Dragon Cypress headed to Molan Mountain and brought Black Peach over.
The Ink Emperor Peach was sown.
It sprouted in one day.
After three days, it grew into a seedling over 20 centiters tall.
Black Peach stood guard with troops.
Molan entered the cave, continuing to use Divine-Grade Six Paths Fruit, with Dragon Cypress helping to guard outside.
It was almost exactly the sa situation as Dragon Cypress before—using the first fruit, digestion took three days.
Rested for a day,
then used the second fruit; digestion took a day, then slept for two days, soul sublimated, broke through the Mountain Lord Level limit, and stepped into Lord-Level.
"Dragon Cypress?"
"Here."
"How many days was I asleep?"
"Just under two days."
Dragon Cypress asked, "What’s your spiritual power’s maximum detection range?"
Molan walked out of the cave, focusing her spiritual power into a beam and extending it into the distance. Soon, she had the answer.
"Around 300 to 350 ters. Too strong! It’s hard to say precisely."
"Not bad."
Dragon Cypress said blandly, "You’ll need one more Age Period Evolution before the Divine-Grade Six Paths Fruit’s strengthening effect fully manifests. By then, your spiritual power’s maximum detection distance should be around 500 ters."
—I get it!
Molan wiggled her tentacles, excitedly said, "My perception of Origin Force fluctuations is much sharper now! I’ll be way more efficient at finding Divine-Given Seeds in the future."
The Divine-Grade Six Paths Fruit currently provided only this tangible benefit for Molan.
It’d been countless years since the last Divine-Given Seed was found—hopefully there’ll be so return this ti.
Dragon Cypress wiggled his tentacles and called out, "Molan, go check on your Ink Emperor Peach!"
The weather had been good lately. In just seven days, the Ink Emperor Peach Divine-Given Seed grew into a half-ter tall little sapling.
Molan stayed behind alone to watch over it.
Black Peach headed back to Molan Mountain.
Dragon Cypress transported the Black Peach No.2 fruit seedlings cultivated by Azure from Xianglan Mountain.
Black Peach commanded the ant colony to plant them.
...
Black Peach No.2 could flower and bear fruit normally.
The fruit showed significant mutation compared to Black Peach No.1—it was purplish red, moderately sized, sweet, with a particularly rich peach aroma; compared to its "ancestor" Black Peach, it was unrecognizable.
Black Peach No.2 had already mutated into a completely new peach variety. It could propagate normally from seeds to new saplings; the seedlings were weak at first, but with protection from Azure’s Water System Primordial Energy Field and assistance from the Specialized Green Ants’ Flourish Ability, they could survive the sapling stage. Once the plants grew over one ter, their developnt returned to normal.
It’s worth large-scale promotion.
Dragon Cypress planned to plant three thousand trees each on Molan Mountain, Cold Orchid Mountain, Black Lotus Lake, and Southern Sour Jujube Mountain.
Starting with Molan Mountain.
...
The Dominating Throne, loaded with seedlings, entered the Land of Origin Force; Dragon Cypress swept with his Soul-Setting Ability and imdiately got angry.
He arranged for Black Peach to lead the worker ants in digging holes, and the seedlings were planted straight in.
This guy hadn’t been beaten for half a month, and was getting lazy again—ran off to the hills where Senior Orchid Mantis was rooted, lying on the slopes sunbathing with the ant army.
The Dominating Throne sped closer; Dragon Cypress hadn’t yet decided how to deal with Black Peach.
Black Peach jumped up, bouncing, waving his tentacles with excitent:
"Great King! Great King! Good news!"
"Hmm?"
"Great King, look at Senior Orchid Mantis! Its fruit! It’s swelling!"
"Eh?!"
The Dominating Throne turned, and Dragon Cypress looked down the slope.
The twelve rats surrounding the mother plant all had noticeably swollen fruit pods.
The pods had grown from about three centiters long to just over five centiters, and their color changed from grass green to a glossy, deep green.
Dragon Cypress was briefly elated, then his heart sank.
Divine-Grade Fruits have extrely low yields and exceedingly long maturation cycles—the reason is simple enough.
The growth process of Divine-Grade Fruits requires the plant to convert and store Origin Force Energy equivalent to tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands, of Source Stones. During the conversion, various Origin Force losses are as high as 99%.
For a Divine-Grade Fruit to store the equivalent of 10,000 Source Stones of Origin Force Energy, a Divine-Given Seed must absorb more than a million Source Stones’ worth of Origin Force Energy.
Moreover, gathering tens or hundreds of thousands of Primordial Energy into a small fruit also consus huge amounts of nutrients and energy along the way.
These factors together result in very few Divine God-Given Seeds, and especially lengthy blossom-fruit cycles.
The growth and developnt mode of Divine-Grade Fruit is: one swelling of the fruit, then storing Primordial Energy, then swelling again, then storing Primordial Energy...
After multiple swelling cycles, it finally matures.
Different Divine-Grades have different numbers of swelling cycles—from three or four tis to well over a dozen.
My own White Poplar Fruit swells four tis.
The Night Fragrance God-Given Seed does, too—four tis.
The Linnan Divine Tree’s Divine-Grade Kunlan Seed swells eleven tis.
The Zhifeng Fruit, also a herbaceous Divine-Grade, needs seven swelling cycles.
This Senior Orchid Mantis...
Senior Orchid Mantis swelled its fruit for the first ti in the third year after flowering. Twelve years later, it swelled for the second ti...
Judging by the amount of swelling this ti, there’ll certainly be a third, fourth, fifth...
If the interval is always twelve years, then the Great King Molan Divine-Given Seed will have a blossom-fruit cycle in its Mountain Lord Level stage of...
Dragon Cypress steered the Dominating Throne off the ground and floated slowly to hover above the mother plant of the Great King Molan Divine-Given Seed.
Senior Orchid Mantis sent out ntal signals of doubt, inquiry, affection, and urging.
Dragon Cypress crawled to the edge of the Throne, tapped with his tentacles, and sent down six consecutive Flourish.
Senior Orchid Mantis sent back ntally joyous, affectionate signals, imdiately followed by further questions: What’s up?
Dragon Cypress sent a comforting ntal wave, then bent down to study the plant carefully, brain calculating rapidly.
Soon reached a conclusion:
Less than a 10% chance that Senior Orchid Mantis’s blossom-fruit cycle in Mountain Lord Level is 39 years.
Over 80% chance it’s 51 years.
Another 10% chance it’s 63 years.
The Great King Molan Divine-Given Seed’s fruit pods have already been growing for 15 years.
If it’s 51 years, there are 36 long years left to go before ripening.
If unlucky and it’s 63 years...
This is a conclusion that would make a mantis despair.
Give up?
Cut off the Great King Molan Divine-Given Seed rats’ fruit pods?
After caring for it for 15 years, give up halfway?
Who could accept that?
That’s even harder for an insect to bear.
"Molan’s at Age Period 7, still needs 3 Divine-Given Seeds to reach Evolution Lord—it’s not so easy to get..."
"At Age Period 9, Molan will have to pause for another 13 to 15 years..."
Dragon Cypress recalculated, and made up his mind: This batch of Divine-Grade Molan Seeds definitely must be kept.
Molan can eat a Moon Peach Fruit to extend her life and stay youthful and energetic.
"Black Peach!"
Dragon Cypress turned the Dominating Throne and shouted sternly, "Go do your job! If you don’t believe I’ll whack you to death!"
"I believe you... Great King..."
Black Peach led the ant army rushing down the slope.
Dragon Cypress followed in the Throne, unloaded the fruit seedlings at the field, turned, and rushed straight to Southern Sour Jujube Mountain.
...
"Dragon Cypress?"
Molan asked, "What happened?"
Dragon Cypress: "Molan, good news."
Molan’s slightly tense expression relaxed: "What good news?"
Dragon Cypress: "The Great King Molan Divine-Given Seed finally swelled its fruit."
"Oh——"
Molan was not at all happy.
Evolution from Age Period 6 to 7 took as long as sixteen years.
Watching Blue Catalpa, Snakebark Maple, Black Rice, Woodberry, Areca, Red Moonseed and the others grow up year by year—one by one, all catching up.
If they surpass her, how could she still speak to them as a senior?
Spiked Cypress, Giant Cypress, Round Cypress, Fragrant Cypress, Cypress, Silver Cypress and all the Command Ants have all caught up too.
How can she keep being the Second King?
Molan was very anxious.
Dragon Cypress said seriously, "Molan, this is trendous news. By my estimation, Senior Orchid Mantis’s blossom-fruit cycle might be as long as 51 years. Generally, the stronger the granted Ability, the lower the average annual yield."
Dragon Cypress: "Molan, think about the Divine-Grade Six Paths Fruit—it has a 36-year blossom-fruit cycle and produces only 18 fruits. Two per batch, so there are only 9 actual batches, or an average of one every 4 years."
Molan: "...Really?"
These days, Molan wasn’t so easily coaxed anymore.
Molan asked, "Could it be because Senior Orchid Mantis’s rats are too weak, or there are too many—twelve fruits on a single plant?"
Dragon Cypress answered seriously, "That’s part of it, but it’s not the main reason. I believe the main reason is that the Divine-Grade Molan Seed grants an extraordinarily powerful Ability."
"Alright then—"
Molan forced a bit of happiness, "Actually, it’s just as well. The Life Seeds I’ll nurture at Age Period 7 and 8 will also have plenty of ti to grow."
Dragon Cypress: "Exactly! Once you cross this hurdle, advancing to Evolution Lord Level will be smooth."
The second swelling of Great King Molan Divine-Given Seed was a big deal; Dragon Cypress ca over just to inform Molan.
Once he’d said his piece, the Dominating Throne turned around and returned to Xianglan Mountain to get back to work.
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