Wasteland: I Awakened A Plant System-Chapter 52: Ruin Related News

December 24th.

Temperature: −20 °C.

Vikram woke up at 10 a.m.

Without Pinku’s usual early-morning crow acting as an alarm clock, he allowed himself a rare moment of indulgence and slept in longer than usual.

What truly surprised him, however, was how mild the so-called extreme cold disaster had been so far.

It had already been six days since the cold wave began, yet the temperature remained stubbornly fixed at –20°C. There had been no terrifying plunge into deeper freezing as he had imagined.

This weather was certainly uncomfortable, biting at exposed skin and stiffening one’s breath — but it was far from the absolute despair he had experienced during the acid rain disaster.

Back then, he had been forced to hide inside the Treehouse just to survive. Now, he even felt that a steady fire for others survivors alone could be enough to get through the night.

"Logically, acid rain should have been the novice protection period..."

"So why does this extreme cold feel easier instead?"

Shaking his head, Vikram didn’t dwell on the thought for long.

He turned and walked toward the greenhouse, eager to check on the cabbages he had planted.

As he approached, the surrounding Bloodvines, Thornvines, and Spikevines sensed his presence and quietly parted, forming a living passageway.

Their intertwined stems loosened like a breathing gate, allowing him to step through without resistance.

He entered a small world of warmth and life.

In one corner of the greenhouse, several newly hatched chicks hopped about energetically, chasing one another with cheerful chirps.

Their tiny claws tapped softly against the soil as they darted around in playful bursts.

Not far away, Pinku lay lazily on the ground, both feet tucked beneath her plump body.

She basked in the comfortable warmth, her feathers looking especially soft and fluffy in the gentle glow of the heated enclosure.

Every now and then she lifted her head, casting a half-interested glance at the chicks. But more often, she simply closed one eye and dozed peacefully, completely at ease.

The calm scene filled the greenhouse with a quiet, homely comfort.

Vikram couldn’t help but feel that all the Plant Essence he had invested into creating this place had been worth it.

Taking out the greenhouse control terminal, he tapped the screen lightly.

A clear line of text appeared:

[Cabbage — Germinated

Estimated Harvest Time: 12 Days]

His heart lifted.

He stepped closer to the cultivated soil and saw dense clusters of tender green shoots pushing through the dark earth.

The tiny leaves shimmered with vitality under the controlled warmth, each one a promise of survival.

One mischievous chick was already pecking curiously at a newly sprouted seedling.

"Great... they really sprouted," Vikram murmured softly, unable to hide the surge of satisfaction in his chest.

He had known intellectually that crops would grow quickly under the Plant Life System’s influence.

But seeing the living proof with his own eyes was something else entirely.

"From now on... the Shelter finally has its own production," he said to himself.

"Even if food becomes scarce outside, at least I won’t be completely dependent on hunting or trade anymore."

What reassured Vikram the most was the situation inside his Shelter.

The warehouse was already filled with food supplies, stacked in neat piles like a miniature hill.

With his current reserves, even if he stopped hunting for quite some time, he would still be able to survive comfortably.

A faint premonition rose in his heart.

He might very well become one of the first Survivors in this wasteland to successfully cultivate crops.

Once that happened, his life would no longer revolve purely around hunting and trading meat.

Fresh vegetables would not only improve his nutrition and overall condition, but could also become valuable strategic resources — items that could be exchanged for rare treasures, hidden information, or even powerful equipment.

The more he imagined this future, the more excited he became.

Just then, his gaze suddenly froze.

One of the small chicks was hopping toward the newly planted seedlings, pecking curiously as if preparing to eat them.

Before Vikram could react, a white blur flashed past.

Pinku.

The plump chicken rushed forward like a tiny guardian.

With a sharp peck and a forceful flap of her wings, she drove the mischievous chick away from the vegetable patch, then stood proudly beside the fragile plants like a loyal sentry protecting precious cabbages.

Vikram couldn’t help but laugh.

"Good job. Keep guarding the garden."

He took out a bag of organic feed he had just traded for from the market. To ensure the chicks grew up healthy and strong, he quickly used the crafting function to create a large shallow wooden feeding tray, then poured the feed inside and pushed it toward them.

The chicks immediately gathered around it, chirping happily.

Pinku tilted her head, puffed out her chest slightly, and gave him a look that clearly meant— Leave everything to me.

Vikram instinctively accepted that she had understood him.

Feeling reassured, he walked toward the small goat tied near the edge of the patch.

He gathered a fresh bundle of banyan leaves, placing them gently in front of it. The goat began chewing contentedly.

Vikram stroked its head a few times before finally leaving the vegetable area with peace of mind.

After finishing a simple lunch, he found himself with a rare moment of idleness.

Leaning back in his chair, he casually opened the Wasteland "World’s Savior Group" chat.

As expected, the group was still extremely lively.

Even in the biting cold, the members showed no signs of slowing down. Messages kept scrolling endlessly — arguments, jokes, rumors, survival tips, recruitment notices.

They were truly chatterboxes no matter the circumstances.

He scrolled further up through the group chat history and quickly realized that most of the discussion revolved around the mysterious Ruins anomaly.

Vikram’s expression gradually stiffened.

"How far did that pillar of light spread...?" he muttered inwardly. "Did all Survivors really see it?"

If the anomaly had been visible across the entire region, then his territory, which he had painstakingly built step by step, might soon become a hotspot of attention.

A dangerous hotspot.

"If thousands of Survivors start heading toward that direction... things could get troublesome."

For a brief moment, the thought of relocating his base flashed across his mind.

But almost instantly, hesitation followed.

Moving meant abandoning everything he had invested so far, the carefully arranged defenses, the stable water supply, the heating plants, the gradually improving living conditions.

Here, he had already achieved a rare balance.

No shortage of water. No fear of cold. No threat from lightning storms.

Even his long-term plans for companionship and building alliances had begun to take shape. Among all the Survivors he had interacted with, Divya remained the only one who seemed genuinely reliable.

Their conversations had slowly grown warmer, and he could sense that his steady efforts might soon bear fruit.

With a quiet exhale, Vikram refocused his thoughts.

He needed information first. Only after understanding the full situation could he decide his next move.

So he typed calmly into the group chat:

[Vikram: Hey, Divya. Do you know what’s going on with that mysterious Ruins everyone’s talking about?]

[Vikram: I see people discussing it nonstop, but I haven’t come across any Ruins myself.]

The words were carefully chosen.

Although he himself was the one who had triggered the anomaly, he deliberately acted ignorant, hoping to extract more useful details.

Her reply came quickly.

[Divya: You seriously don’t know about this?]

[Divya: The regional channel went completely crazy last night. How are you always so slow to catch news?]

Vikram stared at the screen for a second, then sent a simple response:

[Vikram: ?]

Playing dumb was currently his safest strategy.

A moment later, Divya continued:

[Divya: Basically, yesterday evening a huge gray pillar of light shot straight into the sky.]

[Divya: World chat didn’t react much, but in our regional channel almost everyone claimed they saw it.]

Vikram felt as if a herd of wild thoughts was trampling across his mind.

"Our regional channel alone has... what, close to a hundred thousand Survivors?"

"If even a fraction of them decide to investigate... my territory might become the center of a storm."

The pressure quietly settled onto his shoulders.

For the first time since stabilizing his base,

he felt a genuine sense of impending disturbance.

Yet outwardly, he maintained his composed tone.

[Vikram: A gray pillar of light...? What exactly caused it?]

Behind that simple question, countless calculations were already forming in his mind.

Relocate? Strengthen defenses? Or prepare to manipulate the coming chaos for his own benefit?

Different possibilities surged like waves in his thoughts.

No matter how much he tried to suppress it,

a faint urgency had already begun to grow inside his heart.

[ Divya: Yes, many people saw that pillar of light, and everyone kept arguing about what it really meant. ]

[ Divya: At first the guesses were still reasonable. Some thought rare resources had appeared there. Others believed strange monsters or special ruins might have been triggered. ]

[ Divya: But later... the rumors became more and more exaggerated. Some Survivors even claimed the pillar of light was connected to a way back to Earth. ]

[ Divya: That’s why the discussion went on all night. ]

As he read those lines, Vikram could almost feel the faint longing hidden behind Divya’s words.

Hope.

A fragile but dangerous kind of hope.

He let out a quiet, helpless laugh.

"Go home... If it were really that simple, would any of us still be struggling here?"

His gaze grew thoughtful.

"If it were only about treasure, distant Survivors might hesitate to travel thousands of kilometers through this hellish world."

"But if there were even a tiny possibility of returning to Earth alive... then they would risk everything."

After all, that was the shared dream of every Survivor.

How could anyone give up so easily?

He typed again.

[ Vikram: Then... what happened after that? ]

[ Vikram: Was there actually any way to go back? ]

Divya replied almost immediately.

[ Divya: Sigh... of course not. It was all speculation. If this Wasteland really allowed us to leave so easily, that would be a miracle. ]

[ Divya: The first group of Survivors who were close enough rushed there overnight. They’re quite famous in our region. ]

[ Divya: Their Shelter is called Brown Wood Shelter. I heard they have more than a dozen members. ]

[ Divya: They posted pictures after reaching the pillar of light. It turned out to be just an ordinary ruin. No strange energy. No portal home. ]

[ Divya: And the pillar of light disappeared soon after they entered the ruins. ]

[ Divya: Later they warned everyone not to waste time traveling there. They said there was nothing inside that could help us return. ]

Vikram’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"So... the first ones there were Brown Wood Shelter."

Those burly Survivors he had secretly observed yesterday suddenly surfaced in his memory.

His fingers tapped lightly as he replied.

[ Vikram: Sounds like they’re trying to scare others away. ]

[ Vikram: Even if there’s no way home... there must still be treasure inside, right? ]

[ Divya: I really don’t know. When others asked what exactly they found, they refused to answer. ]

[ Vikram: Didn’t anyone else go to verify it themselves? ]

[ Divya: A few stubborn Survivors still went. But after that... they also stopped talking. ]

[ Vikram: I see. ]

After mentally organizing all the information Divya had given him, Vikram finally felt the tight knot in his chest loosen.

So far, at least the ruins had not become a massive migration target.

That meant his territory was still relatively safe... for now. But another thought soon followed.

If even Brown Wood Shelter chose to hide the truth, then the ruins clearly contained something valuable enough to silence people.

A faint, calculating smile appeared on Vikram’s lips. "Looks like... this storm hasn’t really started yet."