Chapter 31: The Mystical Plant Witch

Chapter 31: The Mystical Plant Witch

"What a lame team name!"

Ji Xinghuo's face froze, thinking that only a kid who hadn't graduated from middle school and had an immature imagination would come up with such a name.

Chi Zhonglin rubbed his nose, looking embarrassed.

Ji Xinghuo turned to him, assuming he was the one who came up with the name. Chi Zhonglin quickly explained, "Don't look at me, it wasn't my idea."

"Whose idea was it then?"

"It was mine." Ren Mian's voice floated down from upstairs, once again showcasing her capriciousness. "Do you have a problem with it?"

"Uh... no."

Ji Xinghuo had already guessed as much, but hearing her admit it still surprised him.

The image of Ren Mian as a mature and intelligent woman that he had just formed in his mind suddenly wavered. Beneath her elegant and otherworldly exterior, it seemed like she had a heart that hadn't lost its childlike innocence?

"Xinghuo-kun, please come with me," Nan Caiyi said.

"Caiyi, you don't have to be so formal with me when speaking. It feels weird. Just call me by my name directly," Ji Xinghuo said softly.

"Okay, Xinghuo-kun."

Nan Caiyi, who was walking ahead, turned back and gave him a sweet smile.

Ji Xinghuo felt helpless.

None of his three teammates in this squad seemed like normal people.

Nan Caiyi opened a guest room on the first floor.

Although it was called a guest room, it was quite spacious, fully furnished, and had an independent bathroom. Outside the balcony was a garden with a small path leading deep into it, perfect for morning strolls. At the other end of the garden were a training room and a shooting range.

"My sister and I live on the second floor," Nan Caiyi said.

"Zhonglin lives in the room next to yours. If you need anything, Xinghuo-kun, feel free to come find me at any time," Nan Caiyi said as she briefly introduced the layout of the villa. "I cook five meals a day, so please remember to come and eat on time. If you have any preferences, you can tell me now."

Ji Xinghuo nodded. "Thank you. I'm not picky at all."

"Then I won't disturb your rest, Xinghuo-kun." Nan Caiyi bowed and left the room.

Ji Xinghuo walked around the room. The conditions here were much better than at the inn, except for the lack of electrical appliances, which was a bit inconvenient. Other than that, it was better than his own apartment back in Chang'an.

He sat on the bed and couldn't help but extend his electromagnetic sensing.

In an instant, the entire villa's situation was reflected in his mind. He only saw the magnetic field distribution and not visual images, so he wasn't really snooping on anyone's privacy.

Ren Mian was in the bathroom of the master bedroom on the second floor, taking a shower...

"Cough."

Ji Xinghuo quickly withdrew his magnetic field sensing.

Although the magnetic field distribution was quite abstract and didn't reveal the actual scene, the shape of the magnetic field still clearly outlined the curves of the human body.

"Delicate and luscious! Substantial and authentic! Hidden depths!"

Several words popped into Ji Xinghuo's mind, and he quickly forced himself to shift his attention elsewhere.

Nan Caiyi was busy in the kitchen, preparing a midnight snack for Ren Mian, while Chi Zhonglin in the neighboring room had already collapsed on his bed, fast asleep.

Outside, night had fallen, and darkness enveloped everything.

Ji Xinghuo lay on the soft bed and soon drifted into the world of dreams.

The next day.

As the golden light of the sun bathed Olympia, Ji Xinghuo had already completed one training cycle.

With the long nights of Warm Moon, he didn't need to sleep for too long. Eight hours of sleep were enough, and he woke up naturally to avoid disturbing the others. He practiced the Thousand Spirit Dexterous Hands in his room, not making a single sound.

When he walked into the dining room, he saw Nan Caiyi wearing an apron and cooking breakfast.

"Good morning, Xinghuo-kun," she greeted him with a smile. "Breakfast will be ready soon, so please wait for a moment."

"Good morning," Ji Xinghuo replied.

He knew that she had gotten up more than an hour ago.

This young and beautiful woman from Fusang possessed qualities rarely seen nowadays. She was diligent, hardworking, and a good homemaker. If not for the two knives she always wore at her waist, anyone would mistake her for a full-time housewife.

When breakfast was served, Ren Mian also came downstairs.

She was dressed in a different combat skirt from yesterday, but the style was still simple and elegant. Her face was bare, without any makeup, yet it didn't diminish her beauty at all. Her skin was smooth and delicate, without any blemishes or dullness, so tender that it seemed like one could pinch water out of it.

Her skin was like creamy white jade, and her face was like a peach blossom!

Ji Xinghuo took a closer look and couldn't help but admire her secretly.

If Ren Mian's image were to appear on the internet, she would instantly go viral worldwide. Countless film and television companies would be vying for her with sky-high contracts, begging her to enter the entertainment industry.

Men would be falling at her feet all around the equator!

"Focus on your breakfast." Ren Mian suddenly glared at Ji Xinghuo, but her expression was alluring. "Staring at me won't fill your stomach."

Ji Xinghuo had a good grasp of her character by now and smiled as he said, "A beautiful sight is a feast."

"You're not that old, but you're quite bold," Ren Mian said helplessly.

"If I weren't affected by your beauty, I wouldn't be a man," Ji Xinghuo said honestly. He didn't believe that any man sitting at the same table as Ren Mian could resist looking at her. Suddenly, he asked, "Sister Ren, how old are you?"

"Why do you ask?"

"No reason. I'm just curious," Ji Xinghuo said with a smile. "As teammates, I should at least know my captain's age, right?"

"That's a good excuse," Ren Mian said after a pause. "I'm 26."

"Only four years older than me!"

Ji Xinghuo was surprised. At 26 years old, one would be a Superhuman, a global genius, and one of the very few people in human history with such extraordinary talent and potential.

Any superhuman who could advance to the Superhuman stage before the age of 30 would have the potential to become a Heavenly King!

He said enviously, "Sister Ren, you're so young and already a Superhuman. Advancing to the Legendary or even the Heavenly King stage in the future shouldn't be a problem for you."

Nan Caiyi, who was standing beside them, had a strange expression on her face.

"Who told you I was a Superhuman?" Ren Mian laughed.

Ji Xinghuo was confused. "You're not?"

"I'm just a high-level superhuman," Ren Mian explained. "But I'm not far from advancing to the Superhuman stage. It should happen within the next year or two.

Ever since he first met Ren Mian yesterday, his magnetic field sensing had clearly shown that her magnetic field intensity had reached the Superhuman level and was even stronger than any Superhuman he had ever encountered, almost as if there was a tier difference. Yet, she claimed to be merely a high-level superhuman.

Ji Xinghuo subconsciously thought that she was hiding her strength. If not, could it be that his magnetic field sensing was faulty? Wasn't a stronger magnetic field indicative of greater power?

Nan Caiyi spoke softly, "My sister advanced to the high-level superhuman stage three years ago, which is already very fast. Xinghuo, why are you so surprised?"

Ren Mian also gave him a puzzled look.

"It's nothing. I must have misunderstood," Ji Xinghuo shook his head. "Ren Mian was so formidable during yesterday's test that I assumed she was a Superhuman."

Pride filled Nan Caiyi's face as she said, "You're not wrong to think that. My sister's strength surpasses even Superhumans."

Ji Xinghuo nodded, knowing this to be true.

"I'm curious about Ren Mian's profession now," he asked.

"I'm a Plant Witch," Ren Mian replied.

"Then I guessed right," Ji Xinghuo laughed. With a peach blossom mark between her eyebrows, a floral fragrance about her, and the lush growth of various rare plants in the villa's garden, it was clear that her profession template was that of a Plant Witch.

The first impression most people had of Plant Witches was their healing abilities.

However, their capabilities extended far beyond that. Healing was just their most basic skill.

In essence, Plant Witches were witches who used plants as their medium for spellcasting.

By manipulating plants and utilizing the seeds, fruits, roots, and leaves of the myriad of Star World plants, they could achieve effects that were truly surprising.

Close-quarters combat, buffing teammates, physical attacks, energy bursts, defense, control, poison, tracking, pharmacology, beast taming, cultivation...

There was almost nothing a Plant Witch couldn't do! The versatility of their abilities far surpassed other profession templates.

The diversity and complexity of the Star World's plants meant that the potential of Plant Witches knew almost no bounds. Of course, this was on the premise that they could collect enough plant samples.

"What about you, Caiyi?" Ji Xinghuo asked.

He had never been able to figure out Nan Caiyi's profession template. It was difficult to judge from appearances, and his magnetic field sensing could only reveal the range and intensity of the magnetic field, making it temporarily impossible to deduce her profession from the details.

Moreover, Nan Caiyi's magnetic field was peculiar, very faint and erratic.

Nan Caiyi replied softly, "I'm a Demon Refiner and an Evil Spirit."

"Ah?"

Ji Xinghuo was stunned, almost dropping the chopsticks in his hand. "An advanced profession, Demon Overlord?"

Once a profession template was formed, an otherworldly being could choose to enhance their primary profession by fusing with additional otherworldly abilities, or they could cultivate a secondary profession template.

Not all profession templates could be cultivated together. Some worked well together, while others didn't.

And there were some dual professions that were a perfect match, resulting in even greater power.

These were known as advanced professions! Demon Refiner was already an extremely rare and powerful profession, and it had only a handful of advanced professions, one of which was with Evil Spirit, known as Demon Overlord!

Furthermore, the prerequisite for an advanced profession was at least the Legendary tier!

"No," Nan Caiyi shook her head lightly. "I'm just a high-level superhuman. I haven't advanced, and I've only partially fused with the otherworldly abilities of both the Demon Refiner and Evil Spirit, so neither is complete."

"Is that possible?" Ji Xinghuo asked, surprised as this was the first time he had heard of such a thing.

Profession templates were created to form combat capabilities as quickly as possible, and the abilities that constituted the template were indispensable. Fusing with the otherworldly abilities of other professions, even if they were future advanced profession directions, would greatly delay one's progress and could potentially result in a situation where one was neither here nor there, gaining little while losing much.

Ren Mian interjected, "As long as you find the correct method and succeed in the fusion, advancing early shouldn't be a problem."

Nan Caiyi nodded, "My sister taught me this."

"I see," Ji Xinghuo said, his expression clearing as he understood, but his heart was shaken. The method for advancing early was definitely top-secret information that ordinary people wouldn't be able to access.

Just who was Ren Mian?

At that moment, Chi Zhonglin walked into the dining room, yawning. He picked up a bun and stuffed it into his mouth, swallowing it in two bites before downing an entire glass of juice.

"Good morning, everyone," he greeted before continuing to eat.

Ji Xinghuo had already finished his meal and was chatting with the two beauties. During their conversation, he learned that Chi Zhonglin was also a high-level superhuman, but to his surprise, he wasn't a Martial Artist. Instead, he was a non-profession otherworldly being.

Chi Zhonglin smiled proudly.

Ji Xinghuo wasn't too fazed by this. A non-profession otherworldly being wasn't that uncommon.

Chi Zhonglin's strength was indeed formidable, placing him at the very pinnacle of non-profession otherworldly beings. However, his path to evolution wasn't one that he had discovered on his own, but rather, it was Ren Mian who had guided him as well.

Ren Mian was the absolute core of this team.

The Five Stars and Ten Realms, I Alone Dominate team had been formed five years ago when Ren Mian invited the then 18-year-old Nan Caiyi to join.

Three years ago, the 22-year-old Chi Zhonglin, who had just graduated, became the third member.

Both of them possessed peerless talents, and under Ren Mian's guidance, their strength skyrocketed, rapidly advancing to the high-level superhuman stage as if they were riding a rocket.

And now, Ji Xinghuo was the third member that Ren Mian had found!

He felt that Ren Mian was becoming more and more enigmatic, as if veiled in layer after layer of mystery, intriguing him to uncover the truth.

Fortunately, up until now, Ren Mian had only shown him favorable sides of herself.

Ji Xinghuo sighed inwardly.

For some reason, he suddenly felt a sense of pessimism, hoping that when the secrets were eventually revealed, it wouldn't lead to a bad ending.

"Alright," Ren Mian clapped her hands. "Follow me to the training ground. We'll test Xinghuo's strength and get to know each other's abilities so we can coordinate better in battle."

She glanced at Ji Xinghuo as she said this.

"By the way, I'll also help Xinghuo plan out how to quickly improve his strength."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end