The guardian beastmen of the storm will always follow the storm.
Early morning, clan square.
The orcs of summer, having finished their fruit harvest, are excitedly decorating the place in preparation for a new "Harvest Festival" bonfire party.
A lamp hangs above the entrance to the clan square, extending along the long corridor to its end. Long scrolls, resembling screens, line both sides of the corridor. The left scroll recounts events that occurred in the two settlements while Jiang Yunlan was away from the clan, while the right scroll describes the events that happened to Jiang Yunlan and her clansmen after they went out.
This was the fastest way she could think of to familiarize the orcs with their habitat or the contributions made by their outings. After all, the contribution rankings were already posted, and they needed to understand why the top-ranked orcs were at the top.
When the orcs finish reading the history and enter the clan square, they will see potted plants placed below a high platform surrounded by greenery.
The platform is the Sveta platform, and the plants are those cultivated by the beastmen who participated in the Sveta assessment.
The orcs cultivated a variety of plants, some with all sorts of appearances. But some orcs failed to grow their plants at all; the tops of their pots were empty, looking pitiful compared to the thriving plants around them.
Maple Red darted around the square, dabbling in all sorts of tasks, but whenever she passed by the plants below the platform, she would always cast envious glances at them.
On the day of the campfire gathering, she arrived at the clan square with Lan and couldn't help but wail to her companions: "Sveta's test results are announced today! When will we orcs who asked Freya for her blessing find out what the test was about?!"
Cotton, Grey Honey, and Ah Bai, who also possess the potential to control ice and snow, quickly offered her a few words of comfort.
“Freya is an ice and snow elf, so it’s very likely that the assessment will be arranged during the snow season,” Grey Honey said, offering her guess that calmed Maple Red down.
Jiang Yunlan, with 022 above her head and accompanied by two elves, listened to their conversation with a smile, saying nothing. She knew Freya's arrangements but revealed nothing. When the orcs couldn't help but ask her at first and received this answer, they didn't try to get any more information from her.
Maple Syrup, Antelope Grass, and other beastmen, unable to accept the power of ice and wood, were unable to participate in the assessment and could empathize with Maple Red's feelings. They also wanted to know when they would be able to participate in the assessment.
The orcs who remained in their mountain habitat were unable to ask the two elves for blessings. They would only find out whether they had the potential to master these two natural forces when Lan took the elves to the mountains.
Walking through the record corridor, Jiang Yunlan looked up to find Hati and Heitu.
These two orcs possessed the potential to wield the power of wood, and she specifically instructed them to remember to switch patrol times. The daytime of the bonfire gathering was the time for Sveta to choose the final creature to bless.
Her gaze swept across half of the clan square, where she spotted Hati waving lazily at her, and Heitu waving vigorously.
"Lan, we're here." Hati said, bringing Heitu beside him to Lan's side.
"It's good that you've arrived. How did the morning patrol and guard duty go?" Jiang Yunlan walked a few steps to the two orcs who were close to her, and led them towards the high platform surrounded by plants as she spoke.
Hati blended in naturally among the orcs, including Maple Syrup, and listlessly raised his eyelids.
Hei Tu listened to her question, gave a brief report on the situation around the habitat, and then said, "We have already handed over the work to Captain Yan Duoyu and the others. The orcs in the team who are currently undergoing assessment will all be here before the campfire party ends."
Sveta's test has three stages, and the final stage is to successfully cultivate the seed provided by Sveta. Sveta's test is very difficult to pass, and only fourteen orcs have survived to this stage.
This means that Black Soil and Hati, who have made it to the third stage, have a high chance of becoming blessed orcs. Maple Red, fearing it would put pressure on them, stopped mentioning Freya's assessment as soon as she saw them. Maple Sugar and the other orcs, also worried about their nervousness, kept talking about other things.
Hati responded occasionally in a lazy tone, looking quite absent-minded.
"I noticed you seemed to be deep in thought the whole way here. Is the situation the same as before?" Jiang Yunlan said worriedly.
Hearing Lan's voice, he came back to his senses, his words carrying an air of world-weariness and profound understanding. "Just as you thought, the plants I planted haven't grown yet. I'm not destined for the power of wood, so I might as well spend more time thinking of new moves."
Since he couldn't become a guardian, he would become the best orc among the warriors.
"I really enjoyed sparring with you the other day, but you have very little time. You've only managed to spare half a day to fight me. I'm quite looking forward to seeing what moves the other orc with the power of wood will use." As he spoke, he became more energetic, his voice and tone full of passion, as if he couldn't wait to arrange a training match with the blessed orc at the training ground.
Seeing his performance, Jiang Yunlan knew that he had already adjusted himself, so she replied as usual, "You are still the same as before, you just like to challenge strong opponents."
"I also plan to have the warriors of my tribe spar with orcs who possess natural powers. Familiarizing ourselves with the attack methods of orcs with natural powers in advance will be beneficial for us in dealing with the organization behind the scenes later, since orcs who have not received the blessing may also face their attacks directly."
The orcs, including Black Earth, who were standing nearby, nodded in agreement when they learned of Lan's idea.
After a short conversation, Jiang Yunlan, accompanied by her tribesmen, arrived at the high platform. She waited a while longer before the last orc to participate in the assessment walked out from the crowd.
Seeing that all the orcs had arrived, she used the wooden ladder to place Sveta on the platform. Returning to the ground, she sat on a wooden chair brought by her people, looking up at the fourteen examinees. They stood upright, holding the seeds they had cultivated.
A large group of orcs gathered around, surprised that the basin in Hati's hand contained only a flat layer of soil.
"It's empty! Could it be that the seeds the Hati warriors received are seeds that can't be planted?" the orcs wondered.
Some orcs speculated that this was because he was not suited to be the possessor of the power of wood.
But most of the orcs were drawn to the plants in Black Earth's hands.
"The plants cultivated by the Black Earth Warrior are so much weaker than those of other orcs?! This...this looks so small." They stared at the lone sprout in Black Earth's hand, a plant that seemed to have just grown, and were almost certain that Black Earth couldn't beat the orcs.
In addition, the plants in the twelve orc basins look very lush.
"Hey, I took a closer look, and the plants everyone is holding seem to be different; they're not the same kind of plant."
The surrounding noise didn't bother Black Soil. She stood beside Hati, making no move. She and Hati had been exchanging tips on cultivating plants frequently lately, and she had long anticipated how the surrounding orcs would see them.
Because each orc has a different plant, it's impossible to say for sure who will pass the test.
The noise around them lasted only a few seconds, because Lan raised her hand to signal everyone to be quiet, and the beastmen stopped making any further noise.
"The orcs who passed the test this time are Black Earth and Hati, while the other twelve orcs failed." Sveta announced the results directly, so quickly that many orcs did not have time to react.
The twelve orcs who failed the test stood there dumbfounded, unable to recover.
Seeing their reaction, Sveta slowly explained, "The seeds I gave you are dead. Didn't you notice that the plants in your pots are plants that have appeared in the Xia clan's farmland? How could they be plants that I gave you?"
It directly admitted that it deliberately made the beastmen plant pots mixed with other seeds.
“You all killed it, how could it possibly pass my test? Hati’s seed hasn’t sprouted yet, but it has already taken root and won’t be long before it sprouts.” Sveta said matter-of-factly.
"I have reminded you that you should nurture it with care and not judge it based on past experience."
The twelve orcs who failed the test accepted their defeat gracefully and retreated, their envious gazes sweeping over Black Earth and Hati. Undoubtedly, Black Earth was the best in this test, but Hati, who hadn't killed the seed, was also quite impressive.
Sveta's gaze fell upon the two orcs standing before the platform, holding basins, and he spoke: "Orcs, swear to me that you will not harm any nature spirits. And what will you protect with your life?"
Hei Tu looked up and met Hati's gaze, who was looking down. At the same time, he put down the plants in his hands and squatted down in front of Lan.
The two orcs looked up at Jiang Yunlan and spoke one after the other in her surprised gaze.
"Black Earth, the lemming orc, swears to the elf Sveta that I will never harm any nature spirit. I will protect Jiang Yunlan with my life and stay by her side forever."
Kurotsuchi had already decided that Lan needed a guard. She wanted to become an orc who would always be by Lan's side, protecting her.
"I, Hati, swear to Sveta that I will not harm any nature spirit, and I will protect Jiang Yunlan with my life. Lan, I acknowledge you, I am loyal to you, and I will help you as I promised."
Hati never forgot the promise he made to Lan on the day he agreed to stay. He, Hati, was loyal only to the orcs he recognized, not to any particular clan.
As the two voices fell, Jiang Yunlan clearly saw the light representing the power of wood fly from mid-air into the bodies of the two orcs.
The shimmering lights danced and flickered, as if greeting them.
"The contract is established. From this day forward, you will be the guardians of the Storm, and never forget your oath," Sveta said.
Heitu and Hati, one speaking earnestly with a blank expression, the other answering with a confident smile.
"I will always remember this."
"Of course."
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