Stepping into a Trap

Ever since escaping Black Mountain, Li Fuchan had wandered from place to place, intent on finding somewhere to put his Yang Vessel. Otherwise, not only would his "Brow Peak" be stretched to breaking, but its Treasure Light would also dim, damaging his foundation.

First, he found a cave brimming with yang energy, only to stumble straight into a tiger demon's den. She had just given birth, too.

She gave him a thorough beating. At such close quarters, he had no chance even to unleash his Golden Duke.

He finally escaped at the cost of an arm and a leg. After spending three days gathering qi and molding replacements, he found another spot. This time, he investigated it every which way and entered only after making certain nothing was amiss.

Yet he ran into a fox.

That fox had formidable tricks. A single illusion left him utterly bewitched, and she stripped him bare, intending to harvest his yang to replenish her yin. Unfortunately, Li Fuchan's Yang Vessel was the foundation of his present body; no matter how he molded qi, he could not produce one. When the fox felt between his legs, she cried out in surprise, "Why are you a eunuch?!"

In that moment of distraction, he gouged away half her head with a flash of Golden Light and escaped.

As Li Fuchan roamed and wandered like this, the Three Calamities upon him were washed away little by little, leaving him less and less time to hold on.

One day, he passed a great river. Seeing its vast waters and surging waves, something stirred in his heart, and Li Fuchan sighed. "Where does my path lie, after all?"

Even as he thought this, he feared something might rush out of the river and decided to leave first. But the swelling between his brows grew so severe that, in a moment of inattention, he tumbled into the river.

Under the rush of water qi, his false body, molded from dense stone qi, crumbled inch by inch. A Silvery White Illuminating Light abruptly rose.

Amid the dark waters and the sound of their flow, a voice rang out in shock and fury. "Who's plotting against me?"

Within Peaceful Way Abbey on Flying Yellow Mountain, a middle-aged cultivator in a Magic Robe stopped what he was doing and looked toward the altar above. The spirit tablet inscribed with "Red Serpent Lord of Great Black Mountain, Concealing a Flood Serpent beneath the Azure Heavens, Born through Transformation" had split at the character for "flood serpent." He could not help shaking his head.

"The Flood Serpent has entered the water."

"Oh? Even your 'Nature-and-Fate Root' couldn't hold him, Senior Brother?"

The middle-aged man was the current Abbey Master of Peaceful Way Abbey. His surname was Quan, his features were plain and archaic, and his eyes were sharp and commanding. Hearing his junior brother's words, he laughed and scolded, "I'm an Outer Scenery cultivator who only recently obtained a 'Fate Root.' I haven't yet combined it with my 'Nature Root' into a single treasure to form a Dao Fruit. Do you take me for a True Person, able to kill someone from a thousand miles away? I merely relied on the marvels of the 'Life Force Root' and bowed a few times. Making him lose his head a few times was already my limit."

Jia Hua scratched his head sheepishly. "Preservation, Transformation, manifestation, truth—you've already attained 'truth,' Senior Brother. Once your Dao Fruit forms, you'll be a True Person. That day isn't far off now."

Quan Yong waved a hand. "There's no need for flattery between us. It's just that this man really stands out. I wonder which faction placed him here."

Hearing this, Jia Hua pondered for a long while before saying, "While you were bowing to him, Senior Brother, I was studying and calculating as well. 'Great Black Mountain, Concealing a Flood Serpent beneath the Azure Heavens, Born through Transformation, Red Serpent Lord'—there's a hint of the Name-Aspect Method about him, but his understanding probably isn't deep. It may even be crude. Otherwise, he wouldn't have come up with such a rustic name, one that doesn't even conceal his foundation."

Quan Yong knew that although this junior brother's cultivation fell short of his own, he was widely learned and well informed. He treated others kindly and even had friends in the Five Mountains Immortal Sect, so he knew a great deal. Quan Yong merely nodded. "Go on."

"'Red Serpent Lord' refers to that unlucky fellow hiding in the mountain who was killed by the onrush of blood baleful intent. 'Transformation' could refer to a spell, a Divine Ability, or a particular state. In my view, it isn't a spell. Mountain stone is heavy and dense—how could it embody the imagery of Transformation? Nor is it a Divine Ability. Otherwise..."

Jia Hua paused and glanced discreetly at Quan Yong.

Of course Quan Yong knew what he meant to say. If it were a Divine Ability, never mind bowing to it—he would drop dead the instant he dared entertain the thought.

Unbothered by Jia Hua's glance, Quan Yong said, "Then it must be a state. Is this man badly injured?"

Jia Hua nodded. "I'm afraid his injuries are severe. I reckon even his physical body has been destroyed. Otherwise, it wouldn't warrant the name 'Transformation.'"

Quan Yong considered this carefully for a moment before saying, "Indeed. Your deductions are very likely correct. 'Concealing' is his behavior, and 'Flood Serpent' is his Destiny. At first, I suspected a flood dragon had come ashore, but Emperor Zhao is on poor terms with Dragonkind, so I dismissed that possibility. These past few days, I've used Life Force to bow to him and keep him from entering the water. It took him this long to see through it, so he probably has no master or Dao Lineage and stumbled into Black Mountain by chance. Still, his disposition is good. That matter is approaching, and the other sects have already found their people. We can't lag behind either. Think of a way to bring him under our rule."

Quan Yong's calculations were sound. Peaceful Way Abbey had suffered something of a gap between the old generation and the new in recent years. Below him, few possessed outstanding ability and character. Three disciples had adequate talent and disposition, but they were being nurtured as future pillars of the abbey. How could he send them off to die in that affair?

Now that he had spotted Li Fuchan, he naturally felt the hunter's thrill at the sight of promising prey.

Yet after hearing him out, Jia Hua waved a hand. "You'd better stop thinking about him, Senior Brother. We should leave this man alone."

"Oh? Why?"

"'Concealing a Flood Serpent,' 'Transformation,' 'Red Serpent Lord'—these show just how embarrassing his mastery of the 'Name-Aspect Method' is. Yet with such embarrassing mastery, he actually wrote 'Azure Heavens.' Aren't you puzzled by such grand ambition, Senior Brother?"

Quan Yong was less learned than Jia Hua and had only a partial understanding of the "Name-Aspect Method," but he was not entirely ignorant.

By that reasoning, although the man was hidden, he was hidden beneath the azure heavens. Did that not mean he was everywhere?

"Forget about him, Senior Brother. Find someone else. At a time like this, the more you do, the more mistakes you make. Besides, your breakthrough is imminent. Don't get entangled in any dangerous stakes."

Quan Yong pondered for a moment, then nodded. "You're right. Now that the Flood Serpent has entered the sea, his trail will be hard to find. He may even encounter some good fortune. We'll leave it for another day. The Xu Household's affair is settled, so there's no need to worry about it anymore. Junior Brother, sorry for the trouble, but make another trip to Huaishuo and meet the Gao Household."

"I shall obey."

After realizing someone had been plotting against him, Li Fuchan hid in the water, trembling for nearly half a month. Only when his Three Calamities were almost washed clean did he have no choice but to emerge.

Even then, he kept his Illuminating Light shining at all times.

Flying Earthworm's handwritten notes mentioned that once an Outer Scenery cultivator reaches manifestation, they can seek a 'Nature Root' and a 'Fate Root.' Combining the two into one treasure produces a Dao Fruit, making them a True Person with remarkable powers. I've been muddleheaded all this time, stumbling into one danger after another, and even my Illuminating Light was suppressed. Most likely, a True Person was acting against me in secret...

Li Fuchan turned it over in his mind again and again. Guided by what his Illuminating Light revealed, he finally understood where the problem lay.

It was the title I left behind!

The titles on Flying Earthworm's cave walls were most likely some kind of spellcraft. By devising a title according to his own understanding, he had probably violated a taboo and exposed many of his secrets, drawing someone's attention.

According to Xu Xuan's elderly father, they should be people from Peaceful Way Abbey on Flying Yellow Mountain. I've only just arrived in this world. If I could attach myself to an immortal sect, not only could I resolve the awkward predicament of the 'three lights method' being unable to unite the Conjoined Taboo and offering no further path of cultivation, but a few gifts of spiritual materials would let me restore my physical body faster, too.

The thought made a circuit through Li Fuchan's mind before he suppressed it.

Leaving aside that he had no idea how the Immortal Sect regarded him, even if he did attach himself to it, they would probably use him as an expendable resource. On top of that, the immortal Flying Earthworm had spoken of was still nowhere to be found. With a deadly tribulation looming, Li Fuchan could only find a way to increase his Three Calamities first, restore his physical body as quickly as possible, and cultivate his methods anew before considering anything else.

I originally molded my false body from mountain-stone qi gathered on Black Mountain. Although it was sturdy, it was far too clumsy. Besides, I bear the Destiny of a Flood Serpent. It would be best to mold it from clearer, more ethereal water qi. That would also help guard against being plotted against again.

He promptly began gathering water qi to mold a false body.

Three days later, he succeeded. Much of his savage aura had been tempered, and his long, narrow eyes held a little less viciousness.

Just as he was about to leave and find some mortals with whom to link turbidity, he suddenly stopped.

Illuminating Light shone from between his brows, faintly taking the form of a Flood Serpent and giving off a series of low cries.

Li Fuchan understood almost instantly. Ah, so this is what Destiny means. A Flood Serpent enters the water and lives by obtaining water. My chance to restore my physical body lies in the water.

Without another word, he jumped into the river and headed in the direction Destiny pointed him.