Spirit Qi Recovery Plant Research Department

After Fang Yi left.

The lingering aura in the forest refused to disperse.

A hazy mist blanketed the sky above the entire forest, like a veil of gauze and a translucent barrier separating two worlds.

"The Anomaly Value has exceeded 30. What happened?"

Before long, a team arrived.

They wore neat dark-green uniforms and monitoring bracelets that measured abnormal concentration levels.

The bracelets could detect abnormal concentrations of spirit qi in the surrounding area. Once the value exceeded 10, the area had to be immediately sealed off, with ordinary people barred from entering.

Previously, the Anomaly Value at Qingbei University North Gate had fluctuated between 8 and 10. When it suddenly surpassed 10, the military temporarily took control of the area.

And now,

the Anomaly Value in this forest had actually reached 30.

At that level of danger, even Pioneers had to proceed with extreme caution.

At this moment, they stared at the scene before them in stunned disbelief.

The forest ahead was covered in withered yellow, a desolate wasteland.

A female researcher crouched down and inserted a testing instrument into the soil beneath her feet.

"Large-scale vegetation withering is usually caused by local moisture, sunlight, or soil conditions."

"The air humidity is normal, as are the surface moisture and temperature. There's nothing wrong with the sunlight either. These plants seem to have collectively withered in just a few seconds, almost like humans having their vitality drained away... This is too strange."

"Could it have been caused by the Great World Change?"

The female researcher took a step forward, about to inspect it more closely.

"Don't get any closer!"

Suddenly, the elderly man leading the group shouted and reached out, yanking her back.

The female researcher staggered from his abrupt pull and nearly fell.

"Teacher?"

The old man stared fixedly at the forest, his brows tightly furrowed.

"Don't touch it. This is the Barren Attribute."

"The Barren... Attribute?"

The uniformed young people looked utterly confused.

They were Pioneers from the Spirit Qi Recovery Plant Research Department. Their main field was plant research, but Spirit Qi Recovery had yet to fully unfold, so their knowledge in this area was practically nonexistent.

The old man was their teacher and knew far more than they did.

He slowly began to explain.

"Have any of you heard of the Vine hanging down from the sky?"

Everyone's expressions changed at once.

The Vine hanging down from the sky.

As members of the Spirit Plant Group, they knew all too well what that meant.

It was a phenomenon science could not explain. It had already been listed in the official archives as a Tier A Aberration, one that could not be resolved.

"I heard that Vine is incredibly vicious. The authorities sent many Pioneers inside, and none of them even left behind corpses."

"Because it is exceptionally dangerous, it was classified as Tier A. The root cause of that danger is the Barren Attribute it possesses."

The old man explained.

"The Barren Attribute is a powerful attribute capable of draining the vitality of nearby living beings and claiming everything around it for itself."

The female researcher's face instantly turned pale.

Lingering fear filled her expression.

If her teacher had not stopped her just now, there was a very high chance she would have accidentally come into contact with that barren aura.

"Draining vitality... Wouldn't I have died the instant I stepped inside?"

"That's right." The old man nodded. "A plant that has awakened the Barren Attribute cannot be approached by anyone. The area around it is a domain of death. Anything that enters will have all its vitality devoured."

"I once saw records of another plant with the Barren Attribute in the Xia Kingdom. It was in the Ancient Tree Forbidden Zone in Cang City. There was an ancient tree tainted by decay there, and it had already turned the entire forest into a forbidden zone. Anyone who approached would be pierced through and have their vitality drained."

The researchers were horrified.

"The Great World Change has affected more than just humans. Animals and plants have begun to mutate as well."

"Based on what we currently know, the Barren Attribute should be the strongest attribute plants can awaken. After all, it can absorb the vitality of other beings. That ability is simply too overbearing."

The old man sighed softly.

Looking at the decayed forest before them, everyone could not help nodding in agreement.

Deep within the forest, cracks and blotches covered the ground. Dead branches and fallen leaves tangled together, and even the wild grass was dry and withered. The entire place was steeped in deathly stillness.

Such a supreme ability to plunder was simply too terrifying.

"Strange. Teacher, you said there were only two places with the Barren Attribute, but the Vine in the sky hasn't appeared here. Does that mean this is a newly born Barren Attribute?"

"I'm afraid so," the old man replied.

The researchers' faces changed in shock.

Having sensed the power of the Barren Attribute, they found it utterly unbelievable that one had actually been born here.

Yet when they searched the forest, they could not find the source of the Barren Attribute. The source... was already gone.

Only the special Cloud Vine could wander from place to place. Other plants were rooted in the soil and could not move. In other words, the source had not left on its own. It had been... forcibly taken away?

"Could someone have dug it up?!"

Everyone sucked in a sharp breath.

Without question, that was the most reasonable possibility.

But the problem was...

How had that person approached the Barren Attribute and dug it away?!

Once that ancient tree had awakened, the surrounding area had instantly become a forbidden zone. Barren Power permeated the area. No living creature could come within a single step, and anyone who did would be drained completely, leaving no corpse behind.

Now, the barren aura was weakening. They had been here for five minutes, and the concentration had already fallen to 25.

"The barren aura here was so dense before that we couldn't approach it at all. How did he get inside?"

"If someone truly managed that, then his identity is worth considering."

Once that possibility was raised, everyone fell silent.

No one knew how much time passed.

Only then did the old man let out a soft sigh.

"To dig out the source from a Barren Forbidden Land requires formidable strength."

"Could his senses possibly be sharper than ours?"

In a high-rise apartment.

Fang Yi pushed open the door. Compared with when he had left, he now carried an extra plastic bag containing a flowerpot.

"It's my first time growing flowers, and I don't even have a vase."

Fang Yi took out the flowerpot.

It was a plain white ceramic pot without any flashy patterns, one that had cost only five yuan.

Fang Yi first poured the soil into the ceramic pot, then took the wildflower from his shirt pocket and buried it in the soil.

The flower was only half the size of his palm, looking tiny compared to the pot.

"Now that this flower has the Barren Attribute, it'll keep cultivating. It can count as a capable assistant I've raised."

Fang Yi looked at the flowerpot with satisfaction.

A flower possessing the Barren Attribute could be quite helpful in battle. Since the attribute was so unusual, it could sometimes produce unexpectedly effective results.

In actual combat, strength was only one part of the equation. What mattered more was who had more trump cards.

After finishing everything, Fang Yi placed the flowerpot on the windowsill.

Just then.

Ding-dong.

A notification popped up on his phone.

Old Wang: Yi Zi, I'm back in Tai City. Come out for a drink!

Old Wang?

Fang Yi froze. Seeing that unfamiliar yet familiar contact name, a long-forgotten feeling welled up in his heart.

Wasn't this my childhood friend who enlisted in the army and whom I hadn't seen for three years?

Fan: You brat, you're back?

Old Wang: Yeah, hurry over. Meet at the usual place. I've got a huge secret to tell you. Don't be too shocked when you hear it!

Old Wang's full name was Wang Liang. He was Fang Yi's neighbor, and they had shared a desk from elementary school through middle school. They could have continued being desk mates in high school, but this guy had up and declared that he was going to enlist.

Then he was gone for three years.

Throughout those three years of high school, Wang Liang had not sent a single word. Fang Yi had been busy studying as well, and they gradually lost contact.

He had not expected that just as he had finally finished the exams and gotten some free time, Old Wang would return too.

"A secret? What secret could this guy possibly have?"

Thinking of his time in the military,

Fang Yi could not help showing a curious expression.

The Spirit Qi Recovery Association was currently the official Pioneer association.

But what about the military?

Would Wang Liang, serving in the military... have already begun coming into contact with Spirit Qi Recovery?