Chapter 470 (3): Haven't You Seen a Pseudo-Celestial Weapon Before?

On a small mountain path located near the border of the Colorful Garment Nation and the Water Combing Nation...

A young man in green walked forward slowly, with a large bamboo case on his back and a crudely and casually made hiking stick in his hand. He had already traversed fifty or so kilometers of mountain paths on foot, and he finally walked into an old and rundown temple when night arrived. The temple was covered in cobwebs, and the statues of the Four Heavenly Kings were still lying on the floor just like back then. At the same time, gusts of eerie wind would freely blow through the old temple from time to time.

The young man lit up a campfire before closing his eyes and taking a nap. It was as if he were afraid of ghosts and fiends appearing, so he wanted to sleep but didn't dare to actually sleep.

After approximately midnight, a series of silvery laughter once again traveled over from the distance.

The young man in azure looked like a traveling scholar, and there was a smile tugging at the corners of his lips as his head remained low, However, this had already become a look of puzzlement and astonishment when he looked up and gazed outside again.

The old temple was relatively large, so the young man's campfire was quite far away from the main entrance.

There were three slender women wearing colorful dresses. One was a young girl of approximately thirteen years old with a round face and apricot eyes, one was a tall young woman of approximately twenty years old with a high bun, and one was a shapely woman whose bun was loose like blooming flowers.

The three women were playing around and laughing, and the shapely woman's bosom was trembling very noticeably as they smiled and hovered into the old temple like colorful butterflies. However, they surprisingly became slightly timid when they saw the wide-eyed young man, and they stopped in embarrassment and gathered together, walking slowly as they pushed each other and walked toward the campfire and the young scholar.

The shapely woman appeared slightly bolder, and she squatted down and extended her hands toward the campfire to seek warmth as she looked directly at the young man.

The tall woman stood to the side and peered down with a cold gaze, seemingly wanting to discern whether the young man was a dangerous libertine.

The young girl with apricot eyes was the most timid, and she turned to her side with her fingers interlaced, her head also lowered as she looked at the tip of her embroidered shoes that were poking out from beneath the hem of her dress.

The shapely woman suddenly faltered at this moment.

This was because the young scholar suddenly started to smile, seemingly unable to maintain his facade of seriousness anymore.

The shapely woman squatting on the ground surprisingly retrieved a silk handkerchief from between her large bosom, which was seemingly about to burst out from her dress at any moment. She gently fanned the handkerchief and said in a mellow voice, "Are you feeling hot, Young Master? I suddenly feel like my clothes are a little thick and heavy."

Chen Ping'an's hands remained steady near the campfire as he smiled and replied, "Why are you seeking warmth near the campfire if you feel too hot?"

The shapely woman was rendered speechless. However, she quickly rolled her eyes in a seductive manner, giggling and causing her bosom to tremble as she replied, "Young Master is truly very good at joking. It seems like you're definitely a very understanding man."

Chen Ping'an chuckled and said, "Then why don't you laugh for a little longer?"

Hearing this, the beautiful and seductive woman did indeed laugh for a while longer. However, it wasn't long before she couldn't laugh anymore. Even so, she was unwilling to relent just like this, so she licked the corners of her lips before narrowing her eyes and musing, "Young Master is handsome and eloquent, but I wonder if Young Master's stamina is any good?"

Chen Ping'an remained smiling as he replied, "Aunty is quite good at joking as well."

The shapely woman's face immediately became stiff and unnatural.

Chen Ping'an had purposely returned to this place with this specific appearance, and he once again observed the three women and eventually settled his gaze on the timid young girl, saying with a chuckle, "Alright, I know who you people are. We've already interacted with each other before."

Of the three women, the shapely woman appeared puzzled and aggrieved, and she covered her shapely bosom with her silk handkerchief. The tall and slender woman furrowed her brows, and the young girl completely ignored his words as she remained timid and embarrassed.

Chen Ping'an added a dried branch to the fire, still smiling as he looked at the young girl with embroidered shoes. He was unsure of whether she genuinely hadn't learned her lesson or if she truly liked cleanliness that much. Regardless of whether it was her embroidered shoes or the hems of her dress, they all remained spotless even though she had walked along the dusty mountain paths.

His voice was slow as he continued, "You don't remember? Then let me help you jog your memory. Roughly seven years ago, four outsiders sat exactly where I'm sitting right now. There was a big-bearded and gallant martial artist, a young Daoist priest, a refined scholar, and an impoverished young boy... Mhm, we then met each other again at the Sword Water Villa afterward."

The young girl with apricot eyes didn't stand sideways and avoid Chen Ping'an's gaze anymore, and she covered her mouth and smiled as she looked at Chen Ping'an and replied, "How can I not remember? I suffered great losses at the hands of you and Old Bastard Song back then, and my little heart still aches with great pain whenever I recall this tragic matter. You stinky men didn't understand how to cherish beautiful women, and you killed my two pitiful maidservants without any hesitation at all. If I'm not mistaken, Young Master is the young boy who was the most ruthless in killing my maidservants back then, correct? Oh my! You're truly becoming more and more handsome as you grow up. In any case, for what reason are you gracing us with your presence this time?"

She clasped her hands behind her back, walking half a circle around the campfire and maintaining a certain distance between herself and Chen Ping'an the entire time. "What's the matter? Perhaps Young Master is no longer a naive young boy, and you're already someone who's started to understand the taste of women? Perhaps you've become bored with mortal women, so you've come here to taste something new? Perhaps you want to try the bedroom skills of us beautiful ghosts?"

Chen Ping'an shook his hand and replied, "I wouldn't dare to. I know that Madam enjoys eating stir-fried hearts, especially those of cultivators because these hearts don't have a sanguine taste."

Chen Ping'an glanced toward the entrance of the old temple and said, "By the looks of it, you no longer possess the same power as before after Senior Song drew his sword and killed many of your subordinate ghosts and yin entities in a single breath back then."

The young girl with apricot eyes pursed her lips and extended an embroidered shoe to lightly play around with the campfire. "Go on, tell me what your purpose is for luring us out this time."

"Following the battle at the Sword Water Villa, the original four evil spirits of the Water Combing Nation suffered heavy casualties, with some dying and some fleeing," Chen Ping'an said. "Also... Forget about it, let's not talk about these things, I already became aware of them a long time ago. However, when I was at the Colorful Garment Nation, I heard that a new group of four evil spirits quickly reappeared in the Water Combing Nation, and some of them rose to this position from old immortal forces?"

The young girl squatted down and sighed, replying, "Two of the original four died, and they didn't have the fortune to enjoy a good life. They were casually killed by a martial secretary or whatnot from the Great Li Empire. The other one always ran around to do odd jobs for the others, and he was also the target for bullying and amusement. He was almost frightened into moving away, and it took a lot of persuasion from me for him not to carry through with his plan. People continue to live if they move, but will ghosts still be ghosts if they move?

"Thanks to my persuasion, he was able to strike riches by staying instead of moving. On the other hand, I was left to feel immense regret. The nation was gripped by the chaos of war a few years ago, and that person's business immediately started to prosper. He gathered a large army of powerful vicious ghosts, yet he never provoked those barbarians from the Great Li Empire.

"He enjoyed a great lifestyle, and he even received a title from the imperial court that made me feel very envious. Not only did he stop mentioning the four evil spirits of the Water Combing Nation, but that animal almost kidnapped me to become his wife as well. That's the current world for you. It's hard to survive as a human, and it's hard to get by as a ghost. What in the world is going on?"

Even though Chen Ping'an was looking at her the entire time, he was actually observing the two other female ghosts out of the corners of his eyes as well.

She was taking on the form of a young girl, and she could be regarded as a fairly powerful ghost in the Water Combing Nation. However, this wasn't important to Chen Ping'an right now.

The important thing was the interaction between Sword Saint Song Yushao and this female ghost back then. He had retrieved a lunar almanac and said, "A suitable day for fasting, a suitable day for seeking wealth," before telling the female ghost to offer up one lesser heat coin. Sword Saint Song Yushao had surprisingly let her go after this.

In the beginning, Chen Ping'an had genuinely believed that Senior Song's decision was because of the old lunar almanac and because of the notorious female ghost's good luck that night. It was only when chatting and eating hotpot in the nearby small town with Senior Song afterward that he learned that this female ghost had the most complex background and behavior out of the four evil spirits of the Water Combing Nation. Killing her wouldn't be wrong, but not killing her wouldn't necessarily be a bad decision either.

Chen Ping'an sighed and asked, "Tell me, how many men of the yang world have you killed these past few years?"

The young girl with apricot eyes rolled her eyes and replied, "It sounds so bad to say that I killed them. Everything was mutual, and they got to enjoy the pleasures of copulation while my sisters were able to obtain their yang energy and not devolve into malicious ghosts who can never experience reincarnation. Everyone was satisfied. Of course, if I truly came across those individuals whom cultivators like you couldn't be bothered dealing with and the authorities were unable to deal with, then I wouldn't mind cooking myself a few plates of stir-fried hearts either."

Chen Ping'an didn't offer any response to this, and it was as if he had recalled something from the past.

The young girl with apricot eyes clasped her hands behind her back and clicked her tongue in wonder, remarking, "I truly didn't recognize you, and I would have failed to recognize you even if I were beaten dead if you didn't reveal your identity. You were a heavily tanned young boy back then. People all say that young girls change a lot when they grow up, but who knew that boys would be the same?"

As if playing along with the joke, Chen Ping'an said, "Since you would have failed to recognize me even if you were beaten dead, then I can consider not beating you to death."

The young girl suddenly felt a sense of anger when she glanced at Chen Ping'an's azure robes.

She turned around and shot a glare at the tall and slender woman, saying, "Don't think that I'm unaware of your relationship with that poor scholar. Are you hoping that he can one day help you leave this sea of hardship? Do you believe me when I say that I'll bring you over to that animal tonight? He's a legitimate mountain god now, so even if becoming a mistress isn't as glorious as becoming a wife, the difference really isn't so great!"

Her eyes were pitch-black as she said this, and there was a murderous aura floating around her body. Her embroidered shoes that were just poking out from under her dress also became a sanguine red, and it was as if there were blood flowing over the surface of her shoes.

There was a terrified look on the tall and slender female ghost's face as she fell to her knees with a thud, with her entire body trembling in fear.

Standing beside her, there was a look of ridicule on the shapely woman's face, and there was perhaps a hint of jealousy behind this look of ridicule as well.

Chen Ping'an glanced at the entrance of the old temple before waving his hand at the three female ghosts and saying, "You guys can leave now."

A moment later...

The young girl with apricot eyes furrowed her brows, her voice solemn as she said to her two remaining maidservants, "You two leave first! Leave via the back door and directly return to our residence..."

Right at this moment, a burst of thick black wind that contained specks of gold surged into the old temple, bringing with it a tall and sturdy man whose chest was exposed and had two tusks extending out from the sides of his mouth. He strode forward after appearing in the temple, and he roared with laughter and exclaimed, "Leave? I think none of you should leave! I've waited for this day for a long time, and I can capture all of you in one fell swoop now. You were truly difficult to capture, little missy, and you surprisingly didn't take the bait that I set several times. Why couldn't you resist today? What gave you the courage to leave your base? Do you really think that taking that long-legged woman as a mistress is enough for me? You might not know, but I specifically enjoy women like you!"

The old temple was instantly filled with a pungent and sanguine smell following the appearance of the sturdy man who measured three meters in height.

There was loud commotion all around the old temple.

It was clear that this spirit, who had become a mountain god, was well prepared and had been waiting for this moment to make his move.

Chen Ping'an was exasperated as he said, "This person is the mountain god, right? He's in no hurry to dispose of me, presumably because I can't escape anyway. You guys can feel free to chat and reminisce on the past. You can give your dowries and take your mistresses."

The tall and sturdy mountain spirit had once been a member of the Water Combing Nation's four evil spirits, and after throwing in a large amount of immortal coins, he had finally obtained the position of mountain god. There was drool habitually dripping from the corners of his mouth, and he sure enough paid no more attention to the young man who was either an amateur martial artist or a weak little Qi refiner. He instead turned his attention to the young girl with apricot eyes, looking at her short body and her slender waist.

The mountain god then beckoned with his hand, and the shapely and beautiful woman immediately ran toward him, falling into his arms. She giggled as she rested in the "forest" on the mountain god's chest, and she didn't dare to look toward her master, the young girl. Rather, she shot a vicious glare at the tall and slender female ghost who had a shocked expression, and she scolded, "Little bitch, you don't know how lucky you were! You had the chance to become his mistress, yet you actually dared to turn down such a wonderful opportunity?!"

The mountain god's laugh was thunderous, and he said, "We're all family from tonight onward, and the three of you will be sisters both in bed and out of bed. Don't cause bad blood because of a few words. You each have your own strengths, and I'll make sure to cherish all of you."

He wiped his mouth and casually wiped his spit on the shapely woman's breasts, continuing, "I'll definitely treat the three of you differently from how I treat those weak mortal women from outside the mountains. In any case, those women are genuinely unable to withstand any rough play, and it's reprehensible that they can't become ghosts even after they die. They're nowhere near as fortunate as the three of you. Otherwise, you could have gained a few more sisters, and that would have made my mountain god temple much livelier than right now, no?"

In the end, he put away the silk handkerchief that he had given the shapely female ghost. It was thanks to this item that he had managed to track them down and trap the crafty young girl whom he had coveted for a long time. Otherwise, it would be extremely difficult for him to breach the young girl's base, and the losses couldn't be justified even if he succeeded in overcoming her defenses. Moreover, it was possible that he would still fail to capture her anyway.

The mountain god was wildly ambitious nowadays, and he was aiming to become a formal god of the Water Combing Nation's Five Mountains. Even if the Water Combing Nation became a vassal state of the Great Li Empire, causing the formal gods of the Five Mountains to suffer a huge drop in status, a starving camel was still bigger than a horse, after all. In the territory of the Water Combing Nation, what would the higher-ranked river goddesses be worth? To say nothing of a few mortal women, some beautiful female ghosts, and the river guardians that he hadn't dared to dream of before, even these river goddesses would be at his beck and call.

Chen Ping'an placed another dried branch into the campfire. His movement was gentle, but it inevitably created some noise.

The mountain god was clearly not as crude and reckless as his appearance suggested, and he immediately focused his gaze on the unfamiliar traveling scholar.

"Apologies, you guys can continue," Chen Ping'an said with a smile.

The newly appointed mountain god of the Water Combing Nation temporarily suppressed the feeling of strangeness and puzzlement in his mind, smiling at the young girl with apricot eyes and saying, "Wei Wei, just submit to me, okay? What do you say? I won't mistreat you, and you'll definitely receive a proper title and be treated to a formal mountain god wedding. You'll be brought to the mountains on a lavish sedan chair carried by eight people, and if you want, we can even have the city god of the county city lead the procession for you. In fact, we can even have the mountain lords carry the sedan chair for you!"

The female ghost called Wei Wei raised a foot high into the air and wiggled around her embroidered shoe, saying, "Do you see how clean this is? Now take a piss and have a look at yourself."

The mountain god pushed aside the shapely woman and reached for his crotch, chuckling, "I like your temper. However, I have no option but to use my power as a mountain god to snatch you over and make you mine first. We can make up for the wedding in the future. Don't blame me for this, as you're the one asking for trouble. I do indeed like your temper that's anger-inducing, but how can we live peacefully in the future if I don't teach you a lesson in bed?"

Wei Wei patted her chest and remarked, "Oh, I'm so scared of you."

After some intense internal conflict, the tall and slender female ghost standing beside her stepped forward and offered, "I'm willing to become your mistress, so can you please let my master go?"

There was a look of displeasure on Wei Wei's face, and she sent the tall and slender female ghost flying with a single flick of her sleeve. The tall and slender female ghost crashed into the wall, and by the looks of it, she was going to punch through the wall and fly outside.

The mountain god pursed his lips and stomped his foot, rapidly channeling the power of the surrounding mountains and rivers.

It was as if the tall and slender female ghost crashed into an iron wall, and she viciously crashed to the ground, with her extravagant and colorful dress that was created by an illusion technique fading away with the wind. Some specks of dust fell to the ground, and she used her hands to cover her private parts as she lay curled up against the wall.

The mountain god chuckled coldly and said, "Wei Wei, now is different from before, yet you're still unwilling to accept your fate? Do you still think I'm the huge fool whom you can make fun of me to your heart's content like before?! Do you know that I whipped you once in my mind every time you made fun of me back then?! In a moment, I'll make sure to let you know that beating you is an expression of care and scolding you is an expression of love!"

He beckoned with his hand, and a flexible whip that was like viscous mercury materialized in his palm, with a thin golden thread displaying his current status as an official mountain god.

Wei Wei didn't turn around, and she simply pointed at the scholar in azure behind her and said, "Filthy beast who has yet to shed all of his hair, do you see this person? He's the lover whom I was planning to bring to my residence tonight. However, as a ghost, I'm going to die for love with this scholar in this old temple tonight! This is not a bad end!"

Chen Ping'an smiled and interjected, "You're not allowed to drag me down with you in death, okay? You're so unfair even as a ghost, so it's no wonder that you're facing such calamity tonight."

Wei Wei chuckled coldly, ignoring the pitiful person behind her who was destined to die tonight.

It went without saying what a mountain god represented on this mountain.

Wei Wei's strike just then was already a huge show of benevolence to that tall and slender yet brainless maidservant of hers. However, Wei Wei definitely wouldn't offer to become that vile beast's plaything in exchange for the freedom of her maidservant. She wouldn't say something so stupid.

In any case, Wei Wei wasn't a benevolent Bodhisattva or anything, and she cared even less about the young man who was seeking death and had caused her to fall into this trap in the first place. He deserved to die with her tonight. Die for love? What absolute nonsense! Her several hundred years of wonderful days were going to be cut short just like this, so she wanted to smack Chen Ping'an to death even if that vile beast didn't kill him, lest he be skinned alive and thrown into boiling oil afterward. In fact, Chen Ping'an should thank her for such a swift and painless death.

"Mr. Mountain God, did you go through some scholarly officials of the Great Li Empire's heavy cavalry, or did you bribe the officials of the Water Combing Nation in order to obtain the position of mountain god?" Chen Ping'an suddenly asked.

The mountain god chuckled in an eerie manner and replied, "After you die, I'll answer your question in the off chance that you become a ghost."

Wei Wei chortled with laughter and exclaimed, "Would he dare to seek out those barbarians from the Great Li Empire? I surmise that all three of his legs will become limp when he so much as hears the mention of the Great Li Empire."

"So that's how it is," Chen Ping'an said with a nod.

"Just you wait, Wei Wei! I'll have you change your pitiful habit of scissoring other women after I train you for ten days!" the mountain god roared with a furious expression.

The tall and slender female ghost near the wall and the shapely female ghost near the mountain god both had slightly strange and awkward expressions at this moment.

Wei Wei was completely unfazed, and she started to ponder how she could change the current situation from one of futile resistance into one of mutual destruction.

Chen Ping'an slowly stood up and patted his clothes.

It was almost time for him to act.

He was quite lucky, and one of the four evil spirits of the Water Combing Nation had voluntarily turned up.

However, judging from the black smoke before and the golden thread in the long whip, this mountain god's godly body was most likely still unstable due to a lack of incense offerings.

Chen Ping'an bent down and rifled through his bamboo bookcase.

The mountain god frowned upon seeing this.

Wei Wei couldn't help but jump back several steps as well, turning around to look at Chen Ping'an. He had once again carried a bamboo bookcase onto the mountain and into the old temple like back then, and she didn't know what he was trying to do at this moment.

What she saw was the young man grabbing the long sword that he had placed inside his bamboo bookcase and trying to return it to the scabbard on his back.

Upon seeing Wei Wei's inquisitive gaze, Chen Ping'an smiled and explained, "This is a pseudo-celestial tool. Have you not seen one before? How can one traverse the mountains and cross the rivers without some accompanying treasures?"

Wei Wei chuckled in anger after hearing his shameless claim, and she narrowed her eyes and said with a smile and a nod, "Yes, yes, I've seen them before. I've seen dozens or even hundreds of pseudo-celestial tools."

The mountain god immediately felt at ease. After all, did genuinely powerful cultivators need to play tricks and attempt to bluff like this?

Chen Ping'an looked around and said, "This is a pure land for Buddhism, so even if monks and Buddhist scriptures no longer exist, perhaps the teachings of Buddhism still linger around. Because of her kind heart, that fox spirit from back then enjoyed a positive fate and was able to follow 'Liu Chicheng' around. So, what about the three of you?"

Looking at the scornful smile on the face of the young man who was carrying a sword on his back, Wei Wei suddenly felt slightly anxious for no apparent reason.

Chen Ping'an flicked his wrist, causing his bamboo bookcase to vanish into his pocket treasure.

With another flick of his wrist, he retrieved his bamboo hat and placed it on his head before adjusting it slightly.

For some unknown reason, the knees of the mountain spirit who had just become an official mountain god of the nation surprisingly started to ache at this moment. It was as if his innate divine mystical powers were being subdued by a paramount immortal power, comprehensively stopping him from channeling them.

However, compared to his journey through the mountains to the south of Bamboo Scroll Lake back then, Chen Ping'an started to keep his aura and intent concealed after practicing fist techniques at the bamboo building in Downtrodden Mountain.

Even though he was unable to release and retract his aura and intent as he pleased, he at least wouldn't allow them to casually flow outward and be completely unaware.

Otherwise, how could Chen Ping'an have lured out Wei Wei and her two maidservants? They would have been scared off a long time ago.

In the next moment...

Wei Wei widened her beautiful apricot eyes.

At some unknown time, the young man in azure was already standing one sword's length away from the tall and sturdy mountain god.

It was perfectly one sword's length, nothing more and nothing less.

She knew this because Chen Ping'an had already drawn his sword at some unknown time, angling its tip upward and piercing it through the mountain god's chin, directly lifting him off the ground in a surprising turn of events.

Countless thin fractures immediately appeared on the godly body of the mountain god.

Chen Ping'an looked up slightly and mused, "I was riddled with bad karma after I killed that eel demon wreaking havoc back then, so killing an official mountain god will only cause me to accumulate more bad karma."

Wei Wei was at a complete loss in a rare display.

She felt like heaven and earth had fallen silent, with only the words of that swordsman in azure slowly reverberating around the surroundings.

"It's okay, I'll accept this bad karma."

————

In the end, Wei Wei didn't even know when Chen Ping'an left. It was only after a long time that she partially regained her composure and was able to think again. However, she immediately fell into a daze, confused about why the young man didn't kill her afterward.

In the end, she was, of course, also unable to determine whether that sword was truly a pseudo-celestial tool or not.

Inside the old temple, it was the shapely female ghost who fell to her knees and kowtowed as she begged for forgiveness.

The tall and slender female ghost shakily walked to Wei Wei's side, saying in a quivering voice, "Master was lost in thought the entire time, not responding even when that esteemed immortal called out to you. In the end, he told me to deliver a message to Master, saying that we shouldn't come to this old temple again in the future. Moreover, it's not a bad thing if we can accumulate more hidden virtue, and perhaps the Bodhisattvas at this old temple are watching our each and every action."

Wei Wei also noticed the strange state that she was in, so she forcefully channeled her power, only regaining her senses after seemingly tugging her feet out of thick mud. She breathed heavily, and she was drenched in cold sweat even though she was a ghost. Her dress and embroidered shoes weren't the product of crude illusion techniques like those of her two maidservants.

Wei Wei glanced at the area where the corpse of the mountain god should have been resting, but was empty right now. There wasn't so much as a single drop of blood, and she asked, "Where is he?"

The tall and slender female ghost shook her head and replied, "He left after saying this."

Wei Wei was just about to kick the kowtowing wretch and obliterate her from this world, but she suddenly retracted her embroidered shoe and said in anger, "I'll spare your life this time and give you punishment when we return!"

She then waved her hand and instructed, "It's time to make haste and leave!"

Before leaving the old temple, however, she turned around at the door threshold and held her hands together in a prayer. Wei Wei had never believed in Buddha before, but she surprisingly lowered her head and murmured, "Please watch over us, Bodhisattva..."

In the end, Wei Wei glanced at the bright campfire that was yet to extinguish.

The three female ghosts then left the old temple and returned to their residence.

Following their departure...

A young man in azure surprisingly returned to the old temple not long afterward, removing his bamboo hat and occasionally placing dried branches into the fire. It was as if he were guarding the night.

He stood up one time, standing somewhere in the temple as he closed his eyes and feigned holding a sword, gently performing a forward slash.

The first rays of sunshine gently peeked over the horizon.

Chen Ping'an walked out of the temple and arrived at a cliff face where he slowly performed walking meditation.

He stood still after completing his session, and he turned around and smiled.

Chen Ping'an retracted his gaze and looked into the distance.

The heavens were lofty and the earth was vast, with the scenery between them appearing like a painting.

He was sure that spring next year would once again welcome red apricot blossoms, white plum blossoms, and yellow rapeseed flowers.