Chapter 183 - 124: Ice-Scale Dogfish and Wind Flash Butterfly

Chapter 183: Chapter 124: Ice-Scale Dogfish and Wind Flash Butterfly

The previous night, You Weiwei had created a group chat on Q-Chat for the four of them, so the pair had already spoken with Zhong Yi and Shen Xuan.

Zhong Yi couldn’t possibly stand up Bai Chen and Yu Juanjuan just to tour the Exotic Beast Garden.

Returning in the afternoon would be far too disrespectful to them.

Bai Chen and Yu Juanjuan had already shown great goodwill by offering to visit him and Shen Xuan.

’For our first meeting, I can’t have them thinking I’m arrogant and just relying on my Talent.’

’Besides, keeping a promise is a basic courtesy.’

Hearing Zhong Yi, Fu Hongning quickly led the way, and they soon arrived at the display for the first Exotic Beast.

Zhong Yi didn’t even need to use All Things Exploration to recognize the Exotic Beast for sale. It was a Thorn-tailed Centipede, a mutated variant of the Needle-tailed Centipede.

The Needle-tailed Centipede was an unremarkable and very common species among centipede-type Insect Guardian Beasts.

But unlike the Needle-tailed Centipede, which only grew a single needle-tail, the Thorn-tailed Centipede already had over ten thorn-tails on the rear half of its body at the Mortal Beast Tier.

As its Tier and Quality increased, the number of thorn-tails would grow even greater.

The Thorn-tailed Centipede, unlike the Needle-tailed Centipede, wasn’t limited to just stabbing with its tail.

By tensing its muscles, the Thorn-tailed Centipede could launch its tails to strike targets from a distance.

Although its venom wasn’t as potent as a Needle-tailed Centipede’s, the Thorn-tailed Centipede’s venom production was on a completely different scale.

Among centipede-type Insect Guardian Beasts, the Thorn-tailed Centipede was considered an exceptionally good choice.

The Thorn-tailed Centipede had some value, but no one Zhong Yi knew needed to contract a centipede-type Guardian Beast.

’The Thorn-tailed Centipede isn’t a pressing need.’

Even though using a Thorn-tailed Centipede as the mother and breeding it with a Needle-tailed Centipede through special methods had a high chance of producing offspring with the Thorn-tailed Centipede’s genes.

’But for me, the breeding cycle is too long and the profit margin is too small. It’s not a viable option.’

Fu Hongning’s introduction was very detailed, immediately showcasing the profound knowledge of a Four-star Scholar.

The Zhenchong Commerce Association was a power that specialized in cultivating Insect Guardian Beasts, and this Thorn-tailed Centipede could be considered Fu Hongning’s target for the day.

In the future, if he could find a way to breed them, he could mass-produce and sell this excellent Combat Type of Insect Guardian Beast.

Alternatively, he could supply it to VIP clients who had a pressing need for one. Either way, it would be a great boon to the Zhenchong Commerce Association’s development.

Only after seeing that Zhong Yi was completely uninterested in the Thorn-tailed Centipede did Fu Hongning make a bid.

Fu Hongning had a target price in mind for an Exotic Beast like the Thorn-tailed Centipede.

He didn’t choose to buy it outright with a single bid.

The Exotic Beast at the second display was a spindle-shaped fish in a tank. Its body was covered in bright blue Scale Armor, and its mouth was filled with sharp teeth.

Before Zhong Yi could even use All Things Exploration to investigate the Guardian Beast in the tank, Fu Hongning began his introduction.

"Master Zhong Yi, this is an Ice-Scale Dogfish, a mutated variant of the Gray-Scaled Dogfish."

"There’s a Glacial Crystal at the bottom of the tank, and it’s even more valuable than the Ice-Scale Dogfish itself."

"The Ice-Scale Dogfish can only grow in extremely low temperatures. If the temperature rises above negative fifty degrees, its growth will halt."

"Above negative forty degrees, its scales will lose their luster, and its body will begin to decay."

"Don’t let its ferocious appearance fool you; it’s a very delicate Guardian Beast."

"However, the ice scales it sheds periodically are considered a mid-tier Ice Attribute Material."

"The only issue is that when it sheds its scales, its glands secrete a large amount of mucus, making the surrounding area smell incredibly foul."

"Of course, compared to the value it can generate, this is a negligible issue."

Fu Hongning paused for a moment, then continued as if he’d just remembered something.

"Although the mucus it secretes while shedding is incredibly foul, the Ice-Scale Dogfish itself is an exquisite delicacy."

"I’ve had it a few times at banquets, and I’ll never forget the taste."

Zhong Yi shook his head at this and continued walking.

’I was actually thinking of acquiring this Ice-Scale Dogfish.’

’My Soul Base, expanded with an Ice Attribute Heart of the Secret Realm, would be perfect for raising an Ice-Scale Dogfish.’

’After all, I didn’t grow all those Quenching Snow Needle Mushrooms for nothing.’

’But if it’s going to pollute the environment while producing materials...’

’...then there’s no need for me to raise it in my Soul Base.’

’I don’t want my Soul Base reeking!’

There was no shortage of foodies in any world, but Zhong Yi didn’t like the idea of turning Production-type Guardian Beasts, which could generate resources, into a meal just to satisfy one’s palate.

’In my opinion, that’s an enormous waste of resources.’

After looking at seven or eight more Exotic Beasts, Zhong Yi finally spotted a target.

Inside a Crystal Cover before him, a cyan butterfly with intricate white patterns on its wings flitted about, seeming to flash in and out of existence.

As the cyan butterfly flew in this strange way, the sound of a sharp wind echoed from within the Crystal Cover.

The moment Zhong Yi saw this butterfly, his eyes lit up.

’I can’t believe I’ve run into a Wind Flash Butterfly here!’

Seeing Zhong Yi’s interest in the Wind Flash Butterfly, Fu Hongning assumed he was just captivated by its strange flight pattern and quickly began to explain.

"Master Zhong Yi, this Exotic Beast is a mutated variant of the Wind Dance Butterfly."

"Our Zhenchong Commerce Association cultivated it by chance while we were raising Wind Dance Butterflies."

"The reason our Zhenchong Commerce Association has this Wind Flash Butterfly on display for sale in the Exotic Beast Garden..."

"...is that the Soul Power required to form a Contract with it is more than double that of a normal Wind Dance Butterfly."

"Yet, aside from its strange flight pattern, its Basic Skills are identical to a Wind Dance Butterfly’s—it’s still Tornado Shield, with no special variations."

Buying one of the Exotic Beasts on display in the Exotic Beast Garden came down to a combination of a keen eye and sheer luck.

After all, when faced with such rare, mutated Guardian Beasts, no one could be certain of their true value.

The value of many Exotic Beasts only became apparent after their Tier and Quality were raised.

If it had been anyone else, Fu Hongning wouldn’t have needed to point out a flaw like this one with the Wind Flash Butterfly.

But if Zhong Yi was thinking of buying it, Fu Hongning absolutely had to be upfront with him.

With Zhong Yi’s status, it wouldn’t be difficult for him to find out which power or sponsoring association was behind each Exotic Beast in the garden.

Zhong Yi nodded but didn’t take his eyes off the Wind Flash Butterfly.

’In this world, every Guardian Beast Master’s Soul Power is finite.’

’They have to be extremely careful with their Soul Power when forming a Contract with a Guardian Beast.’

’But in the game, to enhance the player’s enjoyment of contracting pets—or to put it bluntly, as a cash grab—’

’...players could continuously raise their Soul Power cap by buying Soul Pills from the store.’

’Soul Pills were cheap, so even players who didn’t spend much could contract more than a dozen Guardian Beasts.’

’It was a huge difference from the real world.’

’That’s why players never worried about the Soul Power cost when contracting a Wind Flash Butterfly.’

’In the game, players had extensively explored the potential of this particular Wind Dance Butterfly variant.’

’The Wind Flash Butterfly, like the Wind Dance Butterfly, has Wind Vortex Shield as its Basic Skill, but their attributes are different.’

’The Wind Dance Butterfly is a Wind Attribute Defensive Guardian Beast, whereas the Wind Flash Butterfly is a dual-attribute Guardian Beast possessing both Space and Wind attributes.’

’If specially guided during its Evolution, the Wind Flash Butterfly has a chance to develop into a unique type of Functional Guardian Beast.’

’In battle, this special Functional Butterfly Guardian Beast can turn the tides or save its master’s life at a critical moment.’

’It’s perfect for Zhong Ling to form a one-way Contract with, using the Soul Vein Mother Butterfly.’