Nightwatcher

# 414. Splitting the Lotus Seeds

The orange cat suddenly stiffened, maintaining its arched-back posture, frozen for a few seconds before letting out a shrill scream and rolling around on the ground.

One of its pupils turned pitch black, while the other was dyed a pure fiery gold, both demonic and sacred in appearance.

The cat’s cries were shrill and hoarse, its limbs flailing wildly as if it were enduring immense pain.

Xu Qi’an wasted no time. He flicked his fingers, sending Cao Qingyang’s soul into his forehead, then turned to approach the orange cat.

Daoist Bailian blocked his path, swept her gaze across the disciples, and scolded, “Stop standing there like fools! Form the Supreme Formation and channel merit.”

As she spoke, she tossed out a thin rope woven from golden silk, binding the orange cat tightly.

The cat’s screams grew even more piercing.

The Heaven and Earth Society disciples snapped out of their daze, rushing forward to surround the orange cat. They formed hand seals and began chanting incantations.

“Blessings and calamities have no gate; they come of their own accord. The rewards of good and evil follow like shadows. Thus, Heaven and Earth have spirits that govern transgressions…”

The chanting started out disordered but gradually became synchronised, merging into a single voice. Before long, it seemed as though the entire world was left with nothing but the sound of the chant.

Xu Qi’an clearly saw golden light, soft as spring rain, flowing from the disciples’ foreheads and falling upon the orange cat.

The golden light in the cat’s left eye grew brighter, overshadowing the blackness in its right eye. Gradually, the cat stopped struggling and screaming, eventually lying still and silent on the ground.

On the other side, Cao Qingyang had just regained consciousness when he heard the layered chanting. He gazed around in confusion, then turned to the members of the Wulin Alliance.

“What happened? I remember losing to the Human Sect Daoist Leader and having my soul scattered.”

For a moment, he couldn’t tell if his previous experience had been a hallucination or reality.

Seeing him awake, the members of the Wulin Alliance breathed a collective sigh of relief.

The Tower Master of Wanhua Tower smiled and said, “Alliance Leader Cao, it was Young Master Xu who saved you.”

“The National Teacher merely extracted your soul. Just now, Young Master Xu brought it back.”

Yang Cuixue and the others hurried to explain, implying that Silver Gong Xu’s intervention had been crucial in convincing the National Teacher to show mercy.

The members of the Wulin Alliance smiled warmly, their gazes toward Xu Qi’an filled with gratitude and respect.

Although they failed to obtain the lotus seeds this time, they had forged a bond with Silver Gong Xu through this ordeal. For these martial artists who secretly admired Xu Qi’an, their hearts burned with excitement.

Cao Qingyang slowly nodded, his righteous and imposing face turning toward Xu Qi’an. He cupped his fists and said, “Thank you, Silver Gong Xu, for your mercy.”

Xu Qi’an returned the gesture and said, “Alliance Leader Cao, you overpraise me. It’s I who should be thanking you.”

After a pause, he added solemnly, “I don’t see you as a greedy man, so why are you so obsessed with the Nine-Coloured Lotus?”

Cao Qingyang didn’t answer directly, saying instead, “Tonight, I’ll host a banquet at Quanrong Mountain. I hope Silver Gong Xu will do me the honour of attending.”

*He’s implying that this wasn’t the right time to talk… Cao Qingyang is looking to build a closer relationship with me…* Xu Qi’an nodded.

“Then I thank the Alliance Leader for the trouble. By the way, could you help drive away the wandering martial artists nearby?”

Seeing him agree, the members of the Wulin Alliance immediately smiled with relief.

Cao Qingyang nodded. “I’ll station some people around the manor to guard against the Earth Sect Daoists attempting a counterattack.”

Given the Heaven and Earth Society’s combat strength, if the Earth Sect and King Huai’s spies attacked again, they would struggle to defend themselves.

*Alliance Leader Cao is indeed a seasoned veteran—experienced and thorough…* Xu Qi’an cupped his hands. “Thank you.”

Once the members of the Wulin Alliance left Yue Clan manor, Xu Qi’an and the others waited quietly for a while. Before long, the chanting of the Heaven and Earth Society disciples faded and eventually ceased.

“Whew…”

It sounded like they had just fought an intense battle. Sighs of relief filled the air as the disciples wiped the sweat from their foreheads.

The orange cat remained lying there, completely motionless.

Xu Qi’an watched the cat as he approached Daoist Bailian and asked, “What happened?”

Chu Yuanzhen and Nangong Qianrou, curious outsiders, also looked over.

“Senior Brother Jinlian’s consciousness fused with a trail of Heilian’s thought. For now, they are evenly matched. Earlier, we were channelling merit to help Senior Brother Jinlian suppress Heilian’s demonic intent,” Daoist Bailian explained calmly. “This was all part of the original plan.”

Xu Qi’an was surprised. “Daoist Jinlian can match the Earth Sect Daoist Leader’s demonic thought?”

*That doesn’t make sense. The Earth Sect Daoist Leader’s avatar is Rank Three, while Daoist Jinlian is at most Rank Four. How could he manage this?*

“Senior Brother used the Earth Sect’s secret arts,” Daoist Bailian said with an unchanged smile.

Xu Qi’an nodded, accepting the explanation.

*So, Daoist Jinlian had long prepared countermeasures for the Earth Sect Daoist Leader’s avatar. The task of the Earth Book fragment holders was to deal with the Wulin Alliance and other parties. No, in Daoist Jinlian’s eyes, Li Miaozhen and Chu Yuanzhen were secondary—his real target was me…*

Daoist Bailian furrowed her brows and said, “Earlier, they intended to seize Cao Qingyang’s body. But for some reason, they suddenly changed their mind and possessed a cat instead.”

The Heaven and Earth Society disciples were equally puzzled.

*Why? Perhaps because he has a deep love for cats…* Xu Qi’an shrugged, pretending he didn’t know.

At that moment, the orange cat’s tail twitched slightly, as though it had regained consciousness. It slowly sat up, its black and golden eyes sweeping over the crowd.

“It’s me.”

The orange cat spoke in Daoist Jinlian’s slightly weathered voice.

Everyone present let out a breath of relief.

“I’ve temporarily suppressed it. Now, where is the Nine-Coloured Lotus?” Daoist Jinlian’s voice was slightly urgent.

“It’s with me,” said Li Miaozhen.

The orange cat gave a slight nod and said gently, “Give the lotus seed and root to Bailian. Bailian, we need to move to the next hiding place.”

At that moment, the orange cat’s black right eye suddenly gleamed with an eerie light.

“Hiss…”

The cat bared its teeth and suddenly pounced at Daoist Bailian, an icy, sinister voice echoing from within:

“Bailian, come back to the Earth Sect with me and dual cultivate.”

_Smack!_

Xu Qi’an swung his scabbard and slapped the cat to the ground.

“Hiss, hiss!!…”

The orange cat struggled for a moment. Its golden left pupil lit up, then it regained its composure, sat down elegantly, and coughed:

“Although I’ve suppressed him, he occasionally takes control. Junior Sister Bailian, please don’t mind him.”

Daoist Bailian’s smooth forehead was covered with black lines. Her face twitched slightly as she said without emotion, “Chanyi, chase away all the female cats in the manor.”

Daoist Jinlian lifted a front paw and slapped the ground forcefully, his tone slightly panicked: “N-no need for that…”

Daoist Bailian said gently, “Senior Brother Jinlian would naturally not commit immoral acts. What we need to guard against is the Demon Daoist Heilian. He has already fallen into the demonic path and is capable of anything.”

*Was she trying to preserve Daoist Jinlian’s dignity?…* Xu Qi’an couldn’t hold back and let out a stifled laugh.

Once he started, it immediately spread…

“Pfft!”

“Pfft!”

“Pfft…”

Chu Yuanzhen, Li Miaozhen, and Lina couldn’t hold it in and followed with laughter.

The Heaven and Earth Society disciples were both sad and amused, their expressions extremely peculiar.

“Right, Daoist Jinlian, there’s something I need to discuss with you.” Xu Qi’an glanced at Li Miaozhen, signalling her to take out the Nine-Coloured Lotus.

The Holy Maiden of the Heaven Sect produced a fragment of the Earth Book, mirror side down, and gently tapped the back of the mirror. A large and a small section of dark golden lotus root, along with a lotus seed pod, dropped out.

“Daoist, a small section of the lotus root has been cut off,” Xu Qi’an said.

“No matter,” the orange cat glanced at it, “it will recover after being nurtured for a dozen years.”

Xu Qi’an seized the opportunity and asked, “This small section of lotus root… can I have it?”

“Do you want to use it to refine medicine?” the orange cat asked in return.

*Uh, my aunt told me to get it…* Xu Qi’an thought for a moment and said, “It’s a favour for someone.”

Hint, hint.

The orange cat suddenly understood and nodded, “Once the lotus root leaves the main root, it will wither after one day and lose all vitality after two. Only then can it be used for refining.”

Xu Qi’an’s heart stirred. “Can’t it be kept alive?”

The orange cat chuckled. “The Earth Sect has passed down this lotus root for thousands of years. There’s only one. Why do you think that is?”

*Good point. If it could be cultivated, it would have been mass-produced long ago. The reason heavenly treasures are called heavenly treasures is largely due to their rarity.* Xu Qi’an hummed in acknowledgement and bent down to pick up the lotus root.

“Hissss…”

The moment he bent over, he heard a hissing roar in his ear. Without thinking, he instinctively reached out and pressed down.

The orange cat’s head was pinned to the ground. Its two paws frantically scratched at his arm, while Heilian’s curses came from its mouth: “The lotus root is the Earth Sect’s supreme treasure! You can’t take it! You can’t take it…”

*The Daoist Leader of the Earth Sect is actually kind of cute!* Xu Qi’an slapped the cat, sending it flying.

The orange cat rolled softly to absorb the force, changed its target, raised its tail, and pounced at Qiu Chanyi: “Little girl, you’re quite pretty. Come with me back to the mountain for dual cultivation.”

Qiu Chanyi screamed in fright and then kicked the orange cat away.

The power within it seemed to be in a relatively balanced state, unable to unleash magical techniques or spells, so it was no different from an ordinary cat…

*Suddenly, I understand why they say that lust is the root of all evil…* Watching the orange cat’s relentless attempts to “attack” Qiu Chanyi, Xu Qi’an gained an insight.

*Not just the Earth Sect’s Daoist Leader — the other Demon Daoists who have fallen into the demonic path also tend to bring up R-rated topics first. From this, one can see that humanity’s greatest evil stems from the word “lust.”*

The charging orange cat suddenly paused, looked around at the others in slight confusion, then calmly said, “Let’s divide the lotus seeds.”

*Daoist, that transition was way too abrupt…* Xu Qi’an silently covered his face.

According to the previous agreement, Xu Qi’an got two seeds, while Chu Yuanzhen, Li Miaozhen, Lina, Hengyuan, and Nangong Qianrou each got one.

Daoist Bailian peeled open the dark golden lotus seed pod with her long, pale fingers, distributed the seeds to everyone, and instructed:

“If you wish to infuse an object, peel the lotus seed, place it together with the item in a jade box, and leave it for three hours. If you wish to gain enlightenment, swallow it directly.”

“Thank you!”

The Earth Book fragment holders cupped their fists in gratitude.

Daoist Bailian then turned to Xu Qi’an and said softly, “Young Master Xu, please come with me. I have something to discuss with you alone.”

The two of them walked side by side to a secluded spot. Daoist Bailian slid a small jade mirror from her sleeve and said:

“This was entrusted to me by Senior Brother Jinlian for safekeeping. He anticipated trouble after the battle, so he handed it to me, instructing me to return it to you afterwards.”

Xu Qi’an hurriedly took the Earth Book fragment, glanced at the mirror surface, and saw that the patterns were unchanged. This meant that no one had touched the gold and silver within. He breathed a sigh of relief.

After the two returned, Daoist Bailian gathered the Heaven and Earth Society disciples, took Daoist Jinlian’s body, and prepared to leave Jianzhou for their next base.

Jianzhou was no longer safe. Fortunately, they had backup hideouts in other provinces.

“Brother Chu, Miaozhen, Master Hengyuan… please escort them for a while,” Xu Qi’an said, looking at Li Miaozhen and the others.

The outstanding disciples of the Human and Heaven Sects nodded.

“Young Master Xu.”

A girl’s voice, clear as a wind chime under the eaves, sounded. Qiu Chanyi stood in front of him, blushing, and pressed a scented sachet into Xu Qi’an’s hand.

The others reacted differently to this scene.

The Heaven and Earth Society disciples smiled knowingly. Some even started jeering — the Earth Sect did not prohibit marriage.

Li Miaozhen raised an eyebrow.

Chu Yuanzhen smiled without saying anything.

Hengyuan and Lina had no particular reaction.

Nangong Qianrou wore a cold sneer — he had a habit of treating certain contemptible matters with a cold smile, such as a certain flirtatious scoundrel seducing yet another innocent girl.

*Ah, young girls are always emotional…* Xu Qi’an happily pocketed the sachet, delighted that there was yet another fish in his pond.

“You seem quite pleased?”

Suddenly, Li Miaozhen’s voice rang out in his mind.

“I made a new friend. Of course, I’m happy. When I roam the jianghu in the future, these connections will be invaluable,” Xu Qi’an replied mentally.

“Heh, I had a senior brother who used to think the same way,” Li Miaozhen sneered.

She didn’t explain further. Stepping onto her flying sword, she took Lina with her and soared away with the other Heaven and Earth Society members.

*That senior brother of yours must be doing pretty well now,* Xu Qi’an thought to himself.