Cornflower Witch

Chapter 146 Toad Advancement
In the afternoon, the wind blew through the summer shade of the trees.

Hiltiya sat by the pool behind the cottage, her feet soaking in the cool water. While building the various structures, she had also installed a water pipe from the well to her small garden, so she wouldn't have to fetch water every time.

As the pebble-lined pool gradually filled, Hiltiya turned off the tap and soaked in the water for a while longer. She then playfully splashed the water with her feet before picking them up again. After they dried, she put her shoes back on.

She picked up the kettle, filled it with water, and began watering the trees and flowers in the garden.

Two new apple trees have been planted here, but they are still seedlings and are slightly shorter than the girl's height.

"Grow up quickly." Hilti sprinkled water on the roots of the tree, then placed her hand on a thinner branch. A faint green halo appeared, and the apple sapling began to absorb the water, sprouting new buds and extending its trunk little by little.

After a short while, she put her hand down and went to another apple tree, repeating the same action.

With the combined power of the Dewdrop Water, the Pruning Method, Natural Perception, and the Identification Eye, she has reached an astonishing level in the field of plant cultivation. Now, for Hilti, cultivating plants of 'perfect' quality is basically a piece of cake.

Generally, gardeners learn the Dew-Praying Technique at Tier 1, and the Branch-Pruning Technique at Tier 2. By the end of Tier 2, they combine the two to form a class ability. Even so, raising this class ability to Lv.3 is quite difficult. Very few can raise [Gardener Apprentice] to Lv.4 at Tier 2. At this point, without the support of the Eye of Recognition, it would be difficult to catch up with Silti's current level.

It would probably take until the mid-stage of the third tier to further improve one's cultivation ability to catch up with Silti's current proficiency. At that time, even geniuses would mostly be 30-40 years old, but Silti has only been on the path of cultivating extraordinary beings for less than a year.

If others knew her true situation, they would probably be astonished. In the capital, she would be a rising star of genius.

However, the woodland base in the Shadow World currently has limited communication. Only a few people have heard that there is a newly advanced second-tier student who has advanced very quickly. As for how long it took her to advance and how she advanced, no one knows.

Such rapid advancement inevitably leads those who hear of it to suspect that shortcuts were taken.

After tending to her little garden, Hilti put on her sun hat and went to the fields at the foot of the hill where the cottage was located. It was August, and the sun was scorching. As she walked through the fields, the occasional summer breeze blew by, lifting her skirt and revealing her fair legs.

Sandals clattered on the ridges of the fields, occasionally requiring her to jump over potholes, while Hiltiya's long, silvery-white hair fluttered and fell in the wind.

Fifty days have passed since this batch of wheat was planted, and it is currently in the heading stage. It will be ready for harvest in about two weeks.

[Wheat] (Rare-81): Excellent growth condition, with a bountiful harvest expected.

After a while, it will be upgraded to perfection, and then the harvest will not be far away.

……

After tending to the wheat field, Hilti was about to return to the hut when several toads excitedly ran over.

"Quack, boss."

"I've leveled up, quack."

The lead toad shouted happily, and the others followed suit joyfully.

Has it advanced? Hilti was slightly surprised, but then she thought that after feeding them alfalfa buns for so long, it was indeed time for them to advance.

"Let me see." She walked over and made the red toad stand still in front of her.

Race: Toad-like Demi-human (Enhanced)

Status: Healthy (Domesticated)
talent:

Amphibious [Good]: Adapted to both water and land life, with increased speed in water.

Fate Card: [Crimson Forest Frog] (Tier 1 - Blood Law)
'The sexual aspect of blood rhythm awakens within the body, enhancing various physical attributes while causing the skin to turn red.'
-
Effect [Swift Body Lv.2]: The power of the 'Blood Rhythm' aspect fills and circulates within the body, moderately enhancing one's physical constitution and increasing speed and reaction ability.

Ability Cards:
[Toad Bloodline Lv.2] (Blood Rhythm): The toad bloodline in your body has been activated, allowing you to move faster in water, rain, and humid environments, gain explosive power, and become immune to some toxins.

After examining the toad for a long time, Hiltiya finally understood its situation.

Although it's still not very strong after solidifying, it's at least still growing, and perhaps it will become even more powerful in the future.

In the following days, other toads advanced one after another, and the properties they formed were not all the same. Among them, 'Emerald Honey' and 'Snail Fish' were the most common, but there were also toads with the properties of 'Blood Law' and 'Blazing Sun'.

Fate Card: [Jade Forest Frog] (Tier 1 - Emerald Honey)
'The essence of emerald green awakens within the body, enhancing various physical attributes and giving the skin an emerald green hue.'
-
Effect [Forest Perception Lv.2]: Allows you to distinguish and perceive the growth of plants, letting you know their current status. (Effect is one-quarter of that of the 'Emerald Eye' potion)

Ability Cards:
[Toad Bloodline Lv.1] (Blood Rhythm): Your toad bloodline has been activated, allowing you to move faster in water, rain, and humid environments, gaining explosive power and immunity to some toxins. [Dew Prayer Lv.1] (Emerald Honey): Gather morning mist at dawn, transforming emerald dew into water. (Emerald dew promotes plant growth and cultivation.)

After seeing Siltia use the Dew-Praying Technique so many times, a toad finally learned the ability, which filled the girl with joy.

-

Fate Card: [Summer Forest Frog] (Tier 1 - Blazing Sun)
'The fiery nature of the sun awakens within the body, enhancing various physical attributes and giving the skin an orange-yellow hue.'
-
Effect [Sun-Protected Skin Lv.2]: Absorbs the power of sunlight, enhances vitality and endurance, and prevents sunburn.

Ability Cards:
[Toad Bloodline Lv.1] (Blood Rhythm): The toad bloodline in your body has been activated, allowing you to move faster in water, rain, and humid environments, gain explosive power, and become immune to some toxins.

【Hot Air Blowing Lv.1】(Blazing Sun): Can blow out airflow containing the 'Blazing Sun' property. Currently, it can only be used to dry items and cannot be burned or ignited.

Well, this thing is very useful for drying and separating grains.

-

Fate Card: [Rainy Forest Frog] (Tier 1 - Snail Fish)
'The snail's sexual nature awakens within its body, enhancing its various physical attributes and causing its skin to turn a light blue color.'
-
Effect [Hydrating Body Lv.2]: Allows for rapid swimming in water and absorption of moisture through skin filtration.

Ability Cards:
[Toad Bloodline Lv.1] (Blood Rhythm): The toad bloodline in your body has been activated, allowing you to move faster in water, rain, and humid environments, gain explosive power, and become immune to some toxins.

【Water Jet Lv.1】(Snail Fish): Can compress the water in its body and then jet it out to shoot down flying insects and small birds.

Perhaps this thing can be used for watering? Siltia thought to herself.

This week, 16 toads advanced in rank. To make them easier to manage, she selected the strongest ones from each species and named them.

“Your skin is red, so let’s call you ‘Blood Frog’.” She pointed to the ‘Blood Law’ toad, winked, and named it with a slight smile.

"Ribbit, my name is 'Blood Frog'." The toad, whose name was called, walked forward proudly.

"Croak, Blood Frog, so amazing." The other toads that hadn't managed to solidify their physical form looked on with envy and admiration.

“From now on, you will be called ‘Wood Frog’.” She then pointed to another toad that had condensed the 'Emerald Honey' attribute.

"Croak, wood frog, croak." It proudly walked out and stood in front.

"You shall be called... 'Fire Frog'." The girl looked at the orange-skinned toad with a 'blazing sun' appearance and named it.

“Croak, ‘Firefrog’.” It seemed quite excited as well.

Then, Hiltiya pointed to another toad with the appearance of a 'snail fish'.

"Your name is 'Water Frog'." This name speaks for itself.

Finally, the light blue toad came out, croaked a few times, and stood with the others.

"From now on, you will be the Four Great Scoundrels, managing everyone's work." The girl was giving her orders.

"Quack, quack." The four of them proudly chirped in front of their kind.

Among the sixteen members who advanced this time, there are three red toads with the 'Blood Law' attribute, six water blue toads with the 'Snail Fish' attribute, two orange toads with the 'Blazing Sun' attribute, and five emerald green toads with the 'Emerald Honey' attribute.

Overall, there were still more 'snail fish' and 'emerald honey', probably because they lived in swampy rainforest environments. As for 'blood law', it is a property that many living creatures possess, so it is not surprising that there were three of them. However, two of them had condensed 'blazing sun' property, which surprised Hilti.

Perhaps this is another form of resistance and adaptation. Most toads are afraid of prolonged direct sunlight, which can cause their bodies to become dehydrated and cracked. To cope with this situation, they may choose to get close to the 'scorching sun' to adapt to the harsh environment.

After the division of labor was redistributed, these toads began to participate in the cultivation of the plants, instead of just doing simple tasks such as fetching water, watering, and tilling.

Perhaps it's an advancement, or perhaps it's the awakening of their bloodline, but the toads that have solidified their physical form have become much smarter, roughly equivalent to a 10-year-old human. Just as ordinary people can understand and learn things, they can now learn and understand them as well.

From this perspective, breeding these toads seems to have great potential.

(End of this chapter)