Chapter 140: Chapter 138: Mimic Worm_l
Translator: 549690339 I
Soon, the three of them gathered together.
“I’ve observed the growth of some of the Water Ling Peaches. There are no abnormalities from what I can see.”
The average-looking Yan Ping spoke in a low voice.
“Indeed, there’s no sign of any worm damage.”
Lu Xuan nodded in agreement.
“Is there a protective array set up around the Zhang Family’s Spirit Plant Garden?”
Senior Sister Yao asked Zhang Yu Tang.
“That… isn’t really feasible.”
The elderly man with white hair shook his head.
“There are hundreds of Water Ling Peach trees planted in this swampland, covering dozens of acres. A low-rank Protective Array cannot cover such a large Spirit Plant Garden.”
“As for high-rank formations, even with the financial and actual strength of the Zhang Family, we cannot afford such a formation.”
“Aside from that, the Water Ling Peaches are growing in such a unique environment, where the swamp and lakes interconnect with each other. We simply can’t prevent all types of strange worms from intruding.”
“Therefore, we have only set up some simple traps in the Spirit Plant Garden to fend off cultivators or water beasts. On normal days, there are Zhang Family cultivators on patrol.”
“These are the defensive measures for the Water Ling Peaches.”
Hearing the elderly man’s explanation, Lu Xuan and his companions nodded in understanding.
“Does the Zhang Family have any live strange worms on hand?”
Lu Xuan asked Zhang Yu Tang.
The old man called over a middle-aged Cultivator of the “Qi Practitioner Intermediate Level,” asked him a few questions, and then shook his head.
“All the discovered strange worms were dealt with on-site. None were kept alive.”
“If Friend Lu wants to capture a live strange worm, you can try with Cheng Ning in the Spirit Plant Garden.
He often hangs out in the Spirit Plant Garden and has a good knowledge of the areas where strange worms are most likely to appear.”
“That would be great.”
After Lu Xuan and Senior Sister Yao shared their thoughts, they entered deeper into the peach forest under the guidance of a young man.
“Senior Lu, are we trying to catch a live strange worm now?”
On the way, a curious expression appeared on Zhang Cheng Ning’s handsome face.
“Yes. We didn’t find any problems with the Water Ling Peaches, so it’s best to catch a live strange worm for further examination.”
Lu Xuan spoke gently to the young man.
Of course, his main goal was not just that. Capturing strange worms would allow him to understand their detailed conditions through breeding and then take the necessary countermeasures.
“This area is likely to be infested with those weird bugs.”
The handsome teenager, Zhang Cheng Ning, led Lu Xuan into the depths of the peach forest and pointed ahead.
Upon hearing this, Lu Xuan nodded, walked over to a Spirit Peach Tree and searched carefully on the tree’s bark and leaves with his Spiritual Sense.
After a while, there was no movement at all.
Lu Xuan had to change his target and shift his attention to another Spirit Peach Tree.
Suddenly, a branch of the Spirit Peach Tree attacked Lu Xuan like a poisonous snake. Prepared for this, Lu Xuan circulated his Spiritual Power, trapping the attacking branch with something that resembled green spiritual vines.
“So this is what it looks like. No wonder it’s almost unnoticeable.”
The strange worm in front of him struggled constantly. It looked identical to the branches of the Water Ling Peach Tree. When it clung to the tree, it seemed to merge into one, making it extremely hard to detect. Only when it attempted to attack could the shape of the strange worm be clearly observed.
A flash of red light passed, fixing the strange worm to the branch of the Spirit Peach Tree.
“Which part of the Spirit Peach does this strange worm consume?”
Lu Xuan asked the young man.
“Ah, I recall the tree branches of the Spirit Peach where the strange worm was discovered were hollow. So, they probably consume the branches of the Spirit Peach.”
“Good.”
Lu Xuan cut off a small piece of a Spirit Peach branch and placed it near the strange worm’s mouth.
The strange worm, under the effect of the red threaded needle, struggled for a while, but soon became calm. The patterns on its body quietly changed. If it wasn’t for the red threaded needle remaining the same, one might assume that the strange worm had escaped.
“Senior Lu, what’s the intent behind feeding the strange worm a piece of Spirit Peach branch?”
“Knowing your enemy and yourself leads to victory in a hundred battles. Only by understanding the strange worm’s habits and condition can we find the right way to deal with it.”
Lu Xuan responded casually, not taking his eyes off the small piece of Spirit Peach branch placed near the strange worm’s mouth.
Soon, the piece of the Spirit Peach branch slowly disappeared from his sight while the strange worm maintained its excellent camouflage.
Lu Xuan, however, no longer cared about its ability.
His mind was focused on the strange worm. Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind.
[Mimic Worm, a first-grade strange worm, has a low reproductive capacity. Its eggs parasitize Spiritual Plants, and the hatched larvae feed on the branches and leaves of the Spiritual Plant. As they mature, they slowly mimic the shape of the parasitic Spiritual Plant, which makes them extremely difficult to detect.]
“They can mimic the shape of the parasitic Spiritual Plant during their growth? That’s interesting.”
Lu Xuan couldn’t help but marvel at the wonders of the Mimic Worm.
“It parasitizes the Water Ling Peach and it will grow to look like a branch of the Water Ling Peach. If it parasitized other Spiritual Plants, it would presumably grow to appear like the corresponding Spiritual Plant.”
“It truly becomes you, slowly.”
Lu Xuan, holding the almost dead Mimic Worm, returned to the crowd under the guidance of the handsome young man.
Senior Sister Yao, Yan Ping, and the cultivators of the Zhang Family were gathered together, discussing something in low voices.
On the damp ground, several Mimic Worms were displayed. At first glance, they appeared to be several branches of the Water Ling Peach.
“Junior Brother Lu, you’re back? Did you discover anything?”
“I caught a strange worm, but other than that, I didn’t find anything new.”
Lu Xuan hid the information he had learned and didn’t directly tell Senior Sister Yao and the others.
“We also caught a few together over here. It took notable effort.”
“These strange worms are indeed great at hiding, so it’s hard to confront them at their source.”
“Currently, the main issue is to identify the species of the worm, understand its details, and thereby find an easy way to locate or exterminate them.”
The beautiful woman softly spoke.
Lu Xuan and Yan Ping nodded in agreement.
“It seems that these strange worms can disguise themselves to look like Spiritual Plants. Maybe we can find a breakthrough in there.”
Lu Xuan suddenly voiced his thoughts.
Although he had already figured out the species and way of life of the Mimic Worm, he still did not know how to deal with them.
He was not in a hurry to share the information about the Mimic Worm with Senior Sister Yao. The large-scale infestation in the Zhang Family seemed to be more complicated than what appeared on the surface.
“The Mimic Worm has a low reproductive capacity, so it should be difficult for it to produce a large number of eggs. However, in this area of Water Ling Peaches, there’s clearly a large number of Mimic Worms.”
“So, were so many Mimic Worms produced naturally, or were they caused by human intervention?”
Lu Xuan silently pondered over this while planning to investigate the Water Ling Peaches parasitized by the Mimic Worms for solutions to the worm problem.
“I need to find an opportunity to dig out a parasitized Spirit Peach Tree and see what the specific problem is and how to solve it..”