Branch Parasitism

The Linxi Secret Realm was a paradise for insects.

Although small insects were fundamentally unsuitable for cultivation as spirit pets unless one controlled a mother insect, they were still an extremely important part of the ecosystem.

Many bird-type and frog-type spirit beasts needed these insects as feed, or even as materials for evolution.

Beside a stream frequented by Jade Snails, countless palm-sized mosquitoes flew about recklessly, buzzing as they searched for blooming flowers to drink their sweet nectar.

Suddenly, an emerald-green Vine Step vine swept through the swarm of mosquitoes, striking several unlucky ones head-on.

However, the vine seemed to have merely swept past them. The mosquitoes that had been hit spun several times in the air, then quickly steadied themselves and flapped their wings to catch up with the main swarm.

Yet after flying forward for some distance, they grew slower and slower, and green shoots appeared on their bodies.

In the blink of an eye, the shoots began Mad Growth. White roots pierced straight through the mosquitoes' bodies, and the plants rapidly grew, utterly claiming the mosquitoes' lives.

Carried by inertia, the little grasses flew forward with the mosquitoes' remains for some distance before finally falling onto the soft earth.

In an instant, the mosquitoes that had been brimming with life became inconspicuous little grasses in the forest.

Or rather, Dream Rain Flowers.

Within seconds, every mosquito struck by the vine met the same fate.

Their bodies became nourishment for the plants growing from them, and they lay forever buried in the soil.

"Well done, Huohuo!"

Not far away, Zhou Lu observed the mosquitoes' reactions and excitedly pumped his fist.

Having received her master's praise, Huohuo proudly tapped her snail shell with a vine.

During the last few days in the Linxi Secret Realm, Zhou Lu had been training Huohuo to use Lilliput to shrink her branches before parasitizing other creatures with them.

It had to be said that the results were outstanding.

The current Huohuo could not only perfectly parasitize mushrooms such as Enlarged Delicious Mushrooms with her branches, but could even parasitize certain small insects.

Once Huohuo evolved and leveled up in the future, becoming even stronger, perhaps she would be able to parasitize large spirit beasts with her branches.

She might not be able to drain and kill large spirit beasts as effortlessly as she killed insects, but draining a spirit beast's energy and unleashing vines to bind it would still be an excellent effect.

At this stage, however, the most useful aspect of this technique was still controlling Enlarged Delicious Mushrooms.

With Huohuo's Branch Parasitism, he no longer needed to worry about the Enlarged Delicious Mushrooms' backlash. Once his goal had been achieved, he could immediately make the branches undergo Mad Growth and dismantle the Delicious Mushrooms from within.

Furthermore, the branches' vines could form a perfect combination with the Delicious Mushrooms' brute force.

He wondered whether, after becoming proficient in this technique, it could solidify into a skill, just like Huohuo's walking technique.

As he spoke, Zhou Lu glanced at Huohuo's Beast Taming Card.

In the skill section, another skill had appeared: Vine Walking.

Vine Walking: Innate Skill. Achieves movement by continuously switching between Mad Growth and Vine Step.

This skill had solidified from a technique into a skill after Huohuo's walking technique reached the proficient level.

Therefore, Zhou Lu had no doubt that Huohuo's Branch Parasitism technique would likewise solidify into an innate skill once she became proficient in it.

Moreover, unlike Vine Walking, since other Plant Spirit Beasts could not learn Lilliput, this Branch Parasitism would become a skill unique to Huohuo.

Watching Huohuo continuously lash at flying insects with her vines nearby, Zhou Lu sank into thought.

Since Huohuo's branches could already parasitize other creatures, could he take it a step further?

Some parasitic organisms could control their hosts' behavior through certain means.

For example, the sacculina that controlled crabs, or the cordyceps fungus that controlled ants.

Huohuo had already begun learning Branch Parasitism. Could there be some way for Huohuo to gain the ability to control her parasitized hosts through her branches?

He wondered whether similar skills existed in this world.

Huohuo seemed to have tired of playing. She wrapped a vine around Zhou Lu's ankle, then used her skill to swiftly shrink herself and expertly climbed up his leg.

Before long, she crawled rapidly up Zhou Lu's body like a large spider and settled upon her throne: the top of Zhou Lu's head.

Huohuo lazily rubbed Zhou Lu's ear with her vine, expressing her drowsiness.

This little grass really was something else. She was exhausted, yet she still refused to return to her Beast Taming Card to rest, preferring to lie atop his head instead.

After checking the time, he saw that the secret realm exploration time he had exchanged with Academic Credits was nearly up.

Zhou Lu returned to camp, packed his things, and prepared to leave.

If he wanted to visit the Linxi Secret Realm frequently, he could actually choose to rent a simple residence here.

But Zhou Lu had no such plans for the time being.

After settling the lodging fee, he raised his wrist and activated his wristband.

Lu Rang knocked on his door.

"There are still thirty minutes until the exploration ends," Lu Rang said to Zhou Lu. "Are you sure you want to leave?"

Zhou Lu nodded.

Lu Rang gave Zhou Lu a deep look.

His training by the stream had all been carried out under Lu Rang's observation.

There was no helping it. Since he had chosen to operate within the safe zone, trading privacy for safety was something he had to accept.

Zhou Lu understood this as well.

Within the safe zone, no matter what one did, a safety instructor would definitely be nearby.

But his conscience was clear and his conduct aboveboard, so there was nothing for him to hide.

Besides, safety instructors like Lu Rang had all signed confidentiality agreements—the strictest kind, personally supervised by the Seeking Dao Wood.

With Zhou Lu's confirmation, the light of teleportation lit up.

When Zhou Lu opened his eyes again, he and Lu Rang had already returned to the Explorer Association.

Huohuo lay atop Zhou Lu's head, still looking lazy.

Zhou Lu did not linger at the Explorer Association and headed straight back to the dormitory.

He needed to begin preparing for his trip to the C0021 Mountain Secret Realm.

After the initial combat examination ended, the campus also quieted down. Even the first-year freshmen had begun preparing for their various exams.

Zhou Lu soon returned to his dormitory.

When he opened the door, he froze for a moment, then silently stepped back outside to take another look.

"Yo! You're back!" Xiao Xi's voice came from inside, finally confirming for Zhou Lu that he had not entered the wrong dormitory.

Although Zhou Lu often cleaned the dormitory, he would never make it this tidy.

The books that had originally been piled across the floor had been sorted and returned to the bookshelves. Those that would not fit had been packed into cardboard boxes and stacked by the window.

As a result, the previously cramped dormitory suddenly became much more spacious.

"This is..." Zhou Lu looked at Xiao Xi in confusion.

"Hehe, you're hardly home a few days each month anyway, so leaving it like that would be a waste. I just cleaned it up while I was at it." Xiao Xi put her hands on her hips and chuckled. "This way, the area of my room has doubled at once!"

Zhou Lu looked speechlessly at Xiao Xi, then searched for his water cup, intending to take a drink first. "Where's my water cup?"

"That thing was too dirty, so I threw it away..."

The next second, Xiao Xi looked helplessly at the vine around her waist. "It was just a cup..."

Huohuo swiftly flung Xiao Xi around.

I was the one who cleaned the room!

You snatched my job, seedling. You must be plotting something!

And you even threw away Master's water cup. Unforgivable!

"Aaaah! I'm sorry! I was wrong!"

Xiao Xi's screams echoed through the corridor.

"Hey! Don't stuff strange things into my body! What is this?!"