Chapter 254 - 192: A New Use for a Divine Ability, Arranging Affairs
Chapter 254: Chapter 192: A New Use for a Divine Ability, Arranging Affairs
In the end, the Sun Family could no longer hold out. The Spirit Beast grew older by the day, its value plummeting, and they finally agreed to sell it for the price of five thousand five hundred.
They also threw in the Magic Technique required to raise this Spirit Beast.
However, the two Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Sun Family wore expressions of men who had gritted their teeth and made a great concession.
"Thank you for your trouble."
Upon hearing the news, Lin Changheng immediately took out the full amount of Spirit Stones and handed them over.
At the same time, Chef Zeng took a Spirit Beast Bag from his waist, produced a Beast Taming Token, and handed both to Lin Changheng.
The two chatted for a while longer before Chef Zeng finally took his leave. Lin Changheng, for his part, immediately began to inspect the Spirit Beast Bag.
Inside was a gigantic clam-like creature.
The Deep Lake Spirit Clam!
He’d gotten it!
Using his Magical Power, he drew the beast out of the Spirit Beast Bag.
Following a flash of dark Spiritual Light, the Deep Lake Spirit Clam crashed to the ground. Its heavy shell slammed onto the stone slabs with a dull thud.
It was as large as a massive stone millstone. Its shell was a cyan-black color, its surface covered in fine, spiral patterns. A faint, ethereal blue Spiritual Light shimmered at its edges, a clear sign of being nourished by Water Spirit Qi for many years.
A glint appeared in Lin Changheng’s eyes as he continued to observe it.
The shell opened and closed slightly, revealing a glimpse of the glossy, jade-like flesh within. A wisp of misty water vapor could be faintly seen swirling in the gap.
Furthermore, the pure Water Spiritual Power it emanated was at the level of a Tier Two!
According to the Sun Family, this Spirit Clam had been growing and undergoing Cultivation for nearly one hundred and fifty years and was already old. Otherwise, they would never have sold it.
Lin Changheng subconsciously circulated the True Intent of his Rongsheng Divine Abilities. He briefly sensed it and confirmed that the clam’s Lifespan was indeed short—only about ten years left.
’But logically, a Tier Two Spirit Clam shouldn’t be like this. It should live for at least two hundred years. What’s more, it’s a Water Element Spirit Beast. Water Spiritual Power has nourishing properties that should make Longevity easier to achieve.’
But the facts were laid bare before him. The Deep Lake Spirit Clam’s Lifespan was faintly discernible; in its current state, it would live for about one hundred and sixty years in total.
’Did something happen to drastically reduce its Lifespan? Or is its life force just draining away faster?’
Lin Changheng cupped his chin in thought.
The Sun Family hadn’t mentioned this, and perhaps they didn’t even know.
’For me, if I can make the Deep Lake Spirit Clam live even a few more years, this will be a massive profit. It’s a Tier Two Spiritual Beast, which means it’s a Tier Two fighting force!’
"Brother Lin, what’s wrong?"
Yan Mingyi, who had been in her room cultivating, vaguely heard a heavy object fall outside. She immediately stopped her practice and ran out.
She came out to see Brother Lin standing in the courtyard, squatting in front of a large black stone.
’Wait, where did this big black stone come from?’
As she got closer, she realized it was a living clam.
Her red lips parted slightly in curiosity.
"This is a Tier Two Spiritual Beast. Don’t underestimate it."
Seeing Yan Mingyi about to reach out and touch it, Lin Changheng smiled and reminded her.
"Ah? It’s that powerful?"
Yan Mingyi was slightly startled. Her fair hand stopped in mid-air, not daring to touch it.
"Go ahead, you can touch it."
Lin Changheng chuckled and brandished the Beast Taming Token in his hand, indicating that the beast was already under control.
Seeing this, Yan Mingyi dared to touch it, clearly placing immense trust in Lin Changheng.
The shell was cool to the touch, yet it contained a terrifying power within.
Then she asked curiously, "Doesn’t this Spirit Clam need water?"
Lin Changheng had already read through the complimentary Magic Technique Jade Scroll for raising this Spirit Beast. He smiled and said, "It’s best if it’s in water, but it can survive out of it."
At the same time, Lin Changheng tossed the Jade Scroll directly into Yan Mingyi’s hands.
"It’s all in here. This should answer your questions."
’The task of caring for this Spirit Clam would ultimately fall to his concubine.’
’Then again, a Tier Two Spiritual Beast like this was extremely easy to raise. You just had to periodically toss in the required food, and that was it. You could even raise it in a lake or pond, add some Spirit Fish, and scatter some fry, and then you could basically ignore it.’
’It was just that Lin Changheng’s current cave residence didn’t have the conditions for digging a pond or filling a lake.’
’If he had an entire mountain peak as a Dao Field like Mo Zhaoli, the space would be enormous, enough to raise anything he wanted, however he wanted.’
"I understand."
Yan Mingyi smiled and nodded. Seeing that Lin Changheng seemed to be studying something, she obediently took the Jade Scroll and went back inside.
’What on earth is the reason?’
Lin Changheng gently flicked the clam’s shell with his finger, wanting to inspect it. With his current level of Body Refining and physical strength, he feared that even a slight bit of force would instantly shatter the hard, black shell.
CREAK...
The shell actually opened wide, completely exposing the tender, jade-like flesh inside.
’It must have sensed the presence of the Beast Taming Token.’
Quite docile and obedient.
’No wonder it’s a Spirit Beast; its nature is fundamentally different from the violent and ferocious temperament of a Demon Beast.’
A moment later, Lin Changheng withdrew his Divine Sense and his gaze. The confusion on his face deepened; he still couldn’t determine the crux of the problem.
He had just scanned it back and forth several times, and the Deep Lake Spirit Clam had been quite cooperative, yet he had still found nothing.
’Maybe I should try the Poison Transformation Demon Technique?’
Lin Changheng began to experiment. After all, this was the technique that had saved the Black Armored Earth Turtle’s Beast Egg before, so it was well worth a try.
Having made his decision, he directed a stream of cool energy, wrapped in Magical Power, to surge into the Deep Lake Spirit Clam and cleanse its flesh.
「A quarter of an hour later.」
Lin Changheng temporarily stopped and began to check the clam’s condition, but there was no obvious change.
’Could it be unrelated to poison?’
Fortunately, Lin Changheng had many methods, and he tried them one by one.
The clam’s condition did not improve.
Lin Changheng couldn’t help but shake his head. If he ultimately couldn’t find a solution, then his only option was to spend the next ten years nourishing it while also extracting its blood.
’This had been his original plan anyway. He was just trying these other methods to push for a better outcome.’
......
HUMMM~ HUMMM~
A greenish halo of light appeared, projecting from Lin Changheng’s hand to envelop the giant clam before him, pulsing with the breath of life.
This was Lin Changheng’s final trump card: the True Intent of his Rongsheng Divine Abilities.
He wasn’t using his own Lifespan to activate this Divine Power True Intent; it wasn’t necessary, nor was it worth the cost.
Instead, he was powering it with Magical Power.
At this moment, Lin Changheng’s focus was split. His Divine Sense spread out to ensure no one was watching, confirming that Yan Mingyi was still meditating and comprehending something.
’This was his greatest secret, second only to the Primordial Cauldron. He had to be absolutely certain.’
’Hm? What’s this?’
Lin Changheng was taken aback.
As the halo of light continuously washed over it, a sort of aura of Withered Silence seemed to be revealed from deep within the Deep Lake Spirit Clam.
It had been hidden extremely deep, but now it was being drawn out.
Lin Changheng was overjoyed. He increased the power, and the True Intent of his Rongsheng Divine Abilities clashed with the aura of Withered Silence, both annihilating each other.
But the aura of Withered Silence was finite, while Lin Changheng’s Rongsheng Divine Abilities True Intent was limitless.
’As long as he had enough Magical Power, they would cancel each other out, and his would definitely be the one left standing!’
He exhaled sharply.
Once Lin Changheng had consumed half of his Magical Power, he stopped immediately.
’That portion was for emergencies and couldn’t be touched lightly.’
He once again sensed the Deep Lake Spirit Clam’s condition and found that it was much better.
It was no longer aging and withering away at an accelerated rate.
But what had been lost could not be recovered.
This was about saving what hadn’t yet been lost. Lin Changheng had a faint feeling that if he could completely wear away this aura of Withered Silence, whose source was unknown, the clam could live for at least another forty or fifty years.
Reaching a Lifespan of two hundred years shouldn’t be a problem.
By then, the Essence Blood he could extract from the Spirit Stealing Fifth Layer all the way to Metamorphosis should be just barely enough.
If it only had ten years left, even if he forcefully exploited it or even killed it for its Essence Blood, it definitely wouldn’t be enough.
’It seems the applications of the Rongsheng Divine Abilities True Intent are quite broad. The ones I know of so far include "nurturing life and counteracting death." It’s truly powerful.’
Lin Changheng was overjoyed.
’I just need to remove a little bit every day, and it’ll be gone in a month or two.’
GURGLE GURGLE...
The Deep Lake Spirit Clam seemed to sense the change in its own body and immediately revealed a sense of joy. At the same time, its shell opened and closed continuously, as if giving thanks.
"No need to thank me."
A smile instantly appeared on Lin Changheng’s face. He patted the shell and said in a tempting voice:
"Heh heh, once your body has recovered, you can start donating blood."
"Yes, donating blood in moderation is good for your health..."
The Deep Lake Spirit Clam was clearly stunned for a moment, as if contemplating something. Finally, considering the professionalism of Lin Changheng’s recent treatment, it happily flapped its giant shell, stirring up gusts of wind. "GURGLE! GURGLE!"
’Is that a nod? Did it agree?’
"Good Xiaobai."
Lin Changheng couldn’t help but sigh with emotion.
’He had also given the clam a nickname. Hmm, its shell was black, but the Black Armored Earth Turtle had already taken the name "Xiaohai," so he decided to name it based on the color of its flesh. "Xiaobai" was just right.’
......
With this in mind, Lin Changheng was in high spirits. He raised his hand and used his Cyan Gold Flying Sword Spiritual Artifact to carve out a small pond in a corner of the courtyard.
He then cast the Earth Solidification Skill, filled it with fresh water, and wrapped the clam in Magical Power to move it inside.
"Make do with this for now."
"When your master gets a bigger cave residence in the future, I’ll promise you an entire lake to roam in!"
The Deep Lake Spirit Clam was currently bobbing up and down in the pond. Seeing this, Lin Changheng laughed from the pond’s edge.
PSSH! PSSH! PSSH!...
Small jets of water shot out in all directions, looking just like a fountain from his past life. It was quite a sight. The clam had clearly bought the grand promise Lin Changheng had made.
......
「The next day, which was also his fifth day with the Huang Family.」
Lin Changheng was summoned by a messenger from Huang Jiuyuan, the Huang Family Grand Elder and patriarch of the branch family.
In Huang Jiuyuan’s exclusive mountain peak cave residence, the two of them closed the door and had a secret discussion for a long time before Lin Changheng finally emerged.
He was personally seen off by Huang Jiuyuan.
Both men wore placid expressions, making it impossible to read their thoughts.
And no one could know what the two had just discussed.
Chef Zeng, who was there to receive him, was curious, but he knew better than to ask any careless questions.
’But Lin Changheng knew. An aura of Withered Silence clung to Huang Jiuyuan; he was simply making arrangements for what would come after his death.’
The man had given him something, hoping that for the next thirty years—as long as there were no serious incidents like betrayal or backstabbing from the Huang Family—Lin Changheng would not hold minor issues against them and maintain the current state of cooperation with the Huang Family.
Lin Changheng had wanted to refuse, but in the end, under the man’s earnest, clouded gaze, he had agreed.
Of course, the item the man had offered also played a significant role in pushing Lin Changheng toward his decision.
It made it difficult for him to refuse.