Sunroot Herb

A few days later, in the outer region of the Great Star Dou Forest, an orange lizard walked, seemingly searching for something.

'Hmm, it's been a few days... my Charmander form has leveled up to 18, but I haven't been able to find any heaven and earth treasures,' Wang Shòu thought with distress.

'Even though the scanning range has upgraded from 50 meters to 75 meters, finding it won't be easy...'

'Hmm... I can't continue like this. If I keep searching without results, not only will my efforts be pointless, but I will also waste the time that I could have used for leveling up'

Staring at the blue sky dully, Wang Shòu could faintly make out large mountains on the left and a massive technological wall on the right in the distance. Seeing this, Wang Shòu suddenly remembered something.

'Hey, system. Am I in the east or west of the Great Star Dou Forest?'

[West]

'I see. Hmm... if I recall correctly, in fantasy novels, mountains are often inhabited by fire-type creatures...'

'So, heading there might give me a good chance to find fire heaven and earth treasures'

With a goal in mind, Wang Shòu transformed into his Pikachu form and quickly headed towards the direction of the mountains.

A few hours later, while running, Wang Shòu suddenly received a notification from the system.

[Wang Shòu]

'Hmm? Yes, what is it? Have you found the fire heaven and earth treasures?'

[No, but my scan has shown that for some reason, spirit beasts in our area are moving in one direction.]

Hearing that, Wang Shòu paused, surprised by the answer.

'Moving in one direction? But why?'

[I don't know, but there are usually two reasons for this. One is that a particularly powerful spirit beast from the middle or inner region is nearby, causing them to flee. The other is that they sense an attractive presence they desire, such as heaven and earth treasures.]

Wang Shòu's ears perked up suddenly upon hearing the words 'heaven and earth treasures' which he had been searching for.

'Heaven and earth treasures?! What are the chances that it could be heaven and earth treasures?'

[I do not know, but there is a high likelihood, as there is no other reason for spirit beasts from the middle or outer region to come here.]

Hearing that, Wang Shòu began to weigh the pros and cons.

'Hmm, if I go there, there's a chance of finding fire heaven and earth treasures...'

'But there's also a possibility that I might encounter danger, since there are certainly other powerful spirit beasts who also want to claim it'

'Hmm... hey, system. Is the direction the spirit beasts are heading towards where the mountains are?'

[Yes, the spirit beasts are heading towards the location of the mountains.]

Hearing that, Wang Shòu decisively made up his mind.

'Then let's go there!'

Wang Shòu quickly ran toward the mountains, more determined than ever, with the possibility of his goal finally in sight.

----------

Wang Shòu kept running with only a few short breaks in between, the process continuing like this until the next morning arrived.

'Yawn... I'm really tired. Have you found it yet, system?'

Wang Shòu yawned, covering his mouth with his small yellow hand, his eyes almost red from staying awake all night.

Although Pokémon have better stamina than humans, it was still too much for Wang Shòu, who had run all night without any sleep.

[Yes, I have detected the presence of the heaven and earth treasures. It's approximately 75 meters away. However, I can't determine its exact type unless I get closer.]

Hearing that, Wang Shòu suddenly became energized, his tiredness dissipating.

'Really?! Then let's go!'

Eagerly, Wang Shòu ran toward the spot indicated by the system, where the heaven and earth treasures were located.

After a short time and a leap into a tree, Wang Shòu quickly spotted a solitary plant basking in sunlight. It had an orangish hue and emitted an attractive scent, seemingly on the verge of blooming.

'Is this the one? And if so, what is it?'

[Yes, Wang Shòu, this is indeed a heaven and earth treasure. Based on my scan, it's a fire plant heaven and earth treasure known as the Sunroot Herb]

[The Sunroot Herb absorbs sunlight to grow and can only be found in areas exclusively bathed in sunlight. It ages ten years each year and blooms every 500 years. When it blooms, its fire energy intensifies, and it carry light energy from the sunlight nourishing both body and spirit. Judging by its size and intensity, it's almost 500 years old and will likely bloom within the next day or two.]

'Wow, I don't fully understand, but it sounds amazing'

Wang Shòu nodded, seemingly understanding but not understanding.

'Anyway, you mentioned it will bloom in a day or two, right? Hmm, what should I do about the powerful spirit beasts around it?'

Wang Shòu glanced around.

He could sense several powerful spirit beasts ranging from 400 to 1,000 years old, hidden nearby and waiting for an opportunity.

'With my Pikachu form, I might be able to defeat spirit beasts around 700-800 years old using the three-stack Nasty Plot technique. However, a 1,000-year-old spirit beast is out of my league... hmm, this is a problem'

Deep in thought, Wang Shòu quickly consulted the system.

'Hey, system, show me the moveset for Charmander, Pikachu, Cleffa, and provide descriptions for each move as well.'

Three blue lists promptly appeared, accompanied by move descriptions.

Carefully looking through the lists and reading the descriptions, Wang Shòu's attention was suddenly focused on a move.

'Hmm?! This seems very useful... but I'll need to catch them off guard for it to work...'

After pondering for a while, Wang Shòu devised a viable plan that could work.

'Yes, this could work... after all, who said that obtaining the treasures required defeating them?'

Rumble!

Wang Shòu's stomach suddenly rumbled, protesting its lack of sustenance.

'Oh right, I need to eat as well. I can't keep going without energy'

Turning around, Wang Shòu scoured the nearby area for food.

As night fell and the stars illuminated the Great Star Dou Forest, Wang Shòu noted, 'It's close to dawn. The Sunroot Herb is about to bloom...'

Wang Shòu thought, nibbling on the pile of fruits he had gathered from the vicinity.

'Sigh. Fruits are tasty, but I'd really like some meat...'

Wang Shòu sighed. People might assume that as a former animal rights activist, he would be a herbivore and resistant to consuming meat, but this was a misconception.

When he was five, he lived with a family of wolves, predators, for five years. Thus, he consumed meat and even enjoyed it.

Although he was an animal rights activist, he wasn't naive. He believed that as long as animals weren't needlessly harmed and were hunted for survival, it was acceptable. Every creature needed energy to survive, and depriving oneself of survival options out of pity for others was unwise.

In life, the highest priority for any creature was survival, which meant their lives were more significant than those of other creatures.

Wang Shòu had once said this in his past life when conversing with someone seeking wilderness survival advice: "To live, one must be more selfish than others and be ready to kill."

While becoming a Pokémon allowed him to subsist on fruits and Douluo World's food is more delicious, making it easier for him to live off fruits.

However, after almost a month, living solely on fruits was challenging. But if he wanted meat, he had to hunt spirit beasts.

While he could do it, he didn't want to. Unlike in his previous life, the spirit beasts in the Douluo World, while less intelligent than humans, can grow wiser as they became stronger, even surpassing human intelligence.

And he had no reason to kill them, as he could sustain himself with just fruits. Hunting them for pleasure would be selfish.

'Hmm... what should I do?'

[You might have forgotten, but creatures from your previous life exist in this world as well, like fish]

With the system's reminder, Wang Shòu's eyes widened, and he slapped his forehead speechless.

'Yes, you're right! I completely forgot, given that this is a Xianxia world and I got accustomed to fantasy creatures'

Cursing his own oversight, Wang Shòu's attention swiftly shifted to the large sun who appeared in the far distance and the Sunroot Herb, which was suddenly radiating light.

[The Sunroot Herb is about to bloom]