CHAPTER 36: CHAPTER 36: GREAT BREWMASTER, AN UNEXPECTED SURPRISE!

"Speed is slow..."

"Lacks agility..."

"Why does it seem so dumb, as if its intelligence has decreased..."

"..."

"What the hell is this?"

Qi Ping was a bit speechless.

Initially, Qi Ping didn’t mind that the Big Belly Bee’s agility and speed were inferior to the ordinary Golden Marrow Bee, thinking perhaps it had awakened some special talent?

So Qi Ping started to communicate with the Big Belly Bee, wanting to know what special talent it had mutated.

But after communicating dozens of times, Qi Ping found that its intelligence seemed to have decreased.

Even when Qi Ping communicated with it, the responses were inconsistent, and its intelligence was far inferior even to the little black bee...

If it weren’t for its solid late first-tier aura, Qi Ping would have suspected it broke through to nothingness.

"This is ridiculous!"

"Could it really be the Big Belly Demon Insect described in the Demon Insect Cultivation Manual, which only one in ten thousand evolves?"

"..."

But upon closer inspection, Qi Ping still felt something was off; this Big Belly Bee still gave a very harmonious feeling.

Its aura was stable and solid, not floating at all; it should indeed be a solid late first-tier bee.

"What’s in its belly? Could it be related to honey-making?" Qi Ping began proactively searching.

The Bloodline Mutation Potion generally follows certain traces, mutating original aspects of the demon insect.

And the best talent related to the Golden Marrow Bee’s belly is honey-making.

So Qi Ping started testing in the direction of honey-making.

About half a day later.

Qi Ping was utterly stunned by the spiritual medicine fused under the Big Belly Bee’s control!

"Wow! Amazing!"

The Big Belly Bee could keenly distinguish how different spiritual medicines should be proportioned to maximize their effects, then make honey!

This honey-making ability far surpassed the Golden Marrow Bee!

"This is too amazing!"

"The only pity is that the Big Belly Bee’s intelligence seems quite low, only instinctively distinguishing and fusing the spiritual medicine nectar before it, creating combinations that maximize efficacy, and then brewing it into honey..."

"What a pity... If these Big Belly Bees had higher intelligence, they’d be natural alchemists!"

From the Big Belly Bee’s situation, Qi Ping figured it could handle most first-tier spiritual medicines perfectly.

And the honey brewed by the Big Belly Bee surpassed the ordinary Golden Marrow Bee significantly.

"In this way, cultivating a batch of Big Belly Bees within the Golden Marrow Bee hive to specialize in high-quality honey-making is feasible. In the future, other uses might also be discovered..."

After numerous tests, Qi Ping finally grasped the attributes of the Big Belly Bee.

[Species: Brewer Big Belly Bee (Golden Marrow Bee Mutation)]

[Bloodline: Tier One High Level]

[Talent: Great Brewmaster]

Great Brewmaster: Possesses a talent for honey-making far superior to ordinary Golden Marrow Bees, with extremely keen spiritual sense towards spiritual medicine, able to keenly fuse them to maximize their effects, then brew them into honey.

[Evaluation: Endowed with exceptional sensitivity towards spiritual medicine, but consequently loses talents like Highly Poisonous Tail Needle and Wind Speed, even its intelligence is reduced as a result...]

"Actually, in a way, the transformation of the Big Belly Bee is nothing less than that of the High-speed Ring-cutting Bee..."

"With the Big Belly Bee around, I needn’t worry about my late-stage Qi Refining resources..."

If using the Big Belly Bees for mass production of high-grade honey, Qi Ping estimated he could make a fortune, but feared a Foundation Establishment expert might come knocking the next day...

Qi Ping was certain that the honey brewed by the Big Belly Bees would be valuable enough to tempt even those at the Foundation Establishment Stage.

However, it also required sufficient spiritual medicine, and if including the value of the spiritual medicine, the profit margin wasn’t that high, still far behind the alchemist’s vast profits.

After all, the perfected legacy of alchemy over the ages isn’t something a Big Belly Bee with a Great Brewmaster talent can match.

More accurately, the Big Belly Bee is like an alchemist with low intelligence but high success rate in fusing spiritual medicines, valuable but not exaggerated.

But this alchemist-like bee form was just right for Qi Ping.

Qi Ping could accelerate spiritual medicine growth, and the Big Belly Bee could brew honey suitable for Qi Ping’s cultivation enhancement, or honey with other healing effects.

This setup suited Qi Ping perfectly for quietly farming and strengthening himself, without unnecessary external conflicts.

Compared to risking life in various perilous ruins for resources, Qi Ping preferred farming and beekeeping on the mountain.

...

After testing the attributes of three drones, Qi Ping was still very satisfied.

The disappointment from the failure of the Highly Poisonous Bee and Blood-colored Bee’s transformation gradually faded.

Overall, the effect of this Bloodline Mutation Potion was excellent, far exceeding Qi Ping’s expectations!

"This is really thanks to Sister Nan, once there’s surplus Golden Marrow Honey, I should send some to her. Considering the value of Spirit Beast Cultivation: Demon Insect Chapter, giving her only a small amount of honey seems insufficient..."

Qi Ping recognized the principle of repaying kindness, of course, without affecting his cultivation.

After all, Qi Ping was a selfish person; within his capability, he was willing to do what he could, for both Old Zhou and Sister Nan.

After instructing the excited Golden Marrow Bees several times, Qi Ping returned to the ancient fir tree, calmed his excitement, and entered a state of full cultivation.

With his animal companions getting stronger, he couldn’t fall too far behind in cultivation, especially since he hadn’t started practicing yet today!

After receiving Qi Ping’s instructions, the Golden Marrow Bees didn’t need further guidance from him.

Whether cultivating the High-speed Ring-cutting Bee Legion, the Big Belly Bee, or the Balanced Bee...

The Golden Marrow Bees would cultivate in the most suitable direction for their hive enhancement, perhaps more diligently and excitedly than Qi Ping himself.

Next, Qi Ping simply needed to wait quietly for the formation of the High-speed Ring-cutting Bee Legion and the Big Belly Bee Legion.

In the days that followed, Qi Ping entered a state of full cultivation.

With rent paid, Qi Ping didn’t have to worry about anything for the next year.

After explaining things to Old Zhou, he didn’t ask further, knowing that with the Golden Marrow Bees, Qi Ping could generally handle things himself, just advising him to be more cautious.

...

However, Qi Ping soon encountered a new problem; due to excessive consumption of Golden Marrow Honey, his realm began to feel a bit unstable...

Originally, he was close to breaking through to Fourth-Layer of Qi Refining, but due to the unstable spiritual qi, rashly attempting a breakthrough posed the risk of failure and serious harm.

If the breakthrough failed, it would truly be a loss.

Fortunately, Qi Ping estimated that within half a month, he could stabilize his realm, making the breakthrough to Fourth-Layer of Qi Refining likely trouble-free.

In any case, before the High-speed Ring-cutting Bee Legion is trained, Qi Ping wasn’t planning to head to the Cyan Stone Marketplace, even if High Boss had to wait another month.

Although Qi Ping was curious whether High Boss had found the second animal companion he sought, he suppressed this impulse, prioritizing stability.

No rush over just one month.

In a bit over a month, Qi Ping estimated a breakthrough to Fourth-Layer of Qi Refining was achievable, and with Tree Skin Technique level already at level three, his defense would suffice against more dangers.

But just after Qi Ping calmly settled his cultivation, someone unexpected, yet expected, appeared.

In the courtyard at the foot of 007 Mountain Peak, Lin Chaoyang sat by the rosewood table, excitedly saying after sipping tea:

"Brother Qi, I’ve got the secret realm’s news all checked, at least seventy percent certainty, let’s go seek opportunities together!"