Chapter 20: Chapter 20

From a small hillside by the road, she could see the wide highway below, where wandering zombies were scattered everywhere—a clear sign it was not a good route to take.

There was still a long way from the north of Qingshan Town to the seed market on the southern outskirts of Binhai City. All she remembered about this stretch was the scenery along the highway.

Worried about losing her way, she kept to the forested hills beside the highway, always staying within sight of the road.

The woods were her domain. Even if she ran into zombies, she could use her skills to move swiftly through the trees, easily shaking off the slow, stiff undead.

Along the way, she also encountered many different plants, and her professional experience points soared.

[Profession: Druid Lv2 (128/300)]

Of these, only 56 points came from killing; the rest were earned by tending to plants and channeling the power of nature as she traveled.

At this point, she was firmly in first place on the level leaderboard, far ahead of second place.

In contrast, on the combat leaderboard, she was languishing at the bottom.

Many people had already maxed out their kill experience for level 1, but that didn’t stop them from racking up zombie kills for their combat records.

Mu Ying, on the other hand, was an oddity—she would avoid zombies whenever possible.

She had her territory to earn money from, and her profession was unusually convenient to level up. She didn’t care much for the meager income from killing zombies.

After all, her mana depleted quickly and recovered slowly. She was already being delayed by all the interesting plants she encountered; if she stopped to kill zombies too often, who knew how long it would take her to reach the seed market.

Even so, it still took her three days of wandering through the woods before she finally arrived at the southern outskirts.

The southern outskirts were home to the farmers’ market, the seed market, and a logistics center, surrounded by several large farms and orchards.

Now, there was just one orchard between her and the seed market.

She’d been to this orchard once on a high school field trip. It had a huge variety of fruit trees—pretty much every type that could grow in the Binhai area could be found here.

To Mu Ying now, these trees were treasures, all species she couldn’t find in the wild. She wished she could take them all back to her territory.

It was the season when most fruits were ripening, so there were probably plenty of people who had come to pick fruit—in other words, plenty of zombies.

Mu Ying led her old yellow ox carefully into the orchard. As soon as she entered, she saw several zombies gathered under a few peach trees ahead. About half of them were small in stature—children, most likely.

She had already developed her own efficient method for dealing with zombies, and soon dispatched this group.

Once she was sure there were no more zombies in sight, Mu Ying eagerly made her way into the peach grove, stopping in front of an old peach tree that bore no fruit.

The old peach tree was festooned with red ribbons. It was a wishing tree, the star attraction of the orchard.

Mu Ying remembered the story behind this tree very clearly.

It was said to be a true ancient tree, several hundred years old, and every year it used to bear lots of peaches—crisp and sweet. The owner of the orchard had bought the surrounding land and built the orchard all because of this tree.

Unfortunately, after the orchard was established, even with the owner’s careful care, the tree bore fewer and fewer peaches, and the fruit grew increasingly bitter. Eventually, it was turned into a wishing tree, with red wishing ribbons sold for ten yuan each—far more expensive than the peaches themselves.

Mu Ying extended her senses into the tree. A dense, heavy natural energy unfurled before her—the thickest she had ever seen. Not only was the color deep, but the energy flowed sluggishly, giving a stifling feeling, especially around the places tied with red ribbons.

Understanding the problem, Mu Ying began to untie the ribbons one by one.

Maybe people had tied them extra tight to make their wishes more secure, but even humans dislike being bound—how much more so would a tree?

She spent the whole day at the tree, finally removing all the ribbons.

Feeling that such an ancient tree was truly precious, Mu Ying poured all of that day’s supply of Spring of Restoration onto its roots.

[You have completed a professional practice. Gained: Spirit Peach ×1, Profession EXP ×10]

“Spirit Peach?” Mu Ying looked at the tree curiously. She saw a green glow appear on a branch before her, growing larger and larger until it became a peach the size of her palm. A sweet fragrance wafted into her nose, making her mouth water.

She reached out and picked the peach to appraise it.

[Spirit Peach]

[Quality: Blue (Rare)]

[Effect: Increases Constitution by 1 when eaten. No effect if used multiple times.]

[Note: The old tree has a spirit; its fruit is only given to those with a connection.]

After reading the information, Mu Ying promptly ignored the longing gazes and suspicious drool of Yuan Gungun and the old yellow ox, and took a big bite of the Spirit Peach herself.

A wave of deliciousness spread from her mouth to her chest and then her belly, leaving behind a lingering fruity aftertaste. Her hand was suddenly empty—there wasn’t even a pit left.

“This Spirit Peach is amazing!” Mu Ying finally understood how Zhu Bajie must have felt eating the ginseng fruit—before you even start, it’s already over. Maddening!

She checked her character panel.

[HP: 170/170]

…

[Attributes: Strength 8, Constitution 10+1, Agility 11, Intelligence 12, Perception 16, Charisma 11]

…

Her Constitution had increased, and her HP had gone up by 10 points as well—a huge gain!

“How generous! Thank you so much!”

Mu Ying happily patted the old peach tree. She loved this grateful and generous tree. Like nature itself, it didn’t like to take advantage of others, nor did it want to shortchange those who treated it well.

A familiar sensation came from her wrist, and Mu Ying looked up in surprise.

[Nature’s Bracelet]

[Quality: Orange (Mythic)]

[Effect 1: Spring of Restoration: …]

[Effect 2: Claw of Recompense: As a loyal protector of nature, you have learned the ways of nature’s rewards. You can channel a trace of nature’s reciprocation, imbuing your hand with the Claw of Recompense. Without harming plants or animals, you may use the Claw to obtain materials.]

[Note: This mythic equipment has not yet revealed all its powers, and will only serve a recognized master.]

Today was full of surprises—Nature’s Bracelet had unlocked a second ability! Mu Ying seriously suspected that, compared to the wishing tree, the old peach tree was a real tree of fortune.

She reached out her “magic claw” toward the old peach tree. Somehow, she sensed a peach blossom, a peach branch, and a peach pit. After a moment’s thought, she chose the peach pit.

The old peach tree’s pit should be of excellent quality, right?

Mu Ying carefully stowed the pit in her backpack.