Chapter 70: The Flower King
“Master, your cooking just keeps getting better,” Shen San said, marveling at the spread before him.
Many of his friends had picked up the cooking profession in the game, but they were all stuck at their starting levels. Even the few who managed to rank up were still just low-level chefs. Only his master had managed to skyrocket from an intermediate chef all the way to the Grandmaster tier.
Looking at the table filled with glowing, Gold-quality dishes, his hands trembled slightly around his chopsticks. Gold-tier items have never even appeared in the game before! he thought. And now, they’re going straight into my stomach.
Seeing her apprentice enjoy the meal so much filled Lu Yunxi with a sense of pride. That’s right—even though she had been an absolute disaster in the kitchen in her past life, she was a top-tier chef now!
“Master, don’t worry!” Shen San suddenly declared, his eyes burning with renewed motivation. “I’ll study hard. Once I master these recipes, I’ll cook for you every single day!” He refused to believe he’d never be able to surpass her cooking skills.
For the rest of the journey, Shen San took over the cooking duties. Lu Yunxi was more than happy to relax, offering a few pointers from the sidelines from time to time.
Just like that, the two of them eventually arrived at the edge of the Flower Continent.
“Master, how can you be sure your aunt is even here?” Shen San asked.
“I’m not entirely sure,” she admitted, resting her chin in her hand thoughtfully. “But my mother always said her hometown was a beautiful place… And doesn’t everyone say the Flower Continent has the most beautiful scenery?”
Shen San gave her a hesitant look, thinking to himself: Most people view their hometowns through rose-tinted glasses. Everyone says their hometown is beautiful, but…
“Let’s go!” Ignoring her apprentice’s skeptical expression, she did a quick warm-up and dove straight into the water toward their destination.
Shen San had no choice but to follow suit. His last thought before losing consciousness in the currents was: Every time we cross to a continent, we have to throw ourselves into the sea. Isn’t there a normal way to travel?!
“Master, you’ve already eaten three bowls of fried flower petals. Are you still not full?” Shen San looked at her in astonishment, his eyes unconsciously drifting down toward her stomach.
Lu Yunxi swatted the back of his head. “Brat, where are you looking?!”
The old lady running the shop smiled so broadly that the wrinkles around her eyes crinkled. “You two have such a wonderful relationship! Are you here for the Flower Festival?”
Ignoring the implied assumption that they were a married couple, Lu Yunxi homed in on the key phrase. “The Flower Festival?”
“Yes,” the old lady replied, her eyes filling with nostalgia as she looked at a vase on the table. “Every year during the festival, the young people present the most beautiful flowers they can find to the Flower King. Whoever presents the Flower King’s favorite bloom receives a special gift from him.”
“A gift? What kind of gift?”
“I don’t know,” the old lady admitted, shaking her head.
“What?!” Lu Yunxi exchanged a look with Shen San. “This festival has been going on for so long, and no one actually knows what the prize is?”
Could this be some sort of pyramid scheme? she wondered. Is it just a scam to trick people into participating?
Lu Yunxi and Shen San exchanged skeptical glances. Neither of them were the type to meddle in other people’s business, so they didn’t dwell on it. A Flower Festival wasn’t important to them anyway!
“Auntie, we’re actually looking for someone named Lu Zhuniang. Do you happen to know her?” Shen San asked. His contacts had reported a sighting of a ‘Lu Zhuniang’ on some unnamed mountain, but the mountain ranges here were endless. Their best bet was to ask the locals.
“Lu Zhuniang?” The old lady frowned in thought. “I know everyone living in the central regions of the Flower Continent, but I’ve never heard that name. You’ll probably have to search the mountains for her.” She paused, then added, “If you don’t want to trek through the ranges, you could try asking the Flower King… But the Flower King rarely grants favors to outsiders, unless they manage to win first place in the Flower Festival.”
“The festival is in three days. You still have plenty of time to go pick something.”
“Master, are we really going to meet the Flower King with these?” Shen San finally asked, unable to hold back any longer as he stared at the meager handful of wild blossoms in his master’s grasp.
The Flower Continent was teeming with exotic flora, most of which he had never seen before. Yet his master had literally just plucked a few ordinary daisies from the side of the dirt road. It was far too casual.
“Let’s just go check out this Flower King first,” she replied. She was highly skeptical of the whole thing. How could a giant flower act like a GPS tracker for missing persons?
Clutching the roadside weeds, the two of them bypassed the mountain and arrived at the widest, most open clearing in the Flower Continent.
There was only a single flower here. But it was massive—almost the size of a full-grown elephant.
Just as Lu Yunxi was about to step forward, Shen San threw an arm out to stop her. “Master, wait a moment. Let me scout it out first. Stay back until I’m sure it’s safe.” Drawing the heavy broadsword from his back, Shen San cautiously approached.
Her eye twitched. Seeing her apprentice gearing up for a boss battle, she quickly shoved half of her crushed daisies into his free hand.
Shen San crept closer, but the Flower King remained perfectly still, blooming quietly like any ordinary plant.
“Flower King? Are you the Flower King?” Shen San called out, keeping his broadsword raised as he inched forward. “Flower King, I heard you are incredibly powerful and know everything about the geography of this land…”
However, no matter what Shen San said, the Flower King didn’t react. It was completely motionless.
After watching this one-sided conversation for a minute, Lu Yunxi confidently strode forward.
“The old lady said you give out gifts, but you just look like an oversized, normal flower to me. What exactly is the prize? Because if you can’t actually help us find the person we’re looking for…” She trailed off mid-sentence.
The massive petals suddenly unfurled completely, leaning down and slowly moving closer to her face.
Startled, she instantly cast a magical protective shield. She took a few slow steps backward, trying to distance herself from the giant, animated plant. Seeing the movement, Shen San immediately leaped in front of her to shield her.
Lu Yunxi stood frozen. Even though the flower had no eyes, she got the eerie sensation that it was staring right at her.
“Human, what are you doing here?” an ancient, worldly voice suddenly echoed through the clearing.
Lu Yunxi’s eyes went wide. “Who said that? Shen San, did you just hear a voice?”
“It’s the flower… the flower is talking,” Shen San replied, looking equally shocked. He had just spent ten minutes yelling at it with no response, yet now it was moving and speaking.
“Otherworldly human… this is no place for you to linger…” the Flower King’s ethereal, ancient voice boomed again.
Lu Yunxi’s heart dropped into her stomach. Otherworldly human? What did that mean? Did the Flower King somehow know she had transmigrated into this game world?!
“What are you waiting for? Return quickly. Go back to where you belong!” After delivering this cryptic warning, the Flower King retreated to its original upright position, falling perfectly still and quietly blooming like an ordinary plant once more.
“Master, are you okay?” Shen San’s sudden question made her heart skip a beat.
Oh no! Shen San heard what the Flower King just said. Is he going to guess the truth…?
“Master, what did the Flower King mean by that? Is there some hidden secret about your background?” Shen San looked at her with intense curiosity and inquiry, clearly convinced he had stumbled upon some massive lore reveal.
Her panic instantly evaporated, replaced by profound relief. Of course. He thought the Flower King was triggering a background lore event for her NPC character. He probably thought he had just unlocked a special hidden questline!
Lu Yunxi laughed inwardly at the misunderstanding. An idea forming in her mind, she put on a melancholic expression, shook her head with a heavy sigh, and remained completely silent.
Shen San’s imagination immediately ran wild. From then on, he watched her with newfound respect, nodding to himself from time to time. He even started bringing her all sorts of novel trinkets and gifts, clearly attempting to grind her “favorability rating” to unlock the next stage of her supposed quest.
His relentless gift-giving continued right up until the day of the Flower Festival.
