Free Web NovelChapter 237: Chapter 225: Evolved Plant Life
She tore open the skull of the Middle-level zombie, dug out the Crystal Core inside, and offered it to Flora Bloom. Flora Bloom looked at the Crystal Core, which was more translucent and brilliant than any crystal gemstone, and shook her head.
"Go ahead and eat it. From now on, you don’t have to give me any Crystal Cores you hunt." ’Since this High-level zombie has been branded with my space’s unique mark, she’s under my control. The more powerful she becomes, the safer I’ll be.’ fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm
’Isla Preston is very likely the world’s first High-level zombie. But it’s also possible that others like her exist elsewhere. In my past life, I only encountered High-level zombies after I became a High-level Superpower User, and as far as I knew, they weren’t supposed to appear for at least another six months.’
’For Isla Preston to become a High-level zombie this early... in the future apocalypse, what kind of existence will she become with enough Crystal Cores? Will she be able to contend with those legendary Corpse Kings? I’m suddenly a little excited!’
’Since my rebirth, so many things have changed drastically, veering far from the course of my past life.’
The number of zombies in the city was growing, and the evolution of advanced and High-level zombies was accelerating. Isla Preston’s appearance, in particular, gave Flora Bloom a deepening sense of crisis. As for how things would turn out in the future, Flora Bloom was both worried and expectant.
She quickly went downstairs. As she led Isla Preston out of the mall, she caught a floral scent. It wasn’t the fragrance of the wildflowers near the safe zone’s quarantine gate, but a cloyingly sweet, lychee-like aroma that was intoxicatingly pleasant and relaxing. However, the appearance of such a scent outside the safe zone was deeply unsettling.
"ROAR!" Xiao Bai’s roar came from not far away. Startled, Flora Bloom immediately rushed towards the source of the sound.
In Area 008, Quinn, Amos Rooney, Yvonne Lynch, and Caleb Bloom were lying unconscious on the ground. When Flora Bloom saw her father on the ground, she rushed over and poured a bottle of spiritual water down his throat.
Having woken up, Caleb Bloom saw Flora Bloom and looked confused. "Flora? Why are you here? What... happened? Ouch, my head hurts!"
Flora Bloom turned and glared at Isla Preston. Isla looked ashamed and said, "Master, they only broke free from my mental control right after you took me into your space. That’s why they fainted. There shouldn’t be any major issues. They’ll wake up soon and won’t remember what happened!"
"ROAR!" Following another roar from Xiao Bai, the floral scent grew stronger.
This was followed by a RUMBLE as the ground split apart. A fissure, a full meter wide, opened up at their feet. Several thick, green vines shot out from the chasm, targeting Flora Bloom, Isla Preston, Caleb Bloom, and the three who were still unconscious on the ground.
"ROAR ROAR!" After another tiger’s roar, Xiao Bai suddenly bounded to Flora Bloom’s side in a few great leaps from the direction of Area 006. It was covered in bloodstains, the blood starkly visible against its snow-white fur.
Flora Bloom quickly dodged a vine that came coiling toward her. After narrowly severing one with a swing of her axe, she leaped onto Xiao Bai’s back, and the tiger carried her to a clear spot.
The plant’s vines were thick and sturdy. Some were green, others purplish-green. Each vine was covered in evenly spaced thorns, every one of which was tipped with red and green, a clear sign of poison.
"Master, be careful! This evolved plant is only Middle Level, but its main body is so powerful that it’s harder to deal with than a typical High-level zombie. Its presence is why I didn’t dare approach the human-inhabited areas. Even if I fought it with several other Middle-level zombies, we wouldn’t be guaranteed a win! One wrong move, and we’d be absorbed as flower fertilizer."
"Can’t you control it with your powerful spiritual power?"
"It’s an evolved plant, not a zombie. I can’t control it," Isla Preston said helplessly. ’A High-level zombie who’s not only evolved such a powerful spiritual power superpower but also possesses expressions as vivid as a human’s... This makes it impossible for me to see Isla as something totally alien.’
"You mean your spiritual power can only control zombies or humans?"
"No, I can only control beings with thought and sentience. Plant life may have a certain degree of intelligence, but it lacks thought. And any plant that has evolved thought is already beyond the control of someone at my level!"
Xiao Bai carried Flora Bloom as it dodged the vines’ attacks, but more and more vines appeared in the area. In a moment of carelessness, two vines pulled Flora Bloom and Xiao Bai apart, wrapped them up separately, and began dragging them in the same direction.
Flora Bloom yanked hard on the vine, trying to pull it into her space. The moment the thought brushed against the vine, a wave of dizziness and a sharp pain emanated from the vortex in her sea of consciousness.
’It seems the main body of this plant is too large, and with so many interconnected parts, it exceeds the size limit of what I can pull into my space.’
"Xiao Bai!"
"Sister-in-law!"
The Crown Prince and Li Mao had appeared out of nowhere. With a single slash of his dagger, The Crown Prince severed the vine wrapped around Flora Bloom. But in his haste, another vine caught him, coiling around his arms and binding them behind his back as if to deliberately restrain his movements.
"The Crown Prince!"
’This can’t go on! The number of vines is increasing. If I get trapped again, there’s no telling what will happen.’
She saw Quinn and the other two, along with her father, Caleb Bloom, bound by vines and being dragged toward Area 006.
"Area 006?"
’The plant’s main body is enormous. How can I rescue the others without getting trapped myself?’ freёwebnovel.com
’Plants in the apocalypse aren’t supposed to evolve this powerfully so early on. Or... could this be the reason Morhaven was the only city to survive the third year’s great war intact in my past life?’
’What do I do? How am I supposed to fight these vines?’
’Plant, plant, plant.’
Suddenly, an idea flashed through Flora Bloom’s mind. ’Plant?’
"Li Mao, fall back!"
"Sister-in-law?"
"Don’t worry, I have a plan!"
As soon as the words left her mouth, a ball of water appeared in Flora Bloom’s hand. Though small, it was a sphere of tightly compressed, concentrated water.
Most importantly, this was the spiritual water from her evolved space, its quality now enhanced. The Spiritual Energy alone that overflowed from it gave off a fresh, natural aroma.
It held an irresistible attraction for all living things.
Flora Bloom had once used spiritual water to irrigate the flowers and trees on the lawns on either side of the quarantine wall. Although those spiritual beings hadn’t evolved to the same degree as this plant, their evolutionary needs should be similar: energy and Spiritual Energy.
Flora Bloom deliberately stood her ground, waiting for a vine to approach. Then, she used the spiritual water to form a water-shield bubble that enveloped her completely.
The Spirit Water Ball in her hand began to power the water-shield bubble, continuously supplying it with Water Energy.
After a vine wrapped around the water-shield bubble, the entire vine began to tremble with excitement, as if it had taken some kind of stimulant.
In just a few seconds, the water-shield bubble surrounding Flora Bloom became incredibly thin.
The Concentrated Spirit Water Ball in Flora Bloom’s hand continuously supplied Water Energy to the bubble, but now other vines, drawn by the aura of the spiritual water, coiled around her. In no time, they had wrapped Flora Bloom into a ball.
From a distance, it looked like a green cocoon. The vines on its surface writhed slowly as if they had a life of their own, seemingly absorbing something in a state of excitement.
