Volume Two, Chapter Four: Blossoms Bloom and Fade

“Sacrificial Wind... Did the Taoist say such things about me? What else did she say?”
He had expected the giant bird to turn hostile at once, perhaps even fling another load of droppings at him. Yet unexpectedly, the bird not only remained calm but became especially gentle. Yi Bing was so shocked his jaw nearly dropped. Only after a long pause did he realize his mistake—he had addressed her as “uncle” instead of “senior brother.”

“She said a lot…” Yi Bing ventured, and at once the bird’s eyes widened.

“She said you’re not a demon, but an immortal—a good immortal,” Yi Bing said nervously, swallowing his saliva. “She said you’re our venerable ancestor, powerful and kind, slaying demons and aiding the needy… Especially, you’re always eager to help others…” Even as he spoke, Yi Bing found his words sickening.

“Heh, chubby boy, you sure talk nonsense. Still, it sounds rather pleasant!” The bird couldn’t help but laugh. These were words Sacrificial Wind would never utter.

“She really said it! She really did! Heh! Immortal, how should I address you?” Yi Bing quickly stood up, smiling.

“Carefree,” the bird said, craning its neck.

“Wow, what an impressive name! Are you close with my uncle?” Yi Bing stared curiously into the bird’s eyes.

“Ahem… Ahem… Hmph! I’ve known her for a long time!” Carefree coughed lightly, his gaze evasive.

“Oh, I see!” Yi Bing nodded repeatedly, thinking, “They must be very close!”

“Hey, chubby, what’s your name?” Carefree glanced at the branch supporting Qi Yuanxiao and He Lingchi.

“Disciple Mu Tianci pays his respects to the great immortal!” Yi Bing solemnly bowed.

“Tianci? With exceptional talent?” Carefree scoffed.

“Heh, the immortal really knows everything, even that they all call me Yi Bing!” Yi Bing’s face was full of admiration.

“Exceptional talent?”

“One for ‘Yi,’ and ‘Bing’ as in baked bun!” Yi Bing replied awkwardly.

“Hahaha… Spot on! Spot on!” Carefree laughed so hard his feathers quivered. Seeing his good mood, Yi Bing quickly brought Jin Guishan over.

“What are you doing?” Carefree’s expression turned stern.

“Immortal, for my uncle’s sake, please forgive them!” Yi Bing pleaded.

“Forgive? They tried to steal my treasure; why should I forgive them?” Carefree cast a contemptuous glance at Jin Guishan.

“Immortal, we truly didn’t know it belonged to someone! Had we known, we would never have dared to take it!” Jin Guishan hurriedly explained.

“Who told you there was treasure here? Didn’t he tell you it was already owned?”

“This… I can’t say… He didn’t mention it…” Jin Guishan looked troubled.

“Hmph! That person’s intentions are questionable!” Carefree frowned.

“Immortal, please forgive them! Ignorance is no crime, right?” Yi Bing interjected.

“No! Stealing is stealing, whether you know or not makes no difference.”

“You…” Yi Bing clenched his fists.

“What?” Carefree tilted his head, fixing Yi Bing with a glare.

“…Nothing…” Yi Bing lowered his head in frustration, sighing deeply. “Oh, uncle, you praised him, but he won’t even honor your reputation…”

“Hey! Chubby, you’re talking nonsense! Who says I won’t honor Sacrificial Wind’s reputation?!” Carefree’s feathers bristled.

“So you do? My uncle’s praise was well deserved!” Yi Bing quickly smiled, lifting his head. Carefree awkwardly avoided his gaze.

“What’s your relationship with them?” Carefree asked with a dark expression.

“These three are fellow disciples from the Mist Cloud Sect. They came here seeking treasure to save their junior sister. We once…” Yi Bing hurriedly explained. Though his words rambled, Carefree listened intently. Usually, he guarded Peach Marsh alone, with no one to talk to; today, he finally had a chatterbox to keep him company, which delighted him.

“So that’s it! That girl is truly remarkable!” Carefree sighed once Yi Bing finished.

“Immortal, I beg you! As long as my junior sister can be saved, punish me however you wish!” Jin Guishan dropped to his knees with a thud.

“You are loyal and righteous! Sigh… Forgiving you is no problem, but the treasure cannot be given. It’s not mine; I merely guard it and have no authority to bestow it upon you.”

“Then who owns it?” Jin Guishan’s face paled.

“Telling you is pointless… First, pull those two up!” Carefree seemed troubled.

“But…” Jin Guishan wanted to ask more, but Yi Bing quickly dragged him aside.

Yi Bing then gradually shortened the branch, pulling Qi Yuanxiao and He Lingchi up.

“Chubby, you’ve become its master!” Carefree stared intently at the divine iron tied around Yi Bing’s waist.

“You know it? My uncle doesn’t even know its origin, only that it’s a sacred object!” Yi Bing eyed Carefree curiously.

“She wouldn’t know! That dragon must be furious, right?” Carefree couldn’t help but ask.

“You know about that too?” Seeing Carefree smile and say nothing, Yi Bing continued, “It seems pretty happy, saying it’s finally free!”

“Oh?” Carefree’s face fell in disappointment.

Just then, Jin Guishan, together with Qi Yuanxiao and He Lingchi, approached. They bowed respectfully, saying, “Thank you, Great Immortal!”

“That’s enough! That’s enough!” Carefree waved them off. But seeing they had no intention of leaving, he immediately understood their purpose.

“Sigh… Even if I told you who owns this item, it would be meaningless.” Carefree sighed.

“Why? At least we could plead with him!” Jin Guishan stepped forward.

“Follow me!” Carefree hesitated, then strode toward the center of Peach Marsh without looking back. Yi Bing and the others hurried after.

With Carefree leading the way, they no longer needed to search blindly, and soon arrived at the marsh’s center. Perhaps last time he had rushed too quickly, but Yi Bing hadn’t noticed a little path heading west. Following it, they soon saw a rounded well of jet-black jade ahead. Without Carefree’s guidance, no one could have guessed there was a well amid the darkness of the marsh.

“See for yourselves!” Carefree pointed at the well. Yi Bing and the others quickly peered in, only to find the water inside pitch-black as ink.

“This…” They were greatly astonished.

“The treasure you seek is within this well!” Carefree turned to Jin Guishan. “It is called the Hell Lotus; its seeds can indeed restore the soul. However, it blooms only once every eight years and bears fruit every sixteen years.”

“Sixteen years…” Jin Guishan’s face turned ashen.

“This very year is its fruit-bearing year…” Carefree’s bird face twitched.

“Really?” Jin Guishan’s eyes widened in hope.

“The Hell Lotus, before blooming, sleeps at the marsh bottom and its water is muddy as ink; after blooming, the water clears like a mirror and floats upon the marsh; when it bears fruit, the water splits into yin and yang, and the seeds emerge on that day,” Carefree explained with a blank expression.

“You said this is the fruit-bearing year?” Yi Bing looked at the pitch-black water.

“Yes, not only this year, but today. Yesterday the water was clear as a mirror, but this morning, not only did it not split into yin and yang, it turned into this. I fear the seeds may not form, so telling you who owns it is pointless!” Carefree spoke gloomily. Everyone was stunned.

Suddenly, He Lingchi began to sob, her cries echoing in the silent marsh, sounding especially mournful.

“Hey, hey, stop crying!” Carefree disliked seeing women cry.

“So there’s no other way? Is my junior doomed to lose her soul?” He Lingchi looked at Carefree with tearful eyes.

“Isn’t there any left from previous years?” Yi Bing interjected.

“Absolutely not! When the lotus blooms every eight years, the previous seeds vanish; as soon as one blooms, the other’s seeds are destroyed!” Carefree shook his head and sighed. “If the lotus bears fruit and the seeds are harvested, I could ask the treasure’s owner for one, and perhaps save your junior sister. But as things stand…”

“Why did it turn out like this? You’ve guarded it for so many years—can’t you guess the reason?” Yi Bing grabbed Carefree’s wing.

“At first, I suspected demons at work, so I searched everywhere. Just after my patrol, I saw those three sneaking about and thought they were the culprits, so… but it wasn’t them. The only thing left is to explore the marsh bottom, but to stir up this ancient marsh would require the owner’s permission,” Carefree frowned deeply.

“Then why not hurry and ask the owner?” Yi Bing urged.

“It’s not so simple. I can only leave Peach Marsh when delivering the seeds, which is tomorrow. All other times, I cannot leave. Even if I go to ask tomorrow, it will be too late—after today, the Hell Lotus will sink again, and the next fruit will come only sixteen years from now.” Carefree forced a smile.

“Ah?! Then let me deliver the message for you!” Yi Bing sprang up.

“You can’t reach him…” Carefree gratefully patted him with his wing.

“Is there no other way?” Yi Bing grew frantic at the thought of Fat Girl’s soul drifting away. He clung to the well rim, pulling the water aside with both hands, trying to see beneath the surface.

“It’s so dark—what can you see?!” Carefree couldn’t help but admire him: “This chubby really shares others’ worries.”

“At least… Ah!” Suddenly, an unknown force seized his hands, dragging him downward. The wellwater spun rapidly, forming a huge whirlpool that sucked him in.

Yi Bing thought, “I’m doomed!”

He held his breath and shut his eyes, but felt no mud or water in his face; instead, he seemed to descend slowly through the air. Opening his eyes, he found himself surrounded by light, with the dark mud peeling away to form a space around him, much like the Guiyuan Cave. He breathed anxiously, and found he could do so freely, just as in Guiyuan Cave.

“So this is what uncle meant by its benefits!” Yi Bing patted his chest in relief. Only then did he realize his clothes were bone dry, as if untouched by water. Looking down, he nearly jumped—the source of the light was his own body!

“Could it be the tear?” Yi Bing rolled up his sleeve, but saw no glowing spot.

“Whatever! Surviving comes first!” Seeing himself sinking ever deeper into the black mud, he put aside all other worries. He hurriedly untied his belt, pondering what transformation might help him escape, when he suddenly plunged into murky water. It turned out Peach Marsh had mud above and water below. After a short descent, he finally touched solid ground.

The bottom was covered in black sand and stone, with not a single blade of grass nor living insect; aside from occasional bubbles, there was only dead silence everywhere. Surveying the surroundings, he noticed a faint glow to the west. Swallowing nervously, he carefully made his way toward the light. After only a dozen yards or so, he saw a jade-like object protruding from the black mud, with a column of light as thick as a bowl rising up from it toward the marsh surface. Upon closer inspection, he realized the jade-like object was a segment of lotus root, with the column of light its stem.

“This must be the Hell Lotus!” Yi Bing hurriedly swam upward along the stem.

Along the way, he saw the stem writhing constantly, growing more violent the higher he went. It seemed something was tugging at it. Initially, it stretched eastward, but upon reaching the mud layer’s base, it suddenly bent westward. Swimming west for less than five yards, Yi Bing was greeted by a leaping orb of light—a dazzling, seven-colored lotus in full bloom!

Yi Bing was overjoyed and swam quickly toward it. But before he could approach, three streams of dark water rushed at him, forcefully pushing him back several feet. He promptly drew his belt, transforming it into a sword.

Only then did Yi Bing notice three objects hanging from the crystal-clear flower stalk, seemingly dragging the Hell Lotus downward, holding it under the water!