Chapter 73: Thought of a Good Idea

Chapter 73: Chapter 73: Thought of a Good Idea

Gu Weilan gasped. "You’re incredibly daring. Even knowing my Fertility is so low, you still asked to use an Incubation Pod to gestate cubs and dared to form a bond with me. Since when did I have such a captivating potential?"

A smile played on Shi Lingfeng’s lips, his eyes brimming with hidden affection and overflowing amusement.

Back then... he had actually been somewhat resigned to his fate while fleeing from his pursuers. If he hadn’t chosen Gu Weilan and had just walked out instead, he didn’t know what would have happened to him. But by forming a bond with her, those Beastmen wouldn’t dare break into the Central Beastman Academy to persecute him.

Lorenzo didn’t like that Gu Weilan’s attention was entirely focused on Shi Lingfeng. Under Gu Weilan’s intense scrutiny, he reached out toward the weeds, paused in silence for a moment, and then moved his hand to hover over the seedlings. He looked as though he was deeply troubled, but Gu Weilan couldn’t shake the feeling that the guy was just teasing her.

But what did that matter? Zhan Heng took a long, deep look at Shi Lingfeng, and when he turned back to Gu Weilan, he caught Lorenzo’s little tricks.

Zhan Heng spoke up directly. "The cubs are in pretty good shape right now. Even though it’s only been a few days, they are consuming a significant amount of Cultivation Liquid."

The slight tension at the corners of Shi Lingfeng’s mouth finally relaxed. He really wasn’t as resolute as Gu Weilan made him out to be; he had actually been quite nervous back then! However, over the past two days while Xie Jing was at home supplying energy to the cubs, Shi Lingfeng had brought him meals.

He had also consulted with other elders who had successfully raised excellent level cubs using an Incubation Pod. They had never heard of a Tenth Rank male feeling drained of energy every single day just from supplying it to an Incubation Pod! They unanimously agreed that this was only happening because the cubs possessed exceptional aptitude. Shi Lingfeng had sought verification from multiple sources; the only thing he lacked was personal confirmation from Zhan Heng and Xie Jing.

Zhan Heng continued, "I’ve seen plenty of people posting their Incubation Pod stats online. Even the numbers in those highly praised posts aren’t as good as ours.

"However, there are many families with even better conditions who simply wouldn’t post their Incubation Pod stats publicly."

Shi Lingfeng nodded. "Exactly. Many males who use excellent level Cultivation Liquid won’t share their stats with any other Beastman. It would just invite trouble.

"But since Zhan Heng Beast Husband believes that both our Cultivation Liquid and the cub embryos are of superior quality, I can finally rest easy."

He then looked at Gu Weilan. "So, Female Master, could you let me gestate a cub using the Incubation Pod this month?"

Gu Weilan fell silent for a moment before nodding. She turned to Zhan Heng. "Does your family deal in the Cultivation Liquid business? Or do you know someone who does..."

"We can do it," Zhan Heng replied. "Our family used to have a production line for Cultivation Liquid. But because our formula was cracked by another Beast Clan—and they even upgraded it based on our original recipe—we were preparing to shut down the production line and sell it off."

Zhan Heng gazed at Gu Weilan, his blood-red pupils filled with a fiercely protective warmth. If Xie Jing were here, he definitely would have reminded Zhan Heng that their production line had long since been repurposed to manufacture rationing liquids.

Gu Weilan frowned slightly, wondering how the soybeans, corn, and other crops she had planted with her own hands would turn out. If combined with the rationing liquid, what grade of Cultivation Liquid could they produce? And what about the ones inside her spatial dimension?

Fortunately, the growth cycles of crops in the interstellar beast world had been drastically shortened. In just twenty more days, this batch of crops would be ready for harvest.

She wondered, "Wait... the growth cycles of the crops were shortened? Does a shorter growth cycle mean the plants absorb more pollution... No, that’s not right. They probably shortened the growing period precisely to prevent the plants from absorbing too much radiation pollution."

It was just like traditional ancient rice, which took 150 to 180 days to grow, whereas the hybrid rice on the Blue Star only needed 90 to 110 days. Different breeding methods would naturally alter the cultivation cycle. Here in the interstellar beast world, the growing cycle had been compressed to a mere 7 to 20 days.

Could crops grown like this absorb enough nutrients? Did the produce cultivated with those planting nutrient solutions actually hold any real nutritional value? She couldn’t shake the feeling that they were vastly inferior to the crops cultivated over 90 to 110 days on the Blue Star.

However, when it came to farming, Gu Weilan was completely and utterly clueless! She felt incredibly frustrated by her own ignorance.

Zhan Heng watched Gu Weilan, noticing that she had spaced out again. His grip on the Incubation Pod tightened. If he weren’t holding this bulky, egg-like Incubation Pod in his arms, he could have pulled his Female Master into his embrace. He really, really, really hated it when Gu Weilan spaced out and let her mind wander. He always felt that there was another Beastman in her heart—someone he could never surpass! Zhan Heng desperately wanted to know who that Beastman was!

Shi Lingfeng looked at Gu Weilan, formulating a few guesses of his own. He couldn’t help but ask directly, "Female Master, did some other Beastman give you the rationing formula for your Cultivation Liquid?"

Gu Weilan pursed her lips. How was she supposed to explain this? Pomegranate Seed had given it to her, and she certainly possessed no extraordinary talent in this area. She had no choice but to play along with his assumption. "Yes. But he’s gone now. This formula isn’t copied from any other Beastman; it belongs entirely to me now."

Shi Lingfeng lowered his eyes, masking his sudden twinge of jealousy. He finally understood why Zhan Heng had been acting so strangely.

During this recent trip out with their Female Master, Zhan Heng, Lorenzo, Shen Mianzhou... oh, right, and Xuanshuo had all gone along. Anyway, ever since returning from that outing, Zhan Heng had become unusually insecure and anxious.

Previously, Shi Lingfeng had believed that only Lorenzo Snow, who held the highest Beast Rank at the time, was capable of competing with him for the position of First Beast Husband. But then Zhan Heng had suddenly broken through to the Twelfth Rank. Given Zhan Heng’s domineering nature, Shi Lingfeng had to admit that if Gu Weilan were to choose a First Beast Husband, it would highly likely be him. But as it turned out, there was an invisible, formidable rival lurking in the shadows!

Shi Lingfeng pinched the bridge of his nose. He might have lost a step when it came to her affections, but he absolutely refused to fall behind when it came to making money!

When Shi Lingfeng looked at Gu Weilan again, his deeply affectionate, peach-blossom eyes now carried the rigorous precision of someone strictly talking business.

"Lanlan, if you want Zhan Heng Beast Husband’s family to expand their production line, can I invest in it too? Expanding a production line will definitely require money to purchase equipment. We can use our shared assets to buy shares in the expansion.

"It would be best for you to apply for a patent on your formula as soon as possible. Then, we can enter a joint investment using technology shares and equipment shares. Zhan Heng Beast Husband will only need to provide the sales channels."

As Shi Lingfeng laid out the plan, Gu Weilan’s eyes grew brighter and brighter. She nodded. "I’ll leave this matter in your and Zhan Heng’s hands. Let me think... let me think about something else for a moment."

For her to single-handedly activate the vitality of each and every little seedling... it was absolutely breaking her back! Truly! Anyone whose waist hadn’t endured the rigors of farming had no idea how excruciating it was!

Gu Weilan suddenly remembered what Pomegranate Seed had told her: she could spend 100 points to duplicate her Awakened Talent Technique and grant it to a Beast Husband who shared a matching elemental attribute and Beast Rank with her!