Care Guide to Raising a Max Level Leaf in Apocalypse - 40
Drink
Everyone watched the mass of vines, their breath held. Their attention was entirely on the aggressive and consuming vines. Only Ji Jiu focused on the flower bud of the Luminous Lilies, the quiet, unmoving flower bud that seemed lifeless.
But he knew that at this moment, its vitality had suddenly increased dramatically, even stronger than when he had empowered it.
Sensing his distraction, Si Yin Yuan lowered his head and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Ji Jiu curled his fingers, gripping the buttons on his owner’s clothes. “It seems… something’s not right.”
As if to confirm his words, cracking sounds emanated from inside the flower bud.
“Careful!” Yu Feichen pulled Hu Yan behind him.
Hu Yan’s awakened ability was “Absolute Logic,” possessing calculation speeds faster than a computer, but his physical attributes were just like an ordinary person’s. However, he seemed never to fear death, more enthusiastic than anyone when dealing with mutants.
If Yu Feichen hadn’t quickly grabbed him, he would have already pounced on the Luminous Lilies to observe it closely.
Hu Yan was filled with excitement, looking as if he’d won a hundred million.
In contrast, Ji Jiu felt a growing sense of unease in his heart. It seemed like his food was about to go bad.
Crack… Crack…
The sound, resembling the cracking of an eggshell, grew louder. Su Yin Yuan comfortingly rubbed Ji Jiu’s head and cast a cold gaze at the Luminous Lilies.
Golden flames emerged beneath him, and he watched the Luminous Lilies vigilantly, ready for any sign of trouble.
“It’s… It’s blooming!”
“What’s inside?”
People looked anxious and frightened as they watched the half-opened flower petals. The terrifying scene they had imagined didn’t happen. Instead, something sticky fell out of the partially opened flower bud.
After expelling this substance, the bud instantly withered, its purple-white petals wilting into the color of rotten leaves.
“Is that a person?!”
“Did the mutant turn into a human?!”
Many people present were terrified.
The humanoid figure wrapped in the green viscous liquid began to move clumsily on the ground. No one had expected that inside the enormous flower bud of the Luminous Lilies, there would be a human, or more accurately, someone who didn’t quite resemble a human. Their limbs moved like those of a newborn deer, trying to get up from the ground but repeatedly slipping due to the green fluid.
Ji Jiu was completely bewildered. Where had the huge flower gone? How did it transform into what seemed like an unappetizing human?! If it weren’t for his owner, he would have already rushed over and shaken this person violently, demanding they spit out his precious flower!
Midway through his anger, Ji Jiu froze. Wait a moment, this person’s aura was strange, identical to that of the Luminous Lilies, but it lacked the enticing fragrance that usually accompanied it. To be precise, he was originally a Luminous Lilies, but he had lost all the abilities inherent to the vine, making him no different from an ordinary human.
Ji Jiu couldn’t hide his disdain and pursed his lips. Taking advantage of Yu Feichen’s momentary distraction, Hu Yan broke free and knelt down, using both hands to cradle the man’s face, allowing the green viscous substance to dirty his hands. His voice was complex as he said, “Chen Ke?”
The face concealed under the messy black hair was identical to Chen Ke’s!
Yu Feichen gasped for the second time today. “What the hell is this thing?”
People behind them started whispering. “He’s not dead?! Look at his height; he’s completely different from the one we saw earlier!”
The person expelled by the Luminous Lilies had a more upright stature. Besides a similar face to Chen Ke, there were no other similarities.
He raised his head in confusion, uttering meaningless monosyllables.
Hu Yan’s hands were too tense, and his veins were visible. He regarded the seemingly pure, newborn human with great reverence. “Do you remember Chen Ke?”
The man’s gaze didn’t waver, resembling a baby learning to speak.
Hu Yan’s disappointment was evident, and his fervor subsided slightly. “It seems you don’t remember.”
If Chen Ke’s death could stimulate the Luminous Lilies’s transformation into a human and provide a new direction for his experiments.
Unfortunately, it appeared that Chen Ke’s corpse was the crucial factor in prompting the transformation into a human-like being. If it was due to obsession that they wanted to become human, could it mean that other mutants might also transform into humans due to their obsessions? This was just a possibility, but Hu Yan couldn’t calm down at all. His hands unintentionally exerted more force. He was eager to understand the key to its transformation into a human or, in broader terms, the connection between mutants and humans.
The face that looked exactly like Chen Ke’s began to show signs of deformation due to the excessive pressure, yet the person remained motionless, as if unable to react to anything happening before them.
Ji Jiu paused for a moment, and he was the only one who felt the Luminous Lilies pheromones becoming even sadder as soon as Hu Yan mentioned that name. It was an involuntary sense of sadness, like a hopeless cry from the abyss, where the person who would respond to it would never return.
Influenced by the intense emotions, he felt somewhat uncomfortable and had an instinct to leave.
The hunter from the “hunter association” approached Si Yin Yuan and asked, “What should we do now, Chief?”
Hu Yan also raised his head to look at him, his tone unusually serious. “You should understand the importance of the first mutant capable of turning into a human, right?”
His hands unconsciously fiddled with something. The overly tense atmosphere made him feel like smoking a cigarette.
The decision now rested on Si Yin Yuan’s shoulders, and he was the only one within the base who could confidently make a decision on this matter. As long as he nodded, Hu Yan wouldn’t be able to protect the Luminous Lilies here.
Ji Jiu nudged his owner’s clothes and said with a hint of frustration, “I’m hungry.”
His flirtatious, crisp, and slightly lazy tone clashed with the heavy atmosphere at the scene, like a sudden burst of color.
Humans could be such boring creatures.
He didn’t care about the subtle, hidden glances from the others, and he pressed his complaint while nuzzling his owner.
Everyone watched as their stern Chief, who had just been immersed in thought, lowered his head. He appeared gentle beyond belief as he responded, “Very soon.”
But when he raised his head again, the cold indifference returned to his golden eyes, as if the earlier softness had been an illusion.
Si Yin Yuan furrowed his brows and issued a concise command, “Bring him back to the research institute and monitor him closely.”
With this one sentence, the Luminous Lilies received a pardon from death.
Hu Yan relaxed and flashed a pair of alluring fox-like eyes. “Be careful; he’s a very important specimen.”
Only trembling hands exposed the inner desire for enthusiastic research hidden beneath Hu Yan’s nonchalant facade.
The Luminous Lilies didn’t resist at all; it allowed itself to be captured by the “Hunter Association” and curled up in confusion. Their identities had been completely stripped away. Ji Jiu, meanwhile, removed his mask entirely and enjoyed sipping his strawberry-flavored nutritional fluid, watching his owner handle things with a sense of ease.
Yu Feichen called for Rumeng, the resilient girl who had completely emerged from her psychological counseling sessions. There were no signs of the psychological harm of getting killed more than twenty times had left on her. Adversity hadn’t defeated her; the nightmare experience had allowed her abilities to evolve once more. Besides influencing the host when she entered their dreams, she could forcibly pull someone into a dream she created, modifying their memories and even common knowledge. It was a very practical psychic ability.
The reason for summoning her was simple: memory erasure.
…
After everything was settled, it was already midnight, and the festive atmosphere of the Nightingale’s Tail flower carnival was reaching its peak.
Yu Feichen acted as a laborer, sending those who had been forcefully drawn into dreams back one by one. Rumeng had fabricated a dream excuse, making them believe they had gotten drunk at the carnival.
Ji Jiu was yawning from exhaustion, and his head was drooping listlessly. He had the feeling that he had forgotten something, but he couldn’t remember what it was.
Si Yin Yuan led him back home.
Originally, this little grass who had been dozy, suddenly perked up as soon as they returned.
It blinked its eyes and said eagerly, “Late-night snack!”
Si Yin Yuan was somewhat helpless. “Aren’t you supposed to sleep?”
Though he said that, he still honestly rolled up his sleeves and went to the kitchen. Using the ingredients available in the refrigerator, he stir-fried three dishes and cooked a large pot of noodles.
Ji Jiu, excited, held his bowl, waiting at the table, showing no signs of tiredness from their journey back.
He was now so thrilled that he could probably eat ten more bowls of noodles!
Si Yin Yuan served the meal and watched the young man in the warm light, feeling inexplicably soft inside. It was like taking care of a little cat with a big appetite, making every mealtime heartwarming.
Ji Jiu glanced at the food, then at his owner, and instead of immediately picking up his chopsticks, he hesitated and asked, “Where’s the colorful water?”
Colorful water?
Si Yin Yuan was lost in thought for a full five seconds before he remembered what he had promised Ji Jiu. If he agreed to wear that mask, he’d take him to have a cocktail. He had promised this himself. Si Yin Yuan rubbed his forehead and decided to retract what he had just thought.
This wasn’t like taking care of a little cat with a big appetite; it was more like dealing with a little tyrant.
Since Ji Jiu’s “Devour” had its own resistance, a bit of alcohol should be fine, right…?
Si Yin Yuan hesitated for less than half a minute, and under the relentless assault of Ji Jiu’s starry eyes, he gave in, got up, and went to look for the cabinet that was locked behind transparent glass. The cabinet was filled with all sorts of alcohol.
He, himself, didn’t like drinking. He had barely touched cigarettes or alcohol before the apocalypse. All of this liquor had been given to him by others. If it weren’t for Ji Jiu’s current desire to drink, he wouldn’t have remembered these bottles of alcohol at all.
Si Yin Yuan found a blue-colored cocktail, cautioning, “Just a little bit, okay?”
Ji Jiu extended his index finger and made a tiny gesture, indicating, “I’ll just have a tiny bit.”
Little Grass being obedient.jpg
He remembered something he had heard at the carnival earlier in the day, so he dashed off to the kitchen and fetched a new glass.
Continuing to use his starry eyes, he coaxed, “Let’s drink together.”
People at the carnival said that you should drink with close friends because drinking alone wasn’t enjoyable.
Ji Jiu tried to persuade him with puppy dog eyes once more.
Si Yin Yuan, after much struggle, sighed and poured a glass for himself as well.
Originally, it was just a form of courtesy, but unexpectedly, as soon as he had filled the glass, Ji Jiu’s glass was emptied in an instant.
The hair on his head instantly stood on end, and he exclaimed, “Delicious!”
This colorful water, which matched his appearance, was indeed as delicious as it looked!
Ji Jiu looked at him and asked, “Aren’t you going to drink?”
His expression was pitiful once again.
Si Yin Yuan:…
He raised his glass and drank it all in one gulp.
Five minutes later…
Bang!
A loud crashing sound startled Ji Jiu, who was drinking. He clutched the bottle like a frightened little hamster, widened his eyes, and looked up.
The loud noise had come from Si Yin Yuan’s forehead colliding with the table.
Ji Jiu, feeling helpless, walked over and poked his owner. “Are you… are you asleep?”
Before he could withdraw his hand, it was tightly held.
Si Yin Yuan silently raised his head, opened his eyes, and his two golden pupils displayed complex emotions, like a struggling storm.
He showed an extremely rare hostile emotion towards Ji Jiu, gritting his teeth as he asked, “Who is that man?”