Care Guide to Raising a Max Level Leaf in Apocalypse - 54
Diary
It seems something is off.
If the situation were different, Si Yin Yuan would want to pinch Ji Jiu’s face and ask what’s going on.
When Ji Jiu looks at him with clear eyes, it makes him doubt himself again.
Maybe he’s overthinking things; he’s been a bit clingy today.
Also falling with them is the filth that the red lips spat out just now, emitting an extremely strong foul odor.
Ji Jiu pats his own chest. “You almost got sprayed by this filthy stuff.”
The little grass doesn’t like a foul-smelling owner.
He lifts his fair little face, and his round black eyes have a hint of pride. “If it weren’t for me, you’d be stinking right now.”
If Ji Jiu had a tail, it would probably be wagging triumphantly.
“Oh…”
From that mass of filth emerges a human shape, wrapped in a thick layer of black, so it’s impossible to identify their appearance.
Ji Jiu is surprised. “It’s like how the Peace Lily spat out a person.”
Si Yin Yuan replies, “…I think it’s different.”
Clearly, this is someone eaten by the red lips who hasn’t been fully digested and was expelled after being eaten up.
What’s strange is that this person still has an extremely faint breath. When Si Yin Yuan gets closer, they excitedly extend their neck to bite. “Ergh!”
The slow movement clearly couldn’t hurt anyone. But it startles Ji Jiu. He quickly pulls his owner back and clenches his little fists in anger. “You’re not allowed to bully him!”
Si Yin Yuan’s heart softens, and he rubs the young man’s head. “Don’t worry; no one can bully me.”
Ji Jiu is still concerned and watches that person warily, like a provoked little hedgehog, with all its spines bristling.
That person doesn’t react to his anger at all, emitting a hoarse voice and opening their mouth to the maximum.
Drool flows from their elongated mouth, revealing red fragments of flesh between their teeth, with a greedy but colorless gaze.
Ji Jiu tests again and confirms that this person has completely lost their sanity, only focusing on chasing the living creature in front of them. Also, they’re too weak to pose any real threat, and if left unattended, they will likely die within a few hours.
During this time, Si Yin Yuan takes out a small one-meter-long combat stick attached to his waist and uses it to dislodge more of the filth. Among it, there’s a frog that was recently swallowed and has partially melted, staring with unblinking frog eyes.
Ji Jiu finds the stick quite entertaining, so he pats his own waist to locate his own combat stick.
Everyone’s combat suits and equipment are custom-made by the logistics team. Ji Jiu’s combat suit was just tailored before this mission, fitting his waist closely and accentuating his slender figure.
To others, the flesh and mud might be horrifying, but to him, it’s like the mud children play with. Feeling playful, he mimics Si Yin Yuan’s actions and pokes at the filth with his combat stick.
The person who seems completely irrational and only interested in eating people is disregarded by them.
Suddenly, they hear Yu Feichen’s call from above. “Boss! Are you guys okay?”
Si Yin Yuan looks up and replies, “We’re fine.”
When they fell, the mechanisms above sealed off again, and no matter what they did, the people above couldn’t open it.
Yu Feichen’s voice sounded frustrated. “Li Chao and the others still haven’t regained their senses, even though the big red lips are dead!”
Ji Ning’s voice also comes in from above, somewhat muffled. “Do we need to kill all these red lips?”
“Damn! How did they get here?!”
Shortly after, there was frantic commotion, followed by the sound of the door being scratched.
Ban Tang said,”Captain, they walked into this red lip sea without any reaction and now seem to want to go further down.”
Yu Feichen exclaimed, “What’s attracting them below?! Hey, you two, don’t go around in circles; you’re going to bleed!”
The scratching at the door intensified.
Li Chao and Ying Xiao were scratching, and the thing they wanted to find must be related to these red lips, but the only aggressive red lips were already dead…
Si Yin Yuan’s contemplation was interrupted by Ji Jiu, who crouched on the ground with a look of curiosity. “What’s this?”
He said and used the combat stick to push something out a bit.
Si Yin Yuan leaned down and saw a palm-sized notebook. Ji Jiu pointed to the struggling person nearby. “It was found near that person, and it seems to have words on it.”
These red lips were quite selective and haven’t dissolved these nutrition-less pages.
Si Yin Yuan cleared the dirt from the notebook’s surface using his golden flames. In no time, it looked brand new.
Ji Jiu exclaimed, then urged his owner to read. Si Yin Yuan opened the cover and slowly read aloud:
“September 12th, I’m still trapped in this island prison.”
“September 15th, I finally managed to send out a distress signal to the outside world. I don’t know how things are out there now.”
“September 21st, if this were a movie, I’d probably be the protagonist. I’ve somehow gained superpowers.”
The following pages of the diary contained mundane details of the author’s life, recording what they ate and how much supplies remained, likely because of their boredom. The frequency of diary entries increased, suggesting their growing isolation and need for a connection to the outside world.
Si Yin Yuan flipped through several pages before finding something relevant.
“November 8th, I’ve finally figured out the correct way to use this superpower, symbiosis! I can establish a symbiotic relationship with other organisms!”
“Unfortunately, this superpower is somewhat underwhelming. I can’t control the organisms I bond with, and my own thoughts are influenced.”
“November 9th, maybe I can try to find other people on the island. It’s been a month since I last saw the hotlips flowers. I wonder what they look like now.”
Several pages were stained with blood and stuck together, indicating the author’s severe injuries.
On the next page with legible text, the tone suddenly shifted to sharp despair:
“Why has such a large hotlips flower suddenly appeared! I’m being eaten!”
“Eaten, eaten, eaten, eaten!!!”
“I can’t break free! This is the second day I’ve been trapped! My whole body hurts! Someone, please save me!”
“My skin has dissolved a lot… it hurts so much. My hand can hardly write. There’s only one way left. I have to establish symbiosis with this damn plant—”
The diary ended here, with the words jumbled and chaotic. Si Yin Yuan put in some effort to decipher the final page’s content.
Ji Jiu looked at the person and said, “No wonder the tree frog showed little signs of melting after being swallowed. This person didn’t know how long he had been inside. He was only partially dissolved.”
He pondered, “If he survived within the red lips for so long, does that mean he succeeded in symbiosis?”
Si Yin Yuan shook his head and clarified, “Material symbiosis is not genuine symbiosis; it’s the spiritual aspect that matters. This person didn’t succeed. His spirit has been assimilated or rather, corrupted by the red lips.”
Regardless of whether his spirit was suppressed into non-existence or he transformed into a mutant after surviving, he has completely transcended the realm of humanity. Even if he survived in some form, his spirit had already perished.
Spiritual contamination isn’t an instantaneous process, but this person stayed hidden for too long, and in a sense, he had been irreversibly transformed into a mutant.
The person kept trying to crawl towards them, leaving a trail of blood and intestines. It was as if he didn’t perceive pain, his sole purpose being to attack and devour them.
Si Yin Yuan used his golden flames to send him on his final journey, and the scratching at the door stopped abruptly, including Yu Feichen’s furious shouting.
Yu Feichen’s anger turned into joy as he exclaimed, “captain! They’ve regained their senses!”
The symbiotic relationship ended.
Si Yin Yuan: “This is the interior of the signal tower. You go and find another entrance while Ji Jiu and I continue deeper.”
“Understood!”
The sounds of footsteps receding and Yu Feichen explaining to the others reach them.
Si Yin Yuan turned and said, “Let’s go.”
“Okay.” Ji Jiu took the initiative to hold Si Yin Yuan’s hand.
He recalled Chen Zhaonian’s words. Chen Zhaonian told him that as a lover, you should know how to flirt at all times; otherwise, a cold-hearted man might leave at any moment.
Ji Jiu didn’t understand what “flirting” meant, so Chen Zhaonian gave an example. For instance, when holding hands, create some ambiguous emotions—scratch the palm of the hand.
Ji Jiu tried curling his fingers and gently scratching Si Yin Yuan’s palm.
Si Yin Yuan: ?
He lowered his head to look at Ji Jiu, who gazed back innocently.
The palm was lightly scratched again, like a kitten extending its claws, causing a tingling sensation in his heart. However, Ji Jiu still appeared completely clueless about the wild beast he was teasing. He lacked any finesse, his attempt at pleasing was clumsy, and it felt like an innocent action.
The entire day’s sense that something was off was now validated at this moment. No matter how “straight” he might be, he would react to such balatant signals. Si Yin Yuan’s pupils contracted slightly as he asked, “Who taught you this?”
Ji Jiu shrank his neck, sensing a trace of anger in Si Yin Yuan’s tone. He asked innocently, “Don’t you like it?”
Si Yin Yuan rubbed his forehead and, after a moment of hesitation, finally found his voice, “Doing this… is not right.”
Ji Jiu tilted his head, “Why not? Am I not your lover?”
He tugged at Si Yin Yuan’s clothes, puzzled and persistent, like a little lamb willingly offering itself to a predator.
The little lamb kept bleating, completely unaware that it’s provoking a fierce beast.
Si Yin Yuan’s eyes immediately displayed an ominous glint, tinged with a touch of darkness. “Who told you this?”