The Egg-Gambling Mission

Chapter 47: The Egg-Gambling Mission

Because of the power of the realm's laws, many fearsome insects with vast supernatural abilities couldn't cross between realms. But even the fearsome insects that did cross over, though slightly weaker, were more than ordinary cultivators could fight. That was why this place had become one of the Four Forbidden Lands.

The Fierce Insect Forbidden Land stretched for hundreds of miles, all of it occupied by various strange insects. These insects had very little intelligence and couldn't cultivate, yet they possessed incredible supernatural abilities. Their strength grew over time, and many species lived in swarms, making them impossible for ordinary cultivators to fight.

But these strange insects had one special trait: before they hatched, a cultivator could drip their own blood onto an egg and establish a bond with the insect, allowing them to command it. Once an insect had hatched, however, it could never be tamed.

Egg gambling had been around almost since the Forbidden Land first formed. But the industry truly flourished because of one person: the founding patriarch of the Insect Taming Studio. The Insect Taming Studio was a top immortal sect, as famous as the Myriad Demon Sect.

Legend had it that several hundred years ago, the Insect Taming Studio's founding patriarch had been a penniless Rogue Cultivator. Then he had bet on an inconspicuous insect egg, melting it with his blood—and out hatched a peerless fearsome insect. The insect possessed all kinds of incredible supernatural abilities, and its bloodline even carried a world-shaking immortal technique. With the insect at his side, the patriarch had risen to become a supreme powerhouse in just a few hundred years, and so he founded the Insect Taming Studio.

After that, cultivators flocked to egg gambling. There had even been quite a few cases of people striking it rich after betting on a rare insect egg, and the practice grew ever more popular.

"I see."

After hearing the Porcupine Demon's explanation, Chen Lin understood. He looked at the strange insect eggs displayed at the stall, then asked, "Does egg gambling always get you a strange insect?"

The Porcupine Demon chuckled. "Egg gambling? Nine times out of ten, you lose. Insect eggs have an extremely low survival rate; ninety-nine percent are dead eggs. You can't tell by looking at them, and even an expert probing them with their soul power won't be able to tell. But based on the experience people have gained from years of egg gambling, the brighter and more unusual the color, the more precious the insect inside is likely to be. As for those eggs with dull colors, like these, they're probably dead."

As he spoke, the Porcupine Demon casually pointed to some eggs at the very edge of the stall. They were utterly unremarkable, mostly dark gray or black, and seemed lifeless. They were exactly the kind of dead eggs he'd been talking about.

Chen Lin nodded without showing his thoughts. Rather than get carried away and gamble on an egg, he watched coolly from the sidelines.

Though gambling on eggs cost a considerable number of Spirit Stones, as time passed, the cultivators gathered around the stall began to lose patience, and one after another started choosing eggs.

"This one! I'll take it. How many Spirit Stones?"

Among them, a burly, fat cultivator was the first to snatch up an egg about the size of his fist, its surface shimmering with purple light. He held it in his hands and wouldn't let go.

Chen Lin took a look. Among all the eggs, this one was indeed rather unusual. Not only did purple light flicker across its surface, but its natural markings also made it look extraordinary.

"Heh, you've got a good eye, fellow Daoist. This egg is clearly extraordinary. If I weren't in urgent need of Spirit Stones, I'd be tempted to gamble on it myself. Three hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones, and that's my final price!"

The middle-aged stall owner chuckled. First, he gave a thumbs-up to praise the cultivator's discerning eye, then held up three fingers.

When the fat cultivator heard the price of three hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones, his expression grew uncertain. But in the end, he gritted his teeth and took three brightly colored Spirit Stones from the Storage Bag fastened to his golden-threaded pouch, then handed them over.

"Mid-Grade Spirit Stones?"

Chen Lin's eyes narrowed. He glanced at the cultivator gambling on the egg, surprised.

Spirit Stones came in four grades: Low-Grade Spirit Stones, Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, High-Grade Spirit Stones, and the extremely rare Supreme-Grade Spirit Stones.

One Mid-Grade Spirit Stone was worth one hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones, while one High-Grade Spirit Stone was worth one hundred Mid-Grade Spirit Stones. As for a Supreme-Grade Spirit Stone, it was worth one hundred High-Grade Spirit Stones. Of course, cultivators who possessed Supreme-Grade Spirit Stones generally wouldn't exchange them for other grades.

Once the fat cultivator had paid, the insect egg was his. The onlookers watched the purple egg in his hands with curious, eager eyes.

"Why not hatch it right here, fellow Daoist? Let us see how lucky you are!"

"Exactly! This egg looks extraordinary, with natural markings and all. It might be a live egg. Hurry up and drip your blood onto it so we can broaden our horizons!"

Hearing the crowd egg him on, the fat cultivator didn't hesitate. He carefully held the purple egg in one hand, as if afraid it might fall, then raised his thick index finger and bit down hard. Blood immediately welled up.

Drip.

The blood fell onto the purple egg. The fat cultivator stared at it with his round little eyes, his whole face taut with nervous anticipation.

The surrounding cultivators fell silent as they watched for a change. Even the middle-aged stall owner couldn't help staring intently at the egg, anxiety in his eyes. After all, he made his living selling eggs. If a strange insect really hatched, he'd surely beat his chest and cry out at his loss. Even the most ordinary strange insect was worth over a thousand Spirit Stones.

"Hiss~"

Not long after the fat cultivator's blood was absorbed, a strange sound suddenly rang out. Purple light flashed across the egg's surface, then gradually faded beneath the crowd's breathless gaze. The purple sheen vanished, and the egg seemed to lose its life in an instant, turning dull.

"Alas, it's a dead egg."

"What a shame. It looked so good that I thought for sure it would hatch a strange insect."

"What's so surprising? Egg gambling is nine losses for every ten bets. This is nothing unusual."

The fat cultivator stared blankly at the lifeless egg in his palm, as if he couldn't believe it. Then disappointment and anger crossed his face. He slammed the egg to the ground and shouted furiously at the middle-aged stall owner, "Did you already know this egg was dead and trick me into buying it?!"

The stall owner's broad smile vanished, and his face darkened. He sneered, "Fellow Daoist, if I could tell whether an egg was dead or alive, would I still be here setting up a stall to earn Spirit Stones? Besides, egg gambling is a matter of mutual consent. If you lose, you should be prepared for it. Is this your first time gambling on an egg?"

"That's right. Egg gambling is all about luck. This fellow Daoist's composure is rather poor. I've gambled on hundreds, if not a thousand, eggs over the years, and hatched a mere two strange insects."

"Exactly. If strange insects hatched at the drop of a hat, wouldn't the world be full of powerful cultivators?"

Hearing the surrounding cultivators' jeers, the middle-aged stall owner sneered again and again. The fat cultivator seemed to realize he was in the wrong and didn't dare say anything more. Instead, he pulled out three more Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, looking like a gambler who'd lost his head, and gritted out, "I refuse to believe my luck's this bad. I'll gamble again!"

As he spoke, he picked up another egg, this one gleaming with golden light, and without a word dripped his blood onto it.

The middle-aged stall owner tossed the three Spirit Stones in his hand. His gloomy expression immediately brightened, and he no longer looked at the fat cultivator with displeasure. After all, anyone who paid in Spirit Stones was king; he'd instantly put the earlier unpleasantness behind him.

Unfortunately, this egg, which also looked extraordinary, was just like the one before it—a dead egg. It quickly turned ashen.

A wave of sighs rose from the crowd, and the fat cultivator's expression turned thoroughly grim.

Chen Lin watched coolly from the sidelines and secretly shook his head. It really did seem that egg gambling came down to luck.

"I'll do it!"

At that moment, another cultivator from the Demon Race waved his hand and picked out a promising-looking egg. He began dripping his blood onto it to hatch it.

Unfortunately, it was another dead egg.

Even after witnessing these failures, the surrounding cultivators' enthusiasm didn't wane. In fact, as the crowd grew, the eggs sold at an astonishing rate, leaving the middle-aged stall owner grinning from ear to ear.

"Huh? It's changing! A live egg! It's a live egg!"

"Indeed! It really is a live egg. We just don't know what rank of strange insect it is, or what immortal technique it carries."

"Even if it carries the lowest-grade Human-Grade Immortal Technique, this is still a bargain. He only spent 200 Low-Grade Spirit Stones."

Hearing the crowd's envious chatter, Chen Lin turned to look as well.

It was an egg rippling with azure light. After blood was dripped onto it, the light grew even more dazzling, radiating rings of brilliance. A short, middle-aged human cultivator was carefully cradling it in his hands, his face alight with joy as the azure glow reflected off him.

The middle-aged stall owner's smile stiffened. As he stared at the egg shimmering with azure light, a pained look flashed in his eyes.

Chen Lin watched the glowing egg with keen curiosity, but his expression soon changed. Just then, the Guide's cold, emotionless voice suddenly rang out.

"Ding!"

"Main quest activated: The contractor must gamble on a living insect egg within one hour."

"Quest completion reward: One precious item randomly drawn from another plane. Quest failure penalty: 10,000 points of Death Energy deducted. Note: If Death Energy falls below zero, the system will execute the host's elimination protocol. Current Death Energy remaining: 54861 points."