章節 23: The Fruit of Soporific Flowers

Upon hearing Enzo's command, the giant bear Betta growled softly and was reluctant to comply. Despite remembering the silver-haired girl, that was in the past.

Now, it only acknowledged Enzo as its master.

Seeing this, Enzo softly threatened Betta by its lowered head, and only then did Betta reluctantly look towards Jessica.

Jessica was overwhelmed with surprise and gratitude, saying, "Enzo, thank you for giving Betta back to me."

Enzo shook his head and said, "No, I'm just lending it to you temporarily. I don't want anything to happen to you, after all, your totemic power is very useful to me."

Jessica turned her head away,angrily climbing onto Betta's back.

Bad guy!

Jessica cursing Enzo in her heart, urging Betta to leave quickly.

After Jessica left, the smile faded from Enzo's face, unable to resist speculating about Priest Lucy's true intentions.

Leading the tribe out of the archipelago, across the blue sea, and over much of the barren mountain area, Priest Lucy could accomplish all this. She was definitely not lacking in intelligence.

Moreover, the Venom Tribe seemed to have lived in that swamp for a long time.

Lakes near the swamp were teeming with a vast number of supernatural creatures, so it was highly likely that such beings existed within the swamp itself, yet had not been discovered during previous explorations.

Either they had been hunted down.

Or they had controlled by the Venom Tribe.

Enzo leaned towards the latter, especially considering the case of the Huge Silver Backed Bear, Betta, which was a prime example.

Creatures nearing the supernatural realm, when acquired by any tribe, are considered extremely valuable, but Priest Lucy doesn't seem to care, which is evidently not a normal reaction.

Just then, the hunting party returned.

They brought back plenty of game, along with various wild vegetable seedlings and seeds, as well as several soporific flowers wrapped in animal skins.

Rhode delivered the soporific flowers to Enzo's residence.

And he said, "Lord Priest, these are the soporific flowers. When harvesting, we removed the flowers."

Enzo looked at the soporific flowers on the ground, somewhat resembling bird of paradise flowers.

He nodded and said to Rhode, "Well done."

"Continuing, Enzo picked up the soporific flowers and walked outside the camp, taking out the rope from his backpack and tying it around himself, adding a few more vine fiber ropes, totaling two hundred meters in length. Then, he instructed Rhode, who was following behind, "Count silently to six hundred. If I haven't returned by then, remember to pull me back."

"Yes!" Rhode acknowledged.

Ripening soporific flowers to the supernatural tier was a daring attempt. Enzo didn't want any mishaps.

It wouldn't be good if he sent the entire camp into a state of unconsciousness.

After reaching a suitable spot and instructing the patrol members not to approach, Enzo cleared an area of land, planted a soporific flower, and then began ripening it. With the infusion of power from the leaf totem of the life tree , the soporific flower started growing continuously, blooming flowers, emitting a unique bloody scent that induced drowsiness.

At that moment, the leaf totem of the life tree appeared, clearing Enzo's mind.

He was somewhat surprised and muttered to himself,"The leaf totem of the life tree, it actually has this function. Does that mean it can also dispel toxins?"

Now wasn't the time to consider that.

With the continuous infusion of totem power, the soporific flowers grew to over a meter tall, then ceased growing. The flowers withered, and a brown fruit appeared. After the fruit emerged, all the leaves and branches of the soporific flowers within the short sapling dried up, seemingly transferring all their energy into the fruit.

Even the power of the life totem couldn't reverse this.

This scene intrigued Enzo.

Moreover, he sensed the unique aura of the fruit, which belonged to the supernatural realm, albeit very faintly, undoubtedly categorizing it as a supernatural plant.

The question arose: what was the use of this fruit?"

Enzo felt frustrated.

He dared not use the fruit recklessly, fearing unforeseen consequences.

With no other choice, he returned to the camp.

However, upon his return, he found everyone in a deep slumber. The entire camp was silent, with only a few crackling sounds coming from the scattered fires.

The soporific flowers' potency after ripening was astonishing!

Enzo was both amazed and excited, realizing the unique combat strategy of the leaf totem of the life tree: rapidly ripen plants with special abilities and let them fight on his behalf.

He even contemplated injecting totem power into seeds beforehand, then tossing them out to unleash their power.

Those seeds would instantly grow into mature plants, blocking enemy attacks. If they were plants like man-eating flowers, they could even directly kill enemies!

As soon as the idea emerged, Enzo envisioned several combinations of plants.

But now, he needed to wake up everyone in the camp.

Rhode was the first to be awakened.

He was in a panic until he saw Enzo, then calmed down and exclaimed, "Lord Priest!"

Enzo briefly explained, "Well... the commotion from ripening the soporific flowers caused everyone in the camp to fall asleep. Please go wake them up."

Rhode paused for a moment, then realized, "Alright, I'll go right away."

However, he was immensely shocked.

Could this be considered just a bit of commotion?

Enzo was ripening the soporific flowers over 200 meters away from the camp, with the innermost part of the camp about 700 meters away.

This range far exceeded the typical size of a tribe's camp. If Enzo were an enemy, ripening the soporific flowers at a suitable distance would have unimaginable consequences.

Rhode broke out in a cold sweat, feeling immensely relieved.

Afterwards, after waking up everyone in the camp and the patrol team, various discussions echoed throughout the entire camp.

Upon learning the cause of everything, Sovita hurriedly approached Enzo, not to complain, but with eager anticipation, suggesting, "Lord Enzo, I think we can plant some soporific flowers around the camp, leaving only a few normal pathways and safe patrol routes. This way, we can fully ensure the safety of the camp."

Enzo thought for a moment and rejected the proposal.

He admonished, "Sovita, perhaps these days of comfort have made you forget the laws of survival in the jungle? The tribe will inevitably need to expand outward, not stay confined here. Also, soporific flowers don't discriminate between friend and foe. The enemy could just as easily use them against us."

Sovita listened, sweating profusely.

Reflecting on life after Enzo became the priest, Sovita realized that he had indeed become lax.

The tribe's flourishing development and the emergence of various novelties had subconsciously made him forget the many dangers surrounding the tribe. A slight lapse in attention could lead to the tribe's downfall.

It wasn't just the combat team. Everyone in the tribe should always remain vigilant.

Understanding this, Sovita solemnly admitted his mistake: "Lord Priest, I have been too lax in vigilance."

Enzo didn't continue to blame Sovita. Realizing the mistake was enough.

He then inquired about the current situation of the camp and took out the soporific flowers' fruit, asking, "Sovita, do you know the fuction of soporific flowers' fruit?"

Sovita looked curious, "The fruit of soporific flowers?"

He shook his head and said with a wry smile, "Lord Priest, I've never seen such a thing. Soporific flowers bloom in the summer, with the flowering period lasting over seven months. However, once winter arrives, plants like soporific flowers are completely frozen and cannot bear fruit." Enzo found this puzzling and asked, "Then how do soporific flowers reproduce?"

Sovita smiled and said, "The roots of the soporific flowers run deep, they can withstand severe cold."

Enzo understood, couldn't help but marvel at the resilience of plant life.

When Sovita mentioned winter, Enzo's expression changed slightly, and he asked again, "How long will winter last here?"

Sovita also realized the gravity of the situation, his expression turning serious as he replied, "We'll endure at least four months of severe cold. We've just entered summer, with another one or two months of rainy season ahead. That means we only have four months left to store food and gather animal skins for warmth."

Enzo is feeling the pressure.

With only four months and the rainy season approaching, time is indeed tight.

Especially considering the current location of the tribe camp, nestled in a basin surrounded by three mountains, there's a risk of flooding if the rains are too heavy.

In that case, all the construction efforts would be in vain.

Should they cut their losses and move to a more suitable location, or perhaps establish a new camp elsewhere?