Creating a paradise in an ant nest

Chapter 51 What to do if someone steals a spot from the second generation?

Earth elemental spirit?

As Yin Zhi listened to Liu He recount his experience of saving the Jade Leaf Ficus, he was puzzled as to how Liu He could have eradicated all the Golden Mustard Root Aphids using only two types of earth-based insect repellent techniques.

The Earth Elemental Spirit's earth-based spells are amplified, and Liu He is also proficient in insect repelling. Only by combining these two abilities can such a level of power be achieved.

Yin Zhi guessed this, and had no further doubts.

"You have an earth elemental spirit body and have put a lot of effort into studying the art of insect repelling. Entering the Spirit Plant Peak will not be a problem."

"You don't need to continue the practical tests; you can go back and wait for good news. In a few days, the selection of those chosen for Spirit Plant Peak will be finalized, and someone will come to inform you and take you to Spirit Plant Peak."

Another spot for a menial disciple has been confirmed.

Although Liu He was confident in himself, hearing Yin Zhi announce the result in person put his heart at ease, and he couldn't help but feel secretly pleased.

"Thank you, Steward Yin. May I stay here until the examination is over? The spiritual energy here is more abundant; I will meditate and practice my skills here."

He was thinking about the ant soldiers.

Now that he's gone, what will happen to those ant soldiers? Don't be fooled by the thousands of ants here; without a queen, the ants are "leaderless" and cannot function properly.

"sure."

Yin Zhi nodded with a smile. He was the same way when he was young, never missing any opportunity to cultivate. Cultivating on Lingzhi Peak was definitely more efficient than on Qixia Peak.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

After Yin Zhi and Qi Wei left.

The two discussed the candidates to be selected for the Spirit Plant Peak.

"Deacon Qi, since Liu He has such talent in the art of insect exorcism, it is not appropriate to directly confirm Meng Kaizhou's spot."

Yin Zhi looked troubled, but inwardly he was gloating.

He wanted to see what other tricks Meng Yunxiang had up his sleeve.

His upright conduct and reputation stemmed from the many injustices he had suffered in the past, making his journey to the Foundation Establishment stage incredibly difficult. He despised Meng Kaizhou's behavior of using connections to squeeze resources from others.

According to the selection rules of Lingzhi Peak, priority is given to cultivators who have special talents in a certain area.

If it weren't for Liu He, Meng Kaizhou would have been the one to get rid of the pests and save the spirit tree.

But Liu He's performance was too outstanding, and Meng Kaizhou, who was "copying the answers" at the moment, was clearly inferior in skill.

"this……"

Qi Wei hadn't expected this unexpected situation to occur.

How will he explain this to Meng Yunxiang?

Because of his role in the Lingzhi Peak selection, Meng Yunxiang asked him to help reveal the questions to Meng Kaizhou.

As a result, Meng Kaizhou, who had prepared in advance, was no match for others.

Liu He saved that jade-leaf banyan tree; who could have predicted that? He's not to blame.

The only solution left is for Meng Yunxiang to find.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

It was approaching evening.

The practical assessment is about to end.

Beside an inconspicuous sacred tree, Liu He was meditating.

He finished circulating his cultivation technique and opened his eyes: "Cultivating on Spirit Plant Peak is much more effective than on Qixia Peak. It can save about 50% of the cultivation time."

"If it took me three years of arduous training to advance from the first to the second level of Qi Refining on Qixia Peak, it would only take two years on Lingzhi Peak."

"Ant soldiers, assemble! It's time to head back."

He stood up, and the ants at his feet crawled up his shoes, trousers, and robes, burrowing into the square magical artifact in his arms.

They brought five thousand worker ants and dozens of specialized soldier ants with them. Several hundred ants died while eliminating the spirit insects.

In the middle of the examination grounds, the servant disciples gathered.

Most people didn't know the outcome and surrounded Yin Zhi, eagerly asking him questions.

"Deacon Yin, is there any hope for me to be admitted to the Spirit Plant Peak based on my performance?"

"Deacon Yin, what about me? Even if I can't get into the Flower Garden or the Spirit Tree Garden, I can always go to the Grain Garden."

"..."

Yin Zhi waved his sleeve, his aura as a Foundation Establishment cultivator overwhelming everyone: "Please be quiet. The results of the Spirit Plant Peak selection will be announced in a few days. The list is not yet finalized, so you all have a chance."

"The examination is over. You may leave now. Do not linger on Lingzhi Peak."

In fact, most of them were not selected, and Yin Zhi did not want to discourage them in person.

"Sigh~~"

As everyone had anticipated, they all left dejectedly.

Liu He, Wang Yarong, Meng Kaizhou, and Song Qian were all present.

"Ya Rong, weren't you selected by Steward Yin right from the start? Why do you look a little unhappy?"

Liu He noticed that Wang Yarong looked slightly downcast.

As soon as the practical assessment began, when Wang Yarong demonstrated her plant-based spiritual body, Yin Zhi said she didn't need to take the assessment anymore. While others had to go through the motions, she was selected the fastest.

With a medium-level spiritual root and a plant-based spiritual body, he undoubtedly possesses the best talent among all the menial disciples.

"I thought at least one of the four garden owners would come to take me as their personal disciple, or even two or three would compete for me. But after waiting for two days, no one came to take me."

Wang Yarong felt helpless; her talent wasn't good enough.

Plant and tree spirit bodies are just the most common type of the five elemental spirit bodies, and are not rare. Even if she has a medium-level spiritual root, she cannot attract those late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators to take her as their personal disciple.

"this……"

Liu He was already very satisfied to be selected as a disciple of the Spirit Plant Peak, but others aimed to become personal disciples.

"And you, how did you do?"

Wang Yarong casually asked about Liu He's situation.

"I was selected."

"It's okay, there will be another chance next time... What? You were selected?"

Wang Yarong was halfway through her words of comfort when she realized she had "misheard".

"You're not lying to me, are you?"

"Why would I lie to you? I said I was 90% sure before the exam. You've been hiding your plant spirit body, and I haven't told anyone about my earth spirit body."

Hearing the conversation between the two, Meng Kaizhou looked at Liu He with a complicated expression: "What he said is true, he has been confirmed as the candidate to enter the Spirit Plant Peak."

He had heard about this from Qi Wei before.

Moreover, he knew that Liu He's performance in insect repellent surpassed his own, becoming the biggest obstacle to his selection for the Spirit Plant Peak.

"Earth elemental spirit body?"

Wang Yarong was surprised, and her gaze towards Liu He subtly changed: "I didn't expect you to be even better at hiding things than me. Keep up the good work when you get to Lingzhi Peak, and I look forward to seeing your performance."

Although she and Liu He were partners in protecting the same forest area, and the two had a good relationship, they could be considered "friends".

But she never considered herself and Liu He to be the same kind of people; she only regarded Liu He as a passerby.

It's not that she's "snobbish," but rather that birds of a feather flock together, and the two are simply too different.

With her talent, she will at least reach the Foundation Establishment stage in the future, and may very well reach the late Foundation Establishment stage.

Given Liu He's demonstrated talent, it would be difficult for him to even break through to the late stage of Qi Refining and remain in the sect.

At this moment, Wang Yarong regarded Liu He as a true fellow Daoist, someone who could accompany her on the path of cultivating immortality.

"Haha, let's work hard together."

Liu He was unaware of the changes in Wang Yarong's feelings for him, and he looked forward to life at Lingzhi Peak.

With the resources of the Spirit Plant Peak, his improvement will be faster.

Ant colonies are about to enter a new stage of development.

They chatted for a few moments, then left Lingzhi Peak and went their separate ways.