“I think… I can sense my seed.”
Inside a silver metal cage, a young girl of about eighteen or nineteen with long hair flowing freely had a faint silver totem on her brow that was hard to see unless you looked closely.
The edges of her pale green dress were already torn, revealing fair skin beneath, and her hands and feet were bound with thin silver chains that clinked crisply with every movement.
Beside her, several others were confined in metal cages. Calling them “humans” wasn’t accurate—they were merely humanoid species, their bodies still retaining features of their original forms.
A girl of a similar age in the neighboring cage, her twin horns resembling dried branches, perked up at Pu Xin’s words. Curiously, she asked, “Sister Pu Xin, you can sense your seed?”
For beings like them, unless it was a clone, even a painstakingly nurtured seed could not detect its source.
After being caged together for two days, everyone knew that Pu Xin had been captured by humans while searching for her own seed, and once they deemed her of no research value, she had been thrown in here.
Pu Xin gripped the cold metal bar and eagerly cast her gaze toward a dim corner of the cell, murmuring, “I can feel my seed nearby.”
It was vague, but the feeling was definitely there.
She was a dandelion with a congenital deficiency, who had struggled to produce five seeds. After finishing, she had fallen into a long slumber, and when she awoke, the seeds were gone.
The small girl tilted her head, a solitary green leaf on her branch swaying as she asked, “Did they come to rescue you?”
Before she could finish, a disdainful voice cut through, mocking, “Stop daydreaming. Once you’re in here, don’t even think of leaving unless you’re sold.”
In another cage, a woman with a pale purple mandrake tucked in her hair crossed her legs and folded her arms, leaning back in contempt at the overly naive pair.
Pu Xin blinked. She had only been here two days and had no clear knowledge of her future fate.
The woman, seeing her gaze, pointed with false generosity toward a pile of white bones entwined in blood-red thorns in a dark corner. “Those are from people who tried to get in three days ago,” she said.
“They even talked about taking us out, but before they could finish, the blood thorns drained them dry.” She lifted her chin slightly, as if such things were routine.
Pu Xin looked at the bones without fear or curiosity, but with worry, tightening her grip on the cage. “My seed seems to be getting closer.”
The connection she felt was intangible, indescribable.
The woman thought the little dandelion, fresh from the Devil’s Eye, was probably scared out of her mind.
Instead of comforting her, she said cruelly, “If you meet a kind buyer, maybe they’ll help you find your seed.”
Pu Xin shook her head silently. She didn’t need to retrieve the seeds, only to know how they were now.
Seeds, once mature, drift away on the wind, but hers are still weak, far from capable of rooting and growing independently. Her long sleep had left her unaware of how they had vanished.
Finding her uninteresting, the woman snorted and leaned back to rest, speaking no more.
The small girl, her words stolen by the other, timidly glanced at the blood thorns thriving over the bones and whispered, “Where will they sell us?”
As if to confirm her words, the large basement’s metal gate slammed open with a roar, cold white light flooding in. Pu Xin blinked against it.
A few fully armed humans entered. Seeing the caged beings tense, a plump man with a belly smirked cruelly, “Lucky bosses, these specimens are top-tier. I wonder when we’ll get a taste?”
His greasy voice wormed into Pu Xin’s ears, instinctively making her feel filth-tainted.
“Easy, just request a transfer to logistics. Pick any species you want,” said a man with a keyring at his waist.
“Come on, everyone knows the logistics team—” The plump man was cut off by a glare from the man at the front. “Enough, shut your mouth!”
A number, 009, was visible at his collar.
The plump man fell silent, others didn’t dare speak. The former obediently read from a list: “Number 666, 520, 888, 29, 732…”
After ten numbers, 009 activated the smart system, and corresponding cages clicked mechanically. Small robots emerged from beneath, pushing the heavy cages toward the metal gate.
The beings stirred, some trying to reach out, only to be stunned by electric shocks from their chains. Others froze in fear.
Pu Xin was the first cage moved. She glanced around, seeing only unfamiliar beings being pushed out. The mocking woman and anxious little girl remained behind.
The woman closed her eyes, used to this. The girl wanted to speak but hesitated at the electric chains, tears trembling in her eyes.
Pu Xin felt tension but her experience in the human world taught her restraint.
The cage rolled through the gate, wheels thundering like rolling thunder in the sealed corridor.
She clutched the silver chains, sensing her seed drawing nearer.
The other beings trembled in fear while she remained absent-minded.
The armed humans chatted idly until the ground shook violently. They immediately became alert. “What’s happening?” the plump man called out.
The tremors grew stronger, like an earth dragon thrashing.
009 quickly accessed a terminal and dialed. The brief beeping stretched endlessly.
The moment the call connected, Pu Xin felt their sudden relief, and she tilted her head, curious at 009.
“Damn it, 009! The Federal Security Bureau got wind of us! The exchange is exposed. Destroy all items and leave; I’ll contact you once the heat dies down.”
His harsh words darkened the atmosphere instantly. 009 barely had time to respond before the call ended, redialing to a dead line.
009 cursed lowly, the plump man’s brow twitched anxiously. “Everything was ready, just the last step! How did the Bureau find out?”
009, unaware of the answer, glared at the plump man. “No nonsense, destroy all items.”
“Boss, if we go back now, we might run into the Bureau. The exchange is exposed. Why risk it? Let’s leave; we might be the scapegoats,” interrupted the keyring man.
The corridor fell silent. 009’s brow twitched, then blood thorns shot from his sleeve, instantly piercing the man’s chest.
The plump man quivered as 009’s cold voice rang out, “The organization’s orders aren’t up for debate.”
Blood spurted, the man collapsed, keys clinking crisply on the floor.
009 reveled in the sensation, feeling no fear of death, exhaling comfortably.
Silence enveloped the corridor, broken only by the gurgling of the thorns absorbing blood.
Pu Xin tilted her head, meeting 009’s crimson eyes directly.
“You’re a species too?”
Her clear, sweet voice made 009’s chest tighten. His gaze locked onto her emerald green eyes, and the thorns’ barbs swelled.
009’s pupils tinged with red. Other caged beings sensed the blood, panicked, but 666—not only unafraid, was curious about his identity.
Beneath his mask, 009 licked his lips and extracted the thorns from the corpse, whispering hoarsely, “Your blood must be delicious. Since you’ll die anyway, might as well be my nourishment.”
His tone shifted wildly between sentences, showing clear instability.
Pu Xin remained unmoved, her gaze shifting toward the sturdy wall beside her. The corridor shook violently as the wall cracked.
Her eyes lit up. Kneeling eagerly, emerald green pupils sparkling, she sensed joy.
All others in the corridor panicked, half-falling, half-running out, only to be pierced by thorns and violently dragged back.
Gurgling sounds filled the air as flesh visibly withered.
009 seemed oblivious to the danger, focused entirely on Pu Xin.
The thorns in his sleeve reacted, branching like octopus tentacles to bind her and drain her blood.
A metallic clang, Pu Xin’s cage twisted instantly, the greedy thorns blocked. A gust of wind and a silver dagger cut through the flying thorns effortlessly.
009 screamed in agony.
The echo of military boots mingled with rubble and smoke from prior explosions.
Pu Xin, barefoot, locked eyes with a man whose emerald gaze mirrored hers, calm and deep like the coveted Devil’s Eye lake.
As the smoke cleared, the man was fully visible.
He wore a black-and-gold military uniform with two small golden swords at the collar, each inlaid with red gems, and a dazzling golden medal on his chest.
The uniform was sharp, high boots covering toned calves, radiating strength and danger.
Black leather gloves covered his hands, casually playing with a silver dagger. Noticing her gaze, he looked directly at her.
Pu Xin gripped her chains, puzzled. How could she sense the unique aura of seeds from this human?
In that instant, she considered one possibility: Had her little one been secretly growing up all this time?