Chapter 18: Mass Production of Extraordinary Plants

"Jack, make sure no one gets near this place," Alexander ordered.

The courtyard was filled with suitcases.

Jack knew exactly what those suitcases, each large enough to hold a person, contained. Cold sweat trickled down his temples.

He quickly nodded and left the courtyard as fast as he could, as if fleeing.

Alexander stretched his neck, preparing for the task ahead. "Time to get to work. Let's see what surprises these hundreds of corpses of condemned awakened criminals can bring me."

He opened one of the suitcases.

Inside was the body of a middle-aged man with a small, dark hole in his forehead. Alexander dragged the corpse out.

Because the man had been an awakened individual, his spiritual energy had not yet dissipated, so the body had not decayed, and there was no foul smell.

He threw the corpse into a pre-dug pit in the vegetable garden.

The garden emitted a faint glow. If it were nighttime, it would have been a stunning sight.

Alexander continued opening the other suitcases, filling the pit with bodies.

Once the pit was full, he covered it with soil and waited.

The super fruit tree and the other seeds in the garden began to absorb the energy rapidly.

One by one, unusual plants, filled with spiritual essence, broke through the soil, eagerly blooming and competing for the energy.

The super fruit tree emitted a soft green glow as orbs of light appeared on its branches. The light faded, revealing the eerie forms of super fruits.

Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Alexander realized that his spiritual energy had been greatly depleted.

He picked a wild blueberry from the garden and ate it.

[Wild Blueberry (E-Class): Quickly restores a portion of consumed spiritual energy.]

Rejuvenated, Alexander resumed his work.

He dug more pits, filled them with corpses, and continued the process of cultivation.

By the time he finished, the bodies of the awakened criminals had turned into brittle white bones that crumbled to dust at the slightest touch.

After numerous rounds of planting and consuming wild blueberries, the suitcases were empty, and the soil in the garden had taken on a cold, pale hue.

Piles of harvested extraordinary plants had begun to accumulate.

[Moonlight Herb (F-Class): Emits light at night, and meditating under its glow increases the speed of spiritual recovery.]

[Potato Bomb (F-Class): Press the red button on top, bury it in the ground, and it will explode when triggered.]

[Wild Strawberry (F-Class): Instantly heals minor injuries upon consumption.]

[Wild Blueberry (E-Class): Quickly restores a portion of consumed spiritual energy.]

[Sailor's Spinach (D-Class): Doubles strength after consumption.]

These items were perfect for the guild's trading store.

Satisfied, Alexander walked over to the super fruit tree and admired the twelve newly grown super fruits. He looked like a contented farmer surveying a bountiful harvest.

"The real focus of the Flame of Creation Mercenary Guild will be the future super fruit users," he muttered to himself.

"How can I cultivate a B-Class fruit? Perhaps it requires the body of a B-Class awakened individual..."

Alexander pondered this, deciding that if the opportunity arose, he would try to obtain a B-Class awakened corpse with sufficient spiritual energy.

"Rosie, come here for a moment," Alexander called out.

Rosie emerged from the house, only to be left speechless by the sight of the courtyard filled with extraordinary plants.

Just a few days ago, when those few F-Class extraordinary plants were put in the trading store, William had been constantly pestering customer service, begging for more tasks, driven mad by the plants' effects.

Even Ethan Blake, who had initially been resistant to joining the Flame of Creation, couldn't resist the allure of the extraordinary plants and frequently checked the task section of the app.

Alexander said, "You can put all these extraordinary plants into the trading store. Also, add one super fruit, priced at 5,000 points."

Rosie nodded but asked, "Should we put the rest of the super fruits up for trade as well?"

Since gaining access to the police department's database, they could easily identify individuals who would benefit the most from the super fruits.

Alexander shook his head. "Leave the rest of the super fruits alone for now."

"Assign two tasks to Ethan Blake. First, make sure Sam Neri from the East District Police stops harassing Yvette Ivanova. Second, arrange a meeting with Giovanni, the owner of the Imperial Nightclub. I want to have a talk with him."

According to Rosie's investigation, Giovanni was the suitor the café owner had mentioned, known as a half-underground emperor of Bluewater City.

After thinking for a moment, Alexander added, "Also, post a public task: collect monster corpses. E-Class is worth 5 points, D-Class is worth 10 points, C-Class is worth 50 points, B-Class is worth 500 points, and A-Class is worth 2,500 points."

Rosie memorized the instructions and immediately returned to the house to start working.

Alexander picked a super fruit from the tree and left the courtyard.

The cool winds of early autumn swept through Bluewater City, especially near the coast where it was particularly cold.

The streets were desolate, with a gust carrying a fallen leaf to the feet of an old beggar.

The beggar tightened his tattered blanket around himself, squinting through the faint drizzle illuminated by the yellow light of a nearby streetlamp.

Cursing under his breath, he muttered, "Why's it raining so much this year? Must be those corrupt officials hoarding so much money that they made the heavens cry!"

Having been driven away from the bridge underpass by other beggars, he didn't dare seek shelter under anyone else's roof, so he huddled beneath his blanket, shielding his head from the rain.

Suddenly, he heard footsteps approaching and immediately lowered his head.

His voice, trembling with desperation, rang out in a pitiful plea, "Please, sir, have mercy! I haven't eaten in three days!"

Barely able to catch his breath, he followed up with, "Spare some change, good sir."

A pair of sneakers appeared in his view.

Confused, the beggar looked up and was startled by the sight before him.

"What is this, Halloween? Who wears such a terrifying mask?"

It was Alexander, conducting an experiment.

He wanted to see if someone from the lowest rungs of society, after gaining the power of a super fruit, would cause chaos that might expose the Flame of Creation Mercenary Guild too soon. For someone like Alexander, who wanted to develop quietly and steadily, this was the last thing he wanted.

Without a word, Alexander tossed a super fruit into the beggar's bowl and walked away, watching from the shadows.

The old beggar, confused, picked up the strange fruit from his bowl and cursed, "What kind of weirdo gives a beggar this weird fruit? Couldn't they have just given me some money? This is bullying an honest man!"

He was about to throw the fruit away when his stomach growled in protest.

Sighing, he rubbed his belly and brought the fruit back to his face.

"Guess it's edible, right?"

He took a bite, and his face turned green with disgust. "What the hell is this taste? Ugh, whatever, I'll just choke it down."

Closing his eyes, he tried to imagine the fruit was a delicious meal from the noodle shop by the bridge, forcing himself to eat it despite the revolting flavor.

[Scythe Fruit: C-Class]

[Consumes spiritual energy to compress the air your hand cuts through, creating blade-like slashes.]

The old beggar froze, as if time itself had stopped.

"I... I awakened?"

The beggar thought he must be hallucinating from hunger, so he waved his hand toward the streetlamp that had been his companion for so long.

The air compressed wildly, turning opaque, and a blade of wind shot forward, severing the streetlamp in half.

He burst into wild laughter, his messy hair dancing in the wind.

Then his phone rang, the loud ringtone startling him.

He pulled out an ancient, cracked phone that had been obsolete for who knows how long.

[Flame of Creation Mercenary Guild download complete. Please complete registration!]

The old beggar didn't pay much attention, stuffing the phone back into his pocket.

With his limited knowledge, he didn't even question whether the phone had a virus. He just assumed it was another annoying piece of malware trying to squeeze whatever value it could out of him.

"Dammit! I'm taking back that bridge underpass! No, wait, I'm awakened now! Why sleep in an underpass when I can sleep in a massage parlor with some women by my side?"

Suddenly, he noticed something on the ground.

"Huh? A mask? Must've been dropped by that guy earlier."

The beggar picked up the smiling mask and tucked it into his pocket, ready to embark on his first night as an awakened individual.