9: Iron-eating ants in the southern suburbs of Huacheng

The team dispatched by the Flower City City Defense Force quickly found the returning academy group and escorted them back to Flower City.

Although they encountered two small Yao Beast tides along the way, they fortunately emerged unscathed and successfully repelled them.

By the time the group arrived in Flower City, dusk had already fallen.

The City Defense Force returned to their camp with the bodies of the Fallen Demon Tamer and the Magic Sound Brain Worm, and the students also went home after a few words from their teachers.

"Great God Xie, I'm heading back now!" Mo Yu waved her hand, walking briskly out of the campus.

Xie Ning smiled and nodded, then left, leaving some students staring in place.

Who would have thought that Xie Ning, who they once thought of as crazy, would have such a shining moment? But they couldn't say anything, because their lives were saved by Xie Ning.

After the students left one after another, the teacher leading the team, dragging his injured body, also went to the principal's office... Xie Ning, who left school, did not go home immediately, but went to the Demon Tamers Beast Merchant Guild.

Looking at the price of the Materials at the Merchant Guild, his mouth twitched. His entire assets were only about 10,000 yuan, barely enough to buy the detoxifying Materials, but after buying them, life would become a problem.

"Forget it. I'll help this Little Wolf Cub first. After all, treating illnesses is important..." Xie Ning patted the Little Wolf Cub in his arms, exasperatedly tapping it once, then looked at the female attendant at the counter, "Hello, please give me one catty of Snake Tongue Flower, two Spider Grasses, three strands of Taiji Qi, one Anti-Insect Fruit, and..."

"Thank you for your patronage, that will be a total of 8,900 yuan."

"...Okay."

Xie Ning's heart was bleeding.

Damn it, I killed so many Yao Beasts, but didn't get a single one. And you said the rewards would be distributed at school. Captain Wang, you're really stingy.

A surge of resentment turned into a sigh.

No wonder the world always says that Demon Tamer is a rich man's profession. Anything related to Demon Tamers Beast is not cheap. Even detoxifying Materials used by Black Iron Rank Demon Tamers can cost nearly ten thousand yuan once bought.

"It seems I need to find a way to earn some money."

As Xie Ning walked, he came back to his senses and found himself at the Cultivation Association.

The Cultivation Association, one of the associations under the Monster Taming Alliance, is mainly responsible for the evolution, treatment, and consultation services for Demon Tamers Beast.

Speaking of which, although Xie Ning had become a Demon Tamer, he had never been to the Cultivation Association.

Thinking this, Xie Ning walked into the Cultivation Association.

The interior of the association was very large, with the first floor alone being as big as a stadium. Crystal screens above occasionally interspersed some Demon Tamers BeastPopular Science information among a large number of advertisements.

A small number of people were on the right, in front of a huge electronic task board. Even from a distance, Xie Ning could clearly see the tasks written on it, either for evolution or treatment, and the rewards for each task were not low, making Xie Ning's heart pound.

On the left, there was an Information Tree, a type of Demon Tamers Beast that combined technology and biology, without combat capabilities, but capable of providing the latest information. People often gathered around the Information Tree, hoping to get first-hand information.

This was no exception, as nearly seventy percent of the Demon Tamers were watching in front of the Information Tree.

At the reception counter in the front, there were also a few people, one of whom was a fat Middle-aged Man, saying something to a Girl next to him, but the Girl ignored him.

The Girl's back looked somewhat familiar, but Xie Ning couldn't remember who it was. He went to the counter and said to the receptionist, "Hello, I want to sign up for the Breeder qualification exam."

Hearing the sound, the few people turned to look. The Girl who was being chatted up by the fat Middle-aged Man was first stunned, then smiled and said, "Great God Xie, I didn't expect to see you here, what a coincidence!"

This Girl was none other than Mo Yu, whom he had only met less than a day ago.

Xie Ning smiled, "What a coincidence, I didn't expect you to be here either."

"Yeah, I'm here to sign up for the Breeder qualification exam. Today is the last day, and if I miss it, my sister will be angry," Mo Yu said, sticking out her tongue.

"The last day, huh? Then I'm really lucky to make it in time."

Xie Ning and Mo Yu were chatting happily, but someone was not pleased.

"Kid, do you understand breeding?" The fat Middle-aged Man looked at Xie Ning with dissatisfaction.

Xie Ning couldn't be bothered with this person who was inexplicably looking for trouble. He took the form handed to him by the receptionist and began to fill it out.

"Hey! What's your attitude? I asked if you know how to breed! Can't you understand human speech or something?"

"Li Yongfu, don't go too far! This is my classmate!" Mo Yu shouted at the fat Middle-aged Man.

At Mo Yu's shout, the fat Middle-aged Man, Li Yongfu, immediately reined in his temper, puffed out his big belly, put on a gentlemanly facade, and said with a friendly expression, "Mo Yu, you little Girl, I'm your uncle, you should call me uncle, you know? Besides, I'm doing this for your own good. You haven't truly experienced society yet, you don't know how sinister people's hearts can be. Some people may seem like students, but if they are arrogant, their upbringing might be problematic."

Xie Ning, who was filling out the form at the desk, paused his hand, gave Li Yongfu a cold glance, then turned to Mo Yu: "Your relative?"

"Of course not," Mo Yu whispered into Xie Ning's ear, "This is Li Zhi's uncle, the uncle of that Li Zhi who challenged you. I've seen him a few times at my family's breeding shop. Relying on his brother being the leader of the Madman Hunter Group, he idles away his days, always chasing women. I heard he loves to nitpick in the group and has developed bad habits."

Hearing this, Xie Ning understood a little. The other party's words had already annoyed Xie Ning, and since he was Li Zhi's elder, he was even more displeased. Although the Madman Hunter Group was powerful, he wasn't afraid. He looked at Li Yongfu and said indifferently, "My upbringing taught me to be polite to people, not to a ball."

"Who are you calling a ball? You brat, I think you're asking for a beating!" Li Yongfu rolled up his sleeves, ready to fight, but was glared at by the counter staff, and his Aura immediately weakened.

Seeing that he couldn't resort to violence, Li Yongfu set his sights on the form Xie Ning was filling out.

"Kid, it seems you're also here to take the Elementary qualification exam. If you've got the guts, let's compete tomorrow and see who's better!"

Xie Ning pursed his lips, a harmless smile on his face, and said, "Someone who's already so old and still hasn't passed the Elementary certificate, I don't think that's necessary."

"What a sharp tongue. We'll see about that tomorrow! Let's see if your breeding skills are even half as good as your mouth!"

With that, Li Yongfu lost his interest in flirting, huffed, and walked away.

At this point, Xie Ning had also finished filling out the form and handed it to the receptionist. After chatting with Mo Yu for a few more moments, he left the counter and went to the Information Tree on the left.

He noticed that the most prominent branch on the Information Tree wasn't about any hot news; instead, it was all about one particular matter.

"July 31st News: Five Iron-Eating Ants sighted again in the southern suburbs of Flower City. Netizens call for them to be roasted!"

"July 30th News: Citizen Chen and his family attacked by Iron-Eating Ants, only one escaped."

"July 30th News: According to the City Defense Bureau spokesperson, troops will be deployed for a large-scale extermination of Iron-Eating Ants. During this period, all citizens are advised not to go to the southern suburbs."

"July 29th News: Iron-Eating Ant swarm..."

Unexpectedly, just after the Yao Beast tide, Flower City was once again facing an attack from Iron-Eating Ant swarms.

But according to Xie Ning's understanding, Iron-Eating Ant swarms are not very aggressive Yao Beasts; they usually stay in the Jīn Shí Mountain Range, far from human populations.

Why would they suddenly come to human city territory?

Although puzzled, Xie Ning didn't take it to heart. After all, the Iron-Eating Ant's strength lies not in individual power, but in numbers. A few scattered Iron-Eating Ants posed no threat to Flower City.

After watching for a while and finding no valuable news, Xie Ning left the Cultivation Association and returned home.

Back home, finally alone, Xie Ning also summoned his Supersonic Mantis.

The Supersonic Mantis currently attracts too much attention; walking with it on the road would inevitably draw stares.

After letting the Supersonic Mantis move freely, Xie Ning placed the Little Wolf Cub on a chair and began to prepare the detoxifying Materials. Soon, a faint, refreshing scent wafted out.

Smelling this scent, the Little Wolf Cub, in a daze, moved its limbs, shifting towards the direction the scent was coming from, much like crawling forward, not forgetting to let out tender 'ao ao' sounds from its mouth.

Seeing this scene, Xie Ning almost burst out laughing. He walked over, picked up the Little Wolf Cub, and slowly placed it into the medicinal liquid.

The medicinal liquid barely covered the Little Wolf Cub's entire body, its head propped up high, allowing it to still breathe.

The Supersonic Mantis nearby, driven by curiosity, also squatted down and gently tapped the Little Wolf Cub with its bladed arm, eliciting a series of 'hmph hmph' protests.

Xie Ning then fed some other ointment to the Little Wolf Cub, and only after watching it swallow it little by little did he feel relieved.

Soon, seeing the Little Wolf Cub's status change to [Detoxifying], he finally relaxed and went to wash up.

In the large villa, he was alone. If it weren't for the Supersonic Mantis's company and the occasional 'hmph' sounds from the Little Wolf Cub, the night would have felt much colder.

After washing up, Xie Ning lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling, recalling the day's events.

First, evolving the Supersonic Mantis, then saving the Little Wolf Cub, and then encountering the Yao Beast tide... Xie Ning realized that with the activation of the Yao Beast Evolution System, his life seemed to be heading down a different path... While thinking, Xie Ning unknowingly drifted into dreamland...