Chapter 169 - 168: The First Question

Chapter 169: Chapter 168: The First Question

Back in the cave, Han Ning tossed the few Energy Crystal Stones he had dug out of the toad’s corpse to the Treasure-Seeking Bumblebee.

The little fellow chirped excitedly, "COO COO," and dove headfirst into its vine bag while hugging the Crystal Stones, leaving only its round bottom wiggling outside in excitement.

"HISS RUSTLE."

Han Ning looked at the Six-winged Dragonfly Leader, his Mental Power spreading outward. "Leave a few subordinates behind. It will make it easier to communicate and transport ore later."

The Six-winged Dragonfly Leader singled out five relatively strong dragonflies. They tucked their wings in and laid quietly on the floor, acting extremely obedient.

The remaining dragonflies, led by their Leader, returned to the Dark Ore Vein.

"These dragonflies seem like pretty good transport vehicles... I wonder how much a single one can carry.

"Forming a small airlift unit seems feasible," Han Ning said, stroking his chin as he sized up the five dragonflies resting on the ground.

He planned to make a few woven vine bags later to hang under them for transporting supplies.

Carrying a person on their backs didn’t seem to be a problem either...

"RUSTLE..."

Stared at by Han Ning, the five dragonflies wriggled uneasily.

"Thanks, buddy," Han Ning said, retracting his gaze and rubbing the Treasure-Seeking Bee’s furry head.

"COO!" The Treasure-Seeking Bee waved the branch in its hand, signaling that if there were such good deals in the future, it should be called again!

"No problem!"

After seeing off the Treasure-Seeking Bee, Han Ning turned to Professor Ye and handed him a fist-sized piece of Dark Ore gleaming with a faint purple luster.

"Professor Ye, refine the new High-Energy Soil with me. Just follow my instructions."

"Alright," Professor Ye nodded.

Han Ning brought over an iron pot to serve as a crucible. Following his instructions, Professor Ye carefully placed a dozen fist-sized pieces of Dark Ore inside.

The iron pot was from a large kitchen stove, measuring about eighty centimeters in diameter.

A stone pot would have been best, but due to their limited circumstances, they didn’t have one.

Han Ning hovered his right hand over the ore at the bottom of the pot, and a cluster of condensed, brilliant golden flame sprang up from his palm.

The flame burned quietly, emitting a soft yet searing light.

Han Ning mentally recited the inherited knowledge of the Source Race, "Continue burning until the surface of the ore begins to soften."

He used Starfire for no other reason than the fact that it burned ore very quickly.

Licked by the flames, the ore gradually turned red, its surface melting and flowing like wax.

Gradually, the ore completely turned into a pool of viscous, dark purple magma.

"Extinguish the flame, add Qingshui, and stir for thirty seconds!"

Han Ning quickly withdrew his hand.

Professor Ye immediately poured the prepared Qingshui into the iron pot.

"SIZZLE!" White steam billowed into the air.

He picked up a wooden stick and stirred vigorously. The purplish-black magma mixed with the water, lightening in color and turning into a murky, purplish-gray mud.

"Reignite the fire..."

The flame roared back to life.

Following Han Ning’s commands, Professor Ye held his breath. Just as the mud churned violently and the moisture rapidly evaporated, he poured in a bottle of liquid made from a mixture of Black Snake Flesh and Blood and Extraordinary Plant Species.

"HISS!"

The liquid came into contact with the high-temperature mud, sending up a smoke with a strange odor.

They meticulously repeated this process of adding liquid, stirring, and evaporating three times.

After the third evaporation, the liquid in the iron pot was reduced to a semi-viscous substance that took up about a third of the pot.

It exhibited a deep, dark brown hue, its surface smooth as an ointment, accompanied by faint Energy Fluctuations.

This was the High-Energy Soil recorded in the knowledge of the Source Race, used for cultivating Moxiang Wood.

Dark Ore was one of the raw materials for preparing Energy Stones, and it could also be used directly to create High-Energy Soil.

"It’s done!" Han Ning’s spirit lifted. He transferred the soil into a specially made container and sealed it.

Following that, he brought over a few ordinary wooden stakes cut from outside the cave, drove them into the soil of the mutation planting area, and then mixed the High-Energy Soil in.

Han Ning hovered his hands over the wooden stakes.

A rich Power of Natural Blessing poured down. Emerald light mingled with specks of starlight, fully guiding the structural reorganization of the wood fibers, causing them to mutate toward Moxiang Wood.

The stakes trembled slightly and began absorbing the dark power within the soil, their wooden textures becoming dense and tough...

Time slipped by, and in the blink of an eye, two days passed.

The central area of the cave had been cleared out and covered with dozens of treated Black Snake Monster Skins.

Chairman Wu and Lin Qianqian stood at the front, their expressions solemn.

Each research student participating in the assessment received a special Engraving Pen. The tip of the pen was inlaid with a small Energy Stone fragment, used to guide weak Energy for drawing Runes.

The assessment was simple: carve the simplest energy-guiding circuit from the Source Race’s basic introduction to Crystal Runes onto the snakeskin.

"Begin!" Chairman Wu ordered.

The Awakened proceeded relatively smoothly. Their pen tips lit up with a faint glow as their Mental Power guided the Energy Flow, leaving crooked, intermittent marks on the tough snakeskin with considerable difficulty.

On the other hand, the situation for the ordinary students was entirely different.

"Damn it, why isn’t the pen moving?"

Jiang Yuan was covered in sweat, tightly gripping his Engraving Pen. His arm muscles bulged, yet the pen tip only left a shallow white dot on the surface of the snakeskin.

Beside him, his younger sister Jiang Rui was even more anxious. Her face was flushed red, but her Engraving Pen still couldn’t guide any Energy.

Many others were in a similar situation.

Even if the ordinary students used every ounce of their strength, the tips of their Engraving Pens only glowed faintly at best, barely carving out a trace. The Rune lines were twisted and dispersed, completely unable to form a complete circuit.

For the few who barely managed to draw a shape, the lines were dim and lacked any Energy Fluctuations.

The assessment ended, and the results were tallied.

Among the Awakened students, less than forty percent barely passed, and the Runes they carved had weak effects.

As for the ordinary students, less than ten percent passed.

Seeing everyone looking so defeated, Chairman Wu comforted them.

"Don’t feel discouraged just because your test results aren’t ideal. Over the past two days, we’ve only studied theory. We’ve only practiced practically once or twice.

"We’re feeling our way through the dark right now. It’s completely normal for this kind of situation to occur."

At the summary and analysis meeting, the atmosphere was heavy.

Chairman Wu frowned deeply. "The problem is obvious. The essence of the Source Race’s Rune system lies in the precise manipulation of Mental Power and Energy.

"Ordinary people haven’t awakened their Mental Power, or rather, their Mental Power is too weak. They simply cannot guide the Energy at the tip of the pen, let alone carve circuits that require extremely high stability and Energy perception."

Lin Qianqian added with a solemn face, "Even for the simplest circuits, the requirements for mental focus and Energy Manipulation far exceed our expectations. This knowledge system has a certain threshold."

No one expected to encounter such a significant setback on their very first step.

Han Ning had gained a basic understanding of the problems the camp was currently facing.

He thought for a moment before speaking up. "In truth, it’s just that the strength of ordinary people is too low. This isn’t a massive problem.

"The passing rate for the Awakened is quite decent, at nearly forty percent.

"So, we just need to improve the strength of all the ordinary people first and enhance their Mental Power."