A medical cultivator must also know how to use poisons. At this moment, Meng Qi was employing a mixture of several spiritual herbs she had concocted, capable of causing most plants to wither rapidly. With the added effect of the array, if it worked as intended…
Meng Qi gripped her medicinal knife firmly, her left hand clasping several spirit stones. The medicinal aura had already struck the green vines in front of her, and in an instant, the previously verdant vines turned withered yellow where the aura touched them. Not just the vines, but even the leaves on them began to wither. The leaves rapidly detached from the vines and fluttered to the ground.
Meng Qi breathed a sigh of relief and, without waiting for the leaves to completely fall, charged forward with her medicinal knife. Her weapon had limited offensive capabilities, but now that the vines had wilted, it easily cut through them, like a hot knife through butter. She darted through the gap she had created; her blue figure quickly left the vines behind.
The mysterious entity chuckled again, “You’re quite fast, and your mind is sharp, too. But your use of the medicinal knife leaves much to be desired. Little girl, forget about climbing the Ten Absolutes Mountain. Stay with This Lord, and in ten years, I assure you, you’ll be a formidable force to be reckoned with.”
Meng Qi snorted softly, not slowing down her pace. Ten years? Firstly, she had no idea who this person was or whether they were trustworthy, and secondly, even if she really could leave after ten years, it would be too late. She certainly didn’t want that!
“What do you say, little girl? It’s rare for This Lord to take such an interest in someone. Why not stay?” The voice softened, now carrying a coaxing tone, “I’ll pass on all my skills to you, and once you master them, you will stand above millions.”
He kept prattling on, but Meng Qi paid him no heed.
“Little girl,” the entity continued, “you’re a medical cultivator and know arrays, so your Five Spirits Cauldron must have been passed down by that girl Lin Yan, right? This Lord must be correct about that?”
As soon as Meng Qi heard the words “Lin Yan,” her steps slowed for the first time.
“Heh heh heh.” The entity laughed smugly, “That girl Lin Yan had talent, but she was also quite stubborn.”
Wait! He called Senior Lin Yan a ‘little girl’? Meng Qi slowed down for just a moment, then picked up speed again. If this person wasn’t deceiving her, could he be an ancient cultivator? Otherwise, why would he refer to Senior Lin Yan as a ‘little girl’?
“Stubbornness is good, but it can also be a problem,” the voice continued, seemingly indifferent to whether Meng Qi was listening or not, “Little girl, you shouldn’t imitate her.”
“Why wouldn’t it be good?” Meng Qi asked.
Seeing her finally speaking, the voice’s tone became excited, “Because it can lead to fixation on trivial matters, and one might end up sacrificing themselves over it. Little girl, since you’re her successor… oh wait, that’s not right!” The person suddenly exclaimed, “After ten thousand years, how did you receive her legacy? If you’ve inherited the Five Spirits Cauldron, does that mean… oh dear! This could be troublesome.”
He continued to exclaim and fret.
Meng Qi guessed this person might be an ancient great power. Hearing his sudden alarm, she became more cautious.
“Oh, little girl, you’re entering the Ten Absolutes Mountain, do you know about… no! This Lord must not speak! This matter absolutely cannot be spoken of.”
“Oh,” Meng Qi responded nonchalantly. After he said that, the voice fell silent. Although the swamp was still tumultuous, Meng Qi had passed through the thickest part of the toxic clouds and felt more at ease. With the mysterious entity not speaking, she took the opportunity to run even faster.
“Little girl, aren’t you curious? What is it I can’t tell you?”
“If I were curious, would you tell me?” Meng Qi casually asked.
“Of course not, it’s a big secret, a great secret of the Ten Absolutes Mountain, and I can’t tell you, a mere Nascent Soul cultivator,” the voice replied.
“Then there’s no use in being curious, better not to be,” Meng Qi stated.
“You’re an interesting little girl,” he paused, then continued, “This Lord can understand why Lin Yan passed the Five Spirits Cauldron to you… If you were from her era, you two might have been close friends.”
“Thank you for the compliment, Senior, but this junior is unworthy,” Meng Qi replied.
“Calling me senior now… Well, since you’ve called me senior, I can’t let you suffer a loss,” he spoke again.
As Meng Qi casually conversed with the entity, she was about to cross the last of the plank bridge. She could even see the land on the opposite side of the swamp. Once she set foot there, she should have completed a quarter of the test. Although she didn’t know how much time she had spent, she believed she wasn’t the slowest.
The changes happened not long after the voice turned silent. Meng Qi’s sharp eyes glinted — the swamp on both sides of the wooden plank bridge suddenly churned, and large green leaves emerged, quickly sprouting buds. In the span of a breath, various colored lotuses bloomed. The swamp, devoid of any living things and had just been ominously overcast, had transformed into a garden of lotus leaves in an instant.
Right in front of her path, a golden lotus emerged from the earth. The lotus was exquisitely beautiful, radiating dazzling golden light.
“Little girl,” the voice rang again, “this is the Karmic Fire Red Lotus.”
“???” Meng Qi was baffled. She had read quite a few books, including ancient medical records and compendiums, but this was the first time she had heard of this name.
“The Karmic Fire Red Lotus is a flame even more powerful than your Lihuo fire array. It can not only burn everything in the world to ashes, but can even devour one’s spiritual sea and consciousness.”
Meng Qi silently observed the lotus, not responding.
“If you want to leave here, you have to pluck it,” the voice continued. “Karmic fire is even more formidable than Lihuo fire. If you can pluck it, you can integrate it into your Five Spirits Cauldron’s Lihuo array. Your future refining will become much more powerful.”
Meng Qi took a deep breath but made no move.
“Of course, if you cannot pluck it, you might be directly devoured by its flame, leaving no trace behind, not even your consciousness or spiritual sea. You would completely perish as if you never existed in this world. Do you dare to try?” the voice asked.
Meng Qi gazed at the Karmic Fire Red Lotus and suddenly smiled, “Can I choose not to try?”
“Little girl, having no sense of adventure won’t do,” the voice chuckled ominously.
“Must I pluck it?” Meng Qi didn’t take a single step forward. Although she didn’t feel any intense heat, just standing nearby made her feel somewhat uneasy.
“You can also choose to stay and accompany This Lord for ten years. Don’t be ungrateful for the good fortune you have, little girl. If This Lord didn’t see that you have the Five Spirits Cauldron and some connection to little girl Lin Yan, I wouldn’t offer you such a treasure. Moreover…” he said mysteriously, “once you reach the Ten Absolutes Mountain, you’ll understand the other marvelous uses of the Karmic Fire Red Lotus.”
“Especially in this year’s Ten Absolutes Mountain,” he added.
“Okay,” Meng Qi quietly observed the lotus. What was a karmic fire? She had never heard of it.
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