Black-Bellied Beetle Gu

Translator: Cinder Translations

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Two days later.

Cave Dwelling No. 97.

Eight small beetle Gu were flying around in the cave, having been released by Song Wen for some fresh air.

In the Gu cauldron, nine milky white larvae were lying on the leaves of Green Spirit Grass, feeding.

Although Song Wen kept the Gu worms inside his body, it didn't mean they had to stay there all the time.

For things like feeding the larvae and adult Gu, it could still be done outside the body with the help of the Gu cauldron.

Suddenly.

Song Wen's mind stirred.

He sensed that two of the remaining three eggs in his body were also starting to hatch.

Two larvae with black spots on their backs broke through the eggs and crawled out.

Song Wen was delighted; the experiment was successful. Breeding larvae from the black-bellied beetle Gu had a higher chance of producing black-spotted larvae.

To avoid the situation of the Gu worms counterattacking again, Song Wen had completed the refining process on the Gu worms while they were still in the egg stage, according to the "Blood Gu Technique."

The remaining egg, for some reason, did not successfully hatch and turned out to be a dead egg.

Song Wen drew the dead egg and the two black-spotted larvae out of his body and threw them into the Gu cauldron.

The dead egg became food for the other larvae.

Additionally, he killed the nine ordinary larvae and fed them to the black-spotted larvae.

Since the black-spotted larvae had successfully hatched, there was no need to cultivate more ordinary beetle Gu.

Looking at the newly hatched black-spotted larvae in the Gu cauldron, Song Wen realized it was time to go out and buy more Green Spirit Grass.

Before leaving, Song Wen disguised himself.

First, he concealed his aura to the first level of Qi Refining, then used the "Corpse King Blood Refining Technique" to make his face look ashen, as if something had gone wrong with his cultivation, with corpse aura uncontrollably seeping out and dispersing everywhere.

He then donned a black cloak that covered his entire body.

At this moment, Song Wen looked like a novice who had just entered the sect and, out of ignorance, forcibly absorbed too much corpse aura during cultivation, leading to an excess of corpse aura and insufficient vitality, appearing as if he could die at any moment.

In short, he looked like someone in dire straits, seemingly on the brink of madness and ready to lash out in revenge against the world.

After leaving his dwelling, Song Wen headed straight to the marketplace.

First, he sold the eight bottles of blood essence he had accumulated in four different shops, earning 1,100 spirit stones.

Such a large amount of spirit stones was undoubtedly a huge fortune for someone at Song Wen's current cultivation level.

Next, he bought the spiritual herbs needed for the beetle Gu and the resources for his own cultivation.

He did not choose to buy Green Spirit Grass from Chen Yi again. Buying large quantities of Green Spirit Grass from the same person might arouse suspicion.

Even if Chen Yi had no ill intentions toward Song Wen, he dared not be careless.

In the perilous world of immortal cultivation, Song Wen now only trusted himself.

One must always be vigilant!

He found a large spiritual herb shop and purchased a batch of Green Spirit Grass and Purple Moon Orchid.

Purple Moon Orchid is the food for adult Gu, and prolonged consumption in large quantities helps to enhance the strength of beetle Gu.

Due to the different types of Gu worms, their preferences for food vary:

Some Gu worms rely on devouring various minerals to enhance their strength, some consume human corpses, others prefer the corpses of demonic beasts, and some like various impure energies.

Among Gu worms, the consumption of spiritual herbs like Purple Moon Orchid is relatively rare for beetle Gu. Compared to the disgusting and nauseating foods of other Gu worms, beetle Gu's diet can be considered a breath of fresh air in the Gu worm world.

Purple Moon Orchid is a second-grade medium-quality spiritual herb, not very expensive, worth about one spirit stone for two or three flowers.

After feeding on Purple Moon Orchid for over a month, Song Wen discovered that the strength of the seven ordinary beetle Gu had somewhat increased, while the cultivation of the black-bellied beetle Gu remained stagnant.

Moreover, each ordinary beetle Gu could sustain itself for a day with just one Purple Moon Orchid, highlighting its cost-effectiveness.

In contrast, the black-bellied beetle Gu needed to consume at least four Purple Moon Orchids daily. It almost consumed two spirit stones per day, surpassing the resources Song Wen used for cultivation.

Yet, despite the consumption, the cultivation of the black-bellied beetle Gu showed no signs of improvement, causing Song Wen to suspect that Purple Moon Orchid might not be the most suitable food for them.

According to the "Blood Gu Technique," Purple Moon Orchid is only the food for ordinary beetle Gu adults, and there is no mention of the best food for the intermediate black-bellied beetle Gu between beetle Gu and sacred beetle Gu.

The best food for sacred beetle Gu is a type of ore called Bright Silver Stone, a second-grade ore.

Song Wen learned that a thumb-sized piece of Bright Silver Stone cost about 50 spirit stones, making it extremely expensive. After all, sacred beetle Gu are second-grade Gu insects comparable to the Foundation Establishment stage, so their food requirements are naturally higher.

Originally, Song Wen wanted to save some resources and test the effect of Purple Moon Orchid on the black-bellied beetle Gu. Now, it seemed he had no choice but to purchase Bright Silver Stone.

After purchasing Bright Silver Stone, Corpse Qi, as well as Qi Gathering Pills and Fasting Pills, Song Wen entered a cultivator's gambling establishment.

To prevent cultivators from cheating with powerful mental energy, the gambling establishment had various restrictions on spiritual energy, even arrays that targeted the spiritual consciousness of Foundation Establishment stage cultivators.

Passing through the hall of the gambling establishment, Song Wen went straight to the backyard latrine.

If a Qi Refining stage cultivator did not continuously consume Fasting Pills, they still needed to eat. Therefore, the existence of latrines in the cultivation world was not surprising.

Inside the latrine, Song Wen changed his appearance. First, he removed his disguise, then based on a "Disguise Art" he had picked up from a stall, he quickly disguised himself as a burly man with a beard before leaving the gambling establishment.

In the cultivation world, identifying someone relied not only on appearance and physique but also on the aura emitted by cultivators.

Appearance and physique could be moderately altered by controlling spiritual power. However, aura could not be changed. The common "Concealment Art" in the cultivation world could only alter the strength of one's aura but not its characteristics.

This meant that secretive arts like Disguise Art were not popular in the cultivation world.

But for Song Wen, changing the strength of his aura was the easiest.

After wandering around the establishment for a few rounds, Song Wen made sure he wasn't being followed before heading back to his dwelling.

His strength was weak, yet he possessed a large amount of spirit stones, forcing Song Wen to be extremely cautious.

...

With the Bright Silver Stone, the growth of the black-bellied beetle Gu improved significantly. However, Bright Silver Stone seemed slightly higher-tier for the black-bellied beetle Gu, making it somewhat difficult to digest.

Each time, the black-bellied beetle Gu consumed one-twentieth of a piece of Bright Silver Stone. It took two to three days to digest after consumption before it could eat again, during which it would eat some Purple Moon Orchid as supplementary food.

After more than thirty days, nearly half of the Bright Silver Stone was gone, and the aura of the black-bellied beetle Gu had noticeably strengthened.

At this point, two black-spotted larvae successfully transformed into adults, both females. This greatly excited Song Wen, prompting him to begin his new round of breeding plans.

He allowed three black-bellied beetle Gu to mate and reproduce, increasing the chances of producing black-spotted larvae and possibly even stronger beetle Gu, perhaps even true sacred beetle Gu.

Meanwhile, Song Wen continued his routine of harvesting corpses and cultivation.

(End of the Chapter)