The flower swayed. Then a face emerged from the petals—strangely delicate, disturbingly demonic. It looked at her with watery eyes.

  “I am carnivorous by nature.”

  Lauren’s mouth twitched.

  “You’re actually a man-eating flower?”

  The flower blinked quickly. “Carnivorous flower. Not specifically human-eating.”

  Lauren rubbed her temples. So Edmund really had brought back a carnivorous plant.

  “If you didn’t eat meat, what would happen?” she asked.

  The flower tilted its head. “What happens if a wolf doesn’t eat meat?”

  Lauren: “…”

  That was annoyingly logical.

  Edmund appeared behind her without a sound.

  “All things exist for a reason,” he said evenly. “A wolf eats meat. That does not make it evil. You humans eat beasts and refine their flesh into elixirs. Are you evil?”

  Briar’s eyes filled with tears instantly.

  “Waaah! God Venerable speaks the truth! Heaven gave me this appearance, I had no choice!”

  Edmund glanced at it coolly. “So you’re a naturally evil creature.”

  “…” Briar sputtered. “I’m not! I stay in my territory. I only eat beasts that try to eat me—or humans who try to harvest me for alchemy!”

  “And then you discovered how delicious they were and became addicted?”

  “This—this—”

  Its petals flushed a deeper crimson. It clearly wanted to defend itself. But it didn’t know how.

  Lauren crossed her arms.

  Since this thing was planted in her space, she needed to understand what it was. She couldn’t just let it grow unchecked.

  “Explain yourself,” she said calmly. “What exactly are you?”

  The flower nervously glanced at Edmund.

  He ignored it. Then it looked back at Lauren, trembling slightly.

  “My name is Briar. I chose it myself. I was born naturally—there is only one of me in this world. I’m very precious.” It paused. “Being rejected… it’s because I eat meat.”

  Then it hurriedly added:

  “I’m not the only carnivorous flower species! But all carnivorous plants are called evil things. Little fairy, please don’t reject me. From now on, I’ll only eat your leftovers. I promise.”

  Lauren looked at the pitiful expression on its petaled face.

  It was genuinely terrified of being abandoned.

  “Since you’re a flower from the Upper Realm,” Lauren asked, “how the hell did you end up in the Icefield Secret Realm?”

  Briar’s petals drooped slightly.

  “That… is a long story.”

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  It hesitated before continuing.

  “The first creature I ate after I gained awareness was an elk. It tried to eat me. I bewitched it instead, and it became my nourishment.”

  Its voice was soft, almost embarrassed.

  “After that, more demonic beasts came. They wanted to devour me. Human cultivators wanted to refine me into pills. They all became nourishment as well. I grew from a palm-sized blossom into a vast sea of flowers, stretching across a valley thousands of miles long.”

  Lauren’s brows lifted slightly.

  “I never left the valley where I was born. I don’t know how I became famous. They called me an evil creature.”

  Its leaves trembled.

  “After that, people came in waves. They flew overhead and hacked at me. They poured poison. They burned entire mountains to ash. I couldn’t endure it anymore. I fled.”

  “To heal, I had to eat. Wherever I could.”

  The petals lowered further.

  “Then even more people came to kill me. I couldn’t remain in the God Realm. Nor the Immortal Realm. So I hid in the Icefield Secret Realm.”

  It finished speaking and lowered its flower-face completely.

  Its two leaves fidgeted nervously. Its roots shifted in the soil, stirring up the scarlet earth. It didn’t dare look at Lauren.

  Lauren was silent.

  In a world ruled by human cultivators, it didn’t matter whether you were a wolf or a carnivorous flower. Once you ate humans, you were marked for death.

  And judging by its words— A valley stretching thousands of miles?

  It must have devoured countless cultivators. Who else would they be targeting?

  After a long pause, Lauren sighed. “Fine. Stay.”

  Briar’s petals twitched.

  “But clean up this damn mess. It stinks.”

  Briar blinked.

  Stinks? It smells delicious…

  Lauren didn’t stay to argue. She went to the spiritual hot spring she’d transplanted into her space.

  The spiritual energy here was shockingly dense.

  Without a natural Spirit Gathering Array feeding it, the energy in the spring would gradually thin as she absorbed it—eventually becoming nothing more than ordinary water.

  She understood that perfectly. Even the rarest natural treasures existed to be used.

  If something could accelerate her cultivation, she wouldn’t hesitate.

  The Twin Ice and Fire Lotus shimmered faintly beneath the water. Lauren sank into the pool until only her head remained above the surface.

  She took out the elixirs she’d acquired earlier—pills meant for Nascent Soul cultivators.

  Then she began cultivating.

  .......

  Three months passed in silence.

  In that time, she absorbed half the spiritual energy from the spring and swallowed a considerable number of pills.

  The results were astonishing. When she opened her eyes again— Mid-stage Nascent Soul.

  Equivalent to several years of cultivation outside.

  She emerged from the pool and saw Edmund reclining lazily on a fur blanket.

  Nearby, a small red figure—Briar in humanoid form—was busily working.

  It was dredging irrigation channels. Summoning clouds. Calling rain.

  Even in human shape, it still looked… distinctly unusual.

  “Mid-stage Nascent Soul,” Edmund remarked casually. “Not bad.”

  “I drained half the spiritual pool and ate a pile of pills,” Lauren replied. “It would’ve been embarrassing if I didn’t advance.”

  “As long as it improves cultivation, nothing is wasted.”

  ......

  After Lauren exited the space, Briar cautiously spoke.

  “Can she really take us back to the God Realm?”

  “Of course,” Edmund said.

  “But… she’s just a little girl. She doesn’t seem to know anything.”

  Edmund was quiet for a moment.

  “She knows a great deal.”

  “Like what?”

  “She is the key to breaking the deadlock. But breaking it requires all of us.”

  Briar blinked. That sounded profound. And completely unhelpful.

  “At the very least,” Edmund added, “without her, I would not have escaped.”

  “…Alright.”

  ......

  Three months passed in the blink of an eye.

  Drake hadn’t summoned her. So Lauren went to the secluded courtyard where Timothy was staying.

  Zainab hurried out when she saw her.

  “Miss Lauren.”

  Lauren sensed her aura.

  The girl’s spiritual energy had grown considerably. She hadn’t wasted the dense spiritual energy of Starfell Summit.

  “Anything unusual these past few months?”

  “No. Your guest has been very quiet. He cultivates indoors and hasn’t stepped out once.”

  Lauren nodded.

  Good. At least he wasn’t causing trouble.

  She handed Zainab a pouch.

  “Your wages. Three months.”

  Zainab clutched it nervously.

  “I haven’t really done anything. I was able to cultivate in such a rich place and still receive spirit stones. It feels wrong.”

  “You were hired to watch him. His obedience means your job was easy. Take it.”

  After a pause, she added, “Pack up. I’ll take you down the mountain.”

  “Yes.”

  ......

  Lauren entered the hall.

  Timothy looked far better than before.

  He no longer needed crutches. His complexion had regained some color.

  She didn’t waste words.

  “Stay put. Don’t wander.”

  He nodded.

  She left and escorted Zainab down the mountain.

  On the way back, she spoke quietly to Edmund.

  “Edmund… what’s wrong with Timothy? He’s like a different person.”

  “How would I know?”

  “He isn’t hiding something twisted, is he?”

  Edmund glanced at her. “Why are you so hostile toward him?”

  “Because if I hadn’t run fast enough, he would’ve wiped out my family.”