Wasteland: I Awakened A Plant System-Chapter 23: Spying
Vikram walked steadily along the familiar path back toward his Territory.
His pace was not hurried, but his strides were long and powerful. What would normally take an hour of walking was shortened to barely half that time for him.
Behind him, however, Amit was completely exhausted.
He had been following from a distance the entire time, trying not to get too close. Even so, keeping up with Vikram proved far more difficult than he had expected.
By the time Vikram reached the outskirts of his Territory and disappeared from sight, Amit was still far behind.
Leaning heavily against a tree trunk, Amit panted violently, his chest rising and falling as if it would burst.
"Damn... that kid..."
"He’s not even running... how can he move this fast..."
Sweat dripped down his face as he tried to catch his breath.
He had been running almost the entire way just to keep Vikram within tracking distance, and even then he could barely follow the faint traces left behind on the path.
Fortunately, the occasional bloodstains from the earlier battle had helped him confirm the direction.
Otherwise, he might have lost the trail completely.
After resting for a moment, Amit wiped the sweat from his forehead and muttered:
"That brat must have eaten a lot of vitality fruits... otherwise how could his stamina and speed be so ridiculous?"
Thinking about this, Amit couldn’t help feeling confused.
After all, he himself had eaten two vitality fruits.
Yet the gap between them was still enormous.
He simply couldn’t understand it.
"There’s no way someone could collect five or six fruits in just a few days..."
"That kid definitely has some kind of secret." 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚
His mind soon drifted back to the scene he had witnessed earlier.
When he secretly hid in the bushes near the ruins, he had clearly seen Vikram fight the three Wolf Spirit Guards.
Even now, remembering it made Amit feel a chill run down his spine.
That level of power... It wasn’t something a normal Survivor could possess.
And the most bizarre part wasn’t even Vikram himself. It was the three strange plant-like creatures following him.
Amit frowned deeply as he tried to recall the scene. One of them carried a large shield, blocking the Wolf Spirits’ attacks head-on.
Another wielded something like a vine-blade, moving swiftly and cutting the wolves down with surprising precision.
And the third one... The smallest one... He didn’t know what it even did.
"Plant monsters...? No... they didn’t look like enemies. They were clearly obeying that kid’s commands."
The more Amit thought about it, the more shocked he felt. Creatures that could fight, and defend...
And all three were following Vikram like loyal soldiers.
"If that brat can control those things... he definitely has a secret..."
Amit took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.
Only then did he finally begin walking again toward the distant Shelter where his companions were waiting.
---
The situation actually began much earlier.
Amit, Tej Pratap, and Dushyant had met through the regional chat channel shortly after everyone arrived in the Wasteland.
Dushyant possessed a map, which allowed the three of them to locate each other and meet at the border between two regions within a single day.
Together, they built a shared Shelter there. Unlike most Survivors who were focused on honest survival, their alliance had been formed from the very beginning with a much darker goal.
Plunder.
Before the acid rain even arrived, the three had already robbed quite a few stones from inexperienced Survivors through deception and threats in the regional chat.
When the acid rain disaster ended and they realized how weak most Survivors were, their methods became even more ruthless.
They began killing and robbing directly.
Anyone who dared complain in the chat would simply be ignored or threatened further.
Their roles within the group were clearly divided.
Amit was responsible for gathering intelligence and scouting.
Dushyant handled combat, as he was the strongest among them.
And the slightly plump but extremely cunning Tej Pratap served as the group’s strategist.
All the vitality fruits they obtained were consumed by Amit to enhance his mobility.
The physique fruits all went to Dushyant to strengthen their main fighter.
Meanwhile, Tej Pratap monopolized blueprints and valuable items, using them to plan their long-term advantage.
It was during their exploration on the first day after the acid rain ended that they discovered the Wolf Spirit Ruins.
At first, they believed they had stumbled upon a huge opportunity.
But reality quickly slapped them in the face.
They had watched several Crimson Creatures accidentally approach the ruins.
None of them survived more than five moves against the guarding Wolf Spirits.
Even Dushyant, who had eaten three physique fruits, could only barely handle exquisite-grade Crimson Creatures.
Facing the ruin guards directly would be suicide.
So the three of them decided to observe the ruins from a distance, waiting for an opportunity.
And then, Vikram suddenly appeared. Out of nowhere. A young man they had never seen before.
Not only did he challenge three Wolf Spirit Guards at once, but he also defeated them.
Although Amit could see that Vikram was slightly tired at the end of the battle, the result still completely stunned him.
If someone like that could be followed... Amit’s eyes narrowed slightly.
"...then the gains from those ruins might belong to us after all."
Meanwhile, the two who were preparing to go out and search for Amit finally received his message.
[Amit: This time we’ve really struck gold. I found a Survivor who can hunt three Wolf Spirits, and I’ve already discovered the location of his Shelter.]
[Dushyant: How is that possible? Rare-grade Wolf Spirits can contend with exquisite-grade Crimson Creatures. You’re saying a Survivor single-handedly took down three Wolf Spirits?]
[Amit: It’s true. I personally saw the Wolf Spirits die and drop treasure chests. If you don’t believe me, go outside and see if there’s a lot of blood near the ruins.]
"Let’s go, let’s go out and see," Dushyant immediately said, already eager to step outside.
"No need," Tej Pratap replied calmly from the side, stroking his chin as he thought.
"Amit wouldn’t make such a boring joke."
[Tej Pratap: Tell me exactly what happened.]
A few seconds later, Amit replied.
[Amit: It wasn’t exactly a direct fight. That kid mainly used a bow and arrows from a distance. Two strange plant-type monsters helped him hold the wolves back. One carried a shield and blocked the attacks, while the other used a blade-like vine to slash at the wolves.]
[Amit: While they were fighting, the kid kept firing arrows from the side. The wolves were killed one by one like that.]
[Amit: What’s certain is that his strength is far greater than Dushyant’s, and his speed is even faster than mine.]
Inside the Shelter, Tej Pratap’s eyes narrowed slightly.
"Plant monsters...?"
He murmured to himself.
Creatures that could fight, defend, and cooperate with a human were something he had never heard of before.
"Interesting..."
His mind began rapidly calculating possibilities.
If that Survivor could control such creatures...
And if they could somehow seize those creatures or eliminate their owner...
Then the ruins might truly become theirs.
---
On the other side.
Vikram had already returned to his Territory.
After entering the Treehouse, he went straight to his bedroom and retrieved a medical kit.
Sitting down calmly, he slowly unwrapped the bandage on his forearm.
Earlier, when the three Wolf Spirits attacked him together, one of the claws had grazed his arm slightly.
The wound was only a small scratch, hardly worth mentioning.
Even the Healer Sprout had already helped close most of it during the battle.
Still, Vikram didn’t want to take any unnecessary risks. In a world like this, even the smallest wound could lead to infection.
Carefully cleaning the area, he inspected the skin closely.
"Hmm... It’s already healing."
There was no swelling, and no sign of pus forming.
Satisfied, Vikram reapplied a clean bandage and flexed his arm slightly.
"Looks fine."
Outside the Treehouse, the Guardian Sprout, Warrior Sprout, and Healer Sprout quietly moved around the Territory, performing their usual patrol.
The Guardian Sprout checked the Thornvine barrier near the entrance.
The Warrior Sprout wandered near the farming area, occasionally slashing weeds or probing the soil as if inspecting the ground.
Meanwhile, the Healer Sprout slowly floated around the Treehouse, releasing faint healing particles that drifted gently across the surroundings.
Everything seemed calm.
But Vikram had no idea that far away, someone had already found the location of his Territory.
He gently moved his arm, confirmed its recovery, and then stood up to check the items dropped from killing the Wolf Spirit:
Physique Fruit (Blue) X1,
Wolf Spirit Claw (Blue) X2,
Wolfskin Inner Armor X1 (Blue),
Steel (Blue) X10,
Stainless steel (Blue) X7,
Fabric (Green) X5,
Simple Toilet Blueprint X1 (Green).
After eating the physique fruit dropped this time and the two from the hyena last time, Vikram turned his attention to the two new items.
Host: Vikram
Strength 22+4
Speed 22
Stamina 24
Reaction 23+4
[Wolf Spirit Claw: Blue, crafting material, can be fused with weapons to gain a bleeding effect.]
[Wolfskin Inner Armor: Blue, lightweight inner armor, can resist some damage, with an added resistance bonus against scratches.]
"Finally, I’ve gotten a piece of armor after all this time. Although it’s soft armor, it’s better than nothing."
"As for this wolf claw..."
Vikram held the newly acquired Wolf Spirit Claw and Iron sword together in his hand, and a prompt appeared on the screen asking if he wanted to merge them.
"Yes."
As soon as he spoke, a light burst from his hand, and the Wolf Spirit Claw slowly approached the Iron sword, merging into one.
The wild power contained within it gradually imprinted itself on the sword, forming a unique pattern characteristic of the Wolf Spirit Claw.
When the light gradually dissipated, a brand new weapon appeared in Vikram’s hand.
The blade became sharper. He swung it once, and the new weapon cut an arc through the air, bringing with it a whooshing sound.
"The quality hasn’t changed, it’s just sharper. As for the bleeding effect, I’ll have to see."
