Chapter 33: The Mutation of Kuroji Haworthia Cooperi Variegata

He stayed inside the Counterfeit Spirit Gathering Array for more than half an hour, walking in and out of it several times, before Zhou Yu barely felt a slight difference.

It seemed that a bit of Spiritual Energy had indeed gathered inside, but compared to the genuine Spirit Gathering Array, the gap was really like heaven and earth.

He estimated that this small amount of Spiritual Energy was probably just a fraction drawn from the genuine Spirit Gathering Array. After staying here for half an hour, he only felt a little more comfortable than he would outside.

Whereas entering the genuine Spirit Gathering Array instantly made one feel extremely comfortable, as if all the pores on the body were opening up.

Zhou Yu gave a bitter smile. This Counterfeit Spirit Gathering Array could be considered a success; managing to snatch a bit of Spiritual Energy from the genuine Spirit Gathering Array was no easy feat.

At the very least, plants grown inside it would fare better than in an ordinary environment. Moreover, this time he had only purchased Jade Stones worth just under a thousand yuan; if he used the most expensive Jade Stones, the effect should be somewhat different.

Exiting the Counterfeit Spirit Gathering Array, he went into the genuine Spirit Gathering Array. Soon, the knife cut on his hand had already disappeared. Then, he filled in the four dug-up holes. Riding his electric bike, he first delivered the Grapes to the Sweetheart Cottage.

After returning to the Old Family House, Zhou Yu picked up a shovel and began loosening the soil inside the Counterfeit Spirit Gathering Array. Although this Counterfeit Spirit Gathering Array absorbed Spiritual Energy from the yard’s genuine Spirit Gathering Array, it could only absorb a tiny bit.

Even this tiny bit was better than nothing. The Spirit Gathering Array he got from Uncle-Master Wu was composed of four Immortal Stones. The Spiritual Energy it gathered was no longer ordinary Spiritual Energy; it carried the aura and enhancement of the Immortal Stones.

However, while this genuine Spirit Gathering Array was excellent, its only drawback was its small range, making sustainable development impossible. Now he had a solution: the Counterfeit Spirit Gathering Array. Although it dispersed the Spiritual Energy of the genuine Spirit Gathering Array, it allowed him to grow more things.

He was thinking not just of growing more things, but of establishing a complete cyclic system.

After loosening the soil, Zhou Yu came to the main Spirit Gathering Array, picked several bunches of Grapes, and ate them together with Huzi. From now on, he decided to call the genuine Spirit Gathering Array the main Spirit Gathering Array, and those Counterfeit Spirit Gathering Arrays the sub-arrays.

While eating Grapes, Zhou Yu observed the Jade Dew beneath the grapevine. Ten leaf cuttings for propagation had grown over the past week from single leaves into sub-adult plants, each about five centimeters in diameter.

Then, his gaze fell upon the original twenty Jade Dew plants. He had bought two, but now there were only eighteen left. The two from which he had previously cut five leaves for propagation had now grown almost the same as the surrounding Jade Dew plants.

Among these eighteen Jade Dew plants, two Pan Deng Yulu Variegata remained: one was the pink treasure of the family, and the other was a naturally variegated yellow one.

On the other side, the Black Muscle Jade Dew had three that showed variegation, all of them mutated after being dripped with Spirit Stabilizing Liquid.

Especially the first Black Muscle Jade Dew that received the Spirit Stabilizing Liquid after he obtained it. Its variegation color, like the prized Pan Deng Jade Dew, was pink. However, this pink on the Black Muscle Jade Dew appeared even more mysterious.

The other two were yellow-variegated Black Muscle Jade Dew plants. One of them even variegated accidentally during an experiment intended to not produce variegation.

While observing carefully, Zhou Yu suddenly noticed that the pink Kuroji Haworthia Cooperi Variegata seemed a bit different from the nearby Black Muscle Jade Dew.

He immediately put down the Grapes and quickly walked to the side of this Kuroji Haworthia Cooperi Variegata, concentrating on observing it. This Kuroji Hawworthia Cooperi Variegata was noticeably larger than the nearby Black Muscle Jade Dew plants, and its leaves, which had been pointed, had become somewhat smoother.

Not only that, the black patterns and hue on the leaves had become deeper than those on the nearby Black Muscle Jade Dew plants, displaying a different kind of beauty.

Zhou Yu looked at these changes, his mind racing. Suddenly, he thought of something, and a hint of delight appeared on his face.

These changes seemed to be characteristic of the large Hei Ji Jade Dew. Could it be that dripping it with Spirit Stabilizing Liquid, combined with the nourishment from this Spirit Gathering Array, caused this ordinary Black Muscle Jade Dew to mutate into a large Hei Ji Jade Dew?

Large Hei Ji Jade Dew, as the name implied, was much larger than ordinary Black Muscle Jade Dew and also had some other changes.

However, the world of large Hei Ji was deep and complex. Things like “Black Grape” or “OM Jade Dew” all belonged to the category of large Hei Ji. Not to mention ordinary people, even some veteran succulent plants enthusiasts found it hard to distinguish clearly. Many were completely confused, and Zhou Yu was among them.

But he could be sure that this Kuroji Haworthia Cooperi Variegata was already different from ordinary Black Muscle Jade Dew. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call it a large Hei Ji.

If it had truly mutated into a large Hei Ji, plus this pink variegation, its value would be incredibly exciting.

Even an ordinary large Hei Ji cost much more than a Black Muscle Jade Dew, especially a variegated one—that was even more precious. Large Hei Ji Variegata was something that could drive people even crazier than Pan Deng Yulu Variegata.

However, apart from this Kuroji Haworthia Cooperi Variegata that mutated, the other two variegated Black Muscle Jade Dew plants showed no signs of mutation. At this stage, it seemed luck was truly needed for mutation.

A smile appeared on Zhou Yu’s face. The greatest joy in raising succulent plants was the surprise brought by sudden variegation or mutation.

If the remaining two yellow-variegated Black Muscle Jade Dew plants showed no changes in the next few days, he would consider selling one and using the money to buy better Jade Stones to set up Spirit Gathering Arrays.

After calming down, Zhou Yu’s gaze turned to the nearby Spirit Gathering sub-array. Although it was a weak, counterfeit version with only a little Spiritual Energy inside, since he had bought it, he shouldn’t leave it idle.

He thought for a moment and decided to buy some other varieties of Jade Dew to first plant in this Spirit Gathering Array. When the Jade Dew plants in the main array matured and were moved out, he could then move these new ones in.

Taking out his Mobile Phone from his pocket, Zhou Yu first logged into Xianrou Garden. Hundreds of notifications appeared on his phone. He glanced at them casually but didn’t pay them much mind. The hottest post on the forum today was no longer his sales picture post, but rather Young Master Qi’s post about receiving the Pan Deng Yulu Variegata.

When they met with Young Master Qi yesterday, they had taken some photos together, including group photos and individual photos of the Jade Dew plants.

Zhou clicked open Young Master Qi’s post. It described some details of their meeting, and below were the highlights of yesterday’s transaction: the Pan Deng Yulu Variegata and the Black Muscle Jade Dew.

The photos of the two Jade Dew plants in the post were clearer than the ones he took yesterday and gave a very different feeling. He couldn’t help but sigh; different cameras really produced different effects.

The photos also included group shots of them with the two Jade Dew plants, though all faces were pixelated.

Below the post were many amazed replies. The look of this Pan Deng Yulu Variegata was even more beautiful than the ones Flower Not Flower posted. Was it because of a different camera? If the real Pan Deng Variegata looked like this, fifty thousand was totally worth it.

This Flower Not Flower was truly a master-level figure. The two Jade Dew plants he cultivated far surpassed those of ordinary players, including many veterans.

What the person above said was right. There’s a saying: A true master isn’t someone who owns a few succulent plants worth over ten thousand, but someone who can cultivate ordinary succulent plants into extraordinary forms.

I think in the pixelated group photo, the thinnest one should be Flower Not Flower. I really want to see what the two moderators and the two succulent-plant tycoons look like. Where is the trust between people?

I used to think Flower Not Flower might be a beauty. Now, my dream is shattered.

Seeing these comments, Zhou Yu couldn’t help but laugh. He browsed the forum for a while, replied to some messages, then logged out of Xianrou Garden, switched accounts, and logged into Taobao.

Although Young Master Qi might have some higher-quality Jade Dew plants, Zhou couldn’t purchase them from him.

However, quality, good or bad, didn’t matter much to him. Given the capability of the Spirit Gathering Array, even nearly dead succulent plants could be revived.