[Plant Care] appeared in Bai Mu's active skill bar. When he learned the skill through the skill card, he experienced a very strange sensation. He felt as though he had genuinely comprehended something and could release it through his own hands.
It was like a person who did not know how to ride a bicycle suddenly having an epiphany one day. Bai Mu had similarly grasped the casting method for [Plant Care].
It was incredibly simple. He only needed to reach out and massage the plant he wanted to care for, which would consume thirty percent of his Stamina to restore a plant to "health".
If this skill were translated into a "spell" from a video game, its casting time would be roughly one second.
He tried casting [Plant Care] on the empty space in front of him, and a faint green light surged from his palm.
[Skill casting failed, please try again.]
Since there were no plants in front of him, he naturally failed, and his Stamina remained unconsumed.
He had no plants on hand to experiment with, the point shop did not sell living things, and it was impossible to waste a Garden Plant Card in the community, so he had to let it go.
Opening the Adventure Script shop once again, he decided to spend his 330 Points.
He quickly selected his first item, purchasing the Peashooter Garden Plant Card.
[You have spent 150 Points to purchase the item: "Garden Plant Card (Peashooter)".]
The Wall-nut was basically a meat shield, and the Cherry Bomb was a single-use consumable. Only the Peashooter was a Garden Plant capable of sustained damage. Although its damage output was not exceptionally high, it was at least an automated ranged attacker. Hoarding a card would not be a loss; there would always be an opportunity to use it.
As for the Potato Mine, he already had the much more effective Cherry Bomb. The Blover was a plant only useful in specific scenarios; its description mentioned it could blow away fog and certain flying targets, which felt too niche in its application. After some thought, he decided against it and chose to spend his Points on a different item.
Naturally, it was not Dave's beloved frying pan, "Mary", but rather the "Conehead Zombie's Cone". This item was a piece of armor priced at 100 Points, equivalent in value to two Guam Rails or one Potato Mine.
It could not be called expensive, nor was it cheap. Regardless, after buying it, Bai Mu was left with only 80 Points, and there was nothing else that caught his eye.
[Name: Conehead Zombie's Cone]
[Type: Head Armor]
[Quality: Normal]
[Defense: Low]
[Attributes: None]
[Equipment Effect: 30% resistance to head damage. Reduces the attention of zombie-type characters toward you, but will attract the attention of non-zombie characters.]
[Equip Requirements: None]
[Remark: It was originally just a traffic cone, quietly serving as a silent guardian on the road. However, one day it was chosen by a party-loving zombie and became a party hat. Yes, Conehead Zombies love attending parties, especially brain-eating parties.]
Bai Mu took out the "Cone", a pointy, bright orange object.
It carried a faint odor, the same rotting stench found on zombies, but it was much milder than the nauseating stench in the Script. It was roughly equivalent to the smell of stinky tofu or durian.
Paradise had thoughtfully added an auto-resize function for head armor, allowing him to equip the "Conehead Zombie's Cone" directly from his menu interface.
Without him needing to lift a finger, the pointy hat appeared on his head, fitting snugly against his scalp so securely that it would not fall off even if he shook his head violently.
Checking his reflection in the mirror, it really did look like a party hat. The plastic traffic cone, which should have been about three feet tall, was only slightly larger than a palm on his head, looking much like a toy used in a children's game of house.
However, as a piece of head armor recognized by Paradise, it was genuinely serving its purpose. Not only did it protect the user's head, but it also constantly emitted that faint, rotting odor.
In the world of zombies, this was the scent of one of their own. But if a normal person smelled it, they would likely suspect he had either fallen into a smelly ditch or just crawled out of a garbage dump.
A germaphobe would most likely find it unbearable, but Bai Mu was completely accustomed to it. Ten years of surviving an apocalypse had granted him an exceptionally high tolerance.
Gore, grotesque sights, and foul stenches were nothing to him; he was entirely immune.
After finishing his purchases, he took out the car keys he had acquired in the Script.
As the owner of the keys, he could view the danger rating and basic introduction of the next level.
[Script Name: The Lost Sunflower]
[Mode: Solo (Adventure)]
[Script Danger Rating: Grade C]
[Remark: Before the zombie tide broke out, Crazy Dave parked his car at his brother's place. He accidentally left the Sunflower in the trunk and has been deeply distressed about it. Therefore, he has commissioned someone he trusts, hoping they can retrieve both his car and the Sunflower.]
The difficulty of a Grade C Script could well be imagined.
Comparing it to his final thirty seconds facing the Gargantuar, relying on his current methods in a Grade C Script would truly mean grasping at straws for a chance to survive. Even the slightest lapse in concentration would result in a "Game Over, brave hero, please try again" scenario.
But he was no brave hero, and he had no extra lives to start over with.
Judging by the Script's remarks, this was no longer a tower defense-style clear condition. Most likely, he would have to traverse a horde of zombies to find the Sunflower and Dave's car.
This was one of the reasons Bai Mu had purchased the "Conehead Zombie's Cone". He felt this helmet would definitely come in handy in the new Script.
However, he was not considering fighting zombies for the time being.
Last time he had a guide, but this time he could only rely on himself.
What he would have to face was still an unknown variable.
He decided to first temper himself in Main Scripts closer to his own Grade. He needed to at least level up, learn a few more skills, and gather some equipment before attempting it.
After all, his goal in clearing Scripts was not to challenge high difficulties for the thrill of it, but to acquire resources and make his survival easier. Challenging a high difficulty right now would certainly be thrilling, but it would be putting the cart before the horse.
'Let's rest for a bit.'
Bai Mu let out a long breath and began working out on the fitness equipment. To him, physical training was a form of rest.
After completing a full set of strength training, he filled his stomach and then took another stroll around the community.
With over forty hours of Community Time remaining, he did not want to waste it, hoping to see if he could trade with someone for something useful.
Unfortunately, he could not find the streetwalker who charged "ten hours a pop." Perhaps she was currently on the clock. He also failed to locate the Player Trading Market or any auction house.
It was only after spending one hour of Community Time to purchase information from Light Evening Breeze that he learned specialized markets and auction house functions would only unlock upon reaching Grade E.
Perhaps Paradise considered Players who had not yet reached Grade E to be mere "consumables," unworthy of participating in trades.
"If there's anything you want to buy, I can help you check the market. But you know the drill, I have to charge a small processing fee," Light Evening Breeze messaged in the friend chat.
"Thanks, but I'll just wait until I'm qualified to go myself," Bai Mu replied.
He did not want to waste any more of his Community Time. The most pressing matter was to raise his Grade, so he proactively initiated his second random Script from the community interface.
[Do you wish to start a random Script early?]
[Yes/No.]
"Yes," Bai Mu confirmed, and in an instant, he was plunged into darkness once again.