Symbiotic panel, I am cultivating immortality in the world of immortality

Chapter 159 The Ant's Fungal "God"

Wheat has been sown on the day of Lichun (the beginning of spring).

A full hundred acres of planting area—within Li Ye's cave dwelling area, basically any land there is considered to be the lowest-grade spiritual field.

It is even more powerful than a typical low-level spiritual field due to the flow of spiritual energy within the cave.

This is actually the normal thing.

What a spirit plant master should do is transform the land into spirit fields, rather than constantly buying spirit fields to fill up the land. The difference between the former and the latter is quite significant.

After waking up, Li Ye sat on the edge of the field and looked out. When he had nothing to do, he changed into a comfortable set of clothes and walked barefoot in the field.

He walked casually, yet he didn't step on even a single wheat seedling.

My feet touched the slightly damp soil and I could feel the vitality brewing within it, about to burst forth from the earth.

It's like a foot massage.

Those seeds that haven't yet sprouted, and those seedlings that have already sprouted, are all conveying their joy and eagerness to the plum leaves in this way.

"Through these wheat grains harvested at the beginning of spring, I can also infuse my emotions into the earth."

"To completely transform this land into a spiritual field."

Li Ye tried to cast spells without using his hands—as the limb that has the most contact with the ground, he felt that he should be able to cast spells while standing on the ground.

He measured the land with his own two feet, and the condition of every inch of the land was within his perception, with spiritual energy flowing into the land.

His hopes, the spiritual power of the Jianmu tree, and the cawing golden crows flying in the sky.

Everything was conceived and spread within the earth.

"It is indeed effective."

"It just takes time."

Li Ye was not discouraged; as long as it could be completed before the wheat matured at the beginning of spring, that was fine.

As usual, he walked through the entire hundred acres of land and then turned to the area where the bamboo ants were placed.

A strange-looking bamboo house has been added here.

—That was a variant of the spirit bamboo from the cave that the Enlightened Clan sent immediately after receiving confirmation that the Potato Dragon could spread the word.

This variant is called "Green Leaf Spirit Mansion".

It looks like a bamboo plant, but its leaves are huge, curled up into the shape of a round wooden house, hanging directly to the ground.

Simply put, it is formed by the gathering of the leaves of the spirit bamboo. It is not for people to live in; in most cases, it is used as a warm bed for spirit plants or spirit beasts.

This thing is also an experimental product among the Enlightened Clan; they plan to intercrop it with some spiritual plants and beasts.

This thing couldn't be bound when it was delivered.

Li Ye was initially a little disappointed, but he didn't expect his bamboo ants to be so fond of this spiritual plant—the bamboo ants are now cutting off leaves and carrying them back to their nests to plant them directly.

"correct."

Speaking of the bamboo ant nest, Li Ye came to the ant nest, which resembled a mountain range, and silently looked up at it.

"Every time I see them, I feel that these guys' architectural talent is really comparable to some masters."

The bamboo and wood structure in front of him, which was tens of feet high and contained countless tunnels, caves and rooms, was the nest of the bamboo ants.

All the bamboo and wood ants that Li Ye used to bind have now merged into one colony.

Whenever the bamboo ant is about to die or something, it stretches itself into strips of wood and embeds them into the nest.

After a period of continuous expansion and reproduction by all the bamboo ants, the nest has become as large as a mountain, and the passages inside are so large that even a cultivator's spiritual sense would feel strained and exhausted.

Apart from the bamboo ants that need to go out to collect food, the rest of the bamboo ants complete their lives from birth to death within this giant bamboo nest.

The leaves that were cut off by the Qingye Spirit Mansion were taken deep into this building for planting and cultivation.

This is actually the original and correct way for bamboo ants to survive.

They... originally needed the fungi that grew from the decaying leaves in the anthill as food.

Forcibly inserting substances like those from Li Ye, turning them from cultivating fungi into edible bamboo juice, is actually a misguided approach.

"I never thought we'd be back to square one."

"It also...has a connection with local mycelium."

Li Ye used his divine sense to probe a rather magnificent bamboo building area located deep within the anthill.

That area was very strange; it didn't feel cramped like an anthill at all, but rather resembled a temple or shrine.

But inside were piles of all the leaves they had collected.

The spiritual energy and the warm spiritual energy produced by the decay of bamboo and wood, mixed with the spiritual energy of the leaves, form a very good nutrient for fungi.

Clusters of mycelium are growing in the leaves, and on those tiny mycelium hang strings shaped like candied hawthorns, braised pork, lion's head meatballs, and other foods.

Moreover, the color has changed from the grayish-black that didn't look very good before to the green of bamboo and wood.

The bamboo ants are diligently carrying the "fruits" grown from the ground fungus to deeper parts of the anthill, where they serve as food and are stored.

Originally, Li Ye had bound a Void Grass to the Earthly Mycelium, and this thing wandered around everywhere. If he hadn't discovered that it had disappeared, Li Ye would never have imagined that it had formed such a relationship with the Bamboo Ant.

It can grow without resentment, and it has even found a long-term source of sustenance for itself—the bamboo ants will diligently search for leaves and transport them here to provide nutrients for the growth of mycelium.

In a dramatic transformation, the Earth Fungi, which used to chase after spirit beasts to feed them, now lies here reaping the benefits of their labor, incidentally producing some "fruits" to feed the bamboo ants.

He had previously heard that it was best for the mycelium to grow without relying on resentment, as this would produce better mycelium.

However, this sudden change caught him somewhat off guard, and there were no prompts on the panel.

He flipped through several books and found records about local mycelium, but he was still completely baffled.

So he decided to visit a senior sister in the sect who also cultivated terrestrial mycelium that did not require resentment, to see how her terrestrial mycelium grew.

Perhaps it can offer some inspiration.

……

The senior student who cultivates the mycelium of the local plant is surnamed Qi.

Upon receiving Li Ye's visiting card, she invited him to visit her cave dwelling without hesitation.

Firstly, she knew that Li Ye had cultivated the Potato Dragon that was gradually being transported outwards; secondly, she had once received a favor from True Person Su Xing.

—In fact, most of the spiritual plant masters in the sect have received the grace of Master Su Xing’s teachings. This may seem insignificant on ordinary days, but you can see how important it is when something really happens.

"Senior Sister Qi, I came in a hurry and didn't bring anything with me. This is some tea produced by our family. Please feel free to try it."

Li Ye smiled and handed over a box.

Senior Sister Qi smiled and said, "I suppose your tea isn't ordinary spiritual tea. It would be wonderful if we could enjoy tea and discuss the Dao together after we've explored the Earthly Mycelium Cave. Jixiang, take this and prepare it."

She tossed the tea box aside, and a brightly colored bird immediately grabbed it with its claws and spoke in a human voice, "Yes, Master!"

The bird flapped its wings and flew straight into the sky, where a white jade palace standing in the clouds could be vaguely seen in the sunlight.

"Oh, Senior Sister, your Rainbow Dash is truly magnificent."

Li Ye's tone was tinged with envy. His cloud, made from Yunbao, was only a tiny bit, while others' cloud was already a palace.

“Junior brother has only been in the sect for a year. This Yunbao (a type of magical treasure) requires accumulation and cannot be achieved overnight.”

It took me decades of accumulation to barely achieve this level; the other Golden Core disciples can already ride their Cloud Treasures on journeys."

Senior Sister Qi explained for a moment, and then led Li Ye into her Earthly Mycelium Cave.

The cave was even more bizarre than Li Ye had imagined—the entire cave was shimmering with light and color, paved entirely with glass, and the floor and cave walls were sparkling.

Clumps of mycelium grew boldly on the ground and rock walls, but what grew were not the various foods that Li Ye was familiar with, but the fruits of spiritual plants.

"Is this a peach?"

"Senior sister, I really can't understand how the earth-conditioning mycelium can grow and produce... fruit here, even though there is spiritual energy but no nutrients?"

Li Ye observed for a while but was still completely confused.

This is actually normal; every spiritual plant grower cultivates unique spiritual plants.

To be able to tell exactly why something is wrong at a glance requires accumulated experience and skill.

His master should be able to do it, but Li Ye is still far from it.

When Senior Sister Qi saw Li Ye's invitation, she knew what this junior brother's intentions were. If she hadn't wanted to say anything then, she would have simply refused.

Since they agreed to and invited Li Ye, they must be willing to share some of their experiences.

So she spoke slowly and deliberately: "Junior brother, have you ever considered that since resentment can supply the growth of these local mycelia, the power of will can do the same?"

"Willpower?" Li Ye was slightly taken aback.

This kind of power is quite common in the mortal realm within the Jianmu Grotto of the Four Seasons Sect, and it is generally related to incense offerings and wishes.

In the cultivation world, it's actually not used very often; at least Li Ye hadn't thought about it in that regard.

"Does Senior Sister mean that your terrestrial mycelium grew through the power of will?"

"No." Senior Sister Qi shook her head: "To be more precise, the earth-conditioning mycelium can only grow by relying on either resentment or willpower."

"Just like the local mycelium here, it is actually supplied by a special kind of willpower."

"When they feel that the power of their will can overcome their desire for resentment, they will abandon resentment and choose the power of their will to help them grow."

"Let me explain it to you more clearly. The power of my vow here comes from a kind of spirit beast."

"Since ancient times, the willpower of spirit beasts and spirit insects has been purer than that of our human race, and is also more suitable for the growth of local mycelium."

Li Ye suddenly realized the truth after hearing his senior sister's words.

In today's cultivation world, resentment and willpower are considered to be the two sides of the same yin and yang, with resentment and willpower being the same.

That is to say...

Those terrestrial mycelia only abandoned their resentment after receiving the "power of will" from the bamboo ants.

His deep thought was noticed by Senior Sister Qi, who narrowed her eyes and asked, "Judging from your appearance, it seems that the Earth Mycelium may also be undergoing such mutations."

I need to tell you that the attribute of willpower is ascent, while that of resentment is descent. You should know what will happen if ascent is not controlled properly.

Within our sect... Foundation Establishment cultivators are not allowed to raise gods.

—This rule actually exists, and it's clearly written in the sect's prohibitions.

Given that any rule in the Four Seasons Sect implies that something less than pleasant has happened in the past, it's true that Foundation Establishment cultivators raising gods has indeed occurred.

But in fact, Li Ye hadn't thought about it in that way at all.

It was only after his senior sister reminded him that he remembered the many bamboo and wood ants that had already developed basic intelligence, and the building that resembled a temple...

Could it be that those guys are actually worshipping terrestrial mycelium as a "god"?

Thinking about it more carefully, it seems even more terrifying—since bamboo ant nests are made up of the bodies of countless bamboo ants, does this mean that there are still cases of sacrifice?
His expression immediately turned serious.

He said apologetically to his senior sister, "I have indeed thought of some things, and I am truly grateful for your help. I will come to thank you in person after this matter is resolved!"

After he finished speaking, golden light emanated from the soles of his feet.

In the blink of an eye, they disappeared from Senior Sister Qi's Four Seasons Hall, returned to their cave through the teleportation array there, and arrived at the nest of the bamboo ants.

He hadn't thought of it this way at all, but now, looking at the bamboo ant nest, it was clear that they had been offering up the ground fungus.

He could also vaguely sense a special power being transmitted to the earth-conditioning mycelium through the bamboo ants.

"The God of Fungi".

"I never expected you guys could come up with something like this."

Li Ye hesitated for a moment.

There are just too many bamboo ants.

Furthermore, their complete lack of fear of death and their practice of building nests with their own bodies, which resembles a sacrifice, could potentially elevate the terrestrial mycelium to the status of a "mycelium god" if this continues for a long time.

The logic behind this is actually quite easy to explain.

The mycelium of the earth provides them with food. For most spirit beasts and insects, as long as there is food, they are gods.

In fact, within this cave, the other spiritual plants and beasts also had their will power flowing towards Li Ye, which is why he didn't discover the existence of the will power immediately.

The simplest and most direct method is to nip it in the bud—simply remove the mycelium.

However, this method also has its hidden dangers.

Bamboo ants might find other things to offer as offerings, and they might even cultivate fungi themselves, which is actually one of their traditional skills.

It is better to block than to open up.

"So we still need to figure out how to utilize this power of will, and then report it to the sect. It's possible that I can cultivate a 'Fungus God'."

"The sect uses the power of vows the most in the cave heaven of Jianmu. I happen to be going to Huiya Market to promote the Potato Dragon, so why not take this opportunity to go and have a look at Tianhe City?"

After careful consideration, Li Ye made a decision.

I just don't know why there's still no news from Su Ya.

It's been several days already, hasn't it? Could it be that he's really discovered he's rolling in wealth and is planning to go back and inherit the management of the market instead of continuing his cultivation?

(End of this chapter)