"AHHH! Let go of me, you evil weed!"
Rong Ye screamed as Stove’s vines wrapped around his ankle and dragged him back inside the cave like a sack of potatoes. He clawed at the ground dramatically, leaving scratch marks on the ground.
"No! I refuse! You can’t do this to me! I’m a noble fox...let me gooo!"
Stove, completely unfazed, tightened its grip and pulled harder. With one final tug, the fox went flying backward and landed flat on his back with a loud thud.
"Ugh...!" he wheezed. His expression was filled with disbelief. "You...you heartless shrub! How could you betray me like this?!"
He sat up, glaring furiously at the plant that now stood triumphantly near the cave entrance, vines coiled like little guards.
"You useless weed!" Rong Ye pointed at it with trembling indignation. "Why are you siding with that snake? I’m the one who feeds you every day!"
Stove tilted slightly, its leaves rustling in disbelief. If it had a face, it would’ve been giving him the biggest Are you serious right now? Look.
Then it rustled loudly, clearly mocking him.
Rong Ye paused, blinking. "What’s that supposed to mean?"
Another rustle.
The message came across loud and clear in his mind: You? Feed me? You’re the one who counts how much I eat like a miser.
Rong Ye froze. His mouth opened... then closed.
He could feel his ears turning red. "T-that’s... budgeting! I was just making sure you didn’t overeat! Plants can get fat too, you know!"
The stove gave a dramatic little shake, clearly judging him.
Rong Ye’s embarrassment immediately turned into fury. "Don’t you look at me like that! You’re supposed to help me rescue Qinglan, not stop me!"
He got to his feet, puffing up his chest. "Now move aside, or I’ll..."
Before he could finish, Stove stretched its vines wide across the cave entrance, forming a solid wall of green. It wasn’t moving an inch.
"Oh, so that’s how it is, huh?" Rong Ye growled. "You want a fight?"
The stove didn’t move.
Rong Ye bared his teeth. "Fine. You asked for it!"
In an instant, his body glowed, and poof...a puff of silver mist burst out. Where the man stood, a large six-tailed fox now stood proudly with bristling fur and blazing eyes.
Or... trying to look proud.
Because one of his tails had a big, unmistakable bald patch.
He had forgotten about that.
And Stove immediately noticed that.
It stared for a long, silent second. Then its leaves started to shake. And shake. And shake even harder...until the whole plant was trembling from the effort not to laugh.
Rong Ye blinked. "...What? Why are you shaking like that?"
A moment later, one of the vines reached out and lifted his bald tail, holding it up like a trophy.
The stove quivered wildly, its leaves rustling with uncontrollable amusement.
Rong Ye froze. His jaw dropped. "Y–You put it down!"
The plant rustled harder, clearly laughing even more.
"You dare! You dare mock me?!" he shouted, fur puffing out even more. "That’s it! You think it’s funny? Then I’ll make you bald too!"
He leapt at the stove with a dramatic battle cry with extended claws.
The stove shrieked (as much as a plant could shriek) and tried to scuttle away on its roots, vines flailing wildly. But it was too slow.

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