Lin Chen had faced many crises since transmigrating.
Bankruptcy.
Sect collapse.
Recruitment disasters.
But nothing—nothing—prepared him for this.
The farm was glowing.
Not one crop.
All of them.
Cabbages shimmered like lanterns. Carrots hummed ominously. Even the cucumbers—which Lin Chen had explicitly warned about—were vibrating suspiciously.
At the center stood Little Green, floating three inches above the ground.
"…WHY is it floating?" Lin Chen asked calmly.
Zhao Feng whispered, "Master… I think it's breaking through."
Lin Chen's calm shattered.
"BREAKING THROUGH WHAT?! IT DOESN'T EVEN HAVE MERIDIANS!"
> System Alert:
Secondary Awakening Event:
Spirit Crop → Spirit Entity (Prototype)
Trigger: Excessive Sect Prosperity
Cause: You. Probably.
Lin Chen stared at the last line.
"…The system is blaming me now."
---
The sky darkened.
Clouds gathered.
Actual thunder rumbled.
Su Ming looked up, horrified. "Master… are those tribulation clouds?"
Lin Chen shouted, "WHY WOULD A RADISH NEED A HEAVENLY TRIBULATION?!"
The radish raised one leafy arm.
The thunder paused.
"…It waved back," Li Yue whispered.
---
A bolt of lightning cracked through the sky—
—and struck the ground next to Little Green.
The radish flinched.
Then looked offended.
It pulled out a tiny wooden sign:
PLEASE AIM PROPERLY
Lin Chen dropped to one knee.
"I can't do this anymore."
---
> Emergency Choice Required:
Option A: Allow Ascension (High Risk, High Absurdity)
Option B: Suppress Evolution (Stable, Slightly Traumatizing)
Option C: Redirect Energy (Creative, Dangerous)
Lin Chen didn't hesitate.
"OPTION C," he shouted. "ALWAYS OPTION C."
---
He slammed his hand onto the ground and activated the Sect Foundation Formation.
The accumulated energy surged—not upward—
—but sideways.
Straight into the main hall.
The thunderclouds froze.
Then dispersed awkwardly.
The sky cleared.
The radish dropped back onto the soil with a soft plop.
Silence.
Everyone held their breath.
> Event Result:
Ascension: Interrupted
Outcome: Partial Evolution
Status: Stable
Note: That was close.
---
Little Green looked… different.
Slightly taller.
Slightly brighter.
And now—
Wearing a tiny cloth sash someone had inexplicably prepared.
It read:
ASSISTANT TO THE SECT MASTER
"…Who made that?" Lin Chen asked weakly.
Zhao Feng raised his hand. "In my defense, I had a feeling."
Lin Chen lay flat on the ground.
---
The system chimed one last time.
> Sect Milestone Achieved:
Thriving Sect (Early Stage)
Unique Feature: Living Spirit Agriculture
Bonus: Sect Master Cultivation Boost
Warmth flooded Lin Chen's body.
> Cultivation Progress:
Qi Refinement Peak 6 → Qi Refinement 7
He laughed hysterically.
"I just stopped a radish from ascending," he said.
"And I got stronger for it."
Su Ming nodded respectfully. "Master walks an unparalleled Dao."
Li Yue smiled. "The Dao of Responsibility."
Zhao Feng corrected, "The Dao of Vegetables."
Little Green saluted.
Lin Chen groaned.
As dawn broke over Azure Cloud Sect, one thing was clear:
They had officially entered dangerous territory.
Not because of enemies.
Not because of fate.
But because somewhere in the soil—
A radish had almost touched the heavens.
And Heaven would not forget that.