Chapter 037

Chapter 037

Bai Xiaoyu gently touched the egg with his fingertips and carefully pulled out the thread of mental energy.

As long as there's hope, that's good.

At this moment, his feelings were somewhat complicated. The original owner had quite a few siblings, and now there was one more, a full sibling.

He never thought he would end up hatching the original owner's parents' second child.

Looking at the egg in front of him, it was the smallest one he had ever seen.

Not only was it tiny but also extremely fragile, as if any slight jostle while carrying the incubator could extinguish the life within.

Bai Xiaoyu had to steady the egg with his hand, walking very slowly and steadily.

He didn't choose to leave the egg in the incubation facility below but brought it back to his room.

Because this little one was so weak that if placed in the incubation compartment below and directly immersed in the nutrient solution for hatching, it might not last five minutes before starting its next journey.

The big black egg was rolling around in Bai Xiaoyu's room. It even hopped over and used its body to press the switch on the floor mat, bumping into it several times until it finally lowered the mat.

It rolled happily onto the mat, lying down, and the huge black egg started rolling around.

Upon hearing familiar footsteps, it immediately stood still, seemingly waiting for Bai Xiaoyu to come in.

Tonight, I have to find a way to stay in Bai Bai's room. Since the floor mat is already down, as long as I don't leave, Bai Bai won't make me go either.

Now that Bai Bai is back, should I pretend to be asleep?

Thinking this, the big black egg stopped moving and lay still.

Bai Xiaoyu entered with the incubator and immediately saw a big black egg beside his bed.

He couldn't help feeling both amused and exasperated. "Big Black, stop pretending to sleep. I have something to do tonight, so you need to go back to your own room."

The big black egg started rolling from side to side upon being exposed.

Bai Xiaoyu: "You don't want to? If I'm not coming back to the room tonight, do you still want to stay here?"

The big black egg immediately jumped up.

If you're not staying in the room, Bai Bai, then I won't stay here either. Wherever you go, I'll follow.

The big black egg noticed the incubator in Bai Xiaoyu's arms almost instantly. The small egg barely visible in Bai Xiaoyu's palm made it feel uneasy.

Why did Bai Bai bring another egg here?

And why does this egg give me such an unpleasant feeling on first sight?

Those dozen little ones just left, and that wolf is gone too.

Finally, we have some time alone, but now this egg appears, and it looks even more annoying than that wolf.

Seeing the big black egg motionless, Bai Xiaoyu called out, "Big Black?"

The big black egg hopped over, seemingly examining the egg in his hand.

This egg is small and ugly, with a dull color, far worse than me.

Bai Bai has been touching it for so long; it must feel terrible. He should touch my egg instead.

Seeing the big black egg trying to rub against him, Bai Xiaoyu quickly moved back, afraid of hurting the egg in his hands.

The big black egg froze; Bai Bai had never refused to let it rub against him before.

Bai Xiaoyu: "Big Black, be good. This little one is very weak. I need to take him to the alchemy room and can't accompany you tonight. Go to sleep."

The big black egg could only watch as Bai Xiaoyu turned and left, feeling like thunder had struck.

Bai Bai actually left him for another egg!

After a while, the big black egg couldn't resist hopping out.

Bai Xiaoyu gently took the little one out and placed it in his alchemy furnace.

After adjusting the temperature, he began placing herbs in the small chamber of the furnace to prepare a stabilizing elixir.

Preparing the stabilizing elixir wasn't difficult, and he succeeded quickly.

The next step was more challenging. He had to use threads of mental energy to guide the elixir into the egg, controlling the amount precisely. Even a tiny excess could overwhelm the egg. At the same time, he had to constantly feel the temperature of the egg and the elixir, never leaving the egg's surface.

This process lasted all night, and by the time dawn approached, he had finally stabilized the little one's precarious state.

Carrying the incubator, he opened the door and nearly jumped when he saw a dark silhouette blending into the darkness. Upon closer inspection, he felt both amused and exasperated. "Big Black, why are you here? Didn't I tell you to sleep?"

The big black egg silently followed him, keeping its eyes on the egg in his hands.

When Bai Xiaoyu returned to his room and placed the incubator on the bed, the big black egg jumped high.

How dare he put that egg on the bed! Previously, Bai Bai wouldn't even let him on.

Seeing the big black egg trying to hop onto the bed, Bai Xiaoyu quickly reached out to stop it. "Big Black, you still sleep where you used to."

If Big Black gets on the bed, it will probably collapse again, just like last time.

The big black egg stared at the egg on the bed, feeling utterly dejected from top to bottom.

Bai Bai, am I still your favorite egg?

Do you not want me anymore now that you have this egg?

Bai Xiaoyu was utterly confused, but when he saw Dahuhei return to his spot on the floor, he turned off the light and went to sleep.

Although Xiaodian’s condition had temporarily stabilized, Bai Xiaoyu still needed to keep an eye on him with his mental power around the clock.

After spending the entire night doing such mentally exhausting work, his brain was feeling quite fatigued.

He directed a sliver of his mental power to the egg in the incubator and closed his eyes.

After a long while, Bai Xiaoyu suddenly opened his eyes and turned to look.

A tall, round shadow stood motionless at the foot of his bed, blending into the darkness, seemingly staring at him quietly.

Bai Xiaoyu: "…"

Dahuhei!

Bai Xiaoyu, with dark circles under his eyes, was startled by Dahuhei and didn’t get much sleep.

He placed Xiaodian back into the alchemy cauldron, nourishing him with solidifying essence potions and adding some nutrient solution, working for another two hours.

Bai Xiaoyu put Xiaodian back into the incubator, his expression grave.

Xiaodian was just too weak, and considering his size, it was unlikely that any newborn egg across the entire star system could be smaller than this one.

With insufficient innate essence energy dispersing, coupled with the prolonged spatial jump from Imperial Star to here, even with his current carefulness, he wasn’t very confident.

Bai Xiaoyu frowned, sensing something was amiss.

The egg was far too weak; even if it were premature, it shouldn’t be this small, given that it was only a few days away from full term.

Moreover, the physical constitution of interstellar people is generally good, and with parents who have decent potential, their children usually aren’t too bad either.

From his memories, he knew that his adoptive parents had one with SS mental power and S+ physical constitution, and the other with A-level mental power and physical constitution.

Their child, the original host, had dual F-level potential, and the egg was even weaker.

Bai Xiaoyu looked at Xiaodian, pondered for a while without finding an answer, and decided to set the matter aside for now.

At this moment, Bai Qing and Doctor He were having a conversation.

"Your Majesty, Young Master Bai has accepted it."

Bai Qing: "Did you see anything unusual around him when you went over there?"

Doctor He: "No, as per your instructions, I thoroughly investigated the surroundings. Inside the incubation facility, there was only him and the egg."

Bai Qing nodded: "Anything else?"

Doctor He: "The egg might not survive."

Bai Qing paused, then after a long moment, said: "Mm."

Doctor He watched the call being hung up and didn’t speculate about the meaning behind that last emotionless word.

Bai Xiaoyu carried the incubator to the incubation room, with Dahuhei following like a ghost.

Seeing Dahuhei’s appearance, Bai Xiaoyu finally realized: "Dahuhei, this egg isn’t doing well right now and needs constant attention until its condition stabilizes, at which point it can be placed in the incubation chamber."

Under Bai Xiaoyu’s explanation and gentle petting, Dahuhei reluctantly revived, though he still looked displeased at Xiaodian.

Bai Xiaoyu descended to the incubation facility and carefully examined each egg. The first batch of eggs still showed no significant problems.

The second batch of eggs had issues, so he added restorative agents to the nutrient solution. For the egg with the damaged shell, he added more solidifying essence potion today.

He also noticed something odd with the second batch of eggs, as if they had been hatched before. However, he couldn’t use his mental power to explore inside the eggs too much and would have to wait a bit longer.

Additionally, the system did not automatically create a parent group for the second batch of eggs as it had done for the first batch.

Thinking about how these eggs were rescued from a planet invaded by insectoids and transported back, could it be that none of their parents survived?

Finally, he came to the egg with seven yolks, where the yolks were relatively small.

He checked the absorption rate of the nutrient solution for this egg, which was only 52%.

An egg larger than the others absorbing such a small amount of nutrient solution was quite troublesome.

Just as he was deep in thought, someone arrived outside.

Bai Xiaoyu went out and found two young men.

Recognizing them from their resumes, Bai Xiaoyu realized they were his assistants.

Bai Xiaoyu: "Zhang Yi, Lu Qing?"

Zhang Yi: "Yes, Breeder Bai, I will be your assistant Zhang Yi. Please guide me."

Lu Qing: "I’m Lu Qing, and I’m delighted to be your assistant."

Seeing Bai Xiaoyu, both of them couldn’t hide their excitement. They had expected the setup to be as rudimentary as during the live broadcast, but were surprised to find the latest advanced incubation equipment inside, which was typically only found on developed planets. On their previous planet, they used intermediate-level equipment.

They had prepared themselves for working with basic instruments, but instead, they were greeted with a pleasant surprise.

Advanced incubation equipment is a breeder’s prized possession, much like how warriors cherish their mechs.

However, before they could fully enjoy their joy, they saw nearly a hundred eggs waiting to be hatched.

Seeing this scene, the two of them drew in a sharp breath. Hatching so many eggs at once was something even a senior cultivator wouldn't dare to do.

They both considered themselves experienced cultivators with a few years under their belts, and now they could handle no more than thirty eggs simultaneously.

If there were any more, they simply couldn't manage.

Even more terrifying was that over half of these eggs had various issues!

Watching Bai Xiaoyu constantly cradling the tiny egg, barely palm-sized, along with another severely damaged one and the clearly oversized one, the two of them turned pale. Usually, one problematic egg was enough to cause a headache; now there were over fifty...

One must remember that if a cultivator mishandled an egg during hatching, the assistant cultivator would also bear secondary responsibility.

If it were just one or two, the shared responsibility might still be manageable.

But with over fifty problematic eggs, some of which were unsolvable...

So were they on a sinking ship? After hatching this batch, they might end up in the Interstellar Court, facing life sentences.

Yet Bai Xiaoyu had achieved perfect hatching ratios before; perhaps a miracle could happen?

Though the chances were slim.

Seeing their expressions, Bai Xiaoyu found it amusing. "Scared? It's not too late to back out."

The two looked at each other, then both gritted their teeth.

Zhang Yi: "No, I won't regret it." The pharmacist who sold him the potion was right by Bai Xiaoyu's side, and he hadn't had the chance to thank him yet.

Lu Qing: "Me too. These eggs belong to our planet, and I want to help preserve the next generation's legacy."

Seeing that neither wanted to leave, Bai Xiaoyu arranged their accommodations. Then the people from the Sixteenth Legion and the Twenty-ninth Legion arrived with the eggs.

In addition to bringing the eggs, they also brought a lot of medicinal herbs. This time, they came to collect potions from Bai Xiaoyu as well.

Previously, the Sixteenth Legion had collaborated with Bai Xiaoyu. Since he alone was slow in making potions, the quantity he produced was insufficient for the entire legion, barely enough to whet their appetite.

Now with another legion competing, the situation was even worse.

As a result, when they met, their eyes were filled with hostility, but they remained courteous to Bai Xiaoyu.

Bai Xiaoyu pretended not to notice their intense gaze battles and handed over the potions for the period.

However, their gaze battles weren't enough, and they later went into the forest to fight.

Bai Xiaoyu heard the booming explosions and flocks of birds fleeing from within.

It seemed like a fierce battle.

Apparently, the Sixteenth Legion and the Twenty-ninth Legion often clashed due to their leaders, and their subordinates frequently fought.

Meanwhile, at Huang's Pharmacy.

Bai Qi was reviewing documents while someone reported to him.

"...Those eggs were supposed to undergo a second trial after the first one, but during the conflict, the Sixteenth Legion discovered them and took them away. Previously, the Cultivation Association had put the eggs up for selection, which was ideal. Separating the trials would minimize risk. Even if something went wrong, only a couple of eggs from one facility would be lost, and given the damage these eggs had sustained, such an outcome wouldn't attract much attention."

"However, just as we were discussing retrieving the eggs, Bai Xiaoyu intercepted them and took all of them."

Bai Qi's expression darkened. Once again, Bai Xiaoyu had thwarted his plans. But those eggs that had undergone one trial, how would he hatch them?

"By the way, what about that person?"

"His mental strength was destroyed, his physique damaged, and he can no longer transform into a beast. However, he managed to escape, and our people are pursuing him."

Bai Qi: "Deal with him quickly. Also, have you found the alchemist and the refining device capable of producing top-grade cultivation liquid for Bai Xiaoyu?"

"No, our people cannot get close to Bai Xiaoyu. Perhaps because of the master alchemist, he is heavily guarded, impenetrable. Our people who tried to approach haven't returned."

Bai Qi: "I wonder where he got his luck to have a master alchemist choose to help him! Find a way to get closer to the alchemist. If you can recruit him, offer any conditions. First with courtesy, then force if necessary."

Not just Bai Qing and Bai Qi, many factions were searching for the mysterious master alchemist, but none could get close.

At this moment, Bai Xiaoyu finally set down the tiny egg. His mental strength had broken through after continuous and meticulous high-frequency use last night. Now, leaving a trace of mental strength on the tiny egg, he worked with his two assistants to check and record the condition of the newly arrived eggs before placing them in the incubation compartments.

These eight eggs were all healthy, round, and large, with excellent color and texture.

Any one of them was more than twice the size of the tiny egg, surpassing it in every aspect.

Everyone speculated that they would likely hatch into young beasts.

While everyone was busy, the big black egg quietly moved in front of the tiny egg.

The big, round, pitch-black egg faced the tiny egg for the first time.

The two eggs silently regarded each other.

The big black egg bounced slightly. Unable to move, it felt the weakest here. What did Bai Bai see in him?

Bai Xiaoyu's brow furrowed. The mental strength left on the tiny egg detected fluctuating vitality inside.

He turned to Zhang Yi and Lu Qing. "Watch these eggs. I'll go check on the tiny egg."

They nodded in agreement.

Bai Xiaoyu walked over and saw the big black egg in front of the tiny egg, just as it had been earlier that morning, staring at it.

The big black egg's imposing presence was significant. Could the little one be scared?

Bai Xiaoyu: "Big Black, what are you doing?"

How did Bai Bai come here?

Big Black Egg hopped a few times; he hadn’t done anything.

Bai Xiaoyu felt the subtle fluctuations of spiritual threads coming from inside the egg and patted Big Black Egg. "Big Black, Xiaoyu is a bit timid. Don’t scare him."

Big Black Egg: "…"

He hadn’t done anything.

Even if he wanted to do something, he hadn’t had the chance.

Such an injustice.

This egg was just like that wolf, always sticking to Bai Bai, truly annoying.

At least that wolf could be fought; this egg would shatter if touched, right?

After watching Bai Xiaoyu pat him, he turned to touch that tiny egg again.

They had been so close for a whole day and night. Last night, he even held it while sleeping. Now, he’s still drawing Bai Bai’s attention?

Big Black Egg couldn’t stand it anymore. He approached Bai Xiaoyu, swaying and rubbing against him, jumping around, trying to get as close as possible, as if his massive body wanted to squeeze into Bai Xiaoyu’s arms.

Bai Bai, I want to be touched too.

Bai Xiaoyu had no choice but to use one hand to pat Big Black Egg and the other to gently caress Xiaoyu with his fingertips.

If he let go of either one, neither would agree.

Big Black Egg would roll around, and Xiaoyu would faint.

Bai Xiaoyu found it inexplicable, not understanding how this situation had developed.

Were Big Black Egg and Xiaoyu really competing?

But was that even possible?

He must be overthinking it.