fēng xiǎn zì rán bù xiǎo ， dàn sú huà shuō de hǎo ， shě bù dé hái zi tào bù zhe láng ， zhǐ yào néng gòu ràng xiū wèi bào zhǎng ， lín xuān zì rán yuàn yì mào xiǎn yī cháng ， hé kuàng tā de zhǔn bèi yě shí fēn chōng zú ， yīng gāi bú huì yǒu shén me dà de chā cuò 。
风险自然不小，但俗话说的好，舍不得孩子套不着狼，只要能够让修为爆涨，林轩自然愿意冒险一尝，何况他的准备也十分充足，应该不会有什么大的差错。
The risks were naturally considerable, but as the saying went, one must be willing to sacrifice a child to catch a wolf. Lin Xuan was more than willing to take such risks if it could boost his cultivation significantly. Besides, he had prepared thoroughly and should not encounter any major issues.
cǐ kè lín xuān pán xī ér zuò ， shuāng shǒu gè qiā yī dào fǎ jué ， píng fàng yú liǎng xī zhī jiān ， liǎng yǎn jǐn bì ， jìn rù le zuì hòu de tiáo xī 。
此刻林轩盘膝而坐，双手各掐一道法诀，平放于两膝之间，两眼紧闭，进入了最后的调息。
At this moment, Lin Xuan sat cross-legged, with both hands forming various magical seals and placing them on his knees. His eyes were tightly closed as he entered the final stage of breathing exercises.
tū rán ， tā zuǐ chún wēi qǐ ， xú xú de niàn chū le yī duàn huì sè nán dǒng de zhòu yǔ ， suí hòu liǎng shǒu de fǎ yìn yě biàn huàn bù tíng ， shēn gèng shì fān yǒng chū wú jìn de mó qì ， rú tóng guǐ guài bān zhāng yá wǔ zhǎo ， xiǎn de zhēng níng yǐ jí 。
突然，他嘴唇微启，徐徐的念出了一段晦涩难懂的咒语，随后两手的法印也变幻不停，身更是翻涌出无尽的魔气，如同鬼怪般张牙舞爪，显得狰狞以极。
Suddenly, his lips moved slightly, and he recited a series of obscure incantations slowly. The magical hand gestures in front of him kept changing, and an endless amount of demonic energy surged out from his body, resembling ghostly creatures with their fangs bared, appearing extremely ferocious.
bù guò zhè jǐn jǐn shì biǎo xiàng ér yǐ ， zhēn zhèng de biàn huà ， hái zài yú dān tián 。
不过这仅仅是表象而已，真正的变化，还在于丹田。
However, this was just the surface manifestation. The true changes were happening within his dantian.
zhǐ jiàn yuán běn fèn sàn yú sì chù de qīng sè líng lì ， jìng xú xú de jù hé zài le yì qǐ ， biàn chéng yī qīng sè de hú pō ， tǐ jī suī bù suàn hěn dà ， què yě zhe shí kě guān le 。
只见原本分散于四处的青色灵力，竟徐徐的聚合在了一起，变成一青色的湖泊，体积虽不算很大，却也着实可观了。
The originally scattered green essence qi began to gradually converge into a green lake. Although its volume wasn't large, it was quite impressive.
lín xuān shī zhǎn nèi shì zhī fǎ ， xiǎo xīn de guān chá zhe qì hǎi zhōng de biàn huà 。
林轩施展内视之法，小心的观察着气海中的变化。
Lin Xuan used Inner Vision and carefully observed the changes in his qiantian (primordial energy sea).
yī qiè shùn lì ， tā de zuǐ jiǎo biān ， bù yóu de gōu lè chū yī sī xīn wèi de xiào yì 。
一切顺利，他的嘴角边，不由得勾勒出一丝欣慰的笑意。
Everything went smoothly, and Lin Xuan couldn't help but smile with satisfaction.
shuāng shǒu huī wǔ de gèng jí ， shēn qián jìng rán chū xiàn le yī lián chuàn de huàn yǐng ， ér tǐ nèi de jīn dān ， dī liū liū de kāi shǐ xuán zhuǎn ， qǐ chū yán huǎn ， hěn kuài jiù biàn dé xùn jí le qǐ lái ， lín xuān jiāng quán bù shén niàn ， dōu chén rù dào le lǐ biān 。
双手挥舞的更急，身前竟然出现了一连串的幻影，而体内的金丹，滴溜溜的开始旋转，起初沿缓，很快就变得迅疾了起来，林轩将全部神念，都沉入到了里边。
His hands moved even faster, and before him appeared a series of illusions. The golden core within his body began to rotate rapidly, initially slowly, then quickly accelerating. Lin Xuan sank all his mental focus into it.
suí zhe xuán zhuàn sù dù de jiā kuài ， nà jīn dān de tǐ jī ， yě suí zhī biàn dà ， ér dǐ xià de líng lì zhī hú ， yuán běn píng jìng wú bō ， cǐ kè jìng mò míng de chū xiàn le yí gè xuán wō 。
随着旋转速度的加快，那金丹的体积，也随之变大，而底下的灵力之湖，原本平静无波，此刻竟莫名的出现了一个漩涡。
As the rotation speed increased, the volume of the golden core also grew. Below the essence qi lake, which was originally calm, now inexplicably formed a vortex.
yī dào yóu chún zhèng líng lì gòu chéng de shuǐ zhù chōng tiān ér qǐ ， bàn kōng zhōng ， huà wèi yī tóu jiāo lóng ， xiàng zhe jīn dān hū xiào ér qù 。
一道由纯正灵力构成的水柱冲天而起，半空中，化为一头蛟龙，向着金丹呼啸而去。
A water column made entirely of pure essence qi shot up into the air and transformed into a dragon mid-air, heading straight for the golden core.
yī kǒu tūn le xià qù ！
一口吞了下去！
Swallowed it down!
zhè qíng jǐng zhe shí yǒu xiē guǐ yì ， dàn mó yīng jué lìng pì xī jìng ， xiū liàn zhī fǎ zì rán bù néng sī zhī yǐ cháng lǐ 。
这情景着实有些诡异，但魔婴诀另辟蹊径，修炼之法自然不能思之以常理。
The scene was rather strange, but the Magic Infant Art took an unconventional path. Thus, its cultivation method couldn't be thought through in a conventional manner.
ér lín xuān de liǎn zé lù chū wú bǐ tòng kǔ de biǎo qíng ……
而林轩的脸则露出无比痛苦的表情……
Lin Xuan's face showed an extremely painful expression...
jiù zhè yàng guò qù le shù rì zhī jiǔ ， lín xuān yī jiù zài dòng fǔ nèi pán xī ér zuò ， méi yǔ jiān de hēi diǎn yǐ jīng bú jiàn le 。 tū rán ， lín xuān sōng le kǒu qì ， zhēng kāi le yǎn jīng 。
就这样过去了数日之久，林轩依旧在洞府内盘膝而坐，眉宇间的黑点已经不见了。突然，林轩松了口气，睁开了眼睛。
Days passed, and Lin Xuan still sat cross-legged in his cave. The black spots on his forehead had disappeared. Suddenly, he let out a sigh of relief as he opened his eyes.
cǐ shí tā de liǎn sè yǒu xiē cāng bái ， dàn biǎo qíng què cóng róng dàn dìng ， xiǎng lái xiū liàn de guò chéng ， yī qiè shùn lì bìng méi yǒu yù jiàn shén me chā chí 。
此时他的脸色有些苍白，但表情却从容淡定，想来修炼的过程，一切顺利并没有遇见什么差池。
His complexion was slightly pale, but his expression was calm and composed. It seemed that the cultivation process went smoothly without any issues.
dān tián zhī zhōng ， jīn dān yǐ jīng chéng gōng fēn liè chéng le liǎng gè ， rán ér sè zé què àn dàn le xǔ duō 。 zhèng bèi wú shù de líng lì bāo guǒ 。
丹田之中，金丹已经成功分裂成了两个，然而色泽却黯淡了许多。正被无数的灵力包裹。
Inside his dantian, the golden core had successfully split into two, though its color had become much darker. It was enveloped by countless essence qi.
lín xuān sōng le kǒu qì ， zhèn yī ér qǐ ， yī qiè shùn lì ， bù guò xiàn zài ， kě bù néng jì xù xiū liàn xià qù ， yīn wèi jiē xià lái jǐn shèng xià yī bù ， ràng mó yīng pò jiǎn ér chū 。
林轩松了口气，振衣而起，一切顺利，不过现在，可不能继续修炼下去，因为接下来仅剩下一步，让魔婴破茧而出。
Lin Xuan let out a sigh of relief as he got up. Everything went well, but now he couldn't continue cultivating because there was only one more step left: letting the Magic Infant break free from its cocoon.
mó yīng jiāng yóu fēn liè chū de dì èr jīn dān zhuǎn huà ， yě jiù shì shuō ， jīn dān qǐ wěn gù ， yuán qì yuè chōng zú chéng gōng lǜ cái huì yuè gāo 。 xiàn zài cái gāng gāng chéng xíng ， lín xuān zì rán bù gǎn mào mào shī shī de cuī shēng mó yīng 。
魔婴将由分裂出的第二金丹转化，也就是说，金丹起稳固，元气越充足成功率才会越高。现在才刚刚成形，林轩自然不敢冒冒失失的催生魔婴。
The second golden core would transform into the Magic Infant, meaning that the stability of the golden core and the abundance of yuanqi (vital energy) would determine the success rate. Since it had just formed, Lin Xuan naturally didn't dare to prematurely induce the emergence of the Magic Infant.
xiān jìn xíng yī duàn shí jiān de péi yǎng zī liàn 。
先进行一段时间的培养滋炼。
Instead, he needed to cultivate and refine for a period of time.
dāng rán ， zhè duàn shí jiān ， lín xuān yě bú huì làng fèi ， tā xiān lái dào yuè ér de fáng jiān ， yǔ xiǎo yā tou liáo le yī huì er tiān ， tàn tǎo le yī fān xiū liàn xīn dé ， suí hòu màn màn duó dào le líng shòu shì zhōng 。
当然，这段时间，林轩也不会浪费，他先来到月儿的房间，与小丫头聊了一会儿天，探讨了一番修炼心得，随后慢慢踱到了灵兽室中。
Of course, during this time, Lin Xuan wouldn't waste his efforts. He first went to Mo'er's room, chatting with the little girl for a while before discussing cultivation insights. Then, he slowly walked into the spirit beast room.
shí mén kāi qǐ ， yìng rù yǎn lián de shì yí gè fēng wō 。
石门开启，映入眼帘的是一个蜂窝。
The stone door opened, revealing a beehive.
lín xuān kàn zhe cǐ wù ， liǎn lù chū chén yín zhī sè 。
林轩看着此物，脸露出沉吟之色。
Lin Xuan looked at it, his face showing deep contemplation.
zài yù xuán zōng de shí hòu ， tā kě shì chī guò zhè zhǒng mó fēng de kǔ tóu ， shēn zhī qí lì hài ， rú guǒ shù liàng duō yī xiē ， yòu quán shì chéng shú tǐ ， kǒng pà jiù suàn shì yuán yīng qī lǎo guài ， yě zhǐ néng tuì bì sān shè 。
在玉玄宗的时候，他可是吃过这种魔蜂的苦头，深知其厉害，如果数量多一些，又全是成熟体，恐怕就算是元婴期老怪，也只能退避三舍。
In the Jade Profound Sect, he had suffered greatly from these demonic bees and knew their power well. If there were more of them and all matured, even an old monster in the元婴 stage would have to retreat.
hòu lái còu qiǎo dé dào le mó fēng de yòu chóng ， lín xuān shí fēn huān xǐ ， bì guān zhī qián ， yǐ jīng rèn zhǔ wán bì ， rú jīn yào zuò de ， jiù shì rú hé jiāng qí cuī shú 。
后来凑巧得到了魔蜂的幼虫，林轩十分欢喜，闭关之前，已经认主完毕，如今要做的，就是如何将其催熟。
Later, he happened to obtain a larva of the demon bee and was very happy. Before closing his seclusion, he had already completed the process of recognizing it as his master. Now, he needed to figure out how to hasten its maturity.
qū chóng shù lín xuān bìng bù mò shēng ， dì yī bù zì rán yào liǎo jiě shǒu xià mó chóng de xí xìng ， kě xī yǎn qián de mó fēng bié shuō jiàn le ， lián tīng dōu méi tīng shuō 。
驱虫术林轩并不陌生，第一步自然要了解手下魔虫的习性，可惜眼前的魔蜂别说见了，连听都没听说。
The Drive Insect Technique wasn't unfamiliar to Lin Xuan. The first step naturally involved understanding the habits of these demonic insects under his control. Unfortunately, before him were demon bees that he hadn't seen or even heard about.
gēn běn jiù wú cóng xià shǒu ！
根本就无从下手！
He had no idea where to start!
lín xuān zhòu méi sī suǒ le yī huì ， yě xiǎng bù chū hǎo zhǔ yì ， zhǐ hǎo huí dào zì jǐ de qǐ jū shì ， cóng chǔ wù dài zhōng ， ná chū le yī duī de yù tǒng ， xián xiá zhī yú ， tā yī jiù xǐ huān bó lǎn qún ， zhè xiē dōu shì yǐ qián shōu jí de gǔ diǎn jí 。
林轩皱眉思索了一会，也想不出好主意，只好回到自己的起居室，从储物袋中，拿出了一堆的玉筒，闲暇之余，他依旧喜欢博览群，这些都是以前收集的古典籍。
Lin Xuan frowned and pondered for a while but couldn't come up with any good ideas. He returned to his living room and took out several jade cylinders from his storage bracelet. In his free time, he still enjoyed reading extensively; these were ancient texts he had collected before.
suī rán bìng fēi gōng fǎ zhī lèi de dōng xī ， dàn lǐ miàn jì zǎi le hěn duō qí wén yì shì ， yě suàn shì zhēn guì wú bǐ 。
虽然并非功法之类的东西，但里面记载了很多奇闻异事，也算是珍贵无比。
Although not cultivation techniques per se, they recorded many strange tales, making them invaluable.
lín xuān ná qǐ yí gè ， shén shí chén rù 。
林轩拿起一个，神识沉入。
Lin Xuan picked one up and sank his spiritual sense into it.
hěn kuài jiù lù chū shī wàng zhī sè ， jiāng qí diū dào yī biān 。
很快就露出失望之色，将其丢到一边。
He quickly showed disappointment and tossed it aside.
jiē zhe yòu qǔ chū yí gè 。
接着又取出一个。
Then he took out another...
……
……
In the end, Lin Xuan spent three days in his room, poring over ancient texts.
jiù zhè yàng lín xuān jiāng zì jǐ guān zài fáng jiān zhōng ， chá yuè gǔ jí huā le sān rì zhī jiǔ 。
就这样林轩将自己关在房间中，查阅古籍花了三日之久。
One day at noon, Lin Xuan suddenly threw the jade cylinder to the side and laughed loudly. Initially, he had thought that if he couldn't find any clues from his carried classics, he would just have to run to a nearby market or even farther away to figure out the origin of these demon bees.
zhè tiān zhōng wǔ ， lín xuān tū rán jiāng shǒu zhōng de yù tǒng jiǎn yī pāo ， hā hā dà xiào 。
这天中午，林轩突然将手中的玉筒简一抛，哈哈大笑。
To his surprise, he actually found it.
yuán běn tā hái zài xiǎng ， ruò shì cóng zì jǐ xié dài de diǎn jí zhōng zhǎo bú dào xiàn suǒ ， nà jiù zhǐ yào pǎo fù jìn de fāng shì yī tàng ， shèn zhì qù gèng yuǎn de dì fāng ， zǒng zhī bù guǎn rú hé ， yě yào jiāng zhè zhǒng mó fēng de lái lì nòng qīng chǔ 。
原本他还在想，若是从自己携带的典籍中找不到线索，那就只要跑附近的坊市一趟，甚至去更远的地方，总之不管如何，也要将这种魔蜂的来历弄清楚。
The jade cylinder was purchased in the Mo Yin Mountains on the territory of the Moon Clan.
méi xiǎng dào hái zhēn de zhǎo zháo le 。
没想到还真的找着了。
Unlike the cultivators in Youzhou, the witch doctors of the Moon Clan were skilled in poison cultivation. This demon bee was a very powerful one from ancient times called Jade Luo Bee.
nà yù tǒng jiǎn shì zài kuí yīn shān mài mò yuè zú de dì pán suǒ mǎi 。
那玉筒简是在奎阴山脉墨月族的地盘所买。
Its speed was like the wind and contained terrifying toxins. Moreover, it had an extremely strong生命力 (life force), even dead bodies could explode or turn into highly corrosive liquids. Such Jade Luo Bees were incredibly troublesome.
yǔ yōu zhōu de xiū shì bù tóng ， mò yuè zú de wū shī běn jiù shàn cháng dú gōng ， cǐ mó fēng shì gǔ shí qī fēi cháng lì hài de yī zhǒng ， míng jiào yù luó fēng 。
与幽州的修士不同，墨月族的巫师本就擅长毒功，此魔蜂是古时期非常厉害的一种，名叫玉罗蜂。
It was said that in ancient times, some cultivators drove these demon bees to destroy several sects consecutively, and many old monsters of the元婴 stage also became the souls of insects.
sù dù rú fēng ， hán yǒu kě bù de jù dú ， qiě shēng mìng lì jí qí wán qiáng ， jiù suàn shì sǐ le chóng shī yě néng zì bào huò zhě biàn wèi qiáng fǔ shí xìng de yè tǐ ， zhè zhǒng yù luó fēng shí zài shì nán chán wú bǐ 。
速度如风，含有可怖的剧毒，且生命力极其顽强，就算是死了虫尸也能自爆或者变为强腐蚀性的液体，这种玉罗蜂实在是难缠无比。
When Lin Xuan read this introduction, he felt unexpectedly excited. The heavens seemed generous to him. However, he then thought about a question: why were there so few records of such powerful demon insects?
jù shuō gǔ shí qī ， céng jīng yǒu xiū shì qū shǐ zhè zhǒng mó fēng ， yī lián miè le shù gè zōng mén ， shèn zhì yǒu bù shǎo yuán yīng qī de lǎo guài wù ， yě chéng le chóng xià wáng hún 。
据说古时期，曾经有修士驱使这种魔蜂，一连灭了数个宗门，甚至有不少元婴期的老怪物，也成了虫下亡魂。
He continued reading.
kàn dào zhè yī duàn jiè shào de shí hòu ， lín xuān mò míng xīng fèn ， lǎo tiān yé dài zì jǐ hái zhēn shì bù báo ， dàn tā yòu xiǎng dào le yí gè wèn tí ， zhè me lì hài de mó chóng ， wèi shén me diǎn jí shǎo yǒu tí jí 。
看到这一段介绍的时候，林轩莫名兴奋，老天爷待自己还真是不薄，但他又想到了一个问题，这么厉害的魔虫，为什么典籍少有提及。
It turned out that although Jade Luo Bees were formidable, they had two weaknesses. One was their slow growth rate; its strength was directly proportional to its maturity level. If it was just a larva, even a cultivator in the筑基 stage could easily handle it.
máng jì xù kàn xià qù 。
忙继续看下去。
But this wasn't the most critical issue. After all, no matter how slow the growth, there would eventually be a day when it matured. The key was that raising these insects required feeding them with something precious.
yuán lái yù luó fēng suī rán lì hài ， kě què yǒu liǎng gè ruò diǎn ， yī shì shēng zhǎng huǎn màn ， ér tā de shí lì ， shì yǔ chéng shú de chéng dù chéng zhèng bǐ ， ruò jǐn jǐn shì yòu chóng ， lián zhù jī qī xiū shì dōu néng qīng yì yìng fù 。
原来玉罗蜂虽然厉害，可却有两个弱点，一是生长缓慢，而他的实力，是与成熟的程度成正比，若仅仅是幼虫，连筑基期修士都能轻易应付。
Ginseng Essence!
ér zhè hái bú shì zuì guān jiàn de ， bì jìng shēng zhǎng zài màn ， yě zǒng yǒu chéng shú de yī tiān ， guān jiàn shì sì yǎng cǐ chóng ， bì xū wèi shí yī zhǒng zhēn guì de dōng dōng 。
而这还不是最关键的，毕竟生长再慢，也总有成熟的一天，关键是饲养此虫，必须喂食一种珍贵的东东。
So-called Ginseng Essence referred to the essence of ginseng. Only after reaching a thousand years in age would such a small amount naturally form. For high-stage cultivators, this wasn't particularly rare. However, remember that for Jade Luo Bees to unleash their full power, they needed to be numerous. Feeding one wouldn't require much Ginseng Essence, but what about hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands?
cān jīng ！
参精！
Even an old monster in the元婴 stage wouldn't have such a large budget unless it was a top-tier sect with that kind of strength. But even if they had the means, they likely wouldn't do so because the Ginseng Essence required was too much, making the investment and return unbalanced. The resources spent on cultivation could be used to nurture many more experts or exchanged for more treasures.
suǒ wèi cān jīng ， yě jiù shì rén shēn zhī jīng huá ， bì xū yào nián fèn dá dào qiān nián ， cái huì zì rán shēng chū zhè me yì diǎn ， duì gāo jiē xiū shì lái shuō ， yě bù suàn shì rú hé de zhēn xī ， kě bù yào wàng jì ， yù luó fēng xiǎng yào fā huī wēi lì ， bì xū shù liàng páng dà cái kě yǐ ， wèi yǎng yī zhī ， yòng bù liǎo duō shǎo cān jīng ， kě jǐ bǎi zhǐ ， jǐ qiān zhǐ shèn zhì wàn zhǐ ne ？
所谓参精，也就是人参之精华，必须要年份达到千年，才会自然生出这么一点，对高阶修士来说，也不算是如何的珍稀，可不要忘记，玉罗蜂想要发挥威力，必须数量庞大才可以，喂养一只，用不了多少参精，可几百只，几千只甚至万只呢？
The cultivation world valued strength, and the principle of survival of the fittest was even clearer. Thus, over time, this powerful but difficult-to-raise Jade Luo Bee faded into history.
jiù suàn shì yuán yīng qī xiū shì ， yě méi yǒu nà me dà shǒu bǐ ， chú fēi shì nà zhǒng yī děng yī de zōng pài ， dōu yǒu nà yàng de shí lì ， kě jí biàn xíng ， yě bù dài biǎo huì qù zuò ， yīn wèi xū yào de cān jīng tài duō ， fù chū yǔ shōu huò xiāng bǐ jiù yǒu xiē bù huá suàn le ， xiāo hào de xiū xiān zī yuán ， yǐ jīng zú gòu péi yǎng chū xǔ duō gāo shǒu ， huò zhě huàn huí gèng duō de bǎo wù 。
就算是元婴期修士，也没有那么大手笔，除非是那种一等一的宗派，都有那样的实力，可即便行，也不代表会去做，因为需要的参精太多，付出与收获相比就有些不划算了，消耗的修仙资源，已经足够培养出许多高手，或者换回更多的宝物。
After reading about the origin of the demon insects, Lin Xuan let out a long sigh with a smile on his face. So it turned out that for others, Ginseng Essence might be rare, but for him, it seemed to be less of an issue.
The risks were naturally considerable, but as the saying went, one must be willing to sacrifice a child to catch a wolf. Lin Xuan was more than willing to take such risks if it could boost his cultivation significantly. Besides, he had prepared thoroughly and should not encounter any major issues.
At this moment, Lin Xuan sat cross-legged, with both hands forming various magical seals and placing them on his knees. His eyes were tightly closed as he entered the final stage of breathing exercises.
Suddenly, his lips moved slightly, and he recited a series of obscure incantations slowly. The magical hand gestures in front of him kept changing, and an endless amount of demonic energy surged out from his body, resembling ghostly creatures with their fangs bared, appearing extremely ferocious.
However, this was just the surface manifestation. The true changes were happening within his dantian.
The originally scattered green essence qi began to gradually converge into a green lake. Although its volume wasn't large, it was quite impressive.
Lin Xuan used Inner Vision and carefully observed the changes in his qiantian (primordial energy sea).
Everything went smoothly, and Lin Xuan couldn't help but smile with satisfaction.
His hands moved even faster, and before him appeared a series of illusions. The golden core within his body began to rotate rapidly, initially slowly, then quickly accelerating. Lin Xuan sank all his mental focus into it.
As the rotation speed increased, the volume of the golden core also grew. Below the essence qi lake, which was originally calm, now inexplicably formed a vortex.
Peng!
A water column made entirely of pure essence qi shot up into the air and transformed into a dragon mid-air, heading straight for the golden core.
Swallowed it down!
The scene was rather strange, but the Magic Infant Art took an unconventional path. Thus, its cultivation method couldn't be thought through in a conventional manner.
Lin Xuan's face showed an extremely painful expression...
Days passed, and Lin Xuan still sat cross-legged in his cave. The black spots on his forehead had disappeared. Suddenly, he let out a sigh of relief as he opened his eyes.
His complexion was slightly pale, but his expression was calm and composed. It seemed that the cultivation process went smoothly without any issues.
Inside his dantian, the golden core had successfully split into two, though its color had become much darker. It was enveloped by countless essence qi.
Lin Xuan let out a sigh of relief as he got up. Everything went well, but now he couldn't continue cultivating because there was only one more step left: letting the Magic Infant break free from its cocoon.
The second golden core would transform into the Magic Infant, meaning that the stability of the golden core and the abundance of yuanqi (vital energy) would determine the success rate. Since it had just formed, Lin Xuan naturally didn't dare to prematurely induce the emergence of the Magic Infant.
Instead, he needed to cultivate and refine for a period of time.
Of course, during this time, Lin Xuan wouldn't waste his efforts. He first went to Mo'er's room, chatting with the little girl for a while before discussing cultivation insights. Then, he slowly walked into the spirit beast room.
The stone door opened, revealing a beehive.
Lin Xuan looked at it, his face showing deep contemplation.
In the Jade Profound Sect, he had suffered greatly from these demonic bees and knew their power well. If there were more of them and all matured, even an old monster in the元婴 stage would have to retreat.
Later, he happened to obtain a larva of the demon bee and was very happy. Before closing his seclusion, he had already completed the process of recognizing it as his master. Now, he needed to figure out how to hasten its maturity.
The Drive Insect Technique wasn't unfamiliar to Lin Xuan. The first step naturally involved understanding the habits of these demonic insects under his control. Unfortunately, before him were demon bees that he hadn't seen or even heard about.
He had no idea where to start!
Lin Xuan frowned and pondered for a while but couldn't come up with any good ideas. He returned to his living room and took out several jade cylinders from his storage bracelet. In his free time, he still enjoyed reading extensively; these were ancient texts he had collected before.
Although not cultivation techniques per se, they recorded many strange tales, making them invaluable.
Lin Xuan picked one up and sank his spiritual sense into it.
He quickly showed disappointment and tossed it aside.
Then he took out another...
In the end, Lin Xuan spent three days in his room, poring over ancient texts.
One day at noon, Lin Xuan suddenly threw the jade cylinder to the side and laughed loudly. Initially, he had thought that if he couldn't find any clues from his carried classics, he would just have to run to a nearby market or even farther away to figure out the origin of these demon bees.
To his surprise, he actually found it.
The jade cylinder was purchased in the Mo Yin Mountains on the territory of the Moon Clan.
Unlike the cultivators in Youzhou, the witch doctors of the Moon Clan were skilled in poison cultivation. This demon bee was a very powerful one from ancient times called Jade Luo Bee.
Its speed was like the wind and contained terrifying toxins. Moreover, it had an extremely strong生命力 (life force), even dead bodies could explode or turn into highly corrosive liquids. Such Jade Luo Bees were incredibly troublesome.
It was said that in ancient times, some cultivators drove these demon bees to destroy several sects consecutively, and many old monsters of the元婴 stage also became the souls of insects.
When Lin Xuan read this introduction, he felt unexpectedly excited. The heavens seemed generous to him. However, he then thought about a question: why were there so few records of such powerful demon insects?
He continued reading.
It turned out that although Jade Luo Bees were formidable, they had two weaknesses. One was their slow growth rate; its strength was directly proportional to its maturity level. If it was just a larva, even a cultivator in the筑基 stage could easily handle it.
But this wasn't the most critical issue. After all, no matter how slow the growth, there would eventually be a day when it matured. The key was that raising these insects required feeding them with something precious.
Ginseng Essence!
So-called Ginseng Essence referred to the essence of ginseng. Only after reaching a thousand years in age would such a small amount naturally form. For high-stage cultivators, this wasn't particularly rare. However, remember that for Jade Luo Bees to unleash their full power, they needed to be numerous. Feeding one wouldn't require much Ginseng Essence, but what about hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands?
Even an old monster in the元婴 stage wouldn't have such a large budget unless it was a top-tier sect with that kind of strength. But even if they had the means, they likely wouldn't do so because the Ginseng Essence required was too much, making the investment and return unbalanced. The resources spent on cultivation could be used to nurture many more experts or exchanged for more treasures.
The cultivation world valued strength, and the principle of survival of the fittest was even clearer. Thus, over time, this powerful but difficult-to-raise Jade Luo Bee faded into history.
After reading about the origin of the demon insects, Lin Xuan let out a long sigh with a smile on his face. So it turned out that for others, Ginseng Essence might be rare, but for him, it seemed to be less of an issue.