Chapter 311: Chapter 311

After he finished feeding it the remaining Star Remnants, lush greenery once again filled the entire Grotto Heaven.

Hmm, that should about do it. From now on, let’s call this place Military Willow Realm.

It had been a month since the reorganization of Butterfly Star began, and various aspects were getting back on track.

Closing the recruitment manual, Chen Jiuge sighed. I never imagined I’d be poor again. It’s been such a long time since I’ve felt this way.

Star Stones, Star Stones... where on earth am I supposed to find them?

Besides some Spirit Plants, like the Meteor Butterfly Sword, which produced Star Stones upon maturation, Star Stones were more commonly formed from ore veins automatically created by completely extinguished stars. Certain Spiritual Beasts could also produce Star Stones.

However, such Spiritual Beasts were outrageously expensive and could only be exchanged for with Contribution Points. Since Chen Jiuge didn’t have a single Contribution Point to his name, he couldn’t even consider it; he could only drool at the thought.

"Young Master, a Corpse Demon has appeared," Hu Xiao’s voice suddenly came from the Communication Stone.

Because Chen Jiuge was solely responsible for managing Butterfly Star, the perimeters of the original City Walls One through Five had been redrawn. The garrisons remained largely the same, with only minor adjustments.

City Wall Number Four, guarded by Hu Xiao’s Azure Wood Guards, was the longest and thus had the most substantial forces.

By the time Chen Jiuge arrived, the battle had already ended.

This is the Corpse Demon?

Looking at the green, humanoid creature Hu Xiao held, the word "zombie" flashed through Chen Jiuge’s mind.

"Yes, Young Master," Hu Xiao confirmed.

"This is a Green Kui. Its Cultivation is around the True Immortal realm, and its individual strength is much greater than an Insect’s."

"How many Corpse Demons appeared this time?" Chen Jiuge looked down from the city wall and saw the Mandala Snake Group below, already squabbling over the corpses of the slain Corpse Demons.

Although Mandala Snakes could sustain themselves on a vegetarian diet, they weren’t averse to other foods. The corpses of these Corpse Demons, an alien universe species, were also quite beneficial for their growth.

"Not too many. Just one Green Kui and a hundred regular Corpse Demons. This is a standard reconnaissance team for the Corpse Demon Clan," Hu Xiao explained.

"Are you saying a Corpse Demon army has appeared nearby?"

"That’s highly probable. Only after establishing a stable presence will the Corpse Demons send out reconnaissance teams to find new food sources."

"Yes, all living things are food for the Corpse Demons. Sometimes, even the highly prolific Insect Clan falls prey to the Corpse Demons. In the Upper Star Sea, ordinary Insect Nests are practically a standing food reserve for the Corpse Demon Clan," Hu Xiao said, a hint of dark humor in his tone.

"Stay alert," Chen Jiuge said thoughtfully. "I’ll have Mo Yu arrange for daily patrols outside the walls."

Chen Jiuge’s brow remained furrowed as he left, carrying the half-dead Green Kui. The unexpected appearance of the Corpse Demon Clan had shattered his dream of getting rich quickly by finding an undiscovered Star.

Back in his small courtyard, Chen Jiuge first tried to contact Jin Xiao via the Communication Stone. When no one answered, he left a message about the appearance of the Corpse Demon Clan.

Let’s see what this Corpse Demon Clan is all about.

The severely injured Green Kui looked in terror at the approaching Chen Jiuge and let out a stream of guttural, unintelligible sounds—the unique language of the Corpse Demon Clan.

Eh, there’s actually a Bloodline! Chen Jiuge was shocked by what the Golden Finger’s probe revealed.

These Corpse Demons can’t be Spiritual Beasts, can they? No, that’s not right. The Insect Clan I encountered before had no Bloodlines, so why does this Corpse Demon have one? Chen Jiuge immediately dismissed his own speculation.

Could it be that those rapidly produced lesser insects and the standard Insects aren’t the true members of the Insect Clan? Perhaps only the Insect Nests and the Insect Nest Queen truly count?

Upon closer inspection of the Corpse Demon’s Bloodline, Chen Jiuge noticed its distribution resembled that of the Merfolk. Unfortunately, the Golden Finger couldn’t retrieve specific information about the Bloodline itself, only revealing that its overall shape was eerily similar to a humanoid form.

Although the Corpse Demon possessed only a single type of Bloodline, the fact that it could be extracted was something Chen Jiuge had never encountered before. He found it utterly perplexing.

For now, I’ll keep it alive. If the Corpse Demon Clan truly appears in the Third Zone, I won’t have to worry about capturing more in the future.

However, this Infinite Star Sea sure is miraculous. The Golden Finger, which I once thought had limited use, might actually have effects beyond my imagination, Chen Jiuge mused.

The next three days passed peacefully, with no further sightings of the Corpse Demon Clan, much to Chen Jiuge’s relief.

Among the supplies his Master had previously gifted him, there was a wealth of information about the various species in the Infinite Star Sea. However, Chen Jiuge had never found the time to study it until the appearance of the Corpse Demon Clan prompted him to finally begin familiarizing himself.

He hadn’t realized it before, but upon looking, he was astounded. The sheer number of species in the Infinite Star Sea was staggering, and most of them shared the characteristic of potent reproductive capabilities.

Setting other species aside, the information specifically about the Corpse Demon Clan weighed heavily on Chen Jiuge’s mind.

Corpse Demon Clan: One of the top species in the Infinite Star Sea.

They possess an extreme craving for living beings. A Corpse Demon matures in ten years with normal feeding. If food is plentiful, this period shortens; if food is scarce, maturation will be correspondingly delayed.

A mature Corpse Demon can produce one offspring annually. For every thousand mature Corpse Demons, there is a chance one Green Kui will emerge.

At an equivalent level, their strength far surpasses that of an Insect. They are capable of rivaling ordinary True Immortal Cultivators in the Heavenly Realm and must be handled with extreme caution.

Every Corpse Demon encampment will house formidable Corpse Demon Generals and an extremely powerful Corpse Demon King. They are distinguished by their eyes: Generals have four eyes, and Kings have six. The most powerful Divine Son in the Corpse Demon Clan possesses eight eyes!

Corpse Demon King, Corpse Demon General, and Divine Son... why does this sound like something out of a heretical cult? Chen Jiuge complained inwardly.

I wonder if Senior Brother Jin Xiao received my message. That unknown star Huang Kui mentioned must be the new Corpse Demon Clan encampment. No wonder he died; his luck was truly awful.

Another seven days passed. Chen Jiuge still hadn’t received a message from Jin Xiao. Instead, he was met by the arrival of a colossal White Tiger Flying Boat.

From the majestic and imposing tiger-headed Flying Boat, a group of incredibly imposing Cultivators descended. Leading them was none other than Jin Xiao, who had not responded to his message.

"Junior Brother, where did you say the Corpse Demon Clan is?" Follow current ɴᴏᴠᴇʟs on NoveI(F)ire.net

The moment they met, Jin Xiao immediately asked about the Corpse Demon Clan’s whereabouts. He was clearly agitated, making it obvious that even though both were top-tier species from alien universes, the Insect Clan and the Corpse Demon Clan were vastly different.