Immortal Venerable of the Beast Race
Chapter 214 - 134 Closed-Door Cultivation_1

Chapter 214: 134 Closed-Door Cultivation_1

A full cup of tea time passed, and no more cultivators were transmitted out; both sides tallied up the numbers.

The Human Clan and the Barbarian Tribe each had sent three hundred Foundation Establishment Cultivators into the secret realm to hunt for treasure, and a total of ninety-two people came out alive, with forty-seven from the Human Clan and forty-five from the Barbarian Tribe, two people short.

"Madam Gu, Taoist Friend Ta, according to our agreement, you’ve lost,"

said Xuanyang True Monarch with a smile.

"Hmph, we will honor the agreement. Allocate the Qingxu crystal veins according to your plan. If you play any tricks again, we’ll continue the fight,"

said Gu Bing coldly.

"Sounds as if we’re scared of you. Losing is losing, and there’s no use being a dead duck with a stiff beak,"

taunted Du Yinyin.

With a cold snort, Gu Bing led his tribespeople away.

The Human Cultivators were jubilant; the war was finally coming to an end.

Three hundred Human Clan Foundation Establishment Cultivators had been dispatched into the Secret Realm for treasure-hunting, but only forty-seven cultivators came out alive. Upon tallying up, there were seventeen cultivators from Qin Country, eighteen from Wei Country, and twelve from Zhao Country.

Among the seventeen cultivators of Qin Country, there were five from the Spirit Control Sect, namely Shen Long, Lin Sisi, Ye Yutang, Ye Yuqing, and Xu Feng; Xuanyang Sect had only four disciples.

As such, regarding the share that the Human Clan was to receive, Wei Country took fifty percent, Qin Country took thirty percent, and Zhao Country twenty percent; from Qin’s share, Spirit Control Sect took the lion’s share.

The Spirit Control Sect had dispatched a total of twenty disciples into the secret realm, and with five coming out alive, the outcome was quite good.

Through this battle, both the Human Clan and the Barbarian Tribe had their gains and losses; Wei Country benefited the most, and within Qin Country, Spirit Control Sect gained the most.

The Hundred Ghosts Sect had two disciples who left the secret realm alive, while the Yin Corpse Sect had slightly more, four disciples.

The cultivators returned to Refuse Barbarian City and went back to their own posts.

Shen Long and the other four followed their sect’s seniors back to Spirit Control Garden, arriving at a hexagonal blue stone pavilion.

Du Yinyin sat on a stone chair with Ice Silkworm True Person, Golden Toad True Person, and over ten other Core Formation cultivators standing aside.

"Take out the Spiritual Medicine you’ve obtained. You may keep a quarter of it, and the rest will be converted into Kind Attribute according to the medicine you submit,"

said Ice Silkworm True Person.

Shen Long and the others each took out a Storage Bag, turned it upside down with a shake, and a cascade of glimmering light swept across, leaving a large pile of items on the ground.

Shen Long had the most Spiritual Medicine, which brought delight to Ice Silkworm True Person’s face.

After tallying, Shen Long had produced a total of two thousand three hundred stalks of Spiritual Medicine, all over a hundred years old, with the oldest being a seven-hundred-year-old Golden Jade Mushroom.

Xu Feng took out five hundred and twenty-five stalks, Lin Sisi four hundred and seventy-five stalks, Ye Yutang and Ye Yuqing combined had nine hundred and thirty-two stalks; thus, Shen Long alone surpassed the other four.

Shen Long thought Du Yinyin might use a Spiritual Beast to investigate and see if they had hidden any Spiritual Medicine, but she did not.

"Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit!"

When Du Yinyin saw the Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit Shen Long had taken out, her face showed delight.

"Shen Long, well done,"

commended Ice Silkworm True Person.

"Without the third-grade Talisman Master gave me, I would have probably died at the hands of a third-grade Monster Beast and wouldn’t have been able to get the Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit,"

Shen Long humbly said.

He had obtained a total of seven Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruits and had hidden one along with some Spiritual Medicine within the Spirit Control Tower.

After several tests, items hidden in the Spirit Control Tower were undetectable to the Green-Eyed Spirit Fox, and even if discovered, he could claim it was his own kept share.

According to the agreement, they could keep a quarter of the Spiritual Medicine, but whether to submit all of it and then keep a quarter, or submit three-quarters, neither Du Yinyin nor Ice Silkworm True Person specified.

"Nephew Shen, you did very well. On this treasure hunting trip to the secret realm, you gathered the most, so I reward you with a Core Formation Spiritual Object, and your submitted Spiritual Medicine will be converted into Kind Attribute,"

said Du Yinyin.

"Thank you, Master Aunt Du,"

Shen Long expressed his gratitude with a bow.

Envy was written all over the faces of Xu Feng and the others; their haul wasn’t small, but they were far behind Shen Long.

Du Yinyin took three of the Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruits and over a hundred stalks of Spiritual Medicine while Ice Silkworm True Person took two. Out of the two thousand-plus stalks of Spiritual Medicine Shen Long had taken out, he was able to keep a quarter.

After Du Yinyin gave some words of encouragement, she let them leave.

Shen Long followed Ice Silkworm True Person to the Ice Silkworm Court. Ice Silkworm True Person took out a Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit and handed it to Shen Long, saying, "You risked your life to obtain this, so you should have a Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit."

"Master, originally there were eight Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruits, but a third-grade Snow Pupil Toad ate two of them,"

Shen Long briefly recounted the events.

Although the Snow Pupil Toad ate only one Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit, Shen Long claimed it ate two and gave one to Bai Keke, leaving exactly five remaining.

"So that’s how it is, you’ve done well. In the end, finding a place to hide and wait for the closing of the Secret Realm is wise. One must know contentment in life,"

Ice Silkworm True Person said with a tone full of meaningful weight.

"Yes, Master’s teaching, I will bear it in mind,"

Shen Long replied.

He seemed to think of something, hesitating to speak.

"Are you wondering why Master Aunt Du didn’t use a Spirit Beast or a treasure to check whether you were secretly keeping any Spiritual Medicine?"

Ice Silworm True Person asked.

"Exactly!"

Shen Long honestly nodded; he had previously been worried about this.

"If the water is too clear, there are no fish! You risked your lives to enter the Secret Realm, and just surviving is not an easy feat. As long as it’s not too excessive, Master Aunt Du would turn a blind eye. However, not everyone is like Master Aunt Du, and you shouldn’t pin all your hopes on others,"

Ice Silkworm True Person said slowly.

"This disciple has taken the lesson to heart."

Shen Long nodded. Something came to his mind, and he said, "Master, can Spirit Beasts, Spirit Birds, and Spirit Insects below the fourth level mutate after consuming the Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit?"

"Of course not, the Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit merely increases the chances of mutation. Didn’t you also say that the third-level Snow Pupil Toad didn’t mutate, whereas the second-level one did?"

Ice Silkworm True Person replied.

"Is that a coincidence?"

Shen Long continued to ask.

"It’s a matter of probability," Ice Silkworm True Person spoke, "I speculate that they weren’t guarding the Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit at first. Later, they eliminated the Monster Beasts guarding the fruit. At that time, there was a third-level and a second-level Snow Pupil Toad. They both ate the Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit, with the second-level one showing a better response, which led to its mutation. If the third-level Snow Pupil Toad had eaten more, it might also have mutated. Your Spirit Beast, Spirit Bird, and Spirit Insect have a Purity of Bloodline at two, making it easier to mutate upon consuming the Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit. If it’s a third-level or has a Purity of Bloodline at three, the effect is lesser. Also, don’t feed the Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit to the Iron Tail Scorpion; it would be a waste."

"A waste? Why is that?"

Shen Long asked, puzzled.

"Any Spirit Beast, Spirit Insect, and Spirit Bird mutating once is quite an accomplishment. The difficulty to mutate a second time is even greater. Let me put it this way: throughout the tens of thousands of years of our sect’s history, many ancestors have bred Spirit Beasts, Spirit Birds, and Spirit Insects that underwent one mutation, and their Mutated Divine Powers are often not strong. Those that mutated twice amount to less than a handful, and that’s after consuming higher-tier Miracle Elixirs,"

Ice Silkworm True Person patiently explained.

"So, you’re saying that for the Iron Tail Scorpion to mutate again, the difficulty is significantly high, and it would require a higher-tier Miracle Elixir,"

Shen Long said.

"Not entirely. If you fed it the Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit, theoretically there’s a chance for another mutation, albeit at a lower probability. It would be better to feed other Spirit Beasts or Spirit Insects, like the Gold Ant Queen. Perhaps it might mutate into a Gold-Winged Fire Ant and significantly increase its strength,"

Ice Silkworm True Person said.

"Mutate into a Gold-Winged Fire Ant? How is that different from simply breeding Gold-Winged Fire Ants?"

Shen Long asked, confused.

Though both are types of Spirit Ants, the Gold-Winged Fire Ant possesses more powerful Divine Skills. If he really liked Gold-Winged Fire Ants, he could simply breed them.

"Since it is a mutation, it’s hard to say. Maybe the Divine Skills are more formidable than those of a regular Gold-Winged Fire Ant or perhaps weaker. Naturally, only if the Gold Ant Queen mutates into a Gold-Winged Fire Ant can more be born, inheriting its Mutated Divine Powers. A single Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit isn’t enough; ideally, the Gold Ant Queen should consume a higher-tier Demon Core from a Gold-Winged Fire Ant in combination with the Five-Colored Ganoderma Fruit, which increases the chances of a successful mutation,"

Ice Silkworm True Person explained.

Shen Long asked Ice Silkworm True Person for advice regarding the mutation of Spirit Insects, who informed him thoroughly and gave him meticulous guidance.

An hour and a half later, Shen Long took his leave and went back to his residence to rest.

Three days later, Shen Long and some other disciples of Spirt Control Sect followed Du Yinyin out of Refuse Barbarian City and returned to the Spirt Control Sect. The mining of the Qingxu Crystal Mines was left to others to handle.

After returning to the Spirt Control Sect, Shen Long invited Ye Yutang, Ye Yuqing, Qian Dafu, and others to Qinglian Garden for tea and a casual chat.

"I plan to enter seclusion for cultivation for a while. Junior Brother Qian, I need your help in collecting higher-tier Gold-Winged Fire Ant inner cores,"

Shen Long said.

"Consider it done, leave it to me,"

Qian Dafu assured him, patting his chest.

After chatting for over three hours, Qian Dafu and the others took their leave. Shen Long walked into the Qinglian Pavilion and entered a secret chamber.

He took out a Blood Flood Dragon Pill, swallowed it, and began cultivating while assimilating the medicine’s power.