Shao Xuan couldn't believe his eyes when he suddenly saw this familiar figure. He stared at it carefully for a while to make sure he wasn't mistaken. Then, he hurried down the hill and walked in that direction.
He hadn't paid much attention to it when he was walking in the forest. He even walked back and forth a few times, but he didn't pay attention to the figure that looked like a cabbage. It was because it was too big!
There were all kinds of strange plants in the forest. Shao Xuan didn't know how many plants that looked like leaves he had seen, so he didn't pay much attention to it when he walked past. But standing on the hill and looking down, Shao Xuan couldn't calm down when he saw the figure clearly.
The leaves were quite similar, but its appearance was too similar to a cabbage. It was just that this cabbage was taller than Shao Xuan himself!
Shao Xuan came to the plant that looked like a cabbage and took a closer look.
He could hear the sound of something shattering in his ears.
Turning his head to look, Shao Xuan saw a bug as thick as an arm lying on a wide leaf outside the cabbage. It was gnawing a hole in the leaf. Probably sensing Shao Xuan's arrival, the unfamiliar aura gave it a sense of crisis. It stopped gnawing on the leaf and raised the front half of its body to face Shao Xuan.
If Shao Xuan hadn't been prepared and knew that this was just a bug gnawing on a leaf, he might have mistaken it for a snake when he saw such a scene.
The spots and patterns on the front of the bug looked like a green poisonous snake in the forest. Even the fine lines on the scales were very clear, especially the two lines that looked like "eyes". It was very scary. Suddenly, it looked like a snake was staring at him.
This was also one of the bug's life-saving methods.
However, Shao Xuan had seen many similar bugs, so he wasn't scared by it. He even stood to the side and observed it with interest for a while.
Perhaps it felt that Shao Xuan was no longer in danger, so the bug crawled back and continued to gnaw on the leaf.
Some bugs in the forest would take years or even longer to transform into butterflies or moths. This bug was probably not far from transforming.
Shao Xuan moved his gaze away from the bug and continued to look at the cabbage in front of him.
He raised his hand and cut off a piece of the leaf with a dagger. He sniffed it and found it to be okay. There wasn't any strange smell, but Shao Xuan didn't eat it. He might not be able to eat something that the bug could eat. He took the leaf and walked over to the flying squirrel that was hanging on the tree. Unfortunately, the flying squirrel didn't show any interest in the leaf. It only bit when it was irritated, it didn't eat it and spat it out.
After a few tries, Shao Xuan watched as the flying squirrel bit the leaf angrily. Nothing happened and Shao Xuan was overjoyed.
He stopped tormenting the flying squirrel.
He walked around the surrounding forest. Because of the Vein of the Sky, the other plants didn't grow well near the hole. Shao Xuan didn't see any plants that looked like cabbages, so he had to look further away. Just like the one he had just found, it was found a little further away from the cave. It was quite a strong plant to be able to squeeze out a place to grow in the forest.
Shao Xuan hadn't paid attention to it before because he hadn't paid attention to plants that were taller. Now that he followed the leaf, it didn't take long for him to find about thirty of them. And this was only the one in the vicinity.
There were even more small plants on the ground that hadn't grown yet. Some of them had obvious traces of being trampled by forest animals, while others had been bitten and had incomplete leaves. There were too many seedlings like this, so Shao Xuan did not count them. If they were left alone, they would not survive. They would either be trampled to death by the animals in the forest, or starve to death by other plants.
After looking around, Shao Xuan returned to the hole. Last night, he had been watching the flying squirrel and the effects of the Vein of the Sky. He hadn't slept at all. Today, he had been running around since early morning. He was a little tired, so he sat down on the grass to rest. He ate the leftover meat from yesterday to relieve his hunger.
Shao Xuan thought about the origin of these "cabbages". Did they really grow here naturally?
There were also people who grew vegetables here. The leaves were about sixty percent similar to cabbages, but the leaves were much longer and narrower. Moreover, the vegetables that were commonly grown here had fat roots. The people in the tribe mainly ate the roots, and the leaves were just a side dish. The vegetables that were commonly grown in the fields here were large, but most of them were only as tall as Shao Xuan's waist. If they were too small, the people in the tribe wouldn't be willing to grow them. But compared to the "cabbages" here, they were nothing.
Mutated?
Shao Xuan suddenly thought of the vegetables that were grown on the other side of the sea.
There were also crops similar to cabbages over there. Shao Xuan had seen them in the fields of Ji Ju. However, although the leaves of the vegetables over there were wide, they grew too scattered and were very short. They only reached Shao Xuan's knees. Many tribes on the other side of the sea didn't grow that. They felt that the yield was too low and it wasn't enough to fill their hunger. But the slave owners liked it.
Only the slave masters in King's City who liked these vegetables would set aside a large amount of land in their own fields to grow these vegetables in order to eat them. So, on the other side of the sea, only the slave owners had the seeds of these vegetables.
The "cabbages" around here weren't the type that the people here often grew. They were also different from the ones grown in the fields of the slave owners on the other side of the sea. Of course, there were many similarities. But so far, after going to so many places, even the mountains and forests, Shao Xuan had never seen such "cabbages".
After thinking for a while, Shao Xuan's eyes suddenly widened. He thought of a possibility.
This used to be the territory of an unknown small tribe. They also knew how to grow crops. The surrounding terrain was relatively flat, and they might have grown the vegetables that were commonly grown by the tribes on the mainland. So, even if the small tribe migrated, there would more or less be some vegetables left behind.
What if the Ji family didn't just plant the seeds of the sky here, but also the seeds of some other vegetables?
What if the three Ji family members in the cave scattered a handful of vegetable seeds around here before they died?
There were two similar yet different vegetables growing here. Would they give birth to a descendant that had the strengths of both?
Perhaps Shao Xuan was overthinking it. But, what if it was true?
If it was true, Shao Xuan could only say that it was the will of the heavens!
If it was artificially grown, who knew how long it would take to get a satisfactory vegetable? Even the vegetables that were grown in many tribes today had to be filtered generation after generation.
Here, different varieties of vegetables from the two continents grew together and obtained offspring that fused the characteristics of both sides. Then, after a long period of natural combination and selection, the offspring that survived today, that fused the advantages of both sides, and that had the strongest adaptability and the most stable inheritance — the "cabbage".
Not only were these 'Chinese cabbages' large in size, they were also in the shape of a ball.
Unlike the leaves on the other side of the sea, these 'Chinese cabbages' here, other than the large leaves on the outside, had a tendency to wrap around the core, forming an upright oval ball.
Regardless of whether it was the result of cross-breeding or the mutation of the vegetables planted here, Shao Xuan was very satisfied just by looking at the shape.
Now, the only question was, could it be eaten?
No matter what, he had to chop one first.
Shao Xuan chose the first one he saw and chopped the big vegetable ball in the middle with his sword. The few leaves on the outside looked too old and were not easy to carry, so he only chopped the ball into an oval shape.
The vegetable ball was taller than him and heavier, which made Shao Xuan even more satisfied. The fact that it was heavier meant that there were more leaves forming the vegetable ball, unlike the other leaves. If it was edible, the yield would be higher.
Carrying the vegetable ball on his shoulder, Shao Xuan went to the cave. He thought of something and turned around to look at the flying squirrel hanging on the tree.
There was only a broken straw rope left. It must have run away when he was looking for the 'Chinese cabbages'. To be able to bite the rope, it must have had a lot of strength. It must have used up a lot of energy to struggle. It seemed that the flying squirrel's injuries were almost healed.
The Veins of the Sky around it had no signs of being bitten, which meant that the flying squirrel did not notice the Veins of the Sky growing here. The Veins of the Sky that were not cut open were not much different from normal tree roots. It was indeed hard to notice.
Robber Eleven and Robber Twelve had stolen many treasures over the years, but they never thought that there was such a precious thing growing here. Perhaps, they had never thought about plants at all. After all, who would just 'throw' a 'treasure' on the ground?
After cleaning up the surrounding traces, Shao Xuan wrapped the Veins of the Sky and put it in his animal skin bag. He then pulled some big leaves and straw rope to wrap the vegetable ball and left.
Shao Xuan did not plan to do anything here for the time being. He was alone now, so it was impossible for him to take everything away. Especially the biggest Veins of the Sky, which required more careful excavation and protection. He also wanted to try transplanting the Veins of the Sky back to the tribe, so he needed more help.
The other Veins of the Sky here and the Chinese cabbages were all treasures. Shao Xuan planned to get people to dig them all up when he returned to the tribe.
After everything was settled, Shao Xuan carried the vegetable ball and left.
He chased after the robbers for a whole night and did not return. The tribe's warriors patrolling the border paid attention to any movements in the distance.
When they saw Shao Xuan's figure, the patrolling warriors did not recognize him because he was too far away. Plus, Shao Xuan was carrying a big vegetable ball, which was very strange. When they got closer and saw that it was Shao Xuan, the patrolling warriors happily went to welcome him.
They did not know what Shao Xuan was carrying, but since the Great Elder carried it back personally, it must be something extraordinary.
Not only the patrolling warriors, but the others were also curious when they saw Shao Xuan carrying an unknown object back. It was very big, so it was hard to ignore.
Shao Xuan did not explain much to them. He just carried the vegetable ball and rushed into the forest towards the tribe. His footsteps were hurried, and he disappeared in a flash.
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