The next day, Wen Ruo and Elder Guman arrived at Eden Garden together.
Chen Jiuge was somewhat surprised and said, "Senior Sister, Elder, what brings you here?"
"I came to see. I remember a long, long time ago, the Master also participated in the Beast Breeding Competition, but unfortunately, he was eliminated before even passing the preliminaries." Elder Guman couldn’t help laughing as he recalled something amusing.
"Is that so?" Chen Jiuge dared not mock his Master, merely responding dryly.
"Alright, Elder, let’s first go see the Silver Iron Eagles that Junior Brother has been nurturing," Wen Ruo said with a smile.
Upon reaching the breeding area of the Silver Iron Eagles and observing these majestic creatures, Wen Ruo touched the head of a young eagle and said, "Junior Brother, did you nurture these? They look really good."
Elder Guman also remarked, "They indeed look appealing and are quite a highlight. However, the Beast Breeding Competition places more emphasis on the cost and potential of nurturing. Jiuge, can you tell us how you nurtured these Silver Iron Eagles, if it’s convenient?"
Chen Jiuge, who trusted them both deeply, immediately handed over the Jade Scroll that recorded the nurturing methods of the Silver Iron Eagles to Elder Guman, saying, "This scroll contains all the nurturing techniques for the Silver Iron Eagles."
After Elder Guman and Wen Ruo closely examined it, they exclaimed, "Jiuge, you truly are a genius!"
"To think you managed to nurture Silver Iron Eagles that are nearly reaching Fourth Rank from barely First Rank Spiritual Chickens! However, I must remind you, the current Grade is still somewhat low. If you can’t enhance it, the preliminaries will be challenging. After all, this Beast Breeding Competition occurs only once every eight hundred years. Many participants are well-prepared, and there are numerous capable individuals within the Sect," Wen Ruo advised.
"I estimate that with the current progress of cultivation and the enhancement through Bloodline Transformation, it should be possible to nurture them to around a Fifth Rank bloodline within a hundred years," Chen Jiuge calculated. The initial bloodline Grade was too low and the time too short; even with the aid of the Golden Finger, it was still very challenging.
"Hmm, that’s already quite impressive. Before the Master went into seclusion, he asked me to help you out, so let’s use the small world," Elder Guman contemplated.
"The small world? Is that the Flower Sea Realm?" Wen Ruo guessed.
"Yes, the Flower Sea Realm doesn’t have many creatures, mostly just little elves. The time flow there can be ten times faster. Originally, the spiritual energy in such small worlds would be somewhat insufficient. However, Master planted a Heavenly Spirit Holy Tree there a long time ago. Although its spiritual energy can’t compare to Jiuge’s Eden Garden, it’s not too far off," Elder Guman explained.
"What do you think?" Elder Guman asked.
Upon hearing this, Chen Jiuge readily agreed, recognizing it as a great opportunity.
"However, I need to remind you about one thing. The passage of time in the Flower Sea Realm is real. The number of years you spend there is the exact amount of life span you will lose. You must manage it yourself and not stay there continuously. The laws of the small world are not suitable for our cultivation," Elder Guman cautioned.
"I will be careful," Chen Jiuge said solemnly.
Handing over a token engraved with a floral pattern, Elder Guman said, "This is the token for entering and exiting the Flower Sea Realm. I will go tidy it up later and set up a barrier, so you can nurture the Silver Iron Eagles there without worries."
"Thank you for your trouble, Elder," Chen Jiuge expressed his gratitude.
"There’s no need. As long as you can nurture the Silver Iron Eagles up to the Sixth Rank, you might even achieve a good ranking," Elder Guman encouraged.
"Alright, Junior Brother, do your best," Wen Ruo cheered, clenching her little fist.
"I will, Senior Sister," Chen Jiuge nodded.
I had hoped to receive some advice, but I didn’t expect Elder Guman to send such a generous gift. If I can’t achieve good results this time, it would truly be a waste of my Golden Finger, Chen Jiuge thought confidently.
Beyond the Silver Iron Eagles, Chen Jiuge also brought the previously crossbred Fire Spiritual Chickens and White Spiritual Chickens to the Flower Sea Realm. He substituted their food with Spiritual Beast Pills. This matter required Yue Meng to pay more attention, as refining elixirs himself was more Spirit Stone-efficient than buying them.
In a dim cave within the Gravel Forest, Chen Jiuge successfully found Yue Meng.
Seeing Yue Meng covered in dust and exuding a strong medicinal odor, Chen Jiuge exclaimed in disbelief, "What happened to you?"
"Oh, it’s master. Do you need something? If it’s nothing, please don’t disturb me," Yue Meng’s glistening eyes stared straight at Chen Jiuge.
Looking not far away at what appeared to be Spiritual Chickens that had died from diarrhea, and recalling Black Eye’s previous complaint, he swallowed and asked, "Are you still refining the Positive Yang Pill?"
"Correct! I’ve now improved it to fix the diarrhea side effect. I’m simply a genius!" Yue Meng rasped with a sinister chuckle.
"Stop, stop, stop! First, come out with me and get washed," Chen Jiuge really couldn’t stand the smell.
Carrying the constantly squirming Yue Meng, he washed it several times in the Spirit Lake until its snow-white fur showed, and only then did he stop.
"Yue Meng, let’s not make any Positive Yang Pills for now. Your master has a very, very important task for you," Chen Jiuge said solemnly.
Affected by Chen Jiuge’s earnest gaze, Yue Meng straightened up and, thumping its chest, shouted, "Speak! The super-strong Yue Meng is always ready!"
After reiterating the importance of the Beast Breeding Competition and the Silver Iron Eagles multiple times, Yue Meng reluctantly agreed to refine daily Spiritual Beast Pills for Chen Jiuge until the start of the competition.
Dealing with Yue Meng so easily left Chen Jiuge quite puzzled. Were Spiritual Beasts so easily swayed by such serious appeals to duty?
With everything prepared, all that was left was for Elder Guman to secure the Flower Sea Realm, and then he could accelerate the breeding process.
The wait lasted three days, almost making Chen Jiuge’s ambitions waver.
Arriving at the Flower Sea Realm with all his chickens and eagles in tow, Chen Jiuge was stunned by the beautiful scenery before him.
It was a sea of multicolored flowers, with occasional playful Flower Elves. Their TEE HEE HEE laughter echoed across the expanse, and a delightful floral fragrance filled the air. The only thing slightly lacking was a sense of vitality.
"How about it? Pretty, isn’t it?" Elder Guman appeared behind him and chuckled.
"Jiuge, I’ve set up a Spirit Array for growth in this place, the same as in your Eden Garden. From now on, you just need to focus on nurturing them well and keep an eye on the time," Elder Guman advised.
"Thank you, Elder. But what about those Flower Elves?" Chen Jiuge pointed at the adorable little creatures.
"Don’t worry. These Flower Elves are at least Sixth or Seventh Rank; they’re the strongest bunch in the Flower Sea Realm. Your little eagle fledglings can’t hurt them. Just focus on your breeding," Elder Guman shook his head.
After confirming everything, Elder Guman didn’t stay long. After all, he was getting old; even a Heavenly Immortal would find resisting the small world’s erosion tiring. An old man like him should get more rest.
The real work begins now, Chen Jiuge thought.
First, he designated and set up the habitats for the Silver Iron Eagles, Fire Spiritual Chickens, and White Spiritual Chickens. Then, he released each type of Spiritual Beast from the Spiritual Beast Bag into their respective areas. Since the Silver Iron Eagles could fly, Chen Jiuge had specially installed a No-fly Array. As long as they didn’t fly above three thousand meters, all would be well.
Since the Silver Iron Eagles were still young, the immediate task was to feed them and wait for them to mature and lay eggs.