Starting with the frog, he has ruled for eternity.

Chapter 5, Croak! Brave! Tiger roars and frogs croak!

"What a huge patterned spider!"

Master Lu sat in a grand chair in the main hall, holding a booklet in his hand. It was painted with a huge tiger-striped tarantula, colorful and about the size of a human head.

It was extremely ferocious and terrifying.

The butler standing opposite was bowing and waiting, holding a cup of warm tea in his hand.

"Do you remember that caravan that came from the southern border last time, sir?" the butler asked.

"Hmm? This spider belongs to their caravan?" Master Lu took the teacup from the butler and sipped his tea.

"Yes, yes!" the butler replied. "Didn't Miss really like the live spider they brought last time? Manager Ma heard about it and specially found a few more of the better ones, drew up some designs, and sent them to you for your inspection, saying they were gifts for Miss."

"Oh—" Lu Ye suddenly realized, a smile spreading across his face. "I almost forgot. Nan Nan used to hold that spider and look at it every day, saying that the patterns on its back were like human faces. That girl, she has quite the eye for things at such a young age."

"Indeed," the butler chuckled. "Manager Ma said back then that even in Miao territory, these spiders are rare. We heard that the young lady liked them, so they went to great lengths to find a few more. Master, what do you think about inviting Manager Ma to the auction on the third of next month? We heard they've recently acquired some other rare treasures—"

"Father! Father!"

A clear, childlike voice came from afar, interrupting the butler. The butler stopped asking questions, took a step back, and made way for the little darling.

Nan Nan appeared at the doorway, her little face flushed, clearly having run all the way there. Her bun was a little crooked, fine beads of sweat clung to her forehead, and she was panting, her little hand clutching her chest.

"Oh dear, my little darling." Master Lu put down his teacup, smiled, and stretched out his hand. "Why are you running so fast? Be careful not to fall."

His large, fan-like hand habitually landed on his daughter's head and gently rubbed it.

"Daddy!" Nan Nan looked up, her eyes sparkling, completely oblivious to her father's strange expression. "I just heard my older brother say there's an auction next month! I want to go too!"

"An auction?" Master Lu paused, his smile fading slightly. "That won't do. Auctions are crowded and chaotic, full of people from the martial arts world, all about swords and shadows. It's not a place for a young girl like you."

"But...but I want to go!" Nan Nan pouted, tugging at her father's sleeve with her little hand. "If Second Brother can go, why can't I?"

"Your second brother is a boy, and you're a girl. How can you be the same?" Grandpa Lu shook his head, his voice softening. "Be good, listen to Daddy. After the auction, Daddy will bring you back some fun things, even rarer than what's at the auction, okay?"

"No, no!" Nan Nan shook her head. "I want to go! I want to go!"

"Alright, alright—but you'll have to be a bit older then!" Master Lu's tone became more serious. "There are too many people at the auction, and who knows what bad guys might be there!"

"Oh, okay, okay... I know, I won't go then..." Nan Nan nodded reluctantly when she saw her father's stern face, muttering softly, "Daddy's so stingy..."

Grandpa Lu was both amused and exasperated. Just as he was about to say a few more words of comfort, his gaze suddenly fell on his daughter's empty palms, and then swept over her equally empty head.

He frowned. "Where's your frog?"

Although Nan Nan only caught the frog from the field, it was still one of her favorite things. If it were lost, she would probably make a fuss for days.

"Huh?" Nan Nan paused for a moment, then seemed to remember something, slapping her forehead with her little hand, "Little Frog? I put it by the pond in the back garden! There are lots of lotus leaves and mosquitoes there, it'll definitely like it!"

The words had barely left his mouth—

The butler, who had been standing to the side, suddenly changed his expression.

"What's wrong?" Master Lu noticed the butler's unusual behavior and asked with a frown.

"Master...Master..." the butler's voice was hoarse, "That patterned spider we were talking about...where does Miss keep it again?"

"It's by the little pond in the back garden," Nan Nan answered eagerly. "It's in the crack in the rocks over by the rockery. I go to see it every day!"

"Oh no..." The butler sighed, glanced at Nan Nan, and then said with a hint of worry, "Master, that thing is no pushover! It eats frogs!"

"What?!" Master Lu suddenly stood up.

How can a spider eat a frog?!

Master Lu subconsciously glanced at the little girl's expression.

Whether the spider eats the frog or not is not important, and whether the frog is eaten is not important either. What is important is that Nan Nan's frog cannot be eaten by Nan Nan's own spider!

Who knows how long this little devil will cause trouble once he gets angry!

"Manager Ma specifically instructed me to do so!" The butler's voice quickened slightly as he saw Master Lu stand up. "He said that spider is a poisonous insect from Miao territory. Although it has been domesticated, it is inherently ferocious and loves to eat live prey! Not to mention ordinary flying insects, it will even pounce on and bite mice and small birds! Frogs... frogs are probably just a meal for it!"

Nan Nan's face immediately fell.

She subconsciously puffed out her cheeks and then glanced at her father.

Those once bright eyes instantly filled with tears, like two small springs.

Master Lu watched Nan Nan without making a sound, and suddenly sensed something was wrong.

If the little darling really starts crying, then the Lu family won't have any peace this month.

The next moment, the little darling asked with teary eyes:

"Little frog...will little frog get eaten?"

Nan Nan's voice was choked with tears, her little hands tightly gripping Lu Ye's sleeve: "Daddy... Little Frog... what if it..."

"No!" Master Lu scooped his daughter up in his arms and strode towards the door, his voice booming, "Someone! Come with me to the back garden!"

Snapped!

He pushed the door open so hard that the entire door frame shook.

"quick!"

The butler hurried after them, calling out to the servants in the corridor as he went, "All of you, follow! To the back garden! Quickly!"

The two servants waiting under the eaves were taken aback, then picked up their lanterns and followed. Although they didn't know what had happened, judging from the master and the steward's hurried manner, it was obviously not a small matter.

The group walked through the winding corridors, their footsteps echoing hurriedly on the bluestone slabs.

Nan Nan hugged Lu Ye's neck tightly, tears streaming down her face, each drop landing on Lu Ye's clothes and spreading into dark water stains.

"Father...I hope Little Frog will be alright?" she asked, her voice choked with emotion.

"No," Master Lu said in a deep voice, his steps becoming increasingly hurried. "Father will definitely find it."

"But...but the butler said spiders eat frogs..." Nan Nan's voice trailed off, "The little frog is so small...and the spider is so big..."

"Don't be afraid," Lu Ye said softly, though he himself felt a little uneasy.

Although that frog was clever, it was still just a frog at heart.

As for that patterned spider... Although he didn't know much about these rare and exotic creatures, judging from the cautious way Manager Ma was handling it, it was clearly not a friendly creature.

If it really gets eaten...

Then we can only find a veterinarian to fool them for now, and then send someone to quickly catch a similar one in the field to cover up the matter!

As long as the little girl doesn't cause trouble, everything is negotiable!

"Master!" the butler followed breathlessly. "That spider's appetite has increased dramatically these past few days. The servant who feeds it yesterday seems to have forgotten to feed it... This morning I specifically told him to feed it a few more live insects... But he... but he..."

"You mean, that spider is hungry right now?" Master Lu's expression darkened further.

"Yes...yes..." The butler's voice trailed off, clearly indicating his pessimism. "What if it's starving and sees a frog..."

Nan Nan couldn't hold back anymore and really started crying, her eyes instantly reddening: "Little frog... Little frog..."

"Don't cry!" Master Lu said in a deep voice, "We haven't seen it yet. Maybe Little Frog is hiding."

"But...but..."

"No buts!" Master Lu's voice carried an undeniable authority. "Father said we'll definitely find it!"

But is it really too late?

He wasn't sure himself...

I just hope that frog can hold on a little longer!

……

After passing the artificial hill and through the bamboo forest, a bright and open view suddenly appeared before us.

The pond in the back garden came into view.

The lotus leaves stand tall and graceful, the lotus flowers are half-open, and several dragonflies fly low over the water. The afterglow of the setting sun shines on the water, making it shimmer and reflecting the clouds on the horizon.

What a beautiful scene!

But Lu Ye had no interest in admiring the scenery; his gaze quickly swept across the edge of the pond.

The butler's eyes widened as well, as if he wanted to see clearly what was under each lotus leaf.

"There!" Nan Nan suddenly stretched out her hand, pointing to a clump of grass by the pond, her voice filled with terror, "Daddy! There!"

All eyes turned to that direction.

There, in the shade of the lotus leaves, two dark figures could be vaguely seen.

One big and one small.

One was a frog the size of a palm, and the other was a large, patterned spider with eight legs, waving its claws on the ground.

……

What a huge patterned spider!

It was a truly ferocious creature, entirely dark brown with several deep yellow horizontal stripes, and furry—it was clearly not a friendly animal!

Tiger-striped tarantula.

Fang Yuan immediately remembered the name.

They are mostly around 18 centimeters long, more than twice the size of that frog.

This shouldn't be something that should be found in this place. Fang Yuan remembered that in the documentaries he had watched, this was something that appeared in tropical rainforests or subtropical regions!

Most of them were traveling with Master Lu's caravans, mingling among medicinal herbs or furs, and eventually made their way to Lu Family Village, where they escaped into this garden.

It's too big.

Even disregarding the legs, the spider head alone, which was a size larger than Fang Yuan's head, already brought him immense visual pressure.

If you include its eight thick, long legs, the size of this spider is like a man facing a bear to Fang Yuan.

"Hiss~~Hiss~~"

The spider had obviously also spotted Fang Yuan.

Instead of fleeing in fright like ordinary insects, it slowly raised its forelimbs, revealing a pair of chelicerae below its mouthparts that resembled black daggers.

Then, it suddenly rushed up!

Quack!!

hateful!

So your name is Birdcatcher, right?

Fang Yuan snorted coldly, raised his webbed hands, and rubbed them together!

How could Fang Yuan, who had just added some martial arts skills, tolerate such humiliation?

With a clap of his hands and a push of his hind legs, he leaped high into the air, dodging the opponent's first attack, and then gripped the small wooden stick on the ground tightly with both hands!

Wow! Hey!

Take this [Quack Down the Mountain]! Quack~!!!

Fang Yuan viciously swung the wooden stick downwards! The croaking of frogs reverberated! A chorus of croaks filled the air!

Amidst the whistling wind, a faint cry could be heard!

……

This, this is!!?

Master Lu was stunned for a moment. This... this was his own Tiger Roar Saber Technique!?

He rubbed his eyes!

But the frog did indeed pounce down with the stick in its hand!

A chorus of croaks filled the air! Their figures moved like hungry tigers descending the mountain!

It does indeed bear some resemblance to the Tiger Roar Saber Technique!

How...how is this possible?!

It, a frog, can't even read, how could it possibly master the Tiger Roar Knife Technique?