The Yin Fire Pile and the Strange Tree

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As the skeletons systematically stored the collected supplies, system prompts sounded in Gu Su's mind, continuously updating the resource statistics:

[Collected a small amount of vines, can be converted into 1 unit of wood.] [Collected some weeds, can be converted into 1 unit of wood.] [Collected a rusty car hood, can be converted into 1 unit of metal.] [Collected shelf brackets, can be converted into 2 units of metal.] [Collected a ceiling fan blade, can be converted into 1 unit of metal, or processed separately.] [Collected a rusty shopping cart, can be converted into 41 units of metal, or processed separately.] [Collected a large piece of glass, can be converted into 1 unit of stone.] [...]

As supplies were continuously inventoried and stored, small and medium-sized wooden and iron chests gradually piled up on both sides of Gu Su's tent.

This was clearly a materialized representation of the collected materials exceeding the storage limit within the tent, forcing them to be temporarily piled outdoors.

The skeletons, following his default instructions, automatically categorized the materials that could be directly converted.

Items marked for separate processing, such as the ceiling fan blade, the intact plastic box, and a row of shopping carts, were neatly placed aside.

Gu Su walked forward and glanced at the resource statistics panel. Excluding the special materials intended for modification and utilization, this exploration yielded a total of 19 units of wood, 21 units of metal, and 5 units of stone.

Including the gold coins and gems obtained from opening treasure chests, his current total resources were clearly displayed:

[Gold Coins: 382, Yin Energy: 9, Wood: 42, Stone: 5, Metal: 50, Gems: 2, Crystal: 0, Mercury: 0, Sulfur: 0]

This harvest was within Gu Su's expectations. It wasn't astounding, but it was enough to support the basic repairs of the graveyard demon and minor enhancements to his undead troops.

However, what truly caught his attention were the special items that couldn't be quantified into basic resources.

Gu Su took out the pale yellow rat treasure from his pocket, his fingertips caressing its hard surface, and then turned towards the pile of yin fire, which was barely maintaining a faint flame, in front of the tent.

This item was one of the materials needed to repair the yin fire pile. Now that the corruption mycelium had recovered, he could proceed to activate the yin fire pile.

He raised his hand and threw the rat treasure into the yin fire. The moment the pale yellow stone fell into the flames, it was engulfed and consumed by the ghostly blue fire.

The next second, a semi-transparent, ghostly green rat phantom slowly rose from the fire pile, hovering above the flames. It emitted a few faint squeaking sounds before transforming into a wisp of green light and merging into the flames.

The previously weak yin fire suddenly surged, and its color gradually shifted from normal to a faint ink green.

The flames flickered more steadily, and a rich yet not pungent yin energy slowly spread out, enveloping the yin fire pile.

[Yin Fire Pile Repair Complete. Yin Fire Pile Status: Intact. Level increased to Level 1. Can produce 500 Yin Energy points every 24 hours.]

Gu Su reached out and felt the yin energy emanating from the flames, his eyes filled with satisfaction.

With the yin fire pile restored to produce yin energy and the corruption mycelium capable of expanding territory and converting resources, the two core functions of the graveyard demon were fully activated. His undead forces finally had a stable foundation for development.

After the yin fire pile was restored, Gu Su immediately turned and headed towards the direction of the eerie tree.

The eerie tree remained in its withered, black, and vigorous state, its branches twisted and intertwined.

Previously, only a bare black trunk remained, devoid of life.

Gu Su took out the iron box containing melted corpse oil from his pocket and was about to bury it at the base of the eerie tree.

However, he noticed that the branches of the eerie tree were slightly trembling. A withered black branch slowly turned towards him, seemingly showing particular interest in something on his person, rather than the corpse oil in front of him.

Gu Su was momentarily stunned. Following the direction the branch was pointing, he looked down and realized that the eerie tree was pointing at the six white seeds he had casually brought out.

These were random seeds obtained from a supermarket treasure chest, which he had been carrying around without having had a chance to examine.

"Could it be you want these?" Gu Su wondered. He decided to place the six seeds one by one on the ground beside the base of the eerie tree.

"I can't identify the varieties of these seeds either. Take a look for yourself; keep what's useful."

As soon as the seeds landed, the ground vibrated slightly. Two faint cracks appeared in the soil, directly swallowing two of the seeds underground before quickly closing and returning to their original state.

The remaining four seeds lay quietly in place, unmoved, clearly not meeting the eerie tree's requirements.

Gu Su understood and carefully picked up the four seeds whose situation was still uncertain. He then picked up the iron box of corpse oil again, preparing to dig a hole and bury it at the root system of the eerie tree to nourish it.

But just as he bent down, a clear, cool breeze suddenly swept past, carrying a faint scent of grass and trees, completely different from the usual cold, gloomy atmosphere of the graveyard.

Immediately after, countless tiny fragments drifted down from the sky, landing on his shoulders and the ground.

"Paper money?" Gu Su raised his hand and picked up a piece. It was thin and light like paper, with a faint grayish-white hue. He was filled with surprise and abruptly looked up at the eerie tree.

This glance left him completely stunned. The eerie tree, which had only a withered black trunk moments ago, had sprouted new leaves in such a short time.

The leaves were mostly in groups of three, a tender green with a hint of dark ink, their veins clearly visible. They would occasionally rotate slowly on their own, and each rotation would blow out a faint gust of wind, precisely the breeze he had just felt.

And among the twisted branches, fruits the size of a palm were hanging. The surface of the fruits was dark brown.

When the wind blew, a crack would appear on the fruit, and the seeds, resembling paper money, were precisely what drifted out from the fruits.

A gentle breeze blew, paper money fluttered, and new leaves adorned the withered tree. The desolate graveyard was instantly enveloped in a strange yet fitting atmosphere, solemn yet with a touch of fantasy.

Gu Su was stunned for a moment. After reacting, he immediately turned and rushed back to the tent, quickly searching for item descriptions next to the quest panel, wanting to understand the origin of the seeds.

The information on the status panel regarding the strange tree's changes quickly appeared, resolving his doubts.

One of the two seeds swallowed by the strange tree was named [Breeze Grass]. It resembled a miniature fan and could continuously blow a gentle breeze. The more of them there were, the stronger the wind.

Now that it had been devoured by the anomaly, it enhanced the strange tree's ability to clear the foul impurities in the air and purify the graveyard environment.

The other was [Great Leaf Lily]. The plant itself had a weak toxicity, but after its seeds split open, they would transform into countless thin flakes resembling spirit money and drift away.

It was considered a rare special plant that could enhance the graveyard's atmosphere, perfectly fitting the strange tree's growth characteristics and the graveyard's environmental needs.

Therefore, the strange tree directly swallowed these two seeds, adding their abilities to its own.

From this, it could be seen that these white seeds were actually quite potent.

This made Gu Su even more eager to find someone to research what the remaining four seeds were.