Chapter 12

She ignored Asher, who stood there like a ghost, and continued with her usual training routine.

Nova knew Wu Ying's situation far better than Asher did. Wu Ying's mental power was deep and enduring, but her level remained too low. The root cause was her inability to mobilize it, so the most critical step was to activate it to the maximum.

The two had a strong rapport and worked well together, and Asher, watching from the side, noticed nothing amiss.

The biggest issue he observed was the difference in training philosophy and the pace being too slow, but it was tailored to Wu Ying's needs, which should certainly suit her temperament.

Before class ended, Wu Ying said to Nova, "Teacher Nova, I want to speed up my training. I heard that military training is quite demanding, and I want to meet the requirements before the next semester starts."

"Why the rush?"

"Mmm, next semester I want to spend more time on my studies."

"That's fine, but we'll need to add more sessions."

Nova didn't think much of it. Before logging off, she glanced at Asher again. She felt that although this man was silent, his presence was overwhelming—he almost reminded her of someone.

After Nova left, the two had no reason to stay in the holographic training room, so they returned to their own training room.

Wu Ying tilted her head with a hint of pride. "So? Did you notice any problems?"

Asher ignored her. Since there were no issues, there was nothing to say.

"Hey, why are you leaving all of a sudden? I wasn't finished."

Wu Ying ran ahead of him. "See, I'm not tired after this training session, so Teacher Nova is the best teacher. You were just trying to find fault."

"You were tired this morning because you didn't adjust your breathing properly, and I wasn't looking for faults."

"It's because you interrupted me that I couldn't adjust."

Asher walked past her, speaking calmly, "Dealing with unexpected situations is a basic quality for awakened beings."

"But I've only been awakened for a short time. You should be tolerant, not critical. This isn't good for my growth."

"I am being tolerant."

Asher said it so naturally that Wu Ying's words caught in her throat.

He walked forward unhurriedly, and in a few steps he was at the door. As if sensing she hadn't followed, he turned back, looking at her with a puzzled expression. His tall frame nearly reached the top of the door.

Wu Ying was filled with admiration: this imposing stature, his considerable wealth, and his broad-mindedness—she really hadn't lost out. Even sharing a bed with him tonight would be a win.

"Hehe, what are you going to do later?"

"Meeting."

Wu Ying understood—online meeting. So he said he was resting, but he still had plenty of work.

Asher was stationed on the border all year round, but he still had to attend daily meetings for the military district. War zone meetings were different from daily ones, with different focuses, so he had to participate in both.

Wu Ying planned to continue her "magic" in the flower room. She'd thought about letting Asher visit, but now she decided not to disturb him.

They both had things to do, so they went their separate ways after leaving the training room.

Wu Ying didn't understand military or political matters; her heart was set on her flower room.

Under her tireless, day-and-night efforts, the two pots of roses were thriving, with buds about to bloom. The two little golden flowers had reached their most adorable stage.

She couldn't wait to see them blossom.

Wu Ying carefully extended her hand, slowly sending tendrils of mental power toward the branches. She closed her eyes and felt carefully as the tendrils moved down into the roots, brushing over the dim spots in the stems one by one. She continued to increase the release, and the tender shoots at the branches sprouted one after another.

Wonderful!

Wu Ying opened her eyes and found that the nutrient content in the culture medium had been completely depleted. She quickly picked up the nutrient solution beside her and poured it in.

This was cultivation: using mental power to activate seeds, promote growth, and formulate suitable culture media and nutrient solutions based on the plant's growth characteristics and environment to keep it alive.

She was now learning soil analysis, culture medium preparation, and nutrient solution formulation. She'd only scratched the surface. Once she mastered these, she'd definitely create custom formulas for her precious flowers.

Fortunately, her mental power was effective, allowing her to maximize the plants' nutrient absorption.

She practiced on the other pot as well. Two pots weren't enough; she wanted to try a large-scale magical attack, but the Seed Bank's requirements for obtaining seeds were strict. She'd need to raise these two pots well before she could get more.

Or maybe she should try an acceleration spell.

Wu Ying called for Jiujiu, asking it to bring all the culture media and nutrient solutions from the storeroom. She had no idea how much nutrient solution these two rose trees would need to bloom and bear fruit, so she prepared plenty.

The two rose trees had already formed many buds. Wu Ying pinched off the small ones, keeping only six, and transferred them to larger culture media. The pink buds swayed gracefully in the air, as if they were happy to know they were about to bloom to their fullest.

A flower must complete its full life cycle—from blooming, to full blossom, and finally to fruiting.

Wu Ying spread her hands, and a strong yet subtle wave surged from her chest to her arms and palms, surrounding the two central rose trees in an enveloping glow.

The next moment, the branches eagerly absorbed the nourishment, growing thicker and stronger. The delicate buds seemed to hit a fast-forward button, opening to their fullest at a visible speed, then gradually withering. Through her mental power, Wu Ying could almost see the nutrient solution flowing through the branches.

All six flowers bloomed one after another, then fell as fruits. The rose trees had matured, and perhaps next year they would bloom on their own.

Wu Ying didn't miss the moment. When the flowers bloomed, the flower room was filled with the fragrance of roses—clear and mellow, at its most pure and clean.

Wu Ying watched as the last flower slowly unfolded. Just as it was about to wither, she stopped.

She didn't want this last one to wither. She plucked it. This rose was blooming beautifully, with vibrant colors: a red-pink that faded from the top of the petals to the base, alluring and fragrant.

"Jiujiu, is the flower pretty?"

Wu Ying held up the flower and asked. The robot, which was recording the scene, immediately praised it. Its exaggerated movements and expressions gave Wu Ying great satisfaction.

How could a flower not be pretty?

Wu Ying lowered her head, letting the tip of her nose lightly touch the petals. A rich, sweet fragrance instantly surged through her nasal cavity—refreshing and soothing to the soul.

She found some flower wrapping paper and wrapped up this treasure. Then, she set about processing the fallen fruits one by one. Fortunately, she had studied diligently, delving into seed science as an elective, or else, without Jiujiu's planting mode, she wouldn't have been able to manage.

"Alright, once I plant them all later, we'll have a field of roses."

Just thinking about that scene made her happy. Wu Ying smiled adorably, her apricot eyes curving into round crescents. Cradling her first bouquet in this place, she happily spun around Jiujiu.

Today was full of rewards. Wu Ying asked Jiujiu to play the recording of the flowers blooming, and as she chatted with it, she went downstairs.

Wu Ying gave Jiujiu some feedback on the filming angles and shots, then praised it. Jiujiu, in turn, praised her for the brilliant technique today, saying she was gifted and would surely become the interstellar flower planter. They went back and forth, and the atmosphere was delightful.

Asher clearly didn't understand what was so happy about getting praise from a robot. His biological clock was always punctual, and it was dinner time now.

But the cooking robot was still over there playing the yes-man.

As soon as Wu Ying walked in, Asher noticed that her complexion was off, as if she had overused her mental power.

His eyes darkened. He was about to ask her, but before he could speak, Wu Ying saw him and happily ran over. Her face was a bit pale, but her eyes were sparkling as she held out a flower.

"Look at my flower! Look!"

Wu Ying thrust the flower forward. "I forced it to bloom with my mental power. I kept it as a souvenir. Isn't it super pretty? Much prettier than those fake flowers, right? It's fragrant too, makes you feel better just smelling it."

Asher looked down. A flower, delicate and fragile—even though it was carefully preserved, the petals still had a few creases. He didn't know how it was better than ornamental flowers, but he vaguely sensed he shouldn't say that.

He now knew where her mental power had gone, but seeing her happy face, Asher decided to swallow his words.

"It's pretty, but you should rest properly."

"Pretty, right? I knew it was pretty."

Wu Ying eagerly went to find a vase, determined to keep it for a few days.

Seeing that Jiujiu was about to follow, Asher called it back—it was time to cook. He didn't know how messed up this robot's programming was, that it wouldn't even follow the cooking command on time.

Meanwhile, Wu Ying searched around, not wanting to put down the flower. "Jiujiu?"

Asher hesitated for a moment at the sound of her voice, but still went over to see what she wanted. "It's time for it to cook. What's wrong?"

"Then hold my flower for me. I need to pick a vase."

Wu Ying carefully handed the flower to him, giving him specific instructions to only hold the stem at the bottom. "Don't touch the petals. They're already damaged."

"…Okay."

"Be gentle! Just pinch the stem with two fingers, no need to grip so hard."

Seeing the flower tremble in his grip, Wu Ying slapped him in fright and shot him an angry glare. Asher kept silent, but stiffened his arm and held the stem at a distance, afraid to knock off a single petal.

He watched Wu Ying mutter to herself as she chose a vase. To him, they all looked the same, but she could come up with a dozen reasons for each one.

After a while, she finally settled on one. Wu Ying wiped the vase clean, placed it on the counter, poured some water in, and then came back to retrieve her precious flower.

Seeing him standing there dazed, she scolded him again, "Asher, you're so silly. You're holding a flower, not a bomb. You should bring it close and smell it, not hold it far away like that."

He had no appreciation for beauty. Didn't he know this might be the first rose in the galaxy?

Wu Ying took the flower and brought it to her nose, her fair nose resting lightly against the crimson petals—a striking image.