Chapter 625: Eternal Illusory Demon Flower and Awakening
"What is this Eternal Illusory Demon Flower?"
Hearing Lin Langtian's words, Lin Dong asked in surprise.
Lin Langtian recalled carefully, then said, "This thing doesn't come from Tianxuan Continent. It's a terrifying creation of the Alien Demon Tribe.
"It is said that to cultivate such a flower, one must use the blood and flesh of countless living beings, then water it with an Alien Demon King's fresh blood as guidance, and continue for a thousand years before an Eternal Illusory Demon Flower can be born.
"This flower releases a fragrance undetectable to humans. Once inhaled, you fall into an illusion.
"That illusion never fades. Once trapped, you remain imprisoned there unless your physical body withers away."
He looked solemn. "From the outside, no one can discover anything unusual. They'll simply think the victim is in deep secluded cultivation."
Lin Dong's pupils shrank. "Brother Langtian, are you saying that the Heavenly Demon Marten expert here—possibly even Little Marten's father—has already fallen into such an illusion?"
Lin Langtian nodded slightly.
He knew very well that through Hao Jiuyou, the Aliens had already inserted their hand deep into the Heavenly Demon Marten Tribe.
"Let's find Little Marten's father first," Lin Dong said, exhaling softly. Whatever else, that was their top priority.
Decision made, the two sped onward, following the faint guidance from the slowly glowing blood feather.
After half an hour, they abruptly came to a halt.
Their gazes locked onto the feather. It had brightened slightly.
Lin Dong turned his head toward the left-hand darkness, hesitated briefly, and then reached out to touch the void.
Buzz.
Ripples of light spread from the darkness, the blackness peeling away to reveal a wide, quiet cavern.
This cave was more serene than the ones they had passed before. Lamps burned with a steady light, and the warm scent of sandalwood filled the air.
At its center stood a green stone platform.
Seated cross-legged upon it was a broad-shouldered figure in black robes. His dark-gold hair flowed down his back, radiating an aura of oppressive dominance.
The feeling he emitted was like a ferocious, slumbering beast ready to explode at any instant.
Clearly, this was Little Marten's father—the current patriarch of the Heavenly Demon Marten Clan.
"Look at the wall behind him," Lin Langtian said, narrowing his eyes.
There, three black Eternal Illusory Demon Flowers swayed slightly upon the cave wall, faint black light flowing over their petals.
"Three Eternal Illusory Demon Flowers?!" Lin Dong gasped.
"Three… The Aliens are really willing to invest," Lin Langtian murmured. "But only this much effort could trap a peak Samsara-level powerhouse."
"So he has indeed been tricked," Lin Dong said, brows tightly knit. "What now? How do we pull him out of the illusion? Destroy the flowers?"
"The scent has already entered his body," Lin Langtian answered. "Even if you destroy these flowers, he'll only awaken naturally once the hallucination fragrance has dissipated within him."
Lin Dong frowned. "And how long does that take?"
"Normally, the illusion-scent cannot be cleansed. It must slowly burn out. That process takes about half a year."
"But Little Marten can't wait that long. Is there no faster way?"
"There is…" Lin Langtian paused and met Lin Dong's eyes. "Your Ancestral Stone."
Lin Dong exhaled in relief and immediately drew out the feather again, tearing open the glowing barrier around the cave.
Gentle white light rushed from deep within his body, enveloping them both in a warm radiance.
They stepped inside.
At the threshold, Lin Langtian felt a faint, strange scent slip into his nostrils. A wave of dizziness washed over his mind.
He steadied himself quickly—the effect was weak, but real.
They advanced toward the stone platform, the patriarch's oppressive aura heavier up close.
"Let's deal with these flowers first," Lin Dong said, circling past the platform toward the wall. Lightning and darkness crackled in his palm as he prepared to destroy the Eternal Illusory Demon Flowers.
"Wait. These are treasures. Don't destroy them," Lin Langtian said suddenly.
Lin Dong blinked. "What?"
"For those who cultivate spiritual power, the Eternal Illusory Demon Flower is an extremely rare treasure," Lin Langtian said calmly. "For us to break through to the Symbol Grandmaster realm, we might very well need its strength."
He knew that in another timeline, Lin Dong had used these very flowers to reach the Symbol Grandmaster level. With his own spiritual power also at the peak of the Master Symbolist stage, he wouldn't let such a chance go.
Lin Dong's body stiffened slightly as a fiery light surged behind his eyes.
Symbol Grandmaster—equal in might to a Rotary Realm expert in Yuan Power, and in some cases, even more troublesome to fight against.
Both he and Lin Langtian stood at the peak of Master Symbolist, one step from that lofty height. But they knew that step required great opportunity.
And now, such an opportunity seemed to be blooming before them.
"In that case, these three flowers stay," Lin Dong said, smiling slightly.
Soft radiance flowed from his body, coalescing into a white dagger. With a few quick slashes, three large pits were carved into the rock wall, and tangled black roots emerged from the earth, forming grotesque, twisted faces.
At once, the three Eternal Illusory Demon Flowers shrieked in high-pitched cries, whipping their petals as torrents of black light and potent fragrance surged toward Lin Dong.
"Hmph."
Lin Langtian snorted sharply. A streak of black light flew from his body, forming a black net and plunging into the broken rock.
Boom.
The stones burst apart, revealing the three uprooted flowers. Their dark roots twisted wildly as they struggled, oozing evil black mist.
Yet as the miasma met the black light, it scattered instantly—like commoners shrinking before a noble.
"Collect."
Lin Langtian flicked his fingers. The net wrapped tightly around the three Eternal Illusory Demon Flowers and pulled them into his inner world.
With their disappearance, the strange fragrance in the cavern thinned dramatically.
"These flowers can be divided later. First, let's wake Little Marten's father," Lin Langtian said.
Lin Dong nodded and quietly summoned the Ancestral Stone.
It floated above the patriarch's head, humming softly as gentle light rained down on his body.
A faint sizzling echoed in the cave.
Slowly, the patriarch's stone-like body began to tremble. Wisps of nearly invisible black gas seeped from his pores, carrying a faint, twisted scent.
Every time the gas touched the Ancestral Stone's white light, it hissed and dissolved into nothingness.
This cleansing continued for nearly half a day until the last ray of light withdrew into the stone, which then shot back into Lin Dong's body.
Still, the patriarch's eyes remained closed.
"His body is free of the illusion-scent," Lin Dong explained quietly. "But after being trapped so long, his mind is still immersed in that world. We must wait for him to completely distinguish illusion from reality before he wakes, or his mind could be torn."
Lin Langtian nodded. "In that case, we'll leave him. Waking up is now his own battle.
"For us, we head deeper into the Heaven Cave and gather every last Eternal Illusory Demon Flower. Consider it a favor to the Marten Clan—and a fortune for us."
Lin Dong had no objections. Helping the Heavenly Demon Marten Tribe while collecting invaluable spiritual treasures was an ideal outcome.
Over the next two days, they combed through the Heaven Cave, removing Eternal Illusory Demon Flowers wherever they found them and using the Ancestral Stone to clear the illusions binding other sealed experts.
By the end, each of them carried seven Eternal Illusory Demon Flowers.
A few caves were off-limits, sealed by the inhabitants themselves. The powerful auras emanating from those retreats made it clear that the sealed martens were of fearsome strength and rank.
But with no way inside, Lin Langtian and Lin Dong could only leave them to the future.
Time passed quickly in the dim cavern. After looping back through the dark, they returned once more to the patriarch's cave.
"Hmm?"
Just as they entered, both men froze, eyes snapping up to the stone platform.
The previously motionless figure there was now slowly opening a pair of razor-sharp eyes.
At the same moment, a terrifying whirlwind of Yuan Power exploded to life within the cave.
The leader of the Heavenly Demon Marten Clan was awakening…
(END CHAPTER)
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 30 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Franklin1