Chapter 164: Chapter 0164: The Key to the Evolution of the Thorn Bug
Having dispatched the clueless Granney,

Liszt closed the door and, in the brightly lit study, he waved his hand, summoning forth the Smoke Mission.

“Complete the task, reward: Magic Potion variable rapid growth variety of Thorn.”

“Magic Potion!”

Seeing these two Serpent Script characters, Liszt’s pupils dilated instantly. The long-desired mutation was now a reality, for indeed, a Magic Potion had been cultivated from the Thorns! Not cutting down the ordinary Rapid Growth Thorns in the beginning was truly a wise choice; no matter how practical the Rapid Growth Iron Thorns were, they couldn’t compare to the importance of a Magic Potion.

Especially now, as he had entered the Elite Earth Knight Sequence, it was precisely the time he needed a Magic Potion.

It was like a timely rain, pouring refreshingly through his heart, utterly exhilarating.

The smoke slowly transformed in front of his eyes, forming new Serpent Script: “Mission: A chain outbreak of five varieties of mutant Thorns is the Thorn Elf Bug expressing its desire for evolution, launching a firm attack against fate. As its contracted master, you should lend a hand, please provide new varieties of Thorns for the Thorn Bug. Reward: A Little Minor Elf.”

At this point,

Liszt’s pupils dilated once again.

“A Thorn Bug chain mission, finally at the last link. My first Little Minor Elf will be a Thorn Minor Elf! I originally thought it the least likely to evolve successfully, but unexpectedly, it’s the first to evolve… The new Thorn variety isn’t available in Fresh Flower Town; it seems I need to go outside to find it.”

With that thought, he did not hesitate for a moment.

He directly called over his Retainer Knights, Philip and Zavier—the two Apprentice Knights who had been the first to cultivate Dou Qi and the most likely to break through to become Earth Knights; Liszt was focusing on training them.

“Philip, Zavier, I have a task for you.”

The young faces, now tanned dark, no longer held a wooden expression but rather a resolute one: “We are at your service, my lord!”

“Philip, make a trip to Coral City. Tell Captain Abagon to mobilize all the routes of the caravan to look for Thorns, not ordinary Thorns, but unusual varieties within them.”

Philip promptly replied, “Understood!”

“Zavier, accompany the Thorn Caravan on a trip, the same mission, to find unusual Thorn varieties. Also, when leaving, stop by and call for Teacher Marcus.”

“As you wish.”

Zavier quickly brought Marcus, who had been training the serf boys, over.

“My lord, you called for me?”

“Come with me.” Liszt led Marcus straight to the Worm Room on the second floor, pointing out the increasingly plump Thorn Bug, “Teacher Marcus, you are the person I trust the most. Take a look at these Elf Bugs, do you notice anything?”

Marcus seldom saw Elf Bugs.

But that did not mean he was unfamiliar with Elf Bugs. As someone who aspired to be a Noble, he had made it a point to inquire about matters related to Elf Bugs. Therefore, when he saw the Thorn Bug, he was stunned: “My lord, this Thorn Bug… has it entered the Fat Pupa Stage?”

“The emergence of four consecutive varieties of mutant Thorns has made my Thorn Bug no ordinary bug. It has a strong desire to evolve. I can already feel its urgent craving to evolve. So, I want to help it. I need you to make a trip to Tulip Castle, as well as to the Beer Castle and Shattered Stone Castle.”

“My lord, what’s the task you’re entrusting me with?”

“Get in touch with them to inquire about Thorn Bugs. I suspect all three places have Thorn Bugs; Tulip Castle alone has two more. If they also have control over unusual varieties of Thorns, negotiate for me. I want to bring my Thorn Bug to assimilate these Thorn varieties.”

Thomas nodded in agreement, then furrowed his brows and asked, “My lord, do you think the Thorn Bug could possibly break through to become a Little Minor Elf?”

“Why not? Maybe the odds are low, but nothing is absolute. Even if there’s only the slightest possibility, I will not give up. I need a Thorn Minor Elf to care for my Rapid Growth Iron Thorns, understand?”

“Understood, I’ll set off at once.”

“I’ll write three letters for you to take with you.”

Marcus set off with the three letters.

Liszt wasn’t idle either. After greeting Douson and Elkerson, who was preparing to train Juan Fu, he set off toward the thorn shrubbery.

He was searching for a new variant of magic potion rapid growth thorn, which he called Rapid Growth Magic Thorn.

Rapid Growth Thorn, Rapid Growth Poison Thorn, Rapid Growth Spiky Thorn, Rapid Growth Iron Thorns, Rapid Growth Magic Thorn—the benefits brought by the Thorn Bug were already rich and were now on the verge of a breakthrough. The future profits that thorns could bring would be even richer.

Riding on the back of a Li Dragon Horse,

he suddenly thought of a very serious question, “Now that I have a Little Minor Elf, I can probably choose to change my surname, right?”

Some nobles would change their surname for their elves.

Usually, they would change their surname after acquiring a Greater Elf, to declare their family’s glory. But since Greater Elves were rare, many smaller nobles followed suit; upon acquiring a Little Minor Elf, they would change their surname—after all, Greater Elves lived two hundred years and Little Minor Elves lived one hundred years, both of which could prolong the glory of a family for several generations.

The Tulip Family began in the era of the earl. The Tulip Lesser Spirit evolved into the Tulip Great Elf, and the surname changed from “Tile” to “Tulip.”

The Lycra Family of Beer Castle had a Lycra Minor Elf and directly changed their surname to “Lycra.”

The Shattered Stone Family from Shattered Stone Castle also had a Little Minor Elf but did not change their surname. Perhaps they harbored ambitions to wait for a Greater Elf before changing the surname, or perhaps they were too modest to use a Little Minor Elf as their surname.

“In any case, I can now change my surname to Thorn… Liszt Thorn… It doesn’t sound as noble as Liszt Tulip, never mind, I won’t change it. I’ll continue to bear the surname Tulip and maintain some distance from Tulip Castle so that I can still benefit from the Earl in the future.”

He arrived at the Thorn Cordyceps Shrubbery.

Bug Guard Members came forward to salute.

He simply used the Eye of Magic to observe the thorns. The Thorn Cordyceps were the most conspicuous with their abundant magic power. Moments later, Liszt discovered a new trace of magic power in a corner of the shrubbery and determined the location of the Rapid Growth Magic Thorn.

The Rapid Growth Magic Thorn was not conspicuous.

On the contrary, compared to the surrounding Rapid Growth Thorns, it was even smaller. This smallness was not because it was in the seedling phase but rather because the entire plant had a dwarfed appearance. Judging by its form, it had definitely grown for more than a month, with branches fully spread out, but the height only reached the lower leg.

“The chaotic, attribute-less magic power is like that of the Black Tulip, not bad at all. With this, I have a new magic potion available to use… Most importantly, this is a rapid growth variant of the magic potion, practically a Gold Coin production line!”

He touched the Rapid Growth Magic Thorn. Its thorns were very small and rather blunt, posing virtually no harm.

Beside it was a Rapid Growth Spiky Thorn, whose thorns glinted coldly, as if ready to kill at any moment.

“I need to protect this Rapid Growth Magic Thorn. Clear out all the other varieties of thorns, from top to root, to make room for its growth.”

Having confirmed the plan for cultivating the Rapid Growth Magic Thorn,

he faced another concern: “The Rapid Growth Magic Thorn needs Thorn Bugs to increase production, as does the Rapid Growth Iron Thorns, how should I allocate them?”

One can’t have both the fish and the bear’s paw.

His only hope was for the Thorn Bug to break through into a Thorn Minor Elf soon and affect a larger range of thorns.

Standing up, he looked across over a hundred acres of Thorn Cordyceps Shrubbery, envisioning an endless supply of magic potions and high-quality wood.

“The Sea of Thorns is a bit exaggerated; The Land of Thorns is a bit mundane; The Forest of Thorns lacks creativity… I might as well call this shrubbery the Thorn Garden. I’ll tend to it as I would a garden!”