When I Became a Flower, I Was Just a Flower

"What are you looking at so intently?"

Lin Qing walked over with a smile, his voice startling Er Ni.

"Ah Qing!"

Er Ni looked up, her eyes instantly curving into crescents, gleaming with delight.

She waved the thick ledger in her hand.

"I'm looking over the restaurant's accounts from last month."

"Revenue was fifty percent higher than the month before, but... the growth seems to be slowing down.

She pointed at the figures, explaining them with remarkable clarity.

"Not bad. You've improved."

Lin Qing sat down beside her.

"It's normal for growth to slow. There are only so many people in Suotuo City, and the market is about to be saturated. Our business here is nearly at its limit."

Er Ni blinked and asked somewhat anxiously, "Then... what should we do?"

"Simple."

Lin Qing gave a mysterious smile.

"We just need to set our sights farther."

"A restaurant doesn't have to exist only in Suotuo City."

"We can open branches in other cities, one after another."

"First, we'll establish ourselves in several other major cities of the Balak Kingdom, then slowly expand outward. And restaurants aren't the only business we can do—we can diversify into other ventures too."

"Maybe one day, our business will spread across the entire continent."

He looked beyond the courtyard wall toward the distant horizon, his voice carrying calm certainty.

"..."

Er Ni was a little stunned as she stared blankly at Lin Qing's profile.

Business across the entire continent?

That goal sounded as vast as the sky.

Yet when Lin Qing said it, it somehow felt perfectly natural, as if it were as ordinary as eating and drinking—something that simply had to succeed.

"I... I'll study hard!"

She came back to herself and nodded firmly, a small, unyielding flame igniting in her eyes.

She had to help Ah Qing!

"No rush. Take it one step at a time. Keeping your feet on the ground is better than anything else."

Lin Qing smiled and patted her shoulder.

"Money is something you can never finish making in this world."

"And, Sister Er Ni, making money with this restaurant is only one part of it. More importantly, we're building a network to gather information and channels to circulate it quickly."

"You need to have the sharper employees keep their eyes and ears open, listen to what all kinds of people are talking about."

"Especially news about Soul Masters—where rare soul beasts have appeared, what certain Soul Masters are up to, what fresh developments the various academies have... Sometimes, that kind of information is worth more than gold."

Er Ni listened with great seriousness, memorizing every word and nodding solemnly. "Mm, I'll remember it."

As far as Lin Qing himself was concerned, having enough money was enough.

Soul Bones were already priceless and unavailable in this era. Even if he wanted to buy them, there was nowhere to do so.

What was truly useful to him were rare medicinal herbs and Whale Rubber.

Beyond that, what he valued more were the information and personal connections that flowed through commerce.

Restaurants attracted all sorts of people from every walk of life, making them perfect places to gather intelligence.

Of course.

He also had an even bigger plan in mind, one he had not yet explained to Er Ni in detail.

He wanted to build a commercial network that could spread through every city in the shortest possible time.

Ordinarily, such a thing would be as difficult as reaching the heavens.

But who told him that his mind contained all the experience and insights of a "great profiteer," along with a crystal-clear understanding of this continent's future commercial trends?

He was very confident.

Moreover, this vast commercial network was crucial to his future plans. At critical moments, it could become a trump card that saved his life.

"Oh, right."

Lin Qing lowered his voice until it was nearly a whisper.

"Have trustworthy people quietly buy up Whale Rubber. It isn't too expensive yet, but the benefits... Sister Er Ni, you understand. It's definitely a treasure."

"Let's stockpile as much as we can while we have the chance and keep the bulk of this resource in our own hands."

"Alright."

Er Ni agreed without hesitation.

"Also, keep an eye on what's happening at the Soul Master Academies."

Lin Qing pondered for a moment.

"See whether any academies, especially advanced Soul Master Academies, are struggling financially and need sponsors."

"Sponsor academies?"

Er Ni was a little surprised.

She had not expected Ah Qing to do such a charitable thing.

"Yes, sponsor them."

Lin Qing smiled, and there was a different sort of meaning in that smile.

After receiving so many benefits from the "great profiteer" and making so much money, he ought to promote that fellow's philosophy of "being kind to others and investing in the future," shouldn't he?

Of course, this was also to build a bit of goodwill in advance for a move he would make soon.

Though Er Ni did not fully understand the deeper meaning, she trusted Lin Qing completely.

"I understand. I'll keep watch."

"Mm, keep busy for now. I'm heading back to my room."

Lin Qing stood up and had only taken two steps toward his room.

"Hm?"

Without warning, a familiar and strange sensation surged through his heart.

He immediately quickened his pace.

He shoved open the door.

Just as expected!

A pitch-black Ash Urn sat quietly on the table in the center of the room.

[ Ding! You have received the relic of 'Immortal Herb Lin Qing'! ]

[ Would you like to listen to the final words immediately? ]

"Immortal Herb?"

Lin Qing blinked.

He stared at the newly appeared Ash Urn on the table, inwardly grumbling in confusion.

He walked to the table, bent over, and examined it closely.

This urn was somewhat different from the previous ones.

There was no portrait of a person on its surface at all—only a flower, an exquisitely detailed flower.

Its petals overlapped layer upon layer, as though it were alive.

An odd symbol was carved at its center. At first glance, it resembled a half-closed eye.

Lin Qing's mouth twitched.

"Well, damn..."

He muttered to himself, "This time he isn't even pretending to be human? He turned straight into a flower?"

This system's methods of finding versions of himself from Parallel Worlds were getting wilder and wilder.

He shook his head.

Though he inwardly complained about how absurd this was, he still placed a hand on the lid.

"Play the final words."

[ Ding! Playing final words! ]

The familiar screen of light unfolded before him, and the image gradually became clear.

[ My name is Lin Qing. ]

The opening was the same as always.

[ I was reborn and transmigrated into the Douluo World. ]

Hearing that, Lin Qing nodded, thinking that he knew this routine well.

But the next sentence nearly made him choke.

[ But... fuck! Why was I reborn as a flower? I'm not even human! How am I supposed to play this? ]

Within the image on the screen, a black-and-white flower swayed gently in the breeze.

Its petals were spread beautifully, while its stamen trembled faintly.

It was beautiful, yes, but no matter how he looked at it, it exuded a sense of... helplessness.

"..."

In reality, Lin Qing did not know whether to laugh or cry. He raised a hand and wiped his face.

"So it really is a flower..."

"This is a little too ridiculous."

He pulled over a chair and sat down, preparing to see just what this "flower brother" had experienced.

The image on the screen continued playing.

[ Day 1: Basking in the sun, absorbing the essence of heaven and earth... ]

[ Day 2: Basking in the sun, absorbing the essence of heaven and earth... ]

[ Day 3: It rained. Absorbing the essence of heaven and earth... ]

As Lin Qing watched line after line drift past, several question marks gradually seemed to appear over his head.

"What is this? A running diary?"

He refused to believe that a final message from a Parallel World would be nothing but this, so he patiently continued watching.

[ Day 100: Absorbing the essence of heaven and earth... ]

[ Day 365: Absorbing the essence of heaven and earth... ]

The scene on the screen barely changed.

That flower simply stood there.

During the day, it basked in the sun. At night, it bathed in moonlight. When it rained, it was drenched. When it snowed, it was buried beneath snow...

Day after day.

Year after year.

The numbers marking time on the screen flashed by rapidly, but the content was so monotonous that it made his eyelids droop.

Lin Qing's scalp began to tingle as he watched.

"This is... way too boring!"

He finally truly understood what it meant to transmigrate into a flower.

It could not move, could not speak, and could not even relocate to somewhere else to bask in the sun.

It was a plant, not a soul beast. It did not even possess the most basic ability to move.

It could only remain where it was, enduring wind, sunlight, rain, and snow.

Day after day, year after year.