Chapter 140: Mutated Fruits
The plants cultivated by wood-type ability users were simply accelerated growth without energy. However, plants that grew under the influence of mutated plants carried the mutated plant’s energy.
Although Lu Weiyi didn’t recognize these plants, he knew that some wild vegetables were edible. He planned to have Xi Shi identify them when they returned, and maybe they could get a couple of dishes out of them.
“The vines suddenly retracted? What’s going on?” came Li Zhuang’s voice over the radio.
“They’re dead. You can come over now,” Lu Weiyi replied, giving them their location and adding, “Don’t touch the fruit trees. I’ll show you how to collect them later. Also, gather all the ivy vines.”
“They’ve been gathered,” Antonio replied. In his view, the green leaves had disappeared, revealing the bare ground beneath, with some patches of grass growing.
“Not everything has been gathered,” Lu Weiyi said. Who knew whether there were medicinal herbs or edible plants? After mutation, their effects were usually significantly enhanced, so they couldn’t afford to waste anything.
“Got it,” Antonio replied, looking at Li Qing. “Shall we go?”
Li Qing nodded and gathered the others before heading out in the truck.
As they drove, areas that were once blocked began to reveal dead animal-people and abandoned vehicles with supplies they had left behind.
“Boss, can we…?” Someone in the team noticed the supplies falling from the vehicle, looking at Li Qing.
Li Qing hesitated for a moment, then nodded. Lu Weiyi had only mentioned the mutated fruits, but he hadn’t said anything about the supplies. Still, since they hadn’t contributed, Li Qing thought it wouldn’t hurt to give him a little, “Have someone collect it.”
The truck slowly moved forward, and soon they saw the mutated fruit Li Qing had mentioned. Just looking at it made them feel it must be delicious. After all, no one had eaten fruit since the big snow, and even Li Qing was feeling a craving. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been so careless and surrounded before.
However, since he had promised Lu Weiyi, Li Qing wasn’t going to break his word.
As they walked a little further, the number of mutated fruits increased. Li Zhuang finally realized why Lu Weiyi had that “got a good deal” look. Compared to the wild grass surrounding them, even though they had never been short of supplies, the fruits still made everyone’s mouths water.
“Captain Li, help us collect the vines. The fruit is fine,” Li Zhuang took the initiative to offer a share of the fruits. They had already agreed that Lu Weiyi would take everything, but it still made some people uneasy. They still relied on the military for support at the base, and doing too much might not look good.
As the vines were attacked, all their branches and leaves quickly withdrew. Lu Weiyi was so fast that before they could retract, the energy supply was already cut off, and the vines couldn’t recover, spreading across the ground instead.
“No need to be polite. Just helping out,” Li Qing immediately ordered his subordinates to spread out and collect the vines from the ground. At first, they were worried about another attack, being cautious. But after a moment of probing with no response, everyone finally believed that the vines were truly “dead.”
The vines, which had cost them the lives of several people to barely escape from, were now effortlessly destroyed, and a few of the soldiers who had been through the previous attack couldn’t help but feel a little uncomfortable.
“They really are impressive. I wonder how they did it?” one of them remarked.
“We should ask them later how to clean up mutated plants. That way, if we encounter them next time, we’ll be better prepared,” Lei Jun said, looking at Li Qing.
Li Qing nodded, “I’ll send a few ability users. I’ll introduce them, and they’ll guide us.”
They had many people, but collecting the vines over several kilometers was too much. Eventually, even Antonio felt it was too much and asked, “Lu, over a thousand pounds. Are you sure you want all of it?”
“Yes,” Lu Weiyi replied. Mutated plants weren’t something you came across every day, and encountering the same mutated species was even rarer. Of course, he wasn’t going to let a single one slip by.
“You’ll probably need to come and get it yourself,” Antonio said.
Just as Lu Weiyi was about to tell him to wait, he noticed that the speed at which Gu Qingji was absorbing the crystal core had suddenly doubled. Lu Weiyi had never seen how fast Gu Qingji usually absorbed them, so he wasn’t sure if something unexpected had happened. Just as he was thinking about whether to dig out the crystal core from the ivy Gu Qingji was holding, he saw Gu Qingji take a deep breath, wipe the sweat from his forehead, and smile, “It worked.”
He raised his hand, tightly bound by the newly grown ivy roots. The roots, which had been tightly wrapped around his wrist, automatically loosened, revealing the palm of his hand, which was covered in marks from the vines. The root that had originally been the size of his wrist had now grown to the thickness of his fingers.
“You should wear it on your wrist for now, just to get used to it,” Lu Weiyi suggested.
Gu Qingji nodded. The root in his hand slowly coiled into a circle, and several small leaves grew on it, looking quite similar to Lu Weiyi’s “bracelet.” He picked it up and put it on his wrist.
“How to use it, you’ll figure that out as you go. Let’s collect the surrounding vegetables and fruits,” Lu Weiyi said, and the two of them exited the courtyard.
As soon as they met, everyone noticed the new bracelet on Gu Qingji’s wrist, realizing the mission had been a success. They playfully bumped his shoulder, silently congratulating him.
Gu Qingji smiled, accepting the congratulations. As always, he was already handsome, but with that smile, it was hard for anyone to look away.
“Did your team recruit based on looks?” Zhang Peng joked.
“That’s actually true,” Antonio replied, laughing.
“Come with me to collect the fruit, and you two go gather the vines,” Lu Weiyi directed. He then led Li Zhuang away.
Li Zhuang directly uprooted the mutated fruits and stored them in his space. With his ability, he also cleared the ground, collecting all the abundant plants in the area.
“Wherever you go, nothing survives,” Li Zhuang remarked.
“These are all good things. Don’t be ungrateful,” Lu Weiyi shot him a look. “If you’re so capable, don’t eat them.”
“Eat, eat, eat, you’re a little emperor,” Li Zhuang tossed a large jujube into his mouth. “I have to admit, it’s pretty sweet… Hmm… Wait a minute…” He turned to Lu Weiyi. “Does this contain energy?”
“Yeah, it’s quite mild. You wouldn’t notice if you weren’t paying attention,” Lu Weiyi said, eating one himself. “These plants around here all grew under the influence of the mutated ivy, and the energy in them is beneficial to ordinary people too.”
He couldn’t help but be a little smug, “I’m too clever, claimed it in advance.”
Li Zhuang chuckled at his childish side but still gave him advice, “Later, let’s give some to the soldiers. We’ll still need their help at the base. The things they collect should go to them, and we won’t fight them for what we have.”
“Got it,” Lu Weiyi responded.
“Good boy,” Li Zhuang ruffled his head, then quickly jogged off to a slightly farther spot before Lu Weiyi could react.
*
Li Qing’s group had gathered all the supplies intercepted by the mutated ivy. The vines stretched for dozens of kilometers, and many ability users had already been absorbed by them.
A full day passed as they worked. They decided to rest in the small village. Lu Weiyi gave some of the fruits to Li Qing as a thank you for helping collect the vines.
Before Lu Weiyi took anything from his space, he cleared out part of it, intending to use it for transporting things. However, the vines alone took up a huge amount of space. With only limited room left, he was unsure how much salt they could get from Zhoujia County. He thought for a moment and aimed for the base in Xiang Ning City, which they would pass by tomorrow.
“I’d like to send someone to the Xiang Ning City base to trade some things. Do you know anyone in the military there?” Lu Weiyi asked, hoping a familiar face would make things easier. He turned his gaze to Li Qing.
“You really know how to find people,” Li Qing chuckled. “The director of the Xiang Ning City Police Station, Su Yan, was my comrade before the apocalypse. I ran into him when I was leading a rescue mission after the earthquake. He has some weight in the base. What do you want to trade? I can talk to him for you.”
“I want to exchange for some jade, the higher quality, the better,” Lu Weiyi replied.
“…Are you looking for space crystals?” Li Qing paused before reminding him, “These days, everyone knows about space jade. Those with space abilities have likely already tried it, so the stuff that’s out there isn’t likely to be anything special.”
“It’s fine, I just like it. If the apocalypse ends, it might be useful,” Lu Weiyi said, lying smoothly.
“In times of chaos, gold is king, but in times of peace, it’s antiques. Shouldn’t you be stocking up on gold?” Li Qing remarked.
“Gold is easy to get from jewelry stores or banks. Quality jade is always kept by the rich,” Lu Weiyi responded, not wanting to continue the discussion. One lie needed countless others to back it up. “Let’s head out early, ask for his help, and then find a place to meet up with the rest of the team.”
“Got it, I’ll talk to him,” Li Qing agreed.
Lu Weiyi also informed his team, deciding to leave Lu Xi at the Xiang Ning City base. Although Lu Xi didn’t understand why they needed so many jade pieces, Lu Weiyi obviously had a bigger plan, so he didn’t ask further.
“Make sure you pick high-quality jade. The price is up to you, the more, the better,” Lu Weiyi instructed.
Lu Xi nodded. “I’ll wait for you to pick me up.”
The next day, Lu Weiyi took an off-road vehicle from his space and, with Lu Xi and Li Qing, set out early to ensure they would arrive by morning. They wanted to avoid missing them in case they also went out looking for supplies.
“Why did you bring Lu Xi?” Li Qing casually asked.
“I’ve assigned this task to Lu Xi,” Lu Weiyi explained. “If your comrade is in the military, you might have heard of Lu Xi’s father. Maybe they’ll take care of him since they’re both military.”
“Lu Xi’s father is in the military?” Li Qing asked, surprised. He’d never heard of it.
“Yeah,” Lu Xi mentioned a military unit number. “Lu Xiao.”
“Cough, cough…” Li Qing choked on his own saliva, incredulously asking, “Lu Xiao, the Major General?”
Lu Xi nodded.
“Then he’ll definitely take care of you,” Li Qing said. “Your father is a legend among the soldiers in our generation, the youngest Major General in the military. Su Yan admires him a lot. After seeing his strength in a military exercise, Su Yan aimed to join the special forces that Lu Xiao served in. Unfortunately, his health declined, and that became a regret.”
