"Luckily, I know a not-so-secret secret, otherwise, I wouldn't be confident in growing the Yellow Seed Gourd," Li Cunxu muttered to himself as he stared at the Yellow Seed Gourd buried in the yellow soil.
This not-so-secret secret is that the special 'soil' required for the growth of a Seed Gourd is related to the color corresponding to the gourd. For example, the 'soil' needed for a Yellow Seed Gourd might be yellow earth, yellow wood, yellow copper, gold, yellow jade, gold-inlaid jade dew—anything related to the color yellow.
Similarly, the 'soil' for a Blue Seed Gourd could be blue seawater, blue freshwater, blue soil, blue gold, sapphire, blue heavenly water—anything related to the color blue.
Why is it called a not-so-secret secret? Because many high-ranking individuals know about it, but ordinary people do not.
Moreover, the required soil is related to the gourd's abilities. For instance, the last Yellow Seed Gourd grown was cultivated using 'yellow stone' as the soil, hence named the 'Yellowstone Gourd.' Its ability was to absorb yellow stone, enhancing the gourd's weight and hardness. A Yellowstone Gourd weighing hundreds of thousands of tons could crush a King instantly.
Another example is the Yellow Seed Gourd grown before that, which used 'the golden light of the sun' as its soil. Named the 'Golden Light Gourd,' its ability was to circulate golden light, converting sunlight into 'Golden Light Fluid.' Consuming this fluid allowed for rapid escape, making it a divine artifact for fleeing.
The most intriguing aspect of Seed Gourds is that each one grown by different individuals is unique, with varying abilities. However, the difficulty of growing them is also significant.
The next day, when the Yellow Seed Gourd planted in the yellow soil failed to sprout, Li Cunxu knew it had failed and decided to try a different 'soil.' This time, the yellow 'soil' was soybeans.
The final day of the Strongest Newcomer Cup's championship had arrived. Yesterday, the six finalists were narrowed down to three. Today's format was a round-robin among the three, with the one winning two matches becoming the champion.
Before the match, someone specifically instructed Li Cunxu to take it slow, avoiding instant kills if possible, as it would make the match less entertaining for the audience.
Li Cunxu responded unhappily, "You say not to instant kill, but what if I end up losing because of that?"
The supervisor quickly replied, "There will be compensation. As long as you don't instant kill, regardless of whether you win or lose, you'll receive a portion of elite-level resources."
"Make it a rare-level resource, or I won't agree," Li Cunxu urged. "Hurry up, I need to get on stage."
"Alright."
"Don't go back on your word, especially with the recording," Li Cunxu said, shaking his phone. The supervisor's face darkened, cursing under his breath about how cunning kids these days were.
Walking down the deserted contestant corridor, Li Cunxu sneered. The organizers told me to take it slow to make the match more entertaining? That's a load of nonsense! An instant kill, taking out an opponent in a second, wouldn't be entertaining for the audience? When the audience doesn't know much about the contestants, what they love to see is a one-sided, crushing victory.
Moreover, the organizers have signed a fair and just contract. They wouldn't do anything that could affect a contestant's performance or the fairness of the match.
"It must be the families of the other two contestants pulling strings," Li Cunxu thought. "Maybe they don't want their kids to lose too embarrassingly, or perhaps they're trying to make me hesitant and disrupt my performance, giving their kids a chance to win."
Whatever the reason, Li Cunxu didn't care.
Just a petty trick, it's useless against someone as experienced as him.
The opponent in the first match was Zhang Shuihuo from the Yin Yang Zhang Family, and his Pet Beast was the Icefire Sword Rider.
The Icefire Sword Rider, a dual-element Pet Beast of ice and fire, is a unique creature from the far north.
Clad in a dark blue ice armor with blue flames flickering at the joints, it wields an ice sword that scatters snowflakes in its left hand and a blazing fire sword in its right, looking incredibly dashing.
Li Cunxu was green with envy.
If only he had enough Contract Slots, he would have definitely contracted one.
Zhang Shuihuo had remained silent since stepping onto the stage, which struck Li Cunxu as odd. Why wasn't he saying anything?
Every member of the Yin Yang Zhang Family is a chatterbox, exceptionally skilled at sarcastic trash talk, often infuriating their opponents to the point of losing their temper.
Their most famous feat was when the Zhengfan Wang of the Zhang Family managed to enrage a Monarch so much that the latter fainted before the fight even began.
Zhang Shuihuo also loved to talk trash, but today he refrained, fearing embarrassment.
Imagine spouting a bunch of trash talk only to be defeated by a Slime from the opponent's side—how humiliating would that be?
The referee announced, "The match begins."
"Icefire Sword Rider, sharpen your blades."
The Icefire Sword Rider rubbed its swords together, sparks flying as the blades grew sharper.
Zhang Shuihuo's eyes turned one white and one black, an eerie sight.
"Yang Spirit General, possess!"
A Yang Spirit General radiating a faint golden light merged into the Icefire Sword Rider, significantly boosting its aura.
"Xiao Ruan, create a field advantage, let the Poison Mist spread across the arena."
While the Icefire Sword Rider was enhancing itself, purple Poison Mist had already covered half the battlefield.
"Icefire Sword Rider, charge in, use Whirling Sword Wind."
The Icefire Sword Rider spun like a top, its sharp sword wind dispersing the Poison Mist.
The sword wind attacked from all angles, and Xiao Ruan, hidden in the mist, was hit. The wind shattered the Constant Light Armor and struck Xiao Ruan's ironized body, leaving a faint mark.
The commentator paused for a second, then exclaimed excitedly.
"Oh my! Am I seeing this right? I actually spotted the Sacred Lotus Carp's exclusive racial skill, [Constant Light Armor], on a Slime! Although the Light Armor is weak and shatters upon contact, as we all know, Constant Light Armor is a growth skill. It strengthens with sunlight exposure, and given time, the armor's strength would be immeasurable."
"Azure Lotus Sword Blade, Constant Light Armor—this tiny Slime has mastered two Holy Skills. Could it be a Holy-attribute Slime?"
Elder Li Shihuo, watching the live broadcast, immediately stood up.
"Constant Light Armor? How did a Slime learn this racial skill? Could it be another Sacred Meal? But many family members have used fish scales for Sacred Meals, and none of them have mastered this skill, let alone two."
The battle continued.
Li Cunxu thought to himself, "Xiao Ruan isn't good at dealing with high-speed, high-attack Pet Beasts like the Icefire Sword Rider. We need to end this quickly."
The Icefire Sword Rider is akin to an assassin, while Xiao Ruan is like a mage. Assassins excel at taking out fragile, long-range mages.
"Azure Lotus Sword Blade."
The commentator shouted excitedly, "It's here, the Azure Lotus Sword Blade has appeared! Can the Icefire Sword Rider withstand this ultimate attack?"
Zhang Shuihuo quickly commanded, "Fire Breaking Sword."
Fire Breaking Sword, a fire-element Silver Skill, seeks out the weakness in the enemy's skill and shatters it with a single strike.
The fire sword's flames surged as it struck the weak point of the Azure Lotus Sword Blade. After a two-second standoff, the green glow dissipated into the air.
The commentator explained, "The Icefire Sword Rider used the Fire Breaking Sword, which specifically counters wood-based skills, successfully neutralizing the Azure Lotus Sword Blade."
Li Cunxu narrowed his eyes. The Icefire Sword Rider's Fire Breaking Sword seemed quite unpolished, as if he had only recently learned it. This skill was obscure and rarely used, with few practitioners. It was likely learned specifically to counter the Azure Lotus Sword Blade.
"Continue with the Azure Lotus Sword Blade."
Xiao Ruan swung the Azure Lotus Sword Blade once more, and the Icefire Sword Rider countered it again with the Ice Breaking Sword.
The Ye
llow Seed Gourd requires different types of soil to grow various gourds.
For example: the Yellowstone Gourd, the Golden Light Gourd, the Golden Sword Gourd...
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