Immortality and Cultivation: Starting with Harvesting the Talents of Demonic Beasts

Chapter 77 Black-Armored Earth Tortoise
Its entire surface is bluish-green, with faint square patterns spreading across the surface of the animal egg.

Lin Changheng raised an eyebrow, intrigued. He looked at the beast egg without speaking, and sure enough, Liu Fengxiu, the shopkeeper, began his introduction:
"This is the egg of the Black-Armored Earth Turtle, possessing the Xuanling Bloodline. The bloodline is quite good, and it will most likely reach the second tier after adulthood, but it has not yet hatched!"

"Oh? That's quite impressive. Among the Xuanling bloodline, it's probably in the upper-middle range, right?"

Lin Changheng gave a compliment.

Manager Liu nodded naturally, but before Manager Liu could continue, Lin Changheng frowned slightly and asked, "But since this tortoise is so extraordinary, why hasn't your shop made a move yet? Logically speaking, some Qi Refining families, or even Foundation Establishment families, would find it difficult to refuse such a long-lived spirit beast with a high probability of reaching the second tier upon adulthood, right?"

"Moreover, with a major auction approaching, it's clear that consignment bidding could be a good way to aim for a high price..."

"Could it be... that this egg has some kind of defect?"

At this moment, Lin Changheng looked as if he had just realized something, believing that he had guessed the key to the matter.

Upon hearing this, Manager Liu showed no embarrassment and instead said quite frankly, "Fellow Daoist is indeed insightful. This is what I will explain to you next. As for whether or not you will make the purchase, it is entirely up to your inner judgment and wishes."

Lin Changheng nodded, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

"That's how it is. This egg wasn't cultivated by our clan. Instead, it was obtained by a Foundation Establishment senior who was on good terms with our clan after slaying a demon during the Great Wilderness Opening. He was initially quite pleased, knowing that this tortoise had good bloodline and a gentle temperament, and planned to raise it. However, he soon discovered something was amiss."

"The life force of this beast egg is weak, which can be detected even by someone who is not skilled in beast taming."

Upon hearing this, Lin Changheng stepped forward to touch it, finding it icy cold. He then used his magical power to sense it.

Sure enough, the vitality of this beast egg was not as obvious as the miscellaneous earth dragon beast egg he had sensed downstairs; the latter was surging and powerful, while this one was extremely weak.

While it's unlikely that the person suddenly died, it's clear that there's a sickly individual among them, or perhaps someone with congenital malformation.

Meanwhile, Manager Liu kept saying, "So, the senior entrusted this tortoise to our clan, who are skilled in beast taming, to see if they could find a way to cure it. Soon, the elders of the clan all took action, but they still gave a negative answer."

"When this animal egg was developing in the mother turtle's abdomen, the mother turtle was suspected of being infected with some kind of rare animal poison, which was then passed on to the egg, thus leaving this disease."

"The toxin has penetrated deep and is incurable, but since the egg did not die, it means that it has developed some resistance to the toxin. The probability of it dying after hatching is not high, but its potential will definitely be greatly reduced. It can forget about reaching the second tier, but there is a chance to break through to the late stage of the first tier."

"Used for breeding and raising offspring, there is a 30% chance that the toxin will not be transmitted."

"Upon receiving this result, the Foundation Establishment senior, after confirming it from multiple sources, lost interest and had no desire to continue cultivating it. He then entrusted the egg to our clan for sale. Isn't it just a good opportunity to take advantage of the auction's popularity and bring it to the shop to try and find a destined owner?"

Poisoning?

Lin Changheng remained crouched in front of the beast egg, sensing its presence without getting up. The ancient words that kept echoing in his ears made his lowered eyes shine.

After concealing his emotions, he stood up, suddenly smiled, and praised, "The shopkeeper is quite frank, not hiding anything, which is something I have never seen in other shops."

"That's natural. Our shop has always relied on word of mouth, and we are well-known and highly regarded in Huangxufang."

Manager Liu, however, said seriously.

But that's only one aspect. Another aspect is that this beast egg was consigned for auction by a Foundation Establishment cultivator who was on good terms with the seller. It was purely a friendly favor, and there was no profit to be made. Naturally, the seller wouldn't be foolish enough to risk the reputation of their shop, which they had built up over many years, to make money for someone else.

As for whether it can be sold...

You can't force someone to buy or sell something in business, right? As long as you're doing things honestly, I doubt that Foundation Establishment cultivator can find anything to criticize.

Lin Changheng feigned hesitation, pacing back and forth in the VIP room until Manager Liu was almost dizzy from looking at him, before finally asking, "How much is it?"

"There's a chance!" Manager Liu's eyes lit up. He had missed this crucial step so many times, only to have the customer give up in the end. Now he was determined to seize the opportunity and settle the matter.

Having something constantly on my mind is exhausting.

"According to market prices, a spirit beast egg of the [Mysterious Spirit Bloodline] level is worth about two hundred low-grade spirit stones. However, considering that this egg is defective and cannot be compared with a normal spirit beast egg, we cannot let you suffer a loss. Therefore, we will offer a 20% discount, so you can take it for one hundred and sixty spirit stones. How about that?"

Manager Liu quoted a price.

"Taller."

Lin Changheng shook his head and began to haggle meticulously: "The shopkeeper is also a family cultivator, so he naturally knows that running a family business is not easy and that spirit stones have to be spent on all aspects. If this were a perfectly intact Black Armored Earth Turtle egg, it would be reasonable to sell it at this price based on its potential. However, it is not only lacking in potential, but its most fundamental reproduction is also likely to be affected."

"Most importantly, there is a certain probability that the eggs will die immediately after hatching... If this happens, it will be an unbearable burden for the family."

Using both reason and emotion, Lin Changheng negotiated the price down, finally offering a price:
"How about one hundred and twenty spirit stones?"

"Too low! Too low! Fellow Daoist, that's not how you bargain. Besides, if it's this low, I won't even have an explanation to give to the Foundation Establishment seniors..."

Manager Liu smiled wryly, shook his head repeatedly, and began to raise the price.

After some back and forth, the two compromised and settled on a price of 140 low-grade spirit stones.

"The deal is done."

Lin Changheng paid the spirit stones and accepted a jade slip for cultivating and hatching turtle-type spirit beasts, as well as a beast-taming token. The transaction was settled, but he was puzzled by the spirit beast egg, which was as big as a baby's head.

"Fellow Daoist, did you forget to bring your spirit beast pouch?"

Manager Liu had been in charge of the market for many years and had a keen eye for all sorts of people and things. He made a guess in an instant and asked with a smile.

“That’s right. I originally planned to look around first and didn’t bring the spirit beast bag with me, but I got carried away and bought it on the spot.”

Beneath the veil of a bamboo hat, a male cultivator's helpless voice could be heard.

"When you encounter the right opportunity, you should seize it!"

Shopkeeper Liu immediately flattered him, then enthusiastically offered advice, "Fellow Daoist, would you like to purchase spirit beast bags? Our shop sells them too. Or perhaps you could temporarily store one or two in a storage bag? Beast eggs can be taken out in no more than half an hour, so there's basically no problem. However, once they hatch, they can't be stored in a bag anymore."

Lin Changheng then asked about spirit stones and received the answer that they were fifty each.

If you need to divide the space into columns, the number of columns will double for each additional column.

"It's a few spirit stones more expensive than outside."

Lin Changheng's commentary.

"The quality is naturally much better," Manager Liu didn't deny.

"Your store does indeed have a wide range of offerings."

Lin Changheng then asked, "Do you have any knowledge books such as 'Illustrations of Monsters' or 'Notes on Spirit Beasts'?"

(End of this chapter)