Beast Taming: I'm Really Not a Cultivation Master

Chapter 180: Chapter 162: A Possible Direction

After quickly washing up and changing his clothes, Li Qian went with Wen Wan to the Cultivation Base’s main building once again.

There were quite a few employees at the base, about fifty or sixty in total, but most of them didn’t live on-site.

They commuted here for work like a normal job. Most worked nine-to-five, while a small portion worked in shifts.

Therefore, at this moment, there weren’t many people having breakfast in the main building’s cafeteria.

Say what you will, the facilities at Gao Yaxin’s Cultivation Base were genuinely top-notch. Even though few people were eating breakfast, the selection of dishes was quite lavish.

There was a complete spread of congee, noodles, soy milk, fried dough sticks, and soup dumplings, as well as some foods unique to this Beast Taming World, like Thousand-Star Mushroom Soup, Silk-Touch Dumplings, and so on...

Upon entering the cafeteria, Li Qian didn’t stand on ceremony and began to enjoy himself, generously helping himself to all sorts of food and drinks.

Gao Yaxin sat across from him and asked, ”How did you sleep last night here at my Cultivation Base?”

”Not bad at all. The facilities are comprehensive, the environment is great, and it’s much more comfortable than my Jiaoyang Cultivation Base,” Li Qian said between bites. This was what he genuinely felt.

”In that case, I’m relieved. You rarely get a chance to visit, so it would be my fault if I failed to be a good host,” Gao Yaxin replied, also eating as she spoke.

Li Qian chuckled. ”Sister Yaxin, I’m not that delicate. Besides, with conditions this good at your Cultivation Base, how could the hospitality be poor? I’m the one who’s benefiting.”

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Gao Yaxin didn’t beat around the bush and cut right to the chase. ”Brother Qian, what do you think? What’s your take on this research project?”

Li Qian was a little surprised to see Gao Yaxin looking so eager, but he quickly understood the situation.

’Looks like the pressure to maintain the Cultivation Base’s star rating is immense. It also implies that losing a star would have a huge impact on them.’

Li Qian thought for a moment as he ate, then replied, ”Between the time you organized the data for me yesterday and this morning, I still haven’t finished reading all of it.”

He paused for a moment before continuing, ”This morning, I also made a special trip to the small grove where the Red Feather Chickens are active to observe them for a while.”

”I guess you could say that while my thoughts aren’t fully formed yet, I already have a preliminary understanding of your research project.”

At this point, he suddenly stopped speaking. His reaction naturally drew the full attention of Gao Yaxin and the other two women.

Even Wu You, who was still eating her breakfast, cast a curious glance in their direction.

Of course, her gaze was tinged with scrutiny and suspicion.

’So many Breeders across the country have studied the Red Feather Chicken without getting anywhere. And you, a high school graduate? Even if you really are a breeding genius, you think you can make a breakthrough just by looking at data for one night and observing them for a little while in the morning?’ In short, there was no way Wu You would ever believe it.

In her eyes, whatever Li Qian said next would either be empty boasting or complete nonsense.

And so, under Wu You’s skeptical gaze, Li Qian spoke again. ”I think there might be a problem with your research direction.”

”Oh?” Hearing this, the interest in Gao Yaxin’s eyes deepened. She stopped eating, her gaze sharp as she looked at Li Qian.

Li Qian didn’t keep them in suspense. He continued the topic in an unhurried tone, ”The evolution of a Red Feather Chicken into a Golden Crowned Red Feather Chicken is simple. It just needs to reach its Racial Potential Limit and then consume a Fire Cloud Grass.”

Fire Cloud Grass is a plant that contains a minuscule amount of Fire Element energy and grows both within Dimensional Rifts and on the Ancestral Star.

Furthermore, it’s quite common.

In recent years, it has even been cultivated on a large scale by humans, leading to significant yields. A single stalk of Fire Cloud Grass only costs around two thousand Federation Coins.

Because of this, the cost to evolve a Red Feather Chicken into a Golden Crowned Red Feather Chicken is very low—a price any Beast Master can afford.

But being able to afford it is one thing; whether anyone would actually do it is another matter entirely.

After all, even after evolving into a Golden Crowned Red Feather Chicken, the creature’s Potential doesn’t break through to the Elite Level.

To advance to the Elite Level, it would still need to break its Racial Potential Limit. And breaking the Racial Potential Limit is no simple task. Even just breaking through from the Ordinary Level to the Elite Level requires a significant price.

This was clearly a case where the effort did not match the reward.

Therefore, an ordinary Beast Master would definitely not do this. Breeders, however, are different.

From a Breeder’s perspective, the fact that a Red Feather Chicken can evolve into a Golden Crowned Red Feather Chicken and slightly enhance its Fire Element abilities proves, at the very least, that it has potential in this area.

Li Qian paused mid-sentence and took a moment to gather his thoughts before continuing, ”This is a very simple and low-cost evolution method. Although the Golden Crowned Red Feather Chicken still has limited Potential after evolving, it at least proves that this direction holds some possibility.”

”So, you’ve focused most of your energy on this. It’s not just you; the previous owner of this base and the vast majority of Breeders across the country have likely thought the same and tried the same approach.”

At this point, Li Qian’s tone suddenly grew serious. ”But have you ever considered that, aside from the possibility that the conditions are extremely harsh and hard to find, focusing your efforts on stacking the Fire Element might be the wrong path altogether?”

”But the Red Feather Chicken’s attribute is Fire. As its base form, its attribute is Fire. The Fire Element is clearly the most likely direction in its bloodline to uncover more potential,” Gao Yaxin said, a little confused by Li Qian’s words. She sounded quite puzzled.

Li Qian nodded. ”I don’t deny that the Fire Element is currently the most obvious manifestation of the Red Feather Chicken’s abilities. But it’s not the only one, is it?”

Hearing this, Gao Yaxin froze as if struck by lightning. She stood there, speechless for a long time, utterly shocked.

’Researching the Red Feather Chicken’s evolution without starting from the Fire Element... that idea is too subversive, too bold.’

’No wonder Li Qian was able to figure out the evolution paths from Koi Carp to Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragon and from Koi Carp to Frostfire Salamander. His way of thinking is truly unconventional.’

”You mean... the Light Element?” Prompted by Li Qian’s words, Gao Yaxin immediately thought of the ”Light Energy Storage” Skill.

Li Qian smiled, took a few more spoonfuls of the congee from his bowl, and then said meaningfully, ”That’s... not an entirely unlikely direction.”

In fact, this direction was 100% correct. But on the surface, he had only just been introduced to this breeding project. Stating it as an absolute fact would have no persuasive power. It was better to be intentionally vague, just as he was doing now.