Chapter 186: Dangerous Plants

“Grandmaster…” Yun Jiao had just opened her mouth to ask when—

The moment Ying Lun saw someone arriving, he immediately burst into a torrent of frantic wailing.

“Ahhh, little disciple, thank heavens you’re here! I’m dying! Save me, save me! Night Abyss has gone mad! My poor waist—my old, well-cared-for waist that I’ve maintained for tens of thousands of years! He almost snapped it in half! After all these years of friendship, he’s showing me no mercy at all! Too much! I swear I’m cutting ties for at least three hours! Ahhhh… little disciple, hurry, talk to him! Tell him to take his foot off me! Night Abyss, just because you don’t use your own waist doesn’t mean you can be jealous of mine, I—Ahhh~~~!”

Before he could finish, Night Abyss pressed down with a sharp twist of his heel, shoving Ying Lun deeper into the muddy pit so that he bit a mouthful of dirt. He spat and coughed several times before trying to speak again.

“Little disciple, you saw that, right—”

“Enough out of you!” Yun Jiao snapped, unable to bear it any longer. Even half-buried in the ground, he still couldn’t stop talking. She rubbed her temples and turned to Night Abyss. “Grandmaster, please, let’s talk calmly. Maybe let him up first?”

Night Abyss froze. His face grew colder, but there was something strange in his eyes—a flicker of disbelief, and beneath it, an unmistakable trace of wounded grievance.

“You want to help him?” he asked slowly.

Something about that look pricked sharply at Yun Jiao’s heart. She shook her head at once. “Of course not! But the two of you can’t just fight here, can you? Why don’t you tell me what happened first?”

Night Abyss’s expression finally eased, though his anger still simmered. He glared down at Ying Lun, his hand tightening at his side. Then, with visible effort, he stepped back, removing his boot from the man’s back.

Ying Lun rolled over with an exaggerated groan, clutching his waist. “Ow, ow, ow… good, good, not broken, still in one piece. My poor old waist—another half a minute and—”

“Enough already!” Yun Jiao’s mouth twitched. “You’re a King of the Underworld—can you be any more fragile? Even if it was broken, it would heal instantly. Now tell me—what did you do? What happened here?” She looked around the ruined field. “Do you have any idea how much this damage is worth?”

“Ah, well…” Ying Lun froze, then gave an awkward laugh. “Just a small accident while I was planting the seeds, that’s all! A little mishap. I’m still getting the hang of it. After a few more tries, it’ll be fine!” He scratched his head, glancing sheepishly at the cratered landscape.

“An accident?” Yun Jiao raised an eyebrow. “What kind of accident creates explosions? What exactly were you planting? Bombs?”

“It was the seeds Brother Bai gave me!” Ying Lun said, pointing at the old man.

The old man blinked, immediately waving both hands. “Don’t look at me! I bought him ordinary vegetable and fruit seeds—nothing dangerous!”

“It was those!” Ying Lun insisted, pointing at the ground. “I picked the black ones, watered them, and they grew beautifully—but the fruit they bore kept exploding! One after another, until the whole place looked like this!”

“Impossible!” the old man protested. “Don’t dump this pot on me!”

“It’s true!” Ying Lun said, sounding indignant now. “I’ll show you!”

Before anyone could stop him, he crouched down and yanked a small green sprout from the dirt. “This one! This is the kind!” The seedling was half-covered in mud, impossible to identify. He replanted it, pressed the soil down, and grasped one of its tiny leaves. A pulse of vibrant life energy rushed into it.

Before their eyes, the sprout shot upward, its stem thickening, leaves unfurling, vines spreading in all directions until they covered two full meters around him.

Yun Jiao’s eyes widened. The leaves looked strangely familiar—but before she could identify them, a large, round, green fruit with striped patterns began to form on the vine. It grew rapidly.

“Watermelon!” she gasped.

But the fruit didn’t stop growing. It swelled larger and larger until, within seconds, it was nearly half as tall as a person. Yun Jiao’s stomach dropped. A very bad feeling prickled through her.

“Wait—Ying Lun!” she shouted.

“What?”

Too late.

BOOM!

The giant watermelon exploded like a grenade. A wave of sweet, sticky red mist blasted through the air, splattering everywhere like rainfall.

Just as Yun Jiao was about to be drenched, a strong hand grabbed her. Night Abyss pulled her into his arms, and a golden barrier flared around them, blocking every drop of flying juice.

“See? I told you it would explode,” Ying Lun said matter-of-factly, standing there behind his own shield.

The only one who hadn’t defended himself—the old man—stood dripping in bright red pulp.

“……”

(￣△￣；)

He wiped his face, expression flat, then turned to Night Abyss. “Grandmaster, I support you. Step on him again.”

To hell with your ‘plants’—that thing wasn’t a watermelon, it was a watermelon spirit! Who grows produce that self-destructs?!

(╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻

Yun Jiao: “……”

“It’s really not my fault!” Ying Lun protested earnestly. “Honestly, I didn’t think they’d be so volatile! Just give me some time—I’ll get it right eventually! Once you get used to the explosions, it’s not so bad. Besides, look how lovely the vines are! I tell you—”

And off he went again, babbling nonstop.

Yun Jiao’s headache worsened. Watching him chatter beside yet another fresh half-meter-deep crater, she seriously began to question whether keeping this so-called gardener had been a terrible mistake. And what’s more, Night Abyss clearly couldn’t stand the man. But normally, her grandmaster never interfered in sect matters—why was he this furious over a few holes in the vegetable field?

Wait. Exploded field…

Her heart skipped. “You didn’t blow up the root cellar next to the garden, did you?” That cellar held the jars of pickles her grandmaster had just finished making days ago!

w(Д)w

“You mean that biggest crater?” Ying Lun asked honestly. “That’s the one that went off first.”

Yun Jiao: “……”

Old Man: “……”

(￣△￣；)

They exchanged a long, meaningful look—one of silent pity. Better pray for your life, buddy.

“What… what’s wrong?” Ying Lun asked, bewildered.

“Old man, teach him some basic survival skills,” Yun Jiao sighed, handing him over. She quickly grabbed her grandmaster by the wrist and pulled him away from the scene. “Grandmaster, I suddenly feel like making sweet soup. Would you like to taste some?”

Night Abyss still had fury smoldering on his face. He cast one last icy glare at Ying Lun before letting Yun Jiao lead him away.

---

A little later, outside the kitchen.

Night Abyss suddenly stopped walking.

“Little disciple…”

“Mm?”

“Those ten jars…” His normally cool tone softened, trembling slightly. His cold gaze met hers—no longer aloof, but fragile, like a wounded cat exposing its belly. His eyes glimmered with quiet hurt and wordless accusation.

“You never tasted them.”

“……”

Yun Jiao’s heart clenched. For a moment, she wanted to drag Ying Lun over and let her grandmaster stomp him flat personally.

She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him.

“I’ll make them again for you, okay? Not just ten jars—twenty, thirty if you want.”

His eyes brightened. “Really?”

“Really.”

“Good. Then forty jars!”

“……”

Hey!

(End of Chapter)