A white, crystalline three-petaled lotus floated silently less than half a meter in front of Fang Jie, who had just shaken off a white lotus clinging to the tip of his Morning Dew Blade. As he turned, he saw the white lotus instantly turn black. Then, the lotus began to grow larger, seemingly about to explode in the next second.
Fang Jie's pupils dilated sharply at the sight of the white lotus's power, his heart nearly leaping out of his throat. He had thought he was now capable of fighting a cultivator; after all, Xie Fuyao was a seventh-rank expert, and in a life-or-death struggle with Fang Jie, no one could be certain of victory.
Initially, relying on his perception of the天地元气 (heaven and earth's energy), Fang Jie precisely dodged and blocked Fang Henshui's Flower-Picking Finger technique. He successfully closed the distance and wounded Fang Henshui with his Broken Blade Blood Slaughter. At that moment, Fang Jie had the upper hand, and he himself thought he was about to win the battle.
However, the three-petaled white lotus thrown by Fang Henshui shattered Fang Jie's pride instantly.
The timing and location of an attack from a cultivator of a certain level are indeed unpredictable, making them impossible to defend against. Just seconds before, Fang Jie had the upper hand, and Fang Henshui, seemingly in a sorry state with a cut to his chest, was now facing a dead end thanks to the first white lotus.
A complete and utter dead end.
The lotus, now black, was too close to Fang Jie; even if he dodged immediately, he wouldn't have time to avoid it. Knowing he was cornered, Fang Jie's breath caught in his throat, and his face turned deathly pale. At that moment, his resentment and unwillingness to accept defeat surged forth.
He had clearly gained the upper hand, yet he was being plunged into hell by a single black lotus?
Is someone who cannot utilize the energy of heaven and earth truly without any chance of winning against a cultivator of the seventh rank or higher?
Unwillingness!
Anger! Fang Jie's eyes were fixed on the black lotus. If his gaze were intense enough, the black lotus might melt away.
Fang Henshui, having leaped away, wore a smug smile. Although he had been somewhat forced into a sorry state by Fang Jie, he was certain he was the victor. The power of this black lotus far surpassed that of the previous white lotus; it was his strongest technique. He was certain that once the black lotus exploded, even a rock within a five-meter radius would be pulverized. In fact, he even believed that Fang Jie would be certain death within ten meters.
He could already see victory approaching, so close.
He felt he could sense Fang Jie's resentment and anger, because he himself had often felt such emotions. Fang Jie was a lucky man, a universally acknowledged genius of the entire Sui Dynasty. He was only the second person in over a hundred years since the founding of the Sui Dynasty to achieve excellence in all nine subjects of the Martial Arts Academy's examinations, not only highly regarded by the Martial Arts Academy but also admired by the Emperor. Fang Henshui was merely a constable from a remote county. Without this trip to Chang'an, he was certain he would have lived a mediocre life.
But precisely because he had endured hardships others couldn't bear, he had become a powerful figure.
He could even look at the Sui Dynasty's genius, the pride of the Martial Arts Academy, with pity and contempt.
He had been contemplating how to kill Fang Jie—whether to destroy his confidence first and then slowly torture him to death, or to kill him outright. But when the day actually arrived, he suddenly forgot all these thoughts. As long as he could kill Fang Jie, no matter how, his name would be legendary.
A constable from a small fishing village on the Jiangnan coast had actually killed the Sui Dynasty's rising star.
How joyful this was!
At this moment, he even felt he could forget the suffering, humiliation, and torment he had endured with Zhihui. With Fang Jie dead, who among the younger generation was more outstanding than him?
Fang Jie's surname was Fang, and so was his. Why should Fang Jie be the most glorious one?
The black lotus rapidly expanded, swelling from the size of a peach blossom to the size of a bowl.
"Die!"
Fang Henshui gritted his teeth, his eyes suddenly sharpening.
As if receiving a command, the black lotus trembled and then began to explode!
Fang Henshui's eyes narrowed. He knew that at this moment, no one could save Fang Jie. Not to mention the ninth-rank cultivator beside him, nor his many powerful friends. At this point, even a Great Luo Golden Immortal appearing might not be able to pull Fang Jie back from the brink of death.
If time could slow down a hundredfold, the process of the black lotus exploding could be seen with the naked eye.
The three lotus petals opened outwards, and a pure black mass within the lotus's center gradually enlarged. The petals parted, and black light shone outwards from the lotus's center, as if piercing through clouds, in wisps. Then, a large mass of black matter gushed out like a waterfall, then expanded and exploded.
Of course, time could not slow down a hundredfold, so the speed at which the black lotus exploded was completely invisible to the naked eye. Even Fang Jie himself didn't doubt that he would be reduced to minced meat the moment the black lotus exploded.
However, if time could truly slow down a hundredfold, a careful observer would not only see the black lotus explode, but also witness a subtle change quietly occurring within its heart—a vibrant red struggling to emerge from the black.
Others couldn't see it, couldn't detect it. But Fang Henshui could clearly sense the subtle changes in the black lotus he had created, so he immediately frowned. He reached out and grasped at it, seemingly trying to urge the black lotus to explode quickly. But he failed. The already exploded black lotus was suddenly bound by red threads surging from its heart, like a blooming flower being strangled by thin red ropes. The three petals, which had already separated, were pulled back together by the red threads.
Fang Henshui was horrified, watching helplessly as the black lotus he had created turned a vivid red at a visible speed. So thoroughly, so beautifully red—this was the lotus he had created, yet it no longer belonged to him. That red lotus... filled him with fear and helplessness.
The lotus, which had already burst open, became perfect again, its red beauty breathtaking.
Fang Henshui subconsciously looked at Fang Jie, but was so startled by a pair of red eyes that his heart skipped a beat.
At this moment, Fang Jie's eyes no longer had the distinct black and white of his pupils; only pure red remained. And this red wasn't a festive red; it was an eerie red. Fang Henshui knew that his eyes would turn black when his cultivation reached its limit, due to the inheritance he had received. Wisdom had once said that receiving this inheritance would make one's eyes exceptionally powerful. And depending on the type of inheritance received and the level of comprehension, the color of the eyes would also differ.
...
...
At this moment, Fang Henshui involuntarily recalled that rainy night. In the huge tree hollow at the foot of the north side of Half-Moon Mountain, the old monk Wisdom had told him many secrets about Buddhism. One secret, in particular, Fang Henshui remembered clearly: the inheritance of Buddhism.
The old monk Zhihui once said that the amount of inheritance a person receives is greatly related to their aptitude. The better the aptitude, the more perfect the inheritance. Zhihui said that even someone as useless as him, incapable of cultivation, would become a true powerhouse once they received the Buddhist inheritance.
The most direct indication of how much inheritance a person has received is their eyes.
When Fang Henshui later discovered that his eyes could turn pure black, he recalled the old monk Zhihui's words and felt somewhat annoyed. Zhihui had told him that day that those who receive the least inheritance will have pure black eyes. This is a dark power that can corrupt the cultivation power of others and transform it into one's own internal energy.
If someone receives the Buddhist inheritance and their eyes turn pure black, it is considered almost indistinguishable from a failed inheritance. Because even an ordinary person, after receiving the inheritance, will become an absolute powerhouse. Fang Henshui had once asked the old monk if black eyes were the most unsuccessful manifestation of inheritance. The old monk replied that the more inheritance a recipient receives, the greater the color change in their eyes.
Receiving less, one remains within the original black and white color. Receiving more, it is possible to change the color of the eyes.
Fang Henshui harbored resentment for a long time because of these words, which gradually subsided only when he encountered almost no rivals. He knew his aptitude was average, and that the inheritance he received was insufficient, but the blackening of his eyes still left him somewhat dissatisfied.
Although the inheritance he received was unexpected,
human greed is boundless. When one cannot obtain something, one craves it. When one obtains it, one craves even more. And when one cannot obtain more, resentment and anger arise. This morbid mentality is like weeds in a garden; even turning over the entire garden cannot eradicate it. With the nourishment of a little gloomy rain, this morbidity will rapidly grow and spread.
Fang Henshui knew what had filled his heart with weeds, but he didn't consider them weeds.
It was ambition.
A distorted ambition.
He unexpectedly received the inheritance of the old monk's wisdom, transforming himself from a humble person into a powerful cultivator. When he first realized this change in himself, he even felt fear, because he didn't understand what it was at all. As he slowly groped his way out and realized he was no longer the same person he once was, the hatred in his heart grew stronger.
He had the right to hate.
He had endured so much suffering for no reason; he was originally just an ordinary person. He had fantasized about becoming a high-ranking official, but at that time he knew that fantasy was unrealistic. If it weren't for this change, he would have married a fisherman's daughter and had several children.
He would have worked at the government office, and his wife would have stayed home to manage the household.
That would have been his mundane life.
But how could Fang Henshui, whose life had been changed, willingly return to the past? To marry a fisherman's daughter, live a meaningless life by the sea for decades, and then die a natural death? When he took refuge in that dilapidated courtyard on the 18th Street in the east of Chang'an, he swore an oath under the bright moonlight.
He wanted to be a superior man, to sleep with the most beautiful women, live in the grandest houses, have inexhaustible wealth and countless properties, and have countless people bowing down before him. When people mentioned his name, their eyes would be filled with the most sincere respect.
But when he arrived in Chang'an, he realized how difficult all of this was.
Then, he saw the most beautiful women beside Fang Jie, saw Fang Jie living in the courtyard of the Marquis of Sanjin, lacking nothing in terms of food and drink. Although no one bowed down before him, every citizen of the Sui Dynasty felt proud and honored when Fang Jie's name was mentioned.
So he hated.
But at this moment...
His heart almost stopped, his face turned deathly pale. The blackness in his eyes receded like a tide, leaving only terror and fear in their sockets.
"If you see someone with the purest, most eerie blood-red eyes, then you have no choice but to kneel down and worship. That is the darling of this world; no one can resist the gaze of those blood-red eyes."
These were... the words of the old monk Zhihui.
At this moment, Fang Jie's eyes had completely turned bloodshot.
The lotus flower, now the size of a peach blossom, coiled around his fingertip, its red petals vibrant and alluring. It seemed almost alive, willingly submitting to the gaze of this young man with bloodshot eyes. The previously violent and arrogant black lotus was gone, though… the lotus flower was still the same lotus flower.