Chapter 111: Spirit Insect Advancement

Standing at the entrance of the mountain cave, Zhang Nuo pondered for a moment. Finally, he looked back into the cave and, seeing that Zhuge Qing did not follow him out, he steered his Flying Sword and flew toward the depths of the great mountain.

After flying for about an hour, he landed in an uninhabited area. Zhang Nuo unleashed his Divine Sense to search the surroundings carefully. Only after confirming it was safe did he take out the Spirit Beast Bag.

At this moment, the inside of the Spirit Beast Bag was already filled with restless energy, and waves of agitation were visible on the surface of the bag.

"It seems you are impatient! I will let you out right away!"

With an excited smile, Zhang Nuo was also full of curiosity about the spirit insect waking up this time. With his five fingers suffused with Spirit Power, he reached toward the opening of the bag, and the Spirit Beast Bag was opened instantly. The moment the bag opened, a streak of Golden Light shot out from within, circled above his head, and then stabilized.

Zhang Nuo watched that mass of Golden Light intently. After the Golden Light faded, a fist-sized golden beetle appeared before his eyes. The appearance of the beetle was exactly the same as the Mysterious Heaven Gold-Devouring Insect, only its body was much larger.

On the beetle's back, a pair of wings flapped incessantly, and its eyes were filled with a joyful expression!

"The spirit insect has advanced!"

Before Zhang Nuo could speak, Chunyangzi in the Sword Box on his back suddenly shouted loudly.

"Although it is still just a Fledgling Stage insect, there should be no problem with it producing Black Profound Crystal Stone!"

Hearing that Chunyangzi's voice was even trembling, two flashes of light flickered in the depths of Zhang Nuo's pupils. Regarding the spirit insect, he had only noticed that its body size had grown much larger; as for other things, he was completely unaware.

"Senior, are you saying that the spirit insect can now produce Black Profound Crystal Stone?"

Although he did not know about other things, Zhang Nuo did know about Black Profound Crystal Stone. It was a type of crystal stone even more precious than White Profound Crystal Stone, and in terms of value, it was far higher than White Profound Crystal Stone!

"Correct! For this Heavenly Sky Grade spirit insect, the first few advancements will not be too difficult. Once it enters the Mature Stage, advancing will become ten times, or even a hundred times, harder! This is the reason why Five-Colored Crystal Stone is so precious. Even in the Immortal World, a single Five-Colored Crystal Stone would invite the disaster of sect annihilation!"

"Mature Stage?"

Zhang Nuo had no concept of this in his mind right now, so he could only make a mental note of the term for now.

"As Senior said, the spirit insect will now produce Black Profound Crystal Stone?"

"Hehe, that is not necessarily the case. Little Zhang, do not hold your hopes too high. The current Mysterious Heaven Gold-Devouring Insect is still in the Fledgling Stage. Whether it can produce Black Profound Crystal Stone depends on fate; I only said it is possible, not certain!"

Chunyangzi gave a helpless smile and said indifferently.

"So that is how it is! Even if it cannot produce Black Profound Crystal Stone, producing White Profound Crystal Stone is not bad either!"

As Zhang Nuo spoke, he moved his mind and summoned the spirit insect into his palm, while his other hand kept stroking its smooth carapace! Because of its long slumber, the insect had not seen Zhang Nuo for a long time, and it was currently extremely excited, rubbing its head against Zhang Nuo's palm!

"White Profound Crystal Stone? Hmph! The current Nine Dragon Sword Case has no use for White Profound Crystal Stone, no matter how much you have!"

The voice of Chunyangzi inside the Sword Box suddenly became even more helpless! Zhang Nuo frowned slightly. Back then, the help White Profound Crystal Stone provided to the Sword Box was immense! How could Chunyangzi suddenly be so disdainful of White Profound Crystal Stone?

"What does Senior mean by this?"

Zhang Nuo asked, greatly puzzled.

"Sigh! The Nine Dragon Sword Case was basically completely destroyed back then. Using White Profound Crystal Stone could at most restore one or two tenths of its power! Even if you keep injecting White Profound Crystal Stone into it in the future, its degree of restoration will not improve. If you want to continue restoring this treasure, you must constantly use the five types of crystal stones; each time you restore a stage, you need to switch to another type of stone!"

Letting out a long sigh, Chunyangzi seemed very melancholy!

"Does Senior mean that the current Nine Dragon Sword Case has only been restored by one or two tenths?"

Zhang Nuo found it hard to believe. Previously, he had always thought that the current Sword Box had been restored by at least half; otherwise, it would never have such great power! But Chunyangzi's words instantly caused his previous thoughts to vanish into thin air! If it was like this after only one or two tenths of restoration, what would the Nine Dragon Sword Case be like in its prime? He dared not think any further!

However, in a flash of thought, Zhang Nuo considered another question. Listening to the meaning behind Chunyangzi's words just now, he was extremely concerned about the degree of restoration of the Sword Box. Could it be that the Sword Box had a great connection to him?

"Senior, does this Sword Box also have a connection to you?"

"Hehe! Little Zhang, I will not hide it from you! The Nine Dragon Sword Case is a rare treasure to begin with. Although it has only been restored by one or two tenths, I believe you have already felt its power. The Sword Box is even more important to me. I am but a wisp of Remnant Soul; once my life essence is exhausted, this wisp of Remnant Soul will extinguish on its own."

Hearing this, Zhang Nuo nodded. He was very clear about this point; the power of a Remnant Soul was inherently very weak. If it were the Remnant Soul of an ordinary person, it would have long since turned to dust after a thousand years! If it were not for Chunyangzi's profound cultivation back then, this wisp of Remnant Soul would not have survived until now.

"The Sword Box can gather Spiritual Qi, as you know. In a place rich in Spiritual Qi, my Remnant Soul can recover a bit of life essence. Although this recovery is negligible, it is better than nothing. And the higher the degree of restoration of the Sword Box, the more pure the gathered Spiritual Qi becomes. If things go well, my life essence might even last a bit longer! Once you help me find a Pure Yang Body and I enter that body, I will be able to recover my previous cultivation even faster!"

Only now did Zhang Nuo understand the relationship between the Sword Box and Chunyangzi! No wonder he was so concerned about the degree of restoration of the Sword Box!

"Senior, I have another thing I do not understand. You just said the spirit insect is still in the Fledgling Stage, so when will it advance to the Mature Stage?"

"If I am not mistaken, for a Heavenly Sky Grade spirit insect, even after advancing two or three more times, it still cannot become a Mature Stage insect. If the opportunity is sufficient, perhaps after the fourth advancement, it is possible for it to become a Mature Stage spirit insect!"

After listening, Zhang Nuo looked at the 'Mysterious Heaven Gold-Devouring Insect' in his palm and gave a bitter smile. This was the spirit insect's first advancement, and he did not know when the second advancement would be. Moreover, Chunyangzi had said before that the first few advancements of a Heavenly Sky Grade spirit insect would not be too difficult, and the most difficult ones were the advancements after reaching maturity!

Looking at the spirit insect, a very faint hope suddenly arose in his heart. He did not know how many years or months he would have to wait to possess a Mature Stage spirit insect!

"Hehe! Little Zhang, take it slow! I have waited through these thousand years, so I am not in a rush for a moment. Besides, your spirit insect is of the Heavenly Sky Grade. As far as I know, even in the Immortal World, a Mature Stage Heavenly Sky Grade spirit insect is as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns! As long as it can reach the fourth advancement, perhaps it will be of no small help to me!"

Sensing Zhang Nuo's disappointment, Chunyangzi hurriedly comforted him.

"Senior, do not worry. I understand this principle. In the future, I will do my best to help the spirit insect advance! Until it produces the five types of Mysterious Crystal Stone!"

Zhang Nuo kept stroking the spirit insect's carapace. Through this bit of understanding, he was also in the process of unveiling the mysterious veil of the 'Mysterious Heaven Gold-Devouring Insect'!