Zinogre emerged slowly from the depths of the forest, typical pack animals, they possessed a strong sense of kinship, much like the wolf packs Logan knew in his previous life.Zhu Peiniang was intensely stared at by those pairs of glowing green eyes, and even with her formidable strength, she couldn't help but feel a hint of tension. Her massive body gradually lowered, muscles taut like a drawn bowstring, ready to turn and flee at any moment.However, events unfolded beyond her expectations. These unfamiliar monsters, after approaching a certain distance, did not immediately attack. Instead, they sat in a semicircle on the ground, leaving a wide passage in the middle.Accompanied by a series of heavy, powerful footsteps, bright lightning suddenly flashed in the dark forest, and the surrounding Zinogre began to howl in unison. A gigantic Zinogre appeared before Zhu Peiniang amidst these seemingly welcoming sounds.This was an exceptionally robust individual, over 20 meters long from head to tail. Its deep blue scales were covered with scars from healed wounds, chronicling countless battles from its past. The protruding Thunderbugs on its body, having endured the test of time, displayed a dull, metallic luster like brass.This Zinogre, whether it was its powerful physique, nearing the species' limit, or the rich experience accumulated from brutal battles, undoubtedly indicated it was a powerful, battle-hardened individual, possibly even having traveled from the distant Old World, overcoming countless difficulties and crossing vast oceans.Leveraging its absolute physical advantage, this Zinogre looked down at Zhu Peiniang, its gaze sweeping from her massive horn-like headpiece, to her shimmering metallic scales, and then to her thick Thunderbugs, with a strong sense of admiration flashing in its eyes.But these alone were not enough to make it easily back down. The next moment, this battle-hardened Zinogre let out a low growl from its mouth.The sound was like an invitation, yet subtly laced with a hint of challenge.Zhu Peiniang ignored this Zinogre, instead cautiously observing her surroundings, always ready to retreat immediately if the situation turned unfavorable. Although she had a fiery temper, it didn't mean she was simple-minded. With so many monsters surrounding her, once embroiled in a prolonged fight, she would be hard-pressed to escape.It would be better to go back and find her boss; then, no matter how many Zinogre there were, there would be no need to fear.As Zhu Peiniang's eyes darted around, calculating her own plans, the battle-hardened Zinogre opposite her looked confused. Wasn't this creature here to challenge it? It had already responded, so why was she showing no reaction?The battle-hardened Zinogre looked at its kin around it, seemingly understanding something, and let out another roar. The surrounding Zinogre, hearing the command, began to retreat in an orderly fashion.What's going on? No fight?Zhu Peiniang looked at the opposite side, full of doubt. However, when she heard that slightly provocative sound again, she instantly realized that this Zinogre intended to challenge her to a one-on-one fight.This fellow might not look impressive, but its guts are not small! Among monsters of similar size, Zhu Peiniang had never feared anyone. Immediately, she shook her body violently, her Thunderbugs instantly flared open, and she charged towards the battle-hardened Zinogre like an arrow shot from a bow.In the grand system of natural ecology, organisms are clearly divided into two major camps: producers and consumers. Producers do not rely on other organisms; they can directly utilize energy from the inorganic environment, cleverly converting inorganic matter into the organic matter they need. Various plants are typical representatives of this camp.All other organisms that need to ingest organic matter to sustain life, apart from producers, are collectively defined as consumers. From tiny insects to behemoths weighing hundreds of tons, the organic matter essential for their survival is invariably obtained from other organisms.The survival and reproduction of consumers are highly dependent on the existence of other organisms. If a problem arises in any part of the ecological chain, the entire population may face the crisis of extinction.Although Logan could draw electrical energy from the outside world to meet some of his activity's energy needs, his own growth still required the support of various organic substances, and he needed to eat regularly to sustain his life.However, as more than a month quietly passed, he finally accumulated enough evolution points to evolve photosynthesis. Once this crucial link was added, even if he were in a lifeless desert, he would be able to survive tenaciously.As all existing evolution points were consumed, a familiar power, like a flowing stream, surged within Logan, beginning to permeate every cell of his body.A type of porphyrin-like organic compound gradually appeared in his cells. This substance was quite similar to chlorophyll, but its unique molecular structure gave it the ability to absorb a wider spectrum of light. Moreover, the greater number of enzymes contained within it could effectively reduce meaningless energy consumption, greatly improving work efficiency.When these special substances appeared, Logan's body began to absorb carbon elements from the air like a thirsty creature. The originally white fur on his body, as if endowed with life, gradually extended outwards, and its color deepened, eventually turning completely inky black.These hairs grew wildly upwards, and as their length continuously increased, they also gradually became wider. Soon, they transformed from slender hairs into long, flat structures resembling kelp.Thanks to the magical properties of electromagnetic levitation, even without support, these hairs spread slowly outwards like aquatic plants floating in water. Before long, they covered a vast area of over a thousand meters in diameter. From a distance, they looked like a blooming black lotus.The unique graphene structure made these hairs not only thin and tough but also excellent in photoelectric conductivity. Countless vertically arranged carbon nanotubes on the surface formed a dense nano-array; once light entered it, it would be continuously refracted within the tubes, achieving an astonishing absorption rate of 99.99%.Taking the sun at noon in summer as an example, the solar energy received per square meter is about one kilowatt. The hairs on Logan's body, with a diameter exceeding a thousand meters, cover an area of 785,000 square meters. Even considering the loss of sunlight through clouds and the difference in actual absorption power, this is still an extremely terrifying energy value.This black lotus, rooted at the top of the Ancient Tree, was like a greedy black hole, devouring the abundant sunlight above. A large amount of light energy was continuously transferred back into Logan's body. With each breath he took, the surrounding carbon dioxide converged towards him, and under the action of those photosynthetic cells, combined with water, began to continuously produce organic substances such as glucose.Taking corn, familiar to Logan in his previous life, as an example, during its active growth period, each square meter can produce approximately 0.5 to 1 gram of dry matter per hour through photosynthesis. Logan's utilization rate of sunlight is more than 10 times that of corn. If multiplied by his photosynthetic area of 785,000 square meters, theoretically, he could produce 7.85 million grams of dry matter per hour, which is 78.5 tons.Of course, constrained by various real-world factors, the actual amount of organic matter he synthesizes in his body through photosynthesis certainly cannot reach this exaggerated theoretical value. However, even so, the actual amount of organic matter produced far exceeds his own needs.After only a few minutes of unfolding his photosynthetic plates, Logan felt an unprecedented sense of satisfaction in his body. A large amount of nutrients, exceeding his body's needs, were synthesized into sugar frost and slowly secreted from the glands on his back, looking like crystalline lotus seeds forming within a lotus.At the same time, as the three essential elements for synthesizing organic matter—sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water—the first two could be continuously obtained from the outside world through Logan's own abilities. However, the last element, water, could still only be ingested through eating.This made Logan quickly feel an unbearable thirst while continuously synthesizing organic matter. Helplessly, he could only stop after a brief taste, closing the photosynthetic plates unfolded on his back.However, these photosynthetic plates did not retract as he had imagined.These hairs, composed of graphene and carbon nanotubes, were not only extremely light but also consumed almost no nutrients, so they had no value for secondary use. They broke off directly at the transition from cylindrical to flat, like petals falling when winter arrives, slowly drifting down and gradually covering the entire treetop. As Logan shook his body vigorously, a large amount of transparent crystals rained down onto the ground. At this point, the remaining hairs on his body were still longer than before, and completely dyed black, spiraling across his back, chest, and the outer sides of his limbs. From a distance, they resembled rising black flames.The fallen photosynthetic plates on the ground were not wasted either. As polymers of graphene and carbon fiber tubes, their excellent properties made them almost perfect fabric in every aspect except for being airtight, and they had great utility.Some Grimalkyne quickly noticed the commotion and climbed to the treetop, rolling up and collecting the photosynthetic plates. Then, under Logan's command, they began to excavate the top of the Ancient Tree.The carbonized surface was quickly cleared away. The wood, harder than steel, was torn into large wood chips by Logan's immense strength and razor-sharp claws, and piled in the area where the Thunderbug larvae were raised.Not long after, a huge depression, over 50 meters in diameter, appeared on the previously flat top of the Ancient Tree, which had resembled an airfield. Logan also carefully scorched the surface with emitted flames, burning away excess woody protrusions, making the entire depression look like a smooth, semi-circular swimming pool.Since it was a swimming pool, it naturally needed water. A large amount of clear water was quickly brought up from the sunken reservoirs in the middle layer of the Ancient Tree, gradually filling this huge pool.This was undoubtedly a massive undertaking; due to the lack of sufficiently large buckets, the time spent filling the pool was even longer than excavating the pool itself.By the time the pool was seven or eight tenths full, time had quietly arrived at noon the next day. Logan comfortably lay in the pool, letting the cool clear water immerse most of his body. As carbon dioxide from the air was continuously absorbed, the fur on his body began to lengthen and grow outwards again.The photosynthetic plates, like a black lotus, were slowly unfurled by Logan once more. This time, with an abundant supply of water, he could finally continuously perform photosynthesis.This was almost a subconscious process, not even requiring Logan to actively manage it. In a daze, he simply fell into a deep sleep. A large amount of transparent sugar frost, like ripe fruit, slid from his back and dissolved in the surrounding clear water. Due to the high concentration, crystal-clear formations, like crystals, even gradually formed along the edges of the pool.In the dark and deep dense forest, two massive blue beasts were in a tense standoff.Zhu Peiniang truly hadn't expected this somewhat ugly Zinogre to possess such impressive strength. Their similar body structures meant their fighting styles were almost identical. Although Zhu Peiniang, being young, was slightly at a disadvantage in terms of physical function, her more developed electrical organs and stronger current manipulation abilities compensated for this weakness to some extent.However, Zhu Peiniang had only recently been born and had experienced very few dangerous battles under Logan's protection, so how could she compare to this battle-hardened individual who had fought for most of her life? After a brief clash, the huge gap in experience gradually put her at a disadvantage.But Zhu Peiniang's fierce temper would not allow her to easily admit defeat. Instead, she launched an even more ferocious counterattack, attempting to forcibly close the experience gap between them with a desperate, almost injury-for-injury fighting style.This made the struggle between the two sides exceptionally brutal. Sharp claws left large, torn wounds on each other's bodies, golden Thunderbugs were shattered, and azure scales were mercilessly ripped off. The flowing blood almost completely stained the ground red.It wasn't until she confirmed she truly couldn't win, looking at the robust, battle-hardened Zinogre before her, that Zhu Peiniang began to entertain thoughts of retreat.If her opponent at this moment were only this one Zinogre, Zhu Peiniang could certainly rely on her strong regenerative abilities to slowly wear down her opponent. However, there was also a group of Zinogre surrounding them, whose intentions were unclear.Although this group of Zinogre merely watched quietly from the side, showing no signs of intervening, who could guarantee that this state would continue indefinitely? After successfully forcing back the battle-hardened Zinogre once more, Zhu Peiniang made a decisive move, turned around, and ran off.After evolving, her limbs, now transformed towards feline characteristics, granted her stronger mobility. Her hind legs, significantly longer than those of a regular Zinogre, also provided her with powerful leaping ability.This sudden action left the surrounding Zinogre momentarily stunned, and Zhu Peiniang, like a gust of wind, completely vanished into the distance."Roar!""Roar!"A chorus of roars instantly erupted, and some Zinogre members immediately intended to give chase. However, the battle-hardened Zinogre let out a long, drawn-out howl towards the sky. Hearing its leader's command, those Zinogre that had already lunged forward could only forcefully halt their steps.Looking at the gradually receding golden-blue figure, a deep weariness flashed in the battle-hardened Zinogre's eyes. This fierce battle had already left it exhausted, and it knew in its heart that its era had completely passed.That Zinogre was clearly still a juvenile; its body hadn't even fully matured yet. As time went on, it would grow stronger day by day, while it, on the other hand, was gradually entering its twilight years, only growing weaker.Even if it managed to repel the opponent now, by their next encounter, it probably wouldn't be a match.Coming from the distant Spirit Peak to this New World, the long and arduous journey had long since worn down its ambitions. Now, the only thing left in its heart was the continuation of its species and the desire to return to their ancestral land.If it's this young Zinogre, maybe it really can defeat that monster?The world ultimately belongs to the young; the rising sun holds infinite possibilities, while it itself is already old, like a gradually drying river, waiting no longer for the next rainy season.