Chapter 18
The carrot's spikes are small and its colors are bright and realistic, making it look like a child's toy at first glance.
Upon seeing this, the human superhuman opposite him looked even more displeased.
In the past few days, two or three teams have encountered this super-grade exotic plant, and they all know how terrifying these radish thorns are.
Not only is its accuracy extremely high, but its explosive power is enough to penetrate a wall tens of meters thick.
The person in charge at the front immediately shouted, "Take cover!"
Several superhumans pressed their hands tightly against the wall, where stones, mud, and water mixed with the almost solidified wind, piling up layer by layer.
A large number of radish thorns crashed into these "walls," with both sides consuming each other until only a dozen or so thorns successfully hit the wall itself, creating several large craters.
But at this moment, the human superhumans were ready again, and all kinds of long-range attacks were launched towards the carrot.
The situation has been special recently, and many people with special abilities have been commissioned to assist. Although the incident happened suddenly tonight, we are still prepared, and the wall will not be breached so easily.
Moreover, unlike zombies, plants usually act alone. Even if a single top-tier alien plant is highly powerful, human superhumans can still overcome them with sheer numbers.
If only we could get rid of this carrot right away...it would be even better if we could capture it alive.
On the other side, Carrot discarded the half-broken tree trunk shield, just as the third wave of ranged attacks was about to strike.
The surrounding ruins where it could hide had all been blasted flat, but it wasn't worried at all. It patted its forehead, and hundreds more radish thorns sprouted out.
The radish thorns were like freebies, clashing with the ranged attacks of the superhumans.
Carrot had almost forgotten what he came here for tonight; he was completely absorbed.
It didn't care whether the number of radish thorns had reached its physical limit; all it could think about was "mutual destruction" and "killing you all."
However, at that moment, two more figures appeared in the distance, their greedy eyes fixed on the carrot.
These were two high-level zombies that had been living nearby. After being startled by the carrot, a human superhuman appeared, and the two fled together, but did not go too far.
Now the carrots and the human mutants are fighting, and they are ready to make a sneak attack.
Advanced zombies are more intelligent and have more needs, including satisfying their appetite and their desire for power.
Consuming a top-tier alien plant increases the chance of evolving into a zombie king.
The carrot, busy attacking and dodging, was right there, unwilling to run away, but it was clearly already exhausted.
Two advanced zombies approached silently, unnoticed by it.
When Qianhui arrived near the wall, she could only see a group of superhumans gathered in one place, occasionally throwing out attacks such as fireballs or wind blades.
The high, thick walls blocked the view, and the other windows and side doors were all guarded.
The mimosa plant pointed with its leaves, indicating that the carrot was right outside.
At the same time, it also vaguely smelled the scent of high-level zombies, and there seemed to be more than one.
Although she didn't know why Qianhui was looking for the carrot, Mimosa trusted him and subconsciously felt worried for her kind.
With so many human superhumans and advanced zombies lurking around, Carrot is in grave danger.
The leaves of the mimosa grew a little bigger, wrapped around Qianhui's fingers, and pulled them a little eagerly.
Qian Hui was also very anxious. He looked around, searching for a way out.
More reinforcements arrived from the roadside, and Qianhui retreated and hid in the dark shadows.
He raised his head and looked at the high wall beside him.
Just as everyone was busy dealing with the carrots, an explosion suddenly rang out from somewhere behind them.
The commotion occurred within the safe zone; those closest to the commotion should immediately go and investigate.
At the same time, Qianhui scooped up a small potato and stuffed it into her pocket.
The substitute bomb is one of Potato's skills, and it doesn't leave many traces. Taking advantage of this moment, thin vines emerge from Qian Hui's sleeves and quickly extend to climb.
The vines hooked firmly onto the top of the wall, pulling Qianhui upwards.
The walls are equipped with detection instruments at intervals, which will sound an alarm if any zombie or mutated plant energy approaches.
When Qian Hui touched the wall, the instrument rang, but the guard in charge happened to go to the bomb to check.
By the time the guards rushed back, Qian Hui had already climbed over the wall and had not been discovered by anyone.
The alarm stopped, and the guard opened the window to check, but found nothing unusual; there was still only the carrot outside.
At this moment, Carrot gradually felt his strength dissipating, but he became even more excited and fought harder.
It even moved closer to the wall, personally raising a radish thorn and aiming it at a superhuman standing in front of the wall.
The superhuman was terrified and quickly ducked to avoid it.
Carrot squinted, suddenly sensing another dangerous aura.
The bluish-gray arm, like a stretched noodle, rapidly approached from the side, its sharp, withered claws striking the carrot fiercely.
The carrot dodged, but its attention was focused on the wall, and it didn't notice immediately; it still got a cut on its body.
The zombie's arm reached out to the carrot again, and the carrot grabbed one of its hands, forcefully stabbing it with its radish spikes.
The moment it was stabbed, the arm recoiled in pain, but the whirlwind blast from another advanced zombie accurately struck the carrot.
Despite the pain in his body, the carrot cautiously backed away.
I was careless; I didn't expect those two high-level zombies to still be there...
Is it really going to die here today?
Two advanced zombies were soon discovered in the safe zone, and it was realized that their target was carrots.
This made things much easier for them. If they could seize the opportunity, they might be able to deal with both the zombies and the alien plants at the same time.
The wounds on the zombie's arm from the spikes healed rapidly, becoming softer and more agile as it dodged the remaining spikes.
However, since too many carrots had been consumed previously, there were not enough remaining thorns, which reduced the hit rate.
It hesitated between unleashing a charged attack and fleeing; even if the former could repel the zombies, the humans on the other side of the wall might not let it go.
The latter is... utterly shameful!
Both zombies were ranged attackers, their main bodies hiding in the shadows, while whirlwinds came one after another, never stopping from the other side of the wall.
Within minutes, the carrot began to falter.
The human with superpowers was hot on their heels, while two zombies were eyeing the carrot intently, convinced they could catch it and eat it.
Just then, a deep, muffled roar echoed all around.
Carrot was taken aback and looked up.
It is... a top-grade exotic plant, a giant carnivorous flower.
The carnivorous plant's enormous body resembled a small mountain peak, obscuring the moonlight behind it and casting large shadows among the ruins.
It appeared out of nowhere, its powerful and domineering aura undisguised, its sharp teeth gleaming with a chilling light.
Caught completely off guard by both the human superhuman and the advanced zombie, before they could even react, the man-eating plant snapped its jaws shut, severing the two zombie arms in mid-air.
The zombies screamed shrilly, and the man-eating flower immediately swayed its stem, its body blocking the wall and stopping a round of attacks.
It has thick skin and flesh, and is in its prime, so it is fearless.
The appearance of the man-eating plant instantly turned the tide.
The carrot was able to catch its breath, but its gaze toward the carnivorous plant was somewhat complicated.
How shameful...so shameful! It would rather die in secret than be saved!
Carrot, clutching the wound on his back and wincing, saw a money tree and an ear of corn running towards him.
Both plants looked unfamiliar. The carrot was puzzled when the money tree enlarged its leaves to shield it from the other zombie's whirlwind.
While looking around, Corn held a ball of corn in her hand and secretly glanced at Carrot, her eyes revealing her excitement and anticipation.
It's definitely more fun and exciting outside!
There was another commotion nearby. Carrot turned its head and saw a chili pepper and a potato, which rushed towards the two advanced zombies.
carrot:"……"
It could probably guess that these were mostly new friends of the carnivorous plant.
It's only been a short time since we last met, and I never realized the carnivorous plant was so social!
Carrot felt inexplicably depressed and pulled out a radish thorn.
It tossed the radish thorns into the air, then jumped up to catch them, preparing to slip away before the carnivorous plant came after it.
Seeing this, the money tree cried out urgently, "Huh?"
Carrot didn't even turn its head, ignoring the strange plant and the humans and two zombies in the safe zone.
Just then, a very familiar voice rang out from behind: "Radish?"
Even after several years, Carrot still remembers that voice.
Its body stiffened, and it slowly turned its head to look around. It accidentally lost its grip and fell down with a "thud".
Qianhui quickly ran forward, found the carrot in the ruins, and picked it up.
"Radish!" he asked worriedly, "Are you hurt?"
Carrot stared blankly at Qian Hui for a long time, then reached out to touch his cheek, and tugged at its own leaf to make sure it wasn't dreaming.
Its eyes quickly became wet, like a puppy finally seeing its owner, whimpering softly, and it nestled tightly in Qian Hui's arms.
Qian Hui reassured him, "It's alright, Radish, don't worry, it's okay now."
He left with the carrot in his arms, retreating to a distant ruined shelter under the cover of the money tree.
The advanced zombie with wind-based abilities seems to have escaped; Chili and Potato couldn't catch it.
The other zombie's arm was severed, and it was no match for the man-eating plant's attack, and was quickly torn in two.
Chili originally intended to help, but ended up helping to dig for crystal cores, and then returned to Qianhui's side with Potato.
In the earlier chaos, large areas of ruins outside the wall were razed to the ground and were completely exposed.
Some people saw a money tree, and there seemed to be one or two other mutated plants, as well as fennel.
The darkness obscured visibility, making it impossible to see Qian Hui's face clearly. Judging solely from her figure and movements, she should be a human.
He wasn't afraid of the special-grade exotic plant at all; he walked towards the carrot alone and took it away.
Subsequently, one of the two high-level zombies died and the other escaped. The man-eating plant also abandoned the wall of the safe zone and quickly left.
The human superhuman was initially very uneasy, but as one of the top-tier superhuman plants was injured, another top-tier superhuman plant appeared, seemingly to provide assistance.
They almost had to change tactics and do everything they could to defend against the attack.
As a result, the zombies were dealt with, but both of the top-tier alien plants left.
Inside the safe zone, the human superhumans remained bewildered and cautiously stayed in place until they were certain that the superhumans would not reappear that night.
After a long while, some people slowly realized what was going on and noticed that something was wrong.
When the carnivorous plant left, it seemed to be heading in the same direction as the human who took the carrot.
Since the apocalypse, humans have not actually known much about mutated plants. They only know that the higher the level, the more irritable and easily angered they are, dislike being in groups, and hate humans and zombies.
They didn't know what happened tonight either, but... it seemed as if someone had appeared in time and calmed the frenzied Superior Alien Plant, saving the safe zone.
Otherwise, logically speaking, the carnivorous plant would surely attack them as well.
However, let alone appeasement, there are very few people who can approach a top-grade exotic plant in a gentle manner, and I have never heard of such a thing.
Even though the situation is unclear, the defense went relatively smoothly tonight, with little damage to the wall, which should be repaired by tomorrow morning.
The commotion here was so great that two people from the Blackridge Mountain base also came over.
Blackridge Mountain does not participate in nighttime patrols and defenses. Apart from the movements of the Zombie King, it almost exclusively follows the orders of Nan Tingjin and has relatively free actions.
The two arrived late, and both top-grade exotic plants had already left, so they inquired about the situation from other people.
The two were quite surprised to learn that it was that man-eating flower again.
Wasn't the man-eating plant supposed to be injured and hiding? How did it end up here?
Although the mission to capture the man-eating flower failed and was forced to be suspended and terminated, they were still connected to them after all.
The two were about to report the matter to Nan Tingjin and were returning to their residence when they saw that Nan Tingjin had also arrived.
He stood silently and quietly outside the crowd, most of his face hidden in the darkness, like a sinister ghost.
After the two recounted what had happened outside the wall that evening, Nan Tingjin murmured, "Man-eating flower..."
He lowered his eyes, his expression indifferent, and showed no other reaction. He tossed the detection equipment in his hand to the two men and then left.
Shortly afterward, Nan Tingjin returned to his residence, where his subordinates had been waiting for him at the gate for some time.
He immediately stepped forward to greet him and said, "Liang Jie is here, insisting on seeing you... I don't know what's wrong with him, he's acting like a madman."
Liang Jie came after dark, saying he wanted to find their leader to demand an explanation and return the lost "hunting dog".
Nan Tingjin frowned: "Who?"
The subordinate reminded him, "It's from Sky Base."
Nan Tingjin entered the courtyard, where Liang Jie was in a corner, guarded by several other people.
Upon seeing Nan Tingjin finally appear, Liang Jie immediately took two steps forward, but was stopped by the people around him.
“Chief of the South,” he said, his expression filled with anger and resentment, “it has been so difficult to see you.”
Even before Nan Tingjin returned, Liang Jie had already caused trouble here, almost getting into a fight with several people.
But with Nan Tingjin here, he restrained himself and barely managed to control his emotions.
Nan Tingjin's gaze swept over them coldly, as if he had already forgotten who Liang Jie was.
"Don't you remember? Blackridge Mountain Base accepted our bounty; we were supposed to capture that man-eating flower,"
Liang Jie gritted his teeth and said, "That night, the man-eating flower and the mutated pepper both escaped. I led the team to chase after them, but..."
He recounted everything that had happened, including how both teams later successfully found the carnivorous plant and the chili pepper.
However, the man-eating plant's recovery speed inexplicably increased, and apart from him, both squads were wiped out.
Liang Jie originally planned to visit Nan Tingjin before returning to the base to inquire whether he was aware of the carnivorous flower's unusual behavior.
To make matters worse, when he woke up, he found that the mimosa had vanished.
If he had successfully captured the man-eating flower and the chili pepper, the loss of the mimosa would have been minor. But now, not only had his mission failed, but all his subordinates had died, and he had even lost the "hunting dog" he had painstakingly trained.
Liang Jie thought the hotel owner was responsible, but the owner firmly denied it and kicked him out.
Left with no other choice, he had to come here overnight.
Upon hearing this, Nan Tingjin narrowed his eyes slightly.
“You just said,” he said, taking a slow approach, “that you found the carnivorous plant and attacked it?”
Liang Jie replied, "That's right."
Seeing Nan Tingjin's increasingly gloomy expression, he had a bad feeling.
He had no idea why Nan Tingjin had suddenly become angry. Was there something wrong with what he had just said?
Nan Tingjin stopped in front of Liang Jie, his eyes filled with even more gloom: "So... it was you."
Almost instantly, Liang Jie clearly sensed an intense, bloodthirsty killing intent.
His pupils dilated, and his face gradually turned terrified: "You..."
—
After leaving the vicinity of the wall, Qianhui found a secluded and safe room in the ruins, opened a cabbage shell, and hid inside.
The carnivorous plant had shrunk considerably, and inside the cabbage shell, all the plants surrounded Qian Hui.
Carrot was still nestled in Qian Hui's arms, now docile and quiet, completely unrecognizable from its previous state.
Qianhui fed Carrot a few pills and patted its head tenderly, saying, "It was so dangerous, why didn't you run away quickly?"
Luckily he made it in time, otherwise Carrot would have been injured and might have been caught by the zombies.
Qianhui knew Carrot's personality, but it used to just like to fight, but it wouldn't fight anyone to the death; it would run away when it was time to run away.
Carrot made a few "woof woof" sounds, hugged Qian Hui's wrist tightly, and rubbed against her with its head tilted.
It had become smaller, its wounds were healing rapidly, and after taking a mana potion, its strength had been greatly restored.
Now it finally recovered from the joy of the reunion and looked at the other plants around Qianhui.
There were money trees, corn, chili peppers, potatoes, and even a cabbage, vines, and a mimosa...
Qianhui introduced them one by one: "They are my new friends."
Okay, so it turns out it wasn't the man-eating flower's new friend, but Qianhui's.
Although it didn't recognize these plants, the relationships among everyone in the plant courtyard were just so-so before, and they didn't fight every day because of Qianhui.
Carrot quickly accepted it, hugging Qianhui even tighter, its dark beady eyes looking around.
When it looked towards the carnivorous plant, its gaze paused for a moment before quickly returning to its original direction.
Qianhui also came here; the man-eating flower had met him before she did.
So, did he also find out about the little mushroom...?
The carrot looked sad, and the little mushroom was sensible and well-behaved. Unlike the others who loved to fight, it was like everyone's little sister in the plant garden, and Qianhui liked it very much.
But... the change happened too suddenly, and it wasn't there at the time.
The relationship with the man-eating plant worsened because of this incident.
Carrot kept his face buried and didn't make a sound, but was suddenly pulled up by Qian Hui.
“Radish,” Qian Hui said seriously, “Xiao Zi told me everything.”
He also guessed why the carrot was hiding from the man-eating flower, and felt even more sorry for it.
Qianhui sighed, tidying up the leaves on top of the carrot: "I can revive the little mushroom."
Upon hearing his words, Carrot's eyes went from confusion and shock to overwhelming joy.
"Huh?" It became excited, wanting to confirm if it was true.
“However, not now,” Qianhui explained. “I don’t have enough money; I need to save it up.”
Carrot, though not entirely understanding, was still very happy, and even found the carnivorous plant much more agreeable.
It nuzzled closer, and Qianhui touched a small scar next to its head. It must have been there a long time ago, leaving a mark after it healed.
But Qianhui remembers that Carrot didn't have a scar on his head before.
He touched it with concern: "When did this happen? Was it not bandaged properly?"
Carrot gave a vague reply, looking indifferent.
Qian Hui sighed again: "I just arrived here a while ago... Where are you and Xiao Zi?"
He always felt that many, many things had happened before he woke up.
Some time ago? It turns out Qianhui arrived much later than them.
With a "hmm," Carrot pulled a sharp thorn from its head and placed it next to Qian Hui.
It pulled out a second, a third... until it pulled out six spikes.
Qian Hui hesitated, "Six...six weeks? Six months?"
Carrot shook his head and asked again, "Six... years?"
Carrot nodded, and Qianhui asked in confusion, "Six years... how many days is that?"
His only memories were of the small garden with plants, so he had little knowledge of time and no concept of it.
As soon as he finished speaking, Carrot patted his head, and instantly more carrot thorns flew out.
The cabbage shell has limited space, so it deliberately made the thorns much smaller, but it still filled the narrow space to the brim, and the thorns even protruded out.
Qian Hui called for a stop in time: "Okay, that's enough..."
The carrot waved its hand, and all the thorns disappeared without a trace.
Qian Hui's expression was still somewhat dazed and confused: "So long..."
So he only took a nap, but he was separated from the plants for six years.
Qianhui hugged the carrot tightly, and also picked up the carnivorous plant: "It's alright, I'm here now."
He wasn't as capable as the plants, but with the help of the game, he could do many things and try his best to protect them.
And...Nan Tingjin.
They used to be able to meet every six days, but this time six years have passed.
Six years... how many six-day periods are there?
No wonder he forgot himself... Did he, like the plants, spend six long years in solitude?
Qian Hui felt uneasy, and then she thought of the letter she had written that afternoon.
He didn't know when Nan Tingjin would see the letter... He missed the other person very much, but after delivering the letter, he left the safe zone.
Qian Hui took out the last bottle of disguise potion from her backpack and whispered, "I...I want to go in and take another look."
The carrot asked in confusion, "Huh?"
Where to go?
The carnivorous plant raised its leaves and pointed in the direction of the safe zone.
Carrot immediately frowned and shook his head, indicating his disagreement.
Humans are all bad, what would you do in there?
“Xiao Jin is still inside,” Qian Hui said, pursing her lips with disappointment. “I want to see him.”
Carrot still shook its head. With what it did tonight, the defense and checks in the safe zone will definitely be even more stringent.
Unlike plants, fennel cannot hide, so it is easy to be discovered if you go there rashly.
However, it's not that it's afraid of causing trouble; it's fine for it to venture into the safe zone alone, but not for Qian Hui.
Qian Hui lowered her eyelashes, muttering to herself, "But I also wrote him a letter..."
What if Nan Tingjin received the letter, went to Wanshu's place, but didn't see him?
At this moment, Yumi looked around and pointed to the mimosa on Qianhui's sleeve.
"Woo woo!" It gestured and made a motion as if opening a window and pressing a spray button, then grunted and swung its fist twice.
Corn tilted its head back, put its hands on its hips, and asked, "Huh?"
If Qianhui wants to see someone, she can just tie them up and bring them over!
Communication between plants has become simpler and more convenient; all the plants understand what the corn means.
Little Potato was the first to raise his hand in agreement, and the man-eating flower looked at Qianhui.
Carrot scratched his head, thinking it was a good idea.
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