Level 1 Little Zombie Doomsday Growth Diary - Chapter 39

Chapter 39

Just a few minutes earlier, Carnivorous Flower had reached a position several hundred meters from the base when it spotted a massive dark cloud gathering on the horizon.

The surrounding weather was clear, making the cloud’s presence distinctly abnormal. It was highly likely that human ability users had created it.

Carnivorous Flower stopped cautiously, hiding behind the ruins to observe.

Soon, it and several plants that had poked their heads out of the ground witnessed fireballs hurtling through the air, concentrating their attacks on a single location.

Carrot, who had been napping and estimated it was nearing its destination, woke up and joined the group. “Woo?”

Carnivorous Flower opened its mouth wide, and Qian Hui, who was perched near its teeth, pulled out a telescope. “Are there humans there?”

As the plants peered into the distance, Mimosa trembled nervously, its leaves quivering.

Sunflower’s radiant glow conveyed information. Mimosa told Qian Hui and the other plants that it had detected the scent of a special-grade mutated plant.

The human ability users over there… were very likely attacking a mutated plant.

“Woo?!”

What?!

Carrot reacted the fastest, slapping its head and launching a carrot thorn that shot forward like an arrow.

Before leaving, it let out a final “woo,” signaling that Carnivorous Flower and Chili Pepper, the two vice-captains, should take charge while it went ahead to investigate.

The distance was too great to assess the situation clearly, but Mimosa’s abilities were remarkably accurate, leaving little room for error.

If it was indeed a special-grade mutated plant, then it must be one they had known from the Little Courtyard!

This news caught Qian Hui completely off guard, filling him with both joy and deep anxiety. He called out to Carrot’s retreating figure, “Carrot, be careful! Stay safe!”

Carrot took the lead, while Chili Pepper swiftly organized the next steps.

The plants emerged from the Carnivorous Flower’s maw, with those unable to fight remaining by Qian Hui’s side, including Sunflower.

Uncertain of the situation, Chili Pepper decided they couldn’t afford to split up. They needed to move together, wait until they encountered humans, and then search for Carrot and the other special-grade mutated plant.

Thus, the Plant Squad’s main offensive forces gathered and set off together.

Several plants waved goodbye to Qian Hui, Nut among them, before turning and leaping swiftly through the ruins.

The Carnivorous Flower followed, shrinking its size to trail at the rear. With its departure, the responsibility of protecting Qian Hui fell to Nan Tingjin.

Qian Hui could only remain behind for now, his heart pounding with anxiety. He continued to scan the distant scene through his binoculars.

By now, Carrot had drawn close to the storm clouds.

The wind howled fiercely in the air, nearly blinding it. It saw the lightning gathering within the clouds, poised to strike.

Carrot strained its energy, swiftly splitting off hundreds of carrot thorns in a single breath.

Like a rain of needles, the thorns shot upward from the side, piercing into the storm clouds with tremendous force.

Boom—

A muffled explosion shook the air. The clouds flickered with light, and to Carrot’s surprise, they began to disperse.

The human ability users below were forced to halt their attacks, their voices rising in shock: “What’s happening?”

Realizing its tactic was effective, Carrot unleashed another volley of thorns into the clouds while frantically searching below.

It spotted a pale green cabbage darting through the rubble and paused in surprise.

So it’s Cabbage…

With no time to ponder, Carrot guided the sharp thorns downward.

Remote attacks rained down from all directions, forcing Cabbage to dodge frantically. It didn’t even notice the danger looming overhead.

For a brief moment, Cabbage wondered why the massive, ominous storm clouds hadn’t struck yet.

Another fireball hurtled toward it from the side. Cabbage sidestepped the blast, catching a glimpse of an orange blur hurtling toward it.

Instinctively assuming it was another long-range attack from a human Ability User, Cabbage raised its fist to meet the blow head-on.

To its surprise, the orange object moved, dodging the punch and landing gracefully.

Carrot, clearly displeased, shouted loudly, “Woo!”

Cabbage lowered its fist, stunned. “Woo?”

Huh… Carrot?

At that moment, charred carrot chunks began raining down from the sky.

The two plants stared at each other, their eyes wide with surprise.

Carrot and Cabbage had never gotten along well, often brawling in the Plant Little Courtyard.

Both were offensive plants, one specializing in close combat and the other in ranged attacks. They were frequently paired together to defend against zombie invasions.

Over time, their mutual disdain grew. Carrot would mock Cabbage’s slow punches, comparing them to an elderly zombie’s feeble strikes, while Cabbage would retort that Carrot’s thorns were as soft as overcooked noodles.

In truth, both were formidable. Carrot’s attacks covered a wide area, while Cabbage disdained hiding behind Nut, preferring to stand at the front lines, preventing any zombie from approaching.

Whenever their conflicts escalated into fights, Qian Hui would intervene, mediating and placating each of them.

After arriving here, Qian Hui had vanished without a trace, and the plants of the Little Courtyard had scattered. Carrot and Cabbage never saw each other again.

Carrot’s gaze swept Cabbage from head to toe. “Hmph.”

Its expression seemed to say, After all this time, how did you end up like this?

Cabbage didn’t back down. It raised its boxing glove and gestured beside Carrot. “Woo?”

Still as skinny as a noodle, barely as thick as my fist. Haven’t you eaten in ages?

For a moment, the two plants glared fiercely at each other. Just then, three or four wind blades flew in from the distance.

Cabbage reacted faster, pulling Carrot behind a half-collapsed wall.

The second wave of carrot thorns had been exhausted, and the dark clouds overhead began to gather again, pressing down ominously.

This wasn’t the time for reminiscing. Carrot patted Cabbage’s shoulder, urging it to follow. The Plant Squad must be on their way.

Cabbage tilted its head, puzzled. “Woo?”

The Plant Squad? What squad?

Carrot grunted vaguely, implying Cabbage would understand once it saw them.

It slapped its forehead a few times, and a third wave of carrot thorns materialized, circling around them before scattering in all directions.

The human ability users were cautious, maintaining a distance that reduced the accuracy of Carrot’s carrot thorns, though they were sufficient for the moment.

Cabbage nodded, hoisted a stone slab for defense, and followed closely behind Carrot.

Despite their frequent arguments and squabbles in the past, Cabbage was overjoyed to see the plants from the Little Courtyard again.

Especially given the recent crisis, it was no wonder the lightning had been delayed. Carrot had arrived just in time to save it.

Cabbage grew even more curious about the “squad” Carrot had mentioned.

The two plants journeyed together, Carrot navigating while speculating about which direction the Plant Squad might approach from.

The carrot thorns’ counterattack significantly slowed the human ability users’ advance, allowing the pair to weave through the ruins.

Soon, Cabbage spotted a familiar figure in the distance.

It exclaimed in delight, “Woo!”

It was Carnivorous Flower!

Wait… there seemed to be more than just one…

Beside Carnivorous Flower, a brown mass steadily expanded, transforming into a medium-sized nut that settled firmly into the rubble.

Thump—

On the other side, another nut grew rapidly, then rolled half a turn, forcefully driving back the human ability users and crushing one man’s right foot.

After the plant group arrived, they discovered a human squad nearby.

The base had deployed three squads, each stationed in a different direction, with no fewer than twenty members per squad, to ensure Cabbage couldn’t escape unnoticed.

Without hesitation, Carnivorous Flower immediately enlarged its form and charged forward.

The human squad, equipped with energy detection devices, sensed an extremely high energy signature and assumed it was Cabbage approaching, completely neglecting their rear.

By the time they heard the commotion, it was already too late.

The Giant Carnivorous Flower swung its flower stalk, biting and injuring two or three humans in a single strike.

The remaining plants followed closely, launching a barrage of ranged attacks.

The squad retreated hastily, simultaneously sending real-time communication to the other two squads, alerting them to the ambush.

Despite the suddenness of the attack, their numerical advantage and thorough preparations allowed them to temporarily hold their ground.

“It’s the mutated plants from Black Ridge Mountain!” the captain shouted. “They’ve actually come here!”

The mission directives had been distributed to all bases, but for two or three days, no one had provided any leads on the mutated plants’ whereabouts. Their speed had been completely underestimated.

Moreover, Wen Jue’s instructions had made no mention of…

His ability is precognition, right? Why has he repeatedly failed against these mutated plants?

Many in the three squads had the same thought, but no one dared voice it first.

After a brief discussion, the three captains quickly made a decision: everyone was to immediately retreat back to the base.

The mutated plants, united, had annihilated Zhao Xing’s thirty-man squad…

Though their current force was larger, they were divided into three separate groups, making it unlikely they could regroup in time.

Moreover, to capture Cabbage alive, nearly all the base’s personnel had been deployed, leaving no reinforcements available.

This location was merely a branch of Sky Base, housing a small number of non-ability-user staff.

In short, immediate withdrawal was paramount. The base’s walls boasted superior defenses and weaponry, capable of repelling these mutated plants.

Upon receiving the order, everyone abandoned their attack on Cabbage and began retreating toward the base, including the squad currently under assault by the plants.

Sensing the human squad’s retreat, Nut couldn’t contain itself any longer.

Surrounded by ruins offering ample cover, it hadn’t been assigned to combat. Chili Pepper had instructed it to stay back and observe the situation.

Nut, fearless of attacks, simply leaped to the highest point of the ruins to keep watch over the surroundings.

After patiently waiting for a moment, it finally spotted an opportunity and sprang into action.

Though smaller than the Giant Carnivorous Flower, the Large Nut was still a formidable opponent, its power far from its peak but terrifying nonetheless.

The human squad watched in horror as the Large Nut charged forward, blocking their retreat and threatening to roll over them.

They scrambled backward, only to collide with the Carnivorous Flower.

Caught in a pincer attack, with ranged attacks raining down from the side, they had only one direction left to flee.

But moments later, a shower of carrot thorns whistled through the air, piercing several members of the squad.

Amidst the ruins, a pale green Cabbage charged forward, its leafy fists clenched, with Carrot trailing close behind.

The captain was the first to encounter Cabbage. The cabbage’s leafy gauntlets looked verdant but felt like they were wrapped around heavy iron blocks. With a single punch, Cabbage shattered the captain’s nose.

Seeing this, the Carnivorous Flower swung its flower stalk and roared, preparing to meet Cabbage’s advance.

In less than half an hour, the entire squad of human ability users had been eliminated.

These individuals were from Sky Base, frequently involved in capturing and taming mutated plants. The Carnivorous Flower showed no mercy, killing the last one.

Unfortunately, the remaining two squads were too far away and likely had already escaped back to the base.

Carrot didn’t plan to linger in the area. The situation inside the base remained unknown. First, it needed to find Qian Hui, then find a safe place to regroup and strategize how to rescue the imprisoned mutated plants.

Under Carrot’s leadership, the Plant Squad quickly departed. The Carnivorous Flower shrank its massive form, trailing at the rear of the group. With a sweep of its flower stalk, it erased all traces of their passage from the ground.

Along the way, Cabbage looked around with boundless curiosity.

Not only was the Carnivorous Flower present, but Nut was there too!

Cabbage casually reached out to pat Nut’s head, but Nut dodged the gesture.

There were also several unfamiliar plants: Green Chili Pepper, Potato, Corn…

They were all mid-grade, yet their combat performance had been remarkably fierce, bearing no resemblance to the mid-grade mutated plants Cabbage had imagined.

Nearby stood Little Bamboo Shoot and Durian. Durian seemed particularly close to Carrot, trotting closely behind it while nervously glancing at Carrot, as if checking for injuries.

The unfamiliar plants were quite friendly, waving and greeting Cabbage whenever their eyes met.

Cabbage turned to glance at the Carnivorous Flower bringing up the rear, then nudged Carrot. “Woo? Woo? Woo?”

It wanted to ask if these plants were the “squad” Carrot had mentioned earlier, and where Carrot had found them.

Moreover, when had Carrot met Carnivorous Flower and Nut? Had it encountered any other plants from the Little Courtyard?

Carrot, growing impatient with the barrage of questions, shoved Cabbage aside. “Hmph.”

It still refused to answer, leaving Cabbage to figure it out for itself.

Cabbage scratched its head, then suddenly seemed to sense something and looked ahead.

A familiar figure appeared in the distance. Cabbage stopped abruptly and rubbed its eyes.

Confirming it wasn’t mistaken, it broke into a run, sprinting forward.

Qian Hui, holding Sunflower in his arms, waved at the returning Plant Squad.

Seeing Cabbage running toward him, he exclaimed in delight, “Xiao Juan!”

[ The seventh Faction Conflict has ended. Congratulations to our side for winning! Reward: 50 Prestige Points. ]

[ You have bonded with the special-grade mutated plant “Cabbage”! ]

[ Cabbage’s Loyalty has greatly increased, now at 100%! ]

Little Cabbage, nestled in Qian Hui’s arms, peeked out from behind Sunflower’s leaves, craning its neck to look around.

That unfamiliar special-grade mutated plant must be Qian Hui’s friend too. What kind of plant is it…?

As Cabbage drew closer, Little Cabbage froze, its eyes widening. “Eh—?”

Hesitantly, it ducked its head, then glanced back at itself.