Chapter 558: Making a Nest
"Phew!"
When Feng Luo was standing on the tree watching the "military parade," the Collector Beetles had all crawled and stood before him and spat out items from their stomach storage that could expand up to ten times.
A few Level 30 gears, over a hundred energy crystals of various grades (mostly low-grade), and other materials were piled on the ground.
The gears were items dropped by the Cave Spiders that Feng Luo killed. As for the energy crystals and materials, they were dropped by Cave Spiders that were single-handedly killed by the beetle soldiers.
However, Feng Luo was not really all that interested in those items, because the Cave Spiders were too low level. As such, the items they dropped also had low levels, normally being around only Level 30 or so.
Level 30 items, even if they were Rare Grade items, would not be better than Level 50 Fine Grade items. They were not really valuable at the Exchange.
Feng Luo's bullets were probably more expensive than the price of all the items combined.
However, there were also a few exceptions. Feng Luo picked up three items from the pile of battle loot.
Two rings and a necklace. They were all a dark yellowish-green with Cave Spider patterns carved on them.
The three items were dropped by the Cave Spider Queen, and it was clear that the items completed a full set of decorative items. Moreover, it was highly likely that they were Rare Grade items.
Although Rare Grade gears of a lower level would not fetch a high price, the price of Rare Grade decorative items was still quite substantial.
The Cave Spider Queen was a Level 40 monster, at the very least, the decorative item set would be Level 40. It was close to the level of mainstream equipment. In addition, since it was a full set, the price might not be lower than a full set of Rare Grade equipment.
"With this, I've recouped my cost." Feng Luo put the three items inside his special agent inventory bag. Since those three items were high-level gears dropped by a Quasi-Boss monster, they needed to be appraised first. At the moment, he could not see their stats or attributes.
Apart from the set of decorative items, the Quasi-Boss Cave Spider Queen also dropped a blueprint chip. Feng Luo thought that it was probably going to fetch a decent market value.
It was a potion creation blueprint for an item called "Cave Spider Poison," and only Doctors could learn it.
After learning the blueprint, the player would be able to create poison with powerful effects, and the main ingredients were the poison crystals dropped by the Cave Spiders. The higher the level of the crystal, the stronger the potion.
The Cave Spider's poison crystals were considered rare materials dropped by the Cave Spiders. As such, Feng Luo had instructed all the Collector Beetles to collect and store all such materials on the battlefield.
He wouldn't be able to use those items, however, if he were to package them up and sell them, Feng Luo was certain that they were going to be quite valuable.
"Squeak, squeak..." After Feng Luo collected his loot, 24K who had finished recalling all its subordinates had also got back.
A Level 40 Elite Grade Collector Beetle with the flying ability followed closely behind 24K. Its brown claws were holding five light green crystals. After arriving in front of Feng Luo, the Collector Beetle passed them to him.
"What are these? Oh, it's the Commander Grade Cave Spiders' crystal core." Feng Luo discovered that they were the crystal cores dropped by the Commander Grade Cave Spiders after picking them up and inspecting them. He prepared to put these crystal cores into his inventory.
Although they were the crystal cores of Level 38 Commander Grade monsters, their value on the market was still worth thousands or even tens of thousands of credits.
"Squeak, squeak..." When 24K saw that Feng Luo had no intention, it began to squeak loudly while moving its tiny claws in the air, making some gestures while standing on the back of the Collector Beetle.
Through the mental link with 24K, Feng Luo received a message that surprised him for a moment.
"What? You're saying that these things can help them increase their grades? These crystal cores contain a special substance. There is a certain percentage for the beetle soldiers to advance their grade after eating them..." As Feng Luo sorted 24K's message and gradually understood more about it, the happier he looked.
The creatures in War can advance their grade, whether it is a pet or a wild monster. Under certain circumstances, they can advance their grades.
Since the beetles' grades were confirmed after their incubation, Feng Luo always thought they were fixed and did not imagine that they could be increased after they were born. Feng Luo then understood why the group of beetles was fighting against the Cave Spiders.
After all, they could advance their grades after eating the crystal cores of their enemies. For the simple-minded beetle soldiers, and under the guidance and lure of their natural instincts, they did not consider the fact that they might fail and lose the battle.
"Ugh... This means that... A huge loss." Feng Luo suddenly thought of something.
There should be more than five Cave Spider crystal cores.
Apart from the eight Commander Grade Cave Spiders that might drop the crystal core, the Quasi-Boss Cave Spider Queen should have a 100% crystal core drop rate; the grade of the crystal was most definitely going to be higher.
However, the Cave Spider Queen's energy crystal core was destroyed at the last crucial moment by the self-destruction.
"A huge loss... what a loss..." Feng Luo smiled bitterly.
The crystal core of a Quasi-Boss... It was not the crystal core of a Boss Grade monster, so Feng Luo had rated its value as around a few million credits at most.
The price was not enough for him to risk dying and losing a level to stop the Cave Spider Queen's self-destruct.
Now that he had received this piece of intel, he knew that he had made a mistake. He had missed a chance to obtain a Quasi-Boss Grade beetle soldier.
"Forget it. I've earned enough from this. Moreover, it's percentage based. It's not like it'll definitely advance its grade..." Feng Luo shook his head as his face gradually regained its calm.
He had earned a lot today. He easily gained over 400 beetles from this battle, and among the 400 beetles, over a hundred were Elite Grade beetles.
Not to mention the five energy crystal cores in his hand had the chance to directly give him a couple of Commander Grade beetle soldiers.
In terms of luck, this was an incredible profit. Feng Luo thought that he should be content.
Regardless, Feng Luo still thought it was regrettable. All the Cave Spiders in the valley had been wiped out by the beetles.
Feng Luo was not even sure if they would be respawned. If they were not going to be respawned, then it would mean that he would lose the chance to increase the grade of the beetles in the future.
"Squeak, squeak..." However, the message that 24K transmitted to Feng Luo surprised him again.
"What? You're saying that they are planning to build a nest here?" Feng Luo had wondered before where the beetle soldiers were before they were summoned through the wormhole.
After all, they were classified as "wild" monsters and not pets. As such, the normal beetles were not staying with 24K inside the pet space.
After asking 24K, he found that the beetles stayed inside a "nest" in reality. When 24K summoned them, they would go through the wormhole to enter and exit their nest.
As for the location of the nest, it was in a hidden underground location in the wild.
With regard to the intention of the new beetles, it was clear that they did not want to return to the original beetle nest; instead, they wanted to occupy the current valley and build a new nest.
"Squeak, squeak..." 24K nodded its tiny head.
"So, you're saying that the rocks and vegetation of this place have a large amount of special mineral substance beneficial to their growth. And the reason why the crystal cores of those eight-legged monsters can help them advance their grade is due to these mineral substances?" Feng Luo received yet another message from 24K. After that, he realized one thing. "This means that being able to advance their grade after being born has nothing to do with the Cave Spiders. The key is the land. Even without the Cave Spiders, as long as they build their nest here in this valley, the beetles may still advance their grade."
"Squeak, squeak..." Feng Luo received an affirmative answer from 24K, and naturally, he became even happier.
Although the valley was not all that hidden, on the map, the straight line distance between the valley and the closest location with many players - the Lu Conglomerate City was around ten kilometers.
Since it was deep inside the mountain area, it should be quite safe.
"Then, build it."
...
After Feng Luo agreed to them building a nest there, the beetles began to move.
The remaining over 50 Collector Beetles started going around looking for rocks and branches. Using their natural talents and abilities, they also dug multiple tunnels underneath the valley.
Over a dozen Scout Beetles spread out on top of the valley as they took turns patrolling the skies, increasing vigilance.
As for the combat beetles, they lazily and casually crawled to a spot to rest or recuperate. It was clearly a division of labor.
After a while, with some of its psionic energy recovered, 24K summoned the rest of its subordinates from the other nest to help out. This increased the total number of beetles inside the valley to over 400.
After the nest building operation had begun for some time, the day had turned into night.
Feng Luo needed at least two hours to get out of the mountain area. The road that he would have to take passed through a primitive jungle, as such, he had decided not to undertake the journey at night, as nights in War were more dangerous than the day.
Even if players were to go offline, most would not choose to do so in a wild area at night.
The wild was volatile and the situation could change at very short notice. It was possible that one might feel safe when going offline on one night, and by the time the player got online the next day, a Level 60 Commander Grade monster would be sleeping right beside him.
However, Feng Luo was not worried this time. He even felt comfortable enough to grab a military tent from his inventory and set it up, before he crawled inside the tent.
There were over 400 beetles defending the place, and more than ten Scout Beetles patrolling the area in turns.
Not to mention a Commander Grade monster, even if a high level solo type Quasi-Boss were to arrive, they would have a fighting chance.
As for a Boss, it wasn't that easy to encounter one.