Chapter 10 (continued)

The large ones were out of the question, but she could try the small bushes. These were plants from the quarantine zone, after all. Even ordinary ones were probably very different from the weeds at Heqing Residential Complex.

Li Yang unhooked the iron axe from her waist, rolled up her sleeves, and swung it at a small bush.

Before entering the quarantine zone, all the candidates had chosen weapons suited to them.

Most had picked swords, sabers, or spears. Li Yang alone had headed straight for the iron axe, even asking at the end, "Teacher, can I only take one?"

The teacher said, "...You can take more, but mind how much weight you're carrying. Taking more isn't necessarily a good thing."

Li Yang beamed. She wasn't greedy. "Two will do," she said. Two iron axes would last her three days of chopping!

Bang.

Li Yang felled the small bush with a single swing. A long-unheard "ding" sounded by her ear.

Then came a system notification: [Lifespan +3 minutes.]

Sure enough, it was an ordinary plant. The lifespan it gave was too little, though still much more than the weeds at Heqing Residential Complex. Those weeds, which gave only one second, were a real losing proposition.

One swing took ten seconds and earned her three minutes of lifespan. All told... she'd tasted the sweetness of the four-leaf clover and could no longer be bothered with such a tiny bit of lifespan!

Mutated plants were the way to go!

As Li Yang was thinking this, she heard an extremely faint rustle beside her. Her sharp eyes spotted something off about one of the bushes. It wasn't very big, but it seemed to be moving?

The "entry instructions" described dangerous mutated plants, but in a quarantine zone this large, there were bound to be less dangerous ones.

The one in front of her might be one of them!

Li Yang tightened her grip on her iron axe. In theory, this was her first time dealing with a mutated plant—the four-leaf clover didn't count, since it couldn't even move.

With a whoosh, the little bush, apparently aware it had been exposed, actually shot several green leaves at Li Yang.

The leaves were thin as blades and flew fast, but Li Yang easily dodged them with a turn of her body.

Ninety physique points were no joke. Her physical abilities really were beyond reproach now.

Li Yang charged up to the little bush in an instant and brought her axe down.

The little bush abruptly sprang up. The round little shrub had been quite cute, but now it opened a huge mouth lined with barbs, and it wasn't cute anymore.

Li Yang aimed at its gaping mouth and chopped down hard.

"Awooo!" The ugly bush let out a bloodcurdling scream. It tried to jump up and bite Li Yang, but she struck again with her axe, splitting it clean in two.

The ugly bush still had a trick up its sleeve. Before it died, it sent the leaves on its body bursting toward Li Yang.

Li Yang moved with astonishing speed, quickly dodging to the side and taking cover behind a broad, sturdy tree.

Bang, bang, bang.

The leaves missed, and the ugly bush kicked the bucket.

After a soft "ding," a line appeared on the system: [Lifespan +1 month.]

Li Yang: "..."

"Only one month!" she muttered in dissatisfaction.

The system played dead.

Li Yang thought for a moment and comforted herself. "Fine. This ugly bush was pretty easy to chop down."

Although the ugly bush could move and attack people, Li Yang hadn't had much trouble chopping it down. It had only taken a few swings. If there were enough of them... she could make a little fortune!

Li Yang was full of drive. She would sweep through the bushes and ferret out every one of these little things.

Clearing out mutated plants was everyone's responsibility.

Li Yang would not shirk her duty!

With the safety guidelines from the "entry instructions" in her head, plus a week of cramming, Li Yang had gained a deeper understanding of mutated creatures.

For example, they tended to be highly aggressive-looked at that way, the four-leaf clover at Heqing Residential Complex really had been special.

Another example was that the concentration of "Starlight" around them was higher. Li Yang still wasn't sure whether it was Starlight; all she could see was an extremely faint shimmer.

Li Yang avoided areas where mutated animals might appear and focused solely on plants, especially these little bushes. She chopped down every one she found. Sometimes she hit an ordinary one by mistake, in which case she could only collect her three minutes.

And so Li Yang spent the first day bustling about.

As soon as it got dark, she hurried to find a key overnight spot using the clues in the "entry instructions," preparing to stay put and make it through the night.

The quarantine zone was even more dangerous at night, when all sorts of mutated animals came out. Li Yang had no interest in "animals." She just wanted to lie low until tomorrow and continue harvesting little mutated plants.

She had made a considerable haul that day, chopping down ten ugly bushes. They were probably different varieties, since they gave different amounts of lifespan: some one month, others two. But since they all had huge mouths, Li Yang had collectively dubbed them ugly bushes.

She had also chopped down more than twenty mutated flowers and grasses. There were even more varieties of these, and they were the easiest to find because they were generally larger. Take this morning glory, for example: it was the size of a soccer ball, standing there with its claws bared. If Li Yang didn't chop it down, who would she chop?

Li Yang was now hiding in a large tree. It was a safe spot hinted at in the "entry instructions"-a rather subtle hint that probably would have been impossible to figure out if she hadn't memorized the entire text.

She called up the system panel and happily examined her gains.

Name: Li Yang

Lifespan: 4 years / 10 years

Physique: 90

Spirit: 40

Note: Only 4 years of lifespan remaining. Please harvest plants as soon as possible to obtain lifespan.

After a busy day, Master Li had gained three years of lifespan!

Master Li was satisfied. After all, she had picked it up along the way. Once she got into Zhongdu Military Academy and joined the agronomy department, ten or even a hundred years would be no dream!

The day's experiences had given Li Yang more to think about concerning the four-leaf clover at Heqing Residential Complex. It was probably no ordinary clover. Though she had spent a long time chopping it, it had given her a full ten years of lifespan, enough to show it was quite unusual.

Although Li Yang had gained three years of lifespan, she was in no hurry to grind physique points.

Ninety physique points were already conspicuous. If she went past a hundred... she'd really have to worry about being taken away for research.

There was no rush with her Physique Points, so Li Yang turned her attention to her Spirit Points.

The military academy only tested Physique Points. It wouldn't hurt to raise her Spirit Points a little, right?

Besides, her Physique Points were already at ninety, yet her Spirit Points were only forty. It made her look all brawn and no brains. That wouldn't do. People needed brains, after all. Just look at this time: luckily, she had memorized the "entry instructions," which had allowed her to get through the first day safely.

The night was deep and quiet, and she had nothing else to do...

Li Yang prepared to use three years of lifespan to grind her Spirit Points!

Inside the main control room of the quarantine zone reserved for the practical exam.

A huge screen stood in the center, divided into twenty smaller sections. Each section corresponded to a different group, and each focused on different people.

Standing before the screen were the examiners overseeing the assessment in Donghua Province.

The chief examiner was a tall, sturdy middle-aged woman. After watching the screen for a while, she asked, "How did the first day of the assessment go?"

Though she was the chief examiner, she didn't have time to watch everyone. Several proctors were hidden in each area, keeping an eye on the candidates' movements and protecting their safety.

The deputy examiner quickly replied, "So far, twenty people have dropped out. They didn't read the 'entry instructions' carefully and accidentally attacked grade one high-stage mutated creatures."

"The candidates still continuing have generally gone in two directions. Some memorized the 'entry instructions' and chose to act alone, getting through the first day relatively peacefully. Others didn't pay much attention to the 'entry instructions' but were strong enough to barely make it through after a hard day of fighting."

The chief examiner sneered. "Courage without brains will only get them killed for nothing. Better to eliminate them early."

The deputy examiner hesitated, then said, "There's another candidate who's rather unusual."

The chief examiner asked, "How so?"

The deputy examiner said, "She's in Group Eight, a student from Huangcheng No. 1 High School named Li Yang. Her Physique Points are ninety."

Hearing the number, the chief examiner raised an eyebrow. "So it's her. What, did she fail to read the 'entry instructions' too?"

The proctor responsible for Group Eight was also present. He interjected, "Student Li Yang memorized the entire 'entry instructions.'"

Approval showed in the chief examiner's eyes. "She's attentive, at least."

The deputy examiner switched the screen and brought up a video replay of Group Eight. "Professor Chen, please take a look at the details yourself."

The footage was already playing on the screen.

Group Eight had split into three teams. Chen Song's team had the most people and was in the worst shape. They had run into a grade one sixth-stage mutated wild boar right off the bat, leaving all six of them in a sorry state. One had even been so frightened that he broke down and pressed his rescue device.

Xu Wenpei and her two teammates, on the other hand, had fewer people and were relatively cautious, so they had only encountered a grade one first-stage mutated pheasant. Though they had been badly pecked, they had barely managed to escape without anything worse happening.

Then there was Group Eight's third team: Li Yang on her own.

She had clearly thoroughly absorbed the "entry instructions." Every step she took was correct, textbook-level correct.

As long as she stayed there and proceeded methodically, she could pass the practical exam without a hitch.

The elimination rate for the practical exam actually wasn't high. After all, the candidates all had at least eighty-three physique points. As long as they weren't exceptionally brainless, Central Capital and Star Slaying still wanted to admit them and train them over time.

But the girl before them had not only precisely avoided danger; she had also found Gradeless mutated plants hidden in the "safe zone."

Gradeless referred to plants that had absorbed large amounts of Starlight but had not yet had time to complete their mutation.

These plants posed a relatively low danger, so there had been no warning about them in the "entry instructions." Under normal circumstances, as long as candidates didn't actively provoke them, they wouldn't even attack.

But Li Yang was different. She chopped down a Gradeless photinia bush, then a Gradeless blackberry bush, then yet another morning glory that was about to complete its mutation...

The examiners present all fell silent.

No wonder the deputy examiner had called her unusual. She really was unusual enough!