Chapter 100

Chapter 100

On the way here, the attendant insect, recognizing Lu Cian as a Male Consort, gifted him a bag of fish food favored by rainbow fish.

Holding Nair Inan's hand to avoid being separated by the crowd, Lu Cian used his other hand to take fish food from Nair Inan and feed the fish.

Fish food rained down from the bridge, clearly a favorite among the rainbow fish.

Shoals of rainbow fish swam over, hungrily nibbling at the food. After finishing, they lined up and leaped out of the water, undulating their bodies beneath the surface—it truly looked like they were dancing.

Lu Cian was thrilled. "Have these fish gained sentience? They’re actually dancing!"

Nair Inan asked, "Gained sentience?"

After Lu Cian’s colorful explanation, Nair Inan understood that "gained sentience" meant the fish were as intelligent as Insect-kind.

Nair Inan observed that this was merely the result of trainers using food to train the fish to leap and wiggle in simple motions...

Was this behavior really comparable to the intelligence of Insect-kind?

Nair Inan fell silent.

As for the rainbow fish lining up or forming patterns, it was even simpler.

Sprinkle fragrant powder on the water to attract them or manipulate their tails, and the rainbow fish would naturally follow their companions closely.

Even without these methods, there were plenty of similar techniques—none of which required advanced technology.

Moreover, professional trainers could train exotic animals to perform without resorting to deceptive methods.

Nair Inan decided that he must expose Lu Cian to more of the world in the future.

Back on Blue Star, Lu Cian had witnessed countless performances by intelligent animals, but those were usually one or a few creatures trained individually, often selected for their high intelligence.

But these rainbow fish—this was an entire lake teeming with them, numbering in the thousands.

Given that rainbow fish were only about the length of a forearm at most, and with the limited brain capacity of fish, Lu Cian had never seen an entire school behave so intelligently.

Lost in thought, Lu Cian suddenly gasped and called out to Nair Inan, "Brother Nan, look! Something’s coming!"

And it was a big one!

As the dark shadow beneath the water drew closer, Lu Cian felt a mix of nervousness, fear, and excitement.

He had heard that Rainbow Lake only housed rainbow fish—no other species. Was this a long-forgotten giant lurking in the depths? Or perhaps an ancient elder among the rainbow fish?

"It’s coming up! There’s a huge rainbow fish here!"

Someone else heard Lu Cian’s exclamation and turned to look, shouting in excitement.

Many insects now focused on the water, and Lu Cian caught his breath. Nair Inan kept his eyes fixed on the surface, ready to spirit Lu Cian away at the first sign of danger.

"What a massive rainbow fish!"

"I never knew Rainbow Lake had such a giant! It must be hundreds of years old!"

"Hundreds? Count the colors on its body!"

"Ah! Nine colors—it’s nine-colored!"

"Nine colors! It really is!" another insect cried out.

"By the Insect God, I’ve actually seen a live Nine Rainbow Fish today!"

The crowd erupted in excitement, and those who recovered quickly began snapping photos with their light-comms.

Lu Cian was ecstatic—his luck was truly phenomenal to have witnessed the legendary Nine Rainbow Fish!

Nair Inan was also stunned. Despite Apuban becoming a tourist planet with massive visitor traffic, no one had ever reported seeing a Nine Rainbow Fish on Rainbow Island. Many online even doubted they existed.

So, the Nine Rainbow Fish wasn’t just a myth. But if that was true, what about the other half of the legend...?

At this thought, Nair Inan’s expression darkened slightly.

"Come on, let’s take a holo-image with the Nine Rainbow Fish too."

Absentmindedly, Nair Inan posed for a holo-image with Lu Cian.

However, since Nair Inan was usually reserved, Lu Cian didn’t notice anything amiss.

The Nine Rainbow Fish’s head broke the surface. Unlike the flatter heads of other rainbow fish, this one was perfectly round, even its head perfectly spherical.

It shook its head toward Lu Cian, who promptly poured the remaining fish food into the water. The Nine Rainbow Fish happily accepted the tribute.

Perhaps feeling grateful, the fish swam up to Lu Cian and lifted its head toward him.

Getting the hint, Lu Cian crouched and reached out. The Nine Rainbow Fish suddenly spat something into his palm.

Without thinking, Lu Cian used his other hand to stroke the fish’s skin. Nair Inan didn’t stop him, sensing the fish’s gentleness.

The Nine Rainbow Fish seemed to enjoy the touch, emitting a happy chirp and splashing its tail before ignoring the astonished onlookers and disappearing into the depths.

Only then did Lu Cian open his palm, revealing two large pink spheres.

"Are these... pearls?" Lu Cian studied them doubtfully.

Nair Inan glanced over. "Probably not. Maybe just shiny pebbles the fish collected."

Lu Cian blinked. "A fish that collects stones? What kind of fish does that?"

A nearby female insectoid, who had come hoping to buy the Love Pearls at a high price, mentally scoffed. How could these two be so clueless about Love Pearls?

But when she met Lu Cian’s gaze, she offered a polite bow. "Greetings, honored sir. Your luck is truly enviable—no visitor in centuries has had such fortune..."

After lavishing him with compliments, she got to the point. "Might you consider parting with these pearls? My Male Consort is quite taken with them."

Of course, she didn’t mention they were the legendary Love Pearls.

Nor would she shortchange Lu Cian in terms of payment.

"Sir, how does ten billion stellars sound?"

Lu Cian looked at the pearls, then at Nair Inan, and finally at the female insectoid.

Though growing impatient, she maintained a composed demeanor.

Lu Cian was amazed that a pair of pink stones could fetch such a price, but he wasn’t naive enough to be easily swindled.

At first, he hadn’t thought much of the pearls. But holding them longer, he noticed they were warm—still warm from the fish’s mouth. He knew he had come across something extraordinary.

The pink beads should be made of jade, specifically warm-jade.

The Nine Rainbow Fish must have obtained a piece of warm-jade from somewhere, adding it to its growing collection and even shaping it, much like how an oyster cultivates pearls.

However, regardless of the material, since it was a gift from the Nine Rainbow Fish, Lu Cian wouldn’t sell it so easily.

Lu Cian shook his head. "Not for sale."

The female insect, initially confident of success, her smile froze for a fraction of a second upon hearing Lu Cian’s refusal.

Then, she politely continued, "Your Excellency, perhaps you could reconsider. If ten billion Star Coins aren’t enough, how about one hundred billion?"

Lu Cian’s expression darkened. Was this really about Star Coins? He wasn’t short on money.

Seeming to realize something, the female insect pressed on, "One hundred billion Star Coins, plus a resource star!"

She was truly sparing no expense.

One hundred billion Star Coins might seem like a lot, but compared to a resource star, it was nothing.

Of course, she had no intention of giving Lu Cian a truly valuable resource star—just some undeveloped backwater star would suffice, and no one could accuse her of breaking her word.

If this Excellency later sought trouble…

She reminded herself that her family had connections. Judging by how this Excellency didn’t even recognize the love pearls, he must be a common-born noble, accompanied by a lowly bondservant—clearly, he had no powerful connections.

And then there was her male consort’s influence. The female insect gloated inwardly. Once she secured the love pearls, her male consort would surely be overjoyed and might even elevate her status to empress consort.

With her male consort’s favor, she wouldn’t have to fear any trouble from a commoner Excellency.

At worst, she could just offer more Star Coins.

Her calculations were meticulous, but Lu Cian’s expression only grew colder.

One hundred billion Star Coins was indeed a staggering sum—an amount most female insects could never dream of in their lifetime. But to these nobles, it was just a number to be squandered, utterly insignificant.

The cost of living in the insectoid society was higher than on Earth, but with their massive population, the difference wasn’t drastic.

Back on Earth, one hundred billion would land someone on the rich list—it could even bankrupt a small country.

And here they were, offering one hundred billion plus a resource star just for two beads?

Alright, Lu Cian had to admit he was a little jealous. Who knew some insects were so wealthy they measured their assets in planets?

Using planets as a unit of measurement—these insects weren’t just rich, they were unfathomably wealthy.

Lu Cian firmly refused, "No need. I don’t lack such trivial things."

Then, with a pointed glance at Nair Inan, he added, "Tell her how many resource stars I own."

Lu Cian hadn’t picked up many good habits, but he’d certainly mastered the art of condescension.

Nair Inan’s mouth quirked in faux deliberation. "Hmm… perhaps dozens? Hundreds? Who’s counting? After all, how could we possibly know the full extent of our male consort’s assets?"

Lu Cian smirked coldly, his expression practically screaming, *"You think this chump change is enough to impress me?"*

The female insect’s face stiffened. She didn’t think they were bluffing—Lu Cian’s demeanor was too natural, utterly devoid of deceit.

Besides, would Excellencies even bother lying to female insects they looked down upon? They usually just ignored them outright.

The female insect hastily bowed in apology. "My deepest apologies for displeasing Your Excellency. I’ll get out of your sight at once! But before I go, I hope Your Excellency will accept this apology gift to forgive my rudeness and impropriety."

Nair Inan stepped forward to take a Star Card. Seeing that Lu Cian had accepted it, the female insect exhaled in relief before nervously retreating.

She had tried to swindle them as backwater fools, only to end up not only failing to buy the love pearls but also losing a fortune in Star Coins. Truly, she had hoisted herself by her own petard!

Thankfully, her male consort wasn’t present. If he had seen her make a fool of herself in public while failing to secure the love pearls, dragging his name through the cosmic dirt, he would have been furious.

Just imagining such consequences, a full-body shudder ran through her.

She regretted her knee-jerk arrogance and her assumption that a commoner Excellency could be an easy mark.