Wang Ba squatted before the coop, running his hands over the four transformed chickens.
No, strictly speaking, these could no longer be considered Rare Fowl.
They were Spirit Poultry.
Their once gray-black feathers now carried a few streaks of color, and the birds looked full of spirit.
Physically, they were massive—half again the size of the ordinary flock.
Hefting one, Wang Ba was surprised to find it weighed as much as two or even three ordinary Rare Fowl.
Their lifespans, too, were roughly three times those of ordinary Rare Fowl.
Their lifespans were 56.1, 55.7, 58.2, and 59.3 years, respectively.
The first two were roosters, the latter two hens.
Jia-4, a hen, led the others in lifespan at almost sixty years.
However, Wang Ba noted a crucial detail: since yesterday, these numbers had stopped moving.
Their appetites had also fallen sharply. They now ate about twice as much as ordinary Rare Fowl, which matched their larger size.
“The increase in lifespan seems to have hit a ceiling,” Wang Ba muttered.
“Or perhaps this is simply how long Spirit Poultry live. Their lifespans were increasing because they were gradually transforming from Rare Fowl into Spirit Poultry.”
He picked up a piece of charcoal and began scribbling calculations on the hard-packed earth of the manor yard.
The information he had gathered suggested more possibilities.
First, depositing his own lifespan into a Rare Fowl acted as a catalyst, forcing it to evolve into Spirit Poultry. Once the transformation was complete, the change was permanent. Even if he drained the lifespan back out, the bird wouldn’t devolve.
A Spirit Poultry’s lifespan seemed to top out at around fifty-eight to sixty years.
If he were to drain a fully grown Spirit Poultry dry, applying the 1-to-10 loss ratio, he would net about 5 to 6 years of lifespan for himself.
The cost to trigger this evolution? A mere 0.1 years of initial investment.
An incredible bargain!
If he used lifespan from other Rare Fowl to cover the cost, it would be a business requiring virtually no capital.
But the manor held too few Rare Fowl for him to deposit and then absorb lifespan on a large scale.
And then there was the Sect.
If the sect learned that a mortal like him could turn Rare Fowl into Spirit Poultry at will, how would it react?
Would they be pleased, promote him, and value his work?
Or would they use Immortal methods to uncover every last one of his secrets?
“Human hearts are hard to fathom,” he sighed.
He looked at the four magnificent birds, his gaze turning anxious.
“I cannot let Deacon Li see these four. Not yet.”
“At least not for a year.”
Old Man Sun had just produced a Spirit Poultry by ‘luck.’ If Wang Ba immediately offered another one right after taking over, it would scream suspicious activity.
But he couldn’t abandon his Golden Finger. Without it, he had zero hope of mastering the Physique Strengthening Scripture in this lifetime. This chapter was copied from novelping.com without permission.
“Since depositing lifespan allowed them to break through once,” Wang Ba mused, stroking his chin, “can I force a second breakthrough?”
He immediately put the idea to the test, touching Jia-4.
The interface flickered, showing a subtle change.
[Target Lifespan: 59.3 years] [Current Body’s Remaining Lifespan: 60.3 years] [Consumable Items: Physique Strengthening Scripture, Layer 2. Accounting for aptitude and constitution, cost: 18 years.] [Absorb/Deposit (Depositing lifespan can only accelerate growth)]
Wang Ba stared at the last line.
“This path is blocked.”
Wang Ba shook his head helplessly.
Not all news was bad, however.
While collecting eggs later that day, he spotted a hen huddled motionless in the corner of the coop.
His heart skipped a beat.
He gently lifted the hen. There, resting in the straw, was an egg with a dull, matte shell.
A fertilized egg.
He didn’t dare move it recklessly. He quickly arranged some extra straw around it for warmth and settled the mother hen back onto her clutch.
Two days later.
Deacon Li arrived, fashionably late.
Looking serious, he inspected the coops, fanning his nose and avoiding the droppings. After making a circuit, he bluntly pointed out several problems, looking brisk and efficient.
He then tallied the tribute: two roosters, two hens, and two hundred and ten eggs.
Deacon Li paused, looking at the crate. “Huh? Wasn’t the quota 200 eggs?”
“The hens laid ten extra eggs this month, so I thought I’d offer them to you as a small token of thanks for your help,” Wang Ba said with an obliging smile.
“This… isn’t very appropriate…”
Deacon Li protested verbally, but his hands moved with lightning speed, accepting the basket of ten extra eggs without a hint of hesitation.
His stern expression melted away, replaced by a warm, kindly look.
Wang Ba exhaled internally. He had guessed right.
Wang Ba had suspected it when Deacon Li changed Old Man Sun’s reward: if the people below him stopped paying tribute, how would he find opportunities to profit?
He could imagine how much trouble might lie ahead if he did not give this extra gift.
With the bribe accepted, the atmosphere relaxed instantly.
“Work hard, Little Wang,” Deacon Li said, patting his ample stomach. “When vacancies open up in the upper manors of the Ding Section, if your performance remains this good, you might have a chance to compete for them.”
“Those manors produce seven or eight hundred eggs a month.”
“I’ll be counting on your guidance, Deacon!”
“Ah, don’t say that. We all serve the Sect.” Deacon Li’s eyes then fell on a separate, smaller box. “By the way, why are these few so large?”
“Reporting to the Deacon,” Wang Ba said smoothly, “these are eggs laid by the Spirit Poultry Old Man Sun bred before he left. They weren’t collected during the last tribute, so I saved them to hand over to you today.” Visit g.com for the full chapter.
“Good! Good!”
Delighted, Deacon Li carefully put the Spirit Poultry eggs away.
These were treasures.
Those few Spirit Poultry eggs were worth more than dozens of Rare Fowl eggs. Not even the Qi Refinement disciples of the Outer Sect could all eat them every day.
Chicken keepers like Wang Ba did not know this, but Deacon Li knew it very well.
“You’re a sensible lad,” Deacon Li said, glowing. “If you have any trouble in the future, if it’s something I can solve, just speak up!”
The Deacon was in high spirits. Wang Ba knew the window of opportunity was open.
He cupped his hands respectfully. “Deacon, I actually do have a small favor to ask.”
“Oh?”
Deacon Li’s smile vanished instantly. His tone turned guarded and cold.
“Brother Wang, I am just a mortal deacon. My authority is limited. Don’t ask for anything I can’t deliver.”
He laid out the ugly truth upfront.
Wang Ba couldn’t help but admire the man.
No wonder he could become a Deacon as a mortal. He had been overjoyed a moment ago, yet could sense trouble in an instant and leave himself room to maneuver.
That alertness, that decisiveness, that ability to turn on a dime—it was something Wang Ba needed to learn.
Wang Ba kept his smile fixed. “I wouldn’t dare make things difficult for the Deacon. I simply wish to improve my skills. Does the Sect have any manuals or books on poultry farming that I could borrow to study?”
“Books on raising chickens?”
Deacon Li’s brow unfurrowed. The smile returned.
“That’s not difficult. The Outer Sect’s Scripture Hall has plenty of miscellaneous books like that.”
“Hmm, tell you what. Next time I come, I’ll bring a few for you.”
“But borrowing books, even for me, takes a little…”
“I understand!”
Cursing inwardly but still smiling, Wang Ba painfully took out the money he had worked so hard to earn selling chicken manure.
He presented the coins to Deacon Li with both hands.
It was his entire fortune.
But it was a necessary expense.
He had to build a reputation as a skilled chicken keeper, so that he could later explain the appearance of many Spirit Poultry in the coops.
And the path to becoming an expert started with reading books.
The price was… no money left to buy grain this month.