Chapter 675: Chapter 675: Grandpa Was Actually a Plant?!
Su Qinglan’s expression instantly shifted, and she smiled kindly and gently at him. "Grandpa, are you alright? Did he hurt you?"
The old man’s expression became incredibly complicated.
Grandpa. Again. His powerful, ancient heart actually ached from the blow to his pride. Yet, facing the terrifying beastman behind him, he forced out a trembling, weak smile toward Su Qinglan.
"This old beastman... is perfectly fine, kind female."
Su Qinglan nodded sympathetically, her heart melting for the poor old man. Then, she snapped her head back and glared at An Mo again.
"Apologize to him."
An Mo: "..."
The old man: "..."
An Mo’s eyebrow twitched upward. He looked at Su Qinglan’s fiercely protective face, then at the trembling old man who looked like a stiff board.
Finally, he asked with a completely calm, dangerously smooth tone, "So... should I apologize to you?"
The old man’s eyes instantly widened to the size of saucers. He shook his head from side to side so hard and fast that it looked like a rattle.
"No! No! No need at all!" he squeaked, his voice cracking. "This old... this old beastman is perfectly fine! Splendid, even!"
Inside his chest, the old man’s heart was screaming in pure terror.
’Apologize? Please, great female, don’t make him do that!’ As long as this terrifying beastman let him walk out of this room alive, he would happily kneel down and thank his ancestors.
Who in their right mind would dare accept an apology from a peak apex predator? Wasn’t that just a fancy way of begging for a swift death?
Su Qinglan blinked, her hand pausing. Something suddenly felt incredibly strange about the situation.
She looked at An Mo’s relaxed smirk, then at the petrified old man who looked like he was about to faint from fright.
The more she looked, the more her initial anger cooled into confusion.
She had already spent quite some time with An Mo and knew his personality well. He was gentle, infinitely patient, and deeply protective. He would never go out of his way to bully a completely innocent, helpless elder for no reason.
Then... why on earth was he treating this specific old man like a criminal?
An Mo suddenly chuckled, the low rumble vibrating in his chest. His swirling golden eyes narrowed slightly as he stepped closer to the old man.
"Are you going to reveal your real form yourself..." An Mo purred softly, "...or should I drag you out of it myself?"
The old man’s entire body violently trembled. He forced his facial muscles into an even uglier, desperate smile.
"Young gentleman... this old beastman truly doesn’t understand what you’re saying. I really don’t know anything at all."
An Mo’s smile only grew. Without a word, he took one slow step forward.
The old man immediately took a panicked step back.
An Mo took another step forward.
The old man retreated again, his back hitting the wall.
Every single silent stride An Mo took made the old man’s pulse hammer faster and faster against his ribs. Finally...
"Enough," An Mo said, stopping right in front of him, his towering shadow completely enveloping the old man.
The old man shivered from fear. Then... ’Poof!’
A vibrant burst of brilliant green light flashed, completely illuminating the bedroom for a split second.
The small old man vanished into thin air. In his place stood a massive, thick spiritual plant nearly five feet tall. Its lush leaves were trembling nonstop, and its tangled roots curled together in a nervous clump on the wooden floorboards. The entire plant looked absolutely terrified.
Su Qinglan and Shi Feng froze as well. Both of them stared at the huge, vibrating green plant with wide, unblinking eyes.
"..."
"..."
After several seconds of absolute stunned silence, Su Qinglan finally gasped, finding her voice.
"A... a spiritual plant? And such a massive one?"
Her eyes were completely full of disbelief. This was the absolute first time she had ever witnessed a spiritual plant capable of taking a human form. It was simply mind-blowing.
An Mo turned toward her, his expression instantly shifting back into his usual gentle, doting look as he smiled.
"See, Lanlan? This isn’t a beastman at all, and certainly not a fragile, elderly grandfather. He is just a high-grade spiritual plant. A cheap imitator who has evolved just enough to mimic a beastman’s appearance to fool outsiders."
Su Qinglan stared blankly at the quivering leaves.
An Mo continued smoothly, "I sensed his unique spiritual aura earlier. He is the exact one who sneaked near the city gates and snatched Little Hua away. Ask him where she is."
The moment those words fell... Su Qinglan’s entire expression changed.
"What?" her voice dropped. "He... he kidnapped Little Hua?!"
In an instant, a bright crimson flush of pure embarrassment rushed from her neck all the way to her face. Her mind raced as she remembered what had happened just a minute ago. She had actually scolded her own husband, puffed her chest out, and forced An Mo to apologize... to a literal kidnapper!
"..."
She wanted nothing more than to dig a hole right through the floorboards and hide inside it forever.
Slowly, painfully, she turned her head toward An Mo. Her expression was completely filled with profound guilt. She reached out and gently grabbed his large, warm hand, squeezing it softly.
"An Mo... I’m so sorry," she whispered, her voice full of apology. "I didn’t know. I completely misunderstood you."
An Mo simply smiled, his golden eyes warming as he flipped his hand over to interlock his fingers with hers.
He gently shook his head. "It’s perfectly alright, Lanlan. Anyone would be easily deceived by this specific kind of spiritual plant. They are very sly and can perfectly imitate vulnerable beastmen. Many travelers have been fooled by them before."
Su Qinglan nodded slowly, though her gaze remained fixed on the giant plant. She still couldn’t entirely process it.
A spiritual plant... taking human form... The beast world truly held all kinds of unbelievable secrets.
Meanwhile, the giant spiritual plant was internally screaming in a total panic. His leaves were rustling loudly against each other, and his roots kept trying to inch backward centimeter by centimeter, looking for a way out.
His mind was racing. ’Run! I need to run quickly! How do I escape this room? These two males are far too dangerous...especially that terrifying beastman!’
And now, they were even accusing him of a heinous crime! The spiritual plant wanted to cry.
’Kidnapping? What do you mean kidnapping?! Little Hua is my own flesh-and-blood granddaughter! Why would a grandfather ever kidnap his own precious little granddaughter?’
Then, a sudden realization flashed through him. His leaves froze mid-shiver. His perception slowly widened as he processed An Mo’s words.
’Wait... don’t tell me...’
Could this possibly be the exact family Little Hua had been crying about the entire evening?
The legendary "Female Master" she loved so deeply and swore to return to... could it be the young, beautiful female sitting right in front of him on the bed?
The giant spiritual plant slowly tilted its main stem toward Su Qinglan, its aura becoming incredibly complicated and stunned.
’So... this is her female master?’
