I told you to plant peas, and you summon Mordekaiser?

On the other side of the night.

Inside the cave, the dim light cast three shadows on the stone wall, which swayed faintly.

Chen Yang sat cross-legged by the fire, playing with the plant cards in his hand: "The strength of our plants has basically reached its limit."

Chizi Gao leaned against the stone wall and nodded.

"Indeed, my Destruction Mushroom Archers have not stopped hunting during this period, but their strength has begun to stagnate and they have encountered a bottleneck."

"It might be necessary to hunt down a high-level plant in order to break through to the seventh level."

His tone carried a hint of helplessness.

Huangfu Qinghe sat at the cave entrance, letting the cold wind blow across his face, his brows slightly furrowed.

He glanced at the two people inside the cave and said, "If that's the case, we now have two paths."

"One option is to head deeper into the jungle in the center of the basin. There are more higher plants there, but it is also more dangerous."

"The second option is to leave here and find a way out elsewhere."

As soon as he finished speaking, the atmosphere inside the cave quieted down, with only the faint crackling of the flames.

Chen Yang put down the cards in his hand, his gaze deep.

"During the Ascension Qualifying Tournament, I went into the jungle and found a giant squash inside."

"At the time, I didn't know how strong that gourd was, but looking at it now, conservatively speaking, it was at least at the eighth level..."

"A giant squash?" Huangfu Qinghe seemed to be thinking.

“I haven’t seen it, but I found a huge lake deep in the jungle.”

His voice deepened: "That lake isn't marked on the map at all, but it's definitely not a simple place."

“No plants grew around the lake. I was being chased by a large choker and ran to the lakeside.”

"As a result, the big-mouthed flower simply gave up chasing me, as if it were extremely wary of that lake."

After sharing the information they knew, the two of them turned their gazes toward Chizi Gao.

Chi Zigao scratched his head and said somewhat awkwardly, "I was wiped out by a bunch of potato mines at the very beginning. I only made it through the qualifiers thanks to my teammates."

Silence fell over the cave, broken only by the low murmur of the wind passing through the entrance.

Chizi Gao coughed a few times, breaking the silence.

"The depths of the jungle do indeed present both opportunities and dangers, but are the higher-level creatures that exist there really safe with our current strength?"

After a moment of contemplation, Huangfu Qinghe looked up and continued the conversation.

"That's right, the risks there are too high. With our current strength, a slight mistake could lead to the annihilation of our entire army."

"That's right," Chen Yang agreed.

"In that case, let's evacuate here and look for opportunities to upgrade elsewhere."

Chen Yang stood up, his gaze sweeping over the two of them, his tone firm: "Only by possessing eighth-tier plants can we gain a foothold in this world."

Chi Zigao grinned: "An eighth-tier plant? That's a big goal."

"Wait until then—"

Huangfu Qinghe raised his head, his eyes flickering slightly: "If we return to human territory, even if we are not native humans, they should not be willing to be our enemies."

"We'll set off early tomorrow morning, leave this place, and head west. There's a zombie colony there."

Chen Yang waved his hand forcefully, bringing the discussion to a final conclusion.

The three exchanged glances, each seeing a hidden expectation in the other's eyes.

"have a rest."

The night was still...

Inside the cave, only the faint glow of the streetlights flickered.

Huangfu Qinghe leaned against the stone wall, his breathing steady and deep.

Chi Zigao and Chen Yang curled up on a pile of dry grass, snoring softly.

Suddenly, a deep rumble came from underground, like the growl of an ancient beast, waking the three of them from their sleep.

"Boom——"

The ground trembled violently, and the stone walls inside the cave began to crack.

Small pebbles fell one after another from the top, hitting the ground with a crisp sound.

The air was filled with the smell of damp rocks.

Chizi Gao suddenly sat up, his face full of terror: "What's going on?! An earthquake?"

Chen Yang quickly stood up, but staggered due to the violent shaking, and steadied himself by holding onto the cave wall.

"Something's not right! This commotion isn't just an earthquake!"

Huangfu Qinghe opened his eyes, a cold glint flashing in them: "Get out of here!"

The three of them rushed toward the cave entrance without prior arrangement.

The sky was as dark as ink, and from the direction of the distant forest, a low rumbling sound could be faintly heard, like a warning coming from the depths of the earth.

"Om-"

The moment they rushed out of the cave, a deep crack suddenly appeared in the ground.

Rek'Sai burst from the ground, its massive body kicking up dust, its eyes glowing with an eerie purple light, as if it sensed some kind of unusual threat.

It raised its head, staring intently in the direction of the forest, and let out a low growl.

“Even Rek’Sai sensed something was wrong…” Chen Yang’s gaze turned serious as he patted Rek’Sai’s body.

Chi Zigao looked around. The tremors of the mountain had not stopped, as if some enormous creature was slowly awakening underground.

"What happened?"

His voice was low, but he couldn't hide the unease in his heart.

Huangfu Qinghe gazed coldly into the depths of the forest and said in a deep voice, "It seems the plan needs to be moved up. Let's go!"

The three exchanged glances, and a heavy sense of oppression filled the air.

An unknown threat was approaching, and their choice was to leave quickly.

As Chen Yang packed his bags, the image of that giant pumpkin inexplicably appeared in his mind.

What followed seemed to confirm Chen Yang's thoughts.

In the jungle sky, a figure leaped high into the air.

What made Chen Yang and his two companions even more alarmed was that the mountain-sized squash was rapidly approaching them!

"Forget your luggage, run!"

The three of them immediately sensed something was wrong.

The ground tremors became increasingly violent.

Chen Yang rushed out of the cave and was about to jump onto Rek'Sai's back when he suddenly felt something cold gently pat his shoulder.

This gentle tap instantly froze Chen Yang in place.

"Don't worry."

His voice was deep and somewhat nonchalant.

Chen Yang was in a state of great confusion. This voice was neither Chi Zigao nor Huangfu Qinghe!

"It wouldn't be worth missing out on this great show."

The voice continued.

Chen Yang turned around abruptly and saw a zombie standing beside him.

It was tall and slender, dressed in a spotted outfit with colors so bright they were almost comical, and carrying an old box in its arms, exuding an eerie aura.

The zombie was pale, with a faint smile on its lips.

Chen Yang felt a sudden chill run through his body, as if he were frozen in place, unable to move at all.

Rex looked as if it were facing a formidable enemy. Like a tiger with its fur standing on end, it stared intently at the zombie, clearly extremely fearful.

The Clown King looked at the distant jungle, as if talking to himself, or perhaps asking Chen Yang a question.

"The Corpse Cult... how come someone is here?"

"Was this arranged by your bishop?"

The zombie looked down at Chen Yang's left arm, its gaze lingering on his black-gloved hand, a hint of amusement in its eyes.

"Since you're here, keep a close eye on things."

"Watch how we kill this eighth-tier squash. Such a scene is rarely seen."

Chen Yang's pupils contracted slightly, and he was about to speak when he was interrupted by a sharp voice.

"Kill him! Kill him!"

Suddenly, the box in the zombie's arms let out a strange cry, and an ugly clown head sprang out of the box, its features distorted, its mouth opening and closing, and its screams sounding like nails scraping against glass.

The Clown King Zombie impatiently pressed down on the clown's head, his voice cold: "Go back. It's not your time to make an appearance yet."

He forcefully pressed the clown's head back into the box, the lid snapped shut, and the sound stopped abruptly.

Clown King's gaze returned to the distant jungle: "Don't move, just watch quietly."

As soon as he finished speaking, he released his hand from Chen Yang's shoulder.