Sand-Grass Hidden Domain

Mu gazed at the Mountain of the End, hidden beyond the horizon, a complicated look flickering in his eyes. Then he continued speaking to Ye Chen:

"I don't know what the Fragment World you came from was like, but the one you're in now is called the Sand-Grass Hidden Domain."

Mu kindly introduced Ye Chen to the waystation he had reached on his journey.

"The landscape here is mostly grasslands, forests, and lakeshores. Plants grow in abundance, but animals are pitifully scarce. There's no native civilization, either, so I'm basically the master of this little world."

"On top of that, this world has a specific time cycle. There are twenty-four hours in a day, with eighteen hours of daylight and six hours of night. All the plants only emerge from the ground and carry out their life activities during the day. Once night falls, they're suppressed by the power of darkness. If they're exposed to the air for too long, they'll wither and die, so they have no choice but to burrow underground and lie dormant."

"When that happens, this whole world won't look anything like what you see before you. All the grasslands and forests will turn into a desert wilderness. That's why I named it the Sand-Grass Hidden Domain. It's a rather fitting name, don't you think?"

Ye Chen silently surveyed the grasslands stretching in every direction and gave a stiff nod. He clearly wasn't in the mood to joke around with Mu.

"We're on our way to the Sun-Moon Mountain Range. If nothing unexpected happens, we should get there in a little over half a month."

Mu continued explaining.

"I'll carry you the whole way, so don't worry. Just get some rest."

Hearing Mu's reassuring words, gratitude showed in Ye Chen's eyes. Then, unable to hold back his concerns, he asked Mu:

"Grandpa Mu, you really killed that Abyss Monster just now and destroyed its core, right?"

Mu heard him and calmly nodded.

"Yes. Don't worry. I know all about the regenerative traits and vital points of these Abyss creatures."

"Though the creature from the Abyss was already terribly deformed by the time I attacked, I believe it was a native Abyss creature called an 'Abyss Walker.'"

"Individuals of that species aren't very strong, but they're exceptionally sensitive to spatial fluctuations. They can also freely split apart and recombine their bodies."

Ye Chen paused for a moment, then asked again, his tone serious:

"Then, Grandpa Mu, what level do I have to reach before I'll be able to fight one?"

Mu looked Ye Chen up and down, then answered calmly:

"You're in the First Nightmare Realm now, right? After you've gone through three more rounds of nightmares, you'll be fully capable of dealing with them."

At that, Ye Chen lowered his head in silence and pondered.

I still have to go through three more nightmares?

The gap between me and it is actually that huge.

I really am still too weak.

Thinking this, Ye Chen sighed helplessly.

Across the vast grasslands, a towering green wave swept steadily toward the distant mountains.

Two figures stood atop the green wave, woven from countless vines.

One was an old man covered in colorful plants, while the other was a boy clad in a black-and-gold cloak.

The daytime temperature in the Sand-Grass Hidden Domain was far higher than in the Eternal Winter Hidden Domain, so Ye Chen no longer had to wear his thick wolf-fur coat for warmth.

However, Mu had explained that the local temperature would plummet once night fell, so Ye Chen would still have to bundle up then.

"Heh."

Standing beside Ye Chen, Mu used Space Storage to take a large pot, several portions of ingredients, and a pile of firewood from a piece of wood. He bustled around getting everything ready, then happily hummed an unfamiliar tune.

"Hmm-hmm-hmm~"

The old man then proceeded to cook right there on the surface of the vines. Yet the vines beneath the fire weren't affected in the slightest by the heat or sparks, remaining smooth and level throughout.

The bizarre, incongruous sight left Ye Chen dumbfounded. He couldn't help wondering if the vast mass of vines beneath him was a product of Mu's Innate Spirit Art, which would explain why ordinary flames couldn't affect it.

Mu busied himself on the vines for quite a while. At last, he ladled a bowl of thick mushroom and vegetable soup from the pot with a wooden bowl and cheerfully brought it over to Ye Chen.

"Here! Ye Chen, this is my specialty. Eat it while it's hot! You're still growing, after all, and you can't go without your vitamins!"

Laughing heartily, Mu handed the steaming soup to Ye Chen.

Ye Chen looked at the vivid green broth and the plump mushrooms, then glanced at the patch of mushrooms growing on Mu's head.

He knew perfectly well that Mu hadn't plucked the ingredients straight from his own head, but the corners of his eyes still twitched.

Ye Chen had already taken some emergency rations Lyle had prepared for him from his handkerchief and eaten enough to fill his stomach. But the old man had gone to all that trouble to make him a meal, and how could Ye Chen refuse such kindness? He could only accept it with gritted teeth.

"Th-thank you."

Ye Chen picked up the wooden bowl and managed a stiff smile at Mu. Then he looked at the mushrooms in the soup. After a moment's hesitation, he took several big gulps, swallowing both the broth and its ingredients.

The soup was rich and savory, the leaves crisp, and the mushrooms springy. A gentle bite released the fragrant juices unique to fungi, and the measured amount of salt blended into the broth. It tasted nothing like the horrifying concoction the boy had imagined, and had a distinctive flavor unlike anything in the Eternal Winter Hidden Domain.

After trying it, Ye Chen's eyes lit up, and his appetite opened right up.

"Heh heh heh, no need to rush, little guy. There's plenty more!"

Seeing how quickly Ye Chen's appetite had picked up, Mu grew even more delighted. He immediately ladled out several more bowls of mushroom and vegetable soup for him.

Happy New Year, everyone! Go out less and stay home more! Let's get through this flu season together!