Chapter 28: The Crawling Plants

Recovering from his shock, Keji immediately pulled a strange, compact piece of equipment from his backpack and set it up on the muddy, moss-covered ground.

"That is... a light-source detector."

Xia Tong recognized the small device instantly. It was a special illuminator developed by the base, capable of emitting a gentle, peculiar particle glow. In an instant, the underground passage was illuminated as brightly as day, though this only served to make the surrounding twisted plant life appear even more grotesque and terrifying.

Without time to overthink, she transformed into a stream of water and vanished into the cracks of the wall.

A second later, a soft, pristine white light radiated outward, flooding the entire small passage.

"Hiss..." A strange, eerie hissing sound echoed. Countless twisted, emerald-green plants were coiled together like snakes, gnawing and devouring one another.

Seeing this, Xiao Ling felt a wave of discomfort. The scarred captain frowned and followed the trajectory of the previous attack... It was a dark red, snake-like plant, now withered and shriveled, resembling a stiff, dry snakeskin.

"Is this a plant, or an animal?"
"Is it dead, or just withered?"

Keji looked equally incredulous. He pushed up his glasses, his voice trembling: "Captain, the energy signal... it has indeed disappeared. But... this makes no sense."

As he spoke, the group grew vigilant. Deep down, they did not believe that a mutated creature capable of such a fierce strike could die so inexplicably.

The atmosphere at the scene reached a stalemate.

Hidden in the shadows, Xia Tong carefully observed the situation. It was indeed dangerous and bizarre here; truthfully, she did not believe the mutated plant had died so easily either.

In her past life, she had seen far too many strange species brought back by the base's explorers, many of which were expert at playing dead to facilitate their parasitism.

She could not tell which survival mode this "withered" red snake-plant belonged to. For some things, "death" was merely the beginning of another hunt. This snake-plant had either truly exhausted its energy and died, or it was merely feigning.

It would be best if it were truly dead.

If this squad were to be lost here for no reason, she would have to venture into the depths of the underground herself to find this so-called "Moonlight Orchid."

Compared to such painstaking effort, it was much more convenient to simply let them do the work.

...

Just then, when no one was paying attention, a twisted, deep-green plant in the corner suddenly stopped writhing, its color instantly turning to a deep scarlet.

The next moment, as the scarred captain stepped forward, intending to use his axe to poke the "withered" snake-plant to confirm its state, the anomaly struck again!

"Look out!"

Xiao Ling’s sharp warning rang out suddenly. Her mental perception had been scanning the surroundings in a state of high alert. Just a moment ago, she had clearly caught the sudden eruption of malice, which had been almost perfectly integrated into the environment.

Almost the exact moment her voice sounded, a twisted vine in an inconspicuous corner to their right—which had previously been a deep, dull green—stopped its movement without warning.

Immediately afterward, its leather-like skin changed color at a speed visible to the naked eye, shifting from deep green to a chilling scarlet, as if it had been instantly soaked in blood!

"Whoosh!"

Another streak of blood sprayed out!

Accompanied by a thick, fishy stench and a high-pitched whistle that tore through the air, it erupted from the tip of the suddenly transformed scarlet plant. Its target was none other than the scarred captain, who was just about to step forward to investigate!

"I... damn it!"

Hearing Xiao Ling’s warning, the captain looked back instinctively. The scarlet streak was heading straight for him, growing larger and larger in his pupils.

This sudden attack was angled with extreme cunning and timed perfectly; it was clearly a long-premeditated trap!

"Damn it, it really wasn't dead!"

The captain cursed, his hair standing on end.

Thanks to Xiao Ling’s early warning, although he was still shocked, he was not as helpless as the first time. He twisted his body rapidly, and with a burst of powerful force from his core, he dodged the lethal blow by a hair's breadth.

"Riiip!"

The streak of blood brushed past the edge of his tactical suit, leaving a deep, bone-exposed gash in the durable material, sending fabric fibers and sparks flying.

Had he been even a fraction of a second slower, half of his body would likely have been pierced through!

"On the right! That red vine!"

Xiao Ling’s voice was urgent and rapid. The specialized crossbow in her hand had already turned, and she pulled the trigger without hesitation.

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Three specialized bolts, shimmering with a cold, deep-blue light, left the string the moment her words finished. With a whistle that tore through the air, they shot with lethal precision toward the suddenly transformed scarlet vine!

The scarlet vine seemed to perceive the mortal threat. The "stamen" at its tip, which had just finished spraying blood, snapped back sharply. The entire plant attempted to collapse toward another, thicker-looking green plant nearby, clearly intending to use the same trick to shift its parasitic target.

However, Xiao Ling’s arrows were faster!

"Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!"

Three dull thuds echoed in succession as the bolts found their mark.

The three arrows pinned the "seven-inch" vital spot of the scarlet vine, their immense kinetic force nailing it firmly against the moss-covered, damp rock wall!

The scarlet vine writhed violently, even emitting a sound like tearing fabric, but it was held fast by the three specialized bolts. Its attempt to transfer its parasitic form had completely failed.

Soon, the eerie scarlet hue on its skin faded away like a receding tide, returning to an unremarkable deep green. Then, as if it had lost all strength, the plant hung limply and stopped moving.

"Damn! Still pulling that trick!"

The captain wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, his heart still racing. The gash in his tactical suit stung painfully.

Keji immediately stepped forward, pulling the antidote and high-efficiency healing spray from his backpack. As he bandaged the wound, he analyzed: "It's a parasitic mutated plant. Truly cunning; its level of 'intelligence' is clearly not low."

"At least it's pinned down now. It won't get another chance."

Xiao Ling’s voice remained cold, but the slight rise and fall of her chest showed that she had not been entirely unaffected.

She stepped forward and carefully checked the pinned vine. Only after confirming that it had completely lost its vitality did she let out a slight sigh of relief.

"These mutated plants... they are too bizarre."

The captain spat on the ground, his tone laced with lingering fear and disgust.

He remembered the mutated plant brought back by a special squad from the base. That entire squad had been completely parasitized by it before they even entered the base, and they hadn't known a thing.

It had nearly cost the entire base its existence...