Chapter 123: The Flower That Loves to Spray

"Little Gray, Little White, let's head out!"

Ye Da hurriedly called Little White and Little Gray out of the room before stowing the stone house away.

This was the first time Chu Ping had seen the mobile stone house being packed up. He touched the spot where the door had been with a sense of wonder, clicking his tongue in amazement. "There was a door here just a moment ago, and now it’s turned into a solid stone wall. How magical!"

As the stone house transformed into a glowing orb and flew into Ye Da's hand, Chu Ping's eyes widened even further.

"Lord, is that little thing inside the glowing orb in your hand the stone house?"

Chu Ping stared fixedly at the orb, his expression filled with curiosity.

Ye Da generously tossed the stone house orb into Chu Ping's hands and said, "Just return it to me when you're done looking. We need to hurry."

"Yes, yes!"

Chu Ping walked along while cupping the stone house orb, observing it with extreme caution. Beyond his amazement, his eyes held something more—gratitude. He was grateful for the trust his Lord had placed in him!

...

The Macrophage Pitcher Plant field.

"Hmm? Something's not right!"

Upon reaching the flower field, Ye Da’s first reaction was that something felt off.

Chu Ping asked with confusion, "Lord, what seems to be the problem?"

"The flowers..." Ye Da tilted his head in thought. "There seem to be more of them fallen over. There shouldn't have been this many before. You killed one or two, I took one out with a fire-attribute spiritual arrow, and another with a stone arrow. Logically, at most, four or five should be dead. How could such a large patch be cleared out?"

Originally, the Macrophage Pitcher Plant field in the valley should have been a dense, vibrant sea of flowers. But now, a large section was bald—at least a dozen plants had died.

The bare area did indeed correspond to the locations of the plants Chu Ping and Ye Da had killed, but Ye Da remembered there weren't that many...

"The bronze treasure chest is still there," Chu Ping noted, looking into the valley. "And the beast cores that dropped are all there too. There doesn't seem to be any problem."

"Lord, could it be that when I was digging tunnels underground, I accidentally severed the roots of a few Macrophage Pitcher Plants? They might not have died immediately, but succumbed after a while. That would explain why there’s a small patch missing now, wouldn't it?"

"That’s not impossible." Ye Da accepted Chu Ping’s explanation. "Forget it. Regardless of how these flowers died, as long as they are dead, it’s only to our benefit! Chu Ping, are you still fit to fight?"

"Of course I am!" Chu Ping patted his chest. "I haven't even fully digested the life potion the Lord gave me yet. I feel like I have an endless supply of strength!"

"If there were a mirror here, I’m sure I’d see a ruddy complexion and a spirited face! Ha! Attack!!!"

"..."

Ye Da listened to Chu Ping, then looked at his face, which was already turning a sickly bluish-green, with jaundiced whites in his eyes and purple lips. He looked like he was on the verge of death.

He suspected that Chu Ping was currently in the state of a "final flare-up" before the end.

And yet... he claimed to be glowing with health and full of vitality? Ye Da couldn't bring himself to tell Chu Ping what he actually looked like.

"Lord, I'm heading out."

Chu Ping shouted his catchphrase again, which he intended to mean 'let's fight': "Attack!!"

But just as Chu Ping bent down to assume his burrowing posture, Ye Da stopped him.

"Wait! We can't act so rashly this time. We need to formulate a battle plan first, after all..."

The second half of the sentence, which he left unsaid, was: *After all, you can't afford another drain on your life force.*

Chu Ping asked, "After all what?"

Ye Da made up an excuse. "After all, acting recklessly only leads to unnecessary losses."

"The Lord is right. I was being too simple-minded." Thinking of how he had wasted several bottles of the Lord's precious life potion, Chu Ping felt embarrassed. "I am at your command, Lord."

"The plan is simple," Ye Da said. "Stay underground and don't show your face. Just do your best to destroy the roots of the Macrophage Pitcher Plants. Leave everything on the surface to me!"

"If you hear a loud explosion, retreat immediately. Do not linger!"

To ensure Chu Ping's safety, Ye Da established a retreat signal. Since Chu Ping was working underground rather than on the surface, he wouldn't hear Ye Da shouting from the valley ridge if something went wrong.

"Yes, my Lord!" Chu Ping pounded his chest with his fist. "I offer my heart to the Lord! Attack!!"

*Swish!*

Chu Ping dove passionately into the ground.

Soon after, the Macrophage Pitcher Plants in the field began to fall one by one. Their roots must have been destroyed, leaving the stems unable to support their massive heads.

As the flowers collapsed, they weren't quite dead yet. They continued to sway on the ground, oozing large amounts of plant fluid from their pitchers. Seeing the fluid seeping into the snow, Ye Da worried about the impact on Chu Ping underground.

"Bang!"

"Boom!!"

Seeing that most of the Macrophage Pitcher Plants near the bronze chest had been cleared, leaving enough room for him to descend with his grappling hook to collect the loot, Ye Da decided not to be greedy. He immediately signaled Little White to use its air-blast skill to recall Chu Ping.

"Little White, get ready to fire!"

"Woof!" Little White responded.

While waiting for Little White to charge its air blast, Ye Da didn't idle. He conjured his spiritual bow and stone arrows, helping to clear more space in the field.

He hadn't forgotten that these plants could spit acid. If he went down there and got splashed... it would be absolutely disgusting.

*Whoosh!*

Ye Da struck the stem of a Macrophage Pitcher Plant. To his surprise, the plant was remarkably resilient; a single stone arrow failed to knock it down!

Seeing that Little White had finished charging, Ye Da pointed at the plant he hadn't managed to fell. "Little White, blast it!"

Little White opened its mouth...

A small sun-like orb of air flew toward the target!

"Boom!!"

The massive shockwave flattened the flowers in the field in one direction. As for the targeted plant, not only was the stem destroyed, but half the flower was obliterated as well, with countless fluids oozing from the remnants.

The remaining Macrophage Pitcher Plants, sensing the air current, suddenly turned their heads toward the site of the blast and opened their lids to spray acid simultaneously!