A faint light still shimmered from the floating lotus icon, soft ripples of golden energy weaving through the air as the system's voice emerged — smooth, clear, and oddly serene.
"Soul-Nurturing Lotus — a legendary artifact that binds directly to the user's soul. Once merged, it will reside within the cultivator's Knowledge Sea."
The panel's text flickered, and a new section unfolded beneath it.
"The lotus will bloom and root itself in the depths of the Knowledge Sea — the sacred domain within one's soul where divine sense originates. It governs perception, spiritual awareness, and the strength of one's consciousness."
Lao Xie's gaze narrowed slightly. "Knowledge Sea?" he repeated under his breath. His mind turned, quickly sorting through the words. "But that's something that only fully forms after reaching the Nascent Soul Realm."
He paused, frowning slightly. "So what happens if someone… doesn't have a complete one?"
The system responded almost instantly, its tone steady and measured.
"The Host's current cultivation is only at the Qi Refinement Realm. The Knowledge Sea is in an incomplete state. Under normal circumstances, the Soul-Nurturing Lotus cannot be properly housed or bloom within such a vessel."
Lao Xie tilted his head slightly, his expression calm but his tone edged with curiosity. "Then what happens now?"
The lotus continued to glow faintly on the panel — and then, as if responding to his question, the light dimmed.
The golden radiance flickered once. Twice. Then disappeared entirely.
The silence that followed lasted less than a heartbeat before something snapped deep within him.
It was like a string breaking inside his skull — a sharp, tearing pain that shot through his mind and made his breath catch.
"...What—"
Before the word could even escape his lips, the agony struck in full.
It was as if invisible claws had reached into his consciousness and ripped it open. His entire body convulsed as his vision swam. The air around him trembled; even the faint flicker of the lantern dimmed, smothered by the pulse of his spiraling qi.
The system's voice cut through the haze, no longer composed — now edged with something close to alarm.
"Warning: The Soul-Nurturing Lotus is initiating forced integration. The Host's Knowledge Sea is incomplete — structural instability detected."
Lao Xie gasped, his hand gripping his head as a low growl escaped between his teeth. "Tch—!"
His qi surged uncontrollably, flooding through his meridians like boiling water. Inside him, deep within the unseen depths of his consciousness, the faint image of a half-formed sea began to tremble. Waves clashed violently against an unseen boundary — the very fabric of his soul straining under the sudden intrusion.
Cracks spidered across the panel before him, the golden light bleeding through them like molten glass.
"Warning: Host's Knowledge Sea is collapsing—"
Another spike of pain hit him. Lao Xie fell forward onto one knee, his breath ragged, his voice breaking into a raw growl. His vision blurred to white. His every thought drowned beneath the sheer pressure that now surged through his mind.
And then — through the ringing in his ears — the system's voice returned, low but softer, carrying something that almost sounded like… pity.
"Host… hold on. The lotus is attempting to forcibly reconstruct your Knowledge Sea. Do not give up."
His jaw clenched, every muscle trembling, but his will did not break. He forced his breathing steady, even as blood trickled faintly from the corner of his mouth.
Another set of glowing panels appeared midair — their text flickering rapidly, overlapping.
[Attempting to reconstruct Host's Knowledge Sea for artifact integration.]
[Warning: Cultivation realm insufficient — success rate below 10%.]
[Proceeding with emergency override protocol.]
[Attempting forced awakening of Knowledge Sea…]
The system's voice echoed again, firmer now — urging him.
"Hold on, Host. The Soul-Nurturing Lotus has chosen you — it will not stop until it takes root. Endure it."
And then his consciousness was no longer in the hut.
He was falling — through endless darkness, through the weightless pressure of his own mind. The world around him melted away, replaced by a vast, dim expanse filled with swirling mist. Beneath his feet, a faint shimmer — a reflection of water — stretched infinitely into the dark.
His incomplete Knowledge Sea.
The air trembled. The dim, fragile sea churned restlessly. Its waters — thin, weak, colorless — began to ripple violently as something luminous descended from above.
A lotus — the same one from the panel — shimmering with quiet golden light, drifting downward like a falling star.
The moment it touched the surface of the incomplete sea, a violent surge erupted outward. The waters split apart, the sea convulsing as if the entire realm was trying to reject it.
Lao Xie's body trembled, his expression twisting in pain even within this mental realm. The glow of the lotus wavered, dimming and brightening in chaotic pulses.
"The artifact is attempting to root itself… forcibly expanding the Host's Knowledge Sea…" the system's voice echoed, faint but resolute.
The sea cracked.
And in the cracks, light spilled forth.
Every pulse sent new waves of pain crashing through his mind. His hands clenched tightly, his knuckles white, his teeth grinding together.
But even as agony consumed him, he forced his will forward — refusing to fall.
Its petals unfolded one by one — slow, deliberate — releasing faint threads of golden mist that curled upward and sank into the fractured sea. Each thread shimmered as it touched the surface, sending ripples of light racing outward, colliding with cracks that tore through the watery expanse.
Every pulse of light widened those cracks further, and every tremor that followed felt like a hammer striking the center of his soul.
Lao Xie's entire body tensed, his teeth sinking into his lower lip until the faint taste of iron filled his mouth.
The system's voice rang through the turmoil — clear, but now urgent.
"Warning: Knowledge Sea structure unstable. Attempting to stabilize through integration… do not lose consciousness, Host."
As if it were that easy.
The storm within him grew fiercer. His incomplete Knowledge Sea churned violently, the weak, translucent waters beginning to darken — deepening from misty gray into a vivid cerulean, as if infused with life itself. Yet, the expansion came at a cost: pain flared with every heartbeat, every breath, every flicker of thought.
The golden lotus pulsed brighter. Light burst outward — sharp, radiant, blinding — searing through the darkness like sunlight breaking through storm clouds. The cracks that once threatened to shatter the sea suddenly froze, their edges glowing faintly as if sealed by divine fire.
And through the haze, the system's voice spoke again — steady this time, low but filled with strange reverence.
"Integration rate rising… twenty-five percent… forty… sixty…"
Each word beat in rhythm with the light flashing inside his consciousness.
Lao Xie's mind trembled under the force — yet even then, his expression twisted into a grim smile.
"Ha… forcing me to endure all this just for a reward," he hissed through gritted teeth. "You really do enjoy playing god, don't you?"
The waters beneath him surged once more — and then, with a deafening hum, everything changed.
The shattered fragments of his Knowledge Sea suddenly collapsed inward — imploding — and for one terrible instant, everything went still. The silence was absolute. The pain vanished, leaving only emptiness, a hollow space where nothing existed.
Then, like the first breath after drowning, power rushed in.
A tremor shook through the vast expanse. The golden lotus at the center shone brilliantly, its light cascading across the void in blooming waves. The faint, incomplete sea that had once been fragile and shallow now expanded endlessly — reshaping itself, reforging what was broken.