Chapter 1177
After walking along the main road for about ten minutes and turning several corners,
the hotel they were staying at came into view not far ahead.
Under the scorching midday sun, a flower shop by the street stood out like a tranquil green oasis,
its vibrant blooms catching the eye even from outside. Just standing there made the air feel fresher, lifting one’s mood.
Qiao Sang paused as she passed, glancing inside. The sight stirred a memory of how Xialala, back in their time, always stayed in villas with sprawling gardens or the most luxurious, uniquely designed hotels that catered to every whim—including lush floral arrangements.
But this time was different. Traveling a century into the past meant they couldn’t flaunt their status. With a mission to complete, they’d settled for a modest local hotel. No flowering plants, no personal attendants.
“Let’s buy some flowers to take back,” Qiao Sang said to Xialala, stepping into the shop.
Xialala blinked in surprise, then cheerfully followed.
Inside, a familiar creature about a meter tall was watering plants. Its slender body and long limbs were covered in a soft rose-red hue, with a collar of matching petals around its neck and a miniaturization band strapped to its forehead.
“Meimei~”
The creature set down its watering can at once, rushing forward to greet them with a bright call.
Seeing the familiar face, Qiao Sang felt a sudden warmth—reminded of the Sweetflower they’d known before. She gestured subtly toward Xialala and her companions, smiling.
“Ask them what they’d like.”
Sweetflower quickly zeroed in on the true customer. Approaching Xialala’s Freshbloom form, it chirped eagerly:
“Meimei?”
Xialala began exploring the shop, touching petals here and there, occasionally leaning down to sniff a bloom.
Jingle~
The shop’s wind chimes tinkled as the door opened again.
Qiao Sang turned, spotting a meichouni entering. Qingbao instinctively clamped a claw over its nose, then froze mid-gesture, realizing there was no stench.
“Meimei.”
Unfazed by the curious gazes of strangers, the meichouni gave a polite nod and began browsing flowers.
Steel Chief.
Steel Treasure’s voice echoed in Qiao Sang’s mind. It’s wearing an Enduring Flower.
Her eyes narrowed. The green blossom perched atop the meichouni’s head was unmistakable—the same type that once adorned Reiluoluo, one of the ten critically endangered Grass-Type Companion Beasts from the Flame Sky Star. Its elliptical sepals dotted with white speckles gave it an elegant, unassuming charm.
Yet a century later, she’d seen another familiar face wearing the same flower daily—Xialala’s Future Bloom. Though not a florist by trade, Qiao Sang had grown intimately familiar with its appearance.
A Companion Beast capable of transforming into any plant or Grass-Type creature. At the Tenth Seat’s gathering, she’d seen few Grass-Types—only Reiluoloka and Xialala came to mind.
Could this meichouni be…? Her pulse quickened.
“Meimei?” The meichouni tilted its head, puzzled by her fixed gaze. You like my flower?
“Steel Chief.” Steel Treasure translated mentally.
“You like it,” Qiao Sang replied simply, two heartbeats late.
The meichouni plucked the green blossom and held it out. If you like it, it’s yours.
Steel Chief. Steel Treasure relayed the gesture.
Qiao Sang hesitated. If this truly was an Enduring Flower, giving it away so casually seemed… off.
“Fangy—” Fangy began, turning to speak, only to have Treasure Seeker clamp a claw over its mouth.
“Xunxun~” Treasure Seeker hissed. Don’t tell them, Big Brother Yabao!
Fangy nodded, understanding instantly. Treasure Seeker released it, floating over to examine the meichouni’s flower. Snatching it, it held the bloom up to its master.
This looks just like Freshbloom’s!
Qiao Sang watched, heart sinking as the meichouni showed no transformation. Just a coincidence, she muttered. “Return it. They must have similar flowers.”
“Xunxun~” Treasure Seeker handed the blossom back.
“Meimei?” The meichouni reattached it to its head, then grabbed a potted plant to purchase.
“Meimei~” Sweetflower, now at the cash register, quoted the price and pointed to a QR code.
As it moved aside, Xialala—previously hidden behind its bulk—came into the meichouni’s line of sight.
The creature froze, staring at Xialala’s flower. The potted bloom in its hands trembled slightly.
“Meimei?” Sweetflower called again.
“Meimei.” The meichouni snapped back to reality, carrying the plant to checkout.
Xialala lingered, gazing after the retreating figure.
“What’s wrong?” Qiao Sang asked, stepping beside her.
Xialala shook her head, remembering her vow of silence outside their quarters.
The meichouni left without delay, cradling its purchase.
“Qingbao, follow it. Don’t get caught,” Qiao Sang whispered.
The meichouni’s reaction to Xialala had been… odd. Even without the Enduring Flower’s effects, this was a century ago—when Xialala and Li Ou Yasi first arrived in Mingzhou. With the Fire Meteor just a week away, encountering Li Ou Yasi then would make stealing the Li Huo Jing nearly impossible.
A meichouni without stench, eyeing Xialala so intently… Qiao Sang couldn’t ignore the possibility. If this truly was Xialala from a century past, its revival abilities and Divine or Zun-Rank cultivation would easily pierce their Invisibility.
After all, if a familiar's Level was high enough, detecting Ghost-type Companion Beasts using Invisibility wasn't particularly difficult.
However, Qingbao, who could perform Wind Transformation, might not necessarily be detected that easily.
"Qingqing!"
Qingbao called out as her Wind Transformation dissolved.
The next second, a tinkling wind chime sound came from the doorway.
"Why don't you take another look and see if there's anything you like?" Qiao Sang smiled at Xialala.
Xialala retracted her line of sight and nodded.
"Meimei~"
Sweetflower approached, enthusiastically describing the options once more.
...
Meanwhile,
Meichouni cradled a flower pot while weaving through the bustling street. A gust of wind trailed behind her, rustling the tree branches along the road with a soft rustling sound.
After weaving through the alleys, Meichouni arrived at a dilapidated low-rise building. She took out her key and opened the first-floor apartment door.
The room was about thirty square meters—a single bedroom and living area. Though worn down, the space had excellent lighting and was filled with various flowers and plants. The moment she stepped in, a refreshing fragrance greeted her.
Meichouni closed the door behind her. A breeze drifted through the window, making the curtains and plants sway gently.
She placed the flower pot on the windowsill and picked up a watering can from the floor to water the plants.
The flowers in the pot trembled slightly, then transformed into a familiar with an emerald-green body, a collar of colorful Buds around its neck, azure eyes, and white eyelashes.
"Xiàxià!"
It leaped out of the flower pot and chirped.
"Meimei!"
Meichouni called out, then carried the watering can to the kitchen to refill it.
A silent gust of wind slipped out the window.
Almost the instant the wind left, Meichouni and Xialala simultaneously turned toward the window.
"Rèlǐ?"
Meichouni's face showed confusion as she called out again, her voice slightly altered.
Why had it deliberately revealed itself?
"Xiàxià..."
Xialala gazed out the window, murmuring softly.
She had just caught the scent of her kin.
"Rèlǐ?"
Meichouni furrowed her brow, her expression shifting to disbelief.
"Xiàxià."
Xialala withdrew her gaze and chirped.
Wait for it—I'm sure my kin will come looking soon.
Meichouni said nothing else, refilling the watering can before walking toward Xialala's direction.
At the same time, her body slowly transformed into a form with light green fur, with leaves growing around her neck like a leafy cloak trailing behind her like a cape.
...
Elsewhere,
Xialala cradled a huge bouquet of mixed flowers.
"Xunxun~"
Treasure Seeker was doing the same beside her.
Qiao Sang also helped carry some.
Returning to the hotel room, Treasure Seeker immediately placed the flowers down upon entering, removed a ring from her finger, and pulled out several vases to arrange the flowers inside.
"Xiàxià."
Xialala adjusted the positions of the flowers in the vase, then smiled with satisfaction.
By now, Migala had already taken a shower and changed clothes.
"Back already", she said, walking over to Xialala's side and handing her the remaining flowers.
Lulu hopped out of her backpack.
Seeing Teacher Mikara's composed demeanor, Qiao Sang couldn't help thinking about how she had looked a century ago.
Suppressing her urge to laugh, she crouched down beside Xialala, pretending to pick up flowers from the floor while subtly revealing her backpack.
However, Migala didn't glance at the backpack. As she handed Xialala more flowers, she casually asked,
"These flowers are nice—where did you buy them?"
Qiao Sang straightened up helplessly.
"From a flower shop next door."
She paused, then conspiratorially asked,
"Guess who I saw while I was out today?"
"Who?" Migala played along.
"Pengamei", Qiao Sang said, pausing for effect. "And you."
Pengamei looked over.
Migala hesitated briefly before regaining her composure.
"I don't remember specific details clearly, but since we can see Qiongbu Gu, it makes sense that I was here during this time period as well."
Qiao Sang coughed once.
"I even had a conversation with you."
Migala looked at her, her eyes silently asking how.
Qiao Sang turned around, positioning her backpack toward Teacher Mikara.
"You mistook me for one of your fans, so you gave me an autograph. Quite a friendly interaction, actually."
Migala's expression stiffened.
She glanced at the signature on the backpack and recognized her own handwriting instantly.
Before she could fully process this, Qiao Sang continued,
"You even took a photo with me!"
She pulled out her mobile phone and opened a recently taken photo.
Migala looked at the screen.
In the photo, she wore sunglasses, tilted her head slightly, and had a faint smile on her lips—clearly a carefully posed shot.
For some reason, Migala felt oddly embarrassed. She could vividly imagine herself signing and posing for the photo—
Proud yet trying to appear approachable.
One word summed it up: pretentious.
Taking a deep breath, Migala forced herself to calm down and feigned indifference.
"I should've been about to participate in the Interstellar Cup back then", she said calmly. "Mistaking you for a fan would've been normal."
With that, she quickly changed the subject.
"Thinking about it, we shouldn't just sit around waiting for Li Ou Yasi to show up. We should go try searching for her ourselves."
Qiao Sang was immediately distracted, her expression turning serious.
"Speaking of that, when I was buying flowers at the shop, I encountered a meichouni without any odor. There was an Enduring Flower stuck in its head."
Migala stiffened slightly, frowning.
"You just let it go?"
"I had Qingbao follow it", Qiao Sang replied. "But before that, the meichouni deliberately removed the Enduring Flower. However, its form didn't change at all. I'm not sure if that Enduring Flower was genuine."
When certain familiars became famous, replicas of their unique Artifacts often flooded the market.
Hearing this, Migala calmed down.
"Are you suspecting that meichouni might be Xialala?"
Qiao Sang nodded.
"During this time period, Xialala could indeed appear here. It's also very likely she possesses an Enduring Flower."
Migala pondered for a moment before analyzing,
"If it's Xialala, she should sense Qing Yun Nai Nai following her. She was born with an affinity for plants, and plants can detect wind presence."
Qiao Sang's voice turned grave. "So if the target truly is Xialala, she wouldn't have been discovered?"
"Xunxun~"
Treasure Seeker waved his claws beside them, calling out.
If it came to tracking, this was exactly his specialty.
"Xiàxià?"
Xialala listened to the conversation, deep in thought.
She could sense the wind?
"Xiàxià..."
As she arranged flowers, Xialala experimentally tried sensing the wind.
Suddenly, the flowers in her paws trembled slightly.
"Xiàxià!"
Xialala froze briefly, then turned her head and chirped.
Qingbao must've returned.
"Qingqing!"
As the words left her lips, Qingbao materialized, her expression brimming with excitement as she cried out.
(End of Chapter)
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