"Wow, Seventh Sister, look! Hurry, look!"
Early that morning, Dongfang Minghui's excited voice rang out. The tiny girl came running with a huge helmet in her arms, almost hiding her little face and its joyful excitement.
Qian Wanyu kept her eyes on the ground beneath her feet until she stopped in front of her, then turned her attention back to Little Sprout. Of its two buds, one red and one yellow, one had actually opened. It was the red bud that had grown even more vivid after that day's tempering, and a tiny opening had appeared in it.
Even that was enough to delight Dongfang Minghui. She had sown this seed herself and had never left Little Sprout's care to anyone else as it grew. The process was like raising a child: as she raised it, she noticed its every movement and found joy in each one.
Qian Wanyu's expression darkened slightly. Ever since learning that it was a Soul-Tempering Furnace, she had been looking for a suitable opportunity to tell Ninth Sister that Little Sprout might already have been replaced by the Gold-Devouring Rat's soul... Yet every time she met those eyes shining with innocent light, she did not know how to say it.
"Aren't the Ghost-Face Tree Clan's flowers supposed to be as big as a human face when they bloom? Why is this bud so small?"
"I think you're right."
After Qian Wanyu's reminder, Dongfang Minghui began worrying that she had stunted Little Sprout's growth. Was it lacking nutrients, or had she not made time to bring it out into the sunshine? Yes, keeping Little Sprout in her storage space all the time was simply a dereliction of her duties.
"Seventh Sister, it wasn't easy for this plant to grow two buds. They're precious. I heard the