Reborn as a lotus, she initially refuses to hand it over to the state.

Chapter 2: Tier 2

The lake water rippled in layers.

At that moment, the bloodthirsty snakehead was slowly approaching from the murky lakebed.

It swam very slowly, its scarlet eyes showing a clear hint of wariness.

The fish swayed its tail gently, circling the Chu boat repeatedly, as if assessing whether there was any danger.

"That's really despicable."

Chu Zhou's heart sank. He forced himself to calm down. The lotus leaves floated, making him appear completely harmless.

Its roots, embedded in the mud, have already spread out silently, like a spider web, slowly lurking around the snakehead, waiting for their chance.

After a moment, the snakehead finally lowered its guard, a hint of greed appearing in its eyes.

This lotus flower possesses a far richer spiritual energy than ordinary aquatic plants.

Eating it would definitely make me stronger. Without hesitation, it suddenly swung its tail and swam towards Chu Zhou, opening its mouth full of sharp teeth and biting hard at Chu Zhou's stem.

"Now!" Chu Zhou roared inwardly, "Tie it up!"

Whoosh!

Several thick roots burst forth from the mud, shooting towards the snakehead and entangling it.

"It's done."

Chu Zhou was overjoyed. As long as he devoured this snakehead, he would definitely gain a lot of evolution points.

Just as he was feeling happy, a sudden change occurred.

The snakehead fish suddenly struggled frantically, its body glowing with a dark red light.

It opened its mouth, and a crescent-shaped water blade suddenly shot out, severing two roots instantly with a "whoosh".

"Holy crap!" Chu Zhou exclaimed in surprise, "This bastard even has skills?"

【warn! 】

[Target releases low-level ability: Water Blade]

[Danger level increased!]

As the mechanical beep sounded, Chu Zhou was not about to let the snakehead go. He unleashed his skill again, his roots entwining the snakehead once more.

This guy was clearly angry. He originally just wanted to eat this lotus, but he didn't expect to be attacked instead.

It was truly enraged; its mouth opened wide.

It wanted to unleash its skill again, but this time Chu Zhou didn't give it the chance.

The large sludge at the bottom of the lake suddenly churned, and more roots broke through the mud. A dozen bluish-black roots swept around like chains, frantically entwining from all directions.

The fish's tail, belly, fins, and even mouth were forcibly locked shut!

The snakehead was instantly stunned. It struggled frantically, its body twisting wildly, causing the water to churn.

The dark red water blades sprayed wildly, severing several roots once more. But more roots rushed forward, wrapping themselves around the roots tighter and tighter.

The snakehead finally panicked; the ferocity in its scarlet eyes gradually turned into fear. It desperately twisted its body, even trying to burrow into the mud.

But it was too late; Chu Zhou gave him no chance at all.

"Struggling? Weren't you being pretty arrogant just now?"

"Strangle them!"

All the roots suddenly contracted, and a terrifying power suddenly erupted!

With a snap, the snakehead's spine broke, and then its belly was violently constricted and burst open. The snakehead's body convulsed violently and then became completely still.

[Successfully hunted a low-level exotic beast: Bloodthirsty Black Snake]

[Evolution Point +25]

[Gain a small amount of life essence]

[Gain low-level water attribute energy]

A warm current, ten times larger than before, surged wildly into Chu Zhou's body through the roots.

Cool!

So cool!

The feeling was like a traveler on the verge of dying of thirst in the desert suddenly receiving a long-awaited rain, nourishing him from root to stem.

Then, the entire lotus plant, every part of it, greedily absorbs nutrients.

Chu Zhou was so comfortable that he was almost in a daze. The originally damaged lotus leaves quickly recovered, and the withered yellow edges began to turn green again.

The stems became thicker, with faint blue veins appearing on the surface. The lotus leaves, which were originally the size of a palm, grew to the size of a washbasin, and their color became increasingly crystal clear.

It was lush and green, and even in the dark lake water, it emitted a faint glow.

The most exaggerated thing is the roots; originally there were only a dozen or so, but now there are dozens.

Moreover, they are even more resilient and robust, like venomous pythons hidden at the bottom of the water, covering an area of several meters in radius, completely under control!

At the same time, the system panel began to pulsate.

[The host absorbs a large amount of life essence]

Evolution Points: 35/50

[Vital status restored]

[Remaining lifespan: 31 days → 92 days]

[Improved proficiency in root entanglement]

[Ability Level: Lv1→Lv2]

Chu Zhou felt refreshed and invigorated.

I even had the urge to kill a dozen more snakeheads.

"It seems that I am still at the first level. To advance to the second level, I need to continue hunting mutated creatures."

In the previous life, during the early stages of the spiritual energy revival, humans were not very confident in dealing with alien beasts and improving their own strength.

It wasn't until three months later, when numerous attacks by strange beasts occurred around the world, that countries gradually developed a complete cultivation and rating system.

Whether it's human martial artists, or exotic beasts, spiritual plants, or demonic birds.

All are unified as: a ninth-order life system.

From lowest to highest, they are order one to order nine.

Each level represents a leap in the level of life.

Strictly speaking, Chu Zhou has only just stepped into the threshold of the extraordinary realm.

It belongs to the first-order life form.

Thinking of this, Chu Zhou couldn't help but recall his past life.

In the early stages of spiritual energy recovery, those at the first level are actually quite weak; to put it bluntly, they are only slightly stronger than ordinary people. They can easily defeat one or two strong adult men, and their physical abilities have been enhanced.

Their speed, strength, and reaction time far exceed those of ordinary people.

However, it remains vulnerable to firearms, and even a single bullet can be fatal.

Like that bloodthirsty snakehead, although it was ferocious, it would have been nothing more than cannon fodder in the true era of spiritual energy.

At most, it will scare ordinary people.

The second tier is different; second-tier life forms have officially entered the extraordinary realm.

Corresponding to the Body Tempering Realm, or Martial Artist Realm, in the human martial arts system, this is the beginning of humanity truly breaking away from ordinary people.

There was a saying in the Federation in the past: "At the first level, one is still human; at the second level, one is extraordinary. After reaching the second level, the blood and qi of human martial artists will surge."

Bones, muscles, and internal organs will all be strengthened by spiritual energy.

His strength has increased dramatically; he can crack a brick wall with a single punch, sprint a hundred meters like a ferocious beast, and even tear a wild wolf apart with his bare hands.

They have a certain resistance to ordinary firearms. Most importantly, they will awaken innate abilities. Some awaken fire, some control ice, some enhance speed, and some possess mental abilities.

For this reason, second-tier martial artists were already considered true elites in the early stages of the spiritual energy revival.

In the core of the military, as well as as a formal member of the Martial Alliance, even a second-tier martial artist in a small city can serve as a captain.

As for exotic beasts, they are usually stronger at the same level because they are naturally physically powerful.

Its recovery ability is amazing, especially against plant-based and aquatic beasts, which are even more troublesome. Thinking of this, Chu Zhou's spirits lifted. What changes would occur if he stepped into the second stage?

As a spiritual plant, it certainly cannot be the same as a human.

But their abilities will definitely undergo a transformation.

"Become stronger, you must become stronger."

A strong sense of urgency rose in Chu Zhou's heart.

In his previous life, he had seen too many terrifying beings: the Mountain-Splitting Giant Ape smashed a city wall with a single slap, the deep-sea monsters stirred up tsunamis, not to mention the last blood-red demonic lotus that blotted out the sky.

In his presence, even a King-level martial artist was nothing more than an ant.

Although I have been given a second chance at life, if my strength is insufficient, the outcome will remain unchanged.

They might even die a more gruesome death, and then they must do everything they can to continue gaining evolution points.

……

Time passed quietly, and three days later, a green figure floated silently at the bottom of the lake, its lotus leaf, the size of a washbasin, swaying gently in the current.

The area within a dozen meters was eerily quiet, and the small fish near the lake had almost disappeared.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, a bluish-black root shot out from the mud.

Swift as lightning, it instantly entangled a palm-sized, gray-scaled monster fish.

The strange fish struggled desperately, its tail flailing wildly, but the next second, several roots simultaneously entangled it. Snap! The strange fish instantly fell silent.

[Successfully devoured]

[Evolution Point +2]

[Current evolution points: 43/50]

Chu Zhou said with a hint of helplessness, "Only two o'clock again?"

In the past few days, he has almost swept through the surrounding area. Small fish, shrimp, crabs, and water snakes all became food sources as long as they dared to get close. He even hunted down two mutated blackfish.

Unfortunately, the evolution points given by first-tier beasts were becoming increasingly scarce, and as Chu Zhou continued his hunting, the entire lake area noticeably began to quiet down.

Many aquatic creatures seemed to sense the danger and began to walk around it; even turtles knew to hide.

"If this keeps up, I'll become the local bully."

Chu Zhou was both amused and exasperated. He was completely different from when he was first reborn; the lotus leaf had grown to a full half-meter wide.

It is emerald green and crystal clear, with a stem as thick as an adult's arm.

The most striking feature is the root system, which is densely packed across the lakebed, resembling a venomous python hiding in the mud.

The control area has expanded to ten meters, and anything that enters the area will have almost no chance of escaping.

Chu Zhou even discovered that he had begun to develop a sense of territory, and that everything in the nearby lake area was under his control.

He could detect even the slightest ripple in the water.

However, the more this was the case, the more uneasy Chu Zhou felt.

Because the prey is almost gone, and I haven't reached the second tier yet.

Just then, the water plants swayed in the distance. A strange fish with a pointed snout, nearly half a meter long, swam slowly towards them.

Its body was covered in black patterns, its mouth was sharp, and its eyes were scarlet; it was clearly another first-tier beast.

"Finally, a big one has arrived."

Chu Zhou's spirits lifted, and he manipulated his body's roots, causing the silt at the bottom of the lake to churn gently, while his roots quietly lay dormant.

Ten minutes later, the lake water was stained red with blood, and the strange fish's corpse slowly sank to the bottom.

[Successfully devoured]

[Evolution Point +8]

[Current evolution points: 51/50]

[Host has been detected to meet the advanced requirements]

[Has it broken through to the second tier?]

It's finally here! Chu Zhou was overjoyed and didn't hesitate at all.

"breakthrough!"

Boom! In the next instant, the entire shallow water area of Heilong Lake was engulfed in flames.

The spiritual energy suddenly surged, and an energy several times greater than before rushed into Chu Zhou's body, causing the lotus leaves to tremble violently.

The emerald green light began to spread, and a small whirlpool formed in the surrounding lake water.

The silt at the bottom of the lake churned, and roots spread wildly, expanding in all directions like countless poisonous dragons.

At the same time, Chu Zhou felt as if his body had been completely shattered and then reshaped.

It hurts! It hurts terribly! But amidst the pain, there's an indescribable sense of pleasure.

As if a transformation in the level of life was taking place, the lotus leaves began to grow again.

One meter, one and a half meters, two meters!

The color gradually changes from a common emerald green to a translucent, jade-like quality. Faint natural patterns even appear on the surface.

It emits a faint fluorescent glow, but its stems are even more astonishing, as thick as tree trunks, with faint bluish-gold veins appearing on its surface. The most exaggerated feature is its roots.

boom!

A large area at the bottom of the lake suddenly trembled, and hundreds of roots expanded wildly, ten meters, twenty meters, thirty meters, like a giant hunting net.

It unfolded quietly, and system voices sounded one after another:

[Congratulations, host, on your successful breakthrough]

Current Level: Tier 2

[Racial Evolution: Mortal Spirit Green Lotus → Azure Water Demon Lotus]

[Awakening New Ability: Spirit Water Perception]

[Awakening New Ability: Spiritual Energy Absorption]

[Ability Upgrade: Root Entanglement (Lv2→Lv3)]

[Probability ability awakening...]

Chu Zhou's heart skipped a beat. Probability ability?

The next moment, a strange fluctuation quietly spread from the center of the lotus, and a faint fragrance began to permeate the lake.

A system notification appears.

[Congratulations, host, on awakening your special ability—Scent Induction!]