Chapter 61: A Visitor from Flower City
“General Wu.”
As the car gradually slowed down, Zhou Qian spoke earnestly, “Thank you for the sacrifice you made back then. Over the past five years, the Rose Corridor has continuously protected us.”
“The powerful mutant beasts and plants from the wastelands can’t enter, and those reckless citizens haven’t dared to venture out.”
“It gave us time to recover and adjust to society.”
“We’re truly grateful to you.”
The young man in the backseat slightly turned his head. Beneath his thick black brows, his deep eyes gazed at the rose corridor blooming like clouds in the distance. He spoke in a voice barely above a whisper:
“…Yes.”
“We gave up far, far too much for it…”
After a pause, he sighed and asked, “Has it always been like this?”
Zhou Qian was a little confused.
“Always like what?”
Then he chuckled awkwardly, realizing the question probably wasn’t directed at him — just a passing remark.
Everyone knew that wood-type cultivators could communicate spiritually with the plants they nurtured with their heart and soul.
The Rose Corridor had bloomed ceaselessly all these years, ensuring Flower City’s peace. All of it was thanks to the current Guardian Officer, the savior of Flower City from back then, the one who had truly brought the corridor to life—
Wu Yue.
General Wu.
But upon seeing Zhou Qian’s awkward smile, Wu Yue seemed taken aback. Then he leaned back into the seat in silence.
After a moment, he instructed the front seat, “Where’s the old lady?”
The uniformed Guardian soldier in the front replied methodically, “She went shopping this morning after resting. Said she hadn’t been back in years and wanted to soak in the hometown atmosphere.”
Hometown…
Wu Yue tugged at the corner of his mouth, then rubbed his forehead reflexively. “Someone’s following her, right? Her card’s got a spending limit?”
The soldier hesitated. “An assistant is with her.”
Wu Yue’s expression darkened. As the car neared the Rose Corridor, the blooming flowers swayed gracefully in the wind—clearly something important awaited.
Zhou Qian didn’t fully understand, but sensing it was a personal matter, he wisely held his tongue.
He just eased off the gas. “When it’s in a good mood, we’re allowed to drive up to here. Any closer, and sometimes it lashes out—it doesn’t like us much.”
He added, “But if General Wu wants to approach, it shouldn’t be a problem.”
After all, most plants, no matter how temperamental or mutated, held great affection for their nurturer.
Surprisingly, Wu Yue only silently stepped out of the car and stood by its side, gazing into the distance.
Zhou Qian was curious.
After all these years, wouldn’t he want to reconnect?
But wood-type matters weren’t something he—who had only received light enhancements—could understand.
The man who had once caused the blooming of this massive, cloud-like Rose Corridor likely shared an incredible level of communion with it.
Distance, perhaps, was just physical.
Zhou Qian could accept that. But the soldier beside Wu Yue looked puzzled:
“You’re not going over?”
Wu Yue shook his head. His handsome face was filled with silence and sorrow. He stood there like a man gazing at his long-lost lover—his longing and reluctance practically visible in the air.
Zhou Qian snapped out of it and realized he was letting his imagination run wild.
But General Wu had already composed himself and turned to confirm:
“You’re sure Lin Xuefeng went to the wastelands through the Rose Corridor? How did you verify that?”
Though the details had already been reported, Zhou Qian still responded with meticulous care:
“The Rose Corridor has been showing unusual activity lately, likely affected by the heavy rains… During one of the recent incidents, we went to investigate and found a young girl living alone near it.”
“Her ID has no official affiliation. It lists her as 18 years old—the standard age issued on Flower City’s Open Day. Her residence was assigned to the former site of Rose Manor No. 1.”
“She claimed General Lin Xuefeng once told her he intended to go to the wastelands…”
Zhou Qian recounted the events as told by Huaiyu, trying his best to stay objective. He pointed toward the faint outline of a small treehouse:
“The girl had in her possession a permanent ice sculpture—an ice-type power artifact—with Lin Xuefeng’s name engraved on it.”
“We can’t be 100% sure the signature is his, so we filed a report…”
Many more details were already submitted in that report, so he skipped repeating them now.
But Wu Yue, after some thought, asked a completely unrelated question:
“You said the girl’s name is Huaiyu? Which ‘Huai’? Which ‘Yu’? Like the phrase ‘Huai Jin Wo Yu’?”
Zhou Qian froze for a second, then replied seriously, “No—‘Huai’ as in cherish, ‘Yu’ as in elm tree.”
“And…”
He hesitated. “We relaxed age rules on Flower City Open Day to simplify management and support independent living.”
“Her ID says 18, but from what I saw, she’s likely only about 16—still just a young girl.”
This had nothing to do with Lin Xuefeng’s whereabouts, but since Wu Yue asked, Zhou Qian still answered properly, even if it seemed odd.
“She’s only in her teens…”
Wu Yue’s melancholy seemed to deepen. He sighed and gestured toward the treehouse:
“Go retrieve that ice sculpture.”
Zhou Qian paused, not understanding why Wu Yue wouldn’t go himself. Wouldn’t investigating the scene yield more clues?
Surely it wasn’t just because the Rose Corridor was nearby?
No matter the doubts in his mind, Zhou Qian followed the order and headed toward the treehouse.
Meanwhile, Wu Yue looked out over the sea of grass and the romantically blooming corridor. He gave a bitter smile, then unconsciously stepped forward, murmuring:
“Surely… you’re not still mad after all these years?”
Just as the thought passed, the Rose Corridor’s thorns shot upright, and the serrated leaves gleamed with blade-like sharpness!
Petals whipped violently in the wind, and the air split with slicing sounds like knives tearing through fabric.
