boyutpedia Chapter 334 A Giant Tree
Chapter 334 A Giant Tree
Lin Fan returned to the car and rolled up the down window.
Soon, the strange smell was shut off, and at the same time, the strange thought in his mind also weakened.
"really."
Seeing this, he sneered, "Sure enough, there is a spiritual influence in that smell."
This tree can even influence the thoughts of those who get close to it through its scent.
This suggests that the mutated beasts were likely lured here in this way.
As you walk, you unknowingly enter the valley, and then you never want to leave.
"No wonder Big Crow said it couldn't struggle."
If this effect works on evolved beings, then it makes sense for a mutant beast of the size of the Great Crow to be specifically "attracted".
However, Da Wu's mental strength was strong enough that he could sense the abnormality and was resisting it.
But those ordinary mutated beasts probably wouldn't even realize that they've been affected.
Lin Fan sat in the car, looking at the giant tree in the middle of the valley.
"So here's the question," he muttered to himself, "Should I go straight in and confront them head-on, or try to figure out a better strategy first?"
He looked down at his weapon.
Then I looked at the giant tree that I estimated to be fifty or sixty meters tall.
And there are at least a hundred mutated beasts in the valley...
A new idea suddenly popped into his head.
"...Let's see how things go first, and see if we can take advantage of its features..."
And so, Lin Fan spent most of the day observing from the ridge.
As long as you stay in the car with the windows closed, the urge to "go down the mountain" becomes negligible.
After observing for several hours, he came to several conclusions.
First, the mutated beasts in the valley do not attack each other.
But they are not completely still. They move around, drink water, and eat, feeding on strange plants on the ground.
Even carnivores are the same.
Secondly, every two hours or so, there would be a noticeable "light pulse" in the canopy of that giant tree.
Golden light flows down from the treetops, through the trunks to the roots, and then spreads across the entire valley floor.
Each time a light pulse occurs, all the mutated beasts stop moving and remain quietly in place for about ten seconds.
It's as if it's receiving some kind of "signal".
Third, and this is what Lin Fan cares about most.
He discovered that new mutated beasts were arriving one after another at the edge of the valley.
From different directions.
When they reach the edge of the valley, they pause briefly before walking down to join the "Peace Family".
"There are more and more of them."
Lin Fan leaned on the steering wheel, watching yet another mutated beast enter the valley.
"Is the impact of this tree still expanding?"
If that's the case, then things are getting a bit urgent.
The expanding area of influence means the tree itself is becoming stronger. This increased strength means the erosion of the giant crow will also intensify.
He had originally thought about whether he could move the big tree and replant it somewhere closer to Raccoon City.
This way, they can add another layer of protection to their base.
But looking at it this way...
"We can't wait any longer."
He needs more information.
He could only get so much information from a distance. He needed to get closer to the tree to see what was going on.
But rushing in directly would obviously be unwise.
Although those mutated beasts are not fighting each other now, who knows if they will act in unison when outsiders break in?
Hundreds of mutated beasts attacked together...
Although he wasn't afraid, it was still troublesome.
"Then let's go tonight."
He glanced at the sky and then decided to approach and take a look that night.
After all, according to normal theory, the period after dark is when the activity frequency of all living things is at its lowest.
Moreover, most of the mutated beasts in the valley are now in a semi-dormant state.
Perhaps nighttime is a window of opportunity.
After making his decision, Lin Fan continued to wait in the car.
……
Time passed slowly, and soon it got dark.
There were no lights in the valley, but the giant tree itself seemed to be emitting a faint glow.
Golden glints of light danced among the leaves, making it look like a giant Christmas tree from a distance.
Lin Fan pushed open the car door, but this time he didn't close it completely...
He left himself a way out.
He would run away as soon as things went wrong.
The smell was still there in the air.
He could feel the urge to go down resurfacing, but he deliberately ignored it.
He pulled a piece of cloth from the trunk of the car, tore it off, and covered his mouth and nose. He wasn't sure if it would help, but at least it made him feel a little better.
Then, he began to move down the ridge.
We didn't take the main road...
Of course, if there were a main road here.
He chose a spot on the edge of the valley with the densest vegetation, and using the cover of those strange plants, he slowly approached downwards.
The footsteps were very light.
The closer you get to the bottom of the valley, the stronger the smell becomes in the air.
The thought of "getting closer" in his mind grew stronger and stronger. But Lin Fan held onto his consciousness tightly, forcing himself to remain vigilant.
He noticed the root systems of the plants on the ground, or rather, the mycelium that resembled a network. White, filamentous substances of varying thickness emerged from the ground, connecting each plant.
And all the filamentous networks lead in the same direction.
That tree.
"Parasitic networks?"
Lin Fan squatted down, looking at the dense mycelium on the ground.
"These plants...are they all part of that tree?"
If that's the case, the "plants" that those mutated beasts eat are essentially ingesting a part of that tree.
Will eating things from trees lead to assimilation?
There's a lot of information here.
Lin Fan continued forward.
He stopped when he was about three or four hundred meters away from the giant tree.
Because he saw something he hadn't noticed on the ridge before.
At the base of the giant tree, around where the thick aerial roots pierced the ground, lay several mutated beasts. But their condition was strange.
It's not a rest.
It was wrapped up...
The white mycelium emerged from the ground and wrapped around the bodies of the mutated beasts.
Some of the mutated beasts were already covered in a thick layer, making it almost impossible to recognize their original appearance.
The part enveloped by the mycelium is slowly... melting?
No, it's not melting. It's being absorbed.
Those mutated beasts are being "digested" by that tree.
Lin Fan's pupils contracted.
He stared in shock at the mutated beasts lying there quietly being digested; they showed no signs of pain whatsoever.
It was as if it were done willingly.
"Goodness."
After a long pause, he muttered to himself in surprise,
"So, the plan is to lure these animals over, let them eat the plants to completely paralyze them, and then absorb them?"
"No wonder the big crow said it was 'assimilation' rather than 'control'."
This thing's purpose has never been control. It's absorption. It's turning all living things that come near it into nutrients for its own body.
As for the giant crow, it's probably considered a "great tonic."
Lin Fan looked at the giant tree.
In the darkness, its golden glow appeared particularly eerie. The flowing points of light were no longer as warm as they were during the day, but instead exuded an indescribable greed.
"So you're the one messing with that giant tree thing." Lin Fan stared at the giant tree and said in a low voice.
The giant tree did not respond.
Of course, I won't respond.
It is just a tree.
A tree that is slowly devouring all living things around it.
Lin Fan observed the mutated beasts being absorbed at the roots of the giant tree.
There are at least a dozen.
Some are completely covered by mycelium, leaving only a blurry outline. Others still retain their original shape.
What will those that have been absorbed eventually become?
To become nutrients so the tree can continue to grow? To expand its influence? To attract more prey?
"It seems like the idea of taking this thing back is a bit unrealistic."
As he spoke, he stopped and turned back up the hillside. "That's about it. I'll think about it some more. If it doesn't work, I'll transform and pull it out tomorrow."
Lin Fan quickly returned to the pickup truck, got in, and closed the doors and windows.
However, just as he reclined his chair and lay down to think about how to deal with it, he suddenly thought of the withered tree in the dark space.
The living golden giant tree, and the withered gray-white giant tree in that space.
Their shapes are almost identical.
The only difference is their life form.
Is there any connection between them?
If the withered tree in that dark space is a "projection" or "mirror" of this living tree...
Could he influence this side through that side?
"The problem is, I can't just go into that space whenever I want."
Lin Fan sighed.
"Before, they could only get in after they were dead. Tonight, although I was dragged in while I was asleep, it wasn't my choice..."
He paused halfway through his sentence.
I was dragged in tonight.
On the road in the direction where he was approaching the tree.
Is it a coincidence?
This is what it says——
Was it because he was close to the tree that the dark space actively pulled him in?
What was that space reminding him of? Was it warning him? Or was it giving him...some kind of preparation?
What other scenes are there...?
What does that information mean?
Is he telling him the origin of this tree?
Lin Fan took a deep drag on his cigarette.
"Too many questions."
He stubbed out his cigarette in the recess of the car door and then reclined the seat.
"Take a nap first."
If he was pulled into that space because he was close to the giant tree, he's even closer now, so he might be pulled in again tonight.
He needs to verify this hypothesis.
Close your eyes.
Force yourself to relax.
His breathing gradually stabilized.
Consciousness sank into darkness.
Lin Fan didn't know how long he had been waiting. Five minutes? Ten minutes? Half an hour?
Nothing happened.
Just as he was almost falling asleep—
It's that feeling again.
It wasn't the feeling of falling asleep naturally.
It felt like being "grabbed" and "dragged away" by something.
Consciousness instantly detached from the body.
When he opened his eyes again, he was standing on the familiar gray-black ground.
A dimly lit space.
"They actually got in?"
Lin Fan looked down at his hands to make sure he could still feel them. Then he looked up and walked straight toward the group of tombstones.
This time he walked very quickly, without dawdling.
Passing through the group of tombstones, the withered tree reappeared in sight.
Huge. Dead. Grayish-white.
It's the same tree as the real-life golden giant tree, but in a different state.
Seeing this withered tree again at this moment, he was almost certain of it.
That is, these two trees are really the same.
Lin Fan walked to the withered tree and looked up at the bare branches that stretched towards the gray sky.
"What exactly are you?"
silence.
The entire space was deathly silent.
Lin Fan waited a few seconds but received no response.
He took a step forward, reached out, and touched the rough, withered bark.
The moment my fingertips touched the bark...
The images flooded my mind again.
This time, it's not a three-eyed human.
Yes……
Lin Fan's eyes widened.
The creatures of a new civilization appearing in the scene...
Tree.
A walking tree.
A conscious, mobile, gigantic tree-like creature.
Lin Fan was shocked and instinctively flung his hand away from the tree bark, and the scene abruptly ended.
"Hold."
He suddenly realized he had touched something he shouldn't have.