"Died as he deserved."
Han Han didn't care about the result. In fact, he only needed to confirm whether the detector had a shielding function. This simulation had accomplished that.
[Rating: A-60] [Due to your lack of knowledge, you accidentally exposed yourself after obtaining the detector. Not only did you fail to escape Thousand Leaf Planet, but you also lost your life as a result.] [You may choose one of the following rewards] [One: Apprentice Rank, Eighth Stage] [Two: A number of Three Illusion Leaves] [Three: A certain amount of experience gathering Three Illusion Leaves]
"Damn!"
Han Han fell silent as he looked at the options. He was already at the Eighth Stage of Apprentice Rank, and he wasn't far from the Ninth. Wouldn't choosing the first option be a waste?
"Three," Han Han said silently.
In an instant,
some experience entered his mind, giving him several more days' worth of experience gathering Three Illusion Leaves.
There was no helping it. He didn't know exactly where the first option would put him within the Eighth Stage of Apprentice Rank. If it only gave him a slight improvement, he might as well choose something else.
As for Three Illusion Leaves...
If he suddenly produced Three Illusion Leaves without having gathered them, someone might notice a clue.
Next, Han Han walked over, picked up the detector, and hurried toward the Iron Vine Grass.
The simulation had shown that activating it rashly would cause his presence to disappear for an instant, which would alert the Central High Tower. Although the detector could clearly be shut off ahead of time, there was one problem: he didn't know how.
In the end, he decided to let the Iron Vine Grass activate it.
Han Han guessed the detector at the tower would classify the Iron Vine Grass as a plant. Plant Lifeforms were extremely valuable, after all, and it was only natural that an ordinary detector would struggle to distinguish them.
"Iron Vine."
Han Han communicated with him through their consciousness link, telling him to come up from underground carefully.
"Rustle, rustle~"
The ground trembled slightly.
Soon, a tiny vine cautiously touched Han Han's right hand to let him know he had arrived.
"Take this underground. Wait until late at night, then activate it and inject Origin Force." Han Han placed the detector on the tiny vine.
Another vine emerged. Together, the two vines wrapped around the detector and drew it underground.
"Once you activate it, you'll be able to break through."
To be safe, Han Han wouldn't use or go near the thing. That way, there was no chance he would be detected.
Next, Han Han took the ten milliliters of Locke Divine Water he had chosen from System Space. It would probably be enough to help the Iron Vine Grass break through to the sixth or seventh stage of Planetary Rank.
"Break through as soon as you can. I can't take the next step without you."
Han Han dripped the Locke Divine Water onto the vine. He could clearly sense the Iron Vine Grass's overwhelming joy. After absorbing it for a moment, it affectionately brushed against him.
Once he had done all this, Han Han left without lingering.
Night fell.
Thousand Leaf Planet had no moon. And thanks to technological modification, it had no rainy season; the skies were clear all year round, and countless stars dotted the night sky.
"Whew~"
Han Han opened his eyes, unable to keep a smile from appearing at the corners of his mouth.
He had sensed that the Iron Vine Grass had followed his instructions, activated the detector, and broken through to Planetary Rank.
"An Iron Vine Grass at Planetary Rank... My next goal is to find Pansy, kill her, and take the Silver Token. After that, everything will be simple."
With that thought, Han Han entered meditation.
He had reached the limit of his current stage and couldn't break through to the Ninth Stage of Apprentice Rank on his own, so he came up with the idea of comprehending the laws around him.
Although his chances of succeeding were practically zero, there was no harm in trying.
The next day,
Han Han ended his meditation on time and left the Tree House for Three Illusion Tree Valley just before the Supervision System could remind him.
But he wasn't the only one!
The Thousand Leaf People were taught to obey from childhood. Even as adults, they encountered no new ideas, and their thinking remained constrained.
So by this time, Three Illusion Tree Valley was already full of slaves gathering leaves, without any need for a reminder from the system. Han Han was actually late.
What's more, some Thousand Leaf People even gathered extra Three Illusion Leaves to hand in voluntarily.
As he entered,
"Hm?"
Han Han's gaze fell on a young man. He saw something unusual in the man's eyes. "Apprentice Rank, Sixth Stage. His rank is a little different from what I estimated..."
"I'll go take a look."
He couldn't determine Pansy's current rank. It was possible she was at the Sixth Stage of Apprentice Rank, too.
In the simulation, Pansy had noticed that something was wrong with him at the same time he'd noticed her. But that had been because they were both at the Eighth Stage of Apprentice Rank.
After entering Tree Valley, Han Han followed the young man to a relatively dense patch of woods.
"His presence doesn't seem any different."
Han Han cautiously approached, pretending to be a passing cultivator at the Eighth Stage of Apprentice Rank. The instant he drew close, he sensed the young man's presence.
After passing him, Han Han watched the young man from a tall Three Illusion Tree. "He's probably just a slave who wants to escape. He's not Pansy, but I might have been wrong because I didn't observe him for long enough. I'll make a note of him for now."
Han Han silently memorized his presence, then turned and left. The Three Illusion Leaves deeper in the valley were far more abundant.
To avoid the Iron Vine Grass, he chose a different direction.
Unfortunately, Pansy had always gone deeper into the area where the Iron Vine Grass was. But the Iron Vine Grass didn't know Han Han had been searching for her, so it hadn't paid any attention.
"According to the simulation, this could also be one of the subordinates I discovered earlier."
Han Han kept reviewing the simulation.
Pansy wasn't the only one on Thousand Leaf Planet with those thoughts. At least dozens of Thousand Leaf People, including Han Han himself, had them.
"Forget it. I'll take my time."
Han Han shook his head and began gathering Three Illusion Leaves.
Three days passed just like that.
"The second one."
Han Han looked at a young man not far away.
He'd drawn Han Han's attention because, upon seeing him, the young man had hurried away. Although he looked as if he were acting naturally, Han Han was no fool. He had noticed something off.
"I'll investigate after the simulation."
With a thought, his consciousness sank into the simulation.
As for the detector, he had ordered the Iron Vine Grass to keep it at least ten kilometers underground. That was the limit of the detector's precise scanning range.
[Simulation Count: 0] [Life simulation begins]
Elsewhere...
The young man ran several kilometers before stopping. Then, while pretending to gather Three Illusion Leaves, he kept an eye on his surroundings.
"Whew~"
The young man let out a breath, and his rapidly beating heart began to slow.
"Seventh Stage of Apprentice Rank, or even the Eighth!"
"That was close. He noticed me after I'd only watched him for a little while. I can't take that kind of risk next time. But... he seems a little different from the others."
"I'll wait a little longer."
His strength was still low. There was no need to approach Han Han.
Because he... was Pansy!
At the same time,
Han Han's simulation was underway.
[Age 22. You obtained a detector capable of perfectly concealing the Iron Vine Grass, along with ten milliliters of Locke Divine Water. You were extremely excited, because barring any surprises, you would definitely be able to escape Thousand Leaf Planet.] [You began looking for allies.] [Before that, you seemed to have encountered two unusual Thousand Leaf People, so you decided to test the two of them first.] [The three of you eventually formed an alliance. Since you were the strongest, you were appointed leader for the time being. You chose names for yourselves: yours was Han Han, one of the others was called Ouba, and the last one took the name Pansy.]
Before you continue