Nearly Through

Chapter 42: Nearly Through

"Brother Bai Wen, it's only been three days, yet you've already dug a tunnel over two hundred meters long. That's way too fast! How did you do it?" Li Xuan asked Bai Wen, who looked utterly exhausted, in confusion.

Although Li Xuan did not know how quickly an ordinary person could normally dig a tunnel, Bai Wen's speed was clearly astonishing, which was why he asked.

"Xuan Ge'er, it's like this. The soil outside the Flower Sea isn't hard like ordinary dirt. Instead, it's extremely moist and soft. After soaking it with water, digging barely takes any effort. I can easily dig dozens of meters forward in a day. If I put in some overtime, digging over a hundred meters a day isn't a problem," Bai Wen explained weakly after hearing Li Xuan's question.

Over the past few days, Bai Wen had spent all his time digging the tunnel. He was truly exhausted, and once he lay down, he did not want to move again.

"Moist, soft soil... That isn't a good thing. Brother Bai Wen, when you continue digging, make sure to build proper supports. The ground here isn't sturdy, so it could collapse easily. You must carefully set up the framework before digging further," Li Xuan said after pondering for a moment.

"Don't worry, Xuan Ge'er. I noticed that too, so I put up supports every meter I dig. There's basically no risk of collapse." Bai Wen took out a piece of bread and began chewing on it.

Li Xuan nodded silently. Bai Wen was fairly reliable in his work, so there should not be any major problems with digging the tunnel.

Dozens of meters a day was already an excellent pace. In just two or three months, they could dig a fully formed tunnel. By then, he would be able to leave the Flower Sea.

Lin Mo said Chrysanthemum Douluo had given him a year, but Li Xuan did not believe Chrysanthemum Douluo would truly allow him that much time. Still, no matter how long it was, Chrysanthemum Douluo would not make a move against him within the next two or three months.

After all, the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum was still on Li Xuan, and he still had the possibility of cultivating a Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum!

Thinking of this, Li Xuan's mood improved considerably. No matter what, his chances of escaping alive were still quite high.

"Brother Bai Wen, is there anything else you need down here? I can arrange it for you," Li Xuan asked after thinking for a moment.

"Xuan Ge'er, you left me plenty of supplies. Everything I need is more than sufficient, so there's no need for anything extra," Bai Wen said, quickly waving his hand.

There was food and drink underground, and aside from digging the tunnel, there was nothing else to think about. Bai Wen rather enjoyed this kind of life.

Li Xuan shook his head as he looked at Bai Wen.

"All right, Brother Bai Wen. I'll head back first." Li Xuan cupped his fists to Bai Wen, then left the basement.

After watching Li Xuan leave, Bai Wen immediately returned to the tunnel and continued working.

As he watched the tunnel grow longer and longer, Li Xuan's mood improved as well. After all, this was the key to his escape.

Over the following days, aside from bringing Bai Wen supplies every day, Li Xuan spent all his remaining time studying the unusual flowers and plants in the Flower Sea.

After all, when Li Xuan had first applied to Chrysanthemum Douluo, he had said that he wanted to better understand the habits of these plants and lay a foundation for cultivating the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum.

As for Lin Mo, in order to secretly learn Li Xuan's abilities, he followed behind Li Xuan every day, trying to find out exactly what his abilities were.

Within the Flower Sea, Li Xuan came up with a new idea.

By using cutting techniques and the Green Spirit Liquid produced by the Little Green Bottle, he could cultivate seeds without anyone noticing.

Cuttings required fresh plant roots, stems, or leaves, and these things were difficult to preserve. Therefore, Li Xuan used the Green Spirit Liquid to propagate portions of these plants through cuttings, cultivate seeds, and collect those seeds for future needs.

It had to be said that Chrysanthemum Douluo's Flower Sea truly contained countless strange flowers and rare herbs. Plants of both precious and rare quality were everywhere.

Now that Li Xuan had collected all the seeds from these plants as part of his collection, he could use the Little Green Bottle to rapidly cultivate a great many medicinal herbs.

During this time, Lin Mo did not cause any trouble. He simply followed behind Li Xuan obediently every day, saving Li Xuan a great deal of effort.

In the blink of an eye, two and a half months had passed. Li Xuan had long since finished cultivating seeds from every precious plant in the Flower Sea. Three of his five Void Pearls were already filled with all kinds of seeds.

There were not only seeds inside, but also all kinds of mature medicinal herbs. Determined not to waste anything, Li Xuan dried them all and stored them in the Void Pearls.

There was now nothing left in the Flower Sea that Li Xuan felt attached to. He was ready to leave at any moment.

After lightly touching the Void Pearls in his belt, Li Xuan thought for a moment, left the Supervisor Mansion, and returned to his small courtyard.

Li Xuan's residence in the North District had been completed a month ago. After returning to his room, he headed directly into the basement and followed the tunnel to its depths.

The moment he reached the end of the tunnel, Li Xuan saw Bai Wen holding a Starfire Vine fruit in one hand while gently scraping away the soil before him with the other.

"Brother Bai Wen, what are you doing?" Li Xuan scratched the back of his head in confusion and asked curiously.

"Xuan Ge'er, this should be the small mountain marked on the map, right?" Bai Wen turned around with a broad smile, pointed at the exposed stone wall before him, and spoke to Li Xuan with a trembling voice.

Bai Wen had lived underground for two months. His skin was now deathly pale, making him look somewhat sickly. His smile made him look even more frightening.

"Let me see!" Li Xuan froze upon hearing Bai Wen's words, then quickly stepped before the stone wall. He reached out and scraped away the dirt, and sure enough, felt the hard rock beneath.

"That's great! Brother Bai Wen, we have a chance to leave this place!" Li Xuan said joyfully, his voice filled with delight.

"Yes! We finally have a chance to leave!" Bai Wen's voice was also filled with excitement.

"Brother Bai Wen, since we're about to leave, it's time for me to settle a few matters. How many days will it take to circle around the side and reach the back of this small mountain?" Li Xuan asked Bai Wen.

After hearing Li Xuan's words, Bai Wen thought for a moment and held up five fingers.

"Five days at most," Bai Wen said seriously.

Looking at Li Xuan, Bai Wen knew what Li Xuan intended to do. However, he had no intention of stopping him. After they left the Flower Sea, they would never return to this place. Whatever Li Xuan wanted to do, he would let him do it.

"Then all right, Brother Bai Wen. Let's work hard these next few days. Once the tunnel is through, we'll leave!" Li Xuan gave Bai Wen a deep bow.

"Brother Bai Wen, I'm heading back first. I need to make some preparations in advance!" Li Xuan said, then turned and left the tunnel without waiting for Bai Wen's reply.

Wishing all my esteemed readers a happy weekend. I worked the night shift last night and went straight to sleep after getting home...

(End of Chapter)