"Master!"
Mo Yan and the five beast souls lunged forward at the same time, only to be violently thrown back by an invisible force.
The world spun around Xie Zhaolin, and she felt as if she'd passed through a layer of sticky water. When she opened her eyes again, she was in a bizarre new space.
It was far larger than she'd imagined—beneath a silver-white sky stretched an endless, calm water surface. She cautiously took a step and was surprised to find she could stand steadily on the water. Each step caused tiny ripples, but she didn't sink.
A fragrance unlike any she'd ever smelled wafted through the air, crisp but faintly sweet, invigorating her mind. Xie Zhaolin immediately realized—this was likely the inside of the legendary Rebirth Flower!
"So it's like this…" she murmured, her voice rippling softly across the water.
Despite the strangeness, she wasn't panicked. Years of life-and-death experience had taught her that panic only speeds up death. She inhaled deeply and began walking carefully across the water.
Every step made silver light shimmer beneath her feet, as if she were treading across a river of stars. The flower's fragrance grew stronger with each step, thickening until pale pink glimmers seemed to float in the air.
Time seemed meaningless here.
Xie Zhaolin had no idea how long she'd walked until a strange black dot appeared at the horizon where the water met the sky. As she approached, the dot revealed itself—a black core hovering above the water, about the size of a fist, its surface etched with delicate patterns, like the veins of some living creature.
"The core of the Rebirth Flower…" Xie Zhaolin paused, wary, and didn't immediately approach.
She scrutinized the black core. Its aura was both familiar and alien, involuntarily reminding her of the strange black orb.
Thump… thump…
A faint, clear heartbeat echoed from the core, like some life stirring awake. Xie Zhaolin froze. The sound was exactly like what she'd heard in the cavern before!
Carefully, she stepped forward again.
Suddenly, the black core trembled violently. Xie Zhaolin immediately stopped, forming a defensive hand seal.
Crack… crack…
Tiny splitting sounds rang sharply in the silent space. Countless fine cracks appeared across the core's surface, and streams of silver light leaked through. Petal by petal, silver petals unfurled from the core, quickly blooming into a strange, silver flower. And chillingly, at the center of the blossom, a human face slowly emerged.
Xie Zhaolin's steps froze. At first, the face looked unfamiliar, but she quickly recognized it—it was a miniature version of Zhang Xiuxiu!
Sob…
The tiny figure in the flower's center let out faint sobs. Crystal tears rolled down, creating ripples on the water. Those eyes, identical to Xie Zhaolin's, overflowed with unspeakable sorrow. An ethereal voice echoed through the space, tinged with heartbreaking grievance.
Xie Zhaolin stared expressionlessly at the face in the blossom, showing no reaction.
"I can feel the pain inside your body…" the face whispered, its tone sweet and coaxing. "Merge with me… your body will be reborn…"
It deliberately posed a pitiful expression, trying to sway her.
A wave of slight dizziness hit Xie Zhaolin. The scene seemed to warp momentarily. Her heart tightened, and she held her breath, letting her spiritual energy circulate rapidly to suppress the strange sensation.
The flower's fragrance was poisonous.
She noted this mentally while keeping her divine sense vigilant, watching the face. The ethereal voice carried a subtle corrupting power, constantly assaulting her mind. Luckily, her divine sense was already at mid-Golden Core stage, and years of life-and-death trials had forged her will into solid rock. Any ordinary cultivator would've lost their mind long ago under this double seduction.
"Stop resisting…" the voice grew softer, "Merge with me… and you'll gain rebirth."
Xie Zhaolin sneered, forming a divine sense barrier around her body. The seductive power was immediately blocked, and the dizziness vanished.
"Is that all you've got?" she mocked, her eyes flashing cold light.
The face's expression faltered, clearly not expecting her to resist so easily.
It quickly replaced its look with one of deeper sorrow. "Why resist? I am you…"
"Hah," Xie Zhaolin coldly laughed. "You're nothing. How dare you call yourself me?"
Before the words fell, a strike of baleful qi shot toward the flower's center.
"Ah!" The face screamed, its form turning insubstantial where the attack struck. "You can't do this!"
Xie Zhaolin didn't flinch and sent out another strike of baleful qi.
"Don't kill me! I was born from you!" the face panicked, tears streaming even harder, trying to soften her heart.
Xie Zhaolin remembered that when she attacked the black orb, her spiritual sword had fused with her blood. No wonder this face resembled her.
"Hah." She coldly smiled, condensing another strike of baleful qi at her fingertips.
But this thing didn't know the face was almost unfamiliar to her—over three centuries of cultivation in her past life had accustomed her to her original appearance. Before arriving at Blackwater Abyss, she'd even worn a human mask. Had this face reflected her past life's appearance, it might have given her pause.
But now…
She struck again without hesitation.
"Foolish. You think a human face can sway me?"
She stepped forward slowly, each step creating a blood-colored ripple on the water beneath her.
Finally, the face seemed to realize it had no effect. It had made a fatal mistake. It probably couldn't comprehend that to a cultivator, a flower with a human face wasn't heart-softening—it was more terrifying than any monster.
"Stop!" the face shrieked, panic piercing its voice. "If you kill me, this space will collapse! You'll be trapped here forever!"
Xie Zhaolin sneered. "Do you think I'd fall for that?"
She knew these tricks too well—the more it threatened danger if killed, the more insecure it was. If there really were a shared life-and-death link, it would've threatened her long ago instead of waiting and trying to seduce her.
Failing to manipulate her, the face let out a sharp, piercing roar. The face identical to Xie Zhaolin twisted and contorted, its skin cracking to reveal black scales beneath. In an instant, it transformed into a giant lizard she knew all too well.