And so, the Red Line Insect inspection team began their operation.
An Immortal Technique Committee member walked ahead, leading Peach Blossom Eyes.
Peach Blossom Eyes widened their eyes, their fox-like gaze shining brightly, scanning every corner.
Bai Mo, Director Zhang, and others followed behind Peach Blossom Eyes, chatting and laughing, accompanying this fox.
The team went around the Immortal Technique Committee's office building, catching two Red Line Insects, which were dealt with by a committee member using a vacuum cleaner. They then went to the medicinal field that Peach Blossom Eyes did not favor.
This time, despite the disdain, Peach Blossom Eyes took a very responsible work attitude, using their eyes to scan every inch, checking for Red Line Insects.
But they saw that this medicinal field was no longer flat Immortal Soil but had been changed to large pots. Each pot not only contained the herbs needed to make Blood Transformation Powder but also a small piece of Amber Ginger.
"There shouldn't be any Red Line Insects," Bai Mo thought to himself.
As expected, Peach Blossom Eyes made a round and couldn't find any Red Line Insects.
The search team then went to the medical department of the Immortal Technique Committee... This was a separate building accommodating six to seven hundred unfortunate passersby from the Fuqing Hotel incident. They still had traces of Ancient Immortal Blood Qi in their bodies, which was not a major problem, but it still affected their health as they underwent rehabilitation.
Arriving on the first floor of the medical department, the scanning team was about to enter a meeting room when they suddenly heard a meeting taking place inside.
"... So, the Fire Downy Flower is the core of the medicine's potency in this decoction?"
"Sequence Eight Soup Man showed a significant increase in physical attributes compared to Sequence Nine Medicine People.
"This attribute enhancement is almost entirely thanks to the Fire Downy Flower.
"So I believe that during the concoction, particular attention should be paid to the condition of the Fire Downy Flower..."
Chairman Chen Shu and Bai Mo, along with others, peeked in through the window.
Inside the meeting room, a meeting was ongoing.
It was Wang Fangyue, accompanied by a group of graduate students, studying a prescription. Some were standing, some were writing, some were speaking, and some were listening. On a large whiteboard were the names of various medicines and a complex flowchart.
Bai Mo immediately realized they were researching the "Fire Moon Soup." In the Alchemy Path, the transition from Sequence Nine to Sequence Eight requires personally concocting this Fire Moon Soup and then drinking it.
After listening to a bit of their discussion and looking at what they had written and drawn on the whiteboard, Bai Mo twitched the corner of their mouth.
Wang Fangyue's comprehension, and the things Wang Fangyue was studying, seemed related to Fire Moon Soup but were entirely off the mark.
If she only has this level of comprehension, she's unlikely to learn how to concoct Fire Moon Soup in the next few decades! This thing relies solely on aptitude, not hard work. Even if she has an Ancient Immortal Master and the guidance of an Immortal, it might still be impossible.
...
Director Zhang saw Wang Fangyue and immediately smiled as he went up to knock on the door, interrupting their meeting.
"Sorry to interrupt, everyone. We've invited Expert Bai Mo to conduct a Red Line Insect inspection."
The group of graduate students nodded, paused the meeting, and watched as Peach Blossom Eyes entered the conference room for inspection.
Director Zhang and Wang Fangyue started chatting again.
"Fangyue, is the rehabilitation of the patients in this building going smoothly recently?"
Professor Zhang was busy concocting Blood Transformation Powder, so the patients' rehabilitation was mainly led by Wang Fangyue.
The female graduate student smiled and discussed the work with Director Zhang.
"Everything is quite normal, and recently some people have been discharged one after another..."
...
After a round of inspection, the entire Immortal Technique Committee base's remaining three Red Line Insects were all found by Peach Blossom Eyes, with no others left.
Director Zhang was quite excited.
"In recent days, we've used water infused with Amber Ginger for comprehensive disinfection of the entire base.
"Even the committee members have been conscientious about washing their feet.
"Now that it's confirmed, there are no Red Line Insects, we're finally in the clear."
The group happily headed to the base's cafeteria.
Before they even got close, they could smell the aroma of hot fried chicken!
Upon entering the cafeteria doors, they saw racks lined with trays. On each tray lay pieces of fried chicken!
Director Zhang introduced with a smile.
"They're all finger-licking original recipe chicken!
"We couldn't figure out if Immortal Beasts prefer chicken legs or chicken breasts.
"So we simply made ten thousand chicken legs and ten thousand chicken breasts.
"A total of twenty thousand pieces.
"Each tray holds one hundred pieces of fried chicken, with ten trays on each rack, and there are a total of twenty racks here.
"They're all the price we pay to the Immortal Beasts."
In the huge cafeteria, the atmosphere felt slightly peculiar.
A group of Immortal Technique Committee members looked at the fried chicken, then at the Immortal Beast, feeling that Expert Bai Mo's Immortal Beast seemed different from other people's.
Bai Mo remained expressionless, just looking at the rows of fried chicken, golden brown pieces, feeling quite impressed.
"The Fox Mountain Fried Chicken Promotion Plan," succeeded! Ten thousand disciples can all taste the flavor of fried chicken!
Peach Blossom Eyes kept still, standing tall with tail raised, front paws crossed, maintaining the demeanor of an Immortal Beast. In reality, it secretly glanced at the fried chicken, eyeing the golden, fragrant pieces and gulped involuntarily.
So this is fried chicken!
Even though it hadn't been tasted yet, just the look and smell suggested it was delicious!
Its ears perked up discreetly, just waiting for the master's order...
Finally, it heard the master's voice.
"...Let the Immortal Beast take these fried chickens as the price.
"The Immortal Beast helped us inspect the base, and we are providing fried chicken in return.
"We're even!"
White smoke rose at Bai Mo's feet, blurring the boundary between dream and reality.
Peach Blossom Eyes immediately sprang into action, rushing forward, the small fox raised the large rack of fried chicken with its short front paws, carrying it into the white mist, back to Fox Mountain.
Coming and going, it deftly made twenty trips until, on the last trip, it carried the rack into the white mist and didn't come back out.
The white smoke at Bai Mo's feet dispersed.
Director Zhang and the others felt a sense of relief after sending off the Immortal Beast. Smiling, they invited Bai Mo to join them for a meal.
...
On the other side, it was night on Fox Mountain.
Ten thousand plump, fluffy foxes gathered in the cafeteria, forming a thick circle. With their red-brown eyes, they drooled, waiting patiently.
Finally, in the empty space at the center of the circle, a white mist appeared, blurring the boundary between dream and reality...
Within the white mist, Peach Blossom Eyes emerged with a rack full of fried chicken!
The warm aroma wafted through the air, and the foxes immediately cheered and jumped!
"Howl howl howl!"
"Howl howl howl!"
With joyous sounds, the leaping foxes surged like a tidal wave!
Peach Blossom Eyes set down the rack and dove back into the white mist, bringing out another rack full of fried chicken!
The foxes leapt and cheered even more!
"Howl howl howl!"
"Howl howl howl!"
Peach Blossom Eyes went in and out, bringing back rack after rack.
The foxes leapt and cheered each time, their eyes shining.
"Howl howl howl!"
"Howl howl howl!"
Finally, Peach Blossom Eyes returned with the last rack, and the white mist that blurred dream and reality dispersed.
Many foxes suddenly realized something was amiss.
More and more foxes became aware, looking at Peach Blossom Eyes in the center, at the pile of fried chicken, at the now-gone white mist...
Where was the master?
Wouldn't the master join them to eat?
Peach Blossom Eyes raised its voice, speaking in fox language, "Howl howl howl howl," explaining to everyone... The master has their serving over there to eat too!
Then with another "Howl howl howl howl," it explained... The master advised, it should be eaten while hot!