Qin Yi’s foot had barely landed before he even had time to calm the surging spiritual energy inside him, his gaze already sweeping to the center of the cave dwelling.
When he saw the Profound Shadow Egg with that spreading crack, Qin Yi’s pupils suddenly constricted. He didn’t waste a word. With a single arrow-like step he strode forward, not even caring about the glaring golden light or the blistering heat, and crouched down at the edge of the Minor Heavenly Cycle Star Power Gathering Formation.
“Senior Brother, be careful, the temperature is extremely high, the internal energy is very violent.” Su Ming lowered his voice to warn him, yet he did not loosen his grip on the defensive formation plate.
Qin Yi did not answer. He didn’t even activate protective spirit energy.
He slowly extended those long, slender hands, moving with extreme caution, and gently pressed them against the scalding eggshell.
At the moment of contact, Qin Yi’s brows twitched violently, but he did not recoil.
He closed his eyes.
A soft spiritual energy seeped from his palms into the eggshell.
Different from Su Ming’s probing divine sense, Qin Yi’s spiritual energy was more like a pacification, a silent cross-species communication with the life about to be born.
Only the heavy thudding of the Profound Shadow Egg remained in the cave dwelling.
After a moment.
Qin Yi slowly opened his eyes. He let out a long exhale from his abdomen, withdrew his hand from the shell, and turned to look at Su Ming.
“Phew… that scared me. Little junior brother, put the defensive formation plate away, you don’t need to be so tense.” Qin Yi wiped the sweat from his brow with his sleeve; the restless tension finally eased.
Su Ming relaxed his fingers with some doubt, but the Meridian Protection Pill tucked under his tongue he still did not swallow. He mumbled, “Second Senior Brother, what exactly is going on? Didn’t you say it would take another two or three months? Why did it suddenly crack open now?”
Qin Yi looked at the crack the size of a fingernail and his eyes filled with fascinated light.
“It’s not time yet.” He shook his head. “This isn’t it hatching. It’s performing a last ‘rebirth’ energy accumulation to prepare for the real hatching. That crack is a ‘breathing pore’ it actively opened to more violently devour star power.”
“Accumulating energy?” Su Ming glanced at the waterfall of starlight pouring down from the dome, feeling the terrifying throughput, “Then how much longer will it take?”
“At most half a month.” Qin Yi’s tone was supremely certain, and an unusual glint flickered in his eyes. “An ancient-blooded beast like this has vitality far beyond what we imagine. In these half-months it will be like a bottomless pit, swallowing any star power it can touch. The formation you opened was extremely timely. If you had suppressed it just now, you would have instead harmed its innate source.”
Hearing this, Su Ming inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. His inadvertent guiding had turned out to be the correct choice.
“However…” Qin Yi’s tone shifted, his expression growing grave. He stood and looked directly into Su Ming’s eyes. “Little junior brother, since the hatching is imminent, there are certain things you must prepare immediately.”
“Please instruct me, Second Senior Brother.” Su Ming straightened his posture at once.
“The first lifeform that an exotic beast sees as it cracks its shell often instinctively becomes its closest. But for a being with such a high bloodline, mere filial instincts won’t be enough. At the instant of hatching, you must use the most reliable spiritual materials to assist and establish an unbreakable master-servant blood contract.”
While speaking, Qin Yi took a jade bottle of jade-green color from his storage pouch and handed it to Su Ming.
“This is an Enlightening Pill. Its grade isn’t high, but it’s miraculous for awakening an infant beast’s intelligence and stabilizing its soul. I prepared this for you, keep it safe.”
Su Ming received it with both hands and thanked him solemnly, “Thank you, Second Senior Brother.”
Qin Yi waved his hand and continued, “I have Enlightening Pills here, but the other two core materials for recognizing a master you must prepare yourself.”
“What are the two items?”
“Spirit-Communion Jade Marrow and Star-Pattern Silk.” Qin Yi’s expression turned professional. “The Spirit-Communion Jade Marrow greatly enhances the divine-sense compatibility between you and the beast, preventing rejection during contract formation; the Star-Pattern Silk must be soaked in your essence blood for nine days and nights, and at the moment it hatches you must wrap it around its body as the physical carrier of the blood contract.”
“Both items are indispensable. Especially this Profound Shadow Egg, which has absorbed star power for years. The Star-Pattern Silk shares origin with its source, making it the ideal contract medium.”
Su Ming burned those two names into his memory. He didn’t ask whether they were expensive; in the cultivation world, things solvable with spirit stones and contribution points were not problems.
“Understood. I’ll go to the Administration Hall first thing tomorrow morning.”
Qin Yi nodded, glanced once more at the Profound Shadow Egg still ravenously devouring starlight, and patted Su Ming on the shoulder.
“If anything unusual happens in these half-months, send me a transmission at once.”
With that, Qin Yi stared deeply at the crack emitting golden light one more time, then reluctantly summoned his flying sword, becoming a streak of light that vanished into the night.
The cave dwelling was left with only Su Ming again.
He spat the Meridian Protection Pill back into the jade bottle and put it away, then sat cross-legged on the meditation mat once more.
Staring at the glittering Profound Shadow Egg, a flash of eager light crossed Su Ming’s eyes.
“Spirit-Communion Jade Marrow, Star-Pattern Silk…” he calculated silently to himself.
Tomorrow, it’s time to spend some sect wealth.
......
The first ray of morning sunlight pierced the perennial sea of clouds that never left Cloud Hidden Sect, lazily spilling onto the wide Greenstone steps before the Administration Hall, making the weathered slabs faintly gleam.
As the hub for managing the sect’s internal and external materials and issuing tasks, the Administration Hall was always the liveliest place in Cloud Hidden Sect.
Inside the hall voices rose and fell; disciples from inner and outer peaks hurried back and forth. A massive white-jade task board floated in midair, its multicolored spiritual lights constantly flowing; each flicker represented a task being posted or accepted. The air carried the papery smell of low-grade talisman paper mixed with the pine-resin scent unique to spiritual ink, blending into the everyday, bustling flavor of the cultivation world.
At that moment, the noisy chatter at the hall’s entrance suddenly and strangely fell silent for a beat.
The crowd instinctively parted to both sides, forming a spacious passage.
Su Ming strode in with calm, unhurried steps.
Today he wore the purple Daoist robe signifying a true disciple personally taught by Xuanheng Zhenren. The purple fabric shifted with the top-quality sheen of a superior magic garment, and silver thread embroidered the peak’s intricate star patterns on the hem. As he walked, those star patterns seemed to flutter with life.
Wherever he passed, the disciples on both sides lowered their heads in salute.
“Hail, Master Su.”
“Hail, True Disciple Su.”
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