Refining the Destruction Black Lotus

Mount Sumeru sprawled across a vast expanse; beyond its main peak lay numerous side peaks and secluded valleys.

Zhunti led the two through a stretch of pine forest, then around a mountain ridge, where the view suddenly opened up before them.

This was a hidden valley.

Within the valley, clear springs flowed, ancient trees towered to the sky, and spiritual herbs carpeted the ground.

Most peculiar of all, the spiritual energy in the valley was so dense it nearly congealed into substance; with a single deep breath, one could feel the spiritual power circulating through the meridians.

"This place is called Spirit Spring Valley."

Zhunti introduced, "My senior brother and I discovered it in our early years. Several spiritual veins converge underground here, and the abundance of spiritual energy is unmatched on Mount Sumeru.

It's just a bit remote, which makes it perfectly suitable for Daoist brother to go into seclusion and refine."

Jieyin looked around and nodded:

"This place is indeed suitable.

My junior brother and I can set up restrictions at the valley entrance, sealing it off inside and out. Daoist brother can refine with peace of mind, without worrying about external disturbances."

Xuande also sensed the spiritual energy in the valley and felt satisfied in his heart.

He looked at Jieyin and Zhunti: "I am indebted to you two Daoist brothers for your trouble."

Jieyin waved his hand:

"Daoist brother, please wait here a moment. My junior brother and I will go arrange the restrictions."

With that, the two soared into the air and landed on either side of the valley entrance.

Jieyin offered up a string of prayer beads, while Zhunti produced a Seven-Treasure Wonderful Tree branch. Both simultaneously formed hand seals and cast spells, sending streak after streak of dharma formulas into the void.

Xuande stood in the valley, watching the two work.

He saw beams of golden light fly from the prayer beads and streams of azure light scatter from the Seven-Treasure Wonderful Tree branch, intertwining together.

Gradually, a faint, translucent curtain of light formed, enveloping the entire valley entrance.

Sanskrit characters faintly shimmered across the light curtain, exuding an aura of solemnity and purity.

After about half an hour, the restrictions were complete.

Jieyin and Zhunti descended from the clouds and returned to Xuande's side.

"Daoist brother, the restrictions are set."

Jieyin said, "These restrictions can seal off all internal and external auras and also withstand external intrusion.

Daoist brother need only focus on refining. If anything unusual occurs, the two of us will know immediately."

Zhunti added:

"Daoist brother, rest assured. With my senior brother and me guarding, not even a fly can get in."

Xuande bowed to them solemnly:

"Many thanks to you two Daoist brothers.

This thorough refinement—I do not know how long it will take.

You two need not wait here in vain; you may return to your caves to cultivate first. If anything comes up, This Humble One will send word."

Jieyin shook his head:

"Daoist brother, your words miss the mark.

How could we slack off in the duty of guarding the dharma?

My junior brother and I will simply sit in meditation here at the valley entrance. Daoist brother, proceed with confidence."

Zhunti also nodded: "Exactly. Daoist brother, go quickly—do not delay."

Seeing their insistence, Xuande said no more. After bowing again, he turned and walked deeper into the valley.

He found a flat rock in the valley and sat down cross-legged.

Around him, spiritual energy swirled thickly, and clear springs babbled—truly a rare place of purity.

Xuande closed his eyes, sinking his mind into the Primordial Spirit within his Purple Mansion.

Within the Primordial Spirit space, two treasures floated silently.

The Twelve-Petal Destruction Black Lotus was pitch-black all over, its petals edged with a dim, dark gleam, yet no demonic aura leaked out any longer.

The God-Slaying Spear's dark red shaft was ancient and deep, with a single point of cold light at the tip, radiating a chilling aura of slaughter.

Xuande did not rush to refine both treasures at once.

Biting off more than one could chew—he understood this principle.

He decided to first completely refine the Twelve-Petal Destruction Black Lotus.

After all, this object was most homologous with his Merit Golden Lotus, so refining it might go more smoothly.

Moreover, if he could fully control the Black Lotus, it would aid in refining the God-Slaying Spear later.

He first wrapped himself layer by layer in Merit Golden Light for protection.

To completely refine a treasure of such destructive nature, the slightest misstep could allow its aura to erode the Dao heart.

Merit Golden Light was the finest shield, able to keep his mind clear and undisturbed.

Once the protective golden light was in place, Xuande raised his right hand, and the Twelve-Petal Destruction Black Lotus flew out from between his brows, hovering before him.

The Black Lotus now was different from when it had been in the Abyss of Demonic Energy.

At that time, it had been wreathed in demonic qi, cold and deathly still, inspiring fear at a single glance.

Now, those demonic energies had been completely purified.

All that remained was the pure essence of Destruction itself.

Cold, yet not evil. Final, yet not tainted.

Xuande gazed at this lotus platform, born of the same origin yet opposite in nature, and a complex emotion surged within him.

Light and darkness, life and death, creation and destruction.

They seemed opposed, but were in truth two sides of the same coin.

When the Chaos Green Lotus disintegrated, its seeds scattered across the Primordial Wilderness. Some turned toward the light, some toward the darkness, yet all sprang from the same mother plant.

"You and I share the same origin."

Xuande spoke slowly, his voice calm.

"Today, I will completely refine you and make you my own.

From now on, your destruction shall be my destruction, your end shall be my end.

But all of this will be controlled by me, decided by me—when to use it, and how to use it."

As his words fell, he closed his eyes, sinking his mind into the Primordial Spirit imprint he had long since planted.

During the initial refinement, he had merely driven his mark into the core of the Black Lotus.

But now, what he needed to do was to master every single law of the Black Lotus.

Xuande's mind followed that imprint, slowly entering the interior of the Black Lotus.

In an instant, he felt as though he had fallen into an endless void of darkness.

Here, there was no light, no sound, no direction.

Only the pure, cold, vast-as-the-sea laws of Destruction, surging toward him like countless blades.

This was the Black Lotus's origin—the Great Dao it had condensed over countless ages since the Chaos Green Lotus's dissolution.

Xuande's mind did not retreat.

The Merit Golden Light formed a gentle barrier around his Primordial Spirit, isolating those laws of Destruction.

Yet it did not completely block them—he needed to touch them, to understand them, before he could ultimately master them.

He "stood" within this dark void, quietly perceiving.

Destruction.

Not destruction as in ruin, not slaughter, not hatred.

Those were merely the surface of destruction—the emotions and colors that living beings had assigned to it.

True destruction was pure, neutral, inevitable.

All things that are born must die; all things that begin must end.

Destruction is not evil. It is a part of the Heavenly Dao's operation, the end of the cycle, and also the starting point of new life.

A glimmer of enlightenment rose in Xuande's heart.

He had always believed that what he cultivated was merit, was Purity, was bearing the weight of all.

But what was the end of bearing merit? Was it to let all things exist eternally?

No, that was impossible.

The Heavenly Dao has its constancy; it does not exist for Yao nor perish for Jie.

All things live and die according to their own laws.

True merit is not to prevent destruction, but to allow all things to reach fulfillment before destruction comes.

And after destruction, to allow new life to be conceived.

Merit and destruction had never been enemies. They were two sides of the same Great Dao.

This realization struck like a bolt of lightning, illuminating that dark void.

Xuande's mind no longer resisted the surging laws of Destruction.

Instead, it actively met them, using the gentleness of the Merit Golden Light.

To wrap around those cold powers, bit by bit understanding, accepting, and merging with them.

This was not a conquest, but a dialogue.

Time lost all meaning within this void.

Xuande was immersed in the comprehension of the laws of destruction, sometimes lucid, sometimes in a haze.

Those laws were too vast; even with his Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal late-stage cultivation, he could not fully fathom them.

But he did not need to fully fathom them—he only needed to fully control them.

Using the Primordial Spirit imprint planted during the initial refinement as his foundation, and guided by his own Dao, he gradually permeated his will into every petal, every vein, and every law of the Black Lotus.

This process was slow and arduous.

In Spirit Spring Valley, Xuande sat with his eyes tightly shut, his expression alternating between calm and slightly twisted.

The Merit Golden Light and the dark radiance of the Destruction Black Lotus interwove around him, now bright, now dim, forming a strange equilibrium.

The valley's Spiritual Energy was frantically absorbed by him, then released during the refinement process, creating faint ripples of spiritual fluctuation.

At the valley entrance, Jieyin and Zhunti sat cross-legged, their expressions serene, yet their divine senses constantly enveloped the entire valley.

They could perceive the fluctuations coming from within, could sense the interweaving and collision of destruction aura and merit aura, but they never disturbed him—only quietly stood guard.

Another unknown stretch of time passed.

In the valley, Xuande suddenly opened his eyes.

Before him, the Twelve-Petal Destruction Black Lotus floated silently, still pitch-black all over, yet it had lost some of its cold detachment and gained a measure of calm tranquility.

It rotated slowly, the dark light along the edges of its petals no longer eerie and fearsome, but instead revealing a deep, pure beauty.

Xuande raised his hand, and the Black Lotus drifted gently into his palm, shrinking to the size of a walnut and lying there docilely.

He closed his eyes, sensing the connection deep within his Primordial Spirit that had completely merged with the Black Lotus.

He could call upon its laws of destruction at any time.

He could control its power as he wished—let it bloom, or let it slumber.

The Twelve-Petal Destruction Black Lotus was fully refined.

Xuande let out a long breath, a tired but gratified smile spreading across his face.

He then withdrew the Black Lotus into his Primordial Spirit space and closed his eyes to regulate his breathing.

Fully refining the Black Lotus had consumed a great deal of his mental energy.

He needed to recover before beginning to refine another treasure—the God-Slaying Spear.

That supreme weapon of slaughter was even more perilous than the Black Lotus.

The Black Lotus's destruction was law, was the Great Dao—relatively pure.

But the God-Slaying Spear's slaughter was stained with countless blood and grudges—far more violent, far harder to tame.

Still, with the experience of fully refining the Black Lotus, Xuande gained more confidence in fully refining the God-Slaying Spear.

He took a deep breath, circulated his cultivation technique, absorbed the dense Spiritual Energy in the valley, and slowly restored his depleted mind and mana.

In the valley, the clear spring babbled, and spiritual herbs exuded fragrance.

Xuande sat quietly within, his aura gradually stabilizing.

Once he had fully recovered, he would take out that dark red long spear and begin its refinement.