Chapter 517: A Familiar Encounter
The Blood Moon hung high, and a Yin wind howled through the ruins.
In the world 1,500 years in the future, domain creatures ruled, and every corner teemed with slaughter and cruelty.
As time marched on, the years had eroded all traces of humanity, leaving only crumbling architectural remnants to testify to their former existence on this Earth.
Atop the northern corner of these ruins, a once-lush botanical garden had been completely razed by Feng Qi and Suction Cup’s relentless slaughter.
With the battle concluded, Feng Qi’s Blood Source Form receded.
The crimson flesh on his body dissolved into a blood-colored mist that scattered with the wind, revealing the grotesque skeleton beneath. The flickering soulfire within his skull further accentuated his sinister appearance.
Summoning his status panel, Feng Qi eagerly reviewed his gains from this encounter.
The domain plants in the botanical garden shared many species, and he could only acquire one innate ability per type. As a result, his haul of new abilities was limited.
In addition to the initial Moon Harmony Effect and Bloodthorn Assault, he had obtained three additional innate abilities:
lethal pollen (Active Ability)
Description: Converts qi blood into lethal pollen, which can be expelled through the mouth, ears, and nose. Enemies exposed to the pollen suffer continuous poisoning and mild hypnotic effects. The specific effects vary depending on the target’s physical resilience.
exploding fruit (Active Ability)
Description: Converts qi blood into exploding fruit, which can be spat at targets to inflict explosive damage. Upon impact with the ground, the scattered fruit rapidly sprouts into new miniature exploding fruit, launching fresh attacks against enemies (can be mentally manipulated).
These two innate abilities weren’t exactly useless, but they were utterly ineffective for Feng Qi.
He was already tired of complaining about the innate abilities provided by plant-type domain creatures.
These abilities were more like summoning skills, constantly summoning various plants to fight while controlling the battlefield—completely incompatible with his combat style.
Kill more domain plants, and you might be able to create a “Plants vs. Zombies” scenario. Just summon a small botanical garden, stand there, and let the plants hunt domain creatures for you while you lie back and get stronger… Of course, this lazy method of growth would be incredibly slow. When Little Black arrives, you’ll still die.
Ignoring the Narrator’s snide remarks, Feng Qi focused his attention on the fifth innate ability.
He had obtained this ability after killing the ancient tree.
The ancient tree’s abilities were exceptionally powerful. If Suction Cup hadn’t intervened, defeating it would have required considerable effort.
Dragon Tree Blood (Passive Innate Ability):
Description: Your blood carries the effects of Dragon Tree sap, granting potent healing properties and a weak anti-evil effect. The specific effects depend on the potency of your blood.
Feng Qi found the fifth innate ability quite satisfactory.
It was his preferred type of passive ability.
As for the other four innate abilities, he considered them worthless and planned to have Three-Tailed devour and decompose them upon returning to reality. He would then use the Talent Evolution Points gained to further enhance his “blood source.”
At that moment, the Narrator’s voice echoed in his mind:
Good boy, your blood is even more valuable for research now. Drinking it now has healing effects. Next time, have the old woman draw more… No, just drain it all. You won’t die anyway.
Ignoring the Narrator’s snide remarks, Feng Qi turned to look at Suction Cup, who was crouched before the snapped ancient tree, greedily drinking the sap from its trunk.
In feeding mode, Little Suction Cup resembled a pump, the sap level in the trunk visibly dropping. Unsatisfied, she simply leaped inside the trunk to guzzle even more.
Flowing jade light swirled across her body, while the Scarlet Rune Crystal on her arm pulsed with light, seemingly aiding her digestion of the surging energy and converting it into Scarlet energy.
Now I understand why the old woman put Suction Cup into hibernation. How could we possibly afford to keep this thing in the Secret Base? We’re already dirt poor, and we have to feed your brain too. If we had to feed this little glutton as well, even if every member of Scarlet starved themselves, it still wouldn’t be enough… Maybe the Little Suction Cup would even eat your brain if it got hungry enough.
Feng Qi: ……
After a brief wait, Suction Cup leaped out of the ancient tree’s trunk, clutching a milky-white, bamboo shoot-shaped object, and landed in front of him.
To Feng Qi’s surprise, the Little Suction Cup faced him, presenting the milky-white shoot with both hands:
“(ω) Feng Qi, eat!”
Feng Qi glanced down at his drafty body and shook his head regretfully. “You eat it. I’m not hungry.”
Suction Cup’s face clouded with confusion, but she didn’t press the matter. She opened her mouth and, in just two or three bites, devoured the milky-white shoot, which was nearly as large as her own body, chewing and swallowing with gusto.
Watching Suction Cup eat, Feng Qi saw a reflection of Mu Qing.
He had first met Mu Qing in the Star City Academy cafeteria. The table piled high with food scraps and Mu Qing’s gluttonous eating habits remained vividly etched in his memory.
Having finished feeding, the Suction Cup shuddered, scattering the viscous liquid clinging to its body. As a flowing jade light swept over it, the tree sap coating its form was washed away, sliding off in shimmering streams.
“Feng Qi!”
A cheer erupted, and Feng Qi felt a sudden weight on his chest.
Looking down, he saw the Little Suction Cup clinging tightly to him, leaving him both amused and exasperated.
The name “Suction Cup” had been given to it by the Narrator during his initial Dream Realm journeys.
Back then, the Suction Cup had been incredibly clingy, always latching onto his chest like a suction cup.
Now, that nickname had become its true name.
In other timelines, the Suction Cup had borne different names.
For instance, after the Silver Moon Clan invasion of Star City, the city’s residents had revered it as their guardian deity.
Severely wounded from the battle, the scarlet in its eyes had faded, leaving behind white pupils. The people of Star City had then named it “White Eyes.”
But none of these were its true name.
In other timelines, Wei Wei had called the Suction Cup “Little Mu Qing” or “Good Daughter.”
Now influenced by him, Wei Wei also referred to the breathing disk as “Suction Cup,” never changing its name again.
Thus, in subsequent timelines, the name “Suction Cup” had essentially become fixed.
Feng Qi reached out and gently pinched Suction Cup’s rosy cheek before striding eastward.
Just then, a deafening roar echoed from the distance, followed by a howling gale. Debris from shattered buildings swirled through the air, obscuring his vision.
Feng Qi turned to gaze northward, where the sound originated.
He saw a colossal creature, over a hundred meters tall, bellowing in his direction. Resembling a gorilla, its body was covered in crimson fur, with a tuft of black down between its brows.
It was clear that this domain creature wasn’t targeting him; its gaze didn’t focus on him.
Yet the creature seemed agitated, repeatedly roaring in his direction, unleashing gusts of wind, and revealing a flicker of fear in its eyes.
Why’s it roaring so loudly? It’s keeping me awake! Feng Qi, kill it!
“Can I even beat it?”
Hearing the Narrator’s words, Feng Qi immediately felt eager to try.
Compared to hunting domain plants, he much preferred hunting flesh-and-blood domain creatures. He might even obtain an excellent ability that perfectly suited his fighting style.
(End of the Chapter)