The “seed man's” mission took him to the greatest heights — literally, to the roof of the world — to lead a team to collect 40 million seeds from hundreds of thousands of species. Zhong Yang often undertook research in harsh environments, where few biologists dared to tread, especially to Qomolangma, known as Mount Everest in the West. The botanist was also celebrated as an educator and popular science communicator, who cultivated a passion for science among the public and potential PhDs before his recent death in a car accident.