Creating a paradise in an ant nest

Chapter 21 Purple Apple Spirit Fruit

evening.

After finishing his shift, Liu He did not return to Qixia Peak, but instead went to the market.

"The ant colony's efficiency in eliminating termites is too low. It takes nine days to save one large tree per day, and it also takes nine days to save nine trees in my forest area, not to mention the four trees in Li Liangtian's forest area. It takes too long."

"We must find a way to improve the overall combat effectiveness of the ant colony."

He wandered around the market for a while before finally entering "Lingguo Pavilion".

He only had three spirit stones, which wasn't enough to buy even the cheapest spirit pills. His only resources to choose from were things like spirit fruits.

The Lingguo Pavilion is much smaller than the Wanqi Pavilion and Lingdan Pavilion, and there are very few cultivators coming and going.

As Liu He entered the room, the aroma of the spiritual fruit filled his nostrils, making his mouth water.

He was greeted by a female cultivator at the third level of Qi Refining.

The female cultivator sensed Liu He's aura as a first-level Qi Refining cultivator: "Junior Brother, what kind of spiritual fruit would you like to buy?"

"Senior sister, I know very little about spirit fruits. Could you please introduce them to me?"

"Of course. Most of the spiritual fruits in our Spirit Fruit Pavilion are produced from the sect's Spirit Plant Peak."

The female cultivator began to introduce herself to Liu He.

"These are red-seeded spirit berries, and they're very affordable. One pound costs one spirit stone, so two spirit stones can buy three pounds."

The sweet and sour taste is very popular among female cultivators…

"This is Moonlight Spirit Grape, three spirit stones per pound..."

Looking at these colorful, fresh, and seemingly juicy spiritual fruits, Liu He almost drooled.

"Senior sister, what is this purple spiritual fruit?"

He noticed that the female cultivator had overlooked a fist-sized spiritual fruit with an eerie purple luster.

"This is the Purple Apple Fruit, which flowers and bears fruit only once every five years. It tastes very sweet and has a crisp texture, but it's a bit pricey."

The female cultivator didn't look down on Liu He; it was just that a mere Qi Refining Level 1 servant disciple couldn't afford such a spiritual fruit.

"Very expensive?"

"A box containing twenty-four spirit stones."

"One box? Not sold individually?"

"A box of Purple Apple Spirit Fruit comes with eight. Most people buy them to entertain guests or as gifts; it's rare to buy just one."

The nun explained.

Hearing her say that, Liu He felt a rebellious streak. He took out three spirit stones: "Eight spirit stones are twenty-four spirit stones each, so one is three spirit stones. I'll just buy one, okay?"

If he can't afford a box, can't he at least afford one?

"Okay, I'll get it for you."

The female cultivator turned around and took out a fresh purple apple spirit fruit from an exquisite wooden box.

Liu He gave her three spirit stones, took the Purple Apple Spirit Fruit in his hand, and then asked, "How much cultivation time is equivalent to for a Qi Refining stage cultivator with a low-grade spiritual root after eating one Purple Apple Spirit Fruit?"

He asked this question because the Qi-boosting pill, worth thirty spirit stones, could save him half a year of arduous cultivation.

"what?"

The female cultivator was taken aback, then somewhat amused and exasperated: "Junior brother, if you want to improve your cultivation, it's definitely more cost-effective to save your spirit stones to buy spirit pills. Spirit fruits have limited effect on improving cultivation."

The spiritual energy contained in the Purple Apple Spirit Fruit is roughly equivalent to three to five days of cultivation.

"Why don't you return the spirit fruit, and I'll give you back the spirit stones."

Using spiritual fruits to improve cultivation is extremely inefficient; only those uninformed trial cultivators would try to use spiritual fruits to improve their cultivation and make such a mistake.

Elixirs are the most suitable for improving cultivation.

Spiritual fruits are used to entertain guests and give as gifts, as well as to satisfy the appetites of high-level cultivators who have no shortage of spirit stones.

"No need to return it, I really want to buy it."

As Liu He spoke, he put the Purple Apple Spirit Fruit into his pocket and left.

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.

Waishan Forest Farm.

Liu He brought the newly bought Purple Apple Spirit Fruit to feed the ant colony, but ran into Wang Yarong.

"Liu He, what brings you here?"

Wang Yarong was puzzled; wasn't this her shift?

"After I got back, I remembered there was something I forgot to tell you."

Liu He's mind raced.

Previously, since it was Sun Yan's turn to be on duty, he would always slack off and hide in some corner to sleep, so that Liu He would never see him whenever he came.

Wang Yarong is different; if Liu He comes to feed the ant colony at night, she will definitely discover him.

"What is it?"

"During the day, I wiped out a termite colony on a century-old camphor pine. I'll also take care of the other large trees that are infested with termites. Leave this to me, you don't need to worry about it."

"What? Really?"

Wang Yarong was skeptical. After all, Wu Shao had said that only a highly skilled late-stage Qi Refining cultivator could deal with the termite swarm.

"Come with me."

Liu He led her to the century-old camphor tree: "This is the camphor tree. You can check to see if it's real."

Before joining the sect, I knew a recipe for a potion that could kill termites. Combined with the insect-repelling spells I had learned, the two worked together to eliminate the termite colony.

Insect-repelling spells are indeed essential spells for disciples who aspire to reach the Spirit Plant Peak of the sect.

Eliminating pests requires different spells depending on the type of pest; this is a vast and complex subject within the Lingnong Way.

Wang Yarong picked up the golden camphor staff hanging from her waist and activated the incantation: "Wood Diagnosis Technique".

After investigating, she found that the termite colony had indeed been eliminated.

However, this camphor pine is somewhat malnourished due to termite infestation.

Wang Yarong cast a spell again: "Spiritual Nourishment!"

Her spiritual energy transformed into the purest wood-based energy, nourishing the camphor pine.

"I will use the Spirit Nourishment Technique twice more in the next two days, and this century-old camphor pine will be fully restored to its former glory."

"Liu He, you're pretty amazing! You managed to solve such a tricky problem. Are you also a wood-type spirit?"

"also?"

"Um, I mean you might be a wood-type spirit, which is why your insect-repelling spells are so effective."

Wang Yarong let it slip.

She not only possessed average spiritual root cultivation aptitude, but after successfully cultivating Qi and embarking on the path of cultivation, she discovered that she had a special affinity for plants and trees.

She carefully searched in the Gongfa Pavilion and, after comparison, learned that she was a "plant spirit".

This is a common wood-type spirit, which gives her a unique talent in wood-type magic.

Therefore, she did not hesitate to choose the path of spiritual farming and specialize in wood-based magic.

She changed the subject, saying, "No wonder you didn't burn those trees with termites during the day. How long will it take to deal with the rest of the trees?"

"It will take anywhere from three to five days to seven or eight days to ensure that all termites are eliminated."

Liu He was only thinking about how to hide his secret and ignored the "loopholes" in Wang Yarong's words.

"Great! You eliminate the termites, and I'll use the Spirit Nourishment Technique to restore these trees to life."

Senior Brother Wu said that as long as these trees are saved, we can be spared punishment.

"Yes, let's work together and try our best to save all these trees."

Seeing that Wang Yarong had no suspicion or curiosity about his methods of eliminating termites, Liu He chatted for a few more minutes before taking his leave.

As he left, he passed by the ant nest and dropped the purple apple he had bought.

To make it easier for the ants to carry, he crushed the purple apple into small pieces.

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.

Qixia Peak, inside a room.

Liu He couldn't wait to rush into the ant nest.

"It smells so good!"

As soon as he entered the cave, he was greeted by the aroma of fruit.