Chapter 125

Chapter 125

It was just after nightfall when the system notification came through. Inside Shen Yi’s blossom bedroom, the two of them were tugging at the blanket in a standoff.

After watching frogs mating, insects stacking, and spirit beasts bumping pairs during the day, Xi Ye had now turned his attention to Shen Yi.

“I just want to look. Let me see again. Why did it get bigger just now?” Xi Ye tugged at the blanket, his expression earnest as he negotiated with Shen Yi. He didn’t want to be different from Shen Yi, but if he wanted to grow his own, he had to figure out what it was and how it worked.

Hopefully, he could grow one during his next evolution.

Shen Yi clutched the blanket, flustered and red-faced, trying his best to appear nonchalant. “Not now. Some other time.”

But neither his ears, red as blood, nor his pounding heartbeat could be hidden. In his panic, he hastily transformed into his second form, hugging his fluffy belly while screaming internally like a marmot.

*Ahhh, he was aroused.*

*Oh my god, Xi Ye saw him aroused.*

Was there a crack in the ground he could crawl into? Help! Someone save me!

Shen Yi couldn’t face Xi Ye’s innocent, clueless expression. This guy, with such a pure face, did things that were surprisingly bold.

It made Shen Yi not even know where to direct his frustration.

What could Xi Ye possibly be at fault for? He was just curious—why did bumblebee spirits have something that flower spirits didn’t, since they were all spirits?

Curiosity and the desire to explore things beyond one’s understanding were just natural instincts for creatures.

Back then, he himself had tugged at Xi Ye’s hair to study whether the flower on his head grew directly from his scalp.

But now Xi Ye was studying things too meticulously. His brain simply lacked the concepts of “privacy” or “tact,” making Shen Yi extremely uncomfortable.

Shen Yi swore to himself that tomorrow, no matter what, he would find an opportunity to bring up “sleeping separately” with Xi Ye. It was urgent!

Xi Ye didn’t understand why Shen Yi was reacting so strongly. Half-kneeling, he saw that Shen Yi was genuinely resistant and didn’t push further. Instead, he lowered his gaze, thought for a moment, and used his spiritual power to control vines, weaving a rudimentary shape that grew out from between his legs.

Humbly, he asked Shen Yi for his opinion: “Is it like this?”

Shen Yi was stunned.

Shen Yi glanced over and found it quite novel—he’d genuinely never seen a vine-woven bird before. Who wouldn’t be curious about something they’d never seen?

He certainly was.

Shen Yi instinctively leaned forward, his eyes shining like spotlights, eager to examine it inside and out.

The slender vines weren’t thousand-thread vines, nor did they resemble the branches of Xi Ye’s Destiny Flower. The vines were smooth and emerald-green, intricately woven and coiled, with two small flowers blooming at the tip. It looked like a work of art, too artistic to seem indecent.

“Is this from your Destiny Flower’s vine?” Shen Yi was burning with curiosity. “Does it just grow directly out of your skin? Can you use it?”

Xi Ye answered whatever was asked, much more cooperative than Shen Yi: “The Destiny Flower is part of me to begin with. They’re also a part of me.”

Talk about double standards. When Xi Ye was studying him, Shen Yi was all “not this, not that,” getting flustered at the slightest provocation.

Now, roles reversed, he became the curious one, reaching out directly and even giving it a squeeze: “Can you feel that?”

Do plants have sensation? Shen Yi was genuinely curious.

Xi Ye thought for a moment and said carefully, “It’s a plant’s sensation. It’s different from what I feel in my spirit form, but I can sense the temperature of your fingers.”

“That’s pretty cool,” Shen Yi said, his mind opened up, even sounding a little envious. “So doesn’t that mean you can make it as big as you want?”

Upon hearing this, Xi Ye increased his spiritual power output. The vine-woven artistic bird glowed with a green light and swelled up right before Shen Yi’s eyes, making Shen Yi pale.

He marveled and offered a sincere suggestion: “Actually, you really don’t need to spend your evolution energy on this. What you have now is perfectly fine.”

“Really?” Xi Ye looked down, and with a thought, the vine-woven bird instantly withered without spiritual power, retracting back into his body with a swoosh, disappearing without a trace.

Shen Yi: “…” So sudden.

Xi Ye insisted stubbornly at Shen Yi: “But I want to be like you.”

“We’re different species. It’s normal for some parts to be different. No need to force it.”

Shen Yi really didn’t understand why Xi Ye was so fixated on this. He burrowed back under the blanket, adjusting his pillow: “It’s not like you’re in a hurry to find a partner. Even if you evolve one, you won’t have a use for it. There’s no rush.”

“Partner?”

“Yeah, that thing is only useful for people who have partners.” As he spoke, Shen Yi’s eyes suddenly widened, his antennae shooting upright, his face full of inquisitive excitement. “Now that I think about it, you flower spirits are like this… Don’t you date? Don’t you fall in love?”

“What is love?”

“It’s…” Shen Yi was stuck, but then he thought of a clever explanation: “It’s like those mating frogs, stacking insects, and spirit beasts bumping pairs—they’re in love.”

Shen Yi emphasized: “You have to be in love to do those things.”

Xi Ye didn’t really understand, but that didn’t stop him from having big ideas: “Then let’s fall in love.”

“We—we can’t fall in love…” Shen Yi, like a cat poked on its tail, stiffened his antennae until they nearly became antennae straight up. Hugging the blanket, he stammered, “We’re not even the same species…”

“Then wait for me to grow one.”

“…” Shen Yi slumped in defeat, sliding entirely under the blanket and covering his head, feeling completely drained. “I can’t explain this to you. Let’s sleep!”

“You haven’t agreed yet. Let’s fall in love.” Xi Ye leaned forward to pull the blanket away, trying to drag Shen Yi out, but it was as if Shen Yi had fused with the blanket—he wouldn’t budge.

Xi Ye, exceptionally patient, lay down and hugged Shen Yi through the blanket, his back facing him. He rubbed his face against the blanket: “Now we’re like the frogs, insects, and spirit beasts. We’re in love, Shen Yi.”

Shen Yi turned around as if his antennae had been stepped on, but facing Xi Ye directly felt even more awkward. Their breaths were close, warm and humid against his face. Shen Yi’s face flushed bright red.

Just then, the system alert chimed, saving him.

“Host, stop flirting for now. [Foggy Mushroom Forest] is open. Grandpa Tree’s evolution is complete.”

“What nonsense have you been reading again!” Shen Yi flinched. “Do you even know what flirting is? Stop talking nonsense.”

The system quoted a definition and even expanded on it: “Flirting refers to teasing and playful behavior between people with romantic tension.”

“What ambiguity? What ambiguity? Who’s ambiguous?”

“You hold hands, hug, rub bellies, and sleep under the same blanket. If that’s not ambiguous, what is?”

Shen Yi was at a loss for words. Was he supposed to say that even though they held hands, hugged, rubbed bellies, and slept under the same blanket, they were still just good brothers?

Shen Yi got confused by the system’s logic and actually started to feel bewildered.

But in the end, he seized on an excuse: “Xi Ye was genderless.” So what was wrong with hand-holding, hugging, or belly-rubbing?

In his haste to retort, Shen Yi forgot that Xi Ye had originally treated him like a pet—wasn’t cuddling and petting completely normal?

But Shen Yi couldn't think of all this anymore, only knowing how to get worked up: "Seems like you know too much for your own good now..."

A sudden idea flashed through his mind, and he felt enlightened: "Starting tomorrow, you’re responsible for teaching Xi Ye the birds and the bees. Make sure he gains accurate and comprehensive knowledge, at least enough to understand the concepts of privacy and sensitivity."

The system could even connect to Earth’s internet—it was all-knowing and all-powerful. What knowledge could it possibly lack?

Besides, Xi Ye was also bound to the system panel, so the system could access his panel and talk to him directly.

Why hadn’t he thought of this earlier? What was all that suffering he’d endured these past few days for?

Shen Yi took a deep breath, then exhaled heavily, full of energy crawling out from under the covers and pulling Xi Ye up. "Seems like you don’t want to sleep either. Let’s go to the [Mushroom Forest]. Grandpa Tree has woken up."

At the mention of Grandpa Tree waking up, Xi Ye instantly became serious, no longer hung up on romance.

It was already nighttime. Without disturbing Xiao Qi and the others, the two rode A Fu and teleported directly to the [Mushroom Forest].

The [Mushroom Forest] was just as they remembered—filled with towering mushrooms, giant mushroom stalks thick and towering high, with colorful spores twinkling like stars in the wind.

Floating mushrooms hovered in the air, their caps dangling strings of glowing beads. Phantom Insects emitted a soft glow, trailing elegant tentacles that opened and closed rhythmically as they drifted among the mushrooms, creating an indescribable sense of poetry.

Shen Yi first had A Fu take them to see the [Giant Velvet Sunflower]. In his memory, it had been so vast it blotted out the sky, taking up a good portion of the [Mushroom Forest], but now it was only a few meters across. Shen Yi almost didn’t recognize it.

In contrast, the forest was now filled with Holy Light Mushrooms of varying sizes, mostly on the smaller side. Shen Yi spotted a small, fist-sized cluster.

The miniature versions of the Holy Light Mushrooms looked even more delicate and adorable.

These mushrooms sprouted in clusters every few areas, some with just one or two. Shen Yi extended his spiritual sense along these Holy Light Mushrooms deep underground and saw the mycelium connected to them, spreading throughout the entire [Mushroom Forest], omnipresent.

Glistening white mycelium weaving patterns hidden beneath the earth, like a giant net enveloping the entire [Mushroom Forest].

Shen Yi thought of the [Deer Antler Tree] in the desert cavern and the life crystals in the magma crevices. Had Grandpa Tree also evolved into something like the [Deer Antler Tree]?

Based on Shen Yi’s current observations and guesses, whether it was the [Tree of Life] or the life crystals, they were born with a purpose—or rather, came into being for a reason, born from the will of the World Consciousness. They were inherently connected to the rules of heaven and earth, and when the time was right, fate would naturally push them forward.

Could a being like Grandpa Tree, who developed through later cultivation, also seize such an opportunity?

"You’re here?"

A familiar voice rang out. Shen Yi looked in surprise toward the nearest corner, where a cluster of mini Holy Light Mushrooms stood.

"Haha, no need to be surprised," Grandpa Tree laughed. "I’ve already merged with the Holy Light Mushrooms. Wherever the mycelium reaches, my consciousness is there."

Xi Ye’s calm, cool voice sounded: "But you can no longer leave the soil and move freely. Was it worth it?"

Influenced by the constraints of his Destiny Flower’s soil-bound limitations during his low-star stage, Xi Ye couldn’t accept losing his freedom.

Even for the sake of becoming stronger, he probably wouldn’t make such a choice.

Grandpa Tree gave a mysterious smile. The cluster of mini mushrooms on the ground suddenly moved, their caps swaying as their stalks bent and popped out of the soil with a plop. Then, before Shen Yi and Xi Ye’s eyes, the stalks swelled and differentiated into round eyes and limbs, transforming into a group of Mushroom Spirits crowned with Holy Light Mushroom caps.

The small mushrooms lined up in a row, moving in unison as they spun in a circle, their caps trembling with the motion, bursting with energy.