I Got Reincarnated With The Ultimate Suffering System

Rotten Spirit Root

The sect quieted at night.

Gone were the hollers of sect seniors chastising outer disciples, the clang of wooden buckets against stone, the endless sweeping. In their place came whispers of wind brushing dry grass.

Quinn had never been afraid of the dark. He just had an understandable fear of being murdered in it.

Tch. Understandable? Yeah right.

But still, here he was. Wearing a damp robe, a borrowed lantern with a vague sense of impending doom.

He was already asleep when the sub-quest came.

[Sub-Quest Activated: Rotten Opportunity]

Retrieve the Rotten Spirit Root from the Forbidden Greenhouse.

Time Limit: Dawn.

Reward: +2 Spirit Veins / +1 Passive Trait (randomized)

Warning: The Rotten Spirit Root is sentient. And a little mean.

He stood just outside the crumbling arch that led to the Old Greenhouse, a building so long abandoned it had become part of outer disciple horror stories. According to lore, it once grew immortal peaches. Now it mostly grew rumors and possibly mold demons.

“System,” he whispered. “Quick question. On a scale from one to ‘I die horribly,’ how dangerous is this mission?”

[Technically? Four. Unless you scream. Then it jumps to eight.]

“Very Helpful.”

The greenhouse was ahead, partially collapsed under creeping vines and years of indifference. Its jade glass windows were cracked in spiderweb patterns, the panes fogged with old condensation and streaked with long-dried blood. A crooked sign dangled from the archway above the door:

⚠ DO NOT ENTER – Unless You Can Outrun Regret ⚠

Quinn paused. “That's...comforting.”

[Bonus Objective: Do Not Regret This]

He stepped over a patch of dirt that squelched like a wet cough and pushed the door open with the toe of his shoe.

The air inside was dense. Like the room had decided oxygen was for weaklings. Strange vines curled along the stone walls, twitching slightly as if dreaming of strangling something. The once-grand rows of immortal herb beds were now reduced to fungal jungles and thorny messes. One pot growled when he passed it. Another burped.

And then just ahead was the Rotten Spirit Root.

Tucked away in a pit of black mulch, surrounded by bones (small, suspiciously squirrel-like), it looked quite unassuming. Just a gnarled root clump the size of a toddler, wrapped in faint green mist and quiet menace.

[Rotten Spirit Root – Corruption Level: 73%]

[Status: Dormant but Listening]

[Affinities: Wood, Decay, Passive Aggression]

“...Is it breathing?” Quinn whispered.

[Technically it’s exhaling spores. And judging you.]

The ground near it rippled slightly.

[Warning: Proximity too close. Initiating dialogue...]

The mist swirled and a voice rasped out both haughty, nasal, and distinctly unimpressed.

“Another disciple, come to steal my essence. Tsk. Dare you disrespect my rot?”

Quinn blinked. “I— what?”

[Hint: Rotten Spirit Roots are dramatic. Respond in kind.]

He straightened, gave a sweeping bow, and said with mock solemnity, “Oh Great Root, I come not to disrespect you, but to bond with you. Spirit to... uh, spud.”

The root paused.

“Hmm. That was very touching. I would have wanted to bond with you too but your aura smells like overcooked cabbage.”

“It’s been a long day.”

There was another pause then the mist twitched.

“You wish to claim me? Then prove your worth. I demand a contest.”

[Challenge Accepted: Rotten Riddle Duel]

Rules: Answer correctly to earn affinity. Fail, and be pelted with spores.

Quinn groaned. “Of course there’s a riddle round. You’re basically a moldy Sphinx.”

“SILENCE! Here is your question, weak-soul:

I thrive in death but give no life,

I drain your strength and increase strife.

I’m feared when high, ignored when low

What am I? Tell me, and you may go.”

Quinn furrowed his brow. “Okay. Thrive in death… give no life… feared when high, ignored when low...”

He glanced at the system.

[Hint: Think of something that was very rampant in your world.]

“...Corruption?” he guessed.

“...Hmph!. Lucky guess.”

[+10 Affinity with Rotten Spirit Root]

[Debuff Resistance increased]

The mist parted just slightly.

Quinn stepped forward and the root lunged.

“HEY!”

But instead of attacking, it latched to his arm like a vine sinking microscopic tendrils into his skin.

[Warning: Rotten Spirit Root attempting temporary bond...]

[Bond established.]

Pain flared briefly. Then... there was warmth and a pulse of energy. Deep, earthy, and oddly defiant.

Quinn’s eyes widened.

He felt something slot into place inside him. It was unruly and stubborn.

[Congratulations! Rotten Spirit Root (Lesser) bound.]

[+2 Spirit Vein Capacity Unlocked]

[New Passive Gained: “Rotten Resilience” – You thrive the more the odds rot.]

“Whoa,” he breathed. “I... actually feel stronger.”

The root slumped, exhausted but still somehow smug.

“Hmph. You’ll do.”

Quinn gently wrapped it in the system-provided fungus-safe wrapping (which looked suspiciously like a potato sack) and stood.

Outside, the first light of dawn was creeping up the mountains.

He had done it. I mean he was slimed, sore, and insulted but he did it.

[Sub-Quest Completed: Rotten Opportunity]

[System Note: You may now proudly call yourself “The Root Boy.” Actually please don’t.]

Quinn grinned and whispered to himself, “From chamber pot arenas to cursed gardening. I’m climbing the ranks, baby.”

He turned and limped out, the root muttering something in some forgotten tongue.

[Alert: Strong presence detected nearby.]

Quinn froze mid-step.

The system’s voice that was usually so smug and sarcastic was flat and serious.

That alone was enough to stop his breath.

He stood beneath the collapsed arch of the ruined greenhouse, half-hidden behind thick draping vines.

The night breeze stirred the leaves, but everything else had gone still.

“Uh…” he whispered. “System, care to elaborate on—”

[Unable to identify entity. Origin unknown. Suppression field active.]

[Recommendation: Do not move. Do not speak. Do not breathe loudly.]

Quinn’s muscles immediately tensed. He tried to shrink into the shadows, his heart racing frantically.