Chapter 444 - 443: Radiant Sunflower

Chapter 444: Chapter 443: Radiant Sunflower

’There must be some fundamental difference.’

Luna Jacobs had clearly realized this as well.

She stared at the enormous Sunflower, which was flopped on the quilt with its disc half-buried in the cottony fluff. Her brow furrowed slightly as if she were deep in thought.

Her gaze shifted from the brilliant golden petals to the thick stalk, then from the stalk to the huge, unfurled leaves, finally settling on the warm, gentle halo of light.

She watched for a long time.

Then, she withdrew her gaze, turned, walked back to the stone table, sat down, picked up her pen, and went back to drawing on the blueprint.

The series of actions was as smooth and seamless as flowing water, as if that moment of serious contemplation had never happened.

Seraphina Sinclair: "...?"

Luna Jacobs didn’t even look up. The tip of her blade moved steadily across the blueprint, as if she hadn’t noticed Seraphina Sinclair’s stare.

Yet, Seraphina Sinclair strangely understood what she meant.

Luna Jacobs had only one task right now: to improve the blueprint.

Whatever was going on with the Sunflower had little to do with her. Besides, she had already provided all the clues she could. Since there was nothing else she could do to help, she might as well get back to work.

’This woman is remarkably clear-headed.’

She chuckled without a word, her gaze returning to the Sunflower.

The huge flower disc was still buried in the quilt, with only a few golden petals at the edge peeking out. They trembled slightly, as if secretly observing the world outside.

Its largest leaf was still curled around her ankle with a gentle, cautious pressure. It was as if it were confirming she was still there, or perhaps silently urging her: ’Comfort me, pet me, tell me you still love me the most.’

Seraphina Sinclair glanced down at the leaf, then up at the enormous plant playing dead, and suddenly recalled the first time she had seen it.

It had been so small back then, huddled in its flowerpot with two wilted leaves drooping down.

Seraphina Sinclair still remembered what it looked like after producing sunshine for the first time.

She’d been terrified, because the Sunflower had withered. Discovering it was still alive had been a huge relief.

Watching it now, Seraphina Sinclair suddenly smiled.

This was the plant she had raised from a seedling; it wasn’t some replacement Sunflower she’d gotten halfway through.

It had gone from that tiny, wilted thing to this massive, glowing creature. She had nurtured it every step of the way and witnessed its every evolution firsthand.

It was still the same little guy that called her "little human" in its heart.

It had just graduated from "hiding in a flowerpot pretending to be a mushroom" to "sprawling on a quilt acting like a lord."

Seraphina Sinclair walked over and reached out to stroke the leaf still wrapped around her ankle.

The leaf trembled, then softly pressed against her, nuzzling her palm. The flower disc lifted slightly from the quilt, revealing a small patch of brilliant golden petals, as if it were peeking at her.

Seraphina Sinclair laughed and patted the thick stalk. She would need to spread her arms wide to hug it now.

The flower disc lifted completely, its golden petals unfurling. The warm halo of light shimmered slightly, as if in response. A huge leaf curled gently, its edge brushing against her shoulder in a cautious, affectionate gesture.

Seraphina Sinclair sat down beside it and used Insight.

[Radiant Sunflower (E+ Level)]

[Level: 4]

[Current Sunflower Growth Rate 0/10000]

[Hunger Level: 300/300 (Consumes one point of Hunger Level for every point of sunshine produced)]

[Description: It has begun to learn restraint. It restrains itself from filling the entire room with its leaves, restrains itself from calling out to you in its heart every moment, and restrains itself from acting like a proper, mature, and reliable plant in front of others.

But every time you come near, its largest leaf will still secretly wrap around your ankle. It whispers in its heart: Just for a little while, just for a little while. The little human won’t notice.]

’Not only will this little human notice, this little human can also hear you.’

Reading the description again, Seraphina Sinclair still felt her heart melt.

She had long since formed a bond with the Sunflower. No matter what it became, it would always be her partner.

Seraphina Sinclair glanced at the new Growth Rate, sighed, and then checked the upgrades for her mobile home.

In the last two days, she had upgraded it through the Second and Third Levels of the Silver Stage. The mobile home had expanded from 20 square meters to 30 square meters.

Just this morning, she had thought the little house felt much bigger. Now that the Sunflower had upgraded, the room immediately felt small again.

Furthermore, when the mobile home was upgraded from Level 1 to Level 2, it gained reinforced stone walls and a simple rest area.

Seraphina Sinclair couldn’t tell how thick the stone walls were. No monsters had appeared recently to damage the house, and she certainly wasn’t bored enough to poke a hole in it herself.

As for the so-called simple rest area, it was really just a few sofa cushions on the floor, enclosed by a wood fence.

On the very first day it appeared, Seraphina Sinclair tore down the fence.

There wasn’t any particular reason, other than the fact that the system had placed this simple rest area right in the middle of the mobile home.

Seraphina Sinclair’s home was small to begin with. With a fence stuck in the middle, she had to walk around it every two steps. It was like navigating a maze in her own house.

At the time, she stared at the wood fence for three seconds and then promptly dismantled it with her own hands.

After the fence was removed, the sofa cushions remained. Seraphina Sinclair moved them to the wall, lining them up next to the Sunflower’s nest.

Anyway, now that the Sunflower was sprawled out on the quilt and didn’t need cushions, they were perfect for her to use.

Right now, she was sitting on one of those cushions, her back against the Sunflower’s thick stalk, looking at the mobile home’s panel.

A leaf from the Sunflower reached over from the side and rested on her shoulder, its edge curling gently as if it were embracing her.

Seraphina Sinclair paid it no mind, her gaze still fixed on the panel.

To upgrade from Silver Second Level to Silver Level 3, she needed wood x200, Stone x150, Expansion Crystal x80, Black Fog Crystal x30, Sunshine Crystal x30, Blood Moon Crystal x30, and Core Crystal Stone x10.

If it weren’t for the abundant materials from Shatterer, Cloudmute, and Luna Jacobs, Seraphina Sinclair wouldn’t have had enough Core Crystal Stones.

This upgrade had given the house a storage cabinet and a simple lighting system.

The storage cabinet wasn’t large. It was currently placed under the storage rack, and Seraphina Sinclair used it to store smaller items.

With it, these small materials no longer had to be left scattered on the floor. After tidying up, the entire mobile home felt much cleaner.

As for the so-called simple lighting system, Seraphina Sinclair had been quite excited about it at first. However, after opening the panel and studying it for a long time, she finally had to admit that without a power supply, the entire lighting system was just a decoration.

The system had been thoughtful enough to include a hand-cranked power generator, similar to the hand-cranked flashlights that every survivor had.

Seraphina Sinclair tried cranking it a couple of times. The light came on, and she was already tired.

The bad news was, without electricity, the thing was just an ornament.

The good news was, she could get a power supply device after the next tier-up.