yasinovel Chapter 15: You can have your cake and eat it too.
Chapter 15: You can have your cake and eat it too.
【"Abundant Harvest": In this state, if a mid-grade fruit evolves into a high-grade fruit, the high-grade fruit will randomly inherit optimized traits. Given the current limited traits, the "3x increase in wood-attribute spiritual energy metabolism rate" trait will be specified as the inherited trait (which will manifest as other effects when used for alchemy)】
[At the same time, the mother plant will be upgraded from a medium-grade plant to a high-grade plant. After the "transplanting" process is completed, the growth cycle will be reset, and it will be regarded as a third-generation spiritual plant.]
[This mother plant is equivalent to a top-grade spiritual seed. Its cultivation direction can be reselected and optimized at the beginning. It also has the characteristic of "three times the rate of wood-type spiritual energy metabolism", which will be naturally inherited by all spiritual fruits produced in the third generation.]
Therefore, even if you use top-grade fruits to participate in the event, there are still top-grade mother plants that can produce even better third-generation fruits.
You can have your cake and eat it too.
Jiang Qiu no longer hesitated, her gaze sharpening. A wisp of red spiritual energy burst forth from between her fingers, shooting towards the second-generation mother plant like a wildfire—
[Consumes 50 strands of level 1 fire elemental energy]
【Top-tier Level 1 Wood-type Spiritual Plant "Wood Edge Flower"】
[Imminent Transformation, Choosing a Random Optimization Direction:]
【1. Refining Properties (Easy for Alchemy and Formation)】
2. Digestibility (easy to feed and swallow)
3. Reproductive characteristics (easy to increase production and induce labor)
Having decided to participate in the event and sell to Yidan Garden, Jiang Qiu turned her attention back to the last two options and decisively chose one!
Boom! A ball of fire erupted from the bottom of the top-grade fruit, and the petals and calyx were instantly charred yellow or even blackened, almost drying into a thin, brittle shell that teetered precariously in the flames.
Whoosh, a cool breeze blew in from outside the window, the fire faded, the black shell cracked, and emerald light burst from the crack. Crack, a jade-like fruit was revealed with a crisp sound.
Top quality and ready!
【Premium Woody Blossoms and Fruits (Second Generation)】
【Characteristic 1: Wood-type spiritual energy metabolism rate tripled】
【Characteristic 2: The success rate of producing high-grade level 1 pills is doubled (not exceeding the theoretical limit)】
......
The next day happened to be the market day, which is held three times a month in the underground market. As night fell and the streetlights came on, the usually bustling outer area was much quieter than usual.
The stall owners on both sides of the river stood, their eyes fixed on the same direction, while a few passersby also stopped to look into the inner circle and whispered among themselves.
There, police tape cordoned off the area, dozens of police lights flashed on the road, and security personnel in black uniforms maintained a stage with real guns and ammunition, yet the huge crowd still surrounded them in layers.
"What is Yidan Garden doing at its new store? They've set up a huge stage in the plaza in front of the store and gathered so many plantation workers here?"
"I heard it's some kind of acquisition event, with contestants under 25 from various plantations competing for rankings. The cash prizes alone are in the tens of thousands, and the first-place winner from those plantations just received top-grade pills!"
"Wow, that must cost tens of thousands per piece, right?"
"Of course!"
The clamor surged like waves, crashing against her eardrums. Jiang Qiu squeezed into the innermost tier and suddenly heard Yang Zhilan, pressed tightly against her back, exclaim, "So many people! Zhang San and Li Si are here to watch too! Qian Cheng is still sitting in the contestants' section... Will our Huohuang Flower Fruit team get a good ranking?"
Click. Jiang Qiu took the food container from her arms; it was still warm. She stacked it with the two food containers she had brought, not caring about the "we" address. Instead, she was in high spirits and laughed, "Weren't you worried about making the cut yesterday? Now you're so eager to get a good ranking?"
"Ah..." Yang Zhilan twirled her fingers and whispered, "I've noticed that many people's results in the event don't seem to be as good as ours. If we can get a good ranking, it should sell even better in the future."
"If we get into the top ten, there's a bonus."
Jiang Qiu remained noncommittal: "That's true. I'll go report to the contestants' section at Jiuzhi Garden first, and we'll meet up again after the event."
"Okay, sure!"
Watching his figure disappear into the stage, Yang Zhilan secretly clenched her fist, hoping that her fruit would bring her a good ranking, although it was only her first mid-grade fruit and probably not very well cultivated.
But the others seem to be worse.
Maybe it can really help Jiang Qiu snag a spot in the top ten!
......
There were murmurs of complaint among the crowd.
"Holy crap, when did Yidan Garden start this acquisition event? I came to the market today and found everyone gathered here for no reason. I just found out the event has already entered the selection stage," Zhang San said indignantly, spitting everywhere. "Damn it, there was no notification in our group chat at all!"
"Heh, Wu Shan hasn't been in charge for a while now. All the people who signed up in our park are employees who work in the courtyard. I guess only Qian Cheng hangs out with them and knows the news. But several interns who were good friends with him before are now completely clueless!" Li Si sneered.
"Forget it, let's not talk about that. The low-grade spiritual fruit we cultivated in our first generation almost met the store's standards last time. Even if they knew about the event, they wouldn't be eligible to participate. But—"
*Snap* Zhang San patted him on the shoulder, raised an eyebrow and gestured to the stage: "It's the last round of selections for our Jiuzhi Garden. That bastard Qian Cheng is here too, and he's even preparing to showcase two of his achievements. I'm afraid he'll have a very hard time making it into the finals!"
Li Si laughed in agreement: "Heh, a guy who got into Courtyard No. 17 through connections probably only got registered by luck. He dares to go on stage for the selection? He's no match for Jiang Qiu."
"Tsk, needless to say, Jiang Qiu is definitely talented... Wait, Jiang Qiu is actually sitting in the players' section!" Zhang San's eyes widened. "No way, why is he participating in the event?"
"What do you mean?" Li Si was taken aback, but she didn't think there was anything wrong with Jiang Qiu participating in the event. She was much more capable than Qian Cheng.
*Slap!* Zhang San slapped his thigh: "Hey, haven't you noticed? Jiang Qiu and Yang Zhilan have been getting so close lately. I've caught him secretly helping Yang Zhilan with her hair-growth spiritual plants several times!"
"Is that so?" Li Si's eyes widened. "Holy crap, has Jiang Qiu gone mad? Why would he help someone with hair regrowth? Does he buy wood-elemental spiritual energy wholesale? I wouldn't even help Yang Zhilan when she asked me before!"
Zhang San said suspiciously, "So this is outrageous. I feel that Jiang Qiu is focusing most of her attention on Yang Zhilan's [Fire Radiance Flower] and has no time to cultivate her own [Wood Edge Flower]. It may have had the potential to bear mid-grade fruit, but now it's gone, yet she still comes to participate in the event."
Li Si shrugged: "Well, maybe it's just a matter of signing up for fun. Anyway, there's no loss. If the quality is good enough, the store can still buy it. It's not like we can't sell it just because we didn't make the cut."
"That's true, oh! The selection process has begun!"
Tap, tap, tap. On the huge stage, several long tables were arranged side by side. Staff members in uniforms carried the contestants' food containers and placed them in front of their nameplates one after another. There were one to three containers in front of each nameplate, waiting to be opened.
"Ahem," the host cleared his throat, picked up the microphone, and announced in a clear voice, "Next up is the final round of judging. Senior Sister Zhao Nan, a rising alchemist, store owner, and the main person in charge of this event, will select the finalists, the top ten, and the most promising contestants from among the hundreds of participants from Jiuzhi Garden. The rules are the same as the first eight rounds!"