Wait wait wait. Let's not panic. If I panic, its all over, and, as Voice said, I will not be getting any more chances. Huuu, deep breaths, deep breaths...

...Then again, I have no breath, so...

Deep photosynthesis, deep photosynthesis...

...THIS ISNT WORKING HELP

- Calm down. -

HER ABSORB IS LEVEL EIGHT HOW AM I EVEN SUPPOSED TO BATTLE THAT

- Calm down. -

LIKE HELL I WILL

I panicked. I told myself I wouldn’t panic, and then I panicked. Man, I'm smart.

I hurriedly used absorb on the White Lily but was only met with a stinging pain and a slightly slower loss of energy.

SHOOT SHOOT SHOOT WHY DOES IT HURT

- The White Lily is poisonous. However, as the poison is rather weak, you will not die immediately. -

SO LEMMI GET THIS STRAIGHT

ALL I CAN DO TO BATTLE HER IS TO ABSORB HER

BUT WHEN I ABSORB HER I ALSO ABSORB POISON???

- Yes. -

THE DEVIL TAKE THEE

- Please calm down. -

BUT THERE'S NO CHANCE IN HECK

WHATEVER I DO I'M DEAD

WHETHER BY POISON OR DROUGHT IS MY ONLY CHOI-,

- You have gained Poison Resistance Lv.1. -

…

huh...

Are you... trying to tell me there's a chance?...

- No. It's simply that your cells have started to break down the little poison you absorbed and converted it into energy. -

huh... so... the poison doesn't hurt?...

- As your Poison Resistance is only at Lv.1 it has yet to be able to cancel her Poison, however, it is weakened. -

oh... well, that's... good, right?

- Yes. Very. -

so, there's... a chance?...

- There always has been. -

I... I see...

W-, well then! Better continue!

I let my feet intertwine with the roots of the White Lily so that we both had almost the same area of absorption.

And so, the war of absorbing the other started.

It was hard to keep the absorption as a steady stream, but as the Lily had the same strategy, it was rather easy. However, after only a few seconds, I understood the situation. There was no way.

The poison flooding through my veins and the scarce energy I was gaining made me perpetually lose energy instead of gain it, however, I got a plan.

My brain worked fast and I sent my leg up the side of the White Lily’s roots. Soon enough it became thicker, and when I noticed this, I let my leg slither around the stem and quickly used absorb, which killed the root it was holding.

As such, the particular root that the White Lily had used to absorb my energy died.

One of my other legs quickly started absorbing the root before it started decomposing.

The White Lily must have noticed this, as it shot out another root to take its place. However, I wasn't up for any drawn out game.

I once more let my leg slither along the new root and, as the Lily must have noticed what I was planning to do, it tried to use absorb on my entire leg.

However, it was too late.

I had already regained all the energy needed to withstand the attack by absorbing the cut-off root, and, although I was being hurt by the poison within it, by using this surplus energy, I quickly cut off the root.

The White Lily must have been growing annoyed as it, instead of sending its other roots, decided to force new roots to grow from its healthy main body in place of where I had cut off the roots. However, as soon as the healthy new tissue grew from the open wound, I absorbed it.

And, as the new roots had yet to be used, I was able to do so for a fair amount of time until the White Lily decided on another strategy.

A pincer attack.

I could feel a fair many of its roots start to bend and grow, moving towards me from all directions.

However, I kept myself from panic. Instead, I let my leg travel up the root of the White Lily. I felt the roots get thicker and stronger, but not yet, not yet.

After only a few seconds I found an adequately thick root which I could, albeit only barely, cut off and thus destroy much of its artillery.

However, as soon as my leg had wrapped around the thick root, I felt something else. Something small, something powerful, something...

Pulsating.