Chapter 145: Chapter 143: The Fortune of the Working
Crane_l
Translator: 549690339
After obtaining the information about the task, Lu Xuan didn’t delay much, he rented a Spirit Crane and headed towards the Taming Beast Hall.
He inquired inside the Taming Beast Hall about the specific habitat of Spirit Cranes from his fellow disciples. After bypassing several hills, he found a wide expanse of water marsh.
The marsh covered a hundred acres of land. At this time, hundreds of Spirit Cranes resided there. They had elegant postures, with shiny white plumages either twiddling in the water marsh or spreading their wings in the lower airspace. Lu Xuan searched for a long time before he spotted a couple of Spirit Cranes entangling their long necks.
Seemingly sensing Lu Xuan’s arrival, a cultivator with dark skin flew out from the deeper part of the marsh. He had attained the Ninth Level of Qi Training Cultivation Level.
“Greetings, fellow disciple. I’m Xu Yi, the manager of this water marsh. May I know your name, and are you here to solve the breeding problems of the Spirit Cranes?”
“Hello, Senior Brother Xu. I’m Lu Xuan. Just as you said, I took the task regarding Spirit Crane breeding from the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, and so I came to look at the habitat of the Spirit Cranes.”
“So it’s Junior Brother Lu. You have had a tough journey, please follow me to take a rest first.”
Upon hearing this, a warm smile surfaced on Xu Yi’s face as he guided Lu Xuan across the marsh.
After half a moment, they arrived at a small wooden building. The building was not large, including just three or four rooms, but it had a pleasant environment and a good view with water surrounding it on all sides.
“Is it you alone who feeds all these Spirit Cranes within the Sect?”
After some casual chat, Lu Xuan asked curiously.
“Haha, not just me, but I’m mainly responsible for these Spirit Cranes.”
“The Spirit Cranes in the marsh are just a fraction of the total. Most of them stay in various places within the Sect, transporting fellow disciples, and earning Spirit Stones for the Taming Beast Hall.”
“By the time the night falls, most of them return to the marsh, with only a few left in the important places within the Sect.”
The dark-skinned Xu Yi laughed.
“So the hundreds of Spirit Cranes in the marsh are just a small portion? That would mean the total number of cranes must be in thousands, right?”
Lu Xuan exclaimed in surprise at the large number of Spirit Cranes.
“During the most recent census of the Spirit Cranes, the total count was over two thousand three hundred. However, this is the lowest number in years. I remember when I first took over this marsh, the number of Spirit Cranes was over three thousand.”
“The main problem is the high demand for Spirit Cranes within the Sect. Be it for delivering messages or for transport, they are a suitable choice.”
Xu Yi explained.
Lu Xuan nodded. The Sect was so vast, and the Thousand Dragon Lake alone stretched for hundreds of miles.
Most Outer Sect Disciples didn’t possess a Flying Artifact, so reducing the travel time was a major issue for them.
Although cultivators at the Qi Training Realm are equipped with weightless formula methods or possess charms that increase their speed, these methods are relatively slow and consume a large amount of spiritual power, hence they are not cost-effective.
Spirit Cranes, on the other hand, solve this problem perfectly. Their speed is extremely fast, not inferior to some flying artifacts. Regardless of the distance, it only consumes one Spirit Stone each time, which is within the affordability of high-grade Qi practitioners.
“With so many Spirit Cranes, how do you manage their food?”
Lu Xuan showed considerable interest in how to raise such a large number of Spirit Cranes.
“It’s easy to solve. We let them find some Spirit Grass roots, tender leaves, or Spirit Clam and Snail in the marsh.”
“From time to time, the Taming Beast Hall provides some specially cultivated Spirit Bugs to feed them.”
Xu Yi answered casually.
II II
“So, feeding them just these things is enough, even though the Spirit Cranes are earning so many Spirit Stones?”
Lu Xuan felt speechless. Over two thousand Spirit Cranes in the Taming Beast Hall, each earning several Spirit Stones daily. That would mean around seven to eight thousand Spirit Stones a day.
How could they feed such profitable Spirit Beasts by only letting them find their food in the marsh?
Moreover, with so many Spirit Cranes packed in the marsh, they might bump into each other. This could be quite a constraint for the Spirit Cranes that soar in the sky.
“They work hard to earn Spirit Stones, but live in poor conditions and can’t eat enough. All benefit goes to the Taming Beast Hall.”
“This is the blessing of working cranes, with no hope in their lives. No wonder they don’t want to breed.”
Lu Xuan lamented over the heartlessness of the cultivators of Taming Beast Hall and fully understood the Spirit Cranes’ choice.
The two chatted for a while, and then a young practitioner sought the marsh. After some conversation, Lu Xuan learned that the young practitioner’s name was Zhou Zheng Qing, and he had also come to address the issue of Spirit Crane’s breeding.
Some tasks in the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall had a limit on the number of people, while others didn’t. The task involving Spirit Crane breeding had no limit on practitioners.
“So it’s only Junior Brother Lu and Junior Brother Zhou who’ve taken up this task. For the next few days, I’ll have to trouble you both to help solve the breeding problems of the Spirit Cranes.”
Xu Yi straightened his expression and said seriously.
“The Spirit Cranes serve many purposes within the Sky Sword Sect. However, the Spirit Cranes reared by the Taming Beast Hall are currently facing a significant problem. The number of Spirit Cranes willing to breed has been decreasing over the years, leading to a steady decline in their population.”
“Especially this year, the number of pregnant Spirit Cranes has reduced by nearly 20% compared to last year. If this continues, there won’t be enough Spirit Cranes to transport all the practitioners.”
A trace of worry surfaced on Xu Yi’s face.
“There’s another issue to note. The number of female Spirit Cranes refusing to breed is significantly less.”
“Due to the long gestation period, incubating and raising young Spirit Cranes demands a considerable amount of time and energy. Particularly during the gestation phase, bearing Spirit Crane eggs can lead to a depletion of personal spiritual power. All these factors mainly contribute to the decrease in their numbers.”
“Even during the breeding season, Spirit Cranes’ mating desire significantly decreases. Many of them prefer earning Spirit Stones instead of staying in the marsh and hatching new Spirit Cranes.”
Xu Yi gave a detailed explanation of the Spirit Cranes’ situation to Lu Xuan.
Both of them fell silent, seemingly pondering over a solution.
“Senior Brother Xu, I think the current situation is not about Spirit Cranes’ objective breeding difficulties, rather their subjective unwillingness to breed. So, I believe we should focus our efforts there.”
Lu Xuan was the first to speak.
With his experience from his previous life, he knew precisely how the Spirit Cranes felt.
“Junior Brother Lu, that’s quite mysterious.”
Hearing Lu Xuan’s words, Zhou Zheng Qing, who was standing to one side, couldn’t help but retort.
“They’re just livestock, their life and death are in our hands. How could they choose whether or not to breed?”
He turned towards Xu Yi, laughing as he spoke.
“Senior Brother Xu, I suggest we take a simple and direct approach: force these Spirit Cranes to procreate, thus increasing their numbers.”
“As it happens, I recently acquired a technique that’s similar to Dual Cultivation Technique. It can induce a Spirit Beast’s sexual desire. Furthermore, I have a method to prepare an Infatuation Drug. Together, they should substantially promote Spirit Crane’s procreation, thus significantly increasing their population.”
“Really? Junior Brother Zhou, do you have such a wonderful method?”
Upon hearing this, Xu Yi’s eyes lit up..