owlsbooks 59. Antidote
59. Antidote
Lin Mo left the Seven Absolutes Sect and headed west. He did not choose the official road, but relied on his fragmented memories from his previous life and his understanding of the mountains and terrain to travel through desolate paths at an extremely fast pace.
The further west they traveled, the landscape gradually changed. Lush green was replaced by desolate yellowish-brown, and the air became drier. Sandstorms began to rise, stinging their faces slightly. Based on the map provided by Elder Sun and his own judgment, the great snow mountain where the Heavenly Heart Lotus might grow was located deep in the Western Regions, near the edge of the legendary Demon Fire Cult's territory.
After traveling day and night for more than ten days, the human settlements became increasingly sparse. Occasionally, Lin Mo would see scattered oases and camel caravans, but he would carefully avoid them, not wanting to cause any unnecessary trouble. The relief potion in his arms was like an hourglass constantly counting down, reminding him of the urgency of time.
That evening, he crossed a mountain ridge strewn with jagged rocks, and suddenly a breathtaking view opened up before him. A vast snow-capped mountain range stretched across the horizon, the afterglow of the setting sun casting a magnificent golden-red glow on its white peaks. At the foot of the mountains, instead of the icy plains he had imagined, lay a strange valley, with wisps of white mist rising from it—a geothermal hot spring area. According to records, the Heavenly Heart Lotus most likely grew in that frigid spring nourished by its heat.
He concealed his aura and stealthily approached the valley like a ghost. The closer he got, the more he could feel a strange energy fluctuation, a mixture of the warmth of a hot spring and the biting cold of a snow-capped mountain, the two completely different auras strangely blending together in this place.
At the entrance to the valley stood several broken stone statues, their style ancient and strange, unlike anything found in Central China; they seemed more like relics of some ancient ritual. Lin Mo's gaze swept over them, his vigilance growing even stronger. He slowed his pace, raising his senses to their peak.
The moment he stepped into the edge of the valley, a sharp whooshing sound suddenly rang out!
"laugh!"
A short, uniquely shaped arrow, entirely black, carrying a chilling internal force, shot silently toward his throat! Its speed was astonishing!
Lin Mo was prepared. He slightly turned his body, and the short arrow grazed his neck and embedded itself deeply in a rock behind him, its fletching still trembling.
"Who dares to trespass into the forbidden area of the sacred mountain?" A hoarse and cold voice came from behind a boulder.
Lin Mo stopped and looked toward the source of the sound. A figure slowly emerged. The man was tall and thin, wearing a dark red, old robe embroidered with twisted flame patterns. His face was gaunt, his eyes sunken, but his gaze was sharp as an eagle's. In his hand, he held a strangely shaped bow, the bow seemingly crafted from some kind of animal bone.
Cult of the Demonic Fire Cult? Lin Mo's heart skipped a beat. Judging from their attire and the chilling internal energy they used, they were from the same source as the Tibetan monk Kumarajiva who sold "Soul-Eating Incense" as described by Cui Mian. It seemed that this place was indeed related to the Demonic Fire Cult, and this Heavenly Heart Lotus would probably not be so easy to obtain.
"I only seek medicine to save lives and have no intention of offending you," Lin Mo said calmly, clasping his hands in a fist salute. "I only need one Heavenly Heart Lotus. Take it and leave immediately."
The guard sneered, a hint of mockery flashing in his eyes: "The Heavenly Heart Lotus is a sacred object of our sect, blooming only once every hundred years. How dare outsiders covet it? Leave immediately, or I may spare your life!"
"Saving lives is urgent, I cannot comply." Lin Mo shook his head, his attitude resolute.
"You're courting death!" The medicine guardian said no more. His figure blurred, and he arrived like a ghost. His withered hand formed a claw, aiming straight for Lin Mo's face! The claw was fierce, carrying a corrosive and chilling internal force. Even before it reached his body, it made people feel their meridians stiffen.
The Soul-Eating Incense Poison Technique! This person's internal energy characteristics are the same as those of the Soul-Eating Incense, indicating that he has been in contact with this poison for many years and has integrated its toxicity into his own martial arts.
Lin Mo dared not be careless. He shifted his feet and used a sophisticated footwork technique that combined the experience of two lifetimes to narrowly avoid the grab. At the same time, he pointed his fingers like a sword and struck the opponent's wrist acupoint with a condensed finger wind.
The medicine keeper exclaimed "Eh," seemingly not expecting Lin Mo to be so agile and quick in changing his moves. He flipped his hand, changing his grabbing motion to a slapping motion, and a surge of soft palm force rushed out to meet Lin Mo's finger strike.
"Bang!"
The energies clashed, producing a muffled thud. Lin Mo felt a chilling aura trying to invade his arm's meridians, but he immediately circulated his pure Yang internal energy to dispel it. The medicine guardian also swayed slightly, taking a half-step back, his gaze towards Lin Mo becoming more serious.
"Such pure and powerful internal energy! No wonder you dared to come and challenge this mountain!" the medicine guardian said hoarsely, and then launched another attack. His movements were strange, like a slippery eel, circling around Lin Mo. His palms flew, creating streaks of cold palm shadows. The palm winds also contained fine, almost invisible black powder, which was obviously containing the poison of the Soul-Eating Incense.
Lin Mo focused intently, channeling his inner energy throughout his body to form an invisible protective shield against the poison. His fists and palms moved in a seemingly simple fashion, yet each strike targeted the weak points in the guard's movements, forcing him to defend. The two clashed fiercely on the rocky ground at the valley entrance, their energy swirling and stirring up sand and stones.
The more the medicine keeper fought, the more alarmed he became. He had been accustomed to this Soul-Corroding Poison Palm for many years; ordinary experts, touched by its power, would soon suffer from stagnant internal energy and die from the poison. But this young man before him possessed internal energy far beyond his years, and even more remarkably, he had extremely rich combat experience and a keen eye, always able to anticipate his opponent's moves. His poison seemed to have little effect on his opponent.
After a prolonged battle with no clear victor, a fierce glint flashed in the eyes of the medicine guardian. He suddenly took a few steps back, pulled a dark whistle from his pocket, put it in his mouth, and blew it forcefully!
Instead of the expected sharp whistle, a low, eerie wave spread out, seemingly capable of directly affecting the soul.
"Buzz—"
Lin Mo felt a slight dizziness, which was instantly suppressed by his powerful willpower and internal energy, but his movements were still inevitably slowed down for a moment.
In that instant, from the rising mist deep in the valley came heavy crawling sounds and hissing noises! Two giant pythons, as thick as water buckets, covered in ice-blue scales, with a single horn on their heads and red eyes, swam out at an astonishing speed! A thin layer of frost formed on the ground wherever they passed.
Snow Mountain Pythons! And there are two of them! It seems these are the ferocious beasts guarding the Heavenly Heart Lotus.
The guardian of the medicine revealed a cruel smile, directing two icy pythons to pounce on Lin Mo from the left and right! Before the pythons even arrived, the chilling aura that could freeze one's blood was already overwhelming, and the icy mist they spewed from their mouths was also highly poisonous.
With a guard watching them intently from the front and two strange beasts attacking from the sides, the situation became critical in an instant!
Lin Mo took a deep breath, his eyes becoming incredibly sharp. He held nothing back, rapidly circulating his inner energy using a secret technique from his previous life, causing his aura to surge dramatically! He stomped his left foot on the ground, his body moving like an arrow released from a bow, advancing instead of retreating, actively charging towards the slightly smaller frost python on his left!
In the nick of time, dodging the icy python's gaping maw and coiling around him, Lin Mo pointed his fingers like knives, gathered all his strength, and delivered a hand chop with a sharp whistling sound that tore through the air, striking the icy python's vital scale at its seven-inch mark with unparalleled precision!
"Pfft!"
The hand-blade, imbued with the utmost Yang internal force, cut into the ice and snow like a red-hot iron, forcefully piercing through the hard, icy blue scales and penetrating deep inside! The icy python let out a mournful hiss, its massive body twisting wildly, icy blue blood spurting out, hissing as it hit the ground, corroding small pits.
Seeing this, the other, even larger, icy python roared angrily, its massive tail sweeping across like a steel whip, creating a fierce gale! At the same time, the medicine guardian seized the opportunity, silently sneaking up behind Lin Mo and unleashing a palm strike with all his might, aimed directly at his back!
A pincer attack from both sides, seemingly with no way to avoid it!
Lin Mo seemed to have eyes in the back of his head. The moment the giant tail of the frost python swept down, he used the recoil from striking the first frost python to twist his body at an incredible angle and leap into the air. He not only narrowly avoided the sweeping tail, but also kicked out in mid-air, his toes touching the python's tail as it swept past. Using the force, he changed direction again, like an eagle hunting a rabbit, and pounced straight at the medicine guard behind him!
This sudden change of tactics was swift and unexpected, far exceeding the guard's expectations. His palm strike had already been delivered, the old force gone and no new force generated; he could only watch helplessly as Lin Mo's palm, imbued with the force of a thunderbolt, struck his chest!
"Bang!"
The medicine keeper was struck as if by a heavy blow; a cracking sound of bones breaking echoed in his chest. He was sent flying backward, crashing heavily into a rocky outcrop, spitting out a mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs. It was clear he was not going to survive. The bone bow and whistle in his hands also fell to the ground.
The wounded serpent struggled for a moment, then finally stopped moving. The only remaining giant serpent, seeing its companion dead and its controller also dead, let out a hiss filled with fear and anger. It dared not go forward again, twisting its massive body and quickly retreating into the mist deep in the valley.
The valley entrance fell silent again, save for the sound of the wind and a faint smell of blood.
Lin Mo was slightly out of breath; the continuous use of secret techniques and intense combat had taken a toll on him. He walked to the corpse of the medicine keeper, picked up the bone bow and whistle, examined them, and put them in his pocket—perhaps they would come in handy later. Then, without hesitation, he stepped into that strange valley.
Passing through the swirling mist of the hot spring, the deeper he went, the colder it became. Finally, in the very center of the valley, he saw a spring, no more than ten feet in diameter. The water was crystal clear, yet it emanated an astonishing chill, with streams of water mixed with icy fragments constantly gushing from its source. In the center of the spring, a lotus flower, its entire body as translucent as jade, bloomed quietly. The lotus had only three petals, a pure and flawless snow-white, with a touch of gold at its center, as if nurturing a tiny sun, radiating a gentle, serene aura that contrasted sharply with the surrounding extreme cold.
Heavenly Heart Lotus!
With a firm resolve, Lin Mo carefully removed the plant along with a portion of its root and the frozen soil surrounding the spring, placed it in a pre-prepared jade box, and stored it away securely.
The main ingredient for the antidote was finally in his hands. He dared not delay and immediately turned around, quickly retreating from this dangerous, forbidden snow-covered mountain area along the way he had come.