Chapter 62

The wooden piece was carved with crooked characters, which looked rather strange at first glance.

However, these characters are automatically converted into readable information in the eyes of the mutated plant.

"Plant courtyard", "Exclusive base"...

"Chief Qianhui"?

A lettuce, about the size of a palm, stands in the middle of the ruins, staring intently at the piece of wood in its hand.

...

Is it true or false?

Several months ago, Lettuce went for a stroll in the high-risk area to the north, and only came to the vicinity these past two days.

As it left, it encountered carnivorous plants and carrots in different areas, but kept its distance and didn't go over to say hello.

Do those man-eating plants even know what kind of base this is?

It's also called Plant Courtyard... Did someone from the old courtyard deliberately choose the same name?

What's with "Chief Qianhui"...? This can't be a coincidence, right?

Lettuce silently noted down the coordinates on the wooden piece, intending to go and take a look.

It was about to casually throw away the wood chip when it hesitated.

A moment later, Lettuce broke off a small piece of wood engraved with "Chief Qianhui" and stuffed it into the leaves on top of her head to store it.

After doing all this, Lettuce jumped onto the recliner behind the intermediate zombie.

At this moment, the zombie, which was in a dormant state, suddenly trembled slightly, its eye sockets twitched involuntarily, and it raised its heavy head to look to the side.

Lettuce immediately became alert and exhaled a puff of pale green smoke towards the zombie.

The zombie inhaled all the smoke into its nasal cavity, immediately returning to normal and breaking its hibernation. However, its red eyes remained fixed on the side, and it made a soft "hmph" sound in its throat.

This is its reaction when it was summoned; it's so strong that the one over there is probably not a high-level zombie.

If it's not a high-level zombie, then it must be a zombie king.

Lettuce came here because of a zombie king.

The zombie king had been focused on raising a horde of zombies in the high-risk area, but one day it suddenly left without warning, and the horde dispersed one by one.

Normally, even if the zombie horde led by the zombie king is scattered, it will slowly move in the same direction and will not stray too far from the zombie king, making it easy to be summoned at any time.

Lettuce happened to have nothing to do, so she grabbed a mid-level zombie on the way and, out of curiosity, decided to follow along to see what was going on.

The intermediate-level zombie carried it on its back, walking for several days in a half-dreaming, half-awake state, until it finally received its first strong summons, which should be in a not-too-distant location.

More importantly... that side is in the same direction as the coordinates of "Plant Courtyard" on the wooden piece.

Lettuce's eyes were somewhat serious, and she exhaled another puff of smoke towards the zombie, this time it was white.

The zombie regained some of its senses and instinctively took a step to the side, moving slowly and sluggishly like a low-level zombie.

Lettuce sat on the recliner, then took out the small wooden piece hidden on her head and lovingly touched the name on it.

It put the small piece of wood back in place and lay down on its back.

The sun is so nice, let's bask in it for a while and wait until the zombies get close to the summoning location before we do anything else.

—

On the other side, ruins lie beside a distant grove of trees.

Peanut was surrounded by several zombies and suffered injuries to his waist and arms.

It fought back fiercely, spitting out two huge peanuts while punching the nearest zombie beside it.

Peanut's hands and legs were made of intertwined roots, and its fists were quite large when clenched. It swung over and knocked the zombie's nose off.

Two peanuts hit another zombie, causing its red skin to explode and burst into a large mass of peanut fragments. The zombie was immediately severely injured, and another zombie next to it was also affected.

However, there were too many zombies, and Big Peanut was outnumbered. It barely managed to dodge one attack before being tackled to the ground by a zombie.

This zombie was about to break through to a higher level, possessing immense strength. It held Peanut down tightly, roaring and revealing a mouthful of black teeth, about to bite him off.

Suddenly, a red shadow fell from above.

Before the zombie could react, it felt a chill on the back of its neck.

A chili seed dart pierced its throat bone, and Big Pea jumped down and kicked it hard.

The zombie was kicked to the side of the ruins, temporarily unable to move, and weakly struggled to retreat.

Seeing this, the other zombies sensed danger and turned to try to escape.

Bell Pepper rushed forward with a knife in hand, while Big Pea, wearing a gag, spat twice, and several zombies were easily dealt with in the blink of an eye.

Since the carrot hadn't opened the aircraft's transparent cover, making it inconvenient to use the carrot thorns, they sent the bell pepper and the big pea down to help.

They are all strong in close combat and don't easily make a big fuss.

I'm getting ready to go back; it's best to avoid getting into any more trouble.

Amidst the ruins, Big Peanut, clutching its wound, got up and stared blankly at the two plants in front of it.

It quickly noticed movement in the sky above, and when it looked up, it saw... four strangely shaped, round flying machines that looked like UFOs.

Big Peanut had never seen a flying machine before. Shocked, he subconsciously assumed it was something human-made.

It didn't care about anything else and panicked, turning and running away.

Before Big Pea could explain, he had just stretched out his hand: "Ooh..."

This area looks unsafe, and Big Peanut is seriously injured and in a dangerous condition.

Moreover, although their main purpose in going out this time was not to find new plants, they had already seen them...

Of course I'll take it with me!

The bell pepper gave the big pea a look, indicating that it should be given the pea, and then disappeared in a flash.

Ten seconds later, the bell pepper returned with a large peanut between its two hands.

The peanut was slightly taller than the bell pepper, but it was powerless to fight back. Because it was injured at the moment, it buried its head and struggled desperately to no avail.

Its mouth was stuffed with leaves, and it made a terrified "woofing" sound.

The two aircraft then slowly landed, opened their transparent domes, and Big Pea jumped in first.

Bell pepper also jumped into the aircraft piloted by chili pepper and stuffed the large peanut into the crevice behind the seat.

Chili sat to the side, rummaging through her backpack and finding a few pills.

They happened to have one piece of wood left in their backpack. They had brought a total of fifty pieces of wood with them this time, and they scattered them all in suitable locations along the way.

Chili placed the pill and the piece of wood together in Peanut's hand, soothingly saying, "Waaah..."

The pilot of the aircraft was changed to Bell Pepper, and the aircraft took off again, catching up with the three aircraft in front.

Four aircraft ascended into the sky, becoming four tiny black dots as they weaved through the clouds.

The big peanut in the back seat remained motionless, his eyes a mixture of wariness and blankness. He seemed both suspicious and wary of what was happening, yet unable to comprehend it, his understanding of the situation being challenged.

After sending the message to Qian Hui, Chili turned around and saw it like this, so she simply picked up a few pills, pinched Big Peanut's face, and stuffed them directly into its mouth.

The pill melted instantly in his mouth, and his wounds began to heal immediately. Only then did Peanut snap out of his daze.

It cautiously examined the two peppers, then turned its head to look at the vast sky outside the aircraft.

Big Peanut remained blankly at the table, then looked down at the piece of wood in his hand.

Plant...base?

On the way back, the plant team did not stop for a moment, flying at top speed and arriving at the base in half an hour.

The protective net detected unfamiliar plants on the aircraft, and the game prompted Qianhui to inquire before allowing all aircraft to enter.

After the four aircraft landed, the transparent dome opened, and Qianhui quickly stepped forward to greet them.

Sweet Pepper was the most eager, rushing over first and throwing herself into Qian Hui's arms.

The other plants emerged one by one, including the large peanut, which followed behind the chili pepper, nervously looking around.

Upon seeing the unfamiliar face, the plants gradually gathered around. The carnivorous flower lowered its head and sniffed the large peanut, while the small mushroom stood on its head, waving and greeting the large peanut.

Faced with so many plants, Big Peanut seemed a little timid and introverted, silently taking a half step back while quietly observing its surroundings.

Is this the plant base mentioned on the wood chip?

It didn't sense any danger in this place, except that besides the plants, there was also a silver-haired, red-eyed creature... wait?

Bell pepper snuggled against fennel, acting all cute, and carrot squeezed in right after, saying they had successfully completed their mission.

“Okay,” Qian Hui patted each of their heads, “They’re all amazing!”

After the team rescued Peanut, Chili sent a message briefly explaining the situation, and Qianhui also received a notification that they had won the faction conflict.

The wood chips that were taken out were scattered in different places, hoping that some plants would notice them.

Then, Qianhui, carrying bell peppers and carrots, came to the big peanut.

Big Peanut became even more nervous and stood frozen, afraid to move.

"Don't be afraid," Qian Hui said with a friendly smile. "You can stay here for now and recover from your injuries."

The little cabbage followed beside her, offering half a bag of biscuits when the opportunity arose.

Big Peanut hesitated for a moment, but still reached out and took it.

Qianhui knew that the new plants wouldn't adapt quickly, so she got up and left with them, leaving the peanut some space to be alone, and letting the cabbage and apple keep watch from a distance, just keeping an eye on it from time to time.

The peanut came to the base by accident. Once more plants that come voluntarily are accepted in the future, it can be handed over to a few top-grade exotic plants to take care of.

However... it's still uncertain how effective the scattered wood chips will be.

Carrot and Chili discussed it and decided to go out again in two days to search the wooded area and see if there were any plants gathered together waiting.

Half of the wood chips have been used up, so a new batch has to be made.

Qianhui left with some of the plants, while Dahua stayed behind, watching the four aircraft being driven away and parked in the mountains.

It stood alone for a while, then noticed a few other plants hiding behind the bushes, quietly observing it.

It looks like a mini cabbage, an apple, and some small pink mushrooms, pink succulents, and small bamboo shoots...

Is it guarding against itself?

Big Peanut pretended not to see anything, sat on the grass, and slowly finished eating the half-pack of biscuits.

On the way back, after taking the pills Chili gave it, its injuries had mostly healed. It could actually leave now, but it didn't know where it was or how many zombies were outside…

Big Peanut finished eating the cookie when he suddenly heard a noise beside him.

It looked up and saw a bottle of water hanging on the grass, swaying as it approached.

With a "thud," the water bottle fell in front of the peanut plant, and faint footsteps could be heard as the plant quickly ran away.

Peanut remained calm and looked towards the bushes, only to find that the small cabbage was gone.

It hesitated for a moment, then picked up the water.

Mangoes appeared from behind the bushes.

It stretched its limbs, preparing to meet the big peanut, fight it, and find out its strength.

"Hmm!" The little mushroom grabbed it just in time, pointed to the lawn in the distance, and said it wanted to ride in a convertible.

Mango has learned to drive a convertible these past few days, but her skills aren't very good, so she's only allowed to drive on flat ground.

It scratched its head, looked at the big peanut, then at the little mushroom with expectant eyes, hesitated for a while, and temporarily gave up the idea of ​​fighting with the big peanut. It then led the little mushroom and the succulent away.

The little bamboo shoot followed closely behind, guarding the three plants.

—

Two days ago, Yuanji had someone deliver a box of knives and a box of kitchen utensils, so the base built another "kitchen" at the foot of the mountain.

Like the log cabin, the kitchen walls were made of tree trunks, and the roof was simply built, and it was completed quickly.

Once the base has more supplies, Qianhui and the plants can cook soup, cut fresh fruit, or bake some hot food in the kitchen.

Qian Hui unconsciously recalled the past, buried her face in Nan Tingjin's arms, and said in a muffled voice, "In the past, every time I came to see you, you would cook soup for me..."

"What kind of soup?" Nan Tingjin asked subconsciously, stroking Qian Hui's silver hair, seemingly lost in thought. "Herbal?"

Qian Hui raised her head, her expression confused.

He himself didn't know what kind of soup Nan Tingjin was cooking. It smelled like some kind of herb, but had he mentioned it to Nan Tingjin before...?

Just as Qian Hui was wondering, Nan Tingjin's communicator vibrated.

He took it out to check; it was a real-time communication request from Qi Yue.

Nan Tingjin pressed the call button, and Qi Yue's anxious voice came through: "Chief Nan, was the Black Ridge Mountain base also affected by the raid that day?"

His words came out of nowhere, and Nan Tingjin frowned: "What do you mean?"

“We suspect Wen Jue did it,” Qi Yue said, catching his breath. “In the past few days, there have been waves of people getting lost in multiple bases.”

The "Lost Tide" refers to a situation where a large number of superhumans simultaneously exhibit symptoms of disorientation, and these individuals were all involved in the siege of the Blackridge Mountain base.

Yun Chuan Base declined to go at that time, but Qi Yue accepted the invitation today to go to another base to check the situation and found out what happened.

That night, as the team prepared to evacuate, everyone suddenly felt unwell, and their superpowers failed for two or three minutes.

The plant team had a mutated chili pepper. At first, they all thought it was the ability of the alien plant. Fortunately, they did not encounter any further problems and returned to their respective bases smoothly.

In the past few days, these people have gradually started showing signs of disorientation.

Several bases were originally waiting for Wen Jue's explanation. Many people thought that besieging Black Ridge Mountain was a sure thing, which is why Wen Jue gathered people.

The result was not only a complete failure, but also the emergence of a new crisis.

In addition, as the fact that the Sky Base was conducting research on superpower transplantation could no longer be kept secret, rumors that were detrimental to Wen Jue began to spread.

At this point, Sky Base, which had been silent for a long time, finally issued a statement saying that it could provide more potent drugs for free, but those with superpowers had to leave their original bases and join Sky Base instead.

Alternatively, they could choose not to join directly and instead bring the entire base under their control.

Furthermore, the people at Sky Base repeatedly emphasized that the large number of superhumans going missing was caused by the alien plants, and had nothing to do with them.

After the statement was released, some bases no longer believed them, but others couldn't bear the pain of being lost and chose to compromise.

“I think this is all part of Wen Jue’s plan,” Qi Yue said. “The last research exposed and created hidden dangers, which will definitely have an impact on him. It’s better to just be upfront about it and use this method to control other bases and make them work for him.”

Qi Yue hurriedly returned to the base, then thought of Black Ridge Mountain and wanted to ask about the situation.

Qian Hui, who was also listening nearby, asked blankly, "Lost... what is that?"

Qi Yue paused for a moment, then explained, "After using your superpowers to a certain limit, various abnormal symptoms can easily appear. If they are not treated and relieved in time... you may die from your own superpowers."

Everyone has different superpowers, and the abnormal symptoms also vary. They may not be noticeable when they are mild.

As for healing and relief, there are many ways to do it, depending on each person's preferences and specific circumstances. Medication is the fastest way to see results.

Upon hearing this, Qian Hui hurriedly looked at Nan Tingjin.

He now understood what Sky Base had been doing behind the scenes: deliberately causing a large number of superhumans to develop disorientation symptoms in order to control them.

As for Nan Tingjin... he also experienced discomfort, and more than once.

Qian Hui thought back carefully, and it seemed that Nan Tingjin had been acting strangely lately...

He has been sleeping very late these past two days, and his body temperature has been consistently high.

After a moment of silence, Nan Tingjin spoke up: "Only a small number of us were affected."

At the time, Yuanji counted that more than ten ability users near the gate had experienced discomfort, and they were all arranged to rest. No new cases have been reported recently.

The team that came to besiege them that night was forced back by the alien plants in time, so the Sky Base was probably only targeting those people.

The Black Ridge Mountain base is not in the center of the range, so their people have milder symptoms.

Most of them... haven't even realized they're getting lost.

Moreover, the symptoms experienced by the same person with superpowers may differ depending on their environment and current emotional state when they fall into a state of disorientation twice.

"That's good. I'm worried that Wen Jue still wants to take over Black Ridge Mountain. You must keep a close eye on him these days."

Qi Yue was unaware that the alien plants had stayed behind and even built a new base next to the Black Ridge Mountain base.

He had other things to attend to, so he quickly said goodbye to the two of them and ended the communication.

Nan Tingjin put away the communicator, and Qian Hui tugged at his sleeve, asking worriedly, "Xiao Jin, are you feeling unwell too?"

“No,” Nan Tingjin said, lowering his eyes. “Don’t worry.”

He pulled Qian Hui into his arms and whispered, "I'm going back for a bit. Wait for me here."

Qian Hui wanted to go along, but she was afraid that she wouldn't be of much help and would cause trouble for Nan Tingjin.

He nodded obediently, and said reluctantly, "Come back soon..."

Nan Tingjin looked at Qian Hui for a while, then couldn't help but kiss his cheek before letting go and turning to leave quickly.

A modified car was parked at the entrance of the base. It was left there by Yuanji. Qianhui saw the modified car turn around by the roadside and drive towards the side gate of the Black Ridge Mountain base from afar.

He waited anxiously, but Nan Tingjin did not return until nightfall.

Qianhui was worried, so she asked Chili to send a message to Nantingjin, but there was no reply.

He felt even more uneasy, and Chili quickly contacted Yuanji again.

Ten minutes later, Yuanji personally drove to the "Plant Courtyard".

Alone, he vaguely explained to Qian Hui, "The leader... has locked himself up."

Qian Hui was at a loss and asked, "Where is he? Can you take me to see him?"

Yuan Ji was about to refuse, but before he could say anything, he saw a group of plants next to Qian Hui.

The carnivorous plant was eyeing him menacingly, and he felt it was about to grow larger and rush over, flipping his car over.

“Uh,” Yuanji conceded, “Okay.”

He opened the back door, preparing to take Qianhui to the base.

Besides the fennel, the carnivorous plant and several other plants were also put on the vehicle, while the rest remained at the base.

The modified vehicle continued its journey and, after entering the Blackridge Mountain base, quickly arrived at the location of the dungeon.

Yuanji stopped the car and continued to explain, "Several people were detained together, so this is a safer approach."

What he didn't say was that these people who were imprisoned all possessed highly destructive superpowers and were prone to accidentally injuring others when they were in a disoriented state.

As for Nan Tingjin... Yuanji didn't think he could be imprisoned, but it was Nan Tingjin's own request.

Maybe it's partly psychological... It helps me control my emotions and makes it less likely to lose control.

Qian Hui remained silent and followed Yuan Ji into the dungeon, then down the narrow stairs to a corridor.

The corridor was lined with rooms enclosed by iron railings, most of which were empty.

These dungeons are guarded by two special ability users. The iron bars are reinforced with transparent walls that weaken abilities and induce sleep, making it extremely difficult for ordinary ability users to escape.

The corridor was dimly lit. Yuanji rounded two corners and arrived at the end of the dungeon.

He stopped and coughed lightly: "It's over there."

Qian Hui quickly stepped forward and met Nan Tingjin in the narrowest room.

He was worried and heartbroken: "Xiao Jin..."

Nan Tingjin sat on a chair by the wall and looked up.

Upon seeing Qian Hui, he seemed unsurprised, or perhaps his consciousness was somewhat hazy due to the influence of the supernatural powers surrounding the room.

Qian Hui called out again, and Nan Tingjin stood up and slowly walked closer.

“Why are you here?” he said softly. “Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine in a few days.”

"But……"

On the way here, Yuanji also mentioned to Qianhui that in the past, Nantingjin did not need conventional healing methods, but instead went out to hunt zombies.

This rather extreme method is probably only something he would use... However, Nan Tingjin chose to lock himself up this time, most likely because of Qian Hui.

He couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't hurt Qian Hui, but he didn't want to go too far away.

"How are you feeling right now?" Qian Hui asked anxiously. "I... can I help you?"

Yuanji also mentioned some common ways to alleviate superpowers, such as chatting with close friends and family, or spending time in a quiet environment to vent and soothe emotions.

"help me?"

Through an iron fence, Nan Tingjin spoke in a low voice, raising his hand towards Qian Hui as if to confirm whether the Qian Hui standing outside was an illusion.

There were gaps between the fences, and Qian Hui reached in and took Nan Tingjin's burning hand in hers.

“I can stay with you,” he said. “It’s too dark here, let’s go back to the courtyard…”

After a long while, Nan Tingjin finally replied, "No need."

Qian Hui pursed her lips, looking somewhat disappointed.

He also knew that since they confirmed their relationship, so much had happened along the way that they hadn't really had much time to spend together.

Nan Tingjin locked himself up without saying a word. Besides feeling sorry for him, Qian Hui was also a little angry.

He lowered his eyelashes: "Th-that..."

However, at this moment, Qian Hui discovered that Nan Tingjin was still holding her hand and wouldn't let go.

He was slightly stunned and tried to pull his hand away, but he couldn't break free at all.

As Nan Tingjin's gaze fell upon them, the iron fence in front of them suddenly began to rattle.

Several thick iron bars twisted and bent to both sides at the same time, as if they were being forcefully pried open by an invisible hand, until they were wide enough for a person to pass through freely.

Qian Hui stood there, stunned, as Nan Tingjin strode out.