Fang Jie had never felt so comfortable before. This was the first time he had so vividly and clearly experienced this wonderful sensation that he had previously been unable to grasp. He had experienced his eyes turning red a few times before, but Fang Jie had always thought it was a sign of impending abdominal pain. Later, he discovered that the red eyes and abdominal pain were unrelated. Those previous times, he was in a dazed state, completely unaware of the changes happening to him.
But this time, he did not fall into chaotic darkness.
His mind remained clear, even calmer than before.
The world he saw now was vastly different from before. The world used to be colorful, but now most of what he saw was red. Yet this red world was not blurry at all; everything was still clearly visible. Only the person he saw was no longer a living, breathing person, but rather like a dissected human. Clothes became indistinct in his vision, while the contents of the body were clearly visible.
Fang Henshui, whom he saw, still had clearly defined features. The body was merely a red, humanoid outline, but Fang Henshui's meridians, blood, and even his dantian (energy center) were clearly visible. He could even see Fang Henshui's heart pounding rapidly, confirming that Fang Jie was extremely tense and frightened.
So he smiled.
He looked down slightly at the red lotus coiled around his fingertip, noticing the spiderweb-like veins within it were exceptionally clear. It was a lotus shape formed from condensed天地元气 (heaven and earth energy), and this energy circulated within the lotus with remarkable regularity. At this moment, the天地元气 within the red lotus was as gentle as a kitten, completely devoid of its previous violent nature. However, Fang Jie was certain that if he were to throw this red lotus, its power would be enough to blast Fang Henshui to smithereens.
He shifted his gaze from the red lotus back to Fang Henshui, who stood six or seven meters away.
Fang Jie discovered that this person's dantian was vast, and the internal energy within was incredibly powerful. He could see Fang Henshui's internal energy flowing from his meridians into his acupoints, a sign of his focused vigilance. Undoubtedly, the slightest movement from Fang Jie would trigger a rapid flow of internal energy within Fang Henshui, allowing him to react accordingly.
This feeling was truly wondrous; Fang Jie even felt a surge of joy, almost wanting to cheer.
Being able to clearly see the flow of internal energy within his enemy was a tremendous advantage in battle. He could anticipate the enemy's next move before they even attacked. This sudden advantage made Fang Jie feel incredibly comfortable. And after his eyes turned bloodshot, and the black lotus transformed into a red one, the flames burning on Fang Jie's right arm extinguished themselves, leaving no trace of injury.
Fang Jie tried to move his muscles, and a powerful force immediately coalesced.
He couldn't help but smile, then began to walk forward.
Fang Henshui's face turned extremely grim. He had never expected his enemy to undergo such a change. His previously overwhelming advantage had been completely reversed. Although he didn't yet understand the changes Fang Jie had undergone, a sense of powerlessness rapidly spread throughout his body.
Yes, he was filled with hatred for the old monk Zhihui.
But he was also filled with fear of Zhihui.
That's why he remembered every word Zhihui said clearly. Thinking of the Buddhist secrets the old monk had told him in the tree hollow that rainy night, his heart began to pound wildly. Red eyes… Zhihui said that if one day you see someone with pure blood-red eyes, then kneel down and worship. Because you have no room for resistance; there is no other way but submission.
But Fang Henshui was unwilling to accept this. He didn't believe Fang Jie was the kind of person the old monk Zhihui described.
Fang Jie hadn't received any Buddhist inheritance; his eyes turning red didn't necessarily mean he had suddenly become powerful. But the red lotus at Fang Jie's fingertip filled him with vigilance; he could feel the immense energy within it. If that energy exploded, could he withstand it?
He didn't know.
Watching Fang Jie walk towards him step by step, Fang Henshui suddenly thought of running away. He subconsciously turned his head to look around and found that many of the surrounding commoners had already fled in fear. Although a few people had mustered their courage to stay, they had already moved even further away.
Those lowly mortals filled him with disgust.
Just then, he saw a dozen or so people wearing flying fish robes rushing towards them, clearly having noticed the commotion and come to investigate. This place was only five or six li from Chang'an City; the flying fish robes of the Imperial Guards and the city's garrison soldiers wouldn't have difficulty spotting the battle. Therefore, Fang Henshui began to regret his impulsiveness. If only he had pretended not to have noticed Fang Jie and secretly followed him to find an opportunity to strike…
The flying fish robes were moving very fast, already two or three hundred meters away.
Fang Henshui's regret grew stronger, and so did his fear.
Escape!
He told himself that he had to escape now.
Regardless of whether the old monk Zhihui was telling the truth, and regardless of whether Fang Jie was the kind of person Zhihui described. He had to leave now. If more and more Imperial Guards arrived, he wouldn't be able to escape. And if he fell into their hands, he didn't believe Prince Yi would risk his life to save him. He knew Prince Yi had a major plan for tomorrow and wouldn't change it because of him.
At this point, nothing and no one could change Prince Yi's plans.
Escape.
He told himself.
Just as he made up his mind and turned to flee, he saw two red phantoms flash by. Fang Jie, who had been standing on the other side, was now blocking his way a few meters away. Fang Henshui instinctively turned again, and the red phantoms flashed once more; Fang Jie was still blocking his way a few meters away.
A ruthless and resolute glint flashed in Fang Henshui's eyes. He bit his tongue hard, swallowed the blood, and his face became even more ferocious. The spiritual energy within his body flowed rapidly, several times faster than before. A three-petaled lotus flower slowly took shape in his dantian, gradually emerging.
This was the old monk Zhihui's secret technique. Once the lotus flower formed outside his body, he could use its power to escape. Of course, the price would be terrifying, as he didn't yet possess Zhihui's cultivation level and couldn't execute it so naturally.
But…
…
…
Fang Jie clearly saw the flow of primordial energy within Fang Henshui's body, and also clearly saw the lotus flower gradually forming in his dantian. In that instant, Fang Jie thought of the white lotus that the old monk Zhihui had used to escape. That lotus flower seemed to open a portal to another dimension, allowing the caster to escape instantly.
So Fang Jie immediately moved.
The two thin red phantoms Fang Henshui had seen earlier were the lingering traces left by Fang Jie's eyes as he moved. At this moment, Fang Jie's physical strength reached its peak. His speed was beyond imagination.
Just as the lotus flower in Fang Henshui's dantian was about to emerge, Fang Jie suddenly appeared two meters in front of him. If Fang Henshui's eyes hadn't turned black again, he almost wouldn't have been able to keep up with Fang Jie's speed. Even so, he only saw Fang Jie when he was two meters away.
Fang Henshui let out a loud cry, unleashing all his remaining inner strength through his eyes. Two almost tangible black energy blasts shot towards Fang Jie's body, like two black lightning bolts shooting from his eyes. This was the first time since receiving the inheritance that he had been forced into such a desperate situation.
He used all his life-saving abilities, sparing no effort.
However, these two black energies seemed to have no effect on Fang Jie. He watched helplessly as his energy collided with Fang Jie's body, without producing any impact. The inner strength, comparable to sword energy, only tore Fang Jie's clothes, but couldn't leave even the slightest scratch.
In that instant of astonishment and fear, Fang Jie was already in front of him.
Then, he saw Fang Jie imprint the red lotus flower on the outside of his lower abdomen. At that moment, the life-saving three-petaled white lotus had just emerged from his dantian!
Boom!
A massive shockwave exploded violently. Amidst the thick smoke and dust, Fang Jie's body flew backward like a hawk, while on the other side, Fang Henshui's body crashed through the smoke and was sent flying straight away, his body hunched over as he flew backward, leaving a trail of white fragments in his wake.
Those were the shattered life-saving white lotus, directly pulverized by the red lotus in Fang Jie's hand.
If it weren't for the white lotus's supreme defensive power, Fang Henshui would likely have been reduced to a pile of mud. Fang Jie had broken his escape technique, and his internal energy was nearly exhausted. The white and red lotuses neutralized each other, allowing him to escape death. But this escape was only temporary; with his current strength, he was no match for Fang Jie.
As he stumbled backward, Fang Henshui felt utterly hopeless.
His most powerful means of self-preservation had been shattered, and he had no way to use it again in the short term!
Despair filled his heart, and his eyes were lifeless.
He no longer had any means to fight Fang Jie to the death. He hated that Fang Jie was truly the kind of person the old monk Zhihui had described. Under those eerie, blood-red eyes, all his methods became meaningless. Now, even his life-saving White Lotus had been destroyed; he had no chance to escape.
In that instant, many things came to mind. He remembered how he had endured countless hardships to travel from Jiangnan to Chang'an, just to confess to a murder case to the Ministry of Justice. The victims of that murder were all members of the Buddhist sect. Logically, members of the Buddhist sect would never dare to set foot in the Sui Dynasty so easily, yet outside that small fishing village, more than a dozen bald men had died. Because it involved the Buddhist sect, the Ministry of Justice took it very seriously, which was why he had traveled north.
Because of the Buddhist sect's dead, he had to go to Chang'an. Just as he was about to enter the capital of the Sui Dynasty, filled with joy and excitement, he encountered two Buddhist figures: the old monk Zhihui and the eccentric monk Chenya. From then on, he began a life of torment and suffering. He was tortured to the point of near death, yet he couldn't die. This torment wasn't just physical; the most significant was the mental anguish.
Later, Chenya died, and the old monk was severely injured. Perhaps Zhihui was already inseparable from him at that time, because he revealed many secrets. Among them was something that shocked him greatly…
Those Buddhist disciples who died in the fishing village of Jiangnan were actually the ones who hunted Fang Jie!
Because those who hunted Fang Jie were killed, he suffered so much pain later. And now, just when he thought he could kill Fang Jie and vent all his resentment, Fang Jie suddenly transformed into the kind of person the Buddhist celestial being had described as someone he couldn't defeat… Buddhism… Fang Jie… Why was fate so unfair?
He hadn't provoked anyone, so why was he involved with Buddhism? Why was he involved with Fang Jie?
"Unfair!"
With a thud, Fang Henshui's body flew a full twenty meters before crashing to the ground. Unable to stop due to inertia, he rolled several more meters.
Fang Henshui, now stationary, coughed up a mouthful of thick, murky blood, his eyes glazed over.
Several flying fish robes who had rushed over surrounded him, one of them crouching down to check his breath.
Just then!
Fang Henshui suddenly raised his hand and plunged it into the heart of the flying fish robe, his entire palm inside. A moment later, a fresh, bloody heart was ripped out. Amidst the gasps of the others, he swallowed the heart in a few gulps.
The disheveled madman turned back, grabbed another flying fish robe, stabbed it into the heart, pulled out the heart, and swallowed it as well. The remaining flying fish robes howled in terror and retreated, but he quickly caught up. In a short time, he had devoured the hearts of three people. With each heart he consumed, his body underwent astonishing changes!
After three hearts, the blackness in Fang Henshui's eyes had become terrifyingly intense!
Pitch black!