https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-160-The-Misty-Smoke-Fruit-Matures-the-Thousand-Illusions-Misty-Smoke-Formation/12543996/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-162-Gaining-Favor-Starts-with-Cultivation/12543998/
Chapter 161: Silver Thread Mantis
Chapter 161: Silver Thread Mantis
"A fourth-grade array, the Thousand Illusions Misty Smoke Array, is indeed extraordinary for a third-grade spirit plant. It's no wonder I've been carefully cultivating you for so long."
Lu Chen looked at the array disc in his hand, which displayed the misty smoke hanging upside down, and a delighted expression appeared on his face.
He had been worried about the protection of his small courtyard in Jianmen Town, but he hadn't expected the problem to be solved so soon by the light group reward brought by the Misty Smoke Fruit.
Currently, three types of spirit plants were cultivated in the small courtyard: the third-grade Ghost-faced Stone Mushroom, the third-grade Thorny Bone, and the fourth-grade Hundred-eyed Weird Wood. Each one was extremely precious, and he couldn't afford any mishaps.
As he had to focus most of his attention on the sect, he could only occasionally visit the courtyard, and it was natural to feel concerned about its safety.
Although Jianmen Town was not far from the Celestial Sword Sect, and there was little worry of demon beasts or evil creatures intruding, most of the cultivators in the town had close relationships with the inner disciples of the sect, the unpredictability of human nature meant that it was hard to guarantee that no one would harbor ill intentions if the owner of the courtyard was absent for an extended period.
Now, with the Thousand Illusions Misty Smoke Array, which combined illusion, maze, and killing arrays, Lu Chen no longer had to worry about this issue.
He put away the array disc and the Misty Smoke Fruit into his storage bag. He had originally intended to let the Cloud-stepping Lynx swallow the spirit fruit, but considering that its eyes were only skilled in distinguishing evil creatures, consuming the Misty Smoke Fruit, which enhanced illusion abilities, would not have much effect, so he changed his mind.
Over the next few days, he spent most of his time in his cave abode, cultivating spirit plants and nurturing spirit beasts. From time to time, he would make a trip to the Thousand Dragon Lake to feed the remaining Flood Dragons and Giant Pythons.
Each time he went, the Spirit Crane would refuse to accept his spirit stones. After several such occurrences, Lu Chen could only give up on the idea and bring some ordinary spirit fruits as a token of gratitude.
With the remaining time, he cultivated his techniques and spells. Although his cultivation level after several months might still be inferior to a single Spirit Firefly Grass, he could at least make some progress.
Life was extremely leisurely, especially after harvesting the third-grade Misty Smoke Fruit and obtaining the fourth-grade Thousand Illusions Misty Smoke Array. He felt even more content and satisfied.
"Is Brother Lu at home? I took on one of your tasks to collect demon beast eyes, and I'm here to hand them over to you."
A clear and cold female voice sounded from outside the courtyard.
"Yes, I'm here," Lu Chen replied, hurrying to open the courtyard gate.
A female cultivator with a graceful demeanor stood at the entrance.
The female cultivator entered the courtyard and casually sat down on a wooden stool. She took out three long, transparent bottles from her storage bag.
The bottles contained a pale green liquid in which various demon beast eyes were soaked. Each eye was vibrant and lush, as if they had just been extracted from the demon beasts' heads.
"This time, I managed to obtain fourteen complete demon beast eyes. Ten of them are from first-grade demon beasts, and four are from second-grade demon beasts. Each one was extracted recently, and I've preserved them using a special spirit liquid, so they should meet your requirements, Brother Lu," the graceful female cultivator said slowly.
Lu Chen took the bottles and probed them with his spiritual sense to assess the freshness of the eyes. He confirmed that the female cultivator's words were true.
"This eye is rather unique. It comes from a second-grade demon beast, the One-eyed Barbarian Rhino. It possesses tremendous barbaric strength and also has some illusion abilities," the female cultivator explained as she noticed Lu Chen staring at a large, deep black eye in one of the bottles.
Lu Chen nodded slightly upon hearing her words.
"Sister, according to the requirements of the task, each first-grade demon beast eye is worth ten spirit stones. Three of the second-grade demon beast eyes are rather ordinary, so I'm willing to purchase them for thirty spirit stones each.
The eye of the One-eyed Barbarian Rhino is slightly more special, so I'll offer fifty spirit stones for it. What do you think, Sister?"
These demon beasts were originally targets for another one of her tasks, and removing their eyes was merely an afterthought. Lu Chen's offer was a little low, but earning such a substantial sum on the side was still quite satisfactory.
Lu Chen handed over two hundred and forty spirit stones to the graceful woman and took the dozen or so demon beast eyes from her.
"The cost of cultivating high-grade spirit plants is quite high. I just spent over two hundred spirit stones on this fourth-grade Hundred-Eyed Weird Wood."
"The Spirit Firefly Grass is truly remarkable; it only needs a spiritual energy-rich environment to thrive."
"However, high-grade spirit plants have their advantages. These initial investments pale in comparison to their value, especially since I also have the light group reward!"
After the female cultivator left, Lu Chen returned to his house, gazing at the dozen or so eyes floating in the pale green liquid, and couldn't help but sigh.
He stored all the eyes in his ring, ensuring they remained as fresh as possible.
"Brother Lu, are you home? I've found some insect eggs and a type of larva for you."
Half a day later, as Lu Chen was inspecting his spirit fields, a deep voice called out from outside.
Lu Chen opened the courtyard gate to find a tall and burly cultivator standing at the entrance.
"I wonder what kind of insect eggs and larva Brother has brought?"
Lu Chen invited the tall cultivator into the house, served a pot of spirit tea, and asked curiously.
"Brother Lu, I must say, I went through quite a bit of trouble this time. As you know, demon insects guard their eggs and larvae very carefully, and finding them is at least ten times harder than finding the adult insects."
"I spent several days in the Red Miasma Valley before I could find two types. One is the first-grade Black Shell Insect, and the other is the second-grade Silver Thread Mantis larva."
The tall cultivator took a hearty gulp of the spirit tea and explained to Lu Chen. He then took out two items from his storage bag.
One bottle contained several insect eggs—flat and round, pitch-black and shiny, resembling small pebbles.
The other bottle held two mantis larvae, about half a finger long, with bodies as white as jade. Their front limbs resembled tiny knives, and a faint, thin silver line could be seen on their backs.
"These eggs are from the Black Shell Insects, first-grade demon insects. There are seven of them, usually found near odd-shaped stones. Once they mature, they develop decent defensive capabilities and can be used as refining materials for certain pills."
"As for these two larvae, they are Silver Thread Mantises, second-grade demon insects. They are incredibly fast and possess strong offensive capabilities."
The tall cultivator provided a detailed introduction for Lu Chen's benefit.
Lu Chen nodded in response. He wondered if the Black Shell Insects were the type that molted and shed their shells, but as long as they were raised together with the Xuan Worm Vine, they would likely develop a symbiotic relationship.
As for the Silver Thread Mantises, they perfectly met the requirements of the Xuan Worm Vine, and the two could grow together.
Additionally, it was worth mentioning that the Silver Thread Mantises were aesthetically pleasing. Among all the insects and bugs Lu Chen had seen or knew of, these mantises ranked first in terms of appearance.
"Brother, I intend to purchase each Black Shell Insect egg for six spirit stones, and each Silver Thread Mantis larva for thirty-five spirit stones. What do you think?"
Lu Chen's offer was quite reasonable, and the tall cultivator didn't haggle over a minor difference in spirit stones. He simply nodded in agreement.
Lu Chen took out one hundred and twelve spirit stones and handed them to the tall cultivator.
"Brother Lu, you're a straightforward man. If I come across any more insect eggs or larvae in the future, I'll be sure to bother you again."
The tall cultivator accepted the spirit stones and bid farewell.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
