The Poison Lotus had swelled to the size of a washbasin. A gust of wind blew by, and the Poison Lotus immediately took to the air with the breeze.
Mi Xiaojing and Yong Ji both dared not move. Fortunately, the wind came from the side, and the direction in which the Poison Lotus drifted was not where they were.
As they watched the Poison Lotus drift away, Yong Ji stared intently. After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the Poison Lotus was attracted by a corpse and instantly settled upon it. In a few breaths, the corpse completely vanished, sending chills down the spines of Mi Xiaojing and Yong Ji.
Yong Ji whispered, “Let’s slowly back away.”
Mi Xiaojing shook his head, “You go first, I’ll wait a bit longer.”
Yong Ji was stunned, “What do you mean?”
Mi Xiaojing said, “Look.” As he spoke, he extended his palm, and a Poison Lotus slowly bloomed.
The Poison Lotus was only the size of a fist, yet it gave Yong Ji a sense of crisis. He exclaimed in shock, “You have one too?” If they hadn’t come out of the Heart Sect together, he would have thought that the Poison Lotus was released by Mi Xiaojing.
“It’s a bit different from that Poison Lotus. Well, let’s just say, this Poison Lotus was cultivated inspired by the Thousand Poisons.”
Yong Ji was so shocked he couldn’t speak. To think that seeing a Poison Lotus could lead one to cultivate their own? If he didn’t know Mi Xiaojing’s character, he would have slapped him for spouting nonsense.
But Yong Ji knew that Mi Xiaojing never lied to his own people. He would either remain silent or speak the truth. After all, he had protected Mi Xiaojing for a while and had some understanding of the young man’s temperament.
This kid didn’t seem like a cultivator from the Cultivation World at all.
Seeing this Poison Lotus, Yong Ji’s curiosity was piqued, and he said, “Alright, let’s wait a bit longer.”
At that moment, another cultivator fell from the sky. Yong Ji recognized him, and Mi Xiaojing had seen him before too. In the Heart Sect, he was considered Yong Ji’s junior brother.
Yang Shan! A subordinate of Mu Hengyuan.
“Don’t move!”
“Stand still and don’t move!”
Yang Shan was startled and asked, “What?”
Yong Ji said urgently, “Don’t move at all!”
The moment Yang Shan landed, the Poison Lotus drifted towards him. He saw the Poison Lotus but had not yet realized what it was.
Yong Ji watched as the Poison Lotus neared Yang Shan. With a swift motion, he grabbed a stone that fell into his palm and flung it. The stone grazed past the Poison Lotus, which seemed to be stimulated and whooshed after the stone instantly.
Seeing the Poison Lotus move away, Yong Ji was overjoyed inside, as he had roughly figured out how to divert the Poison Lotus.
Yang Shan then approached and asked, “Senior brother Yong, what are you doing here? Who destroyed this place?”
Yong Ji replied, “It was probably destroyed by an Elemental Infant stage expert. That Poison Lotus must be one of Thousand Poisons’ tricks.”
It was Yang Shan’s first encounter with a Poison Lotus, but he knew of Thousand Poisons. He had seen him from afar on the main peak during the second attack by the Vast Gold Sect and knew he was an ally of the sect.
Yang Shan wasn’t present for the last battle of the Heart Sect, as he was out on a mission. Therefore, he wasn’t very clear about the current situation of the sect.
Yang Shan said, “I was just about to return to the sect. I happened to pass by here. How’s the sect doing?”
Yong Ji was surprised, “You don’t know?” He thought Yang Shan had also escaped.
Yang Shan replied, “I’ve been outside all this time and am not clear about the situation of the sect. What happened?”
Yong Ji sighed and said, “The sect is gone. There’s no need for you to return to the sect. Almost everyone is gone. I’m probably the last one to escape.”
Yang Shan was dumbfounded. He didn’t doubt Yong Ji and said with a bitter smile, “Can you tell me what happened?”
Yong Ji briefly recounted everything he knew, and Yang Shan said dejectedly, “What do we do now?”
Yong Ji shook his head, “Without any notice or orders from the sect, to be honest, I don’t know!”
Yang Shan said, “We should at least go back once, right?”
Mi Xiaojing interjected, “The underground fire erupted, and the sect has been submerged in lava. There’s nothing to see if we go back.”
Yang Shan recognized Mi Xiaojing and knew of his alchemy skills. After some thought, he said, “Is it just the two of you now? Are there others?”
Yong Ji replied, “We haven’t seen anyone else.”
An idea crossed Yang Shan’s mind, and he said, “I see. Can I follow you guys?”
Yong Ji immediately welcomed, “Of course!”
Mi Xiaojing smiled, “The more, the merrier. There are still people in Hidden Huo City. I’ll send a paper owl to see where they are.” He wasn’t too worried about Luo Bo and the others, knowing they lived outside the city and could escape even if there was a fight.
Yang Shan was overjoyed. What he valued was Mi Xiaojing’s alchemy skills. Without the sect, getting good Spirit Pills would be nearly impossible. But following Mi Xiaojing was different. As long as they found the right materials and asked Mi Xiaojing for help with alchemy, there wouldn’t be much of a problem. This would solve the issue of obtaining Spirit Pills.
Following Mi Xiaojing, even as his guard, was better than being a lone Rogue Cultivator.
Mi Xiaojing released a paper owl and said, “Wait a moment. Let’s move back a bit first.”
The three of them slowly retreated, temporarily distancing themselves from the Poison Lotus. They hadn’t gone far when a long, nearly invisible thread drifted close to the ground. Yang Shan, walking in front, stepped on it, and the thread instantly wrapped around him.
With a sizzle like a hot iron plunged into cold water, Mi Xiaojing’s face changed instantly, “Poisonous Thread! Who touched it?!”Then they saw a wisp of blue smoke rising from Yang Shan’s ankle, and the expressions of the three men changed drastically.
Mi Xiaojing shouted, “Don’t move! I’ll handle this!”
In the time it took to utter that sentence, Yang Shan could no longer stand and plopped down on his buttocks. He clasped his knees with both hands, trying to stop the Poisonous Thread from climbing further: “What kind of poison is this?”
Yong Ji thought to himself, “It’s over, how could I forget that Poisonous Threads are drifting all around here? Now we’re in trouble. Who can cure the poison drawn by Thousand Poisons?”
Yang Shan was sweating profusely, feeling faint-hearted. He had no hope of curing the poison left by the Elemental Infant Ancestor and looked up, saying, “Quick, cut off my leg, or it’ll be too late!”
Yong Ji’s spirit sword flickered, but Mi Xiaojing hastily said, “Wait!”
Yang Shan became more anxious: “Cut it off! There’s no time!”
Mi Xiaojing shouted, “I can save you!” If the leg was cut off, it would be very difficult to reattach, and Yang Shan’s strength would be greatly reduced. Mi Xiaojing was confident in saving him, as he had previously saved Mu Hengyuan.
Yong Ji said solemnly, “Can you really save him?” This question was directed at Yang Shan. Having seen Mi Xiaojing’s Poison Lotus, Yong Ji had a certain confidence in Mi Xiaojing’s ability to treat Yang Shan.
Yang Shan’s face changed dramatically; he discovered that the Poisonous Thread had already invaded his lower abdomen. Even if his thigh was cut off now, it would be too late. His complexion turned ashen, and he sighed deeply, “If you can’t cure the poison, I… I’m done for! Alas.”
Mi Xiaojing wasted no time in talking. He squatted down, and suddenly, a Poison Lotus appeared in his hand, causing Yang Shan’s eyes to nearly pop out in astonishment. He had not expected Mi Xiaojing to also possess a Poison Lotus, and a glimmer of hope arose in his heart.