11: Evolutionary goal: Natural enemies of iron-eating ants

The chief Examiner was a white-haired old man. Despite his age, his back was straight, and he walked with a vigorous stride, carrying the Aura of a soldier.

Many people were surprised when they saw the old man and cried out in astonishment.

“Isn't that the Flower City Branch President? Why was his elder self disturbed?”

“For real? Why would a President bother hosting an Elementary assessment?”

“I shouldn't be mistaken, it really is strange... Is there something special about today?”

“How could it not be special? With the new assessment mode, maybe the President just came to see the effects of the new test.”

“Maybe...”

From the reactions of those around him, Xie Ning also realized the identity of the old man before him.

At this moment, stone tables and chairs rose from the ground, and a crystal screen descended from high above.

The Cultivation Association Branch President looked around, nodded slightly, and said with a smile, “Here, I am merely a Chief Examiner. What you should be speculating about is not ‘why I am here,’ but how to perform well in this assessment.”

Afterward, under the guidance of the staff, everyone found their seats. Coincidentally, Li Yongfu and Xie Ning were seated right next to each other, separated only by a one-meter aisle.

The content of the written exam was simple. High-definition images of fifty Yao Beasts of different categories and attributes would appear simultaneously on the crystal screen. Every candidate had to write down the information for these fifty Yao Beasts. Except for the evolution plan, the more detailed the other information, the better.

With the shout of “Start,” everyone began to write.

Xie Ning was no exception, looking up from time to time, but spending most of the rest of the time writing on the paper.

Time passed minute by minute. Occasionally, candidates would frown deeply or knock their heads; those who encountered something they didn't know looked regretful, while those who found something they were good at looked excited. Even Li Yongfu joined the collective of changing faces.

If anyone had observed closely, they would have noticed Xie Ning's abnormality.

He was the only one in the entire venue answering the questions with a calm expression. Aside from occasionally looking up, he spent the rest of his time busy writing.

Soon, half an hour passed, and the gap between the superior and inferior could already be roughly seen.

However, the Cultivation Association Branch President didn't look at anyone else; instead, he frowned as he looked at Xie Ning's position.

“What's going on with this candidate? He was writing perfectly well, so why did he suddenly fall asleep?”

The Deputy Examiner beside him looked through the list in his hand and said after a search, “This candidate is named Xie Ning, a student from Huacheng No. 1 Middle School. He came to register yesterday.”

“I thought he was a promising talent, but I didn't expect...” The President shook his head with a sigh, looking disappointed. “Are there any other candidates with student status?”

“There is one other person named Mo Yu, sitting at position A31. Her surname is Mo, so she might be that girl's sister.” The Deputy Examiner pointed toward Mo Yu's position not far away.

“Oh? This little girl's performance just now was quite good. If she really is Han's sister, passing the assessment should be no problem.” Seeing Mo Yu, the President finally showed a satisfied expression and nodded slightly.

Xie Ning didn't know what others thought of him. By now, he had finished writing and was resting with his eyes closed, waiting for the next round.

Soon, the 120-minute assessment ended, and all the exam papers were collected by the staff.

“The first round of the assessment is over. Now, the second round begins.”

As the Deputy Examiner's voice fell, the stone stools, stone tables, and crystal screen were retracted. The ground cracked open to reveal a massive beast containment room, which housed a group of Yao Beasts of the same species.

“Eh? Why are they Iron-Eating Ants?”

“Aren't these the Yao Beasts that recently appeared in the southern suburbs?”

“Could it be that this kind of Yao Beast has some high value, and they want us to evolve them...”

“This kind of Yao Beast has no brains. Aside from their numbers, they have no highlights. What's the use of evolving them?”

Amidst the discussion, Xie Ning also stepped forward to examine the Iron-Eating Ants.

【Yao Beast Name】 Iron-Eating Worker Ant

【Yao Beast Grade】 Ordinary Low Grade

【Yao Beast Rank】 Black Iron Rank 1~10

【Yao Beast Attribute】 Metal

【Yao Beast Weakness】 Electricity

【Yao Beast Status】 None

【Yao Beast Introduction】 The lowest labor class in the Iron-Eating Ant colony. Simple-minded and extremely numerous, they are governed by the Ant Queen.

【Evolution Path】... The Deputy Examiner spoke to everyone at the appropriate time: “The task for this assessment is to evolve a Yao Beast that can counter the Iron-Eating Ant colony. The lower the cost and the stronger the power, the higher the score.”

At the same time, the walls on both the left and right sides sank, revealing small beast containment rooms, most of which contained common, low-level Yao Beasts.

“So that's it, that's great then.”

“This is way too simple. Iron-Eating Ants are very weak; there are too many things that can beat them in a one-on-one fight.”

Even Li Yongfu had a joyful expression at this moment. He glanced at Xie Ning and said, “It seems I'll be graciously accepting that Silver Rank demon core of yours.”

“Don't be happy too early, this matter isn't that simple.” Xie Ning frowned slightly.

Li Yongfu dismissed it with a sneer and said, “Tsk, this bet has a signed agreement. Don't even think about backing out.”

Subsequently, many candidates began to search the left and right sides for the Yao Beast they wanted to evolve. To play it safe, these candidates chose the type of evolution they were most skilled in.

Mo Yu was also preparing to head over. Before leaving, she asked, “Great God Xie, aren't you going to pick? These Yao Beasts are limited in number. If someone else takes all the good ones, it would be a pity.”

“You go first, I'll look a bit more.” Xie Ning shook his head, then walked forward to observe the Iron-Eating Ants inside the containment room.

Soon, someone selected the Yao Beast they wanted to evolve and began the process according to their experience.

For every person's evolution, as long as it was successful, the Materials consumed could be reimbursed. If the evolution failed, they would have to bear the cost of the Materials themselves.

The Chief Examiner watched the busy figures and nodded with satisfaction, but his brow furrowed again when he saw Xie Ning.

“Why is it this candidate again...”

The Deputy Examiner shook his head with a bitter smile and said, “President, forget it. Maybe he's just a student who paid to see the world. Don't be too concerned with him.”

“Fine, let him be.” The Chief Examiner nodded slightly and turned his attention to a few others, only then regaining his smile.

Compared to the busy crowd, the leisurely Xie Ning was not relaxed. He frowned deeply, connecting pieces of information together as he pondered the purpose of this cultivation assessment.

If it was just to counter Iron-Eating Ants, there were too many options. Attribute suppression, high Rank, high grade, or even explosive shells could easily deal with Iron-Eating Worker Ants. There was absolutely no need to list it as a practical assessment task.

Furthermore, a requirement like ‘the lower the cost, the stronger the power’ had been proposed.

Thinking back to the news he saw at the Cultivation Association last night, Xie Ning's eyes suddenly lit up, feeling as if the clouds had parted to reveal the sun.

Iron-eating, iron-eating; as the name implied, they were a colony of worker ants that ate metal.

The reason they could cross the defensive lines and appear in the southern suburbs lay in the words ‘Iron-Eating.’ Once these seemingly weak Yao Beasts gathered in numbers, city walls, tanks, machinery, and shells simply couldn't stop them.

While Demon Tamers could fight them, they didn't have the advantage in numbers.

“Looking at it this way, this assessment is nominally to select Breeders, but the actual purpose is to conduct large-scale experiments to find a Yao Beast that can truly counter Iron-Eating Ants...”

While Xie Ning was thinking, some candidates had already finished their evolutions and began to turn in their work.

Xie Ning looked at the few Yao Beasts that had already been evolved and couldn't help but shake his head.

Gale Wolves, Flame Giant Frogs, Twin-Tailed Venomous Scorpions, and the like could indeed win against Iron-Eating Ants, but they could only deal with two or three at most. Once the numbers increased, they would be instantly submerged.

Just as Xie Ning expected, after seeing these evolved Yao Beasts, the Chief Examiner shook his head. Although he gave some points in the end, he was clearly not satisfied.

There were also people who tried to find a solution through natural enemies, evolving an Electric Light Anteater. However, its electrical capacity was limited and couldn't kill many, and its body was too small to swallow the Iron-Eating Ants.

The unsatisfactory evolution results made many candidates realize that this assessment was not as easy as it appeared on the surface.

After figuring out the purpose of this evolution, Xie Ning began to take action.

Standing outside the containment rooms, Xie Ning let the attributes of each Yao Beast flash through his eyes, excluding them one by one.

Finally, after looking around, Xie Ning locked onto a Yao Beast.

To be precise, it was a plant.