6 First enemy

The time was finally right, Erik found himself in a state of excitation. He would be able to hatch! These last days, he had continuously cultivated, improving his vessels and core. No enormous changes had happened, but manipulating energy in his body wasn't as annoying as before.

The bad sensation from taking energy inside the vessels was still there, but it toned down a bit. About Erik's hatching, well, it was a long process, and when he felt it begin, he started to receive new data about his surroundings.

His coating was slowly opening, as the embryo, his real body, was going up, transforming bit by bit. It was weird for Erik, as everything was moving without his control, and he could not change anything. For the first time, he sensed the earth, seemingly full of nutrients.

He was still holding onto his own food source, but it would be emptied soon, so he needed something new to feed himself. He would have to use the environment if he wanted to survive as a plant. As days passed and he was waiting to grow more, he practiced and experienced what he could do with energy, as he wanted to be prepared for anything.

When his roots were finally developed enough to take in the earth nutriments, he felt himself absorbing something else than energy from the earth, it was quite great for Erik, feeling cheerful. You couldn't compare it with eating like a human, since the process was so slow and always active, but it was great nonetheless. After that, Erik had to wait a few days before he finally felt the gentle sun covering his being.

Different than sun energy, the light he received made him comfortable. It seems plants really do feel pleasant when under the sun. Then, when some leaves sprouted from his body, he felt invigorated. Erik found it weird how his growth affected his emotions, since he actually felt way happier than before, when he was a seed.

_"Are those artificial feelings? Will I always react to certain states? It would be bad if I can't control my anger or something."_

[The system doesn't believe that the plant state would bring you bad emotions, it seems to always be prioritizing a serious state when there is danger, and happiness when your survival's conditions are great.]

Now, Erik was finally a sprout, but he didn't have much time to celebrate before his first misadventure happened. It was actually a group of beetles coming for his life.

Insects, to any plant, were a frightful existence. Not those gentle bees, of course, which helped to scatter the flowers' pollen, but the ones feasting on the vegetation, eating and eradicating everything, not letting even some green to be seen. That was the kind of insect Erik was facing, as the system warned him.

[Host, it seems there is finally some action. Enemies have come to destroy you, you must fight back!

Quest delivered: {Beetles are dangerous}

Objective: Kill every insect which attacks you.

Basic information: A group of beetles is menacing your life, they took you as their prey. They will start their assault soon, prepare yourself. Use your own energy to eliminate them, you practiced for this! If you survive but doesn't end all of their life, you won't receive any reward.

Reward: {One B.A. point} + {Compliments from the system.}

Danger level: Depend on your talent at manipulating energy, just remember to never look down on insects, as you are just a little plant without a real core.]

_"So my first enemies in this life are beetles... pretty disappointing for an ex-bandit like me, but it's true, I'm still a sprout, still not a real tree. But why are they going for me anyway, I'm so small. I sensed that there was a lot of vegetation from all the life energy I gathered, they had so many good choices apart from me"_

[The system believes that their interest toward you is exactly because host has been taking in life energy, you would probably taste really good right now to insects even without a complete core.]

_"That makes sense, but it means I will have to confront a lot of things from now on..."_

Apart from how core creation was a long process, another reason for the rarity of a plant possessing a core that they are practically always eaten by the wild. That is why most sects and clans have their own garden, they can keep them protected from insects and animals. However, they still need to wait centuries, so lone cultivators would never attempt to grow such a plant.

Even if it was perilous, Erik could not stop completing his core. He had already started anyway and he didn't want to wait for centuries, doing nothing. Whatever the danger he would have to face because of his cultivation, Erik would simply do his best to survive.

_" Actually, from how far away can you see things, and are those beetles getting near?"_

[For the sake of ensuing quests before most battles, I can see anything 10 meters away from your position, but don't expect me to know if someone is hiding. Also, those beetles are right about to bite]

When the system finished his sentence, Erik felt as if a part of him disappeared into the void, not connected to him anymore. Soon, it happened all over his body, repeatedly fading away. He thought it would be painful, but he only felt a sense of seriousness substitute the happiness he felt from nutrients and the sun.

He was not distressed, just concentrated on a way to fight them off. Where he received wounds, he felt liquid leaving his body, probably some sort of resin. He also sensed the plant's instinct trying to repair everywhere he was damaged, by growing it again, but the insects were ferocious. There was no way the sprout could patch itself faster than the beetle. But finally, Erik, who was focusing on energy manipulation, started his counterattack.