Ant Nest (Seventh Extra Chapter Arrives)

"Fight against someone? Fight against whom?" Lin Zhen asked.

"Is that even a question? Of course it's with those Old Trainee. There are a lot of people at the Ant Nest. When I went there, I saw about a hundred people."

"So many people? Are they all gathered around the Ant Nest?"

"Yes, they're all gathered around the Ant Nest, and everyone has agreed that only when the Star Crystal is ripe will those ranked higher be qualified to go up and pick it. If they fail, then it's the turn of the next person."

Lin Zhen and Su Mingyue both nodded. It sounded feasible, but there would definitely be difficulties in its implementation. For example, the order of things was hard to say.

"The order is simple: whoever's group has the most power and strength will be ranked first. That's why we need a lot of people, especially a lot of experts. We might have to compete with others for them. I don't know exactly how the competition will work, but we'll find out when we get there."

Lin Zhen didn't ask any more questions. Jiang Huai was among the group, and he was considered a master, so they should be quite competitive.

Jiang Huai and his group of eight, plus Lin Zhen and Su Mingyue, made a total of ten people. The group traveled quickly and entered the Dense Forest Area in the west that same day.

Jiang Huai would actively kill Mutated Insect they encountered on the road. Lin Zhen and Su Mingyue also cooperated well with these people. With many hands making light work, they encountered virtually no strong obstacles on the road.

As dusk fell, Ma Mingxing told them that they still had about half a day's journey ahead and it was too late to continue.

The group stopped in a sheltered spot to rest.

Before the break, everyone, including Jiang Huai, glanced sideways at Lin Zhen and Su Mingyue.

They weren't fools. Su Mingyue's somewhat deliberate behavior made them suspicious. People are naturally gossipy, and they wanted to see if there was something fishy going on between Su Mingyue and Lin Zhen.

After all, it was still somewhat unbelievable to them that a girl like Su Mingyue could fall in love with someone so easily.

If two people are really a couple, then it's normal for them to be together tonight. If they're not, then it'll be obvious right away.

The accommodation was arranged in a very particular way. The Xuan Ze place was a long, narrow tree pit. After everything was laid out, it looked like a long bed, with enough space for about ten people. The martial artists lay down one after another, leaving a small space at the end for Su Mingyue and Lin Zhen.

As a girl, Su Mingyue could certainly suggest moving to another place to stay, but that would arouse suspicion and make the teammates seem uncooperative.

Just as Lin Zhen was still hesitating, Su Mingyue had already lay down on the very edge and said to Lin Zhen, "Rest now, we still have a long way to go."

Lin Zhen nodded and lay down next to Su Mingyue. He could clearly feel that everyone else was watching them, their ears longer than rabbits'.

If the two of them are just lying there like that, then their relationship is probably fake; there's no such thing as a couple who treat each other with such respect.

Of these eight people, I wouldn't say all of them, but at least five of them like Su Mingyue or have some feelings for Su Mingyue. Now that they have the opportunity to travel with Su Mingyue, if Lin Zhen and she weren't a couple, maybe someone would actually pursue Su Mingyue tomorrow.

Just as Lin Zhen had settled down, Su Mingyue spoke again.

"Hold me while I sleep, just like you always do."

The voice wasn't loud, but it was late at night, and to others it sounded like a bolt from the blue!

Suddenly, four or five coughs rang out around them, including Jiang Huai's. Ma Mingxing's cough was even more exaggerated; he almost coughed up his lungs.

A delicate fragrance wafted closer, Su Mingyue's soft, fragrant body leaned against Lin Zhen's chest. She rested her head on Lin Zhen's shoulder, closed her eyes slightly, and murmured, "Hold me."

Lin Zhen reached out and pulled Su Mingyue into his arms.

Their arms were intertwined, their faces pressed together, their ears rubbing against each other. A fragrant, warm breath sprayed onto Lin Zhen's face, and he could feel Su Mingyue's smooth cheeks burning hot.

Lin Zhen closed his eyes slightly, tightened his arms around the stunningly beautiful girl, and held her close.

"I'm doing a good deed, I'm helping her solve her problem, I'm doing a good deed," Lin Zhen said, making an excuse for her actions.

As night deepened, Lin Zhen had Su Mingyue on one side and the sound of heartbreak on the other.

********

The next morning, everyone got up, ate something simple, and continued on their way.

Su Mingyue remained by Lin Zhen's side, her expression showing no unusual reaction. She seemed determined to continue playing the role of Lin Zhen's girlfriend in front of others.

Last night's performance was also very effective. None of the other martial artists bothered Su Mingyue. After all, they were already a couple, and forcing their way in would definitely not end well. No one was willing to do that.

Around noon, they came to a large tree branch blocking their path, Ma Mingxing reminded everyone that they were almost there.

As people climbed over the branch, the view before them suddenly opened up and was incredibly breathtaking.

Within a radius of several kilometers, there is a huge area of dead branches, where fallen branches and leaves are piled up like mountains.

Hundreds of meters above, the green Leaf covered everything like Sky Dome. In the space between them, countless Flying Ant were denser than Insect Swarm. Each one was about two meters long and they were everywhere.

On that pile of dead branches, a huge number of ants crawled up and down.

These ants are all yellow, and most of them are two or three meters long. They move nimbly, and occasionally a huge Soldier Ant appears, raising its antennae. Its huge pincers have terrifying killing power, warning any intruders in the distance to think twice before acting.

And on this anthill-like Ant Nest, there were still many flashes of light.

Occasionally, green tree trunks can be found among the piles of dead branches. Each living branch, having absorbed so much energy, will eventually blossom and form Star Crystal.

From Lin Zhen's perspective, they could only see a corner of the hill, but they could still spot more than a dozen glittering spots.

"Wow! Look over there, isn't that Comet Crystal?"

"Yes, it really is Comet Crystal. This is the first time I've ever seen Comet Crystal."

"Tch, look over there. That one's already spherical, that's a Satellite Crystal, that's the real good stuff."

"And over there, that thing with the yellowish-brown halo, that might be Planet Crystal. It's the first time I've ever seen one like that."

Lin Zhen looked around in surprise. There were a lot of Star Crystal on this small hill. However, the path that Lin Zhen and his group took seemed to be wrong. To reach the other side of the hill, they not only had to cross a dry area of branches, but also an open field. They estimated that before they could even get close to the Star Crystal, they would be eaten to bits by the ants.

Moreover, there are many branches and leaves in between. Even if Lin Zhen uses Gravity, the Star Crystal may not be able to absorb it. However, a lot of dead branches and leaves will definitely be absorbed, and there will be even more Flying Ant.

Therefore, Gravity is absolutely unusable here, because Gravity is not precise enough to accurately absorb a tiny Star Crystal from a pile of dead branches.

"How are we supposed to get across? We can't even get the Star Crystal."

Ma Mingxing pointed into the distance, "There's a way. Out of this Ant Nest, only those few protruding branches are the closest to the Ant Nest. There's also a strange flower there that the ants don't want to go near. Going down from there is the easiest way to get the Star Crystal."

Jiang Huai glanced over there while shading his eyes and said, "It must be a gathering place for martial artists too."

"Of course, that's why we're here."

"Alright, since we're already here, let's go take a look."

Jiang Huai walked in front, followed by Lin Zhen, Su Mingyue, and the others, heading towards the place Ma Mingxing had mentioned.

It took a full half hour to finally get here.

This is a huge, slanted tree trunk. People climbed it like they were climbing a mountain, and after walking about a kilometer, they finally saw the end of this long journey.

There was a small pond in a relatively open area, and there were at least a hundred people around the pond.

In front of the pond, there are three branches extending forward. The end of these three branches is the closest place to the Ant Nest. Only by going down from there can one reach the Ant Nest the fastest and relatively safest way, and the greater the chance of obtaining Star Crystal.

Seeing Lin Zhen and his group approach, a man with a blade of grass in his mouth stood up.

"Wow, so many people have come all at once. You all look like freshmen."

Ma Mingxing hurriedly walked over. "Guang Ge, don't you recognize me? I was here just a few days ago."

"Oh! It's you, kid. What, you've found some buddies to fight for territory?"

Jiang Huai walked over at this moment. "Since we're here, we should naturally compete for it. Otherwise, we might as well go to other wilderness areas and slowly set up our nets."

"Well said, that shows some backbone."

Guang Ge nodded in approval, his gaze sweeping over everyone. "This year's freshmen seem pretty good, they all seem quite capable. Oh my! This girl is too beautiful, and this young man is quite handsome too. It's just that your afro makes you look unreliable."

Guang Ge gave his comments to Human Path, "Since you've come to the Ant Nest, we won't exclude you. After all, you're all from the God General Training Camp. It's just a matter of being a year earlier or later. We're not like those bastards in the Sky Dome who occupy the best spots and don't let others in. But we have our own rules here. See those three tree branches?"

Everyone nodded. Those three branches were the key. Whoever could occupy the area of the branches would have the priority to obtain the Star Crystal.

"We emphasize fair competition. Competition between martial artists naturally comes down to combat strength. We have about a hundred people here now, and with you, there are over a hundred. There are three branches, and each branch has three teams queuing up. The first-ranked team has four days, from Monday to Thursday, to collect the Star Crystal that appear. The second-ranked team has two days, from Friday to Saturday, and the third-ranked team can only collect them on Sunday. Do you understand?"

Seeing Lin Zhen and the others nod, Guang Ge continued, "If you want to get a spot in the queue, you can challenge the teams ahead of you. Whether it's a team battle or an individual battle, you can negotiate. If you win, you can move up one spot; if you lose, you'll stay in the back and won't be allowed to challenge anyone for a week. If you have the courage, then come on up!"

As he spoke, Guang Ge stepped aside, smiling as he watched the group of fresh-faced newbies.

Today, I'm adding a fifth chapter as an extra chapter. This is to Helm Master the book's Helm Master (the group leader Duo Long) for the 10,000 Qidian coins reward.