Chapter 408: 400: The Improvement of All Pets_1
There was no way around it, so Qin Niu could only buy some books for her to study.
At least she could accumulate some theoretical knowledge first.
Now, let’s talk about the cultivation progress of his two wives. Wang Wanyan’s cultivation speed was still relatively slow, but it felt like she had laid a very solid foundation.
Moreover, her cultivation direction seemed to be significantly different from Tang Caixian’s.
Though both of them were practicing the same cultivation technique, it was unclear why there was such a big difference.
Wang Wanyan had also already broken through to the Acquired Realm and reached the fourth level. To have such great progress in just over two months was largely due to the benefits of the Ancient Banyan Tree.
Practicing under the tree, one could cultivate more than twenty times faster than in the outside world.
As long as one wasn’t too foolish and was a little diligent, and the cultivation technique wasn’t complete garbage, one could generally achieve a cultivation speed like Wang Wanyan’s.
Tang Caixian, practicing the Dragon and Tiger Art, displayed quite an impressive talent and had now reached the ninth level of the Acquired Realm, leaving Wang Wanyan far behind.
If nothing unexpected happened, it was estimated that with another month or so of cultivation, she should have hope of advancing to the Innate Realm.
In these two months, aside from his own cultivation, Qin Niu also spent a great deal of time secretly observing that fire bird.
As long as it wasn’t a rainy day, the fire bird would always go to that cave to cultivate.
This fact had already been confirmed without a doubt.
Twice, he had hidden near the cave in advance and witnessed the fire bird flying into the cave with his own eyes. Each time it went in for cultivation, it stayed for two to three hours.
When it went in, there was nothing unusual.
When it came out, its body would always be covered with raging flames.
Qin Niu had observed the fire bird up close several times.
It differed greatly from the legendary Fire Phoenix.
Its size was certainly large, but the aura it emitted could only be described as quite terrifying, though lacking the domineering presence and majesty of a supreme creature of heaven and earth.
Fierce enough, but not sufficiently majestic.
It was precisely because it was not a Fire Phoenix that Qin Niu dared to think about making it his own.
He had now, by lurking with termites on the highest peak and from two to three months of secret observation, essentially figured out the fire bird’s daily routine.
There were multiple demon birds living on the highest peak, and trying to subdue this fire bird there was almost impossible.
Even if Qin Niu’s cultivation had advanced to the Spirit Qi Realm, there was still no chance.
Through various predictions, he believed that if he were discovered by the fire bird on the highest peak, he would almost certainly die.
The best place to subdue it would likely be inside that cave.
It would be easiest to succeed by taking advantage of it during its cultivation.
He was currently making further plans, preparing to find an opportunity to hide inside the cave in advance.
Then, he would secretly observe the fire bird’s cultivation process.
To see if there was an opportunity to exploit.
However, he was very aware that doing this was very dangerous, and if the fire bird discovered him, the consequences would be dire.
Therefore, he had to be thoroughly prepared.
In these more than two months, his gains in controlling insects were also tremendous.
The Gold Devouring Ant had become stronger and stronger with his continuous feeding.
Despite its appetite not seeming large, it chose only the most expensive metals to eat. Initially, Qin Niu fed it only copper and iron.
After he fed it Silver Money, it started to eat Silver Money exclusively, ignoring copper and iron.
Late on, Qin Niu tried feeding it a small piece of gold.
That caused a lot of trouble.
From then on, it ate only gold.
On average, it could consume about ten grams of gold per day. To think, in ten days, it would consume a hundred grams of gold.
This was very costly.
Fortunately, after eating gold, its evolution speed was also extremely evident. At least it was proportional to the money invested.
Qin Niu was unsure to what extent the Gold Devouring Ant could eventually grow.
Since the Gold Devouring Ant could match or even surpass the War Demon Ant, its growth limit definitely would not be low.
Qin Niu was very much looking forward to the day it would advance to Grade Eight.
Almost all insects only reveal whether their abilities are strong or weak after advancing to Grade Eight.
Whether they are dragons or crawling reptiles, it can only be known upon reaching Grade Eight.
Take, for instance, his Red-eyed Golden Toad, which is considered a decent abnormal species among heaven and earth.
When it was at Grade Seven, it seemed strong, but when it fought against formidable insects, it always appeared somewhat weak.
Now that it has advanced to Grade Eight and evolved the Frog Croak Skill, plus the further enhancement of other skills, it becomes aberrantly powerful when battling formidable insects.
There was almost no insect it couldn’t overcome.
His Termite Army had grown by nearly sixty thousand in just over two months.
This was an incredibly large number.
He was very satisfied with the number of Demon Ants. His only regret was that no more special breeds like the War Demon Ant or Gold Devouring Ant had appeared since then.
Fortunately, his Green Demon Bee hadn’t disappointed him.
About a month after mating with the Dark Gold Shadow Fire Bee, the Green Demon Bee started laying eggs.
So far, it had laid thirty-two eggs.
It seemed to be laying an egg almost every day.
The eggs were currently incubating and being nurtured.
Once all these eggs successfully hatched, Qin Niu would have thirty-three Green Demon Bees.
And this number would continue to increase.
Its egg-laying had not stopped, with one egg being produced daily.
The thought of him commanding thirty-two Green Demon Bees in a charge into battle was terrifying.
Whether they could slaughter an Immortal Master was still up for debate.
At least, dealing with strong beings of the Spirit Qi Realm would be like child’s play.
His bees had been continuously collecting pollen from the Ice Lotus to make honey.
This special honey, he estimated, would take over a year to produce, and there would only be a little of it.
As for the effects of this special honey, Qin Niu was very excited.
The Ice Lotus itself was already quite special, and honey made by the War Bees and special honey-making bees couldn’t be too bad.
Additionally, his other insects like the Green Silk Worm, Black Spider Gu, and others were also growing.
The progeny of Green Silk Worms had become quite substantial.
If Qin Niu wanted to surveil someone, he could completely do so without them knowing.
It was a pity that Green Silk Worms were only proficient at hiding on humans.
Against other creatures, Green Silk Worms could be somewhat useful, but their effectiveness was limited.
Another thing worth mentioning was Wang Wanyan’s cat, which, after consuming the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood, fell into a state similar to death.
It had no breathing or heartbeat, and it had not woken up yet.
Its body had not stiffened, nor had it started to rot or emit a foul odor.
This unique method of evolution had opened Qin Niu’s eyes. For a long time, Wan Yan grieved for her cat.
When Qin Niu wanted to get her another pet, she refused no matter what.
She was determined to wait for her cat to wake up.
…
That day, Qin Niu entered the cave early with his tools, vigorously digging out a hole just big enough to hide himself.
He dug over four meters deep.
He planned to hide inside to spy on how the Fire Phoenix cultivated.
For absolute certainty, he dug another lateral tunnel from the hole to conceal his presence.