Chapter 75 Tumbleweed (4) Bull Warrior vs. Tumbleweed

Chapter 75: Tumbleweed (Part 4) – Bull Warrior vs. the Tumbleweed Menace

Ominous clouds drifted, settling above the tumbleweeds. Unaware of the impending crisis, the tumbleweeds stood still.

Suddenly, the cloud quivered, unleashing a torrential downpour upon them.

"Splash..."

Fearing insufficient water, Da Ya unleashed her full power from the start. The sheer volume wasn't mere rain; it was as if a celestial dam had burst.

The deluge drenched the tumbleweeds, bending their leaves and branches under its weight. Their already loose seeds were washed away, swept into the yellow soil. Water mixed with earth, firmly embedding the seeds. This barren land, inhospitable to pollutants, would become the burial ground for these tumbleweed seeds.

After a while, the area around the tumbleweeds became a muddy swamp. The now seedless tumbleweeds lay lifelessly beside a corpse. Normally, once their roots detached, tumbleweeds would roll with the wind, scattering seeds. But here, there was no wind, and the rain had left them too limp to move.

The four tiptoed forward. The body on the ground was a man, likely an escaped passenger based on his clothes. His body, desiccated and contorted by the draining action of tumbleweed roots, was unrecognizable.

The four sighed at the sight. Life was frighteningly fragile.

Zhao Lan pointed ahead. "People must have run in that direction—there are many footprints."

This barren, plantless soil easily preserved footprints. From where they stood, countless frenzied imprints stretched forward.

"Further ahead is the mountain," Miao Yuanjin said worriedly. "A vegetated mountain."

As a Moon God Chosen, she was highly sensitive to pollution. Ever since leaving the vehicle, she'd felt uneasy, and now, at the edge of the yellow soil, that discomfort intensified.

"Are you okay?" Zhao Lan asked, noticing her pale face.

"I’m fine," Miao Yuanjin replied, frowning. "Pollutants make me uncomfortable, but not physically—it’s more of a psychic... repulsion. I can endure it. It’s fine."

Among the four, Miao Yuanjin had relatively strong mental resilience. Aside from Yu Xing, whose mental stability was erratic, her S-class mental fortitude surpassed most Divine Chosen, making this level of discomfort manageable.

Following the footprints, they eventually reached the end of the yellow soil, where a spectacle both magnificent and unsettling unfolded.

Ahead stood a mountain densely covered in vegetation—specifically, a strange plant Yu Xing couldn't definitively classify as either a tree or bamboo.

The plant resembled bamboo in shape, with straight, segmented trunks and leaves similar to bamboo leaves. But its color was off—it was entirely yellow, a luminous, unblemished yellow.

These yellow bamboos covered the mountain in vast clusters, as if asserting dominion over the landscape.

But now, something had changed. Along the mountain’s edge, a verdant fringe of tumbleweeds had sprouted.

Carried by the wind, the tumbleweeds had rolled here, only to be blocked by the bamboo forest.

Compared to the towering yellow bamboos, the tumbleweeds seemed outmatched, but their growth rate was alarming.

The four watched as a large patch of mature tumbleweeds detached from the ground and rolled uphill, only to be stopped by the yellow bamboo forest. The seeds scattered among the bamboos, and soon, a new patch of tumbleweeds sprouted where only bamboo had once stood.

The tumbleweeds grew rapidly, shedding seeds that sprouted into more tumbleweeds, which in turn shed even more seeds.

In no time, the ground beneath the tall yellow bamboos was overrun with tumbleweeds, their spread accelerating as they climbed higher.

Suddenly, Da Ya pointed at the yellow bamboos near the mountain’s edge. "Are they... flowering?"

Indeed, the yellow bamboos were blooming—but only those at the edge.

Yu Xing recalled hearing that bamboo flowering signaled the end of its life cycle, a harbinger of demise. But she had also read in a magazine that bamboo flowers when it can no longer draw enough nutrients from the soil, resorting to reproduction before dying.

If this bamboo-esque flora was flowering, did that mean it was about to perish?

As if confirming her thoughts, the flowering yellow bamboos swiftly bore seeds before their leaves withered and fell. Within two minutes, they stood as skeletal husks.

The now-leafless stalks gradually lost their luster, and tumbleweed seeds drifted onto them, sprouting anew.

"This..." Zhao Lan was stunned. "It’s like a vegetal carnage."

"I’ve never seen plants fight like this before," Da Ya muttered, displeased. "Did the tumbleweeds win? These things have killed so many people!"

Given their past experiences, they all nursed a visceral hatred for tumbleweeds. Even knowing the yellow bamboos were hardly benevolent, they still hoped the bamboos would prevail.

But the yellow bamboos flowered in droves, then withered just as quickly. The tumbleweeds swiftly subjugated the mountainside.

Yu Xing scrutinized the tracks leading into the hills. If the tumbleweeds continued unchecked, those hiding in the mountains would surely die.

"We have to find a way to destroy the tumbleweeds," Yu Xing whispered.

"I support that," Miao Yuanjin said, raising her hand first. She, too, despised the tumbleweeds.

"But how?" Zhao Lan mused anxiously, watching the botanical warfare. "Against tumbleweeds, all we can do is run. To wipe them out, we’d need military backup to torch the infestation."

"Could I drench them with rain again?" Da Ya asked.

"No," Zhao Lan shook her head. "The mountain soil is hospitable to tumbleweed propagation. If the seeds fall there, they’ll just grow back."

"If only... Da Ya’s rain could mix with something," Yu Xing mused, stroking her chin thoughtfully. "Like pesticide."

"That’s a good idea," Zhao Lan acknowledged, then sighed. "But we don’t have pesticide. Even if we did, how would we mix it into the rain?"

As Yu Xing wrestled with the problem, Miao Yuanjin suddenly said, "Actually, we have something far more devastating than pesticide."

Her three companions stared blankly.

Miao Yuanjin shot Yu Xing a knowing look. "What if we made the tumbleweeds... unlucky?"

"..."

"If only Xingxing could fly," Zhao Lan sighed. "If she could, she could levitate midair, let Da Ya’s rain pass through her first, then fall onto the tumbleweeds below. That’d wipe them out for sure."

As they debated how to use Yu Xing’s Divine Skill against the tumbleweeds, the situation on the mountain shifted again.

Where yellow bamboos once dominated, not a trace of gold remained. The entire mountain was now overrun by a sea of viridian tumbleweeds. Amid their unchecked proliferation and seeding, a behemoth tumbleweed emerged at the center.

Tumbleweeds were grass, not trees—though they resembled small shrubs, their stems and branches were thin and weak. But this new tumbleweed was different. It was enormous, growing twice as tall as a regular tree in minutes, its dense foliage eclipsing the heavens.

The titanic tumbleweed swayed in the wind, its branches shaking off seeds like rain. Unlike ordinary tumbleweeds, it didn’t detach and roll away. Instead, it stood firm, propagating with horrifying prolificacy.

This was...

"A Tumbleweed Sovereign?!" Da Ya gasped.

Yu Xing wavered internally. She did have a way to deal with the tumbleweeds—or rather, the Bull Warrior did. But how could she invoke the Bull Warrior's power without revealing herself?

"What do we do?" Miao Yuanjin urged. "Don't just zone out—think of something!"

Yu Xing: "Uh..."

Hearing this, her companions leaned in expectantly, expecting a solution.

Yu Xing: "I... need to relieve myself."

"......"

Instantly, all three faces twisted into dramatic expressions—Miao Yuanjin looked utterly disgusted, Zhao Lan was visibly awkward, and Da Ya said, "I need to go too."

Yu Xing: "...No, thanks."

Da Ya: "Why not?"

"I gotta... take a dump." Yu Xing gave a shy smile.

"I don't care." Da Ya beckoned to her. "Let’s go together. It’s dangerous to go alone outside the walls."

Zhao Lan also urged, "Yeah, it’s best if we don’t separate for anything."

"But..." Yu Xing racked her brain and finally came up with an airtight excuse. "I can’t do my business with people around."

"......"

Yu Xing finally ditched her friends. She returned to the big rock where they'd used rainwater on the tumbleweed earlier. Hidden behind the rock, she peeked at her three friends—they were all staring toward the mountain, paying no attention to her.

Sweet!

Yu Xing quickly put on the Celestial Serpent Feathered Robe, transforming it into the Bull Warrior’s classic getup. This time, she made a slight modification—adding a hood to the red coat to cover her hair, so there was no chance of being recognized.

Once ready, she pulled out her broomstick and magic wand.

"Why isn’t she back yet?" Miao Yuanjin glanced back toward the rock.

"Give her time," Zhao Lan said. "These things take time."

"Yeah," Da Ya added with deep understanding. "Once, I was in too much of a hurry and made myself bleed. It hurt all night."

"......" Miao Yuanjin was speechless. Now of all times, they were seriously discussing *this*?

"We've gotta take out this tumbleweed," Zhao Lan said, staring at the enormous plant. "Otherwise, the train passing through here will be in serious danger. We'll have another train disaster like today."

"Are we actually up for this?" Da Ya felt helpless. Inside the wall, she had thought the Divine Chosen seemed awesome—able to deal with pollution sources and even fight better than others.

But outside the wall, she realized the Divine Chosen weren’t much stronger than ordinary people.

"Man, if only a superhero would show up," Da Ya mused, imagining the handsome protagonist from movies who saved the world. "If he could destroy the tumbleweed, I’d totally be his leading lady."

Miao Yuanjin was ready to tell her she was dreaming when Zhao Lan suddenly widened her eyes. "What’s that?!"

All three looked where she was pointing. A red figure was slowly rising into the air, backlit by the golden sunset. She wore the terrifying yet artistically striking Bull Warrior Mask, her fiery coat flapping behind her like some badass cape.

Her right hand was raised high, and even the broomstick beneath her seemed weirdly fitting...

"Is that..." Zhao Lan stared at the flying figure, too stunned to speak.

"Bull Warrior!" Da Ya gasped. "Isn’t that the one from... the amusement park pollution incident? The one who went viral..."

Miao Yuanjin frowned in confusion. "Why is Bull Warrior here? How did she get outside the wall?"

Yu Xing rode her broomstick, flying over huge patches of tumbleweed until she hovered above the largest one.

The giant tumbleweed seemed to sense the threat. Its branches trembled, and instead of dropping seeds to the ground, they came shooting at Yu Xing like freaking bullets.

Yu Xing blinked in surprise—tumbleweed could do *this*?

She dodged nimbly in the air until one seed struck her sleeve. Realizing the Celestial Serpent Feathered Robe blocked it, she breathed easier.

Raising her wand high, she shouted, "Avada Kendagua!"

A lightning bolt came crashing down, striking the tumbleweed, blowing one of its limbs clean off, the broken end still smoking.

"Yes!" Da Ya whooped with excitement. "Bull Warrior, kill it!"

"Avada Kendagua!!"

"Avada Kendagua!!!"

The tumbleweed fought back, trying to dodge. But it was no longer an ordinary tumbleweed—it had grown massive, stronger.

Yet it had also lost its ability to detach from the ground. Its roots were deeply embedded, unable to roll away like regular tumbleweeds.

Lightning kept hammering down relentlessly until only the main stem remained. But it wasn’t dead—instead, a whole section of nearby tumbleweeds just shriveled up, and the giant plant began regrowing.

New branches sprouted from the stem, leaves unfurling once more.

And on the withered patch, new tumbleweeds popped up almost immediately.

"This isn’t cutting it," Zhao Lan said anxiously. "Their roots must be connected. If we don’t destroy them all at once, they’ll just keep regenerating."

Hearing this, Da Ya panicked and yelled at Yu Xing, "You got this, Bull Warrior! Don’t give up!!"

Yu Xing, considering whether to use her ultimate move, nearly fell off her broomstick from the sudden shout.

"Stop yelling," Miao Yuanjin quickly covered Da Ya’s mouth. "It’s embarrassing—you're acting like some obsessed fangirl."

Da Ya: "Mmmph!"

As the giant tumbleweed neared full regrowth, Yu Xing knew it was time to bring out the big guns.

Raising her wand high, she subtly flicked a small stone from her sleeve with her left hand. It landed silently on the tumbleweed.

Worried her ultimate might not finish it, she first used the Broomstick Star Skill to curse it with misfortune. Double-tapping to be sure.

Would Zhao Lan and the others notice the stone?

Yu Xing wasn’t worried. From this distance, tossing such a tiny pebble—if they could see *that*, they'd have to have freaking X-ray vision.

The pebble landed. Nothing happened.

Yu Xing jabbed her wand forward and roared, "Let thunder shatter the darkness!!!"

The moment she spoke—

A blinding flash of lightning exploded outward from her, spreading across the sky. The thunder was deafening.

Below, Zhao Lan and the others heard nothing but the deafening roar. The mountains, trees, sky, sunset—everything disappeared in the electrical storm.

For a moment, they forgot time, space, even thought—consumed entirely by the spectacle.

Then, as suddenly as it started, the storm ceased.

The sky and sunset reappeared, the world coming back into focus.

They saw Bull Warrior still suspended in midair, hands clutching the broomstick, looking down below.

Compelled by curiosity, they also glanced downward. Where the once enormous tumbleweed had stood, only a deep pit remained, with the surrounding ordinary tumbleweeds mostly withered.

The remaining tumbleweeds no longer displayed their former dominance, wilting in scattered clumps here and there.

Suddenly, Yu Xing turned her head toward a direction, having heard a strange noise.

Under her gaze, something yellow emerged from the gaps between the tumbleweeds. Squinting harder, she realized they were bamboo shoots.

Those yellow bamboos weren’t dead—they'd just been lying dormant.

Once the tumbleweeds lost their dominance, the yellow bamboos would break through the soil and retake this terrain.

Yu Xing had initially considered whether to eliminate the remaining tumbleweeds one by one, but now she knew it wasn’t necessary—the yellow bamboos wouldn’t spare them.

Just as she was about to leave, she noticed a faint glimmer in the pit surrounded by bamboo shoots.

She steered her broomstick downward. The rapidly growing bamboo shoots automatically parted and trembled as they neared Yu Xing, as if afraid of her—the one who had single-handedly destroyed the tumbleweeds.

At the bottom of the pit, Yu Xing found a purple orb.

A pollution core!

Overjoyed, she quickly stashed it away. It made sense—tumbleweeds were pollutants, so of course they’d have a pollution core.

With this thought, Yu Xing glanced around. This was outside the Wall, where pollutants were everywhere. Suddenly, she felt… like she might hit the jackpot?

After securing the pollution core, Yu Xing swiftly flew her broomstick in another direction before doubling back stealthily.

She'd barely left when she heard Da Ya’s excited voice behind her.

"Bull Warrior!!!"

"Take us with you!!!"

Yu Xing: "..."

Wiping cold sweat from her brow, Yu Xing thought, *Don’t worry, I’ll come back for you soon.*

"Waaah…" Da Ya covered her mouth, nearly in tears. "So amazing, absolutely mind-blowing… so cool, so heroic… She’s even cooler than a superhero! This is what a Divine Chosen should be like! Why am I just a Rain God Chosen? Why can’t I be the Beloved of the God of Thunder and Lightning? Ugh, I want to be like her too…"

"Enough," Zhao Lan patted her shoulder. "Don’t anger the Rain God."

Miao Yuanjin also stared at the sky where Bull Warrior had vanished. Clenching her teeth, she muttered, "It’s nothing special. The God of Thunder and Lightning is just a lesser god. I… I’ll get a flight rig too."

On her covert return, Yu Xing encountered several nightmarish-looking birds that attacked her on sight. She made quick work of them with Avada Kendagua.

Finally slipping back behind the rocks, Yu Xing hurriedly changed back into her regular clothes.

As she did, she remembered something and opened the backend of the Transmigrator Trade Forum. She noticed her progress as a Level 2 Broomstick Star had reached 3/10.

The first progress update had been at Sister Xiu’s barbershop, the second in Room 1601 after resolving Cui Anan’s diary. Now, after dealing with the tumbleweeds, her progress ticked up again.

Yes!

Yu Xing couldn't wipe the grin off her face. At this rate, her Broomstick Star Skill would level up again before long.

Just as she was reveling in this thought, a voice suddenly piped up beside her, "What are you smiling about?"

Turning, she found her companions standing nearby.

Miao Yuanjin pinched her nose. "What kept you?"

*Why are you pinching your nose when I haven’t even used the bathroom…*

Almost busted, Yu Xing quickly explained, "Oh, that’s because… because… it was all just so overwhelming, I was stunned."

"Right?!" Da Ya slapped Yu Xing’s shoulder. "Wasn’t Bull Warrior totally badass?"

Yu Xing glanced at her hand, thankful for her Celestial Serpent Feathered Robe—otherwise, Da Ya would’ve been in trouble.

"Absolutely," Yu Xing smiled. "Seriously next-level."

"We’re totally on the same wavelength!" Da Ya excitedly hugged Yu Xing’s shoulder. "I’ve never seen such an incredible Divine Chosen. What level do you think she is? Could she be, like, a legendary Tier 6 Divine Favored?"

She then poked Miao Yuanjin. "You used to live in the First City—have you ever seen a Divine Chosen that powerful?"

Miao Yuanjin clenched her teeth. "I’m still young. One day, I’ll be just as strong. No—stronger!"

Just as she finished her pep talk to herself, Da Ya added, "By the time you’re that strong, Bull Warrior will be even stronger, won’t she?"

"...Hmph!" Miao Yuanjin turned away petulantly, though inwardly, she was burning with envy at what she'd seen.

One day, she too would soar beyond the Wall on a flight rig, casting Purify Holy Light with a wave of her hand, purifying all contaminants in her path…

"Let’s continue the search and rescue," Yu Xing quickly changed the subject to divert attention from Bull Warrior. "Any more delays, and more people might die."

They arrived beneath the yellow bamboo grove, with trepidation.

These yellow bamboos had resisted the tumbleweeds—they were clearly tainted. Walking through them, they had no idea if they'd come under attack.

Edging toward the grove cautiously, Yu Xing was just as concerned about the bamboos lashing out.

So she raised her hand, nipping at her middle finger's glove to pull it off. Then she reached out, going to touch a bamboo stalk.

Before she could make contact, the bamboo trembled, then shrank back slightly, avoiding her touch.