Fire Repellent

Every month, Luo Wendi came to visit him. He never brought anything sensitive, either, only flowers and plants.

The Danmu Bai Ge had sold to Luo Wendi had been delivered here at once.

Liang Zhen adored flowers. When he first saw the Danmu, he did not recognize it.

Only after Luo Wendi introduced it using the original text of the Classic of Mountains and Seas did he suddenly understand.

"A legendary flower from the Classic of Mountains and Seas! Such a beautiful and strange flower really exists in this world?"

Liang Zhen could not take his eyes off it. After examining it repeatedly, he angrily said,

"Who planted it like this? This is simply reckless! The flower's roots and stem are thick and long. How could you put it in such a tiny pot?"

Liang Zhen ignored Luo Wendi and hurriedly carried the flowerpot into the courtyard, where he began tending to it himself.

Seeing how much Liang Zhen liked it, Luo Wendi did not disturb him and silently followed.

After a long while, Liang Zhen finished arranging the Danmu and sat nearby, admiring it with satisfaction.

"Little Luo, where did you get this flower?"

He had finally asked. Luo Wendi hurriedly said, "I picked it myself in Shennongjia. I saw how unusual the flower was and knew Dad would like it..."

"You picked it yourself? That explains it. No wonder you made such a mess of it." Liang Zhen curled his lip.

Luo Wendi gave an awkward laugh. Of course, he knew nothing about flowers.

As he spoke, Liang Zhen took a book from the room and flipped through several pages. His eyes suddenly lit up.

"Round leaves and a red stem, yellow flowers and red fruit. Its taste is like malt sugar. Eating it prevents hunger and allows one to withstand fire."

"It really is the Danmu, just as it was recorded... It's actually this beautiful."

Liang Zhen beamed, utterly delighted.

But then he sighed. "It's a shame it's so precious. This flower shouldn't be raised here with me."

Luo Wendi was not surprised to hear that.

If the flower were merely an ordinary beauty, it would be easy enough.

If Liang Zhen liked it, he could simply raise it himself.

But this was the Danmu.

The flower was not merely beautiful. It also possessed historical and cultural significance, as well as research value.

It had far too many additional values. It might even be the only one of its kind in the world. In that case, it was a priceless treasure.

A flower like this naturally ought to be entrusted to professionals.

Understanding what Liang Zhen meant, Luo Wendi took the initiative and said, "Why don't we send it to the Chinese Academy of Sciences?"

Liang Zhen gave the flower a reluctant look, then nodded.

He picked up the phone and called his secretary.

Not long afterward, the Danmu was sent to the Wuhan Botanical Garden.

Whenever anyone asked about the flower's origins, Luo Wendi always said that he had picked it himself.

In his opinion, although the flower was strange and precious,

as long as he insisted that it was the only one growing at the place where he had picked it, nobody could expose his lie.

The honor of being the first person to discover the Danmu naturally fell to him as well.

Luo Wendi was more than happy with this. Over the next few days, he was frequently invited to the various research groups at the botanical garden.

He bragged about how he had discovered the Danmu, how he had carefully protected it and brought it there, and how he had decisively handed it over to the state.

The relevant officials praised his contribution more than once.

The matter was soon reported by the media. Once a photograph of the Danmu was released, it attracted even more attention.

For a time, the flower became wildly famous. Its gorgeous appearance, combined with the reputation of the Classic of Mountains and Seas, caused a single photograph to be reposted tens of millions of times in a short period!

Even the capital was alarmed and sent an expert team.

Not only that, but many scholars who studied the Classic of Mountains and Seas and ancient geographical records also flocked there.

Everyone wanted to learn more about the flower, and countless related speculations spread across the internet.

People were especially interested in the Danmu's ability to withstand fire, as recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas.

Was it really true? Did the Danmu truly possess some unique property?

If so, could it be considered a mythical plant? Could it serve as another piece of evidence supporting the many unverifiable descriptions in the Classic of Mountains and Seas?

The researchers, filled with countless questions about the flower, began studying the Danmu.

The outside world knew nothing about the research results.

But within the Chinese Academy of Sciences, a tremendous uproar had already erupted!

Luo Wendi, who had originally been preparing to return to Xiangfan City, was summoned back.

"A strange flower! What a strange flower! You discovered it in Shennongjia? Where exactly? Take us there at once!" Numerous doctoral researchers excitedly questioned Luo Wendi.

Luo Wendi was somewhat bewildered. "What happened? I can confirm that there was only this one plant at the place where I found it."

"This isn't about whether there was one plant or not. We need to study its growing environment! Do you know what we discovered from the vegetation cells we extracted?" a researcher asked.

"What?"

"Heat resistance! The cellular structure of that red fruit is incredibly strange. The specimen can withstand temperatures of fifteen hundred degrees Celsius in the laboratory! That's almost the melting point of iron!"

Luo Wendi froze when he heard this.

The researcher continued, "The ancients truly didn't deceive us! Even when roasted in flames, the Danmu suffers no damage whatsoever! No wonder the Classic of Mountains and Seas recorded that eating it would allow one to 'withstand fire'!"

Luo Wendi asked, "The flower itself merely withstands fire. Does that mean eating it can really make someone breathe fire?"

The researcher shook his head. "Who told you it has to make people breathe fire? However, the Danmu's components can fuse with human cells. We speculate that after absorbing the fruit, a highly effective heat-insulating substance will form on the surface of the human body, allowing it to effectively 'repel fire'!"

"The ancients often exaggerated. They said it could withstand fire, but they may simply have meant that the flower had fire-repelling properties. Perhaps they worshiped the flower for that reason and believed eating it would let them withstand fire. That may not necessarily be true."

Put simply, people were very forgiving when the ancients lied a little and bragged a little.

At least they had not invented it out of thin air. The Danmu truly did not fear fire, so it was perfectly reasonable for the ancients to fantasize that eating it would let them withstand fire. Perhaps that was exactly what "eating it allows one to withstand fire" meant: eating it could repel fire.

The ancients could be forgiven, but Luo Wendi was in trouble.

Its habitat? He had no idea!

If the flower were merely beautiful and possessed historical and cultural value, he could simply name any place.

But now, the Danmu's scientific value outweighed its other values. Its overall significance had changed completely!

If Luo Wendi truly made something up and the truth was exposed later, his responsibility would be enormous.

Everyone believed he had picked the flower himself. He could not possibly back out now and say, "Actually, I didn't pick it myself," could he?

He had been making up lies for so long that he was already riding a tiger and unable to dismount. Even his father-in-law believed he had discovered the Danmu and told him to cooperate fully with the Chinese Academy of Sciences in conducting a field investigation.

"When are we leaving?" Luo Wendi asked gloomily.

"As soon as possible!"

Luo Wendi nodded and thought of the Danmu's true discoverer.

He had no other choice. At this point, he had to find Bai Ge.

That night, Chen Song drove Bai Ge to the Chinese Academy of Sciences' botanical garden in Wuhan.

Luo Wendi personally waited at the entrance. When he saw Bai Ge, his face lit up with a smile.

That smile made Chen Song relax.

"Young Master Luo, I brought Bai Ge here."

"Good, good, good. I didn't expect you to come so quickly. I'll treat you to tea when I have time. I have something to take care of tonight, so I'm sorry," Luo Wendi said politely.

Chen Song was immediately satisfied. What he wanted was Luo Wendi's connections, and he had spent one hundred thousand for them. Now that Luo Wendi had offered to treat him to tea, he no longer felt that he had lost out.

Luo Wendi exchanged a few more polite words with him before seeing Chen Song off.

This was a research center, and unauthorized personnel could not enter.

Even Luo Wendi was alone. Only by leading the way himself could he bring Bai Ge into a certain lounge.

Before Luo Wendi could ask, Bai Ge took the initiative and said, "I brought the photographs. I don't have any close-ups, but they can tell you where the place is."

"Good!" Luo Wendi had not expected Bai Ge to be so considerate, and immediately invited him inside.

The two sat opposite each other on the sofa. Bai Ge handed over the photographs.

Luo Wendi looked them over, then opened Google Maps and compared them in detail, memorizing the location.

"You knew why I asked you here?" Luo Wendi asked.

Bai Ge said, "If you're familiar with my profession, you should know that I like to prepare for every possibility. Although we agreed at the time that you wouldn't look for me because of flowers again, I also prepared for the possibility that you would break your promise."

At the mention of breaking his promise, Luo Wendi felt somewhat awkward.

But he argued, "We didn't have a written agreement, did we?"

After saying that, he changed the subject himself. "What's unusual about this place?"

Bai Ge shook his head. "There's nothing unusual about it."

"Hm? Then why did you try so hard to distance yourself from it back then?" Luo Wendi asked.

"This flower matches the records of the Danmu perfectly. As you said, it's a priceless treasure. I simply don't want fame. My profession isn't exactly respectable," Bai Ge said.

"I see..." Luo Wendi was somewhat disappointed.

He did not doubt Bai Ge's words. He could never have imagined that the flower had been artificially created.

"Sigh, such an ordinary place actually gave rise to such a strange flower."

Luo Wendi looked troubled, as though he had not expected the flower's growing environment to be so mundane.

Bai Ge asked, "What's wrong? Why does it have to be unusual?"

"You don't know this, but research has discovered that this flower possesses extraordinary heat resistance. It can withstand temperatures of fifteen hundred degrees Celsius, and anyone who eats the fruit might gain the same ability. However, the precise effects still require testing on a living subject."

"What? Fifteen hundred degrees? Can eating it make someone breathe fire?" Bai Ge said with an expression of surprise.

He was obviously pretending. In truth, he had anticipated this long ago.

When he had created the Danmu, he had only provided a general concept. Ling Dang had created the specifics.

When it came to such details, Ling Dang could do a better job than he could.

Among its various minor settings was one stating that it could repel fire: the Danmu's ignition point was between 1,550 and 1,650 degrees, and anyone who ate it would possess the same resistance.

Only that feature had been realized. The others most likely had not, since he had only lost forty kilograms back then.

So Bai Ge was not genuinely surprised.

But seeing his astonishment, Luo Wendi explained, "That's why it's a strange flower! The Chinese Academy of Sciences believes that such a strange flower must have a unique growing environment."

Bai Ge smiled. "You didn't need to ask me at all. You could have simply made up a place and said there was nothing unusual about it."

Luo Wendi said in frustration, "Do you think I don't know that?"

"This flower is far more precious than I imagined! If I wanted to make something up, why would I have come to you? Taking them to its actual growing environment is also a contribution to the country."

Bai Ge understood. After all, the Danmu's value had exceeded expectations. Luo Wendi was unwilling to fabricate its origin and wanted to tell the Chinese Academy of Sciences the real location. That was understandable.

Thinking about it carefully, Luo Wendi actually had an instinctive desire to contribute to the country.

Otherwise, he could have fabricated everything and concealed the truth.

"What do you plan to do?" Bai Ge asked.

"What else can I do? I'll take them there. The research is their business. Whether they believe me or not is up to them. What can they do to me?" Luo Wendi said.

Bai Ge smiled. This was precisely the outcome he had been hoping for.

"In that case, if there's nothing else, I'll be leaving."

As he spoke, Bai Ge was about to leave.

Suddenly, a series of urgent bells rang out, and the botanical garden's research center immediately grew noisy.

Luo Wendi ran out of the lounge in surprise, and Bai Ge followed him.

Then, from the dimly lit garden, they heard a staff member on duty shout, "Thief!"

"Someone stole the Danmu!"