With the blood flower secured, my heart settled a bit, and I began to observe what this giant sweet potato was truly planning. Before long, the giant sweet potato retracted all its branches, leaves, and flowers back into its body. Then, its form started to shrink and change. Slowly, I realized what it was: a Ginseng Baby!

I remembered how it was portrayed in movies and on TV—a plump Ginseng Baby with pigtails wearing a little red belly band. The one before me, although lacking pigtails and a red belly band, was shrinking smaller and smaller, resembling a chubby little child more and more.

I took a careful look: no little thing. Could it be female? What in the world was this—a plant or an animal? Was it perhaps a human? A human lineage unknown to us?

It shrank until its head, arms, and thighs were all visible, its body now no different from an ordinary small child. There was some fine fuzz on its head. It struggled desperately to break free from my grasp. Startled beyond measure by this thing, I certainly wasn't letting go easily. It possessed no small strength either; the two of us tumbled around in the clear, snow-white ** water.

The pool wasn't deep, only reaching to my calves. I grabbed the giant sweet potato and pinned it down in the ** water, threatening it, "Behave yourself, or I’ll eat you!"

Whether it understood my words or not, it actually froze, not daring to move. I looked closely—wow, it was even shedding tears and crying! Could it truly be human?

This thing, indistinguishable from a normal baby, suddenly weeping softened my resolve. I had the blood flower anyway; rescuing Hua Qingqing was the priority. After all, there were still monsters outside, and I couldn't let them harm Qingqing. As for this one, I’d let it go.

I immediately released it, saying, "Stop crying, you sound like a woman. Play by yourself at home. I’m leaving. I only borrowed a flower to save someone; don't be so petty."

With that, I jumped out of the pool, clutching the blood flower as I headed out. The little doll slowly crawled out of the water, cautiously peeking out and following behind me. I ignored it and quickly exited the stone cave.

The boulder-like monsters were still pacing near the entrance, searching for targets. As soon as they spotted me, before they could even begin to transform, I zipped past them, leaving them so angry they could only swing their claws fruitlessly behind me.

Finding Hua Qingqing, I crushed the blood flower in my palm. With a slight squeeze, a drop of vivid crimson ** dripped into Hua Qingqing’s mouth. I gently opened her throat to allow the ** to penetrate deeper into her body, then quietly prayed for a miracle.

The longer I waited, the more frightened I became. Hua Qingqing showed no reaction for a long time. Could this not be the blood flower?

But the giant sweet potato flower, or perhaps the human flower? That would be tragic. I had already searched the entire basin. Did I really have to dig up the underground to find more?

Fear escalated into panic. Thump! I knelt on the ground and kowtowed several times toward the direction of the rising sun. "Buddhas and Deities, please show your divine power! Qingqing is such a good person; she can’t die! If I can’t save her, I’ll have no choice but to cause havoc in Heaven!"

A soft snicker broke the silence. "Are you the Monkey King? I'm not playing the female monkey."

"Qingqing!" I turned around. Wasn't that her? Qingqing was sitting on the ground, looking at me and smiling.

"Oh, is it not dawn yet? Or is it the evening of the second day?" Hua Qingqing asked, glancing at the night sky.

"No, it hasn't even been an hour," I replied.

Hua Qingqing reached out for me to hold her. I went over and sat down with her on the ground. She wrapped her arms around my neck, saying, "Not fun. You should have let me stay dead a little longer, at least. Death really feels like nothing. I thought there would actually be Heaven and Hell."

"Oh my god, don't scare me like that. You have no idea how I spent this last hour."

Hua Qingqing caressed my face. "You cried, Zhao Qian. You shed tears for me. I love you..."

Hua Qingqing leaned in and kissed me. As she kissed me, she guided my hand to touch her chest. I returned her kiss while gently rubbing her R-house through her clothes. Hua Qingqing whispered, "Put it inside, okay? Let me feel a real man’s touch?"

How could I refuse such a delightful offer? I lifted Hua Qingqing’s clothes, then unfastened her bra. Her R-house, which I had seen when she bathed on the big rock in the river valley, appeared before my eyes again. I immediately covered them both, and Hua Qingqing let out a soft moan, suggesting her body was quite sensitive.

We sat for a while, and then Hua Qingqing suddenly asked, "Where is the blood flower? It must have saved me, right?"

"I only picked one, and I used it on you."

Hua Qingqing looked up and scanned the surroundings. "Where is it? Let’s go pick a few more. Maybe we can transplant the whole plant."

I told her everything that had just happened. Hua Qingqing straightened her clothes as she said, "Hurry and take me to see it. Something like that—is it really not a plant?"

Just as we were about to move, Hua Qingqing embraced me again. "Zhao Qian, in the moment I was dying, I decided. You are my husband from now on, because my world can no longer exist without you. You can have my body whenever you want, but right now, we need to take care of business first. Can you bear with it for a bit?"

"Do you think I’m sexually deprived? When we get back, I’m going to deal with you slowly in the **. And I’ll call Xiao Rou over, and make you two perform ** right in front of me."

"Dream on. If you dare leak a single word about what happened between us, I’ll cut off your J-thing. Because I’m not mentally prepared yet. I don’t know how to face Xiao Rou and the others. I swore I wouldn't like you, you big flirt. To suddenly fall in love with you after only a few days out here is embarrassing."

"Alright, whatever you say goes. I can keep it a secret from them for a lifetime. Come on, I’ll take you to see that little doll."

Hua Qingqing held my arm and walked behind me. "When the time is right, I’ll tell Xiao Rou. Besides, sneaking around with me occasionally doesn't sound so bad, does it?"

I held Hua Qingqing as we passed the boulder-like monsters. There, the little doll was peeking out cautiously from behind the waterfall, trying to look outside. Hua Qingqing spotted it instantly using the light from her helmet.

The little doll saw me and was so scared it turned and bolted into the cave. Hua Qingqing and I followed closely into the stone chamber. There, it stuck its rear end up, dove headfirst into the pool, and its body was trembling.

Hua Qingqing said to me, "You must have frightened her just now."

"I asked for a flower, and it wouldn't give it up, so I had to use force," I admitted.

Hua Qingqing pushed me. "You go out first. She’s afraid of you. I’ll communicate with her."

"How can I do that! What if it tries to harm you? I can’t leave. I have to stay and protect you."

Hua Qingqing countered, "Regardless, she saved my life. And now her essence exists within me. I trust she won't save a life only to take one later."

"Still not acceptable. What if?"

Hua Qingqing pushed me outward. "Then step outside for a bit and don't let her see you. If anything happens, I’ll yell for you loudly."

Hua Qingqing was resolute, so I had no choice but to let her have her way. I found a spot outside the stone chamber and sat down. From inside, I kept hearing Hua Qingqing’s gentle, coaxing voice, like she was soothing a child. It seems she’d make a suitable mother. Maybe tomorrow I’ll plant a seed and see if she can get pregnant.

I boredly counted my fingers for a while. From the sounds inside, there shouldn't be any danger. Time dragged on, and my eyelids grew heavy. I don't know when, but I was kicked twice by Hua Qingqing.

"Get up! You said you were protecting me, and you fell asleep out here."

I shot up instantly. "Who said I was asleep? I was merely resting my eyes. Where did the giant sweet potato go? Did you persuade her to sacrifice herself for the grand plan of human survival? Hurry up and tell her to transform so we can pick a few more flowers for research."

Hua Qingqing grabbed my ear and tugged. "Keep your voice down, hubby! What if we scare Xue'er?"

A small head peeked out from behind Hua Qingqing, looked around, and then quickly retracted. "You gave her a name?" I asked.

"Yes. Look around here, it's all snow-white and transparent. And Xue'er's skin is so beautiful—snow-white and bright. Isn't Xue'er a good name?"

I argued, "She is an unknown life form. Be careful, she could be dangerous to you. Don’t get so close to her."

Hua Qingqing shook her head emphatically. "No way! From now on, she’s a person. Look how cute she is! You will be her big brother from now on, and you must protect her like you protect me, understand?"

"You plan to take her with us?"

Hua Qingqing gently took Xue'er's hand and pulled her forward. "Yes. It would be too lonely for her to stay here by herself. We’ll bring her home. We can protect her, and we can also study her amazing abilities."

"Don't be naive, Qingqing. It's very likely she can't survive outside this environment. We might end up hurting her."

Hua Qingqing frowned deeply. "Oh, you're right. How did I not think of that? I forgot that she is different from us humans."

The little one seemed to understand our words. She pulled Hua Qingqing’s hand and walked to the edge of the pool, pointed at the transparent, shimmering ** in the water, and stomped her little foot. Hua Qingqing asked, "Xue'er, are you saying if we take the ** with us, then you can come along?"

Xue'er nodded happily. It seemed she didn't like this place much either. Could she really not be a plant? Is it a strange phenomenon for an animal to flower? And where did that mass of branches, leaves, flowers, and stems go? Are they all hidden inside her belly? How big must her stomach be then? What a strange thing.

Hua Qingqing was also delighted but worried, asking, "How big a bottle will we need for so much **? The terrain here is complicated; it won’t be easy to carry out."

Xue'er held up a little bit of ** in her small hand and hopped up and down, nodding. Hua Qingqing asked, "Just taking a little bit is enough?"

Xue'er smiled. No one could tell the difference between her and a normal human, but I had clearly seen her before as just a giant sweet potato-shaped tuber. Is she a magician who can transform?

Hua Qingqing asked me for my backpack. Inside, there was a large bottle filled with nutrient solution. She poured out the solution and then went to the waterfall to fetch water, rinsing the bottle several times. Then, she filled it completely with the transparent, glittering ** from the pool. The little one watched from the side, beaming. I glanced at her, and she was so scared she immediately ducked behind Hua Qingqing.

Hua Qingqing handed the bottle to me, then picked up Xue'er, saying, "Look how scared you made the child. If you have your own children someday, and they act like this, what will you do as a father?"

I went over to comfort the former giant sweet potato. "Xue'er, be good. Can you transform back into the big flower for your big brother to see one more time, okay?"

Xue'er burrowed into Hua Qingqing’s arms and shook her head repeatedly. I clearly saw her rubbing against Hua Qingqing's chest, which made me so angry I almost spat blood. However, Hua Qingqing just laughed merrily. "Don't rush, Zhao Qian. Xue'er isn't used to us yet. When we get back and get more familiar, she’ll trust us. I’ll let her transform ten times a day for you to see, if you want."

I shouldered the backpack. "Forget it. I don't need that thing anymore anyway. You two can play dress-up when we get back; I still have to go to school."

Hua Qingqing said, "You need to prepare a few more flowers. What if another beauty needs you to save her? Then our great hero can gather more beauties, right?"

I sighed. "People already accuse me of being promiscuous. If I keep doing this, I’ll be utterly cursed. From now on, if I can avoid such things, I will."

Hua Qingqing smiled. "It's good that you understand. I need to subtly remind Xiao Rou about this, tell her to talk to those sisters back home, and make sure they keep a close eye on you in the future, so you don't go around seducing innocent young women every day."