Is It Weird for a Guy to Apply to a Witch School?

Chapter 251: The Mother Plant of the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine

The environment inside the Carnivorous Forest was indeed vastly different from the forests in my perception.

The biggest difference was probably those so-called plants, right?

These plants didn’t seem to have evolved naturally here.

They were either species transplanted from some special environment, or they were artificially created.

Before reaching the area of the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine that Cheng Yu mentioned, I had already seen too many magical plants.

And I also understood why they would so tirelessly wait a month just to come here.

Because this place was simply a paradise for novel plants!

Plants that I would have never dared to imagine in the past actually existed here, whether it was the man-killing vines that would shrink upon touch, or the man-eating bean pods that were like bear traps.

Although I admit that these plants were very dangerous, they were indeed magical.

After all, a man-eating bean pod that could eat me along with my protective spell was indeed quite marvelous...

But in the end, it was still a plant.

It was broken open by my spell, but the plant juice inside was strongly corrosive.

The moment it exploded, the surrounding plant trunks made a sizzling corrosive sound.

Some of this corrosive juice even splashed onto an unknown plant, which then let out a piercing hiss and burrowed into the ground.

Here you could see the ”vibrancy” and ”liveliness” of the plants.

This was really no exaggeration at all.

Finally, after that man-eating bean pod was blown up by me, we also collected some seeds.

I also curiously collected some, as a collection of sorts.

And Sofili planned to cultivate some of these aggressive trap plants.

Many planters would choose to make a contract with extremely aggressive plants to be their plant summoning spell’s object.

At least they were pretty good to use.

And they could also guard plantations and so on.

After some questioning, I found out that Sofili actually had a whole plantation in the academy!

Although I have no experience in this area, to be able to have such a plantation, one must be either rich or noble, right?

Did I just meet a rich lady?

And when we arrived at the area of the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine where they had been before, I finally understood why they had made so little progress after entering the Carnivorous Forest so many times.

Not to mention that the previous area was still a relatively safe outer area, but now we had gone deep into it.

And in this area where the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine was located, I felt a sense of pressure from the plants.

The area of the forest that was originally dominated by trees was no longer the overlord that covered the sky.

The dark green vines were tightly wrapped around the trees.

Looking at the indentations that looked like rib marks, it was enough to see how long they had existed on these trees.

They were intertwined.

When we first arrived here, there weren’t many of these Giant Corrosive Thorn Vines, but looking into the depths, the dense vines there were like a giant net.

The originally tall trees had become withered under these vines, and the leaves on top were also very sparse, but they were not dead yet, because they still had one last value, which was to provide nutrients for the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine.

The thorns on the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine, which looked like sharp thorns and also like roots, were firmly pierced into the bark of the trees.

On the high-altitude Giant Corrosive Thorn Vines, you could also see the withered bones of birds lying on the vines.

Crystalline juice was secreted from the vines and finally dripped into the ground with the sharp thorns.

The air here was quite humid, and there was a big difference between this place and other places.

There were not so many dense bushes or ferns here.

But even the plants that grew here all avoided the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine.

It seemed that the juice of this thorn vine was also very problematic.

”The Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine has strong and tough vines that cannot be cut even with sharp weapons. They are natural high-strength ropes, and the juice they secrete is very corrosive, but it has a very high value. I came here mainly to collect the side buds and juice of the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine,” Sofili introduced to me, and then took out her professional tools and custom containers.

It seemed that she had come here specifically to collect them.

”This is also the first time we came here last time. We suffered a great loss. It seems that we didn’t gain much last time, and we were even injured. After we went back, Sofili specially found the introduction of this plant. Let me tell you, this thing is quite valuable.”

”Indeed, the book says that the side buds of this thorn vine can be cultivated further. I want to try to cultivate it artificially in my plantation. If I can, I will have another crop that can be continuously produced.”

At this moment, Sofili’s tone was also a little excited.

It seemed that after suffering a loss last time, she was prepared this time and could bring this thing back.

”Is there anything else to pay attention to?”

I asked, ”Will this vine tie people up like the one we encountered before?”

”The book didn’t say, but I don’t think so. The body of the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine has sacrificed the ability to trigger contraction, but in exchange for extremely strong toughness. And although the secreted juice is extremely corrosive, the book describes the feel as slippery. Even if it ties people up, they will quickly break free. At most, they will suffer from corrosive damage and thorn damage. This kind of injury is only a superficial wound, and my potion can be used for emergency treatment.”

”Alright...”

I nodded.

Although I really wanted to complain, I still held it in.

The corrosive ability was so strong, how did the author of the book know that the secretion felt slippery?

Was it because they were too dedicated?

Perhaps it was some kind of local protective spell for the hands.

And this kind of vine, rather than being a predator, looked more like a parasite, looking at these malnourished trees that had been sucked dry.

If it were really a predator, with so many and dense Giant Corrosive Thorn Vines distributed like this, it probably wouldn’t have been able to live for so long.

And after a period of collection, Sofili also put away everything with satisfaction.

”In addition, this is the plant specimen I made, and the side bud specimen. Consider it a gift for you. I used a spell to maintain the vitality of this side bud specimen. If you want to try cultivating it one day, maybe you can grow it.”

”Forget it, I don’t have such a big plantation, and this thing is obviously not suitable for growing in a villa,” I refused.

”Alright, then when we go out, we’ll convert it into Red Copper for you at a discounted price.”

I tacitly agreed to this behavior.

Although our harvest was not much so far, the dangers we encountered were not few at all.

But at the same time, I also saw many novel things.

This trip was not meaningless.

At least it made me realize the diversity of the secret realms, and also gave me a bottom line for the difficulty of the secret realms.

There probably isn’t any secret realm cheaper than this, right?

It should also mean that there is no secret realm with less danger than this.

So this means this is the easiest secret realm, but if those newcomers really came here, casualties would definitely be unavoidable.

Not to mention those dangerous plants, just facing this kind of non-aggressive plant like the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine, not knowing what it is would inevitably lead to big problems.

What this so-called Carnivorous Forest tests is the keen observation of danger, and the knowledge of different kinds of plants.

Without a huge reserve of knowledge and corresponding strength, it’s not easy to get by here.

Even now, although I think the plants here are very fragile to me, they have caused me a great deal of trouble.

For example, the man-binding vines, the man-eating bean pods, the giant-mouthed flowers, and even the man-eating trees that disguised themselves as ordinary trees were all too dangerous.

And with the restriction of having to pay for excessive damage to the secret realm, it was indeed very troublesome.

The only pity was that I hadn’t found the so-called bottles containing notes, drafts, and recipes yet.

But I had collected a lot of novel plants and also received a lot of them.

Although this was the Carnivorous Forest, and most of the plants were very dangerous, there were also many beautiful plants.

The dreamlike flowers bloomed in unmanned corners, and the three of us would naturally not let them go.

After all, it’s a rare trip, so we should take something back to make up for the cost, right?

Even if we are not very proficient in the methods of planting these exotic flowers and plants, but cultivating potted plants should be something anyone can do, right?

These plants can live in such a harsh environment, why can’t they live in my flowerpot?

It’s also very beautiful to put them in the villa for decoration.

We set off directly, preparing to head towards the deeper area of the Dark Thorn Grass.

Facing the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vines that blocked our way, we directly served them with wind blades.

Because there were no other dangers here, but the poisonous insects were becoming more and more numerous.

So I directly cast a full-coverage protective shield on all three of us, and focused on protecting the top.

Otherwise, who knows if the juice of those thorn vines will drip down when we pass by.

What if it corrodes the scalp and causes hair loss and baldness?

How ugly would that be?

And when I used the wind blades, I also felt the toughness and strength of this thorn vine.

The ordinary wind blades actually had some difficulty cutting it!

You know, an ordinary wind blade could directly pierce through an ordinary person.

Although I was a little amazed, they still had to admit defeat under my modded wind blades.

And I also used the wind blades to extend a wind blade technique specifically for cutting targets with strong flexibility, but unfortunately, this could not be counted as an independent derivative.

Because of this, we moved faster and faster, at least faster than the last time they came here for the first time.

Cheng Yu on the side was still telling me about last time, and said that Yanyan had bitten its mouth until it bled when breaking these thorn vines last time, and its fur was corroded by the secreted liquid.

If it weren’t for the earth element protection, I really don’t know what they would have done.

”This is the first time we’ve come so deep into the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine area. We’ve basically cleared the way for others by coming in this way, haven’t we? It’s a bargain for the people who come later.”

Cheng Yu turned around and looked at the passage that had been broken open all the way behind her, feeling a little emotional.

Although this was only the second time they had come to this area, they had not gone so deep this time.

But others probably don’t need us to clear the way.

Although the corrosive effect of the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine is very strong, and its body is very tough, it’s not like it can’t be broken, right?

Even the basic spellbook wind blade can clear the way, it’s just not as efficient as me.

At this moment, Sofili was holding a very thick book in her hand.

Looking at the label on the book, it was borrowed from the library.

At this moment, Sofili was reading the content related to the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine.

I saw that she had already turned several pages, and the content about the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine was not finished yet.

It seemed that the content introduced in this book was really rich.

”The deeper we go, the denser it gets. Yuehan, are you okay? I see you’ve cast so many wind blades. Why don’t we take another route?”

”No need, I have a lot of Magic Power Sources.”

I shook my head and said.

The path we were taking was intentionally guided by me to go deeper, which was why it was getting denser here.

Because I could see from my Spirit Vision that there was a flow of transcendent energy inside this Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine, and it was a type that reproduced through side bud transplantation.

The direction of the energy flow of all its vines was very directional.

So I reasonably suspected that there would be a ”mother plant” like existence in a certain area in the center.

I didn’t care if that mother plant had anything special.

I just hoped that no one had gotten there first.

But this was a very low-level secret realm, so it shouldn’t have been swept clean.

What I was most concerned about were the notes and other things left in the secret realm.

”Sofili, let me ask, I see you’ve been reading about the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine. Does this plant have a special existence similar to a mother plant?”

”A mother plant? Uh... I think I saw it. It does exist. The Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine is a very prolific existence. It is not recommended to put it into an unfamiliar ecosystem. When it is put in, it will reproduce wantonly, just like we are now. And the initial Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine will degenerate many of its characteristics under continuous reproduction, becoming a pure reproductive body, and needs to be supported by other subclones...”

Sofili turned back several pages and pointed to a paragraph.

”So that means there is one?”

I asked.

”Yes, there is,” Sofili nodded and said, ”Um, you’re not going to look for it, are you?”

”Yes, I want to go and have a look. After all, we seem to have reached the central area, haven’t we?”

”That’s true. The Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine doesn’t have any ability to attack actively. I also want to see what the mother plant of the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine looks like! If... if it can be transplanted, that would be even better. Otherwise, I don’t know when the side buds I collected will become a mother plant.”

Sofili closed the book, and her eyes suddenly lit up.

It seemed that she was really interested in plants.

My previous impression of her was that she was introverted.

Perhaps she had opened up after fighting side by side and developing a friendship?

”If we find any notes or recipes there, I hope I can copy a copy,” I also said at this moment.

”Eh? Don’t say it, that’s really possible. Don’t worry, you’ll definitely get a copy! After all, you contributed the most on this journey. I’m a little embarrassed...”

Cheng Yu said, looking away at Yanyan on the side, feeling that it was a bit disappointing.

After all, it’s not like these things can’t be shared.

Just copy another one.

Knowledge is like this, it can be spread.

And Cheng Yu knew that without this Yuehan in front of them, they might not have been able to go so deep.

It’s not that they didn’t have the means, but it wasn’t worth it.

It would take a cost and time, which was not worth the loss.

But soon, under my guidance, we arrived at the center.

Here, we saw a huge sphere woven from the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vines.

From a distance, it had a different kind of strange beauty.

”Wow... it’s so big? And it’s woven so beautifully. Is this the magic of nature?”

At this moment, Cheng Yu also let out a sound of exclamation.

”Indeed, it’s very marvelous.”

I looked at the giant vine cocoon that was like a silkworm cocoon, and I felt a strange rhythm inside.

But then I raised my hand and a wind blade slashed over.

The wind blade carried a powerful cutting force and slammed into the giant cocoon.

I hadn’t been idle on my way here.

I had been using the Flexible Learning and Application spell to continuously improve the wind blade spell, wanting to see if I could deduce an independent derivative spell with the extended effects I had explored, but unfortunately, I didn’t have any inspiration.

But the efficiency of cutting the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine had greatly improved.

But even so, this wind blade of mine did not completely split this thing open.

But I saw a thick cross-section and the corrosive juice flowing out from it.

This thing was not only very big, but also very thick!

”This thing is so powerful? Your wind blade could clearly cut a path open with one strike before!”

”It is indeed very powerful, but that’s all it is,” I also nodded, and then added a few more wind blades.

But I was still very careful when cutting it open, because I was afraid of destroying the things inside, and it seemed that there was something like a liquid inside.

After all, this thing was so well wrapped, the things inside must be very important to be protected so well.

”This is indeed the mother plant of the Giant Corrosive Thorn Vine! The book says that the mother plant that has degenerated many of its characteristics will become fragile, but its reproductive ability is extremely strong, and it needs mature thorn vines to wrap it into a giant cocoon!”

As Sofili pointed to the illustration and text on the book, this giant cocoon was also cut open by me at this moment, revealing a huge sphere made of countless tender vines intertwined...

”This is it! The white... core curled up into a ball!”

Sofili said excitedly.

But before Sofili could rush over, the place where the giant cocoon was broken open directly contracted, and a huge amount of corrosive liquid sprayed out, heading straight for our position.

”Be careful!”

I immediately said, and an energy shield blocked in front of Sofili, Cheng Yu, and me.

When I was cutting the second time, I felt that there was a liquid layer with a lot of pressure inside.

I didn’t expect it to be waiting for us here.

If I hadn’t been vigilant and prepared, I wouldn’t have been able to cast a protective spell on others so quickly.

”Ah? Whoo... that scared me...”

At this moment, Sofili was so scared by the commotion that she fell to the ground.

It seemed that she was really scared.

”Thank you...”

”It’s nothing. It’s my responsibility too, for rashly breaking it open,” I said, shaking my head.

”No... I was clearly holding the book, and I clearly saw it just now. I forgot to tell you all because I was too excited...”

”It’s not that I’m saying you two shouldn’t take responsibility, but let’s see what the spoils of war are, shall we?”

At this moment, Cheng Yu also stepped forward and interrupted our conversation.

”Indeed, it has already happened, and no harm was caused. Don’t worry too much. If you have to remember every life-and-death moment, you’ll live a very tired life,” I said.

After all, I saw this very clearly.

”That’s true... let’s hurry up and see how the mother plant is doing. This is the first time I’ve seen a mother plant... I feel like if I can transplant it... I might even be able to get a bigger plantation...”

”Stop worrying about your plantation and go look at the spoils of war, my great botanist, Miss Sofili.”

Cheng Yu leaned over and slapped Sofili on the butt, speaking in a half-joking manner.

”I know, really!”

Sofili secretly glared at Cheng Yu and then went over.

”Let me put another protective spell on you, be careful,” I said, raising my eyebrows.

That action just now was a bit familiar.

The relationship between these two was really good.