Chapter 26: Jú Duoluo Arrives

Thinking that he was about to leave the Flower Sea, Li Xuan was full of vigor; there was no choice, the pressure that Jú Duoluo placed on Li Xuan was simply too great.

But before that, Li Xuan returned to the basement, summoned a small green bottle and poured the Green Spirit Liquid onto the Purple Thunder Walnut tree.

After the Purple Thunder Walnut tree absorbed the green spirit liquid, only its trunk and branches became a bit sturdier; it did not grow any taller.

Immediately afterward, two green walnuts on the tree sprouted at a speed visible to the naked eye; after a few minutes, the fruits had already grown large and ripened.

Li Xuan, with practiced ease, plucked the walnuts, waited for the shells to become crisp, cleaned them, and then once again obtained two Silver Thunder Walnuts.

Looking at the Silver Thunder Walnuts in his hand, Li Xuan also showed a sighing expression.

This thing is indeed useful, but it makes too much noise, and each use causes the ground to shake once; it's simply too inconvenient.

Only in desperate situations can Li Xuan use this item, but it does count as one of Li Xuan's trump cards.

He carefully placed the Silver Thunder Walnuts into a box, then put the box into the Void Pearl.

This gadget is just like a landmine; Li Xuan also fears it might cause him to self‑detonate, which would be a laughingstock.

After tidying up the Silver Thunder Walnuts, Li Xuan filled a clay jar with water, and only then returned to the tunnel.

Then, Li Xuan once again mobilized the soul power in his body, turning it into flames that fiercely seared the wall.

……

The morning ten days later.

Li Xuan sat on the wall inside the tunnel, sporting two dark circles under his eyes, looking at the stone wall exposed with soil, and chuckling foolishly.

"I've made it, little master!" Li Xuan muttered softly, looking at the damp soil before him.

Li Xuan spent a full ten‑plus days and finally carved a tunnel long enough for himself through a stone cavern over a hundred meters in length.

With the tunnel successfully dug, this escape route was already eighty percent complete; the remaining digging through soil would be far easier.

After digging north for a few more kilometers, he could escape to the surface.

Li Xuan's small stature means the tunnel need not be spacious, and the Iron Anvil Wood can serve directly as supports, saving Li Xuan a great deal of effort.

Within five days, excavating a kilometer is still quite possible.

However, Li Xuan had stayed up all night and was exhausted, so he simply cleared some rubble, sealed the tunnel entrance, then returned to the surface, lying on a mound of thatch to prepare for sleep.

……

Now the tunnel is fully dug, Li Xuan has finally let go, so this sleep was extremely deep.

He didn't know how long he slept, but Li Xuan vaguely heard the sound of moving flower pots in the Courtyard, and groggily opened his eyes.

"Damn it! Who the eyeless one came into my Courtyard to steal?" Li Xuan, still half‑asleep, pulled a Silver Thunder Walnut from the Void Pearl into his chest, then took a wooden stick and walked out of the thatched house.

Just as he stepped out of his thatched house, Li Xuan shouted loudly, "Who the eyeless one came here to steal!"

Rubbing his eyes, Li Xuan saw a middle‑aged man in a splendid yellow ceremonial robe sitting in his Courtyard, holding the very flower pot containing the Dark Realm Ghost Orchid he had cultivated. "You… are Li Xuan? Growing flower seedlings for others in the Flower Sea?" a somewhat feminine‑toned voice of the middle‑aged man entered Li Xuan's ears.

"I'm the little master… me?" Li Xuan initially wanted to lift the wooden stick and point at Jú Duoluo to berate him, after all, he was sleeping soundly yet still dared to…

But combined with that voice and attire, a name suddenly flashed in Li Xuan's mind.

Jú Duoluo! Yet by the time he realized, Li Xuan had already scolded halfway, and the even dirtier second half forced him to swallow it back.

At this moment, Li Xuan's mind was filled with thoughts of how Jú Duoluo could have arrived early—had his tunnel‑digging been exposed? Or had his special ability attracted Jú Duoluo's attention?

"Little Li Xuan pays respects to Jú Duoluo under the crown; I did not expect the great arrival of Jú Duoluo, I would die a thousand deaths!" Li Xuan, without any hesitation, knelt on the ground, his head pressed to the earth.

In front, Zhang Zhiwei's fierce tiger lay on the ground, and behind, Zhang Chulan slipped, kneeling and licking.

Li Xuan also deeply grasped its essence.

"You youngster does know manners; I saw you sleeping soundly just now, so I didn't wake you. You're not bad. Back then I obtained sixteen seeds of the Dark Realm Ghost Orchid, and fifteen of them I couldn't cultivate even after consulting many experts. I thought the last one wouldn't sprout, yet you actually managed to grow it," Jú Duoluo said, gently stroking the leaves of the Dark Realm Ghost Orchid while speaking leisurely to Li Xuan.

Jú Duoluo's voice was soft and slow; though it lacked any sharpness, upon hearing it Li Xuan felt a shiver of goosebumps rise on his skin.

"Thank you, thank you for the praise, Jú Duoluo." Li Xuan didn't even dare lift his head, collapsing flat on the ground.

"Alright, get up. I only came because I heard the Dark Realm Ghost Orchid was successfully cultivated, just came to take a look," Jú Duoluo said, raising a delicate orchid‑shaped finger and waving at Li Xuan.

Hearing this, Li Xuan finally scrambled up from the ground, still keeping his head down, not daring to look at Jú Duoluo's true face.

"I heard you have the ability to help others cultivate flower seedlings. What kind of ability is that? Could you tell me about it?" Jú Duoluo asked Li Xuan in a friendly tone.

"Well… my martial soul has the ability to increase vitality, which can be used to nurture flower seedlings, so that's why I wanted to do this," Li Xuan said, feigning a trembling voice to Jú Duoluo.

Li Xuan now had no other way; he could only grit his teeth and keep forging ahead, for only this gave him a chance to survive.

"No need to be nervous. I'm not here to probe your ability. In the past two days I've researched your background: your parents merely defied a Martial Soul Hall Steward and were executed, and you were thrown into prison. You weren't supposed to be in my Flower Sea to begin with; this place is full of death‑sentence prisoners." Jú Duoluo's gaze never left the Dark Realm Ghost Orchid, and without raising his head, he said to Li Xuan.

After hearing Jú Duoluo's words, Li Xuan was stunned.

He was only a six‑year‑old child; why would Jú Duoluo go to such lengths, even digging into his background?

"But that Martial Soul Hall Steward used some connections to send you into my Flower Sea. Now I intend to cultivate you, hoping you become a steward of this Flower Sea. As for that steward, I've turned him into fertilizer for the Flower Sea; Lin Mo has already buried him in the Flower Sea you oversee, which counts as avenging you." Jú Duoluo lifted the Dark Realm Ghost Orchid in his hand, admiring it while continuing to speak to Li Xuan.

Watt?

Jú Duoluo is this kind?

So you avenged yourself? Li Xuan was at a loss for words, raising his head blankly, looking at Jú Duoluo with a puzzled expression.

Jú Duoluo's maneuver left Li Xuan's brain starved of oxygen.

Ladies and gentlemen, dear readers, happy weekend.

I'm taking a rest at home today, got a stomach upset, spent a whole day writing to finish this chapter; now my stomach feels a bit better. I'll push on and write another chapter later. (End of chapter)