77: Chapter 77: 108 Evolutionary Paths?!

Back home, Lin Fan immediately opened his phone and started searching for an Incubation Chamber and Jade Nectar.

The Incubation Chamber was easy enough to buy; a standard one cost about twenty thousand.

But the Jade Nectar... He stared at the small bottle of pale green liquid on the screen, his mouth twitching.

Four hundred eighty thousand. With the Incubation Chamber, it came to exactly five hundred thousand.

"Really expensive." Lin Fan gritted his teeth and clicked pay.

Technically, his ability to earn money wasn't bad, but every time he spent it, he still felt a pang of heartache.

"I really am used to being poor..."

Before long, the delivery arrived. Lin Fan unpacked it, set up the Incubation Chamber, and carefully poured in the Jade Nectar.

The pale green liquid spread across the bottom of the chamber, emitting a faint, fresh fragrance—the scent of concentrated life force.

He held the tiny egg in his hands and gently placed it into the Incubation Chamber.

As soon as the egg touched the Jade Nectar, the grayish-white shell seemed to flash slightly, but it quickly returned to its original state.

Lin Fan lay in front of the Incubation Chamber, staring at the egg.

One minute, two minutes, five minutes... There was no reaction.

"Don't die on me, little brat." He muttered.

Xiao Zhuang was coiled long and slender around his wrist, its vertical pupils fixed on the egg, flicking its tongue as if curious about this new companion.

Lin Fan watched for a while, then got up and sat on the bed.

Incubation takes time; there was no use in rushing.

He was currently an 17th Rank Armor Warrior, but he still had a way to go before reaching the Armor Master realm.

Now was the perfect time to use the little guy's incubation period to advance to the Armor Master realm as quickly as possible.

He picked up a bottle of Meditation Fluid, drank it, and began to Cultivate.

Three days later.

Lin Fan awoke from his Cultivation and exhaled a long, turbid breath.

For these three days, aside from attending classes, he had only been Cultivating, leaving even the breeding work to the shop employees.

He went through bottle after bottle of Meditation Fluid, and his Spirit power rose rapidly.

After opening his fourth armor aperture, his Cultivation speed had noticeably increased, and he was now an 18th Rank Armor Warrior.

He nodded in satisfaction and turned to look at the Incubation Chamber.

In the chamber, the pale green liquid of the Jade Nectar seemed to have been consumed somewhat, and its color had faded slightly.

The egg still lay quietly at the bottom of the chamber, but upon closer inspection, the grayish-white patterns on the shell seemed to have become clearer, with a faint luster flowing deep within the markings.

His left eye grew slightly warm, and information appeared.

[Race]: Myriad Elephant Bug (Incubating)

[Status]: Life fluctuation activated, incubation progress 37%.

[Estimated Incubation Time]: Three days

[Current Requirements]: Met, no additional action needed.

Lin Fan felt reassured.

The incubation progress was faster than he had imagined; the effect of the Jade Nectar was truly extraordinary.

Another day passed, and the color of the Jade Nectar in the chamber grew even paler, almost becoming a transparent light green.

The patterns on the eggshell, however, became increasingly clear and bright, as if the entire egg were slowly absorbing the surrounding life energy.

Xiao Zhuang seemed to sense something.

It no longer coiled around Lin Fan's wrist but climbed onto the glass wall of the Incubation Chamber, bringing its head very close, its vertical pupils fixed unblinkingly on the slightly trembling egg.

During breaks in his Cultivation, Lin Fan couldn't help but take a few looks.

He could feel a weak but resilient life force gradually awakening and growing inside the shell.

On the night of the third day, Lin Fan was awakened from his meditation by a faint "crack" sound.

He immediately rolled out of bed and rushed to the Incubation Chamber. He saw a tiny crack appear at the top of the eggshell, with a pale golden light shining through the fissure.

Immediately after, the cracks spread like a spiderweb, and a crisp shattering sound rang out.

The remaining Jade Nectar seemed to be drawn in, rapidly gathering toward the cracks in the shell and being completely absorbed.

The eggshell began to shake violently. Lin Fan held his breath, his heart beating faster uncontrollably.

"Clatter..." A piece of the shell was pushed open, and a tiny, wet head poked out.

It seemed a bit dazed, shook its head to shake off the mucus, and revealed a pair of crystal-clear, pale golden compound eyes.

It blinked, and its gaze quickly locked onto Lin Fan outside the chamber. Then, it began to struggle to break free from its confinement.

The shell peeled off piece by piece, and a palm-sized insect was finally fully revealed.

It was only the size of half a palm, its entire body a semi-transparent milky white, round and soft, divided into nine segments.

Unlike ordinary Myriad Elephant Bugs, each of its segments had a thin ring of golden markings that shimmered under the light.

Its head was the most peculiar part; there were no obvious mouthparts, only those pale golden compound eyes that took up most of its face, making it look endearingly simple and cute.

A strange warmth surged in Lin Fan's heart. He carefully opened the lid of the Incubation Chamber, extended a finger, and gently touched the little creature's soft, cool body.

The little guy didn't dodge; instead, it rubbed slightly against his fingertip. Even without a contract, Lin Fan could clearly feel a natural sense of closeness.

The little guy turned around curiously, then clumsily moved its body, crawling bit by bit along Lin Fan's finger until it reached his palm.

Xiao Zhuang also slid down from the glass wall, moved to Lin Fan's hand, flicked its tongue, and carefully sniffed this new member.

The little guy didn't seem afraid; instead, it slightly raised its front body and stared at Xiao Zhuang with those strange compound eyes. One snake and one insect, they had thus completed their first meeting.

Lin Fan looked at the endearingly cute little creature in his palm, and the corners of his mouth lifted unconsciously.

"Little thing, let me see what you're really made of."

With a thought, his left eye grew slightly warm, and lines of information appeared clearly in his field of vision.

[Race]: Myriad Elephant Bug

[Attribute]: None

[Aptitude]: high-grade mortal spirit (Limit: ???)

[Rank]: 1 Rank

[Status]: Healthy, just hatched

[Armorization Part]: Hand

[Current Evolutionary Paths]:

1. Iron Beetle (mid-grade mortal spirit), Rank requirement 5, requires consumption of Iron Ore × 3, Earth Spirit Stone × 1, Armorization Part: Arm.

2. Green Jade Locust (high-grade mortal spirit), Rank requirement 8, requires consumption of Emerald Leaf × 5, Wood Spirit Bead × 1, Armorization Part: Back.

3. Diamond Butterfly (low-grade profound spirit), Rank requirement 12, requires consumption of Gold Spirit Stone × 2, Fire Origin Crystal × 2, Refined Iron × 5, Armorization Part: Arm.

4. Cold Silk Spider (mid-grade profound spirit)...

5. Spirit Whisper Moth (high-grade profound spirit)...

6. Wind Wing Butterfly (mid-grade profound spirit)...

7. Spirit Devouring Mantis (high-grade profound spirit)...

(A total of 108 evolutionary paths, 63 of mortal spirit rank, 45 of profound Spirit Rank.)

Lin Fan stared at that long string of information in his vision, completely stunned.

Densely packed, a full one hundred and eight evolutionary paths, from low-grade mortal spirit to high-grade profound spirit, covering almost every possible direction.

The Myriad Elephant Bugs he had encountered before, while having many evolutionary paths, had never possessed such an exaggerated number.

This Myriad Elephant Bug was truly extraordinary.