123: Chapter 123 is like entering a deep sleep.

At 11:00 PM on Monday, Chen Zhen sat alone in the Secret Base.

After the seedling finished drawing that rune, it went completely quiet; the leaves stopped glowing, the golden patterns dimmed, and the entire seedling seemed to have entered a deep slumber.

He walked over, squatted down, and reached out to touch the leaves.

No consciousness came through, there was no reaction at all, only the plant's own faint life force flowing slowly within the leaves.

He stood up and walked back to the center of the formation.

"Wait for the flower to bloom," it said.

Then he would wait.

At 6:00 AM on Tuesday, Chen Zhen opened his eyes right on time.

The seedling was still the same, its leaves slightly yellowed and curling at the edges.

He frowned and went over to check it—the root system was normal, the soil moisture was normal, and the spiritual energy supply was normal.

But it was just wilted.

Shen Nian pushed the door open and, seeing him squatting in front of the seedling, walked over. "What's wrong with it?"

"It's resting."

Shen Nian squatted down and looked at it through a magnifying glass for a long time. "The root system is fine, and there are no pests or diseases on the leaves."

He looked up at Chen Zhen. "Could it be storing up energy?"

Chen Zhen thought for a moment.

It had exhausted its strength while drawing the rune and now needed time to recover.

Just as a person needs to rest after running a marathon, so does a spiritual plant.

He stood up. "Don't touch it; just water it every day."

Shen Nian nodded and recorded in his notebook: "Dormancy period, cause unknown, continue observation."

At 7:00, Chen Zhen stepped into the classroom.

Zhang Meng was in the back row catching up on homework; seeing him, he called out for help as usual.

Chen Zhen threw his workbook over and walked to his seat to sit down.

The person in front of him, Su Xiaoya, turned her head and stared at him for a few seconds. "Chen Zhen, you look much better today."

"Yeah."

Su Xiaoya smiled. "That's good. Seeing you like that yesterday gave me a scare."

She pulled a small object out of her pocket and handed it over—it was another Protective Talisman.

Chen Zhen took the Protective Talisman and put it into his pocket.

"My mom said you must be busy with big things lately, so you need more blessings."

"Thank you."

Su Xiaoya turned back around. In the last row, Zhou Rui looked up at him once, then lowered his head to read.

At noon after class, Chen Zhen went to the cafeteria.

After getting his food and finding a seat, he had only taken a few bites when Zhou Rui walked over with his tray and sat down opposite him.

"Master, how is the seedling?"

"It's sleeping."

Zhou Rui nodded and lowered his head to eat.

Halfway through the meal, he suddenly spoke up. "Master, I drew a new talisman last night."

Chen Zhen looked at him. Zhou Rui pulled a talisman from his pocket and handed it over.

Chen Zhen took it and glanced at it—it was a Tracking Talisman, but not the kind he had taught. The structure of the rune had been changed, and the flow of spiritual energy was also different.

"You changed it yourself?"

Zhou Rui nodded. "I wanted it to be able to track things from further away. I tried many times, and only this one succeeded."

Chen Zhen stared at that talisman for a long time.

The structure was more complex than the original, but more reasonable, and it consumed less spiritual energy.

He nodded. "Not bad."

Zhou Rui smiled.

It was the first time he smiled not because Chen Zhen had taught him something, but because his own work had been recognized.

At 3:00 PM, at the Secret Base.

Chen Zhen pushed the door open. The seedling was still the same, its leaves slightly yellowed and curling at the edges.

He walked over, squatted down, and reached out to touch the leaves.

This time, he felt a trace of an extremely faint consciousness, like someone turning over in their sleep; it wasn't a conscious awareness, but an instinctive movement.

It was dreaming.

What was it dreaming of?

He didn't know, but he knew it would be soon.

Shen Nian recorded from the side: "Second day of dormancy, no changes."

Chen Zhen stood up and walked to the center of the formation to sit down.

Seventeen points of light rotated slowly; there was no rush.

At 6:00 AM on Wednesday, Chen Zhen opened his eyes.

The seedling was still the same, but the yellow on the leaves had faded a bit, and the edges were no longer curling.

He reached out to touch it; that consciousness was a bit stronger than yesterday, like someone sleeping lightly.

He stood up, pushed the door open, and went out.

At 3:00 PM, at the Secret Base.

Chen Zhen pushed the door open. A new golden pattern had appeared on the seedling's leaves—it was very faint, but it definitely existed.

Shen Nian pointed at the pattern, his voice slightly excited. "It's starting to recover."

Chen Zhen squatted down and stared at the pattern.

It was different from the previous ones; it wasn't a straight line, but a curve, like an arc.

He stared at it for a long time and suddenly understood.

It wasn't a pattern; it was a petal.

It was growing a petal.

"It's going to bloom." Shen Nian was stunned for a moment.

Chen Zhen didn't speak; he stood up and walked to the center of the formation to sit down.

Seventeen points of light rotated slowly.

It would be soon.

At 7:00 PM, Zhou Rui arrived.

He walked to the front of the seedling and squatted down, staring at the new golden pattern for a long time, then stood up and walked in front of Chen Zhen.

"Master, it's going to bloom."

Chen Zhen nodded.

Zhou Rui was silent for a few seconds. "What happens after it blooms?"

Chen Zhen didn't speak.

Zhou Rui waited for two seconds and nodded. "I understand."

He turned and walked to his workbench to sit down and began to draw talismans.

Chen Zhen watched his back.

At 6:00 AM on Friday, Chen Zhen opened his eyes.

On the seedling's leaves, that single golden pattern had turned into three, each one an arc, like the outline of a petal.

Shen Nian was squatting beside it, holding a magnifying glass, his hand trembling slightly. "It's growing very fast. One yesterday, three today. At this rate, tomorrow it will be—"

He didn't finish his sentence.

Chen Zhen walked over, squatted down, and reached out to touch the leaves.

That consciousness was very clear, like someone speaking: "Soon."

He nodded, stood up, and walked to the window.

The sunlight outside was lovely.

He took a deep breath, turned around, and walked back to the center of the formation.