In Da Hu Mountain, Su Qing was like a fish in water. The Spiritual Energy here was even stronger than at Baihua Mountain, and a dense green mist swirled through the forest. To Su Qing, it was like a vast, green ocean.

Su Qing frantically absorbed the green and grey mist in Da Hu Mountain. In just four or five days, the capacity of the Bagua Pool in her palm had expanded. The green and grey mist within it had not only increased in quantity but had also grown much denser. Her Wood Ability even skipped Level 2, jumping straight to the Third Level. As a result, her ability to communicate with plants became much smoother. She no longer needed physical contact and could communicate with them from a distance—though there was a limit, which was currently a twenty-meter radius.

SWISH!

A thick vine shot out from nowhere, ensnaring a wild rabbit that was just about to bolt. The rabbit’s struggles were futile; in an instant, the vine snapped its neck.

Su Qing emerged from behind a tree. The vine swayed gently and delivered the rabbit with the snapped neck into her hands. Su Qing accepted the rabbit and gently stroked the vine, channeling a stream of pure energy into it. Delighted, the vine swayed back and forth, nuzzling against her like a child who had just been given a piece of candy.

It was now noon, so Su Qing dressed the rabbit, built a fire, and began to roast it.

After finishing the roasted rabbit, Su Qing rubbed her slightly bulging stomach. She noticed that the thick vine, despite having moved a bit farther away out of fear of the fire, was still lingering nearby. Smiling, she said to it, "I’m leaving now. You should head back."

With that, she rose to her feet, ready to depart.

However, the vine didn’t leave. Instead, it moved closer and nuzzled against her.

Seeing the vine’s behavior, Su Qing couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow. ’Ever since I gained my Wood Ability, whether in the apocalypse of my past life or in this one, no plant has ever been this reliant on me. It’s always been me giving the commands and the plants obeying. To me, they’ve always been more like puppets.’ 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

’But this vine... it feels like it has a will of its own?’

"Why aren’t you leaving?" Su Qing asked tentatively.

The vine didn’t seem to understand and remained perfectly still. Yet it seemed determined to stick to Su Qing. When she moved left, it followed her left. When she moved right, it followed her right. In short, its one and only mission was to follow her.

Su Qing began to understand. This was deep within Da Hu Mountain, a dense forest rarely visited by people. On top of that, the Spiritual Energy here was the most concentrated she had ever encountered. ’In a place like this,’ she thought, ’it’s not out of the question for some plants to gradually develop a consciousness of their own.’

’Or maybe it isn’t consciousness, but instinct.’

’An instinct that lets it understand what’s best for it.’

’For instance, that stream of pure energy I gave it after it caught the rabbit must have been incredibly beneficial.’

’That’s probably why it’s so reluctant to leave me.’

’But I can’t take it with me!’

’I can’t just carry a vine around everywhere. And judging by its thickness, its root system must be huge. It’s completely impractical to dig it up and take it with me.’

With a sigh, Su Qing stroked the vine. "I can’t take you with me," she said. "You’re too big."

In truth, Su Qing felt a twinge of regret. Her Wood Ability focused on healing and control, not growth acceleration. ’If I could accelerate growth, I could just take this plant’s seed with me. Then I’d have my own informant wherever I go. After all, you can’t find plants everywhere.’

Despite her regret, Su Qing didn’t dwell on it. She channeled another stream of pure energy into the vine and prepared to leave for good.

However, the vine gently coiled around her, refusing to let her go.

Su Qing was exasperated. "I can’t take you with me, so clinging to me is useless. Be good now. You’ve grown here and even developed a bit of sentience, so you should just stay. Few people come to this place, which is good for you. You can grow here in freedom."

But the vine still refused to release her. It tugged her gently, pulling her in the direction of its root system.

Resigned, and unwilling to harm the vine, Su Qing had no choice but to let it lead her.

When they arrived at the spot, Su Qing got a clear look. The vine’s root system was beside an old locust tree, and the entire plant clung to its trunk. The vine’s main stem was a deep purple that gradually faded into a vibrant emerald green. The stem was thick, a clear sign that the vine was quite old.

Seeing Su Qing standing beside it, the vine seemed overjoyed, its entire length trembling with excitement.

At first, Su Qing assumed the vine was just expressing its excitement, but she slowly realized something was wrong. The vine appeared to be withering!

’Could this be...’

Su Qing was shocked. ’I heard about this kind of process back in the apocalypse. Some Wood Ability Users with growth-acceleration superpowers, when they wanted to take a plant’s seeds, would use their power to make the plant wither. This would concentrate all of its life force into the seeds, allowing them to later unleash the seed’s maximum potential.’

’But I’m not controlling this vine; it’s withering on its own. Don’t tell me it’s also concentrating all its life force into a seed, planning to come with me?’

Su Qing didn’t disturb the vine, waiting quietly to one side.

Half an hour later, the entire vine had completely withered away. Su Qing stepped forward and parted the desiccated remains. Sure enough, she found a single purple seed nestled within.

Su Qing picked up the seed and placed it in the palm of her hand. She could feel an immense life force pulsing within it, but that was all. Since she couldn’t accelerate its growth, the seed was essentially useless to her.

’Huh? No, wait!’

Su Qing’s eyes shot open. Her Bagua Pool was reacting!

’It seems...’

Su Qing hesitated for a moment before moving the seed from her left palm to her right. Then, her eyes widened in disbelief.

The seed was gone!

No, it hadn’t disappeared. It had entered her Bagua Pool, where the dense green mist was now tightly wrapped around it.

Then, Su Qing felt a strange connection form between herself and the seed.

’It feels like... I can make this seed grow!’

To test her theory, Su Qing focused her thoughts, and the seed reappeared in her palm. She urged it to grow, and just as she’d hoped, the seed trembled and then quickly sprouted tiny vines and leaves. Though still small, she could feel the young vine’s affinity for her.

Su Qing was overjoyed. ’Looks like I have a new weapon,’ she thought. But as she would later find out, her excitement today was completely misplaced.