Mortals: The Daily Life of Hidden Moon Sect

"After I understand the reason, I will decide whether to agree to the transaction."

"At the same time, I am also full of doubts. These gold-eating insects have long been my partners and I have taken good care of them for many years. Even if you ask for them, they may not be used in combat."

"And the precise requirement for the number - five thousand - is even more puzzling to me."

After Lin Mo pondered for a moment, he spoke slowly in a tone as if he was about to face a great dilemma.

"Humph, your courage is truly admirable. You even dare to question me about my intentions!"

The old man Xu Ling snorted coldly, his eyebrows suddenly raised, and his face instantly became as cold as ice.

"Please forgive me! After all, I have spent many years carefully cultivating these gold-eating bugs. I have put in countless efforts and treat them as my life."

"If I don't know exactly what you want them for, I'm afraid it would be difficult to hand them over to others."

This time, Lin Mo firmly stated his position.

"Haha, your point of view makes sense. Then, I will tell you the general purpose of seeking these gold-eating insects."

"However, once you know the reason, you must not refuse this transaction. Otherwise..."

The old man's eyes flickered for a moment, then he smiled again and answered.

"Okay, I'm willing to promise."

After hesitating for a long time, Lin Mo finally took a deep breath and responded solemnly.

"Haha, little friend Lin, this is a wise choice! Please listen carefully, the reason why I want these gold-eating bugs is to cultivate the legendary gold-eating bug king."

"The key to achieving this is large numbers of adult gold-eating bugs."

"As for why I need 5,000, it's because I already have 5,000 adult gold-eating insects. Together, they are enough to meet my needs for breeding insect kings."

“The part beyond that doesn’t mean much to me.”

The old man finally gave a reason that shocked Lin Mo.

"Insect King! Then the purpose of your collecting the Styx Spirit Milk before..."

Lin Mo's face suddenly changed, and he couldn't help but ask again.

"A large amount of Styx Spirit Milk is also one of the important means of cultivating the Insect King. However, if there are a sufficient number of adult gold-eating insects, this condition will become irrelevant."

The old man replied without hesitation.

"So that's how it is. It seems that the cultivation of this insect king probably requires a large number of gold-eating insects to devour each other." Lin Mo's eyes flashed, and he said with a thoughtful look on his face.

"My friend is indeed very smart. Although it's not completely correct, it's almost right."

"However, apart from a few great elders of our Mayfly Clan, very few people in the outside world know about the Gold Devouring Bug King."

"Just now, you were not surprised when I talked about the Insect King. It seems that you already knew something about it."

"The one who told you this should be Qing Yuanzi. He is the only one who has a good relationship with another great elder in our clan, so he knows a little bit about this."

The old man Xu Ling first praised, then sneered and said.

Lin Mo lowered his eyes and was silent for a moment, as if he was considering his words, and then slowly asked:
"I have indeed heard from Senior Jiang once that once this Gold Devouring Bug King cultivates to the highest level, even the True Immortals in the Immortal Realm will be wary and retreat. Is this true?"

"Haha, although this is a bit exaggerated, the power of this Gold Devouring Bug King should not be underestimated. It is extremely powerful."

"At least if I run into him, I definitely don't want to confront him head-on or fight him head-on."

The old man Xu Ling responded leisurely with a slight smile on his face.

"I see, I've learned a lesson."

Lin Mo nodded slightly, then his eyes turned, and he suddenly changed the topic and asked again:

"However, I am curious. If you were to obtain the spirit insect I have, how confident would you be in nurturing it into an insect king?"

"How sure are you?"

The old man Xu Ling narrowed his eyes slightly, his expression became more serious, and after pondering for a long time, he slowly extended two fingers towards Lin Mo.

“Only 20%?”

Lin Mo's expression changed slightly, and his tone unconsciously became heavy:
"The chance of success is really not high."

"Humph!"

The old man's face darkened and he snorted coldly:

"My friend, are you underestimating this Gold Devouring Bug King?"

"Twenty percent confidence. That's the confidence I can only have after years of studying the art of insect breeding, preparing many backup plans, and using all my skills."

"If it were someone else, they wouldn't even have a 10% chance of winning!"

"Okay, you've asked all the questions you should ask. In fact, this question has exceeded our previous agreement."

"Next, it's your turn to fulfill your promise. If you have any conditions, you can speak up now."

"I have no intention of looking down on you, senior. I hope you will forgive me."

"Now that the deal has been agreed, I will naturally abide by it. As for the terms of the exchange, I have already made up my mind, there are only two."

Lin Mo seemed to have it all figured out, and when he heard the old man Xu Ling say this, he responded without thinking.

"Which two? Tell me about it." The old man's expression relaxed a little, and he nodded slightly to signal Lin Mo to continue.

Lin Mo looked solemn as he stated point by point:
"First, I do not ask for other rare treasures from you, senior. I only hope you can give me some more Styx Spirit Milk."

"As you said just now, after you have enough gold-eating insects, this spiritual milk will not be of much use to you. I think this request is not difficult for you."

"Secondly, I have been studying the art of breeding insects for some time, and I still have a few gold-eating insects left. I was thinking of giving it a try and breeding the insect king."

"Although it will take a long time to gather enough gold-eating bugs."

"But I still want to give it a try, so I want to ask you for a complete secret method of cultivating the Gold Devouring Bug King."

The old man Xu Ling's face was originally smiling, but after listening to Lin Mo's words, his pupils suddenly shrank, and the smile on his face disappeared instantly, replaced by solemnity and contemplation, and he fell into a long silence for a while.

"The first condition is easy to say."

"Although I can't possibly give away all the spiritual milk I have, I can still give you four or five bottles. But the second condition is much more difficult."

After a while, the old man frowned slightly and spoke slowly:
"The secret technique of cultivating the Insect King is a secret of our Mayfly Clan. Many elders in the clan may not even be able to get a glimpse of the full picture. Now it is really against the rules to reveal it to an outsider."

"It is indeed a bit troublesome, but I believe that with the methods and courage of the seniors, it can still be done, right?" Lin Mo raised the corner of his mouth and revealed a calm smile:
"Besides, Senior also knows in his heart that compared with your natal spirit insect and Xuantian remnant treasure, the conditions proposed by this junior are really not worth mentioning and insignificant."

"Hehe, my friend, what you said is quite insightful."

The old man nodded slightly, his smile growing thicker:

"Well, I will agree to your terms."

"However, the secret technique of cultivating the Insect King is of great importance. You must swear an oath in front of me with your inner demon, vowing never to reveal this secret technique to anyone else."

"My friend, at your current level of cultivation, the restraining power of the inner demon cannot be underestimated. Once you break your oath, you will most likely perish when you pass the heavenly tribulation."

"If you agree to this, I will be able to teach you the secret technique."

"No problem, this is what should be done. I am willing to swear this oath!"

Lin Mo was overjoyed when he heard this. His expression immediately became stern. He mobilized the power of his inner demon and swore a vicious oath that was so perfect that even the old man Xu Ling could not find any flaws.

"Okay! In that case, let's start the transaction."

The old man stroked his beard with satisfaction and shook his long sleeves. In an instant, five emerald green bottles flashed out like shooting stars chasing the moon and flew straight towards Lin Mo.

Lin Mo's face was solemn. He raised his hand and grabbed the five small bottles accurately and firmly in his hand.

Then, he opened the bottle caps one by one, scanned them carefully with his mind, and a barely perceptible joy appeared in his eyes.

"Senior, there are exactly 5,000 mature gold-eating bugs in here. Please check them out as well."

As Lin Mo spoke, he took out a spirit beast ring from his sleeve. With a slight shake of his wrist, the spirit beast ring drew an arc in the air and was thrown steadily towards the old man.

The old man Xu Ling rolled up his long sleeves, and as if a suction force appeared out of thin air, he easily took the ring into his palm.

He was not in a hurry to open the spirit beast ring. Instead, he stretched out a few slender and skinny fingers, slowly pressed on the ring, closed his eyes slightly, and his spiritual thoughts penetrated into it silently like a spirit snake coming out of a cave.

After a moment, the old man could not hide his excitement on his face, and he opened his eyes and praised:

"Yes, they are all high-quality mature gold-eating bugs. Their cultivation level is even better than I expected. Very good!"

"My friend, you must keep this jade slip properly and never let anyone else see it."

After saying that, the old man breathed a sigh of relief, a ray of light flashed between his sleeves, and a jade slip seemed to be pulled by an invisible hand. In a few flashes, it hovered above Lin Mo's head.

"The younger generation will definitely keep this in mind."

Lin Mo also showed a flash of joy, and with a respectful tone, he raised his hand and grasped the jade slip steadily in his palm, then gently placed it on his forehead.

In an instant, the densely packed ancient texts and lifelike pictures in the jade slips flooded into his mind like a tide.

The old man Xu Ling put the spirit beast ring filled with gold-eating bugs into his pocket and felt completely at ease.

His gaze turned to Lin Mo, with a half-smile in his eyes, and an increasingly inquiring look appeared on his face, as if Lin Mo contained endless new and interesting things, which aroused his great interest.

After an unknown amount of time, Lin Mo's expression changed. He slowly moved the jade slip away from his forehead and took back all his scattered spiritual thoughts.

"How is it? Is there anything wrong with the secret technique I gave you?"

The old man asked leisurely with a slight smile on his face.

"How dare I have such thoughts! The secret technique of insect breeding taught by the senior is exquisite and mysterious. It has answered many of my doubts in the past and really opened my eyes."

Lin Mo carefully put away the jade slip, placed it in his sleeve, and then replied respectfully.

"Oh? But you can understand something from just a quick glance. It shows that you have made great achievements in the art of expelling insects."

The old man raised his eyebrows slightly, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, and then he advised earnestly:
"But I still have to say one more thing. Although the Gold Devouring Bug King is extremely powerful, it takes both opportunity and effort to successfully cultivate it. You need to do it according to your ability."

"Thank you for your advice, Senior. I will do what I think is appropriate."

Lin Mo looked solemn and bowed in thanks.

"Well, I'm glad you understand. Now that the transaction is complete, you can leave the Black Wind Pavilion first. I will leave soon. Don't keep fellow Daoists Jin Yan waiting for too long."

The old man had a calm expression and gave the order calmly.

"Yes, I will take my leave first."

Lin Mo was very polite and bowed again. Then the spiritual energy in his body surged and turned into a gorgeous green rainbow. It instantly passed through the hall and disappeared in the rolling black air outside in the blink of an eye.

"Hehe, the Gold Devouring Bug King? A mere fusion cultivator actually dares to come up with such an idea."

After Lin Mo's escape light completely disappeared, the old man Xu Ling raised a sneer at the corner of his mouth and muttered to himself in a low voice:

"If it was really that easy to cultivate a being comparable to a true immortal, how could my Mayfly clan not have dominated the spirit world until now? My clan has mastered this secret technique of breeding insects for many years, but no one has ever succeeded."

“Forget it. Although it’s a pity to waste a few bottles of spiritual milk, with so many gold-eating bugs, I think it’s almost certain that I can refine the All-Spirit Umbrella for overcoming the calamity.”

"The mature gold-eating bug is almost indestructible. The All-Spirit Umbrella made with it must be indestructible. It will increase the chances of success in overcoming the tribulation of ascension in the future."

Thinking of this, the old man Xu Ling turned one hand over, and a light flashed in his palm, and the spirit beast ring containing the gold-eating bug appeared again.

The old man's eyes focused, he made a gesture with one hand, and lightly tapped the ring with his fingertips.

In an instant, a ray of spiritual light burst out, followed by a thick black cloud as thick as ink surging out.

The ring was rolled up, and in a flash, the entire spirit beast ring turned into a piece of black mysterious ice that emitted a biting cold.

There were two light "pa pa" sounds, and the old man's other palm was shining with light. Several blue talismans fluttered like butterflies and stuck steadily on the black ice.

After doing all this, the old man's expression completely relaxed and he carefully put away the black ice.

……

Half an hour later, two dazzling rainbows, one gold and one blue, shot out from the white light curtain of the island like meteors, circled in the air, identified a certain direction, and then broke through the air with a bang.

The two people escaping in the light were Lin Mo and Qing Yuanzi.

After Lin Mo and the old man Xu Ling walked out of the Black Wind Pavilion one after another, whether it was a tacit understanding or some other tacit understanding, neither Jin Yanhou nor Qing Yuanzi asked about the transaction between Lin Mo and Xu Ling.

Everyone sat together, chatting about trivial matters, and tasted the top-quality spiritual wine brewed by Jin Yanhou himself, and then stood up and said goodbye.

Along the way, Lin Mo and Qing Yuanzi did not have much conversation, and they rushed straight towards Qing Yuanzi's cave.

More than ten days later, Lin Mo saw the familiar towering peak in the distance, and a long-lost sense of familiarity surged in his heart.

At this moment, Qing Yuanzi's escape light suddenly stopped, and he hovered in the air. Lin Mo was startled, and subconsciously stopped as well.

"My dear Lin, I believe you have achieved what you wished for on this trip, and even gained something else. I have also returned a favor to you." (End of this chapter)