Chapter 349
A vast grove of Entada phaseoloides!
Sophia Sullivan's eyes lit up.
She waved to the others behind her.
"Come look! Entada phaseoloides!"
Hannah Morse and Marcus Lawrence hurried over at her call.
Entada phaseoloides is a famous leguminous plant.
Native to Taiwan.
Later introduced to the mainland.
Also known as the Dragon Vine.
Or Ox Eye.
It often grows in mountain streams or mixed forests on slopes.
It climbs up large trees.
Marcus looked up.
Thick, twisted branches coiled around each other.
Its roots can stretch over fifty meters to reach water.
Sprawling across the mountain forest.
Like a colossal beast.
He was first amazed.
Then delighted.
"The pods can be up to a meter long."
"They can be used medicinally or collected."
"Quite valuable on the market."
"Extremely rare."
Sophia nodded.
"This grove is large."
"Finding the pods won't be easy."
"The sun is setting soon."
"Let's split up."
"Meet back here at six."
Hannah and Marcus agreed.
The forest was deep and vast.
Worried about getting lost.
Sophia established a marking system in advance.
They agreed on a cross as the marker.
The three split up.
The pods are flat.
Seeds are enclosed inside.
Nearly round.
Dark brown.
Easy to identify.
Sophia headed west from the water source.
The light in the forest gradually dimmed.
Until it vanished.
She finally found a seed.
Unfortunately, the pod was intact and beautiful.
Too big and long.
Over a meter by eye.
Impossible to carry.
Pods are traded as collectibles on the market.
Their price far exceeds that of seeds.
More precious.
It was now dark.
Sophia followed the markers back.
It was fine at first.
After passing two connected dense woods.
The markers disappeared!
She didn't want to believe it but had to accept it.
She was lost!
Her first instinct was to pull out her phone for help.
No signal.
Adding insult to injury.
Dark clouds gathered overhead.
It was about to rain.
Anxious, she pressed on.
She patiently retraced her steps.
Searching for the cross markers as she went.
The dense forest was like a maze.
One wrong turn.
Led to more mistakes.
She remembered there was signal where they separated.
It was completely dark now.
Her phone was the only light source.
The battery was dying.
Continuing to search for markers now was unwise.
But she couldn't just do nothing.
Sophia began using other methods to find her way.
The orientation of leaves.
The position of stars.
By the phone's faint light.
She watched for raised roots on the ground.
Careful not to get scratched.
The going was tough.
The wind blew.
Leaves rustled.
Like beasts poised to strike from the void.
As if they would pounce any second.
Her phone battery warned again.
20% remaining.
She took a deep breath.
Any more delay.
The phone would die.
Her situation would worsen.
Sophia quickened her pace.
After nearly half an hour.
She passed through a patch of trees.
She felt something above her.
Looking up.
A banana leaf, twice a person's height, drooped down.
Right on top of her head.
Sophia frowned.
She didn't remember seeing banana trees when she entered.
She shone her light around.
No signposts.
Her heart sank.
She was completely off course.
And had been for half an hour.
Not daring to delay.
She turned back.
A rumble sounded in the sky.
Torrential rain poured down.