Gradually, Nelson started playing music for Handsy and telling him jokes. Handsy liked Nelson a lot, too. But Harry didn't approve of Nelson's methods. He thought Nelson was too gentle and forced him to perform all sorts of brutal experiments on Handsy. When Nelson refused, Harry began tormenting him, trying to break his will. He tortured him to force him to comply. Nelson had no choice but to conduct further experiments on Handsy. Still, he stuck to his principles. He never hurt Handsy or did anything that would harm a living being. He just had to pretend to run those experiments on the surface and outwit Harry. Over time, Nelson came up with a brand-new way of doing experiments. It looked cruel but was actually gentle. He even chatted with Handsy all the time. One night, during a thunderstorm, his machine malfunctioned ... Lightning struck the equipment, and the current traveled into Handsy's trunk. Handsy was scorched, and most of his leaves fell off. Nelson was devastated, thinking Handsy was going to die. But after spending the night holding him close, Nelson discovered that Handsy had evolved even further! His roots could now break free from the earth, gripping the ground with his roots like claws to walk around. He started to understand Nelson's speech. After a while, Nelson even felt like Handsy had developed some human-like thoughts. Caroline was amazed by the story. It really was a scientific miracle. The truck soon arrived at the apartment building. Seeing a giant tree get off the truck by himself, carrying his own things, and waiting on the curb for the truck to park, everyone in the building was stunned. Some people even thought he was a monster.The army sent someone to calm down the public and explain what was happening. Meanwhile, Caroline was racking her brain, trying to figure out where to put Handsy. "Handsy? He'd better stay with me. He may look big, but he's really just a kid at heart—he gets scared easily at night." Nelson's words left Caroline speechless. Handsy is a tree that's over sixteen feet tall! There is no way I could get him into the shelter, no matter what Nelson said. "Mr. Valdez, I'm afraid this building just isn't suitable for your needs," Caroline said helplessly. "There's a rooftop, isn't there? Handsy can stay up there. I can pitch a tent, too." Nelson was completely serious. He didn't seem to be joking, but Caroline couldn't help chuckle at the thought—how was a tree that big supposed to get up to the roof? Maybe seeing her confusion, Nelson pointed to Handsy. "Handsy can climb." Caroline was about to argue—no matter how good at climbing he was, there was no way he'd fit in the stairwell. He was just too tall. But before she could say anything, Handsy moved on his own. He put down all his things, then made his way to the side of the building. He stretched out one of his branches, hooked it onto the building ... Caroline finally understood what Nelson meant by "he can climb." He really did climb up. Handsy's roots—let's just call them his legs—were like octopus arms, gripping the side of the building and moving upward, little by little. Handsy's branches and leaves—think of them as his arms and hands—worked like a frog's webbed feet, grabbing onto higher points and hauling his massive body up. Slowly, inch by inch, he climbed up. Screams echoed from inside the building as terrified residents looked on. Then came the reassurances from the soldiers. Nelson didn't care at all.Handsy cared even less. Nelson was explaining to Caroline, looking proud. "If you look at his leaves and roots, they spread out and can support his whole weight. And see those leaves? They're not smooth—there are tons of tiny hairs that grip onto any bumps in the wall ... " Caroline could only think, That's not the point at all! He's a tree, and he's climbing a building. That's insane! Nelson honestly lived in his own world. He barely noticed or cared about anyone else's reactions. At that moment, he was doing mental math. "Hmm, at Handsy's speed, he'll probably reach the top by tonight. We don't need to wait for him. I should go unpack. Can you show me my new lab?"