Chapter 147 - 147Chapter 142 Beast Core l (2/2)

Upon cutting open the boar king’s belly, something at the heart’s location emitted a faint, dark yellow glow.

Qin Niu couldn’t help but recall the moment he had slain the boar king, when a dark yellow glow had also shone around its neck.

Back then, he had thought it was either an illusion or a reflection of the light from his treasured sword.

He hadn’t had the time to think too much about it.

Now that he witnessed this strange phenomenon, he immediately understood he might have hit the jackpot and come across a treasure.

Carefully opening up its heart, he found a small bead near the back of the heart, which was only slightly larger than a soybean.

It was quite heavy for its size, and it felt incredibly peculiar to the touch.

When he pinched it, it was as though he was holding a highly compressed ball of gas.

After washing away the blood on its surface, the dark yellow glow it emitted became even brighter.

“But wild boars aren’t known to have Luminous Pearls inside them!”

Holding it in his hand, Qin Niu examined the strange bead.

“It must be a Beast Core. I’ve heard from Grandfather that some wild beasts in the mountains can cultivate just like humans. It’s just that their intelligence is limited and they don’t understand cultivation techniques, so very few beasts can successfully cultivate.

Only those who have lived for many years, drawing on the essence of the sun and the moon, might stumble upon some methods of cultivation.

Or perhaps, if they’re lucky enough to discover spiritual fruits or herbs in the mountains and consume them, they can undergo a transformation.

There are also fierce and ferocious beasts that evolve by preying on other cultivated beasts and birds.”

All in all, the cultivation of wild beasts is a hundred times harder than that of humans.

But once they achieve some success in their cultivation, the energy within their bodies slowly compresses and ultimately condenses into a Beast Core. This is the foundation of their cultivation, as well as the first step towards becoming demons. If they transform into demons in the future, their Beast Core will turn into a Demon Core, also known as a Demon Pearl. It is the source of their magical powers and cultivation.”

Xiao Qing knew much more about these matters of cultivation than her master Qin Niu.

She had access to much more information living in the city.

Qin Niu, living a secluded rural life, enjoyed a peaceful existence but lacked opportunities to interact with the outside world.

“So it’s a Beast Core; is it valuable?”

Qin Niu had gained some knowledge.

“Of course, it’s valuable! Even the worst Beast Cores, the size of a sesame seed, can sell for a good amount of money. This Beast Core is as large as a soybean, which indicates that the boar king had attained some level of Dao. Theoretically, with your current cultivation level, you shouldn’t have been able to harm it. You managed to kill it, perhaps because it was already injured and in a weakened state, or maybe there was some other reason.”

Xiao Qing had her suspicions that Qin Niu possessed some sort of divine weapon, but she didn’t say it outright.

Despite her young age, having adventured through the Jianghu with her grandfather, she knew well how treacherous the human heart could be.

For a servant to pry into the secrets of their master was a serious taboo.

“Wild boars have a very diverse diet; they like to eat snakes, insects, rodents, and ants, and also enjoy searching for various plant roots to chew on in the mountains. Some powerful wild boars specialize in digging up wild ginseng to eat. Grandfather and I once encountered such a situation where, within nearly a hundred miles of that forest, not a single ginseng plant could be found. They’d all been eaten up. It’s highly probable that this boar king consumed some kind of spiritual medicine from nature, which allowed it to have such a large Beast Core.”

Xiao Qing analyzed the possible reasons for the formation of the Beast Core within the boar king.

“Wiry don’t you think it’s possible that it lived many years and cultivated to form the Beast Core?” Qin Niu asked.

“That possibility is very small. Because the lifespan of wild boars isn’t particularly long, it’s about the same as humans. It’s very rare to hear about a wild boar that has cultivated to form a Beast Core. They mostly get lucky by consuming treasures of heaven and earth, which eventually allows them to condense a Beast Core and set foot on the path to becoming a demon.

Furthermore, if this boar king really cultivated such a large Beast Core through its own efforts, even the Gang Leader of the Black Tiger Gang might not be its match.”

Xiao Qing didn’t directly say so, but she implied to Qin Niu that,

With Qin Niu’s current level of cultivation, it would be impossible for him to defeat a boar king that had cultivated a Beast Core.

Like humans, beasts also have twofolds of cultivation.

One type increases their cultivation through arduous practice — these are capable of fighting well.

The other is like hitting the jackpot, consuming heavenly materials and earthly treasures, or by chance eating the corpse of another demon beast, and condensing a Beast Core. This is similar to humans who enhance their cultivation by consuming elixirs; it’s considered ‘faux fat.’

Their strength is much weaker.

“If the Beast Core is the source of a wild beast’s cultivation, then if I eat it, I should be able to obtain its cultivation, right?”

Qin Niu asked with great interest.