Wizard: Starting from Escape from the Thorn Garden

Chapter 98 Cultivating the Root of Immortality

Kate's figure blended into the shadows at the edge of the town, like a drop of water flowing into a deep pool, silently returning to the rented three-story building shrouded in a simple protective magic circle.

Only after activating all the isolation and warning arrays did he truly relax, a wave of exhaustion emanating from the depths of his soul washing over him.

It wasn't physical exhaustion, but rather the natural relaxation of a highly stressed mind in a safe environment.

He sat cross-legged on the cold ground, not even having time to walk to the bed in the inner room.

The dimensional bag shimmered, and he solemnly took out the specially made jade box containing the fragments of the [Heart of the Dead] and placed it in front of him.

The moment the jade box was opened, a pure yet cold aura of death, imbued with an undying obsession, permeated the air, violently clashing with the faint remaining life energy in the room, emitting a faint "sizzling" sound.

Kate took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.

The wise words still echo in our ears: to stimulate life with death is like snatching chestnuts from a fire—extremely dangerous. That estimated mortality rate of 40% is by no means an exaggeration.

But he did not immediately begin to try the sage's radical approach, which was like tempering steel.

Instead, one should first immerse oneself completely in the sea of ​​consciousness.

"The Seed of Origin, In-Depth Analysis: Target—Fragment of the Heart of the Dead. Analyze its energy structure, rule imprint characteristics, potential conflict points with the fragment of the Root of Immortality, and—whether there is a possibility of a gentle transformation."

The cold, impersonal command was issued.

hum!

In the sea of ​​spirit, the original seed, rooted in the core and now closely integrated with the nursery of reincarnation, burst forth with an unprecedentedly brilliant golden light.

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Countless dark golden roots spread out with unprecedented activity, like the most precise scanning probes, layer by layer enveloping the energy projection of the heart of the dead that Kate's intention had guided in.

Massive amounts of data are surging forward at an unprecedented speed:

[Command received. Deep parsing initiated—]

[Target: Heart of the Dead (Fragment)]

[Energy Attribute: Highly condensed source of death, containing a faint fragment of undying will (level 4 peak strength), with strong negative energy erosion properties]

[Rule Imprint: Weak Death Rule, Weak Undead Rule]

[Core point of conflict with the root of immortality:]

1. The fundamental opposition of energy: death and annihilation vs. the growth of life. 2. The conflict of rules and imprints: annihilation and return to nothingness vs. immortal continuation. 3. The risk of will contamination: the erosion of undying obsession vs. the pure will to live.

[Risk Assessment: Direct contact or energy infusion carries a 98.7% probability of conflict, potentially triggering a rule-level backlash that could lead to fragment contamination or damage to the host's soul.]

[Deduction of the Possibility of Transformation]

[This deduction is based on: host characteristics (absolute analysis/suppression by the seed of origin, buffering/isolation by the cycle of life, initial understanding of the rules of life, and adaptability to the environment of death)]

Option A (The Wise): Violent Tempering. Guide the impact of death energy, using extreme opposition to stimulate life potential.

Advantages: Highest efficiency, fully unleashing potential.

Disadvantages: Extremely high risk (40% mortality rate), extremely difficult to control, and requires abnormally high host tolerance and control.

Success rate (current host state): 16%

[Option B (Deduction): Microdialysis Slow Release. Establish ultra-micro energy channels to release the source of death extremely slowly. After being filtered by the seed of the source and buffered and transformed by the cycle of the seedlings, it is then absorbed by the root of immortality.]

Advantages: Significantly reduced risk (estimated mortality rate <5%), strong controllability, and can be adjusted in real time using the original seed.

Disadvantages: It takes a very long time (estimated to take 100-150 days for complete absorption), the conversion efficiency is relatively low, and the potential activation is slightly inferior to that of Option A.

Success rate (current host state): 85%

[Recommended Option: B. Aligns with the host's abilities, risk is manageable, and it matches the remaining trial time.]

Kate's eyes flashed with a sharp light.

Microdialysis sustained release.

Sure enough, there was a path more suitable for him.

The absolute analytical and suppressive capabilities of the Seed of Origin, the buffer zone provided by the Reincarnation Nursery, and his own preliminary understanding of the rules of life and his death adaptability honed in the Eternal Desolation Wilderness together form the basis for implementing this plan!

This is not to deny the wisdom of the wise, but rather to find the optimal solution based on their own unique conditions!

"Develop a detailed execution plan: microdialysis slow-release method. Objective: Safely absorb the Hearts of the Dead before the trial ends (approximately 150 days) to promote the growth of the Immortal Root fragments," Kate ordered in her mind.

[Solution Generation:]

1. Energy Channel Construction: At the edge of the Reincarnation Nursery (the boundary between life and space energy), a micro-sized, adjustable channel for diverting death energy is constructed using the roots of the primordial seed and the essence of the moon shadow.

2. Buffer Transformation Zone: At the end of the channel, a miniature buffer array is constructed using the spatial characteristics of the Cycle Nursery. It is filled with a mixture of highly diluted holy spring water and activated ancient tree sap to initially purify and neutralize the death energy.

3. Precise Release and Control: The opening and closing of the channels and the flow rate are precisely controlled by the Seed of Origin to ensure that the intensity of the released death energy is always lower than the current threshold that the Immortal Root fragment can withstand and transform.

4. Absorption and Growth: The weakened source of death, after being buffered and transformed, is guided to the fragments of the root of immortality, stimulating its life rules to resist and grow.

5. Real-time monitoring and adjustment: The Seed of Origin monitors the fragment status and energy conflicts throughout the process, dynamically adjusting the diversion speed to ensure safety.

"Perfect!" Kate thought excitedly.

This plan was almost tailor-made for him, minimizing the risks while allowing for steady progress.

Without further hesitation, he immediately began preparations.

First, he needs to adjust his condition. The continuous hunting and fleeing have taken a toll.

He took several doses of highly effective mental recovery potion and soul nourishing elixir, applied Soul-Devouring Heart-Guarding Ointment, and entered into deep meditation to quickly restore his mental and soul power.

Several hours later, he returned to his peak condition.

Kate immersed her mind in the sea of ​​consciousness, arriving at the now-established nursery of reincarnation.

Within the nursery, the Space Garden, stabilized by the Void Vine Veins and the Void Serenity Lotus, flows with a silvery-blue luster; at the core of the Seed of Life, fragments of the Immortal Root are lush and green, pulsating slowly and radiating boundless vitality; the two achieve a delicate balance under the buffer of the Moon Shadow Essence and the dominion of the Origin Seed.

Kate guided her thoughts, and with the help of the Seed of Origin, selected a point at the edge of the nursery, at the boundary of the Seed of Life's energy field.

"Channel construction begins."

The roots of the primordial seed spread out, entwining and weaving, combining with the spatial characteristics of the moon's essence to begin constructing the envisioned ultra-miniature energy channel.

This process required extremely high precision, and Kate was completely focused, her mental energy highly concentrated.

At the same time, he took out a small amount of highly diluted holy spring water and revitalized ancient tree sap, and based on its pure life energy, carefully constructed a tiny buffer energy pool at the exit of the passage, utilizing the spatial folds of the nursery.

It took most of the day to construct this energy channel, which is thinner than a hair and has an extremely complex and intricate structure.

At the entrance to the passage, an adjustable "valve" is formed by the roots of the original seed.

"Initiate microdialysis."

With a thought, Kate carefully drew out a trace of the energy of the Heart of the Dead from the jade box.

This wisp of energy was extremely weak, yet it was icy cold and carried a chilling aura of annihilation.

Energy is injected slowly with its flow strictly controlled through the "valve" at the entrance of the channel.

As one passes through the tunnel walls constructed from the essence of moonlight, its sharp, deadly corrosiveness is slightly neutralized and dulled by the spatial properties.

Finally, this extremely weakened death energy dripped into that small buffer energy pool.

snort~

Like cold water being dropped into hot oil, the life-giving fluid in the buffer pool boils instantly, but the reaction is infinitely milder compared to a direct impact.

The death energy was rapidly diluted and neutralized. The fragments of death rules and the undying will contained within it were slowly purified and transformed under the protection of pure life energy, forming a unique energy flow that possessed both annihilation and vitality.

"guide."

Kate held her breath, guiding the transformed, faint stream of energy slowly toward the fragment of the Root of Immortality.

The moment this special energy came into contact with the fragment.

hum!

The fragments of the Root of Immortality trembled violently.

The emerald light instantly became somewhat dazzling, as if it had been provoked, and it erupted with a strong life force, instinctively resisting and purifying this energy that carried an unusual aura.

The surface of the fragment even showed a barely perceptible dimness.

Kate's heart tightened, and she immediately used the Seed of Origin to reduce the flow rate of the channel valve again! At the same time, she increased the supply of life energy in the buffer pool.

After a long while, the violent reaction of the fragment of the root of immortality slowly subsided, and the dimness disappeared, as if it had adapted to this extremely weak stimulus.

Furthermore, during the confrontation just now, its internal vitality seemed to have been honed, becoming even more refined.

[Phase one microdialysis complete. The fragments initially showed slight rejection but have since adapted. The purity of the life essence has slightly increased (+0.01%). The activity of the rule imprinting has been weakly activated.]

[Current referral rate: 0.1 standard units/hour. Safe.]

It worked!

Kate breathed a long sigh of relief, but a cold sweat broke out on her back.

Although it was only a tiny bit of progress, it verified the feasibility of the solution, and most importantly, it ensured safety.

Next comes the slow and steady process.

Kate set up monitoring instructions for the Seed of Origin to automatically maintain this extremely slow microdialysis process and fine-tune the flow based on the real-time status of the Immortal Root fragments.

Only after doing all this did he truly relax.

Feeling the continuous yet almost negligible flow of energy deep within her spiritual sea, and the extremely slow yet real growth of the fragments of the Root of Immortality, Kate felt a deep sense of satisfaction.

He transformed the extremely risky and time-sensitive violent training into a safe, controllable, and sustainable "daily practice."

This process of "daily cultivation" is itself a continuous tempering of his mental control, the precision of the Seed of Origin, and the stability of the Reincarnation Nursery.

In the days that followed, Kate led a regular and fulfilling life.

He spent most of his time in the small building, deeply meditating to consolidate his peak fourth-level realm, familiarizing himself with his surging spiritual power and the fully formed Reincarnation Nursery, while monitoring the microdialysis process.

Every few days, when he felt that the microdialysis progress had entered a stable period and the Immortal Root fragments were adapting well to the current flow rate, he would carefully increase the drainage speed by only a very small amount each time to ensure absolute safety.

The process was agonizingly slow, but Kate was incredibly patient. Safety first.

Occasionally, he would leave the town for short hunting trips.

His goal wasn't to earn points, as he already had a significant lead. Instead, he wanted to test his newly acquired power in real combat, collect some special undead materials, and—provide a "real-world test" opportunity for the growth of the Immortal Root fragments.

He discovered that when he fought undead creatures in the Eternal Wasteland, especially when he used the power of the Reincarnation Nursery and the Blood-Eating Vine to devour death energy, the death aura in the environment would resonate subtly with the microdialysis process, causing the adaptation and growth rate of the Immortal Root fragments to accelerate by an extremely slight margin.

This made him even more convinced that his path was correct—the trials between life and death are the best catalyst.

His hunting targets are usually lone or small groups of level 4 mid-to-late game undead creatures.

His powerful spatial perception and blinking ability, gained from merging with the Void Vine, made him appear like a ghost in the Eternal Desolate Wasteland.

Often, the deadly attack comes before the undead creatures even realize it.

The territorial suppression of the Reincarnation Nursery is extremely effective against these generally unintelligent spirits.

Under the constraints of the Cage of Order, the Blood-Devouring Vine greedily and efficiently devours the death energy of the undead, nourishing itself while indirectly nurturing the life core of the Reincarnation Nursery.

Kate even tried some new tactics.

For example, one can use spatial teleportation to instantly close the distance, unleash the Reincarnation Nursery Domain for suppression, then use the Spirit Pivot Seed for mental shockwave interference, and finally use Thorn Armor in conjunction with Bloodthirsty Vine to finish off the enemy. This method is efficient, safe, and consumes minimal resources.

He has also encountered danger.

Once, he attempted to hunt a level 4 peak "Wailing Banshee Lord," but was surrounded by its massive swarm of vengeful spirits, whose terrifying soul shrieks nearly tore through his defenses.

At the critical moment, the spatial anchoring and life barrier of the Reincarnation Nursery played a role, buying him a moment's chance. A long-distance spatial flash combined with a shadow jump allowed him to escape with great difficulty.

This experience made him more cautious, and he no longer easily challenged those top undead lords who possessed large-scale area attacks or special control abilities.

Time flew by in this cycle of meditation, monitoring, and the occasional hunting trip.

Evan, Sophia, and others are also hunting and exploring like crazy, and their points are increasing rapidly, but there is still a considerable gap compared to Kate's exaggerated number.

They occasionally discover powerful undead creatures that appear to possess "pseudo-official wizard-level" combat power, usually some kind of mutated lord or ancient being, and then they gather people to hunt them down.

Kate usually accepts the invitation to attend such events.

On the one hand, teamwork can cope with higher risks and yield greater benefits.

On the other hand, the battle with such a powerful being is of great benefit to the tempering of the Reincarnation Nursery and the understanding of the rules of life and death, and can also better test the results of microdialysis.

In just over three months, he participated in five such hunts.