Chapter 658 - 369: Unboxing (3)

The Pope continued to explain, "Not only that, but according to these notes, the Spiritual Plants he cultivated could not only follow the Pillage Evolution path, but they also retained the natural ability to grow and evolve. In other words, even without pillaging, they can slowly mature and evolve. This is something not even the Hui Race is capable of!"

As an Intelligent Race, the Hui Race could only follow the path of Pillage Evolution, just like any other.

The path available to this Spiritual Plant was far broader than that of the Hui Race. To be precise, no other race in the entire universe possessed such a privilege.

After his shock subsided, Su Ze calmed down and began to consider the value of this research to him.

’This research is extremely valuable—priceless, even. There’s no doubt about that.’

’But it doesn’t seem to have much use for me at my current stage.’

He had no interest in cultivating such a Spiritual Plant. Even if it could follow both evolutionary paths, raising one from scratch would require massive amounts of time and resources.

’With that kind of effort, I’d be better off just increasing my own power.’

’So it seems the most useful thing I can do with this is sell it. I could trade it for resources to help me grow stronger.’

However, at the end of the day, this was the fruit of the Mother Tree’s master’s research. It wouldn’t feel right for Su Ze to just take it and sell it.

Besides, if he sold the technology directly, the risk would be immense. Su Ze’s current strength wasn’t nearly enough to let him sit at the negotiating table and haggle with other races.

’Also, how long ago did the Mother Tree’s master create this Spiritual Plant? Did he ever share his findings with the rest of the Tree Spirit Race?’

Both the Pope and the Mother Tree provided an answer to this question.

The Mother Tree said, "I’ve told you before, my knowledge isn’t vast. My body is damaged and my memories are fragmented, so I don’t know what Master was researching. However, I do know that for many years, he traveled across the universe, studying plants from various places. He never returned to the Tree Spirit Race in all that time, so they definitely don’t know about it."

"That should be correct," the Pope said. "The diary states that just as his research was nearing success, he was hunted down by the Hui Race. He fled across the stars, chose a remote planet, and successfully grew a specimen. However, the powerful Hui Race expert hunting him found the planet and destroyed all the seedlings. He escaped with grave injuries, managing to preserve only a single, final seed."

"Why would a Hui Race expert hunt him down? And what’s the relationship between the Hui Race and the Tree Spirit Race?" Su Ze asked, puzzled.

One was a plant-based Intelligent Race, while the other possessed the "Plant Affinity" talent and was naturally attuned to all flora.

The Pope explained to Su Ze, "Actually, there’s a huge power disparity between these two races, but they’ve historically had a good relationship. The Hui Race is considered a first-rate power in the universe. The top powers are the five Dominator Races: the Witch Race, the Holy Race, the Pan Race, the Spirit Race, and the Primordial Race. The next tier down consists of what are called the first-rate races.

"The Tree Spirit Race, however, is only considered fourth-rate, a Bottom-Feeder Race. They’re on the same level as the Bag Race—perhaps even lower. After all, the Bag Race is on the verge of becoming a third-rate race, thanks to their sheer numbers.

"The power levels of the Tree Spirit Race and the Hui Race are worlds apart. But at the end of the day, the Hui are still plants. Because of the Tree Spirit Race’s talent, the Hui naturally tend to feel an affinity for them, which is the foundation of their diplomatic relations. This Tree Spirit evolutionist relied on that connection to acquire large quantities of Hui Race genetic material for his research."

"In that case, why didn’t the Tree Spirit Race become a Vassal Race to the Hui and accept their protection? And why was the Mother Tree’s master hunted by them?" Su Ze asked, finding it strange.

’Logically, since the two races had a good relationship and such a clear power imbalance, it would be perfectly normal for the stronger race to offer the weaker one protection.’

Just then, the Mother Tree communicated, "The Hui Race feels an affinity for us because of our talent, but for that very same reason, their leadership is incredibly wary and guarded against us. After all, if a Tree Spirit’s talent were developed to its absolute peak, they could control any plant at will to do their bidding.

"The Hui have always feared that if the Tree Spirit Race were to produce a supremely powerful expert, that individual could completely enslave their entire race. This fear isn’t baseless. Every race’s Racial Talent develops around a central concept. If the Tree Spirit Race were to become as powerful as, say, the Witch Race, their ’Plant Affinity’ would undoubtedly allow them to easily control even the strongest Hui experts.

"Thus, their friendly relations are only skin-deep. Or rather, it’s the middle and lower ranks of our races that get along. The leaders on both sides are actually mutually suspicious. If the Hui Race ever got the chance, they would annihilate the Tree Spirit Race without a moment’s hesitation. In fact, they’re probably the ones in the entire universe who want to see us eradicated the most.

"So, to avoid giving the Hui an opening, the Tree Spirit Race scattered, taking up residence in remote, hidden places. In addition to our one publicly known homeworld, we have several backup homeworlds concealed in secret locations."

Hearing this, Su Ze couldn’t help but reflect on how every Weak Race in the universe needed its own strategy for survival just to avoid extinction.

The Bag Race, for instance, had their prolific breeding; they were impossible to kill off completely.

The Nian Race cozied up to the powerful, becoming lapdogs for the Dominator Races.

These were all, in their own way, strategies for survival.

The "sly rabbit has three burrows" strategy was an essential survival tactic for nearly all Weak Races, and the Human Race had perfected it into an art form.

The Human Race had taken it to such an extreme that even their own leaders didn’t know how many "burrows" they had, let alone where they were hidden.

Even Mr. Ao could only rely on some kind of bloodline-sensing art to locate human planets in his vicinity. As Mr. Ao’s successor, Su Ze himself knew of no human planet beyond Blue Star and Zexing.

None of them knew the others’ locations, and there was no contact between them. That way, even if one human planet was discovered by an enemy, the others wouldn’t be compromised.

The Pope added, "That’s why the Hui Race can’t allow the Tree Spirit Race to grow powerful. The Tree Spirits can already control plants for combat. If they were to also master a Spiritual Plant capable of Pillage Evolution, their entire race’s power would undergo a qualitative leap. They might truly become a threat to the Hui.

"Furthermore, the notes also mention that the very existence of this Spiritual Plant poses a grave threat to the Hui Race’s status. Because it can follow two evolutionary paths simultaneously, it’s superior to the Hui in terms of both growth speed and adaptability.

"And just as we flesh-and-blood beings can only absorb extracts from beasts, plant-based life can only absorb extracts from other plants. Once these Spiritual Plants mature, their primary targets for pillaging—aside from other Spiritual Plants—will be the Hui Race."

Su Ze nodded, not asking any more questions. No matter how you looked at it, it all boiled down to a conflict of interest.

He took out the seed he had obtained from the treasure chest and asked the Pope, "Do the notes explain how to cultivate and breed these Spiritual Plants?"

"They do."

"Alright then. I’m leaving this seed with you to cultivate. Don’t worry about making it incredibly powerful; the priority is to get it to reproduce as much as possible."

Su Ze had already made up his mind. He wasn’t going to sell the technology. Stealing the fruits of someone else’s labor just felt wrong.

’But that doesn’t mean I can’t borrow the hen to lay some eggs!’

’First, I’ll have Liou Wenxin and the Pope cultivate as many of these plants as possible. Once we have a large enough quantity, I can either give them to the humans on Zexing as combat pets to boost our fighting strength, or I can sell them.’

’In any case, as long as the technology itself doesn’t leak, there shouldn’t be a major issue. Worst-case scenario, when the Mother Tree’s master wakes up, I can just compensate him with a few extra seeds.’