Chapter 4517: Extreme Immortal Artifact Fragment

"If they were so easy to cultivate, the Chaos Beasts would have already done so. As far as I know, the Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish generally stop at the Golden Immortal stage; cultivating them to the Grand Unity Golden Immortal stage is extremely difficult."

Sun Yuyan said.

"Madam Sun, you've said so much, but you still haven't clearly explained the special function of the Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish."

Wang Changsheng said with a frown.

"Let me put it this way: when Chaos Beasts devour high-level Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish, they can strengthen their inherent source power. The stronger their source power, the greater their chance of mutation."

Sun Yuyan explained.

"So, high-level Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish can increase the chances of Chaos Beast mutation. Isn't cultivating Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish indirectly aiding the enemy?"

Wang Changsheng suddenly understood. In that case, it was natural for immortals to be unwilling to cultivate Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish, and no wonder they weren't widely known. This being the case, was the breaching of Qiankun Immortal City by Chaos Beasts related to the Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish?

"Madam Sun, you're not planning to cultivate high-level Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish to give to the Chaos Beasts, are you?"

Wang Ruyan said with a frown.

"How could that be? If I were doing that, I wouldn't have explained all this to you two fellow cultivators. Water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it. While Chaos Beasts devour high-level Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish to strengthen their inherent source power, conversely, Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish can also strengthen their own source power by devouring the cores of Chaos Beasts, which greatly aids their advancement. To some extent, Chaos Beasts and Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish are natural mortal enemies. The difference is that Chaos Beasts need to rely on the Ten Directions Mother-Child Pagoda to become stronger, whereas Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish can advance more easily by devouring the cores of high-level Chaos Beasts."

Sun Yuyan explained patiently. To increase their chances of mutation, Chaos Beasts can devour high-level creatures chosen by the Ten Directions Mother-Child Pagoda. These high-level creatures, in turn, can advance by devouring the cores of high-level Chaos Beasts. Given the rarity of high-level cores and the unique nature of Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish, immortals have no need to cultivate them. As for Chaos Beasts, cultivating high-level Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish would require killing high-level members of their own kind to feed their cores to the fish, which would be a net loss.

"Madam Sun, please speak directly."

Wang Changsheng said.

"I'd like to purchase Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish at the Golden Immortal stage from Fellow Cultivator Wang! Name your price."

Sun Yuyan's face was full of expectation.

"Madam Sun, Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish cannot transform into human form, and you're not selling them to Chaos Beasts, so why cultivate them?"

Wang Changsheng asked, puzzled.

"Not being able to transform into human form doesn't mean they can't transform into other forms, has Fellow Cultivator Wang forgotten? Chaos Beasts can mutate. Theoretically, if Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish devour a large number of cores, they can also mutate. As for what they might become, I'm not sure myself. Isn't Fellow Cultivator Wang curious?"

Sun Yuyan explained.

"Madam Sun, you're not cultivating high-level Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish just to satisfy your curiosity, are you?"

Wang Changsheng said.

"Of course not. When Chaos Beast cores are refined into immortal pills or wines, their effects are excellent. Similarly, high-level Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish have a similar purpose. I want to cultivate a Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish at the Grand Unity Golden Immortal stage and prepare it as an immortal dish to see if consuming it can help cultivate an immortal physique. Chaos Beast cores need to be purified before they can be used for alchemy, brewing, or array formation, but Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish are different; they can be eaten directly."

Sun Yuyan said, shaking her sleeve. A golden glow swept across, and a pile of items appeared on the table: immortal herbs, immortal ores, immortal wood, Chaos Beast cores, and more.

Wang Changsheng glanced at them, smiled indifferently, and showed no interest.

A hint of surprise flashed in Sun Yuyan's eyes. After a moment of hesitation, she put away the items on the table, took out an exquisite golden jade box, and from it, a rusty chain link. She said, "Fellow Cultivator Wang is an immortal artifact master, are you interested in this item? Even a high-grade immortal artifact would struggle to scratch it."

She flipped her right hand, and a purple light flashed as a shimmering short purple blade appeared in her hand. She struck it towards the chain link.

With a clang of metal, no mark was left on the surface of the chain link.

"This item should be a fragment of a top-grade immortal artifact; it could be useful to me."

Qing Xuan's voice sounded in Wang Changsheng's ear.

"A fragment of a top-grade immortal artifact!"

Wang Changsheng nodded inwardly and said, "One Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish at the Golden Immortal stage?"

"Fellow Cultivator Wang, this item is extraordinary; it appears to be a fragment of a top-grade immortal artifact. One is too few; at least ten."

Sun Yuyan bargained. The chain link was just a fragment and useless to her, but an immortal artifact master could remelt and reforge it.

"This is just a fragment; ten is too many."

Wang Changsheng said.

"Seven. I can't go lower than that. This is a fragment of a top-grade immortal artifact, and Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish at the Golden Immortal stage are surely nothing to Fellow Cultivator Wang, are they? If I acquire any more valuable items, I will prioritize Fellow Cultivator Wang."

Sun Yuyan agreed.

Wang Changsheng conjured the Cangyuan Pearl, which emitted a brilliant blue light from his body as he flew into it.

Not long after, Wang Changsheng flew out of the Cangyuan Pearl, holding a blue-glowing jade bottle, which he handed to Sun Yuyan.

Sun Yuyan uncorked the bottle, swept her divine sense over its contents, and her face lit up with joy before she handed the chain link to Wang Changsheng.

Wang Changsheng put away the chain link and the Cangyuan Pearl. After a brief chat, Sun Yuyan bade farewell and left.

They returned to their dwelling. Wang Changsheng conjured the Myriad Spirits Map, and together with Wang Ruyan, entered it.

They appeared above a vast, boundless blue ocean. There were many Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish in the sea, numbering over thirty thousand. The highest among them were late Golden Immortals. Wang Changsheng had previously asked Wang Shen to cultivate Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish, but they had not been able to produce any at the Grand Unity Golden Immortal stage.

He had discussed Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish with Fang Xiong, Nangong Yunxin, Du Yue, Lin Jiu, and others. They either hadn't heard of them or didn't consider them important. Consequently, Wang Changsheng hadn't given much thought to them either; otherwise, their numbers wouldn't be so low.

"It turns out the Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish are creatures chosen by the Ten Directions Mother-Child Pagoda! I thought the Ten Directions Mother-Child Pagoda had only chosen Chaos Beasts from the beginning!"

Wang Ruyan said.

"This happened at the dawn of chaos; it's normal that we haven't heard of it."

Wang Changsheng dismissed the thought. The dawn of chaos was too long ago. Only a small fraction of the events from that time have been passed down. With the passage of time, most things, except for those with significant impact, have been buried in the river of history.

"According to Madam Sun, Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish can increase their chances of advancement by devouring Chaos Beast cores. If they reach the Grand Unity Golden Immortal stage, will they mutate? Will they become creatures similar to Chaos Beasts?"

Wang Ruyan asked curiously. If what Sun Yuyan said was true, the Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish would be like another type of Chaos Beast. Wang Changsheng could use pure cores to feed and cultivate high-level Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish.

"We'll know if we try. If we use pure cores to cultivate Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish, the results will definitely be better."

Wang Changsheng said in a deep voice. He rarely traded pure cores now, and the Azure Lotus Creation Cauldron could purify cores, producing more than he could ever use.

"Let's take a batch of Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish and test them to see if they mutate and in what direction."

Wang Ruyan suggested.

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan created thirty fish-breeding ponds within the Myriad Spirits Map, setting up multiple layers of restrictions. Each pond contained a Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish at the Golden Immortal stage, and Wang Changsheng fed them pure cores from five-colored Chaos Beasts at the Golden Immortal stage. These thirty Golden-Beard Ice-Scale Fish would serve as samples. If the mutation direction was favorable, Wang Changsheng would intensify their cultivation, as he had an inexhaustible supply of pure cores.