Breeding?
No, that's not quite right.
It should be described as a form that, to humans, resembles breeding.
In Zhou Qing's mind, it was the survival instinct of the Spirit Rhythm Turtle that drove it to herd a group of large white carp into this section of the stream.
The Spirit Rhythm Turtle earned its name because once it reaches the millennial level, plants grow on its shell, capable of gathering energy from the world around it, thereby accelerating the cultivation speed of itself and the soul beasts close to it.
If a human soul master could tame a millennial-level Spirit Rhythm Turtle, theoretically, they too could speed up their cultivation.
However,
when it comes to soul beasts, the types humans can tame are extremely limited—only a handful.
And although the Spirit Rhythm Turtle is relatively docile, no soul master is willing to wait for it to grow from a ten-year-old level to a thousand years of cultivation, as years directly equate to strength for these beasts.
The countless uncertainties during such a long span of time make it an impractical investment.
Not to mention small families—even an organization like the Martial Soul Hall would be reluctant to spend a thousand years raising a Spirit Rhythm Turtle from a mere ten-year-old to a millennial level.
After all, a soul master cannot live for a thousand years before reaching the ninety-ninth level.
Moreover, the soul beast forests across Douluo Continent are filled with countless species for soul masters to choose from. Many soul beasts remain undiscovered—so why waste unnecessary energy on a Spirit Rhythm Turtle?
That said, Zhou Qing had one puzzling question: This mere two-hundred-year-old Spirit Rhythm Turtle—whose shell had been artificially cracked and planted with ordinary aquatic plants early—could it really possess the instinct to gather spirit energy?
According to the books he bought about soul beasts, only millennial-level Spirit Rhythm Turtles with plants fully grown on their backs have the obvious spirit gathering effect noticeable even to Soul Kings.
This means that before reaching a thousand years, the Spirit Rhythm Turtle is accumulating spiritual power and energy to grow.
This two-hundred-year-old Spirit Rhythm Turtle's aquatic plants growing in the cracks on its shell looked decent, but its flesh underneath was mostly pus-filled and infested with some snails.
No matter how you looked at it, it didn't seem to have any "spirit gathering" ability. Zhou Qing suspected that if this continued, the Spirit Rhythm Turtle would die from infection.
This was evident from how it ate the large white carp—biting only small pieces slowly, with little appetite.
If it truly was the main character in the "terrifying legend" circulating around Shenghun Village and nearby villages, it must have endured back pain for at least fifty years!
According to the original rule that "the more painful a soul beast's death, the higher the chance of it dropping soul bones," the chance of this two-hundred-year-old Spirit Rhythm Turtle dropping soul bones upon death was over sixty to seventy percent!
Furthermore, the books recorded that millennial-level Spirit Rhythm Turtles are guaranteed to drop soul bones.
Perhaps, during the symbiotic process with the plants on its shell, millennial-level Spirit Rhythm Turtles must endure the pain of plant roots growing inside their flesh for ten thousand years!
Only after ten thousand years can the plants fully fuse with the turtle's body—and at that time, the Spirit Rhythm Turtle no longer needs to worry about food.
Enduring ten thousand years of pain and torment just for a lifetime of comfort.
That's true "bitterness followed by sweetness."
"How should we kill this Spirit Rhythm Turtle?"
Tang San tapped Zhou Qing's elbow.
When it came to understanding soul beasts, Tang San knew he wasn't as knowledgeable as Zhou Qing, so he hoped Zhou Qing would suggest the best way to kill the turtle.
In the previous life, even a common two-hundred-year-old turtle was considered a great tonic!
Eating the meat of this big turtle, Tang San was sure his Xuan Tian Gong would reach the first layer of perfection within a month.
"I have a different idea now," Zhou Qing shook his head, abandoning the plan to hunt the Spirit Rhythm Turtle.
"What idea?"
Tang San was confused why Zhou Qing suddenly gave up.
The old turtle was clearly badly injured. If they waited for it to die on its own, the meat might no longer be fresh!
Still, he wanted to hear Zhou Qing's reasoning. If it didn't satisfy him, he would find a chance to kill the turtle himself and share some of the spoils with Zhou Qing later.
So Zhou Qing explained the Spirit Rhythm Turtle's "spirit gathering" ability and why this stream segment could turn ordinary large white carp into soul beasts.
"According to the theory, only millennial-level Spirit Rhythm Turtles with symbiotic plants on their backs have spirit gathering ability. This one is only two hundred years old, and its shell was artificially damaged and planted with 'ordinary aquatic plants,' which are not rare but the common 'cow hair moss'—named after its dense appearance like cow hair."
"A two-hundred-year-old Spirit Rhythm Turtle like this simply can't have spirit gathering ability, nor can it turn ordinary large white carp into soul beasts."
"So—"
Tang San figured it out: "There must be something under this stream that can turn ordinary carp into soul beasts!"
Zhou Qing nodded slightly and suspected the same thing was suppressing the turtle's injuries, allowing it to survive despite the flesh decay lasting nearly fifty years.
But the stream water was murky—who knew what dangers lurked below?
Ignoring whether there were other soul beasts, even common creatures like venomous snakes or poisonous insects, or parasites could be fatal if bitten or infected.
This part of the stream was different from others. Its edges floated with rotten water plants, wood chips, and even fish and bird bones and innards.
Zhou Qing wasn't willing to take risks.
Even Tang San was reluctant to jump into the murky water without protection. His Xuan Jade Hand was immune to poisons but couldn't guard against harmful substances penetrating the polluted stream.
So Zhou Qing and Tang San watched the Spirit Rhythm Turtle finish the large white carp, then quietly crawl off the branch and walk back.
Zhou Qing asked, "San'er, do you think it can be healed?"
"What?"
Tang San paused a moment, then replied, "Why do you want to heal it?"
"The Spirit Rhythm Turtle is a relatively docile soul beast. According to my family's book of strange tales about soul beasts, some noble families and soul master clans like to keep Spirit Rhythm Turtles in fish ponds. Those under fifty years old are still abundant, and many people catch and sell them to nobles as ornamental animals for fish ponds…"
Zhou Qing added, "But no family has records of raising a Spirit Rhythm Turtle over a hundred years old. The oldest one lived only fifty years before being slaughtered."
"I'm not trying to imitate those nobles' refined tastes," Zhou Qing said. "I just feel that since this Spirit Rhythm Turtle has prematurely undergone 'hatching' and 'planting,' and has fought to survive, it's like me…"
Thinking of Zhou Qing's orphan background, Tang San fell silent and thought of his own irresponsible father, adding silently: I'm the same.
Thus,
Tang San involuntarily empathized with the Spirit Rhythm Turtle that endured fifty years of pain just to survive.
How similar they were.
Bound by fate!