Just as Tong Zhanyan finished tidying up, a knock sounded at the door. Tian Xinqing and the others returned.

“Here.” Tian Xinqing nonchalantly sucked on his nutrient solution, “Strawberry flavor.”

Hearing those two words instantly brought back the memory of that saccharin-sweet rush to Tong Zhanyan’s head. He grimaced painfully, “Thanks…”

He should have warned him.

“Don’t like it?” Tian Xinqing was puzzled. This new flavor was quite popular—when they went out, other flavors still had plenty left, but this one was almost sold out.

“Too sweet.” Tong Zhanyan forced himself to down it in one gulp, looking as if he were drinking some poison that would rot his intestines.

“Isn’t that how strawberry tastes?”

Tong Zhanyan desperately wanted to say no, but the original body had never had the chance to taste real strawberries.

“Come to think of it, I once tried a radish—a real radish. Tiny, bright red, called a cherry radish. That crisp, refreshing sweetness… mmm…” 

Tian Xinqing shook his head as he spoke, his expression lingering in delight.

Tong Zhanyan, whose taste buds had endured a month of torment, couldn’t help but swallow hard upon hearing this.

”What a reaction…” Su Yanran was slightly surprised by Tong Zhanyan’s response, but then shrugged it off. No one would refuse the chance to try real food.

According to those who’ve tasted it, the nutrient solution they were drinking now was practically urine compared to those things…

Su Yanran glanced down at the half-empty bag of nutrient solution in his hand and felt a wave of nausea wash over him.

“Alright, enough chatting. Let’s get some sleep.” Su Yanran downed the last of the solution in one gulp and tossed the empty bag into the cardboard box by Tong Zhanyan’s door, where they stored trash.

As he moved, he glanced inside the room. The box was empty, but he saw nothing inside.

Su Yanran didn’t pay it much mind.

Su Yanran and the other person returned to their room. Tong Zhanyan closed the door.

The afternoon class was still Devil King’s spirit beast training session, but it seemed he’d genuinely given up. He didn’t make things difficult for Tong Zhanyan at all that entire afternoon.

Being ignored didn’t make Tong Zhanyan feel any better. Though Devil King’s words were like poison, the skills he taught them were real.

Mutant beasts could breach the protective barrier at any moment. Even if he intended to survive through cultivation, combat would inevitably be necessary.

As dusk approached, the class bell rang. The moment Devil King turned to leave, Tian Xinqing and his group collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath.

“Are you okay?” Tong Zhanyan approached.

Tian Xinqing’s eyes rolled back; he didn’t even have the strength to speak.

Su Yanran was in better physical shape than him, but this intense training had taken its toll on her, too.

“Why don’t you guys head back first? I’ll go to the cafeteria and get some nutrient solution,” Tong Zhanyan suggested.

“Strawberry…” Tian Xinqing insisted stubbornly.

“Same.”

“Tong Zhanyan…” Several others looked at him hopefully, too drained to make another trip to the cafeteria.

Their entire class lived in the same building.

Tong Zhanyan resignedly asked, “What do you want?”

“Braised beef.”

“Plain.”

“Pickled peppers…”

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

After jotting down the orders, Tong Zhanyan set off alone toward the cafeteria under the expectant gazes of his classmates.

It was peak meal time, and the cafeteria was packed. It took Tong Zhanyan a while to gather everything.

Carrying a large bag of nutrition drinks, Tong Zhanyan didn’t head straight back to the dorms. Instead, he took a detour to the small grove behind the cafeteria.

Though called a grove, it was really just a dozen or so trees—common landscaping trees found anywhere.

This spot was close to the school’s perimeter wall, relatively secluded and seldom visited. Right now, there wasn’t a soul around.

Tong Zhanyan pulled a plastic bag from his pocket and began gathering leaves.

Plant ash and decaying leaves made excellent fertilizer, and mixing them into the soil also helped improve aeration.

He had researched earlier—these trees were widely planted precisely because their infection rate was low.

The seller had included some fertilizer, but Tong Zhanyan didn’t know its composition, so he preferred to prepare his own.

The planting soil was specially purified, so Tong Zhanyan carefully selected only clean leaves to collect.

Half an hour later, when Tong Zhanyan returned, Tian Xinqing and the others—who had just endured intense training—were already famished, drifting restlessly along the corridor.

Spotting him, they immediately swarmed toward him.

After a brief commotion, Tong Zhanyan returned to his room.

Closing the door, his first act was to inspect the tomato seedlings on the balcony.

Though only an afternoon had passed, the seedlings remained as sickly as before.

Tong Zhanyan went back inside, picked up his terminal, and checked the livestream. An entire afternoon had passed, yet the anticipated flood of viewers never materialized. There were only a pitiful five clicks, and not a single comment, follower, or message.

Tong Zhanyan even began to wonder if those five clicks were ones he had made himself when setting up the livestream earlier.

Tong Zhanyan felt a bit disappointed.

He quickly grasped the underlying reason.

Even if it was a trending topic, that didn’t mean a new account like his would instantly go viral. Especially when compared to other livestreams, his five sickly tomato seedlings were admittedly rather uninspiring.

Getting traffic would be a long and arduous journey.

Once he accepted this, Tong Zhanyan stopped dwelling on it and turned his attention back to the bag of leaves he’d brought home.

He divided the leaves into two portions. One part remained in the bag, mixed with soil from one of the two boxes he’d purchased. He added water, mixed it thoroughly, and sealed the bag.

This natural decomposition method was rather inefficient, but it was all he could manage for now.

For the remaining leaves, Tong Zhanyan activated the room’s ventilation system and set them burning in a metal basin.

Though the leaves seemed plentiful, they reduced to a mere handful of ash.

Once cooled, Tong Zhanyan carefully collected the ashes.

Before, he wouldn’t have given this much thought, but now he treasured it.

After finishing his tasks, Tong Zhanyan glanced at his livestream feed before retiring early.

Over the next few days, Tong Zhanyan visited the small grove whenever he had free time, trying to gather as much plant ash as possible for future needs.

Meanwhile, Tong Zhanyan also discovered why the Devil King was ignoring him—the King seemed to be in a foul mood.

The rest of the class noticed this, too. Everyone speculated about the reason while secretly hoping his mood would improve soon.

While ignoring Tong Zhanyan, the Devil King relentlessly tormented the rest of the class.

Five days later, just as the entire class was on the verge of resenting Tong Zhanyan, the tomato seedlings finally emerged from their acclimation period.

The situation was far from ideal.

Two plants had yellowed even more severely. Two others remained wilted, though their stems had barely straightened. The last one looked even more lifeless than before, as if on the verge of dying.

Tong Zhanyan couldn’t help but feel heartbroken, though the outcome was somewhat expected.

Planting must start with the “seedlings.” With such malnourished specimens, he couldn’t miraculously reverse their fate overnight. For now, all he could do was try to compensate.

Tong Zhanyan snapped off the first set of true leaves and all side shoots below the first flower bud on each of the five seedlings.

With two more snips, he trimmed away most of the buds that had barely emerged, leaving each plant with no more than two potential flowering buds.

Tomatoes have strong branching capabilities—every node can branch out, and each branch can flower. With sufficient nutrients, a single plant could bear hundreds of fruits.

But in their current malnourished state, without control, it’s doubtful they’ll even survive, let alone bear fruit.

After finishing these tasks, Tong Zhanyan took out the wood ash he’d prepared earlier. Wearing gloves, he carefully mixed some into the soil.

The correct method for applying wood ash is actually to mix it directly into the soil from the start. This not only alters the soil’s pH level but also improves aeration, continuously providing nutrients throughout the plant’s growth period.

But now the seedlings are too weak. A complete soil replacement carries a high risk of killing them, so this makeshift approach is the only option.

After mixing the ash, Tong Zhanyan fetched two buckets of water and submerged the seedlings in their pots for their first watering.

The best watering method for potted plants is immersion.

Watering from above often causes water to drain straight through the pot and soil gaps, making thorough saturation difficult.

Finally, Tong Zhanyan unpacked the light fixture he’d never opened since purchasing it. He adjusted it to the solar spectrum he recalled from memory and aimed it directly at the five seedlings.

The soaking process took some time, so Tong Zhanyan went straight to take his afternoon nap.

Upon waking, Tong Zhanyan had just finished placing the tomato pots back onto the tray when a knock sounded at the door.

“Isn’t the Devil King’s class this afternoon?” Tian Xinqing rubbed her sore arms, which hadn’t eased even after the nap, and led the way downstairs.

“No,” Tong Zhanyan replied.

“Good.” Tian Xinqing exhaled in relief.

“But tomorrow morning is entirely his.”

Tian Xinqing’s face instantly twisted in misery, her gaze toward Tong Zhanyan thick with resentment.

Tong Zhanyan sighed helplessly.

“I heard Qing Jiyue and the others are coming back.” Su Yanran had absolutely no desire to discuss anything related to the Devil King right now.

Qing Jiyue and Gu Yinfeng—one a rising star who’d been born with an S-class Spirit Beast, the other equally renowned as a prodigy. Since the start of the semester, they’d been the talk of the school.

Their class paid more attention to Qing Jiyue, since he’d been assigned to their homeroom.

“Any word on when?” Tian Xinqing perked up instantly, eager to meet this rising star.

“Should be within the next couple of days,” Su Yanran replied, a hint of anticipation in her voice. “Wonder if I’ll get a chance to spar with him.”

“Forget it,” Tian Xinqing dismissed. “He probably won’t even attend our classes. What we’re learning—does he even need that?”

Born into one of the Four Great Families, Qing Jiyue certainly wasn’t like them, knowing nothing. He’d undoubtedly had private tutors for ages.

“Then why is he coming to school?” Su Yanran couldn’t understand.

“Who knows,” Tian Xinqing shrugged. “Maybe he just wants to enjoy school life?”

Tian Xinqing’s guess wasn’t entirely implausible.

The problem of frenzy had grown increasingly severe over the years. The more powerful one was at using spirit beasts, the greater the chance of falling into frenzy. As guardians of the protective shield, the Four Great Families naturally faced an especially dire situation.

“I heard the current Qing Family Head started showing signs of trouble a few years ago.” The excitement faded from Tian Xinqing’s face, replaced by a weighty expression.

“But he’s only in his forties?” Su Yanran exclaimed in surprise.

Born in the Inner City to a merchant family, Tian Xinqing possessed far more knowledge than Tong Zhanyan and Su Yanran, who hailed from the outer city.

“Hmm…” Tian Xinqing offered a bitter smile.

Rampage was incurable. Even long-term consumption of special crops could only prevent further deterioration.

Once the frenzy begins, even if one never uses Spirit Beasts again, complete beastification is inevitable—and it usually happens quickly.

“Qing Jiyue seems to be our age?” Su Yanran’s eyes also darkened with bitterness.

“Yes, eighteen.”

Su Yanran fell silent.

If the current Qing Family Head had already begun the process, he might undergo complete beastification within three to five years. By then, Qing Jiyue would have to shoulder the entire Qing Family.

The more one uses their Spirit Beasts, the greater the risk of frenzy. If Qing Jiyue took over the Qing Family, he would inevitably…

Qing Jiyue was only in his teens.

This was too cruel.

Listening to their conversation, Tong Zhanyan’s thoughts drifted elsewhere.

Students from the same class were usually assigned to the same dorm building. Qing Jiyue hadn’t checked in yet, and his roommate was nowhere to be seen either…

“Qing Jiyue isn’t going to be staying in my room, is he?” Tong Zhanyan blurted out.

“Ha…” Tian Xinqing chuckled. “No way! Our dorm environment is decent enough, but it’d be a downgrade for someone from the Four Great Families. Even if they were assigned to yours, they’d probably upgrade to a single room.”

Sidi Military Academy was vast, and dorms were always in high demand, so many students paid extra to apply for single rooms.

Few freshmen did this, but it wasn’t unheard of.

Finding this reasonable, Tong Zhanyan relaxed.

The dormitory was a communal space, and he currently lacked the means to rent a private plot. If the other party refused to let him grow vegetables in the dorm, it would be troublesome.