Chapter 199: Chapter 159: The Debut of the Thunderlight Butterfly (Part 2)
This is how the Hundred-Change Silkworm managed to escape death.
It seems the correct sequence is this: Positive Electric Stone, Electric Camel Crystal Core, Negative Electric Stone, Ancient Lantern Fish Crystal Core.
Ye Bai spent three whole days just figuring out the correct order of ingredient addition.
The rest was left to Big Gray to handle.
The Hundred-Change Silkworms looked as if they were placed on an execution rack, with something like a hat on their bottoms and heads, which were actually positive and negative electrodes.
Big Gray pulled the switch, and the Hundred-Change Silkworms were jolted with electricity, their bodies trembling, many of them losing control over their bodily functions and foaming at the mouth.
"Big Gray, the current is too strong; the Hundred-Change Silkworms haven’t adapted yet."
Ye Bai squinted and said to Big Gray.
Big Gray swallowed, cleaned up the silkworms’ waste, and pulled the switch again.
The voltage steadily increased, and the Hundred-Change Silkworms gritted their teeth, enduring it with all their might.
"Very good, Hundred-Change Silkworms."
"Hang in there."
Ye Bai used ten minutes as a measurement unit, allowing the silkworms to rest every ten minutes before resuming the shocks, until the silkworms were completely exhausted.
Each shock was a test for the Hundred-Change Silkworms. They had to endure enough shocks to break their old bodies and usher in a new evolution.
During this time, Zhang Lingxue just watched from the side and did not intervene in the experiment.
She believed it was a great opportunity for Ye Bai to grow.
If he, a high school student, could cultivate Tier Three or Four Pet Beasts, his future would be limitless.
The last operation against the Resurrection Association caught the attention of her senior brother to Ye Bai’s value.
Once she leaves, naturally, a powerful Pet Beast Master will come to protect Ye Bai.
Ye Bai’s discovery of a new evolutionary path for the Hundred-Change Silkworm means he no longer needs to hide his name.
Previously, hiding Ye Bai’s talent was meant to keep him from standing out too much.
But now Ye Bai has caught the attention of some higher-ups in the Flame Country, so there’s no need to hide anymore.
Moreover, it’s rumored that her teacher is about to become the vice president of Imperial University and the vice director of the Imperial Capital Research Institute, so there’s no need for them to stay low either.
She must display her talents as much as possible and enter the vision of higher-ups, which is what Zhang Lingxue aims to do now.
The success of the Positive Rabbit and Negative Electric Rabbit projects will earn Zhang Lingxue accomplishments, though it might cause the people from the Western Research Institute to be resentful, potentially leading them to take unscrupulous actions.
After days and nights of electrical shocks, the Hundred-Change Silkworms went from losing control initially to withstanding ten thousand volts of electricity silently, and Ye Bai considered that the biggest progress.
In the end, the surface of the silkworms’ bodies formed a Thunder Cocoon, indicating that they were evolving towards becoming Thunderlight Butterflies.
"It seems your experiment was quite successful."
Zhang Lingxue said with a smile.
"This experiment can now be concluded."
"By the way, from the assassin Z you caught last time, we’ve extracted a lot of information."
"The Beautiful Country has a plan to specifically hunt down high-talent, high-potential individuals from other countries."
"The scope of this plan is so vast, it’s beyond my imagination."
"You’ve done a great job this time, and to prevent retaliation from the Beautiful Country, after I leave, a bodyguard will be assigned to you."
"Please be cautious."
At this moment, Zhang Lingxue’s stomach growled.
By now, the sun had set, and Ye Bai looked at the time.
He offered to prepare dinner.
This time, Ye Bai used part of the whitening tuna’s fish meat.
He intended to make an Iron Tower Country’s creative dish, potato fish slices.
Ye Bai selected the most expensive part of the whitening tuna—the belly meat, known to be as tender as clouds.
He also used Sky Potatoes brought back by Li Chen from the Sky Vegetable Garden.
He peeled the potatoes with a peeler and then sliced them into two-millimeter-thick slices.
With a circular mold, he cut coin-sized potato chips from the slices and boiled them in hot water.
These potato chips would serve as the fish scales.
After boiling for a minute, the potato chips were removed and cooled in cold water.
Then he arranged them neatly on the fish meat to simulate fish scales.
The cooking was soon to begin.
Ye Bai placed a piece of butter in a copper frying pan, covered it with greaseproof paper, and placed the potato scale side down.
He aimed to fry the potatoes into a firm shape, then continuously basted the fish with butter so that every inch absorbed its flavor.
This was key to achieving a crispy outside and tender inside.
Later, Ye Bai removed the greaseproof paper, flipped the potato side up, and let the focusing oil turn them golden brown, resembling shining fish scales.
By reaching this step, the dish was nearly finished; now, the most critical part was preparing the orange butter sauce.
A large piece of butter fell into the copper pot, onions were added to enhance the aroma, and after the onions turned slightly brown, they were filtered out. The butter was then simmered with sea salt, black pepper, orange juice, and grated orange peel.
Once the sauce began to thicken slightly, it was ready for plating.
Ye Bai spooned two tablespoons of the sauce onto the plate and dripped black balsamic vinegar over it, gently stirring it with chopsticks to create an arrowed pattern.
The fish was placed in the center of the plate, surrounded by sprinkle of parsley and basil leaves, creating a renowned Iron Tower Country dish.
Ravenous, Zhang Lingxue couldn’t sit still upon smelling the aromatic dish. She gently sliced into the fish with her knife and fork.
The potatoes made a crisp sound, resembling high-quality potato chips yet softer.
The fish, enveloped in sauce, melted into a rich broth upon entering her mouth, enhanced by the crunchy potato chips, making Zhang Lingxue feel as if she were sipping a hearty French soup.
Delicious!
Zhang Lingxue felt as if she were strolling on a vast beach, surrounded by a golden glow, embraced by the tropical warmth, compelling her to immerse in the scene.
She couldn’t stop, enjoying bite after bite, savoring the fish with a subtle fruity aroma.
It took a while for Zhang Lingxue to calm down.
"This is exquisite."
"Ye Bai, once you get into Imperial University and join the Imperial Capital Research Institute, I’ll look forward to more of your cooking."
"I’ll bear with it for now."
Zhang Lingxue remarked with a hint of regret.
"You can bring the Sunflower Emperor clone with you; it can make regular meals."
Zhang Lingxue’s eyes lit up upon hearing Ye Bai’s suggestion.
Just as she was about to speak, a cracking sound came from the laboratory.
It sounded like a soft explosion, and Ye Bai looked up to see it coming from the Thunder Cocoon.
Could it be that the Thunderlight Butterfly was about to emerge?
Surprise filled Ye Bai’s eyes as a tendril broke through the layers of the Thunder Cocoon, emerging.
The Thunderlight Butterfly peeked its head out, its eyes resembling exquisite blue glass.
It crawled out gradually, expanding its wings under the electric impulse.
The Thunderlight Butterfly looked vibrant and energetic as it flew to Zhang Lingxue’s side, even dancing alongside her.
"I’m sorry. Possibly because most of my contracted elves are butterfly-type Exotic Beasts, I naturally carry their scent, which is why they eagerly approach me."
Not all Thunder Cocoons broke open; two remained silent.
Even when Big Gray stopped the current, there was only ash inside, along with a fist-sized Thunder Crystal Core.
"It seems the loss rate of this experiment is quite high."