Chapter 3: I Just Yawned and the Sky Sect Had a Breakdown?!
Red Zone – Day 2 After Girl Appeared in My Garden
Ayan sat on the roof, lazily sipping herbal tea while petting his cat, Meowster, who was secretly a Celestial Lightning Tiger that could kill a Spirit King with a tail flick.
"Life's weird now," he muttered, watching Lan Yueru in the courtyard practicing sword swings. "Ever since I found her in my cabbage patch, things feel less lonely."
He didn't notice how the grass beneath her feet sparkled every time she stepped — a side effect of absorbing Heaven-tier broth energy from yesterday's soup.
Lan Yueru finished her routine and turned toward him. "Your soup… your mansion… that spiritual garden… Who are you really, Ayan?"
Ayan smiled sheepishly. "I'm just a guy who can't cultivate and keeps getting lucky. Probably born under a cabbage star."
Lan Yueru stared in disbelief. He really believes that, doesn't he…?
She opened her mouth to respond when the entire sky trembled.
Outside the Red Zone
Sky Sect Elders – Command Unit
An enormous flying treasure ship hovered just outside the Crimson Cloud Mist. Inside stood Sky Sect Master Lan Tian, eyes burning with determination.
"Signal her token!" he barked. "If she's alive, she'll respond!"
"We've tried, Master! Something inside is jamming our transmission arrays!"
Another elder stepped forward. "We should send a strike team. Get her out by force."
"No," Lan Tian said darkly. "If she's inside the Red Zone and still alive… that means someone powerful is with her. We're not sending troops. We're sending gifts."
Suddenly, a pulse of invisible energy swept across the clouds like a breeze. The fog around the Red Zone parted slightly.
Everyone froze.
"…What was that?"
Back Inside the Mansion
Ayan yawned loudly, stretching.
"Man, I feel sleepy today."
Outside the barrier, half the Sky Sect's detection tools exploded.
Sky Sect Ship – Panic Room
"WHAT WAS THAT?!"
"The mist reacted! The formation—it's weakening! Is it… an attack?!"
"No, wait! It's not collapsing—it's… moving. Like it's letting us see inside..."
An elder activated a spiritual mirror. The image cleared… revealing the mansion courtyard.
A young man in plain robes was laying on the roof, dangling a dried fish in front of a cat.
"That's… a mortal boy?" one elder whispered.
Lan Tian narrowed his eyes. "…Zoom in."
The image sharpened. The cat stared directly into the mirror for a moment. Its pupils narrowed.
Snap.
The mirror shattered into seven pieces.
Silence.
An elder fell to his knees. "That was… a Celestial Tiger's gaze! That boy is living with a mythical beast!"
Another one screamed. "Wait, there's the pigeon! That pigeon just incinerated a fly with its aura! It's—it's a Phoenix!"
One elder had a nosebleed. "D-don't tell me the dog is—"
"Woof."
The barrier crackled.
Back in the Mansion
Lan Yueru served Ayan soup this time. He blinked in shock.
"You cooked?"
"I used the herbs from your garden… and that weird glowing potato you keep in the jar."
"Ohh, that's the one that grows back every time I eat it. Thought it was cursed."
She blushed. "Try it."
Ayan took one sip.
BOOM.
A shockwave rolled through the mansion. Flowers bloomed. The crow fainted.
"…Tastes like fire and lightning," he said. "Delicious."
Lan Yueru, trembling, whispered: "I… I cooked something worthy of you…"
He tilted his head. "You okay?"
"I'm falling in love—ah, I mean! Falling into shock! From the seasoning!"
Elsewhere – Beast Sect
The Beast Sect leader slammed his fist into a stone table.
"She's not dead?! Impossible!"
A subordinate entered. "My lord! New intelligence — the Red Zone reacted to an energy pulse. Someone inside yawned, and the fog parted."
"Yawned?!"
"Also… there's a boy. Surrounded by divine beasts. Possibly a forbidden cultivator or ancient inheritor…"
"…Send a scouting team. No, send a suicide scout. We need more data before we make a move."
Back in the Mansion – Later That Night
Lan Yueru looked at the moonlight through the bamboo window.
"Ayan?"
"Hmm?"
"…If the outside world knew you lived here, they'd send armies. Some would want to worship you. Some would want to kill you. You're surrounded by things that people dream of finding even once in a lifetime."
Ayan blinked, laying on the roof with her beside him. "Really? But they're just pets."
She looked at him.
"You don't get it, do you?"
"I get that soup makes people feel better, and I like when you're not dead in the garden."
Lan Yueru covered her red face with both hands.
"Stop saying sweet things like that…"
"…Huh? Was that sweet?"
To Be Continued...
Next Chapter:A Beast Sect Spy Sneaks Into the Garden and Accidentally Activates a World-Ending Trap Ayan Planted While Planting Radishes.