She Only Cares About Cultivation
Chapter 223: [222] Tasty and Pretty Fisherman 73 (sixteenth watch)

Chapter 223: [222] Tasty and Pretty Fisherman 73 (sixteenth watch)

Xiao Yu immediately nodded, "Yes, that’s right, I hadn’t expected it either. Look how big this octopus is; it’ll be enough for us to eat for several meals, haha!"

Xiao Yu carried the wooden bucket into the room, wanting Grandma to have a look too. After several days of her treatment, the old woman’s condition had improved a lot. She was even able to catch octopuses by herself, and she picked it up for inspection.

"This is a female octopus, even if you don’t catch it, it’s about to die."

"Ah? Why is that?"

Xiao Yu hurriedly leaned in to see, but with her experience, she couldn’t tell its gender at all.

"This female octopus has just laid eggs. She may be the most devoted and self-sacrificing mother in the world."

As it turned out, female octopuses give birth only once in their lifetime, laying hundreds to thousands of eggs, hidden within their dens.

During the incubation period, the female octopus stays by the den without moving, neither eating nor sleeping.

Not only does she fend off predators, but she also constantly moves her tentacles to keep the water in the den refreshed,

Providing the unhatched little ones with enough oxygen.

On the day the baby octopuses hatch, the octopus mother completes her life’s duty and exhausts herself to death.

And she becomes food for the baby octopuses, allowing the little ones to eat well and grow quickly.

"Actually, octopuses, like hens, will protect their offspring. She will caress them, and periodically breathe some water onto them to keep the water fresh. And octopuses will not abandon their offspring, not even willing to leave them for a moment. If prey comes to them, then the octopus will catch it for a nice meal, but it will completely stop eating after four days."

"One week after laying the eggs, the behavior of the female octopus becomes unstable. She not only begins to refuse to hunt and eat, but she also starts to exhibit clear self-destructive behavior. Fishermen have observed that during the late incubation period, octopuses will tear their own skin and eat the tips of their tentacles. They harm themselves as if possessed. What’s more surprising and puzzling is that if you farm the octopuses, they will violently crash into the sides of their tanks. Then, when the eggs begin to hatch, the female octopus dies."

"In this way, the offspring of these octopuses are born orphans. Without the guidance of adult octopuses, they must survive on their own. Perhaps this is one of the reasons for the intelligence and adaptability of octopuses. This behavior might also explain why octopuses tend to be such solitary creatures."

She and Yaya listened, enraptured, and without thinking, asked, "Then...what about the male octopus?"

Grandma’s expression suddenly became indescribable, and she took a look at both of them before continuing,

"The fate of the male octopus isn’t that great, either. Female octopuses usually kill and eat their mates. If they don’t, they will die within a few months after mating. For octopuses, reaching mating age also means the countdown of their life begins."

"Ah? There’s such a thing? That’s almost like the Black Widow Spider!"

After Yaya asked about the Black Widow Spider, Xiao Yu explained it again, and everyone couldn’t help but sigh. However, this is the rule of nature. It’s a pity this octopus mother wasn’t eaten by her children, but ended up in their mouths. It’s truly regrettable, but they wouldn’t give up the food in front of them, especially since they were hungry too. This was the irresistible rule of the food chain.

Having learned about the tragic life of the octopus mother, the sisters quickly went out to prepare breakfast. Their breakfast wasn’t different from usual, still steamed potatoes. As for the octopus feast, they would wait until noon to eat it. And for Grandma, it was still the cornmeal porridge, but looking at it, they were running out soon. What should Grandma eat after that?

"After we’ve eaten, let’s go to town and sell this dried seaweed, shall we?"

Yaya looked at Xiao Yu anxiously, "Sister, can we really sell it?"

"It’s okay to try, isn’t it? I think we’ve dried at least ten pounds these past days. Later we can carry it in bamboo baskets and sell it to restaurants. As for whether the villagers believe me or not, I can’t control that. We should at least try our luck before we can buy more food to bring back. Otherwise, how can Grandma nourish her body?"

Hearing Xiao Yu’s explanation, Yaya felt even more embarrassed, "Sister, I’m sorry for causing you so much trouble and effort."

"Alright, we’re family, no need for such formalities. Let’s quickly eat, then head to town and give it a try."

——Considering the descriptions of octopuses in this Chapter, the word count exceeds 1300 words. The additional hundreds of words are to compensate for the word count.