Chapter 12: Wildvine
Snore Snore
In the wild forest, a Thirst Wolf basked in the sunlight as it slept, its snores echoing like thunder.
Smack!
Suddenly, a stone smashed into its head.
The Thirst Wolf jolted awake and looked toward the source of the attack, only to see a strange blue creature tossing stones at it.
Su Ke, transformed into XLR8, taunted, "Hey there, little puppy. Want to come play with me? Here, boy!"
Seeing this strange creature dare to provoke it, the Thirst Wolf flew into a rage and charged forward with bared fangs.
As the Thirst Wolf lunged, Su Ke instantly flashed to the side, causing it to miss completely.
Before the Thirst Wolf even landed, Su Ke seized the opening and slashed its body dozens of times with his sharp claws.
"Awoo!"
The Thirst Wolf howled in pain, its glowing green eyes locking firmly onto Su Ke.
"Hehe, this is fun!"
After finishing his taunts, Su Ke sprinted off in one direction.
Naturally, the Thirst Wolf refused to let him escape and immediately gave chase.
Although the Thirst Wolf was old, it was still an F-rank mid-tier Mutated Beast, a full watershed above Su Ke. Combined with its naturally agile race, its speed was no slower than XLR8's.
"Wow, you really do want to play with me. Then come on!"
Su Ke accelerated further, with the Thirst Wolf close behind.
Although the Thirst Wolf was faster overall, every time it was about to catch up, XLR8 would abruptly veer off in a bizarre trajectory. Due to inertia, the Thirst Wolf repeatedly lost balance and had to scramble to change direction.
After a while, Su Ke led it into a clearing where a small flag had been planted.
Reaching the flag, Su Ke leaped high into the air as if jumping over something.
The Thirst Wolf, lacking such awareness, charged straight ahead.
The ground beneath it suddenly collapsed, and the Thirst Wolf fell straight into a pre-dug pit.
The Thirst Wolf: Young people truly have no martial ethics, actually resorting to tricks and sneak attacks on an old, weak wolf like me!
The Thirst Wolf tried to jump out of the pit and had the strength to do so. However, just as its head emerged from the opening, the sky darkened as a massive stone came crashing down.
Wang Zhong had thrown it. The group had prepared a large pile of stones in advance.
Unable to exert force mid-air, the Thirst Wolf was smashed back down, nearly snapping its old spine.
Even so, as an F-rank mid-tier Mutated Beast, it was far from finished.
Its claws glowed with red light. With a single swipe, a large stone was sliced into several pieces.
Clearing the obstruction, it leaped again—only for another massive stone to fall.
Su Ke switched to Four Arms and hoisted another boulder overhead.
"Let's play Whack-a-Mole!"
Lin Ning warned, "Be careful. It just activated its innate racial skill, Blood Claw. Its claw sharpness and physical attributes will increase significantly, but its rationality will drop. Once the skill ends, it'll enter a weakened state."
"So we just keep it trapped until the skill ends?" Su Ke replied. "That's easy. We prepared a ridiculous number of stones."
As the Thirst Wolf shredded more rocks, the debris beneath its feet piled higher and higher. Each jump brought it closer to the pit's opening.
Finally, when it was nearly level with the edge, a stone the exact size of the pit suddenly fell from above. To be precise, the pit had been dug specifically for this stone.
Bang!
The boulder sealed the pit completely, pinning the Thirst Wolf between the massive stone above and the rubble below.
But it didn't stop there. The boulder slowly began pressing downward.
Su Ke and Wang Zhong jumped repeatedly on top of it, hammering it down bit by bit. With every jump, they shouted slogans.
Su Ke: "Work hard!"
Wang Zhong: "Push hard!"
Su Ke and Wang Zhong: "For the RMB!"
To increase their weight, Lin Ning even applied a layer of Panshi Armor to both of them.
Crushed between stone and rubble, the Thirst Wolf struggled to breathe, its bones creaking under the pressure. The sharp edges of the shattered rocks pierced deep into its flesh, inflicting unbearable pain.
It tried to resist, but there was no room left to move. It could only feel death closing in.
After jumping until the boulder could sink no further, the two finally stopped.
"Is it dead?" Su Ke asked.
"Yao Beasts have frightening vitality," Lin Ning replied. "To be safe, let it stay down there a bit longer. Let's collect our spoils first."
As soon as she finished speaking, Lin Ning eagerly ran toward the Lingyuan Grass.
Su Ke and Wang Zhong hurried after her.
Lin Ning opened the electronic interface on her armor and reviewed the harvesting procedure. She then took out a specially-made psionic entrenching tool and carefully excavated the soil around the plant.
About half a minute later, she finally stood up.
She wiped the sweat from her forehead. "Done!"
Looking at the perfectly harvested Lingyuan Grass in her hand, she sighed.
"What a pity. This is for Old Ke's breakthrough. Otherwise, I'd definitely keep it as a specimen. This is our first real trophy from the wilderness."
"Then you should keep it," Su Ke said. "I'll find another one next time."
Lin Ning handed the Lingyuan Grass to him.
"No. This was collected for you from the start. I won't let my desire for a souvenir delay your cultivation. Hurry up and eat it."
Su Ke took the Lingyuan Grass. "How do I eat this thing?"
"With your mouth."
"I mean, do I remove the roots or wash it?"
"No," Lin Ning said. "Lingyuan Grass must be eaten whole for maximum effect. Washing it will cause the medicinal power to leak unless you use special spiritual water, and we didn't bring any."
"Alright. Since that wolf is still blocking this area, it should be safe for now. I'll break through here."
"With us guarding you, don't worry," Wang Zhong said.
Su Ke sat cross-legged and swallowed the Lingyuan Grass whole.
A vast medicinal force erupted within his body, forcefully pushing him past the watershed.
His aura surged higher and higher. After about 10 minutes, it finally reached its peak.
A flash of spiritual light flickered around Su Ke—a clear sign of breakthrough.
He continued cultivating for another 20 minutes before opening his eyes.
"How did it go?" Wang Zhong asked.
Su Ke stood up, grinning uncontrollably. "Even better than I expected. It didn't just help me break through the bottleneck—it pushed me past the halfway point of the fourth stage. If I cultivate normally, I'll reach the fifth stage tomorrow."
"Congratulations!" Lin Ning said excitedly. "Quick, check if you unlocked a new Beast Transformation."
Su Ke activated the little broken watch and rotated the dial. A new silhouette had indeed appeared.
He pressed it, and green light flashed.
A green figure replaced him.
Su Ke turned green.
No—he transformed.
The new form had five vine-like legs, clawed hands, and two enormous Venus flytrap-like structures growing from its shoulders. Each flytrap towered above his head, partially obscuring it.
A blue eye sat on its face and on each shoulder. Black spores covered its back, and the Omnitrix symbol rested on its chest.
"Wildvine."
Seeing this Alien Hero, Su Ke felt both delighted and disappointed.
He was delighted because this form would be extremely effective in this environment.
He was disappointed because what he really wanted was Diamond Head.
Dear Readers,
I have an important favor to ask of you today. If you've been enjoying the story, please consider switching to Patreon to support me directly.
By joining, you will instantly unlock 20 chapters and gain access to a total of 50 to 55 chapters every month.
To be honest with you, I am currently in deep financial trouble, and your support would mean the world to me during this difficult time. Furthermore, if I can get more members, I plan to add even more new fanfics by the end of this week!
Please consider supporting me on Patreon so I can continue creating content for you.
Thank you for your help
patreon.com/anish_44