I've already reached the Nascent Soul stage, and you're saying I didn't time travel?

Chapter 138 The entire internet explodes, and the conflict reignites!
"...The specific situation is as I have described above, and further investigation is needed."

But before we get to the next action, let's introduce a little gadget.

Qi Xuan spoke eloquently to the camera as he walked to the side.

Soon, when he came to a section of grayish-yellow dead wood, he stopped abruptly:

"As you can see, this piece of dead wood in front of me is ordinary, unremarkable, and looks like just a very common piece of rotten wood."

"That's what I thought at first, but later I realized that my eyesight is still too poor."

"This is not ordinary rotten wood at all, but a spiritual plant called the Withered and Flourishing Wood."

"The withered and flourishing tree is very special. It withers and flourishes once a year. Well, it withers for half a year and flourishes for half a year. It's different from what is described in ancient poems."

"In its withered state, it is like this, a piece of rotten wood, devoid of any vitality, like a piece of rotten wood that can be found anywhere in the wilderness, utterly worthless."

"In Changrong's case, its vitality is far more vigorous than that of ordinary spiritual plants. Even if it is cut down and all its sap is drained, it can quickly recover."

"Given these characteristics, deadwood is often used to raise some special and precious spiritual insects and birds."

"That's right, the Zhao family uses this kind of withered and flourishing wood to raise cicadas."

Qi Xuan patted the wood, which immediately produced a dull sound.

Netizens found it very novel:
"There are such strange spiritual plants? They wither and flourish every six months?"

Have similar spiritual plants been found on the mainland islands?

"Who knows? What if it's withered? Who would recognize it as a spiritual plant?"

"That's true. After all, even Qi Shen misjudged it. We can't expect everyone's judgment to be better than Qi Shen's."

"Anyway, after Qi Shen said that, all the dead trees on the island will definitely be carefully checked. If we find a dead tree, we'll be rich."

……

Qi Xuan used his camera to carefully scan the appearance of the withered and flourishing wood, and then explained its corresponding characteristics.

As he said, he did initially overlook the withered and flourishing trees, until he used the Recall Talisman to view past images and discovered that the Zhao family's breeding area was covered with densely packed with withered and flourishing trees.

They used withered and decaying wood to raise cicadas.

He happened to see a piece of withered wood at the ruins, which he figured must have been broken up by Zhao Tianchang's self-destruction.

Besides the remnant of this withered and flourishing tree, he searched around the ruins and found other remnants of withered and flourishing trees. However, most of them were blown to pieces, leaving only wood chips and blocks. Even when he occasionally found some pieces of wood, they were no more than waist-high. After two hundred years, they were basically all dead.

The best-preserved section at the scene is the part in front of him, which is shoulder-high and about one-third the length of the intact deadwood.

It's likely that when the Han and Zhang cultivators were cleaning up the cicada breeding area, they didn't want this piece of broken wood and left it behind.

If it were any other kind of spirit wood, it would be very difficult to save a piece of wood that is only one-third intact, let alone two hundred years later.

However, the withered tree is extremely resilient. As long as it is watered with spiritual liquids such as Seven Star Spiritual Herb Liquid or Heavenly Origin Azure Spirit Liquid, it still has a high chance of reviving.

"Let's try to see if we can revive this withered tree."

Qi Xuan took out the Heavenly Origin Azure Spirit Liquid and poured it onto the withered and flourishing wood that was as long as his shoulders.

The spiritual liquid, rich in spiritual energy, was poured onto the withered and flourishing wood, and immediately seeped into it.

The originally grayish-yellow and withered rotten wood began to turn a bright orange-yellow from the spot where the spiritual liquid was poured.

The orange-yellow hue seemed to be contagious, quickly spreading in all directions and turning the entire piece of broken wood orange-yellow.

After the withered wood turned orange-yellow, its trunk gradually grew branches in all directions.

Tiny green leaves sprouted from the branches, gradually becoming lush and adorning the entire tree.

In the blink of an eye, the remaining piece of rotten wood came back to life!

The live stream chat exploded with excitement upon seeing this.
"A dead tree coming back to life? A dead tree coming back to life! I actually witnessed a dead tree truly coming back to life!"

"Withered Tree: I'm only a little dead, but not completely dead."

"Thanks for the invitation. I have just woken up from a two-hundred-year slumber."

"It has to be Qi Shen. Even if someone else found the withered tree, they couldn't save it without spiritual liquid."

"Since God Qi dared to water the withered tree like this, the mother tree seed must have been completely revived, right?"

"That's not certain! Otherwise, he wouldn't dare waste the spirit liquid! But now that we have the withered and flourishing wood, we might be able to raise the ghost cicadas and collect their spirit liquid, which would give us another way to deal with [bone disease]!"

"That's right! With the Netherworld Cicada Elixir, even if the mother tree can't survive, or if something else happens during the planting process, there will at least be a safety net, greatly increasing our ability to withstand risks."

"That being said, the Ghost Cicada isn't so easy to find, is it? The withered and flourishing wood has a special composition, so it's understandable that it can survive for two hundred years, but can the Ghost Cicada live for more than two hundred years?"

"The important thing is not whether the Youchan can live for more than two hundred years, but that after the Zhao family was destroyed, all the Youchan may have been taken away by the Han and Zhang families. Now it will not be easy to find the Youchan."

"Qi Shen, it's time to go to the Han and Zhang families. No matter how arrogant they were two hundred years ago, two hundred years later they can only let us jump around on their graves."

"Your Majesty, let us depart!"

……

Qi Xuan looked at the withered tree that had come back to life and was about to put it away when he raised an eyebrow.

Suddenly, several insects the size of a thumb crawled out from one end of the withered tree trunk.

As soon as these insects appeared, they burst open, and countless rice-grain-sized eggs quickly hatched, vibrating their translucent membranous wings and rushing straight towards Qi Xuan.

Qi Xuan stretched out his right hand and suddenly swept it across the void, trapping many larvae in his palm, making it difficult for them to escape for a time.

Facing the camera, he said with a look of delight:
"I never expected that there would still be several female cicadas slumbering in this withered tree. This is truly wonderful news!"

Upon hearing Qi Xuan's introduction, netizens on Earth were filled with surprise and doubt:

"The Demonic Cicada Mother? If I'm not mistaken, that should be the mother of the demonic insects, right?!"

"The size and shape are extremely similar, and they match perfectly with the mother insects that have been discovered so far!"

"That's right! Absolutely right! Those larvae are exactly the same as the ones I killed!"

"Holy crap! Could it be that the thing invading the entire Blue Star... is actually the Ghost Cicada?!"

"Have we been slaughtering and exterminating these precious resources that can cure [osteophyte disease]?!"

……

Netizens on Earth were stunned, their scalps tingling, but Qi Xuan just smiled and introduced it to himself:
"The Youchan was cultivated by a powerful figure named Xuancang hundreds of years ago. I found information about it in some of the Zhao family's records."

"In order to ensure the efficacy of the Netherworld Cicada Elixir and to ensure that it can treat more people, the Great Master Xuancang selected several special properties for the Netherworld Cicada when it was being cultivated."

"First, it has extremely strong vitality, can adapt to various harsh environments, is easy to keep alive, and can even enter a dormant state in the worst case."

Secondly, their reproductive capacity is extremely strong. Even with only a few female insects, they can reproduce hundreds of thousands or even millions of insects in a short period of time.

Third, its diet is extremely diverse; it eats spiritual plants and trees, as well as demonic beasts, and will even devour each other when there is absolutely nothing else to eat. Fourth, it has a unique evolutionary process; the Ghost Cicada can be selectively cultivated and evolved generation after generation to produce spiritual liquids with stronger and longer-lasting effects.

After a pause, Qi Xuan continued:
"Of course, with so many advantages, if the cicada is accidentally released into the wild, it could easily cause large-scale damage."

To avoid this situation, during its initial cultivation, the powerful Xuancang deliberately left it with many weaknesses, making it easy for humans to completely destroy it.

For example, the insect-dissolving powder can quickly spread to the entire clan if any cicada gets it, leading to the complete annihilation of the clan.

For example, the Crimson Flame. When a cicada is infected with the Crimson Flame, it will actively approach the Cicada Mother to be eaten by her. Then the Crimson Flame will erupt inside the Cicada Mother and completely incinerate her.

Or it could be a Nether Cicada. When a Nether Cicada infiltrates the group of Ghost Cicadas, it will disguise itself as the highest-ranking Cicada Mother and receive offerings of resources from all the Ghost Cicadas. It will continue to devour Ghost Cicadas until it has eaten the last Cicada Mother.

And so on and so forth; the methods are quite varied.

"These methods have essentially eliminated the possibility of the Ghost Cicada causing large-scale damage in the wild. All the families or forces that inherit the Ghost Cicada are constantly cultivating it and selecting the batch with the fewest weaknesses and the strongest medicinal properties."

The fewest weaknesses are to prevent others from harming the cicadas they raise, and the strongest medicinal properties are naturally to better treat "osteophyte disease".

According to the original plan of the great Xuancang, the Youchan should be able to completely cure the [Bone Disease] once it reaches its final evolution.

Of course, this is just a hypothetical scenario, and it remains to be seen whether it will be successful.

However, what is now certain is that the batch of Nether Cicadas inherited by the Zhao family are definitely among the best-cultivated Nether Cicadas. The spiritual liquid they produce is far more potent than that of other Nether Cicadas, which is why it has attracted the covetous eyes of outsiders.

Qi Xuan then began to introduce the social structure and breeding system of the cicada:

"The social structure of cicadas is somewhat similar to that of bees, but there are also differences. Under normal circumstances, there will be a female cicada in a cicada nest responsible for reproduction and egg laying. The female cicada will mate with the strongest adult cicada in the group. After mating, she will eat the adult cicada to provide energy for egg laying."

A single cicada typically lays at least several hundred eggs, and if the adult cicada provides sufficient nutrition, it can lay thousands.

However, when the population reaches a certain size, the cicada mother will stop laying eggs until the population is significantly reduced again, at which point she will resume laying eggs.

Then, when our cicada eggs are released into the outside world, they quickly turn into cicada nymphs. The cicada nymphs will eat voraciously and grow into adult cicadas at the fastest speed. Once they become adult cicadas, this stage will be extremely long, basically spanning their entire life cycle.

No matter how powerful they become later, they are still adult cicadas. Only when the cicada mother dies or the colony faces extinction will some of the most powerful adult cicadas transform into cicada mothers to continue the colony. The cicada mothers we just saw obviously came about in this way.

"As for the Netherworld Cicada Elixir, it is gradually obtained from the production process of the Cicada Mother."

Under normal circumstances, when a cicada lays its eggs, it secretes a kind of mucus called cicada fluid, which nourishes the cicada eggs and helps them to emerge as larvae.

Then we collect cicada sap, add some medicinal plant extracts, and refine it using the Treasure of Cultivation. The final product is the Ghost Cicada Elixir, which can be used to treat [Bone Disease].

"Later, in order to further reduce the refining steps, adult cicadas are often fed various spiritual plants and medicines in advance. After they mate with the cicada mother and are devoured by her, the cicada fluid produced by the cicada mother will have the characteristics of spiritual plants and medicines. After only the initial refining by the Treasure of Cultivation, crude cicada spiritual fluid can be obtained."

"Therefore, if you want to obtain the Netherworld Cicada Spirit Liquid, having the Netherworld Cicada alone is not enough. There are two other things that are indispensable. First, there is the specially crafted cultivation treasure, the Nine Aperture Spirit True Plate. Second, you need to have withered and flourishing wood or certain spiritual plants and objects that are specifically for the Netherworld Cicada to devour."

Of course, it's okay if you don't have either of these two things, because when the Ghost Cicada was first created, the cicada sap it secreted was for treating "osteomalacia".

Adding spiritual plants or refining it with cultivation treasures are merely icing on the cake, further enhancing the medicinal effects of the cicada nectar and reducing its negative side effects. If one unfortunately falls ill and has neither spiritual plants nor the Nine Aperture Spiritual True Plate, then directly consuming the cicada nectar will still be effective.

"But now that we have a clue about the Nine Aperture Spirit True Plate, we certainly won't be satisfied if we don't look for it."

Let me investigate this third son of the Zhao family and see if I can find the whereabouts of the Nine Aperture Spiritual True Plate.”

As Qi Xuan spoke, he no longer hesitated and secretly used the tracking talisman.

Tracking talismans must be used in conjunction with items that retain the target's aura. He may not have other people's items, but he certainly doesn't lack items from this Zhao Laosan.

Because the clothes he was wearing, the shoes he was wearing, and even the clothes stored in his personal space all belonged to that guy.

"It's quite a coincidence that we're so similar in height and build."

"The Nine-Aperture Spiritual True Plate should rightfully belong to me."

Qi Xuan rode Sunday and immediately sped forward.

……

When the afternoon live stream ended, the content discussed immediately caused a global uproar:

"Are you kidding me?! This is absolutely a joke! The monstrous insect ravaging the globe is actually the Ghost Cicada we've been desperately seeking?!"

"Who could have imagined that the ghostly cicadas used by a family on the floating continent to cultivate medicine could cause such a massive disaster in reality, resulting in the deaths of tens of millions of people?!"

"Hilarious! The entire blue planet, with all its global resources combined, can only barely manage a draw against the medicinal herbs grown in trees."

"There's nothing we can do about it. Most of the people on our side are ordinary people and low-level martial artists. A single family on their side can easily produce several terrestrial immortals. No matter how dangerous the Netherworld Cicada is, they can still suppress it with a flick of their wrist. On our side, let alone terrestrial immortals, can we even gather ten grandmasters on the entire Blue Star?"

"Actually, force isn't necessarily that crucial. According to Qi Shen, there are many ways to deal with You Chan, and you might not even need a terrestrial deity to intervene."

The problem is, none of the treasures and methods Qi Shen mentioned are available on our Blue Star. We have no way to specifically target and eliminate them. Otherwise, how could a mere Nether Cicada have caused such immense harm?!

"In the past, because the demonic insects were useless, they slaughtered us humans, hunted all kinds of animals, and destroyed the Blue Star's ecosystem. Naturally, we had to exterminate them all."

But now that we know this demonic insect is the Ghost Cicada, it's about time we changed our attitude.

At the very least, we should try to collect some cicada nests, put all the cicada mothers in cages, and learn from the Zhao family on the floating continent, making them continuously produce cicada sap for us to prevent potential [osteophyte disease].

That way, if osteoporosis suddenly flares up in the future, we won't be caught off guard.

"Although we do not have a cultivation treasure like the Nine-Aperture Spirit True Plate, and we lack all kinds of spiritual plants and objects, we have modern technological power. Perhaps we can separate the effective ingredients from ordinary cicada sap to deal with [osteophyte disease], and even develop a special medicine specifically for the symptoms in the future."

By then, no one will need to worry about osteoporosis anymore; human technological power will surely help us defeat it!

"That's right! Countries should seize the opportunity to harvest cicada nests now. By controlling the nests, we can not only significantly reduce the harm caused by adult cicadas, but also continue to study cicada sap."

Whoever can develop a drug similar to the Ghost Cicada Elixir first will dominate the entire Blue Star market for "osteophyte disease"!
The implicit benefits here could even help a country rise to prominence completely!

"Given the overwhelming trend, we have no choice but to fight! Leaders of all countries, unless they are idiots, will definitely throw themselves into it! The cicada's nest is wealth! The cicada's nest is power!"

"Damn it! I'm going to dig up the cicada nests I didn't have time to dig up last night!"

"I have a complete cicada nest, but no mother cicada. It's for sale for a million dollars, today only. DM me if interested!"

"The location of the Cicada Mother has been suspected. It is in Pei County. Ten people with innate abilities should form a team. After capturing the Cicada Mother, the spoils will be divided equally among everyone!"

……

Netizens are discussing it enthusiastically, and the atmosphere is lively.

Many people have even made plans to team up offline to hunt cicada swarms and harvest their nests.

At that very moment, as if by prior arrangement, major world-class pharmaceutical companies all issued announcements seeking to purchase the drugs.
Pfizer: "Offering a $100 million reward for the purchase of a complete cicada nest."

Merck: "A reward of 50 million is offered for the purchase of female cicadas, at least ten of them."

Novo Nordisk: "A bounty of ten million for the cicada nest, a bounty of fifty million for the cicada mother, and a bounty of one hundred million for the complete cicada nest with the cicada mother attached."

AstraZeneca: "A reward of 120 million for the complete cicada nest! A reward of 10 million for definitive clues about the cicada nest!"

……

The announcement caused an instant uproar across the internet!

(End of this chapter)