Chapter 158: Growing Famished After Skipping a Meal

The flower buds bloomed rapidly; within the brief span of half a teacup’s time, all nine buds had unfurled. The fastest blossom had already reached the size of a bowl’s opening, its petals layered and overlapping. Because the flower’s stem was so long, it resembled the flowing skirt of a fairy gently swaying in the breeze.

The celestial night-blooming cereus was beautiful, fragrant, and peculiar, yet Guan Yibai, who was supplying the continuous influx of true essence to the flowers, could no longer endure the strain.

He estimated that for all nine blossoms to reach full bloom would take at least another half hour, with the demand for true essence increasing as time went on. Moreover, the peak bloom would last no longer than fifteen minutes, according to the scant words left in the jade slip from his predecessor. During that quarter of an hour, he needed to pick every flower and store them in the jar; not even with his junior brother Zhu Xian’s help could he manage it.

Had he known it would be like this, he would have requested two Wood Spirit Root Nascent Souls from Little Ying Continent to assist.

Guan Yibai sighed regretfully and ordered, “Lian, go peck down the slowest opening bud.”

The parrot responded with a chirp, fluttered its wings, and flew into the formation. It selected a half-open bud, perched on it with both feet, and lowered its head to peck at the two-finger-thick flower stem.

Guan Yibai looked up. Lian had been with him in the celestial garden all these years; its beak was sharper than a steel blade, and it often pecked at plants. The only difference today was that this celestial night-blooming cereus was rare and precious.

Sure enough, with a single peck, the parrot detached the bud. The moment the bud left the flower tree, it ceased absorbing spiritual energy and gradually withered.

Guan Yibai felt the pressure ease considerably. At this rate, preserving the remaining eight flowers was still very likely. He exhaled and said, “Alright, I’ll send a message to Uncle Zhu, tell him to hurry. Ah, with the secret realm in turmoil, he’s probably with others from the sect, and no doubt those bothersome men and women will come along upon hearing the news.”

Just as he was about to retrieve the message talisman, a series of crisp cracks sounded from within the flower stem. The blossom that had reached bowl-size suddenly burst open with a loud “bang,” its dozens of petals unfolding fully at once. Not only that flower, but the other seven also eagerly competed to bloom.

A tremendous demand for spiritual energy surged around the celestial night-blooming cereus tree, stirring a swirling mist and gusts. Guan Yibai’s whiskers fluttered in the wind as he shouted, “Disaster!”

Before he could finish, the high-level spiritual stones at the formation’s core shattered with a sharp sound. The formation flags and plates were blown high into the air; the wood-element array was broken.

Guan Yibai could no longer care about the damage to his celestial garden. He leapt up, grabbed a prepared jar, and covered the fully bloomed celestial night-blooming cereus. With his fingers channeling wood-element true essence, he swiftly severed the flower’s stem.

He hurried to collect the flower, but the massive spiritual energy required by the entire tree at that instant was forcibly drawn from other parts of the garden. In a flash, countless other plants were harmed.

Lian flew about erratically in the air, squawking loudly, “Ah! Master, the three-leaf true orchid is dead, the three-leaf true orchid is dead! Terrible, terrible, even the flower buds just formed on the ice cloud withered…”

Guan Yibai was vexed by the parrot’s noisy alarm. Just as he was about to scold it, a strange wind suddenly stirred from the ground. Several mulberry trees, recently stripped of their spiritual energy by the celestial night-blooming cereus, showed yellowed and scorched leaves. The rustling leaves in the wind added an eerie touch.

Then the leaves of the celestial night-blooming cereus also began to sway. Guan Yibai, just about to pick the second flower, was stunned to see the blossom on the verge of full bloom gradually retracting. Not just that one—six others began to show signs of decay.

Something was competing for the spiritual energy against the celestial night-blooming cereus. After a brief skirmish, the once-mighty flowers that had broken the formation and ravaged the garden were defeated.

Guan Yibai made a swift decision to pick the flower that would no longer reach full bloom. The petals of the other flowers, once like white jade, had already yellowed and blackened. Picking them now would be useless, and he felt a sharp pang of grief.

By this point, he was fully sober. He shouted sternly, “Who’s causing trouble here?” With a movement, he appeared behind a mulberry tree.

The mulberry’s trunk was as thick as an adult’s embrace—it was the hiding place of Hong Jian.

The celestial night-blooming cereus was a rare spectacle seen only once in centuries. Since Hong Jian had stumbled upon it, she was unwilling to miss it.

She had been silently hiding behind the tree, quietly watching Guan Yibai at work, clicking her tongue in wonder. Unexpectedly, the situation shifted abruptly. The celestial night-blooming cereus burst free from the formation’s constraints and began to voraciously absorb spiritual energy. When the energy reached the mulberry tree in front of Hong Jian, the dull wood-element spirit seed in her recognition sea, perhaps feeling provoked or challenged, suddenly stirred.

That slight movement was enough. The nearby spiritual energy, swirling like a cyclone, turned abruptly and rushed toward Hong Jian. The celestial night-blooming cereus seemed caught in a merciless internal conflict—its expected spiritual energy vanished, and even its previously stored reserves were instantly drained clean.

Hong Jian realized the danger and muttered, “This could be fatal.” She shrank behind the tree, intending to slip away, but her body was immediately locked by Guan Yibai’s divine sense.

This disaster had come without any warning. She couldn’t escape, and with her true essence suppressed by the Nascent Soul, resistance was impossible. But she refused to stand there and take a beating. As Guan Yibai’s palm descended, she quickly lowered her head and took the opportunity to toss the body of Pu Pingping into his arms.

A dead man! With a huge hole in his chest!

Guan Yibai, in his fury, had been too distracted to notice earlier. The sudden sight stunned him, and his palm halted mid-air.

Hong Jian was fully suppressed and couldn’t communicate by divine sense. In desperation, she croaked hoarsely, “This is Pu Pingping from the Talisman Sect. He still carries two unused talismans. Please accept them, sir, to somewhat make amends for the loss.”

Guan Yibai was taken aback. He had been in the celestial garden and had not yet heard that Pu Pingping had died in the secret realm. But with Pu’s corpse here, the fact was undeniable.

A ripple stirred in his mind. Since she had entered the secret realm and brought talismans to curry favor with him, Guan Yibai suddenly thought of someone. If it was truly the female cultivator who had followed Jiang Yan to seize the Hollow Sword, such a deed would only enrage him further.

Suspicion flared, and he carefully swept his divine sense again, his anger simmering but his face remaining cold as he scoffed, “Nonsense! Why would I want talismans from the Talisman Sect? You’ve not only messed up my celestial garden and caused all the night-blooming cereus to wither, but are you also trying to murder someone and pin it on me?”

Hong Jian was helpless. She had already learned from experience that this old Nascent Soul was two-faced. Now outmatched and caught, she had no choice but to speak truthfully, “Sir, Pu Pingping died in the secret realm, and many already know this. I merely happened upon his corpse—there’s no frame-up involved. I accidentally caused this calamity and have nothing to offer in compensation. I beg you to show mercy for my unintentional mistake. I will repay this great kindness someday.”

Under normal circumstances, Guan Yibai might have softened and released her at this point. But now, seeing the devastation throughout the garden, his anger flared. He snarled, “Release you? Dream on! Could you also be the cause of the secret realm’s collapse? Where is the extraordinary treasure? Is it with you?”

He scrutinized Hong Jian with suspicion. She felt a chill but was relieved that her wood-element spirit seed either was too full or realized the situation was beyond her control; Guan Yibai found no trace of the treasure after a thorough search. He snorted, “Coward, why hide your face? You caused this disaster, and I will hand you over to the sect leader for personal punishment.”

Hong Jian felt a headache but no panic. She said seriously, “Sir, do you truly want to do that? The secret realm has collapsed and a Golden Core from the Talisman Sect was killed. You bear an undeniable responsibility. If you let Sect Leader Yin handle this, can you explain yourself clearly?”

At first Guan Yibai dismissed her words as nonsense. Soon he realized the truth and growled, “Nonsense! How would I know you’re such a troublemaker? I only gave you the Hollow Sword because of that brat Jiang Yan…”

Hong Jian remained calm and nodded, “Good. Now you’ve implicated Elder Zhu’s disciple. Don’t you dare change your story in front of the Talisman Sect. Just say that.”