The person who had suddenly spoken was none other than Comrade Lao Sun, who had hurried back.
Seeing Li Qian and Sun Ruirui sitting face-to-face, looking like they were in the middle of a heated chat, his heart skipped a beat.
Without a second thought, he seized on a topic and bluntly interjected.
His overprotective intentions were painfully obvious in his words.
For a distinguished professor from Zhonghai Beast Taming University, a figure at the Master Level of cultivation, to say something like "can’t teach you," Li Qian wasn’t a fool. He knew exactly who the jab was aimed at.
Moreover, he had even invoked the entire Cultivation College of Zhonghai Beast Taming University.
Li Qian couldn’t help but let out a helpless laugh upon hearing Comrade Lao Sun’s barbed words.
He understood why Comrade Lao Sun had returned in such a hurry, so impatiently even.
But he truly had no intention of poaching the little cabbage of Hongqiao Manor.
He had come this time purely to search for Inspiration Value. Ultimately, it was also for Sun Ruirui’s sake.
Of course, if the research could be completed sooner, there would be considerable benefits for him as well.
After another chuckle, he took the initiative to walk over. "Professor Sun, it’s been a few days. You’re looking as robust as ever, and your voice is full of vigor."
"I’m not in my seventies or eighties yet. I eat well and sleep well. My health is excellent, so you don’t need to worry about me."
After that lukewarm jab, Comrade Lao Sun shot him a sidelong glance. "So, spill it. What brings you here this time, kid?"
Li Qian smiled and was about to speak, but just then, Sun Ruirui jumped in. "Brother Qian is here on important business."
"Brother Qian?" Hearing how Sun Ruirui addressed Li Qian, Sun Hongyi’s eyes went wide.
’How long has it been, and they’re already getting so familiar? In a few more days, is she going to be calling him ’darling’?!’
Comrade Lao Sun was heartbroken. He felt like the little cabbage he had painstakingly raised for so many years was about to be dug up, roots, soil, and all.
"Third Uncle, what are you thinking about? I’m talking to you!" Sun Ruirui called out when she saw Comrade Lao Sun’s dazed expression.
Just then, her cheeks were flushed red, looking utterly adorable.
Although she didn’t know exactly what was going on in her third uncle’s head, she could guess the general idea.
So as she spoke, she snuck a peek at Li Qian. Seeing his expression hadn’t changed, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.
’But what’s with this faint sense of disappointment in my heart?’
Seeing Comrade Lao Sun was a bit distracted, Li Qian didn’t waste any time and got straight to the point. "Here’s the thing. I’ve basically finished reading the cultivation data we exchanged last time. I got lucky and made some small gains."
"I came this time hoping to exchange some experiences and insights with you, Professor Sun, in hopes of finding some inspiration."
Hearing this, Comrade Lao Sun felt a mix of disdain and growing suspicion.
’You brat. Even if you really are a genius in cultivation, it’s no easy feat to fully digest all that data in such a short time.’
’Let alone getting "lucky" and making "some small gains"!’
"Tell me, what kind of experience, what kind of insights do you want to exchange?" Sun Hongyi glanced at Li Qian, then unhurriedly sat down.
Li Qian ignored the taunt in Comrade Lao Sun’s words and said directly, "Your failed experiences. The parts where the evolution was unsuccessful."
His words were rather blunt. But what could he do? The guy acted like he’d swallowed gunpowder every time he saw him.
Li Qian naturally didn’t mind rubbing salt directly into his wound.
The young lady Sun Ruirui, who rarely heard such impolite words, burst out laughing.
It was a rare sight indeed. Normally, hardly any outsiders visited Hongqiao Manor. The few who did come were mostly her third uncle’s students, and they would never dare talk back to their teacher.
As a result, Sun Ruirui had almost never seen her third uncle get put in his place.
Seeing it for the first time, she actually found it quite amusing.
"You brat, you just had to touch a sore spot, didn’t you?"
Seeing Li Qian jab directly at his sore spot, Comrade Lao Sun’s mouth couldn’t help but twitch.
Li Qian chuckled, completely unfazed. "What, are you too ashamed to mention it?"
"It’s not that."
Sun Hongyi shook his head. "Failure to figure it out is failure to figure it out. A failure is a failure. There’s nothing more to say."
"I’ve been through all sorts of things. I’m not so fragile that I can’t accept a single failure."
The smile on Li Qian’s face didn’t fade. "In that case, let’s talk about it. Professor Sun, what do you think are the possible reasons for the evolution’s failure?"
Sun Hongyi furrowed his brow and pondered for a moment.
The young lady Sun Ruirui tactfully poured him a cup of tea.
Comrade Lao Sun saw this and nodded in satisfaction.
’The cabbage I’ve raised for so many years still has some affection for me, after all.’
After organizing his thoughts for a moment, he began his explanation. "You should have noticed that during the evolution process from Golden Pearl Bud to Tidal Sea Spirit, there’s a stage. It requires another Golden Pearl Bud, which has also reached its Potential limit, to offer up its own Golden Pearl to push the evolution forward."
Although the Golden Pearl Bud isn’t a particularly rare Pet Beast and its Potential is only Tier Nine Commander, raising one to the limit of its Racial Potential is no easy task.
The cost involved is certainly not small.
To just sacrifice it as a material is a real shame. Even if it can recover later, it would still take a considerable amount of time.
Last time, after witnessing the entire evolution process, Li Qian had felt that this method of evolution was a bit strange.
Requiring a companion to offer up its life’s essence... no matter how you looked at it, this method of evolution didn’t seem like an orthodox one.
Now it seemed that it wasn’t just him; Sun Hongyi had also realized this problem.
Otherwise, he probably wouldn’t have brought it up right at the beginning of their conversation.
Comrade Lao Sun continued, his words confirming Li Qian’s suspicions. "This method... how should I put it? I don’t really agree with it."
"I’ve always felt that something about that part is problematic. I’ve run some experiments, but unfortunately, aside from this method, no other experimental approach has been able to push the evolution forward."
Li Qian pondered this and proposed a possibility. "The Golden Pearl Bud is a Water-type Pet Beast, while the evolved Tidal Sea Spirit is a dual Water and Life attribute Pet Beast."
"Perhaps the reason it needs a companion’s Golden Pearl during evolution is simply due to a lack of Life Energy, which requires a large amount of Life Energy to supplement."
"If we think along those lines, perhaps other Life Element resources could also serve to advance the evolution."
When Sun Hongyi heard Li Qian’s speculation, a barely perceptible flicker of approval flashed in his eyes.
’He really is a genius in the field of cultivation. The fact that he’s thinking along these lines is enough to prove that he truly did read the data we exchanged carefully.’