If you had a Golden Finger that could extract Low Rank Spiritual Beast Bloodlines at will and infuse them into other Spiritual Beasts, what would you do?
Could Spiritual Beasts with First Rank Bloodlines, without any other Bloodlines in their bodies, strengthen their own Bloodlines to the limit by continuously using the Golden Finger?
Unfortunately, the types of Spiritual Beasts are as elusive as stars. Occasionally, there are spiritual beasts with only a few types of Bloodlines, but those spiritual beasts are generally outrageously strong and not something Chen Jiuge could hope for. freew\ebno\vel..(c)om
After achieving the Nascent Soul, the Golden Finger’s ability changed from extracting from a single Spiritual Beast three times to four times. This meant that as long as the number of Bloodlines within a target did not exceed five, Chen Jiuge could test the aforementioned question.
Coincidentally, the Myriad Beasts Sect happened to have such a Fourth Rank Spiritual Beast. However, testing this idea required a large number of Spiritual Beasts, and a large number meant a lot of Spirit Stones. Luckily, Chen Jiuge had earned a considerable sum from his latest venture, and it looked like it would be enough.
Thus, Chen Jiuge began his plan.
The Fourth Rank Spiritual Beast, the Stone-dragon Lizard, was an ancient creature that had existed since the era when True Immortals roamed the land. For a Spiritual Beast with a Fourth Rank Bloodline to survive to this day was already remarkable. Moreover, this Stone-dragon Lizard’s Bloodline was very pure, mixed with only four other weak Spiritual Beast Bloodlines—truly a miracle of creation.
Spiritual Beast Bloodlines represent the upper limit of a Spiritual Beast’s maturity. While it’s possible for a Spiritual Beast not to reach this limit, this rarely happens. The limit can be broken, much like Cultivators break through their Cultivation Realms, though it is very difficult for Spiritual Beasts to do so.
Although the Stone-dragon Lizard was just a Fourth Rank Spiritual Beast, many unconventional Stone-dragon Lizards had reached a high level of strength. The upper limit of a Bloodline is hard to break, but the fewer mixed Bloodlines there are, the higher the success rate of breaking through. This consistently kept the price of Stone-dragon Lizards high.
The Myriad Beasts Sect, being a top-tier Sect for Guardian Beasts and Spirit Beast Breeding in the Heavenly Realm, naturally possessed this Spiritual Beast of great potential, and in no small quantity, especially since Stone-dragon Lizards reproduce and mature quickly.
Compared to other Spiritual Beasts that might take hundreds of years to mature, Stone-dragon Lizards only need three years—or possibly just one year with proper assistance—to reach adulthood without any loss of potential. They were veritable breeding machines! Sadly, Stone-dragon Lizards are slow and not very powerful in combat. Only their defensive capabilities are notable; otherwise, they would have dominated the Low Rank Spiritual Beast realm long ago.
「Hundred Herbs Garden Immortal City, Beast King Pavilion」
"Five hundred Upper Spirits for one?" Chen Jiuge was incredulous. Despite its various advantages, the Stone-dragon Lizard had even greater disadvantages: its flesh was toxic, and its scales and claws became brittle after death, unsuitable for Artifact Refining. It couldn’t fight, couldn’t be eaten, and the only useful part while alive was its feces, which served as fertilizer. The only truly valuable component was its inner core.
"No, I remember Stone-dragon Lizards used to be three hundred Upper Spirits each, didn’t they? Now it’s five hundred?" Chen Jiuge still couldn’t believe it.
"Senior, didn’t you know? An Elder from Green Dragon Peak had a Stone-dragon Lizard that successfully underwent its Tribulation and became an immortal just half a month ago," the shop assistant said enviously.
What is going on? I finally made some money and can test the limits of the Golden Finger, and now you’re telling me Stone-dragon Lizard prices have increased? This Elder! Why did he have to raise a Stone-dragon Lizard to immortality at this exact moment? It’s too much!
"I’m buying in bulk. Can you give me a discount?" Chen Jiuge said, his expression dark.
The shop assistant seemed skeptical. While many in the Myriad Beasts Sect raised Spiritual Beasts, not many mass-bred Stone-dragon Lizards. It was only after the news of a Stone-dragon Lizard achieving immortality spread half a month ago that demand had slightly increased.
"How many does Senior require?" the shop assistant asked cautiously.
"I need two hundred," Chen Jiuge said through gritted teeth. Damn it, it looks like I’ll have to use Spirit Marrow for this.
The quantity of two hundred made the shop assistant gasp, his eyes filled with admiration. "Senior, please wait a moment. I’ll go ask the shopkeeper."
Soon after, a round, shiny golden orb "rolled" over.
Looking at the shopkeeper whose eyes were squeezed into a single line, Chen Jiuge hesitated and asked, "Shopkeeper?"
"Ah, esteemed guest, that is I. You have a keen eye! Our shop is a time-honored establishment of the Myriad Beasts Sect. My humble name is Qian Youyi. Might I ask if the honored guest is truly serious about purchasing two hundred Stone-dragon Lizards?" Qian Youyi inquired, his smile stretching into what looked like a ’gaping maw’.
Looking at the shopkeeper, who seemed to be smiling, Chen Jiuge replied seriously, "Two hundred Stone-dragon Lizards, at least half of them adults. How many Spirit Stones? I want an honest price. If not, I’ll take my business elsewhere."
Qian Youyi thought for a moment and said, "Five adult Stone-dragon Lizards, the rest juveniles, for fifty thousand Upper Spirits." Qian Youyi gritted his teeth as he spoke.
This price was already quite low. Five adult Stone-dragon Lizards would cost 2,500 Upper Spirits at the current price, and 1,500 Upper Spirits at the old price. Although the juvenile Stone-dragon Lizards were cheaper, they previously cost around two hundred and forty Upper Spirits each. Considering they matured quickly, their price wasn’t significantly lower.
The price was still within Chen Jiuge’s acceptable range. Realizing he would need to use Spirit Marrow to pay, Chen Jiuge tried to negotiate further, "I’ll pay with Spirit Marrow. Four pieces of Spirit Marrow, how about it?"
The exchange ratio between Spirit Marrow and Upper Spirits was 1:10,000. However, in practice, Spirit Marrow had so many uses and applications that its actual value was often more than ten percent higher than this official rate.
"Agreed." Qian Youyi’s eyes, already narrowed to slits, nearly disappeared completely, making it impossible for Chen Jiuge to discern his true thoughts.
Having acquired two hundred Stone-dragon Lizards for four pieces of Spirit Marrow, Chen Jiuge let out a sigh of relief. The price wasn’t too exorbitant, barely acceptable. It’s all that Green Dragon Peak Elder’s fault!
「Back at the Spiritual Beast Garden」
Chen Jiuge first set up an Array to prevent other Spiritual Beasts from disturbing them and to stop the Stone-dragon Lizards from running amok.
Stone-dragon Lizards, despite their name containing the word ’Dragon,’ were not of the Dragon Species, and their mixed Bloodline did not contain any Dragon Species.
They possessed a fixed combination of five Bloodlines: the Stone-dragon Lizard Bloodline, Armored Stone Worm Bloodline, Golden Stone Pangolin Bloodline, Grey Stone Mouse Bloodline, and Black Stone Snake Bloodline.
All were Spiritual Beasts whose names contained the word ’stone.’ It was said that a great expert had intentionally named them this way. Curiously, while the Stone-dragon Lizard’s Bloodline was mixed with these four specific Bloodlines, the Spiritual Beasts from which these four Bloodlines originated each had a much more diverse and complex mix of other Bloodlines.
All the Stone-dragon Lizards were released from the Spiritual Beast Bag. Unlike other Spiritual Beasts that might become panicked and anxious in a new environment, these Stone-dragon Lizards were remarkably docile. They immediately lowered their heads and began to eat the Spirit Grass. Truly befitting Spiritual Beasts that had survived since ancient times, they were incredibly composed.
The Stone-dragon Lizards weren’t very large. From head to tail, they measured just over two meters, with their tails accounting for half of that length. Their four short legs were only a few dozen centimeters high. Combined with their rock-like Scale Armor, they resembled giant stones from a distance. Their faces were quite similar to the lizards Chen Jiuge remembered from his previous life. Ironically, these creatures were herbivores, completely wasting such a carnivorous-looking face.
Five of them. The experiment required these five Stone-dragon Lizards as the primary subjects; the other juvenile Stone-dragon Lizards were merely to be sacrificial offerings for these five.
Taking a deep breath, Chen Jiuge looked sharply at the carefree group of Stone-dragon Lizards and softly said, "The time has come to witness a miracle."