Chapter 106: Hunt for the Orange Orchid

“There’s a nother one!” Geyi Kun pointed.

Zen quickly rushed to the small plant and pulled it ot by its root. Criss Cross was a short plant, made up of a stem surrounded by blades of grass and crowned by a brown, elongated stub. Zen separated the stem from the rest of the plant and threw it away. Kun had told him the leaves were the important parts, the rest was useless. The first time he picked one, he was so excited that he immediately threw the grass blades into his mouth and almost immediately spat it out. It tasted horrible. He hoped it would be better once Kun put it in a soup like she said she would.

Zen had to catch up as Kun did not wait for him at all.

“Why are there so many of these plants.” Zen said as he placed the herb into hs storage stone.”And why aren’t more people not collecting them?”

“Like I said, their effect is minor, so many people don’t know about them and they taste really aweful.” She xplained. “But you’re lucky, for some reason I don’t know about, there seems to be a lot of them growing in this forest. If you collect and eat enough, they would probably have the effect of a low grade ki purifying pill.”

“What about you?” Zen said. “What plant are you looking for?”

“Its called an Orange Orchid.” She said.

“What’s it for?”

“You’re quite nosy aren’t you, Crooked Nose.”

Zen grumbled at the nickname. “Well, I am protecting you, so I should at least know.”

“Fine, I’ll tell you even though your reasoning is shaky.” She said. “I’m making Forever Hot Soup.”

“What’s that?”

“Soup you drink and it will increase your body temperature.” She said. “After drinking this soup, you could literally walk topless in a snow storm without succumbing to the cold’s effects.”

“Why would anyone want to walk in a snow storm topless?”

“Why are you such an idiot? It’s an ancidote. I’m trying to tell you that one would need less resources in winter, or alternatively if someone were to have hyperthermia, the soup would be an instant cure.” She said. “In winter time, it would be very valuable and very expensive.”

“Have you always been this greedy?” Zen said.

“Heh, its not my fault that I didn’t grow uup with a silver sppon in my mouth like you.” She said. “I bet your rich daddy gave you everything you ask for.”

“You don’t know anything about my father and I bet you have a better relationship with yours than I with mine.”

“You don’t know anything about my father.” She said. “There’s another one.”

Zen picked up the herb. They walked mostly in silence, other than to exchange the odd insult once or twice with only Shibi bounding from one tree to another.

“Finally, we’ve arrived.” Geyi Kun, bringing the group to a stop.

“Where is it?” Zen looked around but he saw no plant on the ground, just fallen leaves and few hardy weeds, one of them being the plants he was searching for.

“Its not on the ground idiot, its up there.” Kun pointed up a tree at a an orange pod the size of a human head. The orchid’s roots snaked across the trees bark, thinning out into nothing.

“It grows on other plants?”

“Yes, it’s a parasite,” Kun explained. “It finds a plant and siphon’s off its resources for its own growth.”

“Wow, this is quite a coincidence,” Zen said.

“What?”

“Wel, I think it’s kind of funny. You’re a parasite hunting a parasite.”

Kun growled. “I get it, your angry cause your boss has not been kund to you.” She said before patting him on the head. “I’m proud of you, underling. Now be a good underling and go get the orchid for me.”

“I’m notyour underling!”

“You keep telling yourself that but in the meantime, I need you to do your underling duties like we agreed. I help you collect your herbs and you help me to collect mine while protecting and guiding me. Now, go get the orchid.”

Zen stuck out his tongue while signalling for Shibi to dismount from his shoulder. He then leapt up the the length of the tree, jumping from one leafless branch to another as he climbed up closer to the orchid growing near the tree’s top.

A weak branch snapped under his weight when he landed on it. He fell but before he could go far, he was able to grab a branch on his way down.

“Here lies Wang Zen…!” Kun shouted angrily.

“What?” Zen shouted down after he pulled himself onto the branch.

“I was reading what your future tombstone will say,” Kun said with less passion than last time but still annoyed. “Here lies Wang Zen. He was so weak, he was killed by a half dead tree.”

“It hasn’t killed me yet.”

“Give it time.”

Zen looked up and began making his way hgher once again, one branch at a time. He finally reached a branch that was at the same level.

“Zen, be careful!” Kun warned. “I’ve read that the Orchid has a defense mechanism where…”

“What’s the worse this little plant can do,” Zen said as he reached for it. A hole opeed at the front of the plant and sprayed his face with orange powder.

Zen coughed, while uselessly warding the powder away by waving his arms. He lost his footing and fell again. He clipped a branch on his way down, sending him into an uncontrollable barrel roll. His fall was stopped but not by the ground. His face was cushioned by something soft and he felt the abrupt stop as he landed on the ground gently. He opened his eyes and pulled his face away from the warm, soft darkness, only to find that is head had been resting within Kun’s bossum. He looked up at her.

“Thanks for saving me,” Zen whispered from his position in her arms, being held in bridal position.

Her cheeks flushed as she looked away from him. A moment later, he was unceremoniously dropped on his butt. “You know, Wang Zen, you are a Grade A idiot! You have a monkey with you and yet you decide to climb up the tree on your own?”

“I have two good legs so why wouldn’t I do it on my own?”

“Because Shibi is a better limber. Look!”

They looked up as Shibi quickly scaled the tree and reach the branch leading to the orchid.

“ait Sibhi, watch out for its defense mechanism.”

The Scorch Ape came closer to the plant and it opened up and sprayed its powder at him. Shibi’s body began glowing in fire and incinerating the particles into nothing.

“Wow, he is burning the powder away!” Zen said.

Shibi grasped the thin, green stem of the orchid and pulled it out of the tree, which killed the plant’s fight. Shibi then jumped down and offered the plant to Zen who gave it to Kun.

“Good, we’re done for tonight.” She said as she stored the plant in her storage stone. “Let’s go home, using the other search section.”

Zen nodded and led the way back, ensuring to take another way to allow Kun to search for more hers and him to pick out his ki purifying herbs.

Zen looked on as Kun cooked the herbs into a soup. He poured the contents into a bowl.

“Here,” Kun pushed the steamy bowl to him.

Zen took it in his hands gingerly ad tipped the bowl into his waiting mouth. He kept the liquid in his mouth and fought not to spit it out. Turns out the spup was equally as bad as eating the her raw. He shut his teeth as tight as he could as he forced the horrible liquid down his throat.

“Come now, Wang Zen.” Geyi Kun said. “There’s two more helpings of this to go. If your going to sstruggle with every gul, you may not finish.”

Wang Zen looked at the bowl in his hands. He needed to get stronger. Therefore, drinking this horrible liquid would be a small price to pay. He nodded at Geyi Kun and brought the bowl to his lips where he continuously drank from it…