Immortality: Raising an Ant Queen to Cultivate by increasing stat points

Chapter 509: 501

The volume of this inner core was quite large; using it to refine elixirs to enhance one’s own cultivation or to feed insect pets was a good choice.

There is actually a significant difference between the inner cores of demon beasts and demon insects.

If intended for human consumption, neither type of demon core could be swallowed directly; one needed to find a Pill Alchemist to refine them into elixirs before they could be taken. The failure rate of refining any demon core into an elixir was considerably high.

Don’t think that the time when Qin Niu successfully refined the Pig King’s inner core into a Boundary-breaking Elixir wasn’t a stroke of luck.

Even for Master Zi Zhou, the highest skilled alchemist in Miaodan Pavilion, the success rate of refining a Demonic Beast Inner Alchemy Elixir was only around 30%.

Qin Niu had already reached the Spirit Qi Realm in his cultivation, but to break through to the Immortal Scholar Realm, he was still far from ready.

Last time he barely managed to avoid failure when he took the Mirror-Breaking Elixir to break through to the Innate Realm; now, to think of using a Boundary-breaking Elixir to break through to the Immortal Scholar Realm was out of the question. Based on his experience breaking through the Spirit Qi Realm, the best method was to cultivate to the peak of the current realm and then rely on the power of an elixir at a critical moment to break through in one fell swoop.

Otherwise, it would just be a waste of the precious Boundary-breaking Elixir.

Since he didn’t need the Boundary-breaking Elixir for now and the success rate of refining such an elixir was extremely low, it would be better to keep the Scorpion Demon’s inner core to cultivate insect pets.

The inner cores of demon beasts could be swallowed directly by beast species.

The inner cores of demon insects could be feasted on directly by insect species.

However, beast species could not directly consume the inner cores of demon insects. Conversely, insect species also could not feast on inner cores of demon beasts.

It was already quite difficult for insect species to become demon insects, which made the inner cores of demon insects exceedingly rare.

Thus, the Scorpion Demon’s inner core appeared even more precious and scarce.

Qin Niu was considering whether he should feed the Scorpion Demon’s inner core to the Ant Queen or use it to nourish the Green Demon Bee Queen.

Scorpions, being venomous reptiles, were closer to Termites.

Letting Termites consume the Scorpion Demon’s inner core would definitely yield a higher benefit.

The Ant Queen was Qin Niu’s first insect pet, and it had never disappointed him, having contributed enormously to his rapid rise.

After consuming the Ancient Banyan Tree Blood, it had directly transformed from an ordinary Termite into a Four-Winged Yin Ant.

This also meant it had completed its preliminary leap from being a carp to leaping over the dragon gate.

Its growth potential was incalculable.

Whether out of affection or considering the Ant Queen’s growth potential, Qin Niu decided to prioritize cultivating it.

Even though it was currently much weaker than the Green Demon Bee, its ability to explode into soldiers was hard to rival; if not unmatched in the three realms, it was at least second to none.

Once the Ant Queen one day grew to be a Grade Eight insect, it was uncertain whether the Green Demon Bee would still be a match for it.

Having made up his mind, Qin Niu stored the Scorpion Demon’s inner core.

The corpse of the Scorpion Demon was split evenly between the Ant Queen and the Green Demon Bee King. The Scorpion Demon’s inner core, however, was reserved for the Ant Queen’s sole consumption, hoping to use it to help the Ant Queen advance its level.

…

Five days later, half of the Scorpion Demon’s carcass had been thoroughly devoured by the Ant Queen.

After all, it was an egg-laying machine that consumed an astonishing amount of energy daily. With an open supply, it had eaten the equivalent of half a calf in five days.

Having consumed so much, it finally showed signs of advancing to the next level.

Early on the sixth day, Qin Niu sensed something unusual about the Ant Queen, and the ant colony became restless as well.

He didn’t know what had happened, but after hurrying over to check the Ant Nest, a smile appeared on his face.

It was a good sign.

The Ant Queen was about to advance.

Qin Niu was capable of remaining patient; after checking, he went straight into the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze to cultivate.

By late afternoon, the Ant Queen’s upgrade was complete.

Qin Niu immediately checked the Ant Queen’s attributes.

It had evolved from a Grade Six to a Grade Seven female Four-Winged Yin Ant.

“Strike while the iron is hot, give it another push!”

Qin Niu stopped cultivating and walked out of the Ancient Banyan Tree Maze. He went to the Ant Nest, took out a Scorpion Demon inner core, let Fourth and the Demon Ants devour it, and then fed it to the Ant Queen.

After feeding the Ant Queen, Qin Niu returned home. As he passed through the backyard, he subconsciously checked on the Green Demon Bee King.

More than half of that Scorpion Demon’s body had been eaten by the Green Demon Bees.

Compared to the Ant Queen, the Green Demon Bee seemed to have a much smaller appetite.

The Ant Queen had a very strong digestive ability, which the Green Demon Bee lagged far behind.

At this moment, the Green Demon Bee King was still incessantly munching on the Scorpion Demon, with black qi continuously emerging from its body. If the Green Demon Bee could ascend to the Ninth Level, that would be marvelous.

Qin Niu’s confidence in attending the Water and Land Dharma Assembly increased yet another notch.

After checking on the Green Demon Bee, he went to the herb garden. The veins on the Dogtail Grass seemed to have turned a deeper shade of purple, its roots and stems had become thicker, and its vitality was even more tenacious than before.

After dinner and a bath, Qin Niu proceeded to practice the Everlasting Spring Technique in the backyard.

He observed the reactions of various medicinal herbs in secret.

Days before, he had specifically selected two herbs and infused them with a sufficient amount of Everlasting Spring Technique’s cultivation power. Six days had passed, and these two plants did not exhibit any special abilities.

It was only the Dogtail Grass that still regarded him as the sun. Wherever he sat to cultivate, the Dogtail Grass would turn towards him.

Also, he noticed that the Dogtail Grass seemed to be able to express some ’emotions’ through its leaves.

For example, when Qin Niu cultivated the Everlasting Spring Technique next to it, the Dogtail Grass absorbed some of the diffused energy, which made it comfortable and grow faster. Thus, it would joyfully sway its leaves up and down.

When Qin Niu intentionally moved away to cultivate where the grass could not reach, its leaves and even the entire stalk would desperately stretch towards the direction of Qin Niu.

“It seems this Dogtail Grass has truly undergone some mysterious changes!”

Qin Niu mused to himself.

It used to be like a dumb piece of wood, just quietly growing. Now, it’s like it has gained sentience and expresses its feelings or needs through the movements of its leaves and stems.

“Could it be that it has gained a form of intelligence?”

Qin Niu was inwardly shaken by this possibility.

If it were true, then the Everlasting Spring Technique would definitely be a top-tier cultivation technique. Because it meant that with his current level of cultivation, he could directly enlighten plants and help them awaken their intelligence.

Although plants and stones can cultivate, the ones that transform into spirits are extremely rare.

They are actually the most abundant in nature and possess a long life that animals envy. However, they also have an inherent weakness—plants may have life, but they lack intelligence.

Even a butterfly or a caterpillar knows to hide from enemies.

Or even feign death to save their life.

This shows they possess simple cognitive abilities.

But plants have a hard time developed such cognitive skills; they only know how to grow in silence, competing with their peers for sunlight and nutrients, instinctively rooting deeper or spreading further.

Then they bloom and bear fruit, reproducing offspring, year after year.

If plants were to have intelligence like animals, then they would certainly dominate the world, not humankind.

If Qin Niu’s Everlasting Spring Technique could indeed enlighten plants, wouldn’t he be able to create spirits en masse?