Level 1 Little Zombie Doomsday Growth Diary - Chapter 77

Chapter 77

The plants huddled together, each chiming in with its thoughts.

Carrot and Big Pea both felt they should strike first. Lettuce volunteered to scout ahead, and Big Peanut immediately raised its hand to join.

Durian stood nearby, carefully instructing the nine Little Bitter Gourds to stay close to Qian Hui and Nan Tingjin, warning them not to wander off.

Pomelo remained quiet, shrinking behind Qian Hui, only a few pomelo leaves peeking out.

Sunflower was absent. Though Qian Hui couldn’t understand the plants’ words, he could infer their meaning from their reactions and glances.

“How far away are those people?” he asked Mimosa. Its leaves curled up, indicating uncertainty—it hadn’t gathered enough information yet.

Seeing this, Qian Hui’s expression grew anxious.

Could the human team secretly following them be Wen Jue’s people?

During the last attack on Sky Base, Wen Jue had escaped and vanished without a trace. Yuan Ji and Qi Yue’s forces had been monitoring the remaining branches of Sky Base, but found nothing unusual.

Either Wen Jue had left a contingency plan in place, or he had contacted other unknown bases.

Yuan Ji had compiled a list of bases allied with Sky Base, but due to Sky Base’s former special status, the list was extensive.

Just like in the game’s encyclopedia, any entity not allied with Qian Hui, forming an independent plant faction, was considered an enemy.

Moreover, the human team tracking them must have been extremely cautious and well-prepared. They had been out for over a day, yet the squad only noticed them now, and that was only because they had Mimosa with them.

Without Mimosa, who knew what might have happened?

Seeing Qian Hui’s worried expression, Cabbage nudged closer and wrapped its leaves around his hand, making comforting “woo woo” sounds.

It wanted to tell Qian Hui not to worry too much; they could handle those humans.

The squad had several special-grade mutated plants, and with the newly acquired Pomelo, their combat power had increased even further.

They also had two vehicles and a Flyer. No matter how many humans came, they wouldn’t be a match.

Having already sensed the potential danger, this wasn’t a sudden crisis. The squad had planned ahead, so everything would be fine.

Cabbage chattered on and on, not caring whether Qian Hui understood, and nuzzled its head against his hand.

Qian Hui patted its head. “Okay.”

Pomelo, listening from the back, secretly glanced around, its hands clenching a leaf nervously.

So it had to fight too… Well, they were already preparing to return to the Little Courtyard, so it had to participate.

But humans were so scary, woo woo… They looked so hard to deal with.

Whenever Pomelo squatted by the roadside to snatch food, it would immediately flee, terrified of being caught by the humans.

Then Pomelo reassured itself: Carrot and Pea were so powerful, perhaps they wouldn’t even need its help.

It had always been this way back in the Little Courtyard. Pomelo would squat in the last row or two, and the zombies would collapse before they could even get close.

Carrot approached Qian Hui and let out a soft “woo” to reassure him.

It had already arranged for Cactus to accompany it. They would pilot the Flyer together on a reconnaissance mission to scout distant areas for any signs of the human team.

If they found those humans… Carrot thought with a cold snort.

Perhaps this would also be an opportunity to discover Wen Jue’s hiding place and eliminate this greatest threat once and for all.

Carrot gestured toward the Flyer parked on the grass. Qian Hui nodded, understanding the message. “Be careful,” he said.

Without delay, Carrot immediately set off with Cactus.

As the Flyer lifted off from the grass, a gust of wind swept across the lake. The white head in the center of the lake dove beneath the surface with a whoosh, sending ripples across the water.

Qian Hui and the other plants watched the Flyer depart. He returned to Nan Tingjin’s side and asked, “Any updates from the base?”

“Nothing yet,” Nan Tingjin replied, handing him the Communicator. “Everything’s normal.”

Qian Hui took the communicator and read Yuan Ji’s replies:

If the squad is being followed, and some mutated plants are absent along with Nan Tingjin, the enemy might attack the base.

Yuan Ji had anticipated this. Patrols and defenses everywhere had been reinforced, and spare Mushroom Water was prepared.

In contrast, the Plant Base, shielded by the maze mist, would be safer.

Clutching the communicator, Qian Hui felt a pang of regret, thinking he hadn’t planned well enough.

He lowered his head. “I should have waited longer…”

But he was genuinely worried about Pomelo. If he hadn’t come this time, Pomelo would likely never have returned, relying solely on a few plants.

Nan Tingjin pulled Qian Hui into a hug, gently stroking his silver hair. “Don’t worry. This is a good opportunity.”

If they had waited longer, the enemy might not have been so impatient, still carelessly exposing themselves to the squad.

Qian Hui nodded, leaning into Nan Tingjin’s embrace and looking up at him. “And you? Are you feeling better?”

In the past few days, Nan Tingjin had grown quieter. Qian Hui wondered if the recovery of his memories had stalled, or if he simply didn’t want to discuss their relationship while they were away from home.

Nan Tingjin remained silent, staring at Qian Hui for a moment before leaning in to kiss his cheek, the force of the kiss not gentle.

A blush immediately spread across Qian Hui’s cheek. He instinctively wrapped his arms around Nan Tingjin and returned the kiss, murmuring, “Xiao Jin…”

His affectionate and clingy demeanor made Nan Tingjin tighten his embrace, responding with a soft murmur.

Afterward, Qian Hui picked up his communicator and messaged Chili Pepper, inquiring about the situation at the base.

After a long pause, Chili Pepper replied: “Safe. Tian’s busy.”

“What’s Tian busy with?”

“New ones. Fighting.”

Chili Pepper offered a terse explanation before rushing off to investigate.

The newly joined plants had been left at the base. Earlier, Strawberry and Aloe had gotten into a fight, and Sweet Pepper had gone to mediate.

In a nearby meadow, Strawberry and Aloe were locked in a tangled brawl, surrounded by a growing crowd of onlookers.

Strawberry, lower in grade and smaller in size than Aloe, moved with remarkable agility. It swiftly grabbed two of Aloe’s leaves and began gnawing on them.

Aloe’s leaves were entangled, and it struggled fiercely, thrashing its remaining leaves wildly in an attempt to dislodge Strawberry.

Among the observing plants, Little Cabbage was frantic, waving its leaves and “woo woo”-ing loudly, but the two combatants paid no heed.

Mango joined in with enthusiastic “woo woo” cheers, rooting for both of them.

Sweet Pepper had just arrived on the scene, scratching its head, unsure of what to do.

Qian Hui was out, Carnivorous Flower spent its days playing with Little Mushroom, Nut had likely wandered off to sunbathe again, and Little Bamboo Shoot and Sunflower were nowhere to be seen…

Back when plants fought in the Little Courtyard, they were usually left to settle things themselves. The weaker one would eventually give up, or they’d both get a good thrashing and learn their lesson.

But these new plants had only recently joined the base, so a gentler approach might be necessary…

As for the reason for the fight, it seemed they’d gotten carried away during playtime, and both were stubbornly headstrong.

After a moment’s thought, Sweet Pepper swiftly donned its helmet and darted between Strawberry and Aloe.

First, it untangled Aloe’s intertwined leaves, then pinched Strawberry’s pointy tip to make it release its grip. Finally, it lifted both plants and placed them a meter apart.

Sweet Pepper moved swiftly, completing the entire task in less than half a minute.

It stood with its hands on its hips, watching the forcibly separated plants with satisfaction. Strawberry and Aloe were stunned into silence.

Three seconds later, the two plants charged at each other and resumed their brawl.

Sweet Pepper: “……”

Maintaining its patience, it separated the two plants a second time, then a third, and a fourth…

By the fifth attempt, Sweet Pepper’s patience snapped. With a “bang-bang,” it threw two punches.

Strawberry and Aloe collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Little Cabbage rushed forward to check on them, prying open their mouths to administer medicine before having Soft Vine and Morning Glory drag them away.

Sweet Pepper glared around, its eyes wide. “Woo?”

Who else dared to disobey?

The surrounding plants remained obediently still. Even Mango, unusually quiet, turned and quietly slipped away.

Seeing this, Chili Pepper breathed a sigh of relief and sent Qian Hui a message: “All clear.”

Behind its back, the small bag it carried vibrated with an incoming message on the communicator inside.

Chili Pepper quickly opened the bag and pulled out another old communicator.

“What’s the situation now?”

Chili Pepper hesitated, glancing at its conversation with Qian Hui on the other Communicator.

What a coincidence—both Qian Hui and this mysterious mutated plant were asking about the base’s status.

Moreover, it had just finished chatting with this mutated plant earlier that morning when the other party suddenly changed its attitude and proactively sent a message.

Thinking it was being asked about the base’s size or something similar, Chili Pepper replied, “Fifty.”

The wooden chips it had scattered contained this information, but fearing the other party might not believe it, Chili Pepper added, “True.”

After a moment’s thought, it continued, “Lively, busy.”

The word “lively” was one of the most complex characters Chili Pepper knew.

It wanted to convey that everyone at the base was doing well—happy and fulfilled. Even if there were occasional minor conflicts, they weren’t serious problems.

Meanwhile, Timothy buried its head in the Communicator, studying the messages with a thoughtful expression.

Fifty plants, lively and busy… What could that mean?

With so many plants, were they still struggling to cope with dangers outside the base?

Of those fifty plants, at least half were useless!

Timothy began pacing the meadow, its tail swishing back and forth.

After a few turns, it paused slightly, tilted its head back, and let out a long “woo.”

Soon, over twenty plants emerged from all directions, hurrying to Timothy’s side.

Hydrangea, the fastest runner, carefully adjusted the edge of Timothy’s headscarf. “Woo?”

Boss, what’s up?

Timothy remained silent, scrutinizing each of its “underlings.”

This one’s decent in a fight, this one’s not bad either, this one’s barely passable…

Then Timothy turned and pulled a wooden chip from beneath a shrub leaf.

After glancing at the coordinates on it, it flicked its tail and sat up straight.

Timothy raised its head, its gaze sweeping across the group. “Woo!”

Everyone, tidy up! We might be moving soon.

But Timothy didn’t plan to tell Lettuce and the others about its own trip just yet.

It figured it would observe the situation first. If there was real danger, it would act. If nothing was amiss, it could quietly return here.

Otherwise, it would look like it was eager to go back—which it wasn’t.

It simply didn’t want those dimwits getting beaten up. That would be embarrassing for it too.

Let’s just call it a vacation, Timothy thought. Staying in this forest all the time is getting boring anyway.

And… Timothy flicked its tail, snorting inwardly.

It’ll be interesting to see who dares bully my former underlings.

—

At that moment, among the ruins some distance from the forest, a vehicle was parked in a concealed location.

Three more vehicles approached from the side, one after another, and converged with the first.

As they drew closer, several people emerged from the vehicles, conversing while occasionally glancing toward the forest.

High above, Carrot opened the transparent canopy of the Flyer. With a Mimosa leaf pressed against its face and a telescope in hand, it leaned out to observe the scene below, taking in every detail.

Just as I suspected… These humans were definitely tracking them.

The Flyer was too far from the ground for its presence to be detected, and the humans lacked Mimosa’s sensory abilities, remaining completely unaware of the surveillance from above.

Carrot continued observing for a while. The vehicles remained stationary, as if waiting for something.

Only four vehicles, carrying at most twenty Ability Users. Now that the humans knew the strength of the Mutated Plant Team, such a small number would clearly be insufficient.

That meant… they were waiting for more of their comrades to arrive.

Carrot retracted the telescope, recorded the coordinates, and instructed Cactus to return immediately.

Hmph… just wait! It’ll bring the attack squad to ambush us any minute now!

The Flyer silently departed, unnoticed by the Ability Users below.

One of them held a small vial, his expression hesitant. “Does this stuff have any side effects?”

“It’ll drain you heavily and you’ll need more rest,” another replied. “But no other side effects, according to the Leader.”

With the Sky Base factory destroyed, every drop of this Potion was precious.

Wen Jue had originally instructed them to save it for their next mission, but the base couldn’t wait and had already arranged for several Ability Users to test it.

Rumor had it the Potion was incredibly effective. After taking it, the Ability Users’ charged attacks exploded with power, boosting their Combat Power by at least three to five times.

The base Leader was ecstatic, though Wen Jue grumbled about the waste of his Potion.

Regardless, the base’s forces were already preparing to seize both bases on Black Ridge Mountain in one swift strike.

“Then our operation here should go smoothly too, right?” The companion sighed in relief. “I wonder how many mutated plants there are… as long as that one that destroyed the Sky Base isn’t here.”

—

Meanwhile, Qian Hui bought backup pills from the Game and checked the condition of each plant.

Among the squad’s plants, only Mimosa and the Little Bitter Gourds wouldn’t participate in the battle. Nan Tingjin would stay by Qian Hui’s side.

When the time came, they would sit together in the back of the modified car, while the plant driver in the front used the launcher to attack. Nan Tingjin could also assist if needed.

Nearby, Durian was still comforting the Little Bitter Gourds, assuring them that once they dealt with the villains, they could return to the base.

The Little Bitter Gourds sat in three neat rows, nodding in unison.

Suddenly, a rustling sound came from the bushes to the side. Pomelo, the closest, opened its eyes.

Through a gap in the leaves, it spotted a strange plant sneaking closer.

It was a small lotus root, standing about as tall as an adult’s arm. Its head and body were three segments of uniformly thick lotus root, while its arms and legs were thinner segments, several times narrower than its torso.

The plant was snow-white all over, except for green-black tattoos that swirled around its right arm in a flashy pattern.

The tattooed lotus root silently approached Pomelo. Not recognizing Pomelo’s scent, it mistook the plant for a mere pile of pomelo leaves.

Seizing the opportunity while Qian Hui and the other plants were distracted, the lotus root snatched up the half-eaten bag of cookies lying on the ground and scurried away.

Pomelo, hidden among the leaves, watched the entire scene unfold, its mouth opening in a slow, dazed reaction.

That…

Was mine…