Happy Little Farmer
Chapter 736

Chapter 736: Chapter 736

"Think it over carefully. This is my most sincere advice."

The Old Locust Tree shifted the conversation back to the transaction.

Yang Fan’s gaze remained indifferent as he looked at the abstract face. "Your terms hold no allure for me."

"That ruler in your hand is indeed a fine thing." The Old Locust Tree’s focus lingered briefly on the ruler in Yang Fan’s hand before sneering, "But comparing something that proactively defends itself to something that requires its owner to actively wield it—is there even a contest? With my Locust Leaves, you can be invulnerable to all evils."

"But the ruler in your hand cannot do that. You must use it. Only then can it serve its purpose."

Yang Fan pondered for a moment and then said, "To be honest, I’m somewhat intrigued by your item. How about this: change your terms. Killing my master is something I simply cannot do."

"Young human boy, don’t overestimate yourself. What else can you possibly do for me besides this?" the Old Locust Tree mocked. "To me, your only value lies in completing this task."

"I’ve been keeping you company for so long, and you’re not even considering compensating me? You useless, rotten tree." Yang Fan suddenly snarled, "I’ve alleviated your loneliness, brought some light into your dreary existence, and yet you not only refuse to pay me, but mock me instead? You trash."

Yang Fan didn’t hesitate, launching straight into verbal assault.

On a moral level, he mercilessly cursed the ancestors of the Old Locust Tree.

The abstract face on the Old Locust Tree radiated heavy ridicule as it gazed at Yang Fan. "You humans never fail to display your grotesque hypocrisy. My transaction is fair and equal, yet you aim to take advantage without effort."

Yang Fan paused.

Was he... was he being lectured by an evil tree?

Could it be that this guy had been hurt in a similar way before?

Such an exaggerated reaction—perhaps he’d been hurt quite badly!

"If you’ve experienced this kind of betrayal from trusting a human before, I think I can help you with that," Yang Fan offered. "This would be a fair exchange: I help you overcome your inner pain, and you pay me in return. Doesn’t this sound reasonable?"

The Old Locust Tree let out a cold laugh. "Foolhardy human boy, you’ll pay dearly for your ignorance and shamelessness!"

"Hey, you vile bastard, don’t raise your moral pedestal so high. Do you, a sewer rat who can’t even dare to face the sunlight, think you’ve got the right to lecture me?" Yang Fan retorted dismissively.

"What harm have I even done to you? If mere words can harm your fragile psyche, I suggest you end yourself rather than attempt to live."

"Your existence taints the world so deeply that even the innocent wind and rain around you bear guilt; truly unfair to heaven and earth."

The Old Locust Tree suddenly grew agitated.

"Ignorant human boy, I will string your soul up like a wind chime on my branches and devour your flesh and blood!" the Old Locust Tree roared, its abstract face fracturing and spreading across every leaf. Each leaf bore a gaping mouth that furiously bit at the invisible barrier enclosing the space.

Alarmed, Yang Fan instinctively took two steps back, adopting a defensive stance.

"Honestly, you’re truly hideous," Yang Fan said, shaking his head.

Mr. Fan appeared silently at Yang Fan’s side. "Why do you keep provoking him?"

"He started the conversation, and now he blames me for misleading him," Yang Fan responded wryly. "Old man, what’s with this thing acting like a deranged princess? His so-called transaction requires my agreement; otherwise, I’m ignorant and shameless? How does that even make sense?"

"Creatures like him usually have simple logic—put nicely, they’re straightforward; put bluntly, they’re dumb. You can’t expect a tree to possess human intelligence. He hasn’t even achieved Transformation yet. How smart do you think he can be?" Mr. Fan replied, visibly unimpressed.

"Transformation is the most evident outward sign of intelligence for such beings, proving they’ve gained some level of wisdom. If he hasn’t managed even that, you can imagine where his mental capacity stands."

"Makes sense." Yang Fan chuckled lightly. "Turns out I’ve been wasting my time and energy."

Just moments before, he had truly intended to extend the conversation and see if he could extract some useful information or benefits from the Old Locust Tree.

Yang Fan hadn’t expected that his just teasing the creature a little would cause such an exaggerated meltdown.

The reaction was entirely disproportionate.

"Ignore him. He can’t breach this stone cave. Continue your training. Don’t waste the Spiritual Energy here," Mr. Fan remarked.

The wall of branches at the entrance was covered in leaves, each leaf bearing a ferocious and terrifying face, savagely biting at the invisible barrier. But despite their aggressiveness, they had no effect whatsoever on the barrier, still trapped in a frustrated rage, like a feral dog fighting its reflection in a mirror.

Yang Fan nodded. "Old man, you carry on. I’ll train here while keeping an eye on him."

"Don’t provoke him anymore. Don’t waste your time on meaningless antics," Mr. Fan advised.

Though Mr. Fan spoke casually, Yang Fan could still detect a hint of gravity and vigilance in his eyes.

The old man remained wary.

Right now, the two of them were effectively cornered.

If the stone cave’s defenses failed to hold against the Old Locust Tree, they would lose their only advantage, leaving them no choice but to confront the tree head-on.

And Mr. Fan seemed far from confident about that outcome.

Yang Fan felt a mild sense of worry, though not enough fear to cripple him.

After all, dwelling on fear was meaningless and would only hold him back from acting decisively with the ruler when the moment came.

If all else failed, he would fight head-on. There was nothing to fear.

"Old man, this guy just claimed he has three Lifebound Locust Leaves capable of neutralizing all evils. Is that true?" Yang Fan asked, steering the conversation in another direction. He was a bit puzzled by the claim.

If such an evil entity possessed Lifebound Items with anti-evil properties, wouldn’t it just counteract itself?

The idea sounded a bit odd.

Mr. Fan snickered. "He’s lying to you. At most, he’d have one Lifebound Locust Leaf—there’s no way he has three. If he truly had three Lifebound Locust Leaves, we wouldn’t need to do anything; we’d simply wait to die. That level of power isn’t something we could ever contend with. Kid, do you even know what a Lifebound Item is?"

"Equivalent to one’s very life?" Yang Fan asked.

He had some knowledge but wasn’t well-versed.

"That’s the general idea," Mr. Fan nodded. "A Lifebound Item is equivalent to one’s own life—it’s their most potent weapon. Cultivating just one is already difficult enough; dreaming of three? Who does he think he is?"