Chapter 79: Building a Botanical Garden
After walking for what felt like a long time, the moon had already drifted west. Leonard noticed the soil beneath his feet growing wetter, and the air carried an increasingly heavy stench of damp rot.
He eyed the faint miasma drifting in the air, covered his nose, and slowed his breathing.
Was there a swamp inside the Forbidden Forest? Or was this beyond its borders?
Had he already walked out of the forest?
Up ahead lay a murky bog of uncertain depth. Leonard decided it was best not to continue forward. Still, with water nearby, fertile soil, and a fair distance from Hogwarts, this seemed like a promising place for a botanical garden.
He would have preferred a site beneath a cliff wall for concealment, but none of the places he had scouted so far had satisfied him.
All things considered, this spot seemed the most suitable.
Leonard calculated the land area he would need, then pulled out a handful of Bitterthorn seeds.
He planned to plant large numbers of Thornpiercer around the designated site—not for their explosive attack power, but for the thorny remains they left behind after withering, which could be shaped into a maze.
Human sight plays tricks. When faced with layers of tangled thorns, it becomes all too easy to miss the single hidden path.
One seed after another sank into the soil. Under Leonard’s guidance, every Thornpiercer grew exactly as he directed.
Before long, the outer edge of the botanical garden’s range of vision was lined with withered Bitterthorn, leaving only a narrow passage wide enough for one person to walk through.
That completed the outer defenses of the botanical garden.
Next, Leonard cleared patches of land inside and outside the garden. He planned to plant strips of Whomping Willow there, while the inner ring would be reinforced with Bitterthorn.
Bitterthorn were the most plentiful seeds he had on hand, so the garden’s defenses would have to rely on them.
This time, he enhanced the Bitterthorn for vitality. Twelve seeds, strengthened with both preliminary reinforcement and Root Enhancement, were planted.
Once they matured, his garden would have twelve loyal guardians. With the initial defenses secured, Leonard turned his focus to planting magical species that could reproduce and yield seeds. After mapping out the area, he sowed different varieties in separate zones.
The three remaining Chomping Cabbage seeds, more than a dozen Bitterthorn seeds, and several from Aconite fruit—all were carefully planted.
And with that, a sustainable, self-replenishing botanical garden was established.
At that moment, the long-silent system finally chimed.
[Beginner’s Quest 4: Safe Botanical Garden Completed]
[You gained 300 Experience, 5 Enhancement Points]
[Level Up: Current Rank – Advanced Plant Apprentice (191/700)]
[You gained 1 Enhancement Point and unlocked a new Talent: Magical Plant Radar]
[Magical Plant Radar: Active Talent. Reveals locations of magical plants within a set range when activated]
The troublesome beginner’s quest was finally complete.
Leonard exhaled in relief and opened the system’s Enhancement page.
Only Root Enhancement under the Growth branch and a few Combat enhancements were active. He scrolled straight to the Combat branch and unlocked the prerequisite for [Magical Seed Bag].
The attack-boosting branch [Shield Damage Boost] allowed him to deal additional damage to protective spells.
Another attack branch, [Split], let him produce three times as many plants when planting temporary combat seeds.
In other words, one seed could yield three combat plants.
But even after unlocking both, the Magical Seed Bag remained unavailable. Looking closer, he realized the requirement: at least seven prerequisites needed to be unlocked first.
With four points still remaining, Leonard glanced at the two enhancements under Defense and decided to unlock them both.
Defense Branch [Devour Magic]: Each plant gains the ability to completely devour one spell, granting absolute immunity to magic for that instance.
Defense Branch [Magical Frenzy]: After devouring magic, the plant enters a frenzy, boosting all attributes until the absorbed energy is completely spent.
These two enhancements were intriguing—they actually worked together. The stronger the opponent, the greater the effect. If a plant absorbed the magic of a powerful wizard, it could trigger a long-lasting and tremendously potent frenzy state.
It would be a waste not to unlock this.
After activating both, Leonard smoothly unlocked the [Magical Seed Bag]. As it lit up, he felt a strange space forming faintly at his fingertips. It was invisible and intangible, yet its presence was undeniable.
[Magical Seed Bag activated. No botanical garden currently bound. Would you like to designate one so its seeds are linked to the Seed Bag?]
“Confirm binding.”
[Binding successful. The Magical Seed Bag will automatically collect seeds and fruits produced by your plants, preserving their freshness.]
It even kept things fresh?
Leonard arched a brow and casually tossed the remaining Bitterthorn seeds into the pouch.
A swirling vortex appeared at his side, sucking the seeds in before disappearing.
Now he could retrieve seeds from the bag anytime, anywhere, with no delay—far more convenient than carrying them around.
As expected of a Combat Branch enhancement. Even something that seemed more suited for logistics turned out to be a major asset in battle.
“Still have one more point. Do I put it into another branch, or keep strengthening Combat?” Leonard muttered, scrolling through the system interface.
The Logistics Branch wasn’t worth considering yet. While it could boost the potency of plant-based potions, Leonard rarely needed excessively strong magical flora—basic enhancements were more than enough for him.
And when it came to Wolfsbane Potion, its refinement wasn’t about strength. As Damocles had said, curing lycanthropy ultimately depended on Magic—potions were only support.
Besides, Logistics enhancements shortened plant lifespans, which clashed with Leonard’s aim of harvesting multiple batches of seeds. And enhancing fruit effects didn’t make the next generation of plants any stronger, so there was little value in pursuing that path.
Turning to the Growth Branch, Leonard studied its skill tree. The next enhancement, [Magic Growth], would allow him to feed plants with magic to accelerate their development.
A practical ability, one he found himself curious to test.
Still, the Combat Branch was the most tempting.
At the next node, following two prior upgrades, he found an enhancement called [Ability Sharing].
Not to grant Leonard his plants’ powers—but to let the plants wield Leonard’s magic!
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