Chapter 39: Earth Grade Bloodline

The Marketplace’s trading district.

People bustled to and fro amidst the clamor.

There weren’t many stall owners selling Beast Eggs, and almost all of them were Beast Masters.

Of course, there were also a few lucky Cultivators who stumbled upon Beast Eggs while exploring and brought them back to the Marketplace to sell.

’Where could the Beast Egg from the divination be?’

Li Chang’an altered his aura and walked through the trading district.

He tried his best to remain calm, his gaze sweeping swiftly across one stall after another.

「About ten minutes later.」

He had already checked over a dozen stalls selling Beast Eggs.

But there was still no sign of any Profound Water Turtle Eggs.

Time passed quickly.

Another ten minutes slipped by before he knew it.

Finally, Li Chang’an stopped in his tracks, his gaze locking onto a stall.

Several oval Beast Eggs were displayed on the stall, each emitting faint Water Attribute fluctuations.

’Profound Water Turtle Eggs!’

His expression unchanging, Li Chang’an walked over to take a closer look.

A few other Cultivators were already at the stall, also examining the Beast Eggs.

They all looked hesitant, as if considering whether or not to make a purchase.

Just then, the stall owner was recounting the story of how he had obtained these Profound Water Turtle eggs.

"I’m no Beast Master," he began. "It was pure luck. Not long ago, I was exploring a Secret Realm and came across a large lake. There, on the shore, I discovered this nest of Profound Water Turtle eggs..."

He was beaming, clearly in high spirits.

After all, this nest of Profound Water Turtle Eggs was quite a fortunate find.

Li Chang’an stood before the stall.

His gaze swept over each of the Profound Water Turtle Eggs.

’Strange... they all look the same, just ordinary Profound Water Turtle Eggs. Which one could have undergone a bloodline mutation?’

Li Chang’an wondered to himself.

A normal Profound Water Turtle’s bloodline, like that of a Yellow Sand Dog, was only Middle Grade.

And yet, for some reason, the bloodline of the egg mentioned in the divination had somehow jumped two full grades.

This was comparable to a human’s Middle Grade Spirit Root being elevated to an Earth Spirit Root.

It was truly baffling.

However, it had been discovered in a Secret Realm, after all.

Everyone knew that all sorts of bizarre and unnatural things frequently occurred in Secret Realms.

"Fellow Daoists, these Profound Water Turtle Eggs are only fifty Spirit Stones each. First come, first served!"

The stall owner said with a smile.

One of the Cultivators at the stall shook his head.

"That’s too expensive. Profound Water Turtle Eggs simply aren’t worth that much."

"What’s so expensive about it?"

The stall owner immediately retorted.

"Friend, the Profound Water Turtle is a Spirit Beast with a Middle Grade Bloodline. As long as you raise it properly, it’s not difficult for it to break through to the Tier One Late Stage."

"That may be true, but the raising process requires too many Treasures."

The Cultivator still shook his head.

He sighed and said, "I don’t even have enough Treasures for my own cultivation. Where would I get extra Treasures to raise a Spirit Beast?"

The stall owner asked him, "Then why are you looking to buy, friend?"

"I plan to use it as an ingredient to make a Water Attribute Spiritual Cuisine. Perhaps it can enhance my own comprehension of Water Element Techniques."

"I see."

The stall owner nodded in understanding.

However, he still insisted he would not sell for a single Spirit Stone less than fifty.

The price was indeed steep, causing the other Cultivators to frown.

Before long, they left.

Only Li Chang’an remained at the stall.

"Friend, have you decided?"

The stall owner’s eyes lit up slightly, sensing a sale.

Li Chang’an nodded, his expression calm.

"I’ll take them all."

"All of them?"

The stall owner was startled for a moment, then overjoyed.

But he didn’t complete the deal immediately. Instead, he took a moment to carefully size up Li Chang’an.

"Friend, fifty Spirit Stones each. Are you sure?"

"I’m sure."

Li Chang’an’s tone was perfectly earnest.

Then, the two of them signed a Spirit Contract to finalize the trade.

The seven eggs cost a total of three hundred fifty Spirit Stones.

Li Chang’an received the turtle eggs and tossed the Spirit Stones to the stall owner.

"A pleasure doing business with you, friend!"

The stall owner beamed and hastily put away the Spirit Stones.

Li Chang’an was also delighted, but he didn’t let it show, his expression remaining perfectly calm.

After that, he wandered around the Marketplace for a while longer.

After confirming that no other Profound Water Turtle Eggs were for sale, he left the Marketplace.

Not long after leaving the Marketplace, he used an Escape Technique and vanished on the spot.

...

Back in his room, Li Chang’an took out the seven turtle eggs.

’Just which one is it?’

He studied them intently for a long time, his expression focused.

He still couldn’t see anything unusual.

’Oh well. I’ll just establish the contracts first.’

With a thought, Li Chang’an took out seven Spirit Contracts from his Storage Pouch.

He dripped his blood onto the Spirit Contracts.

「A moment later.」

Each Spirit Contract released a beam of Spiritual Light that shone down upon one of the turtle eggs.

The contracts were now complete.

In that instant, Li Chang’an felt a faint connection form with the seven turtle eggs.

"Huh?"

He immediately noticed the difference in one of the turtle eggs.

Through his perception, he could feel that one of the eggs had an extremely vigorous life aura, far surpassing the other six.

Furthermore, its aura was still rapidly growing stronger.

A dozen or so breaths later, the eggshell began to tremble.

’Is it about to hatch?’

Li Chang’an stared at the egg, his expression serious.

To prevent any mishaps, he placed the Spiritual Eye next to the egg and crushed several Spirit Stones, causing the concentration of Spiritual Power in the room to surge far beyond its usual level.

’I hope nothing goes wrong.’

Li Chang’an thought to himself.

「A moment later.」

With a sharp CRACK, a thin fissure appeared on the eggshell.

It was followed by more and more cracks.

Just then, Li Chang’an’s expression changed slightly.

’The life auras of the other six eggs are dropping.’

He realized that the hatching turtle was absorbing the Life Force from the other six eggs.

Li Chang’an’s gaze flickered, but he did not intervene.

「About ten minutes later.」

The life aura in the other six eggs vanished completely, turning them into dead eggs that would never hatch.

CRACK!

The special Profound Water Turtle finally emerged from its shell.

It was only palm-sized, bluish-gray all over. It held its head high, looking at Li Chang’an with a pair of large eyes that conveyed a sense of affection.

Thanks to the Spirit Contract from before, it already regarded Li Chang’an as family.

’Hungry?’

Li Chang’an sensed another emotion being transmitted by the little turtle.

He took out some Spirit Medicine and Demon Beast Flesh and Blood, placing them beside the small creature.

The little fellow wasn’t picky.

Before long, it had eaten all the Spirit Medicine and flesh completely clean.

It blinked its big eyes, transmitting a feeling of satisfaction.

’I can’t believe it can eat so much.’

Li Chang’an watched, his eyelid twitching slightly.

「After a little while.」

He took out a Spirit Testing Stone.

This type of stone could test a Human Race Cultivator’s Spiritual Root, and could also test a Demon Beast’s bloodline.

He took a drop of the little turtle’s blood and dripped it on the Spirit Testing Stone.

In the next instant, the Spirit Testing Stone erupted in a magnificent, dazzling light.

"It really is an Earth Grade Bloodline!"

A look of joy spread across Li Chang’an’s face.

Even with the hint from the divination, he had still been skeptical before.

After all, a Spirit Beast’s bloodline was fixed from birth.

Just like a Human Race Cultivator’s Spiritual Root, it was theoretically impossible to upgrade.

Li Chang’an thought of his own Spiritual Root.

’Since a bloodline’s grade can be upgraded, could there be a way to upgrade my Spiritual Root as well?’