"Is that a Upralole Moss?" Rezen halted his footsteps as he stared at a boulder several meters away from him
In his time in this entirely new realm, Rezen memorized the images, names, and the use of Spirit Plants that are particularly useful to him
The Waterside Tribe and most likely the other weak tribes lacked enough knowledge. They almost don't know anything about the Spirit Plants that grew in their surroundings
As a result, the forest has no lack of Spirit Plants. Along the way, Rezen already encountered at least ten types of Spirit Planta though they are not something that he particularly needed
A forest with resources that were not harvested regularly is a treasure trove to someone like Rezen that has the support of Ivy's database
Rezen could freely take the Spirit Plants since the tribesmen don't know what they are or how to utilize them
The Upralole is a moss-type Spirit Plant that grew on boulders and Rezen could use it to create alchemical products with offensive capabilities
The only problem was that the Upralole Moss has a symbiotic relationship with the magic beast Burrowing Rocktoise
The boulder that Rezen could see is actually not a normal boulder but the shell of a tortoise-type magic beast
The Burrowing Rocktoise likes to catch its prey off guard. It would act like a normal boulder but whenever a prey went near it, the tortoise would suddenly erupt from the ground and attack
As Rezen cannot use magic yet, even if the tortoise is just a beastling, he cannot defeat it on its own if he doesn't use his products
It would even be more dangerous if this particular Burrowing Rocktoise is actually at the Junior Rank
"Searching for a mana stone mine is still the priority. While the Upralole Moss is a nice ingredient, it's not extremely precious" Rezen thought with a sigh
Truth be told, he wanted to take the Upralole Moss but he has his priorities straight
His offensive items are limited and could only be used when his life is in danger while searching for mana stone mines. Since that was not the case and the moss is not precious enough for Rezen to use his limited offensive items, he could only sigh in regret and continue walking around the forest
Rezen continued, as long as he traverse this forest, Ivy could constantly search for the Spirit Plants that would most likely grow in mana stone mines
He has to cover as large of an area of the forest tonight if he wants to find a mine as soon as possible
After ten minutes or so, Rezen halted his footsteps again. Several meters away from him was the same boulder that he had seen minutes ago
Since Rezen stopped earlier to stare at the boulder with the Upralole Moss, he was sure that this place was the same place that he was earlier
This means that he returned from where he was ten minutes ago which shouldn't be possible since he was running in a straight line
"What is happening..." Rezen mumbled as he stared at his surroundings while his hands went to touch the pouches tied to his belt
He is ready to use his items any moment from now
"Why have I returned to this place..."
Bullets of sweat formed on Rezen's forehead before they rolled down his face. There was nothing scarier than the unknown and Rezen's nerves were completely tensed right now
As soon as Rezen noticed his situation, his heart started beating abnormally fast. His whole body cannot help but tremble while his lungs acted as if it was lacking in oxygen
People that would stare at Rezen would think that he was having a panic attack due to how he was behaving
"I-I'm scared...." He mumbled under his breath while trying to inhale as much oxygen as he could
"I-I want to g-go home... I-I don't like this... m-mom..."
For some reason, Rezen's eyes started to tear up and snot leaked out his nose. However, he does have the luxury to care about how his bodily fluids especially his snot drips down his lips
He was too consumed with fear to think about anything else. All he wanted to do now was to go home and be with his parents
Seconds ticked by and the more time that passed, the more Rezen find it hard to breathe but before he could lose consciousness, one thought helped him recover a bit
"Was I this much of a scaredy-cat?"
That thought sparked more thoughts inside Rezen's mind
With his experience, he is definitely not someone that would freak out all because he walked in circles
This is far from enough to give him this exaggerated kind of panic attack. But his bodily reaction was real and this reaction is definitely abnormal
Rezen shouldn't be panicking like this! It was not in line with his personality
If Rezen were to run while screaming in fear, that is more believable. But him standing scared while crying and his lungs not getting enough supply of oxygen? No, that is a stretch even for Rezen, especially with all the things he experienced
While he is self-aware that his willpower and maturity are still lacking, he wouldn't be such a kid that would have this deep level of a panic attack
"What's happening... wait! Upralole Moss?" Rezen thought before forcing his head to once again stare at the boulder where the Upralole Moss grew
"If I remember correctly, there is a Spirit Plant that is another variant of the Upralole Moss that has an entirely different effect... I think its name is... is... is..."
Rezen has not studied for long and naturally, he cannot remember everything in one go
He was never a genius and he only succeeded so far all because of his cheat of a system and farm
Rezen not remembering everything that he studied is just normal. Fortunately, he really has a cheat
"It's the Terropla Moss, Master" Ivy decided to help Rezen remember the name and after remembering the name, Rezen also remembered its function
"A Spirit Plant that confuses one's sense of direction while inducing terror to the target!"
Upralole Moss and Terropla Moss look extremely similar and they are even of the same family but they are completely different!
The Upralole Moss could at most attract small and weak omnivores of herbivores beastlings. The moss would act as bait while the Burrowing Rocktoise would attack and eat the target
The Upralole Moss is responsible for attracting prey while the Burrowing Rocktoise is responsible for protecting the moss, that is the kind of symbiotic relationship that they have
The Terropla Moss on the other hand benefits the Burrowing Rocktoise in a different way and it was an even better way
The moss would confuse the target's sense of direction and make it so that the prey would return back to it. After that, the moss would release a scent that most creatures would be unable to smell that would then induce terror in their hearts
Now that Rezen knew what was happening to him, he recovered a bit but in the end, a Spirit Plant is still a Spirit Plant. Its effects wouldn't completely vanish just because Rezen is now aware of his condition
While gritting his teeth, Rezen took out a tiny branch from one of his pouches and sent a tiny thread of his mana to it after exerting a lot of effort
As soon as the thread of mana made contact with the tiny branch it immediately bursts into flames
Rezen then used everything he has to throw the burning branch into the Terropla Moss
As soon as the fire touches the Moss, it immediately caught fire, and the Burrowing Tortoise it was attached to started to emerge from the ground
"While the Juta Powder could minimize my presence, I'm still vulnerable to AoE attacks" Rezen smiled bitterly as he ran away
With the help of the Juta Powder, the moss or tortoise shouldn't have noticed his presence
He surmised that his luck was just shitty as he was in time when the Terrupla Moss is trying to feed the Burrowing Rocktoise by using its abilities
It's just that no matter how self-aware Rezen is of his vulnerabilities, it's not like he could solve all of them easily
"No wonder... no wonder that the tribesmen are used to injuries and while they are still saddened when one of them dies, they are able to recover fast. If this kind of danger is everywhere then everyone should be really prepared to one day lose their loved ones without any warning"
A bitter smile formed on Rezen's lips. This is just his first time exploring the forest and he was not doing it for a long time yet he already encountered that kind of danger
Just how many dangerous situations did the people of this world encountered especially the small tribes like the Waterside Tribe?