Two years later.

In a secluded valley of the Outer Star Dou Forest, there lived mostly soul beasts who were below a hundred years old and herbivorous.

A little farther from this valley, there was a place that was filled with various plants and grasses, as if they were trying to cover something valuable. And in the center of this area, a small sapling grew safely. Its bark shimmered with a golden hue. Its three leaves had a delicate emerald teardrop. The roots, visible above the soil, intertwined like threads of life.

This sapling exuded a strange energy that gave the plants and grasses around it a boost in their cultivation and intelligence. That was why they all covered the small sapling in the center to protect it.

In just two years, most of these plants and grasses had grown from ten-year cultivation to hundred-year cultivation, which would have taken them many more years otherwise. And they had also gained a little bit of intelligence, not much, but enough to sense their surroundings.

Today was the same as any other day for everyone, except for the small sapling. It shook its leaves very fast, as if it was trembling. Inside the sapling, there was someone who opened his eyes, or rather, this small sapling awakened.

He opened his spiritual eyes, an innate skill for trees, plants, and grasses. As soon as he did, he felt a surge of panic.

He was not in his bed, not in his room, not even in his home. He was in something that looked like a forest, but not a normal one. He felt a strange sensation of being rooted in the ground.

He tried to look around, only to find that he was completely surrounded by tall trees and plants. He moved his eyes to check himself.

"Noo!!!!!!!" He screamed loudly, but his voice was only in his mind, because he could not speak.

"Why am I a small sapling?"

"No, no, this can't be right."

The more he screamed, the more his leaves shook. After a long time without any help or clue, he accepted, "So I am a tree, a newly grown tree."

He tried to remember how he came to this situation, but he only recalled that he had gotten an electric shock. As for how he got the electric shock, well, the reason was very silly. In simple language, he had lost his 50/50 chance in Genshin Impact to Qiqi. In anger, he had thrown his mouse and keyboard on his PC, but as he did, the water on the table had also spilled over, and that was when the electric shock had started.

"I remember I died, but I also remember that after that I was a white ball that roamed for centuries, I think. Then a big elf hand caught me, and now here I am."

"Is this reincarnation or transmigration or some game of God like Klein?" He tried to think of something, but there was no avail.

He had a feeling that he had more memories, but they were blurry, or it felt like they were locked by something.

"Although I don't have a problem accepting the fact that I am a tree, as long as I have some cheats and I am the protagonist of this world, like those manhua where the main character becomes a tree and then evolves with points as nutrition he absorbs."

"But do I have those cheats?"

"Hello, system."

"Grandpa."

"No, nothing."

"Hey, at least tell me what kind of world this is, and where this is." He shouted with his imaginary lungs.

After a long time, he gradually accepted the fact that he didn't have any cheat or anything, and he was a tree in some fantasy world. As for why it was a fantasy world, it was because he had seen a flying cat in the last three days since he opened his eyes. He had seen this flying car many times.

"Yes Flying cat not tiger."

••••

"Damn it!"

I wondered if I should try to cultivate like those so-called protagonists from novels who focused on the energy outside. I could feel a strange energy out there, but I couldn't absorb it.

How did those protagonists do it?

Was it harnessing the Heaven and Earth energy like those cultivation novels? Or natural mana or ki like those magic novels?

I didn't even know what kind of world I was in.

Let's call it natural energy for now. Maybe I could sense it because I was a tree, or maybe it was an ability that everyone had.

Then let's try it.

I observed how all the trees around me were taking in this energy, but most of the energy they absorbed came from their leaves and roots. Did they have some method or was it simple?

I tried to talk to them, but I couldn't make any sound or communicate in any other way.

Observing these trees, I tried to recall the novels that I had read. There were all kinds of cultivation systems, but the most prominent ones I remembered involved ki, qi, and mana.

But in those novels and comics, most of them were humans and used meridians. I didn't think I had any meridians.

So I was a tree. Maybe I should be some kind of demon or monster, right?

So how did these demons and monsters in novels practice? Most of them relied on eating or absorbing nutrition. And in some novels, they refined the essence of the world or natural energies like the sun and the moon.

So the question was, how do I refine essence?

As I began to focus on the natural energies, I tried to guide them into my small roots and leaves.

But after so many tries, there was no result.

I observed the plants and trees more carefully. Then I saw that they were also absorbing these energies through pores in their bodies. They opened and closed these small pores.

After observing for a long time, I had that so-called epiphany. I tried to guide the energy towards the pores and it worked.

"It's a success!"

I shook my leaves and branches happily.

Then I absorbed the energy with the pores greedily. At first it was okay, but I felt that it was automatically changing the natural energy in my body, or maybe I was adapting to the energy. I didn't know.

The more and more energy I sucked, the more I felt sleepy. And my size also grew from one foot to two feet. A drowsiness hit me and I fell asleep.

••••

The Sapling was successful because of the rules of the world in this world there are no so called techniques for spirit beats to absorbing energy. Either they become strong by eating other spirit beast or their own energy get absorbed by their body.

As the small sapling fell asleep, a mechanical sound rang out that no one heard.

[Ding~~]

[Energy obtained]

[AI-335 installing]

[1%]

[10%]

[40%]

[80%]

[100%]

[AI-335 successfully installed]

[New Environment Detected]

[New Owner Detected]

[Detection of Energy Overload]

[Storing Extra Energy]

On the other side, the small sapling started to absorb the energy from the surrounding plants and trees, who also felt happy because they benefited from it. They could sense the energy increasing as the small sapling absorbed it, which was good for them. The more energy they had, the higher their cultivation.