing, this pigskin is quiterge; besides wanting to make a suit of armor for myself, I¡¯d like to use the leftover material to also make one for my maidservant.¡±
Qin Niu made his request to the shopkeeper.
Xiao Qing bit her lip when she heard this on the side without saying a word.
Her master treated her like his own younger sister, and she could feel this kindness.
¡°Alih¡ that would be possible. Only thing is, I want to craft the most perfect armor, and that would require using the best parts of the pigskin. The remaining material used to make the maidservant¡¯s armor might be slightly inferior. Also, seeing that she¡¯s still young now, I will try to amodate future growth, so she can wear it as a vestter.¡±
The shopkeeper put forth his idea.
And he exined in advance that there might be some differences between the two sets of armor.
Chapter 156 - 151: The Grand Mansion_1
Chapter 151: The Grand Mansion_1
Trantor: 549690339 I
¡°I wonder how long will it take to make?¡±
Qin Niu asked.
¡°The fastest could be half a month, and if it¡¯s slow, it might take about a month. If the young brother finds it inconvenient toe to the city to pick it up, I could also deliver it to your residence after it¡¯s made,¡±
the owner said, fearing that Qin Niu wouldn¡¯t entrust him with the task, and he strived to provide Qin Niu with the best service possible.
It was extremely difficult to hunt down a Pig King, but what Qin Niu cared about more was whether this chubby shop owner had excellent armor-crafting skills.
He subconsciously looked up at the armor disyed on the wall.
¡°Those are armors I crafted by hand, and even this rhomboid shield was made by me. Young brother, you can take a look at the craftsmanship,¡±
the owner said. He greeted and saw off customers every day and could tell from Qin Niu¡¯s nce what he was worried about.
He immediately took out what he considered his best work to show Qin Niu.
¡°Was this leather armor also made by you?¡±
¡°Yes!¡±
the owner nodded.
¡°May I try it on?¡±
¡°Of course! But this leather armor was custom-made for a client, tailored to their height and body shape, so it might not fit you perfectly when you put it on.¡±
¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯ll just try it on.¡±
With the owner¡¯s help, Qin Niu tried on the leather armor right there and then, moving his body around, his limbs were flexible, and not too greatly hindered.
¡°May I also try on that set of Hundred-Tempering ck Armor?¡±
¡°No problem!¡±
The owner took down the valuable Hundred -Tempering ck Armor and helped Qin Niu put it on.
Putting on the armor was far moreplicated than one might think.
The dressing of an Insect Master Robe wasplicated enough for him, butpared to the Hundred-Tempering ck Armor, it was like a small witch standing before a great sorcerer.
This set of Hundred-Tempering ck Armor could be disassembled into multiple parts.
The head portion had a helmet, phoenix wing brow protectors, a facete, a neck guard, and a red tassel on top. The torso part for the chest and abdomen was even moreplex.
It included parts like the chestte fasteners, shoulder shields, arm guards, breastte, pelvis armor, coat armor, abdominal guards, thigh guards, skirt armor, and more.
The legs had shin guards.
Just putting it on took nearly a quarter of an hour.
Once on, it was quite heavy.
But the silent majesty that naturally emanated was undeniable.
Clothes make the man, and gold makes the Buddha.
Once he donned this set of Hundred-Tempering ck Armor, he was immediately transformed into a formidable and majestic soldier.
¡°Master, you look even more imposing than the soldiers at the city gate when you wear this armor!¡±
Xiao Qing¡¯s eyes shone as she watched from the side.
Usually, being around Qin Niu all day and night, she didn¡¯t notice anything particr, but now that he was wearing the Hundred-Tempering ck Armor, she realized for the first time that the aura her master exuded was even stronger than that of the real ck Armored Soldiers.
She was unaware that Qin Niu had already reached the firstyer of the Acquired Realm.
Since his skin, membranes, and bones had been tempered, naturally, he was iparable to amon ck Armored Soldier.
If one had some connections or background, even a person of mere Eightfold cultivation could be a candidate for the ck Armored Army.
What¡¯s a candidate?
That is someone who fills a vacancy when a position opens, and then bes official.
Therefore, among the ck Armored Soldiers, those with weaker abilities were only at the level of Eightfold or Ninefold cultivation.
Their cultivation was not just a little inferior to Qin Niu¡¯s.
It was an entire realm behind.
¡°I don¡¯t feel that I am so imposing; I just sense the smell of Silver Money. This is armor worth five hundred taels of silver a set! It¡¯s too luxurious,¡±
Qin Niu said after trying it on, his heart favoring the leather armor even more.
The ck iron armor, despite being imposing and offering strong defense, felt exceptionally cold.
That leather armor, however, felt light and agile on the body, like wearing an extra cotton-padded jacket, making one feelfortable and natural.
¡°The owner¡¯s craftsmanship is really amazing! The wearing experience of both sets of armors is good, so I will entrust my pigskin to the owner,¡±
Qin Niu expressed, and a brilliant smile appeared on the shop owner¡¯s round, chubby face immediately.
¡°Ha ha, young brother, you are too kind. Rest assured, I will do my best to craft leather armors for you both. Since it¡¯s settled, let me take your measurements, such as height, shoulder width, and waist circumference,¡±
he knew he had secured the big job.
¡°Thank you!¡±
Qin Niu cooperatively spread his arms, allowing the owner to take his body measurements.
¡°Oh, I didn¡¯t see thating; turns out you¡¯re an Insect Master! My apologies for the oversight!¡±
The owner eximed after spotting the bronze Fish Talisman peeking from Qin Niu¡¯s waist, taken aback slightly.
Yet his expression became much more respectful.
¡°It¡¯s just an empty title, pay it no heed,¡±
Qin Niu said indifferently.
The shop clerk beside them was breaking out in a cold sweat.
He had never imagined that this poor country boy could actually be a revered Insect Master. Thinking back on how he received Qin Niu every time with arrogance and rudeness sent chills down his spine.
It was only because the Insect Master was forgiving and didn¡¯t take offense.
Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t even know how he would have died.
After measuring Qin Niu and Xiao Qing¡¯s sizes, the shop owner issued a receipt, and Qin Niu left with Xiao Qing.
To craft two sets of leather armor, Qin Niu originally thought it would cost at least three or four taels of silver.
But after the owner saw they were using demon beast skin, he waived thebor cost outright.
¡°Xiao Qing, since we¡¯re at the Shoe and Clothing Market, let me buy you a couple of pairs of shoes and clothes,¡±
Qin Niu had noticed long ago that she had very few clothes, just two outfits, and was still wearing her worn shoes.
¡°Sister Cai Xian said she had ordered two outfits for me; they should be delivered in a few days,¡± Xiao Qing said softly.
¡°There¡¯s such a thing? Howe I didn¡¯t know about it.¡±
Qin Niu was very surprised.
¡°Sister Cai Xian told me not to tell you.¡±
She hung her head, picking at her fingers.
She had kept this matter from Qin Niu because she feared he would disagree if he found out.
¡°Didn¡¯t you use to like Sister Wanyan more? Now you¡¯re calling Cai Xian ¡®Sister¡¯ so affectionately!¡±
Qin Niu teased her with a yful gaze.
He wasn¡¯t angry about her concealing the gift of the clothes from Tang Caixian.
Which girl didn¡¯t like beautiful clothes?
Xiao Qing¡¯s clothes were already quite worn-out, and Tang Caixian giving her two sets of clothes made it impossible for her to refuse.
¡°Master¡ don¡¯t be angry. I didn¡¯t mean to hide it from you. I thought, since you¡¯ll be marrying Cai Xian into our familyter, I just agreed,¡± she said.
¡°You little devil, arranging your master¡¯s marriage like that! If you dare make such decisions again, I¡¯ll sell you off,¡± Qin Niu said, ring at her.
Xiao Qing, frightened, shrank her neck in fear.
¡°Let¡¯s go, I was nning to buy you two sets of clothes. Since Cai Xian has already ordered two for you, I¡¯ll just buy you one,¡± he said.
Now that Qin Niu¡¯s status had risen and he had the ability to earn money, he naturally wouldn¡¯t let her wear poor clothes.
He took Xiao Qing to a clothing store and bought her a new set of clothes and two pairs of shoes.
Meanwhile, he bought himself two sets of coarse cloth clothes and two pairs of shoes.
After leaving the clothing market, Qin Niu headed straight for the address left by the mysterious old man.
With Xiao Qing leading the way, they found it without much trouble.
From the outside, it looked like arge mansion surrounded by high walls.
The doors were tightly closed.
Buying such arge house in the city would definitely note cheap.
¡°Xiao Qing, I¡¯m going in, you stay outside, and it¡¯s best if you hide further away. If I don¡¯te out after two hours, go find Chairman Li at the Insect Master Association,¡± Qin Niu instructed her.
Before arriving, Qin Niu had already considered the many risks he might face.
A green giant ho that could sell for one hundred and fifty taels of silver did excite him.
He also needed arge sum of silver at the moment.
Whether living in the countryside or in the city, life without money was worse than that of a dog.
He needed money for books, various household items, and everyday expenses.
Having money in hand made him less anxious when facing issues.
¡°Be careful, master,¡± Xiao Qing said as she cleverly hid herself far away.
Qin Niu knocked on the beast-shaped knocker.
Such wealthy families truly lived in luxury. Even the door knocker was an extremely heavy bronze ring.
One that could weigh about a jin and seven or eight taels.
Although the price of bronze wasn¡¯t as high as silver, it was much more expensive than iron. In moderately wealthy families, like Wang Furen¡¯s, they would skimp on the material for door nails and rings as much as possible.
The bronze ring passed through the mouth of a beast-shaped adornment.
It looked very imposing and awe-inspiring.
After knocking three times, there was no response.
Qin Niu wondered, as the address was correct!
Just as he grabbed the ring intending to knock a few more times, a side door opened a crack, and a middle-aged man about forty peeked out to see who it was.
¡°Hello, uncle, may I ask if this is Old Master Huang¡¯s residence?¡± Qin Niu inquired.
The old man hadn¡¯t given his full name.
He only provided an address and a surname, Huang.
¡°Who are you? What do you want with Old Master Huang?¡± the middle-aged man sized up Qin Niu.
¡°My name is Qin Niu. Old Master Huang wants to buy a ho from me. Please inform him,¡± Qin Niu presented his waist tag for the man to see.
When the middle-aged man saw the bronze fish talisman, his expression unchanged, he still looked indifferent.
This was enough to indicate that Old Master Huang was no ordinary person.
A servant guarding the gate wouldn¡¯t possess suchposure otherwise.
¡°Wait here!¡± said the man before closing the small door again.
Manyrge mansions were like this, strangers could not enter at all. They wouldn¡¯t even let you glimpse inside the courtyard.
That¡¯s because there are often valuable or private items within the mansions of wealthy families that could catch the eye of thieves, which would be disastrous. Moreover, thieves who don¡¯t know the specifics inside would naturally not dare to climb over the wall and break in.
They would instead make up excuses to probe theyout and situation inside the courtyard before looking for opportunities tomit their crimes.
Many women say that marrying into a mansion means they might nevere out again, and this isn¡¯t an exaggeration.
Qin Niu patiently waited outside for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, then heard footsteps from inside, followed by therge door being opened.
¡°The young brother really trusts easily! Pleasee in!¡± said the mysterious old man, looking the same as thest time Qin Niu saw him, though now he was dressed in a white practice outfit.
Opening the gate to wee him was the kind of reception reserved for honored guests.
It was clear that the old man ced great importance on Qin Niu.
¡°I greet Old Master Huang!¡± Qin Niu bowed his hands in salutation.
This man was definitely his senior, with inscrutable insect-controlling skills.
¡°Haha, let¡¯s save thoseplex formalities, my ce doesn¡¯t stand on such ceremony. Please follow closely, there are some insects that I¡¯ve raised in the courtyard. Should they be startled, I¡¯m worried they might hurt you,¡± Old Master Huang led the way.
Qin Niu took the opportunity to survey the entire courtyard.
A luxurious carriage was parked in the carriage shed, and not far from it, in the stable, stood a jet-ck horse with a coat glossy as satin.
It somewhat resembled a ck steed, yet it had some differences.
Chapter 157 - 152: Corpse Bee t
Chapter 152: Corpse Bee t
Trantor: 549690339 I
The courtyard was nted with various flowers and nts, as well as several lush trees.
Many wealthy households typically only nted low-lying flowers and grass in their front courtyards and fruit trees in their backyards, as well as ornamental trees, and would construct fish ponds, cool pavilions, and the like.
But this Old Master Huang did the opposite.
Qin Niu also noticed that only the path he walked on was paved with floor tiles, while other ces were eitherwns or bare earth.
Close to the entrance corridor of the house, there was a lotus pond that was ten feet square.
Inside, one could see the ck mud and the lotus flowers that were in full bloom.
However, Qin Niu discovered that the lotus flowers in the pond contained an astonishing amount of energy and emitted a strong medicinal fragrance.
His Medicine King Sutra skills were already quite strong, so even if there was only a slight amount of energy in a medicinal herb, he could sense it. The energy contained in the lotus flowers in the pond far exceeded his expectations.
Moreover, he found that although there seemed to be many lotuses in the entire pond, the medicinal fragrance that rose up was only from one source.
This meant that the entire lotus pond was actually one single organism.
¡°Old Huang, your lotus pond is really elegant. It¡¯s such a refreshing sight.¡±
Qin Niuplimented with a smile.
¡°Hehe, take it as something for everyone to appreciate. I¡¯m not one for all those rules and regtions. In my own courtyard, I nt whatever I want. But you mustn¡¯t get close to the lotus pond; it¡¯s dangerous.¡±
A sycophanticpliment is rarely unappreciated.
Clearly, Qin Niu¡¯s praise made Old Master Huang very happy.
Qin Niu detected the implication in the words¡ªthere were likely poisonous insects living in the lotus pond. Should a thief sneak into the house and unknowingly pass by here, they might well be bitten to death.
This house was truly full of hidden dangers.
Old Master Huang used insect-rearing as a means to construct defenses for his house, a method that Qin Niu found quite interesting.
In the future, he too could set up some defensive mechanisms in his own house.
As he entered the passageway leading to the house, he faintly heard a buzzing sound overhead.
Looking up, he saw an enormous beehive hanging right above his head and severalrge yellow bees, as thick as knife handles, busily moving about outside the hive.
¡°No wonder you wanted to buy a Green Giant beest time; turns out you¡¯re also a beekeeping enthusiast!¡±
Qin Niu had a strong ability to identify insects.
He quietly appraised therge yellow bees hanging above him.
These yellow bees were quiterge, more than ten times the size of ordinary yellow bees.
Their mouthparts were highly developed, their jaws looking rather terrifying.
Additionally, there was a faint foul smell emanating from them, somewhat like the smell of dead fish.
The bands on their bodies were not yellow, but brown.
To be more precise, it was an ashen color.
Normally, the color of the bands on a yellow bee¡¯s body is hard to change.
Because a change in color implies a change in bee species.
¡°I¡¯m just an amateur. The hive of bees I¡¯m raising isn¡¯t anything exceptional. Last time, when I saw the Green Giant bee you were selling, which seemed to contain a trace of Green Demon Bee bloodline, I wanted to buy one to crossbreed with mine, to see if a stronger bee species could be cultivated. s, the Green Demon, a genius of his generation, died young, leaving behind countless legends for us bee enthusiasts.¡±
When Old Master Huang mentioned the Green Demon, there was a look of admiration on his face.
Qin Niu realized that every powerful Insect Master he had met seemed to hold the Green Demon in high regard.
No one cared about the evil deeds the Green Demon hadmitted.
Perhaps in the eyes of Insect Masters, indulging in personal vendettas is the true nature of a man. The Green Demon had killed many people, but there were reasons for each incident.
If they hadn¡¯t oppressed the Green Demon to the utmost and humiliated him in every possible way, how could they have brought upon themselves such a deadly retribution?
Even the Seven Star Sect Master¡¯s death was not unjust.
Because he failed to handle things properly from the beginning.
The governmentunched a blitz attack on the Green Demon without seeking the truth, which indirectly led to the death of the Green Demon¡¯s sister. This was akin to touching the Green Demon¡¯s raw nerve.
Both of them entered the main hall and, after seating themselves ording to guest and host, two exquisitely dressed young maids presented fragrant tea and fruit.
The rich really know how to enjoy life.
These two maids, whether in terms of figure or looks, were far superior to Wang Furen¡¯s maid.
Qin Niu¡¯s gaze, however, didn¡¯t linger on them. Instead, he was silently pondering over the nest of wasps Old Master Huang had raised.
The gray-brown rings on the wasps, varying in depth, and the spotty patterns on their wings caught his attention.
He couldn¡¯t help but feel a violent tremor.
Those wasps were most likely Corpse Bees.
In times of food scarcity, therge yellow wasps often fed on the decaying corpses of animals.
They did not harvest honey, were not sensitive to the scent of pollen, but were extremely sensitive to the smell of flesh.
The dead insects as well as carcasses of wild beasts and birds were their food.
More often, they directly attacked the nests of other bees or insects, initiating plunder and ughter.
¡°Correct, they must be Corpse Bees. If they only fed on the corpses of ordinary animals, it would be difficult for their wings to develop spots. Moreover, the gray-brown rings on their bodies couldn¡¯t possibly be that color. It¡¯s very likely they have been feeding on human corpses.¡±
At this thought, Qin Niu became highly vignt.
He had no wish to be killed and then fed to those Corpse Bees.
¡°Old Master Huang, I have an engagement with Chairman Li and should not impose any longer. This is a Green Demon Bee I¡¯ve meticulously bred; please examine it to see if it meets your standards,¡± he said.
Having sensed danger, Qin Niu naturally dared not drink the tea offered by the beautiful maids.
Nor did he dare to eat the exquisite pastries.
For this reason, he didn¡¯t hesitate to tell a lie, iming to have an arrangement with Chairman Li.
It would allow him to leave early under a legitimate pretense and might also deter the other party from harboring thoughts of murder and plunder.
Although until now, he hadn¡¯t felt the slightest hint of murderous intent, or even hostility, from Old Master Huang.
But he still didn¡¯t dare to be careless.
¡°Indeed, this is the Green Demon Bee I¡¯ve been looking for. Mu Kuai, fetch one hundred and fifty taels of silver for the young brother,¡± said Old Master Huang with glee after inspecting the goods.
Clutching the cage with the Green Demon Bee, he couldn¡¯t stop inspecting it, appearing utterly enchanted.
The middle-aged man who had opened the door for Qin Niu came over with a silver note.
The exact amount, no more, no less: one hundred and fifty taels.
When the man handed the silver note to Qin Niu, his face remained expressionless.
Moreover, when Qin Niu got close to him, he faintly detected a strange odor.
It was somewhat like the scent given off by Corpse Bees, yet not quite the same.
After taking the silver note, he immediately stood up to take his leave.
¡°Old Master Huang, I shall not disturb you any further. I wish you the best in breeding stronger new bee species and in reviving the former glory of the Green Demon. Farewell.¡±
Qin Niu showed great respect to Old Master Huang.
He bowed with his hands folded in front of him.
¡°Young brother, if youe across better bee species in the future, feel free to look for me. As long as I¡¯m satisfied, I promise to buy them at a high price. Mu Kuai, see the young brother out,¡± Huang said.
¡°Please!¡±
Mu Kuai mechanically extended his hand in a gesturing motion.
Qin Niu retraced his steps all the way out and didn¡¯t let out a sigh of relief until he had walked a good distance from therge residence.
What he had been most worried about was Old Master Huang revealing his fangs.
He had already decided that if it came down to it, he would abandon the one hundred and fifty taels of silver.
If the other party continued to be aggressive, he would be left with no choice but to fight to the death in a desperate struggle.
Chapter 158 - 153 Is this a case of a foolish person with too much money?_1
Chapter 153 Is this a case of a foolish person with too much money?_1
Trantor: 549690339
The firstyer of the Acquired Realm coupled with a Treasured Sword and a moderately sessful sh Martial Skill, he was not entirely without fighting strength.
When wild animals hunt their prey, there is aw of injury prevention: the higher the intelligence of the wild animal, the more cautious its hunting.
Human intelligence far surpasses that of wild animals, and their actions are naturally even more cautious.
For a mere one hundred and fifty Silver Money, Old Master Huang¡¯s family had a significant enterprise and would not resort to desperate measures.
But if someone believed that he had cultivated a Queen Bee stronger than the giant green ho, then it would be difficult to say.
In any case, Old Master Huang¡¯s mansion exuded a bone-chilling eeriness everywhere, and he definitely would note back again.
The middle-aged man at the gate also made Qin Niu feel somewhat out of the ordinary.
His movements felt a bit stiff, his face was always without expression, and his eyes were even more bizarre. Also, when he handed over the silver note, the putrid smell emanating from his body was remarkably simr to that of a Corpse Bee.
All these details made Qin Niu¡¯s hair stand on end.
He thought about the silver note, took it out and sniffed it at his nose, detecting the faint smell of decay once again.
¡°Master, was the transaction smooth?¡±
Xiao Qing crawled out from a hidden spot.
¡°It went reasonably well. That household is very strange; you must never go there. Let¡¯s hurry on our way!¡±
Qin Niu briskly left with Xiao Qing.
¡°Are we still going to that family in the west of the city?¡±
¡°Yes, of course we are. There¡¯s money to be made, why not earn it?¡±
¡°Haven¡¯t you already earned quite a bit of Silver Money? Therge silver notes are a hundred Taels each, and the smaller ones are fifty Taels. You¡¯ve earned one hundred and fifty Taels, why take the risk?¡±
She asked somewhat puzzled.
¡°You little imp, you have quite the eagle eyes! I just sniffed the silver note, and you already know how much it is.¡±
Qin Niu said, praising her with augh.
¡°Oh, I get it! You definitely want to earn more money to marry those two beautiful sisters back home.¡±
She eximed as if she had an epiphany.
¡± What are you thinking about? Wan Yan and Cai Xian and I haven¡¯t even started. I want to earn more money to buy mountains, buynd, get you new clothes, and to purchase Elixirs and cultivation techniques. There are too many uses.¡±
No one would think they have too much Silver Money.
Even for a Cultivator, with riches,panions, and fertilends, money stilles first.
The master and servant arrived at Longwang Alley in the west of the city and found the house ording to the address.
¡°This should be it! The same as usual: you wait outside for me. If something happens, go to the Insect Master Association and ask Chairman Li for help.¡±
Qin Niu didn¡¯t know any other influential figures now.
The only person he could think of was Chairman Li.
As for Master Hu, although he treated him nicely, the status of an Insect Identification Appraiser was still somewhat low.
If he encountered a formidable opponent, Master Huing to rescue him might end up costing both of them dearly.
¡°Master, please be careful!¡±
Every time she saw Qin Niu risk his life for Silver Money, a particrly worried expression would appear on her face.
Because Qin Niu was her only support now.
¡°It¡¯s okay, I¡¯ll be careful.¡±
Once Qin Niu saw her hide her figure well in the distance, he knocked on the door.
Compared to Old Master Huang¡¯s tall walls and spacious courtyard, this house looked much more shabby. The house was very old, the knocker was made of iron and had long been corroded. The low courtyard wall was covered in moss, and many ces on the surface were patchy and peeling.
This family did not look like wealthy people who could afford a reward of a hundred Taels of Silver Money.
The door opened quickly, and an old man in grey clothes peeked out half his body.
¡°Old gentleman, is it your family that posted this notice?¡±
Qin Niu showed the notice to the man for inspection.
¡°Yes! I wonder what the young man¡¯s skill in treating nts is like?¡±
Seeing his youth, the old man doubted his ability.
¡°I have some understanding.¡±
Qin Niu appeared very calm.
Given the miraculous nature of the Evesting Spring Technique he cultivated, he was fully capable of healing most nts, allowing them to regain vitality.
The question was whether the other party could offer enough Silver Money.
¡°Here, it¡¯s that potted nt. It¡¯s badly withered now; do you think you can revive it?¡±
The old man turned and pointed at a potted nt under the eaves.
It looked severely wilted.
Its top leaves hadpletely dried up and turned ck, only the leaves near the roots still had a bit of bright yellow, indicating it was not yetpletely dead.
¡°People grey first at the head when old, trees wither starting from the roots when dying; it seems very likely that the roots of this nt are seriously dead.¡±
Qin Niu, now a mid-level farmer, was notcking in nting skills.
After inspecting it, he gained some understanding of the nt¡¯s current state.
¡°Old gentleman, you¡¯re not being sincere!¡±
Qin Niu said and turned to leave.
¡°Wait, young man, why do you say that?¡±
The old man called out to him from behind.
¡°For just this potted nt, to bring it back to life, you would give me a reward of a hundred Taels of Silver Money? Buying a new one wouldn¡¯t cost much at all, right? The problem with this nt lies in the roots, making revival extremely difficult. If it were valuable, perhaps I could give it a try. As it is, I advise you to give up.¡±
After saying that, Qin Niu walked out of the courtyard without looking back.
This family didn¡¯t even qualify as slightly wealthy; they only owned this old and decrepit house in the city.
Selling the house wouldn¡¯t even collect a hundred Taels of Silver Money.
It was aplete mockery.
¡°Don¡¯t be hasty, young man; the reward on this notice is real, and my request for help in curing the nt is also genuine. If I can afford a hundred Taels of Silver Money, can you revive this nt for me?¡±
The elder said, and indeed took out a silver note of a hundred Taels from his bosom.
¡°This¡ Are you sure you¡¯re not joking? A nt like this is not worth the effort of treatment!¡±
Qin Niu said in surprise.
¡°Just tell me, can you save it or not?¡±
¡°I can try. However, you can¡¯t go back on this. I need to be paid first, then write a pledge, and only then will I try to heal it. If I save it, the hundred taels of Silver Money are mine as a fee. If I can¡¯t save it, I will not take a penny.¡±
Seeing that the old man didn¡¯t seem to be lying, Qin Niu decided to give it a try.
¡°Alright, that¡¯s absolutely fine.¡±
The old man wrote a pledge on the spot and gave him a silver note for one hundred taels.
¡°This silver note is real, right?¡±
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help thinking this money was too easy to earn.
It made him feel very uneasy.
¡°The bank hasn¡¯t closed yet. If the young man suspects there¡¯s a problem with the silver note, I can apany you to exchange it right now.¡±
¡°I was just asking casually, I trust the Old Master.¡±
After careful examination, Qin Niu found no issues with the silver note.
Moreover, since the other party had written a pledge, it should be genuine.
This old man probably belonged to the type rich and foolish.
A hundred taels of Silver Money was more than many people could earn in a lifetime, yet the old man was simply handing it over.
Qin Niu put away the silver note.
It seemed he would be staying overnight in the city.
He calcted and had Xiao Qing find an inn to stay for the night.
¡°Old Master, I wille by a bitter tonight. Keep this silver note for now, and give it to me when I arriveter, is that okay?¡±
It was not easy to make a trip to the city, and it was good to take care of everything he had to do.
If there was moonlight tonight, he would be able to earn this sum of Silver Money.
He nned to rush back to the countryside early tomorrow morning.
It would be even better if he had a mount.
That calf, Xiao Nui, was still evolving and likely wouldn¡¯t be able toplete the process in the short term.
Raise another horse?
He had no such ns at the moment.
¡°Keep the silver note. You are free to go wherever you want in the city, but if you want to leave the city, make sure toe back and let me know first.¡±
The old man was extremely calm when he said this.
It showed he was not afraid of Qin Niu taking the money and running away.
Appearances can be deceiving, as can the depths of the sea.
What kind of background did this old man have?
A person who could casually bring out a hundred taels of Silver Money was definitely not ordinary.
By the sound of it, he likely wielded considerable power within the city.
¡°That works!¡±
Qin Niu thought it would be good to find a shop to verify the authenticity of the silver note.
After leaving the dpidated house, Qin Niu met up with Xiao Qing.
¡°Xiao Qing, let¡¯s go to the Cultivation Market first. I wille back to this household to treat the nt tonight. You find an inn and settle in. Tomorrow morning, once I have saved that nt, I will take you back to the countryside.¡±
Qin Niu shared the general n with her.
¡°That household is really willing to pay you a hundred taels of Silver Money to save a nt?¡±
¡°Yes, it¡¯s true. This is the silver note the old man gave me.¡±
Qin Niu took out the silver note and showed it to her.
¡°Is the silver note real?¡±
¡°Yes, it should be genuine. This is a silver note from the Heaven and Earth Bank. Not to mention ordinary people, even the ck Tiger Gang Leader wouldn¡¯t dare to counterfeit it.¡± After examining it, Xiao Qing confirmed that the silver note was authentic.
¡°Is the Heaven and Earth Bank very powerful?¡±
When it came to these high-end institutions, Qin Niu waspletely ¡®illiterate¡¯.
A country person, many have never seen silver notes in their lifetime.
They hardly ever see silver ingots. What they use most is copper coins, Silver Pieces.
¡°Of course, it¡¯s powerful. The branches of Heaven and Earth Bank are spread all over the world, and no one knows exactly how many there are. It is known that almost every city has a branch of Heaven and Earth Bank, and they have a solid gold credit. With their silver note, you can withdraw money at any of their branches.¡±
This was indeed incredibly cool.
¡°I¡¯ve also heard that Heaven and Earth Bank not only deals with mortals, but even cultivators keep their money with them.¡±
¡°Alt¡ so cool, no wonder you said even the ck Tiger Gang Leader wouldn¡¯t dare to fake it!¡±
Qin Niu gained a deeper understanding of the Heaven and Earth Bank.
This type of existence even had the power to obliterate the ck Tiger Gang.
It could only be described as terrifying.
The master and servant entered the Cultivation Market and went straight to Miaodan Pavilion.
Qin Niu wanted to understand the use of Beast Cores.
He wanted to see if Miaodan Pavilion could help refine them into Elixirs that could be taken.
With the power of the Acquired Realm¡¯s first level, he was eager to gain even stronger cultivation.
Miaodan Pavilion was just as busy as thest time he visited, with a never- ending stream of customersing to buy Elixirs.
This time, Qin Niu directly put on an Insect Master¡¯s robe.
As soon as he entered, he was warmly greeted by someone immediately.
¡°Respected Insect Master, what can I do for you?¡±
¡°I¡¯d like to know, if I have a Beast Core, can you refine it into an Elixir for me?¡±
¡°Of course, we can! Miaodan Pavilion employs over a hundred Pharmacists and Elixir Masters. We are thergest Elixir shop in ck Tiger City, integrating the nting of medicinal herbs, alchemy, Elixir sales, herbal cultivation, and healing. Whatever the customer needs, we provide the highest quality service.¡±
The attendant proudly introduced the strength of Miaodan Pavilion.
Being able to sustain over a hundred Pharmacists and Elixir Masters, the scale was indeed astonishing.
Chapter 159 - 154 Alchemist Price List 1
Chapter 154 Alchemist Price List 1
Trantor: 549690339
Even when including apprentice pharmacists and Dan Tong, being able to reach a scale of a hundred people still proves to be quite strong.
¡°How do you charge for your services? And what kind of elixirs can you refine for me?¡±
Qin Niu certainly needed to understand the details before deciding whether to hire someone to refine elixirs.
¡°The fee is based on the type of elixir you need refined, as well as the size and grade of the beast core. Some beast cores have a lot of impurities and require the addition of various materials to purge the contaminants, which can make the service more expensive. Even just the purifying process for ordinary beast cores isn¡¯t cheap. If you are interested, I can ask a Dan Tong toe and discuss the details with you.¡±
The clerk¡¯s job was to handle reception, and he might have a smattering of knowledge about herbs and elixirs.
¡°Thank you.¡±
Qin Niu said to the clerk.
It wasn¡¯t long before the clerk fetched a Dan Tong, who was dressed in a white robe.
Pharmacists and alchemists, in fact, focus on different things.
Pharmacists specialize in the cultivation, collection, identification, and processing of herbs, and they excel at how tobine herbs effectively. Alchemists are adept at blending medicinal materials with additives and refining them into elixir pills.
It can be understood that pharmacists do basic work, while alchemists perform higher-level technical tasks.
Many impressive alchemists are also pharmacists.
This is the origin of the title ¡®Elixir Master¡¯.
If one only excels in either alchemy or pharmaceuticals, they aren¡¯t qualified to be called an Elixir Master.
Rather, they can only be referred to as a pharmacist or alchemist.
Furthermore, the status of an alchemist is higher than that of a pharmacist, and the ie is likewise higher.
Alchemists can enhance the effects of a single herb through the addition of auxiliary ingredients and purifying techniques. Mastery of the me during the refining process is one of the core skills of an alchemist.
Pharmacists, however, are devoted to understanding the properties of herbs and don¡¯t have the capability of enhancing the efficacy of the herbs.
For example, consuming a certain herb could allow a person¡¯s cultivation to advance from the onefold of the Acquired Realm to the twofold. Moreover, due to certain toxicity, the herb might cause extreme pain during ingestion.
But through an alchemist¡¯s refining and the addition of ingredients, that same herb can be non-toxic and even enable a person to advance from the onefold of the Acquired Realm to the threefold, or even higher.
That is the capability of an alchemist.
1 he apprentice that had served Qin Niust time wore a grey robe. But this Dan Tong was dressed in a white robe, with a noticeable gold cauldron pattern embroidered on his chest.
Their attire alone ced him a level above the apprentice in status.
He carried himself with a touch of arrogance.
One would almost think this kid was serving as an alchemy novice to the Supreme Elder Lord.
¡°Are you the one who wants to purify a beast core?¡±
¡°Yes!¡±
¡°The starting fee is ten taels of silver, and there¡¯s a chance of failure in purifying. Are you sure you want to proceed?¡±
The Dan Tong spoke with a hint of coldness.
The mere starting price for purifying a single beast core was ten taels of silver, which was truly not cheap. Buying a single Tempering Elixir would only cost three taels of silver.
Why is the price of purifying a beast core much more expensive than buying an elixir?¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s brow furrowed slightly.
He wasn¡¯t keen on the Dan Tong¡¯s inherent arrogance.
The words spoken were quite cold, delivered with an air of just going through the motions.
¡°Our cheapest elixir is the Detoxification Pill, one tael of silver each. The most affordable of the cultivation-rted elixirs is the Tempering Elixir, three taels of silver each. But these two types of elixirs have noparison to the elixirs refined from purified beast cores. Let me put it this way, even the poorest beast core, if sessfully purified, will produce an elixir worth at least a hundred taels of silver.¡±
The Dan Tong appeared to discern that Qin Niu was an outsider to the field and provided additional exnations.
¡°Is there such a huge difference?¡±
Qin Niu inwardly clicked his tongue in wonder.
You get what you pay for; the best goods are always expensive.
No wonder their starting rate for purifying beast cores was ten taels of silver.
¡°No matter how many Tempering Elixirs one takes, they can at most be promoted to Tenfold of themon realm. However, taking an elixir refined from a Beast Core can break through a major realm in one go, directly advancing to the Acquired Realm.¡±
The apprentice alchemists must frequently deal with bumpkins like Qin Niu.
So he gave him the simplest example.
Leaning against the Ancient Banyan Tree, Qin Niu followed a regimen that included drinking Wolf Blood, snake blood, King Pig¡¯s Blood, along with the meat of various wild beasts, and he cultivated diligently every day, finally achieving a breakthrough to the first level of the Acquired Realm.
He had not anticipated that such a difficult feat could be achieved with a single elixir refined from a Beast Core.
He finally understood why cultivators considered wealth to be of utmost importance.
With money, talent and diligence can be entirely disregarded.
A single elixir can lead to overtaking others on a corner.
¡°How high is the failure rate for refining Beast Cores?¡±
Qin Niu was already quite tempted.
He was currently at the first level of the Acquired Realm. To advance to the next minor realm, he would need at least 1000 points of energy.
That means the difficulty of cultivation had increased more than tenfold.
Cultivation is a process of umtion to begin with.
Amassing quietly to unleash suddenly.
The King Pig Core he possessed was the size of a soybean. If it were refined into an elixir and consumed, his cultivation would undoubtedly take a huge leap forward.
Cultivators are fundamentally contending with fate itself.
They fight for opportunities and for every inch of time.
Advancing greatly at once could save years, or even decades of arduous cultivation, which also means he would have several decades more than other cultivators to strive for higher realms.
No matter how you look at it, it¡¯s worth the attempt.
The sess rate varies. Here at our establishment, the prices for alchemists are clearly marked. If you entrust it to me for refining, I can do it for just One Tael of Silver,¡± said the apprentice alchemist, his tone finally taking on a more human quality.
But is that possible?
Would Qin Niu really give that precious King Pig Core to a novice for refining,
just to save Nine Taels of Silver on the refining fee?
If it were ruined in the process, wouldn¡¯t he be devastated?
Let me take a look at your alchemists¡¯ price list first!¡±
Qin Niu decided to get an understanding of the pricing first.
¡°Sure, the price list is right up there! The closer to the front the alchemist is, the more expensive the price, and you¡¯re also required to wait in line. If you ¡® hand it to me for refining, I can start the alchemy process for you today.¡±
I his guy could tell that Qin Niu was a bumpkin and was desperately trying to score the opportunity to refine a Beast Core from him.
Because refining a Beast Core could significantly improve any alchemist apprentice¡¯s skills.
Qin Niu lifted his eyes to scan the price list.
lhe fee for the Chief Alchemist was the most expensive, starting at Fifty Taels of Silver. The sess rate for ordinary elixirs was above 95%, whereas the refining sess rate for Beast Cores was 30%.
That sess rate wasn¡¯t ordinarily low!
Qin Niu continued to read on.
The three Gold Medal Alchemists had Beast Core refining sess rates of 25%, 23%, and 21% respectively.
The seven Silver Medal Alchemists had even lower Beast Core refining sess rates, the strongest was 20%, and the weakest was only 11%.
As for ordinary alchemists, the sess rates were below ten percent.
Apprentice alchemists? Probably less than 1% sess rate.
¡°I would like your Chief Alchemist to refine for me, please ask him toe out and have a chat!¡±
Qin Niu decided to have a discussion first.
For a matter this important, the more details the better.
lhe Chief Alchemist, due to an overflow of orders, is no longer taking orders
for ordinary Beast Cores. May I take a look at your Beast Core first?¡±
The apprentice alchemist, having failed to snag the job, was quite disappointed..
Chapter 160 - 155: Direct Breakthrough 1
Chapter 155: Direct Breakthrough 1
Trantor: 549690339 |
Qin Niu stared at the apprentice alchemist, instantly subjecting the other to tremendous pressure.
¡°A sess rate below 1%, and you still dare to think about refining this Beast Core for me? To put it bluntly, take a piss and look at yourself.¡±
¡°Please don¡¯t misunderstand, I want to check the size and quality of the Beast Core so as to invite the Chief Alchemist. Otherwise, he would definitely scold me.¡±
The apprentice hurriedly exined.
His status in Miaodan Pavilion might be eptable, but before the Chief Alchemist, he could only behave like a grandson.
¡°I¡¯m afraid I cannot let you examine it here.¡±
Qin Niu swept his gaze around, surrounded by people.
Where there are many people, there will be mixed theories, and he did not want to invite any trouble. Wealth should not be unted; such arge Beast Core could easily attract unwanted attention.
¡°Please follow me!¡±
Understanding Qin Niu¡¯s concerns, the apprentice immediately led him into a private reception room.
Xiao Qing took the initiative to close the doors and stand guard outside.
¡°Is this Beast Core capable of enticing your Chief Alchemist?¡±
Qin Niu didn¡¯t beat around the bush and directly revealed the King Pig Beast Core.
Upon seeing the Beast Core, the apprentice couldn¡¯t help but shudder, and then, his eyes gradually bulged in disbelief.
Gulp!
He swallowed hard.
¡°I will go and invite the Chief Alchemist right away, please wait a moment!¡±
This once arrogant apprentice couldn¡¯t help but use a respectful title when addressing Qin Niu.
After he left, it wasn¡¯t long before a disheveled, stubbly middle-aged man hurried in. The man, unkempt and with dirt on his face, looked like a beggar who had been on the streets for years.
The purple robe he wore, embroidered with an alchemical cauldron on the chest, signified that he was a bona fide alchemist.
But the purple robe was stained and grimy, his hair clumped and tangled, as if he hadn¡¯t washed it for a long time.
This alchemist really didn¡¯t seem to care for his appearance.
¡°Are you the one who wants to refine a Beast Core?¡±
¡°Mhm.¡±
Qin Niu did not rush to take out the Beast Core, as his first impression of the man was poor.
¡°I heard that your Beast Core is the size of a soybean? Show it to me.¡±
¡°The person I am looking to find is Master Zi Zhou, the Chief Alchemist!¡±
He definitely wanted the alchemist with the highest sess rate to refine his Elixir.
¡°I am Zi Zhou.¡±
The middle-aged man stated and then revealed his identity badge.
It was a Silver Fish Medallion.
Within the entire territory of the ck Tiger Gang, there were likely no more than two hundred people who possessed a silver badge.
Such individuals already belonged to the upper echelons of the ck Tiger Gang.
It was hard to imagine such a dignified figure, also the Chief Alchemist of Miaodan Pavilion, dressing so shabbily. If he were to take off his purple alchemist robe and be thrown onto the street, everyone would definitely believe he was a bona fide beggar.
¡°So, you are Master Zi Zhou, I¡¯ve been disrespectful!¡±
Qin Niu chuckled to himself.
It seemed that truly powerful individuals did not care much for appearances.
He took out the Beast Core and ced it on the table.
¡°What arge Beast Core. Its dark yellow color, subdued brilliance, I haven¡¯t seen a Beast Core of this caliber in two or three years.¡±
As he spoke, Master Zi Zhou bent down, propped himself on the table with both hands, then brought his nose close to the Beast Core, sniffing at its scent.
He even focused and closed his eyes.
¡°It¡¯s a King Pig¡¯s Beast Core, containing immense energy, fairly pure, the quality is quite good. However, this Beast Core from the King Pig was not formed through bitter cultivation, but likely from consuming some heaven- and-earth treasures, which led to such arge core with a lower purity than high-quality cores, and its internal energy is not very condensed. The drawback is that the Elixir refined from it will have weaker effects.
The advantage is a much higher chance of sessfully creating the Elixir.¡±
Everything in the world has two sides.
Where there are advantages, there will be disadvantages; the perfect being or object does not exist.
¡°This Beast Core can be refined into a defensive type Elixir, which is for one-time use and cannot enhance one¡¯s cultivation rank. But after taking it, one would gain a very strong defensive barrier. Within the Acquired Realm, it would be practically unbreakable for six hours.¡±
Upon hearing this, Qin Niu immediately shook his head.
This was not what he wanted.
He had no desire to be like that timid little turtle, hiding in its shell.
The best defense is a good offense.
Passively taking hits was not his style.
¡°Then refine an Elixir that enhances cultivation rank. Even though thisrge Beast Core does not have very condensed internal energy, it should still be enough to propel your cultivation from the first level to above the ninth level of the Acquired Realm. It might even directly help you break through the next stage.¡±
Master Zi Zhou could easily see through Qin Niu¡¯s current cultivation rank.
This made Qin Niu respect and be even more curious about the Chief Alchemist.
Xiao Qing¡¯s face showed a shocked expression.
She had not expected her master to be so powerful, already a high-level expert in the Acquired Realm.
Those above the fifth level of the Mortal Realm could also be called experts.
But that needed to be put in quotation marks.
Because they could only bully ordinary people; facing those in the Acquired Realm, they would be out of their depth in minutes.
¡°May I ask how much the cost is?¡±
Qin Niu licked his lips.
If a Beast Core could directly help him break through to the Acquired Realm, that would be too tempting.
¡°For refining a Beast Core of this level, the fee is 180 taels of silver. Alchemy involves risks, and whether the refinement is sessful or not, the fee is non- refundable. If you bring more Beast Cores for refinement in the future, I can give you a VIP card from Miaodan Pavilion, allowing you an eight percent discount on both alchemy and purchasing elixirs.¡±
Upon hearing the price quoted by the other party, Qin Niu instinctively clutched his purse tighter.
He thought that after selling a Green Giant Ho and epting a businessmission of a hundred taels of silver, he was wealthy.
But he hadn¡¯t expected it was only enough to cover the cost of refining a single Beast Core.
That¡¯s expensive.
¡°Could the price be a little more favorable? It really is a bit too expensive.¡±
Qin Niu inquired.
Even with a twenty percent discount, it would still be 144 taels of silver.
That amount could buy dozens of Tempering Elixirs.
¡°Expensive? Do you know how much a sessfully refined elixir can sell for?¡±
Master Zi Zhou was so irritated he blew on his beard.
He kept grabbing at his own hair.
Perhaps, someone like him who was engrossed in alchemy was not good at haggling with people.
¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±
Qin Niu shook his head honestly.
¡°At the very least, it would be worth over two thousand taels of silver. Right now, if you were to sell the Beast Core, at most you could get around eight hundred taels of silver. Sessful refinement could double its value.¡±
Qin Niu was astonished to learn that the Beast Core could sell for as much as eight hundred taels of silver.
Making money in the big mountains was too easy.
But he didn¡¯t consider that without the Ink de, he probably wouldn¡¯t have been able to breach the King Pig¡¯s defenses.
Ordinary people, even if the entire poption of Shuangfeng Vige¡¯s able- bodied men were mobilized to besiege the King Pig, would not be able to harm it in the slightest.
To an ordinary person, eight hundred taels of silver were a huge sum of money.
But for someone capable of ying the King Pig, it was just a standard ie.
¡°Still, you make a killing with your technique! Just tossing it into the furnace for refinement, and you charge such a hefty fee. Can it be discounted further, please?¡±
Qin Niu thought at most fifty taels of silver would be the limit.
¡°You, how should I exin this to you! Refining elixirs is not as simple as you think. The value of the auxiliary materials alone exceeds one hundred taels of silver, and we also invest a great deal of manpower and resources. Giving you an eight percent discount, the actual profit from refining this Beast Core for you wouldn¡¯t exceed twenty taels of silver. Do you know how much it costs to train an apprentice to my level? It requires refining four to five thousand batches of elixirs.
In the early stages, due to imprecise control over the amount of auxiliary materials, the heat, and the timing of collecting the elixir, being able to sessfully refine one batch out of ten was considered extremely fortunate.
Moreover, to refine your Beast Core, a Purple Gold alchemy furnace is necessary, and each use incurs significant wear and tear.
The fuel is also not a small expense. To temper such arge Beast Core, the furnace heat must reach white-hot levels, which requires the use of high- quality charcoal and beast fat to ensure the temperature can reach that intensity. Additionally, regr additions of beast fat are needed to stabilize the mes, or else the furnace could explode¡¡±
Master Zi Zhou detailed every aspect of the costs to him.
To train an apprentice to his level would probably cost more than a mountain of silver.
Auxiliary materials, fuel for alchemy, and wear and tear on the furnace were all additional costs Qin Niu hadn¡¯t considered.
At such extreme temperatures, a regr furnace would not be able to withstand it and would simply explode.
The specially made Purple Gold furnace was incredibly expensive.
That sum of silver stored in a bank to umte interest would be quite considerable, too.
¡°Alright, alright, 180 taels with a twenty percent discount makes it 144 taels. I agree. Please take special care, Master Zi Zhou. If our initial coboration goes well, I¡¯ll definitely seek you out in the future.¡±
Qin Niu sighed inwardly as his silver from selling the ho had barely warmed up before it was to be spent again.
¡°Rest assured, alchemy is my entire life. Such a high-grade Beast Core, I might only encounter once every two or three years, so I will value it even more. I¡¯ll have someonee over right away to handle the paperwork for you. I currently have five batches of elixirs that need to be refined, so it will probably be half a month before I can start on yours. Leave your address and I will send someone to find you then. Let¡¯s be clear upfront, once the deposit is paid, you can¡¯t easily back out.
If during this period your elixir is lost, sold to someone else, or refined by another alchemist, it all constitutes a breach of contract.
The deposit is non-refundable, and Miaodan Pavilion will no longer ept your orders in the future.¡±
Master Zi Zhou rified some details regarding the agreement.
Integrity is the foundation of a person.
As the Chief Alchemist of Miaodan Pavilion, epting this order meant that he had to postpone other clients¡¯ orders.
He might even have to actively forego some orders.
If Qin Niu were to go back on his word, it would cause significant losses for Miaodan Pavilion.
After Master Zi Zhou hurriedly left, Miaodan Pavilion¡¯s staff quickly arrived to assist him with the relevant procedures.
In essence, it was about signing amission agreement.
Qin Niu needed to pay in advance the alchemy fee, considered a deposit.
It was also a gesture of his sincerity.
Once everything was handled, Qin Niu left Miaodan Pavilion with Xiao Qing.
Since it was their first transaction, he did not dare to leave the Beast Core there.
Money moves the heart, and no one could guarantee that Miaodan Pavilion wouldn¡¯t be tempted.
About half a monthter, someone woulde to Shuangfeng Vige to find him. Then, it would be enough to hand over the Beast Core.
As the owner of the Beast Core, he had the right to supervise Master Zi Zhou¡¯s refinement process. During this period, Miaodan Pavilion would cover his board and lodging.
The ability to conduct business on such arge scale spoke volumes about their service.¡±
Chapter 161 - 156: The True God Appears 1
Chapter 156: The True God Appears 1
Trantor: 549690339 |
The master and servant duo had just stepped out of Miaodan Pavilion¡¯s main gate when they saw pedestrians hurrying along the street.
The sky was dark, with several ck clouds floating overhead, pressing down upon the entirety of ck Tiger City.
¡°Master, it looks like it¡¯s going to rain!¡±
Xiao Qing looked up at the sky with some concern.
¡°Rain is a good thing. I¡¯ll arrange for your amodation at the inn first, thene over to get you tomorrow.¡±
Qin Niu took her to an inn, booked a room, and bought her some food.
¡°Keep these two taels of silver on you¡ªif you get hungry and want to buy some food, then buy it. Lock the doors and windows at night, and be safe.¡±
Giving her one tael of silver for pocket money at a time was enough to show Qin Niu¡¯s affection for her.
Xiao Qing took the silver, silently watching Qin Niu leave.
Her eyes were full of reluctance.
And even a bit of fear that Qin Niu might not want her anymore.
¡°Master! Be safe! Xiao Qing will always wait here for you!¡±
In the end, she couldn¡¯t help but shout at his retreating figure.
¡°All right!¡±
Qin Niu stopped in his tracks, waved at her, and signaled for her to go into her room.
Without lingering, he left the inn and quickened his steps towards Longwang Alley in the west of the city.
There were already shes of lightning striking down from the sky, with thunder roaring.
It seemed like it was about to rain heavily soon.
Knocking on the courtyard gate, it was still the old man who answered.
Seeing Qin Niu return, the old man seemed not at all surprised.
At this moment, Qin Niu was already wearing the Insect Master¡¯s robe, which simrly didn¡¯t surprise the elder.
¡°When I treat this nt, I must not be disturbed, and I need to sit in an open area. May I do it in the front yard of the elder¡¯s home?¡±
¡°If you cannot be disturbed, then go to the backyard! It¡¯s quieter there. I often have peopleing in and out of this front yard, which might distract you.¡±
The old man led him all the way to the backyard.
The ce was overgrown with weeds and looked quite unkempt.
Probably, this old man was azy person, not bothering to clean his yard much.
¡°The rain is about to start, and the young man will get wet.¡±
¡°It¡¯s okay.¡±
Qin Niu smiled.
He felt the kindly intentions emanating from the old man.
He practiced the Evesting Spring Technique, which could only be cultivated under two conditions: either it was raining or there was a moon.
He had yet to grasp a third method of cultivation.
¡°Then I won¡¯t disturb the young man any further. If you need anything, feel free to call for me inside the house.¡±
After saying that, the elder left him in the backyard and walked away.
Qin Niu found a suitable spot, cleared out a space, and then ced the nt, which had almostpletely withered, in front of him.
The nt¡¯s energy was extremely weak, emitting no medicinal aura.
It was an utterly ordinary nt; it was unclear why the old man spent so much money to save it.
The hundred taels of silver were very important to him, so he decided to earn them first.
The sky had already started to sprinkle intermittent drops of rain. He closed his eyes and began to cultivate the Evesting Spring Technique.
It was just that his realm was still shallow, and he wasn¡¯t proficient in using the power of the Evesting Spring Technique. Otherwise, he should have been able to directly harness the technique¡¯s power to treat the nt, without all this hassle.
As he continued his cultivation, wisps of the Evesting Spring Technique¡¯s power began to drift away.
They silently nourished the withered nt.
In the sky, the rain grew heavier.
Qin Niu¡¯s cultivation efficiency of the Evesting Spring Technique actually increased, absorbing a massive amount of the water essence and transforming it into the power of the technique.
Time ticked away.
About two hourster, he opened his eyes.
The nt, which had originally withered, had now regained its vitality.
The parts that hadpletely ckened could not be saved, but the other parts had turned green, and it was evident that new shoots were sprouting from the base of the leaves.
By now, the rain in the sky had started to weaken.
Qin Niu was drenched to the bone.
Carrying the pot with the nt, he went directly to find that old man.
¡°Elder, I have revived this nt for you. With proper care, it should quickly return to being lush and leafy.¡±
Qin Niu, holding that pot of flowers and nts, entered the room, and the old man leaned in closely for a careful look, then he also clicked his tongue in amazement.
¡°Young man, you have a remarkable ability, indeed possessing the power to revive the dead. Over there the fire has been lit, and I¡¯ve prepared some braised meat, meat pies, and tea for your consumption. Feel free to help yourself. Now that it¡¯s getting dark, you can stay in my house tonight and leave tomorrow. I need to step out for a while to deliver this pot of flowers to the master¡¯s house, please excuse me.¡±
After speaking, the old man packed the pot of flowers and nts into a basket and carried it out of the door.
Suddenly, only Qin Niu was left alone in the room.
The old man didn¡¯t seem to be afraid of thievery at all.
At first, Qin Niu thought the old man was just a fool with too much money, quite ordinary.
Now he realized that the man was not so simple.
From the old man¡¯s words, he should just be a servant or something of the sort.
The pot of flowers and nts was not the old man¡¯s, but belonged to someone else.
He took off his clothes, wrung them out, and then began to dry them by the fire.
The food prepared on the table seemed to have been hastily bought from a diner.
Under normal circumstances, an average person¡¯s home is unlikely to make braised meat. Because the process isplicated and the technique involved is also quite high.
Ordinary farmwives simply can¡¯t cook this dish well.
It seems that the old man had bought it for him on the spot.
¡°Such a thoughtful person!¡±
The meat pies still retained some warmth.
He was indeed a bit hungry, picked up a piece, and smelled the fragrant aroma.
He swallowed his saliva.
He didn¡¯t immediately start eating but, like a magician, pulled out a bamboo tube and summoned a termite from within, feeding it a small piece of the meat pie.
Nothing unusual happened.
Then he felt confident enough to eat and drink liberally.
After he had eaten his fill and had enough to drink, a noise came from outside.
The courtyard door opened, and a carriage drove in.
It was just a very ordinary carriage, drawn by a yellow-maned horse.
Qin Niu closely watched the movement outside the house.
By then, the clouds had dispersed, and a few stars and a crescent moon appeared in the sky.
The weather in the sixth and seventh months can indeed change quickly.
Two people got out of the carriage.
One was the old man, acting as the coachman.
The other was a man in his thirties who emerged from the back of the carriage. He was d in brocade, with an imposing appearance, a straight nose, and broad ears, clearly not an ordinary person.
These were the only two who came down from the carriage, with no one else.
¡°Where is the person?¡±
¡°He¡¯s inside the house, warming himself by the fire.¡±
¡°You haven¡¯t neglected the guest, have you?¡±
The middle-aged man continued to ask.
¡°I went out and bought braised meat and meat pies, and prepared tea for his consumption.¡±
The old man replied respectfully.
The two of them walked straight into the house.
¡°Young man, this is my master, and he is the true owner of that pot of flowers and nts.¡±
The old man, upon entering, introduced Qin Niu.
¡°Thank you for reviving my flowers and nts. I came here especially to express my gratitude,¡± the gentleman said, bowing to Qin Niu.
¡°You are too kind! To revive an ordinary nt and receive a reward of a hundred taels of silver made me especially curious. Does that nt hold any special significance for you?¡± Qin Niu pondered and could only think of this reason.
It might have been a gift from a friend, or perhaps a treasured object of his parents, and so on.
Otherwise, no one would be willing to spend such an unjust amount of money.
¡°That nt is actually of no particr significance to me, I purposely let it wither to find a true master of cultivation who can revive my other significant medicinal herb.¡±
This revtion from the man made Qin Niu¡¯s eyes widen in surprise.
For just a medicinal herb, was it necessary to make things soplicated?
The people in the city were too roundabout.
¡°Master, you possess the ability to revive the dead. If you are willing to make a move and treat that medicinal herb for me, I am willing to reward you handsomely! Even if you can¡¯t heal it, I will give you ten taels of silver for your troubles. If you can cure it, I am willing to pay a hundred gold.¡±
The man announced a shockingly generous reward.
Chapter 162 - 157 Fang Family Crisis_1
Chapter 162: Chapter 157 Fang Family Crisis_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
¡°Medicinal herbs worth over a thousand taels of patterned silver are probably not thatmon, right?¡±
Upon hearing the other party¡¯s offer, Qin Niu felt not the slightest bit of temptation.
Instead, he keenly sensed that there lurked immense danger.
This young noble was willing to spend a hundred taels of silver to save amon nt, solely to verify whether the person taking up the task really had the ability.
If it was just to test the ability of the person taking up the task, other low-cost methods could have been usedpletely.
The willingness to spend this ¡®unjustified money¡¯ indicated two points.
First, he didn¡¯t care about a hundred taels of silver at all. Perhaps in his eyes, these hundred taels of silver were nothing more than a wen money to ordinary people.
With such financial strength, in ck Tiger City, he would definitely not be a nobody.
Second, this person was extremely cautious. He would rather spend such a sum to test whether the other party really had the healing ability, revealing himself as the true master only after confirmation.
It can also indirectly show that he did not want the sickness of his medicinal nt to be known by outsiders.
If Qin Niu took up the task, wouldn¡¯t they have to kill him to silence him after he healed the nt?
¡°There are actually quite a few medicinal herbs worth a hundred gold. Sir need not worry too much, I havee sincerely to request Sir¡¯s assistance. If Sir agrees, I can present the thousand taels silver note in advance.¡±
The man¡¯s speech was quite slow.
Each word and action exuded the authority of someone who held great power and could easily decide the fate and life or death of others.
While he verbally expressed his sincere request for Qin Niu¡¯s help, he never took the initiative to reveal his own name.
¡°Sorry, I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t take this job. The hundred taels of silver note I previously received will also be returned in full, thank you for your hospitality, farewell.¡±
Qin Niu did not wish to be caught in a hazardous situation.
He needed money, but he would only earn money that he could earn.
With the thousand taels of silver, he could immediately be a newndlord in Jade Stream Town, buy fields, buynd, keep servants, and live a life without concerns for food and clothing.
However, what¡¯s the use of earning it if one has no life to spend? He could earn more but it would be futile.
¡°Master Qin, please wait!¡±
The middle-aged man saw Qin Niu put the hundred taels silver note on the table and walk towards the outside, then immediately called out to stop him.
Just now it was ¡®Sir¡¯ this and ¡®Sir¡¯ that, but now he directly called out Qin Niu¡¯s surname.
This showed that he had long figured out everything about Qin Niu.
This made Qin Niu even more cautious.
It showed that the person was quite deceitful.
¡°Is there something else?¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s brows lifted slightly, already prepared to fight for his life.
Unfortunately, his training in the sh Martial Skill was still short, otherwise, he would have a stronger ability to protect himself against such a strong opponent.
Fortunees with danger.
This was a lesson written in blood by the ancients.
When he first took up the notice, he felt that there were numerous abnormalities in it. He originally thought that relying on his status as an Insect Master and the firstyer of his Acquired Realm cultivation, he could cope with most risks.
Now it seemed that he had overestimated himself.
Before he knew it, he had fallen into a trap set by others.
¡°Master Qin, Young Master Fang might have caused some misunderstandings. There are many things, where Young Master Fang has kept you in the dark, for which I apologize to you here.¡±
While speaking, the middle-aged man actually bowed with cupped hands to Qin Niu with respect.
¡°Young Master!¡±
The old man at the side eximed with surprise, wanting to stop him but not daring to do so.
Qin Niu¡¯s eyes narrowed slightly.
¡°Young Master Fang is making too much of it. You and I are but strangers who met by chance, it¡¯s only natural to conceal some things. Farewell.¡±
All he wanted now was to quickly leave this troubled ce, far away from troubled people.
¡°Master Qin, Young Master Fang swears to heaven that he harbors no intentions of harming you.¡± Young Master Fang¡¯s figure shed, suddenly appearing in front of Qin Niu.
His speed was so fast, like a ghost.
This indicated that his cultivation was much higher than Qin Niu¡¯s.
He probably had also practiced Step-Method Martial Skill. Otherwise, to achieve this speed with cultivation alone, how strong would that have to be?
He might at least have one foot in the door of bing an Immortal Master.
Qin Niu had already reached into his clothes, gripping the handle of his de.
As he hadn¡¯t felt any malice or intent to kill from the other party, he was not in a hurry to draw his Ink de.
Crossing swords would surely harm the harmony.
If the matter could be resolved peacefully, that would be the best.
¡°My young master deliberately concealed that information to protect you! You this young man, really do not know what¡¯s good for you,¡± said the old man by the side, berating him. ¡°Do you know the identity of my young master? To have my young master humble himself to apologize to you, this is already utmost sincerity and kindness.¡±
¡°Young Master Fang, Old Master Huang, since you have brought the matter to this point, then let¡¯s speak inly. With you being so cautious in your actions, if I knew about your medicinal herb, would there be any chance for me to live afterward?¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s face was cold and impassive,pletely unmoved.
Neither of them was a three-year-old child. In the face of absolute interests, even fathers and sons could ughter each other, and siblings could turn on one another directly.
Why should he believe that these two would not silence him by murder?
Only the dead can be relied upon.
¡°As long as Master Qin can revive my family¡¯s medicinal nt, not only will Master Qin face no danger, but he will also receive a reward of a thousand taels of silver, and he can turn to Young Master Fang for help with any future matters,¡± Young Master Fang said earnestly.
¡± What if I can¡¯t save that medicinal herb? Wouldn¡¯t you just kill me to keep your secret forever?¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s words wereced with irony.
While others consider the best-case scenario, he always nned for the worst before counting on sess.
Always prepare for the worst oue.
¡°If it cannot be saved, I still won¡¯t harm Master Qin. However, I will require Master Qin to take a poisonous oath to keep this matter confidential. Originally, if Master Qin had not pressed Mr. Fang to reveal his surname, none of this would have been necessary,¡±
Young Master Fang¡¯s eyes were clear, his tone sincere.
Qin Niu was already somewhat convinced.
The eyes are the windows to the soul; a person can lie, but the eyes, not so easily.
Just moments ago, he found this Young Master Fang to be dishonest about everything, even unwilling to reveal his surname, only to realize he may have misunderstood his good intentions.
¡°Is that herb very important to Young Master Fang?¡±
¡°Yes, extremely. It¡¯s connected to the Fang Family¡¯s fortunes. If our rivals found out about this, it would bring great trouble,¡±
Young Master Fang nodded with honesty.
Hearing this, Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but recall what Xiao Qing had told him.
ck Tiger City houses many great ns that cultivate centuries-old medicinal herbs as strategic reserves, treasures that are not to be underestimated.
These herbs, once refined into pills, have the power to help outstanding n members break through significant cultivation bottlenecks.
When the n¡¯s strongest members face challenges, it helps prevent a period of weakness where there is no sessor.
Even at critical moments, it could help the n¡¯s strongest member reach new heights, breaking through the current bottleneck and thus overpowering rival families.
The problematic herb of the Fang Family must certainly be part of their crucial strategic reserve.
And it is an especially critical one.
Now that it is on the verge of death, the Fang Family is, naturally, in an anxious state.
¡°Is the herb easy to move?¡±
¡°I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s quite difficult. First off, it has very high requirements for the soil and environment. We had a master in our family simte its wild growth conditions to sessfully cultivate it. Given its current condition, there¡¯s a saying: ¡®As people move, they live; as trees move, they die.¡¯ We daren¡¯t touch it. I certainly can¡¯t make this decision on my own. The best course would be local treatment.¡±
¡°Second, it¡¯s nted in a secret ce of our Fang Family, guarded by the family¡¯s masters. Those family masters are of a higher generation than I, and they only follow themands of my father. If I were to take the herb out, they would never consent.¡±
¡°Third, there are many eyes on our Fang Family, including spies from powerful rival families. Inviting you quietly into the family¡¯s secret ce might go unnoticed by them. However, to move the herb elsewhere would require mobilizing forces, with family elites providing an escort. We could never hide that from their watchful eyes.¡±
¡°Therefore, I earnestly request Master Qin to be a guest at our Fang Family and to treat the herb in the secret ce.¡±
¡°I can guarantee with my honor and integrity that, whether it seeds or fails, I will absolutely ensure Master Qin¡¯s safety,¡±
Young Master Fang spoke with urgency, his attitude extremely genuine.
Qin Niu¡¯s gaze flickered as he pondered the risks involved.
The reward of a thousand taels of silver was indeed very tempting.
Don¡¯t be fooled by how he can sell one Giant Green Ho for a hundred and fifty taels of silver; it¡¯s all because rarity creates value.
Selling one or two might work, but selling many would lead to plummeting prices and could even bring fatal trouble.
That old man surnamed Huang was unfathomable and far from benign.
Although he had not shown malice to Qin Niu, out of caution, Qin Niu definitely wanted to keep his distance from Old Master Huang.
With his current abilities, earning a thousand taels of silver was certainly not easy.
This was a significant opportunity.
He was already in the pit Young Master Fang had dug and pulling out was not going to be easy.
Despite Young Master Fang¡¯s current amicable attitude, there was no guarantee that stubborn defiance wouldn¡¯t anger him.
There¡¯s a saying, ¡°Rebuff the toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit.¡±
If Master Qin remains obstinate against polite persuasion, Young Master Fang might well resort to force.
Sons of major families like him are not known for their soft-heartedness.
They can turn on you faster than flipping a page.
¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go with you to have a look,¡±
At this moment, Qin Niu felt one thing profoundly: his own strength was too weak.
Whether the insects he raised or his own cultivation, it was just enough to dominate Shuangfeng Vige.
In ck Tiger City, where dragons and tigersy hidden and great ns stood tall, he was no more significant than a Termite.
¡°Master Qin, please get in the carriage. Your Insect Master Robe is a bit conspicuous, you might need to change into something elseter,¡±
Young Master Fang invited him onto the carriage.
¡°Uncle Heizi, drive us back to the Fang residence,¡±
¡°Alright!¡±
The old man agreed, sat on the coach box, turned the horse around, and after leaving the courtyard and carefully closing the gate, he drove forward.
It was against the rules to move around the city at night, as it could lead to being captured by patrolling soldiers and thrown into jail.
But such rules were meaningless in the presence of Young Master Fang, posing no restriction whatsoever.
The carriage rolled on at a steady pace.
Young Master Fang and Qin Niu sat inside, the former with closed eyes, whether resting or contemting something unknown.
The interior of the carriage was very quiet.
Qin Niu could even hear his own breathing, alongside the rolling sound of the carriage¡¯s wheels.
Chapter 163 - 158: Forbidden Land Small World 1
Chapter 163: Chapter 158: Forbidden Land Small World 1
Trantor: 549690339 |
He dared not carelessly lift the curtain to look outside.
Because it was very easy to cause a misunderstanding.
The fact that the other party hadn¡¯t requested that his eyes be covered was already polite.
The carriage rode through the city for about the time it would take to have a meal before it finally stopped.
¡°Go fetch a set of servant clothes for Master Qin to change into!¡±
Young Master Fang instructed Uncle Heizi outside.
¡°Master Qin, to avoid drawing attention, we have to impose upon you. Please forgive us for any inconvenience.¡±
¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡±
Qin Niu didn¡¯t mind what clothes he wore; what he cared most about was whether he could safely leave the Fang Family when the time came.
Even if he gave up the thousand taels of Silver Money for the sake of his safety, he¡¯d be willing.
It had to be said, the Fang Family¡¯s servant clothing wasn¡¯t bad, made of coarse cloth, but it was very thick and unexpectedly soft andfortable. It was much better than the crude cloth clothes he usually wore.
After he changed into the gray servant attire, Young Master Fang looked him over for a moment.
¡°Shoes have to be changed too, and the hair needs to be done.¡±
He personally helped Qin Niu change his hairstyle.
Uncle Heizi brought a pair of servant¡¯s shoes for him to change into.
¡°Hmm, this should prevent anyone from suspecting you now.¡±
Young Master Fang nodded in satisfaction.
¡°You just need to follow behind me, no need to speak. If any questions need to be answered, I will take care of them.¡±
¡°Understood!¡±
After getting off the carriage, Qin Niu followed behind Young Master Fang, making their way inside.
At this moment, the carriage stopped within the Fang Family mansion.
They got off the carriage and went straight up a corridor.
Even though it was night, the faint starlight and moonlight allowed one to see that the surrounding buildings were very imposing, with dragons and phoenixes carved everywhere, and the roof tiles were all high-quality zed tiles.
Such architecture would not copse for hundreds of years unless there was a fire.
With regr maintenance and care, even a thousand years would pose no significant issues.
Qin Niu secretly marveled at the immense wealth of this top-tier family. His new house in the vige, already the most imposing in his vige, paled inparison to the Fang Family¡¯s architecture.
Everywhere inside were houses, carefully designed and made with extremely high-quality materials, and located in the precious inner citynd.
One dare not even imagine how much money all this cost?
Having seen Old Master Huang¡¯s mansion, he thought it was already quite extravagant.
But now that he was seeing the buildings of the Fang Family, he understood what a true top-tier family was like. It was simply inhumanly extravagant. Inside there was room enough to house thousands of people without issue. Should any enemies invade, with the Fang Family members everywhere, those invaders could easily be captured.
Beyond that, Qin Niu also noticed the hidden guards.
From the moment he got off the carriage, he felt as if someone were watching him.
Arge family that remained standing for a hundred, even a thousand years, naturally had its extraordinary aspects.
As for where those hidden guards were ced, one simply had no idea.
Leading Qin Niu further into the backyard garden,
once again broadened his horizons.
Gorgeous exotic flowers and nts were grown here, a variety of scenic trees as well, and also arge number of unidentified medicinal herbs.
Some of the medicinal herbs emitted an extremely rich medicinal fragrance.
The energy contained within them was also quite astonishing.
Among the medicinal herbs Qin Niu was currently growing, the one with the Broadleaf Paris nt had the strongest energy.
However,pared to the medicinal herbs nted in the Fang Family¡¯s rear garden, I¡¯m afraid I wouldn¡¯t even qualify to carry their shoes.
The key is that these enviable herbs are not one or two in number, but as many as several thousand nts. This is the foundation of a top-tier n!
Their abundant umtion made him feel as if he had lived the past sixteen years in vain.
Today, he truly broadened his horizons and gained a great deal of knowledge. Young Master Fang led Qin Niu to a hidden spot in the rear garden and blew a short, delicate jade flute.
The sound was three long notes followed by a short one, somewhat reminiscent of the call of a cuckoo.
The faux mountain in front rumbled and actually opened a door.
¡°Follow me!¡±
Young Master Fang took the lead and walked ahead, with Qin Niu following closely behind.
The design of the stone door on the faux mountain was very clever. When it was closed, it blended perfectly with the faux mountain.
Once inside, it was as if they had entered another world.
The faux mountain outside acted like a wall, and inside, dozens of medicinal herbs and trees were nted, forming a small world of their own.
As soon as Qin Niu entered, several powerful gazes locked onto him, making him feel as if he were carrying several great mountains on his shoulders, so heavy that he could barely breathe.
¡°This is the master gardener I¡¯ve invited. I beseech you, uncles and grandfather, not to scare our guest.¡±
Young Master Fang quickly gave a respectful greeting to the front left.
Qin Niu looked up and saw that there were five small pavilions there.
Within each pavilion was a stone tform perfectly sized for one person to sit cross-legged and cultivate.
Five elders sat inside the pavilions, seemingly immersed in meditation.
The oppressive feeling he had experienced was caused by the stares of these five individuals.
Under their gaze, he found it strenuous to even move a finger. However, his Ink de, fearless of heaven and earth, trembled slightly, exuding an excitement as if it wanted to drink the blood of men.
If there hadn¡¯t been an outsider present, Qin Niu would definitely scold the Ink de.
Those five elders of the Fang Family were all dreadfully terrifying. The Ink de actually wanted to drink their blood.
It might not fear death, but Qin Niu did.
After Young Master Fang had exined the situation to the five, they all closed their eyes, like old monks falling into deep meditation, and paid no more attention to the outside world.
This also made Qin Niu feel more rxed, as that damned oppressive feeling disappeared.
He also discovered that the refreshing energy here was much denser than the outside world, at least twice as concentrated.
His eyes were drawn to a small tree over two meters tall, bursting with lush foliage, though he didn¡¯t know its name.
Qin Niu had cultivated the Medicine King Sutra, and his skill was fairly deep. Thus, he could clearly sense that this small tree was special.
The energy it contained was extremely formidable. If the Ancient Banyan Tree he had found was a vast ocean of energy, then this small tree¡¯s energy was like a pond in springtime.
Furthermore, there was something magically unique about it. Refreshing energy continuously radiated from the leaves of the small tree, filling this small world.
It was precisely because of this that the refreshing energy in this small world was more than twice as concentrated as the outside world.
Qin Niu, under the Ancient Banyan Tree, often experienced a twentyfold increase in cultivation speed.
As such, he was quite familiar with this kind of refreshing energy and knew its uses.
The five ancestors of the Fang Family cultivated here at a speed more than twice that of the outside world.
They were like fiverge whales, continually siphoning the refreshing energy within this small world. Strangely enough, somehow the small tree managed to just barely maintain a bnce in supply.
That is to say, the speed at which the five of them absorbed the energy was matched by the speed at which the small tree emitted it.
This small tree was definitely not ordinary.
However,pared to Qin Niu¡¯s Ancient Banyan Tree, it seemed quite insignificant.
It only doubled the cultivation speed, whereas his Ancient Banyan Tree could increase it twentyfold.
The two were simply not on the same level.
¡°Master Qin, this is the troubled herb!¡±
Young Master Fang led him to a small medicinal garden, barely five or six square meters in size, and pointed to an herb over a foot tall that was withering, its branches dry and leaves yellow, clearly beginning to wilt.
Chapter 164 - 159 The Problem Has Been Found 1
Chapter 164: Chapter 159 The Problem Has Been Found 1
Trantor: 549690339 ¡ª
It was quite simr to the ordinary medicinal herb he had saved before, its top leaves had withered and ckened, while only the leaves and stems near the root still appeared to hold a trace of vitality.
The soil in which it was nted was ck.
Qin Niu pinched some of the soil to smell it, then brought it close to his eyes for a careful examination.
This type of soil belonged to the y variety, containing acidic humus.
Based on the scent, it wasn¡¯t just the decay of nt leaves and dead branches that could produce such fertilizer. It¡¯s likely that animal carcasses had been buried in the soil and, as they dposed naturally, they enhanced its fertility. Moreover, this process must be quite slow, otherwise the soil¡¯s fertility wouldn¡¯t be so even.
The deeper the fertility seeped into the soil, the milder its nature became. Otherwise, if theposting was done too hastily, it would damage the roots. y soil generally has poor aeration, but after Fang Family¡¯s special preparation, it became not only loose and fertile, with a gentle nature, but also had excellent permeability. What¡¯s more remarkable was its water retention, which was also outstanding.
This allowed it to maintain an ideally optimal level of moisture.
Just from this small handful of soil, one could deduce that the Fang Family kept a top cultivation master.
Also, there was a water storage tank behind this medicinal herb, each about two meters in height, formed from carved ck rock.
There was a slight leakage of water.
In the water, there was a nt that Qin Niu was familiar with, the very same rootless aquatic grass.
He had especially bought two nts of the rootless aquatic grass for the little crow, to ensure it had a good water environment. While practicing the Evesting Spring Technique, he had often moved the broken water vat aside, so that the two rootless aquatic grasses could also benefit from the nourishment.
They were currently growing very well, with a very strong effect on water purification.
At this moment, nted in this ck rock carved water storage tank was a rootless aquatic grass.
However, it looked much stronger than the one Qin Niu was cultivating; it spread its branches and leaves in the water, not only looking very robust but also dispersing its branches throughout the entire water tank. It was continuously purifying the water inside.
He had thought that setting up this water tank was meant for slow drip irrigation for this nearly dead medicinal herb.
But it turned out that two methods of watering were being employed. One waterway was for drip irrigation, while another waterway had a clever pipeline, with the outlet sealed and pricked with some fine holes to create a mist.
When turned on, this mist could cover the entire medicinal herb.
The Fang Family really went to great lengths to take good care of this herb.
Qin Niu closed his eyes and felt carefully; he discovered that although this medicinal herb was about to die, the energy contained within was extremely considerable.
It was like a bundle of hot, raging fires burning intensely.
The energy contained in medicinal herbs could be ssified into four types: cold, cool, warm, and hot.
This medicinal herb belonged to the hot type and was close to scorching hot. His Medicine King Sutra currently could only sense this much, and to further sense other characteristics of the nt, he probably had to wait at least until the Medicine King Sutra¡¯s power reached the Acquired Realm.
Beyond that, he also discovered that the rootless aquatic grass in the water tank contained a considerable amount of cool energy.
It was mixed with a hint of cold aura.
¡°It seems to be a bit different from the energy contained in my rootless aquatic grass!¡± Qin Niu eximed with surprise.
Cold pertains to ice, hot to fire, continuously watering the herb with energy that carries cold air, isn¡¯t that like having both ice and fire?
In fact, he had already felt that the zing energy of the medicinal herb was gradually being suppressed by the watering with cold water.
It was as if a great me was being slowly extinguished.
He wondered whether the cultivation of this medicinal herb was originally supposed to be like this, or if there was a problem with the rootless aquatic grass?
Qin Niu¡¯s Evesting Spring Technique could help the medicinal herb to recover its vitality, but if the root cause was not identified, it would fall into trouble again.
The Fang Family¡¯s reward of a thousand taels was not easily imed.
epting someone¡¯s money binds one to do their bidding faithfully.
He would never dare to take the money without doing the work or to deceive the Fang Family. That would be like courting death.
The five ancestors of the Fang Family were all terrifyingly formidable, able to kill him with just a flick of their finger.
Below them, there were many family experts and employed guards, not to be offended by the current Qin Niu.
Young Master Fang, may I ask how long this medicinal herb has had problems?¡± Qin Niu inquired.
¡°About forty days or so. At first, it was just some spotting on the top tender leaves. As time went on, it gradually worsened, and the spots kept spreading downwards. We thought of many ways to treat it, but none were effective. We could only watch helplessly as it withered away, inch by inch,¡± Young Master Fang replied, his tone filled with helplessness.
As Young Master Fang talked about the medicinal herb, he seemed very helpless.
Before the herb had issues, did its surrounding environment change in any way?¡± Qin Niu continued.
¡°No! Nothing in its facility has changed. Lighting, air, irrigation, soil, even the stones used to build the garden have remained the same. Normally, the soil should be changed every three years, but there¡¯s still over a year left, so it hasn¡¯t been touched,¡± Young Master Fang exined.
Hearing Young Master Fang¡¯s description, Qin Niu¡¯s eyebrows knitted slightly. ¡°Has Master Qin found any anomalies?¡± Young Master Fang, perceptive to nuances, sensed something was amiss.
¡°I don¡¯t know what the previous growth environment of this herb was like. When I inspected it just now, I indeed found something that defiedmon sense, which is why I asked whether the herb¡¯s environment had changed. How long has this rootless aquatic grass been nted here?¡± Qin Niu asked.
¡°For at least two or three hundred years. Has it caused problems?¡± Young Master Fang asked tentatively.
¡°I can¡¯t be sure,¡± Qin Niu replied cautiously, not daring to make a hasty conclusion.
¡°Can we find water grass of a simr age?¡±
¡°We can find ones that are over a hundred years old, but it¡¯s hard to find older ones in a short time. However, just give the Fang Family a few days, and we will certainly be able to get them.¡±
Young Master Fang appeared extremely confident.
This is the power of a great family. They have their ownwork of connections in every aspect and countless people working for the n.
With just onemand, if the whole family¡¯s resources are leveraged, there¡¯s hardly any herb they couldn¡¯t find.
¡°First, bring a hundred-year-old specimen for me to see. I¡¯llpare it, and if this old water grass really has a problem, we¡¯ll rece it. By the way, how is the water supplied? Could there be a problem?¡±
Qin Niu believed that the water grass constantly releasing cold energy was definitely not normal.
¡°The water supply is locally sourced, and direct descendants of our Fang Family are in control, so the likelihood of a problem is infinitesimal. Nheless, since Master Qin mentioned it, I will immediately dispatch someone to secretly investigate.¡±
Young Master Fang was not letting any clue go unnoticed.
¡°If possible, try not to let too many people know. I¡¯m not certain yet whether there¡¯s an issue with this water grass. If there is indeed a problem with it, then there are only two possibilities. Either the water grass has mutated over time, or someone has deliberately tampered with it.¡±
No sooner had Qin Niu finished speaking than he felt the surrounding air turn freezing cold; his body tensed up, and his soul trembled.
All five of the Fang Family¡¯s elders opened their eyes simultaneously.
These five were actually eavesdropping on Qin Niu¡¯s conversation with Young Master Fang while pretending to meditate.
¡°Fang Lian, if you find out that someone has tampered with this herb, remember to keep them alive. I want to see who dares to meddle with the foundations of the Fang Family,¡± a white-haired, shorter elder spoke indifferently to Young Master Fang.
Despite his unimpressive appearance, like a local earth deity, his status among the five Fang Family elders was likely the highest.
Because once he spoke, none of the others said anything further.
¡°Understood! They dare to attack the Fang Family during my father¡¯s seclusion, thinking that I, Fang Lian, am too young to be a threat. If I find out who it is, I will exterminate their entire n to deter others from coveting what belongs to the Fang Family.¡±
Young Master Fang, who looked to be just over thirty, spoke with a chillingly grandiose demeanor.
Wiping out an entire family seemed to him to be as trifling a matter as any. And from his tone, it seemed that he didn¡¯t care which major family within ck Tiger City it was; he would dare to annihte them just the same.
Qin Niu was getting a glimpse into the tip of the iceberg of ck Tiger City¡¯s hidden strength.
Powerful families entrenched within the city were locked in fiercepetition. Without substantial power, one¡¯s life in the city was as insecure as that of an ant.
And this was just the Fang Family, already so powerful. What about the Lu Family, into which Wang Furen dreamed of marrying her daughter? How strong might they be?
Qin Niu had no idea.
He was just a minor character at the moment, not daring to get too involved with those top-tier families that were like huge immovable objects.
Young Master Fang activated the mechanism for the forbidden area, and the stone door opened again.
¡°Guard number one!¡±
¡°Present!¡±
A figure gradually emerged from the darkness.
¡°Bring over a water grass that¡¯s over a hundred years old. Secretly investigate the water supply entering the forbidden area. Keep a close watch on Master Pang¡¯s every move, but for now, don¡¯t alert him¡¡±
Young Master Fang issued a series of orders.
The guard¡¯s figure disappeared.
Before long, a water grass, stored in a bucket, was brought over.
But the guard didn¡¯t dare set foot in the forbidden area, only cing the item at the entrance.
Young Master Fang personally brought it in
And he carefully checked it before bringing it inside.
He made sure there was nothing abnormal before he brought it in.
The herbs and trees cultivated in the forbiddennd were the core high-level strategic resources of the Fang Family.
They could not afford any mishaps.
Having an outsider like Qin Niu brought into the forbiddennd made him extremely uneasy.
In his mind, he had already quickly thought through several life-saving ns. As long as he could escape back to Shuangf eng Vige after leaving ck Tiger City, he would have the means to protect himself. The Ancient Banyan Tree was a natural maze, providing considerable protection.
The only downside was that he couldn¡¯t hide inside it at night.
Because at night, all the living creatures inside would be indiscriminately killed by the tree.
¡°Master Qin, please check if this water grass is normal!¡±
Young Master Fang handed him the bucket.
Qin Niu closed his eyes again, feeling carefully.
The energy contained within this water grass was clearly less, which also indirectly indicated that it was much younger. But the energy was normal, belonging to cool energy, with no trace of cold energy.
¡°This one is normal,¡± Qin Niu said, with only four words.
¡°Could someone really have attacked the most crucial asset of the Fang Family? Despicable.¡±
Young Master Fang¡¯s fists clenched tightly, cracking with tension.
¡°I suggest we rece all the water in this pool and store the reced water in tanks. Then cultivate the normal water grass in there. This way, we can find out if there¡¯s a problem with the pool water.¡±
Qin Niu himself couldn¡¯t be sure where the problemy.
Chapter 165 - 160 Became a Distinguished Guest of the Fang Family_1
Chapter 165: Chapter 160 Became a Distinguished Guest of the Fang Family_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
¡°This matter is easily settled!¡±
Fang Lian promised, taking action personally.
He reced all the water in the pond and cleaned the water pool once more.
The water that was taken out had been secretly stored by his orders and was
nted with normal rootless water grass.
After everything was set, Qin Niu tested the rootless water grass in the pond again, and everything returned to normal.
The drip irrigation and the spray no longer carried that kind of cold energy.
He found that the herb which was on the verge of dying began to slowly show
signs of recovery.
It was worthy of the Fang Family¡¯s high-grade herb that had been carefully nurtured for hundreds of years; its vitality was stronger than imagined.
Qin Niu looked up at the moonlight spilling from the sky and sat down cross- legged next to the herb, beginning to cultivate the Evesting Spring
Technique.
As time passed bit by bit, miraculous changes were happening to the herb in
front of him.
Its vitality was rapidly restoring.
By the time the moonlight faded, Qin Niu was still cultivating with his eyes closed.
Because he found that the mist sprayed out could also achieve the effect of rainwater. It could also allow him to absorb the power of water essence within, and convert it into the power of the Evesting Spring Technique.
This was a great revtion for him.
After a while, he slowly opened his eyes.
The herb in front of him had already regained some vitality; the leaves below its waist had be smooth and full again, and they were starting to turn green.
At the tips of the leaves, new buds could be seen sprouting.
¡°Master Qin, you¡¯re awake! This herb has regained its vitality under your care, and it¡¯s truly heartening to see. Thankyou for your help to our Fang Family.¡±
Young Master Fang addressed him with a ¡®you¡¯.
Only extreme respect and gratitude would invoke such an honorific.
Qin Niu revived the herb, which was equivalent to saving the Fang Family, helping them resolve a significant crisis.
¡°I¡¯m afraid it will have to be treated several more times before it¡¯s fully healed.
For now, it has only begun to regain vitality.¡±
At this moment, Qin Niu wasn¡¯t thinking about the thousand taels of Silver Money as a reward, nor about any credit; instead, he was thinking about how to save his own life.
Because he, a foreigner, had entered the Fang Family¡¯s forbidden area and seen
all their secrets.
No one could guarantee that the Fang Family wouldn¡¯t kill him to silence him.
¡°Might I ask Master Qin to stay a few more days with our Fang Family? Many master nters have tried to save this herb, all to no avail, only you identified the problem and managed to bring it back to life over a single night. You are the true master.¡±
Young Master Fang kept calling him ¡®you¡¯.
His attitude was also extremely respectful.
The five old ancestors of the Fang Family were cultivating with closed eyes, seemingly deaf to the affairs of the outside world.
Qin Niu didn¡¯t buy their act; those five old fellows were probably listening with keen interest.
¡°I dare not im to be a master. I have many matters to attend to at home, I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t be able to stay at the Fang Family. This herb has already regained some of its vitality. Treating it periodically will be sufficient; it doesn¡¯t require daily treatment.¡±
He would never agree to reside in the Fang Family residence.
How foolish it would be to fully heal the herb, only to be disposable once
the Fang Family no longer needed him.
He couldn¡¯t say for certain that the Fang Family would do this.
But one must always guard against others.
He would rather hold the heart of caution at all times than naively y the
gentleman.
Escaping the Fang Family was the best strategy.
¡°That will do, I will send someone to fetch the master when the timees.
Fang Lian didn¡¯t insist on keeping him.
After all, they were still counting on Qin Niu to save the Fang Family¡¯s most important herb.
He naturally didn¡¯t dare to upset Qin Niu.
¡°I have prepared breakfast for Master Qin, please have a meal outside. Later, I will have someone take you away from the Fang Family by carriage.¡±
Fang Lian made a gesture of invitation.
Qin Niu followed out of the Fang Family¡¯s secret grounds, and it was still early morning, just as the day was beginning to dawn.
One could see many of the Fang Family¡¯s servants busily going about their tasks.
Qin Niu was led by Young Master Fang into a room with an elegant environment, furnished with a bed for resting, a dining table, and chairs.
All were high-grade mahogany furniture, the materials so exquisite and the craftsmanship so fine, that they were even superior to the mahogany furniture the Yan Family had given to Qin Niu.
¡°Master Qin has been busy all night, you may first take a bath and change clothes, then have breakfast. After you have rested, I will arrange for someone to send you off. This is the reward I promised Master Qin, and I¡¯ve added an extra five hundred taels as thanks for helping the Fang Family identify the issue with the medicinal herbs.¡±
The sheer amount of fifteen hundred taels of Silver Money made Qin Niu question his life choices.
¡°I merely did a trifling matter, and I simply cannot ept this generous additional gift from Young Master Fang.¡±
Qin Niu returned the silver note for the five hundred taels of Silver Money.
It was hard to let go, but he decisively returned it.
¡°Does the master find it too little? For solving such a big problem for the Fang Family, five hundred taels is indeed not much. I will add another thousand taels for Master Qin then,¡± said Fang Lian, actually pulling out a gold note with a denomination of a hundred taels.
¡°Young Master Fang is truly generous; it seems that I have no choice but to ept this extra generous gift of five hundred taels. I will greedily ept it then, thank you Young Master Fang for the generous reward.¡±
How could Qin Niu dare ept another thousand taels?
Having too much Silver Money would certainly burn his hands.
epting these fifteen hundred taels already meant he had made a fortune.
After Young Master Fang left, two young and beautiful maidservants quickly entered. One carried hot water, and the other brought new clothes.
¡°The Young Head of the Family has instructed us to serve the gentleman with his bath and attire. May we assist you in disrobing now?¡± asked the leading maid in a very gentle voice.
¡°No, no, no, I can manage on my own.¡±
Qin Niu steeled his heart and sent the two beautiful maids away.
Decadence starts with either a singlepse or countless ones.
If he were to ept the services of the two beautiful maids today, get lost in their gentle care and enjoyment, then there would definitely be a second time, a third time.
He dared not indulge himself.
A belief was tightly held in his heart, and that was to seek evesting life.
If he were tovish himself in women¡¯spany and enjoyments with just a bit of cultivation, his spiritual focus would almost certainly be destroyed.
After his bath and changing into clean clothes, he allowed the two beautiful maidservants to enter upon his permission, to take out the dirty clothing, and pour away the used bath water.
They attended to his washing up, then to his breakfast.
One fed him ginseng soup, the other treats, and they wouldn¡¯t be refused. Tears would fall in quick session.
They said they had not served Qin Niu well and would be punishedter on.
It seemed the servants from every household were much the same, without any status to speak of.
Their masters¡¯mands were what they had to obey.
After breakfast, Qin Niu thought of Xiao Qing, who might not have had her meal, and he packed some food in his chest.
The Fang Family had treated him as a distinguished guest, providing him with exceptionally high-quality breakfast.
¡°I am leaving now. Please pass on my farewell to your Young Head of the Family.¡±
¡°The carriage for the master is already prepared, please follow me.¡± Uncle Heizi¡¯s voice came from outside the door.
Qin Niu reflected that if he hadcked restraint before, and dallied with the two beautiful maids, he likely would have been spied upon.
In this Fang Family, eyes were everywhere, and he had to be cautious at all times.
Fortunately, he had developed the habit of being careful and prudent since a young age.
This trip to the city had brought him gains beyond his imagination.
He earned an extra sixteen hundred taels of Silver Money.
The Fang Family was indeed very wealthy, and their actions exceedingly generous.
Chapter 166 - 161: Homeward Heart i
Chapter 166: Chapter 161: Homeward Heart i
Trantor: 549690339 I
With sixteen hundred taels of silver money, if one were to return to the countryside to buynd and live afortable life, they could immediately be a true smallndlord.
Even if an acre of good farnd cost twelve or thirteen taels of silver money, sixteen hundred taels would be enough to buy more than a hundred acres.
Owning more than one hundred acres ofnd is the minimum standard for bing andlord.
So one could only be considered a smallndlord.
As for people like Wang Furen and Xu Zhenchang, who only have a dozen or so acres ofnd and assets of two or three hundred taels of silver money, they are far from beingndlords. At most, they can be called wealthy peasants.
Even so, they surpass more than 99% of the poption.
As long as they manage their affairs steadily and safely, they will have no worries about food and clothing for a lifetime.
Qin Niu hadn¡¯t yet decided how to use the sixteen hundred taels of silver money. After returning, he would definitely need to make a good n, as squandering it all on gluttony and luxury was certainly not an option.
The insect cmity is currently wreaking havoc, and it could easily lead to famine, affecting the value of thend greatly.
If the insect cmity can be stopped in the short term, it would be good.
If it can¡¯t be stopped for a long time, the price ofnd will drop to an infuriatingly low level.
Qin Niu nned to save more money; if the opportunity arose, he wouldn¡¯t mind bing the localndlord. Even if he couldn¡¯t reach the level of the Yan Family, at least he could own over a hundred acres of good farnd.
The carriage traveled at an unhurried pace on the road.
After more than a quarter of an hour, the carriage came to a stop.
¡°Master Qin, please alight here! This is a token that the young head of the family asked me to give you. If you encounter grave danger within the territory of the ck Tiger Gang, you can show this token. Unless the other party ignores our Fang Family, it will surely keep you safe. Also, the next time you enter or leave the Fang mansion, you can use this token for free ess and won¡¯t be subjected to any inspection,¡±
Uncle Heizi handed over a rather hefty silver token to him.
The front bore the words ¡°Guest Retainer of the Fang Family.¡±
On the back, Qin Niu¡¯s name was engraved.
In addition, the token was adorned with many strange patterns. These could be simr to anti-counterfeiting marks.
The token felt like it was made of silver money.
It was possible that other metals were mixed in as well.
Without a word, Young Master Fang had made Qin Niu a guest retainer of the Fang Family, without any discussion.
¡°Please thank Young Master Fang for his generous favor on my behalf!¡±
What else could Qin Niu say?
After receiving it, he carefully stowed the token close to his body.
¡°Take care! Don¡¯t mention your visit to the Fang Family to anyone! Just head out in this direction.¡±
Uncle Heizi said his farewell and quickly drove the carriage away.
The old man might seem ordinary, but being so trusted and relied upon by the young master of the Fang Family, he must be far from simple.
With the guest retainer token from the Fang Family, Qin Niu was essentially under their protection.
Afterward, his safety quotient in ck Tiger City would significantly increase.
As for the countryside, even the Yan Family would definitely not dare to touch him at this point.
Compared to a behemoth like the Fang Family, the Yan Family was likely negligible.
He surveyed his surroundings, finding himself in a somewhat narrow alley, nked by high walls.
There are many residences of wealthy families in the city, withrge houses and courtyards.
For the sake of privacy and safety, they usually build very tall walls to separate themselves from the outside world.
¡°Not sure what part of the city this is? First, I need to find Xiao Qing, then buy some books before hurrying back to Shuangfeng Vige!¡±
Qin Niu followed the direction Uncle Heizi had pointed out and continued to walk forward.
The alley wasn¡¯t very long, and upon exiting, he could see the main street.
¡°This¡ isn¡¯t this the inn where Xiao Qing stays?¡±
Qin Niu was startled, realizing that in ck Tiger City, the Fang Family had eyes and ears everywhere; his every move had long been under their surveince.
Luckily, the Fang Family bore no ill will; otherwise, his slight cunning would have been of no use at all.
¡°Master!¡±
Xiao Qing had been anxiously waiting.
Fearing that Qin Niu wouldn¡¯t want her and would abandon her in the city, she sat at the doorway waiting. Seeing him appear, she rushed over joyfully and clung to Qin Niu¡¯s waist, acting coquettishly.
¡°I¡¯ve finished what I needed to do, take our luggage down, I¡¯ll go pay the bill. We¡¯re going home.¡±
¡°Mmm, I¡¯ll go get it right away!¡±
She scampered off like a bullet towards their room on the second floor.
After settling the ount, Qin Niu took the basket from Xiao Qing¡¯s hands. Suddenly remembering something, he pulled out a few pastries he had taken from the Fang Family.
¡°You haven¡¯t had breakfast yet, have you? I saved a few for you.¡±
Xiao Qing took them and after sniffing them, she immediately drooled with desire.
She examined one of the pastries.
¡°These pastries must be expensive, right? They look so exquisite I¡¯ve seen others selling them in shops for fifty or sixty wen a catty.¡±
¡°Someone else treated me to them, so I actually don¡¯t know the price,¡±
Qin Niu had been preupied with eating while served attentively by two beautiful maids, and he really hadn¡¯t thought about how much the pastries cost.
¡°Mmm¡ it¡¯s so delicious, soft and tasty. The food of these big households is truly different. Thank you, master.¡±
She ate happily.
Walking beside Qin Niu, her little eyes were surveying the entire street.
Qin Niu took her to the book market and bought some books, filling half a basket, and carried it home on his back.
Although all these books were handwritten, they consisted of only general knowledge, the kind that wasmon in the streets, so they weren¡¯t expensive.
Even though he now had more than sixteen hundred taels of silver money, he adhered to the principle of saving where possible when purchasing books.
If there were old books, he wouldn¡¯t buy new ones.
After leaving the city, Qin Niu and Xiao Qing hastened their pace forward.
Xiao Qing lowered her head and bit her lip as she followed behind.
¡°Master¡ may I visit my grandfather¡¯s grave? I¡¯ll just kowtow three times and then leave; I won¡¯t take up too much of your time,¡± she said.
She couldn¡¯t help but make this request, after all.
¡°Aren¡¯t we heading that way already?¡±
Qin Niu knew the route well.
¡°Oh, it does seem like it, thank you, master.¡±
She looked around, and then a smile spread across her face.
The master and servant pair reached the grave, where the tombstone had already been erected.
¡°This is the incense, candles, and paper money I specially bought in the city for you to burn!¡±
Qin Niu took out the items he had purchased for the offering.
¡°Wuwu¡ You are so good to me!¡±
As Xiao Qing took the incense and paper money, she could no longer hold back her tears and was visibly moved.
¡°Now that I have be your only support in this world, naturally, I should treat you well. Besides, your grandfather entrusted you to me in his final moments; it¡¯s only right to take good care of you,¡± he said.
Qin Niu patted her on the head.
¡°Come on, the red candles have been lit; all you need to do is burn the paper money,¡± he instructed.
He lit the incense and candles, cing them on the altar before the grave.
Xiao Qing knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times, also quietly offering prayers to her deceased grandfather, the content of which was unknown.
¡°All right!¡±
Afterpleting the offering, she took one more longing look at the grave before following Qin Niu to leave.
One could feel that her attachment to Qin Niu had grown stronger, bing more intimate.
People are not emotionless like grass and trees; she too was a person with flesh and blood.
Although she was young, she could naturally sense who truly cared for her.
Upon their return to Shuangfeng Vige, everything was as it always was.
The only difference was the day-and-night changes to Qin Niu¡¯s house. The two old mud huts were gone, reced by a grand and majestic mansion.
Green tiles on top of blue bricks, it looked very exquisite and beautiful.
Everything at home remained unchanged.
Even though he did note homest night, still, no one dared to step half a foot into his house.
Xiao Nui was still the same, snoring asleep.
In contrast, the newly acquired little turtle in the fish pond had already adapted to the new environment, swimming and crawling around everywhere. Despite being a Grade Three Diamond Ink Turtle, it was still so timid.
Startled by the noise, it instantly hid at the bottom of the pond, motionless.
Qin Niu shook his head with a smile.
¡°Xiao Qing, go and cut some wild boar meat to throw into the fish pond,¡± he said.
¡°Okay!¡±
She agreed and went inside to cut some meat to feed the Diamond Ink Turtle.
Meanwhile, Qin Niu shouldered the basket and hurried into the mountains.
Arriving in front of the Termite Nest, the Ant Queen was still in the midst of evolution.
Fourth, sensing his presence, crawled out of the nest right away.
Suddenly, a number of Grade Three termites came out of the nest.
All were there to wee their owner.
Qin Niu returned the few termites he carried with him back to the nest.
¡°Master, it seems like you have some bugs on you,¡± Fourth warned.
¡°Bugs?¡±
Qin Niu instinctively checked his body.
Had some bugs crawled onto him when he entered the mountains?
It was possible.
Bugs were everywhere in the mountains, after all.
But he searched his coat and found nothing.
¡°Fourth, where is the bug?¡± Qin Niu asked Fourth.
Chapter 167 - 162: Counterkill_1
Chapter 167: Chapter 162: Counterkill_1
Trantor: 549690339 I
¡°It¡¯s in your hair.¡±
As the words were spoken, Fourth leapt onto Qin Niu¡¯s body.
¡°What kind of insect is it?¡±
Qin Niu patted his hair, but to no avail.
¡°I don¡¯t know, but it feels like it harbors ill will towards you, I¡¯ll go bite it to death.¡±
Fourth quickly crawled towards Qin Niu¡¯s head.
Qin Niu realized something was amiss.
¡°Hold on, I want it alive.¡±
Being an Insect Master himself, once Fourth reminded him that there was an insect lurking on his body, and one with malice no less, Qin Niu could almost be certain that this was no simple matter.
It was very likely someone had sabotaged him.
Havinge into contact with quite a few people in the city, the ones most likely to have tampered with him were the Fang Family and that unfathomable Old Master Huang.
He had to find out who wanted to hurt him.
If it was the Fang Family, he would not go there next time they invited him to treat their medicinal herbs.
Even if he did go, he would be more cautious and prepare for extra contingencies.
Hearing that Qin Niu wanted to catch it alive, Fourth jumped back onto the camphor tree.
Its antennae were pointed at Qin Niu.
This was it using its puppet control ability.
¡°This insect is very strong!¡±
Fourth¡¯s antennae vibrated rapidly, clearly struggling.
Seeing this, Qin Niu was about to call out the Termite Army to help when Fourth suddenly underwent demonization.
Its body instantly became much thicker, and faint ck qi enshrouded it.
A daunting and ferocious aura emanated from its tiny body.
At that moment, Fourth was the very incarnation of a battle-crazed demon.
It gave off an exceptionally vicious vibe.
Moreover, it moved so fast that it was hard for the naked eye to capture, leaving only afterimages.
Too fast.
So this was Fourth¡¯s true strength after demonization.
Qin Niu carefully observed it.
If only he could have a few more white ants as powerful as this.
At this time, Qin Niu felt a sharp pain in his head, as if someone had yanked out a hair.
Fourth wouldn¡¯t attack him.
Could it be that Fourth, having undergone demonization, no longer recognized its kin?
It was indeed a possibility.
Soon, he realized he had misunderstood Fourth.
Although it had entered a state of demonization, it did not fail to recognize its kin.
¡°Master, the insect hase down.¡±
Following the message from Fourth, a lock of hair about three to four inches long, moving eerily, arrived in Qin Niu¡¯s hand.
One could see that it had a sucker on its head, still bearing traces of blood.
The sharp pain in his head just now, as if a strand of hair had been plucked out, was most likely caused by this insect.
It might have been clinging to Qin Niu¡¯s scalp, sucking his blood voraciously.
In such a situation, locating it would have been almost impossible.
Luckily, Fourth was formidable and had detected it immediately.
¡± Who exactly wants to harm me in secret?¡±
Qin Niu looked at the odd insect indistinguishable from a strand of hair and felt a chill.
It was truly impossible to guard against.
He had no clear idea when someone had sabotaged him.
¡°Let¡¯s identify this insect first to see what kind it is.¡±
After trying, he failed to identify it.
Currently, he was only a two-star Insect Identification Master, limited in skill and experience, utterly unable to identify the insect.
There was another approach, which was to subdue it.
But there was one prerequisite: he must ensure that this strange insect had no master.
Someone had gone through great trouble to nt such an insect in his body; they certainly wouldn¡¯t leave one without an owner.
The path of subduing it seemed closed as well.
Qin Niu stared at the insect, pondering strategies to resolve the situation.
He had to find the person working against him in the shadows, or there would be a next time.
The only person proficient in insect control who had dealt with Qin Niu was apparently that Mr. Huang with the surname Huang.
The Fang Family was powerful, and if they wanted to move against Qin Niu, they seemingly had no need for such despicable tactics.
If it really was Old Master Huang who had struck against him, then it meant Qin Niu was marked.
His current predicament was very dangerous.
Selling that Green Giant Corpse Bee for one hundred and fifty pieces of Silver Money, he didn¡¯t expect the money to burn so hot in his hands.
In the future, when selling insects, he must be exceedingly cautious.
¡°Since Fourth can control this insect, why not turn their scheme against them?¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s eyes twinkled as he slowly formted a n to eliminate the enemy.
His life principle was to not cause trouble and to keep as low a profile as possible.
But if someone targeted him, then there was no need for courtesy; kill when necessary.
¡°Fourth, how long can you control this insect?¡±
Qin Niu inquired of Fourth.
¡°At least three days or more. If Master needs it, I canmand the ant colony to control it for as long as you want.¡±
¡°Excellent!¡±
Knowing that Fourth could control it for at least three days gave Qin Niu quite a bit of reassurance.
¡°I¡¯ll go back and make some preparations first, you keep it under control. If anything unexpected happens, and you truly can¡¯t control it anymore, then kill it.¡±
With the powerful Termite Army on standby, there should be no idents.
After returning to the vige, Qin Niu bought a rooster, then tied it up and prepared some other items before going up the mountain.
¡°Fourth, let¡¯s try having ittch onto this rooster.¡±
Following Qin Niu¡¯smand, Fourth manipted the insect to attach itself to the rooster.
The creature¡¯s sucker burrowed into the feathers of the rooster and then began to gorge on its fresh blood like a leech.
Qin Niu took Fourth and some of the Puppet Ants and headed straight for the Ancient Banyan Tree.
He nned to lure the enemy into the maze of the Ancient Banyan Tree and eliminate them effortlessly.
To bait the enemy, he specifically tied up the rooster, dug a hole in the ground, and then ced the rooster in it.
Next to the Ancient Banyan Tree, insects and wild beasts in the mountains would automatically avoid the area.
There was no need to worry about any wild animalsing to eat the rooster.
After preparations were made, Qin Niu, concerned the enemy might be too powerful, had the bee swarm and ant colony ready to fight at any moment.
He was certain the enemy would definitelye looking.
As for when they woulde, that was hard to say.
The likelihood was highest at night.
Even though he had taken down that strange insect, the thought of being targeted by the enemy still left Qin Niu uneasy.
He feared the enemy might harm Xiao Qing at home.
He had to take precautions against this possibility.
Xiao Qing couldn¡¯t sleep at home tonight.
Qin Niu decided to go back to the vige and make some arrangements at home.
Upon arriving outside Wang Furen¡¯s home, he looked up at the window of Wang Wanyan¡¯s boudoir.
¡°Miss Wang, are you home?¡±
¡°I am home! I¡¯ve been wanting to ask you about animal taming for some time now,e have tea at my ce!¡±
Upon hearing Qin Niu¡¯s call, Wang Wanyan immediately opened her window and leaned out.
She was dressed in a white training suit, which was quite thin.
She looked exceptionally beautiful and pure, and her appearance was particrly innocent.
This showed that upon hearing Qin Niu¡¯s call, she hadn¡¯t hesitated, rushing to the window to respond immediately.
This brought a hidden smile to Qin Niu¡¯s heart.
Miss Wang cared so much about him, it seemed likely that she would agree if he were to propose to her.
Now that her father was no longer opposed and she cared so much for Qin Niu, all he needed was to find an appropriate opportunity to send a matchmaker to propose marriage.
But he was in no rush for now.
He nned to grow stronger before considering the matter of marriage.
¡°Could youe over to my ce for a bit, I need your help with something.¡±
Qin Niu was worried about too many prying eyes and the potential leakage of information.
¡°Okay, I¡¯ll change my clothes and be right over. Wait for me, okay?¡±
She agreed readily.
This also indicated that she had deep affection for Qin Niu and trusted him immensely.
Otherwise, how could an unmarried girl casually visit a man¡¯s home?
Qin Niu saw Xiao Qing arranging furniture and cleaning up.
¡°Xiao Qing, those old pieces of furniture can just be thrown in the backyard to be used as firewood! There¡¯s no need to keep them anymore.¡±
They were all old pieces of furniture, roughly made, and wobbly.
Some of the chair armrests had long been broken.
Now that he had risen in status and had money, he naturally wanted to dispose of the old.
¡°Later tonight, you¡¯ll stay at Miss Wang¡¯s ce. Remember, it¡¯s best if people don¡¯t find out when you go over.¡±
Qin Niu told her.
Although puzzled, she nodded in agreement.
She trusted that Qin Niu had his reasons for such arrangements.
¡°All Niu! I¡¯m here!¡±
Wang Wanyan appeared wearing a beautiful dress, clearly wanting to present her best self to Qin Niu.
¡°Wan Yan, I need a favor. I¡¯d like Xiao Qing to stay at your ce for the next few nights, if that¡¯s okay?¡±
Wang Wanyan was taken aback.
¡°What¡¯s this about?¡±
She looked at Qin Niu, a shy expression on her face.
She thought this might be a prelude to Qin Niu proposing marriage, sending his maid over to get familiar with her, so that when he married her, the two could get along harmoniously.
¡°There might be danger at my house tonight. Remember, no matter what noises you hear, do note out to check. I won¡¯t be staying at home either tonight.¡±
Qin Niu feared she might hear something,e out of concern, and end up falling victim to the culprit.
It was crucial to give her a heads up well in advance.
¡°Okay! Just leave Xiao Qing to me, you just focus on staying safe.¡±
She didn¡¯t know why Qin Niu said there would be danger at home, but she had a feeling that he might be hiding from someone.
After arranging everything for Xiao Qing and briefing Wang Wanyan, Qin Niu could rest assured about his household.
The little calf wouldn¡¯t be in any danger.
It was in the midst of evolving, simply lying in the shed and sleeping soundly.
He also visited the Yan Family to tell them that he might not be able to make it due to some urgent matters.
A man¡¯s worth is in his credibility.
Since he had promised to help the Yan Family with their infestation today, he had to give notice now that a change of ns had urred.
With everything settled, Qin Niu now had no more worries and could concentrate on dealing with this unknown enemy.
Back in the mountains, he made a few more arrangements.
He found several hidden spots for concealment and rest.
As dusk fell, the strange insect that had been sucking blood from the rooster began to react.
It extended its tail and started to wave it in the air.
A faint stench wafted through the air, barely noticeable.
Yet, to Qin Niu, the smell was oddly familiar, very simr to the odor of the Corpse Bees in Old Master Huang¡¯s home.
This suggested that the person targeting him was very likely Old Master Huang.
The human heart is deceitful.
Who would have thought that Old Master Huang, who appeared so amiable, could be so malevolent?
If he had wanted to kill Qin Niu, there was a chance to do so during their transaction at the house, but Old Master Huang had not made such a move.
Instead, he was biding his time for a bigger catch.
Chapter 168 - 163: Fight in the Dark l
Chapter 168: Chapter 163: Fight in the Dark l
Trantor: 549690339 |
Not striking face to face, but secretly using a mysterious insect to track and locate Qin Niu, anyone could guess the purpose.
The sole intent was to wipe out Qin Niu¡¯s insects in one fell swoop and seize them all.
¡°Master, this insect seems to be responding to the call of the queen, I can hardly control it!¡±
Fourth alerted Qin Niu.
¡°Use the power of the ant colony to restrain it.¡±
Qin Niu issued the order.
Nowadays, his ant colony could increase by 100 ants a day, and given the chance, he would cultivate new termites punctually every day.
Nearly a hundred special termites could be added daily.
The main issue was that there were too many of them, so the ordinary termites were cultivated in batches, resulting in a certain mortality rate.
To cultivate a hundred ordinary termites into Grade Two special termites, there would always be four or five unfortunate deaths.
This loss was within Qin Niu¡¯s eptable range.
At this moment, following Qin Niu¡¯smand, a hundred special worker ants capable of Spirit Control were thrown into battle. There were Swift Puppet Ants, Lightning Puppet Ants, and leading them were Grade Three Green Scale Puppet Ants.
They were worker ants that had undergone secondary cultivation.
In terms of strength, Grade Three termites were certainly much stronger than Grade Two ones.
For today¡¯s battle, Qin Niu directly mobilized six hundred special worker ants and over four hundred special soldier ants, a super luxurious Termite Army ready to attack.
For an ordinary Insect Master, having a Grade Two insect tomand was already enough to feelcent.
Even for a true Insect Master, a Grade Two insect was also invaluable.
Now, with over a thousand ants of Grade Two and above forming an army, there¡¯s no need to describe how terrifying that might be.
It is estimated that even a Grade Four insect might be instantly torn apart by them.
The previously restless strange insect, once suppressed by a hundred Puppet Ants, instantly became obedient.
¡°If there really is a queen, the main adversary should be showing up soon.¡±
Qin Niu waited patiently.
Now, all he could do was to adapt to the situation as it unfolded.
The sky gradually darkened, the tired birds returned to the woods, and they quieted down.
Qin Niu looked at the Ancient Banyan Tree beside him; it appeared incredibly tranquil in the night. If one didn¡¯t know its terror, it would be almost impossible to spot any abnormalities or dangers from the outside.
As the night fellpletely, the whole mountain seemed to wake up, with the roaring of various beasts rising and falling.
Many nocturnal wild animals, insects, snakes, and rats emerged from their nests.
They roamed about, searching for food.
Qin Niu¡¯s chosen hiding spot was a fairly robust chestnut tree, where he hid, motionless.
The main adversary was still nowhere to be seen.
He wasn¡¯t in a hurry, patiently waiting. Contesting with someone as unfathomable as Old Master Huang, if one lost patience too quickly, it was easy to be wiped out by the opponent.
A pale moon gradually ascended into the sky, and its silvery light bathed the earth, revealing the silhouettes of grass and trees in the moonlight.
The shadows of the trees were faintly discernible on the ground, like so many ghosts.
¡°Master, that queen insect seems to have arrived.¡±
Fourth alerted Qin Niu once more.
All around was very quiet, and there were no sounds to be heard.
After a while, Qin Niu heard a rustling in the vegetation.
It was clearly different from the noise of the wind stirring the trees.
He didn¡¯t focus his gaze in the direction of the sound, because the powerful were very sensitive to being watched. If he kept staring in that direction, he would immediately alert the adversary to his presence.
It could even pinpoint Qin Niu¡¯s hiding spot.
The noise of the vegetation being disturbed wasn¡¯t loud; a shadow more agile than a mountain marten was inching closer to the strange insect¡¯s location.
Qin Niu knew that the crucial moment had arrived.
He dimly saw a ck insect about the thickness of a chopstick, inching forward, bending its body repeatedly.
It must have been tracking by scent.
There was someone following the insect, taking their time but keeping up.
The light was too poor to see the person¡¯s face clearly.
Qin Niu also dared not stare.
¡°No matter where youe from, let¡¯s lure you in first,¡± he thought.
Hemanded the waiting Termite Army, ¡°Take control of that queen and keep it moving forward.¡±
Fourth had already aimed its antennae at the queen.
The Puppet Army within the Termite Army immediately exerted its power in unison.
The queen insect¡¯s body trembled violently; its head suddenly lifted and then split open, transforming into over a hundred ck ¡®strands of hair¡¯. Each ¡®strand¡¯ was actually one of its heads.
Qin Niu¡¯s scalp tingled at the sight.
¡°Master, its level is higher than mine, I can¡¯t control it for long.¡±
Fourth conveyed the message to Qin Niu.
Even with such a vast Termite Army¡¯s help, it could only barely restrain the queen, indicating that the adversary was at least a Grade Four insect.
¡°As long as it can enter the range covered by the banyan tree ahead, that will be enough.¡±
Qin Niu didn¡¯t need to control the queen for long.
Such a powerful insect would probably be very difficult to deal with; it was safer to let it be nutrition for the Ancient Banyan Tree.
Under the control of the ant colony, the queen insect continued to move forward.
Seeing its silhouette gradually disappearing into the range of the Ancient Banyan Tree, Qin Niu breathed a sigh of relief.
The shadow also followed it inside.
Qin Niu felt as if his heart was about to leap out of his throat.
Thankfully, nothing unexpected happened in the end.
The person went directly into the maze of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
¡°Could Old Master Huang have been taken care of so easily?¡±
Qin Niu found everything too smooth.
His consistent caution and suspicion kept him still, watching secretly.
At that moment, a buzzing sound came from the sky.
It was like the noise made by powerful wasps pping their wings.
At night, giant wasps generally do note out.
Because they cannot see.
This meant that it was very likely some other insect.
Qin Niu looked up at the sky and saw two insects as thick as knife handles flying above. Under the moonlight, he could barely make out that their silhouettes resembled those of hos.
Hos this big?
Qin Niu was quite familiar with this mountain region. He had never seen hos of such size before.
Moreover, not only were these two hos extraordinarilyrge, far exceeding ordinary giant wasps, but they also possessed Night Vision. He was almost certain that these two hos were most likely the Corpse Bees raised by Old Master Huang.
They had undergone secretive mutations and evolution, acquiring the ability to see in the dark.
¡°Fourth, do you see those two giant hos in the sky? Look for a chance to lead the ants to knock them down, regardless of life or death.¡±
¡°The distance is too far, we can¡¯t reach them.¡±
The long-range attack capabilities of Fourth and the Termite Army were limited, the further the distance, the weaker the power.
Facing such airborne enemies, they were somewhat powerless.
¡°If it reallyes to it, we¡¯ll have to use the Bee Legion.¡±
He didn¡¯t have many Grade Two bees cultivated at the moment.
Since the Queen Bee hadn¡¯t been evolving for a particrly long time, it took time for the first batch of a hundred bee eggs to hatch, pupate, and mature.
Only about ten Grade Two Worker Bees could be cultivated each day, and sometimes one or two would die from bursting their bodies, so the number of special bee swarms was still very limited.
These two Corpse Bees were much stronger than the green giant hos Qin Niu had been raising.
If he were to have the bees go up against them, the casualties would definitely be extremely heavy.
And his bees did not possess Night Vision.
He was at a disadvantage on all fronts.
To utilize the swarm would only be ast resort.
The main issue was that there had not been enough time for development; the bee swarm¡¯s cultivation was far from sufficient.
It was fine when dealing with ordinary insects.
But faced with an Insect Master as formidable as Old Master Huang, he seemed somewhat at a loss.
The foundation and cumtive effort of the two sides were not on the same level.
The two giant bees, upon losing their target, began to lower their flight altitude, carefully approaching this way for reconnaissance.
They seemed to sense that the Ancient Banyan Tree ahead was extremely dangerous, behaving very cautiously.
When Qin Niu saw their altitude decreasing, he felt a surge of excitement.
¡°Fourth, quicklymand the ants to climb the tree and get ready to knock them down.¡±
The Termite Army silently and swiftly climbed onto the trees to shorten the distance between them and the two Corpse Bees.
Finally, the distance between them was getting closer and closer.
Almost without any warning, one of the Corpse Bees spun twice in the air and fell vertically downwards.
The other was controlled by Fourth.
¡°Master, it¡¯s too strong; we can¡¯t control it for long.¡±
Fourth appeared to be struggling considerably.
¡°The one that fell hasn¡¯t died.¡±
He warned Qin Niu.
¡°Hold on for a moment.¡±
Qin Niu scanned the surroundings and did not find any other figures or movements.
He took out a specially made insect-catching and had Fourth control the Corpse Bee to approach his position.
As it got close, he could already smell the unique stench of rotting corpses, even from two or three meters away.
Qin Niu seized the opportunity, and without any hesitation, heted it in one go.
The bee¡¯s mouthparts were extremely frightening, and it easily bit through the¡¯s threads.
It should be noted that those threads were thickened.
¡°Get inhere!¡±
Qin Niu took off a Bronze Canister from his waist, not very big, just about the size of a normal chopstick holder.
He had specially bought some canisters in town for catching insects.
He never expected that they would actuallye in handy at this moment.
Encased in the Bronze Canister, it still struggled fiercely, wildly biting all around.
But its mouthparts, no matter how strong, couldn¡¯t bite through the smooth inner walls of the Bronze Canister.
¡°Next time, I¡¯ll have to customize a few more thickened Bronze Canisters.¡±
Seeing how fearsome this Corpse Bee was, Qin Niu was shocked to his core.
After capturing this Corpse Bee, he let the ant army kill the other one on the ground that had suffered a heavy blow to its spirit.
In the blink of an eye, the ants killed the Corpse Bee alive.
¡°Don¡¯t eat it; I need it.¡±
The corpse of this Corpse Bee was very useful for cultivating the Ant Queen and the young ants.
Perhaps it could help them evolve.
After all, this was a ¡®premium ingredient.¡¯
He felt that these Corpse Bees were at least Grade Three insects, and they might even have reached Grade Four.
The captured Corpse Bee, although already owned by someone, couldn¡¯t be tamed, but could be kept for crossbreeding with other wasps to cultivate a new bee species.
It did not stay still inside the Bronze Canister, constantly moving about.
Making a rustling noise.
It seemed it wanted to escape.
The foul stench of death wafted from the air holes, making people want to vomit.
¡°Looking at the situation, its master must not be dead. Otherwise, it wouldn¡¯t be in this state.¡±
Qin Niu deduced in his mind.
Chapter 169 - 164: Obtaining the Insect Egg and the Jade Slipi
Chapter 169: Chapter 164: Obtaining the Insect Egg and the Jade Slipi
Trantor: 549690339
Based on his experience and knowledge in controlling insects, Qin Niu knew that if the master died, the insects that had recognized him as their owner were likely to die or be seriously injured as well.
That person had entered the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze some time ago and had never been seen escaping.
It was feared that the chances of misfortune were much greater than those of fortune.
Being killed by the Ancient Banyan Tree was probably just a matter of time.
If that person was Old Master Huang, why send two Corpse Bees to follow him? The person who just went in might not be Old Master Huang.¡± After considering this possibility, Qin Niu stayed motionless in the tree where he was hiding.
One of the Corpse Bees had just been hit by a mental attack from the Termite Army and had plummeted to the ground, but Qin Niu did not climb down the tree to help.
Because he worried that the real Old Master Huang had not died and was instead hiding somewhere close by.
The person who had entered the Ancient Banyan Tree just now was probably just one of Old Master Huang¡¯s subordinates.
Watching that person resolutely follow the insect queen into the maze, looking like a fool, Qin Niu even suspected that the person might be Mu Kuai, who was guarding the gate for Old Master Huang.
Unfortunately, there was no way to go in and check.
He couldn¡¯t take that risk.
What he needed to do now was to continue waiting to see if anyone else woulde.
¡°Master, it seems there is a problem with that strange insect,¡± Fourth alerted Qin Niu.
Due to the distance, the strange insect was as thin as a hair andpletely invisible in the night.
Only the agonized cries of a rooster could be heard.
It seems to have died,¡± Fourth reported again after a while.
¡°Never mind it. Have the ant colony stay hidden and wait for the next wave of enemies to appear,¡± Qin Niuforted the ant colony and stayed still on the tree.
Time slipped away bit by bit.
Until dawn, there was still no sign of any new enemies.
Qin Niu had lurked in this Chou tree all night.
After dawn, he carefully checked the surroundings and found nothing unusual. Still feeling uneasy, he sent out fifty Grade Two bees to patrol the mountain area. Only after finding nothing did he dare to climb down from the Chou tree. First, he used a pottery jar to collect the body of the dead Corpse Bee.
Besides being somewhat heavy, it was also particrly foul-smelling.
Its head had been gnawed off by the Termite Army.
First came the mental attack, then the physical attack; even a strong Grade Four insect like the Corpse Bee could not withstand it.
The Termite Army had managed to capture two Grade Four insects with zero casualties.
This was the true strength of Qin Niu, the Insect Master.
He believed that once the Ant Queenpleted her evolution, his Insect Master strength would increase several times and might even leap an entire level.
After securing the Corpse Bee¡¯s body, he went to check on the rooster.
The rooster¡¯s neck was stretched out straight, and its body had already be stiff.
On its back was found a small puddle of ck, stinky water.
Using a small stick to push away the ck water, Qin Niu unexpectedly discovered an insect egg while examining the wounds on the rooster¡¯s body. It was very small, only about half the size of a sesame seed.
ck.
If his Insect Trace Identification and insect identification skills were not at a high level, he would not have noticed this egg.
Even if seen, it might have been mistaken for a tiny clot of blood.
The wound on the rooster¡¯s back was notrge, just a little bigger than a pinhole. However, the skin around the wound, taking it as the center, was a dark purple color.
It looked quite frightening.
Qin Niu subconsciously touched the back of his own head.
Yesterday, the now-dead strange insect had attached itself to the back of his head, mingling with his hair.
This rooster could not have died for no reason.
I wonder if that strange insect had deadly poison?
He still felt somewhat scared when he thought about it.
If Fourth hadn¡¯t discovered the strange insect hidden on him, would he be the one dead now?
After checking the back of his own head, he didn¡¯t find any problems.
Only the ce where it had attached itself felt a little itchy when touched.
He was somewhat relieved.
When had that insect been ced on him?
When it was attached to his head, he hadn¡¯t felt anything at all.
It was truly impossible to guard against.
¡®The rooster crowed in rm before the strange insect showed abnormal behavior, indicating that the insect might have released some toxins into the rooster¡¯s body right before it died.¡±
Qin Niu spected to himself.
He carefully collected the insect egg and then searched the area thoroughly again, finding nothing.
Why had the strange insect suddenly died when it had been fine before?
There were only two possibilities.
One, the female insect that had entered the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze was killed, causing the strange insect to die as well. The second, the person who entered the Ancient Banyan Tree was the master of the strange insect, and when he died, the insect he had tamed died with him.
It was hard to determine which situation it was.
He carried the dead rooster and walked directly towards the maze beneath the Ancient Banyan Tree.
He deliberately chose a farther spot to avoid running into the person who had entered the day before, in case they hadn¡¯t died.
Upon entering beneath the Ancient Banyan Tree, he could see its branches and leaves were only three meters from the ground, slowly rising.
This Ancient Banyan Tree was particrly magical; its branches would only droop down during the night.
During the daytime, the branches would rise on schedule.
Qin Niu looked around wide-eyed, sweeping his gaze several times, but still didn¡¯t find anyone else.
It seemed the person had been ¡®eaten¡¯ by the Ancient Banyan Tree.
Qin Niu was still somewhat uneasy and began to search around beneath the Ancient Banyan Tree.
Now, the area beneath the Ancient Banyan Tree was as familiar to him as his own backyard.
In fact, it had be Qin Niu¡¯s ¡®backyard¡¯.
He coulde and go as he pleased, practice his skills there, and continually harvest the Banyan Tree Blood and ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± Blood.
What exactly that ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± was, he still didn¡¯t fully understand.
It resembled the legendary bodhi with a thousand eyes, so he named this extremely special small tree the ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree.¡±
Its tree blood was also very interesting; it could help termites evolve abilities like Spirit Control or Mental Attacks.
This was somewhat simr to the Divine Skills of the Buddhist tradition.
Had he known how magical these ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± were, he wouldn¡¯t have cut any down at the beginning.
Fortunately, he hadn¡¯t cut them all down.
Otherwise, the loss would have been too great.
After much effort in searching, he finally made a discovery.
There were several garments and personal belongings on the ground, but the person was gone.
¡°Indeed, it¡¯s the Mu Kuai from Old Master Huang¡¯s house.¡±
Qin Niu vaguely remembered the clothes Mu Kuai wore and recognized them at a nce.
No wonder that dummy blindly followed the strange insect¡¯s mother right into the maze.
Using the Ink de, he pried open the clothes and found a few Silver Pieces and two Silver Ingots. There was no silver note.
He also found a small, very ancient jade slip.
This gave Qin Niu an immense surprise and was unexpected.
Jade slips were absolutely high-level books, used only to record extremely important information, made from expensive jade.
Moreover, as of now, jade slips and bamboo slips had been long phased out.
Paper was the mostmonly used.
A little higher-end might use fabric or animal skins as ¡®paper¡¯.
Chapter 170 - 165 Green Silk Worm_1
Chapter 170: Chapter 165 Green Silk Worm_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
Etching words on bamboo slips is rtively easy, and the crafting process isn¡¯t tooplicated.
Jade slips are made by polishing pieces of jade, and both manufacturing them and etching words on them are much more difficult.
Picking up the jade slip and wiping off the dust, the words etched onto it became clearly visible.
¡°Green Silkworm breeding secret technique!¡±
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but be startled before bing overjoyed.
The Green Silkworm was likely that strange insect that could imperceptiblytch onto his head, hair-like in form and extremely difficult to detect.
The writing on the jade slip was very small, but meticulous and without error.
ncing over it, it recorded the Green Silk Worm¡¯s breeding methods, uses, and its known grades and forms.
The Green Silkworm is born as a Grade Two insect, tiny as a bedbug.
The best time to bind it to a master is during the egg phase.
Its breeding is extremely difficult.
It requires using the body temperature of a human to incubate, which can take as short as a month or as long as several years. During this incubation period, if the eggs get cold, they can easily die.
After sessful hatching, it needs to be fed with the master¡¯s own blood essence.
Moreover, it only consumes fresh human blood.
The fresh blood from a human¡¯s head is most weed by it.
The Green Silkworm is highly poisonous, and in itsrval stage, it cannot control the venom within its body very well, often resulting in the release of toxins while feeding on the master¡¯s blood essence, leading to itching sores and swelling on the master.
The venom of an adult Green Silkworm can be lethal, causing a person¡¯s blood to clot all over the body, ultimately leading to death.
Therefore, its venom has the effect of stopping bleeding.
No wonder the rooster died. Surely, that Green Silkworm injected its venom into the rooster before dying, causing the rooster¡¯s blood to clot and leading to its painful death.
The Green Silkworm reproduces by parthenogenesis, and although reaching Grade Three counts as an adult, it only has the basic ability toy eggs at that stage.
It onlyys one or two eggs before dying.
Many insects have this breeding mechanism.
It¡¯s as if one generation fades, only then giving birth to new life.
It¡¯s precisely because of this mechanism that they can pass on from generation to generation, avoiding extinction.
To be a true female insect, the Green Silkworm needs to reach Grade Four.
At that stage, it has the normal ability toy eggs, but its reproductive capacity is very poor, requiring a feast on the master¡¯s blood essence for one or two months to incubate a single egg.
Afterying eggs, a Grade Four Green Silkworm mother can hatch them on her own and nourish thervae that emerge.
The mother will continue to support them until they reach adulthood.
The weakest Green Silk Worm mothers only track their offspring by scent. As the mother ascends each grade, she gains new abilities.
The owner of the jade slip only bred the Green Silkworm to Grade Seven.
At Grade Four, the mother can track her offspring by scent. Even if the offspring hide at the ends of the world, tens of thousands of miles away from the mother, she can still find them.
This ability is super awesome, equivalent to a modern-day tracker.
As long as ittches onto an enemy undetected, even if they flee to the ends of the earth, they can be pursued and killed.
At Grade Five, through the offspring, it¡¯s possible to eavesdrop on the sounds surrounding thervae.
At Grade Six, it¡¯s possible to see the surroundings through thervae.
At Grade Seven, it can sense the host¡¯s emotional fluctuations and even peer into the host¡¯s thoughts.
ording to the owner of the jade slip¡¯s spection, this is not the ultimate form of the Green Silkworm; it can still be bred and evolve further.
After reading the description of the Green Silk Worm from Grade Two to Grade Seven on the jade slip, Qin Niu was beyond excited.
Gosh, the abilities of the Green Silkworm are simply heaven-defying.
Although it cannot be used for directbat, for eavesdropping on intelligence, monitoring enemies, and pinpointing their location, it¡¯s virtually a ¡°divine tool.¡±
Evolved to Grade Seven, it could even steal the host¡¯s emotional fluctuations and thoughts.
It was even more terrifying than brain-eating insects.
He subconsciously took out the egg to look at it; it wasn¡¯t lost.
He quickly wrapped ityer byyer and then ced it in a bronze canister before feeling at ease.
If such a powerful insect were to be lost, it would be a real pity.
He must find a way to hatch it quickly.
He was willing to feed it his blood essence.
To endure the itchiness and swelling after it fed on his blood essence was a small price to pay.
Compared to its heaven-defying abilities, what was a little suffering?
As long as he sessfully hatches it and breeds it to Grade Four, it will definitely y a major role in the future.
As for breeding it to Grade Seven, Qin Niu dared not aim too high, not even daring to contemte it at this time.
Since the Green Silkwormys eggs before dying, and there were over a hundred offspring on that female worm that the Ancient Banyan Tree had killed, then wouldn¡¯t it haveid hundreds of eggs?
He quickly squatted down and searched carefully.
Unfortunately, he found nothing.
Were even the eggs killed by the Ancient Banyan Tree?
Qin Niu did not rush back to the vige.
He could now basically conclude that Old Master Huang had not died, which posed a great threat.
Mu Kuai and those two Corpse Bees were taken down by Qin Niu, so it was very likely that Old Master Huang himself would take action next time.
Being targeted by such a ruthless character made it hard for him to rest.
At this moment, he could also seek protection from the Fang Family.
The Fang Family would definitely be eager for this.
But he was very clear that this was ast resort. As long as he could cope, he should most definitely not rely on the Fang Family.
A debt owed must eventually be repaid.
The more he received from the Fang Family, the higher the likelihood of bing subordinate to them.
Being a servant to others, this was definitely not the life he wanted.
Even being a king of grass in the countryside was much better than being a wealthy servant in the city.
Under the Ancient Banyan Tree, he cultivated until the afternoon, then he came out of the maze and checked on the bee poption. There were twenty more new bees. He nurtured them on the spot with Banyan Tree Blood.
Even though these bees were still far inferior to the Corpse Bees after cultivation, he didn¡¯t feel inferior.
He believed that Old Master Huang¡¯s Corpse Bees must have be so powerful after many rounds of cultivation.
As long as he seriously summed up experience and learned more about controlling insects, the bees would certainly continue to be cultivated. One day they would surpass the Corpse Bees.
Besides, he hadn¡¯t been raising this swarm of bees forbat in the first ce.
Even the termite nest he was raising wasn¡¯t for fighting.
He preferred to engage in nting and then constantly look for ways to enhance his cultivation level and extend his life.
Currently, he had already broken past a hundred years in age.
This was only a primary goal; his next target was to break through to a lifespan of a thousand years.
After cultivating the bees, he casually took some honey and put it into a basket.
Children all like to eat sweets, so he believed Xiao Qing would be particrly happy to see so much honey.
He arrived at the Ant Nest and there were no abnormalities.
The Ant Queen was still evolving.
He really hoped it would finish evolving soon.
Currently being targeted by a powerful enemy, the stronger his ant colony became, the more power he would have to fight back when facing formidable foes.
It also meant he would be safer.
He hadn¡¯t been willing to feed the corpse of that Corpse Bee to the ordinary worker ants.
Instead, he nned to wait until the Ant Queen finished evolving and then use it to feed the queen.
After all, such good things were hard toe by.
Grade Four insects were already extremely rare.
Even Fourth, being such a rare species and having been cultivated with Banyan Tree Blood and ¡®Thousand Eyes Tree¡¯ Blood, such high-grade sustenance, was still only a Grade Three termite.
It was conceivable how difficult it was to cultivate Grade Four insects.
His calctions were precise, using such scarce resources to cultivate ordinary termites, even if sessful, would only result in one special termite.
If he used it to cultivate the Ant Queen, allowing it to acquire special abilities, then special termites could be continuously produced.
Which would bring greater benefits, is clear at a nce.
After cultivating the newly molted termites into adults, Qin Niu then headed home.
He deliberately chose this time to return home because he was worried about Old Master Huang lurking in the vige waiting for him.
¡°Master Qin, have you been hunting in the mountains again!¡±
Wang Furen walked with his hands behind his back; he should be inspecting the crops he had nted in the field.
¡± I¡¯m just strolling around!¡±
Qin Niu obviously couldn¡¯t tell the truth.
¡°Uncle Wang, there haven¡¯t been any strangers in our vige these past two days, have there?¡±
¡°No, with locust gues everywhere, who has the mood to run around!¡±
¡°That¡¯s true! Recently, I heard that some viins have set their sights on our vige. Tell everyone, if a stranger enters the vige, report to me immediately. And don¡¯t get near that person, they¡¯re all cold-blooded demons.¡±
Qin Niu wasn¡¯t just trying to scare him.
Old Master Huang had a ck heart and ruthless hands; he didn¡¯t need to do the dirty work himself.
A single Corpse Bee could wipe out the entire Shuangfeng Vige.
¡°Where did you get this information? My eyelids have been twitchingtely, oh no, this won¡¯t do, I have to hurry back and warn Wan Yan and the others not to go out recently.¡±
Wang Furen was very timid and feared death.
Once, when someone in the vige contracted an epidemic, Wang Furen shut himself in at home and didn¡¯te out for over a month.
He lived afortable life and didn¡¯t want to die.
When Qin Niu returned home, he carefully observed the ground and other ces and didn¡¯t find signs of intrusion.
Fortunately, he had headed into the mountains soon aftering back from the city.
If he had stayed at home all along, the Green Silkworm would have been undetected, and the Mu Kuai would have surely killed its way into his house at night.
They say a crafty rabbit has three burrows, and Qin Niu started contemting contingency ns for various crises.
¡°Move that swarm of bees to be raised at home?¡±
They could serve as sentinels.
If a stranger invaded, they would soon detect it and warn Qin Niu.
The only drawback of the bees was that they did not work at night.
Because they cannot see.
The vision of the bees was naturally poor, and they couldn¡¯t see anything at night. They could only act as sentinels during the day.
The Diamond Ink Turtle raised in the front yard pond was also a good sentinel.
Perhaps he could also consider learning from Old Master Huang and keep some other insects in the courtyard.
He was certain that Old Master Huang kept many insects in the lotus pond in the front yard, as well as in the grass and on the trees. For an Insect Master, insects could not only serve as sentinels but also as guards, attacking the invaders directly when necessary.
¡°Now that I have reached the first level of the Acquired Realm and the ant colony has grown to a certain size, perhaps it¡¯s time to retrieve the Green Demon¡¯s treasure.¡±
Qin Niu cared deeply about the treasure left by the Green Demon.
With so many formidable insect masters worshipping the Green Demon to such an extent, it indicated there must be something exceptional about him.
¡°Wait until Miaodan Pavilion helps me refine the Beast Core, and after taking it, I raise my cultivation level by a major realm, perhaps I will have a better chance. Both the Ant Queen and Xiao Nui are evolving, and being away from home for many days, I worry something might go wrong with them.¡±
He thought to himself.
Moreover, once the Ant Queen finished evolving, it might be able to produce even more formidable termites, allowing him to cultivate stronger special termites.
It would also make venturing into the mountains where the Green Demon once lived a little safer.
Chapter 171 - 166 When Mother Hen_1
Chapter 171: Chapter 166 When Mother Hen_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
After all, that mountain is home to arge number of special bee colonies bred by the Green Demon.
Though they are merely the discarded products from the breeding process of the Green Demon Bees, they remain incredibly powerful. Qin Niu knew that many who ventured into those woods in search of Green Demon Bees met their unfortunate end at the hands of the wild bees¡¯ Poison Stingers.
¡°Master, you¡¯re back!¡±
Xiao Qing ran over excitedly from Wang Furen¡¯s house.
Wang Wanyan followed behind with a smile on her face.
¡°You don¡¯t know how worried Xiao Qing was about you. She barely sleptst night. She spent most of today crouched by the window, looking outside, hoping for your return.¡±
Wang Wanyan said to Qin Niu.
¡°She has always been this way.¡±
Xiao Qing had long regarded Qin Niu as her only support. After returning from the city this time, her trust in and fondness for Qin Niu had deepened, treating him as her only family.
She was still young and couldn¡¯t help feeling uneasy when Qin Niu had not returned home by nightfall.
¡°Xiao Qing didn¡¯t cause any trouble in your ce yesterday, did she?¡±
¡°She was very good, helping me clean and organize the room. I am really envious that you have such a good servant girl. My father once thought of buying me a servant girl, but I was worried about the expenses and didn¡¯t agree. But it would be nice to buy one if I earn money in the future!¡±
Wang Wanyan was very affectionate towards Xiao Qing.
¡°Sister Wanyan, if you marry my master, I¡¯ll be your servant girl! Then you won¡¯t need to buy another one.¡±
Xiao Qing¡¯s idea was tinged with a child¡¯s innocence.
A single careless remark suddenly made the atmosphere turn somewhat chilly.
Wang Wanyan¡¯s pretty face blushed, and she stole nces at Qin Niu.
¡°Sister Wanyan, such a beautiful and outstanding girl like you would never fancy a country bumpkin like me! Child, don¡¯t talk nonsense in the future.¡±
Qin Niu chided Xiao Qing.
¡°Not at all! In Sister Wanyan¡¯s room, there is a drawing of¡¡±
¡°Xiao Qing, you must not tell your master about that. You promised.¡±
¡°Oh, I almost let it slip!¡±
Xiao Qing quickly covered her mouth.
¡°Um¡ my father seemed to have something for me just now. I¡¯m heading back. Ah Niu, when you have time, can you teach me how to tame beasts? I¡¯ve tamed our cat, but I don¡¯t know how to interact and cultivate it.¡±
Wang Wanyan¡¯s pretty face had turned red all the way to the base of her neck, making her look even more beautiful.
Watching her, Qin Niu¡¯s gaze was fixed.
It wasn¡¯t until she hurriedly walked out of the courtyard that Qin Niu came to his senses.
¡°I¡¯lle to your house in a couple of days. I¡¯m afraid of causing you trouble right now.¡±
Qin Niu called out to her retreating figure.
¡°Mitin!¡±
She didn¡¯t dare to stop or to look at Qin Niu.
All she wanted was to flee quickly, to avoid the awkward situation.
¡°Thank you for taking care of Xiao Qing for me. May I trouble you with her again tonight?¡±
¡°Mhm!¡±
She still didn¡¯t turn around, but her body paused momentarily.
Inwardly, Qin Niu guessed that Xiao Qing must have seen some secret while helping her tidy up the room.
What could she be drawing? Cowherd and the Weaving Maid, or mandarin ducks? Or perhaps a pair of lovebirds?
A girl¡¯s mind is the mostplex.
A woman¡¯s heart is as unfathomable as the ocean¡¯s depths; nobody knows what they truly think.
She was unlike an ordinary girl¡ªhaving read various books since childhood and possessing strong convictions, her expectations for love were surely higher.
That evening, Qin Niu didn¡¯t go into the mountains but took Xiao Qing to Miss Wang¡¯s house before leaping onto the roof.
He sat cross-legged atop the roof, practicing the Evesting Spring Technique.
The Pork of the Pig King had worked well, being that of a demonic beast, it contained considerable energy. After consuming it, his body absorbed the energy within. When he practiced the Evesting Spring Technique, they transformed into the technique¡¯s power.
However, the power of the Medicine King Sutra only grew through the absorption of medicinal qi.
No other method was effective.
Eating copious amounts of the Corpse King¡¯s flesh did not increase the potency of his Medicine King Sutra by even a little bit.
He felt that the Medicine King Sutra was very special, likely created solely for the purpose of refining and identifying medicines.
There were no incidents throughout the night.
It seemed that after taking down Mu Kuai, the Green Silkworm, and the two Corpse Bees, Old Master Huang temporarily lost his target.
However, even so, Qin Niu still did not dare to be careless.
He took out a low-grade Talisman, bit his fingertip, activated the Talisman, and then attempted to subdue one of the Corpse Bees.
The golden light that emanated from the Talisman upon approaching the Corpse Bee was directly repelled.
A faint golden light appeared on the surface of the Corpse Bee.
This indicated that it had already been imed by someone, owned and bound.
Such insects or animals could not be tamed.
Adhering to the principle of not wasting, Qin Niu¡¯s gaze turned to the egg of the Green Silk Worm.
The golden light from the Talisman shot towards the insect egg.
This time, it was sessful.
The golden light entered the insect egg as if into a bottomless pit, causing not even a ripple of disturbance.
He knew what this meant.
It meant the egg he had subdued was of a higher grade than Grade One.
The prior consumption of a low-grade Talisman was merely a test to see if the Corpse Bee had already been imed.
Now that it was confirmed to be imed, it indicated that Old Master Huang had established a direct connection with it.
The day before yesterday, killing that Corpse Bee must have certainly caused some spirit damage to Old Master Huang.
The other party now knew that Qin Niu was capable of handling Grade Four Corpse Bees.
¡°Old Master Huang didn¡¯te to seek vengeancest night, either because he couldn¡¯t find the location, or because his soul was wounded, or maybe he realized that the Mu Kuai and Corpse Bees he sent out had been killed, so he didn¡¯t dare to make any reckless moves,¡± Qin Niu thought to himself with a touch of enlightenment.
A mid-grade Contractual Talisman in his hand was activated, transforming into golden light that entered the insect egg, smaller than a sesame seed.
This time, there was finally a bit of a reaction.
After a moment, a wisp of faint golden light shot out, entering Qin Niu¡¯s forehead.
Fortunately, this Green Silk Worm was still in the egg stage and had almost no consciousness to resist. Therefore, the entire taming process went exceptionally smoothly.
Green Silkworm (Egg)
Grade: Grade Two, Cephalopodic Ringworms, experience towards the next level o/iooo
Lifespan: Infinite
Energy: 1
Skills: None
Talent: Parasitism
Currently, it is still in the egg stage, and its abilities are in a state of the unknown.
It is only after it sessfully hatches that we will know what skills it possesses.
As for talent, it may change as the insect continuously advances in grade.
Sometimes, when insects advance in grade, they may lose their original talent.
But most often, insects acquire new talents upon advancing in grade.
If an Insect Master¡¯s insect loses its talent during the process of advancement, they can only consider it bad luck.
However, this isn¡¯t necessarily a bad thing.
Because when an insect evolves, the loss of a talent may be in exchange for bing stronger. Often, the lost talent conflicts with new capabilities, and the insect makes a choice to discard the talent in order to gain more powerful skills.
Qin Niu, having sessfully imed this Green Silkworm, was filled with endless anticipation and joy.
The next step was to keep it close to his body and use his body heat to incubate it.
Being an Insect Master is truly not easy, feeling now like a mother hen that has to incubate this egg. He also had to be constantly alert to avoid letting it get cold.
¡°I hope it can hatch soon.¡±
ording to the scriptures on the jade slip, at best it only takes about a month to hatch, but if it¡¯s slow, then it¡¯s a bit tragic, possibly taking several years.
The main concern is that it¡¯s so small that it¡¯s prone to getting lost.
Chapter 172 - 167 Yan Family in Urgent Trouble 1
Chapter 172: Chapter 167 Yan Family in Urgent Trouble 1
Trantor: 549690339 |
Having dealt with the Green Silkworm eggs, Qin Niu¡¯s gaze couldn¡¯t help but turn once more to the bronze canister that imprisoned the Corpse Bee.
It was extremely agitated inside, climbing and biting everywhere in a frenzy, with its ck Poison Stinger stabbing wildly.
Being stung by it would likely cost one half their life immediately.
It could even result in instantaneous death.
One must know, it emitted a foul stench like that of rotting corpses, and it was very likely that it fed on such carrion regrly. The probability that its body contained corpse poison was extremely high.
The venom of an ordinary ho was already formidable, and the venom of the Corpse Bee would only be more terrifying.
Since it couldn¡¯t be tamed, the only option was to find a way to extract its other values.
It had a Poison Stinger, indicating it was a female bee.
More precisely, it was an undeveloped female worker bee.
Old Master Huang certainly wouldn¡¯t be foolish enough to send out the Queen Bee.
Its utilitarian valuey in finding a way to make ity eggs, and then hatching its progeny. The eggs produced by a worker bee were unfertilized, so only male bees could hatch from them.
This was very simr to honey bees.
The male bees, aside from eating, drinking, and frolicking, were nearly useless; their sole purpose was to mate.
Under normal circumstances, even if Qin Niu caught this Corpse Bee, it wouldn¡¯t be of much use.
Because it wouldn¡¯t obedientlyy eggs at hismand.
These creatures, once bonded by contract, had extremely strong wills to resist; they would rather die than yield to maniption or inducement.
But Qin Niu had a special Termite unit at his disposal, which was the Puppet Ants.
He could control this Corpse Bee using the Puppet Ants, making ity bee eggs.
He nned to have the termites handle this task upon heading up the mountain.
The sky gradually brightened, and Xiao Qing returned as well.
Like a diligent little honeybee, she began to busily cook and clean.
Qin Niu washed up inside the house, hearing the sound of a carriage driving rapidly outside and then stopping at his doorstep.
¡°Darn, that Old Master Huang is probably here,¡± he feared.
He immediately took out his Ink de and hid it on his person.
Hopefully, Old Master Huang¡¯s most powerful methods revolved around insects, and his own cultivation wasn¡¯t very strong.
¡°Master Qin, may I ask if you are home?¡±
The shout of Steward Yan Qi came from outside the house.
Qin Niu breathed a sigh of relief, and his tense nerves rxed considerably.
¡°Xiao Qing, go open the door for the guest,¡± he instructed.
Soon, Steward Yan Qi entered.
Carrying some gifts.
Anyone slightly aware of social etiquette would bring along a small gift when visiting friends or leaders.
¡± What brings Steward Yan Qi to my ce today? Please, have a seat!¡±
¡°Alt, the locust gue has been getting worse and worse, and we can¡¯t seem to stop it; our entire Yan Family is anxious. The two Insect Masters we hired are limited in their abilities and are gradually getting overwhelmed. The Young Master of the Yan Family is so distressed that he can¡¯t eat or sleep, and he sent me to see if you coulde today to help our Yan Family deal with the locusts. Now, everyone especially envies the vigers of Shuangfeng Vige; this ce is like a pristinend, unaffected by the gue.
Lord Yan has mentioned several times that it would be great if the Yan Family also had an Insect Master as powerful as Master Qin.¡±
Steward Yan Qi looked at the young man before him with mixed feelings.
He had watched Qin Niu grow up.
Later, the young man¡¯s fortunes soared as he became a respected Insect Master.
In the past, he considered himself an inspirational figure, a role model among the young, the pinnacle among servants.
Butpared to Qin Niu, he was nothing.
¡°I can understand the Yan Family¡¯s difficulties and anxiety, and I deeply empathize with your family¡¯s situation. This evening, I will be there on time to help the Yan Family with pest control. Just have someone direct me to prioritize which fields need cleaning,¡± Qin Niu promptly agreed.
To bite the hand that feeds one is ungrateful, and to not repay one who has supported you is stingy.
The Yan Family had just delivered several sets of valuable furniture to him, and now that they were facing a catastrophe, it would be wrong for him to stand by idly.
Going to the Yan Family¡¯s fields to eliminate pests at night would provide a good excuse to avoid Old Master Huang, and it could also earn him some money.
At the same time, he could repay some of the Yan Family¡¯s kindness.
This was indeed killing several birds with one stone.
After receiving a definite answer, Yan Qi happily went back to report.
After breakfast, Qin Niu went up the mountain with the Corpse Bee.
Being a Grade Four insect, Fourth would have a hard time controlling it alone for long. He could only rely on the power of the Termite Army to aplish this task.
¡°Your only task is to find a way to make ity eggs,¡± Qin Niumanded the ant colony, and then left them to it.
With the Corpse Bee confined in the bronze canister, there was no need to worry about it escaping.
It had a set mechanism for entering the eggying phase, and it wasn¡¯t something that could happen in a day.
Since he needed Fourth to act as the generalmander, and he was also concerned that Old Master Huang might track him down through something like the scent of the Corpse Bee, he dared not just leave it unattended.
He personally stayed nearby, chopping down trees and practicing his de Technique.
He was also stocking up on some dry wood for the winter.
The ever-present threat of being hunted down by Old Master Huang also forced him to work hard to improve his self-preservation abilities.
The sh Martial Skill and Sweeping Martial Technique were both very practical moves.
If he could improve them, Qin Niu would have a better chance of facing Old Master Huang.
He kept busy until the sun began to sink in the west.
Qin Niu checked the time and realized it was about right, so he went to the ce where he kept the Corpse Bee, whichy motionless inside the bronze canister.
Seeing this familiar scene, Qin Niu felt a surge of quiet tion.
This was a sign thatying eggs was imminent.
From activating the eggying mechanism toying the bee eggs, it would take about a week.
¡°I must guard against Old Master Huang following the trace of this Corpse Bee to my door. cing it near the Ancient Banyan Tree might be a good idea.¡±
No real man is untouched by poison.
Qin Niu knew that this Corpse Bee could likely release pheromones like amon wasp, attracting other Corpse Bees.
By then, Old Master Huang might be able to trace it here.
cing it near the Ancient Banyan Tree would confuse Old Master Huang if he wasn¡¯t familiar with the terrain and could easily be led astray.
However, this man was also an Insect Master with unfathomable strength.
Even if trapped within the banyan tree¡¯s maze, he could find his way out by letting insects lead the way, just as Qin Niu had done.
This was a possibility Qin Niu had to consider.
The Ancient Banyan Tree was his greatest treasure at the moment, and he definitely didn¡¯t want anyone else to get their hands on it.
¡°If he really doese, then let¡¯s fight. As long as I exterminate his insects, he naturally won¡¯t be able to leave.¡±
A cold light shed in Qin Niu¡¯s eyes.
This mountain region had now be his personal domain, and with a bit more time, he would be able to arrange even more insects.
He chose a rather tall tree next to the Ancient Banyan Tree, dug a hole, and hid the bronze canister inside.
After finishing all this, he took arge number of termites down the mountain, preparing to help the Yan Family eradicate locusts at night.
As soon as he got home, he saw a familiar carriage stopped in front of Wang Furen¡¯s house.
It was Steward Yan Qi¡¯s carriage.
¡°Master Qin, our Young Master of the Yan Family has sent me to fetch you. We¡¯ve prepared a dinner and are just waiting for you to join us.¡±
The Yan Family was in dire straits, burning with urgency.
Otherwise, they wouldn¡¯t be so ¡®enthusiastic¡¯.
¡°Alright, I¡¯ll put my things away and join you immediately.¡±
After putting his things away, Qin Niu boarded Steward Yan Qi¡¯s carriage.
On the way, locusts could be seen rampaging everywhere, but not yet in a dense mass.
Perhaps the two Insect Masters hired by the Yan Family had yed a role, holding back most of the locust invasion.
The disaster in Daoyuan Vige was also mostly under control.
Actually, as long as the mass migration of the Locust Army could be blocked, the infestation could be controlled.
The three thousand ducks Qin Niu lent to Daoyuan Vige were living happily, now visibly fatter andrger than a few days before.
Their plumage was bing lush.
Feasting on a plentiful supply of nutritious locusts every day, how could they not grow fast?
Seeing this trend, if he let them feast like this for about another half month, Qin Niu could consider selling them for a good price.
The carriage gradually approached the Yan Family¡¯s territory, where from afar, arge cluster of buildings could be seen ¨C that was the Yan Familypound.
The innermost buildings were inhabited by the direct lineage of the Yan Family, while the outer ones housed the side branches and servants. Thisyout had a significant advantage: if an enemy invaded, the perimeter would make contact first and immediately sound the rm.
The Yan Family could then organize forces to exterminate the intruders.
Don¡¯t think this world is at peace; there are plenty of greenwood heroes who engage in banditry and robbery.
They typically target the wealthy for their crimes.
Wealthy individuals with a bit more power will hire Protectors.
It¡¯s not the thieves that you fear, but their continual scheming.
Many of these robbers would buy off lookouts in the viges to keep a close watch on every move made by thendlords. As soon as an opportunity arose, the bandits would spring into action.
¡°On my way here, I didn¡¯t see too many locusts, which implies the Yan Family has gotten the locust disaster under control! Why are they in such a hurry then?¡±
Qin Niu asked inquisitively to Steward Yan Qi.
¡°Alt, that¡¯s just the surface. Now we can see tiny grasshoppers hatching everywhere in the fields, and I¡¯m afraid lots of eggs have beenid in the soil. Once they hatch in batches, an internal and external attack willmence, and the insect defense lines established by the two Insect Masters will copse immediately, putting the Yan Family¡¯s crops in danger.¡±
Steward Yan Qi spoke with a worried tone.
As a high-ranking servant of the Yan Family, his own well-being would certainly be adversely affected if misfortune befell the family.
Qin Niu had originally thought the Yan Family¡¯s crops had been devastated by the locusts.
Now, after seeing the situation firsthand, he gained a new understanding of the self-preservation capabilities of such arge family.
Despite days of disaster, the crops the Yan Family nted had suffered only minor damage.
Thinking about it, they had twelve top-ss farmers being supported. They would have surely reported the initial outbreak of the locust disaster to Yan Ruohai at the earliest opportunity. Afterward, a series of preventative measures would have been taken to ensure crop safety.
Moreover, the Yan Family was deep-rooted and extensive, with many n members entering various professions within the ck Tiger Gang or ck Tiger City, making them far more informed than ordinary people.
Steward Yan Qi had warned Qin Niu early on to be wary of an insect disaster this year.
Once the Yan Family learned of locust disasters urring elsewhere, they would inevitably prepare immediately, stocking up on insect repellent materials, medicines, and the like.
The carriage drove through the Yan Familypound and stopped in front of the weing building.
It was a grand mansion the Yan Family had built specifically for hosting guests.
It also helped keep guests from entering deeper into the Yan Familypound, preventing outsiders from prying into the internalyout and secrets of the family.
¡°Haha, we¡¯ve finally waited for Master Qin! We¡¯ve prepared a modest meal and light wine and hope Master Qin won¡¯t think too little of it.¡±
The Young Master of the Yan Family personally came out to wee.
A few people were already seated at the banquet.
Among them were two individuals dressed in the robes of Insect Masters, likely the ones the Yan Family had invited from the city.
Chapter 173 - 168 Arrogant Ignorance? _1
Chapter 173: Chapter 168 Arrogant Ignorance? _1
Trantor: 549690339 |
The one seated at the upper left, with darker skin and a slender figure, had distinctly prominent cheekbones. His face was clean-shaven, and he appeared to be about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. Quite young.
To the right sat a middle-aged man in his forties, with three tufts of a beautiful beard fluttering across his chest, and a rather square-looking face.
It was just that his nose was exceptionallyrge, and somewhat pointed¡ªit was the often-mentioned hawk nose.
Under normal circumstances, a hawk nose tends to be on the smaller side, but this man¡¯s was quite the opposite, with veryrge nostrils and a thick nose.
From the perspective of physiognomy, people withrge earlobes are often considered fortunate, whereas those withrge noses are thought to be hot- tempered and aggressive by nature.
This man¡¯s eyes also spoke volumes, with a murky yellow gleam that was fierce.
By the sides of both Insect Masters were young and beautiful maids apanying them.
They were unapologetically embracing the maids and constantly emitting teasingughter.
Seeing such a scene, Qin Niu slightly furrowed his brows.
In the upper circles nowadays, there was a peculiar phenomenon¡ªno joy without women.
Just like when Qin Niu visited the Fang Family, two young maids around the age of seventeen or eighteen were in attendance to serve him a pleasurable bath. From the looks of it, they were willing to do anything as long as Qin Niu was inclined.
This was also the sadness of being a servant, with no dignity to speak of, their fates directly in the hands of their masters.
¡°Let me introduce you to the masters. This is Master Qin Niu.¡±
The two Insect Masters merely nced at Qin Niu indifferently and nodded slightly, their attitude extremely arrogant.
¡°This is Master Shi Doudan.¡±
The young heir of the Yan Family made a symbolic gesture with his right hand, pointing to the hawk-nosed Insect Master.
¡°I have seen Master Shi.¡±
Qin Niu, however, was exceptionally humble.
¡°This is Master Mo Sang! Don¡¯t be fooled by his age, not yet thirty, but he already possesses strength close to that of a Middle-rank Insect Master, and he holds considerable prestige within the Insect Master Association. Our Yan Family also relied on connections, and it was not easy to invite Master Mo Sang over.¡±
The young heir of the Yan Family introduced the dark-skinned young Insect Master with great importance.
The fact that the host introduced the other so ceremoniously was also a way to emphasize the Insect Master¡¯s status.
¡°I have seen Master Mo!¡±
Qin Niu gave a slight bow to the other party.
Looking at the robes of these two individuals, they were both merely low-rank Insect Masters, sharing the same status as Qin Niu.
Seeing that Qin Niu was only a youth, they looked down upon him, which was actually very superficial.
Qin Niu¡¯s ant colony could easily deal with Grade Four insects.
You should know that anyone with Grade Four insects has at least one foot in the threshold of bing a Middle-rank Insect Master.
As long as the insects being raised are not too disappointing, and the Insect Master is not ridiculously poor in the most basic Insect Master skill of ¡®Insect Speech¡¯, they basically can pass the assessment for Middle-rank Insect Masters.
The assessment for Insect Masters is based on two criteria: the level of the insects an Insect Master raises and whether they are strong, and the skill level of the Insect Master himself.
The most fundamental ability in controlling insects is ¡°Insect Speech¡±.
If an Insect Master can¡¯t evenmunicate with their raised insects, there¡¯s a good nine out of ten chance they¡¯re ipetent.
As for the level of the raised insects, that also indirectly reflects the strength of the Insect Master.
Ordinary people simply cannotmand insects of Grade Three or higher.
Strictly speaking, an insect that reaches Grade Three is more powerful than the average person.
For an ordinary person tomand such an insect is like expecting an infant to lift a heavy object, simply impossible.
Furthermore, the higher the level of the insect, the stronger the Insect Master¡¯s breeding capabilities are.
Therefore, the assessment for Insect Masters consists only of insect level and Insect Master skills.
This considerably introduced Master Mo Sang, who was not yet a Middle-rank Insect Master, which meant his raised insects were at most Grade Four.
His strength was not evenparable to Qin Niu¡¯s.
Qin Niu gave a polite bow to the other party, a sign of his consistent humility and low profile.
¡°Don¡¯t be polite, sit down!¡±
Master Mo Sang, while embracing a girl and eating the fruit she fed him, said to Qin Niu with a muffled voice.
This is a very disrespectful behavior.
It appears extremely arrogant.
¡°Master Qin, please take a seat!¡±
The eldest son of the Fang Family was very polite to Qin Niu, but he clearly relied more on the other two Insect Masters.
¡°Serve the dishes!¡±
Following the removal of the fruit tter and rted items, the formal meal began.
During the feast, the two Insect Masters continued to enjoy various pleasures, jesting nonstop with the girls in their embrace.
Fine wines, gourmet foods, and beautiful women; they weed it all.
Currently dependent on them for pest control, the Yan family naturally provided high-standard hospitality.
With two ps of his hands from the Yan family¡¯s eldest son, five or six shapely and beautiful servant girls entered, dressed simrly to those attending the Insect Masters. They were all in rtively tight pink clothes.
Servants usually don¡¯t wear skirts, mostly this type of short shirts.
Ordinary servant girls wore gray short shirts, but somendlords, wishing to please the eye, allowed young maids to wear white short shirts.
¡°Master Qin, these servant girls are high-grade servants trained by our Yan family, skilled in singing and dancing. If you see one you like, you can choose her. Tonight, after you¡¯ve worked hard for our Yan family with the pest control, you can have her apany you for a pleasant night,¡± said the eldest son of the Yan Family with a smile.
¡°Thank you, Young Master Yan, for your kind offer; I am grateful. Going to the fields to control pests, the night cold and morning dew are heavy, and the ground is covered with mud. I wouldn¡¯t dare to let these delicate girls suffer with me. After dinner, I will go to the fields to take care of the pests. If nothing speciales up, I will be here on time for the next few days to deal with the pests.¡±
Qin Niu didn¡¯tck interest in such pleasures, but he very much kept his desires in check.
Despite howfortable the two Insect Masters across seemed, their pursuit of pleasure could easily hinder their progress.
When ites down to it, whether one¡¯s resolve is firm depends entirely on oneself.
¡°You may leave now!¡±
Seeing Qin Niu¡¯s firm stance, the Yan family¡¯s eldest son waved his hand to dismiss the servant girls.
¡°Currently, our Yan family¡¯s farnd spans over six hundred acres that need guarding. Master Mo Sang excels in defense, and he, together with Master Shi, guards a line each to prevent locusts from entering our Yan family¡¯s farnd. We¡¯ve already tried to employ chickens and ducks in the fields to help eliminate pests. However, due to the vastness of the ground and the limited number of chickens and ducks, the efficiency of pest removal is limited.
Moreover, the results are not ideal.
The locusts are very cunning and take advantage of the night, when the chickens and ducks cannot see, to secretlyy eggs on the ground.
Then during the day, they fly to the high branches to gnaw on the crops, making it difficult for the chickens and ducks to do anything about them.¡±
Chickens and ducks can deal with locusts, but their pest control is rather crude.
Relying on them topletely eradicate the field¡¯s locusts is nearly impossible.
¡°As long as both Masters can hold the front line, I can handle the locusts behind them,¡± said Qin Niu.
When Qin Niu arrived, he had already observed that the number of locusts in the fields was not particrlyrge.
Now that his ant colony had increased by several hundred, dealing with pests over more than twenty acres in one night should be no problem.
¡°Hmph!¡±
Shi Doudan scoffed coldly but said nothing.
Master Mo Sang looked at Qin Niu with a gaze that held a trace of contempt.
¡°Master Qin looks very young and probablycks experience. These locusts are extraordinary and not as easy to handle as you think. It would be quite an achievement if you could clear one or two acres in a night. It¡¯s best not to speak too soon about the back being in your hands, otherwise you might make Young Master Yan and these two beauties think that we Insect Masters are all talk.¡±
¡°Let¡¯s hope that tomorrow morning, Master Qin can still speak as boldly as you do today,¡± Master Shi added with a sneer.
The two clearly thought they were dealing with a boastful, ignorant youngster.
They had personally experienced how difficult the pests in the field were to handle.
Even with their capabilities, it was a major headache.
Otherwise, the Yan family wouldn¡¯t have needed to call upon Qin Niu. Mo Sang and Shi could have handled it on their own.
¡°If Master Qin encounters any difficulties with pest control, the three of you can discuss strategies together at tomorrow¡¯s dinner. Master Mo Sang, this time our Yan family needs your leadership in pest control,¡± said the Yan family¡¯s eldest son, making his stance known.
Chapter 174 - 169 Master Mo’s Attitude Changed 1
Chapter 174: Chapter 169 Master Mo¡¯s Attitude Changed 1
Trantor: 549690339 |
In the face of interest, everything else is insubstantial.
In the eyes of the Young Master of the Yan Family, Master Mo Sang¡¯s strength surpassed both Qin Niu and Shi Doudan, so naturally, Master Mo Sang took precedence.
After leaving the Yan Family, Steward Yan Qi personally escorted Qin Niu to the fields to show him the way.
¡°These 180 acres of mulberry fields are of utmost importance, for their leaves are sweet and tender, making them severely susceptible to locust infestations. If the locusts consume all the leaves, the silkworms we are raising will starve to death, and we will be unable to fulfill our orders. Then we will face substantialpensation fees. Please, Master Qin, prioritize pest control for these mulberry fields.¡±
Weaving has always been one of many important industries forrgendlords.
It¡¯s much more profitable than growing food crops.
The climate of Jade Stream Town is conducive to sericulture, and the Yan Family was one of the early adopters in the industry.
It¡¯s said that the Yan Family¡¯s initial capital came from silkworm breeding and weaving, earning their first pot of gold before gradually expanding their business to the scale it is today.
In recent years, with the rise of sericulture and weaving in many ces, the profits have started to decline.
Having noticed the market trends, the Yan Family has consciously reduced the number of mulberry fields. At their peak, at least half of theirnd was used for mulberry nting.
Now, it has been reduced to 180 acres, not even half of what it used to be.
That¡¯s why the Yan Family has started expanding their tea ntations in recent years; they want to diversify into multiple industries to make the family¡¯s economy more stable and more resilient to risks.
Even so, the weaving industry remains the Yan Family¡¯srgest economic venture.
If these mulberry leaves are devoured by locusts, the Yan Family¡¯s weaving industry will immediately suffer the most severe blow in history.
The young silkworms will quickly starve to death, and the half-grown silkworms will cocoon and transform into moths rapidly due to theck of food.
The quality of these cocoons is very poor, and the silk they produce will be substandard goods.
Moreover, the yield will greatly decrease.
Normally, a high-quality cocoon weighs about 3 grams with smooth, thick, and lustrous silk.
But the cocoons spun by the half-grown silkworms are purely for survival and reproduction. The cocoons might weigh less than 1 gram, with silk that¡¯s dull yellow and breaks easily upon pulling, which is very poor quality.
And the impact goes far beyond that.
The quantity of silkworm eggs produced will also significantly reduce, and the silkworm hatchlings, due to poor prenatal nutrition, will lead to a decline in the species¡¯ quality.
That is to say, if the Yan Family fails to protect these 180 acres of mulberry trees, their weaving industry will struggle to rebound for at least two years.
¡°Steward Qi, you can go back and rest! I¡¯ll take care of things here. It would be best if you could prepare some gauze or fishings. I can¡¯t eliminate all the locusts in the mulberry fields at once; it will need to be done over several days. Set up the fishings at the edge of the cleared fields to prevent other locusts from migrating over.¡±
After sending Steward Yan Qi away, Qin Niu set his termites to work.
They moved swiftly, especially those Grade Three soldier ants and worker ants ¡ªthey were incredibly strong.
As their master, he found himself with little to do.
Once the moon rose into the sky, he simply sat down in the field to practice the Evesting Spring Technique.
By dawn the next day, Qin Niu checked the termites¡¯ overnight achievements, having eradicated the locusts in twenty-three acres of mulberry fields.
They worked even harder than bees.
As the Termite Army continued to grow and with more Grade Three termites, their work efficiency exponentially increased.
For pest control in one acre ofnd, he received seventy wen as pay.
For twenty-three acres, that made one tael and six coins of silver money.
Earning half a year¡¯s ie for an ordinary person after a night¡¯s work, being an Insect Master really wasn¡¯t bad.
Chapter 175 - 170: Increasing Longevity by 30,000 Years_1
Chapter 175: Chapter 170: Increasing Longevity by 30,000 Years_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
Female Four-Winged Yin Ant (Ant Queen)
Grade: Grade Four equal-wing order insect, upgrade experience 10000/100000
Lifespan: Thirty thousand years
Energy: 71009
Skills: Breeding third tier 100/1000 ys 1000 eggs per day), Feigned Death first tier 2/10, Flight first tier 0/10, Escape first tier 0/10
Talents: Medium Intelligence +++, Produce strong offspring (10%), Produce slightly poisonous offspring (20%), Produce Demon Ant offspring (0.1%), Produce Gold Devouring Ant offspring (0.001%).
Too powerful.
Having seen the Ant Queen¡¯s attributes, Qin Niu was so shocked he was at a loss for words.
After its metamorphosis, it became so powerful it was almost ludicrous.
Its lifespan increased from 4.6 years to thirty thousand years.
This was truly inconceivable.
Qin Niu had thought, if its lifespan could increase by thirty years, it would already be heaven-sent.
Now he understood, the bolder the people, the greater the yield of thend.
Based on experience, the evolution of this Ant Queen was definitely extraordinary.
He had never heard of any insect that could gain so much lifespan upon evolving to Grade Four.
Thirty thousand years¡ that couldst an eternity.
Its Breeding Skill had been upgraded to the third tier, reaching that level was something he had anticipated.
Finally, it couldy a thousand eggs per day.
Insatiable after gaining much.
He already started looking forward to the Ant Queen¡¯s Breeding Skill reaching the ability toy ten thousand eggs per day.
By then, just by relying on this termite colony, he couldmand respect on his own turf, and even be one of the notable entities in the world.
Now, the strong Worker Ants and Poisonous Ants were not worth much.
Because the probability of producing them had significantly increased.
Had he known that the Queen¡¯s promotion would greatly enhance these two talents, he should have found a way to feed the Ant Queen more of other high-grade food.
It had gained two new talents, one was to produce Demon Ant offspring, although the chance was very low at 0.1%, it was still quite remarkable.
The other was to produce Gold Devouring Ant offspring, the probability of which was infuriatingly low.
At a 0.001% chance, that¡¯s one in a hundred thousand.
Based on experience, the rarer and more precious the species, the lower the probability of producing them.
Now, it could almost certainly be concluded that Fourth was a Demon Ant.
But he couldn¡¯t be sure yet, because it would only be known after the Ant Queen produced a second Demon Ant.
As for the Gold Devouring Ant, Qin Niu had never even heard of it, let alone seen one.
The chance of producing a Gold Devouring Ant was so low, it felt like it must be incredibly powerful.
¡°You,e here!¡±
Qin Niu picked out a Grade Two Lightning Worker Ant from the crowd.
¡°Eat the corpse of this Corpse Bee!¡±
When he took out the corpse of the Corpse Bee, he was nearly knocked out by the stench.
This thing must have been very powerful, and it could also see in the dark, but the stench was unbearable.
Those who like raising insects really do have exceptional endurance.
The Lightning Worker Ant immediately began to gnaw on the Corpse Bee that emitted the smell of decaying flesh. It was visibly difficult for the ant to make progress, as the Corpse Bee¡¯s shell was very hard.
This was due to it possessing the special ability of an ultra-strong bite.
Otherwise, it would not have been able to breach the Corpse Bee¡¯s defenses.
After it ate a bit, Qin Niu carefully observed the Lightning Worker Ant¡¯s reaction.
There were no adverse reactions.
He decided to observe it again tomorrow.
If there were no problems, he would let Fourth eat the corpse of the Corpse Bee tomorrow to feed the Ant Queen.
Another two days went by.
The Ant Queen startedying eggs like a super eggying machine, producing eggs continuously day and night.
One thousand eggs per day.
The entire colony¡¯s Worker Ants also became busier than before. They needed to find more food to feed thervae, the Ant Queen, and the entire Ant Nest.
The Lightning Worker Ant that had eaten the Corpse Bee¡¯s carcass did not show any obvious abnormalities.
Qin Niu was reassured this time.
¡°Fourth, eat this Corpse Bee and then feed the Ant Queen,¡± Qin Niu instructed.
¡°Received.¡±
Fourth unconditionally obeyed Qin Niu¡¯s orders.
Their bond was also quite special. Within the entire ant colony, only it and the Ant Queen were closest to Qin Niu. As for other termites, it was impossible for Qin Niu to put in too much effort, let alone emotional attachment.
Their rtionship was that of a master and servant.
Qin Niu cultivated them to grow stronger, and they followed orders, doing whatever hemanded.
The Corpse Bee¡¯ s body was massive; there was no way to drag it directly into the Ant Nest.
Fourth proceeded to dismember it on the spot.
The clicking and chomping sounds of breaking into the Corpse Bee¡¯s body resonated as Fourth, with its armor-piercing capabilities, handled the carcass much more efficiently than a Grade Two Lightning Worker Ant could.
After all, the two were not of the same rank.
After more than an hour, Fourth hadpletely dismembered the Corpse Bee¡¯s body and transported it into the depths of the Ant Nest.
Qin Niu went to check on the other imprisoned Corpse Bee to see if it hadid eggs.
It was still lying motionless.
The usual preparation period for amon Queen Bee toy eggs was around seven days, but this Grade Four Corpse Bee was taking significantly longer than expected.
It had beenpletely abstaining from food and drink for days.
Worried that it might starve to death, Qin Niu had even cut up some Boar King meat and thrown it in.
But it hadn¡¯t touched it at all, and the Boar King meat had gone bad.
As the sun set in the west and the sky gradually darkened, Qin Niu prepared to return home as usual.
He had already moved the entire bee colony back to his residence.
Since Old Master Huang had not shown up, Qin Niu had no choice but to take certain measures to strengthen his vignce.
Just then, he heard a buzzing sound above his head.
It was very loud.
Based on his experience, he immediately determined that this was not a sound that a normal ho could make.
Looking up at the sky, he saw three small ck dots.
¡°They¡¯ve finallye!¡± he eximed, his spirits lifting. Having waited for so many days with no sign of Old Master Huang, he had been feeling uneasy.
Now that Old Master Huang had sent Corpse Bees again, he felt a sense of relief.
His fear was not the enemy¡¯s absence, but their appearance, which meant he would have a way to deal with them.
The three Corpse Bees were very cautious, circling over the tree where theirpanion was imprisoned but refusing tond.
They had definitely smelled the pheromones released by their kin.
He wasn¡¯t surprised at all that they had precisely located the imprisoned Corpse Bee; anything less would be an underestimation of a Grade Four insect.
Qin Niu had struggled thus far, only having his first Grade Four Ant Queen a couple of days ago.
¡°Kids, get to work. There are three big catches this time. Bring them all down for me,¡± he ordered.
This time, Qin Niu was not considering taking any prisoners.
These Corpse Bees had been tamed by Old Master Huang, and their sole purpose if spared would be toy eggs and hatch male bees for breeding.
Having one alive was enough.
Otherwise, even if they were confined in a bronze canister, they would continue to release pheromones, acting just like a locator device installed by Old Master Huang.
Eliminating them was the most straightforward course of action.
It would also add three more ¡®high-level foods¡¯ for the Ant Queen.
Their refusal tond didn¡¯t bother Qin Niu in the slightest.
Over two thousand Grade Two or higher termites, along with their master, quietly waited below.
If they had to wait another twenty days or so, it would be truly terrifying.
Qin Niu could increase his ant forces by around a thousand each day, easily breaking the ten-thousand mark for his main army.
He even stood a chance to ¡®hit the jackpot,¡¯ producing Demon Ants or Gold Devouring Ants.
Little did Old Master Huang know, he was fostering a tiger that would cause him trouble. The longer the dy, the more advantageous it was for Qin Niu.
Chapter 176 - 171: Bee General i
Chapter 176: Chapter 171: Bee General i
Trantor: 549690339 |
The three Corpse Bees in the sky were very cunning, always circling at high altitude, refusing to descend.
¡°You little things think you can outsmart me with that little intelligence?¡±
Qin Niu revealed a disdainful cold sneer.
The currently captured Corpse Bee was essentially a ¡®hostage¡¯, and theiring was definitely not just to scout out the trapped location of the Corpse Bee.
Old Master Huang was extremely timid, having not shown himself in person for many days.
Instead, he sent three new Corpse Bees over.
There was only one purpose, to pinpoint this location and then figure out a way to rescue the trapped Corpse Bee.
No matter how good their eyesight was, flying that high, it was impossible to clearly discern the ¡®hostage¡¯s condition.
Descending was only a matter of time.
However, Qin Niu was not prepared to wait but was ready tomunicate well with the ¡®hostage
1, to turn it into a qualified traitor.
With a powerful Puppet Ant army, it was too simple for Qin Niu to make a prisoner into a traitor.
¡°Fourth, try to control the captured Corpse Bee and make it obey.¡±
¡°We can!¡±
Fourth, with his remaining single antenna aimed at the Corpse Bee, outstretched his hand along with the other Worker Ants to assist in controlling it.
¡°Master, it¡¯s done.¡±
In fact, without Fourth¡¯s reminder, Qin Niu had already noticed that the imprisoned Corpse Bee had be ¡®meek¡¯.
This was a sign of obedience.
¡°Can you call down the three friends who came to save you?¡±
Qin Niumunicated with it in Bee Language, straightforward.
¡°I can! The distant bee captains won¡¯t listen to me.¡±
¡°There¡¯s an even more formidable one in the distance?¡±
Qin Niu was surprised.
¡°Yes, it is our leader.¡±
¡°How much longer will it take you toy eggs?¡±
¡°Soon!¡±
¡°Call down the three friends who came to rescue you first!¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s mind was racing with ways to annihte the enemy.
Eliminating two ordinary Corpse Bees had already scared Old Master Huang into not making a move for many days.
If he could also take care of that bee captain, that would be quite nice.
Qin Niu licked his lips and subconsciously reached for the Bronze Canister at his waist. The Canister could hold a Grade Four Corpse Bee with no issue, but he didn¡¯t know if it could contain a bee captain.
If all else failed, he would have to cut it down with one strike.
Qin Niti¡¯s Ink de had already begun to show promise, able to y even a demonic beast level Pig King, so taking care of a bee captain should not be a problem.
He knew that some formidable insects were immune to water and fire, difficult to wound with des, but the bee captain that had not yet appeared should not be that strong.
Also, his de was no longer ordinary. It had developed de Qi and was now a high-level Treasured Sword that had begun to possess a hint of spirit.
After receiving Qin Niu¡¯s order, the imprisoned Corpse Bee began to sway its two antennae and frequently exposed its abdomen.
It could be releasing some special pheromones or emitting particr scents from its nds.
The three Corpse Bees in the sky continued to circle, but they had begun to consciously lower their flying altitude.
The bee captain hiding in the distance must be remotelymanding them.
After a while, one of the Corpse Bees made a swift dive straight down, aiming directly for the imprisoned Corpse Bee.
¡°Fourth, take control of this Corpse Bee with the ant army.¡±
The Termite Army was now far stronger than it was over ten days ago, more than doubling in number, and should be able to control even more Corpse Bees.
In an instant, the Corpse Bee that hade down to scout was taken under control.
¡°Tell yourrades and the bee captain in the back that the trap holding the Corpse Bee is too strong, and request their support.¡±
Qin Niumunicated with it in Bee Language.
It moved its antennae and pped its wings in circles in the air, somewhat like performing a flight dance.
The other two Corpse Bees, receiving the signal, could never have dreamed that theirrade had turned traitor. They immediately dived down.
¡°Fourth, how many Corpse Bees can you control at the same time?¡±
¡°We should be able to manage four at a time without much problem, though not for a long duration.¡±
¡°Take control of all of them. Ghost Army, follow mymand, do notunch an attack yet.¡±
So far, it was only the Worker Ant troops that were inbat.
The Soldier Ant forcesy dormant, fully prepared for battle.
When the two Corpse Bees in the sky dived down to about ten meters above the ground, they were immediately controlled.
It took roughly four hundred Worker Ants to control a single ordinary Grade Four Corpse Bee.
And it required the leadership of several Grade Three Worker Ants.
Those Corpse Bees were indeed powerful.
¡°Very good! Send a message to the bee captain stating that the prison trapping theirrades is too strong and asking for its help.¡±
Qin Niu gave instructions to the three controlled Corpse Bees.
After being controlled by the Termite Army, they became puppets, doing whatever they were told.
Now it was a race against time.
Because these three Corpse Bees could lose control at any moment.
If he could sessfully lure the bee captain over before exposing the ruse, it would be a victory.
Compared to the ordinary Corpse Bees, the bee captain was clearly more intelligent.
It had been hiding in the distance, remotelymanding and not taking risks personally. This was probably a backup n prepared by Old Master Huang.
If the enemy was assessed thoroughly, when necessary, the bee captain could suddenly strike and annihte the enemy.
It might even kill Qin Niu behind the scenes.
If the enemy was found to be too powerful, it could also retreat in time to return and report.
But no matter how cunning a fox was, it couldn¡¯t outwit a smart hunter.
Soon, Qin Niu heard a very rapid wing-beating sound in his ears. Compared to normal Corpse Bees, the sound of the bee captain flying was much fainter.
This took him by surprise.
At this moment, the day had not yetpletely darkened.
Qin Niu could see the ck dot in the sky growingrger andrger as it rapidly moved closer to this location.
¡°Such a quick flying speed!¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s Grade Two Worker Bees also had a decent flying speed, butpared to the bee captain, it paled significantly.
I thought it would scout around beforeing down.
But its speed was incredibly fast.
In the blink of an eye, it was already near.
¡°Fire at it,¡± Qin Niu said.
Upon achieving his goal, Qin Niu didn¡¯t hesitate and used his Treasured Sword to kill threemon Corpse Bees.
One bee per strike, he finished them off in the blink of an eye.
Using the Ink de to kill the controlled bees was truly an overkill.
As soon as the Bee General entered the Termite¡¯s attack range, it was immediately subjected to a terribly fierce attack.
On one side was a Mental Attack, and on the other, a mental shackle.
A faint ck aura emerged from its body in an attempt to resist fiercely.
However, Qin Niu¡¯s Termite Army was too powerful.
Especially after the threemon Corpse Bees were in, Fourth and the numerous Worker Ants freed their hands, focusing all attacks on it.
How terrifying was this attack?
Just think of the effect of focusing sunlight with a magnifying ss onto a point that could ignite paper, and you would know how terrifying it was.
The Bee General didn¡¯tst three seconds before tumbling down from the sky.
Its body wasrger than themon Corpse Bees, roughly the size of an adult¡¯s forearm.
Such a size was muchrger than that of ordinary birds.
Qin Niu was quick to react, rushing over to capture it in a.
Then, he carefully took out the Bronze Canister, stuffed it in, secured the lid, and locked the buckle.
This should be safe now.
Unless it could bite through the Bronze Canister.
This possibility had to be considered.
Because he felt that this Bee General was much stronger than themon Corpse Bees.
Particrly the ck aura it emitted when attacked was terrifying. It was ominously dark, filled with the scent of death.
If even a little bit touched him, it could devour his soul and corrode his bones.
¡°Finally got you,¡± Qin Niu said.
Qin Niu had just killed three Corpse Bees in one breath, which likely dealt a heavy blow to Old Master Huang¡¯s soul.
This Bee General, however, he did not n to kill.
Keeping it held many potential uses.
One was to possibly have ity eggs, breeding even more powerful male bees.
On the other hand, it could also be used as bait to force Old Master Huang to show himself.
After more than ten days, for a singlemon Corpse Bee held captive by Qin Niu, Old Master Huang sent threemon Corpse Bees and one Bee General to attempt a rescue.
Now that he had captured a higher-grade Bee General, hehe¡ That old man must be frantically jumping up and down in rage, smashing several valuable pieces of porcin by now.
With this Bee General in hand, Qin Niu wasn¡¯t worried about the fish not taking the bait.
For the past ten days, Qin Niu had been living on tenterhooks.
Rather than being the target of thieves, it was better to strike first and find a way to eliminate the danger.
He wouldn¡¯t provoke others, but if someone had designs on him, then there was no need to be merciful.
If he could kill them, he wouldn¡¯t leave them breathing.
He used a pottery jar to collect the corpses of the threemon Corpse Bees, which were high-grade food. He nned to use them all to cultivate the Ant Queen.
The canister containing the Bee General emitted a gnawing sound.
He hurried to check it.
¡°Damn, that¡¯s too strong! The Bronze Canister was actually pierced by its Poison Stinger.¡±
Qin Niu discovered several small holes on the canister.
A ck Poison Stinger kept attacking the Bronze Canister. After being trapped, the Bee General seemed to have quickly regained its strength.
The multitude of attacks by Ghost Ants seemed to have caused little damage to it.
It was so strong, it was likely a Grade Five Corpse Bee.
¡°Next time I enter the city, I¡¯ll have to find a cksmith to custom-make a Fine Iron Canister. Otherwise, if I encounter a more powerful bug, even if I can capture it, I won¡¯t be able to contain it.¡±
This Bronze Canister was made of thin copper.
¡°Fourth, you control thatmon Corpse Bee, I have something to ask it.¡±
Once the ant colony had themon Corpse Bee under control, Qin Niu began tomunicate with it using Bee Language.
¡°How many Bee Generals does your swarm have?¡±
¡°Three.¡±
¡°Is there anything more powerful than the Bee Generals?¡±
¡°Queen Bee!¡±
¡°There are only three Bee Generals in total?¡±
Qin Niu was somewhat incredulous.
¡°Yes!¡±
The Corpse Bee was very honest.
Once under control, it answered whatever was asked.
Having gotten the answers he wanted, Qin Niu felt a surge of secret joy.
The fewer the number of Bee Generals, the more anxious Old Master Huang would be.
¡°Are there any other powerful insects living in your yard?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±
It could only provide this kind of direct and simple answer.
¡°That¡¯s fine, continueying eggs,¡± Qin Niu said.
Qin Niu no longer bothered with it but gave further orders to the ant colony.
¡°Fourth, lead the ants to control this Bee General, make ity eggs.¡±
He nned to drain everyst drop of value from this Bee General.
In theory, the offspring produced by a Bee General should be stronger.
During the night, the cool mountain breeze blew gently, and the roar of beasts arose one after another,ing from deep in the mountains.
Yet the area around the Ancient Banyan Tree had be a sanctuary.
All those fierce beasts wisely avoided this ce.
Chapter 177 - 172 Steady Improvement in Strength_1
Chapter 177: Chapter 172 Steady Improvement in Strength_1
Trantor: 549690339
Qin Niu worried that the bee would escape, and he was even more worried that Old Master Huang woulde and kill him with the Corpse Bees overnight, so he didn¡¯t go to the Yan Family to exterminate insects that night.
As for his home, he was not worried at all.
Xiao Qing was now quite familiar with Miss Wang, and she would stay over
there every night.
Moreover, he had deliberately not brought the Corpse Bees home, so it was very unlikely for Old Master Huang, who was unfamiliar with the area, to find his home.
Nearly sixteen hundred Worker Ants were taking turns in battle under Fourth¡¯smand.
The purpose of this was to continuously control the bee, inducing it to activate
its eggying mechanism andy eggs.
The night quickly passed.
Old Master Huang turned out to be a coward and did not track him down for
revenge.
He must have been thoroughly confused.
After sending a Mu Kuai and two Corpse Bees with no news at all.
Now he had sent three Corpse Bees and one bee in charge, and still, there was
no news.
He had no idea just how strong Qin Niu¡¯s abilities were.
In such a situation, he was even less likely to act rashly.
Looking at the tiny pinholes in the bronze canister, Qin Niu felt his scalp tingle.
Luckily, after a night of effort from the ant colony, this unruly bee seemed to have activated its eggying mechanism and was lying still.
Besides, with its capabilities, although it could pierce the bronze canister with
its stinger, it would be difficult to escape.
¡°I hope you¡¯lly eggs soon. Once Old Master Huang is lured here, I can send
you to meet Buddha.¡±
After checking on the bee in charge, Qin Niu went to look at the ordinary Corpse
Bee.
A spindle-shaped bee egg was hanging on the inner wall of the bronze canister.
Ordinary bee eggs are generally white, but the eggid by the Corpse Bee was actually brown.
¡°Finally, eggs!¡±
He was delighted.
This Corpse Bee still had its uses, as the egg would need it for hatching and nourishment.
After being busy with the insects, he went down the mountain and back to his
home.
As he passed by Xie Laizi¡¯s house, Xie Laizi was basking in the sun in the yard.
¡°Master Qin, good morning!¡±
Xie Laizi greeted Qin Niu with a full smiling face.
This man, having been crippled by Wang Haikun with both legs broken, could still only crawl on the ground.
Moreover, with no one to care for him, his clothes were full of dirt and
somewhat shiny.
What Xie Laizi usually eats is anybody¡¯s guess.
Qin Niu had no good feelings for this person and walked away after giving him a cold nce.
Back at home, everything was as usual.
Steward Yan Qi¡¯s carriage was parked at Wang Furen¡¯s door, and when he heard
Qin Niue back, he quickly came out.
He mainly came to ask why Qin Niu had not gone to the Yan Family to exterminate insects the previous night.
After all, the Yan Family was now very dependent on Qin Niu for exterminating insects.
He simply said he had matters to attend tost night and couldn¡¯t leave, and he told Yan Qi to go back. If nothing special happened tonight, Qin Niu indicated he would go to the Yan Family to exterminate insects.
The days passed by like this for another two days.
Qin Niu¡¯s cultivation also steadily increased, but the power of the Medicine King Sutra remained stuck at the peak of the Tenth Layer of the Mortal Realm.
It felt like advancing through this cultivation technique was much harder than the Evesting Spring Technique.
Maybe he was more suited to practicing the Life-Nurturing Technique.
Or perhaps each cultivation technique had its unique characteristics.
Because he was now practicing the Medicine King Sutra, the amount of power he gained each day did not decrease, which indicated that advancing to the Acquired Realm required a greater umtion of power.
On the other hand, practicing the Evesting Spring Technique felt as though there was no bottleneck at all.
He had already smoothly advanced from the firstyer of the Acquired Realm to the secondyer.
His cultivation was much deeper, and his body was significantly stronger than before. Furthermore, the extension of his lifespan also left him quite satisfied.
After reaching the Acquired Realm with the Evesting Spring Technique, advancing each minor realm could extend lifespan by about ten years.
At present, his lifespan had reached 118 years.
Compared to ordinary people, such a high age made him a genuine old-timer.
Yet, it was still far from the immortality that he sought.
He was particrly envious of the Ant Queen, whose metamorphosis and advancement had increased its lifespan by 30,000 years.
Even though there were undoubtedly unknown reasons behind this, it still made him very envious. If the time of his demise approached and he was still unable to break through in his cultivation, he would definitely consider trying Banyan Tree Blood.
After its advancement, the Ant Queen¡¯s species seemed to have changed as well.
It was no longer a milky termite but had transformed into a Four-Winged Yin
Ant.
He always felt that this name wasn¡¯t like that of an ordinary insect but was filled with an ancient aura. Qin Niu suspected it might have awakened a trace of ancient bloodline during metamorphosis or possibly gained an ancient racial heritage.
Many high-level insects, beasts, and birds possess the ability to pass on their heritage.
That is, to transfer the special abilities of one generation to the next.
But there¡¯s a prerequisite: the offspring need to be strong enough to inherit these abilities.
That day, Qin Niu had just finished ridding the Yan Family of insects and returned home when an ordinary carriage stopped in front of his house.
He recognized it at a nce as the Fang Family¡¯s carriage.
Time flies so fast, he thought, it¡¯s already been half a month.
Uncle Heizi stepped down from the carriage.
¡°Master Qin, we meet again.¡±
Uncle Heizi squeezed out a few strands of a smile.
¡°Pleasee inside for tea, I¡¯ll prepare briefly and then go with you to the city!¡±
Qin Niu thought it was a good opportunity to see if the leather armor was ready. Then Miaodan Pavilion should also be about ready to help him with refining medicines. He could also stop by the cksmith¡¯s shop to order a few insect jars made of fine steel.
The Corpse Bee had been very dociletely as it wasying eggs.
Still, Qin Niu had to be extra careful when handling the bronze canister; if the bee¡¯s stinger pierced through the canister and hit his finger, it would be no joking matter.
¡°This is Master Qin¡¯s hometown, indeed heroes emerge from humble beginnings. Who would have thought such a small mountain vige could produce a distinguished cultivation master like you, Master Qin. And if I remember correctly, you¡¯re also an exceptional Insect Master.¡±
Uncle Heizi wasn¡¯t one to talk much, but today he took the initiative to chat with Qin Niu.
¡°You tter me!¡±
Qin Niu prepared some things inside the house, gave Xiao Qing some instructions, and then boarded the carriage to the Fang Family.
With his current strength, he had no means to contend with super-powerhouses like the Fang Family.
Fortunately, the two parties were getting along quite pleasantly for the moment.
The Fang Family needed him to treat their medicinal nt, so they wouldn¡¯t likely harm him.
After the carriage entered the city, it took Qin Niu into an alley and then switched to another carriage midway.
The driver remained the same, still Uncle Heizi.
It was clear that the Fang Family was extremely cautious in their dealings.
After all, tall trees catch much wind.
The enemies eyeing the Fang Family were also numerous.
The essence of society ispetition-whoever is stronger will possess more cultivation resources and have greater authority.
To topple the Fang Family, smaller families needed a chance to rise.
Otherwise, they would always be suppressed with no opportunity to emerge.
As the carriage drove into the Fang Family residence, Qin Niu stepped out and spotted Young Master Fang, whom he hadn¡¯t seen in days.
Compared to a few days ago, Young Master Fang¡¯splexion had visibly improved, and the worry that used to crease his brow had vanished.
¡°Master Qin, I must trouble you once again.¡±
Young Master Fang greeted him with a smile.
Being personally weed by a scion of such a major family was undoubtedly a great honor.
Chapter 178 - 173 Chief Planting Master_1
Chapter 178: Chapter 173 Chief nting Master_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
¡°Of course! Having taken the Fang Family¡¯s money, I must do my utmost to save that medicinal herb.¡±
Qin Niu had received fifteen hundred taels of silver moneyst time, a giant sum.
Enough to make an ordinary person wealthy for a lifetime.
He was certainly going to help the Fang Family heal that herb.
¡°Haha, Master Qin is a man of integrity, and I admire that about you. However, every time I ask you to exert yourself for the Fang Family, naturally, I won¡¯t let you toil in vain. A payment of one hundred taels of silver money for each visit, you will not be shortchanged. Those medicinal herbs are delicate, each prone to this or that problem, so there will invariably be many more times when we must trouble Master Qin!¡±
So this was the Fang Family¡¯s n all along.
No wonder the young master of the Fang Family had personallye to meet him.
Long-term coboration is a good thing.
Currently weak in strength, what Qin Niu feared most was that the Fang Family would silence him forever.
But now that the herb had been revived, the Fang Family no longer had to worry about the matter leaking and bringing a great crisis, there was no need to kill him at all.
On the contrary, with Qin Niu¡¯s disyed strong cultivation prowess in nting, it would be most beneficial for the Fang Family to coborate with him over the long term.
Young Master Fang led Qin Niu deep into the Fang Family Forbidden Land.
This time, upon entering, those five old ancestors of the Fang Family seemed veryposed, all meditating with closed eyes, not pressuring him with their gazes as they had before.
Qin Niu certainly did not believe these five old fellows were truly oblivious to worldly affairs.
If he dared any subterfuge within the forbiddennd, they would likely kill him on the spot without hesitation.
Such beings must have terrifying cultivation, capable of crushing him to death with a single finger.
He stepped forward to inspect the medicinal herb, pleased to see that its vitality had recovered quite well.
New tender shoots had grown about half an inch.
For such an ancient medicinal herb, growth was generally very slow.
Qin Niu hadn¡¯t nned to cure it all at once, but to treat it gradually. Currently, cultivating the Evesting Spring Technique with the mist spraying from the pool seemed just right. Based on his experience, cultivating the Evesting Spring Technique in such mist would result in slow progress.
The special energy dissipating would ordingly diminish.
This was ideal for achieving a steady, gradual effect.
After cultivating for about six hours, he stopped.
Inspecting the herb before him, its vitality was clearly much stronger and fine buds had sprouted above the waist.
Those tiny green shoots were exceedinglyforting to behold, like the finishing touch to a dragon painting.
¡°Today¡¯s treatment concludes here for now. As long as its current growth environment is maintained without disturbance, it should recover quite a bit more by the time I visit again,¡± Qin Niu stood up and said to Young Master Fang.
¡°Thank you for your hard work! Seeing its vitality slowly return brings me such joy. A luxurious banquet has been prepared outside, please, Master Qin, join us,¡± Young Master Fang, pleased with the critical medicinal herb¡¯s recovery under Qin Niu¡¯s treatment, extended the invitation.
Young Master Fang never even considered that Qin Niu might be intentionally withholding his full ability.
This time, he had only exerted a fraction of his skill.
Leaving the forbiddennd, Qin Niu was led to the same elegant room as before.
Once again, two beautiful maids were attending him attentively at his sides.
The banquet was veryvish as well.
Unlikest time, Young Master Fang also took his seat at the banquet to dine and drink with him.
Two other beauties whom Qin Niu had never seen before were serving Young Master Fang.
Contrary to Qin Niu¡¯s restraint and propriety, Young Master Fang happily epted the two maids¡¯ attentions, clearly ustomed to having his every need attended to without lifting a finger.
However, he did not make any overstepping gestures.
Perhaps in Young Master Fang¡¯s eyes, even the most beautiful ordinary maid was not worthy of his intimate attention.
Compared to the Insect Masters hired by the Yan Family, who had been handsy and embarrassing with the serving maids, embracing and kissing them, Young Master Fang conducted himself with dignity and ss, a cut above by several degrees.
This was Qin Niu¡¯s first time dining with a true noble young master.
He learned quite a lot from Young Master Fang¡¯s demeanor.
They continued to drink and dine, enjoying the banquet at a leisurely pace.
¡°You may leave now,¡± Young Master Fang instructed the four maids.
After their departure and the doors were closed, it was clear that Young Master Fang had something to discuss with him.
¡°Master Qin, with your help thest time, I was able to sessfully uncover that the cultivating master employed by the Fang Family had been bought by our enemies, secretly sabotaging that rootless water nt, leading to its mutation. It was an issue that went unnoticed, and without your reminder, it would have been nearly impossible to discover. This cup, I toast to you, I thank you for helping us eliminate a major hidden danger for my family.¡±
Young Master Fang raised his cup in a toast to Qin Niu.
¡°I just casually mentioned a few things, the ability to find the problem is entirely thanks to Young Master Fang¡¯s strategic wisdom,¡± Qin Niu raised his cup to clink with the other in reply.
He dared not take credit for this feat.
If he wasn¡¯t mistaken, it must have been that Master Pang who was bought off.
As to how the Fang Family dealt with Master Pang, outsiders had no way of knowing.
¡°The Fang Family has always been trying all kinds of ways to recruit powerful cultivating masters. Our family also cultivates talent in this area, but there isn¡¯t a single one who can rece Master Pang. The territory of the ck Tiger Gang is only sorge, and top-tier cultivating masters are few and far between. Whenever any family discovers talent in this area, they recruit them vigorously and never let go.
Master Pang of my Fang Family being corrupted and covertly bought by our enemies is a huge loss for us.¡±
One betrayal, a lifetime of disuse.
Our Fang Family can no longer trust Master Pang and have yet to find a suitable recement. After extensive consideration and investigation, Master Qin is currently the most fitting candidate to take over Master Pang¡¯s position.
As the chief cultivation master for my Fang Family, not only can you be a top patron of our family, but you also have the right to mobilize the Fang Family¡¯s power to assist you in your affairs.
Moreover, the annual sry is at least one thousand taels of silver or more.
For the three festivals and two anniversaries, additional rewards are given.
If you are willing to join the Fang Family, you can even be granted our Cultivation Techniques and unique skills, with a status equivalent to that of a direct descendant.¡±
Every single one of these treatments is enticing.
Qin Niu used to think that an annual ie of thirty taels of silver for a high- level farmer was already a high sry in the industry.
Now he realized thatpared to the annual sry of a nting master, it was dozens of times less.
¡°Thank you, Young Master Fang, for the high regard, but I am too inexperienced and not up to such an important position. Besides, as a simple viger, I am used to idleness and prefer a free and unrestrained life. Please seek another skilled individual, Young Master Fang.¡±
Had Qin Niu wished to be a wealthy servant, he would have been recruited by the Yan Family long ago.
¡°Won¡¯t you reconsider, Master Qin? With your abilities, you are entirely capable of serving as the chief cultivation master for the Fang Family. As for not liking restraints, in ck Tiger City, you may live wherever you wish. As long as youplete your primary duties, you can arrange the rest of your time as you like. If you fancy beautiful women, the Fang Family can provide you with two fresh beauties every month.¡±
Young Master Fang was making a great effort to secure his eptance of the position.
¡°Sorry, I have no interest in this position, please arrange for someone else, Young Master Fang. The hour is also gettingte, and as I seldome into the city, I still have some matters to attend to, so please excuse me.¡±
Qin Niu stood up to take his leave.
¡°Well, everyone has their aspirations, and I can understand Master Qin¡¯s reluctance to serve under others. Here is a silver note for a hundred taels, as a token of our gratitude for your treatment of that medicinal herb for the Fang Family. If there¡¯s ever anything you need from us, feel free toe see me or send someone with a message.¡±
Seeing that he could not persuade him, Young Master Fang did not insist.
¡°The fifteen hundred taels previously given is more than enough! I cannot ept this hundred taels with a clear conscience,¡± Qin Niu declined.
¡°Alt, the past is the past, and this is now. When our Fang Family employs someone, we never shortchange them. We will undoubtedly need to trouble Master Qin again in the future.¡±
The sum of a hundred taels was forcefully entrusted to him.
¡°Then, thank you, Young Master Fang! I¡¯ve be greedy for money!¡±
Qin Niu epted the silver note, thinking to himself that the Fang Family was indeed very generous.
¡°The medicinal herb should recoverpletely with one or two more treatments. If there is nothing out of the ordinary, we can arrange for the next treatment in a month¡¯s time.¡±
¡°Alright, I¡¯ll have Uncle Heizi pick you up then.¡±
¡°By the way, I noticed you do not have a mount; if you don¡¯t mind, you may select one from the Fang Family¡¯s stables. It will make your travels much easier.¡±
Young Master Fang was very eager to win him over.
However, Qin Niu did not wish to owe any favors to the Fang Family and politely refused.
After some time, thatzy ox should also evolvepletely.
Qin Niu was considering using it as his mount.
After leaving the Fang Family, he was dropped off in an alley by Uncle Heizi¡¯s carriage.
The drop-off location was different from thest time.
By doing this, the Fang Family was also providing him protection.
The people who had their eyes on the Fang Family were not only small families but also some powerful familiesparable to the Fangs.
If they knew how important Qin Niu was to the Fang Family, they could resort to any measure.
Qin Niu was all too aware of this fact.
Therefore, he was extremely cautious every time he entered or left the Fang premises.
He first stopped by the Miaodan Pavilion and entrusted the task of elixir crafting to Master Zi Zhou.
Master Zi Zhou told him it would take about seven to ten days, at which point Qin Niu coulde to collect the elixir. However, elixir crafting carried high risks, and if it failed, Master Zi Zhou could not be held responsible.
The Miaodan Pavilion would not assume liability.
Master Zi Zhou¡¯s sess rate of creating Beast Cores was about 30%. This was already an extremely high rate of sess.
Qin Niu was willing to take the gamble.
For if he seeded, he could use the elixir to break through and advance to the next realm.
As his cultivation level rose, he could increasingly feel that the difficulty of advancing was also increasing.
It was said that breaking through the Acquired Realm was hellish in difficulty.
Even with the treasure of the Ancient Banyan Tree, he could not say he was fully confident.
Spending more than a hundred and forty taels of silver and a Beast Core on this risk was still within his capacity to endure, even if it failed.
Normally, had he the time, he would have stayed to oversee the process.
However, given the reputation of the Miaodan Pavilion and the integrity of Master Zi Zhou, it was unlikely they would tarnish their reputation for such a small gain.
With Old Master Huang still atrge, like a sharp sword hanging overhead, Qin Niu couldn¡¯t rest easy.
He had finally caught a prized bee, which amounted to pinching a soft spot on the other party.
Naturally, he intended to seize this opportunity.
This time, he nned to buy even more sturdy Insect Jars, so he would never have to worry about the bee escaping again.
He had quite a few tasks to aplish in the city this time.
Looking up at the sky, he hastened his pace.
Chapter 179 - 174 Master Ou, the Cunning Merchanti
Chapter 179: Chapter 174 Master Ou, the Cunning Merchanti
Trantor: 549690339 |
The two intermediate-grade talismans had all been used up, and he was ready to restock.
He arrived at the familiar Bei Bing Talisman Shop.
¡± Bei Bing, here to buy talismans from you again!¡±
Qin Niu greeted the mute girl with a smile.
¡°Mmm!¡±
She seemed just as happy, using hand gestures and looking at Qin Niu with a smile on her face.
She remained as pure as ever, like the fresh and natural air of a serene valley, spotless.
Her shiny ck eyes were without any impurities.
¡°Get me five intermediate-grade contractual talismans. Do you have any advanced contractual talismans?¡±
Qin Niu asked her.
The mute girl¡¯s eyes widened in surprise upon hearing that he wanted five intermediate-grade contractual talismans in one go.
She remembered Qin Niu struggled to buy the low-grade contractual charms that cost one tael of silver each.
Now he was spending morevishly each time.
¡°Why are you looking at me like that? If I¡¯ve made money, I can obviously afford better things. Hurry up and get them for me, I still have other things to do after the purchase. If I can¡¯t leave the city, I might just have toe here to stay overnight,¡± Qin Niu urged her.
¡°Mhm!¡±
She agreed and fetched five intermediate-grade contractual talismans for him.
Then, she took out a piece of cardboard, on which was written: Advanced contractual talismans, one hundred taels of silver each. Can be used to tame Grade Three or higher insects or beasts, sess rate depends on specific circumstances.
¡°One hundred taels of silver each, not cheap, get me one,¡± Qin Niu decided to bite the bullet and buy one to keep on hand.
The intermediate-grade contractual talismans were quite effective for taming Grade Two insects.
As for the advanced contractual talismans, he had never tried them.
The description stated that they could be used to tame Grade Three or higher insects and beasts.
Given the steep price, Qin Niu would definitely use them cautiously.
¡°Can the advanced contractual talisman tame a Grade Four insect?¡± Qin Niu thought of the Corpse Bee.
That creature was disgusting, extremely vicious and sinister, but itsbat power must be substantial.
Having night vision also greatly tempted Qin Niu.
Taming one to breed new bee species should be very beneficial.
The mute girl quickly scribbled on the paper with her charcoal pencil.
¡°In theory, advanced contractual talismans can tame insects, beasts, and birds of all grades, but the higher the grade of the insect, the more difficult the taming. The number of talismans needed will also increase, and there¡¯s still a possibility of failure,¡± she wrote.
¡°So, what you¡¯re saying is, advanced contractual talismans are the highest- level talismans avable, right?¡± Qin Niu asked.
¡°Mhm.¡±
She nodded vigorously.
¡°Alright, hand me one,¡± Qin Niu took out a silver note worth one hundred and fifty taels.
This was a substantial amount of money.
However,pared to the beasts or beast pets under contract, this was only a small sum.
Bing a powerful insect master or beast tamer was no easy feat.
It required not only a significant amount of silver money but also a massive amount of resources to constantly nurture pets and strengthen them. Luck and opportunity were also necessary.
¡°You can¡¯t even ask for two!¡±
She yfully wrote down a sentence with a smile.
Qin Niu smiled wryly too, seeing that the production of advanced contractual talismans was extremely difficult and that the Bei Bing Talisman Shop didn¡¯t have much in stock.
¡°This talisman can be kept for a long time, right?¡±
¡°Mhm!¡±
Again she nodded.
Reassured, he bought one advanced contractual talisman. Judging by the material, it wasn¡¯t made of animal skin, but somewhat resembled leaves or bark.
It showed a flicker of green light, immediately indicating its extraordinary nature.
Moreover, holding it in his hand, one felt an unsettling sensation; the invisible energy or aura it emitted seemed as though it could stir one¡¯s soul.
¡°When using it to tame a beast pet, try to avoid taking it out too early. It¡¯s best to trap the beast first and then use the talisman,¡±
She wrote down the note.
¡°This box is custom-made, and once you cover it, it can seal off its scent.¡±
Qin Niu nced at the box containing it, noticing many intricate talismans carved on the surface.
Thebination of these talismans should effectively iste the scent.
He felt that Bei Bing¡¯s grandpa was quite impressive.
Could such a talisman master possibly break the enchantment of the Ancient Banyan Tree?
Qin Niu only thought about it in his mind.
He would never be foolish enough to bring an outsider to decipher the enchantment of that Ancient Banyan Tree.
By now, he hade to regard the Ancient Banyan Tree as his private property and it had be his most important cultivation resource.
As he was leaving, Bei Bing gave him a few low-grade talismans as gifts.
A total of five.
¡°I made them myself, thank you for looking after our business,¡±
She wrote down a sentence.
¡± Heh, buying from anyone is still buying, but buying from you is reassuring and helps out a friend, so of course, I¡¯lle to you! Goodbye!¡±
Qin Niu waved at her.
This time, he didn¡¯t see her grandpa. It was just her alone tending to the shop.
Her grandpa often needed to go out to gather materials for making talismans and was rarely seen.
But Qin Niu knew that the middle-grade and high-grade talismans were all made by her grandpa.
For now, she could only make some low-grade talismans.
Actually, her family¡¯s talisman store didn¡¯t have a wide variety of talismans.
Or rather, the talisman varieties avable in the few talisman shops throughout ck Tiger City were very limited.
The Contractual Talisman was the most popr one.
Insect Masters and Beast Tamers woulde to purchase it.
After leaving Bei Bing¡¯s ce, he headed straight for Master Ou¡¯s weapon shop.
¡°Master Ou, I¡¯vee to see you again!¡±
Qin Niu greeted the old man inside.
Master Ou didn¡¯t have a strong impression of him and couldn¡¯t remember who he was.
¡°Young brother, what are you looking for this time?¡±
Master Ou¡¯s attitude was still quite warm.
¡°I¡¯d like to have a few fine iron canisters custom-made, simr to this one, but made with thicker material.¡±
¡°These are insect jars. No need for customization, I have them readily avable here,¡±
Master Ou instructed his apprentice to bring out a few samples.
¡°The inner wall of these canisters is made of fine iron, and the outside is aluminum. If an insect can bite through the inner wall, then even a thicker fine iron won¡¯t help. The price is one tael and five maces of silver each. There are round ones, square ones, long ones ¡ª feel free to choose any. The lides with an air hole and a lock. They are known for being sturdy and lightweight.¡±
The craftsmanship of these insect jars was way better than the ones Qin Niu found on the market.
It was of a more refined craft.
¡°Not bad, I¡¯ll take ten. How about a better price?¡±
Qin Niu knew that weapon shops had high profits and always haggled every time he made a purchase.
¡°If you buy ten at once, I can give you a discount of two silver money.¡±
¡°Just this little discount is as good as none. Ten for twelve silver money, not a mace more,¡±
Qin Niu was very clear that only powerful Insect Masters and wealthy young masters anddies would buy these high-quality insect jars.
At one tael and five maces of silver each, nobody¡¯s money came easy.
¡°You kid, you¡¯re making it so I can¡¯t even afford to eat! I¡¯d be selling at a loss to you,¡±
Master Ou¡¯s face wore an expression of great loss.
Thest time hemissioned weapons, it was the same expression.
In his heart, Qin Niu mused that appearances are deceiving, who would have thought that Master Ou, appearing as a rough cksmith, had quite a few tricks up his sleeve.
And quite the acting skill.
He should have driven a harder bargain knowing this.
Chapter 180 - 18o: Chapter 175: Consulting, King Pig Leather Armori
Chapter 18o: Chapter 175: Consulting, King Pig Leather Armori
Trantor: 549690339 |
Ultimately, he purchased ten insect jars crafted from fine iron from Master Ou for the price of twelve silver money.
Master Ou appeared to be in agony over his loss on the surface, but inside he was probably delighted.
As for the profit margin, Qin Niu was uncertain.
Earning one or two silver money shouldn¡¯t be a problem.
These cksmith shops might not look like much, but they make more money than one would expect.
Indeed, keeping a low profile while making a fortune is truly the way to go.
¡°Master Ou, may I ask you a question?¡±
¡°Go ahead!¡±
¡°You told mest time that weapons need to be ¡®nourished.¡¯ Canmon materials be ¡®nourished¡¯ into something special?¡±
¡°It depends on fate and chance. In theory, even an ordinary wooden sword can be ¡®nourished.¡¯ However, the better the materials and the forging skills, the greater the likelihood of a weapon developing special abilities.¡±
Master Ou spoke fluently and knew a great deal about weapon cultivation.
¡°ording to what you said, if a wooden sword develops special abilities but it¡¯s made of poor materials, won¡¯t it still be of little use?¡±
¡°Not necessarily! When a weapon develops special abilities, it has undoubtedly transformedpletely. Just like an ordinary civilian, given the right opportunities, can be an emperor or a noble. However, due to inferior materials, which is an inherent deficiency, their potential is often limited.¡±
Qin Niu found this quite agreeable.
His treasured sword had undergone a transformation after initial cultivation, with significant improvements in strength and sharpness.
Not to mention its power.
¡°Is there a way to remedy these weapons with innate deficiencies?¡±
¡°There are many methods! For instance, secondary tempering with gold liquid or special materials can enhance them through a second tempering process. Moreover, utilizing the power of lightning, volcanic force, and so forth, canplete the tempering of certain weapons. Another example is synthesis; by forging a second time, new materials or other weapons can be fused into the sword. There¡¯s also nurturing, where the weapon is ced in ancient ice, fire, or a ce abounding with spiritual energy, among others, to break free from the constraints of their original material.
My mentor once mentioned a cultivator whose peach wood sword developed special abilities, and after several strokes of good fortune, he nurtured it into a super weapon that could y gods and immortals. It could overpower all earth attribute talismans and weapons, and specialized in cutting down souls and spirits, exceptionally formidable indeed.¡±
Besides the aforementioned methods, there are many other unique and wonderful techniques.
¡°For example, there¡¯s a legend I heard about, where after someone passed away, they were wrapped in linen and buried.
After many years, that burial cloth, having absorbed the yin energy of the heavens and earth as well as the corpse Qi, turned into a terrifyingly evil treasure. Its emergence brings icy winds and grey mists, with ghosts weeping and gods wailing, transforming an entire area into a realm of death.
To this day, it¡¯s still cherished by a Daluo Golden Immortal as a revered family treasure, employed as a sect¡¯s guardian.
There¡¯s also a great demon who turned ughter into nature and gathered blood into seas, known as the Sea of Blood. Deep within the Sea of Blood, two of the world¡¯s most malevolent weapons, Ah Bi and Yuan Tu, were nurtured. It is said that even the Buddhist Sect could not handle this demon. They promised a great vow, if the demon put down his ughtering weapon, he could immediately attain Buddhahood.¡±
Master Ou recounted ancient legends.
Qin Niu was enthralled, imagining the powerful talismans and divine weapons. If he could nurture one of his own, not to dominate the three realms, but at least he would have nothing to fear in the mortal world.
Putting down the killing de to attain Buddhahood instantly¡ªnever had he imagined such an ancient tale.
He always thought it was just a saying to encourage benevolence.
Did that demon ultimately put down his killing de? As long as one is intelligent, they certainly wouldn¡¯t take the Buddhist Sect¡¯s persuasion seriously.
Putting it down equaled relinquishing the weapon, losing the ability to fight back, and inevitably being at others¡¯ mercy sooner orter.
After leaving the weapon shop, he hurried to the clothing and footwear market.
¡°Master Qin, you¡¯ve arrived! Are you here to pick up your armor?¡±
This time, the assistant¡¯s attitude towards Qin Niu was no longer the disdainful arrogance of the past but had be extremely subservient, filled with respect for him.
¡°Hmm!¡±
Qin Niu nodded.
¡°Shopkeeper, Master Qin hase to pickup the armor!¡±
¡°Alright! Please, Master Qin,e on in!¡±
The voice of the chubby shopkeeper came from upstairs.
Once he reached the second floor, he found it as messy as a dog¡¯s kennel. There were armor-making materials and tools everywhere, along with tables and desks.
The already short and plump shopkeeper had slimmed down considerably after not seeing him for over a month.
But his spirit seemed quite good.
There was a spark in his eyes, his face was radiant, and he was brimming with excitement.
¡°Master Qin, the two sets of leather armor are ready. With the leftover scraps, I am nning to make a hand shield. It will bepleted soon; please try on the leather armor to see if it fits.¡±
¡°Our shopkeeper here has hardly eaten a single meal a day for over half a month to make your armor. Whenever he is tired, he just snoozes here for a while. Other than attending to nature¡¯s call, he hasn¡¯t stepped downstairs,¡± said the clerk.
The shopkeeper had truly reached a state of neglecting sleep and meals.
At this moment, Qin Niu could also see a very precious craftsman spirit in this shopkeeper.
¡°Stop babbling and go watch the store,¡± the shopkeeper scolded the clerk.
Qin Niu examined the two sets ofpleted leather armor, especially therger one. It was so appealing that one couldn¡¯t help but fall for it after just a nce.
The elegant lines, theponents fitting together just right, and the beautiful yet rugged design.
Majestic without losing spirit, flexible yet sturdy.
After taking them, Qin Niu, who had tried on armor before, did not need instruction and managed to suit up without much trouble.
It was much lighter than the Hundred-Tempering ck Armor.
Moving his limbs, waist, and head around, he found he was very agile, almost unaffected by the armor.
The heel guards for the legs, which I had thought would hinder movement, turned out to be especially well-fitted at the knee and ankle joints.
It was simply perfect.
The heart area and neck guard were both reinforced with extra thickness.
Its defensive capability was clearly a cut above the other parts.
¡°Fantastic! This armor is exactly what I¡¯ve always dreamed of,¡±
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but praise.
Once worn, he looked imposing and powerful, and he was filled with an unprecedented sense of safety.
Ordinary swords and sharp arrows could not breach his defense.
¡°d you like it!¡±
Next, try out this hand shield.
The shopkeeper had just finished the final touches on the hand shield and taught Qin Niu how to use it.
¡°Hold the grip inside the shield body, and you can flexibly control this hand shield,¡±
the shopkeeper exined.
The hand shield wasn¡¯t veryrge, just slightly wider than a face, and only a little over a foot in length.
It was just right to protect the entire forearm.
It wasposed of multipleyers of fragmented King Pig leather. Like scales, theyers covered and fitted tightly together.
Holding it in hand, it was quite lightweight.
¡°When this hand shield is not in use, it can be hung on the back,¡±
said the shopkeeper, who had already made provisions on the back of the armor for hanging the shield, making it very convenient.
¡°There¡¯s space on the side for storing weapons like knives or swords. Quivers are usually hung at the waist. If you use a longbow, you can only carry it slung across your back. A short bow can be directly hung on the back,¡± he added.
¡°Thankyou, shopkeeper, this leather armor is simply too perfect! Although we agreed no workmanship fee would be charged, I can¡¯t let youbor for nothing. Here¡¯s fifty Two Silver Money as a token of my appreciation.¡±
After trying it on, Qin Niu fell deeply in love with the set of King Pig Armor.
With it, his likelihood of getting injured would be significantly reduced, whether battling enemies or fighting fierce beasts.
¡°No need for money, no need! Master Qin¡¯s satisfaction with my work is the best affirmation for me. Having crafted a set of beast hide armor in my lifetime, I would die without regrets. Moreover, in the process of making this armor, my craftsmanship has made an unprecedented breakthrough, something that all the Silver Money can¡¯t buy. If Master Qin is satisfied, please bring any beast hides or bones to me in the future for crafting.
I¡¯ll offer you the most favorable price then,¡±
insisted the true Armor Shop shopkeeper firmly, refusing to take the money.
His breakthrough in craftsmanship would enable him to take on many big orders that he couldn¡¯t handle before.
His reputation would also rise considerably.
The benefits would far exceed thebor fee.
¡°Then thank you very much! I¡¯lle to you for all my future armor needs,¡±
Qin Niu, a straightforward person himself, did not persist in offering the silver note.
¡°Haha, thank you for your patronage. If you encounter any problems with this set of King Pig Leather Armor during use, you can always report to me. The helmet¡¯s defense is rtively weak, so avoid being attacked by sharp weapons when fighting enemies,¡±
the shopkeeper reminded Qin Niu of the weak spot of the King Pig Leather Armor.
Every defense has its vulnerabilities, and theoretically, all can be breached.
This set of King Pig Armor, enveloping him from head to toe, was already near perfection.
Leaving the outfitters market, Qin Niu was extremely satisfied with his visit.
The trip had been fruitful.
With this set of King Pig Armor, his odds of victory in battle with Old Master Huang would be much improved.
However, in a battle against an Insect Master, he believed the opponent¡¯s strongest methods would definitely involve insects.
Qin Niu¡¯s strongest insect at the moment was the Termite.
The Ant Queen had also sessfully evolved, and the entire Termite colony had undergone a transformative upgrade in quality and leap in strength.
They were already no longer ordinary insects.
He was particrly eager for the first batch of eggsid by the evolved Ant Queen to hatch and transform into adult insects.
Based on experience, this process would take about twenty-one days.
So his feelings wereplex, wanting Old Master Huang toe looking for him sooner, yet also hoping to wait until the Ant colony grewrger before confronting the formidable foe. If he could have tens of thousands of Grade Two or higher specialized Termites, his chances of winning would be much greater.
From what he had already figured out, Old Master Huang had not just one but three Grade Five bee generals.
Nobody could be certain whether Old Master Huang had even more powerful insects.
The invisible pressure made Qin Niu dare not confront Old Master Huang head- on carelessly.
Even though he was now actively using the bee general to lure the enemy into showing up, his intent was to trick Old Master Huang into the maze of the Ancient Banyan Tree and take care of him there.
After leaving the city, dusk had begun to settle.
He quickened his pace.
Along the way, he could see many farmers still in the fields, driving away locusts or capturing them.
The insect gue had been raging for many days without abatement, and likely both the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s top brass and the Insect Master Association were under great pressure.
However, to this point, the Insect Master Association hadn¡¯t called upon ordinary Insect Masters like Qin Niu toe together to discuss strategies to eliminate the insects, indicating that the situation was still within a controble range.
Chapter 181 - 176 The Side of a Petty Woman_1
Chapter 181: Chapter 176 The Side of a Petty Woman_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
Recently, it¡¯s truly been a period full of troubles!
First came the floods, closely followed by a gue of insects, and therge families within the city are likewise restless.
Qin Niu could feel that it seemed a terrifying storm was about to arrive. Common folk merely wanted to get by with food and warmth, indifferent to these major events.
His strength had increased, yet it was very difficult for him to remain uninvolved.
With greater strength came more benefits, and this indirectly tied him deeper
to the ck Tiger Gang.
All the rich and powerful, it seemed, did not wish for anything to happen to the
ck Tiger Gang.
Otherwise, their good days woulde to an end.
If the ck Tiger Gang were to be destroyed, themon folk would certainly be affected, but the most severe impact would undoubtedly be on the elite ss.
In any dynasty, those who were in charge were never themon folk but the elite of society.
Power was held only in the hands of a few.
If the ck Tiger Gang were to fall, this region would face a reshuffling, and the situation would be even more turbulent. Many of the elitesbeled with the mark of the ck Tiger Gang would probably not even have the chance to surrender.
As for who would dare to destroy the ck Tiger Gang?
This question was somewhat naive; apart fromrge families in the region like the Fang Family, there were also external forces that could annihte the ck
Tiger Gang.
They were just looking for an opportunity to strike.
When Qin Niu returned to Shuangfeng Vige, he felt the vige was now simply a haven of tranquility.
The outside world was gued with rampaging locusts, leaving people panic- stricken, whereas Shuangfeng Vige, thanks to Qin Niu¡¯s presence, seeded in eradicating the locust disaster and had set up buffer zones at the entrance of the vige.
Additionally, Daoyuan Vige, with the help of Qin Niu¡¯s three thousand ducks, sessfully halted the advance of the Locust Army, forcing them to change their path and seek other routes.
Thus, this small area had be a rare ce of purity.
The Yan Family also made significant contributions.
Masters Mo Sang and Shi Doudan, by stopping the locusts at the front, provided benefits to the ordinary people behind them as well.
As for those locusts that were blocked from their path and chose to wreak havoc in other viges, no one would bother about it.
Everyone was for themselves, and the frost on another¡¯s roof was not their concern.
In the face of disaster, it was every man for himself, each relying on their own abilities to find ways to survive.
After returning home, the sky hadpletely darkened.
Xiao Qing was not at home.
This was by Qin Niu¡¯s arrangement, as he had asked her to temporarily stay with Wang Wanyan during this time.
She had experienced life in society and knew how to please others.
As Wang Wanyan and Qin Niu had a very special rtionship, she was naturally very fond of Xiao Qing, saying it was good to have Xiao Qing to keep herpany.
¡°Master, it¡¯s really you!¡±
Xiao Qing hadn¡¯t slept at this hour; hearing some noise, she ran back from
Wang Furen¡¯s house.
¡°Xiao Qing was worried about you and refused to sleep. She just kept watching out the window, and I couldn¡¯t do anything with her.
Wang Wanyan, draped in a white robe, followed.
¡°This child is just like this, it¡¯s not just you¡ªI couldn¡¯t persuade her either.
Qin Niu invited Wang Wanyan into his home.
¡°Xiao Qing, I¡¯ve retrieved that set of leather armor for you. Try it on to see if it fits.¡±
Qin Niu gave her the small Pig King Armor.
¡°Wow, this is fantastic! Thank you, Master!¡±
Xiao Qing held the Pig King Armor, ted.
Though young, she was shrewd.
She naturally knew this was a good thing.
¡°Wan Yan, I¡¯m giving you this Low-grade Contract Charm.¡±
He rarely used Low-grade Contract Charms anymore, so he might as well assist his sweetheart from time to time.
¡°This¡ You already gave me onest time, why are you giving me another one now!¡±
She felt embarrassed to ept it.
It used to be Qin Niu who was embarrassed to ept the food she gave him, but now the roles were reversed.
It was just that the items Qin Niu gave her were much more advanced.
Tempering Elixirs and Contract Talismans, those were high-grade cultivation resources.
¡°Someday when I¡¯m capable, even if you want the stars in the sky, I 11 pluck them down for you.¡±
Qin Niu said with a smile.
¡°Hehe, since when did you learn to say such sweet nothings! Alright then, I¡¯ll ept it.¡±
Sheughed behind her hand and took the Talisman.
She treasured it and carefully put it away close to her.
For Qin Niu, such items were no longer precious. But in Wang Wanyan¡¯s eyes, they were expensive gifts.
¡°How¡¯s that cat that you tameding along?¡±
Qin Niu was usually too busy to concern himself with her Beast Taming affairs.
¡°It¡¯s not too bad! I feel like it¡¯s be more obedient than before.¡±
Hearing her answer, he nearly fainted.
Others trained beasts to earn money or to enhance their fighting ability, yet she went to all this trouble just to make her cat a little more obedient.
¡°Did I do something wrong?¡±
Seeing the expression on Qin Niu¡¯s face, she asked somewhat sheepishly.
¡°You¡¯ve done the right thing bymunicating more with it, and it would be best if you gradually master thenguage of feline beasts. That¡¯s a very important Beast Taming Skill. Then, you need to find a way to make it stronger. I¡¯ll send some Boar King meat to youter. Besides eating it yourself, you can feed it to the cat too; it should help the cat grow stronger rapidly.
Compared to her, Qin Niu was no newbie.
He had rued some experience in insect control and beast taming.
¡°You need to find ways to make it stronger, preferably evolve some special abilities. You can take it to hunt some small wild animals, like mountain rats, rabbits, and so on. Its fighting ability can only grow through being tempered. If trained well, in fights with beasts of the same size, your cat should be an invincible force.¡±
Qin Niu guided her with a general direction for nurturing.
Her family was just moderately wealthy, with Wang Furen¡¯s assets probably totaling two to three hundred taels of Silver Money.
At most around four hundred taels.
Unless Wang Furen was very secretive, he might possess more wealth.
However, with Wang Furen¡¯s character, if he really had a lot of Silver Money, it¡¯s unlikely he¡¯d only purchase a dozen acres of goodnd.
After all, silver left as is will always remain as silver, but buyingnd can make money generate more money-
in modern society, arge proportion of people¡¯s wealthes from real estate. Not only can buying a house appreciate in value, but it can also generate rental ie.
In this world where everyone can cultivate, the best financial strategy formon folk is to buynd.
They can grow grains, cash crops, or rent it out to others and collect rent, all being very good ways to profit.
Wang Wanyan wants to be a Beast Tamer, and given her family¡¯s average financial situation, finding her own way to obtain cultivation resources is the right move. By staying at home, that cat would forever remain the same.
¡°I, I also thought about taking it hunting, but I¡¯m not familiar with the mountains. And I dare not go out at night even more. When you have time, can you take me hunting in the mountains?¡±
Her cultivation wasn¡¯t weak, but at this moment, she unexpectedly showed a side of her that was softly feminine.
¡°Not a problem at all. Shall we go to the mountains tonight?¡±
¡°Maybe we should wait until tomorrow daylight! I¡¯m still a bit scared.¡±
She said with a flushed face.
Girls naturally fear the dark and are even more afraid to venture into the mountains deep into the night.
Their courage is significantly less than that of men.
¡°Fine then, I¡¯ll take you into the mountains tomorrow morning. Xiao Qing can alsoe along to keep youpany.¡±
Qin Niu felt that her showing vulnerability made her seem more real.
Chapter 182 - 177 Healing Ant, New Bee Species 1
Chapter 182: Chapter 177 Healing Ant, New Bee Species 1
Trantor: 549690339 |
¡°Master, look at this armor!¡±
Xiao Qing came over wearing the armor. Even though it was tailor-made, it still looked somewhat oversized on her petite frame.
As soon as she finished speaking, a faint green glow emerged on the surface of the armor.
It enveloped her like a light cocoon.
¡°This¡you can activate it with your power?¡±
Qin Niu asked in surprise.
¡°Yes! Your set should be able to as well.¡±
Xiao Qing was still a child, and her yful nature shone through. She tried to activate the Pig King¡¯s armor with her power and identally discovered that it could produce a green glow.
¡°After being activated with power, its defense should be enhanced.¡±
Qin Niu tried to activate the Pig King¡¯s armor with his power and indeed found that he could allow power to enter into the armor.
Once the armor absorbed his power, a green glow began to appear on its surface.
As he poured more and more power into it, the green glow grew increasingly solid.
He picked up an ordinary firewood knife and chopped at the armor.
When the de was about half an inch from the armor, it was clearly met with resistance. It was blocked by the light cocoon formed by the green glow.
¡°The armor maker didn¡¯t tell me that the defense of the armor could be enhanced when activated with power! This Pig King¡¯s armor is really good.¡±
Qin Niu was already very satisfied with this set of armor, and now he loved it even more.
Light and flexible, yet its defense surpasses that of the heavy Hundred- Tempering ck Armor by a great deal.
Killing that Pig King was really a stroke of good fortune.
He wondered if there were any more Pig Kings in that forest.
¡°Alt Niu, is your cultivation now particrly terrifying?¡±
Wang Wanyan watched enviously as both master and servant had high-level armor.
What surprised her even more was Qin Niu¡¯s cultivation.
When Qin Niu activated the Pig King¡¯s armor earlier, the breath he unintentionally leaked out was extremely frightening, like a mountain copsing, like a raging wave sweeping over.
This kind of breath was even more terrifying than the ck Armored Army at the gate of ck Tiger City.
It was truly shocking.
¡± It¡¯s not bad! A bit stronger than the average person.¡± After witnessing the terrifying cultivation of the five ancestors of the Fang Family, Qin Niu only felt like an ant.
He was still miles away from the real powerhouses.
¡°Xiao Qing, remember to wear this armor every day from now on. It can protect you from harm at critical moments. I need to go into the mountains again. You all should go back and rest! Wan Yan, I will take you hunting in the mountains tomorrow during the day.¡±
¡°Okay!¡±
She saw Qin Niu¡¯s strength, witnessed his rapid changes day by day, and her heart was filled with longing.
And boundless admiration.
Ah Niu, who started low and relied on no one, had fought for his own ce in the world.
He was definitely worth learning from.
After Qin Niu went into the mountains, he found that the Ant Nest was normal, which gave him some peace of mind.
¡°You three,e out and eat.¡±
He insisted on feeding those three termites leaves from the Broad-leaf Trillium every day.
They hadn¡¯t changed much.
After the termites metamorphosed into adults, it was difficult for them to evolve further.
After that Worker Ant finished eating, he then fed the other two Soldier Ants.
During this free time, Qin Niu checked the attributes of the ant colony.
The ant colony had developed quite well by now, and the species were diverse. The number of Grade Two special ants had long surpassed two thousand, and the number of Grade Three special ants had broken through fifty.
It was a fruitful achievement.
Ranged attack, closebat¡ªthey all possessed formidablebat strength.
¡°Huh, the ant colony has a new species!¡±
He was pleasantly surprised and taken aback.
Healing Ant: 1, Lifespan: 3 years, Special Ability: (Heals injured termites)
This was a special Grade One Worker Ant.
Qin Niu wasn¡¯t clear on how it came about.
The abilities of the Ant Queen didn¡¯t include the power to produce this kind of termite. Previously, no Healing Ants had been produced.
Like Fourth, it belonged to a special rare species, or did it appear for some other reason?
For example, Qin Niu had been consistently feeding those three termites leaves from the Broad-leaf Trillium. Could it be that after the Worker Ant ate the leaves and then fed the young ants, it caused a mutation?
This possibility was very high.
Although this Healing Ant¡¯s special ability wasn¡¯tbat-rted, in Qin Niu¡¯s eyes, it was a treasure.
With it around, his termites could be healed by this Healing Ant after suffering injuries in battle.
¡°Should I further cultivate it?¡±
Qin Niu summoned the Healing Ant, which was still a freshly metamorphosed juvenile ant, small in stature. Its mouthparts were white, no different from ordinary Worker Ants elsewhere.
Normal termites have brown or ck mouthparts.
The mouthparts of this Healing Ant, however, were white.
Now, except for the newly metamorphosed adult termites, the rest in the entire ant colony had either been cultivated into special termites by Qin Niu or were in the process of evolving.
A Grade One Healing Ant appeared extremely weak within the ant colony.
Looking at this little guy, Qin Niu hesitated.
Although his sess rate at cultivating termites was now very high, with a mortality rate of less than 1%, there was still some risk.
If such Healing Ants would no longer appear in the future, it would be even more precious.
But without further cultivation, the abilities of a Grade One ant were limited and its lifespan was short.
After three years, it would still die.
If indeed the mutation urred because that Worker Ant ate the Broad-leaf Trillium leaves and then fed the young ants, then continuing to feed them the leaves should be able to produce more Healing Ants in the future.
¡°Let¡¯s take a gamble! This test of life and death is a challenge that every termite wishing to be strong must go through.¡±
Qin Niu finally decided to cultivate it immediately.
The moltedrvae, newly transformed into adult ants, were actually the easiest to cultivate.
Although their bodies were fragile and delicate, they were highly stic, and required less Banyan Blood Potion for feeding.
Therefore, the risk of their bodies bursting was rtively lower.
After calcting several times ording to its size, Qin Niu directly fed it Banyan Tree Blood.
He then proceeded to mass cultivate the adultrvae that had just emerged from their cocoons today.
By the time he was done, he found that the Healing Ant had safely passed the critical stage, saving him undue worry.
Now all that was left was to wait for it toplete its evolution.
Having finished cultivating the termites, he moved on to check on the two Corpse Bees he was keeping in captivity.
He had even taken care to hide them in two different ces.
The Grade Four Corpse Bee was incubating the eggs it hadid.
The War Bee was obediently lying still, nurturing its bee eggs.
Based on the eggying timing of the Grade Four Corpse Bee, it was estimated that it would take more than ten days for it toy its eggs sessfully.
Qin Niu was not in a hurry.
Theter Old Master Huang made his move, the stronger the power Qin Niu would have umted by then.
Days passed by, and with his help, Wang Wanyan gradually learned to take the cat she was taming into the mountains to hunt.
Since it was an ordinary cat, itsbat power was very limited.
On the first day, it only caught a sparrow in the mountains.
Unexpectedly, this thrilled Wang Wanyan to no end.
As a sheltered youngdy, she had spent her days reading, ying the zither, and cultivating in her loft, never experiencing such an exhrating mountain hunt before.
Fortunately, the cat¡¯s strength visibly increased bit by bit after eating the pig king meat that Qin Niu had given it.
Keeping a domestic cat as a pet was actually not a good choice.
From a rational point of view, it was somewhat willful.
Even keeping a wild cat as a pet was better than keeping a domestic cat.
A domestic cat¡¯sbat experience, ferocity, alertness, and wilderness survival skills were all inferior to those of a wild cat. It would need to spend a lot of time and undergo continuous training to reach a levelparable to that of a wild cat.
With the time and energy required for this, it would be better to directly tame a wild cat instead.
However, seeing that she seemed quite satisfied, Qin Niu silently supported her.
For the time being, he was just giving her some pig king meat to feed the cat.
In the future, he would consider using even stronger ¡°good stuff¡± to help her cat evolve.
In the blink of an eye, four days had passed.
Qin Niu¡¯s Healing Ant had finallypleted its evolution.
Its size had visibly be muchrger, and its movements had be as agile as those of a Lightning Worker Ant.
Based on Qin Niu¡¯s cultivation experience, the Healing Ant was definitely stronger than a regr Grade Two Lightning Worker Ant after evolving.
Grade Two Medical Ant: One individual, lifespan of 13 years, special abilities (quickly heal injured termites, swiftness, super-strong biting, immune to various venom attacks.)
These were the changes after the Healing Ant evolved.
Although he had yet to see its healing abilities, they were clearly much more powerful than a Grade One Healing Ant, as evidenced by its attributes.
It could quickly heal injured termites.
At the same time, its speed had greatly increased, and it also possessed a special ability that other termites would envy: immunity to various venom attacks.
This was an incredibly powerful attribute.
Why are bugs scary?
Because most of them possess venom.
They are small, and in order to survive, developing venom attacks became a powerful survival mechanism.
Upon returning home from the mountains, he prepared to take some jars to collect Banyan Tree Blood.
As soon as he entered the house, he heard a buzzing sound.
He was familiar with this sound.
The sound of bees vibrating their wings.
A swarm of bees flew towards him.
He instinctively prepared to activate his power to strengthen his armor, to prevent being stung by the bees.
¡°No, these are my bees!¡±
He immediately felt a connection with them.
Since they were the offspring produced by the Queen Bee, there was no particrly close soul-bond with Qin Niu.
But he could still feel a slight, almost imperceptible force of a contract.
¡°Haha, could these be the first batch of one hundred bee eggsid by the Queen Bee that have sessfully emerged from their cocoons?¡±
Looking at the swarm of new bees that flew over to greet him, each one tender and fresh.
¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll cultivate you right away.¡±
Qin Niu felt that today was a good day indeed.
The emergence of the first hundred new bees signified that from now on, every day would bring one hundred new bees sessfully emerging from their cocoons.
The number of bees under hismand was set to increase dramatically.
This was a force to be reckoned with in aerialbat.
Check the bee swarm.
Bee Swarm: Worker Bees 28651, Drones 272, Young Queen Bees 0.
Grade Two War Bee: One individual, lifespan of 3 years, special abilities (agile flight, bravery, enhanced biting, strengthened stinger.)
Grade Two Honey-Making Bee: Two individuals, lifespan of 2 years, special abilities (gathering essence of pollen, advanced honey-making.)
Grade Two Green Ring Worker Bees: 132 individuals, lifespan of 10.2 years, special abilities (superior gathering ability, can efficiently and quickly gather pollen. Good flying ability, can fly more than five times faster than ordinary bees, turning and rolling in the air agilely. Paralyzing Venom, the venom injected after stinging an enemy has a paralyzing effect, the duration varies ording to the enemy¡¯s strength. Strong biting, can tear at an enemy¡¯s body, effective at breaching initial level carapaces.)
Grade One Giant Wing Worker Bee: Five individuals, lifespan of 5 years, special abilities (can fly quickly over long distances, pollen gathering efficiency +50%, average bite force.)
After checking the attributes of the bee swarm, he revealed a brilliant smile.
Breeding and cultivation are much like farming, the process can be arduous and fraught with risks, but often brings various unexpected rewards.
Chapter 183 - 178: Insect Armor_1
Chapter 183: Chapter 178: Insect Armor_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
To have produced one War Bee and two honey-brewing bees really is a pleasant surprise. Once they are cultivated, they can definitely be stronger.¡±
Qin Niu did not hesitate to carry out batch cultivation on the other 97 ordinary new Worker Bees.
The three special Worker Bees were cultivated with precision.
Perhaps his bee-breeding ability was already very strong, all three special Worker Bees survived.
Actually, whether he was cultivating Termites or honeybees, if he did precise cultivation, the mortality rate was already very low.
He was very much looking forward to the evolved form of the War Bee.
Grade Two Green Ring Worker Bees were already quite powerful, and the Wat- Bee was already so formidable even before evolution; after evolution, it was sure to be a war god among bees.
In fact, his Queen Bee was a War Bee.
But the Queen Bee was too precious to take any chances, and he would never easily allow the Queen Bee to fight the enemy.
The Queen Bee¡¯s job was to be a qualified eggying machine.
To improve the ability to breed special bees as much as possible.
There was another point that surprised him.
Out of the hundred honeybees that the Queen Bee had produced this time, all three special Worker Bees were Grade Two bees.
This also meant that their potential for growth was higher.
Because they had started off so high.
With this evolutionplete, they would surely be able to advance to Grade Three honeybees. In terms of rank, they were only one grade below the ordinary Corpse Bees.
One must know, those Corpse Bees were bred by Old Master Huang after countless strenuous efforts, consuming arge amount of time and resources, following endless experiments.
Qin Niu had not been raising this batch of honeybees for very long and had already managed to breed Grade Three honeybees.
An absolutely proud achievement.
He was even considering, once those Corpse Bee eggs hatched, trying crossbreeding them with the honeybees.
As they were different species, whether crossbreeding would be sessful was still hard to say.
That night, Qin Niu was helping the Yan Family exterminate insects.
He sensed some movement from the Termites he had ced near the two Corpse Bees. Surely, this was Old Master Huang unable to resist making a move once again.
Qin Niu was secretly pleased.
He immediately recalled the Termite Army used for extermination and quickly headed to the mountains.
All along the way, he was very vignt.
Now that he had that batch of honeybees in his home, if a stranger entered, the honeybees would immediately sound the rm.
The timid Diamond Ink Turtle could also serve as a good sentinel.
It was connected to Qin Niu¡¯s spirit.
Upon detecting foreign invaders, despite its timidity, it had no problem sending Qin Niu timely warnings.
No invasions at home had urred, only the ce in the mountains where the two Corpse Bees were stored was signaling something unusual; this indicated that Old Master Huang did not know the whereabouts of Qin Niu¡¯s home.
Or that he hadn¡¯t invaded it.
Qin Niu¡¯s Evesting Spring Technique had now reached the Second Layer of the Acquired Realm, and when he ran at full strength, his speed was astonishingly fast.
After entering the mountains, he slowed down his pace, constantly vignt and scrutinizing his surroundings.
Because no one could be certain whether Old Master Huang hade personally.
For the moment, no enemy tracks were found.
¡°Fourth, you all try hard to sense the environment around us, alert me immediately if you detect anything unusual.¡±
He had over two thousand special Termites on him, which was like wearing over two thousand radars on his body.
ording to the timeline, the first batch of a thousand ant eggsid by the Ant Queen should be transforming into adult ants in these couple of days.
By then, his grasp of fighting the enemy would be even greater.
As Qin Niu gradually approached the location where the Corpse Bees were stored.
Fourth sent out a warning.
¡°Master, be careful, there seem to be some formidable insects around.¡±
Qin Niu faintly heard the whirring sound overhead like that of a bomber ne. Without looking, he knew it was the sound of Corpse Bees pping their wings.
It seemed Old Master Huang¡¯s criminal intent was not extinguished; he had ultimately been unable to resist sending out the Corpse Bees again.
Having suffered two major losses in a row, Old Master Huang would definitely be more cautious and careful if he dared to make another move.
¡°Fourth, are the formidable insects you¡¯re referring to the Corpse Bees above us?¡±
Qin Niu asked it.
¡°No.¡±
Fourth¡¯s only remaining antenna kept swinging; it was trying hard to sense the enemy¡¯s position.
¡°It¡¯s somewhat like our natural enemy!¡±
Fourth seemed to have made a discovery.
¡°Natural enemy?¡±
Termites have many natural predators, with the most formidable being pangolins and anteaters.
Their long tongues can probe deep into ant nests to capture termites or ants.
Inparison, termites are more popr.
Because they¡¯re more nutritious and taste better.
¡°Not good, they¡¯re approaching rapidly in this direction.¡±
Following Fourth¡¯s warning, Qin Niu also heard the rustling sound.
It was like arge swarm of insects crawling quickly on the jungle floor.
¡°Prepare for battle!¡±
Qin Niu gave themand.
Old Master Huang dared to make aeback this time, using not just one type of insect, but having Corpse Bees find the location where Qin Niu hid the War Bee and then set up an ambush.
He wanted to turn the tables and ambush Qin Niu instead.
Indeed, the old are more experienced.
At this moment, dark red ants slightly bigger than green beans appeared in his line of sight.
Although the moonlight wasn¡¯t very bright, their appearance could still be clearly seen when they got closer.
These were the most notoriously famous Army Ants.
Moreover, judging by their size, they were not ordinary Army Ants but rather a hybrid of Killer Ants that had been bred over several generations.
The number was not clear at the moment.
Qin Niu¡¯s Termite Army immediately arranged their formation to meet this formidable enemy.
Fourth was the fiercest, demonizing and able to bite one to death with a single bite.
Over five hundred special Soldier Ants, equally valiant, engaged in the first round of concentrated mental attacks, after which the front row had already begun a fierce battle with the enemy.
It was evident that these Army Ants were probably Grade Three.
Theirbat ability was slightly weaker than that of Grade Three termites.
But they were evidently stronger than Grade Two termites.
The number was at least several thousand.
Old Master Huang¡¯s resources were incredibly deep, indeed not something that a recently risen Qin Niu couldpare with.
¡°Something¡¯s wrong, they seem to be poisonous!¡±
Fourth was the first to engage in closebat with the enemy and also the first to notice something was amiss.
¡°Don¡¯t make direct contact with them, use mental attacks.¡±
Qin Niu immediately made a decision and ordered the Termite Army to retreat in an organized manner.
At this moment, the unified front of the Termite Army became apparent.
The Soldier Ants at the front held the defensive line firmly, providing valuable time for the termites behind them to retreat.
¡°Climb onto me. Use mental attacks against the enemy!¡±
Qin Niu issued an order to the termites.
¡°Master¡ I feel a bit numb!¡±
Fourth was already showing signs of being poisoned.
¡°Fourth, were you poisoned when you bit them?¡±
¡°Right! Their bodies are covered in poison.¡±
It was unknown what kind of poison these Army Ants bore on their bodies?
Qin Niu had already taken out the Ink de, aiding the termites in ying the surging Army Ants.
However, their numbers seemed inexhaustible.
They kepting continuously, dense and innumerable.
And their speed of action was extremely fast.
Having the termites crawl on him to form an Insect Armor and using mental attacks and Spirit Control against the enemy insects was his first time doing so.
Chapter 184 - 179 The Strength of a Veteran Insect Master_i
Chapter 184: Chapter 179 The Strength of a Veteran Insect Master_i
Trantor: 549690339
This also made him realize a new way ofbat.
In the future, he could further develop this approach, using insects to form a true Insect Armor, and transform into a Multi-Headed Beast. He could even use the insects as hidden weapons.
Why do Insect Masters instill such fear in people?
It¡¯s because the insects they raise attack in a way that is almost impossible to guard against.
While Qin Niu was ughtering arge number of Army Ants, he heard a faint pping sound in his ears. Immediately after, he felt the hair on his body stand on end, and an extreme sense of danger enveloped him.
Before he had time to react, he heard a sharp smack.
Something had struck his body at an extremely high speed.
Almost without thinking, Qin Niu immediately used his power to bolster his leather armor¡¯s defenses, to avoid being poisoned.
An shadow that was repelled quickly rose into the air and disappeared.
It was a Corpse Bee General.
Its attack speed was too fast.
If Qin Niu hadn¡¯t been wearing his King Pig Leather Armor, he probably would have already fallen to its poison.
The Corpse Bee General¡¯s stinger could easily pierce through a Bronze Canister.
The clothes on his body were as good as non-existent.
Only the robust defense of the King Pig Leather Armor could block its attack.
¡°Damn it, that Old Master Huang is too cunning. First, he distracts me with therge number of Army Ants on the ground, then confuses me with ordinary Corpse Bees in the sky, but the real killer move is the hidden Corpse Bee General.¡±
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help breaking out in a cold sweat.
When facing a formidable enemy, the more prepared one is, the higher the chance of survival.
If he hadn¡¯t crafted the King Pig Leather Armor yet, he would have been a dead man.
This made him think involuntarily of that dead Mu Kuai.
If he really had been stung by the Corpse Bee General, would he be something like that Mu Kuai?
He wasn¡¯t clear on the toxicity of the Corpse Bees.
But there is a small wild bee, which digs holes in the ground to live, slender in shape and delicately small. They are known as Digging Bees.
They are not good at flying, but their crawling speed on the ground is extremely fast, and they move agilely.
Many insectsrger than themselves fear them.
Caterpirs, locusts, spiders, etc., none of the prey targeted by these bees, even ten or twenty timesrger in size, manage to sessfully escape.
They possess a special ability. Whenever they are ready toy eggs, they will search for arge insect as prey. Then they sting the prey harshly with their poison stinger, injecting a toxin that paralyzes the victim.
At this time, the prey does not die.
It remains paralyzed and unable to move until the Digging Beervae are born, which then proceed to slowly consume the prey bit by bit.
By the time they devour the whole prey, they have reached adulthood.
This is even crueler than eating monkey brains or carving meat from a live donkey.
The prey can only watch as its body is eaten away bit by bit.
There is also an insect called Ghost Tiger Armor, which possesses a special ability to capture prey. A cockroach, muchrger than itself, bes agitated and rolls around on the ground after being bitten by it and injected with venom.
After a moment, the venom takes full effect, and the cockroach will obediently follow the Tiger Armor back to its home.
Making a docile breeding ground for the Tiger Armor¡¯s offspring.
It should be known that the Tiger Armor is said to be the fastest moving insect.
With it locking on, nearly no prey can escape.
The venom of the Corpse Bees may also have a simr effect, turning people into walking corpses.
Qin Niu thought to himself that Old Master Huang only had three Corpse Bee Generals in total.
If he could take down this one that hadunched a sneak attack, it would be painful enough for that old geezer.
¡°Fourth, how do you feel now?¡±
¡°It¡¯s just that my body is a bit unresponsive!¡±
It clung tightly to Qin Niu¡¯s armor.
But its movements had clearly be stiff and sluggish. Even it had been poisoned, so the other Termites hardly need be mentioned.
Some of the weaker Grade Two Soldier Ants and Worker Ants had already copsed to the ground and were instantly devoured by the Army Ants.
Luckily, the discovery was timely, allowing both parties to disengage.
Even so, in a short amount of time, he had already lost over forty Grade Two Termites.
It distressed Qin Niu greatly.
He gripped the Ink de tightly and shed furiously at the approaching Army Ants.
Splendid de Qi instantly killed dozens of Army Ants.
But their numbers were vast, at least over a thousand.
If they weren¡¯t carrying terrifying toxins, Qin Niu¡¯s Termite Army of more than two thousand could crush them effortlessly and eradicate thempletely.
Now, they were like a suicidal squad.
Fourth was one of the Termites Qin Niu valued the most, and its poisoning worried him immensely.
For now, he did not know how terrible the poison was.
Fortunately, his Termite Army was no pushover. After a brief period of chaos during the initial retreat, several Grade Three Termites quickly organized other Grade Two Termites tounch Mental Attacks against the enemy.
Some Army Ants were Spirit Controlled, bing puppets.
They turned to attack their fellow Army Ants.
Some Army Ants, under the Mental Attacks of Ghost Ants, rolled around chaotically on the ground or bit wildly everywhere. Some even seized theirpanions by the neck and bit it off.
¡°Once the numbers of my Termite Army increase, the advantage will be even greater.¡±
Watching the Termites swiftly stabilizing the situation and employing long- range attacks for an effective contact-free counterattack, Qin Niu heaved a sigh of relief.
This experience served as a wake-up call for him. In the future, when cultivating Termites, he would need to strengthen their toxin immunity.
Moreover, he needed to find a way to increase the number of Healing Ants and expand their abilities.
¡°All ants heed mymand, if you spot a Corpse Bee approaching, attack it with full force immediately.¡±
Qin Niu issued the order to his Termite Army and then continued to wield the Ink de, relentlessly shing at the Army Ants.
Buzz buzz!
That faint buzzing of wings was heard again in his ears.
¡°Prepare to face the enemy, the Corpse Bees areing!¡±
Qin Niu immediately warned the Termites.
Two shadows approached him at high speed, one of which aimed its attack rmingly at his face.
The face armor was the weakest part of his defense.
The other shadow targeted the hand with which he wielded his de.
¡°Attack!¡±
Following Qin Niu¡¯smand, all the Termites abandoned their other targets and directed their antennae at the two approaching shadows.
Even Fourth, who was already showing symptoms of poisoning, aimed his antennae at one of the shadows.
In terms ofbat capability, Fourth was definitely the strongest.
The shadow targeting Qin Niu¡¯s face, when about a meter away from him, halted abruptly and then stopped in midair, its wings beating continuously.
A nauseating stench of rot hit his nostrils.
Seeing this, it was clear that the Termites had taken control of it.
The other shadow, aiming for Qin Niu¡¯s right hand, fared worse; it gyrated like a drunken man, mming into Qin Niu¡¯s chest armor.
The force was very strong.
Two Termites that couldn¡¯t dodge in time were hit, and they both fell to the ground injured in an instant.
The shadow that hit Qin Niu¡¯s chest armor also tumbled to the ground, floundering.
This time he finally saw clearly¡ªit was arge Bee General.
Without any fuss, he covered it with a, which he had been preparing for some time, and then carefully ced it into a new Insect Jar.
This was an Insect Jar forged from fine iron; once inside, it wouldn¡¯t dream ofing out again.
It appeared extremely agitated, its long, sharp sting attacking the inner walls of the Insect Jar violently, creating a sharp noise akin to needles stabbing into a metal te.
The Bee General suspended in the air surely couldn¡¯t be controlled by the Termites for too long.
Qin Niu this time didn¡¯t even bother with the and directly took out an Insect Jar to encase it.
It didn¡¯t resist at all throughout the process.
Having sessfully subdued both Bee Generals, he too breathed a long sigh of relief.
Old Master Huang had only three Bee Generals in total; unless he was willing to abandon the results of years of hard work, he would definitelye to rescue them.
If he dared toe, Qin Niu would definitely find a way to eliminate him.
Without the threat of the Bee Generals, these Army Ants had be insignificant.
He could even let them die out on their own.
But instead of doing so, he seized the opportunity to keep annihting them.
The buzzing sound came once again from the sky.
One after another, the Corpse Bees, seeing the tide had turned, began to flee.
¡°These Army Ants might have been air-dropped using the Corpse Bees.¡±
Seeing the number of Corpse Bees was at least over twenty, he had a moment of realization.
Using the Corpse Bees to air-drop the Army Ants was equivalent to deploying airborne troops.
Old Master Huang, indeed an old hand among Insect Masters, used insects in endlessly astonishing ways.
And from this, Qin Niu learned many valuable lessons in practicalbat.
He didn¡¯t have Corpse Bees, but he had honeybees.
In future confrontations, he too could imitate this tactic, letting honeybees carry the Termites and then air-drop them at the target location.
An hour and moreter, the battle ended.
He had sessfully captured two Bee Generals, and there was a ground covered with Army Ant carcasses.
He initially thought their numbers were just over a thousand, but a rough tally showed at least four thousand.
A single Army Ant nest had at least tens of thousands, and up to twenty or thirty million.
If it were one of those super colonies with twenty or thirty million, even lions and tigers when encountered would be reduced to skeletons in a very short time.
The batch of Army Ants sent by Old Master Huang consisted mainly of Grade Three ants.
One couldn¡¯t help but marvel at the old man¡¯s resources.
Qin Niu initially thought ant yers were few, but he unexpectedly encountered one so easily.
Although his Termites were not ants, they were considered part of the ant family for Insect Masters.
¡°The gap between these veteran Insect Masters and me is still quiterge!¡±
Qin Niu, although he had won a great victory by being weaker and fewer, also realized many of his inadequacies.
He had even witnessed the true strength of other Insect Masters.
Old Master Huang was only one of the top Insect Masters in ck Tiger City; if one ventured beyond the territory of the ck Tiger Gang, there would undoubtedly be even more powerful beings.
Although the bodies of these Army Ants were poisonous, Qin Niu still found them valuable.
He carefully collected them in a canister.
It took him a good hour and more.
And many other debris were also collected together.
He had no choice; he didn¡¯t understand the type of poison on these Army Ants and didn¡¯t dare to let the Termites have any contact with them again. Collecting the bodies of the Army Ants could only be done by himself.
If he could let the Termites do the job, it might take only a few short minutes to finish.
¡°Fourth, how do you feel now?¡±
¡°Still a bit numb, but much better.¡±
Fourth replied.
This somewhat eased Qin Niu¡¯s mind.
¡°Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll let the Medical Ant try to heal you.¡±
About eighty to ny of the poisoned Termites were left, out of which around forty were killed by the Army Ants, bing martyrs.
The remaining ones were in a state of poisoning.
Chapter 185 - 180: The Powerful Medical Ant_l
Chapter 185: Chapter 180: The Powerful Medical Ant_l
Trantor 549690339 |
Qin Niu had cultivated the Medical Ant into a Grade Two Termite, but he never
had the chance to test its healing abilities.
Now was the perfect time to try.
Leading the ant colony back to the Ant Nest, Qin Niu summoned the Medical
Ant.
¡°They¡¯re injured, can you heal them?¡±
Qin Niu asked the Medical Ant.
It crawled to the poisoned termites and examined their condition with its
antennae.
¡°This is a paralytic toxin, but it¡¯s treatable!¡±
After speaking, it began to treat Fourth. It bit into Fourth¡¯s neck, slowly
creating a wound.
Then it seemed to suck out the poison from Fourth¡¯s body.
Its originally white mouthparts gradually turned ck.
Fourth¡¯s condition visibly improved at a noticeable pace.
Momentster, Fourth hadpletely recovered.
The mouthparts of the Medical Ant had turnedpletely ck, shiny from the change.
¡°Are you alright?¡±
¡°I¡¯m fine, I just need a little time.¡±
After speaking, it slightly raised its head and remained motionless.
Then, one could see its mouthparts gradually fading in color, from shiny ck to dark gray, then to light gray, and finally bing pure white.
The Medical Ant also soon returned to normal.
¡°Fantastic! I didn¡¯t expect your abilities to be so powerful.¡±
Having witnessed the Medical Ant¡¯s healing abilities, Qin Niu was very pleased.
The anxiety he had been holding onto was alleviated.
He was particrly worried about Fourth encountering an ident and was somewhat concerned about the Medical Ant running into trouble.
It seemed his worries were for naught; Fourth had fully recovered, and not only was the Medical Ant unharmed, it seemed to have grown a bit stronger.
¡°Have you be stronger?¡±
¡°Yes! The venom was of a higher quality, and after absorbing it, I transformed it into a special energy. If I umte enough of this energy, I should be able to evolve just like it.¡±
The Medical Ant had limited expressive ability.
By evolving just like it, it probably meant advancing to a Grade Three Termite.
¡°There is plenty of that venom, you¡¯ll have more than enough.
Qin Niu had collected many Army Ant corpses.
Now that it was confirmed that the toxin on the Army Ant corpses could not fatally harm the termites, Qin Niu immediately assembled a Termite Engineer Squad and took them to the recent battlefield to collect the carcasses.
Many Army Ant bodies were scattered on the ground; he didn¡¯t have the time to pick them up one by one.
These were all Grade Three insect carcasses; feeding them to the termites should be an excellent nutritional supplement.
Once he collected all the Army Ant corpses and returned to the Ant Nest, the Medical Ant was still inside, treating the poisoned termites.
¡°These Army Ants have actually evolved toxins in their bodies; that¡¯s really quite formidable.¡±
Qin Niu thought to himself.
He summoned the Medical Ant, ¡°Can you check if this Army Ant corpse is poisonous? Is it lethal?¡±
The Medical Ant circled the Army Ant carcass twice, constantly scouting with
its antennae.
¡°The toxins on the body aren¡¯t produced by it but are instead smeared on.
After checking, the Medical Ant provided Qin Niu with extremely important information.
¡°This toxin is not lethal. It will make those poisoned stiff and slow m their movements.¡±
It wasn¡¯t a toxin produced by the Army Ants themselves, but one that had been deliberately applied?
The first thing that came to his mind was the method of applying poison to hidden weapons and arrowheads.
This method could ensure that, besides being injured, the person hit by the arrow would also be poisoned.
It¡¯s often used on the battlefield.
Many of the generals who liked to charge into battle had died from poisoned arrows.
These Army Ants had been dropped here by Old Master Huang using the Corpse Bees. Meaning, Old Master Huang¡¯s intention was to use them as cannon
fodder.
Deliberately smearing toxins on them so that Qin Niu¡¯s insects would get poisoned during the skirmish.
Although he didn¡¯t understand why the Army Ants themselves were unaffected.
But Old Master Huang¡¯s move was indeed insidious.
If it weren¡¯t for Qin Niu¡¯s termites possessing long-range attack capabilities, they probably would¡¯ve beenpletely paralyzed by now. Then, they could only be food for the army ants.
The tricks of an old hand are too frightening.
Underhanded tactics, ruthless moves, strange tricks, endless and unpredictable, making them impossible to guard against.
With such a formidable opponent alive another day, it keeps one in a constant state of trepidation.
Qin Niu¡¯s determination to get rid of Old Master Huang strengthened even further.
Now that the three bee generals had fallen into his hands, it was basically the same as clutching at Old Master Huang¡¯s weak spot.
Just a squeeze, and there¡¯s no fear that Old Master Huang wouldn¡¯te over to court death.
¡°To be able to easily sacrifice over four thousand Grade Three army ants means that Old Master Huang most likely has arge number of even more formidable creatures at his disposal. A head-on sh would definitely not be in his favor. We must find a way to lure the man into the banyan tree¡¯s maze. With the help of the banyan tree, we can eliminate this powerful enemy.¡±
Qin Niu silently calcted in his mind.
It¡¯s unlikely that Old Master Huang would send more creatures over tonight.
Qin Niu ced the three bee generals together.
Each was kept in a separate jar.
Their size was considerable, and each insect jar could only amodate one.
He sat cross-legged on the big tree where he often took shelter.
Having captured the opponent¡¯s three bee generals, there¡¯s no guarantee than an enraged Old Master Huang wouldn¡¯t make some rash decisions.
He would definitely have to lie low in the shadows.
For the next few days, he nned to patiently wait for the fish to take the bait.
It was just a matter of when.
The night wind was gusty, while he cultivated on his own.
When dawn was about to break, it was also when people felt the most tired. At that time, most would linger, not wanting to leave the warmth of their beds.
Qin Niu heard a familiar buzzing sound in his ears.
Only Old Master Huang¡¯s corpse bees could make a noise simr to a bomber.
¡°They¡¯reing!¡±
Qin Niu tensed up immediately, observing the nearby movements closely.
Fourth stayed obediently on his shoulder, not moving an inch.
The Termite Army wasn¡¯t at his side.
Afterst night¡¯s battle, some termites were injured, and he had the Termite Army return to the Ant Nest to rest.
A corpse bee circled overhead, then swooped directly down.
¡°Fourth, can you control it?¡±
¡°I¡¯m afraid not, we would need the power of the ant swarm to control it.¡¯
After all, Fourth was only a Grade Three termite.
Although it was a scarce War Demon Ant, asking it to control a corpse bee that was one grade higher was a bit unrealistic.
¡°Let¡¯s see what it does first.¡±
Qin Niumunicated directly with the Ant Queen.
¡°Ant Queen, have the Termite Armye over immediately. I will have Fourth release a signal.¡±
He hadn¡¯t expected Old Master Huang to be so anxious to strike back so quickly after a very short time.
This also indirectly showed how important those three bee generals were to Old Master Huang.
¡°Received.¡±
The Ant Queen was now a Grade Four termite, immensely powerful. As they weren¡¯t far apart, Qin Niu could easilymunicate with her. After all, he had a direct soul connection with the Ant Queen.
If the Ant Queen were to die, his soul would also suffer damage.
¡°Fourth, send out a signal, call the ant army over. Prepare to settle the matter once and for all today and wipe out this troublesome Old Master Huang.¡±
Qin Niu issued the order, while his mind strategized ways to eliminate the enemy.
The corpse bee circled a few times before flying straight away.
The real adversary would probably arrive very soon.
Chapter 186 - 181 Break the Deadlock 1
Chapter 186: Chapter 181 Break the Deadlock 1
Trantor: 549690339 I???????????????? ¡ª
Since it was still nighttime, his bees remained unusable.
The Diamond Ink Turtle was just a turtle shell; looking at its cowardly demeanor, bringing it to face the enemy wouldn¡¯t be of any help.
Xiao Niu was still evolving.
Othersment theck of knowledge when the timees to use it, but hemented the scarcity and weakness of his pets when it was time to use them.
The mam issue was that the enemy they encountered this time was too powerful.
If it had been a master like Mo Sang or Shi Doudan, Qin Niu would easily defeat and win the battle.
This Old Master Huang was just too formidable; he had at least decades of umtion, whereas Qin Niu only had months, naturally resulting in a somewhat strapped situation.
As they waited, a series of intense buzzing sounds came from the sky. Nearly a hundred Corpse Bees appeared above and dove straight down. However, those three Bee Generals had already been relocated by Qin Niu. Buried at the boundary of the Ancient Banyan Tree¡¯s scope.
Qin Niu, on the other hand, had over two thousand Army Ants clinging to him, lying in wait in a concealed spot.
He felt that Old Master Huang¡¯s most formidable method was likely the Corpse Bees.????????????????????????????????? ¡®
Otherwise, after one ordinary Corpse Bee was captured by Qin Niu and imprisoned in the Insect Jar, with Old Master Huang¡¯s caution, he could have simply given up on it.
There was no need to dispatch more formidable Bee Generals and three Corpse Bees for the rescue mission.
If one of Qin Niu¡¯s Grade Three Army Ants fell into enemy hands, and the enemy¡¯s capabilities were unknown, he certainly wouldn¡¯t consider reiming
Unless it was someone as important as Fourth, only then might he consider taking a risk to investigate.
Even so, he would still be extremely cautious.
If it was impossible, he would give up immediately.
That Old Master Huang could dispatch over four thousand Grade Three Army Ants showed that his foundation was incredibly profound.
Logically, losing one or two Grade Four Corpse Bees shouldn¡¯t be a big deal for him.
But Old Master Huang, after a significant amount of time, still couldn¡¯t forget and insisted on dispatching Bee Generals for a rescue mission, indicating that each Corpse Bee was extremely difficult to cultivate.
This time nearly a hundred Corpse Bees came, which probably meant a full mobilization.
The Queen Bee was temporarily nowhere to be seen.
It might also be hidden among the swarm; the dim light made it hard to distinguish.
¡°So many Grade Four Corpse Bees forming an army is indeed terrifying.¡± Qin Niu watched the dense aerial army with a sense of trepidation.
Being stung by any of the Corpse Bees could potentially be fatal.
His target was not these Corpse Bees, but the true adversary who had yet to show themselves.
For now, just let them stir upmotion.
The three Bee Generals were each imprisoned in an iron-cast Insect Jar and buried underground; it was nearly impossible that they would be able to save the Bee Generals.
Old Master Huang, with his sinister and cunning nature, would more likely send them to search for Qin Niu¡¯s whereabouts and then attack en masse.
Thepetition between both sides was a matter of patience.
Time passed bit by bit, and Qin Niu was in no hurry.
Nighttime favored the Corpse Bees, and now, as dawn was about to break, it was definitely Old Master Huang who was anxious.
This was the importance of hiding one¡¯s strength.
Old Master Huang had sent insects and Mu Kuai to deal with Qin Niu three times, all without return; he had no idea of Qin Niu¡¯s true strength.
Finally, a figure like a ghost rapidly approached from the distance.
Its speed was astonishing.
No, this wasn¡¯t Old Master Huang.
Though the figure¡¯s speed was extremely fast, indicating a strength of at least tenfold in themon realm, the figure was short and seemed like a woman.
She was only about one meter thirty to one meter forty in height.
¡°There are actually two enemiesing; this is a bit troublesome.¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s eyebrows knitted slightly.
It was impossible to just watch this person save the Bee Generals.
He subconsciously gripped the Ink de in his hand, quickly thinking of a strategy.
ns can¡¯t keep up with changes.
He had to make a quick decision.
The best n was to kill this pathfinder cannon fodder to prevent the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze from being exposed too early.
The most formidable move must be saved for the most difficult enemy to deal with.
He was certain that Old Master Huang must be watching from not too far away. Killing this cannon fodder shouldn¡¯t be too hard, but by doing so, Qin Niu¡¯s position would be exposed. Then, when nearly a hundred Corpse Bees swarmed over, his handful of Army Ants would not be able to withstand them.
This was a very thorny issue.
Almost like an unsolvable knot.
Qin Niu inwardly sighed that his means were still too few.
Watching the swarm of Corpse Bees fly chaotically at low altitude, searching for his traces, Qin Niu thought of a n.
Why not use the enemy¡¯s strategy against them?
¡°Fourth, how many Corpse Bees can you control at one time?¡±
¡°Four to five is the limit, and if it¡¯s those powerful Bee Generals, we can only control one at a time.¡±
Their strongest were only Grade Three Army Ants;pared to the Grade Four Corpse Bees, they were still somewhat weaker. Against the Grade Five Bee Generals, there was even less of a contest.
It¡¯s like a master in the Acquired Realm-just one finger could kill an ordinary person.
¡°Control a few Corpse Bees to attack that person.¡±
Qin Niu issued themand.
This move was something Old Master Huang would definitely not expect. Five Corpse Bees were soon taken over and swiftly flew toward the rapidly advancing figure.
The Army Ants¡¯ Mental Attack and Spirit Control both had distance limitations.
The current distance was just right.
The figure appeared not to have detected the danger.
The five Corpse Bees pounced on the person, their stingers ruthlessly piercing the body, injecting copious amounts of poison.
¡°Hmph¡ cursed things!¡±
It was the sharp and delicate voice of a young girl; she couldn¡¯t be very old.
Probably around eleven or twelve.
After being attacked, she let out a painful grunt and cursed fiercely.
¡°Fourth, exchange for five new Corpse Bees and continue the attack,¡± Qin Niu ordered without a shred of mercy for the enemy.
Once the Corpse Bees on her body lost control, they quickly reverted to normal.
Although stung, the girl did not harm them.
It was as if the lives of the Corpse Bees were more precious than her own.
Five more controlled Corpse Bees once again pounced towards her.
This time, she was prepared, desperately waving a pair of short des in her hands.
They were two short des, mere half a foot long, flickering with a cold light. One of the Corpse Bees was struck by her short de, injured, and fell to the ground.
Qin Niu watched with silent amusement.
Dog eats dog; this move was simply splendid.
¡°Master, master, why are the bees out of control?¡± the girl cried out in agony. No one responded to her.
Old Master Huang, probably hidden behind her, must have wanted to strangle the girl. Such a shout made it obvious to even a fool that Old Master Huang was lurking in the background.
Qin Niu was all smiles at her misfortune.
Strike the snake at its vital point; to his delight, a clever ruse had caused the enemy to shoot themselves in the foot.
¡°All¡¡±
She screamed again, having been stung once more.
The venom of the Corpse Bee must be terrifying; while the stings had not yet seriously harmed her body, it might only be a matter of time.
Even if bitten by a deadly king cobra, it would take a while for the venom to take effect.
Seeing no response from her master and the Corpse Bees attacking like mad, the girl became infuriated.
She continuously shed and stabbed with her short des.
In an instant, two more Corpse Bees were injured and fell to the ground. These Corpse Bees had strong defenses but were not invincible to swords. The defenses of the Queen Bee might be stronger.
Qin Niu had never tried to test whether swords could injure them.
He deliberately didn¡¯t rush to kill those three Queen Bees, instead using them as a lure, baiting Old Master Huang to reveal himself.
¡°Fourth, control five more to attack that person,¡± Qin Niumanded, indifferent to the oue.
Using the enemy¡¯s weapon against them, even if the Corpse Bees werepletely wiped out, it wouldn¡¯t matter.
It would also destroy one of Old Master Huang¡¯s trump cards, eliminating a major threat.
As five more Corpse Bees rushed towards the girl, she became even more frenzied.
The remaining Corpse Bees, however, heeded themands of the mastermind behind the scenes, quickly ascending before staying out of reach.
Old Master Huang must have realized by now that Qin Niu could control his Corpse Bees.
Now, with the confrontation imminent and secrets being exposed, the fight was alighting with intensity.
¡°Fool! Stop right there!¡±
A furious shout from an elderly voice echoed from a hidden spot behind, and the remaining eighty to ny Corpse Bees all flew in that direction.
With that shout, Old Master Huang finally appeared.
Undoubtedly, he believed that his painstakingly arranged trap had been foiled by Qin Niu, who had edged a slight victory,pelling him to show himself.
¡°All Niu, I know it¡¯s you,e on out!¡± Old Master Huang eximed, showing he was well-informed about Qin Niu¡¯s childhood name, indicating inquiries had been made in the vige.
Who exactly had he asked?
A dark glint shed in Qin Niu¡¯s eyes.
What he despised most were traitors and spies.
Despite Old Master Huang shouting his name, Qin Niu stayed hidden in the shadows, unmoving.
He was waiting for the right moment.
The break of dawn was yet toe, and entering the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze would be certain death.
Although Old Master Huang had lost a round earlier, his vitality was unscathed. He still had eight to ny powerful Corpse Bees, posing a serious threat to Qin Niu.
Patience was crucial.
He might wait for daylight, then brazenly flee into the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze with the three Queen Bees right in front of Old Master Huang.
Of course, he would need to perform convincingly enough to avoid raising suspicion throughout the process.
Alternatively, he could stay put, waiting for Old Master Huang toe looking
for those three Queen Bees.
By then, Old Master Huang was likely to step into the maze himself.
Since Qin Niu had deliberately ced the Queen Bees on the border, Old Master Huang, no matter how cautious and unaware of the intricacies, would fall into the trap with just one misstep.
When it came to schemes and tactics, Qin Niu was no easy adversary.
¡°All Niu, in reality, we have no deep-seated hatred. It was wrong of me to tamper with you, and for that, I apologize. Here, I have ten thousand silver, and as long as you return those three Queen Bees, we¡¯ll consider our debts settled,¡± Old Master Huang proposed, pulling a thick stack of silver notes from his bosom.
No one could confirm the exact amount, but it looked considerable.
Still, there was no answer, just silence in the mountains.
Except for the girl whoy on the ground, groaning with pain that likely heralded the onset of the bee venom, she seemed in great agony.
¡°You are well aware of my capabilities; if we truly go for a life-and-death struggle, the dead man will surely be you. It¡¯s best to think it over,¡± Old Master Huang warned, his message carrying a hint of powerlessness.
His words, once spoken, became a sign of weakness to Qin Niu.
It signaled that Old Master Huang was running out of cards to y.
Otherwise, there would have been no need for threats, just a thorough search of the area to rescue the trapped Queen Bees.
Chapter 187 - 182 Is This Called Despicable?_1
Chapter 187: Chapter 182 Is This Called Despicable?_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
But Old Master Huang stopped not far in front of the woman, simply not daring to move forward recklessly.
¡°It seems you are determined to force me into a final confrontation. I will ughter everyone in Shuangfeng Vige, set fire to your house, and destroy your home. Then I¡¯ll find you and slowly kill you. I¡¯ll count to three, and this is yourst chance. If you¡¯re willing toe out, we can shake hands and make peace, and these ten thousand silver notes will all be yours. From then on, we¡¯ll stay out of each other¡¯s way.
Three.
Two.
One¡¡±
When Old Master Huang got to one, he drew out the tone.
However, he clearly underestimated Qin Niu¡¯s psychological strength, as he wasn¡¯t affected by the threats and didn¡¯t show himself at all.
Nor did he make any noise.
¡°I see you now, haha, go to hell!¡±
With those words, eighty or ny Corpse Bees swiftly pounced forward.
The spot they attacked was about two meters away from where Qin Niu was hiding¡ªthis was already very close.
Qin Niu thought he had been discovered, but having fought Old Master Huang so many times, he understood the man¡¯s temperament.
So he still hid his form, held his breath, and remained motionless.
The confidence he had came from the King Pig Leather Armor he wore.
Even if he were found, he could only activate the armor to defend himself and then try to get close to Old Master Huang to kill him with a single sh.
Currently, his Ink de could emit de Qi, the King Pig Leather Armor could produce a defensive Light Cocoon when powered by cultivation, and he had other cards up his sleeve¡ªhis Acquired Realm secondyer cultivation, sh Martial Skill, Sweeping Martial Technique, etc.¡ªall of which had not been exposed.
At a critical moment, these would serve to deal with Old Master Huang.
Normally, Insect Masters were only strong through the insects they cultivated; their own cultivation andbat power tended to be weak.
But Qin Niu was a rare exception.
Besides powerful insects, his own strength was always his foundation.
Arge group of Corpse Bees rushed toward the patch of bushes next to them.
They discovered nothing.
In turn, Qin Niu was disgusted by this.
As he had guessed, Old Master Huang had simply tried to bluff him.
In fact, he hadn¡¯t discovered Qin Niu¡¯s hiding ce at all.
¡°Fourth, quickly lead the ant swarm to control five more.¡±
Qin Niu would not let such a good opportunity slip away.
He secretly took control of five Corpse Bees.
¡°Let them kill that old man.¡±
After the bees swarmed and missed, they automatically flew back to Old Master Huang¡¯s side.
They were like a group of loyal guards.
Only now, five of them were under Qin Niu¡¯s mental control via the ant swarm, essentially like puppets.
¡°Kill!¡±
The five controlled Corpse Bees suddenly pounced on Old Master Huang.
But when they were about a foot away from Old Master Huang, they stopped advancing.
¡°Hmm?¡±
Old Master Huang noticed the abnormality and twisted his head to see five Corpse Bees lunging at him; he was momentarily stunned.
¡°Ah Niu, what a clever trick. I never expected you could control my Corpse Bees so stealthily. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to cultivate these Corpse Bees? You¡¯ll never know. My own insects, even if controlled by you, would never attack me.¡±
His voice carried a hint of pride and satisfaction.
Why did those five seemingly aggressive Corpse Bees stop when they got within a foot of Old Master Huang?
Qin Niu was puzzled.
It indicated that Old Master Huang must have something formidable on him to prevent the Corpse Bees from turning on him.
Seeing that the attack on Old Master Huang was unsessful, Qin Niu had the ant swarm direct the five Corpse Bees to attack their peers.
The n now was simply to find ways to deplete the enemy¡¯s forces.
And to drag out the time as much as possible.
Dawn was approaching.
As soon as daylight broke, Qin Niu would have the advantage, fearless and dominant.
¡°Despicable!¡±
Old Master Huang watched as his five painstakingly cultivated Corpse Bees attacked five other Corpse Bees, engaging in a frenzy of fratricide.
This spectacle enraged him so much it felt as if his eyes were about to split and his heart was being sliced with a knife.
Qin Niu sneered in secret. Against a viin as sinister and ferocious as Old Master Huang, there was no need to talk about morality.
The more underhanded the method, the better.
¡°Ah Niu, you forced my hand.¡±
Old Master Huang was slowly making his way toward the location of the Bee General.
He seemed to know where the Bee General was hiding.
However, the old fellow was extremely cautious and cunning, not rushing to rescue immediately.
Every step he took was full of wariness.
When he was about five meters away from the hiding ce of the Bee General, he stopped.
Then he detached an Insect Bag from his waist.
Whoosh!
He poured out the insects inside it directly.
These were centipedes.
Also known as millipedes, they could emit a toxic smell that was very diforting to inhale and could even cause dizziness and nausea.
Each centipede was about the thickness of a chopstick, and there seemed to be two or three hundred of them.
Just looking at them was enough to make one¡¯s skin crawl.
¡°Go! Release your poison gas as much as you like. Ah Niu, I know you must be hiding nearby, I have already sensed your presence.¡±
Upon Old Master Huang¡¯smand, the centipedes immediately began to crawl in all directions.
Their crawling speed was fast.
At the same time, an unpleasant stench began to engulf the area.
Luckily, Qin Niu had the foresight to hide in the trees instead of on the ground.
Although the poisonous gas was nauseating, with his strong cultivation base at the secondyer of the Acquired Realm, he could hold his breath for a minute or two without any problem.
The Evesting Spring Technique was essentially a Life-Nurturing Technique, and while it might not be suitable forbat, it certainly had no issue in making the breathst long.
After releasing the centipedes, Old Master Huang closely monitored all activity around him.
A short while passed with no discoveries, and he finally became impatient.
He began to quickly approach the location of the Bee General.
His gaze also searched all around.
Because he simply couldn¡¯t afford to dy.
The hidden Qin Niu was too cautious, from beginning to end not showing himself, just secretlypeting with him and causing him to lose face.
When daylight came, he would be at an even greater disadvantage.
Hence, he took the risk to quickly seize the opportunity to rescue the trapped Bee General.
His calctions were indeed precise.
By releasing the poisonous centipedes, allowing them to release arge amount of toxic stench, he could ensure that arge area behind him was secure.
With seventy to eighty Corpse Bees guarding him, his safety was well assured.
Seeing that Qin Niu just wouldn¡¯t show himself, he guessed that Qin Niu probably didn¡¯t dare to confront him head-on.
It was with this in mind that he only needed to find the Bee General, and he could rescue it.
¡°Hmph, petty tricks. Hiding my Bee General underground, don¡¯t think I don¡¯t know. ying these games with me, you¡¯re still too green.¡±
With that, Old Master Huang actually took out a ck Serpent-shaped Sword and used it to start digging at the target¡¯s location.
Qin Niu watched anxiously as the enemy refused to step over the line even by half a step.
If the three Bee Generals were rescued by Old Master Huang, it would be akin to giving a tiger wings.
By then, Qin Niu would be even less of a match for him.
Although he had prepared some measures, he wasn¡¯t sure they would work against an old hand like Old Master Huang.
Watching Old Master Huang dig quickly and about to uncover the Insect Jar, Qin Niu bit his lip and decided to use the ambush he had prepared.
Chapter 188 - 183: Not Afraid You Won’t Take the Bait_l
Chapter 188: Chapter 183: Not Afraid You Won¡¯t Take the Bait_l
Trantor: 549690339
Pulling the rope, the pre-arranged trap was activated simultaneously.
He couldn¡¯t createplex devices, just a simple hunting device.
Arge was flung over from behind towards Old Master Huang, while a bamboo-woven cage from underground opened, releasing a swarm of yellow bees.
Old Master Huang instinctively dodged backward, a series of rolls showcasing his impressive agility.
In his hand, the Serpent-shaped Sword was shing out an imprable screen of des.
Qin Niu watched in secret with a sense of trepidation.
He had thought to overpower the other with his cultivation and martial skills, but now it appeared that not only were the insects powerful, but the mastery and martial skills of the man himself were also daunting.
Such a formidable enemy was truly a nightmarish existence.
The Insect Jar containing the three bee generals had been swiftly pulled from the ground by Qin Niu, quickly brought into his hands.
Many of therge yellow bees that had flown out were shed into fragments by Old Master Huang, while some, when they got about a meter close to him, seemed to encounter something terrifying and rapidly fled.
Meanwhile, therge arranged by Qin Niu had some effect.
The didn¡¯t catch the person, but it unexpectedly trapped forty or fifty Corpse Bees.
But this ordinary fishing couldn¡¯t pose any threat to them. With their powerful mandibles, they easily bit holes in the and then wriggled out.
¡°Kill him!¡±
Old Master Huang saw Qin Niu appear, hiding at a position only eight or nine meters away from where the bee generals were hidden, and he secretly admired Qin Niu¡¯s guts.
However, he didn¡¯t show any mercy, immediatelymanding the Corpse Bees to attack Qin Niu.
¡°I¡¯ll take care of these three bee generals foryou!¡±
Qin Niu ran swiftly, while also not forgetting to hit Old Master Huang¡¯s weak spot.
Only when the enemy is panicked might they make a mistake.
¡°Fourth, immediately lead the Termite Army to take control of the bee generals in this jar.¡±
He knew very well that a human couldn¡¯t outrun the flying Corpse Bees.
He would soon be caught up to.
Before that happened, he needed to kill a bee general.
The bee general currentlyying eggs was saved forst.
Now, killing one first would make Old Master Huang agonize and anxious.
The Termite Army crawling over Qin Niu¡¯s body went all out to control the bee general in the jar.
¡°I feel like it¡¯s a bit out of control.¡±
¡°Howe?¡±
¡°It¡¯s possible that the Queen Bee is nearby, making it stronger than usual.¡±
¡°No worries, I can kill it just as well.¡±
Qin Niu felt a bit distressed about the Insect Jar; he had bought it for twelve pieces of Silver Money.
But with a formidable enemy before him, he couldn¡¯t care about that anymore.
With force, the jar was crushed in his grip.
The bee general¡¯s ability to withstand pressure was stronger than he had imagined.
It was still struggling furiously, its stinger stabbing wildly, and its mandibles biting randomly. It was too ferocious.
Qin Niu gradually increased his strength until a pus-like liquid began to ooze from the creature¡¯s mouth, the stench strong enough to make someone faint.
A Grade Five bee general, so what?
In front of the second level of acquired cultivation, it was still to be crushed to death.
Of course, the premise was that it had to be trapped and there was no worry about being stung by it.
¡°Damn you, stop! If you dare to harm my bee generals, I will grind you to dust, raise a skyntern, excavate your entire family¡¯s ancestral graves, ughter your whole family, obliterate your whole vige¡¡±
Feeling that a bee general was under threat of death, Old Master Huang was like an enraged lion.
The ordinary Corpse Bees approached Qin Niu with even greater velocity.
¡°Hmph, no one can stop what Qin Niu intends to do.¡±
As he spoke, the jar waspressed to an exaggerated degree. A Grade Five bee general was just pitifully crushed to death.
¡°Just an insect, no matter how powerful, is still just an insect.¡±
Qin Niu didn¡¯t discard the corpse; it was a high-grade ingredient, and he nned to save it to feed the Ant Queen.
Old Master Huang¡¯s body, however, shook violently, and he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.
Each Insect Master¡¯s method of controlling insects is different.
Like Qin Niu¡¯s termites and bees, they had only established contracts with the Ant Queen and Queen Bee.
But as Corpse Bees are difficult to raise, to strengthen his connection with them, Old Master Huang probably made contracts with each one.
The benefit of doing so is more flexible control whenmanding them, no need to worry about them being taken by others.
Qin Niu had even tried to tame a Corpse Bee but found it was already under contract, making it impossible to tame.
This further illustrated that Old Master Huang had entered into agreements with each Corpse Bee.
The upside was that he couldmand them as if they were extensions of his own limbs, without fear of them being seized by others, and no concern of bacshes.
The downside was that for each Corpse Bee killed by someone else, he would have to suffer damage to his soul.
The higher the level of the Corpse Bee that died, the more severe the damage to him.
This is also why that woman, when she swung her de at the Corpse Bees, caused Old Master Huang to reveal himself in a furious and flustered state, calling her an idiot.
¡°I will surely kill you! Dismember, pour oil and set on fire, grind to dust¡¡±
Old Master Huang¡¯splexion turned pale, but his eyes were filled with profound hatred and murderous intent.
¡°Haha, no worries, no worries. Before death, I assure you these three bee generals will apany the burial. The second one, here we go!¡±
Qin Niu grabbed another Insect Jar and then crushed it.
The second bee general began vomiting a pus-like, foul-smelling liquid.
Old Master Huang¡¯s eyes were almost bursting with rage.
¡°Stop, stop¡ you damn little thief¡¡±
Regardless of the damage to his soul, he gritted his teeth and unleashed his strongest cultivation, revealing a rather impressive step technique.
This was a Step-Method Martial Skill.
Once reaching minor proficiency, one could be as light as a swallow, walk on waves, and climb walls as if flying.
Qin Niu sought longevity with all his heart, and since he didn¡¯t have much Silver Money, he hadn¡¯t considered buying a Step-Method Martial Skill to study.
Step-Method Martial Skills were also the most expensive category among all martial skills.
Sword techniques, boxing techniques, de techniques, they could kill enemies and were offensive martial skills.
However, Step-Method Martial Skills could make a person¡¯s movements flexible, allowing one to advance or retreat with ease and secure an unbeatable position.
If they couldn¡¯t defeat their opponent, they could simply use their Step- Method Martial Skill to escape with their lives.
Old Master Huang demonstrated an extremely sophisticated Step-Method Martial Skill, his figure turned into a wisp of light smoke, chasing Qin Niu with a terrifying speed.
In the blink of an eye, he was right behind him.
Qin Niu made a feint while running away.
His body swayed to the right side, but in reality, he did not move to the right.
That was because he had been running along the edge of the Ancient Banyan Tree¡¯s maze, intending to trap Old Master Huang inside.
At this moment, Old Master Huang was like a madman, his eyes fixed only on the Queen Bee he was about to crush to death, and in his mind, he only thought of saving the two Queen Bees with the most cutting measures. Seeing Qin Niu¡¯s figure swaying to the right, he thought Qin Niu was trying to escape into the bushes on the right.
As a result, he made a wrong judgment.
He stepped into the maze of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
By the time he realized something was wrong, it was toote.
Qin Niu noticed that the formidable enemy behind him had disappeared, and a cunning smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.
¡°Finally got this powerful enemy trapped.¡±
He looked at the sky, which had yet to break dawn.
The inside of the Ancient Banyan Tree¡¯s maze should still be in an extremely dangerous state; most creatures that entered were more likely to die than to survive.
¡°Fourth, hurry up and lead the ant troops to control five Corpse Bees, let them fight among themselves. The Soldier Ants are to assist, using Mental Attacks against the Corpse Bees that are not under control,¡± Qin Niu ordered strategically.
With Old Master Huang gone, these Corps Bees had be utterly disorganized.
¡°The Queen Bee should be on Old Master Huang,¡± he concluded.
Because before Old Master Huang was trapped in the maze of the Ancient Banyan Tree, the Corpse Bees showed a high degree of cohesion, advancing and retreating in an orderly fashion.
Normally, even without Old Master Huang, if the Queen Bee were present, they would not be as disorganized as they were.
For bee swarms and ant colonies, what truly bound them together was not the master who contracted them, but their Queen Bee or Ant Queen.
¡°Perfect time to give Old Master Huang another ¡®gift¡¯,¡± Qin Niu said coldly, brandishing his de and shing at the attacking Corpse Bees.
He was not afraid of these ordinary Corpse Bees since he was protected by King Pig Leather Armor.
Under his power, arge green Light Cocoon protected him well.
Even if the Corpse Bees managed to break through this cocoon, there was still the thick King Pig Leather Armor beneath.
In fact, they couldn¡¯t even prate the Light Cocoon.
Only those three Queen Bees constituted some threat to Qin Niu.
Under the power he channeled, the dazzling de Qi became manifest.
A Sweeping Strike hit the three Corpse Bees.
They were instantly Ruptured by the fierce de Qi, cleaved into two and fell to the ground, where they struggled and died.
Trapped in the maze, Old Master Huang must have spat blood again, sustaining another blow to his spirit.
For Old Master Huang, who needed to fend off the attack of the Ancient Banyan Tree, this was truly adding insult to injury.
He was likely cursing in his heart, sending regards to Qin Niu¡¯s ancestors for eighteen generations.
¡°The Group Killing effect is not bad!¡± Qin Niu noted.
He had just learned the Sweeping Martial Technique not long ago and hadn¡¯t practiced it much.
Being able to kill three Corpse Bees with one strike was already very good for him.
Once this martial technique advanced to proficiency, or even to the point of minor achievement, its true power would start to show.
Outside, he went on a killing spree, massacring these Corpse Bees frantically.
In less than two quarters of an hour, he had killed all ny-two Corpse Bees.
He filled half a basket full.
After getting rid of the Corpse Bees, dawn was starting to break.
There were a few injured Corpse Bees on the ground, which he killed one by one.
He approached the woman whoy on the ground motionless with caution; she had long since stopped breathing.
It seemed very likely she was dead.
Using the Ink de, he prodded her a bit, finding her body already beginning to stiffen.
Dark blood was seeping out from under her mask, pooling on the ground in a small puddle.
The woman¡¯s figure was very petite, not exceeding one meter forty at most.
With his de, he lifted her mask.
¡°Air¡¡±
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but cry out in surprise, the face revealed was extremely terrifying, uglier than a ghost, and even more frightening.
Her eyes bulged, more white than ck; her nose seemed as if it had copsed, leaving just a tiny bit.
Her skin resembled old tree bark, full of creases.
It was brown, not the yellow that normal humans should possess.
From the curves of her chest and the tness of her throat, it could be deduced that this was a woman.
¡°She must have been poisoned to death by the Corpse Bees,¡± Qin Niu guessed.
His understanding of the Corpse Bees¡¯ potency deepened anew.
If stung by them, one¡¯s fate would probably not be much different from that of the dead woman.
In front of the woman were two Corpse Bees that had been killed.
He unapologetically collected their corpses.
These were good things.
Chapter 189 - 184: Eliminating a Major Threat
Chapter 189: Chapter 184: Eliminating a Major Threat
Trantor: 549690339
The female corpse was indeed too terrifying, and Qin Niu only carelessly poked her clothes open with his de to have a look.
He didn¡¯t find any treasures.
If left nearby, it would definitely start to stink.
Because the wild beasts of these mountains dared not approach the Ancient Banyan Tree, it was impossible that they woulde to dispose of the body.
Using the Ink de, Qin Niu lifted up the corpse and threw it into the maze within the Ancient Banyan Tree.
He decided to let this magical Ancient Banyan Tree act as a scavenger.
Dawn was gradually breaking, but the two Bee Generals were still alive and well, showing no odd signs.
This caused Qin Niu¡¯s heart to sink.
From the reaction of the Bee Generals, it was certain that Old Master Huang was still alive.
¡°He must not be allowed to escape; I must seize the opportunity to attack him while he is vulnerable,¡± he thought.
Qin Niu was very clear that if Old Master Huang managed to escape, the one to die would be himself.
Grinding his teeth, he chose a more concealed location to enter the maze within the Ancient Banyan Tree.
He had been here many times before, familiar to the point of knowing it like the back of his hand.
In fact, the Ancient Banyan Tree and the maze had long since be his private possessions.
After entering the maze, he scanned around with his gaze but didn¡¯t spot Old Master Huang.
This made the hairs on Qin Niu¡¯s neck stand up.
¡°Where on earth could he be?¡±
He was highly alert, ready to battle at any time.
¡°Crush another one to provoke that old thief!¡± he decided.
Without any courtesy, he took the crushed Insect Jar in hand, applied even more force, and then squashed the already injured Bee General to death.
As the Bee General died, a muffled grunt came from underground not far in front.
It turned out the old scoundrel was hiding underground.
Qin Niu swiftly approached that location.
¡°Fourth, you guys handle any bugs that might suddenly strike,¡± he instructed.
Thebat power of over two thousand special Termites, whenbined, was not to be underestimated.
Even a Grade Five Bee General could be dealt with by them.
As for insects of a higher level, they probably wouldn¡¯t be able to manage.
Approaching closer, Qin Niu saw that the soil ahead was loose.
Old Master Huang had buried himself.
No wonder that old thief could dodge the killing moves of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
ording to Qin Niu¡¯s spection, when the dawn was about to break, the killing moves of the Ancient Banyan Tree were weakening, which allowed Old Master Huang to survive.
Otherwise, hiding in the soil would only have led to a faster death.
¡°Send two to scout the exact location and depth of that old thief¡¯s hiding spot,¡± hemanded.
Qin Niu didn¡¯t act rashly.
Instead, he spent energy to activate the King Pig Leather Armor, with its thick Light Cocoon protecting him, to prevent being assassinated.
He flicked two Worker Ants onto the loose soil in front.
Building nests and digging tunnels on tree bodies or underground was second nature to Termites.
The two Grade Two Worker Ants quickly burrowed inside.
Qin Niu had not formed a contract with them, but controlled them indirectly through the Ant Queen.
This control was weaker, unable to directly share souls.
However, he was proficient in Ant Language, so he could easily obtain their feedback.
¡°Master, the target has been found, right at this location, not too deep,¡± they reported.
The intelligence of Grade Two Termites was limited; they couldn¡¯t provide the precise depth.
But based on his connection with them, Qin Niu already knew the approximate depth.
About half a meter deep.
He gripped the Ink de tightly in his hand and violently stabbed down at Old Master Huang¡¯s hiding spot.
de Qi burst forth from the de.
Thud!
The target was hit.
The earth exploded instantly, and Old Master Huang, terribly wounded, escaped from within it.
He appearedpletely disheveled, with a de-pierced wound on his abdomen, blood oozing out. Old Master Huang¡¯splexion was pale and ashen, his spirit was wilted, and his eyes were lifeless.
A Golden Toad the size of a human head was squatting on his back.
If that stab had hit the Golden Toad, it would definitely have been difficult to injure Old Master Huang.
It seemed fate itself wished to eradicate this man, allowing Qin Niu¡¯s de to wound his abdomen.
¡°All Niu, as long as you don¡¯t kill me, I am willing to give you all the family wealth in the city, the silver notes and treasures on me. This Golden Toad can be transferred to you as well.¡±
Old Master Huang covered the wound on his abdomen with his left hand as he retreated explosively.
His right hand, however, was tightly gripping the Serpent-shaped Sword.
¡°Are you serious?¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s face lit up with joy.
At the same time, as he looked at Old Master Huang, his eyes revealed intense wariness.
¡°I am willing to make a venomous oath to heaven.¡±
¡°Agreed!¡±
Qin Niu pressed in, step by step.
¡°I, Huang Mieyi, hereby swear that as long as Qin Niu does not kill me, I will give him all my wealth and the Golden Toad without any regrets. Otherwise, may I be struck down by heaven and earth.¡±
He truly made a venomous oath.
¡°I can spare you, but you must be my subordinate and forever remain loyal to me.¡±
Qin Niu was rapidly closing the distance between him and Old Master Huang.
How could Old Master Huang, such a formidable figure, willingly submit to someone as a servant?
But under the force of circumstances, he eventually gritted his teeth and said, ¡°I agree to your terms.¡±
¡°Since you¡¯ve agreed to be my subordinate, then you should have the awareness of one. Throw away the sword, kneel on the ground, and hand over all your treasures.¡±
Qin Niumanded Old Master Huang.
Although thetter was reluctant, he still obediently nted the Serpent-shaped Sword into the ground and then took out his silver notes and other items.
¡°Throw the sword farther away; otherwise, it will only make me think you still harbor disloyalty.¡±
Qin Niu coldly reprimanded.
¡°Fine!¡±
Old Master Huang agreed, releasing the hand covering the wound on his abdomen.
The blood from his wound had actually stopped flowing.
What kind of method did he use?
Impressive indeed.
Old Master Huang still held the silver notes in his right hand extended in front of him, as his left hand drew the Silver Snake Sword, ready to throw it away.
¡°Catch the silver notes!¡±
He threw a handful of silver notes at Qin Niu.
Qin Niu¡¯s eyes turned cold as he swung his de to strike.
Old Master Huang, also wielding a sword, charged towards Qin Niu, leaping into the air and aiming a direct thrust at Qin Niu¡¯s heart.
A cold light flickered at the tip of the Serpent-shaped Sword.
This sword must be an extraordinarily made treasure sword, capable of emanating a cold light when powered by Old Master Huang¡¯s skills.
If it could solidify even more, it would be a de Qi.
But it was notparable to Qin Niu¡¯s Ink de at all, not even on the same level of weapon.
His Ink de already possessed a spirit consciousness and could gather de Qi.
Boom!
A vicious shnded on the top of Old Master Huang¡¯s head.
The Golden Toad attempted to leap up to protect its master, but it was a moment toote.
Old Master Huang¡¯s ck Silver Snake Sword also pierced Qin Niu¡¯s heart.
Qin Niu¡¯s Light Cocoon was prated, but the King Pig Leather Armor blocked the sword thrust.
Old Master Huang, however, was not so lucky.
His body was cleaved in two.
Qin Niu¡¯s strike just then resulted in a Rupture effect.
The de Qi tore Old Master Huang¡¯s body in half.
Blood and innards spilled all over the ce.
Both men were formidable, neither truly trusting the other.
Qin Niu used words to steady Old Master Huang, aiming to dispel his thoughts of resistance, to easily finish him off with one strike.
Old Master Huang, on the other hand, pretended to surrender, deceiving Qin Niu, and took the opportunity to deliver a desperate strike.
If it weren¡¯t for the King Pig Leather Armor, Qin Niu might not have been killed, but he would have been severely wounded.
Of course, without this armor, he would not have engaged in closebat with such a strong adversary, foolishly.
The Golden Toad was also caught in the de Qi but incredibly did not die.
It tumbled onto the ground; its outer skin had not been sliced open.
¡°Such incredible defensive power!¡±
Qin Niu inwardly marveled at the strength of the Golden Toad.
Chapter 190 - 185: Struck It Rich_1
Chapter 190: Chapter 185: Struck It Rich_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
You should know, his de Qi was capable of ying even the King of Pigs that had cultivated an inner core.
Toads and frogs possessed a unique ability known as Toad Skill. They could absorb air to swell their body, which would then be full of sticity and possessed an unimaginable level of physical defense.
This Golden Toad was asrge as a human head, which was already quite exaggerated.
Its body was covered with granr bumps.
Therger ones were the size of fingernails, while the finer ones were only as big as mung beans.
It looked extremely disgusting to the observer.
The skin on its back was predominantly golden yellow, with vertical stripes.
When Qin Niu had attacked Old Master Huang, it had actively blocked the attack with its body to protect its master. By rights, it should have been subdued by Old Master Huang.
Only a subdued pet would shield its master with its life at critical moments.
But strangely, after Old Master Huang¡¯s death, the Corpse Bee Qin Niu had trapped in the Insect Jar, along with the Bee General, all died silently. Yet this Golden Toad was unscathed.
Instead, one could see the return of its wild nature in its gaze.
Ity on the ground, desperately opening its mouth and ceaselessly scraping its own head with its front paws, as if trying to vomit something out.
There were two types of contracts.
One was an equal contract, somewhat simr to a mutual defense alliance.
In the force of the contract, the master and the pet were equals, with no master-servant rtionship. The master could not fully control the pet, only coexist with it as friends.
When encountering enemies, the pet might help or might ignore the situation entirely.
If the pet died, it would cause minimal soul trauma to the master. Simrly, if the master died, the impact on the pet would also be very minor.
If either party died, the force of the contract would automatically dissipate.
A contract was more like a lock that linked the souls of two creatures together.
If one side died, the lock would lose its function.
The most overbearing was the master-servant contract.
When a master died, the pet would also die. This was not only overbearing but also somewhat vicious.
However, some masters, in consideration of their master-servant affection, would dissolve the contract actively before dying. This way, the pet could avoid the misfortune of dying along with its master.
Even though masters might have this intention, sometimes they were killed before they could dissolve the contract.
Therefore, when forming soul contracts with insects, beasts, or birds, they would fiercely resist.
Apart from not wanting to lose their freedom, they were even more unwilling to willingly be servants to humans. That innate threat to their life would uncontrobly cause them to resist.
No creature wanted to ce its life in the hands of another.
Qin Niu stared intently at the Golden Toad.
¡°Could it be that this Golden Toad wasn¡¯t subdued, but indirectly controlled by Old Master Huang using insects?¡±
That was indeed a possibility.
Because the Golden Toad was a unique creature of heaven and earth, subduing it was extremely difficult.
At this moment, the Golden Toad was likely trying to vomit out the insects in its stomach.
Logically, when Old Master Huang died, the insects inside the Golden Toad¡¯s stomach should have died as well.
If that were the case, why was the Golden Toad in such a hurry to spit out the corpses of the insects?
And judging by its appearance, it seemed very anxious.
There was only one possibility, not spitting out the corpses of the insects would threaten its life.
¡°A gentleman should be open and upright, a petty person loves to take advantage of others¡¯ misfortune, and today I must y the part of the petty person!¡±
Qin Niu eyed the human-head-sized Golden Toad, intensely desiring to make it his own.
However, it was an opportunity granted by heaven.
It was like a rogue anticipated to have a chance with a beautiful woman; under normal circumstances, there would be no chance. But if something happened in the beauty¡¯s home requiring borrowing arge sum of money, or if her brother was about to be arrested and needed rescue, the rogues would then see their opportunity.
As for taking by force, that was intolerable to heaven and a breach of thew of thend.
Qin Niu always acted calmly and decisively.
Without a second thought, he directly took out that Advanced Contractual Talisman.
This thing was worth a Hundred Taels of Silver Money, after all!
When the price ofnd was cheap, that was enough to buy more than ten acres of fertilend. Even in a normal year, it was no problem to buy six or seven acres of fertilend.
Without the slightest hesitation, he bit the tip of his tongue and spat out a mouthful of fresh blood onto the activation area of the Talisman.
The Golden Toad saw this human before it, with a gaze filled with ill intent and even pulled out an item that it was extremely wary of. This instinctively made it feel fear and urgency, wanting to escape.
But with the insect still inside its stomach, it couldn¡¯t run.
This thing could cost it its life.
It chose to speed up its vomiting, trying to expel the contents of its stomach as quickly as possible.
Qin Niu, however, didn¡¯t give it that time.
Once the Advanced Contractual Talisman was activated, a ray of solid golden light shot forth. It was very spirited, constantly changing in the air, and actually formed into the vague shape of a golden snake.
Countless intricate talismans rolled across the surface and within the body of the golden snake.
When this golden snake appeared, Qin Niu felt his soul tremble and almost couldn¡¯t maintain control.
¡°Go!¡±
Under his mentalmand, the golden snake shot straight towards the Golden Toad.
The golden snake directly engulfed the Golden Toad in one bite.
Then it coiled on the spot, continuing to wriggle.
One could vaguely see the Golden Toad struggling within, faintly visible.
¡°Submit to me and I shall immediately grant you a great opportunity, aiding you in advancing to be stronger. Otherwise, you have no chance of survival,¡± Qin Niu was certainly not joking with it.
If it dared to resist and couldn¡¯t be subdued, death was the only end it faced.
The Golden Toad naturally didn¡¯t listen to him and dismissed his words as nonsense.
It struggled even more fiercely.
¡°I don¡¯t speak thenguage of beasts, but since you possess a certain level of intelligence, you should understand human speech. I know you are unwilling to submit easily because you think I am not strong enough. This tree is merely a trinket of mine. You can try to escape, using the area covered by this tree as the boundary. If you manage to escape, I will let you go. If you cannot, then you will submit to me. How about that?¡±
Qin Niu stared at the Golden Toad.
Under his mentalmand, the golden snake temporarily ceased its assault on it.
It was clearly contemting.
At this moment, fine threads of blood began to appear on the surface of its body, and it seemed to be in extreme pain.
¡°Your time seems to be running out. As soon as you agree, I will allow you to vomit the poison within your belly first. Although we humans are cunning, a true man stands between heaven and earth, and his word is his bond. You can trust me this once¡ªit will also be our first mutual trust.¡±
Qin Niu looked at it sincerely.
He really went to great lengths to subdue this Golden Toad, brazenly iming that the Ancient Banyan Tree was his trinket.
Others wave a tiger¡¯s banner to im kingship, but he is even more exaggerated and shameless, treating the treasure of the world as his private property.
With his current strength, he might not even be one ten-thousandth as powerful as the Ancient Banyan Tree.
The Golden Toad was pushed into a corner.
If it didn¡¯t agree, the thing in its stomach would soon im its life.
If it agreed, at least there was a glimmer of hope for survival.
Its toad eyes shifted slightly, probably assessing the range of the Ancient Banyan Tree¡¯s coverage.
¡°Croak!¡±
In the end, it actuallyy down and nodded its head three times, agreeing to Qin Niu¡¯s proposal.
¡°Just let the golden light enter your body. I can control the golden light not to attack your soul right away, until after you¡¯ve vomited the poison from inside your belly,¡± Qin Niu said to it.
Mutual trust was mutual trust, but he couldn¡¯t let himself be yed by a toad.
As long as the golden light entered its body, even if it renegedter, it would be much easier for Qin Niu to subdue it.
The Golden Toad stopped resisting, and the golden light rapidly entered its body.
True to his word, Qin Niu didn¡¯t rush to subdue it.
Just like in a rtionship between a man and a woman, it all starts with establishing initial trust and then gradually deepening it, until feelings develop.
¡°Nowyou can exert all your strength to vomit the poison inside you,¡± Qin Niu said as he noticed the fine threads of blood on its body bing more and more numerous.
It probably had started to take effect.
It couldn¡¯t wait any longer and began retching to vomit the substance from its belly.
Qin Niu waited patiently.
Looking at Old Master Huang¡¯s corpse, he didn¡¯t waste time and instructed the Termite Army on him, ¡°Fourth, take some termites and investigate to see if these silver notes and the surface of that corpse are poisoned.¡±
Under Qin Niu¡¯smand, Fourth led a group of termites to quickly investigate.
¡°Master, there is no poison,¡± Fourth reported back to Qin Niu afterpleting the investigation.
¡°Very well,e back,¡± Qin Niu said before bending down to pick up the scattered silver notes.
Counting them, there were a total of thirteen thousand and seventy taels.
The smallest denomination was silver notes worth ten taels each.
Thergest were gold notes worth a hundred taels each and silver notes worth a thousand taels each.
Although the exchange ratio between gold and silver remained stable at ten to one, there were asional fluctuations.
When the price of gold was low, one tael of gold could only be exchanged for nine taels of silver.
To avoid losses, many people chose to exchange for a thousand-tael silver notes.
All these silver monies were Old Master Huang¡¯s entire fortune.
He really was wealthy, having over ten thousand taels in cash.
Now, all these riches fell into Qin Niu¡¯s hands.
In the past, when he saw that young master paying five thousand taels of silver for a scroll of Dragon Chant, he could only long for it enviously.
Now, he could buy two scrolls and still have money left over.
But he had no intention of buying a cultivation technique.
The Medicine King Sutra and the Evesting Spring Technique he was currently practicing were already enough.
Biting off more than one can chew is never good.
Practicing too many cultivation techniques is not advisable.
Practicing multiple techniques simultaneously could lead to conflicts, especially if one technique cultivated water attribute energy and another fire attribute energy. The ipatible forces would sh within the body.
At best, one might experience deviation in cultivation; at worst, it could cause the body to explode and lead to death.
Furthermore, shing cultivation techniques might result in stagnation of one¡¯s cultivation level or slow progression.
Generally, practitioners stick to cultivating techniques that are simr or derived from the same source.
Qin Niu nned to save the silver to purchasend and farms.
Having arge amount ofnd resources would allow him better opportunities to research nting and breeding.
It would also provide a continuous stream of ie.
Though thirteen thousand taels of silver might seem like a lot, if he only spent without earning, it would quickly run out.
But by acquiringnd, whether leasing it out or hiring others to cultivate, he could continuously earn silver.
Look at the Yan Family and other such noble ns; which among them didn¡¯t possess their own industries?
Only with a steady ie could he support the considerable expenses of his cultivation.
¡°Let¡¯s see if there¡¯s anything valuable on the body!¡± Qin Niu said after he finished picking up the silver notes, approaching the corpse that had been split in two.
Chapter 191 - 186 Nine Insect Command 1
Chapter 191: Chapter 186 Nine Insect Command 1
Trantor: 549690339
As he approached, he used the Ink de to pry open the clothes on Old Master Huang¡¯s body.
¡°Good heavens, what is this?¡±
He found a Corpse Bee on Old Master Huang¡¯s back that was evenrger than a fist, and it had died.
It had been split in half along with Old Master Huang¡¯s corpse.
But this Corpse Bee was actually growing inside Old Master Huang¡¯s flesh.
Centered around it, thatrge piece of flesh was all ck, simr to that of the dead woman. The skin was covered with wrinkles and revealed scars resembling pustules.
This man was truly no ordinary type of crazy, to be nurturing insects within his own body.
How was this any different from those legendary Gu Masters?
And judging by the state of this wound on his back, he must have endured tremendous pain every day.
No wonder crushing a bee would drive Old Master Huang to madness, fighting for his life against him.
The Corpse Bees he had painstakingly raised at such a great cost, each one was treated like a treasure by Old Master Huang.
¡®This one on Old Master Huang¡¯s back must be the Queen Bee,¡±
Qin Niu looked at this Corpse Bee,rger even than a bee general, and secretly guessed at its identity.
A normal Corpse Bee would not be something Old Master Huang would have kept inside his body.
¡°The body of the Queen Bee must be even more nutritious than that of a bee general. Digging it out to feed the Ant Queen would be excellent.¡±
Thinking it, he did it.
He indeed dug out the body of the Queen Bee using the Ink de.
At the tail end of it, an obvious sunken wound could be seen on Old Master Huang¡¯s back.
¡°Could it be that the Queen Beeid its eggs here? Then, using the rotting flesh on Old Master Huang¡¯s back as an incubator?¡±
That was simply terrifying.
He cut open the piece of rotten flesh and indeed found a bee egg.
This was an unhatched bee egg.
The ordinary Corpse Bee that Qin Niu had captured had alsoid an egg. But that egg could only hatch into a male bee.
He had originally nned to let that Corpse Bee hatch the egg.
But it seems things were not as he had imagined.
Now, that Corpse Bee, including the bee generals, were all dead.
Qin Niu now only had two bee eggs in his possession.
He carefully stored the bee eggs, and the Queen Bee¡¯s body was also separately kept.
The Ant Queen was his key cultivation focus, he definitely wanted to use the best resources to feed the Ant Queen, nurturing it to be stronger.
The Ant Queen now had a lifespan of thirty thousand years, and its special abilities were also stronger than before.
He dared not imagine, if he kept nurturing it, how strong it would be in the future?
It would definitely be far more impressive than this Queen Bee.
He continued to search Old Master Huang¡¯s corpse, and then he found two more things.
A dark green token.
Nine Insect Command.
What was this token about?
¡°Qin Niu felt that this token seemed very advanced. On its back, there were intricate patterns etched, along with a name and position.
Huang Zhiqiu, Executor.
Since Old Master Huang¡¯s surname was Huang, the name carved on the token was likely his real name.
This indicated that Old Master Huang¡¯s identity was that of an Executor.
Nine Insect? Qin Niu could only think of the Nine Insect Gang.
Could it be that Old Master Huang was an Executor for the Nine Insect Gang? If that was the case, then why didn¡¯t this man reside within the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s territory, but instead live within ck Tiger City? What was he plotting? Qin Niu thought about it but decided not to take the token with him. Instead, he nned to bury it at the base of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
The name written on Old Master Huang¡¯s waist tag was Huang Yusheng.
Had he taken a false name to deceive others?
That meant Old Master Huang¡¯s motives for hiding in ck Tiger City were even moreplicated.
The Nine Insect Gang¡¯s strength was truly terrifying.
Just any executor was already this terrifying, let alone the protector, elders, vice gang leader, and gang leader, who were likely to be even more horrifying. ¡°Could it be that the Nine Insect Gang wants to swallow up the ck Tiger Gang?¡±
Such a possibility could not be ruled out.
After all, the Nine Insect Gang had already managed to absorb the Seven-Star Sect.
Human desires are endless; consuming the territory of one faction only leads to thoughts of devouring more, slowly growing stronger, eventually bing a super sect.
Every Immortal Sect¡¯s rise is built on an incalcble amount of resources.
Pouring a wealth of resources into a few geniuses, making them be more and more powerful, until they ultimately step through the Immortal Gate.
Qin Niu realized that killing Old Master Huang might have already spoiled the good deeds of the Nine Insect Gang.
This was already an entanglement in the gang strife.
If discovered, he would be mercilessly erased by the experts of the Nine Insect Gang.
There was even a possibility of being captured and subjected to severe torture for information.
At this thought, he couldn¡¯t help but shiver.
This matter must not be known by a third party, otherwise, Qin Niu¡¯s situation would be exceedingly dangerous.
Even the vigers of Shuangfeng Vige would face a disaster of total annihtion.
¡°Old Master Huang¡¯s two subordinates, as well as he himself, are all killed.
There should be no one else who knows about this,¡± Qin Niu pondered, while his hands did not stop moving.
He continued to search the bodies.
Finally, he found a notebook in a secret pocket of Old Master Huang¡¯s clothes.
It seemed to be something Old Master Huang carried with him and made notes in from time to time.
It contained records of Old Master Huang¡¯s experiences with cultivating insects and some personal experiences.
Something akin to a diary.
The most frequent entries were about the cultivation of Corpse Bees.
Since Qin Niu had not yet subdued the Golden Toad, he did not waste time studying the notebook in detail.
Instead, he put it away, nning to read it carefully when he had the time.
Not finding any Cultivation Techniques or Martial Skills implied that Old Master Huang probably did not carry these things on his person.
Sneaking into Old Master Huang¡¯s residence to look for them?
The idea was tempting, but Qin Niu was too cautious, fearing that doing so would lead to exposure and putting himself at risk of being watched.
Wliat he wanted most was Old Master Huang¡¯s Step-Method Martial Skill.
It was unfortunate that the other party did not carry it with him, and now that the man was likely one of the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s executors and the body yielded no results, he had to decisively give up the idea.
After a thorough search, finding no other items of use, his gaze shifted to the Golden Toad.
A long, slender insect had been vomited out by it.
Entirely dark red, it resembled a piece of intestine.
This insect seemed to be already dead.
It was covered with a lot of mucus.
Even with Qin Niu¡¯s two-star Insect Identification skills, he could not determine the origin of this insect.
Since it could control the Golden Toad, it certainly was no ordinary insect.
The Golden Toad had already leaped towards the outskirts of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
With a single jump, it could reach two to three meters in height and seven to eight meters in distance, which was quite impressive.
This was probably not the full extent of its abilities.
Qin Niu simply followed nonchntly behind it, watching it attempt to escape.
If the Golden Toad could truly get away, then it was just his bad luck.
He would definitely keep his promise, allowing the Golden Toad to return to nature.
After all, he had obtained over ten thousand Silver Money from Old Master Huang¡¯s body, which was enough for him to break even.
The price of an Advanced Contract Talisman was a hundred taels of silver.
After a frenzy of jumping forward, the Golden Toad returned to its original spot.
Seeing this scene, Qin Niu cracked a smile.
The experience he had when he was first trapped here was extremely simr to what the Golden Toad was going through.
¡°No worries, I have plenty of time, you just keep escaping! I won¡¯t stop you,¡± said Qin Niu to the Golden Toad in a leisurely manner.
Chapter 192 - 187 Collect the Golden Toad 1
Chapter 192: Chapter 187 Collect the Golden Toad 1
Trantor: 549690339
Now that the situation was in his grasp, the Golden Toad had no chance of escaping from his mighty clutches. Letting it struggle a bit more would make it realize Qin Niu¡¯s strength.
That would make it easier to subdueter on.
To tame any formidable creature or beast, one must first overpower it.
Naturally, the Golden Toad wouldn¡¯t submit easily and continued its attempts to break free with a stubborn disbelief.
This time, it chose a different direction.
But before long, it had bounced back again.
After repeating this process many times, the Golden Toad¡¯s pride and temper were mostly tamed.
Qin Niu was waiting for just this moment.
¡°Submit to me, and you can be even stronger and possibly live much longer. I own an ant, which originally had a lifespan of only four years, but after bing my pet, it now lives for thirty thousand years. I have a turtle that increased its lifespan by six hundred years after bing my beast pet.¡± As he spoke, his gaze remained locked with the Golden Toad¡¯s.
It was apparent that the toad was now on the brink of yielding.
For any living being, the prospect of prolonging life is a desirable one.
¡°Submit! After a hundred years, if one day you regret it, I might consider granting you freedom,¡± Qin Niu asserted with great confidence.
However, he left himself an out by adding the word ¡°consider.¡±
It meant that in the end, whether to set it free was still up to Qin Niu to decide.
The Golden Toad¡¯s resistance significantly waned, and under its hesitantpliance, the golden light from the Contractual Talisman seeped into the depths of its spirit. Eventually, a streak of golden light flew out and entered Qin Niu¡¯s forehead.
His body trembled slightly as he closed his eyes and silently endured the bacsh of the contractual power.
This was akin to the strong recoil felt when firing a gun.
The more powerful the gun, the stronger the recoil.
The same went for taming beast pets; the stronger the pet, the more intense the bacsh.
That¡¯s why it¡¯s nearly impossible for an ordinary person to tame an overly powerful creature or beast.
Too great a disparity in strength leads to many obstacles.
A momentter, Qin Niu opened his eyes, his face somewhat pale.
¡°This Golden Toad is so strong!¡±
He had originally thought that the Golden Toad was at most a Grade Two or Three; now, it seemed its level was frighteningly high.
No wonder even Old Master Huang, despite his prowess, was unable to tame it.
Moreover, such rare and extraordinary species are inherently rebellious, contending with the heavens and battling with the earth, and supremely difficult to subdue.
Now that he had sessfully tamed it, Qin Niu could finally check its attributes.
Red-eyed Golden Toad
Level: Grade Seven Tailless Golden Swallowing Toad, leveling experience 37440016/100000000
Lifespan: 800 years
Energy: 5700981
Skills: Swimming Grade Six 780003/1000000, Qi Defense Grade Six 102176/1000000, Predation Grade Six 871020/1000000, Hibernation Grade Three 109/1000
Innate Abilities: Swallowing, Defense, Partial Immunity to Venom
After reviewing its attributes, Qin Niu clicked his tongue in admiration.
Many of its skills ovepped with those of the Diamond Ink Turtle.
But the Golden Toad¡¯s level was very high, having reached Grade Seven.
Despite Old Master Huang¡¯s Corpse Bee being Grade Five, for insects and beasts, each step up in grade means a vast difference in capabilities and various properties.
Not to mention anything else, just the tenfold increase in their leveling experience signifies a transformation from quantity to quality.
No wonder its defensive capability was so strong; not only did it have defensive innate abilities, but it also possessed Qi Defense skills.
Besides, its predation skill was equally kick-ass.
With the Golden Toad by his side, Qin Niu could likely annihte all insects below Grade Seven that he encountered.
Frogs and toads are predation experts, their tongues able to extend out of their mouths like lightning, coiling around their prey and pulling it into their mouths.
The Golden Toad had another badass ability¡ªSwallowing.
As part of the Golden Swallowing Toad family, it should be able to consume gold and silver to continually strengthen its body.
But of course, he couldn¡¯t possibly feed it those precious metals.
¡°Very well, from now on, you are officially my beast pet; I will devote myself to nurturing you and making you stronger and stronger,¡± Qin Niu expressed with satisfaction after sessfully taming such a powerful pet.
He found that his spiritual power seemed to have be somewhat insufficient.
This was because the Golden Toad he had subdued was too powerful, upying arge portion of his spirit space.
He must strive to enhance his spiritual power in order to contract more beast pets.
He was already in an overburdened state.
¡°Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll take you out!¡±
Qin Niu picked up Old Master Huang¡¯s ck Snake Sword, which was an extremely high-quality sword.
Those who used serpent-shaped swords were not many to begin with.
ck serpent-shaped swords were even rarer.
He felt that the material of the sword was somewhat like the legendary ck iron.
Because it was not truly ck, but dark red.
Hundred-Tempering Fine Iron is usually of a pale ck color, with some white sheen.
Only the legendary ck iron might exhibit a ck color with a reddish hue, often called falling sky iron or red iron, among other names.
Qin Niu absolutely could not let the killing of Old Master Huang be known.
This ck Snake Sword was too distinctive, easily recognized by others.
Moreover, Qin Niu already had the Ink de and was not in need of weapons.
The best course of action was to have it reforged.
He was extremely cautious about this matter.
The waters in the city were deep; he might walk into the weapon shop with the serpent-shaped sword, and as soon as he left, someone would know.
¡°Golden Toad, can you eat it?¡±
Qin Niu looked towards the Golden Toad.
It was a Tailless Golden Swallowing Toad, so it should have the ability to devour various metals.
¡°I can¡¯t eat it, I need to rise at least two levels before I could possibly digest it.¡±
¡°Then what can you eat?¡±
¡°When I see something I can eat, I¡¯ll tell the master.¡±
It replied.
Qin Niu buried the Serpent-shaped Sword and the Nine Insect Command beneath the Ancient Banyan Tree.
Hiding things here was safer than in other ces.
Because others who came in couldn¡¯t leave.
He hardly needed to worry about his secrets being discovered.
On the other hand, he needed to think of a way to exchange those silver notes.
Now that Old Master Huang had been killed, and no one knew for the short term. As soon as the Nine Insect Gang realized they couldn¡¯t get in touch, they would definitely begin a secret investigation.
At that time, although the silver notes weren¡¯t named, their serial numbers were registered with the banks.
If Qin Niu spent them, he could still potentially face investigation.
He was always cautious in his actions; any potential loophole that could cause his downfall, he would try to fix.
The best course of action was to exchange these silver notes before the Nine Insect Gang started their investigation.
Exchanging silver notes was too easy.
Gold notes for silver notes, silver notes for gold notes, with a bit of a service fee, it could be easily settled.
With Golden Toad by his side, he walked out from thebyrinth within the Ancient Banyan Tree, the mountain still looked as it always did. Old Master Huang and that cat-faced woman would remain forever within thebyrinth of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
By tomorrow, their corpses wouldpletely disappear, bing nutrients for the Ancient Banyan Tree.
All the Corpse Bees had died, leaving only two bee eggs, which made Qin Niu feel somewhat regretful.
This species of bee was one he had encountered for the first time.
Although he didn¡¯t know much about their abilities, he felt these Corpse Bees had many advantages.
Such as night vision, strong defensive capabilities, terrifying venom, and stingers powerful enough to prate copperhide¡
These were advantages that other bee species rarely possessed.
Luckily, he had sessfully acquired Old Master Huang¡¯s notes, so those two bee eggs should be able to hatch sessfully.
He had no ns to deal with that matter at the moment.
Because even if they hatched, his spirit space was already in an overburdened state, and he simply had no way to contract them.
Chapter 193 - 188: Bite Him to Death 1
Chapter 193: Chapter 188: Bite Him to Death 1
Trantor: 549690339
Such powerful Corpse Bees, without the restraint of contractual power, could potentially backfire and attack their master, which would be no joke.
Furthermore, based on his experience with taming the Green Silkworms, it should be much easier to form a contract while they were still in theirrval state.
The Bee Generals were bona fide Grade Five insects; taming them would not be an easy feat by any means.
And it would require the use of an Advanced Contractual Talisman.
You should know that such a talisman is worth a Hundred Taels of Silver Money.
¡°Fourth, lead the ant swarm to clean up this battlefield.¡±
Having fought in this area, it was easy to leave behind many invisible traces.
Having the Termites clean up the battlefield seemed like a good choice.
Qin Niu discovered that the several hundred Myriapods had also all perished.
Could it be that Old Master Huang had signed a master-servant contract with each Myriapod?
It seemed somewhat unrealistic to think about it.
Old Master Huang had released the Myriapods rather casually, probably no different from those four thousand plus Grade Three Army Ants.
They were all expendable cannon fodder.
Since no contracts were signed, how did these Myriapods die?
With Qin Niu¡¯s limited knowledge in insect taming, he could only secretly specte that Old Master Huang must have done something to them.
After all, the Nine Insect Gang was a gang that specialized in insect taming.
There were many skilled Insect Masters within their ranks.
Old Master Huang, being able to serve as the gang¡¯s Executor, was already part of the upper echelons of the gang. Fuhrther upward, he could be promoted to positions like protector or elder.
Therefore, it was normal for him to possess some powerful insect taming methods.
After cleaning up the scene of the fight, Qin Niu did not return the Termites to their nest.
He only checked that the Ant Queen and the other Termites in the nest were normal, then he directly led the more than two thousand strong Termite Army down the mountain.
This is because Old Master Huang had inquired about Qin Niu¡¯s residence in the vige.
There was a good chance that he tampered with his home.
Even though Qin Niu now possessed the cultivation of the acquired secondyer, he could still be killed by some powerful insects.
The leather armor was very strong in defense but not impervious to all.
When agitated by energy, the armor could form a Light Cocoon,pletely protecting Qin Niu without any blind spots, but some insects specialized in breaking through such cocoons or energy armors.
Insect Masters were feared for a reason.
Even an Insect Master with only the cultivation of amon human of Twofold or Tenfold, when controlling a swarm of Grade Two or Three insects, could easily eliminate an expert of the human Tenfold realm, just as easily as cutting vegetables.
With over two thousand Termites and a Grade Seven Golden Toad on him, Qin Niu could handle the vast majority of dangers.
Moreover, with Old Master Huang dead, it was unlikely that he would have left any dangerous insects in Qin Niu¡¯s home.
¡°Who exactly sold me out?¡±
Qin Niu furrowed his brows in thought.
This person must be found and eliminated.
The first person he thought of was Wang Haikun. They had a grudge since Wang Haikun had an arm sliced off by Qin Niu, a deep and bitter hatred.
Given the chance for revenge, he certainly would not be lenient.
When he emerged from the mountains, he found Xie Laizi, who usually crawled on the ground, living a life worse than dogs or pigs, now humming a tune.
¡°Uncle Xie, you seem quite happy today!¡±
Qin Niu greeted him indifferently.
¡°Um¡ I havee to ept things and realized that it¡¯s better to live happily no matter what.¡± Xie Laizi¡¯s eyes clearly showed a sh of panic when he saw Qin Niuing down from the mountains.
Such an obvious change in expression could not escape Qin Niu¡¯s eyes.
¡°You¡¯re right, Uncle Xie, one should indeed live happily. No one came looking for you yesterday, did they?¡±
Qin Niu asked, staring at him.
¡°No, nobody! Not even a dog would dare toe to my shabby house!¡±
Xie Laizi tried to appear calm, squeezing out a smile in response.
¡°You¡¯ve got money now, right? You could build a couple of imposing houses!¡±
Qin Niu said earnestly.
¡°I¡ where would I get money from? Master Qin, you jest.¡±
¡°Didn¡¯t that noble give you some money?¡±
Hearing Qin Niu mention this, Xie Laizi¡¯s face changed.
In terms of psychological endurance, he ultimately fell short.
¡°I don¡¯t know what Master Qin is talking about!¡±
His eyes no longer dared to meet Qin Niu¡¯s gaze, instead lowering his head and darting his eyes around.
At this point, Qin Niu had an idea of what was going on.
¡°Fourth, bite him, deal with him using your poison.¡±
Following Qin Niu¡¯smand, Fourth jumped off his body onto the ground, quickly crawling towards Xie Laizi.
Qin Niu proceeded forward without looking back.
Soon, the sound of Xie Laizi¡¯s pained groans came from behind.
It seemed that Fourth had managed to bite him.
Fourth¡¯s poison was very special, capable of eroding the soul. Its poison was likely to be terrifying against ordinary people or beasts and birds.
This was the first time Qin Niu had asked Fourth to use the Soul Eroding Poison.
The heavens do value all life.
Last time Qin Niu wanted to get rid of Xie Laizi, but Wang Haikun¡¯s strike was too light, only crippling the man and leaving Xie Laizi with a breath of life.
Latter on, Qin Niu did not bother with him again.
Unexpectedly, this scourge sold Qin Niu out again this time.
If he doesn¡¯t kill him now, should he wait until the New Year?
After biting his target, Fourth quickly followed and climbed back onto Qin Niu¡¯s body.
Returning home, Qin Niu was extremely cautious.
He even activated his armor with energy to form a Light Cocoon.
¡°Fourth, have you discovered any other powerful insects hiding in the house?¡±
¡°Not for now.¡±
¡°You lead the Termites to conduct a thorough search of the entire house.¡±
Qin Niu went to the front yard¡¯s fishpond, where the Diamond Ink Turtle was still ying the role of a timid turtle, keeping its head retracted.
It stayed motionless under the rocks at the bottom of the pond.
If a stranger came in, even if they inspected the fish pond carefully, they might not be able to spot its existence.
Being timid has its advantages.
¡°InkTurtle,e out!¡±
Qin Niu called out.
It slowly stretched its head out and then crawled from under the rocks, surfacing on the water.
¡°I¡¯ve brought a new friend for you to meet; this is the Golden Toad.¡±
Qin Niu signaled for the Golden Toad to hop out of the basket.
But as soon as it appeared, the high-grade aura it emitted immediately frightened the Diamond Ink Turtle into forming a faint ripple of energy on its body. Its head and limbs instantly retracted into its shell, and then it quickly sank to the bottom of the water.
¡°Look at you being so cowardly,e out!¡±
Qin Niu scolded it.
This time the little turtle refused toe out, no matter what.
¡°You¡¯re so useless, to think you are a Diamond Ink Turtle!¡±
As much as he scolded it, Qin Niu was always kind to his pets and didn¡¯t really do anything to it.
¡°Golden Toad, from now on you¡¯d better stay in the backyard. Come to the front yard¡¯s fish pond for a bath or whatever.¡±
Qin Niu looked towards Xiao Nui inside the cattle pen.
It was still in deep sleep.
Strangers would think it was just a normal little water buffalo and probably couldn¡¯t be bothered to take another nce.
After checking on Xiao Nui and finding nothing amiss, Qin Niu¡¯s hanging heart finally settled down.
The main issue is still him not being strong enough.
This was why powerful enemies could barge into his home at will.
Once he has more insects and they reach higher grades, this courtyard would be a forbidden ground.
Without his permission, no one would dare to step even half a step inside.
¡±Master, there¡¯s something wrong with the well.¡±
After leading the ant colony to investigate, Fourth signaled to Qin Niu.
Qin Niu approached the well in the backyard, remaining vignt.
The Ink de was already in his hand.
¡°Are there bugs in it?¡±
Even after checking, Qin Niu found nothing amiss.
¡°There¡¯s the scent of poison, a bit like that of a centipede, possibly even moreplex.¡±
Fourth¡¯s most vivid memory was of a centipede.
When the ant colony had just formed, they had encountered an attack by a centipede.
That time, the ant colony suffered heavy losses and deaths.
Fourth had even lost an antenna because of it.
¡°Someone poisoned my well?¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s eyebrows twitched.
This Old Master Huang is really not just ordinarily despicable, to stoop so low.
And extremely cunning; the courtyard gate remained intact, nothing in the yard had been touched.
Even the honeybees raised on the top of the grain storage had not been attacked.
Had it not been for Fourth, after Qin Niu had checked inside and outside the house, he would have certainly believed that Old Master Huang had never entered.
And that was precisely where Old Master Huang¡¯s treacherousnessy.
His method was to first make Qin Niu lower his guard, and then poison the ce most likely to be overlooked.
It would be very easy to fall prey.
He drew half a bucket of water with a bucket; the water¡¯s color was normal ¨C transparent and clear, and the scent was also normal.
He caught a small fish from the front yard¡¯s fish pond and threw it into the bucket.
The small fish had just entered the water and soon began wildly swimming around in a frenzy.
After just four or five breaths, it turned belly up and was dead beyond any doubt.
ck blood flowed from its mouth, eyes, gills, and excretory orifice in the tail.
The well water¡¯s toxicity was extremely frightening, close to being instantly lethal upon contact with blood.
Qin Niu broke out in a cold sweat.
At that moment, Xiao Qing had heard themotion and returned from Wang Furen¡¯s ce.
Seeing the toad as big as a human head, she seemed somewhat afraid.
¡°Xiao Qing, did you hear any noise in our housest night?¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t hear anything.¡±
She shook her head.
¡°Someone poisoned the well. Don¡¯t make a fuss about it. I will clean the well now; you go stay at Miss Wang¡¯s ce for one more day. You should be able toe back home tonight,¡± Qin Niu said to her.
¡°I wonder which scoundrel did it! Master, let me help you clean it.¡±
Xiao Qing was very smart and knew that Qin Niu might have stirred up powerful enemies recently.
She had been sent to stay with Miss Wang for almost a month now.
Listening to what her master was implying, it seemed he might have sorted out the trouble.
¡°This well water is extraordinarily poisoned; I can handle it myself. Other food and utensils in the house also need to be checked. You go to Miss Wang¡¯s ce first. I¡¯ll call you back once I¡¯m done cleaning up.¡±
These past few days, Qin Niu hadn¡¯t slept a single peaceful night.
Now that the powerful enemy had been eliminated, he could finally return to the peaceful and stable life of old.
This incident also served as a wakeup call for him.
As his strength continually increased, he would inevitablye into contact with formidable individuals. Some cmities were simply unavoidable, no matter how much he desired to flee from them.
Unless he lived inplete seclusion.
But that was not realistic.
The best method was to make himself stronger.
He couldn¡¯t help thinking again about the recent severe locust disaster. Could this have something to do with the Nine Insect Gang? Or, was this actually a precursor to the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s move against the ck Tiger Gang?
When the nest is overturned, no egg remains intact.
With crisis looming, he had to seize the time to be stronger.
Fortunately, the Elixir that could precipitate a breakthrough was being concocted, and this time he had also acquired over thirteen thousand silver notes. The Ant Queen had sessfully advanced, and with a Grade Seven Golden Toad now in his possession, his strength in every aspect should be able to climb to a higher level.
Chapter 194 - 189 Hypocrisyi
Chapter 194: Chapter 189 Hypocrisyi
Trantor: 549690339 |
After he cleaned the well, he searched his home thoroughly but did not discover anything else out of the ordinary.
The Pork King meat was hard-won by his hunt and very well hidden; Ah Niu guessed that Old Master Huang likely didn¡¯t have the leisure time to rummage through his belongings.
This time, his residence had been invaded, but his pets proved to be of no use, serving as a wake-up call for Ah Niu.
Scouting pets should be concealed to provide surveince day and night undetected.
The beehive would have been excellent sentinels, but at night, without night vision, they were essentially useless.
In the future, he might consider taming appropriate insects to serve as guards in the yard.
¡°Xie Laizi is in trouble!¡±
¡°Xie Laizi from the end of the vige is in trouble, everyonee and see!¡±
Someone was shouting loudly outside.
Six hours had passed since Ah Niu used insects to bite people, and only now Xie Laizi was discovered to be in trouble. Such is the bleakness of a bachelor¡¯s life.
No wife, no children, not a single rtive close by.
Nobody to care for him if he fell ill.
Even if he died at home, nobody would know.
Xie Laizi, having been bitten by Fourth¡¯s beast, certainly didn¡¯t end well. It could be considered as the end to his life of misdeeds.
Ah Niu naturally did not go to join the crowd for the spectacle.
He was a dignified Insect Master, unable to act as idle as themon vigers.
About half an hourter, Vige Head Xu Zhenchang came to seek an audience outside his door.
¡°Master Qin, our viger Xie Laizi seems to have been bitten by a venomous snake and has died at home without treatment. Now that you are the highest- ranked person in the vige, I¡¯vee to ask for your instructions on how to handle this,¡±
Xu Zhenchang asked respectfully.
¡°The man was alone in the world, without kin or children, indeed pitiable. I will go and see.¡±
Though the Chief was infinitely glorious, and even the vige head had to speak cautiously with him,
it also meant he bore great responsibility.
All major decisions in the vige were made by Ah Niu.
Apanying Xu Zhenchang to Xie Laizi¡¯s home, many vigers followed behind.
Ah Niu saw that Xie Laizi¡¯s orifices bled, his expression fierce and terrifying.
The ground was covered with numerous scratches left by fingernails.
¡°Did anyone check Xie Laizi¡¯s body?¡±
¡°We were afraid of the poison and didn¡¯t dare to touch him,¡±
Xu Zhenchang replied.
Ah Niu felt that Xie Laizi must have gotten hold of Old Master Huang¡¯s wealth, otherwise he wouldn¡¯t have been happily humming a tune.
He squatted down and felt around Xie Laizi¡¯s body, directly finding a two Silver Money weight ingot.
The vigers¡¯ eyes immediately went wide.
All of them were staring intently at that ingot of silver.
Ah Niu then pulled out several dozen copper coins, but nothing more.
¡°Vige Head, how much would it cost to buy a cheap coffin for Xie Laizi¡¯s burial?¡±
¡± If we don¡¯t erect a tombstone, two Silver Money should just be enough to handle it.¡±
¡°This is what we¡¯ll do, you take charge of the arrangements, and let Xie Laizi rest in peace. If there¡¯s any money left over after using these, divide it among those who carried the coffin and buried the body. If it¡¯s not enough or just barely so, each person involved in the burial will receive fifty Wen Money from me aspensation for their hard work, and I will cover any shortfall.¡±
Ah Niu effectively ensured the arrangements for Xie Laizi¡¯s funeral.
Two Silver Money for a cheap coffin would leave very little leftover, and decent meals would still need to be provided for those managing the funeral rites.
With so many mouths to feed well for two meals, a few hundred Wen Money was already very modest.
So, two Silver Money was definitely not enough.
Ah Niu estimated he would need to subsidize more than half a Silver Money.
¡°Thank you, Master Qin! You truly are our vige¡¯s great benefactor!¡±
Xu Zhenchang led the chant, bowing his thanks.
The other vigers also praised Ah Niu as a great phnthropist.
¡°As vigers, we should naturally care for and help each other. As fellow countrymen, it is my duty to assist where my abilities allow. The locust gue is still wreaking havoc these days, ravaging the crops of the people; I need to help the Yan Family with pest control. The funeral matters of Xie Laizi will trouble you all.¡±
Ah Niu sped his hands together and turned to leave.
With the death of Xie Laizi, the secret of Old Master Huang¡¯s visit to him would never be exposed.
He could finally rest easy.
Merely the Executor of the Nine Insect Gang had kept Ah Niu anxious and on edge for over a month, living every day in fear. If he were to provoke the Nine Insect Gang, being marked by them, he couldn¡¯t even dare to imagine.
It would surely be a great cmity.
Returning home, Ah Niu called Xiao Qing back.
She seemed very happy.
Wang Wanyan also followed, with her raised cat trailing behind.
After eating the Pork King meat, the cat¡¯s physique underwent a second growth, bing much more robust than before.
Moreover, with her taking the cat to hunt in the mountains, allowing it to exercise, its ferocity and wildness were gradually being brought out, giving off apletely different impression.
¡°Wan Yan, your cat must be much stronger than before, right?¡±
¡°It does seem to have be considerably stronger. In the past, whenever it saw Liu Shengli¡¯s big yellow dog from the Liu Family, it would immediately climb to a tree or rooftop to hide. Now, the Liu Family¡¯s big yellow dog immediately tucks its tail and whimpers upon seeing it.¡±
Speaking of this matter, her face was brimming with a happy smile.
Seeing her own pet get stronger naturally made her happy.
¡°Hehe, it seems that the pig king meat wasn¡¯t wasted after all, it did have some use. How¡¯s your interaction with it now? Can youmand it to do some things?¡±
¡°It can understand some of my simplemands and our rtionship has gotten closer and closer. But it seems like it still can¡¯t understandplicated orders. For example, when hunting, I told it to ambush a fox from behind while I distracted the fox with bait from the front. In the end, it justy there motionless and the fox got away. I was almost driven mad by it.¡±
Wang Wanyan expressed her troubles during the beast taming process.
This is an experiencemon to all Insect Masters or Beast Tamers.
Qin Niu had just subdued the Ant Queen recently, and because he hadn¡¯t grasped insectnguage, he couldn¡¯tmunicate with the termites at all. The tender leaves he threw at the entrance of their nest werepletely ignored.
Later, after mastering the insectnguage, things gradually improved.
By now, he already had a spiritual power that wasn¡¯t too weak, and he had learned tomunicate with his pets using spiritual power.
Even when facing beast or avian pets, he couldmunicate with them.
¡°Take it slow, I believe it will get better and better. You can carefully observe its actions, expressions, and the sounds it makes in different situations to learn thenguage of the cat. Also, you can make eye contact with it and focus your thoughts tomunicate, which is a more advanced way ofmunicating.¡±
Qin Niu taught her some techniques to master beastnguage.
¡°Ah Niu, you know so much. I¡¯ll have toe to learn these beast taming skills from you often in the future.¡±
She looked at Qin Niu with admiring eyes.
With Qin Niu¡¯s help, she was gradually bing a qualified Beast Tamer.
¡°You¡¯re wee toe over any time. Since Xiao Qing is already quite familiar with you, even if I¡¯m not home, you cane visit Xiao Qing and chat with her.¡± Qin Niu had always had a deep fondness for her.
If she would agree, Qin Niu would be very happy to marry her.
Even when Tang Caixian was chasing after him, he had already reserved the position of the main wife for Wang Wanyan.
Even the Jade Emperor had countless fairy wives, and as a mere mortal, marrying two wives was truly no big deal.
Rich families nearly all had multiple wives and concubines.
¡°Don¡¯t just stand outside,e on in and sit down! We can¡¯t be strangers just because I built a new house.¡±
Qin Niu invited her to sit inside.
¡°Your house is really beautiful and very imposing.¡±
She praised Qin Niu¡¯s new house as she walked inside.
It wasn¡¯t her first time visiting.
Every time she came, she praised it. What does that imply?
Is she hinting to Qin Niu that she really likes this house?
¡°If Sister Wan Yan likes my master¡¯s house, she could marry my master and be my mistress!¡± Xiao Qing was a small creature with big ideas, and it was hard to tell where she got so many notions from.
She spent her days arranging for Qin Niu to get married.
¡°Children say the darndest things, don¡¯t take it to heart.¡±
Upon seeing that Wang Wanyan¡¯s fair face had turned quite red, Qin Niu quickly spoke to ease her embarrassment.
At that moment, her cat, as if it had encountered something terrifying, made a strange cry, tucked its tail, and turned to flee.
¡°Xiao Hua,e back!¡±
Wang Wanyan called it, but to no avail.
In the blink of an eye, it had disappeared without a trace.
¡°I don¡¯t know what frightened it, but I need to go back and check. I¡¯lle over again another time. Xiao Qing, if you¡¯re scared at night and alone at home, you¡¯re always wee to stay at my ce.¡±
Clearly, Xiao Qing had already told her she could stay at her own home in the future.
¡°Ah Niu, I have to go back now. There¡¯s nothing scary in your yard, so why did it frighten my Xiao Hua like that?¡±
Qin Niu was also puzzled.
The Diamond Ink Turtle was still at a very low level, inherently timid, and spent all day hiding under the rocks at the bottom of the water. It couldn¡¯t have scared Wang Wanyan¡¯s cat like that.
Xiao Niu was even more unlikely.
It was just azy ox, which had been sleeping all the time recently.
The only possibility that could have frightened the cat into running away was the newly acquired Golden Toad.
It was a Grade Seven beast pet, terrifyingly powerful.
Even Qin Niu¡¯s Ant Queen was a whole three grades lower than it.
He went to the backyard, where the Golden Toad was sitting next to the well, looking like it wanted to enter the well as it circled around it.
¡°Golden Toad, hold back your aura in the future; you¡¯ve scared away the guests. As my pet, you must remember, the more low-key, the better. Pets that are too showy often don¡¯t live long.¡±
Qin Niu wasn¡¯t just scaring it.
No matter how strong a demon beast was, as long as it unted itself everywhere, nine times out of ten it would be taken by a powerful human as a mount.
Some unlucky ones got directly wiped out by humans.
¡°Croak!¡±
It agreed.
But its croaking was still loud, probably loud enough to be heard halfway across the vige.
¡± Is this you agreeing verbally but resolutely refusing to change? In the vige, do you think you¡¯re in the mountains? Don¡¯t go croaking around without reason in the future.¡±
Qin Niu red at it in critique.
The Golden Toad looked back at him with its red eyes, seemingly aggrieved.
¡°If you like staying in cool underground ces, I can dig a well for you. Of course, you can also choose a spot in this backyard and dig a hole for yourself. But let me give you a heads-up, don¡¯t touch those medicinal herbs. If you dare cause any damage, I¡¯ll skin you and feast on frog meat.¡±
Chapter 195 - 190 Corpse Bee Breeding Method 1
Chapter 195: Chapter 190 Corpse Bee Breeding Method 1
Trantor: 549690339
After Qin Niu¡¯s warning, the Golden Toad looked at him with innocent little eyes.
Qin Niu had no choice but to select a spot ofnd for it.
In a corner of the courtyard.
It was inconspicuous.
The ce was dark and damp, an environment toads favor for shelter.
The toad hopped over, scraped off the tiles, and then began to dig into the earth.
Qin Niu didn¡¯t bother with it any further, instead going into his house. He took out Old Master Huang¡¯s notes and began to read them seriously.
They contained the chronicles of Old Master Huang¡¯s life.
He was originally the son of a wealthy family, with more than thirty mu of fertilend. He aspired to be a great Beast Tamer. As a result, he was swindled out of his family fortune and left in massive debt.
His father died of rage.
His mother also followed soon after, sumbing to depression.
Facing a dead end, Old Master Huang had even considered suicide. Later, he was identally saved by an elder of the Nine Insect Gang and taken in as a nominal disciple.
From then on, he began to exhibit his extraordinary talent for controlling insects, advancing by leaps and bounds.
From nominal disciple, he became an official disciple, andter became the chosen disciple of that elder.
He even bred a unique species of insect by feeding them with his own flesh¡ª the Corpse Bee.
They not only possessed night vision but were also strong and fiercely toxic, with a remarkable self-healing ability. They could rejuvenate from injuries in a very short time.
With these bees, Old Master Huang made a name for himself in the Nine Insect Gang, and with his master¡¯s assistance, he was promoted to the position of an executor.
Afterward, through hard work, he went from being amon executor to an inner hall executor.
And he was one of the most outstanding ones.
This time he was infiltrating ck Tiger City to carry out an important mission for the gang.
It might involve the core secrets of the gang. He didn¡¯t specify what the mission was, only mentioning that if hepleted it, he would have made major achievements and could be promoted to protector within the gang.
An executor was only middle management, while a protector was already halfway into the higher echelons.
No wonder this man was so abnormally powerful; he was an inner hall executor of the Nine Insect Gang, an existence second only to a protector.
Qin Niu was able to kill him, and much of the credit went to the Ancient Banyan Tree.
Old Master Huang first had several Corpse Bees killed, causing damage to his spirit, followed by Qin Niu crushing a beemander right before his eyes, which dealt a severe blow to his spirit.
But that wasn¡¯t even the worst of it.
He was tricked into entering the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze, and it was before dawn¡ªthe Ancient Banyan Tree¡¯s feeding time.
Already heavily injured in spirit, Old Master Huang fought desperately against the Ancient Banyan Tree¡¯s attacks, barely surviving.
By that time, he was already in terrible shape.
But it didn¡¯t stop there.
Qin Niu began to aggressively kill the Corpse Bees outside, with nearly a hundred ughtered. This was like piling snow on Old Master Huang, who was already hurt in spirit and body.
It was like a severely injured patient being stomped on repeatedly.
Even so, Old Master Huang still clung to life desperately.
But who would have thought that after dawn, the first thing Qin Niu did upon entering the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze was to crush another beemander.
This was like another heavy punch to the already battered Old Master Huang.
By then, Old Master Huang was barely clinging to life.
Qin Niu, ying dirty, used his Ink de to deliver a vicious stab, piercing his stomach.
Despite all this, Old Master Huang still had the will to fight on until the end.
However, ultimately he could not escape the killing blow of the Ink de.
Throughout the entire battle, Old Master Huang suffered severe disadvantages. Even before engaging in directbat, he had already lost around eighty to ny percent of his strength, and his life was hanging by a thread.
If Qin Niu hadn¡¯t had these stratagems and the help of the Ancient Banyan Tree, he most certainly wouldn¡¯t have been a match for Old Master Huang.
He also gained a clearer understanding of the strength of the Nine Insect Gang.
The true protectors, or even the sect elders, must possess even more terrifying power.
The notes beyond detailing Old Master Huang¡¯s life story also focused on methods of cultivating Corpse Bees.
To hatch Corpse Bee eggs, one must select a piece of intact flesh on a living creature, bury the eggs within, and then use the creature¡¯s blood flow and body temperature to incubate the eggs.
This process is extremely painful.
As the eggs hatch, they continuously release corpse poison, making the originally intact skin and flesh unbearably itchy, slowly necrotizing and rotting away.
The most ideal way of incubation is to carry it out on a living human being.
Old Master Huang chose to incubate the bee eggs within his own body, allowing them to reside inside him continuously and enduring great pain night and day.
Moreover, to cultivate those three Bee Generals, he went to great lengths and endured much suffering.
During the incubation period, he used his own cultivation to nourish them, aiding their growth in strength.
After they matured into adult bees, they needed to consume his decaying flesh every month.
To ensure sufficient food for the Bee Generals, Old Master Huang let the three of them eat the decaying flesh on his back in turns. After one finished, he would use top-grade Flesh-Regenerating Elixirs to heal the missing flesh on his back, growing new flesh.
Then he would wait for it to rot and be consumed by the second Bee General.
This was the only way to barely meet the needs of the three Bee Generals.
Nevertheless, Old Master Huang suffered unimaginable pain every day.
No wonder when Qin Niu crushed one of his Bee Generals, he went mad like his son had been killed.
The notes also presented an alternative method of incubation, which involved choosing animals, restraining their bodies, and cing the bee eggs within their flesh to hatch. He experimented with horses, dogs, rabbits, and monkeys.
The most effective were the monkeys.
He also mentioned that using live humans yielded even better results than using monkeys.
But the bodies of ordinary people are hardly able to withstand the invasion of corpse poison, often leading to death.
The whole method of hatching and cultivating Corpse Bees seemed to be an utterly evil cultivation technique.
Qin Niu temporarily discarded the idea of hatching such bees.
Utilizing animals as a substitute for incubation was barely eptable to him, but he could never ept using living humans for the experiment.
The notes also described some methods to help strengthen the Corpse Bees, many of which were wicked techniques.
Yet, Old Master Huang did not seem to mind and even believed that if the Corpse Bees were continuously cultivated, their potential could surpass that of the Green Demon¡¯s Green Demon Bees.
Additionally, the Step-Method Martial Skill that Qin Niu coveted was mentioned.
This was a volume of martial skills from the scripture library of the Nine Insect Gang.
Every inner sect disciple and higher-ranked position could practice it.
Every sect had numerous cultivation techniques and martial skills secret manuals, and apart from the very top ones, the rest were generally released to the sect disciples for study.
Qin Niu safely stored the two Corpse Bee eggs forter, deciding whether to hatch them depending on the circumstances.
As dusk approached, the Yan Family sent someone to fetch him again.
¡°Master Qin, are you free tonight to help our Yan Family with extermination?¡±
Ever since Steward Yan Qi found that Qin Niu was even more capable than Master Mo and Master Shi, his attitude towards Qin Niu became even more respectful.
¡°Alright, I¡¯ll get ready and then apany you,¡±
Qin Niu readily agreed.
He made sure to bring along the Golden Toad.
Once Qin Niu boarded the carriage, Yan Qi said to him, ¡°Just a short while ago, Master Mo discovered an abnormal situation. A kind of very powerful locust broke through the defensesid by Master Mo. Those locusts are formidable, and Master Mo would like to invite you over to discuss a good strategy.¡±
Chapter 196: 191 Zhong Si_i
Chapter 196: 191 Zhong Si_i
Trantor: 549690339 |
¡°The locusts have evolved?¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s eyebrows slightly furrowed.
After the idental discovery of Old Master Huang¡¯s true identity, he had already sensed from various signs that the Nine Insect Gang might be the mastermind behind the scenes.
If these locusts were really created by the Nine Insect Gang, he, as a low-rank Insect Master, must not be too conspicuous.
The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.
The heroes who jump the highest often die the earliest.
For now, he could only act ording to the situation.
After arriving at the Yan Family, Yan Family¡¯s eldest son personally came down to greet him.
This also reflected Qin Niu¡¯s higher status than before.
After all, it was all about interests.
The Yan Family now needed the help of an Insect Master to defend against the terrible locust disaster. Qin Niu, with his powerful pest control abilities that even surpassed Master Mo and Master Shi while helping the Yan Family clear pests, naturally made the Yan Family value him greatly.
¡°Master Qin, we have been waiting for you. Just this morning, a new species suddenly appeared among the locusts. Look, I even caught two specifically to study them.¡±
Master Mo Sang saw Qin Niu and immediately stood up to greet him.
There was no longer the arrogance he had before.
Are there many of these new species of locusts?¡±
¡°Not many. But their abilities are very powerful, fearless against my manyyers of defense lines. Under their leadership, the ordinary locusts now have the ability to breach the defense line. Although only fifty or sixty of these dark golden locusts with ck spots on their heads were discovered today, they nearly broke through my defenses.¡±
Master Mo Sang, still shaken, recounted his encounter of the day.
¡°Fortunately, I still had some tricks up my sleeve, otherwise the defense would have definitely been breached today.¡±
Every Insect Master has some tricks up their sleeve.
The fact that Master Mo Sang had to resort to hisst resort is enough to show how formidable these locusts were.
The new locust was a sizerger than the ordinary locust, dark golden in color, and its two hind legs were not thick but appeared slender and elongated.
They were somewhat like the legs of a katydid.
In terms ofbat ability, locusts are rtively inferior within the Orthoptera. Besides strong endurance and decent defense, they probably only had strong reproductive capacities.
Katydids are mostly solitary.
Locusts, on the other hand, like to move in swarms, whether it¡¯s desert locusts, migratory locusts, or smaller wart locusts, all enjoy moving in groups.
When their numbers swell to a certain extent, they are like an overwhelming force, more terrifying than invaders entering a vige.
Katydids too, belong to the Orthoptera order-how strong is theirbat ability?
The ¡®swordsman¡¯ mantis is almost an invincible existence in the insect world.
Even the formidable insects like centipedes and scorpions are within the mantis¡¯s diet range.
When a mantis bes ruthless, it can even kill the ¡®husband¡¯ on its back.
asionally, one might find a smaller mantis lying on the back of a female, but that male mantis¡¯s head would be missing.
This sight often sends shivers down one¡¯s spine.
Yet even such fierce creatures sometimes fail in hunting katydids and are counter killed instead.
Beyond that, katydids sometimes can also counter kill formidable opponents such as spiders and hos.
It¡¯s hard to imagine that katydids, with their delicate, slender bodies, could unleash such ferociousbat abilities.
Some Insect Masters believe that katydids have inherited thebat talent of crickets and are muchrger in size.
This is the reason they can defeat strong opponents.
Qin Niu picked up the cage holding the locusts and looked closely at it.
¡°This should be a new species bred from a cross between locusts and katydids. Theirbat abilities are far superior to ordinary locusts, and their flying capabilities should also be strong. Additionally, they possess powerful stridting skills.¡±
After examining, Qin Niu made a preliminary identification of this new species of locust.
¡°Exactly, exactly! When they charge, they are like fierce warriors on the battlefield, not only taking the lead but also emitting a sharp and high-pitched stridting sound. The other locusts, hearing this, will follow suit and charge. Each one is fearlessly valiant, and theirbat abilities are much stronger than under normal circumstances.¡±
Master Mo Sang nodded vigorously in agreement.
¡®The defense line I¡¯m guarding has not yet encountered this new type of locust, and if it does, I may not be able to hold it.¡±
Master Shi¡¯s abilities were much weaker than Master Mo Sang¡¯s.
With the emergence of this new species of locust, even Master Shi was not in the mood today to embrace the maidservants and seek pleasure.
Instead, he was suffused with a faint worry.
If his defense line was breached, hisfortable life in the Yan Family woulde to an end.
¡°Master Qin, I¡¯m afraid we¡¯ll need you to think of a solution for this matter.¡±
Seeing that the two Insect Masters invited from the city were somewhat at their limits, Yan Family¡¯s eldest son could only put his hope in Qin Niu.
¡°Difficult!¡±
Qin Niu shook his head and sighed.
Of course, this was just a facade.
With Qin Niu¡¯s current strength, not to mention insects of this level, even stronger ones would be within his capabilities.
After all, even the Corpse Bee so powerful from Old Master Huang had been captured by him.
¡°Master Qin only said it¡¯s difficult, and didn¡¯t say it¡¯s impossible to deal with ¨C that means there is a way. I also know that asking Master Qin to deal with such powerful insects, it wouldn¡¯t be right to calcte thebor costs by the old standards. As long as Master Qin agrees, the price is negotiable.¡±
Yan Family¡¯s eldest son was shrewd enough to hear an opportunity to negotiate and immediately expressed his willingness to pay more Silver Money.
¡°Hmm¡ These locusts possess formidablebat capabilities and can even emit piercing shrieks to attack. They¡¯re quite tricky to handle. A slight misstep and my insects might be counter-killed, resulting in significant casualties. Such a loss is almost fatal for us Insect Masters,¡±
Qin Niu did not mention a price at all.
He only discussed how challenging the task was.
If the other party understood what was implied, they would certainly offer a price that could tempt Qin Niu.
¡°I understand the difficulty Master Qin faces! How about this: we set up another defense line in front of Master Mo¡¯s and your job is only to handle these special locusts. For every one you eradicate, the Yan Family will pay ten Wen Money.¡±
This price was already quite high.
Given the current situation, if a hundred special locusts appeared per day and
Qin Niu took care of all of them, the Yan Family would have to pay one thousand Wen.
Which is to say, One Tael of Silver.
The Yan Family was very shrewd.
The several hundred acres ofnd behind had already been cleared of pests once over with Qin Niu¡¯s efforts.
As for the few scattered locusts that strayed onto their fields afterward, they could no longer pose a threat.
By having Qin Niu guard the front line against the special locusts and with Masters Mo and Shi defending the second line, the safety of the fields would be absolutely assured.
¡°This¡¡±
Qin Niu was weighing the risks involved.
He was mainly afraid of attracting the attention of the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s experts.
¡°If Master Qin still feels the amount is inadequate, I can add one more Wen. For every one eradicated, the Yan Family will pay eleven Wen Money,¡±
The young master of the Yan Family clenched his teeth and raised the offer again.
¡°There¡¯s no need. I¡¯ve known the Yan Family for more than a day or two and I don¡¯t engage in kicking someone when they¡¯re down or extortionate price hiking. We¡¯ll go with the price you¡¯ve stated, Young Master Yan, ten Wen Money each. I can only try my best and if I cannot hold the line, then you¡¯ll simply have to find someone more skillful,¡±
Qin Niu agreed to the deal.
He thought taking advantage of this opportunity to train his troops would be beneficial.
Calcting the time, the first batch of thousand eggsid by the Ant Queen would be adult ants in a day or two.
Afterward, there would be an additional one thousand termites each day.
With such a strong force at his disposal, it would be a waste not to make some money when the opportunity arose.
Taking on this job had a deeper meaning as well.
If the Nine Insect Gang did set their sights on him, they¡¯d see him working for the Yan Family for a mere One Tael of Silver a day, which wouldn¡¯t make them suspect he had killed Old Master Huang.
¡°I knew Master Qin was a man of principle. I¡¯ll drink to that, and if Master Qin ever faces any difficulties, as long as the Yan Family can help, we won¡¯t just stand by,¡±
Upon hearing Qin Niu¡¯s agreement without any need for an increased price, the young master of the Yan Family joyfully raised his ss in a toast.
¡°Since you¡¯re putting me on the very front line, then I will be the one to set it
I will also need the Yan Family to dispatch some strongborers to build a new defense line ording to my specifications, as quickly as possible,¡±
¡°That¡¯s not a problem at all. After we finish dinner, I¡¯ll apany Master Qin to the front line. Just tell me your requirements, and I¡¯ll have people work through the night toplete the defense line,¡±
Young Master Yan readily agreed.
After finishing the banquet, Qin Niu, apanied by the young master of the Yan Family and Steward Yan Qi among others, headed to the front line.
¡°Build the defense line right in front of this pond! About ten meters or so should be enough,¡±
Qin Niu voiced his general requirements.
Trouble Young Master Yan to arrange for a straw hut to be built here; I can
stay in it at night. Even if I am not here during the day, I will have my insects guarding this ce. So make sure no one enters this defense line, to avoid my insects identally injuring them,¡±
Locusts are afraid of water; having a pond behind them can effectively force the locusts to stop at the shore and then take off again to fly over the pond.
Because locusts can¡¯t fly far in one go.
They need tond after flying a dozen meters or so to rest before taking off with a leap again.
¡°No problem! I¡¯ll have someone build it overnight,¡±
Right there and then, Young Master Yan instructed Steward Yan Qi to gather people to construct a new defense line.
Qin Niu remained on-site to observe the terrain and the locust situation.
In the short time since, even though it was dusk, he could still see locusts migrating from afar in groups of three or pairs.
They were very clever; they either circumvented the pondpletely or flew straight from the shore, crossing over the pond.
¡°Chirp, chirp!¡±
The high-pitched cry of insects carried over from a distance.
Arge swarm of locusts, at least two to three hundred strong, approached from far away.
Qin Niu saw a special locust captured by Master Mo leading the way at the front.
It constantly vibrated its wings, emitting a piercing shrill that beckoned a massive following of locusts.
This special locust was like a valiant general on the battlefield, leading a troop of soldiers in a charge, its momentum incredibly formidable.
No wonder Master Mo said these locusts might be few in number but were extremely fearsome.
¡°Fourth, can you take care of it?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
The answer from Fourth was absurdly rxed and casual.
Only its single horn was directed at the insect, and it didn¡¯t even need to deploy the power of the ant swarm. As soon as that special locust entered its range of spiritual power attack, the insect trembled and then froze.
In front of Fourth, it couldn¡¯t muster any resistance at all and was immediately controlled.
¡°Come on in!¡±
Qin Niu took out an Insect Jar, and the special locust flew in obediently.
Chapter 197: 192: The Second Demon Ant_i
Chapter 197: 192: The Second Demon Ant_i
Trantor: 549690339 I
After securing the lid, he resumed his study of this particr locust.
¡°Fourth, make it make its call and see if it can control thosemon locusts,¡± he said.
The sound it made was like a charging horn, possessing a strange magic.
There are many ways insects can attack.
Sonic attacks are one of them.
For instance, the death-seeking Jin Chan that Qin Niu sold used sound waves to attack.
Under Fourth¡¯s control, the special locust vibrated its wings once more, sending out a piercing cry.
It was very sharp, agitating to the point of making one¡¯s blood boil with irritation.
Upon hearing the call, manymon locusts began to converge on this location.
In the blink of an eye, two to three hundred had gathered.
¡°Using this method to eliminate themon locusts isn¡¯t half bad either.¡±
Seeing this scene, Qin Niu¡¯s eyes sparkled.
Catch a few more special locusts and use their calls to lure and trap themon ones.
Unfortunately, only this one has been found so far.
Qin Niu was not in a hurry.
Instead, he walked forward to investigate from which directions the locusts were flying in.
In the fields, in the hills, locusts could be found in small groups everywhere.
They ceaselessly nibbled on the tender leaves of any nt they could eat.
After feasting, they¡¯d lift their wings and fly forward in search of the next edible nt.
Grains of insect feces were randomly excreted below.
The locust gue had been going on for so long, why hadn¡¯t there been any reaction from the ck Tiger Gang?
It didn¡¯t feel right!
If the higher-ups of the ck Tiger Gang weren¡¯t brainless, they must have sensed something was amiss by now. The correct approach would be to mobilize all Insect Masters within their jurisdiction to exterminate the locusts together.
Yet there seemed to be no significant movement from the Insect Master Association.
The Insect Masters werergely fighting on their own, guarding whoever paid them the highest price to watch their crops.
By midnight, the defensive line had been built to Qin Niu¡¯s specifications.
The thatched cottage was also ratherrge.
The eldest son of the Yan Family had been supervising the construction on-site, which showed how seriously they took the matter.
After all, whether the defense line could hold determined the safety of the rear.
¡°Master Qin, please check if the bed inside the thatched cottage meets your satisfaction,¡± he requested.
He invited Qin Niu to inspect the thatched cottage.
¡°Why did you even bother to prepare a bed for me?¡± Qin Niu asked, surprised.
¡°You¡¯ve been defending our Yan Family¡¯s front line and clearing locusts, a most arduous and meritorious task. Naturally, we can¡¯t let you suffer too much difort.¡±
¡°But there¡¯s no need for such a big bed!¡±
¡°With the long night ahead, Master Qin, standing watch alone at the front, having a beautiful woman to keep youpany should add some joy to the night.¡±
¡°No need, no need. My insects only recognize me, and please don¡¯t let anyone else enter this area. If someone gets bitten, even I don¡¯t have the antidote,¡± Qin Niu warned the Yan Family¡¯s eldest son.
His Termites were fierce, but without orders from Qin Niu, they wouldn¡¯t attack indiscriminately.
Only if someone vited their territory would they be aggressive.
¡°Master Qin, could it be that you find those pretty maids no longer virgins? I can arrange for a virgin maid to serve you,¡± he offered.
¡°I appreciate the thought, but really, there¡¯s no need for that. The night is deep, Young Master Yan, please go back and rest. Leave this ce to me.¡±
Qin Niu promptly sent Young Master Yan on his way.
These young masters of wealthy families were spoiled from a young age. It¡¯s said that around the age of thirteen or fourteen, they had experienced maids teach them the ways of the bedroom. Changing women for them was truly as casual as changing clothes.
Unless it was their official wife, only then could they not be casually reced.
Even as a concubine with little status, some people would send them directly to those in need of bribes to obtain greater benefits.
And the concubine could not resist.
She could only wipe her tears and ept the man¡¯s heartlessness.
The next morning, Qin Niu looked at the seventeen special locusts he had caught in the Insect Jar, thinking to himself, ¡°At only ten Wen Money apiece, am I earning too little?¡±
Seventeen locusts amounted to just one hundred and seventy Wen Money.
His wealth had already surpassed ten thousand taels. Treating the Fang Family¡¯s special medicinal herb earned him a total of one thousand seven hundred taels, and taking out Old Master Huang hadted him over thirteen thousand taels.
Adding it up, his wealth was nearing fifteen thousand taels.
If he were to buynd with it, he could quickly be andlord of a size simr to the Yan Family.
But he was not ready to buynd yet.
As long as the locust gue continued,nd prices would surely plummet.
If the Nine Insect Gang shed with the ck Tiger Gang,nd prices would fall even further.
The gold of turbulent times, thend of a peaceful and prosperous era.
Although after the Nine Insect Gang took down the ck Tiger Gang, the ordinary peasants andndlords wouldn¡¯t lose theirnd, the chaos would make people feel troubled, and few would be willing to farm.
Moreover, theft and robbery were rampant.
The hard-earned crops, just when harvest time approached, could be stolen or robbed overnight by those without food.
But then again, families like the Yan Family with their own guards were generally not afraid of being robbed or stolen from.
Qin Niu left a contingent of Termites to guard the line of defense, then he returned home.
After breakfast, he ascended the mountain.
Upon reaching the Ant Nest, he saw swarms of delicate, young Termites crawling out from the nest.
¡°I didn¡¯t expect that the Ant Queen¡¯s first batch of a thousand ant eggs would have metamorphosed into adult antsst night.¡±
He was delighted to see these little fellows.
A full one thousand of them!
And the current Ant Queen was a Grade Four Termite, producingrvae even stronger than before.
¡°Don¡¯t rush, all of you line up outside. Let me take a good look,¡± he ordered.
Qin Niumanded the ant swarm to form well-ordered lines outside the Ant Nest.
Grade Tworge Force Worker Ants, 27 in total; Grade Tworge Force Soldier Ants, 11 in total; a Grade Three Demon Ant; Grade Two Breeder Ants, 3 in total; Grade Two Elephant Nose Soldier Ant, 1 in total; Grade Twomon Worker Ants, 673 in total¡
To his great surprise, there was a Demon Ant andter, an Elephant Nose Soldier Ant.
Both types of Termites were rare varieties.
And all of these one thousand Termites were at least Grade Two.
The Demon Ant even reached Grade Three.
It was truly astounding.
To think, a regr Termite would need to be fed Banyan Tree Blood and go through a life-and-death challenge to metamorphose into a Grade Two Termite.
Now, with the Ant Queen bing stronger, they were born as Grade Two Termites.
If cultivated further, wouldn¡¯t they immediately be Grade Three Termites?
Qin Niu now finally understood why Old Master Huang could treat over four thousand Grade Three Army Ants as cannon fodder.
Because with a high-grade Ant Queen, Grade Three ants simply weren¡¯t valuable.
¡°Locusts are nothingpared to my Termite Army,¡± he dered.
Qin Niu beheld the thousand new Termites, and in that moment, he finally felt hopeful.
¡°The old rule:mon Grade Two Termites can only be mass-cultivated. Special Grade Two Termites and the Grade Three Demon Ant will be cultivated with precision on a one-on-one basis,¡± he decided.
Now, he had abundant experience in using Banyan Tree Blood to nurture Termites.
However, each of these special Grade Two Termites was precious.
Out of caution, he first chose a dozenmon Grade Two Worker and Soldier Ants to cultivate.
The result was that all fifteenmon Grade Two ants passed the life-and- death challenge with a sess rate of one hundred percent.
This also made him boldly confident in cultivating the special Grade Two Termites.
When it came time to cultivate the Grade Three Demon Ant, he was still incredibly cautious.
Chapter 198 - 193: Medicine King Sutra Furnace and Cauldroni
Chapter 198: Chapter 193: Medicine King Sutra Furnace and Cauldroni
Trantor: 549690339
The Grade Two strong Worker Ants and Soldier Ants crawl almost as fast as the Swift Ants.
The crawling speed of the Grade Three Demon Ants has even reached the level of the Grade Two Lightning Ants.
However, in terms of strength, the Grade Three Demon Ants are clearly much weaker than Fourth.
Another point worth mentioning is that Grade Two strong Worker Ants and Soldier Ants do not possess any special abilities.
The special abilities of Grade Three Demon Ants include mid-level intelligence, basic exoskeleton, basic self-healing, super strong biting, Venom Attack, and an evolved abdomen with a Poison Stinger and venom sac, whose venom has the dual toxicities of paralysis and soul erosion. Demonization increases their speed threefold, their attack power fivefold, and their defensive ability twofold when in the demonized state.
It feels like the abilities of the Grade Three Demon Ants are on par with Grade Two tiger-striped irond ants.
However, after demonization, their defensive power increases twofold, which is much stronger than that of the Grade Two tiger-striped irond ants.
Also, they have the basic ability of self-healing.
When injured, they can recover quickly.
With this ability alone, they can exhaust many opponents of equal strength.
Even minor injuries in battle can affect the exertion ofbat power afterward.
Currently, even Fourth does not have the ability to heal itself.
With this ability, it¡¯s like having a doctor and medicine with you at all times.
Furthermore, Grade Three Demon Ants are equipped with an abdominal poison stinger that can sting the enemy.
Their venom is also incredibly effective, possessing both paralytic and soul-eroding toxicities.
Last but not least, the lifespan of Demon Ants is 30 years.
This is an incredibly long lifespan that other Termites would envy.
Ordinary Termites, many of which only live for half a year to three years, have a lifespan that is more than ten times less than that of Demon Ants.
Only after drinking the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood and oveing the trials of life and death did Fourth manage to increase its lifespan to 30.5 years.
This is only half a year longer than that of the Grade Three Demon Ants.
Qin Niu feels that although there are simrities between the Demon Ants and the War Demon Ants, they are not the same species.
Fourth¡¯s demonization ability is significantly stronger than that of the Demon Ants.
But it¡¯s too early to draw any conclusions now, as the Grade Three Demon Ants have not yet consumed the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood. Only after cultivating them will their true strength be known.
The Ancient Banyan Tree Blood is definitely a heaven-defying treasure; even an ordinary Termite that drinks it can quickly evolve special abilities.
After drinking the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood, the Demon Ants will surely gain additional special abilities.
But since they already possess many basic special abilities, it feels like the likelihood of evolving new special abilities is small. It¡¯s more likely that their existing abilities will be stronger.
The evolutionary path of each insect isrgely simr.
They strive to enhance their strengths to gain stronger survival abilities in thisplicated world.
Qin Niu did a detailed calction based on the Demon Ant¡¯s physique, weight, etc.
Then he fed it a safe dosage of Banyan Tree Blood.
What follows is a matter of patiently waiting.
The Ant Queen nowys a thousand eggs a day, and her appetite has be astonishing.
She¡¯s living the good life.
The food she eats is all ¡®premium food¡¯¡ªthe main food at this stage is the Grade Four Corpse Bee and the Grade Five Bee General.
So far, there hasn¡¯t been any sign of her evolving new special abilities.
However, Qin Niu is not in a rush because she¡¯s already a Grade Four insect, and evolving new special abilities is certainly more difficult than before.
Like the appearance of the Medical Ant, if Qin Niu hadn¡¯t persisted in feeding the leaves of Broadleaf Paris Polyphy, it would¡¯ve been difficult for this special ant species to emerge.
As the Ant Queen grows stronger, the difficulty of her evolution will continue to increase.
The ease with which she used to evolve offspring with strong breeding properties after being fed bear blood or develop offspring with venom properties after being fed the corpse of a venomous insect is now almost impossible to achieve.
Unless Qin Niu can hunt down insects or beasts of very high grade.
Then use them to feed her.
Watching the Demon Ant consume the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood, he observed its reactions a bit nervously from the side.
Unexpectedly, its physical resilience seemed to far exceed his expectations.
It made it through without any issues.
Once its condition stabilized, Qin Niu breathed a sigh of relief.
Indeed, as a rare species, the overall abilities and performance of the Demon Ant far exceed those of other special Termites by arge margin.
After cultivating the Termites, Qin Niu then went to collect blood from the Ancient Banyan Tree and cultivate the Medicine King Sutra within its maze.
The cultivation speed that is twenty times faster than the outside world is too tempting for him.
Moreover, its medicine aura is unparalleled by any nt. It can provide Qin Niu with an endless supply of medicine aura, helping him to rapidly improve his Medicine King Sutra cultivation.
After entering beneath the Ancient Banyan Tree, he didn¡¯t rush to cultivate but instead checked the bodies of Old Master Huang and that cat-faced woman.
They were gone without a trace, not even bones remained.
Only their clothes were left in ce.
But the clothes of the two looked like they had been abandoned in the wild for three to four years, already beginning to rot away.
The Ancient Banyan Tree is truly formidable.
Qin Niu thought of the ck Serpent-shaped Sword and dug it up to find it intact.
It indicates that although the Ancient Banyan Tree is powerful, it has no attacking ability against metals.
In the Five Elements, Metal conquers Wood.
This attribute is likely the reason why the Ancient Banyan Tree cannot affect metals.
Qin Niu had a sudden inspiration.
What would happen if a metal house were ced beneath the Ancient Banyan Tree?
Would it be safe to live inside it?
It¡¯s at least worth a try.
If it really is safe to have a metal house there, then he would essentially have another ¡®special fortress¡¯.
Afterpleting his check, he went to collect the Banyan Tree Blood and cultivate the Medicine King Sutra, which goes without saying.
As he continually absorbed a massive amount of medicinal energy, the power of his Medicine King Sutra rapidly grew.
He had been stuck at the Mortal Realm¡¯s tenfold for many days.
The power of the Evesting Spring Technique had already reached the secondyer of the Acquired Realm for quite some time, and in a few more days, he estimated he could attempt to break through to the thirdyer.
However, the power of the Medicine King Sutra just could not make a breakthrough.
This inevitably made him somewhat anxious.
As more and more medicinal energy was converted into power, he felt his body gradually inting, swelling.
This made him increasingly ufortable.
He was even more worried about his body exploding.
The Medicine King Sutra he acquired was aplete Cultivation Technique; the Mortal Realm¡¯s tenfold was definitely not the limit.
Why couldn¡¯t he make a breakthrough?
Without a master to guide him, he could only grope his way forward, and encountering such strange phenomena as his body swelling made him somewhat fearful.
With his current conditions, he could fare quite well even without cultivating the Medicine King Sutra.
It cannot be denied that after cultivating the Medicine King Sutra, indeed, there were considerable benefits.
Whether a herb or nt had value, what its properties were, he could now identify at a nce. This was a benefit brought by cultivating the Medicine King Sutra.
He believed that as his power increased, it was very likely new abilities would emerge.
He grit his teeth and persisted, yet his heart was still wavering.
Several times he thought about stopping the cultivation.
But in the end, he overcame his fear and worry, continued to cultivate. Moreover, his determination gradually became firm.
The Medicine King Sutra was left to Xiao Qing by her parents. If there really were any problems, her parents would not have passed it down to their daughter.
Since there were no issues, it meant that cultivating the Medicine King Sutra should be safe.
Even if Qin Niu made some mistakes in cultivating this technique, it should not lead to a body explosion and death.
And from the firstyer to the tenthyer of the Mortal Realm, everything had been normal.
This indicated that his cultivation method should be correct.
The situation now arising was very likely a tribtion that one must go through in the process of cultivating the technique.
It was like the termites looking to be stronger, which, after consuming the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood, had to go through a life-and-death tribtion.
After thorough contemtion, Qin Niu¡¯s will became unwavering and fearless, pressing forward relentlessly.
His body swelled more and more, but fortunately, after the power of the Evesting Spring Technique reached the Acquired Realm, it had tempered and strengthened his body a second time. This allowed him to safely withstand the rapid expansion.
Otherwise, his skin might have cracked from being overstretched.
As his cultivation continued, when his body swelled to a peak, it seemed like there was a change in the dantian within his abdomen.
There, arge amount of the Medicine King Sutra¡¯s power had condensed. They were like a vortex in a raging current, spinning at high speed.
It generated a strong potent force, which like a rolling snowball, began to pull in more and more of the Medicine King Sutra¡¯s power.
When it reached a critical point, Qin Niu distinctly perceived that within it, a cauldron was gradually forming.
In the beginning, like a gestating fetus, it was just a tiny rudimentary form.
Even its outline was somewhat vague and indistinct.
As time passed, it nurtured and changed bit by bit until the outline became clear.
The shape of a cauldron gradually took form.
And it became increasingly substantial.
Once the cauldron was formed, the power of the Medicine King Sutra within Qin Niu felt like it had found its ce.
They all fused into the cauldron.
Who knows how much time had passed when Qin Niu slowly opened his eyes, his body had long since returned to normal.
Inside him, there was now a cauldron formed from the condensation of the Medicine King Sutra¡¯s power.
It rotated slowly.
It functioned akin to a heart, ceaselessly drawing in new Medicine King Sutra power, before exhaling a portion of it.
Qin Niu discovered that the Medicine King Sutra power it exhaled was clearly more refined.
The function of this cauldron seemed to be the refinement of the Medicine King Sutra¡¯s power.
Perhaps it had other uses as well, which he needed to explore.
Finally, his Medicine King Sutra¡¯s power broke through the confines of the Mortal Realm, reaching the firstyer of the Acquired Realm.
However, his current state was not very stable.
It would probably require a few more days of cultivation to solidify his realm.
When he sensed the Ancient Banyan Tree again, he felt something different from before.
Before, he thought its energy was like a vast ocean.
Now, sensing its energy felt more like argeke, or perhaps calling it an inner sea would be more appropriate. He was able to perceive its specific energy, rather than just vaguely sensing its terrifying energy as before.
He checked the changes in his lifespan.
128 years old.
He gained an additional ten years of life.
Originally, his lifespan was 118 years.
Compared to ordinary people, his lifespan was already that of an elder amongst the long-lived.
Butpared to his pets, it really wasn¡¯t much at all.
The extension of a human¡¯s lifespan is inherently much more difficult.
The creator is very fair, granting humans higher intelligence while also making the human body the weakest and life the shortest.
If an ant were to achieve the height and weight of a human, it could easily kill an adult male.
If a rat were to grow as big as a human, if it found a human and there was no escape or hiding, it could instantly kill them.
The truly powerful aspect of humanity, the most spiritually advanced being, is wisdom.
Humans who live longer than two hundred years are already quite rare.
Chapter 199 - 194: Ranking in Jade Stream Towni
Chapter 199: Chapter 194: Ranking in Jade Stream Towni
Trantor: 549690339 |
Humans who lived past four hundred years, were definitely beings like the old ancestor of the Fang Family. Even more so, Qin Niu suspected that the old ancestor of the Fang Family might not have lived for four hundred years.
As for those who lived over a thousand years, they were absolutely beings on the level of terrestrial immortals.
Their strength must be terrifyingly powerful.
Qin Niu¡¯s lifespan had reached close to one hundred thirty years, which was already quite remarkable.
He had more opportunities than other cultivators in the Acquired Realm.
Choosing to cultivate the Evesting Spring Technique back then must have been the most correct decision he made.
Longevity and immortality, that is the realpetitive edge.
As long as one has enough lifespan, even with poor talent, time can be used to slowly umte strength. Ultimately breaking through again and again.
Qin Niu looked up at the Ancient Banyan Tree and noticed its branches beginning to droop.
It meant that it was alreadyte in the day.
He promptly collected the Banyan Tree Blood and hastened out of the maze.
In the past, aftering out, he would always check on the beehive in the pine tree. Now that he had moved them to his home, he really wasn¡¯t used to it.
Back at home, everything was safe and sound.
Xu Zhenchang seemed to time his visit perfectly,ing to see him.
Inviting him into the house, Qin Niu¡¯s home was already furnished with mahogany tables and chairs, high-end screens, calligraphy and painting hung on the walls, and flowers and nts were being grown inside. Even the tea set for entertaining guests was reced with a new one.
Slowly, he had begun to live the quality of life a wealthy person should have.
Xu Zhenchang envied him in his heart.
This man was on his way to wealth, and it would take just about a year or two.
Who could have imagined that just over half a year ago, Alt Niu was a young man who struggled to make ends meet. Now he was the most prestigious person in Shuangfeng Vige, living in the most imposing house, an official residence with three rooms and seven rafters.
He already used high-end furniture and teacups.
Qin Niu had undergone a transformation and umtion that many people would not achieve in their lifetimes, in a very short span of time.
¡°Master Qin, today Xie Laizi has been buried. I have already reported to the official registry to cancel his household registration. Ah, one never knows what tomorrow may bring. Xie Laizi, he was rather despicable and had done some immoral things, being sent off by a venomous snake in hisst moments is retribution. In the end, it was still the vigers who helped and buried him.¡±
Xu Zhenchang sighed.
He also meant to ask Qin Niu for money.
After all, Qin Niu promised yesterday to give fifty Wen Money to every viger who helped bury Xie Laizi.
Xu Zhenchang¡¯s crop this year was hit by both floods and pests, and he might even end up losing money. It was likely that he was short on cash, struggling to get by.
Had he followed the trend and bought a thousand or two ducksst time, he could have made a profit.
Unfortunately, he was too cautious, and with limited funds on hand, he missed the opportunity.
¡°Xie Laizi did not umte virtue, and this disaster is fate. How muchbor was used to bury him?¡±
¡°Sixteen people worked together to bury him, and both Wang Haikun¡¯s wife and Liu Shengli¡¯s wife helped with cooking. In total, eighteen people put in effort.¡±
¡°How much did it cost for the coffin and the vigers¡¯ food?¡±
¡°Two Taels and one Wen of Silver.¡±
This money was basically spent right along the line.
The silver money found on Xie Laizi¡¯s body was just over two taels with several copper coins.
¡°Each of the eighteen people fifty Wen, and you as the leader who put in more effort, get one hundred Wen.¡±
Qin Niu took out One Tael of Silver and gave it to Xu Zhenchang directly.
¡°You must ensure this money reaches the hands of those who helped, you can¡¯t skim off their share.¡±
This statement from Qin Niu served as both a warning and a reminder.
Xu Zhenchang was currently short on cash, and it¡¯s tough to guarantee he wouldn¡¯t get ideas about the two Taels of Silver.
The greed of a man can be boundless.
¡°Understood, rest assured, I will distribute the full amount to each person and tell them that this is Master Qin¡¯s grace.¡±
¡°You can go now! I should also pay a visit to the Yan Family soon.¡±
Qin Niu rose to see his guest out.
¡°Thankyou, Master Qin, for your gracious gift. I take my leave!¡±
Xu Zhenchang, with the silver money in hand, naturally wore a happy face.
Others did not dare to openly ask for the money, and even he, as the vige chief, did not dare to directly ask for it.
If Qin Niu hadn¡¯t given that one tael of silver, others would¡¯ve assumed Xu Zhenchang had embezzled it. They would surely talk behind his back, which could affect his status and prestige in the vige.
With that one tael of silver, and then distributing it, his standing in the vigers¡¯ eyes would be more stable.
It was equivalent to having the status of a foreman under Master Qin¡¯smand.
In the future, wouldn¡¯t he arrange any such good opportunities the same way?
Whomever he assigned to do the task would earn those fifty wen money.
Xu Zhenchang¡¯s choice of two women to cook showed considerable thought.
By inviting Wang Haikun¡¯s wife to cook and earning fifty wen money, he naturally intended to curry favor with Wang Haikun.
Despite Wang Haikun having an arm severed by Qin Niu and rarely leaving his house now, as long as his brother Wang Yue held a position in the military, Wang Haikun¡¯s status in the vige wouldn¡¯t be too low.
As for Liu Shengli¡¯s wife, not only was she beautiful, but she also had a sweet mouth and was adept at socializing.
Xu Zhenchang was the vige chief, and she likely hadn¡¯t spared any effort in keeping him happy.
With good thingsing, he was sure to look after her a bit.
The sixteen men who buried Xie Laizi were probably just ordinaryborers from the vige.
After all, it was a tough job with good pay, but burying the dead brought bad luck.
Everyone earned their money the hard way.
Those close to Xu Zhenchang were prioritized for arrangements, which was nothing out of the ordinary.
The usual day¡¯s wage for aborer was about ten wen money.
Burying someone, and with two meals included, one could earn fifty wen money, which was equivalent to five times the daily wage. In the vige, indeed, people were eager for such work.
Qin Niu¡¯s position in the vige was now unshakable.
He was quietly progressing toward bing a local overlord like the Yan Family.
It was just that the timing wasn¡¯t right yet, but in a few days, as soon as thend prices fell, Qin Niu leaping to be a local upstart was almost a certainty.
Xu Zhenchang had not yet left when Yan Qi¡¯s carriage had already arrived at the doorway.
¡°Master Qin, I¡¯vee to take you over. The young master has already prepared the dinner, we¡¯re just waiting for your arrival to begin.¡±
¡°Wait for me a moment.¡±
Qin Niu made some preparations before getting on Yan Qi¡¯s carriage.
Sitting in the carriage, Yan Qi looked at him with some trepidation.
He asionally stole nces his way.
¡°Is there something dirty on my face?¡± Qin Niu wiped at his face with his hand.
¡°Not at all. It¡¯s just that you seem a bit different than usual today. You appear even more formidable, and the imperceptible aura you exude is quite intimidating. I assume that Master Qin¡¯s cultivation has progressed further.¡±
Yan Qi must have certain cultivation skills himself.
Many of the Yan Family¡¯s senior servants had practiced cultivation techniques.
It wasn¡¯t surprising for him to feel that Qin Niu had made significant improvements in his skills.
After all, they were sitting very close inside the carriage, and that kind of imperceptible pressure could be easily sensed by him.
¡°There have been some improvements, but they¡¯re nothing in front of those real masters.¡±
¡°Master Qin, you¡¯re being too modest. At the very least, ording to my intuition, your strength has reached a notable level within the boundaries of Jade Stream Town. Within the town, I doubt any major family would dare underestimate you.¡±
Although Yan Qi spoke cautiously, his words hinted that Qin Niu¡¯s cultivation had be significant enough to be recognized amongrge families like the Yan Family.
Chapter 200 - 195: Want to Plant a Spy?_i
Chapter 200: Chapter 195: Want to nt a Spy?_i
Trantor: 549690339 |
The true strength of the Yan Family had always been a mystery to Qin Niu.
The minimum threshold for hiring a protector in the Yan Family was a mortal with a twofold cultivation.
With Qin Niu¡¯s current cultivation level, even a hundred protectors with a twofold cultivation would be no match for him. The Evesting Spring Technique and the Medicine King Sutra might not be suitable forbat, but when the level of cultivation wasid bare, it couldn¡¯t be too bad.
Not to mention, he had now cultivated both techniques to the Acquired Realm.
Having both in the Acquired Realm was certainly stronger than just one.
Qjn Niu spected that the Yan Family must also possess experts in the Acquired Realm. After all, Wang Yue definitely had a ninefold mortal cultivation and was a candidate for the ck Armored Army, boasting both status and cultivation. Yet, the Yan Family had never regarded Wang Yue seriously.
Although Wang Haikun bullied both men and women, he was as docile as a pug in front of Yan Family¡¯s house ves.
The adult world was very realistic.
If it weren¡¯t for ack of strength, how could Wang Haikun, so arrogant and domineering, suddenly turn into a pug?
Even though Qin Niu had be an Insect Master, Wang Haikun, albeit fearful, was far from the fear he showed towards the Yan Family.
Moreover, the Yan Family held such arge enterprise but never seemed to be extorted or bullied.
The Yan Family was definitely a plump sheep in the local area.
There had to be many who coveted their assets.
Wiry did those people not dare to make a move? It was naturally because the Yan Family possessed formidable strength that instilled fear in them.
Therefore, Qjn Niu surmised that the Yan Family must have experts in the Acquired Realm.
He wanted to be the second prominent family in the region, so it was vital to understand the strength of these local powerhouses.
Otherwise, if one had wealth but insufficient strength and dared to show it, they would be devoured to the point where nothing was left.
Even the powerful Fang Family had adversaries eyeing their assets; the so- calledws and rules of this world were all established upon strength.
Yan Qi was a loyal servant of the Yan Family, and both parties¡¯ interests were tightly interwoven. Trying to pry the family secrets from Yan Qi was a futile thought.
This matter could not be rushed; the only option was to wait for an opportunity and discreetly investigate or observe.
The carriage soon arrived at the Yan residence, and the Young Master of the Yan Family appeared even more attentive than the day before.
Yesterday, he only came down the stairs upon seeing the carriage.
Today, he was already waiting at the entrance.
¡°Master Qjn, I¡¯ve been anxiously awaiting your arrival. After establishing a new defense linest night, not a single high-level locust has crossed the border. Your strength is just like this,¡± the Young Master of the Yan Family raised his thumb. ¡°Both Master Mo and Master Shi have said, as long as we can maintain this state, they can firmly hold the second defense line. Whether my Yan Family¡¯s crops can be saved depends entirely on you three,¡± he said.
¡°I will do my utmost, please rest assured, Young Master Yan,¡± Qjn Niu responded.
Qjn Niu had epted exquisite furniture as a gift from them, so now that the Yan Family was in trouble, it was indeed only natural for him to reciprocate.
This was amon human sentiment.
¡°Master Qjn, pleasee inside and see what Young Master Yan has prepared for you!¡±
As Master Mo Sang saw Qjn Niu, he too rose up to greet him.
He struggled to deal with those special locusts, but for Qjn Niu, it was seemingly like child¡¯s y.
The difference in their strength was immediately evident.
One must always hold a sense of awe towards the powerful.
¡°Maid Chen Xue pays respects to Master Qjn!¡±
A beautiful girl about sixteen or seventeen years of age stood there, dressed in a pink short blouse, her delicate and lovely appearance enchanting. Upon seeing Qin Niu enter, she immediately bowed deeply in salute.
Her graceful figure, delicate features, fair skin, and the youthful vitality radiating from her every move were enough to make one¡¯s heart skip a beat.
¡°Dispense with the formalities,¡± Qjn Niu said, raising his hand in a dismissing gesture.
¡°Master Qjn, Chen Xue here has been specially prepared for you. Having been orphaned at a young age, she was bought by my Yan Family; we had professionals teach her singing, dancing, poetry, painting, as well as how to serve men. She has, until now, never served anyone. If Master Qjn is pleased, she can be exclusively dedicated to serving you from here on out. Following Master Qjn would also be a good oue for Chen Xue,¡± exined Young Master Yan.
Young Master Yan could tell that Qjn Niu had extremely high standards, not at all like Masters Mo Sang and Shi who would pounce on any young girl they saw.
To win over Qjn Niu, he had carefully selected a beautiful maid who had yet to serve anyone.
The implication was clear: if Qjn Niu liked her, she would be given to him directly.
However, maids like her, trained byrge families from a young age and then given to powerful individuals, were still inclined towards the Yan Family in their hearts.
They treated the Yan Family like their natal family.
In critical moments, if the Yan Family needed them, they would influence their masters with whispered advice and speak well of the Yan Family.
Some even reported back their master¡¯s hobbies, private information, and thoughts, all to the Yan Family in secret.
They were more akin to beautiful female spies.
Masters Mo Sang and Shi were lustfully eyeing Chen Xue, wishing that the Yan Family had curried favor with them instead.
Such a top-tier maid was not something the Yan Family would easily offer up.
Because once used, she would no longer be untouched, and her value would greatly diminish. Essentially, she was like a high-grade, one-time use strategic asset.
¡°Thank you for your kind intentions, Young Master Yan, but I grew up ustomed to poverty and prefer living alone,¡± Qjn Niu politely declined.
¡°Does Master Qjn find this servant unattractive?¡± Chen Xue canvassed, running her hand through the hair at her forehead and looking as if she was about to cry.
Her behavior made it even less likely for Qjn Niu to keep such a spy from the Yan Family by his side.
¡°Miss Chen Xue is overthinking it; no matter who stood here today, my response would be the same,¡± he said, deflecting any further attempts at persuasion.
¡°Young Master Yan, I need to eat quickly and then hurry off to the fields to check things out. In case the number of special locusts has increased, the defense line I set up could be breached, which would really cause trouble.¡± Qjn Niu reminded Young Master Yan of his foremost concern.
Indeed, as soon as this matter came up, Young Master of the Yan Family said to Chen Xue directly, ¡°Go down first!¡±
Having Chen Xue leave first was also to prevent Mo and Li from getting any ideas.
Both of them had their eyes fixed on Chen Xue and hadn¡¯t looked away.
Now that Qjn Niu was not taking this servant girl, if Master Mo opened his mouth to ask for her, Young Master of the Yan Family would actually find it hard to agree.
To give her away would be difficult because it was not easy for the Yan Family to train a servant girl.
Not to give her away would definitely upset Master Mo, and then he would not be so dedicated to pest control for the Yan Family.
The best solution was to let her leave first.
¡°Master Qjn, there is only one servant girl of Chen Xue¡¯s caliber in my Yan Family. After hearing your inspiring story, she was deeply touched and volunteered to serve you. There is no rush for this matter now, and I will strive to reserve her for you. Whenever you need such a servant girl, just let me know, and I¡¯ll provide her to you,¡± said the Young Master of the Yan Family.
The Young Master¡¯s words were quite skillful.
They could put an end to the thoughts of Mo and Li, while also making Qjn Niu feel valued.
After finishing dinner, Qjn Niu didn¡¯t dare to stay a moment longer and hurried to the fields.
He was afraid that Young Master of the Yan Family was not giving up and would forcibly send that Miss Chen Xue into his arms.
Upon arriving at the fields, Qjn Niu checked on the termites that were left to guard, as well as the corpses of the locusts on the ground.
There were a total of one hundred and forty-seven of those special locust corpses.
Good heavens, it seemed that locusts preferred to be active during the day, not at night.
In one day, these termites had earned him nearly one tael and five coins of silver money.
Initially, he was somewhat concerned that termites were not suited for daytimebat, so he had made arrangements for a shade canopy to be built.
Now it seemed that only ordinary termites couldn¡¯t fight during the day. Grade Two or higher special termites were fully capable of all-weatherbat.
He had observed this point from the behavior of Fourth.
Long ago, when he took Fourth on to fight hos, it was during the day.
Fourth and the other special Grade Two termites were not affected in the slightest.
At that time, he realized that the termites were fully capable of all-weatherbat.
¡°The Ant Queen has now evolved to Grade Four, and the range of its pheromone radiation has be wider. These termites don¡¯t necessarily have to be brought back to the nest every day now,¡± he mused.
In the beginning, termites couldn¡¯t stay away from the nest too long.
Otherwise, problems would arise.
Now, as the strength of the Ant Queen and the termite colony continued to grow, it became more convenient for Qjn Niu to lead them into battle outside.
As night fell, the sound of locusts ¡°shasha shasha¡± nibbling on nt leaves added a peculiar tranquility to the mountain fields.
Qjn Niu, too, was sitting cross-legged under the moonlight, cultivating the Evesting Spring Technique.
Although the speed of his power increase was slow, the experience of the Evesting Spring Technique was steadily growing.
¡°Huh, cultivating the Evesting Spring Technique seems a bit different today!¡± he noticed.
He discovered that the speed of his power growth was much faster than usual.
The experience of the Cultivation Technique was still twofold.
The moonlight was no different from usual.
What exactly was causing his power growth to elerate?
After careful analysis, he realized it was likely that during the process of the Medicine King Sutra¡¯s power breakthrough to the Acquired Realm, his will had be firmer, and he began to possess the beginnings of a Dao heart.
This was only his personal spection, and he wasn¡¯t sure if it was indeed the case.
To ordinary people, the Dao heart was beyond understanding.
But the higher the cultivation, the more important the role of the Dao heart.
Simply put, it was the heart that aspired to the Dao.
Every expert who had achieved some measure of sess in cultivation had an indomitable and firm Dao heart.
If Qjn Niu, when attempting the breakthrough to the Acquired Realm of the Medicine King Sutra, had feared death by body explosion and chosen to give up, he would have had a hard time acquiring a Dao heart.
Feeling the rapid growth of his power and the experience of the Cultivation Technique, he immersed himself in it, focusing on cultivation.
The night grew colder, but it didn¡¯t affect him in the slightest.
Cultivation itself is an act against the heavens. Only those who can endure loneliness, who are willing to endure hardship, and who persist will have the possibility of achieving sess in cultivation.
Close to the fifth watch of the night, his ears picked up an unusual fluttering sound.
It was akin to the sound of birds pping their wings.
Qjn Niu slowly ended his cultivation and opened his eyes to look.
At this time, the dark moon was setting and the stars were dim, with still some time before dawn. This was the time of day when people were most sleepy, deeply asleep in their dreams.
And those with wives were even more immersed in the bliss of marital warmth.
¡°These are not birds; these are locusts!¡±
Qjn Niu¡¯s eyes widened in shock, gazing ahead.
He saw a locust as big as a knife handle leading a dense swarm of locusts flying in this direction.
They were rising and falling, moving forward continuously.
One special locust after another followed closely behind, each emitting its own chirping sound, leading groups of ordinary locusts to fly forward together.
They were like an enemy armyunching a night attack.
¡°Taking advantage of people¡¯s deep sleep to make a sneak attack, these locusts really have a mastermind behind them.¡±
Chapter 201 - 196 Mr. Yan is going to feel the paint
Chapter 201: Chapter 196 Mr. Yan is going to feel the paint
Trantor: 549690339
Qin Niu stared at the locust army charging towards him with fierce momentum, the number of termites he had summoned was over two thousand five hundred.
The one thousand that had newly molted into adult insects were still evolving.
It would take at least two to three days before evolution wasplete and they could join the corps.
Once they joined, Qin Niu¡¯s termite army¡¯sbat power would increase exponentially.
You see, the weakest of those one thousand termites before breeding were already Grade Two termites. After breeding, they were bound to advance to Grade Three termites.
Old Master Huang could bring four thousand Grade Three army ants to confront Qin Niu.
In the past, that would have seemed quite formidable.
Now, Qin Niu could mass-produce over a thousand Grade Three or higher termites in just one day.
In only four days, he could match many years of umtion by Old Master Huang.
The greatest charm of breeding insectsy in just this.
As long as you raise the queen well, your strength would increase exponentially like a snowball.
At the initial stage, just breeding one Grade Two termite would already make one happy for several days. After ruing for two to three months, one might have only over two thousand Grade Two termites. Now, one could have over a thousand Grade Three termites in a day.
As the Ant Queen continued to level up in the future, this snowball would keep growing bigger and bigger.
Evenying tens of thousands of ant eggs-per-day would be only a matter of time.
If by that time the Ant Queen had grown to Grade Five or Grade Six, the weakest of thervae it produced would probably be Grade Three.
¡°Fourth, can you handle that leading big locust?¡±
Qin Niu had always favored such high-grade goods; capturing it wouldter be an advanced supplement for breeding an Ant Queen or Queen Bee.
Given its size, it was not much smaller than a Grade Four Corpse Bee.
No matter how worthless, it was probably a Grade Three bug.
The Ant Queen might not need this kind of food any longer, but it was quite suitable for breeding the Queen Bee.
¡°It should be no problem, I can try!¡±
Fourth seemed to be born without knowing the meaning of fear.
It would dare to fight no matter how powerful the enemy it faced.
¡°All ants, heed mymand: aim for those leading locusts only; ignore the ordinary locusts.¡±
Qin Niu issued thebat order.
A general has a sword, not to y flies.
It waspletely unnecessary for them to deal with ordinary locusts. The Yan Family would only pay for special locusts.
Qin Niu took a cursory look and saw no fewer than fifty special locusts within sight. All of that was money.
When they entered the first line of defense set up by Qin Niu, the first one to suffer was that leading extrarge locust.
The creature¡¯s body was thick like a bird¡¯s.
Fourth¡¯s antennae had already targeted it.
This extrarge locust was quite remarkable, managing to fly a good five to six meters before Fourth brought it down.
Qin Niu had already prepared a, capturing it and then cing it into a separate cage.
He had to save it for detailed study.
Other special locusts, almost as soon as they got in line, were either taken control of or directly fell to the ground from the sky, painfully hopping and rolling around.
The termites surged forward in an instant and bit them to death.
Let alone Fourth and the Grade Three iron-armored tiger-pattern ants breaking their armor, even the regr Grade Two termites¡¯ powerful bites were far more than they could handle.
In the blink of an eye, all the leading locusts were subdued.
Just as Qin Niu was preparing to carefully study that extrarge locust, another wave of even more ferocious locusts arrived.
This time there were three extrarge locusts.
Fourth could only handle one.
Qin Niu himself would deal with one, leaving the remaining one for the Golden Toad to handle.
The Golden Toad¡¯s strength was beyond doubt, but it could only handle insects on the ground. As for those flying in the air, it simply couldn¡¯t reach them.
As they entered the first line of defense, Qin Niu had already prepared the.
Unexpectedly, that locust was extremely vignt.
Aware of a human ahead attempting to attack, it immediately increased its flying altitude.
Qin Niu could only watch helplessly.
On the other hand, the Golden Toad easily downed an extrarge locust, swallowing it whole in one gulp.
¡°You idiot, why¡¯d you eat it! I could have exchanged it for silver money with Young Master Yan.¡±
After being scolded by Qin Niu, the Golden Toad immediately began scratching its head with its two short legs, preparing to regurgitate the locust it had swallowed.
¡°Forget it, if you¡¯ve eaten it, there¡¯s no need to spit it out again.¡±
Qin Niu stopped it.
Waiting for it to spit it out, covered in mucus, it looked disgusting.
There was no need for that.
¡°Can you handle that escaped gigantic locust?¡±
¡°Quack!¡±
It had already leapt into action, jumping seven or eight meters in a single bound.
It felt even stronger than Qin Niu had imagined.
By then, Fourth had sessfully captured another gigantic locust. Qin Niu quicklyted it and locked it in a cage.
His pets were all very impressive; it was only him, the master, who had messed up, letting that gigantic locust escape.
Specialization is key.
To deal with insects, you still have to let the insects take action.
Fortunately, the Golden Toad was super impressive; it was also the nemesis of most insects.
It soon captured the escaped gigantic locust.
This time, it didn¡¯t eat it but held it in its mouth.
¡°Well done!¡±
Qin Niu dly epted the trophy it brought back; the gigantic locust was not dead but had already lost half its life.
It was powerless in front of the Golden Toad.
Using an Advanced Contractual Talisman to subdue the Golden Toad felt worth it.
Qin Niu estimated that even if stronger insects came, the Golden Toad would still be able to deal with them.
Even more, Qin Niu suspected that the Golden Toad could easily kill the Corpse Bee¡¯s General.
But that couldn¡¯t be concluded lightly; he had to try it to know.
The venom of the Corpse Bees was extremely dreadful, and the Golden Toad might not withstand it.
The second wave of locusts was more numerous than the first.
More than a hundred leading special locusts were captured.
Qin Niu¡¯s basket now contained over three hundred special locusts.
Three gigantic locusts were also locked in a cage.
These three gigantic locusts had special patterns on their bodies and extremely developed mouthparts. It was suspected that they even had the ability to chew through hard tree bark.
After a preliminary appraisal, these gigantic locusts proved to be Grade Three insects.
They looked big, but they were somewhat ¡®bloated,¡¯ and their strength and grade were only Grade Three, which was different from reaching Grade Four.
¡°The harvest tonight is not bad, if another batches, making three or four Silver Money would not be a problem.¡±
Qin Niu waited quietly.
His Termite Army stood ready for battle.
He waited until dawn, and no new gigantic locusts appeared.
Even the number of special locusts had decreased significantly, and only a few more were caught scattered here and there.
The Yan Family eldest son came over early in the morning to inspect the front line.
¡°Master Qin, was it calmst night?¡±
¡°There were two waves of locusts inrge numbers that attacked the defense line, but luckily they were ultimately held back by me. Including the special locusts captured during the day yesterday, they¡¯re all here.¡±
Qin Niu lifted the basket up in front of Young Master Yan.
Thetter took a nce at the pile of locust bodies in the basket; his face twitched twice.
¡°This is too frightening! In one night, there were so many special locusts.¡±
You could hear a bit of pain in his voice.
A special locust body was worth ten Wen Money; such a big basket was worth at least three to four Silver Money.
No matter how big the Yan Family¡¯s business was, it couldn¡¯t sustain such losses!
And this was just the insect corpses from one day and night.
Heaven knows when the locust disaster will stop; if the number of special locusts keeps increasing, the cost of pest control alone in one day might be enough to suffocate the Yan Family.
Qin Niu noticed the expression on the face of the Yan Family eldest son.
He didn¡¯t say anything.
Pest control was a mutually beneficial cooperation. If the Yan Family was reluctant to spend the money, they were well within their rights to try other Insect Masters.
But it was Qin Niu¡¯s Termite Army that had the capability.
Otherwise, byst night, the Yan Family¡¯s defense line would have been breached.
Ten Mo Sang Masters could not hold it.
Chapter 202 - 197 The Pattern is Too Small_i
Chapter 202: Chapter 197 The Pattern is Too Small_i
Trantor: 549690339 |
¡°These locusts are not the strongest; I¡¯ve caught three particrlyrge locusts. Their strength is greater, and they have even more terrifying rallying power. If these special locusts are merely generals among locusts, then each of these three particrlyrge locusts could serve as a marshal of a locust corps.¡±
Qin Niu disyed the three particrlyrge locusts that he had captured in cages.
¡°There, there¡¯s even stronger ones!¡±
The Young Master of the Yan Family took out a handkerchief from his sleeve and began to wipe his sweat.
Merely special locusts had already made Masters Mo and Shi cry out in exhaustion. It was only after Qin Niu was asked to construct a new line of defense in front and specially target those special locusts that they managed to hold the line.
Now, even more powerful locusts had appeared, and their size alone was already terrifying.
The Young Master of the Yan Family knew, even with his toes, that any one of these locusts could probably break through Master Mo¡¯s defenses.
If it weren¡¯t for Qin Niu¡¯s presence here, the consequences would be unimaginable.
He grew even more appreciative of Qin Niu¡¯s insect control abilities.
This Ah Niu, seemingly unremarkable and indifferent to women, turned out to be so powerful.
Actually, this was just the tip of the iceberg of Qin Niu¡¯s strength.
Even Old Master Huang¡¯s Bee General was killed by Qin Niu, which was a Grade Five insect.
Compared to the Bee General, these three particrlyrge locusts were nothing.
Qin Niu presented the three particrlyrge locusts, surely to ask the Young Master of the Yan Family for money.
Afterpleting the work, it was only natural to receive payment.
It was now up to the Young Master of the Yan Family to respond.
¡°These particrlyrge locusts are truly enormous, fearsome at a nce. Master Qin has sessfully intercepted and captured them,mendably preserving our Yan Family¡¯s crops. Would it be eptable to price these three particrlyrge locusts at fifty Wen Money apiece?¡±
The Young Master of the Yan Family¡¯s perspective was ultimately a bit narrow.
He was only willing to pay fifty Wen Money for an enhanced Grade Three locust, which was downright insulting.
After hearing this, Qin Niu calmly said, ¡°These three locusts were indeed exceedingly difficult to capture; consider them a token of gratitude to the Yan Family. I won¡¯t ept any money.¡±
The furniture given to him by the Yan Familyst time was in fact a significant debt of gratitude.
The smallness of the Young Master¡¯s character provided the perfect opportunity for him to repay that debt.
¡°How could I ept that! Master Qin, you are too courteous. I¡¯ll have Yan Qi send over some fine wer, as a small token of my appreciation.¡±
The Young Master thus managed to save on that expense.
¡°After a night of exhaustion, it¡¯s time for me to head back and rest. I¡¯ve left insects I¡¯ve controlled to guard this ce; as long as no more of these particrlyrge locustse, they should be able to hold the line.¡±
Having said this, Qin Niu left with the three particrlyrge locusts, floating away.
¡°Yan Qi, have a carriage escort Master Qin!¡±
¡°There¡¯s no need to trouble Steward Qi,¡± Qin Niu declined, ¡°I have some personal matters to attend to, and walking is more convenient.¡±
He wanted to check on Daoyuan Vige.
Having some connection with the Tang Family, and with the locusts exhibiting changes these past few days, the three thousand ducks rented by Daoyuan Vige might not hold on.
If Daoyuan Vige fell, the now peaceful Shuangfeng Vige might once again sumb to the gue.
As he walked along the river leading to Daoyuan Vige, he could see many locusts gnawing and wreaking havoc on any nts they could eat. The tender branches of some small trees had been chewed awaypletely.
Leaves are extremely important to nts.
They are essentially the ¡®lungs¡¯ of the nt.
In the sweltering heat of summer, arge tree whose leaves have beenpletely devoured is likely to wither and die.
When the leaves fall, the roots wither.
The tree roots and leaves nourish and apany each other, more like inseparablerades in battle.
The roots supply the tree with water and most of the nutrients, while the leaves help the treeplete the essential process of photosynthesis, absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen.
When all the leaves are gone, the water absorbed by the tree roots cannot be evaporated through the leaves.
It will slowly reduce water absorption, causing the roots to rapidly shrink.
This is also why, when a ring of bark is stripped from a tree, it quickly perishes.
The roots and leaves are interdependent, neither can be without the other.
Many fields by the roadside are nowpletely barren, the seedlings that were rented after the floods have been devoured by the locusts.
The years of great disaster have arrived.
The first half of the year had already seen crop failure, and with the inability to rent young crops for the second half, it¡¯s virtually a total loss for the whole year.
With even the wild grass and leaves in the fields eaten by locusts, the starving popce might not even have grass to eat soon.
As Qin Niu witnessed all this, he sighed inwardly, grateful that he had already undergone the initial phase of transformation and was no longer at the very bottom of the peasantry. Certainly, many people were going to starve to death.
In times of great famine in history, people even resorted to swapping children for food.
A single bag of grain could buy a beautiful virgin bride.
Fortunately, upon entering Daoyuan Vige, one could see that the defensive line made by those three thousand ducks remained intact.
Having not seen them for a few days, these ducks had grown plump andrge, their feathers replete.
Rich in nutritional value, the locusts fed the ducks to satiety daily, promoting their swift growth.
Moreover, their feathers seemed to differ from those of ordinary ducks.
Shining with a lustrous sheen, they faintly disyed a splendid luster.
Since these were no ordinary locusts, it was only natural for the ducks to experience some evolution after consuming them inrge quantities over a long duration.
Qin Niu thought to himself that if any duck managed to evolve, he could surely sell it for a pretty penny when sold separately.
Inside Daoyuan Vige, though the crops suffered some damage from the pests,pared to the barrenness outside, it was like entering a vibrant green world full of life.
The three thousand ducks rented to Daoyuan Vige, together with some more they managed to gather on their own, indeed had a good effect in pest control.
¡°Master Qin!¡±
From afar, Tang Fang spotted Qin Niu and immediately quickened his pace to greet him.
¡°I happened to pass by and wanted to check on your vige¡¯s pest situation. Is everything all right?¡±
Qin Niu asked with concern.
¡°Thanks to your blessing, with the three thousand ducks you lent us and the defensive lines constructed, we have barely managed to control the pestilence. Other viges have suffered misfortunes, though, with many having their cropspletely devoured by locusts. s, when will this gue finally end!¡±
Tang Fangmented.
¡°Master Qin,e to my house for tea! Haven¡¯t had breakfast yet, have you? I haven¡¯t either, so if you don¡¯t mind,e eat at my ce!¡±
¡°No, no, I have things to do in a bit.¡±
Qin Niu politely declined.
As they were talking, someone received the news, probably to report to the vige head.
The old Tang Family Patriarch came over, leaning on a walking stick.
Apanying him was Tang Cai Xian, whom he hadn¡¯t seen in many days.
She seemed to have be thinner, yet somehow grew even more charming and captivating. Observing the way she walked¡ªlighter than before¡ª
He assumed she had been cultivating at home all these days.
¡°Qin Niu!¡±
She called out crisply, her expressive eyes fixed on him.
But there was a deep, unyielding affection and yearning in her gaze.
¡°You¡¯ve lost weight! Did you receive the pork I sent you?¡±
Seeing her slimmer figure stirred a feeling of pity in Qin Niu.
¡°Mhm, thank you for the pork you sent. They were quite special and greatly beneficial to me.¡±
She gave a slight nod, her face filled with gratitude and a hint of sweetness.
Qin Niu had sent her several batches of prime pork.
¡°Master Qin rarely visits Daoyuan Vige, and I see Cai Xian is really fond of you. Why note to our house for a visit, have a chat?¡±
The Tang Family Patriarch was quite astute.
Noticing the young man and woman exchanging nces, he promptly tried to matchmake, giving them an opportunity to talk of love.
¡°I¡¯lle by some other day! Not today, though. I see Daoyuan Vige¡¯s pest control is holding up, but recently some particrly fierce locusts have appeared, so you still need to remain vignt and be careful. You can make hands to manually catch them.¡±
Qin Niu gave a suggestion, then looked toward Tang Cai Xian.
¡°Cai Xian, join me for a walk around Daoyuan Vige.¡±
¡°Okay!¡±
She happily agreed.
Tang Family Patriarch and Tang Fang, among others, all showed understanding smiles, leaving the two to their private time.
¡°This river was my favorite ce to y as a child. I used to pick wildflowers by the riverbank, watching the boys catch fish, and wanting to join in the fun. Once, when stepping down the riverbank, I identally tumbled down. It was fortunate that there were adults around to quickly pull me out of the water¡¡±
She shared stories of her childhood, both fun and embarrassing moments.
After listening, Qin Niu found this girl to be quite down-to-earth.
The faint fragrance wafting from her was enough to stir his senses.
Yet, whether the two of them would ultimately find themselves together remained an uncertainty.
In a world where everyone could cultivate, one could choose mediocrity, to live as an ordinary person, or strive in cultivation, seeking every chance to enhance one¡¯s strength.
Qin Niu always harbored a distant goal in his heart; he aspired for eternal life, to exist forever like the heavens and the earth.
For he felt that the mere decades of a mortal life were no different from a single season of flora.
Havinge into this world, he wanted to live significantly, to roam freely between heaven and earth, to be a carefree traveler.
Because his aspirations were so lofty, finding apanion who only desired a simple life would make it difficult for them to be together.
Falling in love with someone is easy, but forgetting them is hard.
He didn¡¯t want to bear the sorrow and pain of parting.
¡°When I was a kid, I was much naughtier than you. However, Old Man Liu, who took me in, never scolded me. He only prepared a thick branch of thorns and told me if I dared to misbehave again, he¡¯d whip me with it. Despite being scared, the thrill of ying often overpowered my fear. Old Man Liu raised that branch many times, but it never once touched me.¡±
Speaking of the deceased Old Man Liu, his heart was still filled with endless sorrow.
Regrettably, he was too weak and young back then, barely thirteen years old, and didn¡¯t even have the means to bury Old Man Liu, who died of illness. It was the vigers who helped bury him.
Qin Niu had bowed to each of those helpful vigers.
He always remembered their kindness.
His reluctance to fight overnd with his neighbors was for this very reason.
The kinship with fellow vigers mattered, not a life-and-death struggle, unless someone like Xie Laizi acted foolishly, with no sense of right and wrong, in which case, he¡¯d have no choice but to send him to meet Buddha.
¡°How fortunate for you to have been adopted by Old Man Liu, who was so caring. Now that you¡¯ve be sessful, I believe Old Man Liu would smile from theherworld. If ever you¡¯re unhappy or wish to confide in someone, you can alwayse to me. I might not be good atforting people, but I will be a good listener.¡±
She could sense the sadness emanating from Qin Niu.
Yet, she didn¡¯t know quite how to console him.
After all, their rtionship hadn¡¯t even begun, and in these times of strict etiquette, girls were very reserved.
Aside from their husband, they did not engage in intimate contact with others.
¡°Thank you!¡±
Qin Niu could feel her kindness.
¡°By the way, how is your cultivation going?¡±
Chapter 203 - 198 The Particular War Bee Queen Beet
Chapter 203: Chapter 198 The Particr War Bee Queen Beet
Trantor: 549690339
He was very clear that if Tang Caixian wanted to be his woman, she must achieve something in her cultivation.
Not to mention the Mortal Realm, even if she reached the Acquired Realm, she would still be far from the distant goal he had set.
However, as long as she truly had the intention, Qin Niu would definitely help her.
Gifting her the King Pig meat was just a start.
Things are going smoothly for now! Although meditating for cultivation is somewhat dull and boring, and breaking through realms is quite painful, every time I think that as long as I can improve my cultivation, I¡¯ll be able to stay with you forever, I feel full of hope. The pork you gave me works especially well, evenparable to the Tempering Elixir. I guess it¡¯s not ordinary pork, it might be the flesh of a demonic beast.¡±
She looked at Qin Niu, her beautiful eyes glittering with specks of light.
¡°From now on, use the things I give you on your own. If you talk about them, it might bring you trouble.¡±
He cautioned.
¡°Got it! I¡¯m not really a boastful person, anyway. I haven¡¯t told anyone that the pork is the meat of a demon beast. Now I¡¯ve broken through to the fourth tier of the Mortal Realm, so once I reach the tenth tier, can I be with you then?¡±
She asked, full of hope.
Really, who knew why this love-struck girl, clearly beautiful and smart, took a fancy to Qin Niu, the poor boy?
Originally, when she developed an interest in Qin Niu, she didn¡¯t even know he was an Insect Master.
¡°So you want to be with me that much, huh?¡±
¡°Don¡¯t you dare look down on me after I say it!¡± she said seriously.
¡°I won¡¯t look down on you, go ahead!¡± Qin Niu was also curious, what exactly did she see in him?
¡°From the first moment I saw you, my heart was moved. I knew then that you could very likely be the husband I¡¯ve been looking for. I¡¯ve seen plenty of wealthy and talented young men, but none of them touched my heart. After talking with you, I found my intuition was especially urate, you must be the one I¡¯ve been waiting for in my destiny.
Others might call me lovesick, or say I¡¯ve lost my mind, but I don¡¯t care.
In this life, I¡¯d rather be alone than settle.
I only want to spend my life with the person I love, nothing else matters to me.¡±
This talented and unique woman¡¯s thoughts were totally different from those of ordinary women.
Many women who were even slightly attractive wanted to marry into a wealthy family and live the life of a richdy, but she only wanted to marry for love.
¡°About what I mentionedst time, would you still ept if I took you as a concubine?¡±
¡°I would! But I still hope you ¡®re not too fickle. If you have too many wives and concubines, I will be neglected. I think I would be very sad then,¡±
she said uncertainly.
After all, she was also not of great age, and there was much she would learn through experience.
¡°I believe that marrying a woman like you is definitely a man¡¯s good fortune. Keep cultivating well, if you truly believe in destiny, then let me tell you, after thousands of twists and turns, even after hundreds or thousands of years, if we are truly fated, we can stille together. The tenth tier of the Mortal Realm may seem impressive to you, but I want to tell you, that¡¯s just the first step in cultivation.
So, you need to set your goals higher.
If you need anything, you can alwayse to me.
Just like you gave me this jade pendant willingly, I am also willing to make sacrifices for you.¡±
Qin Niu was not a cold-hearted person.
As he interacted more with Tang Caixian, he came to appreciate this girl even more.
Having her own personality, daring to love and hate.
Such women, each one a remarkable woman. For a man to marry one, is surely a great fortune in life.
This jade pendant is definitely an extremely precious item, wearing it continuously enhances spiritual power.
She surely knew its function, yet she resolutely gave it to Qin Niu; this was her affection.
¡°Right, I¡¯ll give you two Low-grade Contract Charms. If you encounter any beasts, birds, or insects you like, you can subdue them.¡± Qin Niu treated her, Wang Wanyan, with impartiality.
After returning home from Daoyuan Vige, Qin Niu first checked the situation of the bees, then nurtured the hundred new bees that had just hatched.
Meanwhile, he took out an extrarge locust and killed it.
¡°Queen Bee, can you eat it directly?¡±
¡°I can¡¯t!¡±
¡°What if I let the termites eat it first and then feed you?¡±
¡°The worker bees can ferment it into honey.¡±
¡®So that¡¯s another way to do it. You sure are picky about what you eat!¡±
Qin Niu ced the extrarge locust¡¯s corpse next to the beehive. By now, he had amassed arge number of special bees whose defensive capabilities and honey-making quality had increased significantly.
At the moment, the beehive was in the process of making some special honey, but it still needed more time.
Truly good honey usually could only be harvested once a year.
The time required to make special honey would only be longer.
The corpses of Corpse Bees were actually not bad as material for cultivating insects. But Qin Niu didn¡¯t dare feed them to his bees.
What if after eating them, the bees started to emit the stench of rotting corpses? That would render them useless, wouldn¡¯t it?
The most important objective of raising this swarm of honeybees was twofold: one was for them to make honey, and the other was to serve as aerial scouts.
When necessary, they could also be used as an air force.
However, in terms of fighting capability, they were definitely much weaker than Corpse Bees.
After cultivating the bee colony, Qin Niu was quite satisfied.
He now had 5 War Bees, 27 special honey-making bees.
The number of ordinary Grade Two Green Ring Worker Bees was nearing twelve hundred.
Every day, a hundred new bees were added to the swarm.
The old bees were dying off continuously.
Once cultivated, the new bees had a lifespan of more than ten years. Qin Niu believed that with a bit more time, his swarm would be very impressive.
Unfortunately, the Queen Bee was still a bit too weak.
Compared to the Ant Queen, it was significantly behind.
If the chance arose, he would definitely cultivate it further to make it stronger.
Qin Niu nned to wait until he got his hands on the Boundary-breaking Elixir and further increase his cultivation. Then, the number of ants in his colony would reach an astonishing figure, and he could go to the homnd of the Green Demon to retrieve the Green Demon¡¯s treasure.
After leaving his home, he headed straight for the mountains.
He made a beeline for the Ant Nest.
As expected, there were a thousand new termites.
Upon checking, although there were no Demon Ants, two Elephant-Nosed Soldier Ants had appeared, as well as many strong Worker Ants and Soldier Ants, and even Poisonous Ants.
The most impressive might be the Gold Devouring Ants.
Unfortunately, the probability of producing a Gold Devouring Ant was too low.
If one appeared someday, Qin Niu would finally witness just how formidable this legendary species of ant really was.
After cultivating the termites, he naturally went to the Ancient Banyan Tree¡¯s maze to practice cultivation, but let¡¯s not delve into that.
If Xiao Nuipleted his evolution, Qin Niu would have morepany.
It had been in deep slumber without a sign of when it would awaken.
This mountainous area had essentially be Qin Niu¡¯s territory. In time, he nned to buy the entire mountain. At that point, everything within the mountain would belong to him.
Moreover, as a private, legal property, he could develop and utilize it any way he wanted.
Chapter 204 - 199: Elixir Success i
Chapter 204: Chapter 199: Elixir Sess i
Trantor: 549690339 |
After he finished cultivating, he emerged from the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze and went to check on the ant nest.
The thousand termites he had cultivated the day before yesterday were still evolving.
The evolution time of an ordinary Grade One termite is about two days, but these newly cultivated thousand termites were at least ordinary Grade Two. Cultivating them consumed even more Ancient Banyan Tree Blood.
Their evolution time was evidently much longer.
Since it was Qin Niu¡¯s first time cultivating these Grade Two ordinary termites, he did not have a clear idea of how long it would take.
He remembered that the first time he cultivated a Queen Bee, it took seven days for the Grade Two War Bees to evolve, and the two Grade Two honey bees took five days.
He estimated that cultivating Grade Two termites would take about the same amount of time.
As for how long it would take for the Grade Three Demon Ant toplete its evolution, he could only wait patiently.
Now that there were Grade Three giant locusts appearing among the locusts, if his ant colony could not expand and strengthen quickly, they might struggle when confronted with them.
¡°I really hope that you can finish evolving quickly so that I can have arge army of ants at my disposal.¡±
The thought of adding a thousand termites in one day was exciting.
It had taken him several months to umte just under three thousand termites of Grade Two and above.
Now, being able to add a thousand termites of Grade Three and above in a single day, he could be considered a very top-notch Insect Master within ck Tiger City.
Tonight, Qin Niu still had to help the Yan Family with pest elimination.
Taking a batch of termites, he hurried down the mountain.
Just as he reached the foot of the mountain, he saw Yan Qi, apanied by the anxious Young Master Yan, waiting at the mountain¡¯s entrance.
Young Master Yan was as anxious as ants on a hot pan, frequently ncing into the mountainside.
When he saw Qin Niuing down from the mountain, he immediately hurried forward as if he had seen a savior.
¡°Master Qin, I finally waited foryou toe out.¡±
Young Master Yan was nearly in tears.
¡°Young Master Yan, what has happened?¡± Qin Niu was somewhat surprised.
Even though he had been cultivating in the mountains, if there were any anomalies with the termites he had ced in the Yan Family¡¯s fields, he would have definitely sensed it.
The termites showed no abnormalities, which indicated that the defensive line was holding strong.
As a person of esteemed status and dignity in the region, what could make Yan Qi condescend to wait at the foot of the mountain?
¡°Last night, Master Qin helped my Yan Family eliminate three giant locusts, and I was only willing to pay fifty coins for each one. After my father learned of this, he severely scolded me. This is ten Silver Money in apology; I hope Master Qin doesn¡¯t find it too meager.¡±
Young Master Yan took out ten Silver Money and presented it with both hands, his demeanor extremely respectful.
¡°I eliminated those three giant locusts for the Yan Family for free, Young Master Yan needn¡¯t pay.¡±
Qin Niu silently noted that at least there was someone sensible in the Yan Family.
Yan Ruohai was much more magnanimous in his actions than his son.
¡°No, no, no, Master Qin eliminated three formidable locusts for my Yan Family at no charge, that was your kindness. Please, you must ept this ten Silver Money, otherwise I won¡¯t be able to exin it to my father when I go back.¡± Young Master Yan was not yet in charge of the Yan Family.
He was only being groomed as the sessor, and if he did not perform adequately, for the sake of family interests, they might rece him with another son to take control of the Yan Family.
His handling of the situation with Qin Niu today was indeed a significant demerit.
¡°Alright then, thank you very much.¡±
Qin Niu happily epted the ten Silver Money.
The Yan Family eldest heir visibly rxed.
¡°It was fortunate that Master Qin was therest night, otherwise our Yan Family¡¯s crops would have been devastated. ording to reliable information,st night Jade Stream Town¡¯s Pang Family and He Family both suffered. The He Family has three Insect Masters, one of whom is even stronger than Master Mo Sang. These days, the other families¡¯ crops have mostly been destroyed by the locust gue, but the He Family remained unscathed.
Last night, the He Family was attacked by a giant locust, their defenses immediately copsed, and most of the locusts poured in. The He Family¡¯s tea garden was devastated, more than half destroyed overnight. It is said that one of the He Family¡¯s Insect Masters fell to the ground. Industry insiders specte that the Insect Master¡¯s pet might have met with an ident.¡±
The tea garden is of the utmost importance, and for assurance, major families generally adopt double protection measures.
The He Family is also an old and influential n in the area, established much earlier than the Yan Family.
Their defenses for the tea garden would certainly not be weak.
That they were still breached indicates the ferocity of the locusts.
As for the Insect Master copsing on the ground, it was likely due to his pet being killed, which severely impacted him as the owner.
Typically, the longer the insects are cultivated, the closer their connection with their master¡¯s soul.
The greater the damage to the master¡¯s soul when they die.
Qin Niu only needed to kill one of Old Master Huang¡¯s bee generals to drive him mad, which was for this very reason.
Are Grade Three locusts just big in size? Could theirbat power be that strong?
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but be curious.
It was not easy to kill an Insect Master¡¯s pet.
To be an Insect Master, one must have at least one obedient Grade Three insect.
The giant locusts were at about Grade Three, not yet reaching Grade Four.
And yet, it could bite to death insects of the same level?
In Qin Niu¡¯s view, thebat power of the giant locusts was very weak.
Only needing the antennae of Fourth to twitch, and the giant locusts would immediately turn into obedient puppets. Just send a few more Grade Two termites, and they could easily annihte them. As for the Golden Toad, there was even less need to mention, he could eat them one by one as if snacking with ease.
¡°The Pang Family had one of their own Insect Masters, and also hired three others, but they were still unable to hold their defenses and were breached.
However, the situation of the Pang Family was much better; it is said they soon stabilized the situation and the losses were not significant.
Both families only discovered one giant locust, but my Yan Family had the misfortune of facing three. Fortunately, Master Qin was there, otherwise our Yan Family¡¯s crops would have surely been in ruins.¡±
Only after learning about the other two major families¡¯ experiences did the Yan Family eldest heir realize how difficult it was for Qin Niu to single-handedly eliminate three giant locustsst night.
The Insect Masters of the Pang Family were evidently stronger.
The fact that they were initially overwhelmed indicated their regr strength was no match for the extraordinarilyrge locusts.
Likely resorting to their trump cards thereafter, they managed to reverse the situation.
This also indirectly suggests that the Pang Family now has the capacity to deal with Grade Three oversized locusts.
Qin Niu had gained a thorough understanding of the Insect Master capabilities of these two families.
Another piece of information filled him with vignce.
The other two families had only encountered a single oversized locust attack, just like the Yan Family at the start.
It was only after Qin Niu instantaneously captured that one that three more appeared.
This could hardly be a coincidence.
It was very likely that the puppeteer behind the scenes noticed something amiss and sent three more oversized locusts to either rescue or probe.
If that was the case, Qin Niu¡¯s current predicament was very dangerous.
The mastermind controlling the insects was almost certainly a member of the Nine Insect Gang.
If they discovered that a formidable Insect Master was hiding in the small Shuangfeng Vige, they would definitely begin an in-depth investigation in secret. Once they connected Old Master Huang¡¯s disappearance with him, he would be in big trouble.
Old Master Huang¡¯s master was an elder of the Nine Insect Gang.
If his beloved pupil was killed, that elder would surely be enraged.
With this thought, Qin Niu¡¯s back broke out in cold sweats.
¡°Young Master Yan, to be honest, to deal with those oversized locustsst night, I have alreadyid all my cards on the table, exhausting the strength I had gathered with great difficulty. If such oversized locusts appear again today, I simply cannot cope. This is also why I reminded you this morning that you must make early preparations.¡±
Qin Niu put on a distressed face.
When talking about exhausting his umted strength, his face was especially filled with a pained and distressed expression.
¡°Alt¡ what shall we do now? If even Master Qin cannot hold the line, my Yan Family¡¯s crops will definitely be ruined,¡± said Young Master Yan, turning pale with shock.
¡± When the timees, we¡¯ll save whatever we can! Corn, wheat, rice¡ªharvest them quickly if possible. As for the mulberry fields and tea gardens, if you want to protect them, I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll need to call in an even more powerful Insect Master.¡±
Qin Niu was prepared to take strategic retreat.
Having assisted the Yan Family for so many days, he felt he had done his duty.
Now aware of the danger, Qin Niu absolutely refused to remain in the forefront.
During the Yan Family¡¯s dinner, Masters Mo and Shi both had low spirits, even finding no joy in the beautiful servants they were holding.
They must have also heard the news about how an Insect Master from the He Family lost all his insects.
For an Insect Master, their insects are their lifeblood.
If the insects die, the Insect Master is virtually left with a name but no substance, especially for lower-ranked Insect Masters who often rely on just one skilled insect and have a very weak ability to withstand risks.
The gloomy mood not only spread among the two Insect Masters but Young Master Yan was also troubled and full of worry.
After having dinner at the Yan Family¡¯s, Qin Niu went to inspect the defenses.
The termites were still performing strongly, capturing a total of seventy-six special locusts.
But no Grade Three oversized locusts were discovered.
The number of special locusts they captured was also noticeably less than the day before.
This made Qin Niu even more uneasy.
He acted even more cautiously and unobtrusively.
If Grade Three oversized locusts came again, he would definitely let them pass.
In the blink of an eye, four more days passed.
The defensive line Qin Niu was guarding remained stable¡ªnot to mention Grade Three giant locusts, even the number of Grade Two special locusts was dwindling.
The locust gue seemed to be abating.
In the past few days, the Yan Family had been on tenterhooks, with Young Master Yan running around the fields everyday, his eyes ringed with dark circles.
Any grain that could be salvaged was being hastily gathered by family servants and workers.
Qin Niu seized every day to practice cultivation and nurture his insects.
He was very aware that these days of peace could very well be the calm before a storm.
One day, while he was nurturing his newly hatched bees at home, he heard someone asking to see him outside.
The visitor was an employee from the Miaodan Pavilion.
He had been too busy to follow up after handing the beast core over to Master Zi Zhou.
¡°Master Qin Niu, this is the elixir you entrusted us at Miaodan Pavilion to refine. The pill is now ready; congrattions,¡± said the visitor, who came in a pair, handing Qin Niu a box.
¡°Excellent! You¡¯ve worked hard! Please convey my thanks to Master Zi Zhou.¡±
This was truly a timely rain; he had been waiting for it.
epting the box, Qin Niu opened it to take a look.
Inside was a green pill, about the size of an egg yolk.
Next to it were two simrly wax-sealed yellow pills.
They looked just like two mud pills.
They were also significantly smaller than the green pill.
At most, they were the size of a pigeon egg.
¡°Are these two extra pills gifted to me?¡±
Qin Niu asked curiously.
Chapter 205 - 200: Emergence of a Large Number of Grade Three Termites i
Chapter 205: Chapter 200: Emergence of a Large Number of Grade Three Termites i
Trantor: 549690339
¡°Master Zi Zhou instructed that the verdant elixir is the main elixir, which humans can consume. Those two smaller beads are the subsidiary elixirs, which absorbed the violent energy humans couldn¡¯t during the tempering process. They can be consumed by earth attribute beast pets. All three elixirs can enhance the cultivator¡¯s power,¡±
the delivery staff replied.
Qin Niu, upon hearing this, felt very satisfied.
A major elixir pharmacy truly is different, trustworthy as gold.
If it were a dishonest elixir pharmacy, those two subsidiary elixirs would definitely be intercepted privately.
Even the main elixir might be swindled away.
Of course, those who can afford a beast core, along with one hundred forty to fifty silver money for the refinement fee, aren¡¯t easy targets.
Trying to swindle them could easily lead to big trouble, and even throwing up what was swallowed along with the profit would be getting off lightly.
In the worst case, they might not even get to keep their lives.
¡°If Master Qin has no objections, please sign and imprint your handprint, then return the receipt to us so we canplete our job,¡±
After signing and imprinting, Qin Niu sent off the two staff members from Miaodan Pavilion, holding the three elixirs with great joy.
Longing for stars, longing for the moon, he had finally awaited the return of the Boundary-breaking Elixir.
His power should surge once more with the help of this main elixir.
As for the two subsidiary elixirs, since the little turtle is an earth attribute beast pet, he could give one to it.
Xiao Nui should also be of the earth attribute, and with giving it one, they would be distributed cleanly.
As for the Grade Seven Golden Toad, Qin Niu couldn¡¯t figure out if it was of the earth or metal attribute. He suspected the metal attribute was more likely, given its ability to consume metal.
¡°Xiao Qing, I may note home tonight, keep an eye on the house,¡±
Qin Niu reminded Xiao Qing before he left the house with his basket on his back.
Arriving by the pond in the front courtyard, he was not stingy at all.
He called directly into the pond, ¡°Cowardly turtle,e out.¡±
Because it was incredibly timid, Qin Niu simply gave it a nickname ordingly.
The Diamond Ink Turtle emerged from the bottom of the water.
Its little mung bean eyes still frantically scanned around, extremely vignt.
Having been scared into wetting itself by the Golden Toadst time, it was now exceedingly cautious every time it surfaced.
¡°Coward! Open your mouth!¡±
Qin Niu took out one earth-yellow subsidiary elixir, and the rich fragrance of the medicine immediately wafted out. In his hand, the elixir felt like a keg of gunpowder, seeming to contain a wildly fierce energy.
The little turtle seemed to know its stuff, staring at the elixir in his hand with its little eyes glowing green.
After eating this and getting stronger, show some more courage. Being such a coward is embarrassing me,¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s own courage was actually not much bigger than that of the little turtle.
The little turtle opened its mouth wide, and Qin Niu precisely tossed the subsidiary elixir into it, which it swallowed with an extended neck.
¡°Make good use of it, don¡¯t waste it.¡±
Even though it was just a subsidiary elixir, if sold on the market, it would easily fetch a hundred taels of silver.
Qin Niu was not clear on the exact value.
In his eyes, no matter how much silver money there was, it was just a pile of dirt; only by converting it into strength did it be something truly substantial.
To be his pets was certainly their fortune.
When cultivating beast pets, he was never stingy.
After feeding the little turtle, he left with Golden Toad in tow.
Nowadays, when venturing outside, he almost always took Fourth, some termites, and Golden Toad with him.
In the future, he could consider bringing along the War Bee as well.
With insects or beast pets for water,nd, and air, he could calmly face whatever unexpected situations arose.
If he encountered some rare opportunity, he could also grasp it.
For example, facing an extremely rare and scarce insect, his own bug-catching ability would hardly suffice.
With Fourth and Golden Toad, it would be a different story altogether.
He could directly collect any rare insects he encountered into his pouch.
Since the number of war bees was still very small, he kept them to guard the beehive, to watch the house.
After he entered the mountain, his goal was unwaveringly the ant nest.
As soon as he reached the ant nest, he was shocked.
One by one, termites as thick as pinky fingers crawled out of the nest.
They emerged endlessly like a tide, then surrounded Qin Niu.
¡°Goodness, have theypleted their evolution?¡±
It was about time by his calctions.
The evolved worker ants were all nimble and agile, with thick legs and strong mandibles¡ªclearly adept at their work.
The soldier ants were terrifying.
They bore tiger stripes on their bodies, and their upper jaws gleamed with a cold light like fine steel; one bite would likely cut most insects in half on the spot.
Their legs were a bit longer than those of the worker ants, making them even more agile.
Just standing there, each radiated a presence of war and battle, as though they were elite troops ready to charge and fight on the battlefield.
The power worker ants, power soldier ants, demon ants, and elephantic ants had yet toplete their evolution.
The main force that had evolved now were just ordinary Grade Two worker ants and Grade Two soldier ants.
He felt theirbat abilities were noticeably stronger than the existing Grade Two lightning ants and Grade Two tiger-striped soldier ants.
This was normal.
After all, their grade was one level higher.
Qin Niu checked their attributes.
Grade Three lightning worker ants, 673 in total, lifespan of 33 years, special abilities (agility, super-strong mandible bite, ant acid that assists in healing nt wounds, primary carapace).
Grade Three tiger-striped soldier ants, 277 in total, lifespan of 30.5 years, special abilities (agility, armor pration, primary carapace, frenzy; in a frenzied state, speed increases by three times, attack power by five times, and defense by one time).
Their attributes and lifespan had significantly increased.
The Grade Three tiger-striped soldier ants even gained new abilities such as agility, armor pration, and primary carapace.
This also meant that theirbat power would increase multiple times over.
With this batch of fresh forces, Qin Niu would definitely be much more at ease if he encountered a formidable Insect Master again.
Last time, he encountered an ambush by Old Master Huang¡¯s four thousand army ants and was put in a very difficult position, even losing several dozen Grade Two termites.
If, like now, he could add nearly a thousand Grade Three termites in one day,
he would break ten thousand in just around eleven days.
Even if he lost one or two hundred in battle, he couldpletely afford the loss.
¡°Alright, go back in! There will be time for you to shine. But usually, stay low- key for me and hide deep in the nest, that¡¯s right.¡±
Qin Niu called out the one thousand newly-molted juvenile ants from the ant nest.
He was ecstatic to see another demon ant had emerged.
Both war bees and demon ants were rare species.
Theirbat abilities were far stronger than other special ants.
Now, he had two demon ants and one war demon ant.
Once he managed to cultivate the demon ants, he could consider making them like giant locusts, bing generals to lead a termite army into battle.
By then, with demon ants as generals, tiger-striped irond ants as lieutenants, dark poison ants, and elephantic soldier ants as special forces,
As for the ghost ants, as long as there was ample ¡®Thousand Eyes Tree Blood,¡¯ he could mass-produce them.
¡°The blood of the Ancient Banyan Tree is almost inexhaustible; I can take two or three jars of it every day. But the production of Thousand Eyes Tree Blood is very limited. Now that the termites have be fierce, the ¡®Thousand Eyes Tree Blood¡¯ consumed for their secondary cultivation will increase tenfold or even more. I¡¯ve got to think of a way.¡±
Qin Niu was decent at cultivation.
The Evesting Spring Technique was especially beneficial to nts, bringing them back from the brink and promoting rapid growth.
He was considering the possibility of cultivating the ¡®Thousand Eyes Tree¡¯ himself.
Chapter 206 - 201 Breakthrough i
Chapter 206: Chapter 201 Breakthrough i
Trantor: 549690339 |
As long as there is a sufficient supply of Thousand Eyes Tree Blood, it¡¯s possible to endlessly cultivate termites with long-range spirit control or mental attack capabilities.
In actualbat, the ability tounch mental attacks and perform spirit control is incredibly strong.
Not only can they kill enemies beyond their own level, but few insects can withstand such strange modes of attack.
The enemy often falls victim without a sound or a sign.
Moreover, as termites are social insects, they exhibit a high degree of unity, whether there are ten or ten million. As long as they belong to the same colony, they can act as one. During groupbat, the stacking of mental attacks is particrly terrifying.
Even a Grade Five Bee General could be taken down silently and swiftly.
With such an important special ability, Qin Niu naturally wanted to find ways to preserve it.
After contemtion, he decided to start from two approaches.
The first approach was to feed the Ant Queen with Thousand Eyes Tree Blood.
The risk of termites consuming Thousand Eyes Tree Blood was almost non-existent; if the Ant Queen hadn¡¯t been fed before, it was because it hadn¡¯tpleted its initial cultivation.
Comparatively, evolving through consuming Ancient Banyan Tree Blood was most crucial.
It could transform the termitespletely.
While evolving spirit control or attack abilities by consuming Thousand Eyes Tree Blood was also important, it certainly couldn¡¯tpare to the former.
Up to now, the Ant Queen remained Qin Niu¡¯s core insect pet, and naturally, he aimed for perfect cultivation. He did his utmost to cultivate it as strongly and perfectly as possible.
Now, havingpleted its initial cultivation, he could consider the second cultivation for the Ant Queen.
The only downside was that the eggying of the Ant Queen would be temporarily suspended during the second cultivation period.
The current situation was unstable, with undercurrents swirling, and Qin Niu needed more termites to ensure he could face danger withposure.
Therefore, he nned to postpone the second cultivation of the Ant Queen appropriately.
Currentlyying a thousand eggs a day was an extremely tempting situation.
He truly did not wish to interrupt it.
The second cultivation approach: nting the Thousand Eyes Tree to increase its blood production.
The Ancient Banyan Tree was extremely mysterious; any nts taken from the maze would immediately wither and die upon transntation. And they would die for good, not even the Evesting Spring Technique could revive them.
This gave him an unconventional idea, to proactively nt the Thousand Eyes Tree within the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze.
Since he now treated the Ancient Banyan Tree as his ¡®private property,¡¯ it was entirely reasonable for him to develop thend under its cover.
This was an idea he had been considering for a long time.
Now, with the rapid growth of the termite colony, the Thousand Eyes Tree Blood was no longer sufficient, forcing him to find ways to increase the production of the blood.
This nt was extremely special, and up to this point, he had only seen it under the Ancient Banyan Tree.
He even suspected that it was a symbiotic nt of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
It might not be found at all in the outside world.
After cultivating the termites, he directly entered the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze.
Today¡¯s tasks were quite heavy: collecting Banyan Tree Blood, taking the Boundary-breaking Elixir to enhance his cultivation level, and nting the Thousand Eyes Tree.
First was collecting Banyan Tree Blood. As usual, he swung the Ink de mercilessly, striking the Ancient Banyan Tree harshly to create wounds, then collecting the blood with a jar.
This Ancient Banyan Tree really seemed to be cursed, having to endure several cuts every day.
Fortunately, its self-healing ability was extremely strong; it had be ustomed to the cuts. Each time, it would heal quickly and return to its original state.
Next, Qin Niu cleared a space beside its trunk and transnted a few seedlings of the Thousand Eyes Tree. He specifically chose small saplings.
After nting them, he didn¡¯t notice anything unusual.
This filled Qin Niu with silent joy; the n seemed very likely to work.
He sat down cross-legged beside the newly nted Thousand Eyes Trees, took out the Boundary-breaking Elixir, didn¡¯t think much of it, peeled off the wax seal, and swallowed it in one go.
It didn¡¯t melt in his mouth as the legends suggested but instead was quite chewy.
The taste was slightly odd, a little bitter.
It also carried a hint of earthy scent along with a rich medicinal fragrance from a mixture of various herbs.
After consuming it, he didn¡¯t feel anything out of the ordinary.
It was as if what he had eaten was just ordinary food.
Having some experience in cultivation, he immediately closed his eyes and concentrated, starting to cultivate the Evesting Spring Technique.
His thoughts were simple: break through to the Acquired Realm first.
The Evesting Spring Technique seemed more suitable for his cultivation, and advancing to the next level seemed rtively easier. The experience of breaking through from the Mortal Realm to the Acquired Realm with the Medicine King Sutra had left him with a deep psychological shadow.
The difficulty of leveling up was not to be underestimated.
But this was also a test for his cultivation spirit, granting him a preliminary understanding of the Dao heart.
At this moment, as he began to cultivate the Evesting Spring Technique, the power within his body also grew rapidly.
At first, he didn¡¯t feel anything special, but gradually, his internal power felt as if it was possessed by a deity, increasing at an amazing pace.
Qin Niu clearly absorbed only a trace of power from the outside, but it was enough to double his internal power.
And this was just the beginning.
The growth rate of his power was like a rolling snowball.
By now, absorbing a trace of power from the surroundings, his internal power could increase by more than tenfold.
The shocking rate of cultivation growth even scared him.
And it seemed to be just the beginning.
Eleven times.
Twelve times¡
It seemed to have no end.
To think that cultivating the Evesting Spring Technique under the Ancient Banyan Tree was already twenty times faster than outside.
Now after consuming the Boundary-breaking Elixir, the speed of cultivation continued to amplify.
When this amplification reached tenfold, it was effectively two hundred times the normal cultivation speed in the outside world.
Cultivating for one day was equivalent to half a year of cultivation for others in the outside world.
The charm of elixirs was so great that it was simply irresistible.
In the past, I thought cultivating under the Ancient Banyan Tree was already like having a huge advantage, but I didn¡¯t realize that was just child¡¯s y.
Only now could it be called a truly privileged life.
Qin Niu was keenly aware that this cultivation opportunity was extremely rare. Who knew when the next chance to obtain a Boundary-breaking Elixir woulde.
Hunting monster beasts for their Beast Cores was a matter of luck.
If one could encounter such an opportunity once in ten years, it would be as if their ancestors¡¯ graves had billowed with blue smoke.
Even if one did encounter it, there was no guarantee of sess in the kill.
Because every monster beast that managed to mature was an existence of extreme terror.
The King Pig that Qin Niu had inst time wasn¡¯t really a true monster beast in the strict sense.
At best, it was a powerful King Pig that had encountered a stroke of luck.
It barely qualified as a half-demon.
In reality, it was much weakerpared to a true half-demon.
Moreover, even if one hunted down a monster beast and obtained its Beast Core, one couldn¡¯t necessarily refine it into a Boundary-breaking Elixir.
Because even Master Zi Zhou, with the highest sess rate of elixir formation, only had a thirty percent chance.
Therefore, this cultivation opportunity was extraordinarily precious.
Many people, if given such a chance once in their lifetime, would be able to rise above themon herd and directly change their fate.
Time was rapidly slipping by, and his cultivation level was oveing barriers one after another, advancing by leaps and bounds.
He easily broke through to the third level of the Acquired Realm, and then came the fourth level, fifth level¡
When his cultivation level broke through to the tenth level of the Acquired Realm, the rate at which his strength was increasing started to diminish. This indicated that most of the elixir¡¯s energy had been consumed by him.
¡°Taking the Boundary-breaking Elixir for the first time, I was a bit too impatient. Quality steel should be used on the de¡¯s edge. Others probably cultivate to the peak of the tenth level of the Acquired Realm before taking the Boundary-breaking Elixir, using the power of the elixir to breakthrough.¡±
Qin Niu had a moment of realization.
Many pits could only be known after one had fallen into them.
The detours one must take in life really cannot be skipped.
Fortunately, the cultivation environment he was in was extremely special.
The cool energy under the Ancient Banyan Tree was very concentrated, at least twenty times that of the outside world. This had be an important aid for his assault on a new realm, its effect no less potent than that of the Boundary-breaking Elixir.
Clenching his teeth, with an unrestrained determination in his heart, he wanted to break through the Acquired Realm and experience the taste of a higher realm.
Boom!
Boom!
The power of the Evesting Spring Technique surged within him like raging waves, rushing crazily through his body, repeatedly tempering and strengthening every inch of his skin, muscles, and internal organs.
His entire body became as solid as if it were cast from steel, extraordinarily robust.
Now, he was like a human-shaped mech capable of crushing steel des with his bare hands.
Ordinary arrows shot at him probably couldn¡¯t even prate his defenses.
And this was without donning the King Pig Leather Armor.
Otherwise, his defense would be even more terrifying.
But then again, the fundamental strength of the body is what truly matters. Armor, no matter how strong, is ultimately an external object; its role is merely to gild the lily.
If the body itself isn¡¯t strong enough, no matter how powerful the armor, against a real master, one move would be enough to shatter the flesh beneath the armor.
¡°Charge, charge, charge!¡±
Qin Niu bit down hard, his cultivation level rising rapidly.
He wanted to break through.
As the amping effect of his cultivation began to wane, he felt a clear insufficiency of strength when attempting to break through the major barrier.
Yet he did not give up, harboring an unwavering determination in his heart.
His resolve was indestructible.
As time passed, his power had reached the peak of the Acquired Realm¡¯s tenth level, and he could even vaguely glimpse some of the rules and abilities of the new realm.
But breaking through was still extremely difficult.
Since the start of his cultivation of the Evesting Spring Technique, this was the first time he had encountered an obstacle.
Or it could also be called a bottleneck.
After breaking through the Acquired Realm, he would no longer be an ordinary person, but would have stepped halfway into the threshold of Immortal Gate, bing a true cultivator.
Such an existence, even in ck Tiger City, was by no meansmonce.
Rather, it was an exceedingly rare and transcendent being.
Not even Old Master Huang, whom he had in, would have reached this realm.
Otherwise, no matter how much Qin Niu schemed, it¡¯s unlikely he could have killed him.
At this moment, the more he glimpsed the aspects of the new realm, the more he yearned to break through.
He also felt a twinge of regret, wishing he had not been so hasty.
At the very least, he could have waited to advance to the tenth level of the Acquired Realm before using the Boundary-breaking Elixir to charge at the new realm. But what¡¯s done can¡¯t be undone, and regret was pointless.
All he could do was grit his teeth and persist to the end.
Sometimes, when facing difficult challenges, having faith is crucial.
If one¡¯s resolve wavers at the slightest setback and contemtes giving up, then once the spirit is gone, failure is sure to follow. But if one¡¯s will is as solid as iron, and one strives with a steely resolve, one might just seed in the end.
At that moment, he felt a drizzle-like cold energy raining down upon him from above.
When these energies invaded his body, they caused his blood to stagnate and his spirit to be sluggish.
He knew this meant the sky had darkened and the Ancient Banyan Tree was beginning to cleanse its territory of all living beings.
The energy from the Boundary-breaking Elixir was almost depleted, night had fallen, and the new realm was extremely difficult to break into; multiple difficulties weighed on his heart, shaking his conviction.
Chapter 207 - 202: Formidably Strong i
Chapter 207: Chapter 202: Formidably Strong i
Trantor: 549690339 |
If he waited until the branches of the Ancient Banyan Treepletely pressed down, his death was certain.
Yet, cultivating until this critical moment, to give up was truly unbearable for him.
He now found himself in a dilemma of difficult choices.
¡°I can¡¯t just give up so easily, I have to fight.¡±
His thoughts shed like lightning as he finally made a decision.
Recalling the path he had taken, every step was filled with hardship and danger.
Termite, Queen Bee, they were willing to risk their lives for the promotion to the next level, fighting desperately to the death.
Being the most spiritually endowed beings, humans, could they really be inferior to their own pets?
That made no sense.
He gritted his teeth again, desperately striking at the new realm.
The bell of life and death tolled above his head. The feeling of hanging by a thread made his heart even more serene and focused.
While cultivating, Qin Niu suddenly felt the energy pouring into his body doubled.
Could it be the residual power of the Boundary-breaking Elixir?
No, this energy was flowing into his body from the outside world.
The way the Boundary-breaking Elixir enhanced one¡¯s Cultivation Technique was very special; it added power directly from within the body. Purely consuming the energy of the elixir, transforming it into cultivation strength.
If it wasn¡¯t the effect of the Boundary-breaking Elixir, then there was only one possibility left.
The experience level of his Evesting Spring Technique broke through at this dangerous moment.
This was truly rain in a drought.
At the moment he needed help the most, his Cultivation Technique¡¯s experience level had made a breakthrough.
Sometimes, at such a critical moment, even a slight increase in support could significantly boost the chances of sess. Directly doubling the efficiency with which he absorbed external energy, this assistance was immense.
Qin Niu felt as though even heaven was helping him.
Heaven rewards the diligent, indeed.
As vast amounts of external energy transformed into cultivation strength, he sensed a slight easing of the bottleneck of his realm.
Finally, he saw the hope of sessfully breaking through the realm.
Only the branches of the Banyan Tree above were already pressing down very low.
The falling cold energy had also changed from a fine drizzle to a moderate rain. After falling on him, it made him feel drowsy, his body stiff and cold, and his blood cirction slowing down more and more.
The risk of death was rapidly increasing.
At this critical moment, the Golden Toad leaped up andy on top of his head like a hat.
It blocked the cold energy falling from the branches of the Ancient Banyan Tree for him.
With this precious moment of time, Qin Niu drummed up energy to strike at the new realm once again.
¡°Break!¡±
Although the bottleneck had loosened even more, he still failed.
¡°Again!¡±
Qin Niu, undaunted by repeated failures, once again gathered strength to assault the new realm.
The result was another failure.
But with each failure, he grew stronger and his resolve more steadfast.
¡°With true sincerity, even metal and stone will be pierced; break for me!¡±
Qin Niu took on the posture of someone risking his life, with only one belief in his heart: to be sessful or to die with honor.
Even if he were to die here today, he would fight to the end.
Boom! A mighty and peerless aura surged from his body, shooting into the sky, and the Golden Toad on his head was sent flying.
The invisible energy rising into the sky even forced the falling cold energy above to halt temporarily.
He himself underwent a shocking transformation.
Ayer of faint green luminescence flowed endlessly on the surface of his skin.
Though weak, it helped him barely resist the invasion of the cold energy.
¡°Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll take you out.¡±
Qin Niu picked up the Golden Toad, shouldered the basket, not even wanting the Banyan Tree Blood any longer.
It was extremely dangerous, and there simply wasn¡¯t time for him to collect those few jars of Banyan Tree Blood.
The termites, under the assault of the chilling energy, had be rigid, struggling to move.
Fourth happened to be the most favored one.
Qin Niu had allowed it to hide on his body, and now it was protected by thatyer of cyan light, faring rtively well.
Guided by it, Qin Niu stepped out.
He covered three to four meters in a single step, light as a swallow, with surging strength. As he moved forward, he was like a shifting mountain, or a rushing tidal wave. The invisible aura he exuded sent shivers down one¡¯s spine, and those who were weaker would simply find their knees buckling, bringing them to the ground.
In addition, his body was like it had been cast from steel, powerful and vigorous, his movements swift.
He escaped the Ancient Banyan Tree¡¯s maze in the blink of an eye.
Because the branches had lowered considerably, Qin Niu dared not let them touch the top of his head.
All the way, he swung his sword to strike.
The Sweeping Martial Technique was used frequently, with each sh sending out radiant de Qi four to five inches long, much more substantial than before.
Wherever the de Qi swept across, it was like divine powers that cut down gods and yed Buddhas.
¡°Phew!¡±
Having escaped, he let out a long, muddled breath.
Two faint wisps of light were exhaling and inhaling before his nostrils, almost startling him.
¡°Finally escaped, finally made a breakthrough. It really is true that fortune favors the bold.¡±
Qin Niu reminisced about the many obstacles he faced when breaking through his limits and the life-or-death decisions he made at critical moments, filled with emotion.
Mortals vie for power, leaving a trail of countless bones upon one general¡¯s sess.
Cultivators defy the heavens, where a single thought could mean life or death.
This attempt to surge into a new realm, one wrong step could have resulted in both death and the annihtion of one¡¯s path.
Having ovee it, he earned the right to be considered above ordinary men.
He was no longer a mere mortal.
Instead, he now possessed the qualifications to step into the Immortal Gate and truly begin seeking the path for eternal life.
It was like having the basic conditions for a ticket to admission.
¡°Wart Toad, for your merits in protecting your master today, I¡¯ll remember it. Given the chance, I will surely reward you well.¡±
Qin Niu used to call it Golden Toad, but now he referred to it as Wart Toad.
Although the name sounded unpleasant, it was more endearing. It also signified the added trust and affection he felt for the Golden Toad. The bond between master and servant had grown stronger as well.
¡°Croak!¡±
The Golden Toad voiced its protest.
¡°Haha, you silly thing, aren¡¯t you pleased? It¡¯s only when I¡¯m happy that I would call you such. I¡¯ll call you Wart Toad every day from now on.¡±
Qin Niu patted its head.
However, having just broken through to a new realm and still unfamiliar with controlling his strength,
he caused the Golden Toad great pain as it croaked in distress, giving him pitiful and innocent looks.
Despite its merits, it was left out when elixirs were distributed and ended up on the receiving end of a few smacks.
¡°Haha, sorry, sorry, I¡¯ve just broken through to apletely new realm. I meant to be gentle, but I didn¡¯t expect it to cause you pain.¡±
Qin Niu chuckled, this time gently stroking its head instead.
Strands of the Evesting Spring Technique¡¯s power seeped from his fingertips into the Golden Toad¡¯s body.
He was using his own Cultivation Technique to help it dispel the chilling energy within its body.
The Ancient Banyan Tree was truly formidable.
Even if Qin Niu was now more than a hundred times stronger than before, he still had little resistance within its maze.
At best, he might struggle a bit more, merely dying slower.
Now that he had finally made a breakthrough, in a few days, once the number of Grade Three termites increased, he could consider going for the Green Demon treasure.
He mused to himself.
He was somewhat fixated on the Green Demon Bee.
The Corpse Bee was incredibly powerful, yet its ultimate goal of evolution was simply to surpass the Green Demon Bee.
With the resources at Qin Niu¡¯smand, if he could acquire a Green Demon Bee, the potential was unimaginable.
The Green Demon is mentioned in the Green Demon Bee Breeding Manual, iming that with just another fifty years to raise the next generation, even Cultivators from the Immortal Sect would dare to challenge it.
Chapter 208 - 203: Half-Step into the Primordial Realm - Part 1
Chapter 208: Chapter 203: Half-Step into the Primordial Realm ¨C Part 1
Trantor: 549690339 |
In the territory of the ck Tiger Gang right now, an insect cmity is wreaking havoc, and dangers lurk everywhere, he desperately needs to have enough strength to protect himself.
Even after having broken through to a new realm, it merely gives him the confidence to sit tight in this countryside, but for those top experts in ck Tiger City, this level of strength is still not enough.
In the short term, it¡¯s impossible for his cultivation to make any significant breakthroughs.
This time, with the help of the elixirs, he directly advanced from the secondyer of the Acquired Realm to the next major realm, which was absolutely like rocketing up in speed.
As the saying goes, too much is as bad as not enough.
What others might take ten or twenty years, or even a lifetime to achieve, he aplished in just one day.
Compared to those experts who have climbed up step by step, his foundation is definitely not as solid as theirs.
If he doesn¡¯t calm his mind now and stabilize his realm, it could easily copse
like a ¡°high-rise building.¡±
He ns to spend some time now to solidify his realm andy a firm
foundation.
While at it, he could also practice the two martial skills and take them to the
next level.
Whether it¡¯s the sh Martial Skill or the Sweeping Martial Technique, both can help him turn the tide in dangerous moments, so he definitely needs to master them.
Especially with the ¡°storm¡± about toe, improving his strength in any area, even slightly, could mean the difference between life and death in a crisis.
¡°Right, let¡¯s see how much my lifespan has increased!
Qin Niu remembered the most important thing.
Ultimately, there is only one purpose behind everything he does, and that is to
prolong his life.
Check personal attributes.
Qin Niu
Cultivation: Evesting Spring Technique Innate early stage 10,000/100,000 (Medicine King Sutra Acquired firstyer 1,570/2,000), Intermediate Farmer 119/1,000, intermediate Insect Master 108/1,000, Advanced Beast Tamer 10,000/100,000
Lifespan: 188 years
Cultivation Technique: Evesting Spring Technique, Grade Three 1,022/10,000, Medicine King Sutra, Grade Two 572/1,000
So after the Acquired Realm,es the legendary Innate Realm.
¡°One step into the Innate, half a step into immortality,¡± means that as soon as one enters the Innate Realm, it¡¯s like taking half a step into the Immortal Gate, qualifying for the true pursuit of evesting life.
He has always found himself quite deficient in knowledge about cultivation, but now that he¡¯s finally umted some power, he can spare some time to catch up on this knowledge.
He bought a number of books on cultivation, beast-taming, and insect mastering from the cityst time, but he has never had the time to read them.
It couldn¡¯t be helped.
At that time, he was being targeted by Old Master Huang. He had to give his all to outwit his opponent, as the slightest carelessness could have cost him his life.
It was impossible for him to be distracted and learn the basics of cultivation.
Although he killed Old Master Huangter on, the appearance of Grade Three giant locusts gave him a hint of the presence of the Nine Insect Gang. Faced with masters of the Nine Insect Gang hidden in the shadows, his mere second-yer Acquired Realm cultivation would likely not even suffice to fill the gaps between their teeth.
Without long-term considerations, there will be immediate worries.
Always being far-sighted, he naturally did everything possible to enhance his strength before the crisis hit.
Now that he has broken through to the Innate Realm, he finally can catch his breath.
His lifespan has increased by a total of sixty years.
That is, inmon terms, a jiazi.
This result is slightly lower than he expected.
After all the hardship to break through to the Innate Realm, the total only adds
up to 188 years of life.
He finds it too little.
But the lifespan of humans is indeed fleeting, and it¡¯s extremely difficult to
extend it.
For ordinary people, living past seventy is already very rare. Most people die in their fifties or sixties.
After seventy, every decade is a hurdle.
Those who live past a hundred can definitely be called centenarians.
120 years is the limit for the Mortal Realm.
Almost no one lives to be 120 years old.
If you break into the Acquired Realm and take good care of your body, living past 120 with little issue should be possible. For those at this realm, 140 is the limit.
In fact, those who can cultivate to the Acquired Realm are already rare.
Most people are struggling in the Mortal Realm.
The Innate Realm is a profound state of cultivation that ordinary people cannot even reach.
Mortals are like ants; those in the Acquired Realm are merely stronger ants, but only upon reaching the Innate Realm does one ascend to a new level.
Most Innate Realm experts can live beyond 150 years.
For someone like Qin Niu, who practices Life-Nurturing Techniques and is only at the early stage of the Innate Realm, to live nearly 190 years is alluring.
It¡¯s equivalent to more than three times the lifespan of an ordinary person.
The key is that he¡¯s only sixteen years old, which is a tremendous advantage.
Most Innate Realm experts are over a hundred years old, the kind of old men who are half-buried in the ground.
Being young has many advantages. It doesn¡¯t just mean having a longer life to attempt breaking through to the next realm and time to umte strength, but it also means being more vigorous, making advancement rtively easier and the potential greater.
¡°It¡¯s time to head back!¡±
Qin Niu nced back at the Ancient Banyan Tree and the towering mountains, his heart still full of awe. However,pared to his previous trepidation, he now felt a bit more confidence andposure.
He believed that even if he were to encounter a half-demon or even a real demon beast at this moment, he would have the strength to fight.
With one step, he covered over three meters.
Moreover, his movements were as light as a swallow, hardly requiring any
effort.
He ran through the mountains, his pace getting faster and faster.
The armor from the Pig King allowed him to disregard all thorns and branches that stood in his way.
It let Qin Niu run freely, without having to worry about his clothes getting torn. And for his physical body, ordinary thorns couldn¡¯t harm him in the slightest. As his speed increased, the distance of each step he took grew from over three meters to over four meters.
¡°It would be wonderful if I could learn a Step-Method Martial Skill at some point.¡±
Qin Niu secretly admired the movement skills Old Master Huang had demonstrated.
Genuine core cultivation techniques and martial skills are usually hard to find
on the market.
This is because all the top-level martial skills and techniques are collected by the government and noble ns.
After buying these techniques, they only pass them on to the core disciples within their families, strictly controlling them to prevent any leaks.
It is extremely difficult for ordinary people to learn them. Returning to the vige, as he passed by the houses, he discovered he could actually hear voicesing from inside.
Sister Liu¡¯s child was crying, Yu Le¡¯s wife was losing her temper, scolding him
for being ipetent and useless¡
Having ascended to the Innate Realm, his hearing had be much more sensitive, and he could detect many subtle sounds that he was previously unable to hear.
¡°Master, you really came back! Hehe, it seems my sensing ability is quite urate!¡±
Xiao Qing stood at the door looking out, and upon seeing Qin Niu returning from the mountains, she revealed a happy smile.
¡± Have you had your meal?¡±
¡°Not yet!¡±
¡°Did you practice diligently?¡±
¡°I did practice, but I kind of wilted all the medicinal herbs you nted.¡±
She answered, looking down.
¡°No problem, I will help them recoverter.¡±
Qin Niu was thinking, should he impart the Evesting Spring Technique to
Xiao Qing?
After thinking over it, in the end, he gave up on the idea.
It wasn¡¯t that he was worried she might betray him in the future; rather, he feared she might bite off more than she could chew.
It would be better to take her to train within the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze than to transmit skills to her.
However, before doing so, he still needed to test her.
After all, she was just a child, not yet of age, and if she couldn¡¯t keep her mouth shut, it could easily result in disaster.
Moreover, after her cultivation level rapidly increased, it might also go to her head.
If she unted her power too openly without understanding the need to hide her strength, it would likewise bring trouble.
These were all issues that needed to be considered.
As for her loyalty, Qin Niu was not too concerned.
The bond between master and servant was growing deeper, and the likelihood of her betraying Qin Niu in the future was almost nil.
¡°Xiao Qing, do you still like the leather armor I gave you?¡±
¡°I like it! Every gift the master gives me is especially precious.¡±
She spoke earnestly.
¡°But I haven¡¯t seen you wear it much!¡±
¡°I usually can¡¯t bear to wear it, I only wear it when I go hunting m the mountains with Sister Wan Yan.¡±
¡°What¡¯s there to bear? Wear it every day from now on, it can protect your safety.¡±
Qin Niu felt that at her young age, she was really quite sensible.
Hardworking and clever.
She kept the house tidy and clean, cooking and doingundry for Qin Niu every day.
Perhaps because she had lived quite a hard life with her adoptive grandfather since she was young, she was usually very frugal.
¡°What would you do if one day your cultivation level suddenly broke through to the tenth level of the Mortal Realm?¡±
The two chatted idly as they ate.
¡°Hmm¡ I think I would be very happy, and I would find an opportunity to tell my grandfather the good news at his grave. Then I would continue to practice hard, striving to advance to the Acquired Realm as soon as possible. By then, I would have the ability to protect the master,¡± she said thoughtfully, expressing her genuine thoughts.
¡°At such a young age and with such high cultivation, is your grandfather the only person you think about telling?¡±
¡°Yes. Oh, no, no, I would tell the master first, and then my grandfather second.¡±
¡°You wouldn¡¯t want to show off in front of Sister Wan Yan or other kids?
¡°I can¡¯t show off. My grandfather told me that even with the closest people, you have to learn to hide, as a form of self-protection. Cultivation levels, money, treasures ¨C these are all core secrets, not to be casually revealed to outsiders. Showing off even a little bit of strength openly can lead to a quick death. Master, you have to remember these too. When I was traveling with my grandfather, we saw people shing their wealth and then they were targeted and killed for it.¡±
She ended up advising Qin Niu to learn how to be low-key in turn.
¡°Hehe, who would have thought you are so young, yet you understand quite a lot! Come to the mountains with me early tomorrow morning, I¡¯ll take you to train. But you must remember, I am taking you there because I consider you my closest and most trusted person. You must not tell anyone about this,¡± Qin Niu was very satisfied with her answer.
As her master, now that he had be very strong, it was natural to help his maid as well.
Having such a loyal maid by his side meant she could help Qin Niu with many things on normal days.
At crucial moments, she might even save his life.
Supporting her aptly was akin to strengthening his own arms.
In the evening, Qin Niu did not rush to the Yan family¡¯s fields after dinner.
The number of locusts seemed to be decreasing in thest few days, with even fewer special locusts.
The ck Tiger Gang likely had already taken action.
He genuinely hoped the insect disaster would cease soon.
Qin Niu had originally thought his three thousand ducks could be sold for a good price.
Now, after eating a vast quantity of locusts, some of the ducks seemed to be evolving, which made Qin Niu temporarily give up the idea of selling the ducks. Frankly, even if they sold for fifty silver coins each, it wouldn¡¯t bring in much money.
Just one hundred and fifty silver money.
In the past, that amount was a fortune to him.
Now, it was just a small sum.
He went to the backyard, making his way toward the medicinal herbs.
They looked wilted, as if tormented by frost.
Now that he had attained the Innate Realm, could he use the power of the Evesting Spring Technique directly to help them quickly recover their vitality?
Chapter 209 - 204: Becoming Friends with the Yan Family_1
Chapter 209: Chapter 204: Bing Friends with the Yan Family_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
He had wanted to try this method for a long time.
However, he previouslycked the necessary cultivation levels, unable to mobilize and externalize the energy within his body.
Now that he had reached the Innate Realm, he barely possessed this ability.
He had tested it when he was helping the Golden Toad with its injuries, and it worked quite well.
He extended his hand to grasp the root stem of the Dogtail Grass.
Then he mobilized a faint trace of the Evesting Spring Technique¡¯s energy and released it, controlling it to prate into the Dogtail Grass.
After it was absorbed, the stems and leaves slowly filled out, rapidly regaining vitality.
This method was indeed feasible.
Qin Niu repeated the process with the other herbs, treating each one in turn.
In about half an hour, all of them had regained their vitality.
¡°Now that I have the cultivation of the Innate Realm, I should be able to explore deeper into the mountains. I can gather some more medicinal herbs to nt.¡±
Having tasted the sweetness of the Boundary-breaking Elixir, he waspletely captivated by the supreme allure of elixirs.
The best main ingredients for refining high-grade elixirs are not beast cores,
but Spiritual Medicines.
It has always been so since ancient times.
The essence of nts and trees is the best material for alchemy.
Beast cores are instead considered unorthodox. Acquiring beast cores not only requires taking a life but also, beasts and humans are fundamentally different beings. Their cultivation methods also differ.
Using beast cores for alchemy goes against natural principles and involves numerous risks.
This is why the major families only regard cultivated medicinal herbs as the core resources of the family, and never as one hears a family raising a mystical beast as their core asset.
At most, they would raise a mystical beast to guard the house and protect the family¡¯s forbidden grounds.
After restoring vitality to these herbs, Qin Niu then hurried to the Yan Family¡¯s farnd.
Upon arriving at the first line of defense, swarms of locusts were advancing under the cover of darkness. Ordinary locusts passing this line of defense would not be attacked.
Only when special locusts went through would they be intercepted by Qin Niu¡¯s Termite soldiers and then mercilessly killed.
He checked the Termite¡¯s results.
Thirteen special locusts were hunted.
Compared to the peak times when hundreds could be hunted in a day, this was a significant drop.
Qin Niu had specifically brought a group of Grade Three Termites this time to test theirbat strength.
It turned out that not to mention the extrarge locusts, even the special locusts were hard toe by.
This left him somewhat frustrated.
He was contemting discussing with the Yan Family the next morning about having the Yan Family find another Insect Master to guard this defensive line.
Having helped guard the Yan Family for so many days, he felt he had done enough and had repaid his debt of gratitude.
He had specifically brought a book to read today.
It was about time he brushed up on the fundamental knowledge of cultivation.
Entering the thatched hut, he lit the oilmp and read through the night.
The night passed peacefully.
The next morning, Yan Qi arrived.
¡°Master Qin, was everything peacefulst night?¡±
¡°Nothing happened. Looking at the situation, the locust gue seems to be subsiding. Pass a message to Young Master of the Yan Family for me, starting today, I am officially withdrawing from this defensive line.¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s rtionship with the Yan Family was merely one of cooperation.
He would work if he wanted to.
If not, he¡¯d just say goodbye and leave.
¡°Is there any way in which our Yan Family has failed to be hospitable?
The color drained from Yan Qi¡¯s face as she carefully asked.
¡°I stood guardst night, and there were only two special locusts. I estimate that even if a few more appear during the day, it won¡¯t cause much trouble. Master Mo Sang can handle itpletely. There are many affairs to attend to at home, and I really don¡¯t have time to waste here. Of course, if the locust situation changes and the Yan Family encounters difficulties, feel free to call on me at any time.¡±
After finishing his words, Qin Niu left with the Termite he had collected.
¡°Master Qin, your breakfast banquet is ready! How about having your meal before I see you off?¡±
¡°No need, just go and notify the Young Master of the Yan Family and Masters
Mo and Shi, that will do.¡±
With a wave of his hand, Qin Niu left gracefully.
Not long after he had arrived home, the Young Master of the Yan Family came over personally in a carriage.
¡°Master Qin, we owe a lot to you for aiding our Yan Family in holding the line these past few days, preserving our assets. If you¡¯re leaving abruptly, could it be that the decrease in the number of special locusts has substantially reduced your ie? This oversight is indeed my mistake. After consulting with my father, the Yan Family is willing to offer a guaranteed daily rate of One Tael of Silver for your pest control services.
If the number of special locusts killed in a day exceeds a hundred, then we will calcte the cost as per our prior agreement.
If it¡¯s less than a hundred, the Yan Family will cover the base rate of One Tael of Silver per day for you.¡±
The Young Master of the Yan Family offered a rate that would make countless Insect Masters green with envy.
A daily wage of One Tael of Silver is definitely a top-tier sry.
¡°It¡¯s really not about the money, Young Master Yan, you needn¡¯t overthink it. My defense against pests for the Yan Family wasn¡¯t wholly for the sake of making money. The Yan Family has taken great care of me, and when my new residence waspleted, you presented a generous gift to celebrate, which signifies a deep bond. Seeing the Yan Family in trouble, I naturally couldn¡¯t stand by idly. Now that the pest cmity has subsided, defending that line has also caused me to neglect many matters.
That¡¯s why I decided to step back.¡±
Qin Niu patiently exined.
¡°So that¡¯s the case, we of the Yan Family have been narrow-minded. Here¡¯s the remuneration for the recent pest control services you¡¯ve performed for our Yan Family, totaling 92 Taels and 5 cents of Silver Money. Would you please check if there are any discrepancies?¡±
¡°If you¡¯ve counted it, that¡¯s fine by me, I trust you.¡±
After working for so many days, Qin Niu had earned more than ny taels of Silver Money, which was quite good.
And in passing, he also trained his troops, giving the Termites very good exercise.
Their capacity for group cooperation and experience inbat against enemies had both grown substantially.
Teamwork is the Termites¡¯ greatest strength.
This must be diligently practiced; there are no shortcuts.
¡°ording to my father¡¯s wishes, we¡¯ve rounded it up to a Hundred Taels of Silver Money to thank you for your help to our Yan Family. My father also said, whenever Master Qin is free, you¡¯re wee to visit the Yan Family at any time. If you encounter any difficulties, feel free to turn to us. As long as it¡¯s within our capability, the Yan Family will certainly not stand idly by.¡±
Yan Ruohai is much more capable in dealing with matters than the Young Master of the Yan Family.
In dealing with people, he makes one feel veryfortable.
¡°Please convey my thanks to your father; when I have time, I will surely pay him a visit.¡±
Qin Niu had long looked up to this local authority.
There were many areas in which Yan Ruohai was worthy of his study.
After this pest cmity, he wanted to take advantage of the momentum to be a local power like the Yan Family, and there were still many things he needed to learn from them.
From Yan Ruohai¡¯s message, it was clear he regarded Qin Niu as a friend.
That was very good.
Every brave man needs allies; everyone needs friends.
After seeing off the Young Master, Qin Niu took Xiao Qing and went to the mountains for training.
This was also the first time he brought Xiao Qing into the maze within the Ancient Banyan Tree.
¡°Xiao Qing, remember this ce.¡±
He led her directly in front of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
¡°Such a huge old tree! But why do I feel there is emptiness ahead¡ It¡¯s not right. With such a big tree, there should be a lot of energy reserves.¡±
Xiao Qing, also practicing the Medicine King Sutra, could feel the energy within nt bodies.
She was surprised to find she couldn¡¯t sense anything; the Ancient Banyan Tree in front of her was void.
Chapter 210 - 205: Xiao Qing’s Talent_i
Chapter 210: Chapter 205: Xiao Qing¡¯s Talent_i
Trantor: 549690339 I
This is because of the effect of the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze, which can iste the outside world and form a small world within.
Standing outside, one naturally cannot sense its vast energy.
¡°Take three steps forward.¡±
Qin Niu signaled to her.
Faithfully, Xiao Qing took three steps forward, but when she turned back, she immediately panicked.
She could no longer see her master¡¯s figure.
In her haste to return, she quickly realized with horror that she kept circling the same spot, trapped.
Just as she was in turmoil, Qin Niu also walked into the maze from the outside.
¡°Master, I seem to be trapped and can¡¯t find my way out. I couldn¡¯t find you just now.¡±
¡°This is a maze, once you¡¯re in, there¡¯s no getting out. Feel the medicinal qi here.¡±
Qin Niu pointed to the Ancient Banyan Tree.
She closed her eyes and focused intently.
¡°Oh my goodness, its medicinal qi is terrifying!¡±
¡°From now on, when Ie here to cultivate, you will join me. But there¡¯s one thing you must remember, never reveal anything about this ce to anyone else, or it will surely bring us lethal trouble.¡±
Qin Niu gave her a stern warning.
¡°Sure, I get it!¡±
She couldn¡¯t wait to sit down cross-legged and began to try cultivating the Medicine King Sutra with her eyes closed.
Qin Niu quietly left the maze and went to cultivate his termites.
Upon arriving at the ant nest, he was pleasantly surprised to find another Demon Ant had emerged, bringing the total to three ordinary Demon Ants.
With just a bit of cultivation, these could be three great generals.
Fourth¡¯s position as Marshal was for the time being still unchallenged by any other termite.
¡°Eh, the first batch of Grade Two strong Worker Ants and strong Soldier Ants has alsopleted their evolution.¡±
Dozens of strikingly impressive Grade Three ants appeared before him.
After evolving, the Grade Two strong Worker Ants¡¯ bodies surprisingly developed dense green scales, each shining with a metallic luster.
This was no ordinary green scale armor but an exoskeleton made of green scales.
Their scale armor was even stronger than that of the Grade Three green-scale Giant Puppet Worker Ants.
Moreover, they were also noticeablyrger in size.
Qin Niu looked at the new species with delight.
He turned his gaze to another new breed.
They were evolved from Grade Two strong Soldier Ants. Their entire bodies were like cast steel, shining with a metallic glow. Moreover, they were extremely agile, and their terrifying mandibles looked chilling to the observer.
If they mped down on you, a chunk of flesh would be gone instantly.
Watching them nonstop flexing their ¡®weapons¡¯, even if a beetle from the Coleoptera order came by, it would instantly have its shell torn apart and killed on the spot.
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t wait to check their attributes.
27 Grade Three Green Armor Giant Worker Ants, lifespan of 33 years, special abilities (Swiftness, Super Endurance, Immense Strength, Armor Piercing, and their formic acid can assist in the healing of nt wounds. Intermediate Green Scales.)
11 Grade Three Tiger Stripe Iron Armor Ants, lifespan of 30.5 years, special abilities (Swiftness, Armor Piercing, possessing Intermediate Carapace, Frenzy, with speed increased by three times in a frenzied state, attack power increased by ten times, and defense increased by one time.)
After evolution,pared to the veteran Grade Two green-scale Giant Worker Ants and Grade Two Tiger Stripe Iron Armor Ants, their lifespan had significantly increased.
And their abilities also improved qualitatively.
Take the veteran Grade Two Tiger Stripe Iron Armor Ant for instance, it did not have the special ability of Swiftness and its rtively slow movement was a critical vulnerability.
Although its speed could greatly increase in a frenzied state, its sluggishness in a normal state was a substantial w.
The new Grade Three Tiger Stripe Iron Armor Ants had already remedied this shoring.
I believe their performance on the battlefield will be even more outstanding.
Theirbat strength is so formidable that they can almost match Fourth.
Of course, if Fourth entered a state of demonization, they would instantly have to bow down in submission.
And Fourth¡¯s overallbat strength is tremendously strong.
Venom Attack, Spirit Control, Intermediate Carapace, plus possessing Medium Intelligence*, they simply cannotpare.
As the cultivation of insects progresses, the difference in abilities shrinks.
Sometimes, even a slight special ability advantage over an opponent is enough to secure victory.
Therefore, up to this point, Fourth remains an unbeatable presence in the ant group.
Qin Niu was curious whether the defense of the Grade Three Green Armor Giant Worker Ants wasparable to the Grade Three Tiger Stripe Iron Armor Ants?
Intermediate Green Scales and Intermediate Carapace both seemed to provide medium-level defensive capabilities.
The specifics, however, would only be known after they entered the battlefield.
The green-scale armor, beingposed of scales, provided more flexibility. The Intermediate Carapace was like a turtle shell, a singr piece without any weak points, but rather inflexible inparison.
Their paths of evolution were also different.
Worker Ants primarily engaged inbor, while Soldier Ants were mainly responsible for defense andbat.
¡°Feeding all thirty-eight Grade Three ants with Thousand Eyes Tree Blood should be able to promote them to Grade Four.¡±
Qin Niu had this kind of cultivation experience.
Because Grade Two Tiger Stripe Iron Armor Ants could be promoted to Grade Three after consuming Thousand Eyes Tree Blood.
¡°Line up, I¡¯ll be promoting you to Grade Four right away.¡±
He dug out a small jar of Thousand Eyes Tree Blood hidden under the tree and fed it to them.
Soldier Ants didn¡¯t have the ability to progress on their own and had to be fed by the Grade Three Green Armor Giant Worker Ants.
¡°These gluttons, not even forty strong, actually consumed half a jar of Thousand Eyes Tree Blood. They eat too much,¡± Qin Niumented as he watched the rapidly depleting Thousand Eyes Tree Blood, a frown forming on his face.
It was the secret form for cultivating termites with Spirit Control or Mental Attack.
It took him a long time to umte this small jar of Thousand Eyes Tree Blood.
Based on their current consumption rate, a small jar could at most cultivate a hundred termites.
His dream was to form a massive army of termites, at least one hundred thousand strong.
He would have to think of a solution.
Apart from striving to cultivate the ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± to increase blood collection, perhaps he could consider the breeding process of ordinary termites.
The blood of the Ancient Banyan Tree was almost inexhaustible, while the output of the ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± blood was very limited.
Previously, in order to reduce the mortality rate of cultivating termites, he first let them ingest Ancient Banyan Tree blood toplete evolution, then feed them ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± blood.
Now that thousands of termites were produced daily, even if there was some mortality in the cultivation process, it was eptable.
Moreover, his experience in cultivating termites was now extremely rich; the survival rate of the termites he cultivated was above 99%.
With these two conditions, he had already begun to consider feeding the termites ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± blood first.
Only afterward would he feed them Ancient Banyan Tree blood.
Only in this way could he ensure that a vast ant army would be assembled in a short period of time.
Currently, among the first batch of cultivated termites, only Breeder Ants, Poisonous Ants, and Demon Ants were still evolving.
Based on the timeline, Breeder Ants and Poisonous Ants shouldplete their evolution in the next two days.
The Demon Ants, however, would probably take a little longer.
Qin Niu¡¯s cultivation of termites and his retreat into the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze for personal cultivation goes without saying.
Having just advanced to the Innate Realm, he needed to consolidate his realm and had to put in a great deal of hard work.
Master and servant practiced inside the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze until evening before emerging.
After a day of arduous cultivation, Qin Niu had not only made significant progress in the power of Medicine King Sutra but had also consolidated his level in the Evesting Spring Technique to a certain extent. He was very satisfied with the results of his practice.
The dozen or so ¡°Thousand Eyes Trees¡± transnted yesterday were showing a pleasing growth trend under the nourishment of Evesting Spring Technique.
At least ten times faster than the normal growth rate.
If nothing unexpected happens, the supply of ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± blood should not be so tight after a while.
¡°Master, cultivating in here is truly wonderful! Did you know? I have now broken through to the Human Fourfold!¡±
Xiao Qing¡¯s face was filled with joy.
Anyone experiencing the taste of rapid advancement in cultivation would feel extremely delighted.
Growing stronger is the most instinctual pursuit of every creature.
¡°Not bad at all, breaking through a small realm after just one day of cultivation,¡±
Qin Niu praised her with a smile.
After returning home, Qin Niu first checked on the Diamond Ink Turtle.
After consuming that elixir, it had been motionless at the bottom of the water.
It was probably digesting and absorbing the energy of the elixir.
Pets, unlike humans, cannot learn to cultivate techniques and, in the early stages, can onlyprehend and explore on their own. Once they have opened their spiritual intelligence and achieved a certain level of cultivation, it may be possible to understand some more profound techniques with the guidance of their masters.
Back in the days of the ¡®Teaching without Distinction¡¯ school, many little demons went to listen to the lectures of the Supreme Master of Tongtian.
Even if they only gained a hint of insight, theyter became powerful great demons.
This little turtle could only explore on its own now; no one could help it.
In his cultivation journey, Qin Niu was also feeling his way across the river by feeling the stones.
Concerning the cultivation method for Evesting Spring Technique, he had only grasped a hint, far from being profound.
After checking on the little turtle, he went to look at the calf.
It was still the same as usual.
However, its horns seemed to have grown much longer.
Unlike those of ordinary water buffalo, its horns are clearly different. The horns of other buffaloes grow outward in the shape of a crescent moon.
Its horns, on the other hand, grow upward.
There is no sign of bending as of yet.
Its name is Board-Horned Male Water Buffalo. Naturally, its horns are somewhat different.
¡°It has already been sleeping for far more than a month, I wonder if it is alright?¡±
Qin Niu could not do much for it.
He could only provide it with a safe environment shielded from wind and rain.
The next day, he took Xiao Qing with him into the mountains to cultivate. When they finished their cultivation, Xiao Qing actually told him that she had advanced another small realm.
Her cultivation had progressed from Human Fourfold to Human Fivefold.
This astonishing pace of cultivation immediately caught Qin Niu¡¯s attention.
You should know that he, too, was cultivating Medicine King Sutra under the Ancient Banyan Tree and needed three days to advance a small realm.
When Xiao Qing progressed from Threefold to Human Fourfold yesterday, he thought it was because of some prior umtion on her part.
Today¡¯s breakthrough into another small realm immediately made him realize that Xiao Qing¡¯s talent for cultivating Medicine King Sutra was far superior to his own.
Considering that the Medicine King Sutra was found together with her, it is very likely that her parents also practiced Medicine King Sutra.
Now that she is disying such astonishing talent, her origins may not be simple.
Based on the abilities of Medicine King Sutra, it does not belong to Life- Nurturing Techniques, but may instead be a technique created specifically for harvesting herbs.
There may also be other abilities, for example, it could be used forpounding medicines or making elixirs.
Only when Qin Niu bes more powerful in the future andes into contact with more cultivation knowledge will he be able to understand more.
When the two of them returned to the vige, they found Steward Yan Qi¡¯s carriage outside.
¡°Master Qin!¡±
Yan Qi greeted with a heavy expression on his face.
Normally, when Yan Qi came and Qin Niu wasn¡¯t home, he would go sit at Wang Furen¡¯s house.
Today, however, he was waiting inside his carriage, which likely meant something had happened.
Chapter 211 - 206: Calamity Beginsi
Chapter 211: Chapter 206: Cmity Beginsi
Trantor: 549690339 |
¡°Housekeeper Yan Qi, pleasee inside and have a seat!¡±
Qin Niu unlocked the door and invited Yan Qi into the house.
Xiao Qing was meanwhile boiling water, preparing a pickled vegetable feast to entertain the guest.
¡°Master Qin, I came over to warn you to be extra careful these days. Master Mo Sang suddenly died violently today, bleeding from all seven orifices. Master Shi is nowhere to be found. Our Yan Family has already reported to the authorities. ¡°However, we received information from the officials that recently a string of Insect Masters have been killed.
¡°You must be on your guard.
¡°If possible, it would be safer for you to reside within the city. Old Master Yan also said that if you don¡¯t own a property in the city, our Yan Family can provide you with a temporary residence.¡±
The Yan Family knows how to behave.
Upon receiving the news, they were the first to offer a warning, and were even willing to provide Qin Niu with a ce to stay in the city.
¡°Thank you for your master¡¯s kind intention, but I can handle it for the moment. I will be extra vignt.¡±
Qin Niu was well aware that living in the city might seem safe, but the waters there were much deeper.
Old Master Huang, who is an Executor of the Nine Insect Gang, had been lurking within ck Tiger City without his true identity being discovered. This alone indicated a major problem with the ck Tiger Gang.
Living in the countryside, Qin Niu was familiar with the terrain and could use thebyrinth of the Ancient Banyan Tree to fend off enemies if overpowered. After sending Yan Qi away, he sank into deep thought.
The sudden death of Master Mo Sang hade too unexpectedly.
Just two days ago, as the locusts were receding, he thought that the insect gue wasing to an end.
Now it seemed that things were far moreplicated than imagined.
The next morning, a fast horse galloped into the vige.
This was a middle-aged man dressed in a ck robe, riding a dark brown horse.
Not really a superior steed, but it was a lot better than an average horse.
Traveling three hundred li in a day was nothing remarkable.
¡°Excuse me, where does Insect Master Qin Niu live?¡±
The middle-aged man asked a viger passing by.
¡°Hmm hmm hmm¡¡±
The viger gestured with his hands and then pointed to his mouth.
Qin Niu watched this scene from a distance, almost bursting intoughter.
The viger being questioned was none other than his neighbor, Wu Si.
Wu Si, who usually seemed afraid of his wife and quite timid, was surprisingly quick-witted. In this critical moment, he feigned being a mute.
Since he didn¡¯t know the stranger¡¯s intent, he dared not openly reveal Qin Niu¡¯s address.
¡°Damn, why did I run into a mute!¡±
The middle-aged man cursed and rode on, noticing that the vigers would dodge at the sight of him.
¡°Who is the head of your vige?¡±
The middle-aged man dismounted swiftly, grabbing another viger and demanding directly.
This viger was Wu San, who didn¡¯t see very well, and was just about to check on his crops when the middle-aged man seized him.
It was toote to run.
Those brothers were really unlucky today.
Just their luck to encounter such a thing early in the morning.
¡°Hmyahmya¡¡±
Wu San was not as sharp as his younger brother; seeing him evade questioning by pretending to be mute, he followed suit.
¡°Damn it, why are both of them mute? Show me the way, lead me to Qin Niu or your vige head.¡±
The middle-aged man red, frightening Wu San into struggling to escape.
But it was in vain; Wu San was already old, and the middle-aged man clearly possessed considerable skills, making it impossible for Wu San to get away. ¡°Do you believe I¡¯ll hit you?¡±
The middle-aged man raised his fist, pretending to threaten Wu San.
Wu San¡¯s eyes rolled back, his head tilted, and he fainted on the spot.
The two brothers were well-known troublemakers in the vige, often bickering. If Wu San could be so easily scared into fainting, he wouldn¡¯t havested to his current age.
He was simply feigning unconsciousness.
Both the vige head and Qin Niu had already acquired considerable prestige in the vige, and everyone respected them, naturally refusing to reveal information about either one to strangers.
Qin Niu hurried over.
¡°Don¡¯t harm the innocent! What do you want with our vige head?¡±
The middle-aged man sized up Qin Niu, noting that although he was just a youngster, his demeanor was extraordinary and his gaze indifferent, clearly not an ordinary rural youth.
He didn¡¯t dare to act violently again.
After putting Wu San onto the ground, he then turned to Qin Niu.
¡°I am looking for the Insect Master of your vige, Qin Niu. I asked two vigers, but neither would tell me where Qin Niu lives. Just now, I wasn¡¯t really going to hit him; I was just trying to scare him. I am a guard from the Insect Master Association, specially here to deliver a letter to Master Qin Niu.¡± The middle-aged man turned out to be someone sent by the Insect Master Association.
No wonder he was so aggressive.
¡°May I see your waist badge?¡±
¡°Certainly.¡±
The middle-aged man took off his waist badge to show Qin Niu.
¡°Was it to deliver a written letter or a verbal message?¡±
¡°A written letter.¡±
The middle-aged man took out a letter sealed with red wax.
¡°Just hand it to me!¡± Qin Niu reached out and said.
¡°This letter must be personally handed over to Master Qin Niu and cannot be passed on by anyone else.¡±
The middle-aged man refused.
Qin Niu showed a bronze Fish Talisman.
¡°Can you give it to me now?¡±
¡°Ah¡ You are¡ No problem. My apologies for the offense. I shall take my leave.¡±
Only after seeing the name on the Fish Talisman did the middle-aged man realize that the person he was looking for was right in front of him.
After handing the letter over to Qin Niu and saluting, he mounted his horse, ready to leave.
¡°Next time you enter Shuangfeng Vige, do not be rude to the vigers again, or don¡¯t me me for not being considerate.¡±
¡°I was just in a hurry to deliver the letter, it was unavoidable. I¡¯ll take care next time.¡±
The middle-aged man then left after cupping his hands together in a gesture of farewell.
Qin Niu looked toward Wu San, who had ¡®regained consciousness¡¯ on his own.
¡°Wu San, this is a reward for you. You and your brother both did well.¡± Qin Niu helped Wu San up and rewarded him with ten copper coins.
This was equivalent to the daily wage of an ordinary person.
¡°I can¡¯t ept this, I can¡¯t.¡±
Wu San repeatedly waved his hands.
¡°Take it and buy yourself a drink. Give these ten wen money to Wu Si and say it¡¯s a reward from me, no skimming allowed.¡±
¡°Thankyou, Master Qin!¡±
Wu San happily took the money and walked in the direction where Wu Si was.
He didn¡¯t talk to Wu Si¡¯s wife and was quite afraid of her.
After all, he had been yelled unconscious several times by her.
Not pretending to be unconscious like earlier, but actually being yelled unconscious.
He could only hand the reward money directly to Wu Si.
By doing this, Qin Niu was deliberately creating an opportunity for the brothers to reconcile.
Some brothers, though they are siblings, act like enemies.
They find each other disagreeable and quarrel upon meeting.
It¡¯s truly iprehensible.
Regardless, both brothers¡¯ performance today satisfied Qin Niu.
After returning to his room, he opened the letter.
It was a warning letter sent by Chairman Li to the Association¡¯s Insect Masters. It must have been copied by the Association¡¯s staff in the name of Chairman Li. The letter mentioned that the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory had recently experienced an unprecedented locust disaster and, ording to the Insect Master Association¡¯s investigation, it was confirmed that someone was covertly manipting the situation, not a natural disaster.
In recent days, several Insect Masters had been assassinated, including three middle-rank Insect Masters and more than a dozen lower-rank Insect Masters. Others had gone missing.
Chairman Li reminded Insect Masters to be careful and if they encountered danger or suspicious individuals, to immediately find a way to ask for help or report to the Insect Master Association.
Besides that, there was also a recruitment proposal, open to all Insect Masters. To join the military directly, to help the ck Tiger Gang resist the external enemy.
The conditions offered were very generous; upon joining the military, one could immediately be promoted to an officer, with a monthly sry of at least five taels of Silver Money. umted military achievements could be exchanged at the government office for cultivation techniques, martial arts, equipment, and other cultivation materials.
Chapter 212 - 207 Two Types of Poisonous Ants’ Evolutionary Directionsi
Chapter 212: Chapter 207 Two Types of Poisonous Ants¡¯ Evolutionary Directionsi
Trantor: 549690339
These generous terms were nothing but a fart in Qin Niu¡¯s eyes.
He could sell any old insect for more than this amount of money.
Once he obtained the Green Demon¡¯s treasure and had some ability to protect himself, he could boldly take on some special jobs in ck Tiger City.
For example, helping everyone treat problematic herbs or selling cultivated substandard insects, etc.
As for cultivation techniques, he had already cultivated two techniques. Unless there was a higher-level technique avable that could connect with the Evesting Spring Technique or the Medicine King Sutra, he did not even consider it.
In terms of martial skills, he was only temporarilycking a step-method martial skill.
He could easily obtain it through other channels.
The biggest benefit of joining the army was being able to seize military power.
This was very tempting.
In any dynasty, as long as one had troops under one¡¯smand, it was akin to holding the power of life and death.
Even if an emperor wanted to deal with a general who held troops, he would have to find a way to strip him of his military power first, or trick him into the capital city, and then capture him.
Qin Niu had no immediate ns to join the army; striving to grow stronger in this mountain vige was his best option for now.
¡°Xiao Qing, let¡¯s go into the mountains!¡±
He chose to take Xiao Qing with him to cultivate in the mountains.
¡°Alright!¡±
Xiao Qing, hearing that she could again cultivate under the Ancient Banyan Tree, was very happy.
After the two entered the mountains, Qin Niu still needed to cultivate termites.
So he simply told her, ¡°You go ahead and cultivate! I¡¯lleter!¡±
¡°Okay!¡±
She was clever and never meddled in her master¡¯s affairs.
Qin Niu arrived at the Ant Nest and found that arge batch of ordinary termites had sessfullypleted their evolution. In addition, as usual, another thousand new termites had be adults.
This time, he decided to first use the Thousand Eyes Tree Blood to cultivate some of the ordinary termites.
Not for any other reason but to breed as many termites as possible with limited Thousand Eyes Tree Blood that could control or attack with spiritual power.
¡°Is this thepleted evolution of Grade Two Poisonous Ants?¡±
He noticed seven glossy, pitch-ck termites, each several timesrger than the Grade Two Dark Poison Ants.
Their bodies were as long as wolves¡¯, with a slender and sharp upper jaw like scissors, and a fearsome Poison Stinger in their abdomens that was constantly expanding and contracting. It was clear that their venom sacs and the muscles of their Poison Stingers were highly developed.
¡°Tsk tsk, how painful it must be to get stung by one of these!¡±
The key was that their Poison Stingerscked barbs, allowing them to attack their enemies repeatedly and indefinitely without sacrificing themselves, unlike bees.
In addition to the Poisonous Ants¡¯ evolution beingplete, that Grade Two Elephantic Ant had also finished evolving.
Its elongated mouthparts had fully evolved into a trunk resembling that of an elephant.
It was more like the nozzle of a spray bottle.
The base of it was connected to several venom nds, and with just a bit of exertion, it could spray a pungent chemical from its lengthy trunk.
Humans might not be greatly affected by it, but other insects could drop dead after three steps or flee in panic.
Grade Three Dark Poison Ants, 7 in total, lifespan of 30.5 years, special abilities (Venom Attack, evolution of a venomous stinger and venom sac in the abdomen, venom has super strong paralyzing effect, stinger has initial armor-prating ability.)
Grade Three Chemoreceptor Soldier Ants, 1 in total, lifespan of 30.5 years, special abilities (releases strong pungent substances, extremely effective stunning effect on the vast majority of insect species. Can mimic other formidable creatures¡¯ scents and pheromones, releasing them continuously to repel or confuse enemies.)
It seemed that both these types of termites belonged to the chemical attack category.
The difference was that Dark Poison Ants required contact to attack, targeting one enemy at a time.
Their venom was intense and dominant.
Now that they possessed initial armor-prating capabilities, there would be fewer and fewer insects that could withstand their venomous stings.
Even insects and arthropods with scales or shells, such as centipedes, could be easily pierced through by their stings.
The Chemoreceptor Soldier Ants could attack without contacting the enemy and could engage multiple enemies at once.
The two types of soldiers each had their strengths.
Theyplemented each other well, filling in for each other¡¯s shorings.
Qin Niu was truly pleased after inspecting the attributes of the two new ant types.
As the Ant Queen rose to Grade Four, the offspring she produced were significantly stronger than the previously white ants.
After the initial cultivation, the special abilities they evolved were also more advantageous.
This was a naturalpetitive process.
Survival of the fittest.
The more than three thousand white ants also had their advantages, as it was rtively easier for them to progress to the next grade.
Up to now, the first batch of a thousand Grade Two and Three termites was left with only three Breeder Ants and Demon Ants yet toplete their evolution.
Qin Niu spent nearly half an hour cultivating the new termites before he hurriedly went beneath the Ancient Banyan Tree to cultivate.
The demand for Ancient Banyan Tree Blood was also bing increasingly greater.
The amount needed to cultivate a single termite was more than ten times what it used to be. And, his Ink de consumed more than half a jar of Banyan Tree Blood each day.
This increased the pressure on him to harvest blood.
The days went by neither too fast nor too slow, passing nearly five days.
Qin Niu¡¯s three Grade Two Breeder Ants hadpleted their evolution.
Mutated Milky Female Ant (Breeder Ant)
Grade: Grade Three equal-winged insect, experience required for upgrading 1000/10000
Lifespan: 120 years
Energy: 23000
Skill: Reproduction Stage One 0/10
Talent: Ability to reproduce Grade Two strong termites and Grade Two Poisonous Ants, with an extremely low probability of reproducing Grade Two Demon Ants.
Their talent abilities did not seem to have increased, quite equivalent to the Grade Two mutated milky female ants.
However, their lifespan had increased by 50 years.
This should be the biggest highlight.
Imagine that a termite Ant Queen can live for 120 years, which is twice the lifespan of an ordinary human.
Qin Niu has so far cultivated four Breeder Ants in total.
The first Grade Two female mutant milky termite would take flight to mate after a period of time.
He had been pondering a question.
Theoretically, the Contractual Talisman can only bind insects that have directly established a contract.
The Ant Queen and Queen Bee fall into a special category.
That¡¯s because the Ant Queen and Queen Bee are not individual entities. Once they breed offspring and form an ant colony or bee swarm, it bes a collective entity.
That is also why Qin Niu was able tomand the multitude of termites by only forming a contract with the Ant Queen.
It was simply because they were an entity as a whole.
Now the problem arises, once the Breeder Ant takes its nuptial flight, it will no longer belong to this ant colony.
At that point, will Qin Niu be able tomand it?
Even if he canmand it, will the termites it produces listen to Qin Niu¡¯s orders?
Even among humans, kinship usually does not extend beyond three generations.
Let alone insects.
To contract another Breeder Ant and then establish another ant colony?
There¡¯s simply no need for that.
Moreover, he didn¡¯t collect just any insect.
Only those with distinctive characteristics, and insects or beasts with decent potential, were worthy of his interest.
As his strength continued to increase, the criteria for selecting his pets became increasingly selective.
That day, after he and Xiao Qing finished cultivating in thebyrinth of the Ancient Banyan Tree, he felt somemotion in the ant colony as soon as they emerged.
Startled, he wondered if some cmity had urred.
¡°Xiao Qing, go home on your own, I need to check on the insects I¡¯ve been raising,¡± he said.
¡°Okay!¡±
Xiao Qing crisply agreed.
Her cultivation was increasing at the rate of a small realm every day, and over the span of five days, her cultivation had already risen to Tenfold in themoner¡¯s level.
Just like Qin Niu initially, she too hit a bottleneck at this stage.
For any Cultivation Technique, progressing to a major realm is an immensely difficult task.
Breaking through to major realms while practicing the Medicine King Sutra seems to be much more challenging than with ordinary techniques.
However, with her exceptional talent and the aid of the Ancient Banyan Tree, breaking through to the Acquired Realm should not be a problem.
It was just a matter of time.
At this moment, Qin Niu, with his full speed unleashed, sprinted through the mountains like a swift arrow.
Soon, he arrived at the entrance of the Ant Nest.
The ant colony was noticeably disturbed, but they did note out; it seemed more like an internalmotion.
¡°Could it be that the first Demon Ant haspleted its evolution?¡± he thought.
That seemed to be the only possibility.
At present, the ant colony¡¯s strength was so terrifying that if any other insect dared to invade the termites¡¯ir, even a Grade Six insect might end up dead within.
The current ant colony had several thousand Grade Three ants.
The longstanding special ants of Grade Two numbered close to three thousand.
Thesebined were already an immensely terrifying force.
Add to that the presence of Fourth, the War Demon Ant, and it was likely that an ordinary Grade Six insect would not be a match for them.
As for Grade Five creatures, several of the Grade Five Corpse Bee generals had been vanquished by them in the past.
They probably would have been defeated even before reaching the nest¡¯s vicinity.
¡°Come out!¡± Qin Niumanded the ant colony.
Legions of termites swiftly surged from their nest.
Luckily, their diet was varied, consisting mostly of nt leaves and roots.
Otherwise, the insects and ants in the vicinity would likely have been devoured clean.
Fourth possessed high intelligence and was now capable of ughtering the nest of ck stinking ants not far away all by itself. Yet, this nest of ck stinking ants continued to thrive.
Qin Niu secretly spected that Fourth was intentionally protecting the surrounding ecology.
The smaller hermit hides in the woods, while the greater hermit hides in the open.
If the termites acted overbearingly and devoured all surrounding beings, their presence would be immediately noticeable to anyone entering the area.
On the contrary, their current low-profile and modest behavior, preserving the surrounding original ecosystem, was a very clever strategy.
Who would have thought that beneath thisrge camphor tree, a colony of super termites was hidden?
Fourth¡¯s figure darted out of the nest with agility, followed closely by a termite that stood out significantlyrger than Fourth.
Its size was almost as thick as an adult¡¯s index finger.
Bear in mind, even theter cultivated Grade Three termites were smaller than an adult¡¯s little finger.
This shy super termite was more than twice as robust as the regr Grade Three ones.
After it emerged, it stood off against Fourth like two roosters who would not back down in a cockfight.
¡°Indeed, the first Demon Ant haspleted its evolution,¡± he confirmed.
Qin Niu checked the attributes of the ant colony and immediately noted the new changes.
Grade Four Demon Ant, one specimen, life expectancy 70 years, special abilities (Swift, Medium Intelligence, Intermediate Carapace, Primary Self-Healing, Armor Pration, Venom Attack, abdomen evolved to have a Poison Stinger and Venom Sac, the venom has strong paralysis and soul-corroding toxicity, the Poison Stinger has armor-prating capability. Demonization+, during demonization state, speed increases fourfold, attack power sixfold, and defense threefold.)
No wonder it dared to challenge Fourth.
In various aspects, its strength had indeed increased significantly.
And its level had also reached Grade Four, the same as Fourth¡¯s.
Chapter 213 - 208: Grade Four Demon Ant VS War Demon Ant_1
Chapter 213: Chapter 208: Grade Four Demon Ant VS War Demon Ant_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
One mountain cannot contain two tigers.
Both sides were rare species among the termites, belonging to the cream of the crop.
Neither would easily submit to the other.
Qin Niu watched the two Demon Ants face off against each other like an emperor observing two of his great generals in a dispute.
If it were the art of bncing power in the eyes of an emperor, this would be a good thing.
If there were no treacherous officials in the court, only loyal ones, the emperor¡¯s throne would no longer be secure.
But the current situation was different!
He was their master, and the termites had no conflicts over power or profit.
Pets generally have a simple mind; they pursue survival and growth.
They didn¡¯t care much for power.
Every termite in the colony was equal.
The weak submitted to the strong and followed themands of the strong, such were their social rules.
¡°If you must fight, then fight! No need for a fight to the death, just determine the winner.¡±
Qin Niu was very clear that if he didn¡¯t let them have this fight, they would never listen to each other in the future.
This was not conducive to the unity of the ant colony.
Fourth seemed to have been restraining himself all along, just waiting for Qin Niu¡¯s word.
With his master¡¯smand, he went straight into his demonization state and then lunged at his opponent.
The Grade Four Demon Ant, although very powerful, was not a match for Fourth in terms ofbat experience or the burst of power after demonization. Moreover, it was significantly weaker in terms of momentum as well.
As soon as the battle started, Fourth nearly had the upper hand.
Biting its neck, he lifted it face-up. It wildly twisted its abdomen trying to attack Fourth with its poison sting, but it couldn¡¯t reach at all.
And given Fourth¡¯s defensive power, it probably wouldn¡¯t have been able to prate Fourth¡¯s defenses.
Its six legs iled in the air, powerless.
This was Fourth still holding back.
Otherwise, its neck would have already been bitten off.
After demonization, Fourth¡¯s attack power increased tenfold, absolutely terrifying to the extreme.
¡°Do you submit?¡±
Qin Niu inquired of the Grade Four Demon Ant.
Despite the simrity in name between a Demon Ant and a War Demon Ant, there was a huge difference in strength between the two.
¡°No, I don¡¯t.¡±
It had been held high by Fourth before even beginning to fight, rendering it unable to disy its abilities, and it utterly refused to ept this.
¡°Fourth, put it down and fight again.¡±
Fourth immediately put it down.
The Grade Four Demon Ant was very cunning, twisting its rear and attempting to sting Fourth with its poison sting right away.
This time, Fourth didn¡¯t show any courtesy.
He dodged agilely and bit at the Grade Four Demon Ant¡¯s antennae.
Crack!
The antennae of the Grade Four Demon Ant were bitten off but notpletely severed.
This was Fourth showing mercy.
After biting off the Grade Four Demon Ant¡¯s antennae, he bit one of its legs, just as decisively breaking it.
That wasn¡¯t all, he mounted the Grade Four Demon Ant again, bit its neck, flipped it over his shoulder, and then raised it high above his head.
¡°I submit, I submit!¡±
The Grade Four Demon Ant acknowledged its inferiority and hurriedly submitted.
No matter how unruly it was, it already knew it was no match for Fourth.
If Fourth had not shown mercy, it would have ended up a one-horned ant.
And additionally with a leg broken off.
¡°Healing Ant, heal it.¡±
Qin Niu ordered the Healing Ant to treat the Grade Four Demon Ant¡¯s injuries.
Themotion in the ant colony settled down as the battle ended, and calm was restored.
The Grade Four Demon Ant had a strong self-healing ability, and now with the Healing Ant¡¯s treatment, it recovered even faster.
It healed back to its original state almost visibly to the naked eye.
Sometimes, not only insects but also humans act the same way.
When two people¡¯s cultivation levels are nearly equal, neither will concede to the other. Only through a fight can one know who is stronger and who is weaker.
After this battle, Fourth¡¯s position as the king of the ant colony remained unshaken by any termite.
Even the Grade Four Demon Ants were subdued by him, and other termites challenging him would essentially be delivering themselves to defeat.
¡°The strength of the War Demon Ant is so formidable, it would be great if the Ant Queen could produce one or two more,¡±
Just now, Fourth hadn¡¯t used his Spirit Control ability, otherwise, the battle might have ended even quicker.
Although the Grade Four Demon Ant¡¯sbat power was less than Fourth¡¯s, it was still very formidable.
Qin Niu was not stingy, he took a small amount of the limited remaining Thousand Eyes Tree Blood to nurture this Demon Ant sufficiently.
To grant it a Spirit Control ability as well.
Merely after one day, this Demon Ant hadpleted its second evolution.
Regrettably, it hadn¡¯t broken through to Grade Five.
It feels like the higher the level of the creatures, whether humans or insects, the more difficult it bes to advance.
This Demon Ant seemed to have reached the pinnacle of Grade Four, and with the right opportunity, it could make a breakthrough and sessfully advance to Grade Five.
As the ant colony continued to expand, Qin Niu now faced the issue of a shortage of Thousand Eyes Tree Blood.
Despite thinking of many solutions, it still required time to wait.
The Thousand Eyes Trees he had nted, even with a rapid growth rate, had their limitations.
This forced him to scale back on cultivating the group.
Only the most excellent batch of termites could receive a second round of nurturing.
It had been some time since he fed the bodies of Corpse Bees to the Ant Queen, and the three generals¡¯ bodies were already consumed.
Yet, the Ant Queen still hadn¡¯t evolved any new special abilities.
Qin Niu had begun using the Corpse Bee Queen, extracted from Old Master Huang¡¯s back, to feed the Ant Queen, hoping it would help her evolve special abilities.
He felt it might be because the Ant Queen¡¯s current level was high, so the difficulty of evolving special abilities had also increased significantly.
In the past few days, despite the rumors of Insect Masters being harmed persisting outside, Qin Niu, apanied by Xiao Qing, continued their routine cultivation each day without running into any danger.
The small mountain vige of Shuangfeng Vige remained peaceful and harmonious.
After finishing his cultivation in the mountains, Qin Niu would return home as usual.
As he passed by Xie Laizi¡¯s house, he keenly sensed something amiss.
Xie Laizi had been dead for some time, and because his house was originally very dpidated and located at the foot of the mountain, it was considered a very unfavorable spot.
His house had been left vacant ever since.
Nobody dared to move in.
Qin Niu, now at the Innate Realm, had exceptionally acute hearing.
He could clearly hear a strange noiseing from inside the house just now.
It definitely wasn¡¯t a noise a rat could make.
The front door wasn¡¯t locked, but it was closed.
Qin Niu wondered to himself, could it be that a wild beast from the mountains had entered the house through the back window?
After hesitating for a moment, he ultimately decided not to investigate.
Instead, he continued forward with Xiao Qing.
He hadn¡¯t walked far when he sensed danger. He couldn¡¯t exin it but felt extremely threatened; even the hairs on the back of his neck stood up.
It was nearing dusk, and the sky had darkened.
He was suddenly rmed, wondering if a monstrous beast had infiltrated Xie Laizi¡¯s house?
¡°Xiao Qing, I¡¯ll hold your hand as we walk,¡±
Concerned for Xiao Qing¡¯s safety, Qin Niu quickly took her small hand in his.
¡°Master, my scalp feels a bit tingly. There might be danger,¡±
she whispered softly.
¡°Mm, let¡¯s just keep moving forward. If it¡¯s targeting me, it will definitely reveal itself,¡±
Qin Niu had secretly ordered some Poisonous Ants to silently leap into the roadside bushes without making a sound.
Just then, a ck snake with a crested head suddenly sprang out from in front of them, aiming for his ankle.
He was wearing the armor of the Pig King, which the small snake would probably have difficulty piercing through.
However, out of caution, he acted.
First, he pulled Xiao Qing back, and at the same time, his right hand drew the Ink de with lightning speed and shed towards the ck snake.
Chapter 214 - 209 A decent harvest_1
Chapter 214: Chapter 209 A decent harvest_1
Trantor: 549690339 |
Snakes with crowns or horns on their heads are mostly highly venomous and often belong to exotic species.
When Qin Niu swung his de, he executed a sh Martial Skill.
However, he deliberately held back and did not fully reveal his strength at the Innate Realm.
The small snake appeared to be only as thick as a finger and half a foot long, but it was extremely agile. Faced with Qin Niu¡¯s sh, it twisted its body and deftly dodged the blow.
Qin Niu was unconcerned about this.
He had heard a noise from Xie Laizi¡¯s room just now, and now this odd little snake had emerged to attack him, suggesting that there was likely someone hiding in the room.
Moreover, it was highly probable that this person was here to kill him.
Insect Masters had been falling victim to assassinationstely, and it was very likely that Qin Niu was being targeted.
Why would the Nine Insect Gang, which specializes in insect control, go to such lengths to kill an Insect Master from the ck Tiger Gang?
This action was quite puzzling.
If it was merely to render the locust gue uncontroble, they should have targeted the Insect Masters before the gue began, not wait until now.
Watching the ck little snake that had dodged his sh now lunging to bite again, Qin Niu decided to test out the strength of the Termite.
Since the enemy in the room had not yet shown themselves, it was best to avoid exposing his own cultivation level and strength as much as possible.
Then, at the critical moment, he would y his trump cards one after another and kill the enemy with the force of thunder.
A lion must use all its strength even when hunting a rabbit.
This way, he could ensure to the greatest extent that he wouldn¡¯t capsize the boat.
¡°Fourth, lead the ant swarm to attack this small snake.¡±
In recent days, Qin Niu had been maintaining a rxed exterior while remaining vignt on the inside.
It seemed as if he was going about his usual business every day, but in fact, he always carried arge number of white ants on his body.
When going out, the Golden Toad would certainly be carried in a basket.
The grade of this small snake could not be determined.
So, he could only let the white ants give it a try.
As the ant swarmunched a Mental Attack, the little snake¡¯s attack speed significantly slowed down.
It moved on the ground as if it were drunk.
Seeing such an opportunity, Qin Niu naturally did not let it slip away. With a swift motion of his hand and drop of his de, he shed at the snake¡¯s body.
Surprisingly, a metallic ng sounded.
What formidable defensive strength.
¡°Die!¡±
Qin Niu utilized a trace of his strength to empower the Ink de, and terrifying de Qi instantly broke through the little snake¡¯s tough scales and severed it in two.
Even beheaded, the creature still seemed extremely fierce.
Its snake head sprang up trying to bite.
It was blocked by Qin Niu¡¯s King Pig Leather Armor.
He didn¡¯t know any defensive de techniques and could only perform the two most basic martial skills, the sh and the Sweeping Strike.
Following the beheading of the little snake, a muffled groan came from Xie Laizi¡¯s room.
Immediately afterward, a figure shot out from inside.
A towering murderous aura solidified as if tangible.
The person who emerged was a middle-aged man with a hooked nose and fierce, triangr eyes filled with violence and resentment, his face twisted to the point of ferocity.
¡°You deserve to die! Killing my Crow-Crowned Bow Snake, our grudge is irreconcble. Even if I grind your bones to dust and scatter them, it still wouldn¡¯t quell the hatred in my heart.¡±
The man held a slim narrow sword, and his movement technique was quite simr to that of the deceased Old Master Huang, indicating that they both practiced the same type of Step-Method Martial Skill. This man¡¯s identity was also basically confirmed as a member of the Nine Insect Gang.
Isn¡¯t the Nine Insect Gang supposed to specialize in rearing insects?
Why does everyone seem to like taming beasts?
The most powerful pet of Old Master Huang turned out to be the Red-eyed Golden Toad, not the Corpse Bee Queen. Although he never managed to tame the Golden Toad, he essentially achieved the effect of having it as a pet by controlling it through insects.
This man¡¯s pet was the little snake that had been killed.
It was called the Crow-Crowned Bow Snake.
Seeing the man¡¯s fierce expression, as if his parents had been killed and his wife vited, Qin Niu secretly guessed that killing that little snake had already dealt a certain blow to the man¡¯s spirit.
Looking at his speed and momentum, it was clear that his cultivation level was not as high as Old Master Huang¡¯s.
At most, it was around the sixth or seventh level of the Houtian stage, far from the Innate Realm.
¡°Xiao Qing, get out of here first.¡±
Qin Niu signaled to Xiao Qing and then ¡®desperately¡¯ ran towards the direction of the mountains.
¡°With that speed, you think you can escape? Leave your life behind.¡±
From the moment the small snake was killed, the middle-aged man had lost his sanity, his heart filled with hatred.
His judgment and observation were not as good as usual.
Hepletely failed to realize that Qin Niu was deliberately luring him to fight to the death.
The most formidable thing about an Insect Master should not be their cultivation level or martial skills, but the insects they raise.
At this moment, the middle-aged man made a fatal mistake, actually thinking of engaging Qin Niu in hand-to-handbat.
Merely three or four breaths of time passed before he caught up with Qin Niu using his superior movement technique.
His heart swelled with even greater pride.
The enemy was right in front of him; naturally, the best thing to do was to kill him and then rejoice.
His hand-sword turned into specks of cold stars, enveloping several vital points of Qin Niu¡¯s body.
¡°sh!¡±
At this critical moment, Qin Niu did not hesitate at all, swinging his Ink de directly at the middle-aged man who blocked his path.
He no longer concealed his cultivation level.
With full strength activated, the de of the Ink de showed a solid looking de Qi, three to four inches long.
This was his true power.
Bang!
Their swords shed, and the opponent¡¯s narrow sword broke into several pieces.
Qin Niu¡¯s Ink de, undiminished in momentum, struck fiercely and quickly on the top of the middle-aged man¡¯s head.
It split him straight to the bottom.
Directly cleaving the man in two.
His death was no different from Old Master Huang¡¯s.
¡°To think such a trashy cultivation level could attempt to kill an Innate Realm expert wearing a King Pig Leather Armor? What a joke.¡±
Qin Niu dispatched his enemy with a single blow.
Concerned that allies of the enemies might still be hidden inside the house, he had already sent several termites to scout it out.
Meanwhile, he was quickly looting the spoils of battle and dealing with the bodies.
His movements were actually quite adept.
Do this a few times, and you naturally get used to it.
The corpse d in the ck-crowned bow outfit was a treasure; feeding it to the Ant Queen should help her progress significantly.
Because when he had the antsunch a mental attack on the small snake earlier, it was somewhat effective, but they were unable to control it.
This suggested that its level might have reached Grade Six.
Moreover, its scales were as hard as steel, and the pure force of the Ink de had almost failed to kill it.
This indicated that its defense was incredibly abnormal.
Therefore, Qin Niu estimated that its level should be Grade Six.
Packing the snake¡¯s corpse into a jar, he began searching the bodies.
He found a gold note of a hundred taels and about six or seven silver notes of varying denominations.
The smallest was a silver note of fifty taels each.
Added up, the total was precisely nine hundred and fifty taels.
A gold note of a hundred taels could be exchanged for a thousand Silver Money.
The wealth of this man didn¡¯t even amount to two thousand taels.
¡°Poor devil!¡±
Qin Niu pocketed the man¡¯s entire possessions and still had to curse him.
In addition, he found a Nine Insect Command.
Inner disciple: Wu Hao.
So he was just an inner disciple; no wonder his cultivation level wasn¡¯t as good as Old Master Huang¡¯s, and his worth was even worse.
This was the second member of the Nine Insect Gang that Qin Niu had killed.
Beyond that, he found three insect pouches and a bamboo tube on the man.
The insects inside were all dead.
One of the pouches contained two Green-footed Centipedes, onerge and one small.
Therger one was nearly half a foot long, its shell was hard, and even though it was dead, its fangs looked frightening.
He felt that these two centipedes might be a mother and child.
Therger one was at least a Grade Five insect.
The smaller one was much weaker, around a Grade Three.
The second pouch contained a grey moth. He couldn¡¯t identify the specific species but could roughly estimate that its level was around Grade Four. He felt that the scale powder on its body was poisonous.
The third pouch contained a scorpion.
It had an unusual pair of eyes on the shell on its back. This was a Four-eyed Poison Scorpion, a verymon species.
It could often be found for sale in the Insect Market, where one could buy one for five pieces of silver.
But raising it to this size was no easy feat.
When he opened the bamboo tube, the corpse of a ck Venomous Spider rolled out.
Its abdomen looked like a human face.
This spider was a Human-faced Spider, a variant of the ck Widow.
Its venom was extremely domineering; not only did it possess a venom that could paralyze an enemy, it also had another type of venom that could directly dissolve and digest an enemy¡¯s body.
Moreover, its silk was tough, light, and colorless.
People who bought it at a high price would use its silk to make threads sharper than a de. By setting them up in the woods or at home, enemies who trespassed would easily be sliced into pieces.
Aside from territories controlled by the Nine Insect Gang, many government offices had issued notices prohibiting the use of Human-faced Spider silk to make lethal weapons.
The risk it posed was simply too great.
People often set it up in the mountains, and whether it was wild animals, woodcutters going up the mountain, or Hunters, they could easily be decapitated.
But with market demand, official announcements do little.
The more it was forbidden, the more people secretly bought and raised them.
Specifically to harvest the silk.
A qian of silk could sell for ten taels of silver. With such profits, naturally, some people will take the risk.
The dead Human-faced Spider was almost as big as a child¡¯s fist, its belly round, and its silk-spinning end was extremely developed. It must have been that the disciple named Wu Hao was raising it specifically to sell the silk.
He also unexpectedly found a Sword Technique Manual on the man.
Named the Seven-Star Sword Technique, with one strike, points of cold starlight would aim for the enemy¡¯s vitals.
The highest realm of the Seven-Star Sword Technique was rumored to be where a single stab transformed into seven points of cold starlight, covering the enemy¡¯s vital spots with the constetion of the Big Dipper, leaving no room for evasion.
This sword technique was also for sale in the Supreme Sea.
Qin Niu hadn¡¯t paid attention to its price at the time, just nced over it.
Since it was ced at the very top, it certainly wouldn¡¯t be cheap.
It must be at least five hundred taels of silver or more.
¡°Xiao Qing, this Sword Technique Manual is for your cultivation. Once you¡¯ve mastered it, give it back to me.¡±
Qin Niu had always been extremely good to the people around him.
Xiao Qing had just witnessed her master skillfully kill a powerful enemy with one strike, her heart full of horror. She still looked like she hadn¡¯t quite recovered.
¡°Take it, what are you thinking about?¡±
Qin Niu turned his head to look at her.
¡°Oh, oh, yes, thank you, master!¡±
Xiao Qing took over the Seven-Star Sword Technique Manual, still looking a bit dazed.
¡°I need to deal with the bodies; you go home and wait for me.¡±
After ensuring there were no other enemies nearby, Qin Niu told her to go home first.
¡°Remember, don¡¯t talk about what happened here to anyone.¡±
¡°Understood!¡±
She naturally understood the serious implications.
Qin Niu carried the bodies and threw them directly into the maze of the Ancient Banyan Tree, and aftering back, he cleaned up the scene once again.
The Nine Insect Gang didn¡¯t know how many people they had infiltrated into the territory of the ck Tiger Gang.
The death of the disciple called Wu Hao would definitely prompt an investigation by the Nine Insect Gang.
Fortunately, the Nine Insect Gang, being the guilty party, couldn¡¯t investigate openly.
As long as he was careful and cautious, he shouldn¡¯t have any major problems.
Chapter 215 - 210: The Strong Enters the Village l
Chapter 215: Chapter 210: The Strong Enters the Vige l
Trantor: 549690339 |
This battle had yielded many insect corpses, including the body of a Grade Six ck Crowned Bow Coat, as well as a Sword Technique Manual and nearly two thousand taels of Silver Money, a bountiful harvest indeed.
Two thousand taels of Silver Money would take him a long time to earn with his abilities.
¡°Unexpected wealth does not make one rich.¡±
This kind of fortune from the deceased came without much effort.
When Qin Niu returned home, Xiao Qing was already preparing dinner.
There were no signs that anyone had broken into the house.
¡°It¡¯s also time to retrieve the treasure of the Green Demon.¡±
Lately, crises abounded, and Qin Niu pondered inwardly.
He urgently needed to possess an incredibly powerful insect to ensure his own safety.
The number of Termites had surged dramatically after some time of cultivation.
The quantity of Grade Three ants was estimated to soon exceed ten thousand.
However, theter cultivated Termites, due to the limited supply of Thousand Eyes Tree Blood, could no longer be mass-produced with mental attack abilities like the Puppet Ants or Ghost Ants as before.
Taking seven to eight thousand Termites with him should pose no problem.
The number of bees was also increasing.
This included both the War Bees and the honey-making bees whose numbers had also grown substantially.
He nned to bring a few War Bees with him when the time came.
As for the ordinary Grade Two Green Ring Worker Bees, a small number would suffice. They had weakerbat capabilities, and against stronger bee species, bringing them would be like serving up an easy meal.
At night, he was practicing the Evesting Spring Technique in the backyard.
Each herb was growing cheerfully, the veins on the leaves of the Dogtail Grass turning a deep purple.
Yet it had not bloomed.
Qin Niu thought to himself, even if a Dogtail Grass benefits from some fate, it¡¯s still just a Dogtail Grass.
It couldn¡¯t possibly turn into Spiritual Medicine or an Immortal Herb, could it?
As long as it didn¡¯t wither, Qin Niu nned to continue nurturing it.
If there ever came a day when it underwent metamorphosis and breakthrough, that would be its own good fortune.
Deep in the night, he heard the sound of hooves on the road outside.
Listening carefully, it was very different from the sound of ordinary hooves.
The noise outside was much lighter, and the speed was extremely fast.
In the blink of an eye, it was gone.
Even a ck steed at full gallop probably couldn¡¯t match that speed. And he had heard the sound of a ck steed¡¯s hooves before¡ªit was very heavy.
When it hit the ground, it was like the beating of war drums.
A thought flickered in Qin Niu¡¯s mind¡ªit was either a formidable wild beast that hade down from the mountains in search of food in the vige, or a master had entered the vige.
Formidable wild beasts from the mountains usually had a sense of spirit and would not easily enter human viges.
So as to avoid bringing disaster upon themselves.
It was likely that some powerhouse had ridden a high-grade mount into the vige.
If it were an expert from the ck Tiger Gang, there would be no problem.
But if it were a master from the Nine Insect Gang investigating the murder of Wu Hao, that could be dangerous.
Qin Niu sat in the backyard, not daring to move.
The wisest course of action at this moment was to lower his presence and not attract attention.
He did not rashly run to the front yard or the roof to check.
Instead, after the sound of the hooves had faded, he immediately went back into the house and took the Ink de that had been soaked in Banyan Tree Blood.
He put on the King Pig Leather Armor and was ready to flee with Xiao Qing or confront a strong enemy at any moment.
Though his number of Termites was not small, and they were strong inbat, they were currently only suited for fighting against other insects. They had virtually no advantage against human opponents.
Unless used to deal with amon person like Xie Laizi.
But such an enemy could be killed by Qin Niu with a flick of his finger. Did he need the Termites to step in?
This was why he was so eager to obtain the treasure of the Green Demon.
Because the war records created by the Green Demon Bee were extremely impressive.
It had killed off the head of the Seven-Star Sect and, with its own strength, single-handedly challenged the entire sect, ultimately forcing the Seven-Star Sect to ask the Immortal Sect to intervene and y it. This showed just how strong the Green Demon Bee was.
Why do many Insect Masters like to raise poisonous insects?
Centipedes, spiders, scorpions, and the like.
Because poisonous insects are more practical, they can pose a lethal threat to enemies duringbat.
Qin Niu¡¯s termites had also evolved into two species of poisonous ants.
However, due to the short evolution time, their toxicity and abilities were very limited.
Moreover, termites are better at defense rather than attack.
Normally, ordinary termites would seal off their ant nest, either inside a tree or underground.
Only when arge number of breeder ants were ready for their nuptial flight would they dig an exit and emerge from the nest.
After he took the Ink de and put on the King Pig Leather Armor, he felt a bit more at ease.
He sat quietly in the house, waiting.
The sound of hooves outside had already be distant, heading towards the mountains.
It could almost certainly be concluded that the expert outside was without doubt a strong member of the Nine Insect Gang.
It was very likely they hade to investigate upon discovering Wu Hao¡¯s unexined absence.
The fact that the person could head straight in the direction of the mountain indicated they knew the location Wu Hao had been in.
If it wasn¡¯t a prearranged signal, then it was quite terrifying.
It was very possible they had special pets or insects that could track by scent.
Some insects¡¯ sense of smell is much stronger than that of hunting dogs.
After returning home, Qin Niu took a bath and changed his clothes. It was unknown whether the enemy could still track him.
He felt somewhat nervous inside.
All he could do now was to wait patiently.
Running away was unnecessary and would not make much difference.
On the contrary, it could lead to a direct encounter with the enemy.
As time passed bit by bit, Qin Niu¡¯s heart remained in suspense.
Because he had yet to hear the sound of hooves passing by the door.
The terrain of Shuangfeng Vige was rtively enclosed, with only one road for entering and exiting the vige.
The person had been inside for a considerable time withouting out, which made Qin Niu grow increasingly restless.
He hoped the nest of termites he kept in the mountains wouldn¡¯t be discovered by anyone.
Otherwise, they would surely destroy his entire colony and the termites with it.
Fortunately, the Ant Queen possessed moderate intelligence, and the termites were naturally good at hiding.
They wouldn¡¯t easily emerge from their nest.
Especially now that their strength had increased, they had be even more low-key.
The chances of being discovered by that person should not be high.
But he still needed to be cautious.
Qin Niu had long been considering buying that mountain area and turning it into his private territory. The time was not yet ripe, and he needed to patiently wait for a suitable opportunity.
If he suddenly spent arge sum of silver money to buynd and mountains, he would certainly attract attention.
His n was to wait for the situation with the Nine Insect Gang to calm down before seizing the moment to buy thend and mountains.
The current price for buying mountainnds was also quite expensive.
The locust gue had been going on for so long, and its negative impacts were bing evident little by little. As grain prices rose,nd prices were expected to fall.
Moreover, the locust gue hadn¡¯t stopped yet.
With everyone in a state of panic, whetherndlord or tenant, the enthusiasm for farming was very low.
Seeds, fertilizers,bor¡ªall required money.
If you nted crops only for locusts to consume them, the loss would be tangible and actual.
Therefore, it wouldn¡¯t be long before there would bend being sold off.
Once it turned into a trend,nd prices would instantly plummet.
The market has always been like this.
When food is scarce, people hold back on selling, driving up the grain prices even further.
With the risk of farming too high and not even being able to recover the cost, people sell off theirnd, and soon there is a rush as everyone fears suffering losses by selling toote.
It¡¯s better to sell early for a decent price, hold on to the money, wait fornd prices to bottom out, then buy back in and naturally make a good profit.
It¡¯s actually quite simr to the logic of buying stocks in modern times.
Chapter 216 - 211: Water Controli
Chapter 216: Chapter 211: Water Controli
Trantor: 549690339 I
After killing two experts from the Nine Insect Gang, his pouch swiftly swelled up with loot.
Old Master Huang contributed over thirteen thousand taels, and this inner disciple named Wu Hao contributed 1950 taels, adding up to fifteen thousand taels. Coupled with the seventeen hundred taels he earned from treating that medicinal herb for the Fang Family, his fortune was rapidly approaching twenty thousand taels.
Though there were some expenses afterward, he still had over sixteen thousand five hundred taels remaining.
He felt like every member of the Nine Insect Gang was plump with wealth.
He didn¡¯t consider that to be an inner disciple or an Executor, one would already be superior among men; how could their wealth be meager?
At that moment, he was eagerly waiting for the sound of hooves to emerge once more.
Approaching the third watch of the night, suddenmotion arose from the front courtyard.
The sound of flowing water was loud and clear.
Startled, Qin Niu hurried out to investigate.
It turned out to be amotion caused by the Diamond Ink Turtle in the fishpond.
Having consumed an elixir, it was probably at the critical moment of advancing in grade, or it might have alreadypleted its advancement.
This was indeed a bit rming.
This timid turtle, neither advancing earlier norter, chose precisely this moment to do so.
If it were to attract the attention of that formidable Nine Insect Gang member, that would be a big problem.
In fact, the majority of insects and beasts tend to advance at night.
It likely has to do with their habits.
Qin Niu quickly made his way over, gazing toward the Diamond Ink Turtle in the pond.
The water churned as it submerged near the bottom of the pond.
¡°I¡¯ll take you to the backyard!¡±
He directly scooped the Diamond Ink Turtle out from the bottom of the water.
Its size had grown to that of a sea bowl, no longer a little turtle but having transformed into arge ck turtle.
He could feel the surging energy within it, violently fluctuating.
Taking it to the backyard, Qin Niu, to avoid catching the attention of the powerful individual, directly threw the little turtle into the water well.
Then, he covered the well with its lid,
Leaving it to struggle on its own.
He could still hear the well water churning, making loud noises.
About an hourter, the noise gradually subsided. Qin Niu also heaved a sigh of relief.
Although he now possessed the cultivation of the Innate Realm and could basically y most experts with a single sh, he still did not dare to be careless.
If he were to encounter a ruthless character, his end coulde in a matter of minutes.
With his prudence and caution, he would only act if he was certain he could defeat the adversary with ease.
Otherwise, he would continue lurking, slowly increasing his strength.
He surmised the Diamond Ink Turtle¡¯s advancement was nearlyplete.
Qin Niu checked its attributes.
Male Diamond Ink Turtle
Grade: Five-Level Turtle Testudines Longevity, upgrade experience 100000/1000000
Lifespan: 857 years.
Energy: 1100002
Skills: Swimming Second Order 71/100, Hibernation First Order 0/10, Qi Wave Defense First Order 0.01/10, Water Control First Order 0.34/10
Talent: Timid, Defense, Water Command
He hadn¡¯t expected it to advance two grades.
Beast Cores were wonderful things.
Merely one of the two secondary cores produced during the main core refinement process was enough to propel a beast pet from Grade Three directly to Grade Five.
Although Qin Niu already owned a Grade Seven Golden Toad, this little ck turtle was something he had raised by hand from a youngling.
He felt that a single secondary core shouldn¡¯t have had such a significant effect.
It was likely due to the continuous feeding of the Pig King¡¯s meat to the little ck turtle, which quickly boosted its strength, nearing Grade Four already.
Then, with the aid of the elixir, it broke through Grade Four with strong momentum and ultimately managed, arduously, to advance another grade.
A Fourth Grade Beast Pet was now considered a respectable force to reckon with.
Theoretically, the strength of a Fifth Grade Beast Pet should be greater than that of a Fifth Grade insect pet.
Insects inherently have a disadvantage in size.
Thus, the universally epted rule of thumb is that insects are considered one grade lower than beast pets.
That is to say, a Fifth Grade insect could only match the strength of a Fourth Grade Beast Pet.
There is a condition involved, of course¡ªthe two must not have mutual restraints.
For example, pangolins and anteaters are the natural predators of ants and termites. Even a Fifth Grade Termite facing off against a Grade Three anteater would most likely be forced to flee in a panic.
The same natural suppression exists between cats and mice, eagles and rabbits.
Some believe this is a suppression caused by inherent bloodline grades.
The strengthparison between pets is often not determined solely by grade.
It hingesrgely on theirbat experience, skills, talent, and whether they happen to suppress their opponent in terms of abilities.
Even a feeble mosquito can drive a mighty lion to an enraged impotence.
This time, aside from having advanced two grades, the lifespan of the Diamond Ink Turtle also increased by two hundred years.
It made him, the owner, envious to the point of tears.
Qin Niu had struggled hard and cultivated to his current state, and even after breaking through to the Innate Realm, his lifespan still had not exceeded two hundred years.
Turtles are seen as symbols of longevity and inherently hold an advantage in terms of lifespan.
It had also gained an additional talent and skill.
The new talent was Water Command.
The skill was a new one, Water Control.
Turtles, being amphibians, spend more time in water than onnd. Qin Niu was not surprised that it had developed a Water Control skill.
It was just a shame its size was still quite small; otherwise, in the future, carrying it with him would be like having a high-level life preserver, no longer needing to worry about drowning.
Moreover, as it continued to evolve and its Water Control skill improved, he believed it wouldn¡¯t just be for frolicking in the water.
Potent aquatic monsters, even if only a fish or shrimp, could be invincible beings within their watery domain.
The beast pet had grown stronger, and Qin Niu, as its master, naturally felt ted.
However, the absence of horse hoof sounds outside made his nerves remain taut.
That person riding a horse into the vige could not have avoided leaving eventually.
As long as they left the vige, they would inevitably pass by the road in front of the door.
The continued silence of horse hooves indicated that person had not left the vige since entering.
Had they infiltrated to lie low in one of the vigers¡¯ homes, or had they entered the mountains to lie in wait, hoping Qjn Niu would walk into their trap?
Or had they followed the scent of Wu Hao¡¯s corpse and identally wandered into the maze of the Ancient Banyan Tree?
If it were thest case, Qin Niu would have cause to celebrate.
As the night gradually faded and the sky showed a glimmer of dawn, the stranger still had not emerged from the vige.
This couldn¡¯t help but keep Qin Niu on edge.
He made up his mind that if the person had not left soon, he would report the matter directly to Chairman Li of the Insect Master Association.
If the enemy proved too powerful, he still had one more card to y.
The Fang Family had promised to help in times of trouble at a moment¡¯s notice.
And since the Fang Family needed Qin Niu to cure that high-grade herb, they wouldn¡¯t just watch him be killed. As long as he asked for help, the Fang Family would likely get involved.
At dawn, Qin Niu watched as the sky brightened, but the mysterious person who had entered the vige still hadn¡¯t left.
He decided to investigate discreetly first.
Even if he wanted to report to Chairman Li, he needed to get a clear grasp of the situation first.
Last night he had only heard faint hoof sounds and couldn¡¯t even be sure what kind of animal had made them, let alone confirm that someone was riding it. How could he report that?
Rashly heading into the mountains or running to Xie Laizi¡¯s house to snoop around would be a death wish.
This needed to be handled without undue haste, finding a way to subtly gather information.
After eating breakfast, he showed no intention of leaving the house.
Xiao Qing had cultivated up to the tenth level of mortals and was urgently wishing to advance to the Acquired Realm soon.
¡°Master, aren¡¯t we going up the mountain to cultivate today?¡±
¡°No hurry. These next two days, you should meditate on the Seven-Star Sword Technique at home and cultivate in seated meditation. Don¡¯t go out,¡± Qin Niu instructed her.
¡°Alright!¡±
She clearly seemed reluctant but dared not defy Qin Niu¡¯s orders.
Qin Niu shouldered a hoe and a basket and stepped out.
The field of sorghum had been harvested and was lying fallow.
Because of the constant pest troubles, nting anything amounted to nothing.
The food supplies he had stored were enough to feed himself and Xiao Qing for an entire year. Moreover, he now had plenty of Silver Money and could buy more food.
Now, pretending to be a farmer and working in the field would serve as a cover.
It would at least not likely draw that person¡¯s attention.
Once outside, he discretely observed the tracks on the road.
Regrettably, until now, he had only mastered Insect Trace Identification. He had acquired very few skills in the realm of beast control.
Despite being a high-level Beast Tamer, that was only because he had sessfully subdued the Red-Eyed Golden Watcher, which allowed him to advance.
Having a high rank was meaningless without the corresponding skills in controlling beasts.
There were some traces left by livestock on the ground, but he couldn¡¯t discern anything from them.
After an inconclusive secret check, Qin Niu headed straight for his own thin acre of farnd.
In just over a month, various weeds had overgrown the field.
He released the Termite.
¡°Fourth, eating nts is your innate instinct, lead the Worker Ants to help weed. The Soldier Ants will take care of defense,¡± he said.
When he first started raising Termites, his ambitions had been quite modest.
He had only aimed to be a low-level Insect Master.
Given that Termites primarily fed on nts¡ªwild grass, leaves, tree trunks, roots¡ªthey were all fair game and easy to keep fed.
Once their numbers increased, they could help him weed the crops.
After all, the thing that grew fastest on this thin acre was the weeds, not so much the crops.
Weeding had always been the most troublesome task for him.
If the Termites could help eliminate those hard-to-deal-with weeds, it would give him much relief.
Now, the Termites he raised had be very powerful.
If they were simply tasked with weeding, it would indeed be a waste of their abilities.
In reality, he was not that foolish.
Apanying the Termites in the mountains, he could easily catch some rare insects that could be sold for a couple hundred Wen Money or even fetch a high price of a few Silver Coins.
How much could farming bring in a year?
Land like this could count itself lucky to yield five hundred Wen Money.
In a year of heavy taxation and poor harvest, there might even be a loss.
The Termites no longer needed to fear predators like frogs, spiders, snakes in the fields.
They could even easily kill these predators.
Qin Niu released them into the field and let them be.
He busied himself with hoeing, weeding, and turning the soil.
Digging down, all he found were stones.
That¡¯s the nature of thin soil¡ªbarely arable and extremely poor in quality.
He turned over the earth, nning to nt wheat in the second half of the year.
Previously, farming was for survival, but now he was purely enhancing his nting skills toy the foundation for future high-grade nt cultivation.
¡°Master Qin, you¡¯re still farming by yourself even though you¡¯ve be an Insect Master?¡±
Xu Zhenchang passed by carrying a pole and noticed Qin Niu working in the field, he specifically came over to greet him.
Chapter 217 - 212 Disaster Arises, Insect Master Thrives_1
Chapter 217: Chapter 212 Disaster Arises, Insect Master Thrives_1
Trantor: 549690339
¡°You, vige chief, workharder than anyone else! You rented eighty mu ofnd from the Yan Family, didn¡¯t you?¡±
¡°Heh heh, how can Ipare to you! I¡¯ve got a whole family with mouths waiting to be fed; if I don¡¯t work for a day, I start getting anxious. You¡¯re different, with your iron rice bowl, drawing a government sry every month.¡±
Although Xu Zhenchang seemed to be ying the sympathy card somewhat intentionally, what he said was also logical.
A farmer¡¯s economic ie relies entirely on working thend; without work,
where would the moneye from?
Insect Masters are a different story entirely.
Even a low-ranking Insect Master gets a fixed sry every month. It¡¯s
equivalent to being on the public grain ration.
Even if Qin Niu didn¡¯t farm, he¡¯d still have food to eat and live much morefortably than the vast majority of farmers.
¡°That may be so, but being an Insect Master isn¡¯t an easy job. With the current unstable situation, who knows when we might be conscripted by the
government to defend the borders.¡±
The ck Tiger Gang had implemented a talent registration and management system and issued monthly sries, naturally expecting something in return.
There¡¯s an age-old rule of maintaining troops for thousands of days to use
them at a critical time.
Once you¡¯re enlisted, you enjoy all kinds of preferential treatment from the government, but when war breaks out, you can¡¯t be a deserter or hide like a scared turtle. How could there be such a good deal?
¡°By the way, did you notice any outsiders entering the vige?¡±
Qin Niu asked in a hushed voice.
¡°Haven¡¯t noticed! But I¡¯ve been in the fields since early morning, and I haven¡¯t gone door-to-door to ask around. Does Master Qin need me to check it out?¡± ¡°There¡¯s no need to conduct house-to-house searches, and that would be too dangerous anyway. The Insect Master Association has issued a notice, saying that the situation is rather tensetely and that you, as vige chief, should be extra cautious. If outsiderse into the vige, you can report them to me immediately, and officials wille to handle it.¡±
Qin Niu pondered silently to himself.
Could it really have been a monster beast that entered the vigest night and went directly into the mountains?
It was not an impossibility.
If only ordinary monster beasts were roaming around, the ck Tiger Gang could deal with them. If a dangerous fiend made an appearance, they would surely report it to the Immortal Sects and ask them to send an Immortal Master to capture the beast.
¡°I also heard some simr news. I heard that two Insect Masters hired by the Yan Family, one died, and the other disappeared. It¡¯s a good thing you didn¡¯t go, Master Qin; otherwise, it would have been really dangerous.¡±
Xu Zhenchang nodded solemnly.
Recent undercurrents were stirring, and anyone with a modicum of vignce
could detect it.
Xu Zhenchang was closely connected to the Yan Family, so it wasn¡¯t surprising that he could get hold of such information.
As they were talking, there was amotion in the wheat field nearby.
Qin Niu was on high alert.
Could it be that the powerful individual who entered the vige was hiding in
the wheat field?
That would surely be quite demeaning for them.
¡°When insects wreak havoc, ck Tigers run amok. As cmity strikes, Insect
Masters rise¡¡±
Zhang Banzui, reeking of alcohol, stumbled out of the wheat field.
It turned out to be this old drunkard who, having drunk too much the previous night, had identally wandered into the wheat field andy down to sleep there.
Zhang Banzui often took the sky as his nket and the earth as his bed.
¡°Ah, Zhang Banzui, why lie in my wheat field of all ces? Do you know how hard it was for me to grow this little bit of wheat? I¡ª¡±
Seeing Zhang Banzui staggering out of the wheat field, Xu Zhenchang¡¯s cheeks twitched with grief.
With this drunkard lying in there for a night, he surely must have ruined a lot of wheat.
¡°Heh heh, vige, vige chief, hello!¡±
Zhang Banzui¡¯s cheeks were flushed, his face sporting a foolish smile, and he was still clutching his precious gourd that he never let go of.
It always seemed to contain an endless supply of alcohol.
¡°Vige chief, don¡¯t scold him. Zhang Banzui¡¯s had a tough life too, living alone without children. His settling in our vige was fate. We should try to treat him kindly.¡±
Qin Niu intervened to stop Xu Zhenchang fromshing out.
As his strength and wealth increased, he had grown more understanding of the suffering of the poor.
They say poverty breeds cunning while wealth breedspassion.
That was probably the stage he was in now.
Confronted with these lower sses, he felt a deeper sympathy.
¡°All Niu, heh heh, Ah Niu is the good one!¡±
Zhang Banzui, holding his liquor gourd, nced drunkenly at Qin Niu and then stumbled off.
Watching him actually head toward the direction of the mountains, Qin Niu thought about how the strong visitor had entered the vige and hadn¡¯te out since, possibly still lurking in the mountains or at Xie Laizi¡¯s house. Zhang Banzui was a drunkard, and what if he stumbled upon them, wouldn¡¯t that be courting disaster?
¡°Zhang Banzui, you¡¯re going the wrong way! That¡¯s the path leading into the mountains, your home is at the entrance of the vige, you should walk in that direction.¡±
Qin Niu quickly ran over, steadied Zhang Banzui, and pointed him in the right direction.
¡°All Niu is so kind! Hehe¡¡±
Muttering these words, Zhang Banzui walked toward the direction of the
vige entrance.
There was always something odd about Zhang Banzui, yet he always managed
to predict urately.
Last time he said a disaster of insects woulde, and sure enough, not muchter, it really happened.
Now the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory had already started to descend into chaos. What did Zhang Banzui mean by thest half of his sentence about cmitying and the rise of Insect Masters?
Could it be that the Insect Masters are about to flourish?
In these years, the status of Insect Masters had always been somewhat awkward, brutally suppressed by Beast Tamers.
Even nt Mastery experts were doing better than Insect Masters.
Fortune changes like the seasons; in this world, there is nothing permanent. Insect Masters had once flourished, but afterward, had gradually declined. In fact, it¡¯s simr for any profession; as long as there emerged a group of top-notch experts, they could quickly lead the trend of an era.
Qin Niu had been busy in the fields all morning, and the efficiency of the Termites at weeding was quite remarkable.
They gnawed and devoured the sweet, juicy soft roots, and naturally, the weeds couldn¡¯t survive.
The Soldier Ants, now too powerful, became restless with inactivity.
It was a rare asion for a mole cricket or a frog to emerge in the fields, only to be immediately besieged by them, toyed with like a cat with a mouse.
Qin Niu had not heard any news about outsiders entering the vige.
And he had not seen anything unusual.
The sound of horse hooves he had heardst night was definitely correct, faint and swift. It was a mount even superior to a ck charger.
A person who possessed such a mount was definitely not a weakling. Moreover, the timing of this person¡¯s arrival was also very delicate. Just as Wu Hao was dealt with by Qin Niu, that very night the visitor entered the vige.
And they chose to enter the vige in the dead of night.
He really couldn¡¯t believe that the person wasn¡¯t one of the high-ranking experts from the Nine Insect Gang.
When there are too many coincidences in one matter, then it¡¯s not a coincidence anymore; it¡¯s a deliberate action.
After returning home, Qin Niu remained secretly vignt of the movements within the vige.
The little mountain vige was as peaceful and serene as ever.
A day quickly passed.
He had wasted an entire day staying at home. If he had cultivated under the Ancient Banyan Tree, his cultivation level would have certainly made considerable progress.
And so the cultivation of the Termites was dyed as well.
Every day, a thousand new Termites would be added, all requiring his cultivation.
At night, the vige was peaceful, and outside the house, it was quiet as a mouse.
The people had already entered their dreands early.
Qin Niu, however, sat cross-legged in his backyard, cultivating. He had already taken out the Diamond Ink Turtle from the well.
Its size had grown quite a bit.
It was now almost as big as the bottom of a water bucket.
Its shell shone with a glossy ck, and upon closer inspection, countless fine golden lines could be discerned. The defense of its shell seemed to have increased significantly.
The night passed uneventfully, and the high-grade mount that had entered the vige seemed to have vanished into thin air.
Including the person on the mount, there was no trace to be found.
Qin Niu decided to send out a swarm of bees to scout the area tomorrow.
Chapter 218 - 213: The New Talent of the Grade Five Ant Queen_1
Chapter 218: Chapter 213: The New Talent of the Grade Five Ant Queen_1
Trantor: 549690339
At midnight, Shuangfeng Vigey eerily silent.
A swath of dark clouds drifted slowly across the sky, gradually swallowing up the hanging moon.
Qin Niu, who practiced the Evesting Spring Technique to absorb Moonlight Power, found his cultivation halted as the moonlight vanished and darkness enveloped the earth.
A cool night breeze whistled gently, and the medicinal herbs in his backyard were thriving joyfully, nourished by the power of his Evesting Spring Technique.
On a whim, he leapt onto the roof of the granary to observe the bees¡¯ nocturnal activities.
They were quite still at night.
But still, a portion of the bees bustled about within their nests.
After watching for a moment, he casually sat down on a horizontal beam next to the beehive, from where he could admire the view of half the vige.
However, the dim light made it difficult to see clearly at night.
Staring into the darkness ahead, his mind wandered, recalling the struggles and joys he had experienced along the way.
In less than a year, he hadpletely turned his life around, acquired a distinguished status, moved into arge, imposing residence, and amassed a considerable fortune.
Soon, he should be able to be the second Yan Family of the locale.
Master of hundreds of acres of fertilend and thousands of acres of mountains.
He guessed that servants and maidservants would soon follow in abundance.
Thosends would generate a substantial ie for him continuously.
At that moment, a figure stumbled from afar, swaying unsteadily.
Qin Niu¡¯s gaze sharpened. Even though the starlight was dim, he could instantly tell that the figure was Zhang Banzui.
Why would Zhang Banzui be out and about at this hour,ing from the direction of the mountain, instead of staying at home?
He was probably drunk again and had lost his way.
Qin Niu shook his head inwardly, feeling sorry for Zhang Banzui.
All alone, he had to tell fortunes for people everywhere just to earn some drinking money. And then, often getting beaten for inurate predictions. Drunk, he could fail asleep lying on the roadside or under an eave.
Someday he might even freeze to death outdoors, and no one would care.
Gradually, Zhang Banzui reached the door of Wang Furen¡¯s house. Bowing his head and staggering every few steps, he still clutched his liquor gourd.
Compared to daytime, he wasn¡¯t muttering incessantly.
He was probably afraid of disturbing others¡¯ sleep at night and getting beaten for it.
Qin Niu silently watched as Zhang Banzui passed by the door and headed towards the vige entrance. His figure grew smaller and farther away until it seemed like he had gone home.
He really worried that Zhang Banzui might one day get drunk, lie down in the mountains at night, and feed the dhole beasts.
The next morning, Qin Niu was still thinking about the mysterious strong man who had entered the vige.
That man hadn¡¯te out since he entered, which was rather odd.
The problem was, as long as this man stayed hidden, Qin Niu dared not enter the mountains.
His Ink de needed arge amount of Banyan Tree Blood daily to nourish it and enhance its power.
The termites in the mountains also required his cultivation and care.
Without further hesitation, he promptly sent out dozens of bees to scout.
Before long, the dispatched bees returned.
They didn¡¯t detect anything unusual.
Qin Niu still dared not venture into the mountains but decided to find someone to scout out the path.
¡°Parting ways does not mean death, dear friend.¡±
If there were any danger, he would certainly cherish his life.
From afar, he saw Liu Shengli¡¯s wife twisting her hips, carrying a basket of clothes, presumably preparing to wash them by the stream.
One has to admit, Liu Shengli really had an eye for choosing the woman whom his cousin was supposed to marry.
The woman was pretty with a voluptuous figure, not only frugal and a good housekeeper, but she was also quite adept at handling rtionships. She had a good reputation in the vige.
Even Xu Zhenchang would think of her whenever something good came up.
¡°Mrs. Liu!
it
Qin Niu called out.
¡°All!¡± She responded crisply, looking up. Upon realizing it was Qin Niu calling her, she immediately shed a charming smile, respectful. ¡°So it¡¯s Master Qin calling me! Is there anything 1 can help you with? Please feel free to ask.¡±
She knew Qin Niu was like a god of wealth.
Whenever he sought help, he never let anyone toil for nothing; he always gave a generous reward.
Carrying the basket, she sashayed over to Qin Niu.
¡°We¡¯ve run out of firewood at home, and 1 would like to buy some from your husband. I don¡¯t have any special requirements, just some thick hardwood logs will do. It doesn¡¯t matter if they¡¯re not split; just have them cut in the mountains and delivered to my house. As for the price, I¡¯ll pay twenty percent above the market rate. In these next three days, 1 will take whatever he can chop. He can also recruit two people to help him out.¡±
Qin Niu was wealthy and generous; buying some firewood was but a drop in the bucket for him.
Spend two to three hundred wen, and it¡¯s enough for Liu Shengli and his helpers to be busy in the mountains for several days.
¡°Alright then! I¡¯ll go home right now and get Shengli to take people up the mountain to chop for you. Thank you for looking after our family!¡±
She gave Qin Niu a sweet smile, her peach blossom eyes filled with gratitude.
Dealing with such a woman, few men could likely resist her charm.
Qin Niu, however, just nodded indifferently.
All he had to do next was wait at home.
Money was indeed a fine thing; it might not make ghosts grind away for him, but getting these vigers to work for him was as easy as turning over his hand.
Before long, he saw Liu Shengli entering the mountain with his cousin and brother.
When there was a good opportunity, people always looked out for their kin first.
Qin Niu waited patiently at home.
He even sent out the bees again to survey and monitor Liu Shengli and the others.
Less than an hour passed, and Liu Shengli came back with arge bundle of freshly cut logs.
¡°Master Qin, I wasn¡¯t sure what kind of firewood you wanted, so 1 brought back a bundle first. If you need them cut or split, I¡¯ll do it ording to your specifications.¡±
Liu Shengli was mopping the sweat from his brow, respectfully inquiring about Qin Niu¡¯s preferences.
¡°It¡¯s fine just like this, I¡¯ll cut it myself. Just leave them in the front yard.¡±
Qin Niu realized that human strength was indeed very limited.
Liu Shengli, a strong and young man, had exerted tremendous effort to carry the firewood all the way back. With Qin Niu¡¯s current strength, lifting those logs was as effortless as holding a twig.
¡°You all must be careful when chopping wood in the mountains. If you encounter any dangerous beasts, flee immediately and report back to me.¡±
If there had been any abnormalities, the bees he had sent out to scout would have already returned with news.
Because Qin Niu was paying twenty percent above the market rate, Liu Shengli and the others were very motivated.
In just a morning, they had chopped and brought back arge pile of wet firewood.
No need for them to cut and split, savingbor and effort¡ªsuch good fortune is rare.
Considering Liu Shengli¡¯s shrewdness, he naturally worked as hard as he could.
Earning some money is better than none.
After lunch, Qin Niu entered the mountain alone.
He nned to scout the path himself.
Not to draw attention, he deliberately disguised himself as a woodcutter.
When he passed by Xie Laizi¡¯s house, he quietly released a few termites to investigate.
He found nothing unusual.
After entering the mountains, he continued to observe in secret and still saw nothing out of the ordinary.
This was indeed strange.
Could the sound of horse hooves he had heard that night have been an illusion?
He didn¡¯t rush towards the Ant Nest; instead, he first visited the vicinity of the
Ancient Banyan Tree to check for anything amiss. There was nothing.
Only then did he enter the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze with peace of mind.
Truth be told, he suspected that the man might have entered the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze while investigating Wu Hao¡¯s whereabouts.
This was the only exnation for the man¡¯s disappearance.
The power of the Ancient Banyan Tree was terrifying; anyone who ventured into it was more likely to meet misfortune than fortune.
Especially at night, the danger was extreme.
He inspected every inch of the ground inside the Banyan Tree and still found nothing. Even if someone had identally fallen into the maze and been killed by the Ancient Banyan Tree, they would have left something behind.
Things like clothing, weapons, tokens, and so on.
Theck of any clues indicated that the person hadn¡¯te in at all.
The days passed, and after assuring that there was no danger, Qin Niu, as usual, took Xiao Qing into the mountains every day to cultivate and breed the termites.
He was preparing to obtain the treasure of the Green Demon.
His cultivation level had been solidified, and mobilizing the internal power of the Evesting Spring Technique was noticeably easier than right after his advancement.
The Ant Queen was nowying a thousand eggs a day, with a massive consumption of resources; the Corpse Bees were nearly ail consumed by her.
Qin Niu also fed the Ant Queen the body of the ck-crowned snake.
Since this snake was highly venomous, he was initially concerned.
He first used an ordinary termite for testing and, upon verifying there was no issue, allowed Fourth and other specialized Worker Ants to eat the ck-crowned snake before feeding it to the Ant Queen.
This morning, he sensed something unusual about the Ant Queen.
It appeared to have stoppedying eggs.
This had never happened before.
Qin Niu hurried to the mountains to check.
The Ant Queen¡¯s massive body was hidden within the subterranean Ant Queen Pce¡¯, and now it could no longer emerge with ease as it used to.
If it were toe out, the Worker Ants would have to dig a special tunnel.
This couldpromise the Ant Queen¡¯s safety.
It would also disrupt the original structure of the Ant Nest.
¡°Ant Queen, what¡¯s the matter?¡± Qin Niu directlymunicated with it.
He had a soul contract with the Ant Queen, allowing him to easily interact with it telepathically.
¡°Advancing!¡±
After the Ant Queen sent back a feeble soul vibration, it didn¡¯t respond anymore.
It turned out the Ant Queen was advancing in level, which filled Qin Niu with joy.
Thest advancement to Grade Four hadn¡¯t been long ago, and recently he had fed it corpses of three Grade Five Bee Generals, nearly a hundred corpses of Grade Four Corpse Bees, as well as the ck-crowned snake¡¯s corpse¡
With so much high-grade food consumed, to put it bluntly, even a pig might have taken flight.
Moreover, the Ant Queen probably had awakened a thread of ancient insect bloodline.
Its potential was immeasurable.
Its lifespan of thirty thousand years was a testament to that.
Qin Niu asked the ant colony to strengthen their defenses, while he himself went to draw blood from the Ancient Banyan Tree and cultivate.
By evening, Qin Niu discovered that the Ant Queen had alreadypleted its advancement.
The progression was much faster than expected.
He checked its attributes.
Female Four-Winged Yin Ant (Ant Queen)
Level: Grade Five Isoptera insect, experience 100000/1000000
Lifespan: 31,000 years
Energy: 990083
Skills: Reproduction level three 371/1000 (1000 eggs per day), Feign Death level one 2/10, Flight level one 0/10, Escape level one 0/10, Basic Self-Healing level one 0/10.
Talent: Moderate Intelligence++++, reproduce descendants with great strength attribute (10%), reproduce descendants with high poison attribute (30%), reproduce Demon Ant offspring (0.2%), reproduce Gold Devouring Ant offspring (0.002%), reproduce Healing Ant offspring (0.1%), reproduce Zombie Ant offspring (2%).
After sessfully advancing to Grade Five, the Ant Queen¡¯s lifespan increased by one thousand years.
This was undeniably the longest-lived termite in history.
Even the Diamond Ink Turtle¡¯s lifespan only increased by 200 years upon advancing two levels.
It was no match for the Ant Queen.
More so, the Ant Queen evolved a basic self-healing ability.
This capability, simr to the Demon Ants, allowed it to heal automatically when injured.
Additionally, its intelligence gained another plus sign.
It seemed to be evolving towards a higher level of intelligence.
The most impressive change was the richer variety of special offspring it could now produce.
Previously, it could only birth descendants with a mild toxic attribute, possessing stingers and poison sacs, but the venom wasn¡¯t very potent.
Only after Qin Niu¡¯s cultivation would the venom of the Poisonous Ants be stronger.
Now it could directly birth highly venomous descendants.
He was truly looking forward to their emergence.
And the probability was as high as 30%, a terrifyingly high rate. On average, thirty out of every hundred termites would possess stingers and poison sacs.
Chapter 219 - 214 Double Happinessi
Chapter 219: Chapter 214 Double Happinessi
Trantor: 549690339 I
Insect evolution¡¯s venom attack is indeed the best strategy.
Due to their small size and weak bodies, the damage they can inflict with a single bite is limited.
If they possess potent venom, even a small ant could cause enormous damage to its enemies. The sheer intimidation factor would multiply exponentially.
Now that the Ant Queen can reproduce Toxic Ants at a 30% chance, this means the fighting power of the ant colony would significantly increase.
Why is the Green Demon Bee so fearsome?
Isn¡¯t it because of its deadly venom? Just one sting from it, and even someone as powerful as the Seven Star Sect Master could perish.
Besides producing venomous Termite, the Ant Queen has gained two new innate abilities.
She can reproduce Healing Ants.
This is a very practical type of ant.
In battle, it¡¯s inevitable that some Termite will get injured.
In such cases, having a Healing Ant to tend to them could prevent death and speedy recovery.
If I¡¯m not mistaken, it must be the daily feeding of the broad-leaved Paris polyphy leaves to the Ant Queen that enabled it to evolve the ability to reproduce Healing Ants.
It also gained the ability to reproduce Zombie Ants.
This is a rather bizarre name.
It¡¯s likely rted to it consuming arge number of Corpse Bees.
What are Zombie Ants like?
Do they move stiffly like zombies? Or do they possess zombie-like abilities?
He certainly hopes for thetter.
For every one hundred Termite produced, there¡¯s a chance to get two Zombie Ants.
That¡¯s still a fairly high probability.
Soon when the first batch of eggs hatches, he should be able to see.
Having just leveled up, the Ant Queen once again transformed into an eggying machine, incessantly producing ant eggs.
She is truly dedicated.
The Ant Queen¡¯s advancement also made Qin Niu realize that the primary way to cultivate the Ant Queen is still to feed it high-quality food.
Termites are omnivorous creatures and are not picky eaters.
Poisonous or not, they¡¯ll eat it all the same.
¡°Since the Ant Queen has evolved at this time, let¡¯s postpone the hunt for Green Demon¡¯s treasure. Prepare a bit more, and it will be safer and more likely to win when the timees.¡±
He was very aware that if Green Demon¡¯s treasure were so easy to obtain, it would have been taken long ago.
After all, the mountains where Green Demon once lived have be a sacred site coveted by many Insect Masters.
Those whoe to capture powerful bee species are also endless.
For amon Insect Master, capturing even a bee species discarded by the Green Demon could be a life-changing achievement.
The Ant Queen¡¯s crucial timing for leveling up almost felt predestined.
At that moment, Qin Niu sensed a disturbance emanating from the Green Silk Worm eggs he was carrying on his person.
Upon inspection, a radiant smile spread across his face.
They say misfortunes nevere singly, and happiness does note in pairs.
Today, however, is an exception, as good fortunes doubled.
The Green Silk Worm, incubated for many days, chose this moment to sessfully hatch.
Its body was extremely tiny, finer than a strand of hair, and very short, probably about one millimeter in length.
It was hard to see with the naked eye.
Qin Niu had long anticipated this insect.
As long as it¡¯s raised properly, it could be used for undetected enemy surveince.
¡°Come, you may feed on my blood. From now on, you can lurk on top of my head.¡±
Qin Niu carefully ced it on his scalp.
After a moment, he felt an itching sensation on his scalp.
He knew the Green Silk Wormrva had begun to feed on his essence blood.
Green Silk Worm (Larva)
Grade: Grade Three Annelida, experience 1000/10000
Lifespan: Infinite
Energy: 1
Skills: Bloodsucking First Order 0.1/10, Venom Attack First Order 0.1/10 (paralysis, coagtion).
Talent: Parasitic, Spirit Communication
I feel it¡¯s still pretty badass, being Grade Three just after birth.
You know, many insects can¡¯t ever advance to Grade Three in their entire lifetime.
Its abilities are also quite straightforward, merely bloodsucking, venom, spiritmunication, and parasitic.
If we¡¯re talking about the most impressive ability of the Green Silkworm, it has to be spiritmunication.
By using this ability, one can stealthily monitor anyone without them noticing.
The condition is not to be detected by the host.
A Grade Three Green Silk Worm is still not able toy eggs normally, only after advancing to Grade Four can ity eggs properly.
It is still in itsrval stage now.
Qin Niu, now being a strong person of the Innate Realm, allows it to suck his vital blood, which is enough to help it quickly advance and be stronger.
Raising this insect is indeed not much trouble.
The only downside is that it doesn¡¯t control its venom well when bloodsucking, which easily results in the venom entering the host¡¯s body and causing localized itching and swelling. Once it bes an adult, this should improve.
Days fly by, and Qin Niu spends every day cultivating and nurturing the Termite and the Ant Queen.
What worries him the most is Xiao Nui who still hasn¡¯t woken up to this moment.
It has also be the one among Qin Niu¡¯s many pets to have the longest evolution time.
Shuangfeng Vige has been peaceful these days.
How that strong character left the vige that night is still a mystery.
But since then, no one from the Nine Insect Gang hase by.
That¡¯s a good thing.
Qin Niu thinks it is possible that the strong person left after the investigation turned up nothing.
Of course, this is just a guess.
About three or four days ago, the locust disaster, which had ceased for many days, suddenly became rampant again. This time, it was fiercer than ever before.
Even those rarer,rge locusts were appearing in groups of dozens.
The Yan Family is currently unable to hire any Insect Masters.
Because of sessive killings of Insect Masters within the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory, those who survived have all hidden away.
They¡¯re terrified of being discovered.
How could they possiblye out to make money at the risk of their lives?
You have to be alive to spend money after all.
The young master of the Yan Family personally requested Qin Niu¡¯s assistance twice, only to be tactfully rejected both times.
Unable to hire an Insect Master, the Yan Family set their sights on the three thousand ducks Qin Niu had rented out.
The Yan Family knows about Qin Niu¡¯s special rtionship with Tang Caixian of Daoyuan Vige, and with the Tang Family having an official of not insignificant rank, they knew the matter could only be negotiated.
The details of the talk are unclear.
The Yan Family convinced Daoyuan Vige to loosen up and agreed to terminate the duck rental at any moment.
Actually, with the locust disaster bing more severe, the ducks had limited effectiveness, after all.
This day, Qin Niu was at home, watching the Diamond Ink Turtle in his fishpond.
It spent its time yfully manipting the water in the pond when there was nothing else to do, having a st.
Aside from making the water in the fishpond churn, it had developed a new skill. It could control a stream of water to shoot out, just like a water gun, targeting objects.
Although the controlled water column wasn¡¯trge and its power was very limited,
Qin Niu was very clear that once it perfected this ability, it would definitely be able to use it to attack enemies.
¡°May I ask if Master Qin is home?¡±
The voice of Tang Family¡¯s old Chief came from outside the courtyard.
¡°Is that Chief Tang? Pleasee in!¡±
Qin Niu sent Xiao Qing to open the door and wee the guest into the house.
He had a vague guess about Chief Tang¡¯s purpose foring.
Because the Yan Family had alreadymunicated with Qin Niu.
¡°Master Qin, we¡¯ve been renting those three thousand ducks from you for some time now. The recent locust disaster is overly vicious, and the ducks are no longer holding back the defensive line. Fortunately, our Daoyuan Vige has already harvested the crops we needed to. Whatever is left, we¡¯ll just let the locusts have their fill. Now, we¡¯re prepared to return the ducks to their rightful owner.¡±
Chief Tang said, his voice trembling.
Chapter 220 - 215 Hundred-Tempering Child 1
Chapter 220: Chapter 215 Hundred-Tempering Child 1
Trantor: 549690339 I
Although the rent Qin Niu charged Daoyuan Vige was not expensive, the daily rent of 300 coins was still a heavy burden for them.
Now that the Yan Family could not hire an Insect Master, they urgently needed this batch of ducks to help fend off locusts, and the opportunity was perfect for the Tang Family to do a good deed.
¡°That works, you just need to drive them back to the buffer zone by our Shuangfeng Vige,¡± he said.
Qin Niu nodded in agreement.
Chief Tang had alsoe prepared and gestured to the two n members who followed him to settle the rental fee on the spot.
The total rental period was thirty-seven days, amounting to 11,100 coins.
That was a considerable sum of money.
¡°Master Qin, this is the rental fee for thirty-seven days, please count it,¡± he said.
¡°Let¡¯s not worry about the tail end of 100 coins, just give eleven taels,¡± Qin Niu replied.
The total cost Qin Niu had initially spent on purchasing these ducks was just a little over eighteen taels of Silver Money, not quite neen.
Now the ducks had evolved from half-grown to big, fat ducks and were all returned to him.
That was not all; he also made an extra eleven taels in rent.
He could make another hefty profit by reselling themter.
In these times, the meek starve and the bold prosper.
Xu Zhenchang must have regretted not buying them then, probably kicking himself by now.
Although Wang Furen had also bought two thousand ducks, he resold them early and made a limited profit.
Qin Niu held on and did not sell, bing the biggest winner.
After collecting the rent, Chief Tang invited him to hand over the ducks in person.
The sight of three thousand ducks, each one fat, and some clearly having evolved with different shades of feathers, delighted his heart. They were more agile and more formidable in catching locusts than ordinary ducks.
These ducks had been eating those mutated locusts every day, so it was not surprising that some of them, with superior potential, had evolved.
Not long after Daoyuan Vige returned the ducks, the Young Master of the Yan Family brought Yan Qi over.
It was as if they had made an appointment.
¡°Master Qin, our Young Master Yan specially came to find you,¡± he said.
Yan Qi served as Young Master Yan¡¯s coachman himself.
He was very clever, fully aware that everything was provided by his master. Yan Ruohai was getting old and would hand over the family to his son sooner orter.
Since ancient times, the eldest son has been the heir to the family business.
As long as Young Master Yan did not make any serious mistakes, his taking over the Yan Family was just a matter of time.
A new king, a new court.
Yan Qi was now promoted to the position of ¡°Seventh Steward¡± because he was favored by Yan Ruohai. The situation might change once Young Master Yan took power.
Getting on good terms with Young Master Yan now meant he wouldn¡¯t have to worry about being recedter.
While they were talking, Young Master Yan emerged from the carriage.
¡°Did Young Master Yane for these ducks?¡± Qin Niu asked directly.
¡°Ha ha, Master Qin speaks his mind, and 1 like your straightforward nature. Although most of the Yan Family¡¯s crops have been harvested, the mulberry fields, tea gardens, and other industries still need maintenance. Recently, because Insect Masters have been constantly killed, everyone is self-preserving and we can no longer hire any. The ducks we bought from the Yan Familyst time had a decent effect in pest control.
¡°It¡¯s just that ducks are now hard toe by, and I wonder if Master Qin might be willing to part with this batch? The price is negotiable,¡± he said.
The Yan Family desperately needed these ducks.
¡°Er¡ I understand the difficulties of the Yan Family. It¡¯s just that 1 haven¡¯t considered selling them for the time being. But since Young Master Yan has personally made the request, naturally, I can¡¯t disregard the goodwill. 1¡¯11 rent them to the Yan Family at the same price I offered Daoyuan Vige. How does that sound?¡± Qin Niu suggested.
Qin Niu wanted to see just how far these ducks could evolve.
Renting them out would ensure a steady daily ie.
¡°Although it¡¯s a bit of a pity not to be able to buy them, it¡¯s also good to rent them. At least it can solve the pressing needs of the Yan Family,¡± Young Master Yan admitted, hinting at some crucial information.
This indicated that the Yan Family might also have noticed that some of the ducks were evolving.
The evolved ducks indeed had a significantly better hunting capability than ordinary ducks.
¡°Young Master Yan, Steward Qi, do you see that some of the ducks in my batch are of a special kind? Look, for instance, at that one, see how skillfully it catches locusts,¡± Qin Niu pointed out, drawing their attention to a duck nearby.
¡°It seems so. Not only can it fly, but it also runs so fast on the waves, catching locusts with each bite,¡± they observed.
¡°I believe that among the two thousand ducks from your Yan Family, some have evolved as well. If we mix our two batches of ducks together, we won¡¯t be able to distinguish which ones belong to which family. Personally, I would suggest that once rented by the Yan Family, could they be kept separately?¡± He said, making his point clear, trusting that the Yan Family would not stoop to swapping ducks.
¡°No problem! Not only can we keep them separate, but we will also mark our Yan Family¡¯s ducks with red paint for easy identification,¡± promised Young Master Yan, showing his understanding that Qin Niu had noticed the evolution of the ducks.
Finding a cheap advantage was almost impossible.
With the terms agreed upon, they wrote up a rental contract, and Qin Niu rented out the three thousand ducks to the Yan Family.
This arrangement pleased everyone involved.
The locust crisis was ring up, breaking out even more fiercely than before and putting tremendous pressure on everyndlord and tenant farmer.
With Qin Niu¡¯s three thousand ducks, the Yan Family could fend off some of the gue.
There was now a greater hope of preserving their core industries.
Facing the elerating crisis, Qin Niu seized every opportunity daily to nurture each termite, trying to evolve their strength to the utmost.
The cultivation of bees was not neglected either.
The only regret was that it was difficult to obtain ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± blood, with the daily amount gathered only enough to cultivate sixty to seventy Grade Three termites.
This was a matter of no alternative.
Through experimentation, it was found that if ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± blood was fed insufficiently, the evolution of the termites would be iplete, or even fail, resulting in defective products.
He tried feeding ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± blood first, followed by Ancient Banyan Tree blood, but it didn¡¯t seem to work that well either.
The mortality rate increased significantly, which was heartbreaking to see.
After several experiments, he decisively chose to give up and continued with the sessful routine he had previously figured out. He first fed them Ancient Banyan Tree blood to help them advance, then fed them ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± blood.
With this method, the survival rate of the cultivated ants could basically reach over 99%.
He also kept increasing the number of ¡°Thousand Eyes Trees¡± he nted under the Ancient Banyan Tree.
He used the energy from the Evesting Spring Technique to help them grow quickly, with quite good results.
It still required a considerable amount of time to grow.
It wasn¡¯t possible that the ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree,¡± after being nourished by the Evesting Spring Technique, would growrge in one day¡ªthat was unrealistic.
He had no choice but to umte slowly.
Throughparison, the growth rate of ¡°Thousand Eyes Trees¡± nurtured by the Evesting Spring Technique¡¯s energy was more than three times that of ordinary ¡°Thousand Eyes Trees.¡±
With his continuous efforts, the amount of ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± blood he obtained each day was also steadily increasing.
At the beginning, one day¡¯s worth of ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± blood was only enough to nurture forty Grade Three termites. Now, the number had increased to sixty to seventy a day, and this stable improvement made him feel more secure.
Being greedy and rushing progress, aiming to cultivate a thousand termites with mental attacks at once, was unrealistic.
As the days passed, the number of his termite army had long since surpassed ten thousand. It was moving towards twenty thousand and was about to break through that number.
A rough estimate suggested that there should be about eighteen thousand termites in the entire colony.
The number of Demon Ants had also increased from three to fourteen.
The rare species of Elephant Trunk Soldier Ants had also reached eight in number.
All had been cultivated by Qin Niu into Grade Three Poisonous Ants.
When they collectively released poison, the attack range was quiterge.
It could cover an area of at least five or six square meters.
Another ant species worth mentioning was his Grade Three Dark Poison Ants, which had, unbeknownst to him, already broken through to 216 in number.
With their toxicity, if they attacked an enemy at the same time,
It is estimated that even arge wild boar would be poisoned and copse instantly.
Although the continuous growth of the ant colony made him very happy and gave him a sense of aplishment, there was still a tinge of regret that the Gold Devouring Ants had not yet emerged.
Furthermore, he was very much hoping that the Ant Queen would give birth to one or two more War Demon Ants.
Because the difference between a Demon Ant and a War Demon Ant was quite significant.
The formidable strength of Fourth made him, the master, envious.
That day, like usual, he was preparing to go up the mountain to cultivate with Xiao Qing.
Her cultivation had been stuck at the tenth level of mortals for many days and had yet to break through, leaving Qin Niu quite puzzled.
Xiao Qing¡¯s talent for cultivating the Medicine King Sutra was clearly excellent, so why couldn¡¯t she make the breakthrough?
Qin Niu¡¯s talent was even less than hers, and it took him less than ten days to make the breakthrough.
Then again, the major thresholds of the Medicine King Sutra were indeed difficult to break through.
The matter of cultivation sometimes also involved opportunity and luck.
Being anxious was useless.
The master and servant had not yet left the house when the guard from the Insect Master Association who had delivered a messagest time came again.
¡°Master Qin, this is a mobilization order issued by the Insect Master Association in response to the government¡¯s call. Please sign here to ept it,¡± the guard said, taking out a booklet for Qin Niu to sign and seal.
Their Fish Talismans had a stamp feature at the bottom.
Simply by dabbing it with cinnabar ink and pressing it against the paper, a clear personal seal would be imprinted.
¡°I still need to deliver messages to other ces, so I must take my leave now!¡± the guard said, saluting him, then mounting his horse and riding off quickly. What is called a mobilization order?
It is basically when war is imminent, and the government mobilizes the experts within its jurisdiction to fight against the enemy and protect the country.
In the strictest sense, the ck Tiger Gang could not be considered a country.
It was more like the vassal states during the Spring and Autumn period.
There were at least a thousand forces like it, each one under the jurisdiction of the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect.
Each Immortal Sect had different sizes of territories. The weakest Immortal Sect wouldmand over a hundred martial factions. The strongest among them were frightening with somemanding over three thousand martial factions.
However, there seemed to be an unwritten rule that any Immortal Sect would notmand over three thousand martial factions.
In other words, the maximum number of martial factions allowed to be established under an Immortal Sect could not exceed three thousand.
The Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect was established by the Terrestrial True Immortal, the Hundred-Tempering Child.
It is said that the Hundred-Tempering Child, like the Red Boy in the ¡°Journey to the West,¡± was extremely powerful, yet bore the appearance of a child. His personality remains unclear.
Some also say that the Hundred-Tempering Child rejuvenates himself every hundred years..
Chapter 221 - 216: Order of Mobilization by Gang Leader Bai_i
Chapter 221: Chapter 216: Order of Mobilization by Gang Leader Bai_i
Trantor: 549690339 I
Rumors have spread in great detail, iming that the Hundred-Tempering Child, upon reaching a hundred years of age and deteriorating to the limit, would ce himself in a coffin. Buried alive for three years, then upon breaking out of the coffin three yearster, he would emerge as a child again.
As for whether this is true or false, themon folk are entirely clueless.
The world respectfully refers to the Hundred-Tempering Child as the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Master.
The Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect is a fairly dominant Immortal Sect that has been growing stronger over the years.
As for the infighting and power struggles among the sects within its jurisdiction, the Immortal Sect generally doesn¡¯t interfere.
Competition leads to bing ever stronger.
Some Immortal Sects even give out two or three Sect Founding Orders annually, setting certain conditions to attain them. Those powerful families or individuals who emerge victorious in thepetition would be rewarded with a Sect Founding Order.
With a Sect Founding Order, one can legally establish their own sect within the territory of an Immortal Sect.
Some might then ask, if the Immortal Sect doesn¡¯t intervene in the shes and ughters between sects, what use is there in having a Sect Founding Order?
A legally recognized sect is naturally useful.
There is an opportunity to receive various high-level cultivation resource rewards from the Immortal Sect, such as Immortal Pills, Immortal Techniques, Cultivation Techniques, Immortal Artifacts. Obtaining any one of these treasures can allow a sect to quickly rise to a higher level in an extremely short amount of time.
Moreover, the stronger the sect, the more Immortal Pills, Immortal Techniques, Cultivation Techniques, and Immortal Artifacts they obtain, the closer they get to bing true Immortal Masters.
This is a process of umting power to be stronger.
Once enough is umted, there is a chance to undergo a transformation and step through the Immortal Gate to be a true Immortal Master.
This is the ultimate pursuit that all mortals dream of.
Bing a disciple of an Immortal Sect is not what many people imagine¡ªthat one is born with a superior immortal root and then recruited by the Immortal Sect, breezing through with cheats and directly cultivating immortal techniques.
That is a dream.
In this world, to be an Immortal Master, even if one¡¯s parents are the leaders of an Immortal Sect, one must still cultivate step by step on their own.
Only those who meet the recruitment conditions can be epted into the Immortal Sect.
It is not a matter of being born with a superior immortal root and then being able to practice cultivation directly.
Ordinary mortals, even with good talent, simply cannot cultivate with bestowed immortal techniques if they do not have the means.
It¡¯s like building a house¡ªwithout a solid foundation, it¡¯s doomed to be a castle in the sky, an illusory dream.
Furthermore,petition within an Immortal Sect is even more intense.
Each disciple of an Immortal Sect will consume vast amounts of cultivation resources, and it¡¯s impossible to waste these precious resources on a mere mortal.
If the child of any Immortal Sect leader could directly enter the Sect for cultivation upon birth, that Immortal Sect would certainly notst long.
It wouldn¡¯t take a thousand years for it to be annihted by other Immortal Sects, leaving nothing behind.
The ck Tiger Gang is, after all, a legitimate gang and Qin Niu is unclear about its ranking among the more than a thousand sects under the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect.
But one thing is for certain¡ªthe higher-ups of the ck Tiger Gang are definitely concerned about their reputation.
If they weren¡¯t pushed into aer, they would never have issued this mobilization order.
This indicates that the enemy is overwhelmingly powerful, that the ck Tiger Gang is finding it difficult to resist, and perhaps even risking the foundation of the gang itself, leading them to lower their pride to call all rtively powerful subjects to join the army and ward off the formidable foe.
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but think again of Zhang Banzui¡¯s words, ¡°When disaster arises, the Insect Masters thrive.¡±
What is meant by disaster?
It is the dread of war that constitutes a disaster.
Zhang Banzui was definitely referring to the war between the ck Tiger Gang and other sects.
The Nine Insect Gang is truly ambitious, seemingly wanting to expand and strengthen its influence!
It had just annexed the Seven-Star Sect a few years ago.
Now, it is targeting the ck Tiger Gang.
The strongest aspect of the ck Tiger Gang should be Beast Taming.
Logically speaking, thebat power of Beast Tamers is generally stronger than that of Insect Masters.
A mighty beast pet can almost crush the insect pets of several Insect Masters.
The fact that the Nine Insect Gang is so dominant indicates that they certainly have insect pets that are far stronger than ordinary beast pets.
Qin Niu¡¯s Termites are actually quite powerful.
If they transform into Army Ants, ordinary beast pets would likely face more danger than fortune upon encountering them.
He opened the letter, and it indeed was a mobilization order issued by the Insect Master Association.
Unlike the previous situation, this time the order was jointly issued by Chairman Li and Bai Xuezhu, the Deputy Gang Leader of the ck Tiger Gang. The ending of the order bore not only the great seal of the Insect Master Association but also the official seal of the government.
¡°Esteemed Insect Masters, take heed. The ck Tiger Gang was first troubled by an insect cmity, and thereafter, Insect Masters across multiple regions fell victim to assassination, with numerous government officials also brutally murdered. Upon thorough investigation, we have discovered that all these acts are the ndestine sabotages of the Nine Insect Gang and the Shennong Sect. The ck Tiger Gang has always been kind and sympathetic to themon people¡¯s suffering, and we have been reluctant to initiate hostilities. However, these two factions are aggressive and pressuring us relentlessly.
Bai and the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s high-ranking members have witnessed our people and crops fall victim to locusts¡¯ devastation, feeling both enraged and deeply pained.
Just three days ago, the Nine Insect Gang suddenly invaded our borders and directly murdered three hundred and fifty-six people in Dafeng Vige by the ckwater River. Victims included men, women, the elderly, and the young, leaving behind a tragic scene of death. Upon discovering the cmity in Dafeng Vige, the warriors on our frontiers immediatelyunched a counterattack, intent on avenging the unjustly in and seeking justice for the three hundred and fifty-six lost souls.
However, the enemy was strong and well-prepared, resulting in heavy losses to our forces.
Now that the enemy has amassed a substantial force on our borders, the situation is precariously dire. I hereby call upon the heroes and the brave within the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory to unite against our formidable foe, to defend our homnd, and to protect our wives, children, and parents. At the same time, one could achieve great deeds, earn official titles, and bring honor to one¡¯s ancestors.
Deputy Gang Leader of the ck Tiger Gang, Bai Xuezhu respectfully pens this order!¡±
After reading the mobilization order, Qin Niu felt a heavy weight on his heart.
He had thought there was only the Nine Insect Gang to worry about, but now even the Shennong Sect had entered the fray.
The Shennong Sect focuses on agriculture, with most of the medicinal herbs used for pill makinging from their territories.
There¡¯s even a saying, ¡°When Shennong prospers, no ce goes hungry.¡±
What does it mean?
It implies that as long as the Shennong Sect¡¯s granaries are bountiful, people from all sects need not fear famine.
A sect that mainlines in farming is naturally not adept atbat.
Just as Qin Niu practices the Life-Nurturing Technique, which is unsuited for battle.
The Shennong Sect has remained neutral and refrained from joining the disputes of other factions.
Its power must be strong; at least, there have been no reports of any sect attacking the Shennong Sect.
It¡¯s unclear why they¡¯ve got involved with the Nine Insect Gang this time.
With the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s crops ravaged by locusts, and now with the Shennong Sect siding with the Nine Insect Gang in a two-against-one strike, the ck Tiger Gang is in dire straits.
If things go wrong, the ck Tiger Gang might be annihted without a trace left behind.
There will naturally be a reshuffling of power.
The most likely oue is the Nine Insect Gang and Shennong Sect directly dividing up the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territories.
A mobilization order is just that¡ªa call to arms. Receiving the order doesn¡¯t mean one has to go.
Qin Niu certainly wouldn¡¯t get heated up by an emotional mobilization order and foolishly rush to the battlefield weapons in hand to fight to the death.
¡°I must seize the Green Demon¡¯s treasure before the conscription order is issued. That way, even if I end up on the battlefield, I will have one more strong card to y.¡±
His gaze flickered as he contemted his future path.
If this round of mobilization fails to achieve its results and the frontline can¡¯t hold, then the ck Tiger Gang Leader himself will personally issue a conscription order.
Those who receive this order must enlist.
Anyone who dares not toply will be deemed a deserter, subject to on-the-spot execution.
Generally, no one dares to refuse.
Especially at the beginning of the conflict, if anyone dares to openly refuse, they will likely be executed as a demonstration to deter others from refusing to join the battle. This is what¡¯s colloquially known as ¡®killing the chicken to scare the monkey.¡¯
Qin Niu definitely did not want to be that sacrificial chicken.
The only thing to do was to increase his power before the conscription order was issued..
Chapter 222 - 217: Invisibility Talisman, Universal Map_1
Chapter 222: Chapter 217: Invisibility Talisman, Universal Map_1
Trantor: 549690339
ording to Qin Niu¡¯s original n, he had intended to wait until the Ant Queen advanced to Grade Five and had hatched and nurtured several batches of eggs.
Only then would he go for the Green Demon¡¯s treasure.
After advancing to Grade Five, the Ant Queen gained several new talents, and the ant offspring she produced would be richer and stronger.
Especially the highly toxic Termite, which Qin Niu was particrly looking forward to.
Now he could no longer wait.
Facing two opponents on their own and faced with a strong alliance, the ck Tiger Gang was probably about to be on the verge of copse.
¡°Xiao Qing, let¡¯s push a bit harder in our training on the mountain today. If we still can¡¯t break through today, I¡¯m afraid we might have to wait for a while,¡± he said.
Qin Niu took her into the mountains.
Xiao Qing also knew that today¡¯s training opportunity was extremely precious, so after entering the mountains she headed straight for the Ancient Banyan Tree. Qin Niu went to the Ant Nest to carefully nurture each Termite.
This time, heading to the Green Demon¡¯s hometown, ck Stone Vige in Hundred Leaf Town to seek treasure, it¡¯s unknown when he would be able to return.
The journey was fraught with risks and uncertainties.
The Termites he nurtured today could only be left in the Ant Nest. Due to the urgency of time, he nned to set off early tomorrow morning.
After cultivating the Termites, he entered the maze within the Ancient Banyan Tree for training, and of course, taking blood was not mentioned.
During this period, he had been practicing diligently, consolidating his realm, and enhancing his cultivation.
The power of the Medicine King Sutra had reached the fifthyer of the Acquired Realm, and the furnace cauldron formed by the Medicine King Sutra¡¯s power in his body had also be much more solid.
The Innate Realm of the Evesting Spring Technique also became stable under his steady and solid approach.
After advancing to the Innate Realm, he discovered that, in addition to the body undergoing aplete transformation, his spirit had also be ten times what it was before. Additionally, the ability to project his power externally was a very important advancement.
When using the Ink de, transmitting his power into the de could immediately cause the de Qi to surge.
If the Golden Toad was injured, he could also expend his power to heal it.
Why is it said that one step into the Innate Realm is a half-step into immortality?
That is because the operation of a magical instrument requires at least the cultivation of the Innate Realm. Otherwise, no matter how powerful the magical instrument is, if it falls into the hands of mortals, it would be like a piece of ordinary scrap metal, unable to exert even the slightest bit of its power.
Moreover, after advancing to the Innate Realm, he found his power to be condensed and pure, qualities that the Acquired Realm did not have.
At the stage of the Mortal Realm, there was almost no power.
The energy introduced into the body was all absorbed by the body, used for strengthening and tempering.
After advancing to the Acquired Realm, some power gradually remained within the body.
However, the power of the Acquired Realm was as loose as scattered sand and smoke, difficult and slow to mobilize, and its power was far inferior to that of the Innate Realm.
If Qin Niu¡¯s cultivation was double Acquired Realm, he would rank among the higher-ups in Jade Stream Town. Now, he was already one of the top experts in Jade Stream Town.
In the whole town, there should be few who had reached this realm.
Estimates suggested that only a fewrge ns might have such level of experts.
Renting ducks to the Yan Family recently, he also had a noticeable change in mentality.
In the past, he was filled with awe towards the Yan Family, and even after reaching the cultivation of the Acquired Realm, that reverence still existed.
Now, with the cultivation of the Innate Realm, when facing the Yan Family, there was no longer that invisible pressure, only mutual respect and equal treatment. Even though his current strength was weaker than the Yan Family¡¯s, he was already on the same level.
This fact showed that one¡¯s own cultivation is fundamental.
No matter how strong a nurtured beast pet is, it could not give him this confidence andposure.
Early the next morning, Qin Niu set out wearing King Pig Leather Armor and carrying a basket on his back.
The Red-eyed Golden Toad was in his basket.
The Diamond Ink Turtle was also brought along.
Since the Green Demon used to live at the bottom of a cliff, there could be dark rivers or pools. Bringing the Diamond Ink Turtle might be useful at a critical moment.
It was now a Grade Five beast pet.
Its personality, however, remained the same as before, timid and staying motionless in the basket, not even daring to stick out its head.
It seemed to be very afraid of the Red-eyed Golden Toad.
In addition to these two beast pets, he carried nearly twenty thousand Termites on him, the lowest Grade Two and the highest Grade Four, all carefully nurtured.
Some were left in the Ant Nest to ensure its safety and normal operation.
The Ant Queen nowid a thousand eggs per day, consuming a huge amount of food.
Additionally, arge number of newly hatchedrvae required nurturing and care, and their food consumption was also not small.
He also took some War Bees and Green Ring Worker Bees with him.
This trip was a big challenge for the War Bees and Green Ring Worker Bees.
Leaving the Queen Bee and the bee nest, it was unknown whether they would encounter problems?
Bringing them was also a necessity.
Because he didn¡¯t have any other air forces avable now, only bees were usable.
If this time he could sessfully acquire Green Demon Bees, his air force would be quickly strengthened, and the battle prowess of his insects might increase tenfold or even a hundredfold.
Xiao Qing was left at home to watch the house, and he instructed her to learn the Seven-Star Sword Technique during this period.
Seeking the Green Demon¡¯s treasure was fraught with great risks, and her presence would not only be of no help but could also be a burden. Leaving her at home was also an act of care for her.
Qin Niu kept his head low and hurried on his way.
He had already nned to first make a trip to ck Tiger City to purchase some necessary supplies.
And by the way, he would ask around for directions to ck Stone Vige in Hundred Leaf Town.
Last time, he only bought one Advanced Contract Talisman, which he used when taming the Red-eyed Golden Toad.
This time, he was prepared to buy one or two more.
Otherwise, without an Advanced Contract Talisman, even if he encountered the Green Demon Bees left behind by the Green Demon, he would not be able to tame them, and that would really leave him at a loss.
Not long ago, after advancing into the Innate Realm, his spiritual power had increased by more than tenfold..
Chapter 223 - 217: Invisibility Talisman, Universal Map_2
Chapter 223: Chapter 217: Invisibility Talisman, Universal Map_2
Trantor: 549690339
It also meant he could tame arge number of new pets.
No longer would he have to worry about not having enough spiritual power.
After entering the city, he made a beeline for Bei Bing¡¯s talisman shop.
¡°Bei Bing, get me two more advanced contract talismans and five intermediate contract talismans,¡± Qin Niu said as he pulled out 250 silver notes.
By now, he should be considered an absolutely major customer of this talisman shop.
Many Insect Masters or Beast Tamers may need to save money for ten, even twenty or thirty years to buy an advanced contract talisman.
Qin Niu made quite a fortune and therefore did notck the money.
¡°Mmm mmm¡¡±
Bei Bing gestured for him to sit and wait a moment.
It wasn¡¯t long before she called out her grandfather.
Of course, whether this old man was her grandfather or father, he did not know. The old man had white hair and looked very old, while Bei Bing was still very young, only about seventeen or eighteen years old.
So Qin Niu concluded that the old man must be Bei Bing¡¯s grandfather.
¡°Currently, there is only one advanced contract talisman avable, young man. If you need two, you¡¯ll have to ce a reservation. It should take about half a month before we can deliver,¡± the grandfather said, naturally not daring to slight such a big customer.
Crafting advanced contract talismans was exceedingly difficult.
Getting the raw materials and the process of creating the talismans were both extremelyplex.
And it was said that there was a high failure rate in crafting talismans.
The higher the level of the talisman, the greater the chance of failure during production.
¡°Alright then, I¡¯ll buy just one for now! Forget the reservation,¡± Qin Niu decided. As his trip was very high-risk, he naturally wasn¡¯t going to pay arge sum of silver for some reservation.
After buying the talismans, Qin Niu asked, ¡°Old sir, do you know how to get to ck Stone Vige in Hundred Leaf Town?¡±
¡°Are you aiming to find the Green Demon Bee?¡± the old man nced at him.
¡°Yes, I want to try my luck,¡± Qin Niu nodded.
¡°Mmm mmm¡¡±
Bei Bing who was listening by the side, began to vigorously wave her hands and shake her head at him, trying to dissuade him from going.
¡°Bei Bing, thank you for your concern. In this lifetime of cultivation, one naturally goes against the heavens, struggling against destiny andpeting against others. 1 have already decided to go. I will be extra careful when the timees,¡± Qin Niu said. Once he made up his mind, not even nine oxen could pull him back.
She stopped talking and ran inside.
Qin Niu thought she got upset and could only shake his head and show a bitter smile. Having such a genuinely concerned friend amid the vast sea of people was truly a great fortune in life.
¡°Young man, I really shouldn¡¯t be meddling. Many go to Hundred Leaf Town seeking the Green Demon Bee¡ªfew return with anything, many leave their lives there. I urge you to consider this carefully. If you¡¯re not familiar with the path, you could buy a map at the nameless shop right at the main junction. They have all kinds of maps there, not expensive and with reliable routes,¡± the old man rmended a map shop to him.
¡°Thank you for your advice,¡± Qin Niu replied.
Qin Niu had obtained a Green Demon treasure map with great difficulty; he naturally couldn¡¯t bear to give up on it just like that.
Moreover, a great battle between the ck Tiger Gang, the Nine Insect Gang, and the Shennong Sect was imminent, and the call to arms was just a matter of time.
His Termite was effective against insects but not against enemies, even he shook his head at that thought.
Those that crawl on the ground can never match those that fly in the sky.
The allure of the Green Demon Bee was simply too great for him.
They say people die for wealth, as birds die for food.
He really didn¡¯t care for ordinary wealth and certainly wouldn¡¯t risk his life for it.
But for such an opportunity that could greatly boost one¡¯s strength and benefit them for a lifetime, it was probably hard for any Cultivator to refuse.
You must take risks to win.
Truly, without taking any risks and just wishing for immortality by lying down is nearly impossible.
For this task of retrieving the Green Demon treasure, he had made a lot of preparations and believed that even with certain risks, he could cope.
After finishing his purchase, he stepped out of the shop.
Behind him, Bei Bing chased after him.
¡°Ya ya¡¡±
She called out from behind then handed him a small wooden box containing a talisman.
Qin Niu did not know what the talisman was for.
Because she was mute, she gestured frantically to exin.
¡°This talisman was a birthday gift for little Bei Bing, it¡¯s called an Invisibility Talisman. Once activated, it can hide your figure. It can be used both day and night.¡±
¡°However, during the day, its invisibility duration will be halved.¡±
¡°Also, if it¡¯s used at night, staying still can make you invisible for up to four hours. During the day, it canst for two hours.¡±
¡°If you move quickly, are attacked by enemies, or if you initiate an attack, it could all cause the effect to dissipate.¡±
¡°In terms of creating the Invisibility Talisman, I¡¯m only just getting the hang of it, and I was fortunate to make one sessfully. Keep it with you in hopes that it will help you escape grave danger.¡±
¡°There are two ways to activate it. One is to prick your fingertip or tongue, and drip blood onto this activation area. The method is simr to using a contract talisman.¡±
¡°The other method to activate it is by using your divine power.¡±
¡°You must possess the cultivation of the Innate Realm or higher.¡±
¡°Actually, the correct way to use all talismans is by stimting them with divine power. Our Talisman Masters create talismans that can be activated with blood essence to amodate ordinary people. This is a non-standard activation method.¡±
The old man exined the function and usage of the talisman in detail.
Qin Niu had not expected such a valuable birthday gift, yet Bei Bing had given it to him.
Looking into Bei Bing¡¯s kind and sincere eyes, Qin Niu did not reject her kindness.
He truly needed such a precious talisman..
Chapter 224 - 217: Invisibility Talisman, Universal Map_3
Chapter 224: Chapter 217: Invisibility Talisman, Universal Map_3
Trantor: 549690339 |
From the old man¡¯s words, it couldn¡¯t be deduced that he had only created this one invisibility talisman.
This high-level talisman had already ventured into the realm of Immortal Techniques; the materials and craftsmanship involved must be against the natural order.
Being able to create just one was already a stroke of great fortune.
It was also apparent that this old man had considerable skills.
¡°Bei Bing, thank you for your kindness and friendship, goodbye!
Qin Niu nodded in gratitude and then strode away.
Qin Niu never easily owed favors to others.
But once he did owe a favor, he would surely repay the other party tenfold or even a hundredfold.
When Wang Wanyan had given him some food, meat pies, and pork at a time when he was short on provisions, Qin Niu had long since repaid her a hundred times over.
Following the old man¡¯s directions, Qin Niu really did find an unmarked small shop at the tail end of the market.
There was no signboard, and the entrance was low.
The shop door was open, however.
Inside hung conical hats, straw raincoats, ropes, and other items.
This was the Cultivation Market; who woulde here to buy such sundries?
It felt like the owner of this shop must have some issues with his head.
¡°Is anyone there?¡±
Qin Niu didn¡¯t notice anyone guarding the shop.
So he raised his voice and called out.
¡°Help yourself to whatever you need.¡±
A hoarse voice, grating like a broken gong, came from behind the counter.
Qin Niu looked closely and finally noticed there was someone lying inside. It was a dwarf old man, whose exact age was indiscernible. He had very ordinary looks.
Even a bit ugly.
¡°I¡¯d like to buy a map to ck Stone Vige in Hundred Leaf Town.¡±
¡°The distance from here to Hundred Leaf Town is not short. Do you want a detailed map or a generic, simplified map?¡±
¡°How much is a detailed map?¡±
¡°A detailed map covers every specific route and topography. You need to buy two, one for the territory of ck Tiger Gang and one for the Nine Insect Gang. The price is fifty taels of silver for each. A total of one hundred taels of silver. A generic map includes the entire domain of the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect and costs one tael of silver.¡±
The price nearly scared Qin Niu to pee his pants.
He could afford it,
but one hundred taels of silver for two maps was practically robbery.
¡°1¡¯11 take a generic map, please!¡±
Qin Niu took out one tael of silver andid it on the counter.
¡°Here you go!¡±
A foldedrge map was tossed over.
The tael of silver that had been ced on the counter, however, had disappeared without a trace at some point.
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but be startled.
This dwarf old man was formidable!
In ck Tiger City, where strength encountered stronger strength, and it was full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers, numerous masters abounded.
Although he had already reached the Innate Realm, he should still remain cautious and keep a low profile going forward.
He unfolded the map to take a closer look; the entire territory governed by the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect was drawn out on it.
Although it wasn¡¯t a detailed version, all the towns, viges, cities, and roads were clearly depicted.
With this map, he needn¡¯t worry about getting lost when outdoors.
This tael of silver was indeed a worthwhile investment.
After purchasing a good map, he no longer dyed and left the city, following the route marked on the map, he went straight ahead.
All the way, his speed was extremely fast.
With the cultivation of the Innate Realm, traveling was too easy for him.
If he ran at full speed, he was even faster than the average horse.
Along the way, locusts could be seen ravaging everywhere.
The number of special locusts turned out to be far less than expected, and as for the Grade Three giant locusts, he didn¡¯t find a single one.
He was somewhat curious, whether these locusts were being controlled by an Insect Master from the Nine Insect Gang or by several Insect Masters at the same time?
Launching a n war is usually arge-scale conflict.
It is equivalent to two countries going to war.
On the battlefield, the power of one person is extremely insignificant.
Often only a thousand troops can form a shape, and ten thousand troops can create a momentum.
To have the locust gue quickly sweep over the entire territory of the ck Tiger Gang, it seems possible that multiple Insect Masters are controlling at the same time.
So far, the most powerful he had encountered were the giant locusts, which were only Grade Three insects, and their numbers were pitifully small.
This made him suspect that the Insect Masters controlling the locusts from behind the scenes were likely arge group of low-level Insect Masters.
Otherwise, if they could reach the level of Old Master Huang, they would make a grand move the moment they took action and would not be so shabby.
When Old Master Huang ambushed Qin Niu, he directly used more than four thousand Grade Three Army Ants.
Although these locusts were numerous, in Qin Niu¡¯s eyes, they still seemed a bit petty.
Even he himself could cultivate a thousand Grade Three Termites in a day, and Grade Three insects really weren¡¯t much in his eyes.
Everywhere he looked, he could see abandoned farnds.
With the continuous locust gue, it was impossible to grow crops.
No matter how much was nted, it was all in vain.
Instead of that, it was better to leave thend fallow to minimize the losses.
Based on the current situation, the market price for farnds should soon plummet to a historical low. He had long prepared arge sum of Silver Money, waiting to snatch up a good deal and be a medium-sizedndlord in one fell swoop.
With a hundred acres of good farnd, one was not considered a majorndlord but only a mid-level one.
Those real majorndlords often owned tens of thousands of acres, with estates everywhere and thousands of servants.
Only they were the true noble ns.
Outside, the locust gue was so severe, and the Nine Insect Gang had already led their troops to invade the territory of the ck Tiger Gang, but inside ck Tiger City, there was still calm.
He wondered whether the news was blocked, or did everyone have faith in the ck Tiger Gang?
As it was getting dark, he was still three or four dozen miles away from Shihe Town of the ck Tiger Gang.
ording to the marks on the map, he had to first reach Shihe Town, then go through the necessary procedures to enter the territory of the Nine Insect Gang. Heading south from there, he would arrive at Hundred Leaf town.
Once at Hundred Leaf Town, finding ck Stone Vige would be easy.
Because every year, arge number of Insect Masters from all over would rush there in search of Green Demon Bees.
¡°I need to hurry to Shihe Town; otherwise, I might end up like Zhang Banzui, spending the night in the wild.¡±
Qin Niu quickened his pace.
It would be good if he could learn a Step-Method Martial Skill, or it would be quite nice to have a mount to ride.
Thatzy ox of his was still evolving andpletely unreliable.
If he encountered a suitable ferocious beast, taming one as a mount would also be quite good.
As the sky turnedpletely dark, he traveled by the light of the stars.
He finally made it to Shihe Town.
This small town was quite prosperous, significantly better than Jade Stream Town.
Possibly because it was located at the junction of two gangs, theing and going of merchants and the trade of goods drove the economy of this small town..
Chapter 225 - 218 Wash Crime River 1
Chapter 225: Chapter 218 Wash Crime River 1
Trantor: 549690339
Unlike the past, Qin Niu felt an unprecedented level of vignce as soon as he entered the small town.
At the entrance of the town, two rows of caltrops were ced.
Even though it waste at night, soldiers were still stationed there.
Behind the caltrops was a temporary camp with a bonfire burning. The temperature wasn¡¯t very low, being summertime, it could even be called hot.
The bonfire must have been lit for illumination.
One could vaguely see more than a dozen soldiers sitting around the bonfire, with only the leading three wearing Hundred-Tempering ck Armor.
The rest were inmon leather armor.
Typically, those who wore Hundred-Tempering ck Armor were either formal soldiers or lower-ranking officers, while those in leather armor were mostly recruits or candidates for enlistment.
Just because the soldiers at the gate of ck Tiger City were all wearing Hundred-Tempering ck Armor and holding long spears, it didn¡¯t mean that such armor was issued to every soldier. A set of Hundred-Tempering ck Armor worth five hundred taels of silver money was never intended to be distributed to each and every foot soldier.
It was only because ck Tiger Gang was not short on money now, that they put on such a show at the entrance.
Back in the early days of the gang¡¯s establishment, if you wanted to enlist, you had to provide your own weapons, mounts, and armor.
¡°Hey, what are you doing?¡±
A soldier spotted Qin Niu, who was carrying a basket and walking briskly.
¡°Just passing through.¡±
Qin Niu showed his bronze Fish Talisman.
This item was quite effective within ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory. If he encountered any inspections, he could immediately enjoy privileges and preferential treatment.
¡°Oh, an Insect Master! Are you preparing to leave ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory?¡±
The soldier took a good look at Qin Niu, noticeably more respectful in his demeanor.
¡°Right, I n to try my luck at Hundred Leaf Town,¡± Qin Niu said nonchntly.
¡°Boss, there¡¯s an Insect Master here who wants to leave the territory!¡±
The soldier turned and shouted to the military leader sitting by the bonfire.
The three military leaders wearing the Hundred-Tempering ck Armor immediately stood up and came over, surrounding Qin Niupletely.
Qin Niu remained unfazed.
Among these three, the one with the highest cultivation was the big-bearded soldier, roughly at the first level of the Acquired Realm. The other two were at most at the peak of the Mortal Realm.
Truth be told, even if all these soldiersbined their forces, they wouldn¡¯t be enough for him to kill with one hand.
¡°Now, our ck Tiger Gang is at war with the Nine Insect Gang, you couldn¡¯t possibly be unaware of that, could you?¡± the big-bearded man asked, his tone somewhat icy as he scrutinized Qin Niu.
¡°I know.¡±
¡°Knowing that the two armies are at war, yet you¡¯re heading towards Nine Insect Gang territory? Hand me your waist token for registration,¡± the big-bearded manmanded as the highest-ranking among the soldiers present.
Military formations are generallyposed of five soldiers as a squad, with ten forming a unit, plus an additional unitmander.
All these people together made up exactly eleven.
The big-bearded man must be a unitmander.
Qin Niu had also gained an initial understanding of the military¡¯s strength.
One at the first level of the Acquired Realm could be a unitmander, while those at the peak of the Mortal Realm with exceptionalbat prowess could aspire to be squad leaders.
As for someone like him in the Innate Realm, he would at least rank as a Centurion.
Qin Niu had his Fish Talisman registered.
¡°Master Qin Niu, if I may be so bold to ask, what do you n to do after leaving the territory? Can you tell me?¡±
¡°I am nning to go to Hundred Leaf Town in search of the Green Demon Bee.¡±
After hearing his objective, the big-bearded man¡¯s expression softened slightly.
¡°If you really must leave our territory, we won¡¯t stop you. However, I still have to offer you some advice. Currently, with the two armies at war, your identity is very sensitive. Going into Nine Insect Gang¡¯s domain is truly unwise. You could easily be mistaken for a deserter or traitor, or even be deemed a spy sent by Nine Insect Gang to gather intelligence. Moreover, once you¡¯re discovered after crossing the border, they won¡¯t hesitate to capture you, and they might even execute you on the spot.¡±
Afterpleting the registration, the big-bearded man exined the risks involved.
The timing to leave the country is indeed not very good.
¡°Thank you for your advice, but I still want to try,¡± Qin Niu insisted on his own idea.
¡°Go ahead, then! I can only wish you luck. There are also some people in the town who want to leave the country for various reasons. You can join them; your chances of sess might be slightly higher,¡± the big-bearded man carried out his duties without giving him trouble.
As long as they were of the privileged ss, they would try to make things convenient for one another.
Qin Niu walked through the passage left open between the barriers.
After entering the town, he could see that thenterns in front of several inns were lit. There were even shop assistants standing outside, soliciting guests who might need a ce to stay.
¡°Sir, would you like to stay at our inn?¡±
Seeing Qin Niu with a basket on his back, in a hurry, a middle-aged woman waved her silk handkerchief, calling out to him.
Those who did not know better might have thought she was a pimp drumming up business.
¡°No need.¡±
Qin Niu indifferently refused with a single sentence, then continued walking forward.
It was not hard to discern from the soldier¡¯s words that leaving the country wasn¡¯t difficult, but once inside the territory of the Nine Insect Gang, evading their inspection was the real issue.
¡°Yo, sir, it seems you want to leave the country! You can¡¯t cross right now. Our inn is hosting many guests like you who want to leave the country! If you trust me, Sister Fang, stay at my inn, and when the timees, I¡¯ll arrange everything for you,¡± the woman bustled about, with sharper eyes than most.
She easily guessed Qin Niu¡¯s intention.
But Qin Niu wasn¡¯t buying her act. He didn¡¯t respond and just kept walking with his head down.
ording to the information on the map, after entering the town, he just needed to keep heading north, and he would encounter a big river.
Once he crossed that river, he would be entering the territory of the Nine Insect Gang.
He moved on, and the few inns along the way all had their lights on, but there was no one standing at the doors to solicit guests.
Only thendy of the first inn was the most dedicated to her business.
Once out of town, the road conditions became much worse.
The road was uneven and full of potholes, the sides overgrown with weeds. It was a dark and windy night, and traveling alone was quite eerie.
The further forward he went, the more deste it became.
After walking about two miles, he could already hear the sound of rushing water ahead.
The big river was not far ahead.
Another two hundred or so meters, and sure enough, he saw a wide river about two hundred meters across, meandering and lying across thend.
The distinctive smell of the water was overpowering.
ording to the map, this river should be the famous Cleanse Sin River.
Also known as Wash Crime River.
It was said that if one bathed in this river and repented sincerely after making a mistake, sins could be washed away.
Still, such tales were somewhat fantastical, and not many believed them.
Instead, there was a ck fish in the river that was tender with few bones and tasted delicious, which was very popr among people. Vigers living near the river often went there to fish.
Qin Niu looked at the relentless river and couldn¡¯t help but worry.
Crossing this river, even with his excellent swimming ability, was not an easy task.
The river had dangerous undercurrents and was full of whirlpools that could swallow a person whole; swimming across was perilous.
The best way was to cross over a bridge.
He had bought a simple version of the map which showed the river, but it did not indicate where the bridge was.
You get what you pay for; a thin gruel provides little sustenance.
A universal map purchased for one tael of silver would certainly not be as detailed as one costing fifty taels.
But to spend a hundred taels of silver on a map of the ck Tiger Gang and another for the Nine Insect Gang, he was somewhat reluctant to part with his money.
Mainly because it wasn¡¯t of much use to him..
Chapter 226 - 219 Darkness Falls - Part 1
Chapter 226: Chapter 219 Darkness Falls ¨C Part 1
Trantor: 549690339 I
He looked around, and because it was night, he could only see the dim starlight and couldn¡¯t see very far.
There was no way to find the big bridge to cross the river.
¡°Timid Turtle, can you help me cross the river?¡±
This time, Qin Niu hade with assistance. The Diamond Ink Turtle, having reached Grade Five, had already begun to master water maniption skills.
It was the perfect opportunity to test its water control abilities.
The small turtle was taken out of the basket while the Red-eyed Golden Toad wasfortably sprawled inside, eyes closed in deep sleep.
As soon as Qin Niu ced the Diamond Ink Turtle by the river, it desperately scrambled to climb back onto the bank.
¡°What are you doing? Do you think this bit of river water could actually drown you?¡±
Every time he saw its cowardly demeanor, Qin Niu became somewhat irritated.
The little turtle, scolded, hid by his feet, refusing to go into the river.
Logically speaking, a turtle should be happy to see the river.
Because the river is its home.
¡°Do you want me to throw you into the river?¡±
Qin Niu bent down, grabbed the little turtle, and pretended he was about to throw it into the river.
He really didn¡¯t understand what this coward was afraid of.
The little turtle, scared, stretched out its limbs, tail, and neck from its shell, struggling incessantly.
¡°Danger, danger¡¡±
Qin Niu could sense the intermittent signalsing from it. It wasmunicating with Qin Niu through spiritual connection.
¡°What¡¯s the danger?¡±
He questioned the little turtle.
Unexpectedly, by pushing the little turtle to such an extent, it had directly learned to initiatemunication with its owner.
Although it was a simple spiritual exchange, it still pleased Qin Niu.
He hadn¡¯t yet grasped beast speech.
Communication with the little turtle and the small water buffalo was very challenging. Only the Red-eyed Golden Toad could barelymunicate with him.
This made him quite helpless.
Now that the little turtle was proactively engaging in spiritualmunication, it was greatly helpful for his understanding of beast speech.
Seizing the moment, he took the opportunity to engage in deepermunication with the little turtle.
¡°There¡¯s danger in the river¡¡±
The little turtle, seeing its owner poised to throw it into the river, also did its utmost tomunicate with Qin Niu.
Dealing with such an irresponsible owner, it was truly unlucky.
¡°I¡¯m asking what the danger in the river is?¡±
¡°Don¡¯t know¡ just sense danger!¡±
The little turtle was progressing very quickly.
Under such extreme pressure, itsmunication with Qin Niu was bing smoother and smoother.
What could the danger possibly be?
Qin Niu looked at the turbulent river surface, secretly relieved that he had yet to recklessly enter the water.
Having managed to survive the flood shortly after birth, the little turtle actually had quite decent swimming skills.
If it said there was danger now, it definitely wasn¡¯t afraid of drowning.
The most likely scenario was that there was something in the river.
¡°Going back to the inn to find a guide might be a good idea,¡± he thought.
Qin Niu dared not take the risk and went back to the small town.
Thendy of the inn didn¡¯t seem surprised to see him return at all.
¡°Guest, stay at our inn, I guarantee you won¡¯t regret it. Just a little extra money, and someone will escort you through a safe passage across the border. It¡¯s still early to go now, and you¡¯ll be easily caught. When to leave and which route to take, we are professionals; you¡¯ll understand when the timees,¡± she said, smiling as she weed him into the inn.
¡°Haven¡¯t eaten yet, right? We¡¯ve got hot wine and hot dishes, all avable.¡±
She was very pleased to have snagged a customer.
¡°Bring me five pounds of braised beef and a pot of fine wine.¡±
Now that he had money, he naturally couldn¡¯t skimp on food.
Cultivators had a great need for meat.
Especially at the Mortal Realm and Acquired Realm stages.
After advancing to the Innate Realm, the demand for food actually began to decrease.
ording to his former appetite, he would need at least ten pounds of beef at one meal.
Now, eating only five pounds was quite refined.
¡°Alright!¡±
The woman quickly brought over arge te of cooked beef with chili sauce. The wine, too, was of excellent quality, fragrant and enticing. Drinking it, he found it sweet, potent, like an unrivaled beauty, immensely satisfying.
¡°How much does it cost to have someone guide me across the border?¡±
¡°If it¡¯s just to cross the river, two hundred Wen will suffice. If after crossing the border you need to be taken to a safe ce, then the fee is higher, starting at no less than ten Silver Coins,¡±
The woman was likely thendy.
Inside the inn was a young man in his twenties serving as the waiter.
¡°Can 1 leave today?¡±
¡°Of course. Leaving around the fourth watch would be most suitable; just pay and there will be someone to take you across then,¡± she replied.
The fourth watch was equivalent to one to three in the early morning.
The fact that they chose this time to cross the border showed just how professional they were.
This time period was when people were in their deepest sleep of the day. Doing so was probably to avoid inspections by the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s soldiers.
With the two factions at war, the other side would not allow passage to members of the enemy faction.
Sneaking into Nine Insect Gang territory under the cover of night was the best method.
Once they got past the border checkpoints, it should be safe from there on out.
¡°How much for the beef and wine?¡±
¡°Sixty wen in total.¡±
¡°Here!¡±
Qin Niu tossed out two pieces of silver money.
That should be three qian for sure.
When traveling outside, never reveal your wealth.
Inside the inn, many people were still seated at this moment. Some were eating and drinking, chatting away, while others were quietly sipping tea.
Everyone was waiting.
Each of them was full of vignce towards strangers, never revealing any details easily.
¡°That¡¯s a little over three qian of silver money, I¡¯ll give you back forty wen.¡±
After receiving the silver money, thendy was very pleased.
¡°No need for change, just give me some more beef to take on the road. The meat here tastes quite good.¡±
Qin Niu figured that forty wen should buy him another five jin of braised beef.
While forty wen may not seem like much, it¡¯s equivalent to four days¡¯ wages for an adult farmer.
Beef is much more expensive than pork, and braised beef shrinks in cooking. Selling it for eight wen per jin is definitely a fair price.
Thendy personally cut five jin of beef for him.
Wrapped in oiled paper.
After Qin Niu took it and weighed it, it seemed more than five jin.
¡°You sure gave a generous portion,ndy! Hope this won¡¯t cause you a loss?¡±
¡°Heh, you¡¯ve got quite a hand there! 1 added an extra jin for you, just a little token.¡± Thendy said with a smile.
¡°Many thanks!¡±
¡°Enjoy, sir. If you need anything, just call me. It¡¯s still early before the fourth watch, so you can also take a nap on the table. If you prefer something morefortable, we have rooms avable upstairs for thirty wen a night. Whether you stay until midnight or dawn, it¡¯s the same one-night charge.¡±
The prices were clearly marked.
Qin Niu thought to himself that if those sitting in the inn¡¯s main hall were also refugees, they would likely be reluctant to spend an extra thirty wen on a room, choosing instead to rest in the main hall.
He discreetly watched the crowd: porters, peddlers, all sorts of people.
Most were just ordinary folks.
There were two or three with considerable strength, but he didn¡¯t detect any cultivators from the Innate Realm.
Sensing someone¡¯s cultivation level is generally clearer for high-level cultivators sensing lower-level ones.
If the other person¡¯s cultivation level is higher than one¡¯s own, it¡¯s usually hard to detect.
One might even mistake them for an ordinary person.
For instance, the dwarf who sold him the map had unfathomable strength.
And as for the five ancestors of the Fang Family, there¡¯s even less need to mention.
After having his fill of beef and wine, he felt quitefortable.
He didn¡¯t go upstairs to rent a room and sleep.
It wasn¡¯t about saving those thirty wen for the room, but instead, he wanted to stay in the main hall to listen in on other people¡¯s conversations. With his Innate Realm cultivation, whether others whispered or spoke softly, he could hear everything clearly.
After some eavesdropping, he roughly understood the basic situation at the border.
The Nine Insect Gang¡¯s main assault wasn¡¯t here, but they had chosen to invade from Dafeng Vige by the ck Water River.
Thetest news was that the frontline troops of the ck Tiger Gang had suffered heavy casualties.
At least over a thousand were dead or injured.
Moreover, the troops of the Nine Insect Gang were extremely cruel. Men captured by them were used as food to feed insects, and young women were turned into ves.
The fate of the children captured was even worse, being used directly as cauldrons for breeding insects.
The Nine Insect Gang¡¯s soldiers were described aspletely wicked, though it was unclear whether these were actual facts or if the higher-ups of the ck Tiger Gang were vilifying their opponents to spur the public¡¯s will to resist.
Besides the invasion by the Nine Insect Gang, the usually neutral Shennong Sect had also invaded directly from the ins near the ck Water River.
They had already taken over a vast area of fertilend from the ck Tiger Gang.
For the Shennong Sect,nd was their treasure.
After all, they specialized in agriculture.
With broadernds, they could grow more crops and support more people.
Once the poption base increased, the number of powerful individuals would also rise.
Qin Niu thought to himself that thosendlords who had boughtnd were sure to be crying now.
Land seized by the troops of a rival gang could not be reimed by anyndlord alone.
This also meant a direct zeroing out of a vast amount of assets.
Normally, just having a hundred acres of good farnd would be enough for generations to live worry-free.
Besides these two pieces of bad news, there was another disadvantageous piece of news: it was said that the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect was in its centennial period of weakness. During this time, the sect would generally not interfere with wars between the various gangs under its jurisdiction.
The ck Tiger Gang, facing two enemies alone, was no match for either gang on its own.
Now with these two gangs joining forces to destroy it, one can imagine the oue.
Two men dressed as merchants were conversing in whispers.
¡°Boss Wen, if we flee to the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s territory now, will we be safe?¡±
¡°As long as you get a legal identity, it¡¯s very safe. Haven¡¯t you already settled the legal identity issue? Just be at ease. But when we¡¯re crossing the borderter, we must be careful of the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s soldiers. If they catch us, they¡¯ll strip us of all our silver money. Our lives will be very difficult then.¡±
¡°Shouldn¡¯t we just spend ten taels of silver money to hire someone to escort us to a safe location?¡±
¡°Are you stupid or something? Who can truly guarantee absolute safety? Besides, ten taels of silver money is not a small sum, it hurts even me to spend it!¡±
¡°That¡¯s true.¡±
¡°No matter what, we were lucky to have prepared early. At least we¡¯ll be able to survive after getting there. Those without a legal identity will really suffer. I heard that somendlords and wealthy merchants have already sold their properties and voluntarily started moving to the ins.¡±
¡°But what¡¯s the point? Aren¡¯t they still within the realm of the ck Tiger Gang when they move there?¡±
¡°You really don¡¯t get it, do you? If they move to the ins, should the ck Tiger Gang really get wiped out, that area will be Shennong Sect territory. The Shennong Sect is much better in its conduct than the Nine Insect Gang; they won¡¯t harm ordinary citizens. Since they have money, once things settle down, they¡¯ll buynd again and livefortably with a legal status from the Shennong Sect.¡±
¡°Smart, that¡¯s really smart! Had we known, we should¡¯ve gotten legal identities from the Shennong Sect. We¡¯ve really lost out this time.¡±
Chapter 227 - 220 River God?_1
Chapter 227: Chapter 220 River God?_1
Trantor: 549690339
Themoners at the bottom live the hardest lives, with the weakest ability to withstand risks.
At the slightest disturbance, many ordinary peopleck even the ability to escape.
Men like these two, who looked like merchants, were a cut above the rest among themoners; at least they could y both sides. Not only did they have legal identities with the ck Tiger Gang, but they also secretly held valid identities with the Nine Insect Gang.
In modern terms, that would be akin to having dual citizenship.
Some who couldn¡¯t secure legal identities from other factions and had a small amount of money foresaw the changes early. They sold their assets and moved to the areas most likely to be taken over by the Shennong Sect.
After a stable transition, they¡¯d still be able to purchasend and live a good life.
The most tormented must be the impoverished, ordinary folks without money or connections.
Faced with the onset of war or disaster, they could only gamble with their lives. Compared to these people, Qin Niu was one of the few who had managed to break free.
With his strength and cultivation level, he believed that he could fare well in any faction¡¯s territory.
Time passed bit by bit, and it was soon the fourth watch of the night.
About thirty-seven or thirty-eight people had gathered inside the inn, some with families in tow, going to the Nine Insect Gang to seek refuge with rtives; others were alone.
Then, another seven or eight people came down from the guest rooms on the second floor.
¡°Is everyone ready?¡±
Thendy had changed into a set of ck tight-fitting clothes and was holding a precious sword in a sharkskin sheath, with arge bundle strapped to her back.
This outfit left everyone stunned.
Was she ying multiple roles all by herself?
¡°We¡¯ve been ready for a while! Just waiting for the guide toe!¡±
Let¡¯s go! Keep close to me! And remember, you must keep quiet; otherwise, we all get into trouble if hassle crops up,¡± thendy warned everyone, then leaped out as she opened the inn¡¯s main door.
She revealed an unexpectedly impressive physical agility.
Qin Niu felt his horizons broadening.
Appearances can be deceiving; who would have thought that an innkeeper, who looked like an aging woman on the surface, would possess noteworthy strength behind the scenes.
Turns out she was quite the moneymaker.
The fee for guiding one person was 200 wen; for ten people, that was 2000 wen, the equivalent of Two Silver Money.
With a total of forty-six or forty-seven people here, guiding them once would mean more than nine silver ingots in ie.
And that didn¡¯t include the money spent by guests in her inn.
Indeed, every surviving store had its own ways to earn wealth.
The crowd followed closely behind her, moving forward in the dark.
No one dared to make a sound.
They were like a ghost army.
Before long, they arrived at the great river¡¯s edge.
Qin Niu had been here once before but hadn¡¯t found where the bridge was.
He definitely wouldn¡¯t dare venture into the river.
If something could scare the Diamond Ink Turtle that much, it meant the creatures in the water were extremely fearsome.
Under her lead, everyone stopped at a point where the river was rtively narrow.
Because the river narrower here, the current seemed much more rapid.
¡°Line up, I¡¯ll escort each one of you across the river. Remember, don¡¯t fall into the river, or it means certain death,¡± she announced before unwrapping therge bundle on her back, pulling out a long rope.
This rope seemed to be specially made. Its exact material was unclear, but it felt exceptionally sturdy.
It was also rtively lightweight.
The color was brown with a slight hint of gold.
Upon extracting thisrge bundle of rope, she nimbly climbed up arge tree and secured one end of the rope around the trunk.
Then, from the shadows, she carried over a small boat.
This boat was custom-made, its bottom covered in a thinyer of copper while wooden on the side. The bow was pointed, and the stern was t.
It looked as though a boat had been cut into two, and this was just the front half.
The width of the small boat was barely over one meter, with a length of less than two meterspact and agile. Judging by its size, carrying an adult of moderate weight might risk sinking it.
She moved the boat to the riverbank, then fitted it with two oars. After cing the rope on the boat, she tied the rope¡¯s end to a metal ring at the stern. Once everything was set, she didn¡¯t immediately let the boat into the water.
Instead, she retrieved arge bag from the bundle that seemed quite heavy.
Qin Niu smelled blood.
It was probably crushed meat, mixed with other substances, exuding a strange scent.
¡°Pipi,e out!¡±
With her call, a small monkey emerged.
It was less than a foot tall, wearing a little vest. Its face was covered in white fur, somewhat resembling the legendary white-faced monkey.
But the white-faced monkey was muchrger than this one.
This little monkey radiated intelligence.
After appearing, it nced at Qin Niu fearfully, then shrank back into thendy¡¯s arms.
Thendy looked at Qin Niu with a touch of surprise but said nothing further.
Qin Niu had a Grade Seven Golden Toad with him, and the little monkey must have sensed its aura, hence its apprehension.
Grade Five Beast Pets were already rare.
Grade Six Beast Pets were even scarcer.
And those reaching Grade Seven were exceptionally few.
A Grade Seven Beast Pet was no ordinarymodity; like a human in the Innate Realm, it represented a being of some status and strength.
Thendy took off a hooded cloak from her back and put it on, securely guarding her head and face.
The little monkey and the bag of bloody food were ced inside the boat.
She started by throwing two handfuls of crushed meat into the river.
Suddenly, the water erupted with crackling sounds, and the two areas where the meatnded roiled like boiling water.
The water churned, continuously lifting dense ripples.
Qin Niu focused his eyes to take a closer look, vaguely making out shadows moving under the roiling waves.
The small ones were only the size of a finger, while therger ones were as big as a human palm.
They were fish, a dense mass offish.
And they were meat eaters.
They tore frantically at the scraps of flesh.
Once he saw the truth, Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but feel his scalp tingle.
However, the old bossdy adeptly shouldered the boat and went straight into the water. Almost flying into the river with the boat.
As soon as the small boat touched the water, the old bossdy immediately began to vigorously paddle, propelling the boat forward like an arrow released from its bow.
The little monkey sitting in the boat quickly scattered handfuls of minced meat to both sides.
The distance it threw was just right, each time the boat had not yet arrived when the meat it tossed went into the river.
The next second, the small boat reached the empty space in the middle where the monkey had scattered the meat.
In this way, the pair, one human and one monkey, worked together seamlessly. The small boat was able to safely navigate through the turbulent river waters.
It all seemed easy, but Qin Niu knew very well that a slight mistake could mean the destruction of the boat and loss of life.
Not long ago, he had thought the old bossdy¡¯s business of guiding people was extremely profitable, but now it seemed that she was indeed risking her life to earn money. Charging only Two Silver Money per person was already very generous.
When the small boat reached the middle of the great river, a towering wave surged up.
Everyone involuntarily held their breath.
Just when everyone expected the worst, that the boat would flip, incredibly it did not overturn in the waves.
A ck head slowly rose from the churning waters.
The old bossdy took an object from her package and tossed it out.
With his Innate Realm skills, Qin Niu had better eyesight than the average person. He barely made out that the object the old bossdy threw was a pig¡¯s head.
The ck head on the water caught the pig¡¯s head in one bite and then swallowed it.
Itsrge head slowly sank back into the water.
What kind of water monster was this?
Its head was muchrger than a normal bucket, easily big enough to swallow a person whole in one gulp.
Not long before, Qin Niu had thought of swimming across, but now, seeing the water monster reveal its head, his entire body shuddered.
If he had truly gone into the water, by now he would most likely have be the monster¡¯s meal.
Seeing it easily devour such arge pig¡¯s head, as if eating a snack, was terrifying.
Swallowing a person in the river would certainly not pose much of a problem for it.
The old bossdy¡¯s boat was now just a small, faint ck dot, due to approaching the opposite riverbank.
Too great a distance, coupled with the dark sky, made it difficult for everyone to see clearly.
Momentster, the old bossdy¡¯s boat reached the shore.
Qin Niu let out a sigh of relief.
Although it was the old bossdy risking her life crossing the river, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from feeling anxious for her.
Earning such guide money was definitely not easy.
After all, if it were up to Qin Niu to risk his own life for such a sum, he would never agree.
The old bossdy must have practiced countless times, her boating skills were top-notch. Moreover, from the moment the small boat hit the water to crossing the river and reaching the other bank, the entire process was executed in one go.
After reaching the shore, she seemed to be strenuously pulling the rope taut.
She secured the other end of the rope to the opposite side of the river.
Then after a while, she astonishingly slid back across the river surface on the rope.
In effect, she had temporarily created a zip line between the two banks.
Alright, next, one by one, I will ensure each of you crosses the river safely,¡± she said.
She started to fasten specially made rope clips to people, escorting them across the river.
Although this section of the river was narrow, it was definitely over a hundred meters wide.
A rope used as a zip line across such a wide expanse of river, carrying the weight of two adults without a hitch, was certainly not ordinary rope.
The first guest, under her escort, sessfully glided to the other side on the rope.
When she returned, she brought back the small boat from the opposite riverbank.
This was her livelihood, naturally she treasured it greatly.
One by one, the guests were transported to the opposite bank. Soon, it was Qin Niu¡¯s turn.
Gliding over the river on the rope, he was about ten meters above the water.
¡°Why is it necessary to wear a cloak to protect your head and face when sailing across the river?¡± Qin Niu asked the old bossdy while following her to the opposite bank.
¡®There are terrifying mosquitoes on the river surface. Being bitten by them causes itching and pain, swelling up into huge bumps that take over seven days to subside,¡± she replied.
That exined it.
¡°So, aren¡¯t we afraid of being bitten while crossing now?¡± he asked.
¡°Those bloodsucking mosquitoes can¡¯t fly very high. I set the slide rope this high, so we don¡¯t have to worry about bites,¡± she exined.
Certainly the work of a professional.
There were many secrets involved that outsiders simply weren¡¯t aware of.
¡°That ck thing in the middle of the river¡¡± Qin Niu began.
¡°Don¡¯t speak of it, or be careful it might get angry,¡± the old bossdy said sternly.
Qin Niu quickly shut his mouth. His curiosity about the ck head, the water monster, persisted. Could there really be a River God in this world?
He and the old bossdy safely slid to the other shore.
¡°Alright, just climb down this tree and you¡¯ll be fine. Remember, it¡¯s best not to go that direction. As long as you sessfully leave this river bank by five miles before dawn, you will be safe,¡± she instructed after arriving.
Having said that, she took the rope clip off him, then kicked off from the tree trunk and swiftly slid back to the opposite bank..
Chapter 228 - 221 Entering the Territory of the Nine Insect Gang 1
Chapter 228: Chapter 221 Entering the Territory of the Nine Insect Gang 1
Qin Niu slid down the big tree to the ground; most of the guests who had crossed the river had already departed.
Only two people were still waiting, possibly for family members or friends who had not yet crossed the river.
Qin Niu followed the direction taken by those before him and strode forward.
The fact that others had traveled this path suggested it was rtively safe.
If anything were to go wrong ahead, following from behind would allow him to detect any trouble and escape immediately.
With his abilities, it was almost impossible for the average soldier of the Nine Insect Gang to capture him.
He walked in the dark for about three or four miles without encountering any soldiers from the Nine Insect Gang.
The two hundred coins paid for the guide today were well spent.
No matter how tightly the borders were sealed, smugglers would find a way through.
ording to the mistress¡¯s words, as long as he was five miles away from the riverbank, he would be safe.
Now, there should only be a mile or two left.
Despite some time remaining before dawn, he was still worried that the longer the night, the more dreams, and the best n was to hurry away from this troublesome ce.
As he ran swiftly forward, he faintly heard screamsing from ahead.
His heart instantly tightened.
There were definitely people in trouble up front.
Had the soldiers of the Nine Insect Gang discovered them, these smugglers, and decided to exterminate them, or had they encountered other problems?
The terrain had been rather t just after crossing the river.
But now, it had be a rugged mountain path, with lush trees and continuous hills everywhere.
Such small hills, no more than two hundred meters high, could not be called mountains.
They were merely hills.
Indeed, a ce had its own features. On one side of the river was apletely different world from the other.
In the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s Shihe Town, thend was t and fertile, perfect for cultivating crops. Who could have imagined that just a few miles beyond the river would turn out to be a mountainous area?
There were fewer signs of habitation as well.
No homes had yet been discovered.
It was also night, and the route they were taking was remote, so it was normal not to encounter any households.
Qin Niu had no intention of going to the rescue or investigating further.
Those with too kind a heart often did not live for long.
Even a Bodhisattva couldn¡¯t possibly save everyone.
Just look at ¡°Journey to the West¡±; the Bodhisattva only extends a helping hand to those demons with whom there is a vested interest.
Those who meddle in the affairs of others are often good people.
But in these times, good people often do not live long lives.
He quickly changed direction and sped up.
However, he soon ran into trouble himself.
As he descended a hill, he found the area infested with vicious mosquitoes.
These mosquitoes had grey and white patterns on their bodies, long proboscises, and were highly agile in flight.
Smelling Qin Niu¡¯s flesh and blood, they swiftly flew towards him, diving straight at him.
The result was predictable; Qin Niu didn¡¯t have to lift a finger, as the twenty thousand termites he carried were not vegetarians.
Among them, nearly four thousand possessed abilities for mental attacks or control.
These mosquitoes were not ordinary, but they didn¡¯t even reach Grade Two.
As soon as they got within five meters of Qin Niu, they were struck down as if by invisible bullets.
They fell to the ground, writhing in pain.
Some died instantly.
Ordinary insects trying to attack Qin Niu couldn¡¯t even get close to him.
The group of termites he had put so much effort into raising was not just for show.
¡°Were these poisonous mosquitoes intentionally ced here by the Nine Insect Gang to guard the border? Or because Insect Masters aremonce within the territory of the Nine Insect Gang, all sorts of formidable wild insects can be found everywhere?¡±
Insect Masters would inevitably discard some lesser breeds during the breeding process.
Or the first generation insects.
For instance, Qin Niu¡¯s termites.
The Ant Queen¡¯s newly produced termites were obviously stronger and of a higher grade, their strength surpassing that of the thousands of termites that came before them.
He didn¡¯t eliminate the first batch of termites because each of them had multiple special abilities.
This was only the case for his insects.
Other Insect Masters didn¡¯t have high-grade resources like the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood; having one insect with special abilities would be enough to make them overjoyed.
Even the over four thousand Grade Three army ants of Old Master Huang were just ordinary.
Therefore, when they acquired higher-grade insects, they would directly eliminate the original generation of insects.
By the time they had fourth or fifth generation insects, they might even eliminate the third generation.
Some of those eliminated insects might be killed directly.
This is a rather selfish and extreme method.
The purpose is to prevent others from breeding simr insects.
Some Insect Masters, due to their affection for their insect pets, wouldn¡¯t kill them,
but would dissolve the contract and release them back into nature.
For colony-type insects, eliminating them is even less of a pressure.
Qin Niu strode fearlessly, ignoring those poison mosquitoes.
As he quickly moved forward, he seemed to feel something like silk threads breaking under his feet.
Looking down, he saw spider silk.
His Insect Identification skill had already reached a certain level, now at two stars. Upon examining the spider silk, he discovered it wasn¡¯t ordinary silk but a kind of very tough special silk.
The spider that spun it must be at least Grade Four.
And the silk thread he broke was still new, indicating that it hadn¡¯t been spun long ago.
It was likely within a day or two.
In the territory of the Nine Insect Gang, where insects were so abundant and powerful, it couldn¡¯t be possible to casually encounter such a formidable spider on a small hill, right?
This Grade Four spider likely had an owner.
What was the purpose of setting up the spider silk in the mountain?
It must be serving as an alert. Simr to setting up a warning bell or a trap, an intrusion would be immediately detected.
¡°I must leave here quickly.¡±
He realized that something was amiss.
He swiftly took another direction and hurriedly escaped from the area.
The mountains were dense with trees, and he was unfamiliar with the terrain.
He was extremely cautious along the way, avoiding any possible traps. As he walked, he actually got lost.
It¡¯s easy to overestimate one¡¯s ability to traverse mountains until exhaustion overtakes.
Getting lost in the mountains was a terrifying situation.
Mainly because this mountain range was not safe.
However strong he was, he wasn¡¯t arrogant enough to confront the army of the Nine Insect Gang alone.
¡°Be careful, everyone¡ª this person broke my spider silk; they should be in this area.¡±
That person¡¯s voice wasn¡¯t loud, but Qin Niu still heard it.
It came from the front left.
He certainly wouldn¡¯t stupidly wait to be surrounded by enemies.
He immediately broke through towards the front right.
The Ink de was already in his hand.
This de was thirsty for human blood. If any blindly searching Nine Insect Gang soldiers came his way, he might just have to embark on a ughter.
Today, no matter what, he had to fight his way out.
Now that he had encountered such great trouble, the other forty or so smuggled passengers were probably in grave danger.
Among those smuggled passengers, just sitting in the main hall, there were three with formidable strength.
The family of four that came down from upstairs, though slightly weaker, had the male head of the household at least at the second or thirdyer of the Acquired Realm. Such a high-level master was actually thinking of escaping the ck Tiger Gang territory with his family.
In Qin Niu¡¯s view, this was simply a foolish move.
Sometimes that¡¯s how human hearts work, scaring oneself.
The ck Tiger Gang might seem weak, but the high ranks of the ck Tiger Gang were fought for, and few high-ranking members got their positions through their parents¡¯ leftover influence.
In terms of strength, the ck Tiger Gang was definitely not as weak as imagined..
Chapter 229 - 222 Scouti
Chapter 229: Chapter 222 Scouti
However, between factions and noble families throughout the ages, the primary strategy of war was always to strike at the heart.
The Nine Insect Gang may seem powerful and ferocious, but if they were to rely solely on their own strength to take down the ck Tiger Gang, the likely oue would be a pyrrhic victory.
They had already absorbed a Seven-Star Sect before, which meant they had umted a certain amount of war experience.
This time, beforeunching the war to invade the ck Tiger Gang, they had already employed a variety ofbination punches.
There were locust gues, assassinations of the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s Insect Masters, and alliances with the Shennong Sect to strike together. It was estimated that the subjects of the ck Tiger Gang who were well-informed had long been living in constant fear.
Qin Niu¡¯s escape was exceptionally swift.
His regr training and activities in the mountains had allowed him to adapt well to the current terrain.
He moved through the mountains like a cunning lynx, agile and swift.
After running non-stop for about seven or eight miles, the sound of pursuers behind him could no longer be heard.
But he felt the danger growing more and more palpable.
He couldn¡¯t exin it; it was purely a sharp intuition.
Now, the sky was revealing a faint pre-dawn light, and his vision could barely make out objects fifty meters away.
¡°Master¡¡±
The Diamond Ink Turtle sent him a faint spiritual signal.
Being a Grade Five Beast Pet, its spiritual power shouldn¡¯t be this weak. This was because it had just learned tomunicate with Qin Niu using its mental intent, and the skill was still somewhat unrefined.
With more practice, it would be more proficient.
¡°Danger ahead!¡±
It seemed quite anxious.
Among Qin Niu¡¯s many pets, it was the most timid.
Using it as an early warning system in the future would not be a bad idea.
¡°What danger do you sense?¡±
Both he and the Diamond Ink Turtle had sensed danger, which confirmed that his intuition was urate.
¡°I don¡¯t know!¡±
The Diamond Ink Turtle replied with conviction.
Facing unclear danger ahead and pursuers behind, Qin Niu¡¯s venture to find the Green Demon¡¯s treasure was proving to be fraught with ill fortune.
¡°Fourth, your sensory abilities are strong. Can you sense any danger ahead?¡±
¡°I can only sense insects or food!¡±
Fourth was of no help either.
Each Beast Pet had its unique talents, and they only paid attention to things rted to their own interests.
Be it insects, beasts or birds, they were only interested in food or threats.
All other entities would be automatically ignored by them.
Qin Niu instinctively slowed down.
In his ears, he could faintly hear a subtle noise that seemed to being from a tree ahead.
It didn¡¯t sound like noises made by birds or animals like squirrels or monkeys. He focused his gaze on the location of that tree, but all he could see was a lush canopy; nothing else was visible.
¡°Little honeybee, go check around that tree.¡±
Qin Niu released an ordinary honeybee.
For this trip, he had brought three different types of honeybees.
War Bees, Green Ring Worker Bees, and ordinary Worker Bees, all to cope with various situations.
With the sky still somewhat dim and the Queen Bee not by his side, he was unsure if this ordinary honeybee was up to the task of scouting this time?
It pped its wings and followed Qin Niu¡¯smand, heading towards therge tree.
Just as it approached that area, it was abruptly killed by something.
It could possibly have been a spider or another insect adept at preying on insects. The honeybee didn¡¯t even manage to send a distress signal before it was instantly taken out.
The Nine Insect Gang rose to power wielding insect-controlling Insect Masters, and they had a multitude of such masters.
Indeed, masters were asmon as clouds.
The honeybee that Qin Niu had sent out, though just a Grade Two ordinary Worker Bee, was silently and effortlessly killed by some entity.
This indicated that the enemy hiding in the tree was extremely formidable. Was it a man or a beast, a bird lurking inside that tree?
He couldn¡¯t be certain.
To send another honeybee would be tantamount to sending it to its death.
If it were indeed an enemy hiding there, it would immediately be on high alert.
This time, he decided to dispatch a Termite to scout the path.
He specifically selected a Grade Three Soldier Ant.
¡°Go to that area and scout. If you encounter danger,e back immediately.¡±
Termites lived in darkness, and their vision was generally poor; their real strengthy in their sense of smell.
The previous honeybee was instantly killed by the enemy, partly due to the dim lighting.
Honeybees needed good light conditions to function during the day.
The current dim light was highly disadvantageous to them.
The Termite quickly crawled forward while Qin Niuy in wait.
Before long, the Termite scurried back.
¡°Master, there are fierce spiders and mantises ahead.¡±
¡°Hmm, well done.¡±
Qin Niu praised it and put it back into his custom-made Insect Bag.
Now that he had confirmed the presence of two dangerous insects ahead, he could almost conclude that someone was hiding in that tree.
In the dead of night, no normal person would hide in such a ce.
What on earth was this person doing?
Knowing there was danger ahead and that someone, likely an Insect Master, was hiding in that tree,
Qin Niu certainly wouldn¡¯t continue charging forward like a stunned ox.
Unlike other smugglers, he had a beast pet capable of handling most insects¡¯ attacks.
Poisonous mosquitoes, wasps, and the like, could hardly inflict any harm on him.
He also had a sufficient supply of food on him.
So he was in no rush to leave this ce.
He decided to first get a clear understanding of the situation, make sure there was no danger, or find a safe route before leaving.
Having made up his mind, he decided to y the game of ¡®the most dangerous ce is the safest.¡¯
He chose a nearby spot suitable for hiding and like a monkey, climbed arge tree silently without causing any noise, because he wasn¡¯t sure how formidable the person hidden inside the distant tree was.
Now he was in the dark, and the other party was exposed, an advantage for him.
As the sky gradually brightened, Qin Niu lurked motionlessly within the leaves and branches.
His gaze was fixed on monitoring therge tree in the distance.
At that moment, two figures came running swiftly from behind.
They wore Vine Armor and had green and white patterns painted on their faces. Both were well-built with developed muscles, their bare arms disying tight and dense muscles.
They moved through the mountains with more agility than wild beasts.
Their cultivation probably hovers around Grade Eight or Nine of the Mortal Realm.
Such cultivation levels, not even reaching Acquired Realm, were like ants in Qin Niu¡¯s eyes.
The clothing of these two clearly indicated that they were soldiers of the Nine Insect Gang.
As they approached rapidly, Qin Niu held his breath and focused, daring not to make any noise. He didn¡¯t even dare to look directly at them and instead monitored their movements with just the corners of his eyes.
Fortunately, they didn¡¯t notice Qin Niu hidden in the tree.
The two fast passed by.
When they passed the tree that was suspected of hiding someone, they looked up.
¡°Wumu, did anyone pass by herest night?¡±
¡°Didn¡¯t notice anything.¡±
A young man¡¯s voice came from the tree.
As Qin Niu had spected, there really was someone hiding in the tree.
Fortunately, he was vignt enough to have detected the disturbance in that tree earlier, and so he wasn¡¯t discovered by the other party¡¯s secret lookout.
¡°Ya Zhake hasid spider webs inside the trees at the border, and someone has broken through. But we searched thoroughly and couldn¡¯t find that person. Ya Zhake believes it¡¯s very likely they escaped in this direction.¡±
¡°You guys go ask the other scouts! I¡¯m certain, absolutely no one passed under my treest night.¡±
¡°Wumu, you didn¡¯t ck off and fall asleepst night, did you?¡±
¡°Bullshit, I¡¯m not a scout for just one day. You can doubt my ability, but you can¡¯t doubt my character.¡±
The young man hidden in the tree was furious.
He was just short of swearing an oath to the heavens.
¡°Besides, though my spider webs are no match for Ya Zhake, if anyone passed through the line I¡¯m guarding, I would definitely have noticed.¡±
Upon hearing this, Qin Niu¡¯s heart stirred slightly.
In the future, he must be careful of the spider webs set by the enemy, for they would know immediately upon contact.
¡°That person must have fled in this direction, we even thought you had captured them already! Last night, under the leadership of Ya Zhake, we hit a big score. We captured a total of forty-six smugglers, including some masters of Grade Three of the Acquired Realm.
Hehe, Kruiwa and I earned fifty military merits each whileying down.¡±
The soldier on the left with longer hair and a small mustache bragged aboutst night¡¯s capture.
If they captured forty-six smugglers in total, wasn¡¯t thatting them all in one go?
Those people, who thought they were clever by choosing to smuggle through Shihe Town, had actually fallen straight into the enemy¡¯s ambush.
It was uncertain what punishments the captured smugglers would face. ¡°Anyway, I can guarantee that no one escaped through the line I¡¯m guarding. Ali, were there young women among the smugglers you captured yesterday?¡± ¡°Yes, of course. There were quite a few! One woman, in particr, was very beautiful with a slender body and skin so tender you could squeeze water out of it, appearing to be only seventeen or eighteen years old. And her strength wasn¡¯t weak either, possessing Grade One of the Acquired Realm.
If you want a wife, you¡¯d better hurry up and umte military merits!
But you can forget about the woman I just mentioned.
Ya Zhake will definitely offer her to Song Zan.¡±
The territory of the Nine Insect Gang, being mountainous and dense with forests, was considered a poor and backward region.
It¡¯s said that deste mountains and treacherous rivers breed crafty people.
The people here were not only vicious and brutish but also lived in harsh conditions due to poverty and backwardness.
It was only after they annexed the territory of the Seven-Star Sect that they gained some economic strength.
The area Qin Niu was currently in used to belong to the Seven-Star Sect.
ording to the map, past this hilly area, there was arge expanse of tnd ahead suitable for farming.
¡°A thousand military merits just to get a wife, when will I be able to save that much! Ali, your days arefortable, having already saved enough military merits to get a beautiful woman.¡±
¡°We put our lives on the line at the front to expand territory with the Gang Leader, if not for money and women? I love women, especially those from the ck Tiger Gang, pretty and charming. If I can save another thousand military merits this time, I¡¯m nning not to exchange for a Cultivation Technique, but to get another woman instead. Being attended by two women in bed would definitely be blissful,¡± Ali said with augh.
¡°Kruiwa, why don¡¯t you exchange a woman to be your wife?¡±
¡°I want to exchange for a powerful insect so I can be an Insect Master as formidable as Ya Zhake.¡±
Every person¡¯s ambition is different.
Some revel in thend of warmth and tenderness, others yearn for greater strength.
¡°Alright, we need to hurry and ask around elsewhere then report back to Ya Zhake, I won¡¯t chat with you anymore,¡± said one.
The two swiftly ran off in another direction..
Chapter 230 - 223 Wolf Soldiers 1
Chapter 230: Chapter 223 Wolf Soldiers 1
Looking at the situation ahead, there were sentries hidden everywhere, forming a densework like a sky and earth trap.
Any smuggler trying to cross this line would almost certainly be caught.
¡°Wu Mu, don¡¯t envy me for having a wife; you should be able to get one soon, too. Our army is probably going to move out in the next few days, and you¡¯ll have plenty of opportunities to distinguish yourself then,¡±
Yali didn¡¯t forget tofort the scout in the tree before leaving.
The army is moving out in a few days?
What does that mean?
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but feel rmed. Could the Nine Insect Gang be feinting to the east and attacking to the west?
Were they assembling arge force on the surface to attack from the ck Water River bank while actually nning to secretly cross the Wash Crime River and attack from the line of Shihe Town?
If that were the case, they could directly reach ck Tiger City in just one day.
Qin Niu didn¡¯t have much feeling about which gang took power. The ck Tiger Gang had never done him any favors.
At least his sense of belonging to the ck Tiger Gang was not as strong as one might imagine.
What he needed to do was to protect his family and friends.
He definitely did not want to see the ck Tiger Gang destroyed.
By now, the sky had gradually brightened, and he was finally able to take a good look at his surroundings.
All around him were rolling hills that seemed to have no end.
Therge tree hiding the enemy sentry in front was less than a hundred meters away from him.
Which was very close.
No other sentries had been discovered nearby for the time being.
However, he still dared not act rashly.
As long as he wasn¡¯t discovered by the enemy, there was no problem.
But if he were discovered, it would be like stirring up a ho¡¯s nest.
It would be best if he could cross the enemy¡¯s alert line without anyone noticing.
After retrieving the Green Demon¡¯s treasure, he could easily carve a bloody path out.
At this moment, the scout in the distance made a move.
He slid down the trunk and then, holding his stomach, entered a clump of grass.
It seemed he was preparing to relieve himself.
Qin Niu was confident he could easily take out this scout. But he wasn¡¯t certain if someone woulde to relieve the sentry.
So he did not dare to make a move.
It wasn¡¯t long before the scout returned to the base of the tree, stretched, yawned, and then climbed back up.
Does he eat, drink, and sleep all in the tree?
If no one came to relieve him, it would definitely be good news for Qin Niu.
He could silently take out this scout and then cross the defense line.
After watching for about an hour, he estimated that the scout above had fallen asleep.
Because he could faintly hear the sound of snoring.
On night watch and sleeping during the day, without seeing any other enemy forcesing to change the guard, he was almost certain that the sentries here were all manned by a single person.
Just as Qin Niu was preparing to act, he faintly heard a greatermotioning from ahead.
It didn¡¯t sound like a single person, but rather a group of people.
At least ten or more.
He quickly hid his figure in the tree and secretly observed the situation in front.
On the hillside, more than a dozen people began to appear faintly.
The man in the lead seemed to be riding a very robust ck Wolf.
The people behind him were riding Grey Wolves, also veryrge.
These were the Wolf Soldiers of the Nine Insect Gang.
They must have crossed over from the other side of the hill.
In the blink of an eye, they had already arrived under the tree where the scout was located.
The scout perched in the tree was dozing off, utterly oblivious.
¡°Wumu!¡±
¡°Ah¡ Lord Wang Qiu! I had no idea you were here, please forgive my offense.¡±
Wumu almost tumbled down from the tree, scrambling to his knees onto the ground and begging for forgiveness from the leading Wolf Soldier.
Qin Niu noted that the man in the lead was around forty, fairly burly, with a face full of a beard that seemed somewhat yellowed. He was holding two spiked hammers in his hands.
Even from a hundred meters away, one could still feel the aggressive aura emanating from this person.
The ck Wolf he was sitting on was a sizerger than the average pony, with narrow, ferocious eyes that sparked fear deep within anyone who beheld them.
Theirbat prowess was likely even stronger than that of a fierce tiger.
What level of Beast Pet it was wasn¡¯t clear, but it was definitely no simple creature.
¡°If an enemy were to approach the base of the tree and you still failed to notice, you would already be dead. We allow our scout soldiers to sleep during the day, but you must keep the necessary vignce. Have you noticed anything unusual on this side?¡±
¡°Nothing unusual for the time being.¡±
¡°Lately, people from the ck Tiger Gang have been continuously sneaking over to our side, so be very careful and on guard. The folks from the ck Tiger Gang are all crafty, and we absolutely can¡¯t let them discover Lord Song Zan¡¯s n. It¡¯s just a few more days, hang in there.¡±
After speaking, Lord Wang Qiu pulled something out from his bosom.
It turned out to be a Tempering Elixir.
Wumu, kneeling on the ground, almost drooled upon seeing the elixir, his eyes fixed on it unblinkingly.
¡°As long as we take down the ck Tiger Gang, we will definitely notck high-grade cultivation resources. This Tempering Elixir is your reward, take it.¡±
¡°Thank you, Lord Wang Qiu. I am willing toy down my life in service to you.¡±
After Wumu caught the Elixir with both hands, he instead stood up, ced his right hand over his chest, raised his left hand high above his head, and then bowed deeply to Lord Wang Qiu.
The rituals of the Nine Insect Gang sure are peculiar.
Even more extraordinary is that a Tempering Elixir, at most worth just three to two Silver Money.
And yet, it made Wumu so grateful, willing toy down his life for Lord Wang Qiu.
Howcking must the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s cultivation resources be?
¡°Move out, we¡¯re going to survey another area.¡± With an order from Wang Qiu, he led the Wolf Soldiers toward another direction.
That pair of soldiers dressed in Vine Armorst night, they, too, went that way.
It seems the location of the next secret watchpost should be in that direction.
And how far it may be from this watchpost?
Wumu watched the Wolf Soldiers leave, then turned around and climbed back up the tree.
Having received the reward of a Tempering Elixir, he must have been very excited. No trace of sleepiness remained.
He was likely preparing to consume the elixir for cultivation.
Qin Niu, meanwhile, pricked up his ears to listen for any movement from the team of Wolf Soldiers.
The next watchpost was at least four or five hundred meters away; he could only detect faint sounds.
Qin Niu quietly calcted the chances of sessfully killing the scout and then crossing the enemy¡¯s defense line.
Only if there was more than a ny percent chance of sess would he risk it.
Since he had not yet been discovered and could theoretically stay safe by keeping still, he yed it safe for the moment.
Soldiers had just left when someone else arrived.
This time, two people came, each carrying arge wooden bucket that seemed heavy, but it wasn¡¯t clear what was inside.
¡°Wumu, time to eat. Here is your ration for today.¡±
Served in a basin, and from this distance, it was hard to make out exactly what food it contained.
Currently in a time of war, the soldiers¡¯ rations were likely not too shabby.
The two people who delivered the food left after giving it to Wumu, carrying their yoke in the same direction as before.
These two individuals were probably responsible for delivering meals to all the scout soldiers.
Time passed until noon, and Qin Niu, unsure if anyone else woulde, resolved to hide in the tree and patiently watch. He nned to observe for an entire day, to grasp the enemy¡¯s routine, and then to devise a solid escape strategy.
He absolutely couldn¡¯t be caught by the enemy, which was his primary concern.
But now that he had crossed the river, going back was incredibly difficult; he had no choice but to forge ahead despite the risks..
Chapter 231 - 224: The Poisonous Mandible Soldier Ant Achieves Merit t
Chapter 231: Chapter 224: The Poisonous Mandible Soldier Ant Achieves Merit t
As the sun dipped westward, the patrol of Wolf Soldiers came again.
It was still that leader named Wang Qiu, riding a ck Wolf, leading ten Wolf Cavalrymen on patrol.
¡°Wumu, nothing out of the ordinary?¡±
¡°Reporting to Lord Wang, no abnormalities detected.¡±
¡°Stay sharp tonight and be extra cautious. I heard from Lord Ya Zhake that there might still be some who slipped through the. The fact that they could escape the search indicates great strength. If you spot anything unusual, immediately shoot up a re or blow the horn, and don¡¯t even think about engaging them yourself.¡±
It seems they may have already ascertained that someone had escaped.
Fortunately, I wasn¡¯t yet exposed; they just suspected something based on some traces.
Lord Wang Qiu swiftly departed with his Wolf Soldiers.
This mountainous region was vast, and horses simply couldn¡¯t traverse the mountains. However, Wolf Cavalry were extremely agile in such terrain.
¡°From what Lord Wang Qiu said, it¡¯s very likely that the patrol won¡¯te again today. Now should be a very good opportunity to make a move.¡±
Qin Niu silently removed his leather armor and ced his basket upon a tree.
Then, with Termite, he quietly approached therge tree where the enemy scouts were positioned.
I had to kill in one strike, not giving the scout any chance to call for help or make a sound.
Up in the tree, Wumu was practicing cultivation with his eyes closed.
For any soldier, increasing one¡¯s cultivation level was absolutely a matter of great importance.
Martial arts, insects, and beast pets were strong but secondary; only the enhancement of cultivation brought the moststing and tangible benefits.
If one of two soldiers advanced from the Mortal Realm to the Acquired Realm, that soldier could immediately rise to an officer rank.
The soldier who didn¡¯t advance could only look up to his formerrade.
That was the most direct benefit.
Then, there were additional advantages such as increased lifespan, enhanced strength, increased spiritual power, control over more or more powerful pets, and so on.
Wumu waspletely unaware that death was descending upon him.
When Qin Niu was about ten meters away from therge tree, he noticed nearly invisible spider webs set up ahead.
A fist-sized spider with grey patterns crouched on Wumu¡¯s shoulder.
Its two ck eyeballs protruded, as if constantly staring wide-eyed.
Next to it were two smaller jumping spiders.
On a branch beside Wumu, arge green mantisy. It was incessantly licking its two front legs with its mouth.
The mantis¡¯ front legs were its most formidable weapons.
Like two big sabers.
¡°Fourth, lead a group of Worker Ants and take control of those three spiders and the mantis.¡±
¡°Roger.¡±
Fourth immediately led six Worker Ants towards therge tree ahead.
Less than five meters from the tree, the mantis and the three spiders ally motionless.
Qin Niu knew they had been brought under control.
Termite really was powerful, managing to deal with Wumu¡¯s four insects with just seven ants.
Even though Wumu was just amon soldier, he actually had four insects raised, and each one was not of low grade.
The mantis and the two jumping spiders were probably Grade Three, and the ckrge spider could very well be Grade Four.
Such formidable power, if ced within the Insect Master Association of the ck Tiger Gang, would definitely be among the best of the low-tier Insect Masters.
Yet, Wumu was nothing extraordinary within the Nine Insect Gang.
The strength of the Insect Masters in the Nine Insect Gang was beyond imagination.
With Wumu¡¯s four insects controlled, Qin Niu released another Demon Ant.
¡°Bring a few Worker Ants to scout around and see if there are any other insects!¡±
Although thebat power of the Demon Ant was not as high as Fourth¡¯s, it was still among the exceptionally prominent within the many Worker Ants.
It soon made a discovery.
¡°Master, found a cricket.¡±
¡°Take control of it!¡±
Qin Niu ordered.
After the Demon Ant controlled the cricket, Qin Niu, holding the Demon de, approached therge tree silently.
The spider webs were broken by him, but there were no rms since the ckrge spider was under control.
It was only when Qin Niu had reached the base of the tree that the cultivating Wumu felt a strong unease and slowly opened his eyes to check.
What met him was a merciless sh of the de.
His neck was cleanly severed.
Qin Niu caught the head and the still-bleeding torso. The smell of blood was a big problem. Right now, there was no good way to handle it.
Following Wumu¡¯s death, the few insects that had been controlled all died as well.
A small bamboo tube hung on Wumu¡¯s waist.
Upon opening it, I found a cricket that had just died.
A cricket could emit various chirping sounds to alert its master.
Lucky for me, I was cautious enough to have the Demon Ant find and control the cricket.
He quickly searched the body, obtaining a token and some Silver Pieces. He also stripped off the Vine Armor from the corpse.
Picking up the body, he quickly tossed it into the thick undergrowth.
He retrieved his basket, put on the King Pig Leather Armor, and covered it with the Vine Armor.
In case of a search, I might have a chance to pass through undetected.
This was not a ce to linger. After dealing with Wumu, he quickly moved forward.
That dangerous feeling still lingered.
As he advanced, he was very cautious.
Secret guards were everywhere, and it was easy to be discovered.
Luckily, by relying on his Innate Realm cultivation, he managed to stealthily proceed, climbing over the hill ahead.
Gazing down into the valley below,
He saw tents pitched in clusters, with arge number of soldiers encamped.
At this moment, he finally understood where the danger wasing from.
It must be from the army inside this valley.
From afar, behind another hill, came the sounds of soldiers¡¯ shouts and drills, as if the troops were practicing.
Looking at this scene, there must be arge number of soldiers encamped in this region.
Quite likely, many valleys have already been filled with encampments.
Qin Niu, if discovered now, would have truly dived headfirst into the enemy¡¯s nest.
There were patrols near the military camp, but no one came to the top of the hill for inspection.
Even so, he still didn¡¯t dare to be careless.
Moving quietly and using the trees for cover, he followed the path along the hilltop, continuing forward.
He wanted to circumvent therge army in the valley below.
All the way, his heart was in his mouth, but fortunately, he wasn¡¯t discovered.
After passing more than a dozen valleys, each valley housed arge army either training or stationed there.
The Nine Insect Gang had indeed assembled a formidable force near Wash Crime River.
He wondered how such a huge army managed to cross Wash Crime River?
The man-eating fish and water monsters in the river were not easy to deal with.
Now, the sky was gradually darkening, and it would soon be night.
For him, the night was a natural cover, which worked to his advantage.
He took out a map to check, and his current position was still in the bordering region between the Nine Insect Gang and the ck Tiger Gang.
There were several paths that led out of this mountainous area.
Since he was heading to Hundred Leaf Town, he naturally would choose the nearest route.
Fixing his direction, Qin Niu continued to stealthily move toward the front right.
He estimated that by the time the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s patrolling Wolf Soldiers discovered Wu Mu had been killed, it would already be tomorrow morning.
By then, he would have already left this mountainous area and would no longer need to worry about being pursued.
He sessfully climbed over the tallest hill in front, and in the valley below, there was only arge tent pitched.
He guessed that it could be the enemy¡¯s central military tent or where the officers resided.
To be an army officer, one certainly had to be extremely strong.
In his eyes, therge tent below was even more dangerous than arge army.
¡°Damn it, Wolf Cavalry ising.¡±
Qin Niu quickly found arge tree and stealthily climbed up, remaining concealed and motionless.
It was still that Lord Wang Qiu.
Wolf Soldiers should be a rare troop type within the Nine Insect Gang.
After all, cultivating a powerful wolf as a Beast Pet was not easy.
From a distance, he saw them escorting a bound girl, quickly heading toward the central military tent below.
The girl¡¯s face was filled with despair.
Qin Niu, however, recognized at a nce that the unfortunate girl being captured was one of the stealthy crossers fromst night.
Her father had the cultivation of the Acquired Realm.
A family of four.
Now he only saw her alone, her parents and brother might have already met with foul y.
Or they could have been detained in a temporary prison at the front lines.
Her, due to being young and beautiful with fair and delicate skin, had been presented by Lord Ya Zhake to a higher-ranking officer.
Beautiful women, gold, and silver money were invariably the most popr things in the army.
Qin Niu had no intention whatsoever of rescuing her.
He just hoped that those Wolf Soldiers would leave quickly after presenting the beautiful woman.
As he had anticipated, the Wolf Soldiers came out soon after presenting the woman, each with a smile on their face, probably having received praise from their superiors.
¡°Lord Song Zan rewarded each of us with a high-grade insect egg. As long as it hatches, I¡¯ll soon be able to cultivate a Grade Four insect, and there¡¯s even a chance for it to evolve to Grade Five. I¡¯m so happy.¡±
¡°Lord Wang Qiu, the insect egg you received is even higher in quality; it shouldn¡¯t be difficult to cultivate a Grade Six insect. Don¡¯t forget about us old subordinatester on.¡±
¡°Haha, we are all brothers in arms; I won¡¯t forget.¡±
The Wolf Soldiers chatted happily, quickly approaching in Qin Niu¡¯s direction.
The path they were going to take was about forty or fifty meters away from where Qin Niu was hiding.
As Wang Qiu¡¯s ck Wolf nearly reached the hilltop, it suddenly lifted its head, sniffing wildly at the air.
It might have caught a trace of blood scent mixed in with the air.
Qin Niu had gotten some blood on himself when he killed Wu Mu.
Although he cleaned it off, the bloodstains on his clothes couldn¡¯t be washed away.
The Wolf Soldiers, who were previously chatting andughing, immediately stopped in their tracks.
Their gazes turned toward the ck Wolf simultaneously.
¡°Elephant Nose Soldier Ant, release a stimting scent immediately,¡± Qin Niu ordered the several Venomous Soldier Ants.
To cover up a bad smell, one would usually spray perfume on it. Now, to cover up the scent of blood, the best way was to have the Elephant Nose Soldier Ants release poison.
Instantly, several Grade Three Venomous Soldier Ants began to emit a stimting chemical.
Qin Niu held his breath to avoid getting overwhelmed by it.
The ck Wolf in the distance continued to sniff around.
Soon, it started sneezing violently and shaking its head.
Seeing this, Qin Niu almostughed out loud.
You little thing, relying on your sharp nose to meddle in affairs, let¡¯s see if you don¡¯t get gassed by this.
It was only because the Venomous Soldier Ants were still Grade Three. If they could upgrade by one or two more levels, the stimting scent they released would be even more potent.
The ck Wolf¡¯s sense of smell had been seriously disrupted, even temporarily damaged.
It kept sneezing and shaking its head as it walked away.
¡°Lord Wang Qiu, did your mount just discover something?¡±
¡°It might be a stinky insect. I¡¯ve encountered this while patrolling the mountains before; let¡¯s hurry on our way.¡±
Lord Wang Qiu obviously could notmunicate with the ck Wolf using Animal Language.
He couldn¡¯t even use spiritual thoughts for a clear soul exchange.
Otherwise, he would have known what the ck Wolf had just smelled was the scent of blood.
Now, however, he thought the ck Wolf had caught the stink of some insect, like a mole cricket or a stink bug, etc.
The vast majority of insects have an unpleasant smell.
Including scorpions; they emit a sour stench that makes people nauseated.
Mole crickets need no mention; their smell can be detected from far away.
If you dare to provoke one, that stench can knock a person out..
Chapter 232 - 225 The Death of the Enemy General_1
Chapter 232: Chapter 225 The Death of the Enemy General_1
Watching the Wolf Soldiers leave, Qin Niu also secretly heaved a sigh of relief.
As the variety of Termite Soldier Ant species became more abundant, his understanding of how to utilize Termites also became richer.
Actually, that was quite dangerous.
Fortunately, several evolved elephant-nosed Soldier Ants had defused the crisis.
The decision to raise a nest of Termites was truly wise. Even he hadn¡¯t expected that as the ant species continued to expand, they would be increasingly formidable.
They were no longer the tiny beings that anyone could trample to death.
Rather, they were a group of brave warriors, versatile and skilled.
Though the Wolf Soldiers had left, he still hid in the tree, not daring to move. Soldiers are never tired of deceit; should those Wolf Soldiers decide to turn back unexpectedly, his cover would be blown in an instant.
A long time passed, and the Wolf Soldiers did not return.
By now, the sky had grown quite dark.
Qin Niu quietly climbed down the tree and continued to move stealthily forward.
The midsection of the enemy camp situated in the valley indicated he had reached the edge of the enemy¡¯s base.
If he could just get past the mountain peak ahead, he would havepletely escaped the enemy¡¯s territory.
¡°Don¡¯t run!¡±
¡°You can¡¯t escape!¡±
A man¡¯s voice suddenly rose from the valley below.
Qin Niu was greatly rmed. Had he been discovered?
He certainly did not want to fall at thest hurdle.
Taking on an army of the Nine Insect Gang by himself, he did not have that confidence.
The best thing to do now was to run desperately forward. With his cultivation, and possessing the Ink de and numerous pets, as long as he didn¡¯t fall into the enemy¡¯s encirclement, there was a great chance he could escape with his life.
Just as Qin Niu was prepared to make a desperate run for it, the man¡¯s shrill voice echoed down the mountain again.
¡°Little beauty, even if you were twice as capable, you couldn¡¯t escape from the palm of my hand. Just give in obediently! If you anger me, don¡¯t me me for making you suffer.¡±
Qin Niu steadied his nerves and looked down.
He saw a figure d in tight white clothing, desperately fleeing up the mountain.
It must be the woman who was sent into the centralmand tent not long ago.
Her clothes had been stripped away, leaving only her tight white garments. In a critical moment, she had somehow managed to escape.
Perhaps Lord Song Zan had been too careless, or maybe he preferred to y with her like a cat with a mouse, seeking some excitement.
Qin Niu had had a false rm, thinking he had been discovered.
¡°Little beauty, you can¡¯t escape. I have eight thousand elite soldiers under mymand. With just one order, 1 can have youpletely surrounded.¡±
The man, while chasing the fleeing woman, was also dissipating her will to run.
He wanted to make her feel desperate and ultimately give up the attempt to flee.
Speaking of the unluckiest person, it was Qin Niu. He was about to escape the enemy¡¯s base when this unexpected situation arose.
If he kept hiding now, once Lord Song Zan called his troops to search the mountainter, Qjin Niu would be in danger.
Escaping with all his might was even riskier.
Lord Song Zan, who was pursuing the woman, was still unaware of any outsiders. If he discovered another person, it would immediately raise his alertness. As amander of an army, he certainly wouldn¡¯t take risks.
The likelihood was that he would immediately call for people toe and capture Qin Niu.
¡°No, I can¡¯t sit here waiting to die. The only way out is to kill this Lord Song Zan. It might not only allow me to escape but also help eliminate a strong enemy for the ck Tiger Gang.¡±
After formting this idea, Qin Niu instead crouched lower, using the dim light as cover, and remainedpletely still.
¡°Poisonous Ants, now is your time to perform a great service. I need you to immediately climb onto the branches and leaves along that line ahead. As soon as Lord Song Zanes near, climb onto him and bite him to death for me.¡± The Grade Three Dark Poison Ants, having evolved, posed no fatal threat with their venom, but it had an extremely potent paralyzing quality.
Once they sessfully stung an enemy, they could immediately paralyze the entire body of that person.
Unable to move or call for help, they would be at Qin Niu¡¯s mercy to be ughtered.
The woman¡¯s cultivation was not weak, and escaping for her life, she naturally used all her strength to run.
She quickly neared the route Qin Niu had predetermined.
She swiftly ran past, followed by the man hunting her¡ªabout fifty years old, with a lean build. His face looked somewhat pale, with deeply set eyes, extremely heavy bags under his eyes, and quite severe dark circles.
Lately, there had been many stowaways, and the soldiers below had captured quite a few beautiful young women to present to him.
He must have been indulging his body every night.
This person¡¯s cultivation wasn¡¯t weak, but it hadn¡¯t reached the Innate Realm.
Qin Niu estimated that it was likely around the eighth or ninth level of the Acquired Realm, possibly a bit higher.
The fleeing woman had practiced a rather good Step-Method Martial Skill, making her as light as a swallow when she ran; her toes constantly tapping the ground, her posture elegant, her speed astonishingly fast.
The man in pursuit had also practiced a Step-Method Martial Skill, but obviously hadn¡¯t mastered it,ing across quite awkwardly.
This led to him, despite having a much higher cultivation than the woman, not being able to catch her after all this time.
Shortly after the woman passed the spot where Qin Niu was lying in ambush, the man also arrived there.
¡°Hmm?¡±
Lord Song Zan seemed to sense something.
It was then that Qin Niu made his move, sending two War Bees, one from the left and one from the right, to attack the fleeing woman.
¡°Ah¡¡±
She cried out in rm and immediately tried to swat them away.
This caused her running speed to nearlye to a halt.
Having chased for so long, Lord Song Zan was already impatient. Seeing this perfect opportunity, he momentarily set aside his suspicions, disregarding the insect trail he had found, and focused entirely on catching the woman.
Just as he seized the woman, two Poisonous Ants fiercely stung his body.
¡°Ugh! Damn it.¡±
Lord Song Zan cursed, subconsciously raising his hand to his neck and stomping his right foot.
Because one of the Poisonous Ants was attacking his neck and the other his right leg.
With a p, Qin Niu felt a pang of heartache.
The Grade Three Dark Poison Ant was ttened with a single p and died instantly.
The power of one¡¯s palm at above the ninth level of the Acquired Realm was quite terrifying.
However formidable the Termites were, they were now essentially just a more powerful insect than average,pletely different from the Heavenly Earth Strange Insects that are impervious to swords and spears, and immune to water and fire.
¡°Die.¡±
Qin Niu felt quite heartbroken over the loss of a Dark Poison Ant.
Fortunately, after the Ant Queen advanced to Grade Five, the probability of producing Poisonous Ants rose to 30%, and they were extremely toxic.
Lord Song Zan noticed that someone was suddenly attacking him with a sword. At this critical moment, he could no longer care about the woman and quickly moved to defend.
He released arge Spotted Spider.
It immediately raised its hindquarters and sprayed arge bundle of spider silk at Qin Niu¡¯s face.
If its attacknded on Qin Niu, those twenty thousand Termites would indeed be worthless.
Fourth had already led the Termite Army tounch a Mental Attack at the first opportunity.
The Spotted Spider, being the size of an egg, definitely had a high level, but it couldn¡¯t withstand the Mental Attack from so many Termites.
With more than four thousand Termites possessing the ability to perform a Mental Attack or Spirit Control.
The spider convulsed in pain on the ground,pletely unable to attack Qin Niu anymore.
After being stung by the Poisonous Ants, Lord Song Zan felt his neck stiffen and knew it was poisoned.
Facing the sh from Qin Niu¡¯s Treasured Sword, he felt both shock and rage, and an even deeper sense of fear.
¡°You, who are you?¡±
The response was Qin Niu¡¯s sh Martial Skill and the dazzling de Qi of the Ink de.
Pff!
Without any needless words, with the sword raised and dropped, Lord Song Zan¡¯s arm was severed, and his body was diagonally split in two.
The Ink de was too strong.
It disregarded the soft armor vest he wore.
It was his own fault, after all, for what had befallen him.
Wanting to take advantage of the young girl, he had already removed all his armor and coat. Plus, he¡¯d been stung by two Dark Poison Ants, and the powerful Paralyzing Venom rapidly stiffened his body and left him unable to move at will.
On top of that, Qin Niu¡¯s cultivation was far superior to his, and it was an ambush.
Abination of factors piled up against him, leading to his instantaneous death by Qin Niu¡¯s de..
Chapter 233 - 226 Inventory of Gains 1
Chapter 233: Chapter 226 Inventory of Gains 1
Themander leading eight thousand warriors was killed, and upon learning this, the Nine Insect Gang would definitely be enraged and shocked.
The young woman who had fled saw a youth suddenly appear and with a single stroke, killed Lord Song Zan. After her initial horror, she looked closely and recognized the youth as someone very familiar.
¡°It, it¡¯s you!¡±
She had identified the youth as one of the individuals who had helped her smuggle herself out the previous night.
She thought that all had fallen victim to the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s evil clutches, but to her surprise, this unremarkable youth had sessfully escaped from the gang¡¯s encirclement and pursuit.
¡°Better run for your life!¡±
Qin Niu had already swiftly knelt down to loot the body of the deceased.
His actions were practiced.
In the blink of an eye, he had stripped it bare.
Even the body of the colorful spider wasn¡¯t spared.
By the time he finished looting, the woman was still standing there in a daze.
Her clothes were torn in several ces, and her white undergarment was somewhat indecent. Especially the upper garment, which seemed to have been violently ripped, as theces near the neckline were all destroyed.
¡°Do you wish to fall into their clutches again?¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s tone was indifferent.
¡°No, not at all. Thank you for saving my life, kind sir.¡±
Remembering the consequences of falling into enemy hands, herplexion shifted slightly.
¡°I estimate the enemy will soon discover their leader has been killed, so you should start running if you don¡¯t want to be caught. Remember, if you want to survive in this world, you must abandon your naive fantasies. The safest is to keep your fate in your own hands.¡±
With that, Qin Niu took a set of coarse cloth clothes from his basket and threw them over.
¡°If you don¡¯t want to die, it¡¯s best to wait until you escape this ce before changing into this outfit.¡±
After speaking, he paid no further attention to the woman and headed straight in the direction of escape.
The woman hesitated slightly before fleeing in the direction he had gone.
She had cultivated the Step-Method Martial Skill and, although not as skilled as Qin Niu, was nheless fast.
Still, the gap between the Acquired Realm and the Innate Realm was significant.
The distance between Qin Niu and her grew increasingly wide.
¡°Kind sir, may I have your name?¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t save you expecting repayment!¡±
Only a cold sentence drifted back as the figure moved farther away.
She too gritted her teeth and hurried forward in her bid to escape.
With Lord Song Zan killed, the enemy furious, if caught by them, her fate would be unspeakably miserable.
Qin Niu ran wildly along the way, blending with the night like a wild horse.
Up ahead, he could see dwellings.
The terrain gradually leveled out, revealing many fields suitable for farming.
The crops looked thriving.
Unlike the entire territory of the ck Tiger Gang, which suffered from a locust gue, this ce was at peace without any insect disaster.
They say ¡®When in Rome, do as the Romans do.¡¯ Having fled for a night, Qin Niu guessed he was safe.
To avoid unnecessary trouble, he nned to change into the attire of the local people.
He chose a brick-and-tile house that looked quite imposing and hopped over the wall to enter.
Inside the house, he could hear the panting of the man and woman.
Being extraordinarily powerful, Qin Niu naturally didn¡¯t consider a few ordinary individuals worthy of concern.
After stealing two sets of the male owner¡¯s clothes and changing into one, he left the other in his basket forter use, then continued on his way.
Although it was safe now, having killed an enemymander, he had undoubtedly incited the rage of the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s higher echelons.
A storm of fugitive hunting was bound to sweep across all directions.
By dawn, he had sessfully reached Hundred Leaf Town.
Themon folk here, many of whom were like him carryingrge baskets, wrapped their heads with scarves and wore attire very different from that of the people in the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory. Some women directly carried their babies in the baskets on their backs.
Others, who didn¡¯t use baskets, carried their children on their backs with cloth straps.
Qin Niu had already put on the local clothing, including a wrapped headscarf, blending in with the crowd.
Having grown up in a remote valley, he didn¡¯t even need to disguise himself, moving among the crowds as just anothermoner.
New to this foreign ce, he took in the local customs and lifestyle.
Hundred Leaf Town was muchrger than he had imagined, at least half the size of ck Tiger City.
That Insect Master who had passed away many years ago, even after death, still silently contributed to thend that nurtured him.
The excellent development and economic prosperity of Hundred Leaf Town, bustling with people, owed much to the Green Demon.
Arge influx of outsiders into Hundred Leaf Town¡ªwhat was it they all sought?
They had alle for the Green Demon Bee.
Perhaps many would lower their goals, content with capturing just one of the Green Demon¡¯s discarded special bee species.
Insect Masters from various regions, or those aspiring to be masters, flocked here in droves.
Then there were the young masters and mistresses, the sect experts, alling to travel and to witness the strength of the Green Demon Bee, which could exterminate the Seven Stars Sect Leader.
They wanted to see for themselves the environment where the Green Demon had once lived and to understand what kind of surroundings could nurture such a formidable super Insect Master.
The influx of these people stimted the town¡¯s various economies.
Initially, only the inn business boomed.
Over time, it developed into aprehensive market for Insect Masters.
You could buy anything there.
¡°Insect Jars for sale, Insect Jars for sale, pure copper crafted Insect Jars, they won¡¯t wear out for a hundred years.¡±
¡°Adventurers looking to catch wild bees on the mountain, look no further! We have all kinds of protective gear avable to prevent stings. These are lifesaving artifacts at crucial moments, all for a low price. Wee to choose and purchase.¡±
¡°Justst night, braving the mountain dangers, I caught Green Winged Giant Bees. Take one home for just ten pieces of silver.¡±
Qin Niu admired the dedication of the street vendors he saw on both sides of the street.
As soon as day broke, they had already taken their ces and begun peddling their wares.
¡°Brother, are you here to hunt for treasures? I have a scroll of the Green Demon Bee Cultivation Technique, only for thirty pieces of silver. With it, you¡¯re guaranteed to be the second Green Demon.¡±
A sneaky-looking man squeezed up to Qin Niu¡¯s side.
He mysteriously pulled out an antiquated book with yellowing covers from his clothes, clumsily inscribed with the words ¡®Green Demon Bee Cultivation Technique¡¯.
Such obviously fake stuff, and yet he dared to try to fool Qin Niu.
He just coldly nced at the man and then continued walking without saying a word.
Under his gaze, the man¡¯s spirit trembled as though he had fallen into an ice cer. Watching Qin Niu¡¯s retreating figure, his face was filled with fear.
Hundred Leaf Town¡¯s visitors seeking adventure came from all walks of life.
Among them were not a few powerful individuals.
The Innate Realm was indeed worthy of the title ¡®powerhouse¡¯.
Qin Niu didn¡¯t rush into the mountain, instead, he found an inn to stay in.
He didn¡¯t choose a small, money-saving inn because it was too easy to end up in a bad establishment. Traveling alone, it was better to be more cautious.
The cost of staying in arger inn was much higher, but safety was guaranteed.
He booked a standard room, which was indeed not cheap, costing a hundred and twenty wen per night, meals and hot water included.
The room was fairly spacious, and the bedding was very clean.
Through the window, one could see the street outside.
Having traveled for two days, he was utterly exhausted and desperately needed a ce to rest well. If he wasn¡¯t already at the level of the Innate Realm, he probably wouldn¡¯t have been able to hold up.
Once he locked the room door, he could finally check the treasures he had scavenged from Sir Song Zan.
The man hadn¡¯t been wearing his coat when he chased after that woman, so Qin Niu had assumed he wouldn¡¯t have much on him. Only after taking stock did he realize he had underestimated the caution of such an important figure.
A total of thirteen Gold Notes were scavenged, the lowest denomination being a hundred taels. There was one worth five hundred taels.
Add that up, and it came to one thousand seven hundred taels worth of Gold Notes.
Converted, that¡¯s seventeen thousand taels worth of silver.
There were also more than thirty silver notes, totaling twenty-one thousand six hundred and fifty taels.
Just adding up the Gold Notes and silver notes, it came to a whopping thirty-eight thousand six hundred and fifty taels of silver.
That was nearly twice the total worth of Qin Niu.
It seemed impossible for a militarymander to carry so many silver and Gold Notes on his person.
In this era, it wasn¡¯tmon for everyone to deposit their silver or gold into banks.
Normally, storing silver in a bank incurred a fee.
Eor big patrons, it depended on the situation.
Some bankscked silver and neededrge deposits, so they¡¯d offer big patrons certain interests or other benefits.
Almost forty thousand taels of silver was by no means a small amount of money.
Even in ck Tiger City, there weren¡¯t many families that could produce forty thousand taels worth of ready cash.
Upon carefully reviewing the information on the silver notes, Qin Niu had an epiphany.
It turned out that a good half of these silver and Gold Notes had actuallye from banks in ck Tiger City.
As a militarymander, Sir Song Zan had snatched up young and beautiful women for his own enjoyment and also pocketed arge portion of the riches scavenged by his soldiers.
Killing him and getting these silver notes was like avenging the smugglers of ck Tiger City.
There had already been several days of fighting.
Quite a few batches of smugglers must have been captured by now.
These thirty-eight thousand taels were plundered from the possessions of several hundred smugglers.
Those smugglers were truly pitiable, having sold their properties and intended to escape to the Nine Insect Gang to live a good life. They thought they were clever, but ended up as fattened sheep in the eyes of others.
Onees, one gets ughtered.
Beyond the Gold and silver notes, Qin Niu also acquired a book on controlling insects, a scroll of a Cultivation Technique called ¡°The Mighty Divine Strength of the Five Sacred Peaks,¡¯ and a volume of a Step-Method Martial Skill called ¡®Misty Rain Traceless Step.¡¯
He also got half a Tiger Symbol Token and a Nine Insect Command.
The Nine Insect Command read, ¡°Song Zan, one-star protector.¡±
He had actually killed a protector?
Yet, this Song Zan didn¡¯t seem as powerful as Old Master Huang.
It¡¯s worth noting that Old Master Huang was just a high-level executor.
It seems that Song Zan must have been the weakest protector of the Nine Insect Gang.
The Mighty Divine Strength of the Five Sacred Peaks, when cultivated, grants immense power. In its advanced stages, as long as one¡¯s feet touch the earth, one can have unending strength.
This kind of Cultivation Technique can¡¯t be said to be the best, but it¡¯s definitely much stronger than average.
Qin Niu didn¡¯t need more Cultivation Techniques for the moment. It was a good choice to keep it for selling or for his subordinates to cultivate.
Probably worth at least two thousand pieces of silver if put up for sale in the Supreme Sea.
What really interested him, though, was the Step-Method Martial Skill.
He had long wanted to acquire a skill in steps and movements, but had never had the chance.
Obtaining one now made him very happy.
After a brief overview, it seemed, once mastered, one could transform into a fleeting shadow¡ªwithout a trace whening or going.
Seemed decent enough.
First, sleep. After a good rest, he would consider learning this martial skill..
Chapter 234 - 227: The Black Tiger Gang Leader Who Scratched His Head Open 1
Chapter 234: Chapter 227: The ck Tiger Gang Leader Who Scratched His Head Open 1
The assassination of Song Zan yielded great rewards, but it was regrettable that no magical creature eggs were obtained.
The Wolf Cavalry brought a beauty to Song Zan, each receiving a high-grade egg as a reward. It felt like Lord Song Zan should have had quite a few high-grade eggs.
He probably didn¡¯t carry them on his person.
After all, who would carry around magical creature eggs at home for no reason!
When Qin Niu killed Song Zan, he only thought about fleeing quickly and didn¡¯t give in to the greed of rummaging through the central military tent for other valuables.
In his view, many people died because of their greed.
Content people are often happy.
In that situation, if he had to choose again, he would still not risk exploring that central military tent.
Because being discovered almost certainly meant certain death.
To risk his life for some valuables was not worth it.
He examined the half of the military token he had, which was heavy and made of bronze. It might also include special materials, like gold. The material was durable, and the tactile feeling was excellent, with cleverly designed male and female sps.
This was a military token used by the armed forces.
During military campaigns, it had to be matched with the other half tomand the troops.
The other half of the token was typically held by the emperor or an envoy sent by the emperor.
In wartime, the left side of the token was held by themanding officer, while the right side was managed by the supervising officer. To mobilize the troops, approval from the supervising officer was needed, and the two halves of the token could perfectly fit together.
The engravings on it wereplex and generally hard to counterfeit.
This half of the token falling into Qin Niu¡¯s hands meant the other half was now useless.
The Nine Insect Gang would probably produce a new token to rece it.
Qin Niu found this item interesting, so he didn¡¯t throw it away.
After tallying his gains, hey down in bed and fell into a deep sleep.
The Evesting Spring Technique needed to be practiced in the rain or on moonlit nights. Otherwise, it couldpletely rece rest and sleep.
He slept soundly in thefort of the inn.
In the central military tent of the Nine Insect Gang, the subordinates, noticing that Lord Song Zan had not returned from chasing the fleeing woman, immediately went out to search and eventually found Song Zan¡¯s in body at the mountain top.
He was decapitated with his death being a tragic sight.
Moreover, all his tokens and military token were lost.
They immediately sounded the horn, the troops, hearing the call, mobilized at once, conducting a search to find the woman who killed Lord Song Zan.
But to no avail.
They were about tounch a surprise attack on the ck Tiger Gang, but theirmanding officer had been killed.
In a rage, the supervisory officer immediately reported the matter.
The upper echelons of the Nine Insect Gang were all furious.
The atmosphere in the council hall was tense to the extreme.
Anyone could feel the Gang Leader¡¯s towering rage.
¡°At all costs, the murderer must be captured. Whoever dares to kill my beloved officer shall not die a good death,¡± said the Gang Leader of the Nine Insect Gang, a woman.
Her words were filled with vile poison, brimming with boundless hatred.
¡°The murderer must die; this is the dignity and face of the Nine Insect Gang. But with Song Zan being killed at this critical moment, could it be that the ck Tiger Gang has already discerned our military ns? If weunch the attack, we can only achieve the best effect by catching the enemy unprepared. If the enemy is ready for us, our eight thousand brave soldiers crossing the river will be in great danger.¡±
¡°Indeed, this matter is suspicious and cannot be ignored. Send orders to the three armies at Wash Crime River to hold their position and continue drills on the spot. Once a newmander is appointed, we will make a decision,¡± said the Nine Insects Gang Leader, not daring to gamble with the lives of the eight thousand soldiers rashly.
The significance of a surprise attack lies in catching the enemy off guard.
If the enemy is already prepared, attempting a surprise attack would basically be like serving oneself up on a tter.
Qin Niu didn¡¯t know that he had inadvertently assisted the ck Tiger Gang greatly.
Right now, the ck Tiger Gang was rushing to prepare for battle, with most of their forces gathered along the ck River riverbank. Their rear defenses were incredibly weak.
The eight thousand soldiers of the Nine Insect Gangunching a surprise attack could likely reach the gates of ck Tiger City in one fell swoop.
And even cause more severe consequences.
Within the ordinary mansion of the ck Tiger Gang, a middle-aged man dressed in white garments was sitting cross-legged in the backyard, practicing his breathing exercises.
Faintly visible were two strands of energy following his breath, endlessly circling around his nostrils.
¡°An intelligence report!¡±
¡°Bring it in.¡±
The middle-aged man slowly ended his exercises and opened his eyes.
This man was burly and his face bore a fierce appearance. When he opened his eyes, a tangible sharpness shot forth, evidencing the high level of his cultivation.
Clearly, only those with extremely profound cultivation could disy such phenomena.
A personal guard took the intelligence report and handed it to the middle-aged man.
¡°The Nine Insects Gang has arge number of troops moving around the banks of Wash Crime River? It looks like they¡¯re searching for someone?¡±
¡°The Wash Crime River is a natural barrier between our two gangs. It would be extremely difficult for an army to cross. The sudden appearance of arge number of troops¡ªwhat is the Nine Insects Gang nning? Are they intending tounch an attack from this location?
If there truly is arge force invading from this direction into our ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory, we cannot afford to be careless.
However, the Nine Insects Gang Leader has always been cunning and ruthless. If he wanted to invade the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory from this direction, it would be more advantageous for him to do so surreptitiously. Why would they intentionally reveal the whereabouts of theirrge force? What are they nning?¡±
The middle-aged man frowned and racked his brain, but he could not figure it out.
¡°Summon the gang¡¯s high-level members for a meeting immediately.¡±
Learning about the sudden appearance of the Nine Insects Gang¡¯srge number of troops on the banks of Wash Crime River made the middle-aged man take it very seriously.
No matter the reason, an immediate response was necessary.
In Hundred Leaf Town, Qin Niu awoke from his sleep as the night fell.
After eating his fill, he also specially bought some meat to feed his Diamond Ink Turtle and Red-eyed Golden Toad.
As for the Termites, he couldn¡¯t feed them now.
Although they are omnivorous creatures, their preferred diet still consists of trees, roots, and the like.
¡°Sir, the streets at night are even livelier. Won¡¯t you go out and have a look?¡±
The waiter brought a pot of tea over to Qin Niu.
¡°Are there people looking for Green Demon Bees at night?¡±
Qin Niu casually rewarded the waiter with half a piece of Silver Money.
The waiter beamed with joy.
¡°Thank you, young master!¡± The waiter tucked the Silver Money into his clothes. ¡°There are even more people looking for Green Demon Bees at night than during the day! Many are like you, resting in the inn during the day and going into the mountains to search for traces of Green Demon Bees at night.¡± ¡°Oh, why is that?¡±
Qin Niu was quite curious.
The mountains at night should be more dangerous after all.
But it was hard to see mountains as big as those near Shuangfeng Vige from here, only some small hills.
¡°Wild bees typically go out to forage during the day, so it¡¯s not easy to find them. Also, many wild bees are not visible at night, making them easier to catch. Comparatively speaking, the risk of being attacked by them at night is also smaller.¡±
The waiter seemed to know quite a bit.
¡°Thankyou for sharing!¡±
Qin Niu, feeling generous, rewarded the waiter with another half piece of Silver Money.
¡°My, my, the young master is really too generous. Thank you for your generous tip.¡±
One piece of Silver Money was equivalent to several days¡¯ ie for the waiter.
Usually, receiving one or two Wen Money as a tip was considered quite good. Qin Niu directly rewarded him with one piece of Silver Money, which was equivalent to a hundred Wen Money.
¡°If you go to the mountains to look for Green Demon Bees, remember one thing for sure; if you encounter ckened rocks in the mountains, do not proceed any further. There are killer bees there, and if stung, it¡¯s easy to lose one¡¯s life. It¡¯s said that there are formidable wild bees inside that can see at night, with long poison stingers that can prate even through cotton clothing.¡±
Having received the tip,
The waiter revealed even more information.
However, upon hearing this, instead of being frightened, Qin Niu showed an extremely interested expression.
If the wild bees weren¡¯t formidable, he wouldn¡¯t even be interested.
So far, he had only discovered that Corpse Bees possessed night vision abilities.
But raising Corpse Bees was harmful to the heavens, and their cultivation was extremely difficult.
He preferred Green Demon Bees..
Chapter 235 - 228: Entering the Green Demon Forest 1
Chapter 235: Chapter 228: Entering the Green Demon Forest 1
Listening to the meaning of the second brother¡¯s words, even the merely formidable wild bees in the mountains possess night vision capabilities.
The real Green Demon Bees must be even stronger.
Even if it¡¯s just an original Green Demon Bee, it must be an extremely terrifying entity.
Qin Niu brought 20,000 termites this time, more than 4,000 of which had the ability to control or attack the mind, and he also prepared an Advanced Contract Talisman. He was quite well-prepared and naturally would not settle for just catching any ordinary wild bee.
Heading out from the inn with the basket on his back, the street was indeed even busier than he had anticipated.
There were people browsing the night market everywhere.
There were also more stalls than during the day.
Everyone seemed to prefer the trading atmosphere shrouded in the cover of night.
Perhaps they felt it was more secretive, making it easier to purchase some ¡®ck market items¡¯ that were hard to obtain during the day.
For example, goods obtained from murder and looting are difficult to dispose of during the day but can fetch a good price at night.
When Qin Niu was ready to leave, he nned to deal with his silver and gold notes.
Since he still did not know how many days he would stay, he naturally would not act rashly.
With the basket on his back, he strode toward the direction of ck Stone Vige, not far from the market town.
Or rather, the center of the market town, after years of expansion, had already extended to ck Stone Vige.
People bustled like smoke.
It¡¯s not just market towns; even a city¡¯s downtown can slowly shift over time.
The prosperity of Hundred Leaf Town was almost entirely driven by ck Stone Vige.
Without these adventurers and ¡®gold diggers,¡¯ it would rapidly wither and be just an ordinary small town.
Along the way, Qin Niu could still see sparsely scattered stallholders.
Some were carrying oilmps, while others fully emted the Ghost Market,ying out their merchandise in pitch darkness. Some even simply sat there without disying any goods.
What were these people doing?
To sell goods, one had to disy them, right? Even writing a sign or shouting would be better!
Like Qin Niu, there were quite a few people carrying tools into the mountains to hunt for bees.
Some had formed small teams of two or three, or even up to five people.
Others were lone adventurers.
Those who were a bit slimmer and dressed head to toe in protective gear were mostly female adventurers.
Qin Niu did not wish to deal with anyone, for he had a treasure map and had no intention of sharing it with anyone.
Some adventurers had purchased expensive protective gear, covering their bodies with thorough protection.
Some held bee-catchings in their hands.
Others were carryingrge wooden barrels, apparently prepared to gather honey.
Hos do not produce honey; it is only honeybees that do.
Looking at the attire of those carrying barrels, they were clearly locals. Surely the various raw honeys sold in the market town were harvested by these people from the mountains.
This meant that besides killer bees, there were also honeybees in the mountains.
After walking out of the market town¡¯s streets, the road slowly became rough and uneven.
Weeds grew on both sides.
There were many paths leading into the mountains.
Some chose the less traveled paths, while others took the main path.
Since Qin Niu was here for the first time, he chose the main path. No other reason, just that it was more popted, with free guides.
Just as he was about to enter the mountains, a vast bamboo forest spread out before him.
People were entering the forest in droves.
Qin Niu, with hearing far superior to the average person, faintly heard the sound of wings pping above the bamboo forest. Looking up, with the help of the dim moonlight, he could see several beehive-like structures.
It seemed that no one was interested in these ordinary wild bees; they simply pushed forward.
The conversation between two adventurers ahead was clearly audible to Qin Niu.
¡°Brother Wang, do you know why there are even more people entering the mountains to catch bees at night? If it were during the day, just trying to pass through this bamboo forest would be extremely difficult.¡±
¡°Is there something special about this bamboo forest?¡±
¡°This forest is home to at least a million poisonous bees. They can¡¯t see at night, so as long as they aren¡¯t provoked, there¡¯s no problem. During the day, however, whether it¡¯s humans or wild animals, passing through here is seen as an invasion. The bees will form swarms andunch their fiercest attacks on the intruders.¡±
¡°What¡¯s to fear? I¡¯ve bought a full set of protective gear, I¡¯m covered head to
toe.¡±
H
Heh, many who think like you end up stung into a swollen mess. Protectives costing less than ten silver money, no matter how well-promoted or sturdy the seller ims it is, can be easily torn apart by the sheer number of wild bees here. A single wild bee may not be formidable, but in the thousands, they can secrete venom that, sprayed onto the gear, can blind a person who gets it in their eyes in an instant.
If it gets on the skin, it can immediately cause blisters to form, more painful than boiling water burns.¡±
Cobras and other highly venomous snakes can also spray their venom to attack enemies.
Unexpectedly, these wild bees have the same ability.
The bamboo forest was muchrger than he had imagined.
After traversing for over a quarter of an hour, they finally made it through.
Beyond the bamboo forest, they had entered the mountainous region.
Small rolling hills continued on, but ording to the map¡¯s description, there wererger mountains, not just one but a chain of them.
After passing through the bamboo forest, the adventurers began to go their separate ways.
Some lit oilmps, ready to use them to find the wild bees.
Little did they know, as soon as the oilmps were lit, the buzzing of bee wings resonated.
Multitudes of wild bees descended upon the source of light.
¡°Ouch¡ Ah¡ Somebody help!¡±
That adventurer was instantly in trouble, stung by the wild bees, and screamed in agony.
Instinctively, he picked up his oilmp and started to run back.
Not realizing that this was a fatal mistake.
As soon as he entered the bamboo forest, he rmed even more bee swarms, with each one assaulting him.
¡°Quick, extinguish the oilmp and lie on the ground, don¡¯t move.¡±
A local yelled at the adventurer.
Thetter, enduring the severe pain, extinguished the oilmp andy on the ground.
A momentter, the swarm of bees slowly returned to calm.
The man staggered to his feet, humming as he ran towards the outside of the mountain. He must have been seriously injured.
Before entering the mountain to hunt for bees, he clearly hadn¡¯t done his homework and ultimately paid a heavy price for lighting amp.
Fortunately, the wild bees outside, though highly poisonous, were not lethal.
Suffering some flesh wounds, he should be able to recover before long.
Qin Niu was already advancing quickly ahead, his goal quite clear, unlike other adventurers who were content with finding just a slightly more formidable wild bee.
He needed to capture the Green Demon Bee to obtain the treasure of the Green Demon.
Armed with his Innate Realm cultivation and long-term experience traversing the mountains, he soon left the other adventurers far behind.
In reality, adventurers were everywhere in the mountains.
Even in some dark corner, there might be an adventurer lying in wait.
Some would bring provisions and lie in wait for a powerful wild bee, motionless like a scout, at one spot.
Observing carefully, one would notice that Qin Niu¡¯s steps were peculiar as he moved forward.
Indeed, he had started to learn the Misty Rain Traceless Step.
He was currently in the early stages of practice.
To master a martial skill, one must first learn the methods, that is, the theory, and understand its principles. Then, put it into practice.
After initially learning it, one must diligently practice to truly grasp the essence of the martial skill.
There are no shortcuts; it¡¯s a matter of studying, practicing, pondering, and understanding more.
As he ventured deeper into the mountains, fewer and fewer adventurers could be seen.
With his keen hearing, he could still detect some adventurers lurking in trees and on the ground.
These people had their own goals.
After crossing the mountain ahead, a taller mountain rose imposingly before him.
More urately, it was a mountain range.
¡°The destination is getting closer.¡±
ording to the treasure map, beyond the mountain range ahead, another evenrger mountain would appear.
That mountain was Broken Head Peak, with its cliff, and the treasure was at the bottom of the cliff.
Everything was going so well that it made him feel uneasy.
From his life experience, things that were too easy to obtain were either of poor quality or a trap.
He hade with great hope to take the treasure of the Green Demon.
Hopefully, nothing untoward would happen.
As he entered the taller mountain range ahead, the terrain became even more treacherous.
¡°Eh, why have these stones turned ck?¡±
Upon entering the mountain range, Qin Niu noticed that visibility had worsened, and the light seemed to have darkened considerably.
Seeing the ck stones, he couldn¡¯t help but recall the warning from the young waiter.
However, he did not stop but continued forward, relying on his courage and mastery of his art.
After walking less than a hundred meters, he saw a stone tablet emzoned with x patterns.
¡°Enter with caution! Dangerous!¡±
Engraved beneath it were several images of wasps.
Past the stone tablet, his feet crunched on thickyers of dry branches.
He instinctively looked down to check.
¡°My goodness!¡±
Even with his boldness, he was startled and retreated repeatedly after seeing clearly.
The ground wasn¡¯t covered with dry branches but with a thickyer of bones.
How many people must have died here?
Qin Niu suddenly felt this area was exceptionally bleak and frightening.
With so many people dead, how did they die?
He could only think of one possibility.
These people were probably stung to death by wild bees.
While looking around, he heard the buzzing of bees¡¯ wings in his ears.
Arge wild bee with yellow patterns covering its body dived towards him like a bomber.
Qin Niu quickly focused to face it.
Thisrge wild bee was even thicker than an adult¡¯s thumb.
It flew at an incredibly fast speed.
However, when it got to about five meters in front of Qin Niu, it suddenly stopped.
Fourth¡¯s antennae were already aimed straight at the wild bee.
It seemed to have been sessfully controlled.
Qin Niu scrutinized it closely; this wild bee was at most a Grade Three creature.
It fell far short of Grade Four.
Its wings were unusually sturdy, which is why they made a particrly deep sound when pping.
¡°You¡¯re of no use to me, Golden Toad, it¡¯s yours.¡±
Qin Niu let the Golden Toad eat it straight away.
He moved forward cautiously, with such wild bees asionally attacking him.
As the discussions had indicated, these wild bees possessed Night Vision capabilities.
This rank of wild bee posed a great threat to ordinary experts, but they couldn¡¯t get close to Qin Niu. He didn¡¯t even need to act personally; his pets would take care of the wild bees for him.
Through careful observation, he noticed that these wild bees¡¯ nests were varied. Some were underground, some inside tree hollows, and some on branches.
And they belonged to different species.
Catching one and selling it in Hundred Leaf Town could fetch around a hundred copper coins.
But since there were many sellers, it was probably not easy to sell them.
He felt their poison must be quite potent, but their other abilities were rathermon..
Chapter 236 - 229 Summoning the Bee t
Chapter 236: Chapter 229 Summoning the Bee t
Qin Niu cut down enemies one by one, pushing further in, having killed many wild bees already.
The bodies of these wild bees did not go to waste.
He used them to feed the Golden Toad and Termite.
Crossing the towering mountain range underfoot, he finally saw the Broken Head Peak that stood between the earth and sky ahead.
Its summit looked as though it had been chopped off by a sword.
It might only be two or three thousand meters tall, but it felt immense.
This was the first time Qin Niu had seen such a massive mountain.
Scattered around his feet were the withered bones of humans and animals alike.
Even at night, wandering through the mountains meant facing attacks from various wild bees.
Some suddenly burst from the ground, while others dived down from the tree branches overhead, catching one off guard.
Qin Niu had the protection of twenty thousand Termite, so he didn¡¯t need to lift a finger, for the moment.
When he entered the area of Broken Head Peak, the emerging wild bees became noticeably more vicious. There were bees with wings like steel that were hugely built and moved as swiftly as the wind.
Their stingers were extremely terrifying, not at all inferior to the ordinary Corpse Bee.
If there were only one or two, he might have stood a chance at fending them off.
But if there were hundreds or even thousands, it was unimaginable.
Fortunately, up to this point, he had only encountered sporadic attacks from the Steel-winged Wild Bee.
He had yet to see arge swarm attacking.
Qin Niu decided to hasten his pace to avoid entanglement with them.
Facing wild bee attacks, either the Puppet Ants would control them or the Ghost Ant would directlyunch a Mental Attack to bring them down.
He made his way towards the peak, encountering danger but avoiding disasters.
The wild bees appearing became increasingly fierce.
Qin Niu gradually approached the location of the cliff.
At that moment, a Green-headed Bee appeared; it looked much weaker than the Steel-winged Wild Bee.
For someone like Qin Niu, such a creature could be easily killed or captured with confidence.
Unexpectedly, this Green-headed Bee was remarkably quick in flight and extremely agile in the air.
It darted left and right, approaching Qin Niu constantly.
However, this Green-headed Bee was very cunning; it didn¡¯te within ten meters of Qin Niu, nor did it show any intent to attack him.
This rendered the Termite utterly unable to deal with it.
It was night now, and he couldn¡¯t mobilize his War Bees or Green Ring Worker Bees.
This left him momentarily at a loss with the Green-headed Wild Bee.
¡°Buzz buzz buzz!¡±
The dense sound of wing vibrations rose from all directions, and he sensed that something was amiss.
Looking around, he saw Steel-winged Wild Bees flying in from all directions, and upon spotting their target, they charged at him without a word.
Among them were even a few the size of knife handles.
These bees were at least Grade Four and could possibly even be at Grade Five.
He felt their strength was probably not less than that of a Corpse Bee general.
¡°Damn it, where did all these wild beese from?¡±
Qin Niu hurriedlymanded the Termite to prepare for battle.
The number of wild bees continued to grow; there were at least three to four dozen of the knife-handle-sized Steel-winged Wild Bee, to say the least.
As for the ordinary ones, there were far too many to count.
Definitely hundreds.
And their numbers were still increasing.
Everything had been fine until the appearance of that Green-headed Bee, which led to a massive swarm of wild bees flying in from all directions.
Could it be that the Green-headed Bee had a summoning ability?
Or perhaps, it was a Scout Wasp, releasingrge amounts of pheromones to call itspanions upon spotting an enemy?
Both were possible.
In any case, the sudden emergence of so many wild bees, including some Bee Generals of Steel-winged Bees he had never seen before, was likely the doing of that Green-headed Bee.
The Green-headed Wasp seemed to y a role simr to a minor demon who knocks gongs.
Itsbat strength might not be strong, but it was exceptionally agile and quick, and it also possessed the special ability to summon itspanions.
¡°Demon Ant, I assign you a task. Lead ten Puppet Ants to take control of that Green-headed Wild Bee for me,¡± Qin Niu quickly made his decision.
He particrly favored insects with special abilities.
He found the Green-headed Bee particrly interesting, even valuing it more highly than a Bee General in his eyes.
In the past, he would have sent Fourth on important tasks, but this time he assigned Demon Ant to this matter because his own safety was more important.
He needed to keep Fourth by his side tomand the Termite Army and face the hundreds of Steel-winged Wild Bees.
The current situation was actually very dangerous.
If Qin Niu made a single mistake in his response, he could get stung and hurt by them.
Looking at the thickyer of dead bones on the ground, it wasn¡¯t hard to imagine that countless heroes had perished here.
The Demon Ant, with ten Puppet Ants, quickly leapt from Qin Niu¡¯s body to the ground and then approached the Green-headed Wild Bee, which was still swaggering around, calling for friends and allies.
Qin Niu¡¯s side was already having a tough time dealing with the attacks of the wild bees.
Theirbat strength was very formidable.
Moreover, they flew swiftly through the air, twisting and turning with ease.
There was no need to mention the Bee Generals, as they seemed to have a flying maneuver that allowed them to perform leap flights in midair.
It looked as though one was still ten meters away, but the next second, it had suddenly pounced on Qin Niu.
However, with the Red-eyed Golden Toad present, their attacks amounted to nothing more than acts of suicide.
The Red-eyed Golden Toad had already eaten three Bee Generals.
But its mouth seemed to have swollen up from stings.
Its movements had also noticeably slowed down.
That meant these wild bees were highly venomous.
Owing to the vast number of wild bees and the considerable strength of each individual, Qin Niu was gradually unable to hold them off.
If it weren¡¯t for his King Pig Leather Armor, he might have been in serious trouble long ago.
Only at this moment did he realize why even the Master of the Seven-Star Sect had been killed by a swarm of Green Demon Bees.
Facing such a multitude of fierce, poisonous bees, ordinary people, unless they were Immortal Masters, stood no chance whatsoever.
Each time Qin Niu swung his de to kill, he could only manage to eliminate one or two wild bees at best.
More often than not, he swung his de only to misspletely.
It wasn¡¯t that his swings were inurate, but rather that the Steel-winged Wild Bees rapidly evaded them.
¡°Master, the Green-headed Wild Bee has been controlled,¡± Demon Ant reported the good news at this moment.
¡°Good, let it fly over here,¡± Qin Niu had already used the newly learned Misty Rain Traceless Step, dodging and weaving through the bee¡¯s assault like a drunk, continuously changing his position.
Now, he was eager to shake off the onught of the bee swarm.
They kepting endlessly, and their numbers were growing. If he couldn¡¯t shake them off, Qin Niu would eventually be worn down by them.
Under such tremendous pressure, his Misty Rain Traceless Step had be increasingly proficient, improving at an extremely rapid pace.
Improving martial skills during battle was the fastest way, bar none.
The Green-headed Wild Bee flew over.
Seizing the opportunity, Qin Niu swung his and caught it, then ced it inside the Insect Jar.
Its body wasn¡¯t strong; it was much weaker than a Bee General.
Even an ordinary Steel-winged Wild Bee would be stronger.
In just a short time, the number of wild bees around him had risen to over ten thousand.
The termites were gradually overpowered, and casualties ensued.
Yet, the number of wild bees continued to surge rapidly.
The area cultivated by the Green Demon, known far and wide for its deadliness, indeed lived up to its reputation.
If Qin Niu¡¯s termites had a longer period for cultivation, that mountain region would probably be even more dangerous than Broken Head Peak..
Chapter 237 - 230: The First Large-Scale Bug Battlei
Chapter 237: Chapter 230: The First Large-Scale Bug Battlei
Qin Niu, facing such a massive attack from wild bees, desperately sought a ce to hide.
He was painfully aware that he would notst long.
He had thought that with over twenty thousand termites, he would be able to handle any situation. Only when he actually faced the wild bees did he realize how terrifying they were.
If the capability of his Ant Queen to reproduce could reach a higher level, producing over ten thousand eggs per day, and he brought millions of termites with him, perhaps he could contend with the swarm of wild bees.
For now, whether in terms of individual soldier strength or numbers, he waspletely overwhelmed by the wild bees.
Ordinary steel-winged wild bees were equivalent to Grade Four insects, while those at the Bee General level were equal to Grade Five insects.
It was still unknown if there were even more powerful wild bees out there.
Qin Niu¡¯s King Pig Leather Armor which he regarded as a safety, at most could only withstand the attacks of Grade Five wild bees. If there were one or two Grade Six wild bees, his situation would be even more perilous.
This experience greatly broadened his horizons and deepened his understanding of insect warfare.
In the past, when dealing with formidable insects, he always used strength in numbers.
Several hundred, several thousand termites against the enemy¡¯s one or a few insects.
With the addition of the Mental Attack ability, he was nearly invincible.
Now his insects, inferior in both number and individual strength to the wild bees, resulted in him tasting the powerlessness and fear when facing swarm attacks.
They were like an army, forming a raging torrent that simply crushed everything in its path.
At this critical juncture, his Misty Rain Traceless Step was performed to the utmost, bing more agile, and his speed increasing.
In life-and-death situations, human potential is constantly squeezed, virtually endless.
But no matter how fast his steps were, they couldn¡¯t be faster than the flying steel-winged wild bees.
Those who walked on the ground were absolutely suppressed in terms of speed by those that could fly.
Just look at the golden eagles to understand.
They may be smaller than wild wolves andck sharp teeth and powerful bite force, but theypletely dominate wild wolves, making escape a luxury.
It was then that he discovered a path leading down the cliff.
Without hesitation, he quickly fled down the cliff. If he could find a water source, perhaps he could survive this ordeal.
The path down the mountain was not only steep but also winding andplex.
Behind him, the terrifying swarm of wild bees was still desperately pursuing him, extremely vicious.
One after another, they dived and attacked swiftly toward him.
Continuously, termites were struck by the wild bees, then either grabbed and carried away or viciously stabbed by their Poison Stingers, injecting terrible venom.
Watching his ant forces suffer losses, Qin Niu¡¯s heart bled.
This was his hard-earned nest egg.
The path to the cliff became somewhat slippery, with moss starting to appear everywhere.
This suggested that there might be water at the bottom of the cliff.
He couldn¡¯t help but elerate his pace.
Using hands and feet together, he fled swiftly to the bottom of the cliff.
At that moment, he unexpectedly found a cave on the steep wall of the cliff.
Like a drowning man grasping at a straw, he quickly shed into the cave.
The entrance was rather constricted, and he couldn¡¯t be concerned about whether there were any dangerous insects or snakes inside.
After squeezing into the cave, he found that this cave on the cliff wall wasn¡¯t deep, barely two meters in length.
The cave entrance was small, but the interior space was adequate.
It was more than enough for one person to curl up inside.
After escaping into the cave, Qin Niu blocked the entrance with his basket. The ferocious steel-winged wild bees thumped against the basket. Venom sprayed, and the vine-woven basket likely would not withstand for long.
A few scattered steel-winged wild bees broke into the cave and were instantly killed by the termites.
For the moment, he was somewhat safe.
He took the shield made of King Pig Leather Armor off his back and ced it against the basket¡¯s inner wall that was already starting to rupture.
No insects were discovered inside the cave, and there were no snakes either, which gave Qin Niu some peace of mind.
He could finally catch his breath for a moment.
The situation just then had been incredibly dangerous.
He turned his gaze to examine the cave walls, noticing obvious signs of man-made chiseling.
It suggested that this cave was excavated by humans.
Judging by the marks, the cave had quite a history. Who exactly dug it was no longer verifiable.
It might have been dug by Green Demons, or by treasure hunters that followed.
It could also be the work of Herb Pickers or woodsmen.
Some Herb Pickers, not finding it easy to venture into the mountain, would choose to guard near the appropriate medicinal herbs after finding them.
Because medicinal herbs nearing maturity are easily eyed by wild animals, birds, insects, and snakes in the mountains.
Without someone to guard them, the herbs are likely to be consumed.
Harvesting some special herbs is extraordinarily difficult.
Usually, one must guard the site for half a month before the fruit of the herbs matures.
Some Herb Pickers might even need to guard for over a month to pick a Spirit Fruit, living in the mountains throughout.
Nighttime is the most difficult and dangerous time for Herb Pickers.
Digging a cave to hide in is a standard procedure.
Savvy Herb Pickers often choose cliffs; they use vines to make ropes, then climb down a bit and carve out a cave.
Being on a sheer cliff face naturally offers protection against many predators.
Moreover, it¡¯s warm in winter and cool in summer, far morefortable than living in the trees.
Right now, this cave had saved Qin Niu¡¯s life.
But even without this cave, facing the attack of the wild bees, he should have no problem preserving his life.
The bees outside continued to relentlessly ram his basket and shield.
But it was already very difficult to pose a threat to him.
Qin Niu checked the numbers and in a short period of time, he lost over three hundred termite soldiers, nearly four hundred.
Such heavy losses pained him greatly.
Fortunately, the ones lost were Grade Three Soldier Ants without the ability tounch mental attacks.
The over four thousand termites with mental attack and spirit control abilities, including the Elephant Nose Soldier Ants, Demon Ants, Medical Ants, and other special kinds of ants, were all his key protection targets.
Each one was extremely precious.
If there could be one hundred thousand, or even a million termites with mental attack abilities today, no matter how many wild bees came, they would be like sending themselves to ughter.
¡°Fourth, you lead the Puppet Ants to control those formidable War Bees. Take them out one by one.¡±
Qin Niu was already impatient and took out arge Insect Jar, ready to capture those Grade Five Bee Generals.
He didn¡¯t care for the ordinary Steel-winged Wild Bees.
After killing them, he would leave their bodies to feed the Termite Ant Queen and War Bee Queen Bee.
As for those Grade Five Bee Generals, selling them or keeping a few for further cultivation and breeding were both excellent choices.
They possessed Night Vision and were naturally equipped with steel wings, their flying abilities not weaker than ordinary birds.
Also, their toxicity was fierce.
All these special abilities had high value for cultivation.
The first priority was to deal with the Bee Generals, as the strategy of ¡°capturing the leader first in catching thieves¡± goes.
As long as he took care of all the Bee Generals, thebat power of the bee swarm would immediately be sharply reduced.
What Qin Niu feared the most were those green-headed wild bees.
They had an overwhelming summoning capability.
Just one could summon ten thousand, even a hundred thousand wild bees to join the battle, which was really terrifying.
Fourth had been brimming with anger all along.
Just waiting for the moment to counterattack to arrive.
He sent forth nearly two thousand seven hundred Puppet Ants and put them to work all at once.
They could take care of four to five Bee Generals at a time.
In just a short while, Qin Niu¡¯s Insect Jar already had seventy-one Bee Generals inside.
One jar simply couldn¡¯t hold them all; he filled two jars to the brim, and they still seemed a bit squeezed.
Holding them in hand, they were quite heavy.
The Bee Generals of these Steel-winged Wild Bees were not onlyrge in size but also exceptionally robust.
Their weight was beyond imagination.
With little effort, Qin Niu captured them all.
This somewhat made up for the loss of nearly four hundred termites.
¡°Fourth, lead the Puppet Ants to make the wild bees ughter each other. The over fourteen hundred Ghost Ants willunch mental attacks, taking any out they can. The rest of themon ants, deal with those bees that have fallen to the ground, ¡®finish them off.¡¯
Qin Niu issued thebat order.
Just now, during the battle with the wild bees, he discovered that of the original three thousand plus termites that had fought with locusts before, which Qin Niu had also taken to eradicate pests in the fields, each one of them was battle-hardened, exhibiting abat force even stronger than ordinary Grade Three termites.
New recruits and old soldiers who had seen battle were not even on the same level in terms ofbat power.
This was a good opportunity for training.
It was just right for the over fifteen thousand regr Worker Ants and Soldier Ants to engage in closebat.
The wild bees might have been struck down, but they had only suffered mental attacks or been wounded by their own kind under control and had fallen to the ground.
They still possessed a strongbat power.
If they were not killed promptly, with their tenacious vitality, they could recover quickly.
Those wild bees that had fallen to the ground were the perfect opponents for the termites¡¯bat training.
Qin Niu just looked on indifferently.
The scales of victory in the battle were already tipping in his favor.
The wild bees outside were being eliminated continuously.
He had already sessfully taken control of the situation.
Thinking back to the significant improvement when he executed the Misty Rain Traceless Step in the critical moment, he subconsciously checked his attributes.
Martial Skill: sh slightly proficient 412/1000 (10% chance of Critical Chop, 30% chance of Critical Chop when using the Ink de), Sweeping Strike beginner 7.12/10, Misty Rain Traceless Step proficient 11.3/100 (speed increased by 30%, agility enhanced by 10%)
This Step-Method Martial Skill was quite good.
It could significantly increase his escape speed, and his agility followed suit.
Agility was an extremely important metric.
Why can felines be invincible among beasts of the same weight? It¡¯s precisely because of their extremely high agility.
If the enemy¡¯s attacks can¡¯tnd, while their sharp ws can easily hit the enemy.
If it¡¯s a tiger, the force of one swipe can reach a ton.
Easily knocking out an opponent.
Even directly crushing the opponent¡¯s skull.
The Misty Rain Traceless Step was only proficient level, but already added 10% agility, and if cultivated to a higher realm, it would definitely be more powerful.
Moreover, this Step-Method Martial Skill had the words ¡®traceless¡¯ in it.
Indicating that, when perfected, it would have an effect of being traceless. By then, there would certainly be new special effects.
Also, he noticed that using the Ink de to execute the sh Martial Skill, the chance of an Explosive sh had increased to 30%.
Though it was just a 10% increase, it could geometrically multiply hisbat power in actualbat.
Imagine, every two or three strikes producing an Explosive sh Effect, which opponent could withstand it?
Just as one explosive chop passes, before the enemy could recover, the second strikees shing over.
And again, it¡¯s an Explosive sh.
The enemy probably only has tears to offer..
Chapter 238 - 231 The Blind Man Who Can See_1
Chapter 238: Chapter 231 The Blind Man Who Can See_1
His sh Martial Skill hadn¡¯t upgraded, yet the probability of Critical Chop increased by 10%, which was a benefit gained from the sessful metamorphosis and evolution of the Ink de, endowing it with spirituality.
The pile of Steel-winged Wild Bee corpses at the entrance of the cave was growingrger, and Qin Niu had already filled arge bag to the brim with them.
The closebat ability of the Termites was pretty decent.
The Puppet Ants and Ghost Ants executed long-range suppression, while more than fifteen thousand Grade Three Termites attacked the injured Steel-winged Wild Bees on the ground, forming a perfectly coordinated tactical system.
They enjoyed every advantage.
The wild bees here had one significant characteristic: they fought fearlessly
and were extremely fierce.
Even as theirrades fell one by one, not a single wild bee fled.
This battle left the ground littered with bee corpses.
Qin Niu¡¯s Termite forces had avenged their deep-seated grudge.
All of the wild bees were eradicated one by one.
There were some losses among the Termites during thebat training. About sixty to seventy Termites died in battle, and over four thousand were injured. Unfortunately, there were only two Medical Ants at the moment, which were simply too busy to handle everything.
They were strenuously treating the injured Termites.
The Demon Ants were the most badass, as they possessed a basic self-healing ability. Even when injured, they could recover quickly without the need for treatment.
¡°After we take the Green Demon treasure back this time, we must further develop and strengthen the logistical troops of the Termite Army,¡± he mused.
After observing that over four thousand Termites were injured, Qin Niu felt an extreme urgency for Medical Ants.
If there had been a thousand Medical Ants now, the injured Termites could
have been restored to health in just moments.
The production of Medical Ants was very low; all he could do was to umte them slowly.
After collecting the wild bee corpses scattered everywhere, he heaved a long sigh of relief. They had finally ovee this ordeal.
¡°Well done, brave warriors, you can spread out and eat these bee corpses, he said.
Qin Niu was not stingy, letting the Termites feast on the carcasses of the Steel-winged Wild Bees to satiate their hunger.
The nutrition was much higher than that of wood or grassroots.
These were the bodies of Grade Four wild bees after all; eating them would surely bring significant benefits to the Termites.
Especially the few thousand Grade Two Termites that were cultivated early on; their potential for growth was still huge.
Eating this high-grade food several times would greatly increase their chances of advancing to Grade Three.
After resting in the cave for nearly an hour, Qin Niu felt it was likely that there were no more wild bees outside, and emerged from the cave.
After the great battle, each Termite was well-fed and quenched.
The injured soldiers¡¯ wounds healed much faster after eating high-grade food.
He initially nned to go down to the bottom of the cliff, and now it was conveniently on the way.
The exact depth of this cliff wasn¡¯t recorded on the map.
The treasure map only outlined the route to the treasure.
He had just crawled out of the cave and hadn¡¯t descended more than a few meters when he heard the familiar buzzing sound in his ears once more.
More wild bees wereing.
They must have discovered him.
Qin Niu¡¯s heart tightened; this was not good news.
Having just battled arge swarm of wild bees, he had developed a profound fear of these creatures.
They were incredibly venomous and ferocious, fighting fearlessly to the death.
Once they identified an enemy, they would stop at nothing to eliminate the invaders.
¡°Damn it, it¡¯s another Steel-winged Wild Bee,¡± he cursed under his breath.
Qin Niu quickly crouched low, hugging the cliff face.
The wild bee dived directly towards him.
However, just as it approached within ten meters of Qin Niu, it was controlled by Fourth.
After battling the wild bees for so long, the Termite Army had umted a wealth ofbat experience.
¡°Die!¡± Qin Niu shouted, his hatred for it bone-deep, fearing it might attract other wild bees.
He was ready to swing his de and kill it immediately.
But upon second thought, keeping this wild bee might have other uses.
¡°Fourth, let it release its kind¡¯s pheromones on me,¡± hemanded.
Qin Niu wanted to disguise himself as a wild bee.
Because bees recognize theirpanions through pheromones, not eyesight.
Some parasites are very good at mimicry.
They can mimic the pheromones of hos, then feast within the ho s nest, consuming all the ho¡¯sid eggs andrvae without being discovered. ¡°Elephant-nosed Soldier Ants, mimic the pheromones released by this wild bee.¡±
Qin Niu had a diverse array of ant species.
The evolved Grade Three Venomous Jaw Soldier Ants could mimic the pheromones of other creatures.
Soon, several Venomous Jaw Soldier Ants began to work hard, releasing arge amount of pheromones simr to that of the wild bees.
The method seemed to be effective.
As Qin Niu continued to climb down, no more wild bees attacked him.
But he quickly encountered a new problem.
The cliff was wet and slippery, and even though he had the prowess of the innate Realm, he was already struggling to maintain his grip.
Falling would not be a joking matter; he could very well fall to his death. He hadn¡¯t brought a rope with him, so now he had to improvise with the materials at hand, looking for vines to climb.
Since it was still night, even with his far-sighted gaze, he could only spot some vine-like nts on the cliff ahead to his right.
He carefully made his way over there.
As soon as he got close, a green-headed wild bee was disturbed and flew out.
It circled Qin Niu, apparently able to recognize that he was disguised.
It had already begun to summon other wild bees to deal with him, the ¡®imposter¡¯.
Seeing this situation unfold, Qin Niu immediately felt overwhelmed.
Fortunately, he had some experience dealing with such cases and quickly sent out a team of Demon Ants.
Five Grade Four Demon Ants quickly scurried in that direction and, as they approached the actively ¡®dancing¡¯ green-headed wild bee, they immediately subjected it to Spirit Control.
The agile green-headed wild bee, fearless of both heaven and earth, only feared the Termite¡¯s Spirit Control.
It was controlled in an instant.
¡°Come here!¡±
With onemand from Qin Niu, the green-headed wild bee obediently flew over.
¡°Release a signal, telling the other wild bees not toe over.¡±
Qin Niumanded.
It seemed not to possess that ability.
With no other choice, Qin Niu could only lock it up for the time being.
Just as he finished dealing with it, he heard the dense buzzing sound in his ears.
This time he was smart, immediately pressing his body t against the cliff and staying perfectly still.
The only kind of wild bee that could identify him as a fake was the green-headed wild bee.
These summoner bees possessed some incredible special abilities.
They were extremely fast fliers and particrly agile.
They also had the power to summon other wild bees, with an exceptionally strong calling ability that could even bring bee generals to their side. Moreover, they could distinguish between real and counterfeit, knowing who was in disguise.
Qin Niu always felt that these wild bees had great potential for domestication. He had already captured two of them.
After bringing them back, he could consider taming one for a trial.
For now, there was definitely no possibility of taming them, as the environment didn¡¯t permit it, and neither did his Talisman.
He only had one Advanced Contract Talisman; he had to save it for taming the Green Demon Bee.
Indeed, arge swarm of wild bees flew in from all directions.
This time, however, it was interesting; Qin Niuy still without moving.
Fourth led the Puppet Ants to control a group of wild bees, then made them desperately release pheromones of their kind onto Qin Niu¡¯s body. The Venomous Jaw Soldier Ants also mimicked adeptly.
After the wild bees searched around over a dozen times, they just couldn¡¯t find the enemy.
In their eyes, Qin Niu had already be one of them.
They had essentially be true blind men with eyes open..
Chapter 239 - 232 Ice Lotus 1
Chapter 239: Chapter 232 Ice Lotus 1
The wild bees patrolled for a while and, finding no target to attack, flew away one after another.
Qin Niu, however, followed the vines down to the base of the cliff.
Even with his innate realm cultivation, the descent was so difficult that it was evident how cautious the Green Demon had been back in the day.
To avoid his enemies¡¯ pursuit, the Green Demon chose to hide at the bottom of a cliff where even masters of the innate realm would find it hard to descend.
Every ascent and descent of the rock face was fraught with great danger.
The Green Demon¡¯s choice was very wise. Precisely because it was so perilous to reach the bottom of the cliff, those hunting him wouldn¡¯t think to look here.
Following the wild vines, Qin Niu slowly made his way down to the bottom of the cliff.
These vines were incredibly sturdy, appearing not too thick, but strong enough to hold fast to the cliff¡¯s precipitous rock face.
Once at the base, he looked around and sawyers of mist.
It felt like entering a dreamy world.
His gaze was soon drawn to a particr vine.
There was a small vine, only as thick as chopsticks and dark green throughout, with ordinary-looking leaves. However, one could see faint yellow veins and white spots on its stem.
ording to experience, such vines had extraordinary toughness and strength.
¡°This vine doesn¡¯t look very big, but the herbal essence is so rich!¡±
His training in the Medicine King Sutra had progressed to the acquired realm, enabling him to clearly sense the energy contained within the nts and the medicinal essence they emitted.
In this world, every herb and tree can be used for medicine.
Even a newly sprouted de of grass emits medicinal essence.
The stronger the medicinal essence of a nt, the higher its value.
Initially searching for the Green Demon¡¯s treasure, Qin Niu found this vine so unusual that he dug it up on the spot.
He did not expect its roots to prate so deeply into the rockyer, and it took considerable effort to finally unearth it.
Many of the vine¡¯s roots were broken off by Qin Niu¡¯s hands.
Just as he had predicted, the vine appeared small but was tremendously resilient.
Though it could notpare to an iron chain of the same size, it was much sturdier than a hemp rope of simr thickness.
Brought back and nted in his own backyard, it would add a new member to the medicinal garden.
The forbidden grounds of the Fang Family had given him a deep insight.
A family or sect that wanted to thrive for generations must make preparations for nurturing talent.
He was mainly cultivating himself, and the medicinal herbs he grew were primarily for his own use.
Only under the right conditions would he consider cultivating the three women¡ªXiao Qing, Wang Wanyan, and Tang Caixian.
For the moment, there were no wild bees at the bottom of the cliff.
Perhaps the pheromones he had released on the surface of his body were still at work, causing other wild bees to mistake him for one of their own. So, they all lurked in the shadows, noting out to attack him.
ording to the treasure map, after descending to the bottom of the cliff, he should continue walking along the right side of the cliff face.
When a cold pool appears, he would have arrived.
Along the way, Qin Niu found human skeletons on the ground, and some had even left behind swords and iron armor.
All were forged from Hundred-Tempering Fine Steel, of extremely high quality.
This indicated that the number of masters who had perished here was not small.
Whether these items and bones were left by adventurers or the Seven-Star Sect masters who chased the Green Demon was no longer verifiable.
The fame of the Green Demon Bee was so great that it attracted countless masters to seek the treasure, yet it also cost many their lives.
He groped his way through the dense mist, barely able to see beyond five meters.
He had no idea how far he had gone, surely more than half an hour, when the mist ahead gradually began to thin, extending his visibility from about five meters to roughly ten meters.
Qin Niu smelled the distinctive fishy smell that one finds only by a riverbank.
The air around him also felt exceedingly cold and damp.
His heart leaped with anticipation; the cold pool must be close by.
Indeed, he didn¡¯t have to go much farther before he came upon a deep pool about two hundred square meters in area. Cold air bubbled up from the surface of the pool, mingling with the mist at the base of the cliff and causing a significant chilling effect.
This was also the reason why the mist was thinning out.
The valley stream flowed into the pool, forming this deep expanse of water.
Qin Niu picked up a stone and threw it into the pool, causingrge ripples to spread.
The stone quickly sank.
¡°Little Ink Turtle, it¡¯s time for you to show what you can do once again.¡±
Qin Niu took the little Ink Turtle out of the basket.
In reality, his basket was a bit broken, damaged by those steel-winged wild bees.
Aftering out, the Diamond Ink Turtle stuck out its head cautiously and crawled towards the edge of the pool.
About a meter from the water, it suddenly elerated and plunged into the pool.
Seeing this, Qin Niu felt reassured.
With the Diamond Ink Turtle¡¯s timid nature, if there were any formidable creatures lurking inside the pool, it would never dare to dive in.
He began to examine the surroundings of the cold pool.
He even took out the Green Demon¡¯s treasure map topare.
There was no mistake, the shape of the cold pool matched exactly what was shown on the map.
ording to the Green Demon¡¯s markings, the treasure should be hidden at the bottom of the pool.
After waiting a moment, the little Ink Turtle surfaced from the bottom of the pool.
It was still yfully frolicking about.
Since being brought home by Qin Niu, it had been kept either in a broken tank or in the front courtyard¡¯s fishpond¡ªnot quiteparable to this natural wild habitat¡¯sfort.
¡°Timid turtle, is it safe down there in the pool?¡±
¡°Safe!¡±
The little Ink Turtlemunicated with him using spiritual thoughts.
Since Qin Niu¡¯s Termite couldn¡¯t enter the water, he hid his basket, removed his clothes, leaving just his underpants on, and with the Ink de in hand, he dived directly into the cold pool.
The pool¡¯s icy water was bone-chillingly cold.
Fortunately, with his innate realm cultivation, he managed to withstand it.
Plunging toward the depths of the pool, the little turtle followed alongside him cheerfully.
Now master of water control andplemented by its swimming skills, it moved more agilely than the average fish and swam even faster.
Qin Niu swam with all his might toward the bottom of the pool, searching for the Green Demon¡¯s treasure.
The cold depths seemed bottomless, and even after descending about thirty meters, he had still not touched the bottom.
By then, the strong water pressure had already made his body somewhat ufortable.
However, he could still withstand it.
After all, he had reached the Innate Realm. His body, having gone through multiple rounds of tempering and strengthening, had be quite formidable.
A normal person diving about ten meters under water would feel noticeably unwell.
The intense water pressure could make a person¡¯s seven orifices bleed.
He held his breath and dived to a depth of thirty meters, which was far beyond the limit that an ordinary person could endure. Only at this depth, the effort needed to continue diving became even greater.
The Diamond Ink Turtle sensed its master¡¯s difficulty and immediately stepped forward to lend a hand.
With its help, Qin Niu found diving much easier.
The water pressure around him also seemed to be significantly reduced.
He continued to dive deeper.
He faintly saw a glimmer of light at the bottom of the pool and instinctively swam towards the source of the light.
As he got closer to the light source, the water grew colder and colder.
But the previously somewhat dark bottom of the pool now became clearer.
A nt, crystal clear and jade-like, was growing at the bottom of the pool.
It looked like a blooming lotus.
The glimmer came from its petals. It seemed to have no leaves, only a blooming lotus blossom.
¡°What kind of nt is this? The energy it contains is terrifying.¡±
Of all the nts Qin Niu had seen so far, the most formidable was that Ancient Banyan Tree deep in the mountains.
The energy contained in this lotus at the bottom of the pool was second only to the Ancient Banyan Tree.
It was even stronger than the ¡®treasure herbs¡¯ nurtured by the Fang Family.
In ces seldom visited by humans, it was indeed easier to find treasures of the earth and sky.
Qin Niu thought about digging it up and taking it back.
Whether for alchemy or cultivating the Medicine King Sutra, it was an excellent choice.
It could even be used to cultivate termites and honeybees.
¡°So cold!¡±
When he was just five or six meters away from the jade-like lotus, he could barely endure it, feeling as though he was about to freeze to death.
His limbs became numb, and his movements noticeably slowed.
He felt a pain he hadn¡¯t experienced in a long time, the pain of being frozen.
¡°Little turtle, if it really bes unbearable, you¡¯ll have to use the Qi Wave Defense,¡± Qin Niumunicated telepathically with the Diamond Ink Turtle.
As long as he could get close to that lotus, he could pluck it.
It was about the size of a washbasin,rge enough for a child to sit on with no problem.
Qin Niu swam faster towards the lotus while gripping the Ink de in his hand. His idea was simple: if he couldn¡¯t pull it out, he would chop off the flower with its roots.
Or use the de to pry it out.
The distance of five or six meters was covered in a blink.
He was secretly delighted and immediately reached out to pluck the lotus.
But as soon as his hand touched the lotus, a powerful vortex was generated, sucking him and the Diamond Ink Turtle directly into it.
There was no time to resist; they were both pulled into a tunnel.
After tumbling head over heels, along with the icy water flow, he and the little turtle fell into another space.
At that moment, Qin Niu sensed intense danger.
As his body fell with the current, he surveyed his surroundings.
It was dark all around, and the water flow enveloping him seemed to start icing over, aiming to freeze him and the little turtle inside it.
The Diamond Ink Turtle also sensed the looming threat and immediately manipted the water to scatter in all directions.
Qin Niu seized the moment to sh with his de, cleaving through the water that was about to freeze.
With the faint light from the sh of de Qi, he finally saw clearly what was below.
There was a pool, its water appearing to be a dark red.
The stench of blood hit his nose, making him feel nauseated.
His first reaction was not to fall into that Blood Pool, or it would be dangerous.
The newly learned Misty Rain Traceless Step proved useful at this critical moment. He tried to twist his body and then kicked against the ice forming around him.
Actually, the water had already turned to ice.
Pushing off against it, he used the recoil to sessfully steer himself and the little turtle away from the Blood Pool.
Ultimately, he narrowly escaped andnded beside the Blood Pool.
The Misty Rain Traceless Step seemed to have undergone significant enlightenment and breakthrough.
As soon as hended, Qin Niu immediately distanced himself from the Blood Pool.
There was no water around, only a slightly chilly air. However, there was no light in this space, all darkness, leaving him clueless about what might be lurking in the shadows.
Nor did he know what kind of environment he was in.
He only knew that the ce where he had almost fallen was a Blood Pool.
¡°Could the Green Demon¡¯s treasure be inside this space?¡±
Qin Niu had only brought an Ink de with him when he came down, and he hadn¡¯t brought anything else.
If he had known, he would have brought down a re.
Just as he was about to explore the space, an extremely cold energy approached him.
Without thinking, he instinctively swung his de to sh.
Chapter 240 - 233 Green Demon_1
Chapter 240: Chapter 233 Green Demon_1
de Qi seeped from the edge of the Ink de, brutally striking the chill
energy that was attacking.
With just one strike, it annihted it.
¡°Ugh!¡±
A slightly pained grunt came from not too far away.
Someone was there!
Qin Niu¡¯s nerves instantly tensed.
There was actually someone in this space who could it be?
Could it be an adventurer like him, who came in searching for treasure and then identally got sucked into this space?
¡°Who¡¯s there?¡±
Qin Niu bent over to pick up two stones from the ground, while sternly calling
out.
That person had justunched a chill energy attack at him, clearly harboring ill intent.
This time, three streams of chill energy assaulted him.
Coming from different directions.
They were filled with an evil presence, carrying a dense scent of death, simr to the chill energy that descended from the branches of the Ancient Banyan
Tree.
Butpared to it, the chill energy from the Ancient Banyan Tree at night seemed more condensed, and it did not carry such an intense deathly aura.
Qin Niu did not know what this triple stream of chill energy was and directly struck out with his de.
The technique he used was a mass-killing skill, the Sweeping Strike.
The three streams of chill energy had no resistance against the sh of his Ink
de and were all extinguished.
In the shadows, that person¡¯s muffled grunt sounded once more.
This time, Qin Niu did not hold back.
As he closed in on the opponent, he threw the two stones in his hand towards
the source of the sound.
For a practitioner of the Innate Realm, even a mere stone thrown held considerable power.
Bang Bang!
The stones struck something hard, sparking off flints, shattering the stones
into several pieces.
Then they fell to the ground.
Using the faint light from the sparks, Qin Niu finally saw the scene in front of him.
It was a human-shaped stone sculpture.
But this sculpture was much bulkier than an average person, its body as thick
as a bear¡¯s.
The height was around one and a half meters.
It was sitting cross-legged.
Another detail, the sculpture was ck.
The facial features were quite vague; it was unclear if it was due to theck of detailed carving on the face or for some other reason.
A stone sculpture should be an inanimate object, right? How could it possibly emit a grunt?
Qin Niu felt utterly baffled.
Feeling that all the threat was emanating from this sculpture, he quickly approached and swung his de.
¡°Mercy, have mercy!¡±
The stone sculpture let out a terrified plea for clemency.
It sounded aged, clearly a male¡¯s voice.
¡°ying tricks! Who are you?¡±
Qin Niu coldly questioned the stone sculpture.
¡°He Houyi!¡±
The stone sculpture seemed very afraid of Qin Niu.
¡°You¡¯re called what?¡±
Qin Niu could hardly believe his ears.
¡°He Houyi.¡±
The stone sculpture repeated.
-You, you¡¯re the beekeeper from ck Stone Vige? The one who single-handedly took on the entire Seven-Star Sect as the Green Demon?¡±
Qin Niu knew that the Green Demon¡¯s real name was He Houyi.
It was just thatter, because the bees he raised were green killer bees, and his actions were simr to that of a demon king, who ughtered the entire vige, he was thus given the name Green Demon.
¡°Heh¡ Let the world call me Green Demon if they wish! I¡¯ve raised bees, I¡¯ve killed people, but I ask myself, those I killed were the ones who had to be killed. The Seven-Star Sect, in my eyes, is no big deal.¡±
The stone sculpture¡¯s voice carried a hint of self-ridicule.
And a trace of mncholy.
¡°Hmph, everyone here deserves death? If 1 hadn¡¯t been vignt, if 1 couldn¡¯t resist those cold and evil creatures, I¡¯m afraid I would¡¯ve been dead by now. You¡¯ve exhausted every scheme to leave behind the Green Demon Beekeeping Manual, deliberately including a treasure map inside, luring people step by step into your trap. Such actions are thoroughly demonic. Today, you cannot remain, I¡¯ll send you on your way first, to prevent future cmities for humanity and continued harm to the world.¡±
Qin Niu raised his de to strike the stone sculpture again.
The two stones had just struck it, sparking on impact, indicating the surface of
the sculpture was very hard.
The Green Demon must have also been a figure from at least two hundred years ago, it was quite unexpected that he could live until now.
Living within a stone sculpture, who knows what method he used? ¡°Don¡¯t kill me! Luring people here in search of treasure was ast resort. Back then, I killed the Seven Star Sect Master, angering the higher-ups of the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect. They sent an Immortal Master to kill me.
In front of the Immortal Master, I had no power to resist.
The Green Demon Bees I had painstakingly raised were easily exterminated by him.
1 managed to use a substitution method to escape the cmity of death. But after I fled back to this cavern beneath the Cold Pond, although I didn¡¯t die, I might as well have been a living corpse. I had to survive by sucking the lifeblood of living people.¡±
Over the years, I¡¯ve been trying every possible way to get my revenge, as long as I can avenge this great enmity, without you needing to lift a finger, I will take my own life as thanks to the world. To give an exnation to those people
I¡¯ve killed.¡±
The Green Demon¡¯s words were earnest.
But Qin Niu listened expressionlessly.
¡°What were those cold and evil creatures that attacked me just now?¡±
¡°It¡¯s a secret technique I cultivated, equivalent to my avatar.¡±
¡°When you were in by the Immortal Master from the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect, your cultivation should have been strong, what realm were you in at that time?¡±
¡°I was already in the Innate Realm.¡±
The Green Demon answered crisply.
¡°Later Stage of the Innate Realm?¡±
¡°Yes.¡±
As the Green Demon answered, he seemed straightforward but actually yed
a trick.
He did not specify which stage of the Innate Realm he had reached.
The difference between the Initial Stage and the Later Stage of the Innate Realm is immense.
¡°The secret technique you cultivated, you must have already been practicing it before you fought the Immortal Master from the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect, right?¡±
¡°Yes!¡±
The Green Demon, facing an opponent like Qin Niu, must have felt helpless.
Mature beyond his years, with extraordinary wisdom and strategy.
All his schemes and tactics were ineffective in front of Qin Niu.
¡°How many Beekeeping Manuals have you left outside?¡±
¡°Over a hundred.¡±
¡°Does every single one contain a treasure map?
¡°Yes!¡±
¡°When I touched that crystalline lotus flower at the bottom of the pond, why did a whirlpool suddenly form, sucking me in?¡±
¡°That was a trap.¡±
¡°What is the name of that nt?¡±
¡°Ice Lotus!¡±
¡°Was it growing here in this pond originally, or did you nt it?¡±
¡°It was already here.¡±
¡°The water in the pond is bone-chillingly cold, is it rted to that?
¡°Yes.¡±
-How do you usually deal with other adventurers? Just wait for them to be sucked in and freeze into ice blocks?¡±
¡°Those with weaker cultivation will be directly frozen to death. Those stronger will fall into the Blood Pool, where my avatar will deal with them.¡±
¡°How do you suck their lifeblood?¡±
¡°My avatar can suck it. Once they die, their fresh blood will merge into the Blood Pool.¡±
¡°How do I leave this ce?¡±
Qin Niu had asked almost everything he wanted and began to ask the most crucial question.
¡°There are two passages. One is where you were sucked in, you can attempt to burst out from that spot. Your cultivation is probably in the Initial Stage of the innate Realm; it might be difficult to achieve. The second passage is beneath the Blood Pool; there¡¯s a cave that leads to the outside bottom of the Cold Pond, they are connected. However, there is a segment that is extremely cold, but you should be able to withstand it.¡±
The Green Demon taught him the two methods of leaving.
¡°Hmm, thank you for your answers.¡±
Qin Niu did not inquire about the whereabouts of the Green Demon Bees, but instead coldly and ruthlessly swung his de at the statue.
Bang!
The stone sculpture was shattered, revealing the flesh body inside.
After so many years, the flesh body of the Green Demon had not been destroyed. It was an older man with a sinister appearance and gray hair..
Chapter 241 - 234: Getting the Bee Eggs 1
Chapter 241: Chapter 234: Getting the Bee Eggs 1
The Green Demon was not very tall, measuring less than 1.6 meters.
This could be rted to his childhood stay at his uncle¡¯s house.
At that time, he was in his growth phase, but his aunt was very harsh on him. She only gave him a little food every day and made him do all sorts of heavy chores, which suppressed his physical development, thus his short stature.
¡°Die!¡±
Qin Niu showed no mercy, directly chopping the body in two.
Arge amount of blood flowed out from the corpse.
¡°You¡ Why didn¡¯t you keep your word and still kill me?¡±
The Green Demon appeared immensely furious.
¡°FImph, you were the one who was not honest from the beginning. If I¡¯m not wrong, even before the Immortal Master hade to kill me, you had already released those Green Demon Bee cultivations. That is to say, you set this trap not as ast resort to save your life after being injured by the Immortal Master, but with a long-standing n. Plus, you told me that the Blood Pool was an exit, harboring malicious intentions.
If I went in there, I would likely die immediately.
Since you were insincere and ill-intentioned from the start, you can¡¯t me me for killing you.¡±
Qin Niu secretly spected that the Green Demon must now be in some special state.
Normally, if a person¡¯s body dies, they too would die.
The Green Demon¡¯s body had been sealed within this stone statue, not eating or drinking for many years, yet he remained alive, which was surely no simple matter.
From the moment Qin Niu obtained the Green Demon Bee cultivation, he had already been calcted by the Green Demon.
After entering this space, the Green Demon¡¯s intent to kill him never diminished.
Yet this person was even craftier than imagined, extremely good at disguising.
It was understandable; after all, having grown up in such an environment, the Green Demon had to learn to be cruel and selfish, cunning, and sinister. Furthermore, a child grown in hatred inevitably has an extreme character and twisted humanity.
The Green Demon¡¯s view of life, values, and world outlook, were undoubtedly very different from that of ordinary people.
With such a treacherous and sly being, Qin Niu made sure he gathered all the information he needed and naturally would not allow him to live to see another year.
Mercy towards enemies is cruelty to oneself.
After the Green Demon¡¯s body was chopped open, an eye emerged from his chest, with glimpses of green lightning flickering within.
It looked rather eerie.
Qin Niu didn¡¯t care for such things, as he held the Ink de in hand. It could spit out de Qi, which had strong lethality against demon beasts, evil spirits, ghosts, and the like.
At least dealing with weaker demons and ghosts was not a problem in the slightest.
With a single chop, de Qi viciously struck the eye.
¡°You destroyed my physical body, and we cannot exist under the same sky, 1 will never let you off!¡±
The voice of the Green Demon was wretched beyondpare, echoing in the space.
¡°FImph, with that neither-human-nor-ghost appearance of yours? If you dare,e at me.¡±
Qin Niu had just exterminated the Green Demon¡¯s four avatars and was not afraid of that kind of cold energy.
Fie guessed that the cold energy might be something like a ghost.
Since he did not know much about cultivation yet, he could only make such an irresponsible guess.
The blood in the Blood Pool kept churning, slowly condensing into a human figure.
In the darkness, the dim glow of blood flickered, making it extraordinarily visible. Yet its eyes were two green beams, like mo green ghost fires dancing.
Qin Niu silently prepared himself.
A bugrva unexpectedly appeared after the chest eye was cut open by the Green Demon¡¯s corpse.
It was only the size of a sesame seed, and it shed with green lightning.
¡°This is a beerva!¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s skill in identifying insects had reached a certain level. Fie had dealt with honey bees, Corpse Bees, bumblebees, Steel-winged Wild Bees, and could recognize at a nce that this was a bugrva.
¡°Forfeit your life!¡±
Bellowing in fury, the blood figure from the Blood Pool rushed directly at Qin Niu.
Fie thought it would leap out of the Blood Pool.
Unexpectedly, it merely shot a water arrow towards Qin Niu.
At this moment, a cold energy once again approached Qin Niu silently.
But instead of attacking him, it was going for that beerva.
¡°ha, with your misdirection tricks, you also want to snatch back the beerva?¡±
Qin Niu burst intoughter after seeing through the opponent¡¯s intentions.
The more the Green Demon wanted to retrieve the beerva, the more important it must be.
And the less likely Qin Niu was to let him get his wish.
Fie chopped at the cold energy with a single sh.
¡°Ugh!¡±
The Green Demon let out another painful groan.
It was probably another one of his avatars that had been extinguished by Qin Niu in an instant.
The iing water arrow waspletely ignored by Qin Niu.
With the Diamond Ink Turtle by his side, if such a timid turtle couldn¡¯t handle even a simple water arrow, he was preparing to kill and boil it for turtle soup.
The water arrow, as it neared to within three meters of Qin Niu, immediately changed direction and hit the wall of the cave a few meters away.
Sputter!
Ssh!
The blood turned into an arrow, not particrly powerful.
After hitting the rock wall, it scattered on the ground. This blood gave off a sense of extremely sinister evil and danger.
Qin Niu had already collected the beerva into a small Insect Jar.
Which infuriated the Green Demon into howling wildly.
¡°Damn it, I must destroy you!
The Green Demon raged as the blood figure in the Blood Pool became uncontrobly erratic, shooting a barrage of blood arrows at Qin Niu.
Unfortunately, in front of the little turtle, such attacks were just like child¡¯s y-
Those blood arrows, once within three meters of Qin Niu, inevitably drifted away.
All of them turned and then struck the rock walls beside him.
After having some fun for a while, under the little turtle¡¯s control, some of the blood arrows turned and shot back towards their origin.
It seemed that its water control skills had be stronger.
Qin Niu checked and found that the Diamond Ink Turtle¡¯s water control ability had indeed advanced to the second order.
¡°I was originally nning to keep you here longer to serve as a sparring partner for my pet, but now that I¡¯ve got my hands on the Green Demon Bee¡¯s egg, 1 won¡¯t let you remain in the world of the living.¡±
Qin Niu quickly approached the Blood Pool and fiercely chopped down at the blood figure over ten feet tall.
Critical Chop!
The de Qi instantly became several times stronger, ferociously striking the blood figure.
Just one chop was enough to cause it to copse.
The Green Demon was indeed down on its luck, being perfectly countered by Qin Niu¡¯s Ink de.
Its duplicate was useless; the blood figure it condensed couldn¡¯t leave the Blood Pool.
With that chop, it let out a sharp and miserable scream before falling silent.
Flowever, Qin Niu dared not let his guard down.
The Green Demon was incredibly cunning; it wouldn¡¯t die that easily.
What Qin Niu cared about most was the bee egg.
If it truly was a Green Demon Bee¡¯s egg, just hatching it would give him a freakishly strong Green Demon Bee.
Fie could even make ity eggs and establish his own bee swarm, just like the Ant Queen had.
An egg that the Green Demon valued so highly couldn¡¯t be an ordinary bee egg.
The Blood Pool slowly returned to calm.
The entire space became deathly still.
Qin Niu was in no hurry to leave because he was certain the Green Demon was not yet dead.
In this situation, any mistake could allow the Green Demon to strike again, seizing the chance to take his life.
¡°Green Demon, you¡¯ve nurtured this bee egg inside your body; it must be very important to you, huh? Tsk tsk, I¡¯ve never seen such an egg that shes with green sparks before. Such a high-grade bee egg; if 1 were to form a contract with it, it would certainly be a beautiful thing in this world.¡±
Qin Niu deliberately provoked the Green Demon with his words.
Still no response.
Fie wasn¡¯t in a rush, wielding the Ink de in his hand, which burst forth with a brilliant de Qi.
Using the bright light emitted by the de Qi, he then explored the entire space.
Just as the Green Demon had said, there were no other exits.
The opening that had sucked him in was above his head, about twenty feet off the ground.
There was a peculiar vortex there, exerting a strong force, preventing the water from escaping down.
One had to marvel at nature¡¯s wonders, capable of creating such extraordinary spectacles.
To get out, it seemed piercing through that vortex might be the way to leave.
But it wasn¡¯t going to be easy.
Furthermore, right below the vortex was the Blood Pool; if he fell in, he would likely be ying right into the Green Demon¡¯s hands.
I¡¯ve got no choice but to take the risk.¡±
After surveying the entire space, Qin Niu decided to risk escaping through the vortex.
It was a pity he had onlye in wearing a pair of shorts, carrying two Insect Jars, and nothing else.
If he had a Contractual Talisman with him, he might¡¯ve been able to form a contract with the bee egg on the spot and further provoke the Green Demon.
The Green Demon was obviously feigning death and hiding within the Blood Pool, unwilling toe out.
For Qin Niu to enter the Blood Pool would be a death wish.
The blood within the Blood Pool felt extremely dangerous, obviously not something benign.
Under such circumstances, the only way out was to escape through the same spot where he was sucked in.
Fie ran forward with borrowed momentum and, upon reaching the edge of the Blood Pool, leapt powerfully into the air.
Misty Rain Traceless Step was unleashed, his figure soaring into the sky.
Below the vortex, he swung his de in a chop.
Fie hoped to carve out a path, then make his escape.
Unfortunately, he failed.
Flis body fell downward.
At this moment, without any reaction, he¡¯d likely drop directly into the Blood Pool.
A thought flickered in his mind; it might be better to go along with the trick.
¡öStruggling desperately,¡¯ his body continued to fall toward the Blood Pool.
Just as his body was about to touch the surface, about three feet above the Blood Pool, the blood water suddenly revealed a ghastly face, opening a gaping maw.
¡°Fleh heh, I knew you were ying dead, you old demon.¡±
Qin Niu had been waiting for this moment.
The Ink de in his hand chopped down mercilessly.
The sh Martial Skill activated with an Explosive sh Effect.
The Ink de had now evolved a spirit, with a Talisman containing universalws engraved within the de itself.
Perhaps calling it a Talisman of the Great Dao was a bit of an exaggeration.
At the very least, it was a Talisman that aligned with the universalws, one that the Ink de had evolved on its own.
Qin Niu¡¯s cultivation had also reached the Innate Realm, and using the de to execute sh Martial Skills was like adding wings to a tiger.
Not every chop would produce an Explosive sh Effect, but at least three out of ten would.
Bang!
The terrifying de Qi struck the bloody face within the Blood Pool, easily Rupturing it in two.
Then, continuing with an unyielding force, it Ruptured the entire Blood Pool¡¯s water.
¡°Aah¡¡±
From the Blood Pool came the Green Demon¡¯s screams of fear and pain.
That chop had cost the Green Demon dearly.
On the contrary, the previous chop that had dished the blood-derived humanoid monster hadn¡¯t likely hurt the Green Demon much.
Or at least, not seriously.
Even the cunning Green Demon hadn¡¯t anticipated thest chop.
It was indeed a huge risk for Qin Niu.
Using the force of the chop, he twisted his body and sessfully stood on the edge of the Blood Pool.
I¡¯ll see if you¡¯re really dead..
Chapter 242 - 235 Return Fully Loaded 1
Chapter 242: Chapter 235 Return Fully Loaded 1
Qin Niu managed to stabilize himself and a slight smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
In this duel of wits, though the Green Demon was cunning, it might not be a match for this youth.
When Qin Niu had just split the water of the Blood Pool, he saw very clearly that there was no passage at the bottom of the pool. Instead, there were some symbols carved on the stone b at the bottom.
He was certain that the Blood Pool had likely been constructed by the Green Demon even before any trouble urred.
As for whether this space had always existed or had been created by the Green Demon, only the Green Demon knew for sure.
There was no way it would tell Qin Niu.
Since there was no passage beneath the Blood Pool, it meant that the second passage the Green Demon had mentioned was entirely a trap.
It was meant to lure Qin Niu down there.
¡°No worries, that was just the first chop. I¡¯ve prepared even more substantial dishes for you, old man. I¡¯m just afraid you might gorge yourself.¡±
The sessful strike of Qin Niu¡¯s de had wounded the Green Demon, meaning if the Green Demon dared to show itself, it could be severely injured or even killed on the spot.
The power of the chop just now was immense, but the Green Demon was still not dead, proving to be much more troublesome than those clones.
With one chop, Qin Niu could annihte three of the Green Demon¡¯s clones.
¡°Come again!¡±
Drawing on his previous failure, he started to move again, leaping and then chopping vigorously.
This time, he sessfully split open a crack in the whirlpool.
Arge amount of cold water poured down.
The water, emitting a chill, instantly turned to ice upon entering this space.
It was very likely the prowess of the Ice Lotus.
Qin Niu coveted that Ice Lotus. Such a powerful herb, if he could dig it up and take it back, together with his Evesting Spring Technique, he wouldn¡¯t worry about not being able to grow it.
He dare not even think of the wonders within.
This time, as he fell toward the Blood Pool, the Green Demon showed no signs of action.
Perhaps it had been scared by Qin Niu¡¯s killing intent.
¡°Coward Turtle, I¡¯ll take you out. This time, you¡¯re in charge of parting the oing water.¡±
Qin Niu grabbed the Diamond Ink Turtle with his left hand and held the Ink de in his right, growing more valiant as the battle raged on.
That¡¯s how people are, with a first attempt, their courage grows bigger and bigger.
And they be more confident.
Plus, by constantly summing up their experiences, there¡¯s a chance for sess.
Gathering his strength, he ran again, leaping high with the momentum and striving with all his might to sh at the whirlpool above.
The whirlpools were actually caused by the high-speed rotation of the cold water.
They were in a strange semi-frozen state.
As soon as they left the whirlpool, they would immediately freeze into chunks of ice.
Whoosh!
An even wider fissure was torn open.
The effect of Qin Niu¡¯s sh Martial Skill seemed to have made a significant breakthrough, reaching an effect that a regr Critical Chop could not achieve.
It had not only the Critical Chop effect but also a terrifying Rupture effect.
It was as if heaven or earth could be split open with one sh.
The Diamond Ink Turtle knew its master was fighting with all his might to escape and exerted its water control skills to the fullest. The pouring water parted to both sides.
Qin Niu, with the Diamond Ink Turtle, managed to break into the cold water stream.
He was caught by the powerful force of the whirlpool and began to spin at high speed.
The Ice Lotus was right ahead.
From here, one could clearly see its roots.
It seemed as though its roots had formed a strong suction force, which was what created the strange whirlpool at the bottom of the pool.
¡°Break!¡±
Qin Niu made another vigorous chop, forcefully stopping the whirlpool that had been forming for who knows how many years with sheer human strength. The effect of tearing everything apart appeared again.
The whirlpool, like a machine running at high speed, suddenly had a screw tossed into its gears.
It hesitated for a moment.
Qin Niu knew he couldn¡¯t miss this opportunity.
He fiercely pushed off the water with both feet, then rushed toward the Ice Lotus.
¡°Timid turtle, perch on my shoulder, and make sure not to fall off again.¡±
The Diamond Ink Turtle was ced on his shoulder, while his left hand reached for the root of the Ice Lotus.
Upon touching the Ice Lotus, the cold was bone-chilling, as if to freeze him to death.
Strangely enough, the power of the Evesting Spring Technique offered no resistance against this extreme cold. However, the Medicine King Sutra¡¯s power, despite being much weaker than the Evesting Spring Technique, was able to protect Qin Niu well, guarding against the bizarre cold energy emanating from the root of the Ice Lotus.
Each cultivation technique has its own use.
The Medicine King Sutra was likely created by pharmacists or elixir masters for the purpose of concocting elixirs.
It naturally counters some of the extraordinary powers of medicinal herbs.
For example, it now sessfully resisted the strange cold from the Ice Lotus.
Otherwise, Qin Niu¡¯s entire left hand would have instantly turned into an ice pop.
With the Ice Lotus in hand, his legs kicked frantically, and he swiftly floated towards the surface of the cold pool.
The Diamond Ink Turtle helped its master rise by controlling the water.
Right at the moment the Ice Lotus was plucked, the whirlpool at the bottom of the pool seemed to suddenly cease.
Then, a vast amount of pool water gushed into the mysterious space below.
Qin Niu felt a powerful current pulling him downward, and he knew that if he were dragged into it, the consequences would be unpredictable.
At this life-or-death moment, he naturally exerted all his strength to swim upward.
Fortunately, with the Diamond Ink Turtle¡¯s assistance, he expended considerable effort and slowly escaped the deep waters at the bottom of the pool.
The higher he floated, the weaker the sucking force became.
The strongest pulling force was at the bottom of the pool.
He could feel that a whirlpool was forming in the center of the cold pool.
It was like an undersea tornado.
If he were sucked into it, it would be very difficult to break free.
At least with his current strength, he was not yet able to contend with such a force of nature.
After barely surfacing with all his might, he didn¡¯t hesitate for a moment and immediately kicked off the water surface, shooting upward into the sky.
The newly learned Misty Rain Elusive Step truly proved its worth today.
Even though he had reached the Innate Realm before, he had never been able to walk on waves like this.
Now, having sessfully leapt out of the cold pool andnded on the bank, he finally felt a bit relieved.
Fearing that other disasters might ur after the pool water poured into that space, Qin Niu dared not linger.
Dressed only in underwear, he quickly grabbed his clothes and basket, fleeing the area.
Just as he had not gone far, a rumbling vibration came from the ground behind him.
Then,rge swathes of the ground began to copse.
If he had stayed by the poolside, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
Even now, he didn¡¯t feel safe.
Hurriedly, he put on his clothes and King Pig Leather Armor, then, with the basket on his back and the Ice Lotus in one hand, he fled frantically.
The rumbling from the bottom of the cliff continued unabated, and the earth trembled.
Qin Niu sped along the same path he hade by.
While it took him over half an hour to get there, the escape took much less time.
Mainly because he was unfamiliar with the route and the terrain on the way there, so he had to proceed with extreme caution.
Now, as he ran for his life, his mindset waspletely different.
Just as he managed to climb the cliff, a wild bee spotted him.
As soon as it came within ten meters of Qin Niu, it was subdued by the termites.
Now, dealing with these wild bees, Qin Niu was well-versed.
The old strategy worked just fine.
Having the subdued bee mark him,
makes it recognize him as one of its own.
With rocks constantly falling from above, he climbed up quickly and meticulously without daring to stop for a moment.
It wasn¡¯t until he sessfully reached the top of the cliff that he felt as if he had escaped to the heavens.
Still not daring to linger, as he saw the ground atop the cliff forming giant fissures.
The entire mountain was likely going to copse.
Chapter 243 - 236 It’s Very Likely the Only One 1
Chapter 243: Chapter 236 It¡¯s Very Likely the Only One 1
It was unimaginable that a single nt had been maintaining the bnce of an entire mountain. After the Ice Lotus was removed, the originally stable valley at the bottom of the cliff began to copse, triggering a chain reaction.
This Ice Lotus was also the best herb Qin Niu had obtained from all the medicinal nts.
Its energy might not beparable to the Ancient Banyan Tree, but its special abilities were in no way inferior to those of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
The Ancient Banyan Tree was too big and simply couldn¡¯t be transnted.
At least, with Qin Niu¡¯s current abilities, he couldn¡¯t transnt it.
The Ice Lotus, however, had no such restrictions.
As he ran forward, birds and wild bees asionally flew up from the mountain, also scattering in escape. Yet, wild animals were rare in these mountains, even mice were seldom seen.
There were far too many wild bees, their presence severely threatened the safety of other animals.
Most of the beasts within this mountain area had been wiped out by the Steel-winged Wild Bees.
Even other insects were scarce.
There were rumors of various kinds of wild bees in these mountains, but they seemed a bit overstated.
In Qin Niu¡¯s view, there were only two or three species.
The strongest were the Steel-winged Wild Bees, and the strongest among them were around Grade Five.
The ground underfoot trembled violently, making it difficult for him to stand steady.
In turn, he fled with even greater urgency and speed.
Still, there were several times he almost fell over.
But he got up and ran away immediately, not daring to pause for even a moment.
Boom! Loud thunderous noises!
As if the heavens had split and the earth had shattered, arge portion of the t-top peak directly copsed.
He too was toppled to the ground by the massive quake.
Looking back, what was once a t-topped mountain peak had now copsed by half, transforming into an inverted V-shaped pointed de peak.
The valley had beenpletely filled in.
The cold pond, secret spaces, and Blood Pool inside were likely buried beneath the ground.
Whether the Green Demon thaty hidden in the Blood Pool was still alive, no one knew.
But in Qin Niu¡¯s opinion, the Green Demon wasn¡¯t as ¡®pitiable¡¯ as imagined. The Green Demon¡¯s bee-rearing manual, written by the Green Demon itself, beautified its own image to some degree.
At least from the Green Demon¡¯s actions, it definitely deserved the title of evil demon.
After the earth stopped shaking, Qin Niu got up and saw a faint light of dawn breaking through.
Daylight was approaching.
Airborne, a vast number of wild bees whirled and hovered.
The copse of the mountain had rendered many formidable wild bees homeless, making them extremely irritable and angry. As soon as they spotted a target to attack, they would swarm it immediately.
Qin Niu was not afraid, but there was no need to incur their wrath unnecessarily.
So, he simply sat down beneath thisrge tree.
Then he took out an Advanced Contract Talisman.
He hesitated. The level of the bee egg was probably not high, and perhaps using a mid-level Contractual Talisman would be enough to subdue it.
After all, Advanced Contract Talismans were not easy toe by.
With this thought, he took out a mid-level Contractual Talisman and activated it with his power.
With his cultivation at the Innate Realm, using a Talisman no longer required him to bite open his tongue or fingertips.
Once the Talisman was activated, it turned into a beam of golden light that shot towards the bee egg.
A faint green glow appeared on the surface of the bee egg, like halo rings, resisting the invasion of the golden light.
Seeing this, Qin Niu showed a pleased expression.
He had always been worried that the bee egg had already been marked by the Green Demon, but now it seemed his luck was good.
Possibly after the Green Demon¡¯s mishap, its physical body died, and it hadn¡¯t managed to im the egg.
Or it had other uses for this bee egg.
Regardless, the fact that the bee egg had not been imed was a great boon.
It at least gave him this opportunity.
The golden light was still contending with the green glow, and the situation looked as though the golden light had little chance of winning.
But the resistance of the green glow was not as strong as imagined either.
Unperturbed, Qin Niu took out a second mid-level Contractual Talisman and activated it.
Another golden beam shot out, bing one with the first.
Under such a powerful offensive, the green glow began to falter, its halo rings slowly beingpressed.
Qin Niu¡¯s lips curved into a slight smile.
He took out a third mid-level Contractual Talisman.
Without any hesitation, he activated it once again.
When the third golden light merged with the others, the bee egg¡¯s resistance became futile.
The golden light tore through the green glow like pulling weeds, and prated into the bee egg.
¡°Be my servant, and 1 promise you¡¯ll grow stronger!¡± Qin Niumunicated directly with it using spiritual power.
It remained unmoved, fiercely resisting.
But such resistance seemed more like a final obstinate struggle, more symbolic than anything, and there was no way it could withstand Qin Niu¡¯s overwhelming assault.
¡°Even the Green Demon was defeated by me, what¡¯s left for you to resist? Submit!¡± Qin Niu pressed down with his formidable spiritual power.
Its will to resist was clearly crumbling.
To all living beings, revering the strong is an innate trait.
Qin Niu had experience taming several pets before, even the Queen Bee with its steely will had been subdued by him.
The consciousness of this bee egg was still weak; under his formidable onught, it was subdued with just three mid-level Contractual Talismans.
And at the very moment when the contract was sessfully formed between them, Qin Niu felt as though a cold wind was sweeping over from a distance.
He immediately gripped his Ink de and became vignt.
If the Green Demon dared toe, he would not mind sending it off with a sh.
The cold wind blew for a while, but there was no follow-up.
Sound and fury, signifying nothing.
The Green Demon lurked in the shadows but didn¡¯t dare to seek revenge on Qin Niu.
Since the Green Demon could sense it as Qin Niu imed ownership of the bee egg, it indicated a certain connection between the Green Demon and it.
Qin Niu, having sessfully imed it, couldn¡¯t wait to check the properties of the bee egg.
Green Demon Bee (Bee Egg)
Grade: Grade Three Hymenoptera Insect, Upgrade Experience 1000/10000
Lifespan: 70 years
Energy: 10000
Skills: None Yet
Talent: Night Vision, grows stronger by absorbing Yin-cold energy and the blood of living beings.
Why do its attributes seem a bit evil?
Its talent to have Night Vision wasn¡¯t surprising.
Its ability to grow stronger by absorbing Yin-cold energy or the blood of living beings looked like the path of evil regardless of how one saw it.
As for its skills, Qin Niu wasn¡¯t worried at all.
Because it was already a Grade Three insect even just as an egg.
If it hatched and became a Queen Bee, it could at least rise to Grade One.
That was without any special cultivation, and its grade was already higher than that of a War Bee Queen Bee.
If it were properly nurtured, it could at least be a Grade Five insect.
As of now, only the Ant Queen had reached that level.
The Green Demon Bee¡¯s grade seemed to be quite close to that of the Green Silk Worm.
But in terms of growth potential, the Green Demon Bee was clearly much stronger.
If it could grow by consuming the blood of living beings, was the Green Demon nting it inside itself to deliberately nurture it with its own essence blood?
It was entirely possible.
The Green Demon and Old Master Huang both raised insects within their bodies; both were madmen among Insect Masters.
To raise more powerful insects, they would sacrifice everything.
Both were absolutely ruthless.
Qin Niu tried biting his fingertip and squeezed out a drop of fresh blood to wrap around the bee egg.
It seemed to be slowly absorbing the fresh blood.
Now, Qin Niu was an Innate Realm powerhouse, and his fresh blood contained a significant amount of energy.
It was greatly beneficial for the hatching of the bee egg.
By this time, the sky was already bright.
Qin Niu could also clearly see the scenery in the mountains.
The mountain behind him had copsed to a great extent, and the rolling stones and soil had formed a new slope.
The cliff he risked his life crossingst night, including the valley at the bottom, hadpletely disappeared.
It had all been filled in.
The forces of nature were truly frightening.
If he had escaped any slower yesterday, he might have ended up buried at the bottom of the cliff.
It was good that the cliff was destroyed, so the Green Demon couldn¡¯t harm anyone else.
The multitude of white bones scattered throughout the ck Stone Mountain were the end of numerous living beings.
By destroying this ce, Qin Niu had umted vast merit.
Wild bees could still be seen flitting about in the mountains.
But when they flew near Qin Niu, they seemed to revere him, restraining their ferocity and not daring to be presumptuous in his presence.
Faced with this strange scene, Qin Niu was momentarily taken aback.
Not long ago, these wild bees had been highly aggressive towards him, but now they had be docile upon nearing him. Could it be due to him subduing the bee egg of the Green Demon Bee?
Just subduing a bee egg had such an effect; once it hatched, wouldn¡¯t all bees submit to it?
In this mountainous region, even in the depths of the cliff, Qin Niu had not discovered the legendary Green Demon Bee.
Either it had been wiped clean by the Immortal Master from the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect,
Or it had been captured by the continuously arriving adventurers.
If the Green Demon Bee had indeed been eradicated by the Immortal Master, Qin Niu¡¯s bee egg would be the only Green Demon Bee left in the world.
It was also the Green Demon¡¯s sole reliance for turning the tables and seeking revenge.
He was truly looking forward to the skills of the bee egg once it hatched; they were bound to be astonishing.
After realizing that the wild bees in the mountains no longer dared to attack him, Qin Niu dashed straight ahead. He was executing the Misty Rain Traceless Step.
This martial skill had enabled him to survive amidst grave dangers and was proving remarkably effective.
Having tasted the sweetness, Qin Niu naturally practiced it whenever the opportunity arose.
Every step he took increased the skill¡¯s proficiency by at least o.oi, and he believed that with perseverance, he could master this movement skill in just a few years.
Besides, he had made a significant breakthrough in his sh Martial Skill during the previous night¡¯s battle.
He checked subconsciously.
Martial Skill: Critical Chop (Minor Achievement) 1022/10000 (30% chance of Critical Chop, 10% chance of Rupture, using the Ink de there is a 50% chance of Critical Chop.), Sweeping Strike (Beginner) 7.12/10, Misty Rain Traceless Step (Proficient) 23.4/100 (Speed increased by 30%, agility improved by 10%)
Indeed, it was almost what he had spected, the sh Martial Skill had advanced.
It had progressed from little achievement to minor achievement.
The chance of a Critical Chop had increased to a terrifying 30%, and it now possessed the new Rupture effect.
The viciousness of Rupture was something he had witnessed himself.
The vortex of liquid ice had been difficult to break.
Yet, when his sh Martial Skill broke through and he grasped Rupture, he was able to tear the vortex apart with a single strike.
If this was used on an enemy, regardless of the strength of their defense, they might be torn apart.
As for how effective it truly was, he would have to wait until he faced an enemy with a hard shell to test it out.
Qin Niu ran swiftly through the mountains, very pleased with his gains from this venture.
The risks taken this time were also considerable.
He had faced the risk of death several times, but luckily, with his calm wit and the help of his numerous pets, he had managed to ovee the crises step by step..
Chapter 244 - 237: The Ruthless Man Speaks Little_1
Chapter 244: Chapter 237: The Ruthless Man Speaks Little_1
As he swiftly ran through the mountains, he noticed that many adventurers had also entered the ck Stone Mountain domain.
Strangely enough, all of the rocks in this mountain area were ck.
Yet, the rocks in the surrounding mountains were of normal color.
ck Stone Vige most likely got its name from the ck stones in these mountains.
He couldn¡¯t find out the specific reason why these stones were ck, nor was he going to investigate. The fact that he had obtained such a magical Ice Lotus at the bottom of the cliff indicated that this ce was definitely not simple.
There was also another matter filled with doubt.
The Green Demon had likely already cultivated the Secret Technique before rhe incident urred.
Where did the Cultivation Techniquee from?
Did he first breed the Green Demon Bees, or did he first cultivate the Secret Technique?
If given the chance, Qin Niu would definitely rify this point because he now possessed the Green Demon Bee.
Whether or nor the Green Demon could again mass-produce Green Demon Bees, or had a secret method to control them, these were questions worth figuring out. Because if he nned to cultivate the Green Demon Bee as an importantbat force, he had to ensure that he would not be controlled by others.
If he spent decades, even a hundred years, finally managing to cultivate incredibly powerful Green Demon Bees, just when he was self-satisfied, relying on Green Demon Bees to dominate a territory, the Green Demon would use a Secret Technique to control his bees.
Or there was a method to counteract the bees.
Wouldn¡¯t all his efforts be in vain?
At this moment, those who dared to venture into the ck Stone Mountain domain were all powerful experts with considerable strength.
Seeing a youth, carrying a crystal clear lotus rushing out from the deep parts of the mountain area, their eyes couldn¡¯t help but light up.
¡°Young brother, what happened in the mountains?¡¯
1
Qin Niu ignored them and proceeded straight toward the exterior of the mountain.
¡°A transparent lotus¡ I ve never seen such before. Did you get it from the mountains? What do you say to selling it to me?¡±
He still did not respond.
He simply kept running towards the outside of the mountains.
¡°Hey, this kid has quite the personality! Brothers, I think he might have gotten quite a few treasures, let¡¯s get him.¡¯
1
A sly-looking man in his thirties signaled hispanions to immediately surround Qin Niu.
The one with the strongest cultivation was in the initial stage of the Innate Realm; the weakest were at the seventh or eighthyer of the Acquired Realm.
Each one was a one-in-ten-thousand expert.
In total, there were five people: one of the Innate Realm, one at the peak of the Acquired Realm, and three at the seventh or eighthyer of the Acquired Realm.
This was an extremely formidable force.
Teaming up to rob Qin Niu, their odds of sess were very high.
The Innate Realm expert who also cultivated Step-Method Martial Skills intercepted Qin Niu directly. His Treasured Sword thrust towards Qin Niu¡¯s face.
He attacked quite viciously.
It might be because he saw Qin Niu wearing leather armor, and he intended to disable Qin Niu with one move.
¡°Hmph!¡±
Qin Niu merely snorted coldly as his Ink de swiftly shed out.
What he executed was a sh Martial Skill.
Bang!
A sh struck down, severing the enemy along with his sword into two halves.
The Rupture effect attached to the sh Martial Skill was too terrifying.
The Hundred-Tempering ck Armor that the Innate Realm expert wore was as thin as paper, providing absolutely no protection whatsoever.
¡°Ah¡ de Qi! It¡¯s a supreme quality Treasured Sword! ¡±
¡°He, he¡¯s also an Innate Realm expert!¡±
¡°Such a horrifying sh, damn it, why won¡¯t my legs obey me!¡±
The few masters who nned to rob Qin Niu were instantly petrified.
Their leader stood no chance against this terrifying young man.
For them, the Acquired Realm experts, facing Qin Niu was likely as simple as cutting vegetables.
One person, due to weak feet during his escape, directly fell to the ground and scrambled towards the distance.
All he wanted now was to get as far away from this merciless killer as possible.
After killing the innate realm expert who had attempted to rob him, Qin Niu crouched down and skillfully looted the body,pletely indifferent to the gazes of others.
He found a gold note worth a thousand taels, several smaller silver notes, a small bag of seeds, and a handwritten notebook detailing nting secret techniques.
This person was likely not a member of the Nine Insect Gang, bur rather a powerful individual from the Shennong Sect.
There were too many adventurers who came to ck Stone Vige.
Within the territory controlled by the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect, there are over a thousand sects and factions.
The Nine Insect Gang and the ck Tiger Gang are just one among them.
Theoretically, the citizens of these thousand plus sects and factions could freely travel between them.
Unless two sects were at war; under such circumstances, the borders might be controlled.
Under normal conditions, one could travel to any territory governed by any sect through legal means.
Some even went as far as sending their children to rhe gates of the Immortal Sect controlled by Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect, all for the sake of gaining an advantage and the chance to enter the Immortal Gate.
Qin Niu happily epted these spoils of war and did nor bother with the four Acquired Realm experts who fled but instead swept off towards the outside of the mountain on his own.
Along the way, no one dared to target him any longer.
To kill one to warn a hundred, this was absolutely the most sessful example.
Not even innate realm experts could take more than a single move from Qin Niu, being cleaved in half along with their swords. It was the same for others who came forward; they would gain no advantage.
In fact, they might even be killed instead.
Under this situation, naturally no one dared toe forward seeking death.
Even some who believed themselves to be more powerful than the one killed did not dare to take the risk.
Because Qin Niu killed swiftly and decisively, without uttering a single useless word from start to end.
Even the technique of looting the bodies¡¯ valuables was so adept that it sent chills down the spines of all those with ill intentions.
One couldn¡¯t imagine how many people this killer must have in to have honed his looting skills to such perfection.
Nearly two hourster, Qin Niu sessfully left the mountain region.
Themotion from the copsing mountain was huge, attracting a continuous stream of adventurers into the mountain.
All hoping to find treasures or to capture Green Demon Bees.
How tragic.
If these people knew the truth, who knows what they would think.
There were no Green Demon Bees in the mountains, just deadly traps set by the Green Demon.
Carrying rhe Ice Lotus, Qin Niu attracted a lot of attention along the way, which was not a good thing.
He left Hundred Leaf Town that very day.
When he left, he purchased some cloth to wrap the Ice Lotus. That finally avoided further prying eyes.
It¡¯s the first rule of safety while traveling abroad to not sh your wealth around.
Originally, ording to his n, he had intended to dispose of those gold and silver notes in Hundred Leaf Town.
This matter could only wait to be dealt withter.
Because the amount of his silver and gold notes was enormous, he estimated that nor even the banks of two small towns could handle it.
It would be best to take care of it in arge city.
Apart from the local banks, mostrger exchanges basically allow for redemption throughout the region.
Even super exchanges like Heaven and Earth Bank should offer worldwide redemption.
Since the Nine Insect Gang and the ck Tiger Gang were at war, withrge numbers of troops gathered at the border, Qin Niu did not want to risk taking the original route back.
Instead, he chose a more roundabout but safer way.
He would first pass through the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s territory to reach the Shennong Sect, and then from there enter the territory of the ck Tiger Gang.
Compared to the others, the Shennong Sect¡¯s way of doing things was much more upright.
The Nine Insect Gang was simply too despicable.
They specifically captured trespassers at the border, not only robbing them but also using the men as fodder for breeding insects. Women were treated as ythings for officers or given to ordinary soldiers as wives..
Chapter 245 - 238 Savage Rule_1
Chapter 245: Chapter 238 Savage Rule_1
This foray into the territory of the Nine Insect Gang also afforded Qin Niu a glimpse into just the tip of the iceberg that was the world of the Insect Masters.
The regions he had breached belonged to the original Seven Star Sect and were not yet considered the oldest dominion of the Nine Insect Gang. Even so, the Insect Masters he encountered were immensely formidable.
these individuals were by no means themanding insect tamers of the Nine Insect Gang, but merely the most ordinary of Insect Masters.
It seemed that practically every citizen of the Nine Insect Gang was an Insect Master.
One could be almost certain that the Nine Insect Gang possessed arge number of top-tier Insect Masters.
Because there was such arge base of Insect Masters, it was natural that there would not be a shortage of powerful ones.
For instance, Old Master Huang was exceptionally skilled. His Corpse Bees had an evolutionary potential surpassed only by the Green Demon Bees.
Moreover, the Corpse Bees were known for their iron-d bodies, remarkable self-healing abilities, night vision, and intense venom.
Their venom was not merely themon wasp poison, but also carried the properties of corpse poison.
This was a truly unique bee venom.
The toxicity of wasp venom was already quiteplex, featuring the ability to corrode and destroy human proteins, cause hemolysis, and damage tissue cells.
If the amount of venom injected into the body was not substantial, perhaps it might result in only localized swelling and unbearable pain.
If one were to be stung by multiple wasps at once, or by a single Grade Two or higher wasp, it could easily be lethal.
Qin Niu would certainly encounter some particrly powerful Insect Masters in the future.
And it was highly likely that they would be foes rather than friends.
Now that he had acquired the Green Demon Bee, and also possessed eggs of the Corpse Bee, he could consider cultivating both bee species simultaneously.
He could even think aboutbining the two into one.
Almost all Insect Masters, during the process of breeding their insects, would try every means to merge simr types over time. For example, owning three different types of wasps at once -one adept at flying, another excelling in reproduction, and one with particrly intense venom.
Cultivating three simultaneously would scatter resources.
If they could be merged into one, concentrating the three advantages onto a new breed of bee, that would be most wonderful.
Not only would the new bee species grow significantly stronger inbat, but because all resources would be focused on nurturing a single one, it would advance more easily.
Even Qin Niu¡¯s overarching approach to insect cultivation was of this mindset.
Though it seemed he had numerous termites, his true focus was on cultivating only the Ant Queen and Fourth.
While the other termites would also be nurtured, the top-tier resources were always prioritized for the Ant Queen.
Quality over quantity.
He kept his head down and hastened along the road, disguised indistinguishably from the local people.
The basket on his back had been swapped for arger one.
ording to the map, to head for the Shennong Sect territory, he had to pass through the Seven-Star City within the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s domain.
Once, this was the most central city of the Seven Star Sect.
But now the times had changed, and it had be thergest city of the Nine Insect Gang.
The geography of the former Seven Star Sect was excellent, with Seven Star City nestled amidst ayout resembling seven stars cradling the moon. It had plenty of mountainous areas but was also rich in fertilends and abundant water resources, with an excellent geographic location to boot.
It was truly a feng shui treasurend that connected nine states.
If the Seven Star Sect Master had not perished that year, the impoverished and vicious Nine Insect Gang from deep in the mountains would have had almost no chance of annexing the Seven Star Sect.
Not only was the Seven Star Sect strong, but it also had excellent rtions with its neighbors.
It was said that the sister of the Seven Star Sect Master had married the Gang
Leader of the Shennong Sect.
With such a marital alliance, they maintained a close rtionship.
The agricultural products of the Shennong Sect, passing through the Seven Star Sect, were sold around the neighboring areas.
Following the misfortune of the Seven Star Sect Master, it remains a mystery why the Shennong Sect did not take the opportunity to consume the Seven Star Sect.
Instead, they allowed the Nine Insect Gang, a group that struggled within its impoverished and rugged environment, to slip in and expand its power.
Now, with rampant ambition, the Nine Insect Gang encroached on the territories of other gangs, disrupting peace throughout the region.
Qin Niu traveled at a brisk pace and reached Seven-Star City in less than two days.
Along the journey, he observed that themon folk did not lead easy lives, lhe Nine Insect Gang stratified people into different sses, with those originally from the Nine Insect Gang being superior. Most of the Seven Star Sect and other non-Nine Insect Gang people were ssified as second-ss.
The worst off were the lowest ss, burdened with heavy taxes. Entire families were forced to serve the superior ss as ves and servants,boring hard in the fields or at other work.
Otherwise, they couldn¡¯t afford to eat their fill or wear warm clothing.
Many women in their twenties and thirties wore merely tattered clothing, barely covering their bodies.
This was not an isted incident but a widespread phenomenon.
Moreover, their customs and habits had undergone significant changes.
As Qin Niu understood, the former Seven Star Sect used to be the wealthiest among all the surrounding sects. Even the ck Tiger Gang was a notch below them, and in terms of civilization, the Seven Star Sect had always been the role model that the surrounding sects strove to emte.
But now, the customs of the local popce were no better than those of the uneducated primitives from the mountains.
Women bathed in the river, baring their upper bodies.
Many people ate with their hands directly.
Violent incidents were rampant.
As Qin Niu hurried on his way, he encountered no fewer than ten robbery attempts.
Even though he dispatched those people, it was evident that thend, once a beacon of civilization, had regressed into a ce of backward barbarism.
As the saying goes, ¡°When the ruler changes, so do his subordinates.¡±
lhe Nine Insect Gang ruled over the territories of the Seven Star Sect for less than two hundred years, yet it had thoroughly extinguished civilization and enforced its barbaric policies.
When he first entered, the conduct of those soldiers was no different from that of robbers and bandits.
Another phenomenon that sent chills down Qin Niu¡¯s spine was the
realization¡
Almost every household reared insects.
Here, everything held Insect Masters as the most distinguished. Bing an Insect Master was virtually the only way out.
Just like in the Han dynasty, when it was proposed to abandon all other philosophies in favor of exclusively venerating Confucianism.
The Nine Insect Gang now revered controlling insects above all.
Under this policy, whethermoners or the middle ss, everyone would desperately nurture their children into Insect Masters.
It was hard to imagine how strong the Insect Masters of the Nine Insect Gang would be if such a policy continued to evolve.
He couldn¡¯t help but recall what Zhang Banzui had said, ¡°With the rise of Insect Masters, chaos will reign over the world.¡±
If the Nine Insect Gang focused solely on controlling insects, they would inevitably take the path of pige, just like wasps.
Wasps, unable to produce honey themselves, must kill and plunder to feed their kind and survive the winter. Near the deep autumn, it wasmon for whole hives of bees to be massacred by wasps.
Once the Nine Insect Gang grew, they would be far more fearsome than wasps. The neighboring sects and powers would suffer.
The Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect seemed to have run into trouble recently; it¡¯s very likely that the centennial term of the Immortal hade. Under such circumstances, the sect needed to defend fully and ensure the safety of the Immortal.
They simply had no energy to manage the affairs of the subordinate sects.
Seizing this opportunity, the Nine Insect Gang would surely expand aggressively.
It remained to see whether the ck Tiger Gang could withstand this pressure. If the ck Tiger Gang were to be absorbed, the Nine Insect Gang would be unstoppable, and the surrounding sects and forces would be served up one by one.
Qin Niu was somewhat concerned about the future.
Standing under Seven-Star City, which remained majestic and magnificent even after two hundred years.
The towering ten-zhang city wall, the huge city gate forged from pure copper, and above it, the threerge characters of ¡°Seven-Star City¡± etched in a dynamic dragon-like script, as well as the thirty-zhang wide moat, all reflected the grandeur and glory of Seven-Star City in its heyday.
It was said that the three characters on the city gate were inscribed by the first city lord, who was also the most extraordinary Gang Leader of the Seven-Star Sect, wielding his sword as he leapt and carved those characters in one breath.
Back then, when people mentioned the Seven-Star Sect, they would think of the Seven-Star Sword Technique.
s, as the Seven-Star Sect was annexed, the Seven-Star Sword Technique also gradually faded into obscurity.
The copy of the Seven-Star Sword Technique obtained by Qin Niu may well have been written by a senior expert of the Seven-Star Sect. For various reasons, it ended up in the hands of Wu Hao, an inner disciple of the Nine Insect Gang.
In the end, Wu Hao was killed by Qin Niu, and the Seven-Star Sword Technique ultimately fell into Qin Niu¡¯s hands.
It¡¯s worth mentioning that the Seven-Star Sword Technique was once the exclusive skill of the Seven-Star Sect. There were undoubtedly more than one copy left behind. All disciples and elders who studied the Seven-Star Sword Technique could have noted down the manual for their descendants.
Hey, hey, do you know the rules? You have to pay to enter the city. Seeing therge basket of goods you¡¯re carrying, you¡¯re here to sell, right? The entry fee is thirty wen.¡±
A soldier of the Nine Insect Gang blocked Qin Niu¡¯s path.
Unlike the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s queuing for entry.
The management of entering the city here seemed quitex.
Eleven soldiers stood at the city gate, collecting fees; as long as the money was paid, one could enter.
The officer-looking man sat behind on a reclining chair, with his eyes half-closed, not bothering with the situation.
An entry fee of thirty wen was already exorbitant.
Normally, the market rate for entry was just ten wen money.
Qin Niu was merely passing through Seven-Star City and had no intention of inciting conflict with the soldiers over thirty wen money.
He honestly paid the thirty wen, and the other party didn¡¯t even inspect his goods.
Perhaps they thought him too young and dressed too ordinarily for a farmer that they couldn¡¯t be bothered to check.
This suited Qin Niu just fine.
If they had inspected his basket and found something amiss,
or even tried to search him, it might have led to a bloody battle.
He was never the honest sort.
As long as he felt threatened, he would never be merciful.
After entering the city, he first made sure he knew the southern gate well.
While they charged for entry here, no one minded those exiting.
Taking the rare opportunity to be in the city, and particrly in the once-grand Seven-Star City, he decided to deal with those silver notes and gold notes.
He exchanged the silver notes for gold notes from Heaven and Earth Bank through various banks and the ck market in the city.
You wouldn¡¯t know until you calcted, and he was startled by the result.
Through various acts of highway robbery and plundering from the dead, he amassed an astonishing total of over ny-three thousand taels of silver.
He was less than seven thousand taels away from amassing a full hundred thousand taels of silver.
Such a huge sum would afford afortable life anywhere, provided it wasn¡¯t stolen.
Now, it was exchanged for nine thousand taels in gold notes and three thousand one hundred taels in silver notes.
Along with some scattered silver pieces and copper coins, for petty cash on the road.
Having dealt with the silver and gold notes, Qin Niu didn¡¯t dare linger any longer. He chose to leave the city and head towards the Shennong Sect.
There were about seven hundred more miles from Seven-Star City to the border shared with the Shennong Sect,
and with many mountain roads, it was estimated to take at least nearly two days to reach there.
On the second day after he left Seven-Star City, arge number of soldiers were suddenly added to the city gate, their swords drawn and crossbows loaded, as if facing a formidable enemy.
The catchpoles from within the city led the way as the soldiersmenced a city-wide manhunt.
Looking at the situation, it was very likely that a clue had emerged from the silver notes Qin Niu had cashed out.
After all, the Nine Insect Gang took the murder of theirmanding Commander very seriously..
Chapter 246 - 239: Women Eventually Leave Their Mothersl
Chapter 246: Chapter 239: Women Eventually Leave Their Mothersl
However, the criminal who killed Lord Song Zan remained atrge, never captured by the Nine Insect Gang.
This was tantamount to pping rhe faces of all rhe high-ranking members of the Nine Insect Gang.
Even the assassination of Song Zan put the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s surprise attack n on the ck Tiger Gang on hold.
Now that the silver notes Song Zan had left behind were being exchanged and used in Seven-Star City, the Nine Insect Gang was determined to dig three feet into the ground if necessary to find the person responsible.
Regrettably, their opponent was Qin Niu, a youth who was extremely cautious.
Having exchanged the silver notes and gold notes, he took flight the very same day, leaving Seven-Star City behind.
Needless to say, the high-level officials of rhe Nine Insect Gang mobilized arge number of soldiers to search for the suspected assassin. They arrested hundreds of people, yet failed to find the real culprit.
At this moment, Qin Niu had already reached the border between the Nine Insect Gang and the Shennong Sect.
Since both sects were in rhe honeymoon phase of an alliance, crossing the border between them was extremely easy.
There wasn¡¯t even a need to smuggle himself across; after paying seven Wen Money, he was let through.
The border-crossing fee was cheaper than the fee to enter rhe city, which was also a result of the mutual friendly signals between the two gangs.
Once inside the territory of the Shennong Sect, Qin Niu didn¡¯t hurry on his way.
Instead, he found an inn to stay in.
Then he bought two sets of local clothes to change into, also adopting the guise of an ordinary farmer from the Shennong Sect.
Looking at himself in the copper mirror, he saw no difference from the local people and only then did he pick up his basket and continue on his way.
¡°Hey, young man, need a ride?¡±
A horse-drawn cart loaded with cargo sped past; seeing Qin Niu carrying arge basket on the road, the cart slowly came to a stop.
Qin Niu nced at the wagon.
It was an open-type, simple wagon.
Very simr to the carriages of modern tricycles.
Surrounded by wood nks to prevent the cargo from falling off.
Inside the cart seemed to be grain, somewhat resembling millet.
The driver, an uncle in his forties, had a forehead etched with deep wrinkles, his skin tanned dark, and his head wrapped in a turban.
The uncle was dressed in a ck short robe.
It was one of the favorite attire of many farmers.
He had a quite honest-looking face.
¡°Uncle, may 1 ask where you are headed?¡±
¡°I¡¯m off to Mai City to deliver a few bags of millet and wheat. Isn¡¯t the frontline preparing for war? Now that the government is requisitioning grain, 1 hear the price is quite good. I¡¯ll take a few bags over to check the market.¡±
The uncle obviously mistook him for a subject of the Shennong Sect.
It felt like the majority of Shennong Sect¡¯smon people were very simple and honest.
Much easier to deal with than the barbarians of the Nine Insect Gang.
¡°Would it be convenient for me to hop on with so much grain you¡¯re pulling?¡±
Upon hearing that the destination was Mai City, Qin Niu found it was on his way as well.
The Shennong Sect and the ck Tiger Gang were currently in conflict, so the ck River banks would definitely be under tight surveince.
Taking this route from Mai City through Tian Shui, then crossing the border by boat, should be a rtively safe path.
Throughout his journey, he took countless risks and finally managed to umte more than ny thousand Silver Money. As long as he safely returned to the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory, he would instantly be a wealthy man at the top of the hierarchy.
Seizing the opportunity of the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s wartime chaos and insect infestation, with the low cost ofnd, he could buy up big and never worry about the future again.
¡°Convenient, very convenient! If you don¡¯t mind, you can sit on top of the grain.¡±
The uncle got busy, hopped off the cart, climbed into the back wagon, and moved the grain around to create a safe seat¡¯ for Qin Niu to sit on.
¡°Here, you can sit in here, and the basket can be ced next to you; there will be no problem at all.¡±
The uncle parted the sack of grain.
These coarse hemp sacks could hold up to a hundred fifty or sixty catties of grain at most.
¡°Then thank you very much, uncle!¡±
Qin Niu climbed onto the cart and sat in the pit¡¯ the uncle had made for him.
¡°Hey, being on the road, catching a ride is nothing! Sit tight now! ¡±
The uncle moved with agility.
He easily settled back into the driver¡¯s seat and then shook the horse¡¯s reins.
¡°Giddy up!¡±
The horse broke into a trot, starting down the main road.
¡°Young man, where are you nning to go?¡±
¡°I¡¯m heading to Tian Shui!¡±
¡°After I¡¯ve sold the grain, 1 should be able to take you another leg of the journey.¡±
¡°Won¡¯t you return home after selling your grain?¡±
Qin Niu asked curiously.
¡°I have a sister who married into Tian Shui over two years ago. The journey is so long, she hasn¡¯t returned home for over a year now, sigh, I don¡¯t even know if she¡¯s getting along well over there. As her older brother, I¡¯m inevitably worried about her. Normally, I don¡¯t have the time to visit her. This time, after selling the grain, it would be perfect to check on her. In case she¡¯s facing hard times, as her brother, I would be able to help out a bit,¡± the uncle exined.
The distance from Mai City to Tian Shui is about sixty to seventy li, neither far nor near.
Qin Niu and the uncle met at a ce more than forty li from Mai City.
Which means, for the uncle¡¯s sister to visit her family, she would have to travel at least a hundred li or more.
In an era with underdeveloped transportation, if her family¡¯s economic conditions were poor, returning home would be quite difficult.
¡°The uncle is a man of deep sentiment and loyalty. I truly admire that kind of affection among siblings, but it s a pity that I¡¯m the only child in my family.¡± When Qin Niu spoke of this, his tone carried a bit of mncholy.
Not even knowing his own heritage, let alone having siblings.
In these times of continuous warfare, natural disasters were also highly prone to ur.
Parents fleeing with their children could easily be lost or might consciously abandon them.
It wasn¡¯t necessarily heartless; sometimes it could be a helpless act.
Children like Qin Niu, who were taken in and raised by others, were not few in number.
His maid, Xiao Qing, was also abandoned by her parents.
¡°Not having siblings might not necessarily be a bad thing. There are some siblings who, out of self-interest, be like enemies. In my family, there are only my sister and me. Now my daughter is about to be married off, and both my sons have arranged marriage ns. The one I worry about the most is still my sister,¡± rhe uncle said, seeing these matters with rity.
¡°Your sons are married, and your sister has only been married for two years; that makes your sister¡¯s age¡¡±
¡°That¡¯s right, my sister is almost twenty years younger than 1 am. She¡¯s a very strong-willed and ambitious person. At sixteen, when many girls of her age were getting married, she insisted on making her way in rhe world. She initially went to Shennong City, but due to fiercepetition there, sheter chose to develop her life in Mai City.
The job she had was actually quite good, working in an elixir pharmacy, where she self-taught a lot of knowledge about herbs and worked hard to be an herb identifier.
When she was 19, she would oftene back to have meals with us and stay at home for a couple of days.
She told me she wanted to work at a nting association or in an elixir pharmacy because she believed there were better prospects and higher ie.
She even said that if she became sessful in the future, she would let our parents enjoy their old age with her, and buy a house for me, her brother, in the city. Wishing for the whole family to move into the city.
Justter on, she met a man she fancied, whose conditions were not good, and he didn¡¯t leave a good impression on me or our parents.
She was determined to marry him despite our objections, so we had to agree.
My father was so upset by this, he fell ill and passed away less than a yearter. When we held the funeral, my sister only came back in a hurry, leaving right after the seventh-day rites and never returned home again after that.
That time she came home, I noticed she had be thinner and sunburned, wearing old clothes from before.
I¡¯m guessing she must not have had an easy life over there.
Sigh, my sister is good in every aspect; it¡¯s just that she¡¯s too proud. She never tells us when she suffers outside, always presenting good news and withholding the worrisome,¡± the unclemented as he talked about his sister, shaking his head.
Everyone has their own thoughts, and daughters are beyond their mothers¡¯ control.
He could only watch powerlessly as his sister married someone whom both he and their parents disapproved of.
Males fear entering the wrong profession, females fear marrying the wrong man.
If his sister could have married a good man, she surely wouldn¡¯t be in her
current state..
Chapter 247 - 240 Master Mo Yangs Herbal Compendium_1
Chapter 247- 240 Master Mo Yang''s Herbal Compendium_1
```
The carriage hurried along and gradually arrived at Mai City.
Compared to the Seven-Star City Qin Niu had seen two days ago, the city before him seemed quite shabby.
The city walls were three zhang high, with the city gates wrapped in ayer of copper. Four soldiers dressed in leather armor stood guard at the gate, holding long spears, looking quite vignt.
There were two idlers in ck robes at the city gate responsible for collecting the entry fee.
This system was quite simr to that of ck Tiger City.
"Two Wen, two Wen, the entry fee is uniformly two Wen! Please prepare in advance."
One of the idlers reminded the entering civilians.
"You two, that''ll be four Wen Money in total!"
When the uncle''s carriage approached the city gate, the fee-collecting idler nced over and immediately announced the price.
The entry fee was calcted per head.
Goods were not charged.
This was a major benefit for themon people who sold goods.
No wonder I couldn''t see even one stall outside the city.
"Uncle, let me, let me!"
Qin Niu hurried to pay the money.
"How could I ept that!"
The uncle responded politely but didn''t push too much. The four Wen Money could be considered as Qin Niu''s contribution for the carriage fare.
Once inside the city, the streets were much narrower than expected and the buildings were also quite ordinary.
However, one thing was quite good: many ces showed people building new houses. The city was populous andmerce was thriving, which revealed a considerable vitality in its development.
"Uncle, where are you going to sell grain? It''s rare for me toe here and I want to look around. If I find suitable seeds, I''ll buy some to take back."
Qin Niu looked around at the city''s shops, which sold grains, seeds, herbs, fertilizer, farming tools, rain gear, and so forth, all well-stocked.
Every ce has its own customs and practices.
The Shennong Sect, just like the ck Tiger Gang, was part of an agricultural civilization.
Only, it specialized in cultivation and was somewhat one-dimensional in development.
This was also reflected in the variety of shops in Mai City.
The goods sold by themon people mainly revolved around cultivation and nting.
"Mm-hm, go ahead! I will wait for you at the East City gateter."
"Alright, thank you, uncle!"
Qin Niu got off the carriage and began to wander around inside the city.
He entered a seed shop.
"What kind of seeds would you like to buy, young master?"
The shopkeeper immediately greeted him warmly.
This seed shop wasn''t big and employed no shop assistants.
"I''m just looking around. Do you have corn seeds?"
Qin Niu inquired.
"Yes, yes, yes! Here, these are all corn seeds. This one is the soft and sticky variety, this one is crisp and sweet, this one yields high withrge cobs and full grains, but the taste is much inferior.
There''s also this corn, which is a new variety this year, resistant to lodging and diseases, very advantageous, it grows quickly and doesn''t require good soil..."
The shopkeeper introduced them one by one.
Who knew that the Shennong Sect could develop corn seeds to such an extent.
Each craft has its experts.
Different sects focus on different development directions, excelling in various techniques.
The Nine Insect Gang''s best development is in insect control.
But Shennong Sect''s main direction is nting.
Inparison, the ck Tiger Gang seems to epass everything, versatile in many fields.
In terms of seniority, the ck Tiger Gang is considered a very young sect. In terms of heritage, it might notpare to veteran sects like the Nine Insect Gang, Seven-Star Sect, and Shennong Sect. But it has its own strengths, having carved out a territory in and shared with dragons and tigers.
Its potential for development should also be one of the strongest among the neighboring sects.
It''s just that a short time has passed, so it hasn''t reached a state where all flowers bloom together in splendor.
"I''ll take five jin of this tasty variety of corn seeds!"
"Alright! I guarantee you''ll be very satisfied after nting them! Please show me your identification tag to register."
"You need to register identification information to buy seeds?"
Qin Niu asked, somewhat surprised.
"All the seeds sold in our seed shops are legitimate and legal; registering the information of the buyer makes it easier to verify andpensate if problems ur after cultivation."
"I see! I''m buying these for a neighborly uncle who''s over there selling grain, I''ll call him overter."
Qin Niu casually fabricated a lie and then left the seed shop.
As a subject of the ck Tiger Gang, and with both sects at war, he dared not reveal his true identity.
After leaving the seed shop, he wandered ahead and found several bookstores.
The Cultivation Techniques and martial arts skills on sale were mostly street stall items.
On the other hand, books about nting were quite professional.
Qin Niu spent fifteen Wen Money and bought a thick botany as.
Although it was a secondhand old book, the content was quite good. And the price was surprisingly cheap.
Thebor cost for transcribing and illustrating couldn''te down without paying two or three Hundred Taels.
The cost for paper and ink would also not be low, at least a couple of hundred Wen.
But because there were too many simr old books and they were everywhere, considered asmon goods on the streets,
the price was remarkably cheap.
At fifteen Wen for such a thick book, the cost was far from sufficient.
"Shopkeeper, do you have an as that records some rare medicinal herbs?"
Qin Niu asked the bookstore owner.
"Yes! But that''s a bit more expensive."
```
"As long as the book is good, it doesn''t matter if it''s a bit more expensive."
Qin Niu now had a fortune of over ny thousand taels, so this small sum of money really didn''t matter to him.
Realizing he had a wealthy customer on his hands, the boss immediately instructed his assistant, "Xiao Li, go up to the attic and bring down that rare botanicalpendium."
Soon, the assistant came down thedder, holding a thick book in his arms.
"Young Master, this is apendium left by the great Master Mo Yang of the Shennong Sect. It contains the rare herbs and trees the master collected throughout his life by various means. Most of the entries have illustrations, with only a few described in text based on what Master Mo Yang learned from others."
The assistant briefly introduced the content of the book.
After flipping through a few pages, Qin Niu realized that this book was chock-full of substantial content.
The first page depicted a towering tree that reached into the clouds, glittering with gold, as if it were made entirely of pure gold.
This tree was known as the Golden Wutong, the foremost of its kind in the world.
It was rumored to be the roosting tree for the Golden Crow.
"Fine birds choose fine trees to rest," that referred specifically to this tree.
The Golden Crow was considered the foremost divine bird in the world, even more famous than the Phoenix. They would only roost on a Golden Wutong.
And this "Wutong" wasn''t any ordinary Wutong tree, but the Golden Wutong depicted in the illustration.
"Not bad, how much for this book?"
Qin Niu deliberately nced at the ntpendium he had just bought for fifteen Wen Money.
This was a conscious maneuver to prevent the boss from quoting a high price.
"Er... If the Young Master truly wants it, how about five hundred taels of silver? This book is the treasure of our store, and it''s the only one we have."
The boss''s eyes rolled around eagerly as a warm smile spread across his face.
The epitome of a sly merchant.
Of course, Qin Niu was not so easily fooled.
"Hehe, five hundred taels of silver indeed isn''t expensive; enough to buy tens of thousands of copies of that ntpendium. But it seems you''d be reluctant to part with it, so you might as well keep it and enjoy it slowly."
And with that, Qin Niu made to leave.
"Hey, wait, Young Master, please wait a moment!"
The boss hurriedly called out to him as he saw Qin Niu walking away.
The price of five hundred taels was just a probe. If by chance he encountered a rich but naive customer, selling just one book could provide enough for him to live on for more than ten years.
"As long as the Young Master truly likes the book, the price can be negotiated!"
"Then you quote a sincere price you''re willing to sell it for."
Qin Niu was already familiar with these merchants'' tricks.
When it came to psychological warfare, he was even stronger than these cunning merchants.
"Er... How about this, I can tell the Young Master is sincere in his fondness for the book. In our line of work, we sell to those fated with the book, and it seems you have a connection with this one. Why don''t you name your price?"
The boss was also unsure about this young man.
Initially, seeing Qin Niu''s youthful appearance and extraordinary demeanor, he had nned to fleece a fatmb.
Now, realizing the young man was very shrewd and not at all a pushover, the boss decided to probe Qin Niu further.
"Five taels of silver, not a penny more," Qin Niu said, biting down on his back teeth, making it seem as if he had made a great resolution.
"Ah... You, you..." The owner was taken aback by the offer, his eyes rolling back.
Five taels of silver was, indeed, a bit ''high.''
"Young Master, other people might cut off a bit of flesh when bargaining, but your cut has reduced me to minced meat! Even if I halved my price, I''d be better off. You''re not truly interested in buying this book, just go!"
The boss dismissed Qin Niu with a wave of his hand, his face mournful.
"I''ll add one more tael, six taels of silver. Not a penny more."
Qin Niu was also testing the boss''s psychological threshold, as that''s how business is done. Neither party knows the other''s bottom line.
"Six taels of silver is definitely not possible. If you''re serious about it, I''ll give it to you for three hundred taels," the boss shed his own price from five hundred taels directly to three hundred.
"I''ll add another five wen of silver, six taels and five wen. Buying a book for three hundred taels that neither allows for cultivation nor enhances strength, just for the sake of seeing something rare¡ªwould you agree to that if you were in my shoes?"
It was true that Qin Niu had money, but he was also bound to save where he should.
This money hadn''te easy; it was all earned by staking his life and defeating powerful enemies.
He was nning to use it as a nest egg for the future.
"Two hundred taels of silver, that''s my lowest price."
"I''ll throw in another five wen of silver, making it seven taels."
Qin Niu continued to gradually increase his offer.
...
"Sixty taels of silver, take it or leave it. That''s even above my cost price for acquiring it."
"Young Master, my boss bought this book for eighty taels of silver, and it hasn''t sold for ten years. Now, letting it go for sixty taels, you''re definitely picking up a bargain," the assistant interjected, finding the courage to speak up for the first time.
Just as the boss and the assistant thought Qin Niu would bargain again, they were caught off guard when he agreed with a surefireugh.
"Done!"
Qin Niu pulled out a silver note for sixty taels, one with a denomination of fifty taels and another of ten, both exchanged from the Heaven and Earth Bank.
They were as good as hard cash.
"Ah, I''ve lost a full twenty taels here!"
The boss endured the pain and, with a heavy heart, sold the book to Qin Niu.
When it came to schemes, he realized the young man in front of him was too formidable.
Decades of experience as a veteran merchant couldn''t best a young man.
After acquiring the book, Qin Niu left the store with great satisfaction.
The assistant, looking like he had just aplished a great feat, waited for the boss''smendation.
"You, Xiao Li, if you had spoken up sooner, would it have killed you?! You''ve made me lose twenty taels of silver."
"But I was afraid you''d me me for meddling!"
The assistant was full of grievance.
Chapter 248: 241 Political Marriage 1
Chapter 248: Chapter 241 Political Marriage 1
Qin Niu listened and chuckled to himself, ¡°The human heart is never content, like a snake trying to swallow an elephant.¡±
The shop owner couldn¡¯t sell it for sixty Silver Money, and if he held onto it for another ten years, he¡¯d probably be happy to get fifty Silver Money for it.
Now that he sold it for sixty Silver Money, he felt as if he had lost twenty Silver Money instead, and it pained his heart.
Paying sixty Silver Money for a herbalpendium, even if it was written by a master like Mo Yang, to the average person, it was just so-so.
As Qin Niu said, it was merely a curiosity to most people.
Sixty Silver Money could equal the wages of an average person for twenty years. Who among themon folk would be willing to spend that much?
The value of this book also depended on who possessed it.
In the eyes of Qin Niu, its value was worth far more than a thousand gold pieces.
Even if it cost him a thousand Silver Money, he would be willing to buy it. But earning money was not easy, and he aimed to save as much as possible.
After some haggling, he managed to acquire it for sixty Silver Money, effectively earning himself the four hundred and forty Silver Money he had cut from the price.
With that money, he could purchase arge batch of cultivation materials.
He was determined to pursue longevity, and that meant he couldn¡¯t just talk about it or fantasize in his head; he needed to take concrete actions.
Wherever he needed to be thrifty, he must be thrifty.
When he had time, he intended to thoroughly study the two volumes of the ntpendium. The Ancient Banyan Tree, the ¡°Thousand Eyes Tree¡± ¡ª what kind of trees they actually were, he had long wanted to figure out.
He believed he could find the answers this time.
He also knew nothing about the Ice Lotus in his hand, what uses it had, or its specific characteristics.
Moreover, the Dogtail Grass had mutated after being nourished by the power of the Evesting Spring Technique, sprouting purple veins, which he also did not understand.
Additionally, after feeding the Termites the Broadleaf Heavy Building nt, he had managed to cultivate Medical Ants. Understanding the mysteries of this process would be greatly beneficial to him when it came to cultivating other insects in the future.
Worried that the uncle had been waiting too long, Qin Niu didn¡¯t continue shopping and hurried to the east gate of Mai City.
Under normal circumstances, nearly all cities would have at least four gates.
Designated as east, west, south, and north gates.
If it were arge city, there might also be gates like the North Straight Gate or the Central Gate. Designing multiple city gates might increase the difficulty of defending the city, but it also facilitated entry and exit for the people, which was more conducive to the city¡¯s development and prosperity.
The core element for any city wishing to develop is people.
Without a significant number of citizens entering the city and without a good business environment, the city would slowly be a dead city.
The leadership of the Nine Insect Gang, with their backward and barbaric way of thinking, obviously failed to realize this.
They knew only to plunder rapaciously.
Qin Niu¡¯s cost to enter Seven-Star City was as high as thirty wen, a shortsighted behavior that was akin to draining the pond to get the fish. Seven-Star City used to be the number one city in the region.
After being ruled by the Nine Insect Gang for two hundred years, it had begun to visibly decline.
¡°Hey, over here! Young brother, this way!¡±
The uncle had already arrived at the east gate and was waiting there.
Upon seeing Qin Niu, he immediately stood up in his cart and waved energetically.
Qin Niu smiled and walked briskly towards him.
¡°Uncle, thank you for waiting for me! Let me treat you to some roasted chicken and braised beef. I didn¡¯t dare get you alcohol, afraid that you might get too drunk to find your wayter.¡±
He had bought quite a lot of food, including a portion for the uncle.
Oh, my, how much did all this cost! You¡¯re too polite, kid, just for a ride.¡±
The uncle epted the food, his face beaming with smiles.
¡°You gave me a ride, I treat you to food, it¡¯s fair! Eat it while it¡¯s still hot. The roasted chicken tastes pretty good, but I haven¡¯t tried the braised beef yet.¡± Qin Niu had bought two portions as he had a rtivelyrge appetite.
He needed to eat meat to maintain the nourishment his body required.
¡°I only indulge in such good food during the New Year. Little brother, you are quite generous. Today I¡¯ve had the good fortune to feast with you. However, it¡¯s not my ce to say, but you¡¯re still young, and there¡¯ll be many asions in the future where you¡¯ll need money, so you really should save when you can. Without money, you¡¯ll find even simple tasks be difficult!¡±
The uncle had seen his share of life.
Having experienced hard times, he advised Qin Niu.
Urging him not to spend money recklessly.
¡°Alright, thank you for the advice, Uncle. By the way, I haven¡¯t had the chance to ask for your esteemed name!¡±
¡°He Zhizhou! And you?¡±
The uncle was already wolfing down the roasted chicken, probably famished.
For ordinary people, it¡¯s indeed a luxury to afford such expensive meat regrly.
Many families can only afford to eat meat during the New Year.
¡°My name is Qin Niu! Meeting Uncle must be fate.¡±
Qin Niu had no intention of helping this uncle change his fate or anything of the sort.
He wasn¡¯t some kind of savior.
He also never meddled in other people¡¯s business.
That being said, if the uncle were in trouble, he would, without a doubt, lend a hand.
The carriage left the city gates and sped along the road.
If all went well, they should reach Tian Shui before nightfall.
The speed of the carriage was much faster than walking.
This uncle managed to keep a horse, so even if his family¡¯s finances were tight, they couldn¡¯t be that bad.
Uncle, why would the Shennong Sect willingly start a war with the ck Tiger Gang?¡±
Qin Niu asked.
¡°s, these matters normally aren¡¯t formon folk like us to discuss. This military action against the ck Tiger Gang is unwise and unusual. Ever since the Gang Leader of the Nine Insect Gang married his sister to the head of our Shennong Sect, things have been a bit off.
It is said that the woman who came over is very beautiful and has bewitched the head of our Shennong Sect.
For hundreds of years, our Shennong Sect has maintained neutrality, allowing us to prosper and maintain friendly trade rtions with the neighboring factions. The grains, herbs, tea leaves, and such that we grow neverck buyers.
But ever since that woman arrived three years ago, things have changed.
The silkworms that were raised before have all been phased out, reced by a new variety of green silkworm that produces more.
The silk made from these looks pretty, but it¡¯s nowhere near asfortable or durable as the old silkworm silk.
Many sericulturists realized that by raising the new silkworm, they could increase their yield by at least half, so most of them switched to green silkworms, with very few still raising white ones.
These green silkworms are a special breed that we can¡¯t reproduce ourselves ¨C we have to buy the eggs from the Nine Insect Gang.
This happens every year.
There are countless such changes, and I have a bad feeling about them.
This military excursion against the ck Tiger Gang, even though the higher- ups say it¡¯s a guaranteed victory that will expand our territory by a third, war leads to death. I¡¯m especially worried that my son might be drafted to fight.
Moreover, after dering war, we can¡¯t sell our goods to the ck Tiger Gang anymore, and our trade with other factions has noticeably decreased.
I¡¯ve never had trouble selling my crops in previous years, but this time I had to haul them dozens of miles to Mai City to sell them.
And the price isn¡¯t even as high asst year.¡±
The uncle shook his head and sighed repeatedly at the impact of the war.
Political marriages aremon among sects and families.
The alliance through marriage between the Nine Insect Gang and the Shennong Sect, I wonder what the Shennong Sect was thinking?
I fear they¡¯re inviting the wolf into the house and might eventually try to negotiate with the tiger for its skin.
It feels like the Shennong Sect might get burned, potentially falling right into the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s trap.
Chapter 249: 242 Unpredictable Human Heart 1
Chapter 249: Chapter 242 Unpredictable Human Heart 1
It¡¯s a pity that this time was so hurried, I didn¡¯t get a chance to visit Shennong City.
Qin Niu made his fortune by raising Termites, but his greatest skill was actually in cultivation.
With the Evesting Spring Technique and the Medicine King Sutra, he was even more formidable.
It was only because he was still in the early stages of gathering primitive forces, and also because he had the Ancient Banyan Tree, that he didn¡¯t spend a lot of energy and time on cultivation.
Focusing on survival first and developmentter was his overall strategy during the early stages of his development.
Shennong City had been established for over a thousand years, making it an extremely ancient city. At the height of the Shennong Sect¡¯s power, the Hundred-Refined Celestial Venerable even personally traveled to Shennong City to seek medicine.
Some said that the Hundred-Refined Celestial Venerable was not there to seek medicine, but rather because an important medicinal nt he was cultivating had encountered a problem and he had asked for a cultivation expert from the Shennong Sect toe and save it.
Whichever the case, being able to personally attract the Hundred-Refined Celestial Venerable certainly indicated exceptional true talent.
Qin Niu would one day go to Shennong City to broaden his horizons.
Throughout the journey, he mostly listened to the uncle¡¯s conversation.
The roast chicken and braised beef he gave to the uncle worked wonders in bribing him. The uncle¡¯s wariness towards him dropped to a low point, and he would talk at length about anything he knew.
After an hour and a half, the coach finally arrived smoothly at Tianshui Town.
This was a small trade town built along the water.
Before the warfare with the ck Tiger Gang, it swallowed up arge volume of goods every day.
Now, one could only see wharves along the river crowded with boats of all sizes, some workers or boat owners sitting on the docks, worrying.
In small groups, they discussed how much longer the war wouldst.
¡°Uncle He, thank you for bringing me all this way. Goodbye!¡±
Qin Niu hopped off the coach and waved goodbye to the uncle.
¡°Be careful on your way. In these chaotic times, if you can¡¯t cross the river, you can alwayse back and find me. Later, once I find my sister, I can also ask someone familiar to help you out.¡±
He Zhizhou actually knew Qin Niu was nning to cross the river into the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory.
¡°Mm, thank you, Uncle He! If there were no war, I could have invited you to be a guest at my home.¡±
Qin Niu, seeing that the uncle had seen through his identity, didn¡¯t offer any further exnation or excuses.
Uncle He was kind-hearted and simple; knowing that Qin Niu was a subject of the ck Tiger Gang, he had no thoughts of reporting him. Instead, he hoped that Qin Niu would safely cross the Tianshui, back to the ck Tiger Gang.
Arriving at the dock, Qin Niu directly approached a boatman who didn¡¯t look too sly.
¡°Uncle, can you take me across the Tianshui River?¡±
Qin Niu asked directly.
¡°Can¡¯t do it. Both sides are at war now, and all our boats are out ofmission. Once you go across, you might not be able toe back.¡±
The boatman shook his head repeatedly.
¡°I can pay extra for the boat fare. Just get me to the other side.¡±
Qin Niu pulled out a Tael of Silver.
This boatman, being earnest and simple, although he was tempted by the Silver Money, still shook his head in refusal.
¡°Paying a Tael of Silver for the boat fare?¡±
A muscr man with shifty eyes raised his head to inquire of Qin Niu. This man had been sitting not far off, chatting with several others.
Qin Niu¡¯s inquiry about crossing the river had already attracted quite a few people¡¯s attention.
Most people were just watching secretly.
¡°Yes, just take me across the river, and I¡¯ll give you a Tael of Silver!¡± Qin Niu nodded his confirmation.
¡°Wait until it gets a bit darker, and thene find me here.¡±
¡°Alright!¡±
Qin Niu felt relieved that someone had taken the job.
Once across the Tianshui, he would be in the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory. With his status as an Insect Master, in the ckwater Gang¡¯s territory, he wouldn¡¯t necessarily walk around with impunity, but at least he could enjoy many privileges.
Once he crossed the river, he would be safe.
Qin Niu decided to take a stroll around the town first to familiarize himself with the terrain, which was always a good idea.
Uncle He had already disappeared, probably off to find his sister.
There were not many shops in the town but rather a lot of warehouses.
Grain stores could be seen everywhere.
Now, the doors of these granaries were firmly locked, and the residents of the town were mostly looking gloomy.
Qin Niu entered a tavern directly.
Inside, there were quite a few people drinking.
Many were burly men who, with nothing to do since the docks were shut down, gathered here to drink away their sorrows.
¡°Everything was going fine, and then suddenly we dered war on the ck Tiger Gang. No idea what the higher-ups were thinking?¡±
¡°Didn¡¯t they say? Taking down the ck Tiger Gang means vast fertilend and the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s beauties all go to us. By then, everyone will have a chance to be andlord.¡±
¡°You actually believe that? If there were such good things, they would be taken by the elites first; what chance would we ordinary folks have?¡±
¡°The beauties from the ck Tiger Gang would be up for grabs, wouldn¡¯t they? I heard that after the Nine Insect Gang conquered the Seven-Star Sect, they ranked people into three sses. Those at the top live lives morefortable than emperors.¡±
¡°It¡¯s true that the ck Tiger Gang has arge poption and the women are really easy on the eyes. Their skin is so delicate that it seems you could pinch water out of it, and each one of them moves in an enchanting way, but the key is their exceptional aura. With the women of the Shennong Sect, only the daughters of big families have that kind of charm, whereas the women of the ck Tiger Gang, all of them are outstanding.¡±
¡°Really?¡±
¡°Of course it¡¯s true. I¡¯ve seen it with my own eyes when I was there. When they dance, they¡¯re so flexible it¡¯s like they have no bones, and when they sing, their voices are intoxicating!¡±
A group of drunken men discussed topics that interested men.
The things that attract men¡¯s interest are nothing other than money, power, and beauties.
Having eaten and drunk his fill in the tavern, Qin Niu saw that it was getting dark outside and left the tavern.
He had been inside for nearly two hours and had heard a few useful things.
The Shennong Sect dared to wage war against the ck Tiger Gang because the high-ups were confident of victory.
It was possible that the Nine Insect Gang had given them some assurances.
Qin Niu¡¯s overall impression was that everyone in the Shennong Sect, from the top echelons to themoners, was very optimistic about the war.
They also believed the war could be ended in a very short time.
Two words, confidence.
After leaving the tavern, he headed straight for the docks not far away.
Before he reached the docks, a figure shed out of the darkness, reaching out to grab him.
But Qin Niu, who possessed the Innate Realm cultivation, gave the person a cold look and was about to teach him a lesson for the sudden attack.
¡°Brother Qin, hurry and follow me!¡±
It was the voice of He Zhizhou.
He lowered his voice and pulled Qin Niu away.
¡°Uncle He, what¡¯s happened?¡±
Qin Niu was full of suspicion.
His first thought was that something had happened to He Zhizhou¡¯s sister, and He Zhizhou needed his help.
However, he quickly dismissed that idea.
¡°The boatman you hired to take you across the river has secretly reported to the authorities, and soldiers are lying in wait inside the boat, ready to capture you the moment you board.¡±
¡°That¡¯s too despicable!¡±
Qin Niu never expected the boatman to be so malicious.
They had agreed on a ferry fee of one tael of silver, and if he wasn¡¯t happy with the money, he could have asked for more.
¡°When traveling abroad, you must always be extra cautious! My brother-in-w happened to hear about this from a friend and brought it up during dinner at home. I guessed that they were probably after you, so I rushed to guard the essential path to the docks and, sure enough, found you.¡±
As He Zhizhou led him briskly forward, he exined softly.
¡°Uncle, knowing that I could belong to the ck Tiger Gang, why would you still help me?¡±
Qin Niu did feel quite moved.
Despite the fact that those soldiers lying in ambush were unlikely to pose a threat to him, avoiding a conflict was best.
¡°I¡¯m just an ordinary citizen; I can¡¯t concern myself with the affairs of the martial sects. All I know is that you are a kind and friendly young man. No matter which sect you belong to, to me you are like any other ordinary citizen.¡±
After leaving the town with Qin Niu, He Zhizhou checked behind to make sure no one was following, then led Qin Niu into a house.
The low house was as dpidated as Qin Niu¡¯s old home.
Tattered and worn.
A young woman clutched a one-year-old baby, apanied by a lean young man.
The young man dressed sloppily, his hat askew, his shirt open, showing his belly¡ªan absolute ruffian in appearance.
The young woman was not particrly pretty, just average looking, but her eyes were filled with spirit and resilience, clearly a woman who had been tempered by society.
It was hard to understand what she saw in such a rascal.
¡°Little sister, brother-inw, this is Brother Qin Niu who I met on the road. Everyonees across difficulties when they¡¯re away from home. If we can offer help, we should do our best.¡±
Having closed the door, He Zhizhou introduced Qin Niu to the couple.
¡°Thankyou for the trouble!¡±
Qin Niu saluted them.
¡°Since Minmin¡¯s big brother has already spoken, let¡¯s not talk about trouble. I might be an idler who has aplished nothing to make a name for myself, but when ites to friends, loyaltyes first. Haven¡¯t had dinner yet? Eat first. Later tonight, I¡¯ll ferry you across the river in my boat.¡±
Don¡¯t judge a book by its cover.
He Zhizhou¡¯s brother-inw might look like a rascal, but he was surprisingly righteous.
¡°I¡¯ve already had something to eat at the tavern, thanks to Brother Lu¡¯s kind intentions.¡±
Qin Niu nced at the leftovers on the table.
Two tes of leftover greens, a salted fish, and several big steamed bread buns.
This family was indeed poor.
They probably only managed to prepare a salted fish because of the uncle¡¯s visit, while on ordinary days, they likely ate just vegetables.
No wonder the couple were both thin.
¡°Madam, we still have eggs at home¡ªboil a couple to serve Brother Qin Niu. I¡¯ll go get the boat ready; I¡¯lle back to call Brother Qin Niu when it¡¯s good to go.¡±
Lu Zhong spoke to his wife.
He was used to fooling around outside, so his observation skills shouldn¡¯t be bad.
He noticed that Qin Niu might be disapproving of their homely meal, thus hesitating to eat at their ce.
¡°Sister-inw, no need, I really did eat, and I¡¯m full. It¡¯s not easy for you looking after the child; please sit and rest.¡±
Qin Niu hastily protested.
But she didn¡¯t listen to him and went to boil the eggs.
For this poor family, boiling a couple of eggs was probably considered high hospitality.
The woman was insistent on going to the kitchen, and he couldn¡¯t exactly drag her back.
Lu Zhong then opened the door and left.
Qin Niu was still on guard against this ruffian. After all, he had just been tricked and almost fell for it.
¡°Brother Qin, sit and rest for a while. I¡¯ll apany my brother-inw to check on things.¡±
He Zhizhou noticed Qin Niu¡¯s concern.
He was not very familiar with his brother-inw either and was equally worried that he might secretly inform the authorities, which would put Qin Niu in trouble.
He followed, exiting the door, apanying his brother-inw to get the boat ready.
Both men seemed to trust Qin Niu, leaving him alone with the hostess and child at home.
Chapter 250: 243: Noble _1
Chapter 250: Chapter 243: Noble _1
Late at night, Qin Niu¡¯s origins were unclear, and if he were tomit an indecent act, it would disgrace the mistress of the house.
Soon, the mistress brought out two boiled purse-shaped eggs.
¡°Brother Qin, our family is poor and we don¡¯t have much to offer you. These two eggs, please don¡¯t disdain them, just make do and fill your stomach. If you would like to eat this cornbread, I¡¯ll take it back to the kitchen and warm it up for you.¡±
The cornbread was generally made from coarse grains.
Rich families never ate this.
It was only for the servants to eat.
To offer it to a guest was indeed a bit shabby, but for some poor families, even cornbread was not enough to satisfy their hunger.
The saying goes that the full man does not understand the plight of the hungry,
and it originates from this kind of situation.
The rich get tired of eating meat and fish every day and think of changing tastes constantly.
The poor can¡¯t even get enough rice to eat.
¡°Sister-inw, please have a seat and rest. The fact that you can offer eggs to treat me is already the greatest kindness to me. Being able to meet such kind- hearted people as you in a foreignnd is my fortune.¡±
Qin Niu saw a clean bowl on the table and picked up an egg.
He pushed it towards the mistress of the house.
¡°Can the child eat solid food now?¡±
He didn¡¯t ask if the child was still nursing, as it might seem a bit frivolous.
¡°Yes, he can.¡±
¡°Let the child have this egg. Is it a boy or a girl?¡±
¡°It¡¯s a boy.¡±
¡°I¡¯ve heard about some of your affairs from your elder brother. Do you regret moving here?¡±
din Niu started to chat with her.
¡°There¡¯s no such thing as regret in marriage. When I married the child¡¯s father, although it was a bit impulsive, I had also considered the worst possible oue.¡±
She took the chopsticks and began feeding the child the egg.
Qin Niu also started eating with his chopsticks.
One must always be on guard.
In front of others, to check for poison with a silver needle? That would very
likely offend them.
If she dared to feed it to the child, it meant the eggs were definitely safe.
Qin Niu wasn¡¯t actually hungry, but he epted their kind intentions graciously.
¡°Your elder brother said you¡¯re a person with a lot of ideas. Do you have any ns for the future?¡±
¡°Hehe! My elder brother just knows how to praise me!¡± the woman said, revealing a happy smile.
She looked quite pretty when she smiled.
¡°I n to wait until the child is a bit older and then try to make a living in Mai
City. It¡¯s got to be better than staying here.¡±
¡°Does the child¡¯s father have a job?¡±
¡°Him? He¡¯s justzy! There¡¯s never a job he can stick with for more than three months; he¡¯s alwaysining and quitting after just a few days.¡±
When mentioning the child¡¯s father, she seemed somewhat helpless.
¡°Forgive me for asking a rather abrupt question, but does he treat you well?¡± Upon hearing Qin Niu¡¯s question, the mistress¡¯s expression became serious, and she looked into Qin Niu¡¯s eyes, ascertaining that he had no ulterior motives before replying, ¡°He treats me and the child quite well, but he can¡¯t make enough money. We can¡¯t even get enough to eat; what¡¯s the use of just being sweet-talked? I¡¯ve thought it through. In future, I¡¯ll go out and workhard to earn money, and let him stay home to look after the child.¡±
¡°That¡¯s a good thought. I think most men would be very happy to have a wife like you. When I came in earlier, I saw a jujube tree by your door; is it yours?
¡°Yes! It started bearing fruit justst year, and it¡¯s still a young tree.
¡°When it bears fruit this year, you can eat a few and then sell the rest.
Qin Niu said to her.
¡°Is there a problem with it?¡±
The woman was a little confused, like a monk who couldn¡¯t make sense of it.
¡°Didn¡¯t you used to work with identifying medicinal herbs? When the timees, examine it carefully; you might find something unexpected!¡±
Qin Niu said lightly.
¡°May I use yourtrine?¡±
¡°Sure, go through there. Just carry the oilmp with you. Be careful with the stepping board, as it¡¯s easy to miss your step.¡±
The woman¡¯s home had only one oilmp.
The dim yellow light shone on this impoverished home.
After Qin Niu took themp away, the room was plunged into darkness.
He went to use the bathroom.
Aftering out, he chatted with the woman for a while. Some hostesses would hide in their rooms to avoid strangers.
She had roamed the outside world and was much more gracious than ordinary
women.
It wasn¡¯t long before He Zhizhou returned.
But his brother-inw, Lu Zhong, had not.
¡°Brother Qin Niu, the boat is ready, I¡¯ll take you there now,¡± he said.
¡°Good!¡±
Qin Niu stood up and hoisted his basket on his back.
The hostess, holding her child, also stood up to see him off.
¡°Thankyou for your generous hospitality and the assistance. I don¡¯t have much to offer in return, but here is a small gift for your child.¡± Qin Niu stuffed a neatly folded small paper packet into the child¡¯s hand.
The child was a bit shy, just mechanically grasping it.
After exiting the house, he walked to a jujube tree only as thick as a knife handle and touched its trunk with his hand.
¡°Quite a sturdy jujube tree, sister-inw, remember to try the fruit when it¡¯s ripe before selling it.¡±
When he touched the jujube tree just now, he had already channeled a sliver of the Evesting Spring Technique into it.
ording to his experience, it should help the tree evolve to some extent.
The degree of its evolution would depend on its destiny.
He followed He Zhizhou down the path to the Tianshui River.
¡°Is it big brother?¡±
A voice came from the darkness.
¡°It¡¯s me!¡±
After responding, Lu Zhong emerged from the bushes.
¡°Brother Qin Niu, hurry onto the boat!¡±
Lu Zhong¡¯s clothes were dripping wet; fetching the boat must have been quite an effort.
The boat was notrge and crossing the river would require skilled boatmanship.
¡± Aren¡¯t you afraid the authorities will trouble you after you ferry me across the river?¡±
¡°No worries, I might not be doing well, but I have many friends. Plus, I wouldn¡¯t be foolish enough to let others know,¡± said Lu Zhong before waving at He Zhizhou. ¡°Big brother, you go back first! It will be more troublesome if you get caughtter.¡±
¡°Alright, take care!¡±
After He Zhizhou gave his warning, he turned his gaze to Qin Niu.
¡°Brother Qin, don¡¯t wander around outside during this period; it¡¯s dangerous.
¡°Got it, thank you Uncle He!¡±
Qin Niu felt very warm inside.
Between people, kindness is the light that most easily warms the heart.
His impression of the Nine Insect Gang for their attempt to get the Green Demon¡¯s treasure was bad, yet the subjects of the Shennong Sect left him with a very good impression.
That wasn¡¯t to say that all of the Shennong Sect¡¯s people were good.
For example, the boatman who reported him to the authorities had a very bad heart.
He Zhizhou and his wife, Lu Zhong, treated him with kindness, which directly made him feel favorable towards the subjects of the Shennong Sect.
In the future, when he became a person of influence, even the entire Shennong Sect¡¯smunity might benefit.
The Tianshui River was arge river that traversednds belonging to many sects within the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect.
Its width was about a thousand meters or so.
As it was summer and the flooding season, the water on the river was turbulent.
Lu Zhong might not be good at many jobs, but his skill in steering a boat was exceptional.
This man should have been a fisherman on the river; at least he could make a living for his family.
It wouldn¡¯te to his wife and child having to eat rough cornbread every day. ¡°Brother Lu, I see your boating skills are quite impressive!¡±
¡°Heh, I grew up by the river, it¡¯s alright! When I was ten, I could row a bamboo raft across the river,¡± he said.
¡°Do you have any ns for the future? I chatted with your sister-inw for a bit and she said you treat her and the child very well. She also mentioned that she wants to go work to earn money to support the family when the child is a little older. I could tell she loves you very much.¡±
Chapter 251: 244 Nine out of Ten Houses are Emptyi
Chapter 251: Chapter 244 Nine out of Ten Houses are Emptyi
¡°She aspires to a step-by-step life, while what I yearn for is¡ to hold sway over a ce, where civil and military affairs are well handled, and thousands admire.¡±
Lu Zhong hesitated slightly when he said this.
In the end, he still spoke his true thoughts.
Who would have thought that a second-rate scoundrel who mingles in society would aspire to be a king who reigns over a territory?
Qin Niu was stunned for a moment, then seriously said, ¡°Brother Lu has the ambition of a great roc soaring to the ninth heaven, which is truly admirable. I believe that as long as one is willing to make the effort, there wille a day when one realizes his ambitions.¡±
Lu Zhong did not expect Qin Niu to actually agree with him. He was immediately as excited as if he had found a kindred spirit. ¡°Thank you, Brother Qin Niu for your encouragement. When I talk about this with my wife, she says I¡¯m daydreaming. When my father was alive, I told him I wanted to hold sway over a ce, and he told me to pole a bamboo raft, to sit in the center of the river and own a corner for fishing!¡±
Being repeatedly discouraged by his family members, Lu Zhong was certainly extremely frustrated.
¡°When you make some achievements, they will believe you¡¯re not just talking in your sleep. I see that your wife is a rather insightful person; as long as you truly make the effort, she will definitely support you.¡±
¡°What Brother Qin says makes sense. It¡¯s a pity there¡¯s no wine on this boat, otherwise, I would definitely drink three cups with you.¡±
As the two talked, the boat had already reached the heart of the river.
The river waves were surging fiercely, several times nearly flipping the boat. However, Lu Zhong skillfully used the momentum to paddle the boat, passing through the center of the river, where the waves were roughest, without danger.
Compared to that innkeeper, Lu Zhong¡¯s boating skill was about clever strength.
Different people have different ways of oveing difficulties.
A mouse has its own path; a snake has its own route.
He quickly and safely delivered Qin Niu to the opposite shore of the Tianshui River.
¡°Brother Qin Niu, there is a small path up here that leads straight to the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s Luoshui Town. I can only escort you this far; I wish you a smooth journey.¡±
Lu Zhong, perhaps feeling that Qin Niu was a kindred spirit, was especially concerned about him.
¡°Thank you, Brother Lu, for your righteouspany. If you truly want to achieve great things, it is also very important to improve your cultivation. Only when you are strong can you realize those dreams. The iron needs to be hard on its own when forging.¡±
Before parting, Qin Niu gave Lu Zhong a piece of sincere advice.
¡°I also want to practice cultivation, but I have read little and have no money to buy cultivation techniques. s, I wasted so much time in my youth.¡± ¡°These Two Silver Money are enough to buy amon cultivation technique, consider it my support for Brother Lu.¡±
Qin Niu threw out the Two Silver Money, as payment for Lu Zhong¡¯s boat fare.
This, this¡ Thank you, Brother Qin Niu, for your generous gift; if therees a day when Lu Zhong achieves something, I will never forget it.¡±
Lu Zhong caught the silver money, visibly thrilled.
¡°Hurry back! Your wife and brother-inw are probably anxiously waiting.¡±
Qin Niu leaped onto the shore and waved towards Lu Zhong.
Lu Zhong, watching him leap ashore so easily, knew that he had met a master today. He bowed to Qin Niu again before setting out on the return journey in his boat.
What he did with the Two Silver Money, whether to buy cultivation techniques or to squander it on eating, drinking, and gambling, that was his own affair now.
If one does not want to rise up, no amount of help from others is of use.
After reaching the shore, Qin Niu felt much more settled being on his own territory.
This was also the first time he truly felt a sense of belonging to the ck Tiger Gang.
Only by venturing out and experiencing could one understand the importance of a ¡®nation¡¯.
Even within the territory of the Shennong Sect, without a base, he still felt a strong sense of insecurity.
Perhaps everyone has a home in their heart, which is the safest haven.
After Qin Niu left, Lu Zhong¡¯s wife went back to the room to open the small paper package, curious to see what gift he had brought for the child.
Upon opening it, she almost screamed.
It was a ten-tael silver note.
Though it was the smallest denomination silver note, in her eyes, it was a huge sum of money.
With such arge sum, they could relieve the family¡¯s financial straits.
She looked out the window with tears in her eyes, towards the direction Qin Niu had left.
Benefactor! Young Master Qin is our family¡¯s great benefactor!¡±
For a poor family like hers, saving up ten taels of silver might take ten years, or even longer.
Lu Zhong had no stable job, and he hung out with a crowd of questionable friends, barely earning much over the course of a year. What he left for household expenses was even less.
As for saving up silver, that was essentially a pipe dream.
¡°We must make good use of this money, not to let down the benefactor¡¯s kindness.¡±
She decided not to tell her husband about the money.
At least not now, otherwise, there was a chance he would squander it all away. Given the ease with which he had given away ten taels of silver, she was certain Qin Niu was no ordinary person. Remembering Qin Niu¡¯s repeated reminders about tasting the jujube fruit before selling them, and his purposeful mention of her knowledge in identifying medicinal herbs,
Even if she were foolish, she realized that the benefactor was hinting at the extraordinary nature of that jujube tree.
Carrying amp, she quickly went to the front yard to inspect the jujube tree.
But she found nothing unusual.
She could see the jujube tree almost every day; if there had been anything unusual, she would have noticed long ago.
But why else would the benefactor keep reminding her?
She nned to take another look when the jujubes ripened.
¡°Wife, what are you looking at?¡±
At that moment, Lu Zhong returned, drenched.
Seeing his wife examining the date tree with an oilmp in the courtyard, he was extremely curious.
¡°Just taking a casual look. Have you ferried Young Master Qin across the river?¡± ¡°Of course, rowing boats is my forte. I watched him safely reach the shore and leave,¡±
Lu Zhong answered with a smile.
With the Two Silver Money given by Qin Niu, Lu Zhong felt like there was a sun shining in his heart, giving him boundless confidence.
He also had a direction for his efforts.
¡°He is our family¡¯s benefactor; it¡¯s good that you got him safely across the river. Your clothes are wet, hurry inside and change!¡±
¡°Wife, are you predicting the future? When Brother Qin Niu left, he gave me Two Silver Money, telling me to buy a set of ordinary cultivation techniques to practice. He¡¯s right, ¡®to forge iron, one must be strong oneself,¡¯ I need to strive to be stronger, only by doing so can I protect you and our child. I¡¯m going to Mai City tomorrow; I can ride in big brother¡¯s horse carriage.¡±
¡°He, he gave you Two Silver Money! Young Master Qin is really too kind to our family. When you be sessful, you must not forget his kindness.¡±
She had not anticipated Qin Niu¡¯s generosity.
¡°I definitely won¡¯t forget! Just wait, when I be strong one day, I¡¯ll be able to repay him.¡±
Lu Zhong always harbored the idea of owning his own territory.
Two Silver Money was not much, but it was a great encouragement to him.
After having a goal to strive for, his entire demeanor changed. He became full of the vitality and energy of youth, no longer the same as before, spending his days only in idleness and frivolity with friends.
The ck Tiger Gang¡¯s Luoshui Town was just approached by Qin Niu when several soldiers with torches surrounded him.
¡°Who goes there?¡±
¡°Insect Master Qin Niu from Shuangfeng Vige, Jade Stream Town, of the
ck Tiger Gang!¡±
Qin Niu directly presented his Fish Talisman badge and stated his identity.
The leading captain took the Fish Talisman and carefully examined it, then shone the torch on Qin Niu¡¯s face.
¡°Turns out it¡¯s our own man. Brothers, all¡¯s well,¡±
He said with obvious relief once he confirmed Qin Niu¡¯s identity.
The other soldiers also lowered their guard.
¡°Did Master Qin juste over from the other side of Tian Shui?¡±
¡°That¡¯s right. The Shennong Sect had the area heavily locked down, and I found someone to secretly get me back by smuggling.¡±
¡°Is Tianshui Town assembling arge army?¡±
Upon hearing this, the captain of the soldiers became tense once more.
¡°There was no sign of arge army gathering, but when I hired a boat to cross the river, the boatman secretly informed the officials. Arge number of soldiers tried to capture me.¡±
It s quite good that you managed to escape safely. ording to reliable information, any ck Tiger Gang member captured in Nine Insect Gang territory ends up in a sorry state. The men are used to raise insects, and the women are taken as ythings. With war upon us, it¡¯s better for Master Qin to avoid wandering around, especially staying away from the Nine Insect Gang area.¡±
After giving Qin Niu a few words of advice, they let him pass.
Knowing that there was norge army assembled on the other side of the river, the soldiers on guard rxed their expressions, looking forward to a good night¡¯s sleep tonight.
Qin Niu entered Luoshui Town and found that aside from locusts crazily gnawing on nts everywhere, the local residents were shrouded in the shadow of war.
Many households had their doors locked tight, the inhabitants having already fled elsewhere for refuge.
In contrast, Shennong Sect¡¯s Tianshui Town was peaceful, with people eating and drinking as usual, very optimistic about the oue of the war.
The locust gue had already spread to Luoshui Town, indicating that the entire territory of the ck Tiger Gang might be at risk of a locust disaster. Weary from traveling for consecutive days, although he wished to return to Shuangfeng Vige as soon as possible, he still decided to find an inn in Luoshui Town and rest well for a night.
In the town, several inns had closed doors.
It was with difficulty that he found an inn withnterns lighted. Despite its old appearance, he went up and knocked.
Bang bang bang!
¡°Who is it?¡±
A voice of an old woman asked.
¡°I¡¯d like to stay for the night,¡±
Qin Niu replied.
The door opened from the inside, and a gray-haired woman in her fifties holding amp evaluated him.
¡°Are you from the Shennong Sect?¡±
¡°I came from there; I¡¯m from Jade Stream Town of the ck Tiger Gang.¡±
¡°Oh! I see, ¡®When in Rome, do as the Romans do,¡¯ so that exins your attire. All the rooms upstairs are empty, feel free to take your pick,¡±
The old woman, experienced in receiving guests, quickly understood what Qin Niu¡¯s Shennong Sect attire implied.
¡°How much for one night?¡±
¡°Just give ten Wen Money! Hot water is at the back of the kitchen; you¡¯ll need to fetch it yourself. I¡¯m old and don¡¯t move easily, and I can no longer carry heavy things upstairs.¡±
¡°Here! I¡¯ll stay for one night and leave tomorrow.¡±
Qin Niu gave the old woman ten Wen Money; the price was indeed reasonable.
¡°Greedy for money!¡±
The old woman received the copper coins, her face breaking into a smile.
¡°I see that the other inns seem to have closed down, are they afraid of the war?¡±
¡°Of course they are scared. If I wasn¡¯t so old and could move better, I would have run away with them. Since the trade operations between both sides have been halted, I haven¡¯t had much patronage. If it were like past years during the peak trade season, with ships bustling on the river, my inn would have been full long ago.¡±
The old woman shook her head repeatedly, sighing.
A perfectly good business had been forcibly halted because of the war.
Chapter 252 - 245 Combat Chicken in the Meeh Suit_1
Chapter 252: Chapter 245 Combat Chicken in the Meeh Suit_1
¡°Where did they all escape to? The ind?¡±
The ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory was quite extensive.
Everyone feared war and fled towards the hintend. ¡°They¡¯ve gone in all directions. They¡¯re seeking refuge with rtives and friends, and if they truly have no other choice, they¡¯ll try their best to get away from the border. I heard that Dafeng Vige by the ck Water River was wiped out overnight by the thugs of the Nine Insect Gang. Since Luoshui Town is adjacent to the Shennong Sect, everyone is also scared of falling victim to their cruel hands.¡±
The Nine Insect Gang¡¯s ruthless move was extremely malicious.
It terrified the residents of the viges and towns near the border, causing
them to abandon their homes and flee in droves.
After these people sought refuge in other parts of the ck Tiger Gang s territory, it would certainly trigger a new wave of war and fear.
Qin Niu had a hot bath and changed back into his usual in clothes.
But the old woman cooked a steaming bowl of noodles for him.
¡°Young man, it¡¯s not easy being away from home, and there¡¯s not much to eat. I made you a bowl of noodles. Eat it while it¡¯s hot to fill your stomach!¡±
¡°Thank you, madam!¡±
After receiving it, Qin Niu was very grateful for the old woman¡¯s kindness.
¡°How much for the noodles? I¡¯ll pay you.¡±
¡°What money! Just eat up!¡±
The old woman waved her hand and went into her room, probably to sleep.
Qin Niu found a fried egg hidden beneath the noodles.
Usually, a big bowl of noodles like this would cost at least two wen money.
The money wasn¡¯t much, but eating it warmed his heart.
After finishing the noodles, he went upstairs and chose a guest room to sleep
in.
In the middle of the night, he heard someone knocking in a daze. It must have been someone knocking on the door of the inn.
He instinctively grabbed the Ink de but stayed in bed without moving.
¡°Master Qin, Master Qin, save me! Save me¡¡±
Someone was calling him.
The voice was urgent, filled with panic.
Qin Niu hurriedly shouldered his basket and went downstairs, opening the door of the inn, only to find two of the soldiers he had encountered upon entering
Luoshui Town.
But their faces were pale, and they looked terrified.
¡°What happened?¡±
Qin Niu asked the two men.
¡°Insects, arge swarm of poisonous insects that bite upon sight. They move fast and bite anyone they see. Three of our brothers have been bitten. The insects¡¯ venom is violent: those bitten convulse on the ground and blood seeps from all seven facial orifices. We beg Master Qin to save our captain and the other brothers.¡±
This soldier seemed to be in histe twenties, with a cultivation at the level of
Grade Ten Mortal.
He was already speaking with a sob in his voice.
To frighten a Grade Ten Mortal regr soldier to tears showed just how frightening those insects must be.
¡°How did the two of you manage to escape?¡±
Qin Niu clearly wouldn¡¯t take the two at their word.
If the insects were so fierce and others couldn¡¯t escape, it was suspicious that these two had managed to get away.
¡°We were on guard duty for thetter half of the night, sitting by the fire, so that¡¯s why we were unharmed.¡±
Soldiers maintain their vigor by taking turns on night watch duty, pairing up in shifts, which is standard procedure.
This strategy was even modeled after the defense patterns of wild animals. When zebra herds rest at night, they designate sentinels to stand guard. This allows the rest of the zebras to rest assuredly, maintaining their energy. The next night, other zebras take over so that those who stood watch the previous night can rest securely within the herd.
With such rotations, the entire herd can always stay energetically robust.
¡°If those insects are afraid of fire, why aren¡¯t you using torches to rescue the people?¡±
¡°It¡¯s no use, there are too many insects. We were afraid of getting trapped, and then there would be no one left to send a warning. We beseech Master Qin to take action and save our captain and the other brothers. I must immediately inform the main camp. The arrival of these insects is strange; it could very well be an enemy¡¯s attack strategy.¡±
One of the soldiers, having said this, mounted his horse and hurried off toward
the outside of the town.
He was delivering a message to the local garrison.
Small military encampments are usually not exposed recklessly.
Especially during a period of warfare between two armies.
Because they could easily be surrounded and taken by the enemy in one fell
swoop.
¡°Madam, insects havee. It would be best if you hid in arge urn. As long as you secure the lid tightly, you should be able to escape this disaster.¡± Qin Niu, having eaten a big bowl of noodles, naturally had something to repay.
¡°Okay!¡±
The old woman replied, already heading toward the kitchen.
Clearly, she¡¯d taken Qin Niu¡¯s advice to heart.
¡°Lead the way!¡±
Rescuing someone was as urgent as putting out a fire; having gotten clear
directions, Qin Niu didn¡¯t dawdle.
He directly had another soldier who stayed behind guide him.
Soon, the two arrived at the docks of Luoshui Town.
This was where eleven soldiers were stationed on guard.
It was also the passageway into the market town from the Tianshui River.
¡°Insects, it¡¯s these insects! Master Qin, be careful!¡¯
The soldier, holding a torch, hadn¡¯t even reached the docks when he spotted the insects attacking from the ground.
They surged like a tide, numerous in number.
Hurriedly crawling forward.
The wooden hut ahead was the temporary camp for a dozen soldiers, from inside which desperate cries still emerged, indicating there were survivors.
¡°Just follow behind me.¡±
Qin Niu, with the Termite Army, wasn¡¯t afraid of these crawling ground insects.
The priority was to rescue the people first.
Over sixteen thousand termites in the Termite Army cleared the path ahead.
The remaining over four thousand, which had the ability tounch mental attacks, directly climbed onto Qin Niu forbat.
Rather than engaging in closebat, it was better to let their long-range attack capabilities assist.
The insects on the ground were a type of ck armored beetle.
Slim and elongated, they moved with extraordinary agility. Upon closer examination, Qin Niu identified them as ground beetles. They belonged to a particrly fierce category of omnivorous insects. It must be emphasized that not all insects are called insects. Termites, bees, ground beetles are all insects. But spiders, centipedes, and such are not considered insects.
They can only be called bugs.
Centipedes, millipedes, both belong to arthropods.
Ground beetles are Coleoptera.
Coleoptera, a superfamily of insects, are characterized by their hard exoskeletons.
For example, rhinoceros beetles are the favorite of insect enthusiasts. Not only are rhinoceros beetlesrge, but they also possess two impressively long horns and have tremendous fighting strength. They are well-known powerhouses, and their defensive abilities needless to say.
Even praying mantises have to detour around them. Ground beetles, however, belong to the smaller-sized insects within the Coleoptera.
They are known for their swift movement, ferocity, and many naturally have stink nds which allow them to spray toxic gases from their tails. If sprayed on a person¡¯s hand, it immediately causes redness and pain, and the smell is very unpleasant.
However, they differ from the stink bugs found among Hemiptera, colloquially known as stink bugs.
The gases released by stink bugs indeed smell terrible.
And also carry a certain toxicity.
In a fight, ten stink bugs wouldn¡¯t stand a chance against a single ground beetle.
They are the ¡®bantam fighters¡¯ among the ground beetles.
The ground beetles crawling on the ground were obviously bred and enhanced by an Insect Master.
Their mandibles had evolved extreme biting strength, and they had developed venom nds in their mouths.
That was the most frightening part.
Once they bit someone, they immediately injected their venom.
¡°My god, the weakest are Grade Two ground beetles, most are Grade Three, and their numbers are so vast.¡±
Qin Niu felt a wave of numbness in his scalp.
Insect warfare has two developmental directions.
One is to win through quality, breeding insects so tough that they are impervious to weapons and resistant to elements, with great mobility and toxicity. To possess just one could allow one to snatch the enemy leader with ease, as easy as reaching into a bag.
Even Buddha, back in the day, was once stung by Scorpion Spirit.
This serves to illustrate how terrifying the toxicity of insects can be.
The second direction is to win through numbers.
On top of having a certain quality, breeding arge number of insect swarms to reach a terrifying figure.
This approach is equally horrifying.
Especially against ordinary humans and skilled fighters, it is almost guaranteed sess.
When ites to explosive reproduction, the Termite Queen of Qin Niu was second to none, and likely no other insect would dare im to be first.
Chapter 253 - 246 One-Sided Slaughter s
Chapter 253: Chapter 246 One-Sided ughter s
He needed time, and even more so, a mass of resources to cultivate the Ant Queen and assist the evolution of its Breeding Skill once again.
A daily production of a thousand eggs was already quite impressive.
For those bugs that produced only a few hundred or even just a few eggs in their lifetime, it was considered high yield.
Butpared to some insects with particrly strong breeding capabilities, it still couldn¡¯t form an overwhelming advantage.
At the moment, facing an army of Labu beetles like a tide, Qin Niu walked with ease, as if entering a realm without insects.
Wherever he passed, the Labu beetle swarm either parted to the sides or turned on one another.
The rest were simply overwhelmed by the fierce Termite Army.
The Termite Army at this moment was even more ferocious than the dreaded Army Ants and moved with greater speed.
This time, the Termite Army participating in closebat was primarilyposed of the newest types of soldiers.
There were only a very few of the earlier Grade Two termites.
Because the termites from the initial batch had basically developed abilities for mental attack or mental control.
Qin Niu treasured them dearly and would not let them engage in closebat with the enemy unless it was absolutely necessary.
Among the many ant species, the Grade Three Lightning Poison Bomb Worker Ants were particrly dazzling.
Not only were they fast movers, but they could also spray venom to attack the enemy, and they possessed a super strong biting force.
The Labu beetle¡¯s shell seemed quite fragile before them.
Almost biting through with each attempt.
The most formidable part was their ability to spray venom. Their venom contained both neurotoxins and corrosive toxins, a mix of poisons.
When getting close to the enemy, they often sprayed venom at the Labu beetles¡¯ eyes and antennae.
Even the Grade Three Labu beetles were powerless in front of this ¡®hidden weapon¡¯ and fell victim one after another.
Besides, the Grade Three Dark Poison Ants, Grade Three Tiger-striped Soldier Ants, Grade Three Green Carapace Giant Worker Ants-each of these soldier types had its unique characteristics.
All of them had the ability to prate armor.
The Labu beetle¡¯s agility and carapace, these two advantages, were precisely countered by them.
Moreover, the Labu beetles¡¯ biting force was nowhere near that of these specialized Grade Three termites. Oncebat ensued, it was truly like destroying dry weeds and smashing rotten wood,pletely one-sided.
It turned into a one-sided massacre.
Qin Niu hadn¡¯t expected his termites to be so formidable against the strongest among the beetle types, the Labu beetles.
At this instant, he truly witnessed the terrifyingbat strength of the termites.
In the past, when leading the Termite Army, they faced particrly powerful enemies. It was either the Corpse Bee or the Grade Four or Five Steel-winged Wild Bees. Being suppressed was only to be expected.
Aerial forces naturally suppress infantry.
Termites actually had aerial forces; Breeder Ants had wings and could fly. It¡¯s just that their flying capability was very ordinary.
Also, the main task of Breeder Ants was reproduction, notbat.
Therefore, the possibility of termites evolving an aerial force was quite slim.
Their evolutionary direction was mainly infantry.
The Labu beetles also had wings, but their flying capability was lousy, nowhere nearparable to wasps and honeybees.
When they fought termites on the ground, they had no advantage at all, and countless Labu beetles were ughtered.
The termites themselves had already been trained on the battlefield.
It was clear that these Labu beetles were novices freshly deployed to the battlefield. Oncebat began, their inexperience showed at every turn.
The termites, on the other hand, grew stronger as they fought, and their cooperative synergy far surpassed that of the Labu beetles.
Though the Labu beetle army was vast in number, they fought individually, like scattered sands.
The termites, however, were more like a well-trained army.
In battle, the trained against the uncoordinated, the oues were entirely different.
In just a moment, Qin Niu had sessfully reached the wooden house.
With one kick, he broke through the tightly shut wooden door. Inside, several soldiers holding torches were fighting against a terrible swarm of insects. The toon leader¡¯s cultivation should have reached the first level of the Acquired Realm, but facing these tiny insects, it was his worst nightmare.
One sword strike could kill a few insects, but more would likely take the opportunity to crawl onto him.
Being bitten by even one insect would result in immediate poisoning.
On the groundy three bodies, and two others were writhing in agony, bleeding from all orifices.
The dense swarm of insects engulfed these two as well.
The three bodies were also overwhelmed by the swarm, with only their contours barely visible.
Labu beetles were omnivorous insects; they also consumed flesh.
After killing a person, they would directly gnaw on the body.
They were veritable demons.
As soon as Qin Niu burst in, he immediately set about exterminating the swarm inside the house. The pressure on the four surviving soldiers was immediately relieved.
In just a short while, Qin Niu sessfully rescued the four soldiers.
¡°Thank you for saving our lives, Master Qin! I am Luo Wanglei, and I will never forget Master Qin¡¯s grace in saving our lives,¡± the leading toon leader thanked Qin Niu.
¡°We¡¯re all subjects of the ck Tiger Gang, and it¡¯s only right to help each other out. You don¡¯t have to be formal, Lord Luo. This swarm of insects is unusual and numerous; it¡¯s likely the enemy deployed them. Who knows how many civilians have been harmed along their path.¡±
Qin Niu wasn¡¯t afraid.
But the insects left people and livestock poisoned wherever they went.
¡°We¡¯re about to report this to the higher-ups immediately. There¡¯s an Insect Master at the military base who should have a way to deal with these insects. Master Qin, we shall meet againter.¡±
¡°Wait, you have horses, help me take someone away.¡±
Qin Niu was still concerned about the old woman who ran the inn.
When he arrived at the inn with the soldiers, the old woman had already fallen victim to the poison.
People hid inside therge iron pot in the kitchen, but the wooden lid failed to fend off the attack of the Army Ants.
Her death was a tragic sight, with numerous Army Ants gnawing at her corpse.
Witnessing this, Qin Niu clenched his fists.
In war between armies, innocent civilians should not be harmed.
Yet the Nine Insect Gang specialized in harming the people, acting like demons.
¡°I¡¯ll take you to a safe ce.¡±
Qin Niu led several soldiers to an area the insect swarm had not yet reached. ¡°Master Qin,e with us! With your abilities, you would surely achieve great military exploits on the battlefield.¡±
¡°I cannot join the army just yet, you all hurry along! Those insects move very fast and will soon reach this area.¡±
The insect swarm¡¯s advance had a certain order to it.
Wherever there was a path, they would follow it.
Upon detecting the scent of humans, they would immediately surround and attack.
¡°Take care! Until we meet again!¡±
Luo Wanglei mounted his horse and, along with the four surviving soldiers, quickly departed.
After seeing them off, Qin Niu turned and headed in the opposite direction of the insect horde¡¯s advance.
He was determined to eliminate the enemy Insect Master and avenge the elderly woman.
The swarm hade from the direction of the Tianshui River.
Following the path of the swarm, he arrived at the riverbank only to see arge number of Army Ants floating on the river surface.
They drifted downstream and, upon reaching the shore, crawled onto thend.
This suggested that the enemy had released a massive number of Army Ants upstream on the opposite side of the river.
Most insects are afraid of water, but these Army Ants were not, which meant they were even more difficult to deal with.
Qin Niu continued along the riverbank, encountering ferocious newlynded Army Ants all the way. Theyunched attacks at him upon detecting his scent.
Unfortunately for them, Qin Niu was protected by the Termite Army and was not afraid of them at all.
Eventually, finding the pace of progress too slow, Qin Niu had his Poison Ants mimic the scent of the Army Ants to mask his human smell.
The trick worked wonders.
The Army Ants no longer attacked Qin Niu, ignoring him as if he were a big living man invisible like the Steel-winged Wild Bee.
Qin Niu executed the Misty Rain Traceless Step and ran swiftly forward.
The swarm was evenrger than he had imagined, stretching two to three kilometers along the river surface.
How many Army Ants could there be?
The Insect Master of the Nine Insect Gang was so formidable that he could annihte the ck Tiger Gang with just a massive swarm of insects, without needing soldiers to take action.
As the number of Army Ants on the river surface gradually diminished, Qin Niu knew he was nearing the end.
He immediately slowed down, advancing stealthily under the cover of night.
Soon, with his keen hearing, he faintly heard voicesing from the opposite side of the river.
Looking over, shadows flickered across the river, with lights twinkling.
There were quite a few people active on the other side.
Now deep into the night, these people surely wouldn¡¯t be idling around for fun by the riverbank.
Separated by the wide river, Qin Niu could do nothing about those people on the opposite side.
He hid in the dark, quietly observing.
The lights barely revealed arge number of boats gathering on the opposite shore.
¡± What are they trying to do?¡±
He was astonished.
He hadn¡¯t expected to encounter such significant military intelligence upon his return to the ck Tiger Gang.
Judging by their movements, they were probably nning to cross the river andunch a night raid.
Even without understanding military strategy, Qin Niu realized the gravity of the situation.
The Shennong Sect was bordered by the ck Tiger Gang across the Tianshui River, and with this natural barrier, the ck Tiger Gang only needed to station a small team of soldiers for sentry duty along the riverbank.
If the Shennong Sectunched a night raid, once they crossed the river, they would catch the ck Tiger Gangpletely off guard.
A strike from Luoshui Town, although a considerable distance from ck Tiger City, would prate directly into the hearnd of the ck Tiger Gang.
An expanse of fertilend would fall entirely into the hands of the Shennong Sect.
Once the Shennong Sect¡¯s armies established their foothold here, reiming lost ground would be more difficult for the ck Tiger Gang than ascending to the heavens.
This attack method of the Shennong Sect is quite despicable. They first release arge number of Army Ants to clear out the civilians and guards along the riverbank, creating an uninhabited zone, then cross the river at night for a surprise attack, naturally without worrying about being discovered. By the time the ck Tiger Gang realizes an army isunching a sneak attack, the enemy will have already taken over the entire hearnd of the ck Tiger Gang. Merely with thendlords, Protectors, and family guards from each vige and town, they wouldn¡¯t be able to resist the enemy¡¯s advancing army.
I must hurry and notify the upper echelons of the ck Tiger Gang.¡±
Without further observation, Qin Niu quickly departed.
It would take about two days to reach ck Tiger City from Luoshui Town.
By then, the opportunity would be long lost.
Luo Wanglei had taken four soldiers to deliver the message, which meant there must be an army stationed locally.
Following the direction Luo Wanglei and the others had left in, Qin Niu ran at breakneck speed.
The proficiency level of his Misty Rain Traceless Step was also increasing rapidly.
He grew faster, and his figure became more blurred, turning into a lingering afterimage.
Cries of agony and screams came from up ahead.
One could tell it was the wailing of people fleeing for their lives.
Many, upon discovering the invasion of poisonous insects, fled their homes overnight, desperately running ahead with children, the elderly, and spouses in tow.
Chapter 254 - 247 Bai Xuezhu 1
Chapter 254: Chapter 247 Bai Xuezhu 1
Along the Tianshui River, the terrain is t, and the fields are fertile.
Manymon folks live here.
Over seventy percent of the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s food supplyes from this region.
On such a crucial piece of territory, no matter how strained their military forces are, the ck Tiger Gang cannot afford not to station troops for defense.
There must be arge army encamped nearby.
Along the way, Qin Niu saw quite a few corpses of themon people.
Some were holding children and trying to flee, likely overtaken by the Termite because they were too slow, bitten down to the ground.
Until their dying breath, they protected the child tightly beneath them.
But it was all in vain.
Both adults and children were killed by the Termite, their bodies now being consumed.
The Termite¡¯s appetite is astonishing, their nature savage; just six Termite could clean out an earthworm as thick as a pinkie finger in thirty minutes.
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help these refugeemoners.
The insect swarm was too vast, and his force of twenty thousand white ants was akin to pouring a cup of water on a cartload of burning hay.
What he sought was the local defending army, not these fleeingmoners.
He ran about twenty li in one go, when morous noise up ahead mixed with the whinnying of horses and the flickering of many torches could be faintly discerned.
Qin Niu spected that it was likely the army stationed along this battle line.
He immediately rushed toward that location.
¡°Who goes there?¡±
The ck Tiger Gang¡¯s military discipline was strict; even in the dead of night upon learning of the insect invasion, they still appeared well-trained.
They were on full alert.
Qin Niu was still a kilometer away from the army camp when he was spotted by a sentry.
¡°Insect Master Qin Niu, with urgent military intelligence to report, please take me to see your general immediately.¡±
If it weren¡¯t for Qin Niu¡¯s abilities, it would have been impossible for anyone to realize that the enemy was preparing tounch a night raid on Luoshui Town, striking deep into the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory.
¡°Your waist token!¡±
A sentry stepped forward to check his waist token, then leaned in to take a closer look at his face.
¡°Follow me.¡±
Most of these soldiers were blunt men, and they spoke very directly.
Leading Qin Niu to the camp, many men here were holding torches, lining up and preparing to set out.
¡°Wait here, I¡¯ll go and report to the general.¡±
The sentry entered thergest tent in the center.
It wasn¡¯t long before he came out.
¡°The General invites you!¡±
Qin Niu directly entered the main army tent, where a man in his forties dressed in white, with a schrly look, a square face andrge ears, clothed in a silver armor and wearing a cape made from tiger skin, sat at the desk.
Inside there were also several deputy generals seated on both sides.
Their expressions were all very grave.
¡°Insect Master Qin Niu pays his respects to the generals.¡±
¡°No need for formalities. What military intelligence does Master Qin bring?¡±
The man in the silver armor spoke unhurriedly, his tone gentle yet emanating an extreme pressure.
He was much more imposing than Young Master Fang.
His gaze was piercing as if he could see right through a person at a nce.
Qin Niu had many secrets and dared not meet the man¡¯s eyes.
Moreover, when he sensed the man¡¯s cultivation, it was unfathomable.
Not knowing the depths of the opponent indicated that the silver-armored general¡¯s cultivation was truly terrifying.
Evenpared to the five old ancestors of the Fang Family, he was not much inferior.
¡°On the banks of the Tianshui River in Luoshui Town, I discovered enemy forces gathering boats on the opposite shore, likely preparing to cross the river by night and mount a surprise attack on our ck Tiger Gang.¡±
¡°Have you seen clearly? How many are in the enemy army? Is it Shennong Sect¡¯s army, or are they together with the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s army?¡±
The silver-armored General faced the news, his originally calm andposed face showing a surge of ripples.
Not to mention the other deputy generals, many of whom changed colour.
¡°The number of the enemy troops is unclear, but when 1 observed, there were at least a hundred ships. Before this, the enemy released arge number of Termite warriors from the river surface. They bite on sight, move quickly, and are highly poisonous. Therefore, I specte that there may be an Insect Master from the Nine Insect Gang assisting within the enemy forces.¡±
Qin Niu faithfully reported his observations.
¡°Hmm, you¡¯ve done very well. This intelligence is extremely important to us. It was you who saved Luo Wanglei and others who escaped from Luoshui Town, wasn¡¯t it?¡±
¡°Yes!¡±
Qin Niu readily admitted.
¡°At such a young age, Master Qin Niu must possess great skills to move freely within the swarms of enemy insects. Right now, battle is imminent, and there must be a fight tonight. Facing the enemy army head-on, 1 and my soldiers are not afraid. However, when ites to dealing with those detestable insects, our soldiers might be insufficient. 1 have a presumptuous request, asking Master Qin Niu to enter our army and assist us in repelling the enemy.
Let¡¯s leave the enemy¡¯s insects to you Insect Masters to deal with, while 1 and my soldiers will handle the enemy forces.¡±
The silver-armored General spoke very politely to Qin Niu.
Even though he was temporarily conscripting Qin Niu into the army, he used the word ¡°please.¡±
¡°Could you possibly be Lord Bai Xuezhu?¡±
Upon hearing this man im his surname was Bai, the only person Qin Niu could think of was the legendary figure, Bai Xuezhu.
This man had climbed the ranks within the army through practicing the Iron Cloth Technique, amon skill, ultimately bing one of the Deputy Gang Leaders of the ck Tiger Gang.
Such big shots, each held immense power.
¡°Haha, indeed, it is I, Bai!¡±
¡°I have no problem helping to repel the enemy tonight, but there are still many matters at home 1 haven¡¯t settled. I beseech Lord Bai to allow me to return home after the battle ends.¡±
¡°Agreed.¡±
Lord Bai was a decisive person.
He didn¡¯t hesitate and immediately nodded in agreement.
¡°When the country is in trouble, every man is responsible. After Master Qin takes care of his family matters, he can return to serve in the armyter. There is home only because there is a country. If ck Tiger Gang were defeated, then at that time, all citizens of the ck Tiger Gang would face destruction, humiliation by the enemy, with no dignity to speak of.¡±
¡°Understood!¡±
Qin Niu naturally understood this principle.
¡°Master Qin Niu will temporarily serve as a Grade Three soldier, under themand of Master He Shan¡¯s Insect Master camp. Your rescue of Luo Xinglei and others and reporting the critical military intelligence of the enemy preparing to cross the river for a night raid will all be recorded as merit, to be rewarded after the battle.¡±
¡°Thank you, Lord Bai!¡±
Qin Niu, well-versed in human rtions, smartly omitted the ¡°Deputy¡± from Deputy City Lord.
¡°This is Master He Shan, one of the top Insect Masters of the ck Tiger Gang.¡±
Deputy City Lord Bai then introduced Master He Shan to Qin Niu.
¡°I¡¯ve seen Master He Shan!¡±
¡°Dispense with the formalities! How many Termite warriors are at the front? What are their characteristics? Tell me everything you know.¡±
Master He Shan was an old man with white hair and beard.
He seemed unsightly with his high cheekbones and onerge brown birthmark on the left side of his face.
He had several Insect Bags hanging around his waist, and a bamboo tube on his back that also likely contained insects.
For an Insect Master, the most formidable weapon was their insects, not swords.
¡°The number of Termite warriors should far exceed a million. As for their characteristics, I¡¯ve captured a few and can give two to Master He Shan.¡±
Qin Niu took out a metal cage, which held more than ten Termite warriors.
They were all Grade Three Termite warriors.
He had intended to capture them for research purposes.
Thebat capabilities of the Termite warriors were worth investigating in many aspects.
¡°Excellent!¡±
Master He Shan immediately took out a jar, which appeared to be made of crystal-clear ss.
¡°Are they all Grade Three Termite warriors?¡±
¡°Not all. The weakest are Grade Two Termite warriors..¡±
Chapter 255 - 248 Spirit Trapping Formation 1
Chapter 255: Chapter 248 Spirit Trapping Formation 1
¡°Can I take away three of them?¡±
¡°Just take them, if it¡¯s not enough, you can still catch more. There¡¯s plenty to go around.¡±
Qin Niu was very generous.
¡°You just need to open the door of the cage!¡±
Master He Shan signaled.
Qin Niu opened a small slit in the cage door, intending to let Termite control three armored crawlers into the other party¡¯s jar. But Master He Shan had already made the first move.
With the jar in his right hand, the five fingers of his left hand were drawing imaginary lines towards the armored crawlers in the metal cage.
Muttering under his breath, ¡°Come,e,e!¡±
Neither more nor less, after saying the word e¡¯ three times, three armored crawlers lined up and entered the other party¡¯s insect jar.
The other armored crawlers in the metal cage became unusually quiet.
You can tell an expert by his first move.
This Master He Shan had managed to control over a dozen Grade Three armored crawlers without making a sound.
He was definitely a master of controlling insects.
¡°Master He Shan has impressive skills, I¡¯m in awe!¡±
Qin Niuplimented sincerely.
¡°You tter me, Master Qin Niu.¡±
Master He Shan did not look down on Qin Niu either. Being able to move freely among the hordes of Grade Two and Three armored crawlers, just this alone meant that Qin Niu was no ordinary Insect Master.
After taking away three armored crawlers, Master He Shan casually grabbed one with his hand.
Pfft!
Pfft!
Pfft!
The armored crawler was not tame and immediately began to struggle with bared fangs and ws, releasing three consecutive farts from its tail end.
Every time it farted, a puff of white smoke sprayed out from the tip of its backside.
Ordinary armored crawlers would excrete formic acid or quinones as defensive substances from their anal nds, a natural attack abilitymon to all adult specimens.
If you¡¯re not careful while catching them, you can easily fall victim to it.
If their poison gas hits your hand, it¡¯s not just unbearable skin pain, but if it gets in your eyes, that¡¯s terrifying.
It could end up causing blindness.
¡°Shell defenses are weak, speed is several times faster than ordinary armored crawlers, they can swim in water, and behind the mandibles, there are even evolved poison nds. That must be their biggest highlight.¡±
Master He Shan casually took out a small wooden stick and brought it close to the armored crawler¡¯s mandibles.
It immediately bit down hard.
Crack!
¡°The biting force is ordinary, but it¡¯s more than enough to pierce human skin and flesh.¡±
He pulled out the wooden stick and then brought it up to his nose to smell.
¡°The venom is moderate, capable of causing the victim¡¯s heart to swell and burst in a short time, leading to death with blood flowing from every orifice. What¡¯s most terrifying is that the poison nds refill quickly with venom after a bite. By sucking fresh blood and gnawing on the flesh, it only takes about a quarter of an hour to refill. This creature is specifically bred to kill, truly vicious.¡±
Master He Shan¡¯s ability to identify insects seems to be even better than that of Master Hu.
Real experts never show themselves openly.
Chairman Li of the Insect Master Association and Master Hu might just be the mundane persona that the authorities want people to see.
This was something Qin Niu had begun to suspect after his encounter with Old Master Huang.
Because no matter how weak the ck Tiger Gang was, it couldn¡¯t possibly have just that little insect mastery power.
Otherwise, considering the brutality and greed of the Nine Insect Gang, they would have probably attacked the ck Tiger Gang long ago.
cing Old Master Huang in ck Tiger City as an undercover agent was probably also to find out the true insect mastery strength of the ck Tiger Gang.
However, Old Master Huang got greedy after meeting Qin Niu.
He probably thought Qin Niu was weak and could be easily controlled, so without hesitation, he chose to take action.
Unexpectedly, Qin Niu looked weak, but he had an abundance of hidden strengths and ultimately, even killed Old Master Huang.
Not long after Old Master Huang died, the Nine Insect Gang dered war on the ck Tiger Gang.
Is there a direct rtionship between the two?
Logically, the Nine Insect Gang wouldn¡¯t dere war on another sect just because an inner hall Executor died.
This matter could be a coincidence.
Or perhaps the death of Old Master Huang led the Nine Insect Gang to mistakenly believe their cover was blown. In light of the ck Tiger Gang not yet being fully prepared, they chose to strike first to gain the upper hand.
The Nine Insect Gang couldn¡¯t have dreamed that it wasn¡¯t the higher-ups of the ck Tiger Gang who killed Old Master Huang, but a mountain vige youth.
Moreover, this youth had no interest in the affairs of the martial factions and didn¡¯t even think to report Old Master Huang¡¯s death to the ck Tiger Gang.
In the dark, everything seemed like fate.
Time and again, due to a series of fortuitous mishaps, Qin Niu foiled the good fortunes of the Nine Insect Gang.
If one believed in destiny, Qin Niu might well have been preordained as the bane of the Nine Insect Gang.
¡°This insect seems only interested in the scent of humans. To raise such creatures, one must feed themrge amounts of human flesh and blood. Such methods are very much like those of Elder Jiu Yin of the Nine Insect Gang. It¡¯s very likely that Elder Jiu Yin has already arrived.¡±
Master He Shan¡¯s eyes flickered with the light of wisdom.
Inferring so much information from just one insect, this was the sign of a true expert.
And he seemed quite familiar with the Insect Masters of the Nine Insect Gang.
¡°Jiu Yin hase? To prompt the Nine Insect Gang to dispatch an elder, the ns for this battle must be grand indeed! Not long ago, they tried tounch a surprise attack from Wash Crime River, but theirmander, Song Zan, was unexpectedly killed by a mysterious person, exposing their scheme.
Now they¡¯ve chosen tounch a stealth attack by crossing the river at Tianshui Town, in the territory of the Shennong Sect. Their audacity knows no bounds.¡±
Excitement tinged Bai Xuezhu¡¯s tone.
Looking towards Master He Shan.
¡°Old He, we¡¯ve fought against the Nine Insect Gang at the frontlines so many times, constantly being led by the nose. This time, having discovered their sneak attack n in advance, should we not make a big move, to raise our spirits and boost morale?¡±
Bai Xuezhu, leading an army in battle, seemed to have always been on the losing end against the Nine Insect Gang.
Mainly because the Nine Insect Gang was very fond of ambushes.
Attacking from here today, striking from another direction tomorrow.
Every assault resulted in either massacring a vige or piging the local area.
The number of young women taken captive was untold.
Their fate was certainly extremely tragic.
¡°Lord Bai means, to eliminate the invading enemy troops?¡±
¡°Merely killing some ordinary soldiers does not do justice to our in kinsfolk. If Jiu Yin has trulye, shouldn¡¯t we set our sights higher and directly take out Elder Jiu Yin? It would be akin to severing an arm of the Nine Insect Gang.¡± Bai Xuezhu indeed had the disposition for grand endeavors.
His goals were set remarkably high.
¡°Elder Jiu Yin is one of the top-ranking elders of the Nine Insect Gang, not only in cultivation but also in nurturing formidable insects. He is also protected by twelve prime disciples, four of whom are at the protector level, and six have be executors of the Nine Insect Gang. Killing him will be extremely difficult,¡± Master He Shan said, showing signs of second thoughts.
An Insect Master understands another Insect Master better.
Elder Jiu Yin was not just a powerhouse but also a formidable Insect Master.
With twelve prime disciples to guard him, killing him seemed too challenging.
Worse still, Vice City Lord Bai and Master He Shan might end up being the ones who failed.
¡°At the very least, it¡¯s worth a try; he¡¯s a big fish after all. If I set up the Spirit Trapping Formation in advance, trapping him will be tantamount to forcing Jiu Yin onto a stage of life and death,¡± Bai Xuezhu said, undeterred.
¡°Lord Bai can already set up a Spirit Trapping Formation? That requires at least the ability tomand spirits, right? It seems your cultivation has broken through significantly! No wonder you aim to directly ughter Elder Jiu Yin,¡± Master He Shan said, full of shock.
His expression also revealed deep envy.
Be it an Insect Master, a Beast Tamer, or even a Master of Herbology¡ no matter how revered the profession, their core power undeniably lies in their own cultivation.
Qin Niu had just entered the Innate Realm and knew nothing of the level required to manipte spirits.
Bai Xuezhu was certainly at least a major realm above him.
To cultivate to the Innate Realm, one merely sets half a foot through the Immortal Gate; whether one could enter was still a question.
Only reaching the next major realm would count like having half one¡¯s body through the Immortal Gate.
Bai Xuezhu, the five venerable ancestors of the Fang Family, and even Master He Shan might already be at that major realm.
Master He Shan¡¯s cultivation was likely much weaker than Bai Xuezhu¡¯s.
Because Qin Niu could faintly sense a whiff of Master He Shan¡¯s cultivation aura.
He was possibly at the peak of the Innate Realm.
Yet even so, that was very powerful.
Qin Niu was just at the Initial Stage of the Innate Realm, far behind them.
¡°All, it¡¯s a bit embarrassing, since my advancement to the Spirit Qi Realm and a whole sixty years of arduous cultivation, I¡¯ve only recently made a minor breakthrough. Compared to those prodigies of the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect, my talents are truly dull,¡± Bai Xuezhu said, disying genuine humility..
Chapter 256 - 249: Double-Headed Lion?_i
Chapter 256: Chapter 249: Double-Headed Lion?_i
Qin Niu pricked up his ears to listen, for usually, touching upon such profound cultivation knowledge was very difficult.
It turned out that after reaching the Innate Realm, the next level was the Spirit Qi Realm.
The books asionally mentioned Spirit Masters who could control swords to eliminate demons, likely referring to this very realm.
What kind of miraculous realm was that?
¡°After breaking through to the Spirit Qi Realm, every subsequent breakthrough is like a chasm in the heavens. You have broken through three realms in just sixty years, which is already monstrously impressive. As for the disciples of the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect, many of them have the lingering influence of their parents and a plethora of resources at their disposal, which is why they can meet the selection criteria of the sect before the age of sixty. We grassroots folks have to fight for everything ourselves, so naturally, we can¡¯tpare to them,¡±
Master He Shan¡¯s eyes were filled with longing as he mentioned the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect.
Almost every cultivator ultimately aspired to enter the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect.
But entrance to the Immortal Gate is difficult, and those lucky enough to be epted by the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect are few and far between.
One must admit that having a good father at birth can save one thirty years, or even fifty or sixty years, of struggle.
For those with an Immortal Master as a parent, first and foremost, they can practice the highest-quality cultivation techniques from the start, and if there¡¯s anything they don¡¯t understand, they have guidance. This alone is something that many people might not achieve even after thirty years of hard work.
Then, when they encounter bottlenecks in their cultivation, parents will definitely find a way to obtain elixirs that can help break through these boundaries.
Qin Niu, thanks to a single elixir, had broken through directly from the Acquired Realm to the Innate Realm.
This was enviable good luck that made countlessmoners weep.
But to those children whose parents were already Immortal Masters, this was nothing at all.
No exaggeration, some second-generation immortals could literally treat Boundary-breaking Elixirs like snacks and munch on a couple whenever they pleased.
In this world, being a rich or official second-generation doesn¡¯t count as true nobility.
But to be a second-generation immortal definitely means defeating 99.999% of people from the moment of birth.
Beyond cultivation techniques and elixirs, there¡¯s also the cultivation environment to consider.
The children of Immortal Masters, if not practicing in naturally spirit Qi-abundant blessednds, would at least cultivate in man-made environments like the Fang Family Forbidden Land.
The spirit Qi there is several times denser than in the outside world.
Moreover, dragons beget dragons, phoenixes beget phoenixes, and the son of a mouse will be good at digging holes.
Immortal Masters themselves are exceedingly exceptional beings, so their offspring are naturally gifted as well.
It¡¯s hard to believe that any Immortal Master would randomly choose a mortal-level beauty as apanion.
As for temporary pleasures, that¡¯s another matter entirely.
Normally, even an emperor would consult with a eunuch before indulging in a moment of pleasure, asking whether to keep or not to keep the favoreddy.
If the emperor says not to keep, then the eunuch will take that woman to be cleansed and to take medicine.
Her chances of bearing offspring are almost none.
Immortal Masters needn¡¯t be mentioned; even if tempted by pleasure, they wouldn¡¯t easily impregnate a mortal woman.
What¡¯s more, many Immortal Masters are devoted to cultivating diligently, busy concocting elixirs, cultivating medicinal herbs, searching for those herbs, taming beast pets, focusing on improving their cultivation, and practicing martial arts, with little time for indulgence.
There are rumors that genuine cultivators in pursuit of eternal life are typically detached and serene, devoted to quiet cultivation.
For indulgence in pleasure would ruin one¡¯s Dao heart.
In this regard, whether orthodox cultivators or heretic ones, they are much the same.
Assuming that all demonic cultivators indulge in pleasures of the flesh and kidnap beauties for their enjoyment is something only an idiot would think.
Real demonic cultivators are all ruthless and detached, focused solely on bing stronger.
¡°No time to dy,manders heed mymand! Qi Fei, Peng Tianlei, you two lead your soldiers and envelop the enemy from both nks. Fang Yue, Gao Zongzheng, Sheng Fan, the three of you lead your soldiers to block the powerful enemy at the front. Master He Shan, youmand the Insect Master regiment and deal with all the insects on the battlefield. The remainingmanders, join me inying an ambush, and strive to annihte the encroaching enemy in one fell swoop,¡±
Bai Xuezhu issued the battlemands.
This left Qin Niu, who hadn¡¯t had his fill of listening, feeling quite regretful.
¡°Yang JiangHe, Zhao Yu, Tang Fangfang, immediately gather your Insect Masters under yourmand and follow me into battle. Qin Niu, you shall temporarily stay close to me as a small soldier, in case of danger, I can look after you a bit.¡±
Master He Shan was quite protective of Qin Niu.
Qin Niu¡¯s current identity was just that of a third-rate soldier, far inferior to those three named Insect Masters.
However, when it came to true strength, Qin Niu might not be weaker than them.
He followed closely behind Master He Shan, and together they left the central military tent.
¡°The young man actually has quite good body movement techniques, and his cultivation has even reached the Innate Realm, which is somewhat surprising to me. The Nine Insect Gang has dispatched an elder this time, and the insects used on the battlefield will certainly not be limited to just the armored insects. You must not be careless. The insects of Elder Jiu Yin are extremely powerful, to say nothing of the beasts of his twelve great disciples, each of which is extraordinary.
¡°Stick close to me, and once you have seen their tactics for yourself, you¡¯ll be better prepared for the next time you face them.¡±
Master He Shan was extremely protective of his new recruit.
And think about it, a promising young talent like Qin Niu was very hard to find.
The enemy that hade this time was unexpectedly strong, and any mishap would be a great loss for the ck Tiger Gang.
If Qin Niu were well-trained, he would surely be a fierce general in the future, formidable enough to strike terror into the hearts of enemies.
¡°Understood. Thank you, Master He Shan, for your care.¡±
Qin Niu followed closely behind Master He Shan.
Outside, the Insect Master battalion had already formed up.
There were about two hundred of them.
It should not exceed three hundred.
Insect Masters were,paratively speaking, a rather scarce upation.
Just here alone there were two hundred seventy or eighty Insect Masters, so the ck Tiger Gang as a whole must have had over a thousand.
In recent times, there had been continuous assassinations of Insect Masters.
It seemed like a great loss on the surface, but in reality, those who died were likely just small fry.
For example, Master Mo Sang was already considered a very formidable presence among the lower-ranking Insect Masters.
But looking around, many of these two hundred plus Insect Masters were powerful and had cold eyes.
Just from their aura, one could tell they were experts.
There were at least forty or fifty practitioners in the Acquired Realm. Many had reached the peak of the Mortal Realm, with strong bodies and agile movements.
¡°Move out!¡±
Master He Shan wasted no time with superfluous words and led the Insect Masters out.
Each of them had a warhorse.
There were also a few whose mounts were special, like fierce wild beasts such as tigers or wolves.
Qin Niu was quite envious; his little Xiao Niu was still nowhere nearplete evolution. Having a mount made travel and battle much more convenient.
It also greatly increased the chance of escape when fleeing.
¡°Qin Niu, you ride this warhorse.¡±
Master He Shan¡¯s mount was a very majestic lion.
Its neck sported arge lump of flesh that was quite unsightly.
But Qin Niu was reminded of the legendary Double-Headed Lion.
Every beast, once cultivated, could evolve.
Master He Shan¡¯s lion might very well have the bloodline of the Double-Headed Lion, already starting to evolve towards it..
Chapter 257 - 250 Horsemanships
Chapter 257: Chapter 250 Horsemanships
Mounts, for themon folk, are dispensable.
However, for a powerful being, a mount is an indispensable and importantpanion. Even when one ascends to the level of immortals, mounts are equally vital.
In ancient times, those mighty experts with profound magical powers each had their mounts.
Many, like Master He Shan, started to rear their mounts while their cultivation was still shallow, nurturing them over a long period.
¡°When one man gains Tao, even his chicken and dogs ascend to heaven.¡±
This phrase is often used to describe how the rtives and friends of a person who climbs up thedder benefit as well.
The earliest source is actually referring to Liu An, who, after sessfully concocting the Immortal Pill, not only became immortal himself but also fed the elixir to the chickens and dogs he raised, aiding their ascension.
This is merely a legend.
In the cultivation world, every Elixir is incredibly precious, making it highly unlikely to be used for feeding chickens and dogs.
When people rear pets, they opt for exotic beasts and birds with outstanding potential.
With the same Elixir, feeding an ordinary chicken might evolve it one or two levels. It may have been unable to beat a dog before, but following its transformation, it can.
But if you feed a Five-Colored Brocade Chicken, it might transform directly into a Demon Bird, possibly even awakening a Phoenix bloodline.
The ratio of investment to return can be quite impressive.
¡°Master He¡¯s mount is extraordinary, majestic and dominating. Did you
directly subdue this exotic beast?¡±
Qin Niu asked with evident envy.
¡°Speaking of which, it was also a matter of fate. In my younger days, as I
wandered through the cultivation markets, I saw a small lion confined in a cage for sale. It looked pitiful, so I spent twenty Silver Money to buy it. Heh, little did I expect that after taking the little fellow home, it showed remarkable qualities, and with just a bit of nurturing, it underwent a transformation.¡±
Master He Shan spoke of his mount with considerable pride.
¡°To acquire an exotic beast for just twenty Silver Money, such profound fortune is enough to make others weep with envy. I see it bears a resemnce to the Double-Headed Lion, which is a rare species in the world.¡±
It goes without saying, everyone has their own destiny.
The calf that Qin Niu saved was equally extraordinary.
¡°Haha, young man, you have a good eye indeed! To recognize at a nce that it has the bloodline of a Double-Headed Lion many have seen my mount and called it ugly. Few really know their stuff.¡±
Master He Shan grew even more smug.
The Double-Headed Lion is indeed a rare variety among exotic beasts, but it¡¯s certainly iparable to the legendary Nine-Headed Lion.
You see, the Nine-Headed Lion was the mount of the Great Taiyi Rescue Sage, directly conferred with the title of Jiuling Yuansheng. Just like the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, it is one of the saintly beasts.
It¡¯s at the pinnacle, so to speak.
¡°Let¡¯s go, stick close to me!¡±
Seeing that the Insect Master¡¯s camp had finished assembling, Master He Shanmanded and leapt forward on his majestic lion.
This beast, truly an extraordinary breed, could leap over seven meters with a casual bound, and while galloping forward, the overwhelming fierce majesty it radiated was enough to make many ordinary mounts tremble.
This was Qin Niu¡¯s first time riding a horse.
Imitating others, he swung himself into the saddle.
¡°Neigh!¡±
The steed beneath him suddenly began behaving stubbornly, lifting its hooves and rebelling on the spot, attempting to throw him off its back.
Lucky for Qin Niu, his cultivation at the Innate Realm saved him from making a fool of himself.
Otherwise, if he were thrown off the horse andnded with a bruised and swollen face, it would have been a huge embarrassment.
¡°First time riding a horse? Squeeze with your legs, lower your body, and as long as you don¡¯t get thrown off, it will settle down after struggling for a bit,¡± said a female officer d in leather armor and draped in a white fox fur cape.
This female Insect Master was one of Master He Shan¡¯s three adjutants.
She appeared to be in her thirties and was quite dashing.
The Insect Master¡¯s camp had only three adjutants, named Yang JiangHe, Zhao Yu, and Tang Fangfang. Among the women, only Zhao Yu seemed to be a
possible name.
This female officer was most likely Zhao Yu.
¡°Thank you for the advice!¡±
Qin Niu, following the woman¡¯s instructions, lowered his body, squeezed his legs against the horse¡¯s sides, and firmly grasped the saddle with both hands. It worked like a charm, and after the horse¡¯s brief frenzy to no avail, it had no choice but to start trotting forward.
When it galloped, the ride on its back was extremely bumpy.
It was clear that it had not fully submitted, but instead tried to shake Qin Niu
off its back by running fast.
Regrettably, it encountered a strong martial artist from the Innate Realm.
Qin Niu sat on its back as if he had taken root.
No matter how it struggled, he remained as steady as Mount Tai.
After stabilizing somewhat, Qin Niu sensed that someone had been following him all along, and subconsciously turned his head to check.
He saw a female general riding a Sweaty Precious Horse behind him.
She seemed ready to intervene at any moment to save Qin Niu.
¡°As it runs, you can try to get a feel for it, moving with the rise and fall of its body, so you won¡¯t be thrown off the horseback. It will also be morefortable,¡±
she said to Qin Niu.
¡°Okay! May I ask how to address you?¡±
Qin Niu wasn¡¯t sure if she was Zhao Yu, so it was safer to ask her name first.
¡°Zhao Yu, not only a centurion but also an Insect Master.¡±
¡°A valiant female general, a woman warrior of note, truly admirable. It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you. My name is Qin Niu; I hope for your guidance.¡±
Qin Niu was not fond of socializing ordinarily.
He was low-key in his actions, used to being alone.
However, he was always willing to interact with those whose character he trusted.
The goodwill shown by this femalemander made a very good impression on him. After entering the military, there would certainly be much to learn, and having made her acquaintance would make it convenient to seek adviceter on.
¡°Pleasure¡¯s all mine!¡±
She agreed heartily.
¡°Now that you¡¯ve learned to ride, I won¡¯t follow you any longer. Just catch up with Master He Shan in front and follow him.¡±
After speaking, she gently pulled on the reins, and the Sweaty Precious Horse she was mounted on raised its hooves and stopped.
¡°Hurry up, everyone! Get ready for battle.¡±
¡°Understood!¡±
Her Insect Masters acknowledged with a roar and rushed towards her, whips in hand.
Qin Niu also whipped his mount, urging the warhorse beneath him to gallop forward. His high cultivation level gave him a solid foundation.
Despite never having learned to ride before, he soon became proficient at it.
The steed he was mounted on was a well-trained warhorse which, after being tamed by Qin Niu, gradually became docile and obedient.
For it realized that no matter how fast it ran or how high it jumped, it could never shake off the person on its back.
The sensation of riding a horse for the first time was novel, and it gave him an experience of freedom and gantry he had never had before, stirring a heroic spirit in his heart.
Master He Shan led the way, rushing at the forefront.
Behind him, dozens of Insect Masters followed on their steeds, guarding and escorting.
After earning a position in the military, one can generally establish one¡¯s own personal soldiers.
These dozens of Insect Masters were likely Master He Shan¡¯s personal troops. Qin Niu followed behind them, galloping towards the direction of Luoshui Town.
They hadn¡¯t gone far when they encounteredrge groups of refugees fleeing headlong towards them.
They were all in extreme panic.
Behind them, a great number of rabjak insects pursued and hunted them.
No one could have imagined that a tiny insect, usually so inconspicuous, could be terrifying when their numbers reached into the thousands upon thousands.
in front of them, humans became exceedingly vulnerable.
In an instant, someone could lose their life..
Chapter 258 - 251 Insect Formation i
Chapter 258: Chapter 251 Insect Formation i
¡°All warriors, heed mymand, clear the middle of the road for the civilians to pass through. We¡¯ll exterminate these insects with all our might,¡±
Master He Shan bellowed orders to his personal soldiers.
Many had already taken out their Insect Bags or various pesticides.
Some even applied the medicine on their mounts to ensure they would not be attacked by the insects.
Master He Shan, on the other hand, took off a long strip-shaped Insect Bag from his back, ¡°whoosh,¡± and directly released the insects within.
They were monstrous centipedes.
Each one as thick as an adult¡¯s pinky finger, about four to five inches long, numbering probably more than a thousand.
The centipedes¡¯ bodies were a dark red color, their shells shimmering with a metallic luster.
They were incredibly nimble; upon hitting the ground, they immediately charged into battle against the attacking Scarabeadle swarm.
Crack! Crack!
One could hear the sound of them crazily ughtering the Scarabeadles, a dense symphony of destruction.
The Scarabeadles stood no chance against them, it was a one-sided massacre.
These centipedes were mostly Grade Four insects.
Breeding over a thousand Grade Four insects was no small feat.
Many Insect Masters focus their resources on cultivating one or two insects. Ihose that cultivate several thousand insects generally have substantial wealth and possess powerful high-level insects.
Otherwise, no one would dare such extravagance.
After all, quantity is still no match for quality.
If you sessfully breed a thousand Grade IWo insects, you¡¯re still just a prospective Insect Master and not even considered a formal one.
But if you breed just one Grade Three insect, no matter how weak, you¡¯re a bona fide Insect Master.
Qin Niu had over twenty thousand Grade Three and Four termites, and that was because he had the super resource of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
Otherwise, even breeding two hundred Grade Three termites would be tough. More than a thousand Grade Four monstrous centipedes, like an invincible army, pushed forward, leaving behind piles of Scarabeadle corpses in their wake.
These centipedes had strong armor and were highly resistant to poison. The Scarabeadles¡¯ biting force was limited and couldn¡¯t breach their defenses. ¡°Master He Shan can casually bring out more than a thousand Grade Four monstrous centipedes, and these centipedes have hard-as-iron shells, at least medium-grade ones. They also have enhanced biting power, and their movements are faster than those of ordinary Grade Four monstrous centipedes. This is the foundation of a powerful Insect Master!¡±
In terms of strength, Master He Shan should still be above Old Master Huang. Back then, to take down Qin Niu, Old Master Huang had mobilized over four thousand Grade Three army ants.
While Old Master Huang¡¯s army ants numbered four thousand, they were not as formidable as Master He Shan¡¯s thousand-plus centipedes.
Theoretically, ten Grade Three insects are no match for one Grade Four insect. Any of Master He Shan¡¯s Grade Four monstrous centipedes could easily eliminate more than ten Grade Three army ants.
But then again, quantity can overwhelm quality.
If the numerical advantage reaches a certain level, it canpensate for theck of quality.
A hundred Grade Three army ants swarming together may potentially kill a Grade Four monstrous centipede.
Master He Shan led with centipedes clearing the way ahead, while other Insect Masters also used their various means to exterminate the Scarabeadles that came at them like a tide.
Unlike ordinary civilians who were utterly helpless against the Scarabeadles, Insect Masters are experts in this field, and facing these insects, they each had their ultimate tricks.
Powerful Insect Masters took the lead while the weaker ones followed to clean up.
Qin Niu was probably the most rxed of all.
Moving amidst the insect swarm, the Scarabeadles treated him and his horse as ¡®one of their own¡¯ and simply didn¡¯t attack him.
This also allowed Qin Niu to easily reach the front of the group.
¡°Qin Niu, did these Scarabeadles alle from the Tianshui River in Luoshui Town?¡±
¡°Yes, I saw it with my own eyes. They floated along the river towards us, stretching out for two kilometers,¡±
Qin Niu said.
¡°So many Scarabeadles, the number must far exceed ten million. The Nine Insect Gang benefit from an advantageous geographical environment, and in cultivating insects, we truly can¡¯tpare with them,¡±
Master He Shan spoke with a tone of envy.
So many insects were beyond his wildest dreams.
Qin Niu, however, was secretly thinking if his Ant Queen¡¯s Breeding Skill were to level up once more, how strong would it be? If it could produce ten thousand eggs a day, even if it¡¯s not quite at the level of the Elder Jiu Yin of the Nine Insect Gang, it ought to be not too far off, right?
Ten million, breeding ten thousand a day, it would take less than three years to breed over ten million.
If one day his Termite Army also had tens of millions, or even more, like these Scarabeadles, how horrifying would that be?
They could probably consume all the nts on a mountain in a single day.
But unlike locusts, they could gnaw on hard tree trunks and roots buried underground.
In terms of destructive power, they would be far more terrifying than locusts. Master He Shan noticed Qin Niu¡¯s rxed appearance by his side and couldn¡¯t help but take a surprised nce at his position.
He saw that the Scarabeadles did not attack Qin Niu¡¯s horse.
As for the person on the horse, they treated him as if he were merely air. ¡°Young man, you have some tricks! These Scarabeadles have no hostility towards you, which is quite remarkable.¡±
You tter me! I just happen to have some aptitude in this area,¡±
Qin Niu replied modestly.
Killing these Scarabeadles one by one is quiteborious, isn¡¯t there another way?¡±
He thought that for Master He Shan to lead his men to sh head-on with the Scarabeadles was not the act of a wise man.
At this rate of progress, they might not reach Luoshui Town by daybreak. By then, the enemy would havepleted their sneak attack and be drinking to celebrate their victory.
¡°What are your bright ideas?¡±
Master He Shan asked.
¡°These Rab Armor are afraid of fire and there are a lot of them. Couldn¡¯t we lure them into a confined space and then burn them all with fire?¡±
Qin Niu never considered the morality of his actions.
As long as it could eliminate the enemy, he would use whatever method worked best.
If you really had to fight honorably and face-to-face on the battlefield, exterminating the countless Rab Armor one by one, you¡¯d almost have to be brain-damaged.
An excellent n! Let¡¯s follow your suggestion.¡±
Upon hearing this, Master He Shan¡¯s eyes lit up.
It was like waking someone from a dream; just before, all he had thought about was the immense threat the Rab Armor posed to the civilians.
That¡¯s why he had been intent on exterminating them all.
The method Qin Niu proposed was somewhat old-fashioned, but very practical. ¡°Zhao Yu, when ites to luring insects, you are the strongest amongst us Insect Masters. Can you find a way to lure these Rab Armor to one ce?¡± Master He Shan called out to Zhao Yu, who had arrived.
¡°We can try. However, given the sheer number of Rab Armor and their wide dispersal, setting up just one lure might not suffice. We¡¯ll need to set up several.¡±
¡°Then set up several lures. Qin Niu just made a great suggestion, to attract the Rab Armor to one ce and use fire to exterminate them in one fell swoop. You¡¯ll be responsible for luring the insects, and Centurions Tang Fangfang and Yang JiangHe, along with their Insect Masters, will be in charge of using fire to kill the lured Rab Armor. 1 will lead the guards to scout the enemy in advance as we¡¯re likely in for a tough fight today.¡±
Master He Shan immediately made arrangements.
¡°Qin Niu, lead the way! To the location where you discovered the enemy preparing to cross the river.¡±
¡°At yourmand!¡±
Qin Niu immediately led the way.
He had wanted to see how Zhao Yu lured the insects and had hoped to watch and learnter.
His own insect-catching skills had reached a certain level, and he knew a bit about luring insects as well.
After mastering this skill, he had nned to use it to capture some rare insects to sell for money. He had never imagined that being proficient in luring insects could be so useful on the battlefield.
Qin Niu rode his steed swiftly through the Rab Armor tide.
He quickly realized a problem.
When the steed galloped, it was easy to step on the densely packed Rab Armor on the ground.
The number was simply too vast, like a tide, crowded and teeming.
A random step could squash several of them at once.
Although they were very fast and could quickly dodge, there were always moments when they couldn¡¯t avoid in time.
When stepped on, their instinct was to immediately attack whatever was pressing down on them.
The venom they sprayed was quite fearsome.
The steed¡¯s hooves were wrapped in horseshoes, so there was no worry of being bitten.
Plus, it galloped very fast.
It would crush the insects as soon as it stepped on them, then lift its hooves and charge forward.
The venom sprayed by the insects at the moment of death did minimal damage to it.
But the sheer number was overwhelming!
Each step taken squashed insects, then sprayed their venomous mist onto its hooves.
Gradually, the hooves began to swell.
Their speed was affected, noticeably slowing down.
In the face of this situation, Qin Niu didn¡¯t have a good solution.
He was rtively alright, but Master He Shan¡¯s personal guards, despite being carefully selected and skilled Insect Masters, still fumbled when swarmed by the insects.
No one had been bitten to death just yet.
As they approached Luoshui Town, the number of insects on the road visibly decreased.
This meant the enemy had already released all of their insects, naturally leading to fewer behind.
¡°Careful! Everyone, stop!¡±
Master He Shan, still two to three hundred meters away from Luoshui Town, immediately gestured for everyone to halt.
Qin Niu, the most cunning, had already sensed the danger and had slowed down.
This action also earned him a new level of respect from Master He Shan.
¡°Qin Niu, have you also sensed something amiss?¡±
Master He Shan asked.
There s a heavy aura of killing intent up ahead, which feels extremely dangerous. The enemy might have set up an ambush waiting for us.¡± Qin Niu stared ahead, his expression grave.
The feeling of danger meant the enemy was stronger than he imagined.
In his mind, he thought that only Insect Masters had arrived so far, and they hadn¡¯t even seen a hint of Deputy City Lord Bai.
If there was a Spirit Qi Realm expert among the enemy forces, these Insect Masters would probably die miserably in front of them.
It wasn¡¯t just about being one whole realm apart.
Even if the difference was just a smaller realm within, the disparity inbat power could be huge.
¡°I¡¯ve already caught the scent of Elder Jiu Yin. If I¡¯m not mistaken, there might be a formidable Insect Formation ahead set by Elder Jiu Yin himself.¡±
Master He Shan mentioned a term that Qin Niu had never heard of before.
He knew about formations.
Insects can set formations?
¡°What is an Insect Formation?¡±
Not understanding, Qin Niu asked.
Chapter 259 - 252 Blood Repository Mosquito and Phantom Jumping Spider_i
Chapter 259: Chapter 252 Blood Repository Mosquito and Phantom Jumping Spider_i
¡°Talking about it is simple, it¡¯s about using multiple bugs to form an army formation. Just like how our human armies deploy troops and formations on the battlefield. However, utilizing insect formations is much more enigmatic and unpredictable. To give the simplest example, abination of ground-crawling poisonous bugs and flying insects can create a basic insect formation. The ground bugs take the lead in attacking, while the flying insects are responsible for distracting the enemy¡¯s attention.¡±
Master He Shan gave a general introduction to the insect formation.
Qin Niu had firsthand experience in his fight with Old Master Huang, witnessing the power ofbining two or more different kinds of bugs in an attack.
So this was the insect formation.
¡°Master He, what do we do now?¡±
A guard asked for instructions.
They clustered around He Shan, each one on high alert.
¡°Where is the scout team?¡±
¡°Here at yourmand!¡±
A scout team of more than ten members stepped forward.
¡°Reconnaissance!¡±
Master He Shan stared ahead and uttered two chilling words.
The thirteen members of the scout team rapidly assumed a fan formation as they moved forward, releasing their respective bugs to scout the situation ahead.
Some released ground-crawling spiders, mole crickets, scorpions, and weevils, while others released flying moths and fireflies. Qin Niu even spotted a steel-winged wild bee.
But now these insects had been tamed and cultivated by the insect masters.
Since it was night, many insects were unable to see in the dark.
Moths were one of the few flying insects that possessed night vision.
These insect masters, chosen for the scout team, were all skilled.
Having them conduct nighttime reconnaissance would prove very effective.
However, after they sent out their insects, they disappeared without a trace, without any response.
And they did not return.
Shortly after, a member of the scout team began to shudder violently and let out a muffled groan.
One by one, several people turned pale and frequently let out pained noises.
This indicated that the bugs they had sent out had probably encountered misfortune.
¡°Master He, the situation ahead is unclear, our bugs sent to scout the enemy have all been harmed.¡±
¡°You all rest first.¡±
Master He Shan¡¯s face wasposed, and he didn¡¯t get angry due to the failure of his subordinates¡¯ reconnaissance.
After a while, he extended his right hand, palm facing up, at chest level.
Qin Niu was puzzled when he saw Master He Shan take off a bamboo tube from his waist with his left hand and open the lid.
¡°Buddy, you¡¯ve worked hard, get inside!¡±
He said to his palm.
Qin Niu, squinting in the light of the torches, finally noticed several tiny ck dots on the palm of Master He Shan¡¯s right hand.
They were fleas.
He hadn¡¯t expected that the most inconspicuous little bugs would be the key to Master He Shan discovering the enemy¡¯s situation.
The size of fleas was even smaller than a sesame seed, hard to see in daylight, let alone at night.
This made Qin Niu realize that every insect has its unique abilities and uses.
¡°We¡¯ll go around from that side.¡±
Master He Shan had already spurred his majestic lion steed and was quickly heading towards a small path to the left.
There were many roads to Luoshui Town.
There¡¯s no need to stick to the main road.
Qin Niu followed closely behind Master He Shan, experiencing his first real battle.
An invisible sense of danger loomed over the entire battlefield at all times.
This made him both nervous and a little excited.
Perhaps every man is a beast, facing the test of blood and fire, what ignites is the frenzy of war.
The real cowards who shrink back are very few.
¡°Be careful! There¡¯s an ambush here too!¡±
Master He Shan alerted everyone.
The enemy had set up an ambush to prevent the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s army from entering Luoshui Town, aiming to prevent their sneak attack from being exposed and to stop their retreat from being cut off.
¡°Choose to breakthrough here, fight our way into Luoshui Town.¡±
Master He Shan appeared extremely calm.
The main force of the Insect Master camp stayed behind to annihte the numerous Labor Armor.
However, Master He Shan led his personal guard directly into the strategic locations guarded by the enemy.
The battle between both sides had officiallymenced.
The contest between Insect Masters could very well determine the oue of today¡¯s war.
Master He Shan, riding a lion, charged straight ahead.
Knowing full well that there was an ambush ahead, he still recklessly charged in.
Qin Niu frowned slightly, military orders were as heavy as mountains; he was now just amon soldier, other than following Master He Shan in the charge, he had no other options.
They had barely charged forward two hundred meters when numerous poisonous insects crawled out from all around, attacking them.
There was arge number of blood-sucking poisonous mosquitoes in the air.
The ground was home to a type of very agile gray spider.
With slender legs and bodies about half the size of a fingernail, their crawling speed was amazingly fast.
Not only could they shoot webs to attack positions two to three meters high, but they were also skilled jumpers.
Their fangs looked chilling to behold.
Being bitten by them would definitely not lead to anything good.
¡°It seems the path we¡¯ve taken is guarded by Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s fourth disciple, Zhu Zhu. These spiders are called Phantom Jumping Spiders, the weakest are Grade Three, and the strongest can reach Grade Five and above. Their venom has a strong paralyzing effect, and if bitten, one must immediately take a Detoxification Pill.¡±
Elder He Shan warned his personal guards.
¡°Qin Niu, catch! This is a Detoxification Pill, take one at a time. You can take up to three a day; keep them in case you are bitten by a poisonous creature. Because there¡¯s a limit on how many you can take, you must avoid getting bitten.¡±
Master He Shan tossed a small green porcin bottle to Qin Niu.
He caught it with his hand.
Just as Qin Niu caught the bottle, over a dozen poisonous mosquitoes swarmed toward him.
¡°Be careful, these poisonous mosquitoes are the notorious Blood Storage Mosquitoes. If they bite you, you won¡¯t feel pain or itchiness and won¡¯t notice anything, but you¡¯ll bleed uncontrobly.¡±
As Elder He Shan warned him, he himself was attacked by arge swarm of Blood Storage Mosquitoes and Phantom Jumping Spiders.
He was so busy that he had no way to help Qin Niu.
The Insect Masters of the Nine Insect Gang, leveraging their unique geographical advantage, had each cultivated arge number of poisonous insects.
They had both quantity and quality, and each one was unusually venomous.
This was the true direction for Insect Master evolution.
An Insect Master could contend against thousands of troops.
The Blood Storage Mosquitoes appeared slightlyrger thanmon house mosquitoes, with an overall ck-gray color, and only their legs had a small amount of white pattern.
In great numbers, they hummed as they attacked the Insect Masters of the ck Tiger Gang.
With attacks from Phantom Jumping Spiders below and Blood Storage Mosquitoes above, everyone was thrown into disarray.
Qin Niu remained very calm.
As long as these Blood Storage Mosquitoesnded on him, they immediately became food for the Termites.
No matter how many came, the Termites could eliminate them.
As for the ground-based Phantom Jumping Spiders, he hadmanded his Poisonous Jaw Ants to mimic their scent and be ¡®one of their own.¡¯ They did not attack Qin Niu or his steed.
The Poisonous Jaw Soldier Ants had already be so formidable just by advancing to Grade Three.
If they were to advance to Grade Four, or even Grade Five, their abilities could be even more heavenly.
He was indeed looking forward to their evolution.
Through this insect battle, Qin Niu even realized that simply cultivating Termites well might suffice for him to easily handle the vast majority of insects.
In his future development in insect control, he would be very deliberate, preferring not to covet quantity, but to specialize in a few types.
Green Silk Worms for monitoring enemies, Bees for making honey, Corpse Bees and Green Demon Bees merging to be used mainly for aerialbat, and Termites for groundbat and nting.
The value of insect species lies in their quality, not their quantity.
With these insects, he currently had more than enough.
In the future, unless he encountered particrly exceptional species, he would not easily tame new insect pets.
Energy, time, and resources are all limited; as long as he could cultivate these insects well, they would be stronger than anything else.
Chapter 260 - 253 Pretending to Be a Pig to Eat a
Chapter 260: Chapter 253 Pretending to Be a Pig to Eat a
Tigeri
At that moment, other Insect Masters were all in disarray, only a few with strong abilities could fend off the enemy rtivelyposedly.
Qin Niu remained leisurely and unrestrained as he charged straight toward the enemies ahead.
Capture the king in order to capture the thieves.
Capturing or killing the enemy meant the insects would naturally be nothing to worry about.
He was already secretly probing for the enemy¡¯s hiding spot.
So long as it wasn¡¯t Elder Jiu Yin himself, he should be capable of fighting them.
¡°Qin Niu, don¡¯t be reckless! Quicklye back!¡±
Master He Shan saw Qin Niu taking the lead and charging directly toward the front, and he urgently called out from behind.
¡°No worries, I¡¯ve heard that Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s fourth disciple, Zhu Zhu, is the most trash, just about anyone can wipe him out.¡±
Qin Niu answered loudly, sporting a semnce of a foolhardy chap.
Without looking back, he charged into the depths of the woods ahead.
This narrow path, due to theck of frequent travelers, was overgrown with weeds and trees on both sides.
The enemy could easily hide anywhere, making them very difficult to spot.
Qin Niu had deliberately taunted that fourth disciple, Zhu Zhu, quite loudly, the purpose being to enrage the enemy.
Only this way could he coax the enemy into revealing themselves.
He was posing as a rookie who had just entered the battlefield, practically offering his head on a tter.
After galloping less than two hundred meters, he faintly heard the sound of something cutting through the air in his ears.
It was an exceptionally vigorous Steel-winged Wild Bee, but it seemed to be somewhat different from the ordinary ones.
Its abdomen sported ink-green, wavy patterns.
The Green Demon once became famous in a single battle, leading many Insect Masters to covet the Green Demon Bee as their dream insect pet. Even Zhu Zhu, a disciple of Elder Jiu Yin, was no exception.
He also kept a Steel-winged Wild Bee as a pet and had extensively cultivated it.
This was truly an eye-opener for Qin Niu.
The Green Demon Bee egg he had received was still incubating. Compared to these rejected products¡ªSteel-winged Wild Bees¡ªit was definitely much stronger.
It was a pity it hadn¡¯t hatched yet; otherwise, he could have arranged a fight between the Green Demon Bee and this Steel-winged Wild Bee.
It would be a good test of itsbat power.
This Steel-winged Wild Bee was as thick as a baby¡¯s arm.
It had at least reached the Bee General Level.
Ordinary Steel-winged Wild Bees are mostly Grade Four.
To reach the Bee General Level means at least Grade Five or above.
This Steel-winged Wild Bee was so massive and its flight speed was amazingly fast, indicating that it might be even more formidable than a regr Grade Five Bee General.
Given time and further cultivation, it should be able to reach Grade Six.
But now, it was actually charging at Qin Niu, which was like delivering high- ss insect food to his doorstep.
Qin Niu looked terrified on the surface, but uncooperatively took out a Metal Bug Canister in his hand.
¡°Come on,e into my bowl!¡±
He chanted like a chatan.
Unexpectedly, the Steel-winged Wild Bee obediently flew into his Insect Jar.
He quickly sealed the lid.
A Grade Five Bee General effortlessly caught, exhrating.
However, from arge tree not far away, there came the sound of heavy panting.
Clearly, someone was infuriated by his actions.
The enemy had already revealed their whereabouts, and Qin Niu was about to pretend to be in a pitiful state to lure the enemy in.
He didn¡¯t expect that the enemy had alreadyunched their fiercest attack.
A Phantom Jumping Spider the size of a sea-bowl leapt down from a tree and swiftly pounced towards Qin Niu.
Its upper body rose, and its hind part bent forward, lining up its spinneret holes aimed at Qin Niu.
Arge volume of spider silk sprayed out.
The target was Qin Niu¡¯s face, intending to blind his eyes with the silk, and plug up his nostrils and mouth.
¡°Wow, this jumping spider must be at least Grade Six. It hasn¡¯t reached Grade Seven, though.¡±
Such an impressive insect just makes one envious at the sight.
If I could ughter it, the food for cultivating the Ant Queen and Green Demon Bee would be immediately taken care of.
And it would be very high-end food.
For omnivorous insects wanting to evolve, the best food is the corpses of other insects.
Preferably those of a higher grade than themselves.
A Grade One insect consuming the corpse of a Grade Three insect might not guarantee evolution, but it would at least greatly aid in their evolution.
Qin Niu¡¯s Termite Ant Queen is extremely special; it has now evolved into a Four-Winged Yin Ant, having awakened a trace of an ancient rare insect¡¯s superior bloodline. After eating high-end food, its conversion rate is higher than before.
Previously, after consuming bear blood and meat, it immediately developed the special ability of the Termite to reproduce with great strength.
Latterly, having consumed a poisonous insect, it developed the ability to produce toxic termite offspring.
This Phantom Jumping Spider is a Grade Six insect, and quiterge at that.
It would definitely reap great benefits if consumed.
Qin Niu eyed the Grade Six Phantom Jumping Spider, nearly drooling.
The enemy hiding in the treeunched an attack almost simultaneously.
They leaped down silently from the tree, holding a narrow sword, stabbing towards his throat and face.
It seems the enemy knew the goods too.
Knowing that the King Pig Leather Armor he wore was very defensively strong, they chose to attack the weakest point, the face.
In a fight with an enemy, everyone aims for a one-hit kill.
No one wants to tangle foolishly.
¡°Hmph, you¡¯re stillcking with those little tricks.¡±
A Red-eyed Golden Toad leapt out of Qin Niu¡¯s basket, targeting the Grade Six Phantom Jumping Spider.
The Golden Toad naturally has bloodline suppression over the vast majority of insects.
Just like cats to mice, or golden eagles to foxes.
Born to suppress the opponent.
The Phantom Jumping Spider never expected Qin Niu to be keeping a Grade Seven Red-eyed Golden Toad, an alien species more powerful than ordinary pet varieties.
While the Red-eyed Golden Toad took on the Phantom Jumping Spider, Qin Niu unsheathed his sword and shed swiftly at the attacking enemy.
No fancy movements.
Just a solid use of shing martial skills.
After advancing his sh Martial Skill to a small level of proficiency, using his Ink de gave him a 50% chance of unleashing Critical Chop, which also had a terrifying Rupture effect.
Bang!
The sh of their swords and des resounded, with the swordy focusing on cunning while the de technique was all about fierceness and dominance.
The dreadful de Qi cut through the narrow sword like a rainbow, then tore through the enemy¡¯s defenses amid their shocked gaze.
By then, Qin Niu finally got a clear look at his opponent.
It was a woman with a graceful figure, her specific age indiscernible, but her face was fairly attractive.
She was wearing armor.
However, in the face of his Ink de, ordinary armor seemed to be no more of a barrier than a piece of paper.
This time the Rupture effect wasn¡¯t triggered, but the Critical Chop effect was.
Being able to produce a Critical Chop with every second strike was too powerful.
It left opponents struggling to defend effectively.
¡°You, you¡¯re pretending to be a pig to eat a tiger, plotting against me?¡±
She was incredibly frightened, but hanging mid-air with no leverage, she could only watch helplessly as the terrifying de Qi cleaved through her helmet, then split her skull open, chopping her head in two in the blink of an eye.
She wore two sets of armor, the outer was the regr armor made of Hundred- Tempering Fine Steel, which couldn¡¯t block Qin Niu¡¯s Ink de at all.
But the Soft Armor she wore inside offered strong defense.
Qin Niu¡¯s de Qi hit it and actually stopped the de¡¯s momentum, failing to split her body in two.
This piece of Soft Armor must be a rare treasure.
Chapter 261 - 254 Bloodsucking Locusts 1
Chapter 261: Chapter 254 Bloodsucking Locusts 1
This was the first time he had encountered armor that could withstand the Ink de¡¯s de Qi.
Not far behind him, therge spider fighting the Red-eyed Golden Toad also copsed onto its back, its eight legs folding in, and then it remained motionless after the woman¡¯s death.
When the master died, the insects bound to them through a spirit contract perished as well.
Their fates were closely linked to their master¡¯s.
Originally engaged in battle with the jumping spider, the Red-eyed Golden Toad, seeing it suddenly die, opened its mouth to devour it.
¡°Wart Toad, show some mercy with your mouth!¡±
Qin Niu quickly dismounted and gathered the body of the Phantom Jumping Spider into a basket.
If the Golden Toad ate it, the benefits would be very limited since it was already a Grade Seven Beast Pet.
It would be better to keep it to feed to the Ant Queenter.
A Grade Five White Termite Ant Queen consuming an entire Grade Six Phantom Jumping Spider would gain considerable benefits.
It might even advance directly to Grade Six.
Having witnessed the collectivebat prowess of these formidable Insect Masters from the Nine Insect Gang, he felt an urgent need to cultivate a super White Termite colony. Then he wouldn¡¯t fear any Insect Master he faced.
After collecting the body of the Phantom Jumping Spider, he quickly scavenged the woman¡¯s corpse for valuables.
He stripped off the soft armor immediately.
The Insect Bags and Insect Jars at the waist of the woman¡¯s corpse were clearly high-quality items, and he happily took them all.
Those Insect Bags came in a wide variety of styles and were made from superior materials, totaling eleven, suitable for housing various insects.
Some of the Insect Bags still contained insects.
These were insects that hadn¡¯t been released in time.
Qin Niu could feel that they seemed to be still active, indicating they had not formed a spirit contract with the woman.
Now was definitely not the time to open and check.
He decided to keep them for now.
Unexpectedly, he found two silver notes inside the woman¡¯s bodice, amounting to fifteen hundred taels.
Truly poor.
But at least there was an old, yellowed book.
The Spider Technique Scroll.
Ordinary Insect Control Books were typically named as certain scriptures, notes, or rearing manuals. It was umon to name them as scrolls.
The word ¡°technique¡± was a high-level term in the cultivation world.
Just like ¡°Taiyi¡± or ¡°Primordial,¡± such terms would never be used casually.
The same was true for Insect Control Books.
The Spider Technique Scroll was of medium thickness and appeared quite old. Some of its corners were worn away.
The cover seemed to be made of animal hide, and the inside consisted of specially made satin pages.
It appeared to be quite high-end.
Qin Niu knew this could be something valuable; otherwise, it wouldn¡¯t have been kept close by the female Insect Master.
Once he finished plundering, he grabbed the corpse and carelessly tossed it into the nearby bushes.
Before long, it would be consumed clean by wild beasts and ants.
This woman, the fourth disciple under Elder Jiu Yin, had a pretty face and a particrly alluring figure, likely much favored by Elder Jiu Yin. Now she had been in by Qin Niu¡¯s de.
Elder Jiu Yin would probably go into a rage.
Since the fourth disciple¡¯s strongest insect was a Grade Six Phantom Jumping Spider, Elder Jiu Yin, being her mentor, would possess at least a Grade Seven insect.
Qin Niu had no trouble dealing with the Grade Six Phantom Jumping Spider because he had a Grade Seven Red-eyed Golden Toad at his disposal. Otherwise, he might have been flustered just trying to handle one spider.
There might even have been danger.
However, he had over twenty thousand White Termites, with over four thousand capable of Mental Attacks and Spirit Control.
In a desperate situation, he should have a great chance of victory.
Mental attacks were indeed an against-the-heavens ability; it was just too bad there was so little Thousand Eyes Tree Blood.
If he could obtain it like Ancient Banyan Tree Blood, getting tworge jars a day,
then he could breed as many Ghost Ants and Puppet Ants as he wanted.
¡°Qin Niu, those Phantom Jumping Spiders and Bloodsucking Locusts suddenly fell into disarray, and the four leading Grade Five Phantom Jumping Spiders died on the spot. What happened on your side?¡±
Master He Shan came galloping over on his lion.
His personal guards followed closely behind.
Several of the personal guards had bleeding faces and hands, clearly bitten by the Bloodsucking Locusts.
Those tiny mosquitoes are truly formidable.
¡°Just now, a female Insect Master died.¡±
Qin Niu knew he couldn¡¯t keep this a secret.
There was no need to hide it.
¡°This, this¡ She died so quickly!¡±
Master He Shan¡¯s eyes revealed a look of horror, and when he looked at Qin Niu, there was a significant change.
¡°While the other disciples of Elder Jiu Yin have not yet reacted, let us hurry to Luoshui Town!¡±
He did not ask how Qin Niu had managed to take out his opponent.
Master He Shan led his people quickly towards Luoshui Town.
They were not far from the town now.
With no obstacles in their way, everyone made very good progress and arrived at the town in less than the time it takes to eat a meal.
Now, Luoshui Town had be a town of the dead.
Everyone had been killed.
In the darkness of night, the entire town was eerily quiet.
¡°Let¡¯s go and burn the enemy¡¯s boats first.¡±
Master He Shan was also a ruthless person.
This was to cut off the enemy¡¯s retreat.
The enemy forces had likely already crossed the Tianshui River and attacked the hearnd of the ck Tiger Gang.
It all depended on whether Deputy City Lord Bai was effective.
¡°Strange, why isn¡¯t there a single enemy?¡±
¡°Idiot, the enemy has likely gone to raid other viges and towns by now. Along this road are many major towns withrge poptions; if they really fall into their hands, the consequences would be unimaginable.¡±
¡°My wife and children are at home; they absolutely cannot fall into the hands of those devils from the Nine Insect Gang.¡±
The Insect Masters discussed among themselves, many filled with worry.
¡°Qin Niu, where did the enemy cross the river?¡±
¡°Right ahead! If we walk along the river for two or three miles upstream, we will be able to see it.¡±
Qin Niu led the way ahead.
Master He Shan, concerned about his safety, followed closely beside, staying highly vignt and ready to react to any enemy at any moment.
¡°It¡¯s strange that Elder Jiu Yin only sent disciples to guard the roads leading into Luoshui Town; this doesn¡¯t seem like that old fellow¡¯s style. You four, go downstream along the Tianshui River and look for the enemy¡¯s tracks. If you discover the enemy¡¯s moored ships,e back and report immediately.
Remember, do not act rashly.
Elder Jiu Yin is cunning and full of tricks; he won¡¯t let us destroy his boats across the river that easily. You are not his match, and upon discovering the enemy ships, return immediately to report quietly.¡±
Master He Shan instructed the four guards he had sent out.
Qin Niu led the way ahead.
After traveling more than two miles upstream, they faintly made outrge shadows on the river surface.
They could vaguely make out the shape of arge number of boats moored on the river.
¡°The time hase for us to make a name for ourselves; let¡¯s burn those boats and leave the enemy with no escape.¡±
Master He Shan¡¯s spirits lifted, and he promptly led everyone forward.
The enemy would definitely have left soldiers to guard it, but in Master He Shan¡¯s eyes, ordinary soldiers were nothing significant.
They could be wiped out easily.
¡°Be careful!¡±
In the darkness, row upon row of Bloodsucking Locusts were perched on trees and grass by the river.
The moment Qin Niu and Master He Shan got close, the locusts immediately arched their bodies, leaping towards them.
The stretching ability of these locusts was extremely strong.
When contracted, they were only a little over an inch long, about as thick as a finger.
But when they stretched out their bodies, they could actually reach a length of seven to eight inches.
Keep in mind, an inch is approximately 3.3 centimeters, so seven or eight inches is equivalent to more than twenty centimeters in length.
The three Bloodsucking Locusts leaping towards Qin Niu were still in the air when they simultaneously shuddered and fell to the ground.
Fourth had already led the ant horde to protect their master at the earliest opportunity.
The Red-eyed Golden Toad, having missed out on the corpse of the Grade Six Phantom Jumping Spider and likely starving by now, seized the opportunity. Its long tongue shot out like lightning, pulling a Bloodsucking Locust straight into its mouth.
Such a small Bloodsucking Locust was nothing more than a little snack for it.
Chapter 262 - 255: The Indestructible Cockroach i
Chapter 262: Chapter 255: The Indestructible Cockroach i
Master He Shan had only just realized that Qin Niu¡¯s basket was hiding a Golden Toad.
He couldn¡¯t help staring at it for a moment, and his appreciation and regard for the young man increased significantly.
With his keen eyesight, he could naturally tell that the level of the Golden Toad was very high.
Normally, unless the creatures are one¡¯s own pets, one can only roughly infer the level of insects or beast pets based on factors like size, breed, and aura.
Unless one is an Appraiser, it¡¯s difficult to urately determine the level of this Golden Toad at a nce.
One can only roughly estimate.
¡°Insect Master Qin¡¯s methods are numerous, truly keeping a low profile. These Bloodsucking Leeches are one of Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s insects. Only Elder Jiu Yin and his chief disciples have bred this type of insect inrge numbers.
If I¡¯m not mistaken, Elder Jiu Yin is likely nearby, and you should be careful.
Many of his insects possess the ability to kill with a single strike.¡±
Master He Shan dealt with the Bloodsucking Locusts with ease.
He didn¡¯t even seem to use any particr method, as the locusts lunging at him fell to the ground one by one, motionless.
They were not dead.
Instead, they curled up, maintaining a posture simr to hibernation.
The more powerful the Insect Master, the more effortless and casual they are in dealing with their enemies.
As someone capable of bing the leader of the Insect Master¡¯s camp, he naturally possessed formidable strength.
¡°All¡ save me, save me¡¡±
A sudden and heart-wrenching scream came from behind.
One of Master He Shan¡¯s soldiers, clutching his face, fell off his horse to the ground and rolled around in agony.
A Bloodsucking Leech had burrowed into his nostril, and he was clutching the end of the leech¡¯s body tightly with his hand.
The leech was ferocious as it desperately tried to burrow deeper into the soldier¡¯s nostril.
Despite the soldier¡¯s considerable strength while pulling on it, the leech¡¯s suction cup seemed terrifying, as if embedded into the soldier¡¯s flesh, impossible to extract.
If he insisted on pulling it out forcibly, it was highly likely that arge chunk of flesh woulde out with it.
¡°Everyone, protect your orifices and don¡¯t let these Bloodsucking Leeches crawl inside.¡±
Master He Shan leaped down from a lion¡¯s back, and within two moves, reached the soldier, only to lightly stroke the body of the leech.
The Bloodsucking Leech, which could not be removed no matter how much force was used, obediently loosened its grip and was then extracted from the soldier¡¯s nostril by him.
It curled up its body, appearing to be in a hibernated state.
It was unclear what method Master He Shan used.
Moreover, the mobility and cultivation level Master He Shan had just disyed were extremely powerful.
Qin Niu inwardly surmised that Master He Shan¡¯s cultivation level must be at the peak of the Innate Realm, and he had not yet reached the Spirit Qi Realm.
The biggest advantage of serving in the military was that high-level cultivation techniques, martial arts, and elixirs were all within reach.
As long as one had sufficient military achievements, almost anything could be exchanged.
In fact, the ck Tiger Gang was not solely owned by the ck Tiger Gang Leader. It was collectively owned by everyone.
Various cultivation resources and even major decisions within the gang were not solely in the hands of the ck Tiger Gang Leader.
Many issues required collective discussion.
¡°Hmm¡ hehe¡¡±
Another soldier fell silently to the ground, desperately clutching at his throat, his expression one of pain and terror.
Who would have thought that just some Bloodsucking Locusts could be so terrifying?
With Qin Niu¡¯s insect identification skills, he could tell that the weakest of these Bloodsucking Locusts were Grade Three, and the more powerful ones could reach around Grade Four.
No Grade Five Bloodsucking Locusts had been found yet.
But they killed as if it were a game.
Even the insect experts among the Insect Masters could hardly fend off their attacks.
If these were regr soldiers, they would probably be even less capable of opposing them.
Qin Niu gained a deeper understanding of what Zhang Banzui said: when Insect Masters rise, the world falls into chaos.
A single powerful Insect Master couldpletely equal a force of thousands of troops.
Master He Shan was about to go and rescue the bodyguard who had fallen to the ground, as he had already been singled out for special attention by the enemy.
Several ck shadows dashed rapidly across the ground, aiming straight for Master He Shan.
Since it was already the wee hours of the morning with only a dim light, it was impossible to see clearly.
Only Qin Niu, with his cultivation at the Innate Realm and his superior vision, could barely make out seven or eight ck shadows.
The size of these creatures was about that of a cup, their bodies not particrly long, probably just fourteen or fifteen centimeters.
All that could be seen was their rapid crawling on the ground.
¡°Lord He, be careful!¡±
¡°Protect Lord He!¡±
Among the bodyguards, there were some with powerful cultivation who immediately sprang into action to protect Master He Shan after detecting the dangerous insects attacking.
They all went all out to guard Master He Shan.
One of the bodyguards, who also had cultivation in the Innate Realm, swung his sword at two of the shadows.
A very faint Sword Qi could be seen.
For warriors at the Innate Realm, even ordinary weapons could exhibit Sword Qi or de Qi.
After all, their cultivation was there.
However, using ordinary weapons obviously couldn¡¯tpare with Qin Niu¡¯s Ink de.
Qin Niu was now wielding the Ink de, which could produce de Qi five or six inches long. Moreover, as the Ink de continued to evolve and level up, other special abilities would certainly appear in the future, not just de Qi.
Bang!
One of the shadows was hit by the sword light, but after splitting in two, it seemed unharmed, flipped over, and immediately attacked the bodyguard.
Qin Niu finally got a clear look at these insects.
Cockroaches.
The so-called indestructible ¡®little strong¡¯, extremely tenacious in their vitality.
No wonder they could survive being split in half by the Sword Qi.
The cockroach that had been cut in two moved as if unaffected.
As they scurried forward, the two halves of their bodies came together.
¡°It¡ recovered just like that?¡±
Qin Niu almost dropped his eyeballs in shock.
Its regenerative ability had to be at least high-grade, if not stronger.
His Demon Ants possessed the ability to heal themselves, but they couldn¡¯tpare to these cockroaches.
He had never seen an insect that could split in half and then rejoin itself, recovering instantly.
Cockroaches, known as the indestructible ¡®little strong,¡¯ already have a strong life force and regenerative capability.
These few cockroaches were pets carefully cultivated by Elder Jiu Yin; their regenerative ability was probably at a terrifying level.
¡°I¡¯ve got to get two of these back home. When the Ant Queenys offspring with this strong regenerative ability, the thought is just unimaginable.¡±
Qin Niu had no interest in those Bloodsucking Locusts.
On the other hand, the Golden Toad in the basket was very interested in them, constantly flicking out its tongue to pull locusts attacking Qin Niu into its mouth.
One by one, it ate joyfully.
¡°Fourth, can you handle those cockroaches?¡±
Qin Niu had already taken out arge Metal Bug Canister.
The cockroaches were huge, and each canister could hold at most one.
He had to figure out a way to bring several back with him.
Because one or two might not be enough to evolve the Ant Queen¡¯s special abilities.
It would be best to catch all of these.
Qin Niu was, for the first time, feeling the inconvenience of the bug canister. Because of its small size, it couldn¡¯t hold much.
Insect Bags were more popr for this reason.
Chapter 263 - 256 Taiyin Yaoyao 1
Chapter 263: Chapter 256 Taiyin Yaoyao 1
The insect bag obtained from killing Zhu Zhu contained eleven insects; after returning, a thorough clean-up of the insects inside would allow for their immediate use.
¡°They seem very strong, I can lead the ant colony to try,¡± Qin Niu suggested.
Fourth seldomcked confidence like this.
This time, facing the cockroaches, it was the first time he appeared extremely unconfident.
Termites and cockroaches actually belong to the same species, both are ttodea.
They both possess an ancient heritage.
In terms of vitality, both have their own merits. Generally speaking, cockroaches have a stronger ability to survive, but the most terrifying aspect of termites should be the Ant Queen¡¯s breeding capacity.
It¡¯s precisely because they are of the same species that the Ant Queen, upon consuming these cockroaches, would likely gain greater benefits.
It¡¯s simr to humans advancing their cultivation levels; because they are not the same species as demon beasts, they cannot directly absorb the vtile energy within the Demon Cores. But there are no such issues when one type of demon beast devours another of its kind.
Because they share the same origin and species.
At this moment, that Innate Realm soldier was still fiercely battling the cockroach.
It was hard to imagine that an Innate Realm expert, when dealing with an insect, was so cautious and had yet to kill it.
Even if the cockroach was cut into two or even four pieces by a sword, it could still rapidly fuse back together.
It was as if its body could disperse and reunite, possessing an immortal body.
Its attack speed was also incredibly fast.
Because of their speed and ability to fly, cockroaches are referred to as ¡®Fei Lian¡¯.
Being nocturnal insects, they thrive at night, whereas human vision is extremely poor in the dark.
At this moment the cockroach¡¯s attack methods remain unknown.
Even if it¡¯s formidable, its offensive capabilities couldn¡¯t be too weak.
Merely a Grade Four Bloodsucking Leech was already difficult for ordinary soldiers to handle. These cockroaches were at least Grade Six insects and could possibly even reach Grade Seven; one could only imagine how terrifying their strength could be.
¡°All¡ aiyah¡¡±
The Innate Realm expert suddenly let out a shriek of agony.
Somehow, he was pounced on by the cockroach, which was now frantically gnawing at the flesh and blood of the Innate Realm expert.
Crunch, crunch!
Blood sttered like a small meat grinder in action.
After all, he was an Innate Realm expert. Despite the severe pain, he managed to quickly grab the cockroach on his face and flung it violently away.
Now, arge bloody hole was visible on his face, even exposing the skull.
In the blink of an eye, he had already been severely wounded.
It was still unclear whether these cockroaches were poisonous, but if they were, the consequences would be even more serious.
After being thrown off, the cockroach instantly transformed into a shadow and pounced once more on the Innate Realm expert.
It was determined not to stop until it had killed him.
It was just one insect, yet who could have thought it would bring an Innate Realm expert to such a dire state?
Green Demon had once, with a swarm of Green Demon Bees, single-handedly challenged the entire Seven-Star Sect, certainly presenting a more domineering scene than this one.
Qin Niu subconsciously touched the Green Demon Bee egg that was incubating.
He truly looked forward to the day when he could traverse a realm with a swarm of Green Demon Bees.
¡°These insects are known as Taiyin Yaoyao, the life-bound pets of Elder Jiu Yin. They nearly have immortal bodies; swords and sabers find them hard to destroy, their biting power is extremely strong, and because they feast on various corpses, they carry a potent corpse poison. If bitten and the poison isn¡¯t immediately neutralized, the body will gradually stiffen, leading to itching and pain, with blisters forming on the skin, oozing yellow pus.
The way to deal with them involves water and fire.
They can be drowned with water or burned to death with fire,¡± Master He Shan exined as he was struggling against seven cockroaches on his own.
He was already fighting the cockroaches with his own insects.
Six Golden Armored Centipedes, as thick as a child¡¯s arm, were particrly eye-catching. They moved quickly, able to spew out a ck poison gas, which could barely fend off the terrifying cockroaches.
Moreover, they were d in golden armor, unafraid of the cockroach¡¯s biting.
In terms of agility, the six Golden Armored Centipedes were clearly much inferior.
Master He Shan, not only protected by armor, had also lit two torches. As soon as a cockroach attacked, he would immediately counter with fire.
Just as he said, the cockroaches were afraid of fire.
Most insects fear fire.
¡°Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Taiyin Yaoyao number nine in total, and we¡¯ve only seen eight so far. Be careful of the most formidable one that has yet to appear,¡± Master He Shan was already having a hard time dealing with seven of them.
The battle was at a stalemate.
For now, it seemed Master He Shan would be able to protect himself.
But killing these Taiyin Yaoyao seemed almost impossible.
If he had a powerful method, he certainly wouldn¡¯t let them rampage unchecked.
Several bodyguards had already charged next to Master He Shan from under the attack of the bloodsucking leeches, helping him deal with the seven cockroaches.
All of them followed suit, lighting torches.
¡°All¡¡±
Another bodyguard was attacked by a cockroach, this time bitten on the back of his hand.
The enormous cockroach mped onto the back of the right hand of this new soldier who was holding the torch, and then immediately began to frenziedly gnaw at the flesh.
Crack crack!
Flesh was sent flying in a gruesomely bloody scene, chilling to the core.
¡°You¡¯re no match for the Taiyin Yaoyao. Don¡¯t worry about me. Immediately make your way to the moored battle ships ahead and set those vessels aze. As long as we destroy those ships, we will cut off the enemy¡¯s retreat and win half the battle,¡± Master He Shan, seeing the bodyguards could only act as fodder, quickly ordered them to burn the ships.
If the ships for crossing the river were lost, the crossing enemy army, learning their retreat was cut off, would certainly plunge into chaos.
Don¡¯t think it¡¯s just the Tianshui River; even for those in the Acquired Realm, it¡¯s hardly easy to cross.
Not everyone in the army can swim, and without ships, the enemy will find themselves in a very passive situation.
Strategically, as long as we sessfully burn the enemy¡¯s ships, we¡¯ll have won half the battle.
Upon hearing Master He Shan¡¯s orders, a crowd of bodyguards rushed toward the dock where the ships were moored.
Qin Niu had already reached the side of the Innate Realm expert with his face bitten.
This fellow was covering his face, awkwardly fending off the continually attacking cockroaches.
Merely one Taiyin Yaoyao had the expert from the Innate Realm almost powerless to fight back.
¡°Fourth, time to get to work!¡±
Qin Niu had the protection of a Grade Seven Red-eyed Golden Toad, various methods of his own, and the King Pig Leather Armor, leaving him truly fearless in the fight against this Taiyin Yaoyao.
Fourth¡¯s antennae targeted the elusive Taiyin Yaoyao, while the other puppet ants followed suit,unching a spirit control assault.
Including a legion of demon ants, they all looked to Fourth as their leader.
They simply couldn¡¯t beat Fourth.
In nature, the strong are revered, such is the naturalw.
¡°It¡¯s too strong!¡±
Fourth¡¯s spirit control was hardly effective, after all, it was only Grade Four.
The Taiyin Yaoyao they faced was likely Grade Seven.
Fourth leading the ant army against a Grade Six insect was almost at its limit; facing a Grade Seven was still somewhat forced.
¡°Ghost ants,unch a mental attack.¡±
Qin Niu decided to go for a two-pronged approach.
This time, it seemed to take effect.
The Taiyin Yaoyao, under mental attack, immediately charged toward Qin Niu in anger.
¡°Herees the delivery!¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s face was indifferent as he swung the Ink de swiftly in a shing motion.
No need for any fancy moves, just the most straightforward sh.
de Qi instantly cleaved the cockroach in two.
Even split into halves, they remained ferocious, attacking Qin Niu once more.
¡°Wart Toad, take action!¡±
Qin Niu was well-prepared with several ns to deal with these Taiyin Yaoyao.
Chapter 264 - 257: Singing of the Empty Fort Strategy?_1
Chapter 264- 257: Singing of the Empty Fort Strategy?_1
The Termite''s Spirit Control had no effect, so let the Red-eyed Golden Toad make its move.
While the severed Taiyin Yaoyao was still unable to rbine, the Red-eyed Golden Toad swiftly flicked out its tongue, snatching back one half of the corpse.
Toads are natural enemies of most insects and can restrain them.
This glutton was dragging the half-body of Taiyin Yaoyao towards its mouth as if it dared to eat anything that moved.
However, the Taiyin Yaoyao was Elder Jiu Yin''s life-linked Insect, so naturally, it would not be so easily defeated.
Its three feet firmly clung to the Golden Toad''s lips.
The other half, sensing danger, quickly pounced over, trying to merge back with its other half.
"Fourth, try to take care of this half-body."
Qin Niu''s idea was straightforward: even if the cockroach could not be killed, after being shed in half, itsbat and spiritual power would definitely be affected.
The simplest math was to divide by two.
That is, the original strength of 2 would now only be 1.
That half of the cockroach''s body trembled and then fell to the ground.
Qin Niu was overjoyed, immediately capturing it within the Insect Jar.
Once the lid was on, how would it be able to rbine? n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om
The half-body of the Taiyin Yaoyao that had been put into the Metal Bug Canister was still extremely active, frantically biting at the canister''s walls.
Fortunately, its biting ability wasn''t as powerful as imagined.
It seemed, it didn''t have the strength to break through the Insect Jar.
Qin Niu looked toward the other half of the Taiyin Yaoyao, which was still desperately clinging to the Golden Toad''s mouth.
"Wart Toad, let me give you a hand."
He aimed the Ink de at one of the Taiyin Yaoyao''s legs.
Its legs were covered in sharp hooks, but in front of the Ink de, they were nothing.
The Golden Toad was also very eager for such a high-ss nutritional item.
It swallowed hard in cooperation.
One could see that the cross-section of the severed Taiyin Yaoyao did not bleed, but was shrouded in a faint mist of gray smoke.
With the cooperation of Qin Niu and the Golden Toad, that half of the Taiyin Yaoyao''s body was finally sessfully swallowed by the Golden Toad.
After it was swallowed, Qin Niu watched it nervously.
Because even if such a strange insect was eaten, there was no guarantee it could be digested.
The Golden Toad soon exhibited a painful expression.
The Innate Realm expert who was saved had already taken a Detoxification Pill and was applying medicine to the wound on his face.
Wisps of white smoke rose from it.
The person involuntarily let out a scream of pain.
The bitten area contained corpse poison; if not treated in time, once the corpse poison reached the heart, the entire person would turn into a walking corpse.
Qin Niu was still observing the Golden Toad''s reaction.
If it was fine, they could consider dealing with the next Taiyin Yaoyao.
This was Elder Jiu Yin''s life-linked Insect; killing one would certainly be a heavy blow to Elder Jiu Yin.
"Thank you, Master Qin, for the rescue!"
The situation of the Innate Realm expert had slightly improved, and he immediately thanked Qin Niu.
"No need to thank me, we are allrades in battle, we should help each other. How are you feeling now?"
Qin Niu noticed there was still a hole on the man''s face.
But the wound had been treated with medicine.
"The corpse poison has been mostly neutralized for now, the rest needs to be slowly resolved when I go back. Elder Jiu Yin lives up to his reputation, the Taiyin Yaoyaos he raised are extremely fierce and difficult to deal with; my insects had no power to fight back and have been ughtered to just one remaining."
The man looked at the insect bodies on the ground with heartache.
It turned out to be two Flower-face Spiders.
In the world of insects, spiders are absolute predators.
They can even prey across species on some small animals.
A powerful spider can capture small animals like snakes or birds.
But these two Grade Five Giant Spiders were utterly weak in the face of a Grade Seven Taiyin Yaoyao.
Although Qin Niu hadn''t witnessed their battle, the shattered bodies told him that they werepletely crushed in the fight.
It must have been a fight without the slightest chance to resist.
These Taiyin Yaoyaos were not only incredibly agile, moving like lightning, but also had strong self-healing abilities.
They were not afraid of injury at all.
With their cockroach-like resilience alone, they could overpower their enemies.
"d you''re alright now. I''ll go check on Master He Shan."
Qin Niu, carrying the Golden Toad, threw it into the basket on his back and dashed straight to Master He Shan.
To him, these Taiyin Yaoyao were absolutely great treasures.
It would be best if he could collect the remaining seven at once.
Their abnormally strong self-healing abilities were truly enviable.
"Wart Toad, how do you feel now?"
Qin Niu asked with concern.
"Not bad! It''s not dead, still resisting. Just give me a bit of time, I should be able to digest it."
The Red-eyed Golden Toadmunicated with Qin Niu through spiritual power.
"Can you catch more Taiyin Yaoyao?"
"Anytime, but I can''t eat any more now."
It was indeed a glutton; it was astonishing to find something it feared to eat.
It proved how formidable these Taiyin Yaoyao really were.
Qin Niu arrived beside Master He Shan.
Even from several meters away, he could still feel the ferocity of the six Golden Armored Centipedes.
The poison gas they spat out shrouded the area.
Qin Niu dared not get closer.
Even a whiff made his head spin, and his blood seemed about to freeze. The temperature around Master He Shan, at the center, was noticeably several degrees colder than nearby.
The closer to Master He Shan, the colder it got.
Centipedes are of a cold and yin nature, preferring to dwell in chilly corners.
When they ascend to a certain level, they can create this kind of cold poison.
It can freeze an opponent''s blood and body.
The powerful ones can even freeze the opponent''s spirit, making them sluggish and drowsy.
Master He Shan''s Golden Centipedes hadn''t reached that level yet; they could only freeze the opponent''s blood, making one feel chilled to the bone and slow in action.
"Master He Shan, I''ll help you!"
Seizing the opportunity, Qin Niu struck a Taiyin Yaoyao with his de.
Effortlessly slicing it in half.
Following suit, he let the Golden Toad grab one half of the body while Fourth led all the Puppet Ants to attack the other half.
Qin Niu took the opportunity to stuff it into an Insect Jar.
This method was very effective.
He easily dealt with two Taiyin Yaoyao.
But now he faced a problem; there was only one Insect Jar left.
Ordinary Insect Jars couldn''t contain these powerful Taiyin Yaoyao, only those made from Hundred-Tempering Fine Iron could trap them.
And they were smart, too.
Even trapped in the jars, they tried to twist off the lids with their legs.
Fortunately, these jars were specially made and couldn''t be opened from the inside.
There were originally eight Taiyin Yaoyao on the battlefield; Qin Niu had dealt with three, leaving five.
"Qin Niu, you''re really something. These are Elder Jiu Yin''s treasured pets. Catching them is sure to drive him mad with grief."
With two less Taiyin Yaoyao attacking, the pressure on Master He Shan greatly eased.
It was a rare asion that he smiled, praising Qin Niu.
"Heh, it would be great for that old Jiu Yin to go mad! But Elder Jiu Yin hasn''t shown up yet, and there are only eight Taiyin Yaoyao, the strongest one still hasn''t appeared. I suspect he''s not here at all."
Qin Niu knew these Insect Masters all too well.
Back in the day, in front of Old Master Huang, he was about to squash a Corpse Beemander.
It made Old Master Huang so anxious that he couldn''t stop jumping around, doing everything to prevent it.
Now that he had caught three of Elder Jiu Yin''s Taiyin Yaoyao, and the elder still hadn''t appeared, it suggested the man most likely wasn''t here.
Otherwise, he would have been hopping mad by now.
"Your analysis makes sense! Elder Jiu Yin must have had a strong reason to use eight life-bound Taiyin Yaoyao to set up an Insect Formation here, preventing us from burning their ships while he himself isn''t here. Where has he gone then, and what is his purpose?"
While fending off the attacking Taiyin Yaoyao, Master He Shan pondered.
"These Taiyin Yaoyao are only attacking you, indicating there must be someonemanding them in secret. You said that these Bloodsucking Leeches can only be controlled by Elder Jiu Yin and his top disciple, which suggests that guarding this ce is very likely Elder Jiu Yin''s top disciple."
Wisdom sparkled in Qin Niu''s eyes.
In terms of cunning, he should be smarter than many. It seemed to be in his nature.
Chapter 265 - 258: Echo Worm_1
Chapter 265 -258: Echo Worm_1
```
"If it really is the Grand Disciple of Elder Jiu Yin defending this ce, and Elder Jiu Yin has deliberatelyid a trap, there must be a very deep intention behind it."
Master He Shan''s expression became solemn.
"Qin Niu, hurry up and eliminate these Taiyin Yaoyao. I''m worried there might be trouble on Deputy City Lord Bai''s end."
"I have no more Metal Bug Canisters to contain them!"
Qin Niu felt helpless; knives and swords simply couldn''t kill these Taiyin Yaoyao, and the best way to deal with them was to lock them up.
But he had no more Metal Bug Canisters to use.
"Take this Insect Bag! It has multiple locking features; once the bugs are inside, just lock the pull string on the bag, and that''s it."
Arge Insect Bag was tossed over.
It was evident that Master He Shan was somewhat pained to part with it.
Higher quality Insect Bags are expensive due to their difficult production and high material standards. Qin Niu had inquired about the price of Insect Bags in the Nine Insect Gang''s Hundred Leaf Town, and even the less expensive ones were sold for more than ten taels of Silver Money.
Such top-notch goods were simply not seen at the street stalls.
The price could soar above a hundred taels of Silver Money. n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om
Even for an Insect Master of Master He Shan''s caliber, earning money in a proper fashion, making a hundred taels of Silver Money was not an easy feat.
During the locust disaster, Qin Niu had helped the Yan Family exterminate insects, and after one hard day''s work, he only earned a few taels of Silver Money.
That was when the locust disaster had struck, and he just happened to have the means to restrain the locusts, which allowed him to earn that ie.
Normally, there aren''t many ways for Insect Masters to make money.
They help people exterminate bugs, catch bugs to sell, or they take on disciples and help others appraise bugs, and so on.
The most stable ie probablyes from nting Masters.
Among the four basic needs¡ªfood, clothing, shelter, and transportation¡ªfood ranks first.
The high-grade herbs grown by nting Masters can be sold for quite a sum, easily enough to keep one well-fed and clothed for a long time.
After receiving the Insect Bag, Qin Niu tried it out; it was quite handy.
It felt hefty in his hands, but he wasn''t sure what material it was made of. The interior usually had gold threads woven into it.
Some are made of special materials; they have to be bite-proof and alsofortable for the insects to live in.
With the Insect Bag in hand, Qin Niu immediately began to kill.
The most terrifying things about these Taiyin Yaoyao were their speed that made them seem to vanish without a trace and their formidable self-healing ability.
Seizing the opportunity, as soon as he sliced one Taiyin Yaoyao in half, he immediately had the Golden Toad and Termite work together.
First, they captured one half of the Taiyin Yaoyao, then the other half.
After locking them in the Insect Bag, Qin Niu was ready to take on the remaining four.
But the Taiyin Yaoyao he had just locked in the bag managed to reunite its halves and burrow out of the bag.
The creature was extremely ferocious; the moment it burrowed out, it rapidly crawled towards Qin Niu''s hand, its mouth gaping, ready to bite.
Luckily, Qin Niu was always cautious.
He activated the King Pig Leather Armor, blocking its attack.
Then with another slice, he cut it in half once more.
The three Taiyin Yaoyao he had caught before had been sessfully detained; was it an issue with the Insect Bag, or should he not have allowed them to reunite?
"Qin Niu, it seems these Taiyin Yaoyao possess strong escape abilities; you need to keep their two halves locked up separately."
With one Insect Bag not sufficient, he had to find another empty Insect Bag among his recent spoils of war.
After separating and detaining the two halves of the Taiyin Yaoyao in different Insect Bags, this time they couldn''t escape. However, they were still ferociously active inside the bags.
Master He Shan quickly spoke up to remind him.
His experience in insectbat was more extensive than Qin Niu''s, and he understood the situation immediately.
When the Taiyin Yaoyao were split in two, their special abilities were impaired, rendering them unable to escape.
These bugs were truly formidable, to the point where even the Insect Bag couldn''t contain them.
Qin Niu had previously used cages to separate and detain their halves mainly because the cages were too small, and he couldn''t deal with both halves at the same time. Ironically, this mistake led him to a sessful method of imprisonment.
With one Insect Bag not sufficient, he had to find another empty Insect Bag among his recent spoils of war.
After separating and detaining the two halves of the Taiyin Yaoyao in different Insect Bags, this time they couldn''t escape. However, they were still ferociously active inside the bags.
Qin Niu then proceeded to apply the same method, sessfully imprisoning the remaining four Taiyin Yaoyao.
By now, he had caught eight Taiyin Yaoyao in total.
All of these were Grade Seven insects; used as food for the Ant Queen, they could help her level up by at least one grade.
"Let''s go; let''s immediately check over there."
Having witnessed Qin Niu''s methods, Master He Shan''s attitude toward him had greatly changed.
```
Even the tone of speaking had be much more polite.
This somewhat ttered and astonished Qin Niu.
After all, he was currently just a third-ss soldier, whereas Master He Shan was the Chiliarch in charge of the Insect Master camp.
In terms of both status and strength, they were not on a level ying field.
Strength was respected everywhere.
Qin Niu had disyed powerful strength, earning Master He Shan''s respect.
The two hurried forward quickly.
Along the way, bloodsucking leeches asionally attacked them, but they posed no threat to either of them.
A true expert was entirely capable of handling these bloodsucking leeches with ease.
After dashing forward for a bit more than three hundred meters, they sequentially came across the bodies of five bodyguards.
One by one, theyy in tragic death, fallen on the road leading to those ships.
Master He Shan leapt down from the back of his mighty lion to examine the corpses.
On their bodies, no obvious wounds were found.
But the mouths of the five corpses were wide open, the expressions terrified, and three of the bodies had their own hands dug into their throats. Dark red blood flowed out from their eyes, nostrils, and ears.
"They might have been killed by voice-imitating insects!"
Master He Shan''s tone was serious, with a hint of solemnity.
"It feels like they were killed by insects burrowing inside their bellies. What are these voice-imitating insects?"
Qin Niu didn''t know much about some strange and unusual insects.
"I''ve never seen what they actually look like myself. I only know that Nie Kun, the leading disciple under Elder Jiu Yin, and the Gang Leader of the Nine Insect Gang, both have a kind of insect called voice-imitating insect. These insects move at the sound and feed on human hearts. They are one of the notorious murderous insects."
Even Master He Shan didn''t know the details of this ferocious insect.
Qin Niu silently raised his vignce, staying alert.
"Don''t worry too much, if we encounter voice-imitating insects, as long as we don''t speak, we will be fine."
Although Master He Shan said not to worry too much, he still took out a mask from his bosom and put it on.
Qin Niu did the same, donning the face armor of the King Pig Leather Armor.
The defensive capability of the face armor was rtively weak, but it was better than nothing.
They could faintly hear the sounds of fighting ahead.
But they couldn''t see any figures at all.
Qin Niu followed behind Master He Shan, rushing toward the location from which the sounds ofbat came.
Suddenly, Master He Shan disappeared before his eyes.
What followed was a dense fog that made it impossible to see any figures.
"Not good, we might have entered the enemy''s trap of an illusionary formation!"
A sense of dread sank in Qin Niu''s heart.
This sudden fog seemed suspicious and unnatural, unlike a regr mist arising from the riverside.
"Qin Niu, Qin Niu, where are you?"
Master He Shan''s calling voice came from ahead.
Qin Niu was about to respond when he suddenly remembered the five dead bodyguards, each meeting a gruesome end at the hands of voice-imitating insects.
In this uncertain situation, it was best to remain cautious.
With this thought, he kept silent.
Instead, he made his way toward the source of the sound.
"Qin Niu,e over here quickly!"
Master He Shan''s voice came again, sounding quite anxious.
Although Qin Niu had only interacted with Master He Shan for a short time, he knew him to be aposed person.
Whether speaking or acting, he was very level-headed, and even when besieged by seven Taiyin Yaoyao, he hadn''t sought help from anyone.
The sudden urgency of hurrying Qin Niu now was highly abnormal.
Yet the voice sounded so real.
It was no different from Master He Shan''s voice.
Chapter 266: 259: Breaking the Maze_1
Chapter 266: Chapter 259: Breaking the Maze_1
Faced with such a strange situation, Qin Niu decided to wait for the right opportunity to make a move.
Sure enough, Master He Shan¡¯s voice rang out once again.
¡°Qin Niu, be very careful with the few Taiyin Yaoyao you have captured. They can easily escape in this kind of environment.¡±
This time, Qin Niu didn¡¯t hold back.
He immediately employed the Misty Rain Elusive Step and dashed toward the source of the voice, unleashing a strike with his sword.
The dazzling de Qi tore through the mist ahead.
The sh actually had a ripping effect. Although it was not possible to rupture space at present, tearing through the mist in front was quite easy.
The thick mist that blocked the view was instantly torn open, creating a fissure about thirty to forty feet long and three to four meters wide.
With the light of the de Qi, Qin Niu caught a glimpse of a white insect that vanished in a sh.
It was very fast.
With a bend of its body, it shot out.
This made him think of the insects Old Master Huang used to control the Red-eyed Golden Toad. Could it be the same kind that responds to sound?
¡°Fourth, can you lock onto that insect just now?¡±
Qin Niumunicated with Fourth through spiritual thoughts.
¡°Yes! It¡¯s right behind.¡±
Fourth¡¯s sensing ability was extremely powerful. Even before it became a War Demon Ant, it could lead Qin Niu out of the maze inside the Ancient Banyan Tree.
Now that it had evolved into a Grade Four War Demon Ant, its strength was even more formidable, and its sensing ability had also grown stronger.
¡°Do you have the ability to control it?¡±
¡°Can¡¯t control it.¡±
Fourth¡¯s reply was concise.
¡°Is it because its level is too high?¡±
¡°Don¡¯t know. I tried to control it with spiritual power, but it had no effect, as if there was nothing there.¡±
After Fourth¡¯s intelligence had increased, it couldmunicate normally with Qin Niu.
The biggest benefit was that he could pose moreplex questions to it.
¡°Wart Toad, can you deal with that white insect?¡±
Qin Niu then asked the Grade Seven Red-eyed Golden Toad.
Among all his pets, the Red-eyed Golden Toad had the highest level.
¡°If ites near us, we should be able to catch it. Can¡¯t handle it right now.¡±
The Red-eyed Golden Toad was not omnipotent. When faced with such special enemies, it also felt somewhat helpless.
¡°You can¡¯t lock onto the insect¡¯s position?¡±
Qin Niu was somewhat persistent.
The white insect should still be nearby, perhaps it was the storied insect that responds to calls.
If he could just kill or capture it, it would mean breaking one of Nie Kun¡¯s methods of attack.
¡°Can¡¯t lock onto it.¡±
The Red-eyed Golden Toad did not possess Fourth¡¯s special abilities.
In terms of perception, it simply couldn¡¯tpare to the War Demon Ant. It was even less capable than an ordinary Termite.
Each pet had its own strengths and weaknesses; none was perfect in every aspect.
¡°Fourth, where is that white insect now?¡±
¡± It¡¯s constantly moving, right now ahead of us.¡±
¡°Left or right?¡± Qin Niu pressed.
¡°Master, I don¡¯t know what left and right are.¡±
¡°This side is left, this side is right.¡± Qin Niu then took the patience to teach Fourth.
¡°It¡¯s ahead on the right. It moved again, it¡¯s now behind you, on the left.¡±
Fourth¡¯s learning ability was decent.
It quickly learned to distinguish left from right.
¡°Is it far from us?¡±
¡°Slightly far.¡±
¡°Then wait for it toe near me and pinpoint its exact location.¡±
Qin Niu gripped the Ink de tightly, ready to strike at any moment.
He chose not to stay put, but quickly moved forward.
The enemy¡¯s goal was to defend the ships from being destroyed.
The ships were moored on the riverbank, unable to move. As long as he got closer to the ships, the enemy would expose themselves.
As expected, after Qin Niu had rushed forward about forty to fifty meters, Master He Shan¡¯s voice sounded in his ears once again.
¡°Qin Niu, hurry and set the enemy ships on fire.¡±
¡°Hurry up, we¡¯re trapped.¡±
Master He Shan¡¯s voice kepting.
¡°Master, it¡¯s in the front on the left, very close.¡±
Fourth reported to Qin Niu.
Whoosh!
A de shed out swiftly.
Compared tost time, Qin Niu had gained some experience.
This time, he specifically sought out that white worm.
After cleaving through the fog, a streak of white emerged, and Qin Niu switched to a sweeping strike.
He nearly sealed off the escape route of the worm.
He didn¡¯t understand those overly sophisticated de techniques and had only mastered two of the simplest de skills.
One was a chopping strike, and the other was a sweeping strike.
Pfft!
¡°Ow¡¡±
A cry of agony rang out, a man¡¯s voice.
It sounded like that of a middle-aged man.
Qin Niu¡¯s sweeping strike failed to hit the white worm but instead cut a man.
More precisely, it severed a man¡¯s arm.
A bloody army on the ground.
The man had gotten in the way to save the white worm and ended up being cut.
The severed arm still trembled non-stop as ity on the ground.
Blood gushed from the cut wound.
¡°Fourth, lock onto the enemy¡¯s position and keep reporting back to me,¡±
Qin Niu was always ruthless when dealing with enemies.
Strike when they¡¯re down and take their lives.
The man who just had an arm chopped off could possibly be Nie Kun, the greatest disciple of Master Jiu Yin.
But the man¡¯s strength seemed very weak!
How could he have had an arm so easily severed?
¡°I can¡¯t sense it anymore,¡±
Fourth¡¯s perceptive range was limited; the enemy had vanished so quickly, what method could they have used?
From that brief sh, Qin Niu was certain that the man was at best in the initial stage of the Innate Realm.
How could someone of that level disappear in an instant?
He likely used some special life-saving item.
For example, the Invisibility Talisman that Bei Bing, the mute girl, had given to Qin Niu, which, when used, could make him vanish immediately.
Now that the enemy had run away, the first step was to burn the enemy¡¯s ships.
He hurried forward at an extremely fast pace, but due to the heavy fog, he could see no one else.
However, he could hear the sounds ofbat.
After running forward for a while, Qin Niu noticed something was off.
Because he saw that severed arm again.
It indicated that he might have entered one of the enemy¡¯s mazes. He had run in a circle and ended up back at the starting point.
He was trapped by the enemy.
¡°Fourth, do you have a way to discern the direction?¡±
When it came to breaking mazes, Fourth was the most skilled.
¡°Yes.¡±
This time, Fourth answered with extreme confidence.
¡°Where is the direction we came from?¡±
¡°It¡¯s to the front on the left-hand side.¡±
¡°I¡¯m now moving toward the back, you guide the way. I¡¯ll just watch your antennae,¡±
Qin Niu asked Fourth to guide him.
There was no other way as he couldn¡¯t find his way out in the fog.
Under normal circumstances, the ships would be just two to three hundred meters ahead by the riverside. But now, these two to three hundred meters had be an insurmountable gap.
If he couldn¡¯t break the maze, he would still be wandering in circles until dawn.
With Fourth guiding him, Qin Niu didn¡¯t get lost again, and in a short time, he arrived at the riverbank beside the ships.
No one attacked him again on this path.
Only some bloodsucking leeches would asionally jump out to meet their death.
Qin Niu could vaguely see several ships moored at the riverbank, but the area behind them was empty.
¡°It¡¯s impossible that there are only these few ships, it seems I¡¯ve been deceived.¡±
But having found the enemy ships, he was certainly not going to be polite.
He set them on fire with a toss of his torch.
Suddenly, mes soared to the sky, and the fog gradually dissipated.
Master He Shan and the surviving personal guards gradually appeared, each one of them looking extremely bedraggled.
They were either fighting each other or, like Qin Niu, had been trapped there going around in circles.
Chapter 267: 260 Mirror Frog Insect_1
Chapter 267: Chapter 260 Mirror Frog Insect_1
Insect Masters¡¯ charm lies precisely in this: a single person can be an
army.
If it hadn¡¯t been for Qin Niu setting fire to those few ships, causing the mist to dissipate, who would have thought that there was actually only one enemy here?
If I¡¯m not mistaken, the enemy stationed here is Nie Kun alone.
¡°What a clever tactic!¡±
Master He Shan swung his sword repeatedly, shing at an afterimage.
The afterimage, however, swiftly fled to a distant ce.
It wasn¡¯trge; it looked like an eye-shaped frog, adept at leaping, its speed almost on par with the fabled Grade Seven Taiyin Yaoyao.
In the blink of an eye, the eye-shaped insect had vanished without a trace.
What kind of monster was this?
This time, Qin Niu truly opened his eyes.
He had seen all sorts of strange insects.
¡°Damn it, to be toyed with by a Mirror Frog Insect, next time I encounter it, I must kill it,¡± raged Master He Shan, cursing the fleeing shadow.
Qin Niu listened and chuckled to himself, wondering what loss Master He Shan had suffered, appearing so infuriated and embarrassed.
At this moment, Master He Shan was sweating profusely, his helmet had fallen off, looking quite disheveled.
¡°Qin Niu, are these your boats?¡±
Master He Shan immediately spotted Qin Niu standing by the riverbank.
¡°They are! But there are only a few boats here, we might have been deceived. The enemy is cunning; they may have stopped the boats somewhere else.¡±
Qin Niu looked at the burning ships and said.
¡°Let¡¯s go upriver and take a look.¡±
Master He Shan quickly made a decision.
Qin Niu followed, and the other guards looked at him with respect.
Even the dullest understood that Qin Niu had just driven off the enemy, saving them all.
¡°Master He, was that Mirror Frog Insect actually an insect?¡±
¡°It¡¯s a very rare type of insect, if it can even be urately ssified as such.
They are kind of insect but not really.¡±
¡°Is it very powerful then?¡±
¡°Its greatest skill is to create some very realistic and frightening illusions. The stronger you are, the stronger the enemy it conjures. Even in broad daylight, one can easily fall for its trick. If one cannot see through the falsehood that its created enemies are mere illusions, they¡¯ll end up fighting endlessly against these phantom foes. When exhausted to the point of copse, the Mirror Frog Insect will consume their brain juices.
They specialize in sucking the brain juices of animals.
Especially those of humans and simians, which possess high intelligence, are their favorites.¡±
As Master He Shan rode the lion, he spoke of the Mirror Frog Insect¡¯s tactics.
¡°Do the illusions it creates have any lethality?¡±
¡°They have no lethality on their own. However, once you attack, that illusion gains lethality. It¡¯s like always fighting against yourself. Each attack you deliver bes the actual attack power of the illusion.¡±
¡°In that case, to deal with this thing, one simply needs not to strike.¡±
Upon hearing this, Qin Niu clicked his tongue in wonder.
There are countless creatures in the world, and strange ones continue to emerge incessantly.
There¡¯s a saying that goes well: what exists is justified.
The existence of these Mirror Frog Insects indicates they certainly have survival capabilities.
¡°Heh, you make it sound so simple. When faced with an enemy attack, it s impossible to remain indifferent. The Mirror Frog Insect precisely capitalizes on the animal¡¯s instinctual fear, which is why it has garnered such immense notoriety.¡±
Master He Shan shook his head with a wry smile.
Faced with a sudden enemy attack, I believe no one would just stand there
hands tied.
The first reaction is to strike back.
¡°As soon as an attack isunched, the illusionary monsters created by the Mirror Frog Insect immediately gain energy, thus obtaining real lethality.
¡°Then how can we break its spell?¡±
Qin Niu, not understanding, asked.
He was very interested in that strange insect, and given the chance, he wanted to capture it.
But it was useless to capture one that had already recognized another as its master.
¡°The only way to break the spell is to find its real body and attack that directly. Apart from running fast, the Mirror Frog Insect¡¯s real body has no other abilities. Any Grade Two insect could easily kill it. For an Innate Realm powerhouse like you and me, it¡¯s even more needless to say, a single finger could poke it to death.¡±
That was easier said than done.
Once they were confused by the illusions it created, everyone would definitely be caught up in tensebat, with no chance to pay attention to it.
And the Mirror Frog Insect surely wasn¡¯t stupid enough to reveal itself and let people discover it.
They ran upstream for about a kilometer and discovered nothing.
¡°Damnit, we¡¯ve made the wrong judgement again!¡±
Master He Shan, infuriated, tugged at his beard.
Just now, the enemy had fled upstream, and almost everyone subconsciously believed that the enemy ships were upstream.
But they had fallen into the enemy¡¯s trap again.
Members of the Nine Insect Gang were not only ruthless but also full of cunning tricks.
When dealing with these enemies, one must be extremely vignt.
Otherwise, one could easily fall for the enemy¡¯s deceit.
The group made their way downstream along the same path they hade from.
To transport arge army across the river, at least a hundred ships would be needed.
If it was a surprise attack, to shorten the time crossing the river, they might even use several hundred ships.
It was most likely that so many ships would be docked by the riverside.
The chance they had gone back to the opposite bank was very slim.
And dragging the ships ashore was even more unlikely.
If the enemy ships were not upstream, it meant they were very likely downstream.
As they proceeded downstream along the river, after less than three kilometers, they encountered a thick river fog ahead, obscuring their view.
¡°Not this trick again, so annoying!¡±
Master He Shan, upon seeing the dense river fog, realized their visibility was limited to only three or four meters, and that was with the illumination from torches. Without the torches, in the pitch-ck night, they would likely struggle to see even two meters ahead.
Having had a recent bitter experience, each of them felt apprehensive when they now faced the heavy fog, showing fear on their faces.
Bing an Insect Master was no easy feat.
These individuals held prestigious positions and lived without want, and now facing the threat of death, they would certainly cling to life.
¡°Last time it was also dense fog, and I set those boats on fire, which quickly dispersed the fog. This river fog is very likely created by the enemy on purpose,¡± said Qin Niu.
Their enemy was ying a bluff; in reality, there was only one person.
But with the fog as a cover, making it difficult to distinguish the true situation, it would be easy to assume there were many enemies hidden within.
¡°There is an insect called the Fog Concealing Insect! They live in water or deep mountains, and they love to create fog to hide themselves. These river mists were likely created by them.¡±
Although afraid, Master He Shan, being themander, still showed some resolve.
He resolutely led the way into the fog.
Their mission was to burn the enemy ships and cut off the enemy¡¯s escape routes. Then they would wait for Vice City Lord Bai to lead the grand army to eliminate the enemy.
The Insect Masters had two tasks: one was to deal with the enemy s Insect Masters.
The second task was to burn the ships and destroy the paths.
Qin Niu, skilled and daring, followed right behind Master He Shan, charging ahead.
Having learned the hard wayst time, after entering the fog it was very easy to lose one¡¯s way and end up going in circles. This time, before he even entered the fog, he had Fourth identify the direction.
Chapter 268 - 261: Luxurious Enemy Formation i
Chapter 268: Chapter 261: Luxurious Enemy Formation i
Even in the ck of night, Fourth¡¯s ability to discern direction had not diminished.
He was like apass one carried with oneself.
A group of people entered the river fog, proceeding along the riverbank.
Ssh!
The river suddenly exploded as a giant snake surged out of the water.
It lunged directly at Qin Niu and Master He Shan, striking with an overwhelming fury as water kept dripping from its body.
The threat of deathpelled everyone to instinctively draw their weapons, ready to confront the massive serpent.
¡°It seems fake!¡±
Qin Niu said.
¡°No one attack.¡±
Having suffered greatly from the Mirror Frog Insect¡¯s illusions before, Master He Shan immediately shouted loudly for his personal troops not to attack.
He rode his stout lion at the forefront, shielding the others.
A string of Golden Armored Centipedes had been released by him.
Ssh!
The giant snake instantly dissipated.
Indeed, it was fake, an illusion created by the Mirror Frog Insect. If Qin Niu hadn¡¯t seen through it, everyone would surely havebined their forces to attack the serpent that had ambushed them.
The consequences of that would have been unimaginable.
Thebined attack energy of so many people would have instantly made the illusion terrifyingly powerful.
Master He Shan released arge number of Golden Armored Centipedes, allowing them to spread out and press forward steadily.
This tactic was quite effective.
The Mirror Frog Insect was particrly afraid of such swarm attacks because its illusions could not simultaneously confuse all the insects.
Thus, the likelihood of exposing its true form greatly increased.
It was easily killed.
It specialized in creating illusions to terrify others, but in reality, it was also afraid of death, even more cowardly than the average insect.
As the group advanced, they could faintly make out by the light of the fires the shadows of moored boats not far off by the riverside.
¡°Burn those boats, and we will have won. Warriors, give it all you¡¯ve got.¡±
Master He Shan became excited upon seeing the enemy boats.
But behind him came strange noises as a scorpionrger than a grinding disk quickly emerged from the river fog.
Its long scorpion tail arched high and bent forward above its back.
One could clearly see the joints on the tail, as well as the venomous Poison Stinger at its end.
It was closing in on two personal soldiers at the rear of the group.
¡°Since when are scorpions this huge? It must be another illusion by that wretched Mirror Frog Insect. Brothers, don¡¯t be fooled, watch me break it.¡±
Thest of the personal soldiers, having been frustrated for so long, was eager to have his moment of glory.
Facing the rapidly approaching giant scorpion, he made no move to defend but instead spit at it.
¡°Come on,e at me, kill me!¡±
Spurt!
The giant scorpion reached the soldier, its tail stabbing out swiftly and viciously.
The Poison Stinger pierced the soldier¡¯s armor, boring straight through it.
Its stinger was actually capable of prating armor.
Too strong.
¡°Ah¡ it¡¯s real, damn it!¡±
Fear and regret quickly spread across the face of the soldier.
Then, his lips turned ck at an rming speed, and ck blood oozed from his mouth where his heart had been pierced by the stinger.
He convulsed and fell to the ground shortly after.
The giant scorpion easily dispatched a Grade One Acquired Realm expert and swiftly moved to attack the other personal soldier.
¡°You bastard, I¡¯ll kill you!¡±
The remaining soldier, enraged by hisrade¡¯s death, charged ahead.
He swung his cleaving sword fiercely at the giant scorpion.
This soldier¡¯s cultivation was also at the Acquired Realm, but a bit stronger, at the peak of Grade One, nearly breaking through to Grade Two.
A de strike sliced through the air, with a faint whistling of the de, fierce in its momentum.
¡°Be careful!¡±
Master He Shan leapt down from the lion¡¯s back, then rapidly charged toward the guardsman.
He was determined to save this soldier.
At that moment, the unexpected urred; strands of invisible spider silk shot out from the darkness.
The target was the hurriedly rescuing Master He Shan.
Not just that, swarms of flying poisonous bees also attacked Master He Shan like lightning. Each one as thick as a grown man¡¯s forearm, numbering over a hundred.
These were Grade Five Bee Generals¡ no, they were Grade Six Bee Generals.
This was a force so formidable it made one¡¯s soul tremble.
In addition to the bee swarm, there were unseen spiders, and moths emitting a faint green luminescence, all likewise converging on Master He Shan.
On the ground, the earth cracked open, and elongated ck armored insects burrowed out.
They were the feared mimic ground beetles, true subterranean predators.
These mimic ground beetles, unlike the numerous ferocious beetles before, were each about the thickness of two adult thumbs, extremely agile, and with well-developed mandibles.
As soon as they emerged from the ground, they aimed their behinds at Master He Shan all at once.
Clouds of poison were sprayed.
There were around a hundred of these mimic ground beetles, each at least a Grade Five insect.
¡°Mimic ground beetles, Binding Fairy Spiders, Steel-winged Green-headed Bees, Grinding Disk Scorpions, Echo Bugs, Mirror Frog Insects¡ Haha, Elder Jiu Yin, you truly hold me in high regard. To think you¡¯ve directed your disciples to besiege this old man and calcted the timing so precisely, wishing to bury me here. If I¡¯m not mistaken, there should also be Burial Beetles lying in wait for me, right?¡±
Faced with such an onught, Master He Shan¡¯s shock and anger knew no bounds.
One could hear that his voice carried arrogance, yet it bore insufficient confidence and a hint of fear of death.
Now, his derisiveughter was nothing more than the defiant stubbornness of a dying duck, striving to retain his final dignity.
Qin Niu, witnessing such an extravagant array, felt more excitement, along with a tinge of fear.
This was the true strength of an Insect Master!
Each one, each group, powerful in its own right.
Someday, he too mightmand a multitude of impressive insects like these Insect Masters.
The strength of the Nine Insect Gang was truly formidable.
Merely the twelve disciples beneath Elder Jiu Yin were already so powerful.
The strength of Elder Jiu Yin himself was absolutely breathtaking.
At this moment, Qin Niu faced two choices.
The first was to immediately flee, with Fourth guiding him, the fog could not confine him.
But as the enemy was mighty, the likelihood of being caught was high.
Moreover, he had killed Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s fourth disciple, Zhu Zhu, and severed the arm of the eldest disciple, Nie Kun, creating an irreconcble feud. The opposition would never let him go.
If the Nine Insect Gang discovered he was responsible for killing Old Master Huang, Leader Song Zan, and others, they would be even less likely to spare him.
Also, what bes of home when the nation falls?
If the ck Tiger Gang truly was annihted, Qin Niu would lose his home. Afterwards, he¡¯d face the endless pursuit of the Nine Insect Gang.
The Ancient Banyan Tree in the deep mountains couldn¡¯t be taken with him; it was, to date, his strongest cultivation resource, as well as his most important one. Only by preserving the ck Tiger Gang, could he continue tofortably survive within the secluded valleys.
Only then would he have sufficient time to develop and grow stronger.
With that in mind, he was left with only the second choice.
That was to stand alongside Master He Shan against powerful enemies, to win this battle.
It would be difficult.
Since confronting just the disciples of Elder Jiu Yin was already extremely challenging.
In due course, Elder Jiu Yin was sure to join the battle.
Master He Shan must be protected; once the enemy eliminated him and were free to turn their attention, Qin Niu would undoubtedly be the first to be killed.
Not to mention, capturing eight of Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Taiyin Yaoyao surely guaranteed they wouldn¡¯t let him go.
¡°Lads, don¡¯t forget, there¡¯s also your Lord Qin here. With me around, it¡¯s not your turn to run wild.¡±
Qin Niu abandoned his usual low profile.
To help Master He Shan draw fire, he had no choice but to be high-profile this time.
In his left hand, he gripped a horn shield; the Invisibility Talisman given by the mute Bei Bing was covertly clenched in his hand. Should he truly be overpowered, he would use it immediately.
His right hand grasped the Ink de, bristling with killing intent..
Chapter 269 - 262 Kill the Binding Fairy Spider 1
Chapter 269: Chapter 262 Kill the Binding Fairy Spider 1
Qin Niu felt that the most dangerous creature was not the group of Steel-winged Green-headed Bees, but the Binding Fairy Spider.
Looking at the bees¡¯ appearance, there were traces of Green Demon Bee in their design.
If he wasn¡¯t mistaken, it was very likely that after capturing Steel-winged Wild Bees, they were cultivated, ultimately resulting in this batch of Steel-winged Green-headed Poison Bees.
Given the Green Demon¡¯s cunning nature, it wouldn¡¯t possibly release a second-rate product of the true Green Demon Bee into the wild.
Because for any Insect Master, maintaining a monopoly permitted uniqueness, without the worry of being surpassed by someone else.
The wildest bees of ck Stone Vige were the Steel-winged Wild Bees.
They had the bloodline of Green Demon Bees, but the strongest were only around Grade Five. Not even one Grade Six Steel-winged Wild Bee was spotted.
This in itself spoke volumes.
The difficulty of natural evolution in the wild wasparatively higher, but over so many years, such a vast group of Steel-winged Wild Bees had not produced a single Grade Six Steel-winged Wild Bee.
This was definitely againstmon sense.
It suggested that Green Demon had meddled with the Steel-winged Wild Bees it released into the wild, or perhaps deliberately eliminated any bee species that couldn¡¯t achieve a high enough level.
Their growth ceiling was probably around Grade Five.
For them to advance to a higher level would be incredibly difficult.
At the moment, nearly a hundred poison bees besieging Master He Shan were basically all at Grade Six. This indicated that their master had captured Steel-winged Wild Bees and had subsequently gone through a series of cultivations. Finally, he had sessfully made a breakthrough, allowing them to ascend to Grade Six.
Among the Steel-winged Wild Bees that Qin Niu had captured, aside from the Grade Five Steel-winged Wild Bees, there was also a special summoning bee. They too had green heads, and they came and went like the wind, flying at extreme speeds.
But the abilities of the two types of Steel-winged Green-headed Bees werepletely different.
They also looked drastically different from each other.
Another interesting phenomenon was noticed.
Most Insect Masters believed that any poison bees with a touch of green had the pure bloodline of Green Demon Bees. Why were the two green giant bumblebees that Qin Niu sold initially so popr?
The main reason was that they possessed a certain special ability, and their wings were green.
Whether it was the spoilt young girl who bought them or Old Master Huang, they must have thought they found a great deal, acquiring bumblebees with the pure bloodline of Green Demon Bees.
In their wildest dreams, they couldn¡¯t imagine that Qin Niu had cultivated a special bee variety with just a small amount of Ancient Banyan Tree Blood.
One hundred and fifty Silver Money a piece, which was absolutely a huge sum of money for the once dirt-poor Qin Niu.
Qin Niu wasn¡¯t fearful of the hundred Steel-winged Green-headed Poison Bees attacking Master He Shan because he had tamed a real Green Demon Bee. Even though the Green Demon Bee wasn¡¯t hatched yet, Qin Niu was like the Emperor Emeritus; all poison bees with the Green Demon Bee bloodline wouldn¡¯t attack him.
Instead, they were extremely wary of him.
This was due to the inherent suppression of bloodline hierarchy.
Because the Green Demon Bee that Qin Niu had, was akin to their ancestor.
Thus, when he rescued Elder He Shan, he directly ignored the attack of the swarm of poison bees. Instead, he targeted the Binding Fairy Spider hiding in the fog, spitting out webs.
The threat posed by this spider was enormous.
Its web was nearly transparent, and amidst the ck night,pounded with the covering fog in the area, spotting its shot webs was exceedingly difficult.
Amon spider, even capable of entwining prey with web, usually traps its prey in a web first before moving forward to wrap from the back and bind the Prey.
Yet this Binding Fairy Spider could directly spray its web to entangle enemies.
Master He Shan¡¯s lion was already entangled around its two front paws, now angrily roaring and struggling, trying to tear apart those fine webs.
However, the web was extremely sharp, easily cutting deep into the lion¡¯s flesh.
Wounds had already appeared on its front legs, with blood flowing freely.
Such a method of attack was terrifying.
If a person were entwined in the web, who would dare to struggle?
No one would dare to move.
They could only submit meekly.
It was precisely because of the spider¡¯s great danger that Qin Niu, by leveraging Fourth¡¯s sense ability and locking onto the Binding Fairy Spider¡¯s location, sped up and rushed towards it. He raised his hand and shed down at it with all his might.
Squeak!
This scourge was still fierce, finding that Qin Niu attacked it, it actually spat out transparent spider silk, trying to bind Qin Niu.
Its size was roughly as big as a bucket.
The height of its abdomen was also about the same as a bucket, its body was gray, decorated with light white spots.
But the color of the spots was not pure white, rather it was a grayish white.
This also made it more advantageous for it to hide its shape in this dark environment.
However, it seemed to have underestimated the power of Qin Niu¡¯s de.
By happenstance, a strike that coincidentally produced a rupture effect.
Shik!
Like tearing through cloth with ease, this insolent Binding Fairy Spider indeed deserved to have this cmity in its fate.
It was cleaved into two halves by a single strike from Qin Niu.
The spider silk it spat out was extremely sticky and also incredibly fast.
Blocked by Qin Niu¡¯s horn shield.
Then he returned the de to cut it off.
The Ink de proved itself as a Treasured Sword, indeed having been worth the many days it was nurtured.
Its material was not much to speak of, really.
However, after being nourished by the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood, it hadpletely transformed, bing an exceptional Treasured Sword.
Even without Qin Niu exerting any force, he could make it disy de Qi.
This allowed its sharpness to far surpass that of ordinary divine weapons.
Easily cutting through the Binding Fairy Spider¡¯s spider silk.
¡°Kill my beloved spider, die!¡±
A man with disheveled hair, looking frenzied, wielded two curved des as he attacked Qin Niu.
A trace of fresh blood dangled from the corner of his mouth, his expression seemed somewhat wilted, obviously because his life-bound insect had been killed, which had severely damaged his spirit and caused him to cough up blood.
Qin Niu currently had numerous insect and beast pets to his name, but he had not decided on his life-bound pet.
There was an advantage to this: if any of them died, the impact on the master would not be particrly severe. At worst, it would just hurt his spirit.
He had experienced such a taste before.
When the two Termites he previously bonded with died, each time, it would leave him spiritless for a long time.
Establishing a spiritual bond with insects or birds and beasts was equivalent to taking them as one¡¯s own.
But that did not mean treating them as life-bound pets.
Knowing well that the death of life-bound pets could cause significant harm to their master, why do so many Insect Masters or Beast Tamers still choose to designate certain pets as their life-bound pets?
Firstly, it is definitely because of affection.
Just like when we fall in love with a man or woman, willing to give selflessly to them.
Taking the hard-earned money and spending it on the other party.
Upon hearing that the other party is sick, one would rush to bring medicine, deliver food, and offer care and concern.
The same goes for pets.
When a certain pet can bring tremendous benefits to the master and is deeply favored by the master, the master will feel that they can¡¯t live without it. They are willing to use the best resources to cultivate it, to help it be stronger.
Treating it as their life-bound insect for cultivation, the master and the insect will be more in sync with each other.
In the future, when the insect bes particrly strong, it can even nourish the master in return.
It can even be refined into a secondary primordial spirit.
Moreover, when the master is in danger, the life-bound pet will automatically protect the master.
Finally, there¡¯s another point: the life-bound pet has a higher status among the master¡¯s many pets, and canmand other pets..
Chapter 270 - 623 Achievements Fulfilled, Retire from the Scene 1
Chapter 270: Chapter 623 Achievements Fulfilled, Retire from the Scene 1
Other pets generally give absolute obedience to themands of a prime pet. It¡¯s somewhat akin to having a spokesperson.
The Insect Masters of the Nine Insect Gang, each had recognized arge number of insects as pets. For convenience, they might focus on cultivating one pet as their prime pet.
The Binding Fairy Spider that was killed was incredibly formidable, and it must have been extremely important in the eyes of its master.
Countless efforts and innumerable resources had been spent on raising it.
Imagine, such an important pet being destroyed in an instant by someone.
Moreover, the master was injured in the process.
With such a serious loss, it¡¯s frightening to think how anyone could not go mad.
That person going after Qin Niu in a frenzy was actually out of desperation. As soon as he reached Qin Niu, he was sliced in half by a swing of the knife. When facing enemies of the Innate Realm level, if the opponent doesn¡¯t have a weapon or shield that can contend with the Ink de, it¡¯s basically one-hit kills in front of Qin Niu.
After ying this person with one stroke, Qin Niu didn¡¯t forget his old trade.
He quickly looted the corpse¡¯s belongings.
These people were not ordinary soldiers, but rather persons with some status in the Nine Insect Gang.
To be a disciple of an elder, at least, had to be at the level of an executor.
One after another, the Ground Armor insects, along with the Grinding Disk Scorpion, allunched attacks at Qin Niu.
When the scorpion, asrge as a grinding disk, swiftly crawled behind Qin Niu, trying tounch a sneak attack, Qin Niu swung his knife and struck.
Hiss!
Again, cut into two halves.
The Ink de,bined with his sh Martial Skill, was just too powerful.
Nearly any god you encounter, y; any buddha, execute.
Whether it be human or insect, all were killed instantly.
¡°Damnable, damnable!¡±
A shrill howl echoed in the fog. Screaming at the top of the lungs, the person must be at the peak of grief and anger.
However, they were too intimidated by Qin Niu¡¯s fearsomebat ability to dare toe over and face certain death.
They could only scream from a distance.
After looting the belongings, Qin Niu didn¡¯t forget to pack the corpses of the
Binding Fairy Spider and Grinding Disk Scorpion into his basket.
The basket, which was already quite full, became even more packed.
That was after he had bought arger backpack; otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to fit so many items.
His gains had been tremendous along the way.
He had collected quite a number of high-level insect corpses.
He nned to save them to feed the Ant Queen and the Green Demon Bee when he got back.
It looked like much now, but when it came to actually raising them, this amount was not much at all.
The Ground Armor insects on the ground posed almost no threat to Qin Niu.
As they were just about to attack Qin Niu, they were taken down by the termites.
At this point, Master He Shan quickly turned the tide from danger to safety.
The enemy¡¯svish lineup was dismantled in a moment, no longer grandiose. ¡°These Grade Six Steel-winged Green-headed Bees are quite nice; taking them back as feed for my insects should be great.¡±
Qin Niu looked up at those still attacking Master He Shan.
Hearing Qin Niu¡¯s muttering, the owner hiding in the dark tightened instantly.
When he saw Qin Niu walking toward those poison bees, without a second thought, he immediately summoned the bees to flee.
Against a demon like Qin Niu, if you¡¯re slow to escape, you¡¯re dead.
¡°Qin Niu, well done. If it weren¡¯t for your help just now, this old life of mine would have been gone.¡±
Master He Shan was now capable of handling the enemy¡¯s insects with ease.
The Ground Armor insects on the ground were fighting with Master He Shan¡¯s Golden Armored Centipede, and they were no match for the centipede.
Though they were both predators, the ability of the Ground Armor insects was far too inferior to that of the Golden Armored Centipede.
¡°Don¡¯t mention it, I¡¯ll go burn their ships first,¡±
Qin Niu immediately dashed rapidly toward the enemy ships moored nearby.
A gigantic centipede appeared in front of him.
It was over five meters long, its body thicker than a human waist, its hard shell and venomous fangs were clearly visible.
Even the segments on its antennae were distinctly discernable.
¡°Hmph, such a petty trick, is it annoying?¡±
Qin Niu did not attack the huge centipede but simply charged past it.
Just as he had expected, the terrifying giant centipede was nothing but an illusion created by the Mirror Frog Insect.
Along the way, no enemy dared to confront him.
As for those insects, ordinary ones were useless against him. Any formidable insect daring to approach him would most likely be cut down with a single sh.
Eventually, he reached the warships moored by the riverbank, and with a firebrand, he set them aze.
These warships, made of wood, quickly caught fire with the help of the strong night breeze.
The fire used the wind¡¯s power, the wind fueled the mes.
In just a moment, a fierce fire raged by the riverbank, and the mist over the river started to gradually dissipate.
The disciples of Elder Jiu Yin must have sensed something was amiss as they began to flee hastily.
In the light of the fire, one could see two warships swiftly rowing towards the opposite bank.
If these people didn¡¯t flee, they were sure to meet a dead end.
As the river fog cleared, the sky gradually began to brighten.
Dawn was approaching; it was almost daybreak.
Only a ground littered with insect corpses remained.
They told the story of the fierce battle from the night before.
Qin Niu had already prepared his life-saving Invisibility Talisman, ready to use it.
Now, however, he silently put it away.
It was good to save it for the next time.
Such life-saving trump cards should be used only when absolutely necessary. ¡°We¡¯ve sessfullypleted our mission, but I wonder how Deputy City Lord Bai is doing?¡±
Master He Shan, looking at the hundreds of enemy ships that werepletely destroyed, couldn¡¯t help but let out a long sigh of relief.
¡°Qin Niu, your contributions to today¡¯s battle were immense. I will make sure to report this truthfully.¡±
¡°Since the battle here is over, I should depart as well. As for the military recognition, you can decide on that.¡±
Qin Niu bid farewell to Master He Shan.
Having killed two of Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s disciples and severing the arm of his senior disciple, it would be wise to leave this ce as soon as possible.
After fighting the enemy for so long, Qin Niu hade to understand just how powerful the Insect Masters were.
If it weren¡¯t for this Ink de, he doubted he would have been able to leave alive.
Not to mention single-handedly turning the tide of battle and winning the final insect war.
After bidding farewell to Master He Shan, Qin Niu, carrying his basket on his back, used the Misty Rain Elusive Step to quickly move forward.
He didn¡¯t take the warhorse with him.
If he had wanted it, Master He Shan would have surely agreed.
But such ordinary mounts held no value in Qin Niu¡¯s eyes. Taking it back would mean having to take care of it, which would be a bother.
There was no need for that.
With such a plentiful haul from the journey, what he wanted to do most now was to rush back to Shuangfeng Vige and nt the Ice Lotus.
If too much time was dyed, this exotic nt could easily perish.
Even with his Evesting Spring Technique, he might not be able to revive it. When he first uprooted the Ice Lotus, it continuously released an immense amount of cold air. But now, the cold air it released was weak, indicating that it was on the verge of dying.
He also needed to take back the insects he had captured, along with various insect corpses, and feed them to the Ant Queen as soon as possible.
Furthermore, having been away from home for so long, he was really starting to feel homesick.
He missed Miss Wang from next door, the soft and delicate Tang Caixian, the maidservant Xiao Qing¡ and he was even more worried about any mishap befalling the Ant Queen..
Chapter 271 - 624 Tiemu City and Jiuli City_1
Chapter 271: Chapter 624 Tiemu City and Jiuli City_1
He ran swiftly, the dawn¡¯s morning light shining on his face and illuminating the entire world ahead.
The final oue of this war was still unpredictable.
Burning all of the enemy¡¯s warships was certainly an important victory in this war.
The disciples under Elder Jiu Yin had suffered heavy casualties, having been routed by Qin Niu, which was a severe blow to the enemies and also served to heavily strike down their arrogance.
The ck Tiger Gang, due to its short history of establishment, simply couldn¡¯tpare with an old sect like the Shennong Sect in terms of heritage. Although the territory of the ck Tiger Gang was fairlyrge, for the time being, they only had ck Tiger City under their control.
The Shennong Sect, aside from their main city, Shennong City, also had secondary cities like Mai City, Tiemu City, and Jiuli City.
Mai City primarily engaged in grain trade, and if not for this war, its developmental vitality would have been very strong. In less than two hundred years, it could have be a trulyrge city.
Tiemu City was a well-established secondary city, second only to Shennong City, mainly trading in various types of lumber.
The ironwood from Tiemu City almost dominated the market throughout the territory of the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect and was much loved by many. Ironwood, being as hard as steel with strong flexibility and resistance to corrosion, and being much lighter than steel, was extremely versatile.
It could be used to make weapons, shields, furniture, and for house renovations.
Especially as the raw material for outdoor furniture, ironwood nearly had aplete monopoly.
Even golden silk nanmu and sandalwood, when faced with sun and rain, would quickly deteriorate. Ironwood, having good oil content, could be coated with tung oil and thencquered, and it would be perfectly usable outdoors for over a hundred years.
Many high-level cultivators often liked to cultivate in natural environments.
Because cultivating in a natural setting often made their efforts twice as effective.
Allws naturally arise, and all cultivation methods originate from the insights into nature. Put simply, thews and ways understood by cultivators are actually the naturalws of the entire world. Whether summoning wind and rain or overturning rivers and seas, which great divine skill doesn¡¯t involve the understanding of nature¡¯s mighty power?
Moreover, many powerful individuals could meditate for decades at a time, and their requirements for outdoor furniture were extremely stringent.
It needed to be durable,fortable, and close to nature.
The ironwood, which fears neither the sun nor the rain, was definitely the best choice.
The Shennong Sect, with just ironwood alone, had umted countless wealth.
lheir Jiuli City was a well-known source of livestock and beasts.
Domestic poultry and livestock like chickens, ducks, cows, sheep, and pigs were just the basics. They had already realizedrge-scale breeding of wild animals such as wolves, deer, bears, rabbits, and snakes.
Conversely, the Nine Insect Gang, despite its geographically advantageous environment, was very weak in terms of breeding.
The subjects of the Nine Insect Gang at most caught a wild wolf or other ferocious beasts, then somehow domesticated it to serve as a mount.
No one thought of breeding as a way to get rich.
The Nine Insect Gang also had a long history. Initially, they only had one city, Jiuchong City, and now they had acquired another, Seven-Star City.
From a development index perspective, the Shennong Sect was undoubtedly a big brother level.
This time, being instigated by the Nine Insect Gang to wage war against the ck Tiger Gang, in Qin Niu¡¯s view, was definitely a strategic folly.
Along the way, locusts ravaging thend could be seen everywhere.
Their sizes varied, showing no clear trend of evolution.
The greatest advantage of these locusts was still their overwhelming numbers. After confronting several Insect Masters from the Nine Insect Gang, Qin Niu found it easier to handle these locusts.
I he battlefield was the best ce to enhance one¡¯s strength.
Having encountered more powerful swarms, these weak locusts seemed almost unworthy of mention.
After a day and night of long and arduous travel, Qin Niu finally returned safely to Jade Stream Town.
Along the way, he saw no traces of the enemy army¡¯s plundering in the major towns.
Although the people were panicked and many were ready to flee at any moment, the enemy had not been able to prate deep into the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory to wreak havoc.
This was a good thing.
It meant the ck Tiger Gang had held the line against the enemy¡¯s assault.
Having left his hometown for many days, as he drew closer to Shuangfeng Vige, his heart surged with excitement.
He couldn¡¯t help but quicken his pace.
The Misty Rain Elusive Step was used whenever possible, and along the way, its proficiency level had rapidly increased.
The Misty Rain Traceless Step had made some progress: 923.4/1000 (speed increased by 40%, agility increased by 20%).
Although progressing from proficiency to some achievement meant an additional 10% increase in both speed and agility, he had yet toprehend any special abilities.
When the sh Martial Skill reached proficiency, he directly unleashed Critical Chop.
The Misty Rain Traceless Step should be a fine Step-Method Martial Skill, and in theory, it must be stronger and more profound than the sh Martial Skill he hadprehended on his own.
Once trained to a certain realm, he should be able to apprehend special abilities.
Fortunately, he was soon to advance to the next realm, and perhaps there would be an unexpected surprise then.
¡°Is that you, Brother Qin Niu?¡±
A woman stood from afar at the entrance to Daoyuan Vige.
Even though it was night, her graceful figure was still discernible.
¡°Cai Xian! It¡¯s me!¡±
Qin Niu flew over quickly, gazing at the beauty before him.
Having not seen her for many days, she seemed somewhat haggard, with messy hair at her temples, stirring a sense ofpassion in anyone who saw her.
¡°Why are you waiting at the vige entrance sote? Has something happened?¡±
Qin Niu, having been away from home for many days, was greatly concerned about the potential invasion by enemies.
If the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s devils came, beauties like Tang Caixian and Wang Wanyan would meet a tragic fate, one by one.
¡°No, nothing much happened. I went to see you a few days ago and learned that you were out. With chaos reigning outside, I couldn¡¯t settle down, fearing that some mishap might have befallen you. Maybe it was a psychic premonition, but today I waspelled toe and wait at the vige entrance. Hehe, and I really did wait for you. I¡¯m so incredibly happy.¡±
She spoke lightly, but she must have been deeply worried these past days.
¡°You¡¯ve lost weight!¡±
Qin Niu looked at her enchanting face, and for the first time, he was willing to truly open his heart, to ept her, to engrave her in his mind.
When a man pursues a woman, there¡¯s a mountain between them.
When a woman pursues a man, it¡¯s only a veil away.
A beautiful young girl, deeply in love with him, pining for him, had even moved his stony heart.
¡°Seeing you return safely is better than anything else. You look travel-weary; you must have suffered a lot on the road. Hurry home and take a bath, rest well. I¡¯lle to see you tomorrow.¡±
Tang Caixian¡¯s face broke into a genuine smile, and her eyes were so tender they seemed to drip water.
Pining away for many days, upon seeing her beloved, she didn¡¯t selfishly wish for Qin Niu to stay with her longer to relieve the anguish of longing. Instead, she considerately urged him to hurry home to rest.
Perhaps only a woman who loves a man to the marrow of her bones could feel this way.
Alright,e to my ce early tomorrow. I have something for you then.¡±
Qin Niu had caught quite a few powerful insects this time, and those he couldn¡¯t use himself, he could consider giving a couple to her.
She had previously focused on learning dance, music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, never thinking about cultivation.
Later, it was Qin Niu who suggested that she raise her cultivation to a certain level before he would consider marrying her..
Chapter 272 - 265: Tussling with the Mighty Green Ox_1
Chapter 272: Chapter 265: Tussling with the Mighty Green Ox_1
Because her time in cultivation was still short, her strength was not evenparable to Wang Wanyan¡¯s.
If she could rear a couple of formidable insects, she would be able to protect herself in dangerous times.
Qin Niu watched her go home before he swiftly departed.
Upon returning to Shuangfeng Vige, tranquility reigned throughout the vige.
Since it was located in a remote area, the good news was that information arrivedte, so during times of war, it was not easily affected.
The door was bolted from the inside, indicating that Xiao Qing was staying there.
She had been looking after the house by herself these past few days, which must have been hard on her.
¡°Moo~!¡±
The sound of the little water buffalo calling out came from the courtyard.
It seemed to sense that its owner was back, hence the calls.
Qin Niu was delighted, thezy ox had finally evolved.
He knocked on the door knocker.
¡°Xiao Qing!¡±
¡°Coming,ing!¡±
Upon hearing Qin Niu¡¯s call, Xiao Qing replied as she rapidly ran out of the house.
First came the sound of the door opening, then the sound of footsteps rushing towards the yard¡¯s gate.
The courtyard door opened from the inside, with Xiao Qing dressed in her simple clothes, her shoes just simply slipped on.
She had been woken from her sleep by Qin Niu¡¯s call.
¡°Master! I¡¯ve finally been waiting for you to return.¡±
Xiao Qing hugged him tightly, visibly excited.
¡°Hehe, haven¡¯t been cking off at home, have you?¡±
Qin Niu patted her head.
¡°No, I cleaned the courtyard and the inside of the house every day, and I took great care of the herbs. Xiao Nui woke up, and I took it to eat some grass.¡± She quickly exined.
¡°What I meant by cking off was whether you¡¯ve been cultivating or not?¡±
¡°I have been cultivating! It¡¯s just that the cultivation technique 1 practice is quite special. You weren¡¯t at home, and after some of the herbs absorbed the medicinal qi from me, they started wilting, so I didn¡¯t dare to cultivate any further. These days, I¡¯ve been learning the Seven-Star Sword Technique and have somewhat mastered it.¡±
Without Qin Niu at home, she couldn¡¯t enter the mountains to cultivate under the Ancient Banyan Tree.
So, she could only learn the Seven-Star Sword Technique.
¡°Good, learning a sword technique is very good. The Seven-Star Sword Technique was once the Seven-Star Sect¡¯s signature skill. Master it, and it will significantly enhance yourbat abilities. Tomorrow, I will teach you a step-method martial skill, and you will be even stronger.¡±
Xiao Qing was his attendant, and he definitely intended to train her well.
¡°Ah Niu!¡±
Wang Wanyan, upon hearing Qin Niu¡¯s voice and knowing he had returned, also came over in the middle of the night to see him.
¡°Sister Wanyan has been daydreaming these days, she¡¯s been thinking about you every day!¡±
Xiao Qing chimed in from the side.
¡°That¡¯s nonsense.¡±
Wang Wanyan¡¯s pretty face instantly reddened, and she red at Xiao Qing. She was always modest and easily embarrassed.
Her way of expressing feelings was also very subtle.
If she didn¡¯t care about Qin Niu, why would she get out of bed in the middle of the night to see him?
Women are often contradictory in this way.
¡°Hehe, these days while wandering outside, I missed you all as well. Wanyan, have you practiced any step-method martial skills?¡±
¡°No! Martial skills are quite expensive, and I want to focus on improving my cultivation first.¡±
Her family was just an average wealthy household, with very limited pocket money each month.
It was already considered good to be able to buy a cultivation technique scroll.
Everyone¡¯s path to cultivation is simr, only able to umte and strive bit by bit.
Unless you¡¯re a true noble scion or a youngdy from a distinguished family, that¡¯s when you can easily possess various cultivation resources.
When Qin Niu first started, it was also incredibly tough.
He would rather eat grass roots and bark, starve and endure hunger in order to be an Insect Master. Fortunately, after many efforts, he finally seeded.
Once he had a certain foundation, he discovered the Ancient Banyan Tree, a super treasure, and then his rapid ascent began.
Now, with a fortune of nearly a hundred thousand Silver Money, he had a decent umtion of insects and beast pets, as well as a substantial collection of cultivation techniques, martial skills, weapons, and armor.
These foundations had gradually made him into a junior powerhouse.
As long as he did not fall, he was bound to grow ever stronger.
¡°If you¡¯re not busy tomorrow,e to my house. I¡¯ll teach you a step-method martial skill.¡±
Qin Niu said to her.
¡°Sure, 1¡¯11e to find you tomorrow. Haven¡¯t you had dinner yet? We still have some meat pies at home, 1¡¯11 bring them over for you now.¡±
¡°No need, no need, I¡¯ve already eaten. You go back and rest;e over early tomorrow.¡±
Qin Niu now possessed a considerablyrge estate, and he had not been skimping on his diet along the way.
After all, it didn¡¯t cost much to eat.
After sending Wang Wanyan away and closing the door, Qin Niu took out the Diamond Ink Turtle and tossed it into the fish pond.
This timid turtle clearly felt a certain affection for its home.
It cheerfully moved through the water, darting about in the fish pond.
Qin Niu didn¡¯t pay any more attention to it and instead walked towards the cattle shed.
¡°Lazy Ox, finally woke up, huh?¡±
As he reached out and stroked its head, he could see that its horns had undergone a noticeable change.
Previously, there were two horns on either side of its forehead, but now they were moving closer to the middle of its forehead.
Could its horns actually move?
Moreover, they were different from the horns of an ordinary water buffalo.
Its horns were spiral.
Additionally, its fur, which used to be ckish-green, now faintly exuded a hint of jade-like precious light.
Its eyes emitted a strange light.
Qin Niu could feel its power; it seemed just as strong as a Grade Seven
Red-eyed Golden Toad¡¯s aura.
In fact, the Red-eyed Golden Toad within the carrying basket was curled up and motionless.
¡°Ao~!¡±
The young water buffalo let out a resonating chant that echoed through heaven and earth.
Qin Niu¡¯s termites, the Red-eyed Golden Toad, all remained still. It seemed they held a deep reverence for Little Niu.
Even the War Demon Ant Fourth, who normally feared nothing, was also curled up motionless. Only its antennaid low, showing a reverence for the powerful.
¡°Let¡¯s see what level you¡¯ve evolved to!¡±
He immediately checked Little Niu¡¯s attributes.
Twisted-Horn Majestic Green Ox
Level: Grade Six ungute mammal, leveling experience 1000000/10000000
Lifespan: 9999 years
Energy: 1000000
Skills: Fertilizer Grade One 7.23/10, Brute Strength Grade One 2.4/10, Divine Light Grade One 0/10 (can emit divine light from the horns to capture enemies or objects), Dragon Chant Grade One 0/10 (can break through evil barriers, illusions, and demonic sounds)
Talent: Awakening, Laziness, Super Defense (physical and magical damage reduced by 50%)
He had not expected it to jump straight to Grade Six.
He didn¡¯t know whether it was because it had consumed a bit too much of the
Ancient Banyan Tree Blood, or it just had excellent natural conditions.
The Ant Queen was currently Grade Five, as was the Diamond Ink Turtle.
The Diamond Ink Turtle¡¯s level had advanced due to consuming an elixirter; otherwise, it would have only been Grade Three.
That is to say, like Little Niu, it had consumed Ancient Banyan Tree Blood to evolve, but while Little Niu had ascended from Grade One to Grade Six in one go, it had only reached Grade Three, a full three grades behind.
From this, one could see that Little Niu¡¯s talent far exceeded theirs by a great margin.
Who could have thought that beast pets, like humans, would find leveling up easier with better talents?
Little Niu typically did not cultivate and waszy about working all day long.
Yet its leveling was far stronger than anyone else¡¯s.
¡°So it¡¯s a Twisted-Horn Majestic Green Ox. I wonder if it¡¯s rted to the Green Ox of the legendary Supreme Elder Lord?¡±
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t be sure for the moment.
Because the Supreme Elder Lord belonged to legends, whether this world actually had a Supreme Elder Lord, no one could be certain.
After evolving, Little Niu¡¯s abilities were truly against the heavens.
There was no need to mention Divine Light; it was somewhat reminiscent of the legendary Kong Xuan, who could brush aside all things. Its Dragon Chant was just as formidable, capable of breaking through evil barriers, illusions, and demonic sounds. With it around, these tricks were almost nothing to fear.
Additionally, it had awakened a super impressive talent, Super Defense.
Physical and magical damage was directly reduced by 50%.
A blow that would normally cause too points of damage to its body was now reduced to just 50 points after the reduction.
And its talent could very well evolve further.
By then, it would undoubtedly be a monstrous presence in terms of defense.
Chapter 273 - 266: Impervious to Water and Fire? 1
Chapter 273: Chapter 266: Impervious to Water and Fire? 1
Finally, he had a mount that looked the part.
Qin Niu had long dreamt of this day.
In the past, seeing others with powerful mounts, he felt particrly envious. Now that he had a special mount, and even one more powerful and with better growth potential than others, he was filled with satisfaction and joy.
¡°Not bad, not bad, it can be described as bullish! It¡¯s good to have strength, but
I still hope you can learn to keep a low profile,¡± he said.
Qin Niu made his requirements clear to it.
After checking Xiao Nui, he returned the Red-eyed Golden Toad to the backyard. He first checked on the bees in the granary, all was normal.
The swarm had many new members.
Now with the Green Demon Bee, his expectations for the War Bees had significantly lessened.
Because bringing the War Bees into battle this time, they yed a very limited role in the insect war.
That¡¯s not to say they were rubbish, on the contrary, their fighting capability was not weak.
Not to mention their honey-gathering abilities.
Far surpassing the ordinary bee.
Their flying ability was also very strong, no less inferior to the Steel-winged Wild Bee. But their biggest w was the inability to see at night.
For wild species, night vision is a very important special ability.
Without the ability to see in the dark, they were virtually useless in the night or in pitch-ck environments.
Having witnessed Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Taiyin Yaoyao this time, along with acquiring Green Demon Bees and Corpse Bees, he decided to breed a new bee species stronger than the Green Demon Bee. He nned tobine the self-healing abilities of the Corpse Bee with those of the Green Demon Bee.
By then, he believed that this brand-new bee species would be even stronger than Taiyin Yaoyao.
Because although cockroaches can fly and even have the title of Fei Lian, they definitely cannotpare with the Green Demon Bee.
Even though it was alreadyte at night, after putting away his luggage, Qin Niu still took the termites into the mountains.
Having been away from home for several days, he was very concerned about the Ant Nest.
Now with his powerful cultivation and the divine weapon Ink de in hand, entering the mountainte at night was like strolling in his own backyard.
When he arrived at the big camphor tree in the mountains, all was well.
The Ant Queen was stillying eggs day and night, and new termites were continuously hatching.
The majority of the new termite species now had Poison Stingers and poison sacks, and their venom was now highly toxic, no longer the mild poison of before.
He believed that as long as they were well cultivated, thebat power they could disy would be very formidable.
A bug without poison is like a tiger without ws or teeth, facing huge enemies, they would be at an absolute disadvantage.
¡°I¡¯lle cultivate you all tomorrow! All of you stay quietly in the nest,¡± Qin Niu instructed, sensing movement within the ant colony.
The Ant Queen also greeted Qin Niu from deep within the nest.
¡°Master!¡±
¡°This time I¡¯ve brought back arge amount of high-level food for you; I believe that after eating them, you¡¯ll at least advance by one grade. And you might even gain some unexpected new abilities,¡± he said.
The corpses and bugs Qin Niu brought back were many extremely powerful special insects.
And they were as high as Grade Five or Six.
There were even multiple Grade Seven bugs.
These bugs were top-tier resources for cultivating the Ant Queen.
Qin Niu had already decided, these top resources would only cater to an extremely small number of termites.
Fourth, all the Demon Ants, Poison Jaw Ants, and Medical Ants, these were the ones he prioritized for cultivation.
Among them, the Ant Queen was of the utmost importance.
Upon returning home, he took out the Ice Lotus and, after pondering for a moment, decided to try nting it in the soil of the backyard first.
The Strange Vine that he had dug up from beneath the cliff was also nted in the backyard.
But, he chose to nt it near the backyard wall.
Eventually, letting it grow along the backyard wall like a hedge.
As for its use, Qin Niu had not yet decided.
After being nted, the Ice Lotus and the Strange Vine were in poor shape. There has always been a saying: ¡°people can move and live, but trees will die if you move them¡±.
These special nts were far more delicate than ordinary ones.
They had very high requirements for the soil and the growing environment.
Even to the point of being demanding.
Moving them even once would cost them at least half their vitality.
Being jostled around with Qin Niu on the road had further aggravated their conditions. Now that they were nted in the soil, under normal circumstances, they would have a hard time surviving.
The Ice Lotus in particr required a very special growing environment, it was supposed to be nted underwater.
Qin Niu¡¯s decision to nt it in soil was an experiment.
The reason he dared to do this was because the Evesting Spring Technique he cultivated could nourish nts. It helped them recover quickly, greatly increasing the survival rate of the transnts.
After nting them, he separately infused some of the Evesting Spring Technique¡¯s energy into the core of the nts.
He would then wait until tomorrow morning toe over and check the results.
Having dealt with the two special nts, there were still many other gains he needed to sort through.
The eight caught Taiyin Yaoyao were the top priority.
These were Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s lifeblood insects; they had to be dealt with as soon as possible.
Qin Niu¡¯s idea was simple, to kill them and then use them to feed the Ant Queen.
To kill them, ording to Master He Shan¡¯s words, water or fire would do the job.
He decided to first experiment with one of the Taiyin Yaoyao that was locked in a Metal Bug Canister.
The Metal Bug Canister he took out had half of a Taiyin Yaoyao inside.
He tried fetching a bucket of water, then immersed the canister in it, filling the canister with water.
The trapped half of the Taiyin Yaoyao seemed a bit frantic at the beginning, crawling around, trying to escape. However, it had no hope of getting out; its struggles were in vain.
There was also something particrly interesting.
Its other half seemed to sense the danger and began frantically crawling and wriggling, trying to escape.
Of course, Qin Niu would not let it escape.
After a full half hour had passed, Qin Niu thought to himself, this should have drowned by now, right? But upon closer inspection, he found water bubbles hanging from its mouth and abdomen.
It was motionless, but not dead.
Looking at the situation, it seemed that even soaking it for a month or two would not kill it.
This definitely wouldn¡¯t do.
Once Elder Jiu Yin was free to act, he would quicklye for him.
By then, Qin Niu would be faced with a vicious cycle simr to the one with Old Master Huang. It was a scenario he was desperate to avoid.
The best course of action was to kill the eight Taiyin Yaoyao before Elder Jiu Yin had a chance to attack.
How to kill them?
The method of using water was too slow; he might as well try burning them.
If these Taiyin Yaoyao truly reached a state where they were impervious to both water and fire, then killing them would be difficult.
Because if he tried to chop them up, whether into two halves or into eight pieces, they could rapidly reassemble and eventually recover.
¡°Xiao Qing, help me make a big fire in the kitchen; I need a strong ze.¡±
¡°Okay!¡±
Xiao Qing was very efficient at these tasks, and soon managed to light a big fire in the kitchen stove.
The iron pot on top had already been removed and set on the ground.
Qin Niu used fire tongs to hold a metal canister over the fire to roast.
¡°Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle¡¡±
The inside half of the Taiyin Yaoyao was desperate like an ant on a hot pan, crawling all over the ce. It even made strange noises.
One wing spread out, pping continuously.
Flying up was simply impossible..
Chapter 274: 267: Teammate Like a Pig Leading to Doom_1
It seems that burning them with fire is quite effective.
Because the more anxious it gets, the more serious the damage it suffers.
As the half of the Taiyin Yaoyao in this jar gradually got roasted, the other half of its body trapped in another metal canister was suddenly enveloped in a wisp of ash-grey mist.
Qin Niu sensed something was amiss.
He quickly put that canister over the fire to roast as well.
Under the intense fire, the ash-grey mist dissipated bit by bit. This half of the
Taiyin Yaoyao also began to desperately struggle and move around.
Its body underwent some changes in a very short time.
At the cut wound, there were signs of healing, and the body seemed to be
shrinking.
An old shell appeared on its surface.
Was it trying to molt and transform into a new, whole life?
Qin Niu, with some experience in identifying and cultivating insects, immediately realized that upon sensing its other half nearing death, it decisively chose to molt in order to be a new,plete life.
Once that happened, it would no longer need its other half.
The capabilities of these Taiyin Yaoyao were too strong.
Qin Niu felt his knowledge expand, which would also provide a good reference for his future cultivation of Termite and Green Demon Bee.
To kill these Taiyin Yaoyao, both halves had to be destroyed together.
Otherwise, once the other half molted into a whole new life, it would likely be uncontroble.
At the very least, it had already been proven that an Insect Bag couldn¡¯t contain
aplete Taiyin Yaoyao.
They possessed a very strong ability to escape.
Furthermore, after molting into aplete new life, their strength should weaken correspondingly.
Roughly after a quarter of an hour, the Taiyin Yaoyao in both metal bug canisters stopped moving. Their legs curled up slightly, their antennae bent a little, and their wings were half-open.
The cut surface of their bodies was no longer enveloped in the gray mist.
Judging by this, they should be dead.
Qin Niu was still somewhat uneasy, so he shook the canisters, but they made no more movement.
It appeared that the method of burning them to death was efficacious.
Once Qin Niu confirmed that both halves of this Taiyin Yaoyao were dead, he applied the same method to the second one.
Only sixty li from Luoshui Town, in a wide open space, heavy fog had enveloped the area for close to three days and nights. Vice City Lord Bai had been waging battle here with arge army against the enemy forces, fighting ferociously.
The battle was at a deadlock.
Because the enemy had formidable insects aiding them and had created the fog that obstructed vision, ck Tiger City¡¯s side did not gain any advantage.
They even began to show signs of falling into a disadvantageous position.
Both sides suffered heavy casualties; it was a bloody conflict where it was either kill or be killed.
Vice City Lord Bai, leading the warriors from ck Tiger City, clenched his teeth and held on stubbornly.
He was very clear that they absolutely could not lose this battle.
If they were defeated, the enemy would march straight through, and all the important towns in the rear would fall under the enemy¡¯s ws and bloodied maws.
However, the enemy had formidable Insect Masters providing support, and
ck Tiger City¡¯s Insect Masters were also giving their all but still seemed to be slightly outmatched, which was very troubling.
The moment Qin Niu burned the first Taiyin Yaoyao to death, a scream came from within the fog, and the fog churned violently.
¡°This¡ Impossible, impossible! How could anyone kill my Taiyin Yaoyao? they are impervious to swords and spears, fast as lightning; who could have killed them? There¡¯s no way the ck Tiger Gang has such a powerful Insect Master!¡±
Elder Jiu Yin was roaring, raging in anger.
Each Taiyin Yaoyao was his painstakingly nurtured darling.
Now that someone had killed one, it being his vital insect, his soul was severely damaged.
Even the Insect King was greatly affected.
¡°Haha, heaven is truly on our side! Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Taiyin Yaoyao has been killed.
It seems Master He Shan is indeed very powerful!¡±
Vice City Lord Bai was overjoyed upon seeing the enemy¡¯s formation loosen and the fog churn violently, especially after hearing Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s roar of fury.
Atst, there appeared a glimmer of hope for victory.
Not long after the enemy formation had returned to normal, the fog began to violently churn once again, even more intensely than before.
There were even signs that it might dissipate.
Suddenly, the cursing roar of Elder Jiu Yin filled the air again.
¡°He Shan, you old bastard, how dare you ughter two of my Taiyin Yaoyao! I will never rest until I have skinned you alive, feasted on your flesh, drunk your blood, desecrated your ancestral grave, ground your bones to dust¡¡±
Elder Jiu Yin cursed Master He Shan with the most venomous words.
If Master He Shan was here, he would surely protest his innocence.
If only he had the power to ughter those eight Taiyin Yaoyao.
But he simply didn¡¯t have the ability.
This deed was clearly done by Qin Niu, yet he bore the brunt of the me.
Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s stream of curses hadn¡¯t even stopped before anotheriyin Yaoyao was burnt to death by Qin Niu.
Poof!
Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s life-bound insects were being killed off one after another, dealing him tremendous damage.
After spitting out a mouthful of fresh blood, Elder Jiu Yin¡¯splexion turned pale, and he could no longer stand firmly.
His guards quickly came to his support.
¡°Elder, Elder¡¡±
¡°Retreat! Retreat immediately!¡±
Three of Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Taiyin Yaoyao had already perished, leaving only five.
He was desperate to save thosest five.
If things continued like this, his spirit was sure to copse.
¡°Just one or two more days and we would have won, we can¡¯t retreat now!¡±
The Marshal of the Shennong Sect was extremely unwilling to give up.
¡°We¡¯re leaving!¡±
Elder Jiu Yin did not even nce at the Marshal of the Shennong Sect. He led all the Insect Masters and guards of the Nine Insect Gang away at breakneck speed toward the rear. He needed to return to Luoshui Town as quickly as possible to save his life-bound insects.
As they retreated, the fog enveloping the area began to lift.
Vice City Lord Bai, having led the army in a grueling battle for several days, was already furious. Now that the enemy was suddenly retreating due to major issues, it provided him with the opportunity to lead his army in pursuit of victory.
Defeat was like a domino effect.
An experienced Marshal leading an army would never retreat abruptly, even in defeat.
Even if retreating were necessary, it would be done in an orderly fashion, with the front line bing the rear and the rear line taking the lead.
Because retreating so suddenly could lead to utter ruin.
Once the soldiers lose their will to fight, they be like scattered sand.
¡°Damn it, that old Jiu Yin has doomed us all! We must report this to the Sect Leader when we return.¡±
The Marshal of the Shennong Sect cursed furiously, stamping his feet.
Vice City Lord Bai was already pursuing and ughtering the enemy with his troops. The soldiers of the Shennong Sect, who had never fought in a war since their sect had always remained neutral, found themselves at a disadvantage.
Their army had regr training but no actual battlefield experience.
Previously, with the assistance of Elder Jiu Yin, many powerful Insect Masters, and the cover of the fog, they had managed to suppress the forces of the ck Tiger Gang.
Now they had be sitting ducks.
The soldiers could only curse their parents for not giving them an extra pair of legs as they fled desperately.
Whoever fled first would survive.
In the face of such significant stakes, no one would bother with politeness.
The cold and ruthless nature of humanity was fully exposed.
The ck Tiger Gang¡¯s army ughtered the invading enemy mercilessly. And an even greater tragedy awaited the enemy, for the warships docked at the river had all been set aze by Qin Niu.
For them, crossing the river now seemed harder than reaching the heavens..
Chapter 275: 268 Great Victory_i
Vice City Lord Bai led his vast army in a sudden, rainbow-like assault, swiftly sweeping through the rear of the enemy forces.
Rapidly devouring those of the enemy who were too slow to escape.
All the way, the enemy fled in panic, leaving behind corpse after corpse.
Elder Jiu Yin gradually sensed that something was amiss.
Because those Taiyin Yaoyaos were his life-bound insects, even if someone had captured them, he could still sense their general location through the Insect King.
He discovered that the closer he got to Luoshui Town, the further away he was from the insects.
¡°Damn it, what¡¯s going on here? My insects were ced by the riverside in Luoshui Town, how did they end up somewhere else? Nie Kun, this fool, what is he doing?¡±
Elder Jiu Yin was seething with rage inside, both anxious and infuriated.
He had already instructed that in case his disciples were conquered, they should withdraw directly with the eight Taiyin Yaoyaos.
With the capabilities of the eight Taiyin Yaoyaos and the cover of the mist, escaping would be a breeze.
¡°Run in that direction!¡±
Elder Jiu Yin immediately adjusted the direction of their escape.
¡°Elder, that way lies the hearnd of the ck Tiger Gang. Without the protection of arge army, it¡¯s very dangerous,¡± a guard hurriedly warned.
They held the advantage in the escape, with the Shennong Sect¡¯s army behind them, dying the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s pursuit, providing a prime opportunity for escape.
¡°Enough nonsense!¡±
Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s expression was fierce, eyes filled with murderous intent.
Even the ck Tiger he rode could feel his master¡¯s towering rage and killing intent, not daring to disobey.
The Insect Masters and guards of the Nine Insect Gang, in turn, had to follow Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s change of direction, taking a detour towards the territory of the ck Tiger Gang.
The Shennong Sect¡¯s army, however, had fallen into dire straits.
When they fled to Luoshui Town, they were ambushed by Master He Shan¡¯s Insect Master unit; swarms of poisonous insects imed the lives of many soldiers. After a fierce struggle, they fought their way through to the riverside, by then, more than half of their forces had been lost.
The Marshal of the Shennong Sect cursed Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s ancestors for eighteen generations N-times over.
Once they reached the riverside, they nned to immediately board ships and cross the river.
By then, they would be safe.
However, when they arrived at the riverside, they were dumbfounded.
Where were the boats?
There was not a single warship to be seen.
The river surface was too clean; not a single boat had been left behind.
¡°Report¡¡±
A scout, who was zing the trail, staggered towards themander¡¯s g.
¡°There are numerous signs of fire at the riverside, as well as the wreckage of a few burned boats.¡±
¡°Those soldiers who can swim, strip off your armor and start swimming across immediately. Brothers who can¡¯t swim, head straight along the river. After 1 cross, I will immediately send boats back to pick you up,¡± the Marshal of the Shennong Sectmanded, nearly vomiting blood from frustration.
The boats had been burned, the least they could do was to report back!
What he didn¡¯t know was that at that time, the situation was extremely perilous. Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s twelve disciples, some dead, others fled.
Each and every one of them had their courage shattered by Qin Niu.
The fact they had managed to sessfully escape back across the river was already a blessing from their ancestors¡¯ protective spirits.
Who would dare to risk their lives to deliver a message to the Shennong Sect¡¯s army?
Needless to say, what followed.
After Master He Shan led the Insect Master battalion to clean up all the insects of the enemy army, he directly stationed in Luoshui Town.
Not even a mosquito could fly past, so how could anyone send a message?
The Shennong Sect¡¯s army had no time to worry about much else; those who could swim immediately shed their armor, threw away their weapons and other items, and plunged into the icy river, swimming towards the opposite bank.
Those who could swim were only a small part; thendlubbers could only flee along the river, waiting for the Marshal to send boats to meet them.
Vice City Lord Bai led his troops to the riverbank, where they joined forces with Master He Shan and quickly made a decision after a brief understanding of the situation: to mercilessly attack the drowning dogs.
The victory had to be expanded.
Two hourster, the battle waspletely over, and the likelihood that soldiers from the Shennong Sect made it back was less than one in ten.
The poorndlubbers ultimately failed to wait for the Marshal to sendrge boats for them.
Constructing a warship takes at least half a month, and even longer for arge ship.
All the boats had been burnt to ashes.
Where would their Marshal find boats now?
Having led his troops to a resounding victory, Vice City Lord Bai was naturally ted and in high spirits.
¡°Master He Shan, how did Elder Jiu Yin manage to escape? If this man had been killed, it would have dealt a heavy blow to the Nine Insect Gang.¡±
This battle yielded countless armors, shields, and weapons, and over ten thousand of the enemy troops were killed.
The only disappointing part was that the main enemy and Elder Jiu Yin were not captured.
¡°We never saw that old scoundrel Jiu Yining! We only saw the Shennong Sect¡¯s army escaping back to Luoshui Town. We took the opportunity tomand the poisonous insects to bite arge number of the enemy troops, but we never saw a trace of Elder Jiu Yin. Unless Elder Jiu Yin disguised himself as an ordinary soldier and mixed in with the troops to escape, we would have definitely spotted him.¡±
This puzzled Master He Shan as well.
¡°It doesn¡¯t make sense! 1 led my forces to closely pursue and attack the enemy from the rear. Elder Jiu Yin led the Insect Masters of the Nine Insect Gang and his guards at the forefront of the army. They should have been the first of the enemy to reach Luoshui Town. How did we not encounter them?¡±
Vice City Lord Bai¡¯s brow furrowed slightly.
¡°At that time on the battlefield, Elder Jiu Yin suddenly let out a scream and vomited blood. I guess that his life-bound insect was killed by you.¡±
¡°Dear me, that¡¯s not good! Qin Niu is in danger!¡±
Upon hearing this, Master He Shan pped his thigh.
¡°Qin Niu? Are you referring to that young Insect Master?¡±
¡°Yes, that¡¯s him. Not to embarrass myself before you, but I led the Insect Master battalion to battle against the twelve disciples of Elder Jiu Yin. Elder Jiu Yin left eight Taiyin Yaoyao to besiege me. If Qin Niu hadn¡¯t stepped in, ughtering left and right, my Insect Master battalion and I might no longer exist. All eight of Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Taiyin Yaoyao were taken by Qin Niu. Elder Jiu Yin must have gone after Qin Niu, following their connection.¡±
Master He Shan seemed very anxious.
Qin Niu had saved his life; this was a great debt of gratitude.
Now that Elder Jiu Yin had not fled to Luoshui Town, it was very possible that he had taken his men to seek out Qin Niu instead.
¡°For our army to have such a formidable warrior is truly Heaven¡¯s help to the ck Tiger Gang. Without Qin Niu defeating Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s disciples, we couldn¡¯t have burned the enemy ships, and the enemy troops wouldn¡¯t have been annihted in such numbers. Moreover, without Qin Niu killing Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s life-bound insect, Elder Jiu Yin would not have suddenly retreated to flee. Qin Niu is truly the lucky star of our ck Tiger Gang, and we cannot allow even the slightest mishap to befall him. All soldiers, heed mymand: Deputy Marshal Wei Zhongyuan will lead the troops to hold Luoshui Town. I will lead the elite battalion with Master He Shan to rescue Qin Niu.¡±
Upon learning of Qin Niu¡¯s prowess and how he alone had turned the tide of the entire battle, Vice City Lord Bai knew they had to do everything possible to protect such an exceptional talent.
¡°Where is Qin Niu¡¯s hometown?¡±
¡°Jade Stream Town, Shuangfeng Vige!¡±
¡°We must rush to Shuangfeng Vige at once and cannot let that old scoundrel Jiu Yin seed.¡±
Vice City Lord Bai, leading his elite troops, joined forces with Master He Shan¡¯s elite Insect Master battalion and headed to Shuangfeng Vige for the rescue. On their way, they quickly discovered some traces left by Elder Jiu Yin leading his troops in their escape.
This made Vice City Lord Bai and Master He Shan even more anxious..
Chapter 276: 269: Leaving Behind Jiu Yin 1
Despite his youth, Qin Niu already possessed such formidablebat strength, almost single-handedly challenging the twelve major disciples under Elder Jiu Yin and emerging victorious. This was simply defying the heavens.
Such a prodigy, as long as he lived, was destined to be the future star of the ck Tiger Gang.
Apanied by his subordinates and the Insect Master from the Nine Insect Gang, Elder Jiu Yin quickly set out towards the location of Jade Stream Town, guided by the sensing abilities of the Taiyin Yaoyao¡¯s king insect.
After less than half an hour, he violently spat out another mouthful of fresh blood, his spirit even more wilted.
¡°Damn He Shan, you¡¯ve killed another one of my life-bound Yaoyao. If 1 don¡¯t desecrate your ancestor¡¯s grave, I¡¯m your grandson.¡±
Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s hatred for Master He Shan was intense to the extreme.
On his way to Jade Stream Town, Master He Shan sneezed several times, feeling a trace of unease.
He was also somewhat baffled.
Who on earth had cursed him out of the blue?
Qin Niu didn¡¯t care about any of that, he was in the process of executing the captured Taiyin Yaoyao one by one.
There were a total of eight, and it took about half an hour to execute each one.
He treasured the corpses of these Taiyin Yaoyao, nning to feed them to the Termite Queen the next day. Nowying a thousand eggs daily, it required a vast amount of energy, consuming an enormous amount of food.
All eight Taiyin Yaoyao would probably be eaten by it in a day.
Four hourster, it was already dawn outside. Qin Niu had spent the whole night executing the eight Taiyin Yaoyao.
Xiao Qing made a fire for him.
Both master and servant were exhausted.
¡°Alright, Xiao Qing, go to sleep first!¡±
Qin Niu urged Xiao Qing to rest, as he himself was also extremely tired.
With the sky already slightly bright outside, there was no chance to cultivate the Evesting Spring Technique to recover his spiritual power.
For his cultivation of the Evesting Spring Technique required the exposure to moonlight or the shower of rain.
This was unavoidable, as he relied solely on his own exploration to cultivate the Evesting Spring Technique. He had only discovered these two techniques so far.
Finally, after dealing with the most urgent tasks, sorting and tidying the spoils of war could wait until he woke up.
Immediately, he returned to his bedroom and fell into a deep sleep.
There was nothing morefortable and reassuring than sleeping in his own home.
He quickly entered dreand.
At this moment, Elder Jiu Yin had already tracked down a location more than a hundred miles from Jade Stream Town. As the eighth Taiyin Yaoyao died, and after coughing up a few mouthfuls of fresh blood, he passed out.
Truly, man¡¯s ns can never match up to fate.
Even though he had rushed here with all his might to rescue the Taiyin Yaoyao, due to the long journey, he was a step toote.
As thest Taiyin Yaoyao died, Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s king insectpletely lost its connection to them. Consumed by a fury born of desperation, and his spirit subjected to eight continuous severe blows, even someone cast from iron wouldn¡¯t survive.
He eventually passed out.
¡°Elder, Elder!¡±
His guards and Insect Masters were thrown into chaos.
After being attended to, Elder Jiu Yin slowly regained consciousness, yet seemed to have aged decades.
¡°I am filled with hatred! The Taiyin Yaoyao that I¡¯ve painstakingly raised for many years has been destroyed in an instant.¡±
Elder Jiu Yin clenched his teeth, pounding his chest repeatedly.
The death of his life-bound insects was as painful to him as gouging out his own heart.
¡°Elder, we can cultivate more insects, but you must take care of your health!¡±
¡°Currently, we are in the hearnd of the ck Tiger Gang. It would be best to escape from here as soon as possible. If the enemy discovers you here, it will be difficult to leave.¡±
A prescient Insect Master advised.
Having battled the ck Tiger Gang multiple times, they knew all too well that although the ck Tiger Gang seemed weak, it was actually far stronger than one might imagine.
¡°If we¡¯re going to leave, we must first dig up Master He Shan¡¯s ancestral grave! He killed my lifebound insect, and for this, our enmity will reach the skies.¡±
Elder Jiu Yin had great confidence in his own strength; he believed that leading Insect Masters and guards deep into the territory of the ck Tiger Gang was as easy as entering and with no one to oppose them. If he wanted to leave, he could do so at any time.
¡°Rest assured, the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s main forces are all assembled at the border, in a standoff with our forces from the Nine Insect Gang and the Shennong Sect. Their hearnd is empty, with no capable masters stationed there. My king insect can sense that He Shan should be within a hundred miles ahead. Let¡¯s go over and check it out. If we get the chance, we can also wreak havoc in the enemy¡¯s hearnd.
Then, we¡¯ll be able to coordinate with the main forces and put the enemy in a tough spot, defeating them without a fight,¡± he said.
Elder Jiu Yin was known to be cruel, cunning, and full of tricks.
Having finally infiltrated the enemy¡¯s hearnd, he naturally was not willing to leave so easily.
His subordinates dared not contravene his will and felt that there was some truth to his words, so theyplied.
They continued to advance.
Once they entered Jade Stream Town, Elder Jiu Yin immediately ordered his guards and Insect Masters to halt.
¡°This should be the ce. Be careful, everyone. Master He Shan is likely residing in this town.¡±
Elder Jiu Yin had the king insect scout ahead.
This Taiyin Yaoyao appeared to be a bitrger than the other eight and had an ancient, dark red pattern on its back, resemblingplex bloodlines.
¡°The enemy is attacking!¡±
¡°Run for your lives!¡±
¡°It¡¯s the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s army! Go report to the officials!¡±
It was daytime, and such arge group bursting into Jade Stream Town immediately rmed the residents.
The people scattered and fled, screaming in terror.
¡°Shut up!¡±
Elder Jiu Yin, already severely traumatized in spirit and soul and with only one lifebound insect left, was in a very foul mood.
Seeing these subjects of the ck Tiger Gang screaming in terror and scattering, he furrowed his brow and made his move¡ªsending a swarm of poisonous bees towards the fleeing townspeople.
¡°Alt, ah, ouch¡¡±
Screams of agony echoed one after another, as people, no matter how fast, could not outrun the bees.
If Qin Niu were here, he would immediately recognize these bees, reeking of the stench of corpses, as Corpse Bees.
But these seemed even more formidable than the ordinary Corpse Bees owned by Old Master Huang.
Numbering over a hundred, each bee¡¯s strength was nearly at the level of a bee general, perhaps only slightly weaker.
Such deadly bees posed a threat not only to ordinary people but even real Insect Masters might not be able to withstand them.
In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen people had been stung and fell to the ground in agony.
¡°Elder Jiu Yin, you impudent dog! Who gave you the audacity toe make trouble in our territory? Today, you shall stay here forever!¡± Vice City Lord Bai arrived just in time in this critical moment, and seeing themon townsfolk being ughtered, he was enraged and charged directly at Elder Jiu Yin.
Along the way, various Insect Masters spurred their insects to confront Vice City Lord Bai in an attempt to protect Elder Jiu Yin.
However, an ephemeralyer of invisible armor seemed to exhibit on the surface of Vice City Lord Bai, with a faint fluctuation of energy¡ªit was the Iron Cloth Technique he had cultivated.
Now it seemed that he had either advanced this technique or switched to cultivating a higher-level technique of the same type.
Because the invisible armor was in constant flux, with asional glimmers of light.
It looked like a ze of shining armor,
encasing Vice City Lord Bai within.
The insects, even the Grade Six Corpse Bees, were repelled the moment they touched Vice City Lord Bai¡¯s body..
Chapter 277: 270 Hundred-Eyed Golden Centipede_1
Chapter 277: Chapter 270 Hundred-Eyed Golden Centipede_1
Vice City Lord Bai¡¯s target was aimed directly at Elder Jiu Yin.
This was an attempt to directly behead the enemy.
Elder Jiu Yin was a top expert in the Nine Insect Gang, with a status almost equal to that of Vice City Lord Bai. Killing Elder Jiu Yin would definitely deal a heavy blow to the Nine Insect Gang.
¡°Hmph, Bai Xuezhu, you think you can kill me?¡±
Elder Jiu Yin wore a look of disdain.
In terms of seniority, Elder Jiu Yin was even older than the current Gang
Leader.
There was no need to mention his strength and prowess, both top-notch.
Vice City Lord Bai didn¡¯t bother with idle talk, his objective was clear, his sword pointed straight at Elder Jiu Yin.
Two Innate Realm level guards stepped forward to block, but Vice City Lord Bai slew them with a single sword strike.
Such terrifying strength was strong enough to make one¡¯s hair stand on end.
If Qin Niu had witnessed Vice City Lord Bai¡¯s strength, he probably would have redefined the Spirit Qi Realm. Such a realm was simply iparable to the Innate Realm.
Within the Innate Realm, one has only just begun to grasp a thread of the true path to immortality, able to externalize the power within one¡¯s body.
Not only can it be used to drive weapons, disying de Qi and Sword Qi, but it also allows one to directly stimte talismans with their power, without the need to bite their fingertips and use their own blood to activate the talismans.
Beyond that, it also allows one to externalize power to heal others, or like Qin
Niu, to use the power of the Evesting Spring Technique to quickly rejuvenate nts.
One could also channel power into special armors and shields to form a Qi Armor, protecting the entire body.
For instance, Qin Niu¡¯s King Pig Leather Armor could be powered by Qi, forming a Qi Armor.
This is equivalent to having an additionalyer of protection, greatly enhancing the armor¡¯s defensive capabilities.
But the Spirit Qi Realm is apletely different and advanced realm.
Those in the Innate Realm have only half-stepped through the Immortal Gate, but those in the Spirit Qi Realm are as if most of their body has entered through the gate.
They can even touch the threshold of the methods of the immortals.
They are no longer mortals in the true sense of the word.
Instead, they are akin to having the identity of a half Immortal Master.
After instantly killing two overconfident Innate Realm experts, Bai Xuezhu s target remained unchanged, pointed directly at Elder Jiu Yin.
Elder Jiu Yin let out a coldugh, and a shadow shot out at an astonishing speed, aiming for Bai Xuezhu. The shadow was notrge, about the size of an ordinary person¡¯s palm.
Not only was it extremely fast, but it was also fearless.
It plunged directly into the range encased by Bai Xuezhu¡¯s sword.
In an instant, the shadow was shed into dozens of pieces. But they still ferociously continued their assault on Bai Xuezhu.
¡°Lord Bai, be careful, this is the king of the Taiyin Yaoyao, likely possessing special abilities.¡±
Master He Shan shouted a warning while not remaining idle.
He too released his own life-bound insect.
It was a giant Golden Armored Centipede. Unlike the over a thousand ordinary
Grade Four Golden Armored Centipedes he had,
this one had an eye growing on its abdomen.
Its body was also muchrger than the Grade Four ones, at least over a foot long, with grey-ck gas swirling around its body.
Upon its arrival, it emitted a sizzling strange cry.
It was said in legends that there were centipedes of unusual kinds which, upon cultivating to a certain level, would transform into humanoid forms with many strange eyes on their torsos capable of shooting golden light to kill their enemies.
The Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord in the ¡®Journey to the West¡¯ was a prime example.
Although Master He Shan¡¯s centipede had only one eye on its abdomen, it was already exceptionally extraordinary.
Its capabilities were definitely far superior to those of ordinary Golden Armored Centipedes.
Indeed, many Insect Masters cultivated Golden Armored Centipedes, but those who could raise an exceptional variant were few and far between.
Ordinary Golden Armored Centipedes don¡¯t amount to much in the eyes of a true master.
For example, the spoiled female Insect Master who bought a Green Giant Ho from Qin Niu once brandished a Golden Armored Centipede in an attempt to intimidate Old Master Huang, only to have it dismissed withplete disdain.
Master He Shan¡¯s centipede was of a rare breed, and its abilities were unknown.
¡°Go, bite that old Jiu Yin to death for me,¡± he ordered.
The fact that Master He Shan was now deploying his lifebound insect indicated that he was ying for keeps.
Even when he was besieged by seven Taiyin Yaoyao, Master He Shan did not resort to using his lifebound Golden Centipede.
It quickly crawled toward Elder Jiu Yin.
There were other Insect Masters from the Nine Insect Gang present, naturally they wouldn¡¯t let the Golden Armored Centipede attack Elder Jiu Yin and began summoning their own insects to join the battle.
A ck Venomous Spider, the size of a human head, spat out its silk to attack the Golden Armored Centipede.
This ck Venomous Spider was slightly smaller than the Binding Fairy Spider in by Qin Niu. But a conservative estimate would put it at Grade Five for
sure.
It might even have reached Grade Six.
Such a formidable venomous spider could easily kill a master of the tenth level in the Acquired Realm.
The Golden Armored Centipede, facing the spider¡¯s silk, simply raised its head in contempt, revealing the eye on its underside.
A faint yellow light beamed out from that eye.
As soon as this yellow light shone on the ck Venomous Spider, it recoiled, growing befuddled right where it stood.
The strange eye¡¯s yellow light attack oddly mirrored the technique used by Qin Niu¡¯s Puppet Ants.
It seemed that allws of the world were interconnected indeed.
¡°He Shan, you old devil, 1 hadn¡¯t thought you managed to cultivate a Hundred-Eyed Golden Centipede. No wonder you were able to exterminate my Taiyin Yaoyao. If I don¡¯t kill you today, I¡¯ll be your grandson,¡± vowed Elder Jiu Yin.
Although Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s spirit had suffered a severe blow and he had lost eight of his lifebound Taiyin Yaoyao, hisbat power was still formidable.
He sent his Taiyin Yaoyao king insect to attack Deputy City Lord Bai.
In a daze, relying solely on one insect, he managed to pin the formidable and invincible Deputy City Lord Bai in ce.
After the king insect was chopped into dozens of pieces, they attacked Deputy City Lord Bai from all directions.
Some managed to break through the sword light¡¯s blockade, firmlytching onto the surface of Deputy City Lord Bai¡¯s body.
Even though Deputy City Lord Bai was covered by a faintyer of energy armor, he was unable to repel the fragments of the Taiyin Yaoyao king insect.
They clung to the armor made of energy, desperately draining its power. Deputy City Lord Bai could feel their terror as his inner strength was rapidly depleting.
No matter how formidable he was, he couldn¡¯t sustain the relentless drain from these insects.
Deputy City Lord Bai decided to finish the battle quickly.
Ignoring the Taiyin Yaoyao clinging to him, he recklessly charged at Elder Jiu Yin.
¡°Haha, Bai Xuezhu, today both you and He Shan will die. You¡¯re a strong practitioner of the Spirit Qi Realm, nearly half an Immortal Master. After your demise, 1¡¯11 use your corpse to rapidly produce new Taiyin Yaoyao, and that will make up for the losses incurred in this battle,¡± Elder Jiu Yin dered.
Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s insects were not limited to the Taiyin Yaoyao. He pped his Insect Bag at his waist.
Arge swarm of Dark Red Ants poured out.
They resembled Fire Ants and Army Ants at the same time.
The Insect Masters of the Nine Insect Gang often exchanged techniques in cultivating insects, which is why many of their cultivated insects were of simr types.
But each person¡¯s destiny was different, some were more skilled at breeding insects than others, and the strength of the insects they raised varied ordingly.
Elder Jiu Yin had lived for many years and could be considered an old ¡°tortoise-grade¡± figure.
There was no need to discuss his experience in breeding insects.
Every type of insect he cultivated was extremely powerful.
And his tactics were inexhaustible..
Chapter 278: 271: Multi-treasure Insect Bag 1
Chapter 278: Chapter 271: Multi-treasure Insect Bag 1
¡°Well, well, you actually have a multitreasure Insect Bag. Being able to use it shows you¡¯re also a Spirit Qi Realm powerhouse,¡±
Master He Shan¡¯s words wereden with intense sourness.
Envy, jealousy, and hatred.
Because Elder Jiu Yin was simply too strong, owning cultivation skills, insects, and an Insect Bag that Master He Shan could only dream of.
¡°Lord Bai, Jiu Yin has already broken through to the Spirit Qi Realm, I¡¯m afraid it will be very difficult to keep him here,¡±
Master He Shan also had his own ulterior motives.
With this shout, he was actually hinting to Vice City Lord Bai that it might be necessary to employ the Spirit Trapping Formation at the critical moment. While calling out, Master He Shan had alreadymanded those Grade Four Golden Armored Centipedes to face the army of Dark Red Ants released by Elder Jiu Yin.
Every creature has its natural enemy.
The ants may be small, but they are almost able to ovee all other insects.
I he reason is simple: unity and sheer numbers.
It is true that with enough ants, even an elephant can be bitten to death.
As soon as the swarm of Dark Red Ants made contact with therge group of Grade Four Golden Armored Centipedes, significant casualties urred immediately. However, each centipede could only attack one Dark Red Ant at a time.
This gave the other ants their chance.
They were frantically gnawing at the bodies of the centipedes.
Facing an opponent wearing rabbot armor, the Golden Armored Centipedes had every advantage ¨C the rabbot armor couldn¡¯t prate their defenses at all.
The same went for the imitation earth armor.
However, these ants could secrete powerful formic acid, which could corrode and soften the exoskeletons of the Golden Armored Centipedes.
Ihis meant that the exoskeletons, the centipedes¡¯ pride, were practically useless against them.
It wasn¡¯t long before the Golden Armored Centipedes discovered their exoskeletons being breached and intense pain coursing through their bodies, they began to twist their bodies, rolling around on the ground.
I he Dark Red Ants released by Elder Jiu Yin from the Insect Bag continued to pour out in endless streams, their numbers incalcble.
The ants¡¯ reproductive ability virtually outmatched that of any other insect.
At this moment, they were using their swarm tactics to eliminate Master He Shan¡¯s Golden Armored Centipedes.
Even the Hundred-Eyed Golden Centipede with eyes on its abdomen was facing the danger of being killed.
¡°Elder Jiu Yin, I had no idea you not only possessed Spirit Qi Realm cultivation but had also bred such powerful Fire Ants, you¡¯ve hidden your abilities well.¡± ¡°Dare to destroy my core Taiyin Yaoyao, today, let you taste the bitterness of having your core insect wiped out,¡±
Elder Jiu Yin had always believed that it was Master He Shan who had destroyed his Taiyin Yaoyao.
He harbored a deep-seated hatred towards him.
At this point, even if it meant exhausting all his resources, he was determined to exterminate Master He Shan¡¯s Hundred-Eyed Golden Centipede.
Vice City Lord Bai fought his way to Elder Jiu Yin, and Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s two personal guards struck again.
This time, they were notparable to the assistant nurses of the Innate Realm.
The two personal guards, a man and a woman, both in the Spirit Qi Realm, appeared quite young.
About forty years old or so.
Both wielded longswords.
The sword, known as the king of all weapons, not only brought a refined air to its user but was also suitable for both men and women. Combined with its extraordinary individualbat capabilities, it was no wonder most powerhouses preferred it.
Many true Immortal Masters used swords as well.
Vice City Lord Bai was extremely strong in both cultivation andbat power. But to fight on his own against three Spirit Qi Realm powerhouses was already a very arduous task.
Moreover, he had a Taiyin Yaoyao King Insect furiously sapping his power on his body.
This was a deadly drain.
Having an insect that was resistant to ded weapons in fight was as good as having a powerful ally.
¡°Where is Iron Guard Camp?¡±
Vice City Lord Bai, seeing that he was outnumbered, naturally didn¡¯t intend to foolishly take on a group of enemies all by himself.
When he came to rescue Qin Niu, he had brought the elite camp with him.
All these soldiers were the best of the best, well-trained, and highly skilled at charging and forming battle formations.
¡°Banner-bearer here!¡±
All the soldiers of Iron Guard Camp responded in unison.
Form up and y the enemy, leave no survivors.¡±
Vice City Lord Bai gave the order and immediately turned around, beginning to ughter some of themon experts among the enemy forces.
This was somewhat dishonorable.
But when dealing with enemies, whoever talks about honor is a fool.
Any mercy shown to the enemy could lead to one¡¯s own destruction.
With the addition of the Iron Guard Camp, the Insect Master Camp under Master He Shan¡¯smand also joined the battle, and the situation began to reverse.
In the enemy ranks, the strongest was Elder Jiu Yin.
An existence like that could match a powerful army alone.
¡°Bai Xuezhu, what skill is there in killing the weak! If you¡¯re capable,e at me!¡±
Elder Jiu Yin saw his insect masters and guards being killed by Vice City Lord Bai.
He was very angry.
But no matter how skillful in martial arts or how advanced in cultivation, Vice City Lord Bai was a bit stronger than him. Coupled with his extremely swift movement techniques, he couldn¡¯t be stopped.
He could only watch helplessly as his insect masters and guards were killed.
These were the elite of the Nine Insect Gang.
Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s heart was bleeding. It was extremely difficult to cultivate his own power.
If his subordinates were wiped out, his status in the Nine Insect Gang would also decline.
The weak rely on the strong, and in turn, the strong also need the weak to help reinforce their status.
¡°Since you are not ying by the rules, then don¡¯t me me for being ruthless.¡±
Elder Jiu Yin drove nearly a hundred Corpse Bees, attacking the soldiers of the Iron Guard Camp.
However, they were firmly blocked by the Insect Master Camp led by Master He Shan.
Preventing him from running amok.
What to do now?
Seeing that things were going this way, his subordinates would be killed by Vice City Lord Bai, Elder Jiu Yin immediately led two close attendants straight to the Insect Master Camp.
This move proved effective.
The insect masters of the Insect Master Camp fell one by one, no match for the three Spirit Qi Realm experts.
Their insects were practically useless in front of Elder Jiu Yin.
Vice City Lord Bai had no choice but to give up chasing down thosemon experts, focusing his target on Elder Jiu Yin again.
Ihis resulted in a stalemate between the two sides.
The Iron Guard Camp had already assembled and charged. Although the insect masters of the Nine Insect Gang were very powerful, they were clearly no match for the well-trained charge of these soldiers.
Qin Niu was sleeping at home when someone from the Yan Family came to tell him that Vice City Lord Bai was leading an army, fighting against the enemies of the Nine Insect Gang in town.
Soon after, Tang Caixian also arrived.
She too ryed the news to Qin Niu.
¡°Why have the experts of the Nine Insect Gang suddenlye to Jade Stream Town?¡±
Qin Niu was very puzzled.
Upon careful consideration, he broke out in a cold sweat.
If he hadn¡¯t guessed wrong, the enemy must havee for him.
More precisely, for those eight Taiyin Yaoyao.
Fortunately, he had executed all of those Taiyin Yaoyao the night before straight after getting home.
Although he had stayed up all night, it was very much worth it.
¡°It must be Elder Jiu Yin who hase knocking.¡±
Qin Niu s first thought was that his home had be very unsafe.
After sending Xiao Qing and Tang Caixian away, Qin Niu immediately took the corpses of the eight Taiyin Yaoyao and headed into the mountains.
Along the way, he pondered how to deal with this crisis.
Thest time he dealt with Old Master Huang, who was only an inner hall executor, the man¡¯s strength was already monstrously powerful. Now that Elder Jiu Yin had personallye to his door, even if Qin Niu were to rely on the Ancient Banyan Tree¡¯s maze formation, he might not necessarily be a match for him.
His instinct was to flee, to run away.
But then he thought that since Vice City Lord Bai had also arrived, this might not necessarily be a bad opportunity.
If he were brave enough, he could perhaps rid himself of future troubles once and for all.. Wouldn¡¯t that be better?
Chapter 279: 272: Zombie Ant 1
Chapter 279: Chapter 272: Zombie Ant 1
He decided to first take pets such as Termite and hurried to the scene to check it out.
If the situation looked grim, and Elder Jiu Yin was too powerful, then he would quickly run for it. If Elder Jiu Yin and Vice City Lord Bai were evenly matched, he would seize the opportunity to strike decisively and eliminate the old Jiu Yin.
After Qin Niu made up his mind, he promptly led his pets and rushed to the battleground.
This time, in addition to bringing arge number of Termite, War Bee, Red-eyed Golden Toad and other pets, he also brought along the sessfully evolved, strong Green Ox with pincers.
In terms of the lineup of pets, this was already very powerful.
For others, having an insect with special abilities would be considered good enough, but his Termite all had special abilities almost without exception.
The vigers saw him taking a small water buffalo and hurriedly running towards the outskirts of the vige with arge basket on his back.
They began to discuss furiously.
¡°I heard that the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s army has already attacked Jade Stream Town! Master Qin must have received the news and is rushing to escape!¡±
We should also pack our valuables quickly and take our families to escape! It¡¯ll be toote if we wait any longer!¡±
¡°How about we wait and see! Wemon people don¡¯t fight in wars, so we should be fine, right?¡±
¡°Hey, are you stupid or naive? The Nine Insect Gang captures men to use as furnaces for raising insects and young women to serve as female ves. When your wife and daughter fall into the hands of those devils, just think about how tragic their fates will be!¡±
¡°Then¡ then I will hurry up and take my wife and children to run for our lives!¡± When the vigers saw even Qin Niu running away, panic quickly spread among them.
Even Wang Furen quickly packed his valuables and told his daughter to be ready to flee at any moment.
Wang Wanyan, however, thought that Qin Niu couldn¡¯t possibly just run away without alerting anyone else.
But she also knew about the ferocity and terror of the Nine Insect Gang, and immediately packed important items, preparing to escape.
Qin Niu quickly arrived at the site of the battle between the two sides, located in the town.
Jade Stream Town was notrge in terms of itsmunal area, and its construction was not very impressive.
Due to its remote location and underdeveloped trade, it was mainly inhabited by local people. There were hardly ever any foreign merchants or travelers.
At that moment, at the entrance to the town, both sides were engaged in fiercebat.
Giant Corpse Bees could be seen flying around everywhere, looking for targets to attack.
But in the center of the battle, there was a dense fog that made it impossible to see from the outside.
One could only hear the ¡°boom boom boom¡± sounds of collision; the fight was extremely intense.
Amidst the fog, one could vaguely see the ck Armored Soldiers lined up and charging into battle, with continuous shouts and orders. This was the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s army.
Qin Niu secretly observed for a while, and it seemed that the ck Tiger Gang still had the upper hand.
Those Corpse Bees, each at the Bee General Level, made Qin Niu envious.
Having fought against Old Master Huang before, he guessed that these Corpse Bees were most likely pets of other Insect Masters from the Nine Insect Gang, and he immediately ordered Fourth to find an opportunity to control one of them.
When a Corpse Bee discovered Qin Niu, it dived towards him.
Fourth did not give it any courtesies and led the Puppet Ant army to directly take control of it. Qin Niu had already prepared a bag, and with one sh, he cut the Corpse Bee in half and then put it into the bag.
He carried out his usual method, focusing on capturing Corpse Bees around the peripheral area.
In just a while, he had already killed seven or eight of them.
¡°Where did this yellow-haired kide from, daring to destroy my Divine Bees? I won¡¯t let you off easily.¡±
Arge group of Corpse Bees rushed towards Qin Niu.
At the same time, there was also a swarm of Dark Red Ants on the ground.
I he cultivation of Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Corpse Bees was not easy, and having them killed one after another already drew his vignce.
Upon taking a moment to check, he immediately discovered Qin Niu, who was sniping from the sidelines.
He immediately ordered the Fire Ants and Corpse Bees to attack Qin Niu together.
¡°Heh, finally encountered someone who ys with ants.¡±
Qin Niu¡¯s termites, though not ants, were also a type of ant species.
Up until now, he had only battled the army ants of Old Master Huang.
Back then, Old Master Huang had coated his army ants with poison powder. After the termites fought with the army ants, they would quickly be poisoned.
This time, Qin Niu was extra cautious.
He sent out a few termites to test the waters first.
He found that the enemy¡¯s dark red ants were mostly Grade Three, with the strongest being Grade Four soldier ants, but he did not find any Grade Five ants.
Qin Niu¡¯s termites were also mostly Grade Three, which made them evenly matched in terms of level.
However, the number of the enemy¡¯s fire ants was beyond imagination, dense like a tide of water surging forward, the sheer quantity was rming.
¡°Could the person who spoke in the fog just now be Elder Jiu Yin? It must be him to have such grand resources.¡±
While Qin Niu was secretly astonished, he immediately ordered his termite army to meet the onught of the dark red fire ants.
The more they fought, the better trained they became.
During this trip away from home for a few days, his number of termites had increased by several thousand.
Among them were special ant species like demon ants, elephantic ants, and strong ants.
In fact, strong ants and poisonous ants no longer counted as special species.
On average, one in every ten termites had the strong trait.
Three out of every ten termites had poison sacs and poison stingers, and their venom was extremely toxic.
So, these two ant species were now capable of mass production and could only be considered regr species.
But demon ants, elephantic ants, healing ants, and gold devouring ants were all considered rare special species.
Especially the gold devouring ant, which none have appeared so far.
Additionally, among the new species, there was another new type ¨C the zombie ant.
Although he didn¡¯t know their abilities, the propagation rate for this ant species wasn¡¯t low. About two out of every hundred newly born termites were zombie ants.
This time, Qin Niu brought nearly a hundred zombie ants with him.
Only he hadn¡¯t trained them yet, and he didn¡¯t know their abilities.
These zombie ants were a dead ash color all over, only the top of their head had a yellow stripe. They crawled slowly, even much slower than swift ants.
They couldn¡¯tpare to lightning ants at all.
Qin Niu watched them sluggishly follow at the back of the termite army off to battle and couldn¡¯t help shaking his head.
What kind of miraculous ant species was this?
He needed to check their attributes when he had time.
One hundred and seven Grade Three zombie ants, life span 30 years, special abilities (basic exoskeleton, basic self-healing, super strong biting, corpse poison attack, assimtion (enemies that are bitten have a high probability of being assimted). Night devil (this ant species¡¯bat power doubles in the dark or in an environment with heavy Yin energy, and their self-healing ability bes extremely strong).
Seeing their special abilities, Qin Niu got excited, realizing he had struck gold.
Originally, feeding the corpses of corpse bees to the Ant Queen, allowing it to eventually evolve the special ability to reproduce zombie ants, he thought these slow-moving zombie ants were surely worthless.
He never expected their special abilities to be so bizarre.
Even whenpared to the demon ants, they are not to be underestimated.
¡°Since zombie ants are so powerful, it¡¯s a good opportunity to get more of these Bee General Level corpse bees to feed to the Ant Queen back home.¡±
Qin Niu looked toward therge group of iing corpse bees.
He wasn¡¯t scared at all.
The King Pig Leather Armor he was wearing was already emitting a faint glow, with ayer of air armor covering his body, securely protecting its master.
Chapter 280: 273 Jiu Yin Loses Face_1
Chapter 280: Chapter 273 Jiu Yin Loses Face_1
¡°Sweeping Strike!¡±
Qin Niu swung his Ink de, executing the Sweeping Martial Technique.
However, these Corpse Bees had incredibly strong evasion capabilities and swiftly dodged with a swoosh.
Only the Corpse Bee being controlled by Fourth and the ant swarm foolishly stayed in ce and was bisected by his strike.
The Red-eyed Golden Toad in Qin Niu¡¯s basket flicked its tongue out and also sessfully captured a Corpse Bee.
It directly swallowed it into its stomach.
Being immune to all poison, it wasn¡¯t afraid of the Corpse Bee¡¯s Poison Stinger at all.
After eating one, the Red-eyed Golden Toad, having tasted sweetness, immediately waited for another attack from the swarm of Corpse Bees.
There were about a hundred of them.
A single charge would result in a loss of about two bees.
Adding on to the seven or eight Qin Niu had killed before, nearly ten Corpse Bees had been lost.
Elder Jiu Yin, while battling Deputy City Lord Bai, was also observing the battle outside the ring.
Discovering that his Corpse Bees failed to bring down that young Insect Master, he too was secretly surprised.
¡°I didn¡¯t expect your ck Tiger Gang to have some outstanding young Insect Masters! But even if he is powerful, he will be nothing but bones in front of my Fire Ants,¡± he thought.
Elder Jiu Yin had absolute confidence in his insects.
All his insect swarms put together could challenge an entire army.
No matter how strong that young Insect Master of the ck Tiger Gang was, he couldn¡¯t resist the attack of millions, tens of millions of Fire Ants.
Master He Shan¡¯s Golden Armored Centipede was undeniably powerful, but after battling Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Fire Ant Army, it had suffered heavy losses.
Even the Hundred-Eyed Golden Centipede was no match for the Fire Ant Army.
In a one-on-one fight, the Hundred-Eyed Golden Centipede could easily eliminate any Fire Ant. But even a brave man cannot withstand a multitude of wolves, capable of killing one ant but not a hundred, not a thousand.
As they surged forward, had Master He Shan not acted quickly and promptly retracted the Hundred-Eyed Golden Centipede, it might have actually been in danger.
In the hands of a formidable Insect Master, seemingly weak insects can perform miracles.
Who could have thought that a swarm of Grade Three and Four Fire Ants could easily annihte a fearsome Hundred-Eyed Golden Centipede?
Qin Niu¡¯s Termite Army had already engaged with the Fire Ants.
The ferocity of the Termites was enough to make the majority of fierce ants submit.
At this moment, they fought fiercely with the Fire Ant Army like wolves and tigers, tearing into each other with fervor.
Trained and well-coordinated, the Termites worked together seamlessly.
Qin Niu had yet to release his Puppet Ants and Ghost Ants into the battle.
Because he wanted to kill a few more Corpse Bees.
These were valuable creatures.
Although the Fire Ant Army was numerous and strong, from the battle so far, it seemed highly unlikely that they could annihte the Termite Army an endeavor harder than reaching the heavens.
At least their numerical advantage had yet to be disyed.
¡°Puppet Ants, capture the Corpse Bees. Ghost Ants, focus fire and bring down the Corpse Bees. Eliminate them as quickly as possible,¡± Qin Niu ordered his battle deployment.
The swarm attacked once more, and this time two Corpse Bees suddenly struggled painfully and fell from the sky, while another flew in front of Qin Niu and stopped moving.
Qin Niu didn¡¯t hesitate to be hospitable.
He swung his de repeatedly, dealing with all three Corpse Bees.
The gluttonous Red-eyed Golden Toad seized the opportunity to catch one as well.
In one round, four Corpse Bees were taken down.
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but smile at this efficient oue, while Elder Jiu Yin, engaged in battle with Deputy City Lord Bai, shivered inwardly.
The cultivation of Corpse Bees was extremely difficult; losing four in one go, what kind of monster had they encountered?
That Qin Niu¡¯s Ghost Ants could actually bring down two Corpse Bees at once was truly impressive.
This also indicated one thing.
Controlling a single Corpse Bee was more difficult.
If it was just a pure Mental Attack to bring them down, that would be much easier.
In just a moment, a total of sixteen Corpse Bees were dismembered. Except for those eaten by the Red-eyed Golden Toad, the rest were all collected by Qin Niu into his bag.
It was now half full.
Hefting it in hand felt substantial, as a single Corpse Bee wasrge and not light in weight.
¡°Hehe, this rate of harvest is quite nice,¡± he chuckled.
In the past, catching one of Old Master Huang¡¯s Corpse Bee generals would have made his day.
Now, these bee generals seem to have lost their value.
He could harvest four at a time.
He estimated that within a few encounters, all of the hundred-plus Corpse Bees would be taken down by him.
¡°Go, bite him to death!¡±
Elder Jiu Yin, refusing to believe in curses, drove the remaining Corpse Bees, ready to sacrifice them all in one final gambit.
Just to kill Qin Niu.
Because his Fire Ants were blocked by the Termite Army, they currently couldn¡¯t threaten Qin Niu¡¯s safety.
A swarm of Corpse Bees fearlessly lunged toward Qin Niu.
They each fiercely crashed against his protective Qi shield.
But Qin Niu had long since steadied his cultivation at the Innate Realm and easily activated his King Pig Leather Armor without expending much effort. Although the attacks of these Corpse Bees were fierce, they couldn¡¯t harm him in the least.
On the contrary, because they were close, it was convenient for the Termites and the Red-eyed Golden Toads to attack.
Up until now, Xiao Niu still seemed very calm.
And no Corpse Bee dared to attack him.
All beings between heaven and earth have their sense of spirit.
These Corpse Bees should sense that Xiao Nui¡¯s strength is formidable. After all, even the Grade Seven Red-eyed Golden Toad is somewhat fearful of Green Ox.
In just a moment, therge group of Corpse Bees was decimated, with less than half remaining.
¡°Don¡¯t run,e back for more!¡±
Qin Niu was having a great time killing, when those Corpse Bees suddenly retreated and fled.
They must have been recalled by Elder Jiu Yin.
Elder Jiu Yin wasn¡¯t a fool, seeing that the situation was hopeless, naturally he wouldn¡¯t let the Corpse Bees continue to die in vain.
¡°Bai Xuezhu probably won¡¯t be able to hold on much longer. Let¡¯s focus our forces to take down Bai Xuezhu first, and then deal with that brat afterward.¡± With more than half of Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Corpse Bees dead, he felt a deep pain in his heart.
Seeing that his two insect groups couldn¡¯t take down Qin Niu, he simply stopped concerning himself with Qin Niu for the time being, instead concentrating his efforts on dealing with Deputy City Lord Bai.
Boom, boom!
Energy sted in all directions, the fog was swept away like by a fierce wind, revealing the battle inside.
Three high-ranking members of the Nine Insect Gang were seen besieging Deputy City Lord Bai.
The old man in the center, with long white eyebrows and a vicious gaze, had a sinister expression. He was clearly no kind soul.
The two guards beside him, both wearing Treasure Armor and wielding longswords, one male and one female, looked quite young. On their sword tips, there was nearly half a foot of Sword Qi bursting out.
Qin Niu watched in secret awe.
Such might was alreadyparable to him exerting his full strength with the Ink de.
It seems that cultivation is the key.
No matter how formidable the weapon, without sufficient cultivation, one simply cannot unleash its proper power.
He was certain that his Ink de was definitely stronger than the swords of these two people.
But his cultivation was much weaker than the two, so the de Qi he could evoke from the Ink de was of equal intensity to their Sword Qi.
Moreover, these two people¡¯s swords must not be ordinary weapons; they likely were on par with the Ink de when it had just begun to manifest a hint of Sword Qi.
They too belonged to nurtured spiritual weapons with achievements.
On the ground, Qin Niu¡¯s Termites were fiercely fighting the Fire Ants.
A few Termites were injured or killed.
But there were more Fire Ant corpses on the ground.
What shocked Qin Niu the most were those hundred-plus Zombie Ants.
They too had entered the fray amongst the Fire Ant Army.
Not a single one had died; instead, around them were hordes of Fire Ants, which seemed to have been bitten by them and had undergone assimtion.
They fought alongside the hundred-plus Zombie Ants like puppets.
The Fire Ants that had been bitten by them also saw some being assimted.
However, their assimtive abilities were obviously not as powerful as the Zombie Ants¡¯.
Too strong!
Chapter 281: 274: Exterminate the King Insect_1
Chapter 281: Chapter 274: Exterminate the King Insect_1
Originally, there were only a little over a hundred zombie ants, but after constant assimtion, the number of the zombie ant troops had already exceeded three thousand.
How long had they been fighting?
It was believed that as the battle dragged on, the numbers of the zombie ant troops would increase geometrically.
Using them to deal with the numerous fire ant army was simply tailor-made. The zombie ants had above averagebat strength but moved slowly. However, they possessed strong self-healing abilities and their defense was quite remarkable. Additionally, any enemy wounded by them would soon be assimted.
Under these circumstances, the more fire ants there were, the more the zombie ants could expand their army like a snowball rolling downhill.
These zombie ants were already so formidable without any cultivation.
If they were nurtured with Ancient Banyan Tree Blood, it was hard to imagine.
By then, they would definitely be even stronger.
Qin Niu decided to seize this opportunity to refine theirbat strength and enrich theirbat experience.
Apart from the outstanding performance of the zombie ants, the other members of the Termite Army were also quite exceptional.
Now that Qin Niu no longer had to deal with the Corpse Bees, the Puppet Ants and Ghost Ants had also joined the battle.
They clung to Qin Niu¡¯s King Pig Leather Armor, assisting the termites on the front line in their fight against the fire ants.
The Puppet Ants controlled the fire ants to turn around and kill their own kind.
The Ghost Antsunched mental attacks on the fire ants, causing them to fall to the ground in pain, where they were easily bitten to death by the Termite Army.
With the addition of the Ghost Ants and Puppet Ants, the casualties of the Termite Army rapidly decreased.
The forefront of the fire ant army had turned into a ughterhouse.
Fire ants rushed forward one after another as if they were on a suicide mission.
No matter how astonishing the number of the fire ant army was, it couldn¡¯t withstand such losses.
You should know that Qin Niu had brought out almost twenty-six thousand termites this time. Excluding the four thousand or so Ghost Ants and Puppet Ants that did not engage directly with the enemy, the rest were almost all thrown into the fight.
This meant that nearly twenty-two thousand termites were on the front lines, ughtering fire ants.
The termites were extremely fierce in battle, and the speed at which they harvested fire ants was shockingly fast. A formidable termite could bite a fire ant to death with one bite.
Their bites were quick and fierce, and before one could even see clearly, the heads of fire ants were separated from their bodies.
The ground was already piled with the corpses of fire ants.
Some of them were not dead immediately and were still struggling in pain.
Some of Qin Niu¡¯s termites were injured as well.
The total casualties should not exceed a thousand.
Compared to the number of fire ants killed, this was negligible.
The insect war was losing suspense, and his gaze shifted to the center of the battle where Deputy City Lord Bai and Elder Jiu Yin, among others, were engaged.
The situation of Deputy City Lord Bai seemed a bit grim.
A massive Taiyin Yaoyao was lying on him, frantically devouring the aura armor on his body.
Qin Niu was very clear that the aura armor on Deputy City Lord Bai¡¯s body was made from his internal energy.
Now that it was being continuously devoured by the Taiyin Yaoyao, it also meant that his internal energy was being rapidly drained.
The three experts besieging the Deputy City Lord were all in the Spirit Qi Realm.
This was easy to discern.
Spirit Qi Realm masters not only emitted an extremely awe-inspiring aura, like a towering mountain, but they also disyed manifesting spirit Qi during offense or defense.
This was something Innate Realm masters couldn¡¯t do.
Furthermore, Spirit Qi Realm masters could generate Sword Qi or Qi Armor when using weapons or armor.
This ability was also not possessed by Innate Realm masters.
However, if one¡¯s cultivation wasn¡¯t enough, good equipment could make up for it.
Qin Niu¡¯s Ink de and King Pig Leather Armor could achieve simr effects. His Ink de was even stronger than the ordinary divine weapons urged by a Spirit Qi Realm master.
At this moment, the Taiyin Yaoyao that was lying on Deputy City Lord Bai was shed into several pieces by his sword.
But for it, this didn¡¯t cause any substantive damage.
It instantly rushed towards Deputy City Lord Bai again, reattaching itself to his body and continuing to devour his internal energy.
Bai Xuezhu, let¡¯s see how much longer you can hold out! Today, this will be your grave!¡±
Elder Jiu Yin cackled evilly, intensifying his attacks even further.
Vice City Lord Bai really is formidable, fighting alone against three Spirit Qi
Realm powerhouses and not falling behind.
I his man is an absolute fierce general.
¡°You think using just this Taiyin Yaoyao will wear me down to death? Hmph, you are too naive. This is ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory, and other masters will soon arrive upon hearing the news. Then we¡¯ll see who dies,¡±
Vice City Lord Bai may say so, but there is a bit of a bluff in his manner.
If other masters from the ck Tiger Gang coulde, they should have arrived by now.
The fact that they still haven¡¯t arrived likely means they are being held up by the enemy at the front line.
The Nine Insect Gang are not fools either; knowing that a heavyweight like
Elder Jiu Yin has led an attack into the hearnd of the ck Tiger Gang, they would naturally not allow other ck Tiger Gang masters the chance to ¡¯ encircle Elder Jiu Yin.
¡°To think a mere Taiyin Yaoyao could fix me, watch me capture it.¡±
Qin Niu had long been eyeing that Taiyin Yaoyao king insect with envy.
This is good stuff.
He has considerable experience in capturing such insects.
¡°Lord Bai, reward me with that Taiyin Yaoyao!¡±
Qin Niu called out.
Upon hearing this, Vice City Lord Bai¡¯s heart stirred.
He repelled the three strong enemies surrounding him with one sword stroke, then used the t of his de to smack the Taiyin Yaoyao, instantly knocking it flying towards where Qin Niu was.
¡°Qin Niu, be careful, this is a king insect raised by old Jiu Yin himself; it¡¯s more formidable than an ordinary Taiyin Yaoyao,¡±
Vice City Lord Bai did not forget to remind Qin Niu.
Even while fighting against three strong enemies, he took the chance to assess
Qin Niu¡¯sbat abilities.
Neither Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Corpse Bees nor the Fire Ants could take down Qin Niu.
In fact, Qin Niu even managed to kill dozens of the Corpse Bees in return.
Such formidablebat prowess indeed surprised Vice City Lord Bai.
If Qin Niu could really help him take down this extremely troublesome Taiyin Yaoyao king insect, it would be like cutting off one of Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s arms. The situation on the battlefield would immediately reverse.
To this, Vice City Lord Bai was full of anticipation.
At the same time, he had his concerns.
He feared that Qin Niu would not be able to deal with that insect and might instead be killed by the Taiyin Yaoyao king.
Qin Niu had already ordered the Termite Army and the Red-eyed Golden Toad to be ready for battle.
Watching the Taiyin Yaoyao being knocked over,
Without a word, Qin Niu shed out with his de.
Unexpectedly, the king insect possessed remarkable evasive abilities.
It actually dodged the attack.
But no matter, the Red-eyed Golden Toad was very effective, rolling its tongue and snatching it up.
Qin Niu seized the opportunity and shed again.
This time, he sessfully split its body in two.
¡°You little beast, you¡¯re courting death.¡±
Seeing the Taiyin Yaoyao king insect getting bitten by a veryrge Golden Toad and then immediately split in two by Qin Niu, Elder Jiu Yin suddenly felt a bad premonition.
Without hesitation, he charged at Qin Niu, desperate to free the king insect from its predicament.
¡°Jiu Yin, your opponent is me, Lord Bai. It¡¯s not good to bully the weak,¡± Vice City Lord Bai firmly stood between Elder Jiu Yin and the other two guards, his treasured sword turning into a curtain of Sword Qi that tightly sealed the three of them off.
In doing so, if Elder Jiu Yin insisted on forcing through, the cost would undoubtedly be grievous.
At the very least, he would be gravely injured.
Qin Niu had already ordered Fourth to lead all the Puppet Ants to attack the fallen half of the Taiyin Yaoyao king insect s body while all the Ghost Ants concentrated their firepower on the other half of its body.
¡°Master, it¡¯s too strong, act quickly!¡±
Fourth appeared extremely strained.
Qm Niu was prepared and immediately used the Metal Bug Canister to cover
half of the body, then ced it inside the canister.
After sealing it, he was still somewhat worried it might escape.
He watched closely..
Chapter 282: 275: Jiu Yin in Distress_1
Chapter 282: Chapter 275: Jiu Yin in Distress_1
Fortunately, although it appeared extremely furious within the Insect Jar, its weakness was also very obvious. Its biting ability had not yet reached the level of being able to bite through metal.
One could even say that it was far from being able to bite through metal.
Qin Niu was relieved this time.
He took out another Metal Bug Canister and captured the other half of the Red-eyed Golden Toad¡¯s body.
The Golden Toad still seemed somewhat reluctant to let go of its tongue.
This glutton must have also sensed the scent, knowing that the body of the mystical creature was an exceptional tonic.
¡°You little beast, so it was you who snatched away my Taiyin Yaoyao. Today, I shall grind you to dust and scatter your ashes,¡± Insect Master roared like a madman, desperately attacking Vice City Lord Bai, trying to shake off thetter¡¯s grip so he could kill Qin Niu.
Qin Niu faced Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s frenzied cursing with a look of disdain.
¡°Lord Bai, 1 leave the enemy to you. I¡¯ll find a way to kill this mystical creature immediately,¡± Qin Niu said, intentionally provoking Elder Jiu Yin.
He wanted to make him crazy before he made him die.
Once Elder Jiu Yin went mad, his mind would not be as calm as usual, and he was prone to exposing ws.
At that point, it would give Vice City Lord Bai the chance to take advantage and kill him.
¡®Haha, no problem, just kill the precious mystical creature of that old Jiu Yin for me,¡± Deputy City Lord responded with a heartyugh.
¡°Left and right guards, join me in breaking out immediately. We must kill that httle beast and take back the mystical creature,¡± Elder Jiu Yin demanded, not expecting his prized Taiyin Yaoyao to be so easily captured by Qin Niu.
Logically, not even a powerful individual of the Innate Realm, let alone Vice City Lord Bai, should have been capable of capturing the Taiyin Yaoyao. This made Elder Jiu Yin realize that Qin Niu might possess some special method.
¡°Haha, Elder Jiu Yin, you might as well stay here and keep Deputy City Lord Baipany!¡± Deputy City Lord Baiughed heartily, formed a seal with his hands, and shouted, ¡°Trap!¡±
Suddenly, beams of light rose from all around, rotating continuously, sealing off the entire area.
Deputy City Lord Bai and Elder Jiu Yin were trapped inside.
¡°What, is this the Spirit Trapping Formation? Bai Xuezhu, you sly old fox, ying this trick. You¡¯ve hidden your cards well!¡± Elder Jiu Yin was shocked, angry, and even a bit afraid.
Things were increasingly slipping out of his control.
Theposure and confidence he once had were no longer very certain.
His tricks, which he regarded as powerful, were one by one being negated by his enemy.
¡°To keep you here requires concealing my methods deep. This Spirit Trapping Formation is a special gift prepared by Deputy City Lord Bai for you, Elder Jiu Yin. Now you can ept it,¡± Deputy City Lord Bai once again engaged in fierce battle with Elder Jiu Yin inside the formation.
Even though he hadn¡¯t gained much of an advantage, with the Taiyin Yaoyao no longer entangling and gnawing at him, Deputy City Lord Bai had already gained the upper hand.
Moreover, Qin Niu held Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s lifebound mystical creature, ready to deliver a heavy blow to Elder Jiu Yin at any time.
That moment would also mark Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s end.
Elder Jiu Yin was clearly aware of the danger he was in. He fired a signal re straight into the sky.
Even in daylight, the green light it emitted was still dazzling.
Qin Niu, speeding away into the distance, saw the signal re rising from the Spirit Trapping Formation and immediately realized that Elder Jiu Yin was calling for help from the outside world.
Surviving for many years in this merciless world and cultivating to the Spirit Qi Realm naturally meant he had a fewst-ditch life-saving methods.
Elder Jiu Yin was at least considered a number three, if not a number two figure in the Nine Insect Gang.
Qin Niu burst into a household in the town.
¡°Who are you? What do you want to do?¡±
This family, including both old and young, with two young women hiding behind them, had their bags packed and looked ready to flee at a moment¡¯s notice.
¡°I am Insect Master Qin Niu; there¡¯s no need for rm. I merely wish to borrow your stove. You two,e help me light a fire.¡±
Qin Niu brandished the Fish Talisman and pressed into service those two young women to help him make fire on the spot.
He had summoned those two women to help, not because he harboured any improper thoughts.
ording to his understanding, countrywomen were often adept at kitchen tasks. These two young women would be nimble and able to quickly start a roaring fire for him.
Moreover, women were more timid and thus easier to control.
¡°Master Qin, Master Qin, this one is my daughter, and this is my concubine, please show mercy and spare them! If it¡¯s silver money you want, I can give it to you,¡± pleaded the owner of the house, a wealthy man in his fifties.
He was of simr status to Wang Furen, considered as someone with modest wealth.
The daughter and the concubine were not far apart in age and evidently knew how to enjoy life.
In any era, as long as one had money, life could be quitefortable.
Qin Niu had no time to exin further to the old man.
¡°Cut the chatter, just have them help with the fire. I don¡¯t intend to mistreat them. If you prattle on, don¡¯t me me for ughtering you,¡± he said sternly.
Qin Niu shed his Ink de, a menacing look on his face.
The two women and children screamed in fright, shaking all over.
Ordinary civilians hardly had any rights before the powerful and were subject to arbitrary maniption.
¡°Hurry up.¡±
With another intimidating shout from Qin Niu, the two women, weeping and wailing, led the way to the kitchen at the back.
The male owner gritted his teeth and then relented; he wanted to fight, but he was also somewhat afraid of dying.
He could only watch helplessly as Qin Niu entered the kitchen and didn¡¯t dare to follow.
Fortunately, Qin Niu was not a viin like Wang Haikun. Otherwise, this entire family would have been in serious trouble today.
Under his order, the two women quickly lit a fierce fire.
I hey were terrified, unsure if Qin Niu wouldmit violence against them.
Thankfully, Qin Niu focused on taking out two Metal Bug Canisters and heating them over the fire.
¡°Keep the fire burning strongly, or don¡¯t me me for being impolite,¡± he warned.
The two women repeatedly agreed, their fear palpable.
Meanwhile, the male owner, having seen Qin Niu forcing his concubine and daughter into the kitchen without returning, felt like he wanted to die.
Gathering his courage, he peeked into the kitchen at the back.
He could see his concubine and daughter tending the fire and that they had not been harmed, which allowed him to breathe a slight sigh of relief.
About half an hourter, Qin Niu realized that the king insects in the bug canisters were resistant to the fire and had not diedpletely.
He had no choice but to continue roasting them.
He didn¡¯t dare to open the bug canisters, as the insects would immediately escape.
Thus, after another half an hour or so, the king insects¡¯ bodies finally stopped moving.
Yet, he didn¡¯t allow himself to rx and kept roasting them.
Within the Spirit Trapping Formation, Elder Jiu Yin suddenly let out a cry of pain and left a wide opening in his defense.
Vice City Lord Bai seized the moment and did not hesitate.
He unsheathed his sword and shed at him.
But two bodyguards blocked the attack.
Elder Jiu Yin wailed, ¡°Woe is me! My king insects have been killed by that brat¡ Oh, the hatred!¡±
One could imagine the blow it was to Elder Jiu Yin to have his king insects, which he had painstakingly raised for years, killed.
More urgent crises awaited him now.
His spirit greatly damaged again, Elder Jiu Yin could barely stand up. Staggering, he was unable to continue fighting. His two bodyguards were strong, but they were certainly no match for Vice City Lord Bai.
If reinforcements didn¡¯t arrive in time, Elder Jiu Yin would not escape his fate today..
Chapter 283: 276 Nine Insects Gang Leader 1
Chapter 283: Chapter 276 Nine Insects Gang Leader 1
The battle within the Spirit Trapping Formation continued, as Vice City Lord Bai wouldn¡¯t easily let Elder Jiu Yin escape after going to the trouble of using the formation.
At the border of the Nine Insect Gang, which adjoined the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s territory, the stationed troops were restless and eager to move.
They were waiting for the right moment to strike and invade the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s domain in one fell swoop.
The high-ranking officials suddenly saw a green light re up in the sky, which made their expressions turn very grave at once.
¡°It¡¯s daytime now, and the green light ising from the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s hearnd, it must be Elder Jiu Yin in grave danger, calling for our aid.¡±
¡°Gang Leader, please send troops immediately to invade ck Tiger Gang and rescue Elder Jiu Yin.¡±
¡°Gang Leader, dispatch the troops at once!¡±
Elder Jiu Yin had deep roots within the Nine Insect Gang and had cultivated many friends and disciples over the years.
Now in trouble, there were many speaking on his behalf right away.
¡°Elder Jiu Yin is one of the Seven Great Elders of the Nine Insect Gang, with a high position and considerable power, and holds a prestigious status. For our Nine Insect Gang, he is like the upper arm or the main beam of a house. This time, we dispatched him to sneak into enemy territory from Tian Shui, with the intention of using the Shennong Sect¡¯s army inbination with Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s power to prate into the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s hearnd. The goal was to destabilize the entire ck Tiger Gang, causing utter chaos within their ranks. Then, we would strike from Wash Crime River like lightning, in coboration with the Shennong Sect, tounch a pincer attack on ck Tiger City.
Thus, we hoped to decide the fate of the battle in one move.
An intelligence report from our secret lines indicates that the ck Tiger Gang Leader and at least three Deputy City Lords are leading heavy troops along the Wash Crime River, and they are certainly aware that our army is assembled here.
This raises baffling questions. With the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s main military force and numerous experts gathered on the opposite shore, why have Elder Jiu Yin and the Shennong Sect achieved nothing? Why are they now sending out res to call for help?¡±
Naturally, anyone who can be a Gang Leader is no ordinary person.
Now that Elder Jiu Yin is in danger, if she outright refuses to help, it will surely lead to the gang members feeling dismayed and disheartened.
Using the main force tounch an offensive would amount to a brute force attack.
The ck Tiger Gang Leader is old and cunning, and it won¡¯t be easy to take him down.
If not careful, the Nine Insect Gang might end up badly beaten.
¡°Report!¡±
A soldier rushed into the central tent with an urgent missive.
¡°A flying crane message has arrived from the Shennong Sect, bringing thetest intelligence!¡±
¡°Bring it here!¡±
The Nine Insects Gang Leader¡¯s face was covered with a ck veil, making it impossible to discern her features or expressions.
Known as the ck Widow, she had managed to seize the throne of the Gang Leader in the chaotic and unordered Nine Insects Gang by virtue of her femininity, and she had led her followers to expand the territory and grow the gang¡¯s strength, which was proof of her strong capabilities and methods.
The flying crane message is a rtively advanced method for sending urgent intelligence.
As cranes fly at higher altitudes than pigeons,
their stamina is also greater, and their intelligence is simrly higher, making it hard for enemies to intercept their messages.
There is another important reason.
Although pigeons are easy to train and have decent flight capabilities, they are not as easy to cultivate for advancement.
But crane species are naturally gifted and precious birds.
The most famous is the Immortal Crane, even considered an auspicious creature by immortals and nurtured as pets, indicating the crane¡¯s potential for growth far exceeds that of pigeons.
The secret letter was contained in a bamboo tube, which had waterproof and scratch-resistant features.
This was to prevent the flying crane from damaging the missive en route.
There¡¯s also another purpose: the bamboo tube was cleverly designed with a mechanism, and the opening was sealed withcquer. If it fell into enemy hands and they tried to force it open, it would trigger the mechanism and the secret letter inside would be destroyed.
The Nine Insects Gang Leader took the bamboo tube, checked that it had not been opened, and then skillfully disabled the mechanism on the tube.
She pulled out the secret letter.
He had only read two lines before he mmed his palm heavily onto the desk.
¡°This is outrageous!¡±
The crowd felt the Gang Leader¡¯s anger and dared not make a sound.
Everyone held this woman in awe.
¡°Mu Sect Leader of Shennong Sect sent a letter, saying that Elder Jiu Yin and the Shennong Sect¡¯s army had sessfully invaded the territory of the ck Tiger Gang, and the situation was initially very favorable, having the upper hand. But suddenly, Elder Jiu Yin led the Insect Master to retreat, resulting in a disastrous defeat for the Shennong Sect¡¯s forces.
Out of twelve thousand troops deployed, less than five hundred escaped, nearly a total annihtion.
Now, Mu Sect Leader of Shennong Sect is demanding an exnation from us.¡±
The Nine Insects Gang Leader¡¯s tone was filled with anger and murderous intent.
A war that was a matter of life and death for tens of thousands of soldiers, also determined the future and fate of the two sects.
Such a crucial battle and Elder Jiu Yin, for his personal reasons, suddenly led the Insect Masters to retreat. This was a taboo in military affairs.
¡°Gang Leader, calm your anger. The true circumstances of this matter have not yet been determined, and we cannot just blindly believe the words of Shennong Sect.¡±
¡°The fighting capabilities of Shennong Sect are as weak as chickens. It¡¯s very likely they were the ones who lost the battle and are now pushing the me onto Elder Jiu Yin. Gang Leader, don¡¯t be deceived by their malice.¡±
¡°And look at Shennong Sect, having the nerve to y the victim and use us first, when they are the ones who allowed hundreds to escape. Meanwhile, not a single one of our Nine Insect Gang¡¯s men made it back, and now Elder Jiu Yin is trapped by the enemy deep within ck Tiger Gang territory. It¡¯s clear who retreated first, even a fool could see.¡±
¡°From my perspective, if we can¡¯t swallow the ck Tiger Gang whole, we might as well devour Shennong Sect first.¡±
Each one of these men was a wolf in sheep¡¯s clothing.
Allying with Shennong Sect was akin to seeking skin from a tiger.
If Mu Sect Leader of Shennong Sect were here, he would probably be furious enough to drop dead.
¡°Gang Leader, please dispatch troops to rescue Elder Jiu Yin immediately, or it will dampen everyone¡¯s spirit!¡±
¡°Gang Leader, send the troops now, and I¡¯m willing to lead the vanguard!¡±
¡°Gang Leader, please dispatch the troops! Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s safety is crucial!¡±
Most of the mid- and high-ranking members below supported sending troops to rescue Elder Jiu Yin.
These were all men who favored battle.
Now with such a legitimate reason, they were all eager and rubbing their hands together in anticipation.
¡°We can¡¯t rush into this. If we throw ourselves into disarray, we will spoil the Gang Leader¡¯s grand n. Over the years, the Gang Leader has led our Nine Insect Gang to grow and strengthen, which is apparent to all. Please follow the Gang Leader¡¯s orders.¡±
Someone stood up to speak on behalf of the Nine Insects Gang Leader.
¡°Right, if we rush headlong into ck Tiger Gang territory to save our people, we may just fall into the enemy¡¯s trap. Across the river, the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s camp is deathly silent and supremelyposed, just waiting for us to cross the river!¡±
¡°Listen to the Gang Leader, we must not hurry!¡±
The mid- and high-ranking members of the Nine Insect Gang were divided into two factions.
Those who were anxious to send troops to rescue people were closely rted to Elder Jiu Yin. There were direct interests involved.
Though the Nine Insect Gang had seven Great Elders, there were truly only two with significant influence.
If Elder Jiu Yin died, the status of those close to him would definitely be reduced, and their interests affected.
Therefore, they did not want anything to happen to Elder Jiu Yin and were eager to rescue him.
¡°Enough squabbling! Whether Elder Jiu Yin is right or wrong, the person must be saved. As the Gang Leader, I will not abandon any of our members. Outside, the Nine Insect Gang is your most reliable support. However, rashly sending troops on a rescue mission is unwise. If we fail to save our people and, as a result, sacrifice even more lives, our gang¡¯s strength will suffer greatly, and the disaster of our destruction will be upon us.
I will immediatelypose a letter requesting the Shennong Sect to send troops at once to attack the ck Tiger Gang.
We will also lead arge army from Wash Crime River, attacking from both sides to hold the enemy¡¯s experts at bay. Then, we will send a small group of elite troops to stealthily proceed to the location where Elder Jiu Yin is requesting assistance and rescue him.¡±
Though the Nine Insects Gang Leader was a woman, she revealed her immense wisdom..
Chapter 284: 277 One Person Changed the Entire Battlefield_1
Chapter 284: Chapter 277 One Person Changed the Entire Battlefield_1
Her tactics were also top-notch.
Although the situation arose suddenly, she was not led by the nose by the enemy.
¡°Judging from the direction of the signal re, we can roughly deduce that Elder Jiu Yin is trapped in the ck Tiger Gang¡¯s Jade Stream Town. Elder Mei, I need you to lead an elite crew to go and rescue him.¡±
Elder Mei was exactly the one who had just been most anxious to go on a rescue mission.
Sending him to the heart of the ck Tiger Gang to rescue someone, if the mission was sessful, that would be best. If it failed, the Nine Insects Gang Leader would have effectively weakened the opposition¡¯s forces, making her position as Gang Leader even more secure.
¡°Yes, mymand!¡±
Elder Mei didn¡¯t have a second word and directly went to select people for the mission.
After the Nine Insects Gang Leader wrote a letter, she still had Fei He take the encrypted message back.
She had been confronting the ck Tiger Gang for many days, testing them numerous times, but the ck Tiger Gang had always been deeply hidden. She couldn¡¯t fathom their depth or shallowness.
This time, with Elder Jiu Yin trapped, the call within her gang to rescue him was extremely high.
She could only act opportunistically, deciding to have a direct, forceful confrontation with the ck Tiger Gang.
Across Wash Crime River, the ck Tiger Gang Leader led his top experts and a sizable army to garrison, always on guard against the Nine Insects Gang¡¯s army crossing the river.
¡°Gang Leader, this is thetest battle report from Deputy City Lord Bai.¡±
The ck Tiger Gang Leader, dressed inmoner¡¯s clothes and looking like an ordinary person, took the battle report to examine.
¡°Ha ha, truly heaven helps our gang! The Shennong Sect and Nine Insects Gang attempted a surprise attack across the Tianshui River, only to be discovered by a young Insect Master of our gang. Deputy City Lord Bai led troops to meet them in battle and, after two days of hard fighting, drove the enemy army to a crushing defeat, annihting more than ten thousand of them.
Now, they¡¯ve even trapped Elder Jiu Yin of the Nine Insects Gang in Jade Stream Town.
Elder Jiu Yin is one of the most powerful elders in the Nine Insects Gang, second only to the Nine Insects Gang Leader, with immense influence. If this man were to die on our ck Tiger Gang turf, it would deal a heavy blow to the Nine Insects Gang.
It could possibly discourage the Nine Insects Gang from ever invading us again.¡±
In his words, the ck Tiger Gang Leader was quite wary of the Nine Insects Gang.
Following the principle that harmony is most precious, he would avoid fighting with the Nine Insects Gang whenever possible.
¡°This is great! Such significant good news is truly exhrating for our ck Tiger Gang.¡±
¡°Gang Leader, should we immediately send our top experts to Jade Stream Town to join forces with Deputy City Lord Bai to kill Elder Jiu Yin?¡±
The high-ranking members of the ck Tiger Gang, upon hearing this good news, were extremely thrilled.
¡°That young Insect Master who discovered such important enemy information has made a great contribution. To boost troop morale, I suggest the Gang Leader immediately bestow a reward upon him.¡±
Some, amidst their joy, suggested a generous reward for the young Insect Master who had detected the enemy¡¯s intentions.
¡°Hmm, it is indeed necessary to heavily reward this Insect Master named Qin Niu. However, it¡¯s better to wait until the battle at Deputy City Lord Bai¡¯s side is over before giving out rewards together. The great service that Qin Niu has rendered may not be limited to this alone. Do you all remember the incident from more than ten days ago, when the Nine Insects Gang¡¯s army was searching along the borders of Wash Crime River? That was because the enemy¡¯smander, Song Zan, was killed.
ording to the information passed by our nted spy, Song Zan¡¯s demise might be rted to two traveling stowaways, a man and a woman.
Latter investigations by the Nine Insects Gang at the site of Song Zan¡¯s death concluded that Song Zan was killed by an Innate Realm expert, likely to be an Insect Master.
Though the whereabouts of the young female stowaway remain unknown, she is not an Insect Master, and her cultivation has not reached the Innate Realm.
Therefore, the person who killed Song Zan is very likely that young Insect Master.
Although we can¡¯t confirm that the young Insect Master is Qin Niu, judging from various clues, it is very likely to be him.
It¡¯s indeed fortunate for our ck Tiger Gang to have such a talent!¡±
The ck Tiger Gang Leader¡¯s intelligence was much stronger than imagined.
He had even nted spies within the Nine Insects Gang, clearly learning all of the enemy¡¯s information.
Perhaps this was the earliest prototype of a spy!
¡°Elder Jiu Yin daring to break into the hearnd of our ck Tiger Gang is like treating us as if we are nobody! Fang Lian, when ites to the number of top experts, the Fang Family has the most! I want you to go to Jade Stream Town immediately, fully assist Deputy City Lord Bai in killing Elder Jiu Yin, and make no mistakes.¡±
The ck Tiger Gang Leader¡¯s gaze turned to Fang Lian.
He was indeed a young master from the Fang Family.
Because his father was in seclusion for cultivation, he had already started to take on the heavy responsibilities of the Fang Family¡¯s n leadership.
The outbreak of the faction war caused these top-tier families to dispatch their experts to participate in the battle.
It was not only a great opportunity to earn military merit, but also to train their n¡¯s younger generation.
¡°Understood!¡±
Fang Lian was quite surprised when he heard Qin Niu¡¯s name.
He had had several encounters with Qin Niu.
It was unexpected that in such a short time, Qin Niu had already advanced to be an Innate Realm powerhouse, a high-level expert just like him.
Back then, Qin Niu, in his eyes, was just a few-level expert that he could easily crush to death.
The rapidity of Qin Niu¡¯s growth far exceeded his imagination.
in Elder Jiu Yin, that was unquestionably a colossal act of military merit.
Fang Lian was in dire need of such a great military exploit to solidify his position.
He led the Fang Family¡¯s experts and quickly headed to Jade Stream Town.
Not long after Fang Lian left, a scout returned with news from the front.
¡°Gang Leader, the enemy force across Wash Crime River is setting up flying ropes to cross it.¡±
¡°Engage!¡±
The ck Tiger Gang Leader didn¡¯t waste any words and simply said two.
¡°The Nine Insects Gang can¡¯t hold back,unching a sudden attack¡ªit seems they¡¯ve learned that Elder Jiu Yin is trapped and want to dispatch troops for a rescue.¡±
¡°Haha, this is even better. Using Elder Jiu Yin as bait, we can severely damage the main force of the Nine Insects Gang in one fell swoop, securing at least a century of peaceful development.¡±
The ck Tiger Gang Leaderughed heartily, but did not mention leading the army into the battle.
On the Shennong Sect¡¯s side, although they lost over ten thousand soldiers due to the sudden retreat of their ipetent allies, the alliance of the two factions was already bound together.
The Nine Insects Gang Leadermanded them to join forces in attacking the enemy, and the Shennong Sect, whether they liked it or not, had toply.
Otherwise, if the Nine Insects Gang acted alone and ended up defeated, the Shennong Sect would certainly not fare well.
Firstly, the Nine Insects Gang would regard the Shennong Sect as traitors, as enemies.
They would definitely devise ways to deal with the Shennong Sect.
Secondly, if the ck Tiger Gang won the battle, they too would seek to settle ounts with the Shennong Sect.
The Shennong Sect was also like an arrow drawn on a bow; they had no choice but to release it.
Qin Niu waspletely unaware that he, seemingly an insignificant figure, had triggered a massive change in the war among the three gangs.
At the moment, he had just killed the king insect and was contemting when to feed it to the Ant Queen.
The two women who had helped him kindle the fire huddled in fear.
¡°Alright, here¡¯s fifty Wen Money to reward you.¡±
Qin Niu casually threw a piece of Silver Piece and walked outside.
The male head of this family and the older female head watched Qin Niu with a mix of fear and hatred in their eyes.
¡°Don¡¯t worry, I didn¡¯t do anything to them, I just had them help me keep the fire going for over an hour.¡±
After giving an exnation, Qin Niu left the household.
He was considering whether to flee directly back to Shuangfeng Vige or to take a look at the battlefield.
In the end, he decided to go and have a look.
With an Invisibility Talisman on his body, that was his greatest confidence..
Chapter 285: 278: Resurgence of Gu Techniques? 1
Chapter 285: Chapter 278: Resurgence of Gu Techniques? 1
He believed that the death of the leader worm would undoubtedly deal another heavy blow to Elder Jiu Yin. If Vice City Lord Bai could seize the opportunity, he had every capability to deliver a fatal strike and directly kill Elder Jiu Yin.
By then, Qin Niu would be able to rest easy.
He had just run less than a hundred meters forward when suddenly a tremendous explosion was heard from ahead, shaking the earth and rocking the mountains, shaking the tiles off the roofs of nearby residences.
The windowttices creaked.
Such a terrifying force of explosion could not possibly be caused by an expert of the Innate Realm.
Qin Niu¡¯s heart sank slightly, guessing that Elder Jiu Yin might have used some life-saving measures.
This was not good news.
If this person escaped and recovered his strength, Qin Niu would undoubtedly be the first he ughtered.
Killing so many of Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s life-linked insects, this enmity was even deeper than that of killing one¡¯s father.
¡°Bai Xuezhu, I will surely ughter your entire family, defile your wife and daughters, and dig out your ancestral grave.¡±
The voice of Elder Jiu Yin, filled with endless resentment, rose up.
Qin Niu sensed trouble.
Indeed, at the level of Elder Jiu Yin, there were many life-saving methods; he was not that easy to kill.
Even though Vice City Lord Bai had resorted to using the Spirit Trapping Formation, his ultimate measure, he still failed to capture Elder Jiu Yin.
By the time Qin Niu arrived at the battlefield, he saw a huge crater on the ground, the deepest part surpassing two meters in depth.
One could imagine just how terrifying the explosion had been.
Vice City Lord Bai¡¯s armor was shattered, his body covered in blood, with blood still dribbling from the corner of his mouth.
Around him, numerous soldiersy in pools of blood.
Master He Shan¡¯s Double-Headed Lion was also severely injured.
Ity there, breathing heavily.
Master He Shan himself had his eyes tightly closed, blood around his mouth, his entire body nearly in a state of unconsciousness.
¡°Master He Shan, Master He Shan!¡±
Qin Niu stepped forward to check and provide assistance.
Manipting the acupoint was of no use.
He ced his hand on Master He Shan¡¯s back and transferred a thread of his powerful energy. Master He Shan coughed up two mouthfuls of ck blood and then slowly came to.
¡°Qin Niu, thank you.¡±
Master He Shan¡¯s voice was weak
¡°Just now, two of Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Spirit Qi Realm attendants self-destructed, breaking Lord Bai¡¯s Spirit Trapping Formation. Because I was close by, I was also injured in the explosion. Spirit Qi Realm experts, such an enviable state, terrifying as such.¡±
Although he was quite seriously injured, he could still speak and his energy was continuous, indicating he would not die.
No wonder the sound earlier was so loud; it turned out that two Spirit Qi Realm experts had self-destructed simultaneously.
Being able to cultivate to the Spirit Qi Realm, one in a hundred thousand could achieve it.
It was extremely difficult.
Yet those two attendants were willing to sacrifice their own lives to help Elder
Jiu Yin escape, showing their extreme loyalty to him.
Qin Niu was quite envious; he also wanted such loyal attendants.
At present, he only had Xiao Qing as a maidservant.
The rtionship between master and servant was deep, but Xiao Qing¡¯s cultivation level was subpar.
¡°Those two attendants possessed such cultivation and were willing to self-destruct; their loyalty and bravery are indeed admirable.¡±
Qin Niu remarked with emotion.
¡°Hmph, do you think those two attendants did it willingly? Before they self-destructed, their eyes were blood-red and they showed painful expressions on their faces. It¡¯s very likely they were being controlled by that old bastard Jiu Yin.¡±
Vice City Lord Bai had presumably finished healing, he turned his head to look over.
Qin Niu¡¯s praise of the two attendants¡¯ bravery clearly annoyed him.
¡°How¡ how do you control it?¡±
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but recall the Red-eyed Golden Toad, which had also been controlled by Old Master Huang using a worm.
¡°The Nine Insect Gang has some secret techniques that can imnt worms into another person¡¯s body and then control the person through the worms. It¡¯s quite simr to the Gu technique.¡±
Master He Shan exined weakly, clutching his chest.
¡°So that¡¯s how it is. This Insect Commanding Technique is indeed evil, even capable of controlling humans.¡±
Qin Niu nodded, feeling as though he had gained more insight.
The Gu technique was a peculiar magic of the southern border, which had been lost for many years.
This method of controlling others by imnting worms inside their bodies was highly simr to the Gu technique.
Whether it was a revival of Gu technique, that remained unknown.
Back then, the masters of Gu technique from the southern border took part in the Immortal Sects war, only to be eradicated by the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect.
It was that very battle that allowed the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect to sessfully establish itself.
It has been over a thousand years since then.
Many have even forgotten the once-glorious Gu technique and its numerous legendary stories, now asionally glimpsed only in fragments within some books.
They say for one general¡¯s sess, thousands of bones areid to rest.
The founding of an Immortal Sect is far more brutal than one can imagine.
In wars between Immortal Sects, even strong practitioners of the Innate Realm are like ants.
Wars of that magnitude spare none, from Immortal Masters to mortals.
They are absolute catastrophes for the human world.
¡°Qin Niu, you have achieved remarkable feats in this war and shall be appropriately rewarded. Elder Jiu Yin has fled with serious injuries and is a significant hidden danger. I must lead my men to pursue and eliminate him immediately. There will be other experts from the gang to intercept him ahead; he must not be allowed to escape back This man is cunning and deceitful, and he will surely hold a grudge against you for destroying his king insect, so you must be extra cautious.¡±
After speaking, Deputy City Lord Bai swallowed a Fresh Red Elixir and quickly left with a few guards.
Though Deputy City Lord Bai¡¯s horizontal training was unparalleled in the ck Tiger Gang,
the self-destruction of two Spirit Qi Realm experts has nheless left him quite injured.
Qin Niu, observing the fallen Innate Realm experts and Insect Masters on the scene, felt life was incredibly cheap. Every step of cultivation from the Mortal Realm to the Innate Realm was fraught with difficulty,
yet in war, they died so easily.
This also served as a stark warning to Qin Niu.
Regardless of how high one¡¯s cultivation or how strong one¡¯s power, it is best not to engage in conflicts lightly. One mistake can lead to death and the end of one¡¯s path.
Qin Niu returned to his home in Shuangfeng Vige and began to inventory the spoils of war gathered over many days.
He needed to quickly convert his spoils into strength.
This time, he had obtained several Corpse Bee Bee Generals¡¯ bodies, the king worm of a Taiyin Yaoyao, and even high-level insect corpses like that of the Binding Fairy Spider. He believed the Ant Queen would certainly undergo significant evolution.
In his room, he carefully checked and sorted each of the spoils.
Martial arts practice scrolls like the Misty Rain Elusive Step, ancient Insect Commanding tomes like the Spider Technique Scroll, and several Insect Master¡¯s notes, plus a The nt As and aption of rare nts and trees left by Master Mo Yang.
Then there were more than ten Insect Bags and numerous Insect Jars.
He had also captured a fair number of live insects.
There were quite a few bodies of Steel-winged Wild Bees, as well as several live ones.
And they were all of the Bee General Level.
The two green-headed wild bees were what Qin Niu valued the most. These bees were summoning bees, acting like bell-ringing imps, capable of calling upon swarms of wild bees to attack their enemies.
These were special bee species, hence Qin Niu¡¯s particr interest in them.
As he went through the Insect Bags, some of the insects inside were still alive.
These were the ones not tamed by the Insect Master Zhu Zhu.
They were basically various sorts of spiders, and Qin Niu didn¡¯t care for them at all.
However, instead of killing them, he took them to the mountains to release them.
Now possessing nearly a hundred thousand silver notes, he awaited the war¡¯s end when he could buynd and mountains, bing a grandndlord in Shuangfeng Vige. By then, he would manage the entire mountain as his stronghold..
Chapter 286: 279 Lovebirds 1
Chapter 286: Chapter 279 Lovebirds 1
He nned to release some of the poison insects and mysterious creatures he had caught that he had no use for into the forest.
In a few decades, that mountain would teem with all sorts of bizarre and venomous creatures and would be a dragon¡¯sir and a tiger¡¯s den, where ordinary people dare not set foot.
As a result, he now had a rtively secluded private training ground.
The ancient banyan tree had already be his private property.
And now he had an Ice Lotus as well.
Having seen the Fang Family¡¯s depth of resources, Qin Niu followed suit, constantly umting his strength to grow into a towering ¡®great tree¡¯.
¡°Xiao Qing, we haven¡¯t been up the mountain for training in many days. Today, I¡¯ll take you up the mountain to train,¡± Qin Niu said.
Looking at the sky, it wasn¡¯t even noon yet.
He could still train under the ancient banyan tree for two or three hours.
Originally, he had nned to rest at home today and had arranged for Wang Wanyan and Tang Caixian toe over to learn the martial technique ¡®Misty Rain Elusive Step¡¯ and provide them with some cultivation resources.
But that would have to be postponed until tomorrow.
Because he was eager to go into the mountains to cultivate termites.
Also, he hadn¡¯t collected banyan tree blood to nourish his sword in days, so he needed to get some Ancient Banyan Tree Blood for his Ink de today.
¡°Oh, yes, yes!¡±
Xiao Qing pped her hands excitedly upon hearing this.
With Qin Niu away from home, she had been cooped up in the house all day and was feeling unbearably stifled.
Training under the ancient banyan tree, where the cultivation speed was dozens of times faster than in the outside world, was enough to enchant anyone.
The master and servant left the house, with Qin Niu carrying arge basket on his back.
He had brought all nine corpses of the Taiyin Yaoyao.
He nned to feed them all to the Ant Queen.
Passing by Wang Furen¡¯s house, a pudgy head stuck out from the gate¡ªit was Wang Furen himself.
¡°Master Qin, Master Qin, are you heading into the mountains?¡±
¡°Yes, Uncle Wang. Are you packing up to flee with all these bags and parcels?¡± Qin Niu asked, noticing several bundles and boxes on the ground behind Wang Furen.
¡°Hasn¡¯t the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s army advanced on Jade Stream Town? As you know, those demons do all kinds of evil and kill anyone they see. My daughter Wan Yan is quite beautiful. The idea of her falling into the hands of those devils is unthinkable. In my younger days, I traveled extensively on business and am quite familiar with many ces, so I¡¯m nning to take my family to hide somewhere else,¡± Wang Furen exined.
Wang Furen was somewhat conscientious.
Though prepared to flee for his life, he didn¡¯t abandon the maidservants who had served him for many years.
He couldn¡¯t give her a formal status, but he had already treated her as a concubine.
She had changed into coarse clothing and wrapped a headscarf around her head, appearing like an ordinary vige woman.
In the end, she hadn¡¯t done anyborious work for years, nor worked the fields, so her skin still appeared fair and tender. She followed closely behind Wang Furen.
¡°Uncle Wang, your foresight is admirable. However, from what I understand, there is no need for you to flee too far. Our Shuangfeng Vige is far safer than ces abroad. I¡¯ve seen some wealthy people who have sold their property and smuggled their families into the Nine Insect Gang. They are some capable people who have obtained legitimate identities within the Nine Insect Gang.
Guess what happened to them in the end?
Every man, woman, and child was captured by the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s troops.
The men were bound and used for breeding insects.
The elderly were killed on the spot, fed to the insects. The children were also used for breeding insects, while the women suffered all kinds of humiliation. Any slightly good-looking ones were sent first to be enjoyed by the higher ranks. All the valuables they carried were plundered.
If they hadn¡¯t fled to the Nine Insect Gang, maybe they wouldn¡¯t have met with such a catastrophe.
I¡¯m telling you this because you¡¯re my neighbor, and because you¡¯ve taken great care of me over the years.¡±
Qin Niu knew that Wang Furen was a shrewd businessman.
Sometimes, being too savvy wasn¡¯t a good thing.
Those who were too clever by half often died miserably.
¡°So¡ are you saying it¡¯s safer to stay in Shuangfeng Vige?¡±
Wang Furen wiped the sweat from his forehead repeatedly with his hand.
It seemed he had considered the idea of smuggling his family out of the country.
¡°I¡¯ve been to where the Nine Insect Gang resides, where the folk are fierce, and the weak have no standing whatsoever. Bringing Wan Yan and the others there would only harm them. The Shennong Sect might seem safe, but could actually be the most dangerous ce. Shuangfeng Vige might appear dangerous, but in reality, it might be a refuge from warfare.¡±
Qin Niu offered his own perspective.
Wang Furen wouldn¡¯t listen, and there was nothing he could do.
¡°Dad, we definitely won¡¯t go wrong listening to Ah Niu.¡±
Wang Wanyan¡¯s voice rang out as the door opened.
She too had changed into a set of coarse clothes.
Yet, it still could not conceal her breathtaking beauty, her graceful figure, standing tall and slender. Her features were like a master painting, with a delicate nose and rosy lips, looking beautiful in whatever she wore.
Solely in terms of beauty, Tang Caixian was somewhat inferior to her.
However, both women had their respective charms.
Wang Wanyan was pure as snow, proud and cold, yet she also possessed the poise and intelligence of ady from a prestigious family.
Tang Caixian, on the other hand, was bold and forthright, passionate and fierce as fire. She exhibited a charm and softness, without losing her inner pride and wisdom.
Qin Niu liked and respected both girls.
¡°The vigers were spreading rumors, saying that you abandoned Xiao Qing to escape the disaster alone. I never believed it. But my father insists that our family prepare to flee.¡±
Wang Wanyan exined to Qin Niu.
¡°Uncle Wang¡¯s concerns are not without reason. Now that I am back, the rumors will naturally be dispelled. Uncle Wang, there¡¯s no need to flee. If enemies really doe, 1 will surely notify you before I flee for safety.¡±
How could Qin Niu abandon Xiao Qing, Wang Wanyan, and Tang Caixian to flee for his life?
Though he might seem cold and ruthless, he valued loyalty deeply.
But in such precarious times, it was true that he didn¡¯t meddle in affairs that weren¡¯t his own.
This was also a form of self-preservation.
¡°It seems it was a false rm, Ah Niu. I see that you and Wan Yan have feelings for each other. In these turbulent times, if you don¡¯t mind, I¡¯d like you to take Wan Yan as your bride. I¡¯m old and truly cannot protect her.¡±
Wang Furen¡¯s mentality had undergone a significant change.
In the past, he feared his precious daughter being led astray by Qin Niu, but now he was hoping Qin Niu would marry her sooner rather thanter.
Because he felt that entrusting his daughter to Qin Niu was safer.
¡°I am more than willing, but 1e from humble beginnings and fear that it would be unfair to Wan Yan.¡±
Qin Niu looked toward Wang Wanyan.
She blushed, her face turning red, and she nced down bashfully, sneaking looks at Qin Niu.
Smiling upon hearing Qin Niu¡¯s agreement to marry her, a smile blossomed on her face that could overturn kingdoms.
¡°I leave everything to my father¡¯s decision.¡±
Being a girl, naturally she was too shy to directly admit her liking for Qin Niu.
She expressed herself in a rather demure manner.
¡°Ha ha, since both you young people agree, Master Qin can hire a matchmaker and set an early date to bring forth the engagement andplete the marriage.¡±
Wang Furenughed heartily upon hearing this.
How times had changed.
The current Qin Niu had a startling potential for growth. The local powerhouse, the Yan Family, treated him with great respect.
Tang Yan of the Tang Family had also personally paid a visit to Qin Niu.
Additionally, Tang Caixian from the Tang Family was a well-known beauty far and wide, her family background was not a bit inferior to that of Wang Furen¡¯s. She had taken the initiative to send a matchmaker to discuss marriage with Qin Niu.
Wang Furen also had his own calctions.
He feared that if he acted too slowly, Qin Niu would marry Tang Caixian first, and then his daughter would have to be a concubine, or marry someone else.
In these chaotic times, he did not trust anyone else.
On the contrary, he felt that marrying Qin Niu was the best option. Not only could he see his daughter every day, providing someone to look out for her, but also because he knew Qin Niu well and deemed him trustworthy.
¡°Then tomorrow 1 will find a matchmaker to propose officially. It¡¯s just that my achievements are limited at the moment, and 1 would be putting Wan Yan at a disadvantage.¡±
Seeing how anxious the girl¡¯s father was, Qin Niu naturally would not decline.
He wouldn¡¯t put Wang Furen in an awkward position..
Chapter 287: 280 The Three Matchmakers and Six Proposals_1
Chapter 287: Chapter 280 The Three Matchmakers and Six Proposals_1
With his current wealth and strength, marrying a wife posed no real pressure
on him.
However, as he wholeheartedly pursued immortality, taking a wife now could potentially introduce some distractions to his cultivation.
After all, he was a man of flesh and blood, and marrying a beautiful wife was bound to lead to a harmonious marital rtionship.
Many books mention that the allure of women can easily corrupt one¡¯s dao
heart.
If his wife were to get pregnant and bear one or two children, that would be even more troublesome.
He could understand Wang Furen¡¯s concerns. In these turbulent times, with his daughter Wang Wanyan being so beautiful, it would be more secure for her to marry earlier.
However, if Qin Niu wasn¡¯t powerful enough, even marrying him might not ensure her safety.
If a strong man coveted her beauty, he would have the power to take her by force.
Such incidents were too numerous throughout history.
Powerful figures lusting after some beautiful married woman, and then using their influence and power to coerce, intimidate, or seduce her, leading to her family¡¯s ruin, were plentiful.
Beautiful women, money, and power were generally considered the three resources fought over most fiercely.
These three resources were also something men couldn¡¯t resist.
Even if Qin Niu were to marry Wang Wanyan, if he wasn¡¯t powerful enough, it was very likely he would be framing himself for disaster.
But he and Wang Wanyan were childhood sweethearts and their affection for each other was mutual, so he wouldn¡¯t have too many worries.
If he couldn¡¯t even protect the one he cared about, what was the point of cultivation and seeking immortality?
After reaching a verbal agreement with Wang Furen, Qin Niu made a detour to Auntie Hua¡¯s house.
The door was closed tightly, but movements could be heard inside.
Upon hearing that the army of the Nine Insect Gang wasing and seeing Qin Niu flee, the vigers were prepared to escape. They all closed their doors tightly, watching and waiting.
Qin Niu stepped forward and knocked on the door.
Immediately, the house fell silent.
Auntie Hua¡¯s family was probably scared out of their wits.
¡°Auntie Hua, it¡¯s me, Qin Niu!¡±
Qin Niu shouted, raising his voice.
¡°Oh, it¡¯s Master Qin! You¡¯ve scared us to death! Master Qin, pleasee in and have a seat!¡±
Upon hearing it was Qin Niu, Auntie Hua hurriedly opened the door.
¡°No need to sit, I just came to tell you some good news. The forces of the Nine Insect Gang have been defeated by Deputy City Lord Bai; the dead have died, and the rest have fled. You don¡¯t have to worry about the army of the Nine Insect Gang invading the vige anymore.¡±
Qin Niu nced at Auntie Hua¡¯s family.
Packed up in big and small bags, ready to flee at a moment¡¯s notice.
¡°Oh, that¡¯s such great news! Thank heavens!¡± Auntie Hua said, patting her still plump chest and smiling joyfully. ¡°Thank you foring to tell us this good news, Master Qin. Come in for some tea! Xiao Qing, youe too.¡±
She enthusiastically invited them both.
¡°I¡¯ll visit another time! I have another matter I¡¯d like to ask you. I¡¯d like you to go to Wang Furen¡¯s house to propose a match. I want to marry Wang Wanyan as my principal wife. You decide on what bridal gifts are required; you can handle all the preparations. I won¡¯t let your hard work go unpaid.¡±
Qin Niu, busy with cultivation and rearing insects, naturally needed to delegate such trivial matters to someone else.
¡°Oh, hahaha, done, done, done! This is a momentous asion. Rest assured, Master Qin, I¡¯ve got this. 1¡¯11 make sure everything is done beautifully,¡± Auntie Hua responded, all smiles upon hearing business wasing her way.
Matchmaking was her specialty after all, and having the chance to do such a big favor for Qin Niu was something she wholeheartedly weed.
Not to mention, just by virtue of being Qin Niu¡¯s matchmaker, she could reap huge benefits in the vige in the future.
Moreover, it¡¯s a long-term benefit.
For bullies like Wang Haikun, if they want to bully her, they must consider her significant status.
Also, if anything good happens in the vige, the vige chief Xu Zhenchang certainly can¡¯t forget her.
¡°How much silver money do you think is needed to handle the betrothal gifts?¡±
¡°Uh¡ let¡¯s follow the tradition of ¡®the three matchmaker¡¯s gifts and the six betrothal gifts¡¯! We should first arrange for a matchmaker, and then wait until both parties¡¯ elders have agreed before presenting the betrothal gifts.¡± Auntie Hua seemed very professional and was also crystal clear about the wedding procedures.
To present the betrothal gifts without arranging for a matchmaker first is very reckless.
If the bride¡¯s family feels disrespected, the marriage proposal would likely fall through.
¡°Rest assured, I¡¯ve juste from Wang Furen¡¯s home, and Uncle Wang has agreed. Of course, to honor tradition, you can still visit first on my behalf to formally ask for her hand in marriage. As for the betrothal gifts, handle it generously, I¡¯m not afraid to spend silver money.¡±
Qin Niu was not stingy at all when it came to marrying a wife, which was a lifetime matter.
Moreover, for him, even spending a few hundred taels of silver money was still but a drop in the bucket.
Lately, he had killed quite a few experts from the Nine Insect Gang and umted quite a fortune from the assets of the deceased.
Marriage and acquiringnd were all things he could achieve with ease.
¡°Haha, very good, very good, it¡¯s easy since Wang Furen has agreed! Master Qin is deeply in love with Miss Wang and is willing to spend money; I believe this will make both Wang Furen and Miss Wang very happy. You are like a child 1 watched grow up, and Old Man Liu didn¡¯t leave you much inheritance. You¡¯ve built such an impressive house, which must have cost a lot of money, and if you handle the betrothal gifts generously, I¡¯m afraid it could cost forty or fifty taels of silver money.
If you go for a mid to high standard, twelve or thirteen taels of silver money can also make a grand ceremony.
I believe the Wang Furen¡¯s family won¡¯t have any objections to that either.¡± Auntie Hua was not only eloquent but also kind-hearted.
She was worried that Qin Niu had just built a house and might not have enough silver money at hand.
After building a new house, many families need to tighten their belts for several years.
Because building a house requires a lot of money, people usually borrow some from rtives and friends. After the house is built, they need to make money to repay the loans.
Qin Niu¡¯s house was even more imposing than those of Xu Zhenchang and Wang Furen and was Shuangfeng Vige¡¯s most luxurious mansion; naturally, it cost quite a bit of money.
In Auntie Hua¡¯s opinion, Qin Niu might also have some debts.
In such a case, naturally, one would save where possible when arranging a marriage.
¡°Auntie Hua, you don¡¯t need to worry about the money. 1 have only one request: to marry Miss Wang with dignity and not to slight her in any way. Here, take fifty taels as silver notes to start with; if it is not enough, you can alwayse to meter.¡±
Qin Niu directly and boldly took out a silver note worth fifty taels.
This was an absolute fortune.
He hadn¡¯t given a silver note of a hundred taels, and he had his own reasons for that.
To prepare the betrothal gifts, actually, a few taels of silver money would be enough. Moreover, it could be made quite generous.
The rest of the silver money was mostly given in cash to the bride¡¯s side.
The betrothal gifts typically included a pair of roosters and hens, one pig, one sheep, a pair of carp, and the rest would be cloth and the like.
¡°Oh my, Master Qin is simply like the God of Wealth! Auntie Hua has been a matchmaker all her life and this is the first time I¡¯ve seen a silver note!¡±
Auntie Hua took the silver note, examining it as if it were a rare treasure.
¡°I¡¯ll leave this matter in your hands, Auntie Hua. When picking the cloth and other items, be sure to choose the best satin avable, don¡¯t worry about the cost.¡±
¡°Sure, sure, I will definitely choose the best. But where 1 can save you money, I still will,¡± Auntie Hua said as she took the silver note, nodding her head repeatedly in agreement.
¡°Be careful when you go to town and consider bringing a couple more people with you,¡± Qin Niu admonished, before he went up the mountain with Xiao Qing and the strong Green Ox..
Chapter 288: 281 Cultivating Zombie Ants 1
Chapter 288: Chapter 281 Cultivating Zombie Ants 1
With Qin Niu¡¯s current strength, he still doesn¡¯t rank among the powers in ck Tiger Gang territory.
At most, he could make a name for himself in Jade Stream Town.
Auntie Hua, carrying such arge amount of silver money, would find it exceedingly difficult to recover it if it was really stolen.
The principle that wealth shouldn¡¯t be unted is understood even by slightly smarter children, let alone Auntie Hua, a grown adult. Qin Niu¡¯s well-intentioned reminder was just a precaution.
Having fifty silver notes stolen is a minor issue, but it¡¯s a bad omen.
Moreover, if the other party had malicious intent to steal the silver notes, they might very well resort to violence and killing to silence any witnesses and eliminate future troubles.
That would be even more inauspicious.
Arriving at the mountain, Qin Niu first led Xiao Qing into the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze.
Having not visited for several days, the Ancient Banyan Tree was still lush and thriving.
Banyan trees are known for their longevity; it¡¯s verymon to see them live over a thousand years. This Ancient Banyan Tree was already akin to a creature of spirit-monster level.
Ordinary mortals truly felt like mere passersby in front of such ancient trees. A regr person has a lifespan of just fifty or sixty years, not even a tenth of its age.
¡°Once I¡¯ve handled my affairs and have some spare time, I might be able to find out what kind of being this Ancient Banyan Tree is from those two botanical texts.¡±
Qin Niu didn¡¯t stand on ceremony with it; he wielded his knife and carved a few wounds on the tree¡¯s trunk, then ced jars to collect the blood.
Xiao Qing, who had been eagerly waiting, immediately sat down at the base of the tree to cultivate.
This ce was a cultivation secret ground for the two of them, master and servant.
After that, Qin Niu didn¡¯t rush to cultivate but went to nurture the newly hatched termites.
The ant colony not only gained arge number of poisonous ants with potent venom, but there were also six new demon ants.
The number of healing ants increased to eleven too.
The total number of zombie ants rose to one hundred and thirty-eight.
Three more elephantic ants were added as well.
All of these belonged to rtively scarce ant species and possessed strong special abilities.
Thebat power of the demon ants goes without saying, extremely formidable, and with their primary self-healing ability, they fear no injury.
Qin Niu even felt that, once the demon ants were cultivated to a certain level, they¡¯d definitely be like the Taiyin Yaoyao, able to rapidly reassemble even if chopped into several pieces.
By that time, the demon ants might be even stronger than the Taiyin Yaoyao. For they possess venom and stingers, as well as the special ability to demonize. ¡°Fourth, you and the demon ants feed the corpse of this Taiyin Yaoyao to the Ant Queen,¡± said Qin Niu as he directly took out a corpse of the Taiyin Yaoyao. For feeding the Ant Queen.
Such high-level strategic resources, he wouldn¡¯t possibly feed to ordinary termites.
Only Fourth and the demon ants had such privilege.
In the process of feeding the Ant Queen, they would eat a portion as well, thus obtaining benefits.
The huge corpse of the Taiyin Yaoyao was cut into pieces in the blink of an eye and dragged into the depths of the nest.
As it was the first time feeding a Taiyin Yaoyao corpse, and not knowing what the oue would be, he didn¡¯t rashly feed all nine Taiyin Yaoyao corpses at once but nned to feed them in batches.
The most powerful ability of the Taiyin Yaoyao was their strong self-healing capacity.
Qin Niu very much hoped that after the Ant Queen ate their corpses, the offspring produced would also possess this special ability.
Next, he began to nurture the newly hatched termites that had yet to be cultivated.
Including over a hundred zombie ants.
This ant species was already terrifying without being nurtured; after they consumed the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood, they were bound to be even more formidable.
Thousands of termites needed to be cultivated; the workload was quite heavy. Luckily, the supply of Ancient Banyan Tree Blood was abundant, nearly ensuring each termite got a chance to be nurtured.
After spending just over an hour, he finally finished cultivating the several thousand termites.
Using up most of a jar of Ancient Banyan Tree Blood.
What was now mostcking was the blood of the Thousand Eyes Tree.
Qin Niu was also in the process of cultivating the over four thousand puppet ants and ghost ants. Arge quantity of ordinary insect corpses were used to feed them.
Normally, acquiring so many Grade Four insect corpses was not an easy task.
It was the recent battle with Elder Jiu Yin of the Nine Insect Gang and his twelve major disciples that yielded arge number of these Grade Three and Four insect corpses.
¡°Alright, you guys eat up! 1 need to go over there to cultivate,¡± said Qin Niu as he summoned Fourth and together they entered the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze.
Helpless, to this point, Fourth was the only one who could lead him out from the maze.
¡°Lazy Ox, why don¡¯t you join me inside?¡±
Qin Niu called out to Xiao Niu, who was nearby nibbling on fresh grass and leaves.
¡°Moo!¡±
The calf immediately raised its neck and let out a cheerful sound as it galloped over.
It followed its master Qin Niu into the maze of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
Before it entered, it looked up at the Ancient Banyan Tree with a gaze full of awe, indicating that it could now sense the tree¡¯s terror.
Inside the maze, Xiao Qing was painstakingly cultivating.
She had been stuck at the peak of the Mortal Realm for some time now.
The Medicine King Sutra was good in every respect, except for the difficulty of advancing to the next level.
Xiao Qing still hadn¡¯t broken through to the Acquired Realm.
This was something only she could do for herself.
As time slowly passed, Qin Niu sensed that the branches of the Ancient Banyan Tree had begun to droop, so he opened his eyes.
He quickly packed up the jars used for collecting the Banyan Tree Blood.
Xiao Niuy not far away, its gaze fixed on the distance, seemingly lost in thought.
¡°Xiao Qing, we¡¯lle back for training tomorrow, let¡¯s go home now,¡± Qin Niu said, noticing that Xiao Qing was still immersed in her cultivation, and he had to wake her.
At night, the Ancient Banyan Tree would be extremely terrifying, and any living beings within its reach would turn into its nourishment.
¡°s, I still couldn¡¯t make a breakthrough, I¡¯m really dumb,¡± she said with reluctance after wrapping up her practice.
¡°Haha, in the path of cultivation, one must not be eager for quick sess.
There is a saying, ¡®Haste makes waste.¡¯ Just keep umting your efforts day by day, and there will eventuallye a time when persistence pays off,¡± Qin Niu said with augh, patting her head tofort her.
He took Xiao Qing and Green Ox out of the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze, and by then, the sky had already turned somewhat dim outside.
Nowadays, this mountain, in Qin Niu¡¯s eyes, no longer posed a danger.
Unless he foolishly ventured deep into the mountain, it was unlikely that any wild beast could harm him.
Qin Niu had only taken a few steps when he vaguely sensed a disquiet in his mind.
It was hard to describe.
It was as if something significant was about to happen.
This feeling was like having a stone weighing on his heart.
What could it be?
He checked the Termite swarm and found nothing abnormal.
Both the Ant Queen and the Demon Ants were acting normally.
Out of caution, he brought arge number of Termites down the mountain.
The Zombie Ants and the newly cultivated Termites were still evolving and had to be left in the Ant Nest for the time being.
By now, the area within a one- to two-mile radius had probably be the Termites¡¯ domain.
No other insect dared to contend with them.
Even poisonous snakes couldn¡¯t pose any threat to them.
Should anything dare to invade their nest, be it centipedes or poisonous snakes, they would be directly killed by the Termites without any suspense.
Qin Niu returned home with Xiao Qing.
The unsettling feeling inside him intensified even more.
¡°All Niu, help me open the door!¡±
Wang Wanyan stood outside calling, holding a food container in her hands.
Upon opening the courtyard door, she nced at Qin Niu with a slightly embarrassed expression.
¡°These are pancakes I made following Mother Wu¡¯s instructions. You haven¡¯t had dinner yet, so I brought some over for you to try.¡±
She usually wouldn¡¯t even dip her fingers in in water.
Why would she suddenly want to learn how to cook and follow Mother Wu?
Qin Niu caught a glimpse of her blushing face and understood a bit.
Before getting married, girls would learn some skills to take care of men, as well as cooking and doingundry.
She was preparing for her marriage.
It looked like she too wished to marry Qin Niu soon and be his wife.
But being a girl with a thin skin, there were many things she wouldn¡¯t openly say.
¡°Wan Yan, thank you! But you really don¡¯t need to learn these things. When you marry meter, we can just hire a maid,¡± Qin Niu said, looking at her affectionately..
Chapter 289: 282: Night-time Visitor_1
Chapter 289: Chapter 282: Night-time Visitor_1
¡°Hmm, I¡¯ll be going back first!¡±
Her face turned beet red, and she almost fled in disarray.
On regr days, she liked to stay at home alone, reading, ying the zither, and tending to her flowers; she must have also practiced cultivation, a typical well-breddy. Apart from buying books, she seldom went out.
This kind of homebody girl was particrly thin-skinned.
Her self-esteem was also extremely strong.
Even though she secretly yearned to marry Qin Niu, she still appeared very bashful when the matter of marriage was brought up to her face.
In this world, many people saw shyness as a form of beauty.
When girls were shy, they indeed looked very cute.
¡°We¡¯re going to finalize the marriage tomorrow; why are you still so shy!¡±
Qin Niu watched her graceful figure disappear and couldn¡¯t help but smile widely.
Picking up a pancake she had made and biting into it, he savored the fragrant, oily taste¡ªquite excellent, though it was a bit tough to chew.
After finishing the pancake, Qin Niu took the freshly harvested Ancient Banyan Tree Blood and went upstairs to the granary.
He began cultivating the bees that had hatched these past few days.
Moving them back home for rearing made it much more convenient now.
Deep inside the hive, more than twenty honey-producing bees were busily at work.
You could see them making honey.
The piece of honeb was only the size of a palm, and the honey inside was milky white in color, not yet sealed with wax. They constantly spat out liquid from their mouths, and the queen nds on either side of their bodies also kept secreting ndr substances.
Then,bined with saliva, it was stored little by little within the well-constructed honeb.
The honey-producing bee was a special breed, rare in number.
The amount of honey produced by an ordinary honey-producing bee was more than five to six times that of other worker bees.
These twenty-plus honey-producing bees, having been cultivated by Qin Niu, were of a higher grade than ordinary ones. However, after their advancement, the speed of making honey had actually slowed down a lot.
But what they were making was Royal Jelly.
The nutritional value was far higher than ordinary honey.
Qin Niu now wished he could have more honey-producing bees to obtain more Royal Jelly.
He spent almost an hour cultivating all the new bees.
Looking at those robust War Bees, he subconsciously took out the Green Demon Bee eggs to check.
Hmm, there seems to be a change!
Qin Niu was excited to find that fine lines had appeared on the surface of the bee eggs.
He had been feeding them with essence blood every day, and it seemed to have had some effect.
Out of joy, he bit his fingertip again and dropped a drop of fresh blood on the bee egg.
The bee egg slowly absorbed the essence blood.
The process was very slow, and it required careful observation to notice that the blood was diminishing little by little.
Qin Niu was particrly looking forward to its early hatching.
Unfortunately, although he had obtained Green Demon Bee eggs, he hadn¡¯t acquired the true bee-rearing secret technique of the Green Demon Bee.
Now he could only grope his way forward.
Fortunately, he had killed several formidable Insect Masters from the Nine Insect Gang and had searched some notebooks recording their bug-rearing experiences from their corpses.
Many Insect Masters would write down their experiences in nurturing bugs during their growth.
For revisiting and verifyingter.
Qin Niu also had this habit. When he cultivated termites, bees, and other creatures, he would record their rearing methods, evolution timings, and the new abilities they acquired after each evolution, and so on.
It¡¯s said that the palest ink is better than the best memory.
Only by recording their growth process could he avoid mistakes the next time he checked. He could also continuously summarize and improve based on the results of cultivation.
This Green Demon Bee egg would likely hatch soon, but as for how it should be reared next, he had no idea.
It couldn¡¯t be that he was going to rely on the honey bees to feed it, right?
He went back to his room, took out several notebooks he had searched from the Insect Masters, and read them carefully to learn from their bug-rearing experiences.
That uneasy feeling lingered in his heart.
Out of caution, he decided to make some preparatory measures.
¡°Xiao Qing!¡±
¡°Master, I¡¯m here!¡±
Xiao Qing hadn¡¯t been sleeping, but studying the Seven-Star Sword Technique in the adjacent room.
At the sound, he immediately came over.
¡°You¡¯ll sleep inside the earth cer tonight, and don¡¯te out if you hear anything.¡±
The earth cer was originally used to store sweet potatoes, pumpkins, and other foodstuffs.
Qin Niu had built it but had never used it.
Inside, it was dark, damp, and the air was poor, making it an unsuitable ce for people to live.
Given the current situation, for safety¡¯s sake, he decided to have Xiao Qing hide in the earth cer.
In case there really was any danger, he wouldn¡¯t have any reservations.
After arranging for Xiao Qing¡¯s hiding ce, he turned to the termites he carried with him.
¡°Old Five, lead a hundred soldier ants to guard every part of the house. If anyone invades, immediately alert me.¡±
The pets Qin Niu trusted the most were still his termites.
They were small in size and had sensitive smell and perception, which made them ideal for positioning in every corner of the house to serve as hidden sentries.
As night fell and the crescent moon gradually rose into the sky.
After his bath, Qin Niu, clothed, came to the backyard to practice cultivation.
He usually only wore shorts for his cultivation practice, but today he had donned the King Pig Leather Armor.
The Ice Lotus and the Strange Vine had both taken root and were alive.
This once again proved the marvels of the Evesting Spring Technique.
As long as a nt had a breath left, it could almost certainly be revived.
Such an outstanding cultivation technique, yet no one had bought it, which could only mean that the mainstream direction of cultivation was still geared towardsbat.
Nonbat cultivation techniques had almost no market.
Moreover, since it was an iplete scroll, even fewer people were willing to buy it.
For the same price, one could buy an entire scroll of amon cultivation technique. Iron Cloth Technique and Barbarian Bull Technique were both good choices.
Qin Niu disliked fighting and killing, preferring to nestle in the countryside, cultivate thend, breed insects, and live a carefree andfortable life.
If possible, he wished to be at peace with the world.
He was very indifferent towards fame, fortune, and power.
With his current conditions, if he joined the army, he could definitely be an officer, but he had no intention of enlisting.
He carefully inspected the Ice Lotus.
Though it had taken root and was alive, its condition wasn¡¯t good.
Its petals were somewhat wilted, and itcked the stunning beauty it had the first time he saw it. Only a slight trace of cold air emanated from the nt.
The herbs nted around it were affected by the cold air and some had already suffered from frost damage.
This indicated that it wasn¡¯t suitable to be nted in soil, but needed to be nted in water.
Qin Niu contemted hiring someone to dig a lotus pond in the backyard specifically for the Ice Lotus.
In any ce, as long as one had the money, almost anything could be aplished.
He sat beside the herb garden, began to close his eyes, and entered into cultivation.
The Ink dey on hisp, ready for battle at any moment.
As the crescent moon began to sink in the west, the night deepened further.
Gusts of night wind brushed the earth, and the herbs around Qin Niu swayed in the breeze like dancing spirits in the darkness.
¡°Master, something¡¯s happening!¡±
The termite sentries positioned within the house for vignce sent him a signal.
The enemy hadn¡¯t invaded from the front yard but from the backyard.
This showed that the person acted with extreme cunning.
Qin Niu, appearing rxed on the outside but tense on the inside, immediately stopped cultivating and readied himself to confront the invader.
A shadowy figure easily scaled the wall and entered, eyes brimming with boundless killing intent, heading straight for Qin Niu.
One could see that the figure stumbled slightly, disheveled, indicating he was quite injured.
¡°You little beast, die!¡±
The hoarse and aged growl was fraught with overwhelming hatred.
Chapter 290: 283 Green Ox Shows Its Might_1
Chapter 290: Chapter 283 Green Ox Shows Its Might_1
¡°`
Qin Niu subconsciously licked his lips, indeed it was just as he had anticipated.
Elder Jiu Yin did not rush to flee the ck Tiger Gang, instead, he quietly turned back and ran towards Shuangfeng Vige to kill Qin Niu.
¡°Daring to show aggression at the end of your tether?¡±
Facing an opponent in the Spirit Qi Realm, Qin Niu openly scorned the enemy, but in reality, he was fully engaged in battle.
The Qingfeng Sword was in Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s hand.
Under the moonlight, the edge of the sword flickered with a green light, with tiny sparks of electricity glinting faintly.
The sword¡¯s thrust was simple and direct, stabbing straight at Qin Niu.
It was both fast and fierce, with the Sword Qi shining through the tip of the sword, about an inch long.
If he remembered correctly, Qin Niu recalled that Elder Jiu Yin had been able to unleash five to six inches of Sword Qi with this sword during his battle with Vice City Lord Bai. Now, filled with resentment, Elder Jiu Yin aimed for a one-hit kill.
But the Sword Qi was only about an inch long, signifying Elder Jiu Yin had suffered heavy injuries and had only a tenth of his power left.
Qin Niu firmly gripped the Ink de with both hands and made a swift sh.
Bang!
When their des shed, Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s treasured sword didn¡¯t break.
This surprised Qin Niu.
It meant that this treasured sword was no ordinary weapon.
With his current level of cultivation, and the power of the Ink de, he could easily cut through a weapon made of Hundred-Tempering Fine Steel.
The powerful energy from the collision transferred from the de to the palms of his hands.
It caused a faint pain in the base of his thumbs.
The Ink de almost flew out of his hand.
An emaciated camel is still bigger than a horse.
Even gravely injured and constantly pursued by Vice City Lord Bai, leaving no time for recovery, a Spirit Qi Realm powerhouse remained formidable.
If Elder Jiu Yin hadn¡¯t been injured, he probably could have easily in Qin Niu with a single thrust.
The gap between the Innate Realm and the Spirit Qi Realm was indeed not a small one.
If Elder Jiu Yin was this strong, how terrifying must Vice City Lord Bai be, who was able to hold his own in a bloody battle against three Spirit Qi Realm powerhouses without falling behind?
Qin Niu now had a firsthand experience of just how powerful a Spirit Qi Realm master could be.
With the Ancient Banyan Tree, coupled with his nting skills, and those hundred thousand silver notes, given some time to grow, he might not even need ten years to sessfully advance to the Spirit Qi Realm.
¡°This de is quite good! It can somewhat make up for this old man¡¯s losses.¡±
After exchanging blows with Qin Niu, Elder Jiu Yin gauged the strength and weakness of both parties.
He realized that the cultivation technique practiced by Qin Niu was not suited forbat.
Therefore, he believed that the oue of the battle was no longer in doubt, and he could quickly eliminate Qin Niu. After that, the Ink de would naturally belong to him.
¡°Elder Jiu Yin, what do you think will happen if Lord Bai happens to be around here?¡±
Qin Niu used his words to unsettle the adversary¡¯s resolve.
His aim was to make Elder Jiu Yin feel the pressure, making it easier for him to expose ws.
Then, Qin Niu would naturally seize the opportunity to eliminate the enemy.
¡°Humph, save your tricks. I¡¯ve crossed more bridges than you¡¯ve walked roads, who are you trying to fool? Die!¡±
Elder Jiu Yin spoke toughly, but his eagerness to attack again already revealed a flicker of panic in his heart. He was very afraid that Vice City Lord Bai would arrive.
¡°Go! Immediately inform Lord Bai, tell him Elder Jiu Yin has turned back towards Shuangfeng Vige in Jade Stream Town.¡±
Qin Niu shouted towards the distance.
And then, he started running.
This made Elder Jiu Yin frantic.
Who knew if Qin Niu had really arranged his men in the vicinity?
If Vice City Lord Bai were called over, Elder Jiu Yin wouldn¡¯t be able to survive even with two more lives.
¡°You little beast, don¡¯t think you can escape!¡±
Elder Jiu Yin spat out a puff of ck air from his mouth, within which was a ck centipede exuding an aura of death. With four wings pping, it flew towards Qin Niu.
It moved incredibly fast.
This insect was only about two inches long, as thick as a chopstick.
Elder Jiu Yin had actually been rearing it inside his body, which truly broadened Qin Niu¡¯s horizons.
The ck centipede¡¯s wings pped, and its body vanished in a whoosh; in the next second, it appeared right behind Qin Niu.
Its speed was too fast.
And while flying, it seemed to be capable of teleporting.
Moreover, this centipede gave Qin Niu a strong sense of lethal threat.
¡°`
¡°Fourth, attack it immediately with the ant swarm!¡±
At this moment, Qin Niu knew he must have Fourth lead the Ghost Ants and Puppet Ants to deal with the ck centipede.
¡°Master, it¡¯s too strong. Our Spirit Control and Mental Attacks are having little effect on it.¡±
Fourth ryed the oue of the attack to Qin Niu.
¡°Wart Toad, help out!¡±
Qin Niu called for the Red-eyed Golden Toad.
Unfortunately, the speed of the Red-eyed Golden Toad was much slower than that of the ck centipede.
Moreover, since the opponent was flying in the air, it was difficult for the Golden Toad to reach.
Qin Niu had already pushed his Misty Rain Elusive Step to the extreme.
The timid turtle, though scared, felt that its master was in danger and had already crawled out of the fish pond in the front yard on its own initiative.
It was now rapidly approaching Qin Niu.
The robust Green Ox, which had been sleeping in the cattle shed, had also opened the door of the shed by itself and run out.
¡°Hmph, do you think you, an Innate Realm individual, can escape the pursuit of my Four-Winged Demon Centipede?¡±
Elder Jiu Yin pursued persistently from behind as the ck centipedeunched an attack on Qin Niu.
Instantly, it flew in front of Qin Niu and took a bite at his face.
Scared out of his wits, Qin Niu swung his de with all his might, but hit nothing.
It was too fast, he couldn¡¯t hit it at all.
Left with no choice, Qin Niu could only fully activate his King Pig Leather Armor, a faintyer of protective Qi appearing around him.
¡°Demon Armor! This treasure, Elder wants it too.¡±
Elder Jiu Yin, seeing the protective Qi manifest on the surface of the King Pig Leather Armor, couldn¡¯t help but feel ted again.
¡°I never expected that a minor Innate Realm Insect Master like you would have so many treasures. Could you possibly be the illegitimate son of the ck Tiger Gang Leader?¡±
Bang!
The Four-Winged Demon Centipede viciously bit down on Qin Niu¡¯s faceguard.
The protective Qi actually shattered upon its bite.
This Four-Winged Demon Centipede must be at least a Grade Seven creature, and very possibly at the peak of Grade Seven, or even stronger.
In a panic, Qin Niu hastily took out an Invisibility Talisman.
At this critical moment, Green Ox¡¯s horns shot out a beam of golden light, striking the Four-Winged Demon Centipede that was trying to bite Qin Niu to death.
The body of the Four-Winged Demon Centipede instantly became stiff, and it twisted in terror.
With such a golden opportunity, Qin Niu swung his de with full force.
Bang!
This time he struck the Four-Winged Demon Centipede dead on.
It was like hitting metal, sparks flying off its carapace as the creature was sent flying away.
But the de Qi on the edge of the Ink de failed to cut it in two.
It had only sustained some minor injuries.
¡°This ox is actually a demon ox! And an exotic one at that! Who exactly are you?¡±
Elder Jiu Yin, seeing his strongest trump card sent flying, looked at the small water buffalo in surprise.
¡°Lazy Ox, take care of him!¡±
Qin Niumanded Green Ox.
Immediately, he resolutely activated the Invisibility Talisman, and a strange energy enveloped him.
His body disappeared into the night.
¡°What kind of technique is this?¡±
Only now did Elder Jiu Yin realize that this seemingly easy-to-kill Innate Realm youth not only had numerous treasures and powerful pets but also had even more formidable techniques.
Qin Niu now had two choices: to run away using the Invisibility Talisman.
Or he could go for a sneak attack and take down Elder Jiu Yin.
He chose thetter.
Because Elder Jiu Yin was currently seriously injured, his vital energy greatly damaged, and his power yet to recover.
The Four-Winged Demon Centipede was probably thest trump card Elder Jiu Yin could y.
If he couldn¡¯t seize such a heaven-sent opportunity, killing Elder Jiu Yin after he had recovered would be almost impossible.
Qin Niu always liked to nip dangers in the bud.
Having discovered that Qin Niu had vanished, Elder Jiu Yin also immediately heightened his alertness. But Xiao Nui didn¡¯t bother with pleasantries.
Oxen are stubborn by nature, and that¡¯s all there is to it.
Chapter 291: 284 Hundred Treasures Insect Bag_1
Chapter 291: Chapter 284 Hundred Treasures Insect Bag_1
¡°`
An enraged bull won¡¯t rest until it has rammed its enemy to death.
Xiao Niu¡¯s horns could emit a golden light to attack enemies, and even capture them or their treasures directly. During the Period of Gods, Kong Xuan was able to use a five-colored divine light, wiping away all obstacles.
Zhun Ti also had a seven-treasures wonderful tree that could shoot out divine light, leaving nothing untouched.
These two giants from the immortal and Buddhist realms were indeed formidable in the battle to seal the gods.
At this moment, Xiao Niu¡¯s horns targeted Elder Jiu Yin, who had taken a defensive stance to guard against Qin Niu¡¯s sneak attack.
It didn¡¯t care for any so-called martial virtue.
Without even a warning, a beam of golden light shot out abruptly from the tip of the horn, hitting Elder Jiu Yin squarely in the face.
¡°Ugh¡¡±
Elder Jiu Yin grunted, feeling a wave of dizziness washing over his mind.
There was also a strong suction pulling at him, as if it wanted to suck his body in.
Frightened, he sank his waist and rooted himself to the ground with his sword.
Yet inside he cursed, this Xiao Niu looked unimpressive, its fur not even fully grown, but the golden light it emitted was incredibly powerful.
He had thought it was fierce enough to deal with just a Four-Winged Demon Centipede.
But it turned out that Xiao Niu could even handle humans.
Just then, Elder Jiu Yin felt his soul shake and his eyelids twitch uncontrobly.
A feeling of extreme danger enveloped himpletely.
His amplebat experience screamed bad news.
He quickly did azy donkey roll on the spot, hoping to escape the cmity.
Much to his dismay, the moment he hit the ground, nearly a hundred Poisonous Ants with deadly venom swiftly climbed onto him, burrowing into his neck, sleeves, and other ces.
¡°Ah, yow! Aiyoo¡¡±
He screamed in agony, but his face showed an extremely fierce and ruthless expression.
¡°Die!¡±
A wave of energy manifested all over his body, shaking violently.
The Termite were instantly shaken to death, turning into dust.
A Spirit Qi Realm powerhouse fighting for his life can instantaneously kill even Grade Six insects. These Grade Three Poisonous Ants, with rather weak defenses, simply couldn¡¯t withstand the Spirit Qi Realm powerhouse¡¯s energy devastation.
Just as Elder Jiu Yin breathed a sigh of relief after dealing with the Termite that ambushed him and was about to take out a Detoxification Pill to consume, a sh of de light as swift as lightning descended upon him.
Silent and breathless.
Itnded on his neck in an instant.
¡°No¡¡±
Elder Jiu Yin let out a final roar before death, filled with unwillingness, anger, and despair.
He had lived for so many years, cultivated so many formidable insects, and even possessed the powerful cultivation of the Spirit Qi Realm. He had hoped that by annihting the ck Tiger Gang this time, he would gain some cultivation resources and then sprint towards the Immortal Gate.
He never expected to fall at the hands of an unknown country youth.
In his heart, along with unwillingness, was a trace of regret.
Reaching this point today was all due to two words: greed and rage.
If he had not been greedy, if he had cut his losses in time after defeat and fled back to the Nine Insect Gang, he might not have died. If he had not thought about taking revenge on Qin Niu afterward, but had truly given up, he might have sessfully escaped.
Now, all his life¡¯s efforts and umtions were reduced to nothing as de Qi cut through his neck in a sh.
If he could do it all over again, he would definitely not confront this young Insect Master head-on but choose to yield.
The terrifying de Qi, the merciless Ink de, shed by, severing his neck directly.
His head separated from his body, and blood spurted out from the severed neck.
Qin Niu¡¯s figure also slowly became visible in the darkness.
This extremely precious Invisibility Talisman had been consumed.
But it was well worth it.
In his eyes, as long as he could preserve his life, even exhausting everything was worth it.
Pets, equipment, those were all external things.
Even if they were gone, new ones could be acquired again.
But if life was lost, then everything was over.
Death of the body means the end of the path.
¡°`
As Elder Jiu Yin died, that exceedingly fearsome Four-Winged Demon Centipede also instantly perished in the air.
It fell to the ground vertically, its body twisting non-stop.
Even a hundred-legged bug dies without stiffening.
Its current writhing was merely the body¡¯s instinctive reaction.
Seeing such a powerful strange insect die like this, Qin Niu felt it was somewhat a pity.
Fortunately, its corpse could be used to feed the Ant Queen or other insects.
This Four-Winged Demon Centipede was at least a Grade Seven at its peak, and might even be slightly higher level than the king of those Taiyin Yaoyaos.
Elder Jiu Yin, after years of arduous cultivation, had also umted over the years, and his foundation was indeed profound.
To the outside world, he showed off nine Taiyin Yaoyaos.
But secretly, he was also raising an even more formidable Four-Winged Demon Centipede. He would never reveal this Four-Winged Demon Centipede until the moment of desperation.
This was a point well worth learning for Qin Niu.
Some powerful moves must be hidden and not revealed.
Only in this way, when facing life and death cmities, might there be a possibility to turn the tides.
Blood was still spouting from where Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s neck was severed.
That was the blood of a Spirit Qi Realm expert, a good stuff indeed.
Qin Niu hurriedly brought over a wooden bucket to catch it.
He even directly threw in the egg of the Green Demon Bee.
Using someone else¡¯s resources to hatch one¡¯s own egg, he was not letting Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s lifelong cultivation go to waste.
The bee egg began to desperately absorb the energy from the fresh blood.
Its surface pattern was also growing at a rate visible to the naked eye.
Qin Niu did not bother with it any longer, and after finishing collecting the blood, he did not n to waste the corpse either.
The physical body of a Spirit Qi Realm expert was ¡®premium resource¡¯ for raising insects.
It could rapidly help the insects level up, and even evolve some formidable special abilities.
Qin Niu was even considering whether to use this opportunity to hatch the egg of the Corpse Bee.
¡°Green Silk Worm, this is a great opportunity for your growth, don¡¯t be polite, just indulge in drinking the blood!¡±
Qin Niu let the Green Silk Worm on his head drink Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s blood.
However, the Green Silk Worm did not drink the blood from the bucket, but instead jumped onto Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s severed head to suck blood.
Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s heady on the ground, eyes wide open, dying without closing them.
To this, Qin Niu simply ignored it.
The enemies he had killed were not just one or two, he really didn¡¯t have any psychological burden.
In this cruel world, if he didn¡¯t kill the enemies, then the one who would die would be himself.
Whoever had stronger methods would survive till the end.
He began to quickly loot the treasures on Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s body.
¡°This bag is quite special! It looks a bit like an Insect Bag, but why can¡¯t I open it? The material also seems very special.¡±
This Insect Bag Qin Niu found was also the only Insect Bag on Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s body.
All those insects of Elder Jiu Yin fitted into such a small bag?
He studied the Insect Bag repeatedly.
There were some simple talismanic symbols on it, simr to the symbols on the Invisibility Talisman.
But the symbols on this Insect Bag were much moreplicated.
They looked more intricate and profound.
¡°This bag could very possibly be a treasure.¡±
After studying for a while, Qin Niu had preliminary knowledge of this Insect Bag.
He had seen a few of the symbols that contained the mysteries of heaven and earth, and thews of the great Dao.
For instance, after the Ink de evolved, a very special symbol appeared inside the de.
It allowed the Ink de to emit de Qi and also developed a hint of its own consciousness.
The symbols on the Invisibility Talisman were even more profound, which upon activation, could make Qin Niu invisible.
Chapter 292: 285: Killing People is Sure to Bring Wealth_1
Chapter 292: Chapter 285: Killing People is Sure to Bring Wealth_1
The runes on this insect bag are more profound and numerous than those on the first two treasures, indicating that the bag¡¯s abilities are likely even stronger.
Could it be that Elder Jiu Yin fit so many insects inside this bag?
Considering that possibility, Qin Niu¡¯s breathing became somewhat rapid.
He had always wanted arger insect bag, ideally one that could hold tens of thousands of termites, or even more.
But as the termites continued to evolve, they grewrger andrger.
Ordinary insect bags simply couldn¡¯t amodate them.
If this insect bag was a treasure, it might be able to solve this problem.
Since he was in his own yard, there was no need to rush.
He took his time to study the bag over and over again.
If it was an item embodying thews of the Great Dao, it should be possible toy im to it via blood recognition.
Not entirely sure, he decided to give it a try.
He bit his fingertip and dripped three drops of blood on it.
As the fresh blood touched the insect bag, the ancient and minute runes seemed toe to life.
They emitted a faint luminescence.
Overjoyed, Qin Niu thought that such a reaction to his blood meant that blood recognition was possible.
Indeed, after only a moment, he felt a curious connection with the bag, much like the connection he had with his Ink de.
Qin Niu¡¯s spiritual power could now easily probe inside the bag.
¡°It¡¯s truly miraculous. Inside, there are so many independent spaces, and some are particrly vast. It wouldn¡¯t just hold ten thousand termites; it could easily hold a million,¡± he mused.
However, he had no idea how to use it.
He tried the most old-fashioned method, infusing a trace of his Qi into the insect bag.
Without needing any instruction, he instinctively discovered that he could control which space in the bag to open with his spiritual power or even just his thoughts.
The insect bag was not empty; it still contained quite a few insects.
Some of them were dead.
Others were still alive.
The deceased insects had all been imed by Elder Jiu Yin.
The living insects, however, had not been directly imed.
Just like Qin Niu, it was enough to im only the Ant Queen.
He couldmand all the termites produced by the Ant Queen.
Elder Jiu Yin did the same. The millions of Bloodsucking Leeches, over a hundred thousand Fire Ants, and the quantity of these insects was indeed terrifying.
If each insect had to be imed individually, any Insect Master would end up bankrupt.
Even a low-grade Contract Charm costs one tael of silver on the market.
Could a Beast Tamer afford to spend a hundred taels of silver to subdue a hundred thousand Grade Three Fire Ants?
Let¡¯s say, hypothetically, that a Beast Tamer was willing to spend so much money, his Spirit Space wouldn¡¯t possibly support such a vast host of pets.
Now at the Innate Realm, Qin Niu could only im around forty to fifty insects or other low-grade beasts before reaching the limit.
In fact, as insects and beast pets advanced in rank, the amount of Spirit Space they required increased further.
Almost all Insect Masters and Beast Tamers would choose to use their limited Spirit Space to im higher-value insects or beasts.
In this process, some would even proactively cull pets with less potential to free up Spirit Space.
Qin Niu attempted to control the space holding the Fire Ants in the insect bag. As soon as he opened the mouth of the bag, hundreds of Fire Ants fell out andnded on the ground.
They were extremely fierce.
They immediately tried to attack Qin Niu.
However, they were quickly subdued by Fourth, along with the Ghost Ants and Puppet Ants, or targeted with a Mental Attack that left them writhing in pain on the ground.
Some even died outright.
¡°With this treasure, I won¡¯t have to worry about raising too many insects in the future. The insects kept in the bag will just have to be cleared out gradually,¡± he thought.
He carefully stored away the Hundred Treasures Insect Bag, feeling extremely satisfied.
The Invisibility Talisman that was consumed, and the hundreds of Poisonous Ants that died¡ªall losses were recuperated with this Hundred Treasures Insect Bag.
He began to search for treasures on Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s body.
The armor was directly shattered.
No inner armor was found.
The sword was a good item, he picked it up and observed it carefully.
He tried channeling a wisp of his power into the de.
Hisss!
Immediately, Sword Qi emanated from the tip of the sword de.
The material of this treasured sword was at least Meteoric Iron from beyond the heavens, and its grade was probably on par with the level of the Ink de when it had just developed Sword Qi. For now, he hadn¡¯t sensed any spirit consciousness in the sword.
Generally, treasured swords or des with spirit consciousness would tremble non-stop and fiercely resist when held by strangers.
This sword could be used as soon as it was picked up, indicating it hadn¡¯t evolved a spirit consciousness yet, but it had already reached the level of having Sword Qi.
¡°Xiao Qing is cultivating the Seven-Star Sword Technique, so giving her this sword would be quite suitable,¡± he thought.
Qin Niu had the Ink de, and he didn¡¯t really fancy this treasured sword.
Xiao Qing was his personal servant, practically his right-hand, so naturally, he had to intensify her training.
With a set of King Pig Leather Armor and now this treasured sword, Xiao Qing was armed by him to be an ¡®little monster¡¯ ready for both offense and defense. Once Xiao Qing advanced to the Acquired Realm, most of the formidable experts would not be able to cause a stir in front of her in this rural area.
In Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s personal belongings, Qin Niu found more hidden treasures.
Dozens of gold and silver notes.
After counting, it totaled up to roughly thirty-seven thousand five hundred taels of silver.
Poorer than he had imagined.
He thought that someone of Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s caliber would have a fortune of at least one hundred thousand taels.
But this was also understandable.
After earning money, Elder Jiu Yin certainly wouldn¡¯t hoard it like a miser. He would find ways to purchase various cultivation resources to improve his cultivation and breed insects.
Maintaining so many insects would certainly entail a staggering cost.
The Termites and bees Qin Niu raised were many in number, but Termites were omnivorous insects. Leaves, bark, wood, roots, insect corpses, and so forth¡ªthey could eat them all.
They could even consume stones and soil.
The cost of feeding was virtually zero.
Moreover, he didn¡¯t need to personally tend to them; they built nests and foraged underground on their own.
Not to mention the bees, which flew out to collect pollen and make honey.
Besides their own consumption, Qin Niu, their master, would also asionally partake.
Elder Jiu Yin kept various kinds of insects, some of which required meat.
That surely required spending money on purchases.
There were also Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s equipment investments, expenditure on servants¡¯ upkeep, and so on. The bigger a personage, the greater the expenses.
To still have thirty-seven thousand five hundred taels of silver left was already quite impressive.
In the pocket of his clothes, aside from the silver and gold notes, a thick ¡°Breeding Insects Secrets¡± was found. Flipping through it, it was all various methods of breeding and controlling insects recorded by Elder Jiu Yin himself.
This was a lifetime of breeding and insect controlling experience and insights from an extremely formidable Insect Master, immensely valuable.
For Qin Niu, a neer to insect controlling, this was definitely a treasure.
In addition, there were several bottles of Elixirs, which were also treasures.
Perhaps to avoid confusion, each bottle of the Elixirs had its name written on it.
Detoxification Pills, Qi Refining Elixirs, Healing Pills, Insect Medicine¡
Also found was a ¡°Wind-Riding Nine Sword Art¡±. It should be a sword technique.
It looked quite old.
Qin Niu flipped through it, a rather profound book of sword techniques. There were only nine movements in total, but with the mental methods, it had infinite variations.
He decided to keep it forter.
It would also be quite excellent for his wife¡¯s cultivation.
He was about to marry Wang Wanyan, and after she became part of the family, Qin Niu was determined to cherish her well.
Chapter 293: 286 Immortal Brief _1
Chapter 293: Chapter 286 Immortal Brief _1
¡°Such a formidable member of the Nine Insect Gang, the most valuable thing on him must be that insect bag.¡±
Qin Niu finished looting the spoils, feeling fairly satisfied.
But it wasn¡¯t as substantial as he had imagined.
As his strength and wealth surged, ordinary treasures hardly caught his eye anymore.
He longed for elixirs and treasures that could help him quickly step into the Immortal Gate.
The elixirs he looted were all rathermon ones.
There were none of the advanced elixirs like the Boundary-breaking Elixir.
Qi Refining Elixirs were considered advanced elixirs, but one had to reach the Spirit Qi Realm to consume them, which he couldn¡¯t use at the moment.
Moreover, this elixir was meant for daily cultivation.
It was of the same nature as the Tempering Elixir used in the Mortal Realm, belonging to the ordinary elixirs that improved cultivation level.
Having looted the property, he began to consider how to deal with the corpse.
Using it to feed the insects seemed like the obvious choice.
Currently, among all the insects, only Termite had the capability to consume the corpse in a short time.
But such an act was against the natural order.
Humans were the sovereigns of the world, the spirit of all living things; even nibbling on a corpse could attract great trouble.
Termite had always been his most important insect, and in the future, he might even cultivate it as his core insect. He was indecisive about whether to let them incur such karma.
However, to simply bury the body of such a powerful Spirit Qi Realm practitioner seemed a waste.
After much thought, he decided to give the corpse of Elder Jiu Yin proper disposal.
Throwing the body into the maze surrounding the Ancient Banyan Tree, allowing the corpse to be nourishment for the tree, might be the best way to handle it.
Although the corpse was tempting as food for the insects, the consequences of doing so were very serious.
Qin Niu valued long-term development more than immediate gains.
As he dragged the body, he noticed that the boots on Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s feet were exceptionally thick.
This old thief, extremely sly and cunning with deep schemes, could there be treasures hidden inside his boots?
Qin Niu instinctively took off the boots from the corpse to check.
Sure enough, he discovered something.
The left boot felt thicker, and upon close inspection, he found a very concealedpartment.
It could be opened directly.
He pulled out a t brocade bag from inside.
The workmanship of this brocade bag was exquisite.
Upon opening it, there was a jade slip inside, along with a tiny ss tube.
The tube, only four millimeters in diameter, looked more like a lidded ¡®bottle.¡¯ It was only about three centimeters long.
It had a lid and even a threaded structure that could be screwed on tightly.
Inside this miniature ss vial were more than a dozen brown insect eggs.
Considering Elder Jiu Yin went to great lengths to hide them within the boot¡¯spartment, these eggs must be extremely precious.
To find out what these eggs were for, one simply needed to examine the contents of the jade slip.
Qin Niu had once acquired a jade slip.
It contained methods and uses for cultivating the Green Silk Worm.
This jade slip seemed even older and more sophisticated.
Jade slips came in a variety of types.
The simplest were inscribed with characters that could be directly read with the naked eye.
This type was the mostmon.
There were also more advanced jade slips, which appeared dull and gray, with not a single character visible. But when held in hand, one could feel their extraordinariness.
They contained a faint trace of spirit power.
Ordinary people might not sense this trace of spirit power, but holding it in hand felt cool andfortable.
This type of jade slip is known in the cultivation world as an Immortal Scroll.
It is made from a kind of jade that contains Spirit Qi, so it is quite valuable.
It is much more expensive than ordinary jade.
In fact, all jade is the essence of the earth and sky, containing a trace of the world¡¯s Spirit Qi.
But there are strong and weak ones.
Good jade, with Spirit Qi sealed inside, won¡¯t lose it for ten thousand, or even a hundred thousand years.
Ordinary mortal jade starts to lose its contained Spirit Qi from the moment it is mined.
Until it is depleted.
The kind of jade that can seal Spirit Qi inside is called Spirit Jade.
The cultivation world also refers to it as Spirit Stone.
This type of jade is extremely rare, and even a small piece appearing in the Mortal Realm could incite bloody battles among various powers.
Usually, at the center of a jade mine, there will be a jade core.
It is essentially the heart of the entire jade mine.
Radiating outwards from this central point, it forms a vein of jade ore.
This is because jade is formed over countless years, nourished by the Spirit Qi of thend.
And Spirit Qi underground typically flows like rivers, which is why jade mines often have a long, strip-like shape.
The location of the jade core is typically also the site of a Spirit Qi spring.
In the Mortal Realm, when powerful families mine jade ore, they might hit a stroke of immense luck and find a source of Spirit Qi that has not entirely dried up. Then, faint traces of Spirit Qi would emerge from the spring.
If a family encounters such good fortune and can keep the news secret, in less than a century, they would be the most powerful n locally.
Because they can establish a hidden cultivation site above the Spirit Qi source for their n members to cultivate in.
Cultivating in such an environment rich in Spirit Qi elerates progress, often by several or even more than ten timespared to the outside world.
This is precisely why Qin Niu, upon discovering that cultivating under the Ancient Banyan Tree was twenty times more effective than the outside world, refused to divulge this secret.
He didn¡¯t even allow Wang Wanyan or Tang Caixian to cultivate there.
He was well aware that once the secret was out, not just the powerful families of the ck Tiger Gang and the Gang Leader, but even Immortal Masters from the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect might make a move to snatch it.
In that case, he, a minor character, would be crushed outright.
He examined the Immortal Scroll in his hands carefully, unable to put it down.
Those who use ordinary jade slips for recording are considered craftsmen.
Those capable of recording with an Immortal Scroll are at least at the Immortal Master level. Ordinary people couldn¡¯t even dream of using Immortal Scrolls for recording.
This is a very advanced method of record-keeping.
An Immortal Scroll, even after thousands or tens of thousands of years, will not undergo any changes. The content recorded inside will never be unclear or disappear.
Cultivation Techniques, Immortal Techniques, and so on from the Immortal Sects are all recorded on Immortal Scrolls.
His heart pounded.
To say he wasn¡¯t excited would be a lie. If it recorded the Cultivation Techniques and Spells of the Immortal Sect, and he learned them, the benefits would be endless.
To ess the content of an ordinary jade slip, one just needs to focus and read the inscriptions on the surface.
To obtain the content inside an Immortal Scroll, however, requires the use of one¡¯s consciousness to read it.
Fortunately, he had seen rted records in a book, and now, holding the Immortal Scroll against his forehead, he tried to ess its contents.
As his spiritual power entered the Immortal Scroll, the information flooded his brain like a tide.
It was much more efficient than reading with the eyes.
In an instant, he had grasped all the content recorded inside the Immortal Scroll.
And it was directly imprinted in his brain.
This experience was particrly extraordinary.
¡°So this is the legendary method of essing an Immortal Scroll with divine consciousness,¡± he mused with a wry smile, feeling enlightened.
Chapter 294: 287 Southern Border Gu Techniques_1
Chapter 294: Chapter 287 Southern Border Gu Techniques_1
¡°`
The Puppet Gu Secret Technique, originally a love Gu cultivated by the Witch Gu Sect of the Southern Border, eventually mutated during its cultivation process and became a Puppet Gu capable of invading others¡¯ brains and manipting their consciousness.
It was known as the most sinister Gu insect in the Southern Border.
The Witch Gu Sect used this Gu to covertly control the upper echelons of various sects and families, which finally led to public outrage and resulted in their being besieged by all.
In the end, the Witch Gu Sect waspletely exterminated, and all their secret techniques and Gu insects were destroyed in mes.
I was fortunate to discover records about the Puppet Gu in the ruins of an underground pce and recorded them into the Immortal Scrolls for future Gu-loving friends to study.
The Southern Border is considered one of the cradles of insect control.
Its earliest origins can be traced back to Empress Leizu.
As the Emperor¡¯s First Consort, she raised silkworms and wove silk, which provided people with satin and brocade.
Empress Leizu brought the Insect Control Technique to the Southern Border, initially seeing that it was a region with high mountains and dense forests, full of poisonous insects and miasma. The locals not only lived in poverty but also suffered from poisonous insect bites while gathering herbs or chopping wood in the mountains.
At first, the Insect Control Technique of the Southern Border was only passed on to females and not to males.
It is said that this was a rule set by Empress Leizu herself.
Weak by nature, women began to learn the Insect Control Technique to defend themselves against being bullied by men.
Later on, an insect-controlling genius greatly advanced the Insect Control Technique and cultivated the love Gu that could control lovers.
Initially, it was a good thing.
Because the love Gu merely served as a means of monitoring to prevent lovers from being unfaithful.
One female Insect Master made a mountain pledge and sea oath with her lover, swearing lifelongmitment to grow old together, never to part.
But unexpectedly, the lover turned out to be a fickle-hearted phnderer.
He quickly grew tired of the female Insect Master and began to phnder outside.
The female Insect Master gave the man many chances, but he never repented and repeatedly deceived her. He even assaulted her sister through despicable means, leading her sister to take her own life.
Furthermore, relying on his strength, the man persecuted her and her family.
Finally, driven by vengeance, the aggrieved female Insect Master transformed her love into hate and sought revenge against this vile man.
Under the power of hatred, the female Insect Master astonishingly took the Insect Control Technique to a higher level. She turned the love Gu into a heart-eating Gu, and the love Gu inside the man started to gnaw away at his heart.
Not long after, the man died a terrible death at home.
This must have been the earliest prototype of Gu art.
Gu art continued to progress over time, metamorphosing from tangible to intangible.
It became possible to manipte Gu insects inside others¡¯ bodies from thousands of miles away, killing people without leaving a trace.
There were even those who cultivated Gu insects that could help enhance one¡¯s cultivation level.
For example, the Copper Skin Gu could significantly increase its master¡¯s defense, making the skin as hard as copper and iron.
Another example is the Purification Gu, which could help its master detoxify.
When Gu art reached its zenith, there were even the existence of Immortal Gus.
Some people relied on Gus to be Immortal Masters.
This was a sensational event in the realm of cultivation. During that period, countless men married into the Southern Border, not for any other reason but to learn from their wives the arts of nurturing and refining Gu, and then to step through the Immortal Gate with the help of Gu insects.
For unknown reasons, after flourishing for a while, Gu art gradually declined.
Some say that the Gu Masters began infighting, killing each other.
Two exceptionally talented and beautiful female Gu Masters fell in love with a male disciple of the Immortal Sect and fought fiercely over him, which led to a vast sect conflict.
In that war, many powerful Gu Masters perished, and some formidable Gu techniques were forever lost.
Even so, Southern Border Gu art remained renowned in the cultivation world, and its residual strength was still formidable.
Butter, Southern Border Gu Masters were drawn into a great war of the Immortal Sects. More tragically, the sect that the Southern Border Gu Masters supported in the war was defeated by the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect and waspletely wiped out as a consequence.
The Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect did not spare the aplices of their enemies and thus eradicated the Southern Border Gu Masters as well.
Some spected that the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect exterminated the Southern Border Gu Masters because they realized how terrifying Gu art could be, almost indefensible even to Immortal Masters.
To avoid nurturing a threat, they thus resorted to such drastic measures.
Qin Niu leaned toward thistter exnation.
Whether it¡¯s a new dynasty or a new sect, the first order of business is always to consolidate one¡¯s position and eliminate any threats or elements that could destabilize.
¡°`
The Gu Master¡¯s art is unfathomable, mysterious, and unpredictable, posing a serious threat to the dominance of the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect.
Exterminating it directly would be the wisest course of action.
Qin Niu slowly digested the content inside the cultivation manual.
Some records about Gu art and the Puppet Gu¡¯s techniques for nurturing and controlling Gu were eye-opening to him.
It was as if a new window to Insect Commanding had been opened.
Insect Commanding and Gu cultivation are entirely different worlds.
Gu art is characterized by being tricky and strange.
Insect Commanding is characterized by being ruthless, poisonous, and orderly.
A Gu¡¯s emphasis is on being intangible, silent, and colorless. The enemy remains unaware even when struck by a Gu art technique¡ªit¡¯s about being unnoticed by gods and ghosts alike.
Insect Commanding, on the other hand, involves cultivating powerful insects, attacking the enemy head-on with their terrifying venom or numerical superiority, among other things.
The techniques of nurturing and controlling Gu within this Immortal Manual are worth learning and researching.
It seems that Gu art and the Insect Commanding Technique canplement each other.
Each has its own strengths and weaknesses.
¡°Could the insect eggs inside this ss bottle be Gu eggs?¡±
They did not resemble ancient objects, but rather, they seemed like modern high-quality bottles.
Qin Niu spected to himself that Elder Jiu Yin most likely studied the content in the Immortal Manual and then attempted Gu cultivation, eventually breeding these Gu eggs.
Flipping through the thick ¡°Insect Breeding Notes¡± left by Elder Jiu Yin, after some searching, he indeed found some records pertaining to Gu cultivation.
The insect eggs inside the ss bottle were indeed Gu eggs cultivated by Elder Jiu Yin.
However, Elder Jiu Yin had notpletely seeded in their cultivation.
These Gu eggs were still half-Gu, half-insect.
Furthermore, Elder Jiu Yin mentioned that his Taiyin Yaoyao had evolved a special ability to resist shes from swords and knives, a breakthrough he made by learning from Gu art, which led to the sessful cultivation of this unique ability.
The Four-Winged Demon Centipede that Elder Jiu Yin spat out from his mouth was also a result of insights gained from Gu art, allowing him to nurture it inside his stomach.
Moreover, the ability of the Four-Winged Demon Centipede to leap during flight was likewise a harvest from Gu art.
By such a token, Gu art should be more advanced than the current Insect Control Technique.
Qin Niu immediately grinned from ear to ear.
Acquiring this Immortal Manual was indeed more valuable than the Hundred Treasures Insect Bag.
He wouldn¡¯t dare to mess with the Gu eggs inside the ss bottle.
He needed to finish reading all the notes left by Elder Jiu Yin and understand the Gu eggs inside before he dared to open it.
Otherwise, if the Gu were to bacsh, disaster would ensue.
After securing all the treasures, he carried the body of Elder Jiu Yin into the mountains at night and threw it into the mystical formation surrounding the Ancient Banyan Tree.
¡°I often take your tree sap and cultivate under your branches; consider this some repayment,¡± said Qin Niu to the Ancient Banyan Tree.
This Ancient Banyan Tree likelycked spiritual intelligence and probably couldn¡¯t understand what he was saying.
After dealing with the body, Qin Niu went straight home.
He cleaned up all the traces of the fight¡ªthe bloodstains¡ªas if Elder Jiu Yin had never been there.
The Nine Insect Gang surely didn¡¯t know yet that Elder Jiu Yin had been killed.
If they learned of this news, it would certainly cause an upheaval.
After waiting for daylight, Qin Niu hired workers to dig a lotus pond in the backyard.
Because he normally paid very generously forbor,
when word got out that he needed people to dig a lotus pond, the robust workers in the vige were eager to offer their services.
Many hands make light work, and with these people working energetically, the lotus pond would likely bepleted within a day or two at most.
Qin Niu offered them twenty Wen Money a day for the job and didn¡¯t provide meals.
He needed to finish the lotus pond as soon as possible and nt the Ice Lotus inside.
Chapter 295: 288: A Womans Fear of Marrying the Wrong Man_1
Chapter 295: Chapter 288: A Woman¡¯s Fear of Marrying the Wrong Man_1
The enemy had invaded his home this time, providing Qin Niu with a wake-up call.
He must manage hisir well to ensure his absolute safety.
nting the Ice Lotus in the backyard would not only create a small world encased in ice but also allow for the breeding of insects that thrived in cold environments. He could even conduct various cultivation experiments.
This Ice Lotus was very special; he believed that if it was well cultivated, its usefulness would be no less than that of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
¡°Master Qin, are you at home?¡±
Matchmaker Auntie Hua waddled over with her plump hips swaying.
With her face glowing and radiant with joy, anyone unaware of the context might have thought there was a happy asion in her own family!
¡°Auntie Hua, is the betrothal gift ready?¡±
After Qin Niu provided fifty taels of Silver Money, he hadn¡¯t paid it any further attention.
Having spent yesterday preparing, it was assumed everything must be almost in ce.
¡°All set, all set! I¡¯ve procured generously just as you instructed. A set of gold and silver jewelry, a bolt of silk fabric, a bolt of brocade fabric, two sets of silk garments, numerous boxes of candies and assorted goods, and plenty of kitchen and dining wares. I¡¯ve had people carry them over for your inspection.¡±
Auntie Hua called some people to bring them into the courtyard.
¡°I trust your work, Auntie Hua. Is the marriage proposal ready?¡±
¡°Haha, I appreciate Master Qin¡¯s trust. Here is the marriage proposal; I had Zhang Banzui write it, and for his troubles, I gave him ten Wen Money and two pitchers of fine wine.¡±
Auntie Hua took out the marriage proposal.
Upon opening it, the writing inside was very beautiful.
In the guarantor¡¯s section, there was clearly the seal of the vige chief, Xu Zhenchang.
Marriage is no trifling matter and is always treated with utmost seriousness. In addition to the matchmaker, local elders or the vige chief are typically asked to vouch for the marriage, known as guarantors.
If a quarrel arose between the newlyweds, or if the bride¡¯s family demanded more dowry when the groom came to take her, the guarantor would step in to mediate.
Should a husband discard his wife arbitrarily after marriage, the wife¡¯s family would seek justice from the guarantor.
Men fear choosing the wrong profession, women fear marrying the wrong man.
A woman discarded by her husband¡¯s family was often in a pitiable state, not only bringing dishonor to her birth family but potentially being rejected if she returned there.
Especially in families with male heirs, they would follow the saying, ¡®Daughters are like water spilled out of the house,¡¯ and refuse to have a married daughter return home.
In such cases, the woman would find herself without recourse, possibly driven to despair.
Or she might flee to a distantnd.
However, in this dog-eat-dog world, a vulnerable woman wandering outside would find it very dangerous.
The best-case scenario was to be taken in by a kind-hearted individual.
For instance, some solitary old men might take a young woman into their home if she was of a young age and possessed some beauty.
The most tragic were those young and beautiful women who would often be easy targets for the brothels, ending up with a miserable fate.
There was another option known as selling the wife.
A husband would sell his wife to another man.
Some women were fiercely loyal and would not tolerate serving a second husband, possibly unable to bear the shame and choosing to end their lives by throwing themselves against a pir or into a river.
Therefore, a woman¡¯s marriage was tantamount to handing over her fate to the man¡¯s family, and it was generally approached with great caution.
The more substantial the betrothal gift, the more respect it showed the bride¡¯s family.
After reviewing the betrothal letter, Qin Niu was very pleased.
¡°Auntie Hua, how about we go to propose to the Wang Family now?¡±
¡°I spoke with Wang Furen yesterday, and he is very confident entrusting his daughter to you. If we bring the betrothal gifts now, I believe the Wang Family will be very pleased.¡±
Auntie Hua said with a smile.
¡°Then let¡¯s go now!¡±
Qin Niu looked at the vigers helping to carry the betrothal gifts, mostlyposed of women and older men from the vige.
Auntie Hua probably considered the cost ofbor, too.
¡°I am grateful for everyone¡¯s help in carrying the bridal gifts to the Wang Furen¡¯s house, and I will definitely reward you afterward!¡±
Hearing that Qin Niu would give reward money, the crowd waiting in the courtyard all smiled brightly.
They usually had no opportunity to enter Qin Niu¡¯s grand mansion.
Now they had the chance to go into the front courtyard; they took this opportunity to broaden their horizons and admire Qin Niu¡¯s grand mansion.
The flowers and nts in the front courtyard and the hall were mainly arranged by Tang Caixian.
She had put a lot of thought into it, making the entire mansion look particrly elegant and full of vitality.
¡°Master Qin is too polite!¡±
¡°It is our honor to do something for Master Qin!¡±
The people were more than willing to help Qin Niu carry the bridal gifts.
Even without the promise of reward money, they were d to help. If they could be familiar faces to Qin Niu, they might be able to count on some favor or consideration in the future.
This is the most enticing aspect of power; it can easily mobilize massive amounts of social resources at a very low cost.
Qin Niu, dressed in the Insect Master¡¯s robe, went to Wang Furen¡¯s house together with Auntie Hua.
Behind them, a group of vigers carried the bridal gifts.
¡°Haha, pleasee in!¡±
Wang Furen had heard themotion and couldn¡¯t wait to open the gate, greeting them with a beaming smile.
Both parties entered the main hall, took their seats ording to their status, and the matchmaker proceeded with the marriage proposal.
Since the girl¡¯s family had agreed to marry their daughter to Qin Niu, the matter was settled very easily.
¡°Uncle Wang, thank you for giving me your daughter in marriage. In addition to these bridal gifts, I am going to give you an extra hundred taels of silver money as a token of my respect. Buy whatever you want, eat whatever you like, it¡¯s all up to you.¡±
Qin Niu was indeed generous, immediately pulling out a silver note of a hundred taels and handing it to Wang Furen.
¡°Oh my, you child, with such generous bridal gifts, and now even more silver money! It hasn¡¯t been easy for you either, so I ept your kindness. I only have one daughter, and from now on, you¡¯ll be like a son to me.¡±
Wang Furen took the silver note, his hands trembling with happiness.
He was a businessman and loving money was in his nature.
A hundred taels of silver was a sizable sum, even for someone of his modest means.
¡°Please rest assured, Uncle Wang, I will take good care of Wan Yan and will always honor you. There is another matter I would like to discuss with you and Wan Yan, in the presence of Auntie Hua, the matchmaker.¡±
After giving the silver, Qin Niu took advantage of Wang Furen¡¯s good mood to discuss another important matter.
¡°Call the young miss over!¡±
Wang Furen seemed to guess a bit and instructed Nurse Wu to call Wang Wanyan over.
He then pressed the silver note on top of the table and picked up his cup of tea to drink.
Auntie Hua¡¯s eyes were spinning with curiosity. She wondered what matter Qin Niu wanted to discuss.
Wang Wanyan quickly descended the stairs with light steps.
She nced timidly at Qin Niu but smiled nheless.
¡°Master Qin has something he wishes to discuss with you and me. Please take a seat here,¡±
Wang Furen turned to signal to his daughter.
The father and daughter surely had a very deep affection for each other.
Conscientiously speaking, Wang Furen had treated his daughter well. Because she was the only child, there was no problem of favoring sons over daughters.
Wang Wanyan sat down gracefully.
¡°Wan Yan, to marry you is a blessing that I, Qin Niu, have cultivated over several lifetimes. I will treat you well and we will spend our lives together.¡±
¡°Mhm!¡±
She nodded shyly, this time not avoiding his gaze but boldly looking at Qin Niu.
Her eyes were pure and clear as water, as if they could speak.
Marrying such a beautiful girl made Qin Niu feel extremely content.
Chapter 296: 289 A Man Should Stand Firm Between Heaven and Earth_1
Chapter 296: Chapter 289 A Man Should Stand Firm Between Heaven and Earth_1
During the times of distress, her financial support and assistance had deepened Qin Niu¡¯s affections for her.
In every man¡¯s heart lies a patch of the softest soil, home to kinship, friendship, love, or perhaps a profoundly touching moment that etches itself into one¡¯s memory.
¡°Before marrying you, Cai Xian from Daoyuan Vige, apanied by Matchmaker Aunt Hua and another go-between, visited my house with a marriage proposal, which you might have heard about. At that time, I rejected Cai Xian. But after further contact, her infatuation and the bravery she showed in her love moved me deeply.
In ancient times, the two sisters E Huang and Nv Ying shared one husband.
If Uncle Wang and Wan Yan agree, I would like to take Tang Caixian as a concubine.¡±
Qin Niu was well aware that many women are strongly opposed to their husbands taking concubines.
Because it would divide a portion of their husband¡¯s love.
And might even lead to domestic strife.
A lot of concubines, being younger and prettier than the first wife, would rely on their husbands¡¯ affection to stir up strife in the inner chambers. Crafty schemes would emerge one after another, and there were even some cruel concubines who would harm the first wife¡¯s children, all to be the primary woman of the household.
Qin Niu¡¯s words had hardly faded when the atmosphere in the hall suddenly froze.
Matchmaker Aunt Hua was so anxious that she nearly stamped her feet.
This Ah Niu really was a simpleton, bringing up the matter of taking a concubine at such a time?
Even if he waited until after the wedding and found an opportunity to mention it, it would be fine.
If handled poorly now, this marriage could fall through.
Wang Furen¡¯s expression had be quite ugly, and it was only because of Qin Niu¡¯s special status that he dared not lose his temper easily. In his heart, he was probably fuming with rage.
This Ah Niu, he talks sweetly, saying he would treat Wan Yan well, but before they are even married, he is already thinking of taking a concubine.
A phndering cad, through and through.
Entrusting his daughter to such a man, he was very worried about her future life after marriage.
¡°Cai Xian is an exceptionally outstanding girl, kind-hearted, and it should be good to have her serve you alongside me. In the future, with an additional person in the house, we¡¯ll have more help with any issue.
Ah Niu, the fact that you brought this up before the wedding shows that you are an open and honest man.
If you had mentioned this after the wedding, I would have lost respect for you.¡±
After a brief silence, Wang Wanyan unexpectedly spoke in support of Qin Niu.
This indeed showed that a grown woman can¡¯t be restrained.
Wang Furen sighed and shook his head repeatedly.
¡°Father, shall we agree to this? I know Ah Niu¡¯s character; he values sentiment deeply. If Cai Xian hadn¡¯t truly touched his heart, he would never consider taking her as a concubine. As your daughter, I will be the principal wife, so you don¡¯t have to worry about me being aggrieved.¡±
Wang Wanyan was trying to persuade her father.
¡°Ah¡ what kind of situation is this!¡±
Under his daughter¡¯s persuasion, Wang Furen¡¯s face looked much better.
He was a man and naturally understood the thoughts of men.
Which man doesn¡¯t eat what¡¯s in his bowl while eyeing what¡¯s in the pot?
Some daughters from wealthy families, when marrying into a major household, are often apanied by a maidservant to serve in their chamber.
The purpose is twofold: one is to help the new mistress gain a foothold in the new family. The other reason is to rece the mistress in the bedroom when she is indisposed, to prevent the master of the house from seeking pleasure elsewhere.
¡°Ah Niu, I¡¯ve watched you grow up. I¡¯m giving my daughter to you in marriage because I deem your character fit. Now, you wish to take a concubine, and my daughter is not against it, so I, as her father, have nothing more to say. But I require you to swear in front of everyone that you will never wrong my daughter, otherwise may lightning strike you.¡±
Wang Furen needed to secure a guarantee for his daughter.
In this world, oaths are like passing wind to ordinary people.
No one takes them seriously.
But for cultivators, an oath holds a strong binding force.
The higher one¡¯s cultivation, the more one dares not make oaths lightly.
To understand this, consider that ordinary people¡¯s oaths are ignored by the universe, for they are as fleeting as mayflies, their lives short, and even if they break their promises, the harm is limited.
However, powerful cultivators have grasped a strand of the universe¡¯sws, even the profound truths of the Dao.
They hold a certain influence over the universe.
Their oaths are the universe acting as guarantor, backing them up.
If they break their oaths, it¡¯s an affront to the universe.
The universe certainly cannot tolerate such events, and it¡¯s highly likely that it will make oath-breakers meet their doom.
For instance, if someone swears they won¡¯t die a peaceful death, then significant cmities will befall them, ensuring a violent end. Hiding away in a sanctuary would be of no use.
¡°Father, on such an auspicious day, why make such a frightening oath, it¡¯s so inauspicious!¡±
Wang Wanyan coquettishly pleaded with her father.
She truly liked Qin Niu and could not bear to see anything go wrong with him.
¡°If he is unwilling to make this vow, it means he has a guilty conscience and does not truly care for you, and I will resolutely disapprove of your marriage.¡±
Wang Furen¡¯s stance was exceptionally firm.
¡°I can make the vow.¡±
After speaking, Qin Niu raised his left hand above his head, turning his palm towards the heavens.
This act meant aligning his hand with the heart of the heavens and his feet with the heart of the earth, standing on the earth and answering to the sky.
¡°I, Qin Niu, hereby swear that if I should fail my wife, Wang Wanyan, in this life, may heaven strike me with five thunders, may I die a terrible death, and may my soul never ascend.¡±
Qin Niu made his first vow.
His tone was resolute, and his gaze determined.
¡°Good! Since you are willing to swear by your heart, I can rest assured and give you my daughter in marriage.¡±
Wang Furen nodded in satisfaction.
Despite Wang Furen¡¯s usually jovial demeanor, when it came down to the essentials, he was extremely meticulous.
¡°Thank you, Uncle Wang!¡±
Qin Niu thanked him, and Aunt Hua¡¯s hanging heart finally settled.
¡°Wan Yan, thank you for being so forgiving about this matter.¡±
He was well aware that without Wang Wanyan¡¯s support, this would have been out of the question.
¡°We will soon be husband and wife, united as one; there¡¯s no need for thanks.¡±
Wang Wanyan shook her head, gazing into his eyes.
¡°Then let us set the wedding date, and on the same day, we¡¯ll marry Tang Caixian. Do you think that¡¯s eptable?¡±
¡°Mhm.¡±
She nodded in agreement once more.
¡°Master Qin, now that Wang Furen and Miss Wang have agreed to you taking a concubine, but will the Tang Family agree?¡±
Aunt Hua knew very well that Tang Caixian¡¯s poprity even surpassed Wang Wanyan¡¯s.
In the city, countless rich young masters and privileged lords wanted to marry Tang Caixian as their principal wife.
Their conditions were far better than Qin Niu¡¯s.
Yet, they were all rejected by Tang Caixian.
Now to ask her to be a concubine, how could that possibly be eptable?
The status of a concubine was extremely low.
Both the husband and the principal wife could scold or beat the concubine at will, and order her around in the household.
However, there were also some harmonious households where the principal wife would specially respect the concubine.
Even so, the status of a concubine was far beneath that of a principal wife.
Even in death, she could not be buried alongside her husband.
¡°This is precisely what I wanted to discuss with you, to ask you to prepare another set of bridal gifts identical to the ones for marrying Wan Yan, and then propose to the Tang Family.¡±
Qin Niu did not hide his intentions, discussing these matters openly in front of the Wang Family.
It was not possible to marry two principal wives at the same time, and in terms of status, Tang Caixian was already wronged.
Economically, he could not allow Tang Caixian to suffer any further injustice.
¡°No problem, I¡¯ll go procure them shortly.¡±
Aunt Hua could now see that Qin Niu probably wasn¡¯t short of money.
Because he had just given Wang Furen an additional hundred taels of silver money.
As long as the money was settled, the legwork she had to do was not an issue at all.
After proposing and leaving the Wang Family home, Qin Niu took a deep breath of turbid air.
There were many things that were extremely difficult, but there was no avoiding them; they had to be done.
Now that he had secured the Wang Family¡¯s approval, dealing with the Tang Family would be much easier.
A man stands for nothing if he has no integrity.
All the things he promised Tang Caixian, he would naturally fulfill one by one.
He gave Aunt Hua fifty taels of silver money for her to run the errand again, to prepare the bridal gifts, without mentioning it further.
As for the Tang Family¡¯s reaction, it was still hard to predict.
Chapter 297: 290 The Goodwill of the Ancient Banyan Tree_1
Chapter 297: Chapter 290 The Goodwill of the Ancient Banyan Tree_1
Qin Niu was rather efficient, having proposed to the Wang Family, he went straight to the mountain to cultivate and breed termites.
He left Xiao Qing in charge of supervising and directing the workers at home.
If the opportunity arose, he nned to buy two more servants.
With servants to take care of the trivial matters at home, both he and Xiao Qing would be able to focus entirely on cultivation.
In time, when he married Wang Wanyan and Tang Caixian, that would be even more the case.
Managing the daily needs of a household would be a problem in itself.
Both wives were not ustomed to menialbor; he couldn¡¯t possibly have them suffer hardship after marriage, could he?
Xiao Qing was still a child, and Qin Niu never treated her as a servant.
Instead, he nned to train her into a powerful assistant.
Moreover, he now had the financial ability to keep a few servants, so he could certainly afford to have a few to make life morefortable for the family.
Carrying a basket on his back, he went into the mountains where the termites were still increasing at a rate of a thousand per day.
The Ant Queen had consumed the corpse of a Taiyin Yaoyao.
So far, no anomalies had been observed.
Nor had there been any evolution or promotion.
Qin Niu was not discouraged; after all, there were eight more Taiyin Yaoyao corpses, along with many other high-grade insect corpses, including that of a Four-Winged Demon Centipede, which could all be used to feed the Ant Queen.
He intended to use the Four-Winged Demon Centipede¡¯s corpse as a crucial cultivation resource in the end.
Centipedes were naturally wingless terrestrial creatures.
A centipede that grew four wings was considered an exceptional being in heaven and earth.
Having personally experienced the terrifying power of the Four-Winged Demon Centipede, Qin Niu knew how high-grade such an insect corpse was and that it should be reserved for the most crucial moments.
Quality steel should be used on the edge of the de.
Whether it was the Ant Queen or the Green Demon Bee approaching a bottleneck above Grade Six, he would not hesitate to use it.
Termites had one great advantage: they were not picky eaters.
They could consume almost anything.
Unlike bees, with their singr diet, making them difficult to raise.
¡°Fourth, take the Demon Ants and feed this Taiyin Yaoyao corpse to the Ant Queen,¡± Qin Niu ordered.
These high-grade insect corpses were extremely precious, akin to superior elixirs for humans, and had to be utilized properly.
After feeding one Taiyin Yaoyao corpse, he fed the Ant Queen arge number of ordinary Grade Three and Four insect corpses.
Puppet Ants and Ghost Ants also were on his list to cultivate.
But due to limited resources, he could only feed them living Fire Ants.
After acquiring Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Hundred Treasures Insect Bag, which mostly contained Three and Four Grade Fire Ants, their Ant Queen had died, leaving the colony in disarray.
They either had to select a new Ant Queen or the entire colony would gradually head toward destruction.
With termites in his possession, Qin Niu had no intention of cultivating a colony of Fire Ants.
Biting off more than one could chew often led to trouble.
The growth potential of Fire Ants was weaker than that of termites.
Besides, the current termite Ant Queen had long since ceased to be the ordinary termite she once was and was likely awakening an ancient lineage as a Four-Winged Yin Ant.
Typical insects or beast pets couldn¡¯t possibly live up to thirty thousand years.
The lifespan of an Ant Queen was originally only a few decades, but after promotion, it skyrocketed to an astonishing thirty thousand years. Qin Niu could only think of one possibility: the awakening of an ancient bloodline.
Just as the horned water buffalo, after awakening the Green Ox bloodline, had its lifespan reach 9,999 years.
Only one year short of ten thousand years.
Despite the high-ranking species of Green Ox having such a lifespan, it hadn¡¯t broken past ten thousand, yet the Ant Queen easily exceeded that mark, reaching thirty thousand years. This further emphasized its extraordinary nature.
Qin Niu was unclear about the final stage the Ant Queen could reach.
One thing was certain: he would treat the Ant Queen as a core pet for cultivation.
If its performance continued to be outstanding, it might even be chosen by Qin Niu as his life-bound insect.
¡
After cultivating all the termites, Qin Niu, apanied by Fourth, entered thebyrinth within the Ancient Banyan Tree.
The corpses thrown in the previous night had disappeared.
Only some cloth and shattered armor remained, proving that Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s body had indeed been tossed inside.
The Ancient Banyan Tree seemed more lush and verdant than before.
It appeared that the stronger the cultivation of the corpses thrown in, the greater the benefit to the tree.
Qin Niu swung his de decisively towards the Ancient Banyan Tree and then set up an altar to collect the tree¡¯s blood.
¡°Oh, Banyan Tree, you truly are a great treasure. Even though I draw your blood every day, and practice beneath your shade, absorbing your medicinal aura, I also give you something in return. We have formed a bond, and should the daye that I step through the Immortal Gate, I will not forget your kindness.¡±
He caressed the Ancient Banyan Tree with his hand, muttering to himself.
The Ancient Banyan Tree stood in silence between heaven and earth, offering no response.
Qin Niu didn¡¯t bother with it any further but sat down cross-legged underneath the tree to cultivate.
Having visited many times, he had be very familiar with this ancient wood. His fear of it had also faded a great deal.
He continued to practice until the evening, when he finally stopped cultivating.
¡°Eh! Why hasn¡¯t the wound on the tree¡¯s trunk healed today?¡±
Qin Niu was surprised.
ording to his experience, no matter how deep the cut, the Ancient Banyan Tree¡¯s wounds would have healed by evening.
Now, five wounds were still dripping dark green blood.
All five altars were nearly full.
¡°Could it be that my cultivation has improved and I struck with more force than before?¡±
He reached out to touch the trunk and channeled a trace of the Evesting Spring Technique¡¯s power into it.
But for this towering tree, such a small input of energy was like a drop in the ocean.
¡°Next time I cut you, I¡¯ll be gentler, sorry.¡±
After channeling a trace of the Evesting Spring Technique¡¯s power, Qin Niu quickly collected the five altars.
At that moment, something miraculous happened.
The wounds on the Ancient Banyan Tree quickly healed at a pace visible to the naked eye.
Could it be that the influx of the Evesting Spring Technique¡¯s power had an effect?
It seems the Evesting Spring Technique¡¯s energy is quite useful.
A smile appeared on Qin Niu¡¯s face as he packed away five jars of Ancient Banyan Tree Blood and made his way out swiftly.
Because the branches were now heavily drooping, the distance to the ground was less than two meters.
Once again, a miraculous spectacle urred. As Qin Niu moved forward, the branches automatically parted to each side.
It was as if the tree purposefully created a path for Qin Niu to leave.
¡°This¡ could it really possess spirit, regarding me as a friend?¡±
Qin Niu looked up in sheer amazement.
He could only see dense foliage, like a hand covering the sky, firmly in control of this space.
¡°Thank you!¡±
Even though he wasn¡¯t sure whether the Ancient Banyan Tree could understand him, Qin Niu felt the goodwill it emitted.
Between man and tree, there existed a certain tacit understanding.
As he moved forward, the branches and leaves of the Ancient Banyan Tree automatically parted and did not harm him.
Moreover, exiting the Banyan Tree¡¯s maze seemed to be much easier today than before.
Even Fourth appeared puzzled.
Waving its antennae, it lifted its head.
Was it wondering about the life of ants?
Emerging from the Ancient Banyan Tree¡¯s maze, Qin Niu felt joy in his heart. He faintly realized that he might have received a hint of recognition from the tree.
Thinking back carefully, the Ancient Banyan Tree¡¯s wounds had not healed even after he injected a trace of the Evesting Spring Technique¡¯s power into the tree¡¯s blood before retrieving the jars. But once he collected the five jars, the wounds on the Ancient Banyan Tree healed quickly.
This couldn¡¯t be a coincidence.
It¡¯s very likely that the Ancient Banyan Tree intentionally controlled the healing of its wounds, purposely not allowing them to close.
Whether this is true or not, a trip up the mountain tomorrow would tell.
He hastened towards the outer reaches of the mountain.
Xiao Nui followed behind him, frolicking.
¡°Lazy Ox, staying under the tree for most of the day with me, have you gained anything too?¡±
¡°Moo~!¡±
Xiao Nui raised its neck and let out a bellow that resounded through the heavens and earth.
¡°Hey, you¡¯re really not modest! I hope you be stronger so that you can be a big help when powerful enemies try to kill me.¡±
Qin Niu patted its back.
Killing Elder Jiu Yin wouldn¡¯t have been possible without this little ox¡¯s contribution.
Chapter 298: 291: The Return of the Green Demon Bee_1
Chapter 298: Chapter 291: The Return of the Green Demon Bee_1
I believe that once its strength bes even more formidable, the golden light it shoots out will be even more terrifying.
Having juste out of the maze of the Ancient Banyan Tree, Qin Niu sensed something unusual.
He checked the Green Demon Bee egg.
It had already cracked open, which meant that the Green Demon Bee had sessfully hatched.
Qin Niu felt both joy and worry.
Because he had no idea how to raise a Green Demon Bee.
Just like a baby, the newly hatchedrva was fragile and needed careful nurturing to grow steadily.
Therva was very soft and utterly incapable of movement at this stage.
Normally, worker bees are responsible for feeding and caring for them.
Qin Niu really didn¡¯t know what to feed it.
Once home, he saw that the lotus pond in the backyard had been dug out. It was two zhang wide and about three zhang long.
A considerablyrge lotus pond.
It was just over one meter deep.
Money makes things easier.
After he offered a high sry, the vigers worked very hard and excavated such a big pond for him in just one day.
However, it couldn¡¯t be used right away.
He had to ask Tang the tile-worker toe and line it with green tiles to reinforce the edges of the pond. Otherwise, as soon as it was filled with water, the edges of the lotus pond were extremely prone to copse.
¡°Master, Sister Cai Xian came looking for you today.¡±
¡°Didn¡¯t you invite her to stay a while?¡±
¡°I did, but when she saw that you weren¡¯t home, she left quite soon.¡±
¡°Did she say anything?¡±
¡°Actually, she didn¡¯t mention anything specific.¡±
¡°I¡¯m going to her home to propose marriage tomorrow, so I¡¯ll definitely see her then. Have the workers who helped with the pond been paid in full?¡±
¡°They have been paid in full. Just as you instructed, we also gave each of them an extra ten Wen Money as a bonus.¡±
Xiao Qing might be young, but she handled things quite maturely.
She was already able to relieve Qin Niu¡¯s worries.
¡°Well done, let¡¯s have dinner first. Later, I need to take a trip to Daoyuan Vige.¡±
After dinner, Qin Niu did not rush to feed the Green Demon Bee.
Instead, while it was still not toote, he decided to go to Daoyuan Vige to ask Tang Fang toe over tomorrow to work on the lotus pond.
The Ice Lotus had to be nted in the pond as soon as possible.
Currently in the soil, it was in an unhealthy state.
After dinner, Qin Niu hurried off to Daoyuan Vige.
Now, many people in Daoyuan Vige recognized Qin Niu and respected him greatly for helping the vige fight against locusts.
Those he met along the way greeted him respectfully.
¡°Master Tang!¡±
Qin Niu shouted as he arrived outside Tang Fang¡¯s house.
Tang Fang, who had just finished bathing, opened his door to see who was outside.
¡°My, if it isn¡¯t Master Qin! What brings you here? Pleasee in for some tea.¡±
Tang Fang and Qin Niu were quite familiar with each other.
It was Tang Fang who had built Qin Niu¡¯s house.
After entering, Tang Fang¡¯s wife brewed tea for them and brought out some fruit.
The Tang family was well-off, living much better than the poor.
Butpared to Wang Furen, their situation was markedly less affluent.
They were a middle-ss family, better off than some, but not as wealthy as others.
Like the Yan Family, who belonged to the local nobility, only a few families in town were on their level. In some towns, there wasn¡¯t even one.
¡°Master Tang, I recently hired people to dig a lotus pond in my backyard, and it¡¯s nowplete. It¡¯s necessary to reinforce the four sides of the pond with bricks and stone. You did such fine work on my housest time that I was extremely satisfied. I¡¯d like to ask for your help again. Would that be convenient for you?¡±
¡°Master Qin asking me to work is a sign of respect. There¡¯s no inconvenience at all; tomorrow, I¡¯ll bring people to help you finish the brickwork. Have you bought the bricks, sand, and glutinous rice?¡±
¡°I haven¡¯t bought anything. I don¡¯t understand these things, so I¡¯ll leave it all to you ¡ª I¡¯ll pay for both thebor and materials afterward anyway.¡±
Qin Niu really had no clue about these things.
Unlike thest time he had hired Tang Fang to build a house, he was now quite wealthy and didn¡¯tck such a small amount of money.
As long as the job was done well, he didn¡¯t mind paying a little extra.
Besides, Tang Fang was an honest man; there was no chance of him swindling silver money.
¡°Then let¡¯s do this ¡ª I¡¯ll head to your ce right now to check the size and depth of your lotus pond, and then I can calcte the amount of materials needed for the bricks and stones.¡±
¡°Alright, thank you for your efforts!¡±
Although Qin Niu¡¯s status was now far above that of Tang Fang, he spoke very politely.
Respecting others is the most basic principle of conduct.
He learned it from the Yan Family.
As the two of them stepped out the door, a charming figure, like a joyful butterfly, flew in from the darkness.
¡°Ah Niu, is it really you? I heard people saying you came to our Daoyuan Vige, and I wanted toe see for myself.¡±
She appeared extremely delighted.
Every time she saw Qin Niu, her gaze was exceptionally gentle. In her eyes, there was only this man.
¡°Master Tang, how about this ¡ª you go directly to my house to check the lotus pond; my maid Xiao Qing is at home. Just knock on the door when you get there. I¡¯ll talk to Cai Xian.¡±
¡°Sure, sure, sure, you two chat. Cai Xian, this young girl, I¡¯ve watched her grow up ¡ª a very kind-hearted girl, and she is wholeheartedly devoted to Master Qin. Just two days ago, a young master from the city came in a luxurious carriage to propose, but she outright rejected him.¡±
Tang Fang also took the opportunity to speak well of his niece.
¡°Uncle Fang, please go ahead and get busy! Don¡¯t randomly say things!¡±
Tang Caixian didn¡¯t want to share these details with Qin Niu.
¡°Ha ha, you¡¯re implying that I¡¯m in the way here, huh? Off I go, off I go.¡±
Tang Fangughed, waved his hand, and strode away.
Outside in the courtyard, enshrouded in darkness, only Qin Niu and Tang Caixian remained.
¡°Xiao Qing told me that you came looking for me today, but unfortunately, I wasn¡¯t home. It just so happens I have something to tell you; let¡¯s walk and talk, shall we?¡±
¡°Okay!¡±
She nodded and followed beside Qin Niu.
Wafts of a maiden¡¯s subtle fragrance intermittently reached Qin Niu¡¯s nostrils.
¡°How¡¯s your cultivation practice been going recently?¡±
¡°It¡¯s been okay! But my natural talent is just average; I¡¯ve only reached the third level of mortal cultivation. After all this time of arduous practice, I¡¯ve only improved by two levels; am I very slow?¡±
She looked at Qin Niu.
¡°No, you¡¯re not slow at all ¡ª just a little foolish.¡±
¡°Oh, you¡¯re mean! Are you making fun of me?¡±
She yfully protested.
¡°If you weren¡¯t a bit foolish, why would you forsake those young masters and fall for a country Insect Master like myself?¡±
¡°There¡¯s not that many reasons; it¡¯s just that I like you.¡±
Upon realizing Qin Niu wasn¡¯t mocking her for being truly foolish, a joyful smile appeared on her face.
¡°Cai Xian, I like you too, and I n to propose to your family tomorrow.¡±
Qin Niu stopped walking and looked at her.
In the night, her features seemed even more charming, and her eyes shone brightly.
Especially when she heard Qin Niu¡¯s words, she was stunned for a moment, her eyes wide with astonishment.
This made her even more enchanting.
¡°Really? You¡¯re not just trying to make me happy with a lie, are you?¡±
¡°Although I, Qin Niu, have no power or influence, I never speak empty words. I¡¯ve already asked Aunt Hua from Shuangfeng Vige to purchase the betrothal gifts, and I¡¯m preparing to propose at your house tomorrow morning. But¡ as I told you before, I can only take you as a concubine. Would you agree to that?¡±
¡°I agree! As long as I can be with you, I don¡¯t care about status at all!¡±
She was truly love-struck, agreeing to be a concubine so readily.
Chapter 299: 292: Subduing the Exotic Insects of Heaven and Earth _1
Chapter 299: Chapter 292: Subduing the Exotic Insects of Heaven and Earth _1
¡°You agree, but will your parents and brother agree?¡±
Qin Niu was still somewhat worried.
Having one¡¯s daughter be a concubine was not a particrly honorable matter.
Many families of the girl¡¯s side would oppose it.
Unless they were poor and saw it as a way to make a sum of money and climb the socialdder by connecting with a wealthy family, they might agree to marry their daughter off as a concubine to someone else.
And most often, they were married off to old men.
Tang Caixian¡¯s conditions were not bad, and Qin Niu¡¯s current status and strength that was openly known were merely those of an ordinary Insect Master. Such individuals were a dime a dozen in ck Tiger City, far from being considered particrly outstanding.
¡°If they don¡¯t agree, I will think of a way to convince them. In the end, I am the one who will be living the life, and as long as they see you will treat me well, they should agree,¡± she said, although she had no real confidence in her heart.
¡°Caixian, thank you. The only promise I can give you is that I will be true to you, supporting each other until old age.¡±
In matters of affection, Qin Niu was a novice.
He was very naive in all aspects.
But his heart was wholly sincere towards the two women.
And he was confident in providing them with a happy married life.
¡
After returning home from Daoyuan Vige, he began to read through the Insect Control scrolls and Insect Control Books he had gathered.
The Spider Technique Scrolls he had found on Zhu Zhu¡¯s body and the Breeding Insects Secrets he had obtained from Elder Jiu Yin were his focus for study.
The Spider Technique Scroll was an ancient volume at first nce.
Its content was extremely profound.
It mentioned various methods of controlling, breeding, catching, creating, and exterminating spiders.
Later on, it even detailed the methods of cultivating demon spiders and the abilities of various demon spiders.
For instance, the Phantom Jumping Spider, killed by Qin Niu, could be a demon when cultivated to ater stage. Its invisibility power would be extremely formidable in the forest, far surpassing ordinary magical beasts and insect demons.
Moreover, the difficulty of a bug transforming into a demon was much greater than that of beasts or birds, and the Phantom Jumping Spider only needed to find a tree on the verge of gaining spiritual essence and drink its sap to greatly increase the sess rate of bing a demon.
After its transformation, it could even use that nearly enlightened tree as a den to form a strange symbiotic rtionship.
This made Qin Niu think of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
That Ancient Banyan Tree was likely on the brink of bing enlightened, or it already had.
Especially in the evening, when Qin Niu escaped from the maze of the Ancient Banyan Tree, it actually opened up a path for him, indicating it had already acquired a certain level of sentience.
This was also why Qin Niu believed it may have already be enlightened.
The Spider Technique Scroll also mentioned that spiders drinking the sap of nts about to be enlightened had a chance to upgrade or awaken special powers.
A smile crossed Qin Niu¡¯s face.
This point, he had already figured out.
His Termites, bees, Diamond Ink Turtle, Green Ox, and other pets were able to advance only after consuming the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood.
Currently, only the Grade Seven Red-eyed Golden Toad had not consumed the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood.
It wasn¡¯t that he begrudged it; he had simply kept needing it to provide protection. If it drank the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood and, like the Green Ox, fell asleep for two or three months, Qin Niu would lose a powerful ally in battle.
Lately, the Red-eyed Golden Toad had earned numerous merits, helping Qin Niu resolve many dangers.
Once the conflict between the ck Tiger Gang and the Nine Insect Gang hade to an end, he would immediately nurture it.
In the cultivation methods of the Spider Technique Scroll, there was a method mentioned called ¡°spider fusion.¡±
It involved letting one spider devour another, merging to be one.
If the fusion were sessful, it could lead to the development of a new species thatbined the virtues of both spiders.
However, this method had a high rate of failure, and even if the fusion were sessful, it wasn¡¯t guaranteed tobine the virtues of the two spiders. It could also potentiallybine the faults of the other spider.
This could lead to the new species having significant defects.
The way to increase the sess rate was to try to have the primary spider devour spiders of the same kind.
The primary spider should preferably devour spiders weaker than itself.
Otherwise, it might be devoured in reverse, and the new species formed would be dominated by the secondary spider.
Qin Niu couldn¡¯t help but think of the Green Demon Bee and the Corpse Bee.
They all belonged to the bee species, and their prototypes were evolved from hos.
They were essentially of the same origin.
The sess rate of having them devour each other should greatly increase.
And it would be Green Demon Bees taking the lead, exactly as Qin Niu had intended.
With this idea in mind, he began to study meticulously the insect breeding method recorded in the Spider Technique Scroll.
Reading into the night, waves of sleepiness washed over him, and he sat in the backyard, recing sleep with spiritual practice.
As his cultivation improved, his spiritual power also recovered rapidly.
¡
The next morning, Qin Niu did not go to the mountains for cultivation or insect breeding.
Because he hadn¡¯t yet found the method to raise Green Demon Bees.
He wondered if he should let the Worker Bees serve as nursemaids?
The main issue was that he did not know what food the young Green Demon Bees needed.
The Green Demon Bee Breeding ssics did not mention a word about it.
Qin Niu felt this issue was urgent and immediately started studying the Breeding Insects Secrets written by Elder Jiu Yin.
It detailed Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s breeding processes for various insects.
Compared to Green Demons, Elder Jiu Yin did not hold back any secrets, recording theplete breeding processes and insights for every insect.
One book summed up Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s three hundred years of familial history.
As long as Elder Jiu Yin had raised the insect, whether it was a Rabuja, a Bloodsucking Leech, or the Fire Ant, Taiyin Yaoyao, Four-Winged Demon Centipede¡ the breeding process for every insect was described in great detail.
Even how to obtain the original insect was thoroughly recorded.
For instance, the most formidable Four-Winged Demon Centipede was captured by Elder Jiu Yin by chance in the Poisonous Miasma Forest with at least a millennium¡¯s history.
It started off as a Dual-Winged Flying Centipede.
After Elder Jiu Yin captured it with great difficulty, he thought of many ways to subjugate it, using more than thirty Advanced Contract Talismans alone.
When subduing this insect, Elder Jiu Yin adopted a war of attrition method.
He had his attendants and a host of enved insects use mid-tier Contract Charms to continuously wear down the Dual-Winged Flying Centipede¡¯s energy.
Only when it was extremely weary did Elder Jiu Yin personally take action, subduing it at once.
To subdue it, Elder Jiu Yin endured a grueling three days and four nights, using thirty-four Advanced Contract Talismans. Only then did he manage to subdue it.
Of all the pets Qin Niu had tamed, the most difficult to subdue had been the War Bee Queen Bee.
He had never experienced paying such a huge price to subdue an insect like Elder Jiu Yin did.
However, he learned a lot from Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s experiences.
In the future, when encountering particrly difficult insects or animals to tame, he could adopt a war of attrition or relentless harassment approach to subdue them.
In general, insects that require such effort to subdue are either of a high grade or are rare species of heaven and earth.
The Four-Winged Demon Centipede was one of those rare species.
Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s Taiyin Yaoyao had a rathermon origin.
At that time, Elder Jiu Yin was over thirty years old and still unmarried.
Lacking any special skills, penniless, short, and somewhat ugly, he epitomized the trifecta of poor, stubby, and unattractive.
Not a single maiden was willing to marry him.
It¡¯s said that necessity is the mother of invention, so Elder Jiu Yin used the money he had saved from working to buy a Low-grade Contract Charm and a popr Insect Control Book.
Then his reversal of fortune began.
Initially, he wanted to subdue a venomous spider. Since Elder Jiu Yin was a native to the Nine Insect Gang, he grew up in the deep mountains surrounded by forests.
The mostmon sight in the forests were spiders.
At that time, he could barely read and spent over half a year begging for help to learn how to read so that he couldprehend the insect control books.
Feeling somewhat confident in what he had learned, Elder Jiu Yin went into the deep forest full of ambition, searching for the most powerful venomous spider.
The result was that two dayster, he crawled back home.
He didn¡¯t catch a venomous spider; instead, he was bitten by one.
Chapter 300: 293 Feeding Bees with Blood_1
Chapter 300: Chapter 293 Feeding Bees with Blood_1
When he dragged himself home, the wound on his hand had swelled significantly and turned ck.
It was one of his uncles who had summoned a Pharmacist to treat the poison, saving his life. It was after that bite that his right hand became somewhat deformed, and what was worse, he was left with the aftereffects of facial paralysis and a limping gait.
After this, the thought of taking another girl as his bride was pretty much out of the question.
Lying on his rickety bed, Elder Jiu Yin sighed deeply, cursing the thieving heavens andmenting the unfairness of his fate.
It was then that he discovered a cockroach looking for food in a corner of the wall, providingpanionship in his days of hardship.
He deliberately tossed some scraps of food onto the floor every day for no other reason than to have the cockroach keep himpany.
Because lying in bed alone was just too lonely.
Not even someone to talk to.
Now at least he had a cockroach forpany.
Perhaps it was because he fed it every day that the cockroach gradually became much bolder.
Watching the cockroach, Elder Jiu Yin had a moment of inspiration and decided to tame it as a pet.
It seemed to be fated, for he tamed the cockroach with astonishing ease.
In his life, he now had his first pet.
From then on, he was never alone, as he had the cockroach forpany every day.
As cockroaches are omnivorous, Elder Jiu Yin, after taming it, started deliberately killing some of the spiders in the house to feed it in order to help it grow stronger.
Latter, when a gecko came in search of food, Elder Jiu Yin also killed it, using it to feed the cockroach.
From then on, Elder Jiu Yin would kill any small animal or insect that entered his room to feed the cockroach.
He poured all his efforts into raising the cockroach.
The cockroach did not let him down and, after eating these slightly better-quality foods, it evolved directly from a Grade Two female to Grade Three.
This delighted Elder Jiu Yin tremendously.
After achieving the title of Insect Master, his status and destiny werepletely transformed.
He then showed extraordinary talent in the way of rearing insects.
And not long after he gained the status of Insect Master, a beautiful young girl whose family was poor was married off to him with his uncle acting as a go-between, and the two of them tied the knot.
Elder Jiu Yin was on top of the world, and his days finally had hope.
Latter, utilizing the strong reproductive abilities of the cockroach, he made a name for himself in the insect fighting tournaments. He was appreciated by an elder of the Nine Insect Gang and taken in as a nominal disciple.
However, due to the chaotic management and backward thinking of the Nine Insect Gang,
that elder took a fancy to Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s beautiful wife and ultimately forced himself upon her using despicable means.
Meanwhile, Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s wife was already more than five months pregnant.
With a fierce temperament, she left a bloodstained letter and hung herself that very night.
Elder Jiu Yin was overwhelmed with grief and faced a choice: confront the elder immediately to seek justice for his wife,
or after careful consideration, he chose to bide his time.
The next day, when the master asked about his wife¡¯s suicide, Elder Jiu Yin publicly cursed her for being ungrateful, saying her death was well-deserved.
He also said that if he took another wife in the future, if his master liked her, he could have her anytime.
As he spoke these words, Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s heart bled.
But there was no choice, he had to endure it; otherwise, not only would he be unable to avenge her, but his master could also easily kill him.
The disparity in power between them was too great.
Not until sixty-seven yearster did Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s strength be sufficiently powerful.
He also unexpectedly acquired a celestial script detailing gu techniques.
Seizing the opportunity, he poisoned his master, hacked off his limbs, and then used him to feed insects. And not just that, he humiliated all of his master¡¯s female rtives in front of him and sold them into a brothel.
Having avenged his great injustice, he finally dared to build a grave for histe wife to mourn andfort her spirit.
Qin Niu, after reading about Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s early history of vengeance, felt a mix of emotions.
Morality is very important.
If one acts immorally, sooner orter one will suffer a terrible fate and even bring disaster upon one¡¯s family.
The fate of Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s master, who for a moment¡¯s pleasure brought cmity upon his disciple¡¯s wife, ended up extremely wretched.
Through reading ¡°Breeding Insects Secrets,¡± Qin Niu had gained some insights into cultivating Green Demon Bees.
Being able to hatch Green Demon Bee eggs with fresh blood suggested that it was also possible to feed thervae with fresh blood.
The day he ughtered Elder Jiu Yin, Qin Niu obtained arge amount of fresh blood, which came in handy for feeding thervae.
He tried using a small wooden stick to scoop up a bit of coagted blood and then ced it near thervae¡¯s mouth.
No use.
It couldn¡¯t move at the moment and, although its mouthparts kept opening and closing, it couldn¡¯t reach the blood.
This didn¡¯t stump Qin Niu; he had a swarm of bees and could order a couple of Worker Bees toe and feed thisrva.
He directly summoned two powerful War Bees over.
After consuming the coagted blood, they began to feed the young Green Demon Bee.
Hey, this trick indeed worked.
It fed happily, with the two War Bees bustling about joyfully.
¡°Not bad, not bad. Hopefully, thisrva will turn into a pupa soon.¡±
He tried checking therva¡¯s properties.
Green Demon Bee (Larva)
Grade: Grade Four Hymenopteran insects, experience needed for leveling up 10021/100000
Lifespan: 1000 years
Energy: 10070
Skills: None.
Talents: None.
Its skills and talents were not visible for the time being.
It might be necessary to wait for it to pupate and hatch before being able to see its skills and talents as a maturerva.
Being just arva, it already had a lifespan of a thousand years, and it was a Grade Four insect.
Its innate conditions were even better than those of the Green Silk Worm.
This was the famous insect that brought renown to the Green Demon, and once it matured, Qin Niu was certain it would bring him pleasant surprises.
What he needed to do now was to nurture it with great care and wait patiently.
After hesitating for a moment, he took out the egg of a Corpse Bee and ced it beside therva.
Then, following the Secret Technique described in the ¡°Spider Technique Scroll,¡± he used human blood as a catalyst to induce mutual consumption and fusion between them.
This was going to be a lengthy process.
¡°Master Qin, are you home?¡±
It was the voice of the matchmaker, Madam Hua.
¡°I am home. Let me change my clothes, and I shall apany you to the Tang family to propose marriage.¡±
Qin Niu took this matter very seriously.
After all, it was a significant event in his life.
After changing his clothes, he and Madam Hua, carrying the betrothal gifts, set off for Tang Wenh§Ñn¡¯s residence.
In the backyard, Tang Fang was already busy with the craftsmen.
Qin Niu naturally wouldn¡¯t bother with these trifles, leaving it to the craftsmen to get on with their tasks.
They needed to boil sticky rice juice, mix it with five-colored mud, and the firewood in the backyard was at their disposal.
In this world, there was no cement, but there were five-colored muds, which, as legend had it, were passed down by N¨¹wa when she mended the sky. However, N¨¹wa¡¯s creation was the Five-Colored Yuhua Stones.
In folk burials or for constructing the foundations of houses, five-colored paste was often used.
It was made by mixing sticky rice juice, lime, sand paste, and other materials.
Impervious to soaking, resistant to corrosion, it couldst a thousand years without damage.
Pool edges constructed with stones and green bricks along with this mud would be incredibly sturdy.
Because producing five-colored mud required the use of sticky rice, ordinary poor families would be reluctant to waste food. Thus, it was only the rich and powerful who would use it extravagantly.
Chapter 301: 294: Fiancée Steps In_1
Chapter 301: Chapter 294: Fianc¨¦e Steps In_1
The marriage proposal procession was quite impressive,prising over a dozen people and carrying a generous bridal dowry, attracting the attention of many onlookers along the way.
Qin Niu felt uncertain about the Tang Family¡¯s attitude.
If necessary, he could make some promises to the Tang Family aspensation for taking Tang Caixian as his consort.
They soon arrived at Tang Wenh§Ñn¡¯s home.
But the courtyard door was tightly closed.
This gave Qin Niu a bad premonition.
Tang Caixian longed to marry him, but it seemed her family was not very supportive.
¡°No worries, I¡¯ll go get Auntie He over here.¡±
Seeing that they might be turned away at the door, Aunt Hua hurriedly called for the local matchmaker, Sister He, from Daoyuan Vige.
The two often coborated and were in frequent contact, so naturally, she sought help from a colleague when facing a problem.
Sister He, having already discussed the situation with Aunt Hua on the way over, seemed to know the gist of the matter.
She smiled at Qin Niu and said, ¡°Master Qin, don¡¯t worry. They say you can¡¯t keep a grown daughter at home. As long as Cai Xian is willing to marry you, Tang Wenh§Ñn¡¯s stubbornness won¡¯t matter. Besides, Master Qin, you are young and promising, with a bright future ahead of you; marrying you would be no loss for her.¡±
Afterforting Qin Niu, Sister He started calling out at the door directly.
¡°Tang Wenh§Ñn, open up, you¡¯ve got great newsing!¡±
There was no response from inside the house.
A momentter, however, a window on the upper floor opened.
¡°Is that Auntie He? I¡¯lle down and open the door right away.¡±
Tang Caixian leaned out halfway, dressed very delicately.
She wore a pink dress that perfectlybined a young girl¡¯s charm with a graceful figure.
Knowing Qin Niu woulde to propose today, she had taken special care to dress up.
Seeing that her father and brother would not open the door, she could not contain her impatience and rushed to agree.
¡°Stay upstairs, your brother will open the door.¡±
Tang Wenh§Ñn¡¯s voice rose from inside the house.
He ordered his daughter not toe downstairs.
Soon, Tang Bin opened both the main gate and the courtyard door.
His expression was icy-cold, showing no emotion.
¡°Brother Tang Bin!¡±
Qin Niu greeted him proactively with polite respect.
¡°You¡¯re wee to visit, but there¡¯s no need to bring your things inside,¡± Tang Bin said coldly.
Qin Niu knew that this brother-inw was angry. No one would want their sister to marry off as a concubine. He decided not to take issue with Tang Bin¡¯s attitude.
¡°You fellows, please wait outside for a while. Aunt Hua, Sister He, let¡¯s the three of us go in first,¡± Qin Niu said as he led the way.
Inside the main hall, Tang Wenh§Ñn sat there puffing on his dry pipe with a ¡°tapping¡± sound.
¡°Shuangfeng Vige¡¯s Qin Niu pays his respects to Uncle Tang,¡± said Qin Niu as he stepped forward to greet him.
¡°Hmph! Sit down!¡± Tang Wenh§Ñn grunted, not even lifting his eyes.
A young woman in a floral dress, likely Tang Bin¡¯s wife, gestured for the three to sit down and then served them tea.
¡°Brother Wenh§Ñn, you see, Young Master Qin is sincere about wanting to marry your daughter, and Cai Xian has a special affection for Young Master Qin¡¡± Sister He started working on Tang Wenh§Ñn¡¯s mindset very professionally, as soon as she sat down.
¡°Drink your tea, let them speak for themselves,¡± said Tang Wenh§Ñn, looking down and puffing on his pipe.
¡°Uncle Tang, I wish to take your daughter, Tang Caixian, as my concubine. I hope you will grant us your blessing,¡± Qin Niu, deciding not to beat around the bush, said directly.
¡°Bullying too far, bullying too far!¡±
Tang Wenh§Ñn¡¯s dry tobo pipe banged on the table with a thumping sound, his face filled with anger.
¡°I only have this one daughter. In looks, talent, character, where does she fall short for you to look down upon her like this? So many young masters and sons of wealthy families want to marry her, but I refused. Yet, you set your sights on this poor Insect Master. Don¡¯t think that bing an Insect Master is something extraordinary. To take my daughter as a concubine, no way.¡±
Tang Wenh§Ñn was adamant.
¡°Qin Niu, I respected you as a hero, but I didn¡¯t expect you to treat my sister with such contempt. I¡¯m telling you clearly today that my sister does not have to marry you. There are plenty of distinguished young masters willing to marry her with eight pnquins.¡±
Tang Bin also said angrily on the side.
¡°I know this matter has made you very angry, please allow me to exin a few words. First, I have no intention of belittling Cai Xian. The betrothal gifts I presented to the Wang Family were the same as what I brought to your family. Second, I met Wang Wanyan before I met you. In those days when I was destitute and couldn¡¯t even afford a meal, it was she who gave me alms and helped me survive the toughest times.
I can promise you, although Cai Xian will be a concubine, I will definitely not mistreat her, much less betray her deep-sea-like affection.
Also, if given the chance in the future, I will definitely help Cai Xian¡¯s maiden family be a strong n.¡±
Qin Niu wasn¡¯t just bragging.
With his current strength, he was already slightly surpassing the Yan Family.
At the very least, he was on par with the Yan Family.
Now that the Green Demon Bee had hatched and both Green Ox and Termite were growing, his own cultivation was also improving. It would only take a year or two topletely surpass the Yan Family.
By then, Tang Wenh§Ñn would be his father-inw and Tang Bin his brother-inw, undoubtedly receiving some preferential treatment.
¡°Stop fantasizing here. Even if you¡¯re just an ordinary Insect Master now, even if you be a high-ranking member of the ck Tiger Gang, I will not agree to marry off my daughter to be your concubine. Our Tang Family won¡¯t sacrifice our daughter¡¯s lifetime happiness for the benefit of the n.¡±
Tang Wenh§Ñn refuted angrily.
¡°Father is right. This kind of glory and riches obtained by sacrificing our sister, we Tang Family don¡¯t want it.¡±
Tang Bin echoed as well.
The father and son were indeed of one mind.
¡°Father, brother, thank you for loving me so much, but what I want to tell you is that marrying Qin Niu as a concubine is my greatest happiness. Marrying those young masters as a principal wife is not the love I want, and I wouldn¡¯t be happy.¡±
Tang Caixian came down from upstairs.
Or rather, she had been eavesdropping all along.
Apanying her was a rather beautiful middle-aged woman, presumably Tang Caixian¡¯s mother.
¡°You¡ you¡¯re confused!¡±
Tang Wenh§Ñn stood up abruptly, raising his hand to strike his daughter.
But his wife shielded her.
¡°Our daughter is just sharing her true feelings, why strike her?¡±
¡°I want to smack some sense into this foolish girl. A fine principal wife she could be, able to marry into the city, yet she insists on marrying this Qin Niu. And to be someone else¡¯s concubine at that.¡±
Tang Wenh§Ñn bellowed with rage.
¡°Father, I know you want what¡¯s best for your daughter, but you don¡¯t understand what your daughter truly wants. Please, I beg you, agree to Qin Niu! Okay?¡±
Tang Caixian seemed quite pampered at home.
Even if her father was furious beyond measure, she didn¡¯t appear afraid.
She still tried hard to fight for her father¡¯s agreement.
¡°If you want me to agree, wait till I¡¯m dead! Hmph¡ This is truly maddening.¡±
Tang Wenh§Ñn gasped for breath, his breathing harsh.
Just as both parties were at a stalemate, a cool and pleasant female voice came from outside.
¡°May I ask if Uncle Tang Wenh§Ñn is home? Wang Wanyan hase to visit specially.¡±
Everyone was momentarily stunned.
The situation was already chaotic enough, and Wang Wanyan¡¯s arrival at this moment was akin to adding fuel to the fire, wasn¡¯t it?
¡°Pleasee in!¡±
Tang Wenh§Ñn sat back in the master seat, and his wife, along with his daughter Tang Caixian, did not go upstairs.
Wang Wanyan entered, wearing a fitted white dress.
¡°Miss Wang Wanyan pays her respects to Uncle Wenh§Ñn!¡±
¡°What brings you here?¡± Tang Wenh§Ñn asked with a nk expression on his face.
Only his tone had softened somewhat.
Chapter 302: 295: Ennoblement to First-Class Nobility_1
Chapter 302: Chapter 295: Ennoblement to First-ss Nobility_1
¡°I came here to discuss with you the matter of Qin Niu taking Cai Xian as his concubine,¡± Wang Wanyan finished, looking towards Qin Niu and Auntie Hua. ¡°Ah Niu, could you allow me to chat with the Tang Family alone?¡±
Qin Niu, looking at his fianc¨¦e, was filled with confusion.
Nevertheless, he nodded his head.
¡°Auntie Hua, Auntie He, let¡¯s wait outside for now!¡±
After speaking, he took the lead in leaving the Tang Family¡¯s main hall.
Shortly after the three of them left, the door was swiftly closed.
Wang Wanyan didn¡¯t know what was being discussed inside with the Tang Family.
After nearly half an hour, the door opened again, and Tang Bin walked out with a face no longer cold.
¡°Qin Niu, I really envy you for having such a good wife. Let them bring in the dowry! You three, pleasee inside and have some tea.¡±
It seemed Wang Wanyan had persuaded the Tang Family.
What exactly did she say?
Qin Niu didn¡¯t know.
From Tang Bin¡¯s tone, it was evident that Wang Wanyan likely made some promises to the Tang Family and had gained their trust.
After entering the house, Wang Wanyan and Cai Xian were nowhere to be seen.
It was unclear whether they were deliberately avoiding them, or if the matter had been settled, and the two seized the opportunity to have a private chat and further bond.
¡°Qin Niu, just now your fianc¨¦e convinced me and my whole family. Moreover, my daughter is intent on marrying you¡ Sigh, it¡¯s hard to keep a grown daughter at home, so I entrust her to you. I hope you will treat my daughter well. If you fail her, even if it costs me my life, I will make you pay.¡±
Tang Wenhan appeared quite helpless.
His daughter was set on marrying, and as her father, if he insisted on preventing the marriage, it would only trigger a variety of unpredictable and serious consequences.
Either his daughter would seek her own death, or she would elope with Qin Niu, or stubbornly remain unmarried for a lifetime, bing an old maiden. She might even me him for the rest of her life.
After much deliberation, Tang Wenhan could only reluctantly agree to the marriage.
¡°In the presence of you, Auntie, and Brother Tang Bin and his wife, I pledge to treat Cai Xian sincerely, to love and protect her for a lifetime,¡± Qin Niu solemnly promised.
What followed was a matter of course, with both sides setting the wedding date and arranging the marriage.
As Wang Furen was eager to marry off his daughter, the wedding date was set for the sixth day of the following month, an auspicious day for marriage.
In these troubled times, without a strong protector, Wang Furen was particrly worried about not being able to ensure his daughter¡¯s safety.
Marrying his daughter to Qin Niu was a way for him to have peace of mind.
¡
After leaving the Tang Family¡¯s house, Qin Niu finally could breathe a deep sigh of relief.
The matter of a lifetime was settled.
Once he married two beautiful daughters-inw, he would have his own family.
Giving rewards to the two matchmakers goes without saying.
When he returned to Shuangfeng Vige, from afar he could see a luxurious carriage and several fine horses parked outside his home.
It seemed guests had arrived.
Qin Niu hurried home, to find several important figures already seated in the living room.
Upon closer inspection, it was apparent that experts from the Fang Family hade.
¡°Qin Niu pays respects to Young Master Fang and the two esteemed elders of the Fang Family,¡± he said.
Young Master Fang Lian and the two elders from the Fang Family, who cultivated in seclusion, were all known to Qin Niu.
He promptly stepped forward to greet them.
Previously, facing Young Master Fang, Qin Niu only felt that thetter¡¯s strength was unfathomably deep.
Now, with the cultivation of the Innate Realm, Qin Niu faced this young master of the Fang Family with less awe and moreposure.
The cultivation level of the two Fang Family elders should be on par with that of Vice City Lord Bai.
Both were unfathomably profound, like two towering mountains, even just sitting there motionlessly, they exuded a strong sense of oppression.
¡°Master Qin, long time no see!¡±
Fang Lian rose with a smile.
The two elders of the Fang Family slightly nodded to Qin Niu as a form of acknowledgement.
Such existences, each a top expert of the ck Tiger Gang, were quite normal in their haughtiness.
Their mere nod to Qin Niu was already quite courteous.
¡°Young Master Fang remains radiant as ever, which strikes a particrly fond chord with onlookers.¡±
There was more than a hint of sycophancy in Qin Niu¡¯s words.
In the world of adults, being sycophantic is just right.
If you can¡¯t swallow your pride, you¡¯ll struggle in society.
¡°Haha, Master Qin is a friend of our Fang Family, and I find you equally endearing. By the way, this is Deputy City Lord of the City Lord¡¯s Mansion. Since Vice Gang Leader Bai is injured and needs to recuperate, the Gang Leader specifically asked the Deputy City Lord toe to present you with an honor and additional rewards.¡±
Young Master Fang introduced with augh.
Deputy City Lord was a somewhat stern-looking elderly man.
Appearing to be in his sixties.
His long grey eyebrows drooped at the sides of his brow bone, his eyes electric, sharper even than those of an eagle.
His cultivation seemed somewhat weaker than that of the two elders of the Fang Family, roughly equal to that of Elder Jiu Yin.
He also was a powerhouse of the Spirit Qi Realm.
All of these people were top existences within the ck Tiger Gang.
Qin Niu¡¯s heart stirred slightly, recalling thatst time Wang Furen had been very eager to marry off his daughter to the son of ck Tiger City¡¯s City Commandant. He wondered if this man might be the City Commandant?
¡°Qin Niu pays his respects to Deputy City Lord!¡±
Qin Niu bowed deeply as a gesture of respect and reverence to a mighty figure.
¡°No need for formalities! Indeed, a dragon amongst men, youthful yet majestic and unassuming with hidden talents, quite remarkable!¡±
Deputy City Lord scrutinized Qin Niu, offering a very high evaluation.
What does ¡°unassuming with hidden talents¡± mean?
Was it a veiled reference to Qin Niu preferring to conceal his skill, keeping a low profile to hide his true strength?
¡°Thank you for the high praise, Deputy City Lord, I am but a humble Insect Master.¡±
Qin Niu certainly didn¡¯t dare to take suchpliments casually.
¡°A humble Insect Master? One who was able to defeat decisively Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s twelve disciples, furiously in many. Not to mention utterly destroying Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s own Taiyin Yaoyao. Do you think an ordinary Insect Master could do that?¡±
Deputy City Lord asked with a half-smile.
Having heard of Qin Niu¡¯s glorious achievements, Young Master Fang¡¯s gaze clearly shifted dramatically when looking at him.
¡°Uh¡ these things were not aplished by my efforts alone, I merely assisted under the leadership of Lord Bai and Master He Shan.¡±
Qin Niu never thought about taking on some high official role.
He simply wished to retreat to Shuangfeng Vige and cultivate in peace; any grand military achievements were to be deferred whenever possible.
¡°You are quite an interesting young man. While others your age chase fame and fortune like hungry ducks, you steer clear of it. It seems like the Lord of the City¡¯s initial intent was to recruit you into the military, exceptionally promoting you as an officer. Looking at you now, it seems you¡¯ll most likely decline.¡±
This Deputy City Lord was truly impressive, easily piercing through Qin Niu¡¯s thoughts.
¡°Thank you, Deputy City Lord, for your discernment. I am but a simple country bumpkin by nature, not destined for officialdom. If there truly is a reward, a pill or two of Elixir, or somend, would be the best reward for me.¡±
Qin Niu was quite shrewd.
He seized the moment to express his disinterest in an official career.
Asking for Elixir andnd, to be andlord in the countryside, that was his dream.
¡°The Gang Leader really does have a wonderful foresight! Two sets of reward ns were prepared for you. Since you have no interest in officialdom, let¡¯s go with the second one!¡±
After speaking, Deputy City Lord opened amendation letter.
¡°Qin Niu, Insect Master of Shuangfeng Vige in Jade Stream Town, has repeatedly uncovered significant military intelligence, establishing extraordinary meritorious service for our ck Tiger Gang. Following that, under themand of Vice City Lord Bai, he significantly defeated the Insect Formation set by the Nine Insect Gang, burning countless enemy ships, leading our army to a great victory, decimating over ten thousand enemies. Furthermore, he assisted Vice City Lord Bai at a critical moment to destroy Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s foundational Taiyin Yaoyao, breaking the bee and ant swarms, aiding in killing two Spirit Qi Realm high-level enemies of the enemy army, crippling Elder Jiu Yin and forcing him to flee.
Each and every achievement constitutes an immense contribution.
Our ck Tiger Gang clearly distinguishes rewards and punishments, Qin Niu has established immense merit, promoting him over five grades to be a first-ss noble of the ck Tiger Gang, enjoying all the privileges of a first-ss noble.
Awarded a hundred mu of fertilend, and a bottle of Peiyuan Elixir useful for enhancing cultivation.¡±
This reward was too great.
A first-ss noble was no ordinary honor, equivalent to being among the royalty and nobility of a country, belonging to a privileged ss.
Chapter 303: 296 Ascending to the Top_1
Chapter 303: Chapter 296 Ascending to the Top_1
The ck Tiger Gang could confer the title of a first-ss noble on no more than two hundred individuals. Such beings generally have one mandatory condition: their cultivation must reach the Spirit Qi Realm, or they must possess strengthparable to that of the Spirit Qi Realm.
For example, powerful Insect Masters or Beast Tamers, who may only be in the Innate Realm themselves, but have extremely formidable pets that can contend with the strong in the Spirit Qi Realm.
After umting merit, these individuals are also qualified to be conferred the title of a first-ss noble.
Top-tier pill masters and ntation masters, if their cultivation is insufficient, would at most be made second-ss nobles.
In any faction, even in the Nine Insect Gang, strength is revered above all else.
When the ck Tiger Gang confers the title of a first-ss noble, it values not only strength but also merit. Because based on merit, one can measure a person¡¯s contribution to the gang and loyalty.
Strictly speaking, Qin Niu certainly does not meet these two conditions.
The ck Tiger Gang Leader likely sees him as a talent and wants to win over his heart by bestowing grace.
This, coupled with the current urgent need to bolster morale, is why they need to set a few examples.
Qin Niu stumbled into making a great contribution, with strength that was also barely passable, and he himself was particrly young with limitless potential for growth.
And he had no interest in an official career.
He probably wouldn¡¯t ept a government appointment,
So he was directly made a first-ss noble instead.
¡°Thank you, Gang Leader, for your great favor. Qin Niu will surely be deeply engrained with gratitude and seek opportunities to continue making contributions to the ck Tiger Gang.¡±
Qin Niu bowed as he received the conferment document.
¡°Haha, well done, well done. The Gang Leader indeed was not mistaken about you.¡±
Lord Lu rarely showed a smile.
¡°As a first-ss noble, there are less than a thousand conferees thus far in our gang, and of those alive today, just over two hundred people. With this status, all yournds are exempt from taxation, your descendants and family members exempt from conscription. There is no need to salute an official, and only the City Lord¡¯s Mansion may judge you in the case of offenses. If participating in a trial, you may be offered a seat¡¡±
The various privileges of a first-ss noble were enough to make countless people envious.
Not to mention anything else, just the exemption of allnds from taxation and exemption from conscription for the family and individual themselves was a super privilege.
Thend tax, which could be as little as ten percent or as much as thirty percent, was a heavy, long-term burden for manyndlords and farmers.
Even a local influential family like the Yan Family had to pay their taxes honestly.
¡°The hundred mu of fertilend conferred upon you all belong to the public fields of the City Lord¡¯s Mansion. Here is thend deed, specially selected to be the public fields nearest to Shuangfeng Vige.¡±
Other than personal ownership, the remainingnd all belonged to the wealth of the City Lord¡¯s Mansion.
It could also be called public property.
However, the City Lord¡¯s Mansion would not directly cultivate thend but rather rent it out, and then collect rent.
This was an important source of ie for the City Lord¡¯s Mansion.
Nowes the question: with the City Lord¡¯s Mansion often needing to confernd to meritorious subjects, and having only so muchnd to begin with, could it run out?
In reality, it would not.
Besides somendlords and farmers who could be confiscated of their property for breaking thew, the City Lord¡¯s Mansion also had a dedicated department for business affairs. When thend prices were low, the City Lord¡¯s Mansion might buy arge amount ofnd from the people.
A hundred mu of fertilend was already a lot.
Counting one mu of fertilend as eleven taels of silver, that was a total of one thousand one hundred taels of silver.
Add on the deed tax, and the total price exceeded one thousand three hundred taels of silver.
An ordinary person, owning a hundred mu of fertilend, could directly be andlord.
Up until now, Qin Niu had only one mu of inferiornd.
Now he had received the conferment of a hundred mu of fertilend, which was indeed an honor for his ancestors.
¡°Thank you, Lord of the City, thank you, Lord Lu!¡±
Qin Niu took thend deed with both hands, his heart surging with emotion.
If only Old Man Liu were still alive.
Such arge amount ofnd would have been enough to make Old Man Liu grin from ear to ear.
¡°Right now, our ck Tiger Gang is still at war with the Nine Insect Gang and the Shennong Sect, and the oue of the battle is uncertain. You should diligently cultivate, strive to enhance your strength, and try to contribute more when it¡¯s necessary. Protecting one¡¯s family and country is also the obligation and responsibility of every subject.¡±
Lord Lu admonished.
¡°This humble one will certainly keep Lord Lu¡¯s teachings in mind.¡±
¡°You are now a first-ss noble, ranking at the same level as Lu. There¡¯s no need to belittle yourself any longer.¡±
Lord Lu said with a smile, offering a reminder.
¡°This junior will slowly adapt.¡±
Qin Niu immediately changed his way of speaking and no longer referred to himself as ¡°this lowly one.¡±
Lord Lu looked towards Young Master Fang.
¡°We should set off and continue the pursuit of Elder Jiu Yin and the rest of the scoundrels, let¡¯s depart!¡±
They obviously didn¡¯t know about the demise of Elder Jiu Yin at the hands of Qin Niu.
Qin Niu hesitated for two seconds but ultimately decided to keep it to himself until the end.
That Hundred Treasures Insect Bag was a valuable item; if they were to find out he had killed Elder Jiu Yin and demanded the spoils of war, wouldn¡¯t that be troublesome?
Furthermore, if the Nine Insect Gang knew it was he who killed Elder Jiu Yin, they would certainly regard him as a mortal enemy.
Qin Niu ultimately decided to keep this to himself.
After all, the body and evidence had already been destroyed.
¡°Master Qin, we shall take our leave then. Elder Jiu Yin has always been elusive, and from certain clues, we believe he may have fled back to Jade Stream Town. You must be careful. If you encounter him, do not act recklessly. Elder Jiu Yin is one of the two strongest elders of the Nine Insect Gang, with many tricks up his sleeve. Facing him alone, you could easily be killed instead.¡±
Fang Lian treated Qin Niu as a friend.
Only he knew that Qin Niu was not only an Insect Master but also an extremely adept nting Grandmaster.
The important medicinal nt of the Fang Family had gradually recovered under Qin Niu¡¯s treatment.
The crisis of the Fang Family had thus been averted.
But no one could guarantee that those important medicinal nts wouldn¡¯t have issues again, and there might be times in the future when they¡¯d need Qin Niu¡¯s help.
Now that Qin Niu had been ennobled as a first-ss noble, the Fang Family no longer had the power to manipte him as they pleased.
Improving rtions with him was the best strategy.
¡°Also, ording to reliable information, Elder Mei of the Nine Insect Gang led a group of experts into the hearnd of the ck Tiger Gang, possibly to rescue Elder Jiu Yin from his predicament. These experts are also very powerful, and although Elder Mei¡¯s insect control skills may not match Elder Jiu Yin¡¯s, his cultivation had already advanced to the Spirit Qi Realm over a hundred years ago. He is one of the Nine Insect Gang¡¯s top-tier experts, and if you happen to spot this person, the best strategy would be to run away.¡±
Fang Lian disclosed another important piece of information to Qin Niu.
This also showed that Lord Lu had kept certain information from him.
If it weren¡¯t for Fang Lian¡¯s disclosure, Qin Niu would have had no knowledge of this at all.
¡°Thank you for the reminder, Young Master Fang. Take care!¡±
Qin Niu expressed his thanks with a sped fist.
¡°Take care!¡±
Young Master Fang nodded and, along with the family¡¯s experts and Lord Lu, took their leave.
These individuals were among the elite of the ck Tiger Gang.