Chapter 64: Chapter 62: Test Subject
"Um, this... sir... how should I address you?" Li Qian asked, looking at the blond man.
He had subconsciously been about to call him "Little Blondie," but the words died on his lips when he realized something wasn’t right, so he quickly corrected himself.
Besides, the man wasn’t a "little blondie." A closer look revealed he was at least in his late twenties.
If anything, he should be called "Big Blondie."
Hearing Li Qian’s awkward form of address, Niu Fenjin’s mouth couldn’t help but twitch.
’You already let the "young" part slip out. Don’t think I didn’t hear it.’
’Of course, even though I heard it, I have to pretend I didn’t.’
’Otherwise, it’d be even more awkward.’
"My name is Niu Fenjin," Niu Fenjin said flatly.
Li Qian immediately changed his tone and greeted him again. "Brother Niu, hello. Welcome to the Jiaoyang Cultivation Base."
’This blond man, Niu Fenjin, might not look very reliable, but since Teacher Chu and Zhu Bingqing recommended him, I should probably trust him for now.’
’The two teachers definitely wouldn’t lead me astray.’
"Kid, this Cultivation Base of yours looks pretty average," Niu Fenjin remarked casually, scanning his surroundings as he followed Li Qian inside.
Li Qian didn’t mind hearing this.
Strictly speaking, the man wasn’t wrong.
His Jiaoyang Cultivation Base had indeed fallen into decline after the old Breeder passed away and his descendants had no interest in the profession.
There weren’t any high-value Pet Beasts in the base either.
It did look a bit shabby.
With a faint smile, Li Qian said frankly, "I just took over this Cultivation Base and haven’t had time to fix it up yet. It’s perfectly normal that it doesn’t meet Brother Niu’s standards."
"Ahem..."
Seeing how polite Li Qian was, maintaining his composure and treating him with a calm demeanor, Niu Fenjin noted that aside from the initial slip of the tongue, he hadn’t been rude at all. If he continued to be cold and critical, it would just make him seem petty, so he changed his tune. "Actually, for someone your age, it’s already quite impressive to be able to take over such a large Cultivation Base."
"This Cultivation Base may look a bit run-down, but the scale and foundation are still there. If you manage it with care, it will definitely be revitalized."
Li Qian nodded slightly at his words.
’This guy might not look reliable, but after hearing him speak, I can tell he’s not one of those ignorant freeloaders.’
Without wasting time, he got straight to the point. "Brother Niu, I believe the two teachers have already told you about the problem I’m facing."
Niu Fenjin nodded. "You want to learn the Frostfire Array?"
"Yes!" Li Qian said with a smile. "Of course, it would be best if you could set one up here in my Cultivation Base first."
"As for the necessary materials and payment, please feel free to name your price, Brother Niu. I will do my best to meet your terms."
Niu Fenjin waved his hand. "The materials and payment are minor details. Since I promised your Teacher Chu, I will certainly do my best to set it up."
"What I’m more curious about now is what exactly you plan to do with this Frostfire Array."
"Your Teacher Chu only said it was to assist in raising a Pet Beast, but she didn’t give me any specific details..."
Li Qian continued on that topic, "It is indeed for raising a Pet Beast. I want to use the Frostfire Array to stimulate the Energy within a certain Pet Beast, thereby triggering an opportunity for evolution."
Hearing this, the way Niu Fenjin looked at Li Qian changed significantly.
’He’s so young, yet he’s already researching breeding techniques and can articulate such theories. It proves he’s at least a decent student.’
’Then again, that’s to be expected.’
’If he were just messing around, Zhu Bingqing and Chu Xiran wouldn’t have come to me for help.’
"I see." After murmuring his understanding, he began to scan the surroundings again. "So, where are you planning to set up this Frostfire Array?"
"Brother Niu, please follow me." Upon hearing this, Li Qian led the way forward.
Niu Fenjin followed close behind.
Before long, the two arrived at an empty plot of land not far from the Cultivation Base’s Central Pond.
Li Qian looked around and then said, "Right here."
Niu Fenjin studied the area for a moment, then nodded.
’There’s nothing wrong with this spot.’
"When it comes to Arrays, what’s learned on paper is always shallow!" Withdrawing his gaze, Niu Fenjin thought for a moment and made a suggestion. "How about this: I’ll explain as we set it up. What do you think?"
"Sounds good!" Li Qian had no objections.
He was eager for the chance to learn through practice.
Setting up an Array wasn’t something that could be finished in a short time.
So, after Li Qian hosted Niu Fenjin for lunch at the Jiaoyang Cultivation Base that day, the latter left.
Looking at the list of required materials that Niu Fenjin had given him, Li Qian summoned An Hou Nian.
An Hou Nian took the slip of paper from Li Qian and looked it over. He couldn’t make heads or tails of it, but that didn’t stop him from carrying out the task diligently.
"I’ll gather everything as soon as possible," An Hou Nian nodded, then asked, "How many sets should I prepare?"
"Prepare three sets for now," Li Qian replied after a moment’s thought.
’I don’t know if the Frostfire Array will be damaged after the evolution. It would be best if it isn’t, and I can just keep using it by replenishing the Energy Stones. But if it does break and becomes unusable, that’s fine too. The materials needed to set up the Array aren’t that precious. Worst case, I’ll just build another one. In any case, three sets of materials should definitely be enough for now.’
Considering Niu Fenjin was an expert, setting up the Array probably wouldn’t take long once the materials arrived. This forced Li Qian to start thinking about another problem.
Which Pet Beast should he use as a test subject?
In theory, Liu Changfeng’s Ah Long was the most suitable candidate. Its personality was very similar to Qizai’s, and its willpower was certainly superior to other Koi Carp.
But Ah Long was aiming to evolve into a Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragon. If Li Qian rashly tried to evolve it into a Frostfire Salamander... well, if it succeeded, that would be one thing. But if it failed and Ah Long was ruined, how would he ever explain it to Liu Changfeng?
So it was best not to touch the existing Koi Carp that had good Potential and were aiming for the Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragon evolution.
As for the "salted fish"—the Koi Carp that couldn’t even learn Climbing Waterfall—their chances of successfully evolving via the second path were likely not high either.
In that case, it would be better to find a new test subject altogether.
Thinking of this, he took out his phone, opened the Pet Beast Mall, and started browsing.
Since it was called the Pet Beast Mall, it obviously sold Pet Beasts.
Li Qian didn’t waste time browsing; he directly typed in "Koi Carp" and started a targeted search.
Soon, rows of information appeared on his phone screen.
He checked them one by one and quickly found some Koi Carp in the mall that seemed to have good aptitude.
In fact, any Koi Carp that could be listed for sale in the Pet Beast Mall was not bad.
At the very least, they were the cream of the crop among Koi Carp.
Besides, with a species as numerous as Koi Carp, even if you were just picking the tallest among dwarves, you could still find plenty of standouts.
A quick scan revealed a few promising candidates with decent Potential.
Just then, the information for one particular Koi Carp caught his eye.
"Survived ten minutes under a River-Flipping Crocodile’s Intimidation Skill without fainting."
Without hesitation, he paid for and bought this Koi Carp.
The River-Flipping Crocodile’s Racial Potential was slightly lower than that of a Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragon, but even so, its Intimidation Skill was not something a mere Koi Carp could withstand.
The fact that this Koi Carp could resist for ten minutes before fainting proved, at the very least, that its willpower was far superior to its peers.
It was the most suitable choice for a test subject.
Besides this, the matter of the Koi Carp also gave him a new idea.
’Could I use Intimidation-type Skills to train the willpower of the Koi Carp at the base?’
The fact that neither he nor his parents had a Pet Beast with an Intimidation-type Skill wasn’t a major obstacle.
Both the Lingshui City Beastmaster Association and Teachers Zhu Bingqing and Chu Xiran should be able to help.
Besides, there was also his partner, the An family...
