Cherry Leech Lake

Xu Yuan let out a long breath. Cherry Leech Lake was the central hub of Vault Palace. Aside from the Soul-Confusing Corridor, there were only two bosses on this map: the Leech King and the Meishen cherry tree. The methods for clearing it retained Cangyuan's signature multi-route style. Players could ignore every dialogue prompt and brute-force their way through, slaughtering the Leech King first, then chopping down the cherry tree. Alternatively, they could bypass this map entirely, make their way to the innermost sanctum, kill a crazed demonic woman, and pick up the token she dropped. Equipping that token before returning here allowed the player to command this map's Leech King directly when the dialogue popped up. And beyond those two methods, one could also just talk it out. This route was both the most complicated and the simplest, as one could look up a guide to cheese a speedrun. Much like a certain Souls-like game, a vast amount of lore in Cangyuan was scattered in fragments across every map. Piecing them all together allowed players to deduce what needed to be entered into the dialogue prompts: three keywords and one item. "Sorry to keep you waiting," "I'm sorry," "Yuchu," and a bottle of Ten-Thousand-Year Promise Huadiao wine. Having placed the fine Huadiao wine before the mound of earth, Xu Yuan pushed himself up by his knees and looked back once more. The divine cherry tree that had blossomed for ten thousand years had withered at some unknown moment, leaving only a few cherry blossom petals glowing with a faint pink radiance, resting quietly at the base of the dead trunk. Meishen flowers—the sole primary ingredient for the evil path's supreme treasure, Hehuan Powder. The Saint's remnant soul clicked his tongue in wonder. "Kid, that stuff is a real treasure. With those Meishen flowers, you could brew at least three batches of Hehuan Powder. Tsk, tsk..." One batch equaled one bottle, and one bottle was roughly three doses. Xu Yuan smiled faintly and asked under his breath, "Hehuan Powder has to be paired with the Great Yin-Yang Hehuan Art." "Heh heh... Kid, I know where that Hehuan Art is. Speaking of which, that girl surnamed Su seems to possess the Bewitching Soul Fiend Physique, right?" "Heh heh." Xu Yuan chuckled without answering. Seeing this, the Saint's remnant soul shook his head and murmured, "With the cultivation method you currently practice, there's no real need to switch anyway. Still, there's no reason a method so astounding should be unknown under heaven." "Picked it up at the front door," Xu Yuan fabricated casually. "If you don't want to say, so be it. But why haven't you gone to pick up those Meishen flowers?" "No rush. It's not time yet." Xu Yuan fixed his gaze on the lake's surface and added in a low voice, "By the way, no matter what you see in a moment, don't attack." There was still another boss here. The Saint's remnant soul grew solemn. He glanced at the withered, shriveled cherry tree, then at the calm lake water, and said no more. Time ticked past, second by second. Five minutes. A quarter of an hour. Half an hour. Suddenly, an abrupt shift occurred! *Splash—!* The placid lake abruptly churned with violent waves as an eyeless, single-mouthed behemoth thrust its head above the water—a leech no smaller than the Meishen cherry tree! The sudden appearance of that colossal form and the suffocating pressure it radiated nearly forced Xu Yuan straight to his knees! At that exact moment, a surge of soul power erupted from the soul ring. "Don't panic!" Bracing against the pressure, Xu Yuan barked in a low voice. Though perplexed, the Saint's remnant soul instinctively halted his gathering intent-soul fluctuations. Xu Yuan let out a long breath and murmured, "It won't attack." Just as Xu Yuan said, the giant leech made no hostile move after breaching the surface, and the pressure weighing on Xu Yuan gradually dissipated. With its grotesque, horrifying maw, it stared at Xu Yuan for quite a while before finally turning toward the small bottle of Huadiao wine set before the mound of earth. It remained frozen in place for a long time before slowly retreating back into the lake depths. The Saint's remnant soul marvelled slightly. "To think such a strange beast was hidden beneath this lake... Its aura just now was at least comparable to an ordinary Origin Realm. I just don't understand why..." "Shh." Xu Yuan placed an index finger to his lips to cut him off, his eyes glued to the spot where the leech had vanished. "..." The corner of the Saint's remnant soul's eye twitched, his gaze upon Xu Yuan growing all the more grave. A quarter of an hour later, the waves churned once more, and the giant leech resurfaced. Though eyeless, its gaze felt almost tangible. As their gazes met, the leech opened its massive maw—lined with layer upon layer of sharp fangs—and extended a long tongue. Curled around the tip of the tongue was a blue bead. "...A Meteorite Ice Bead?" The Saint's remnant soul sounded puzzled in a low murmur. He could not comprehend why a beast of such low intellect would present a treasure. Xu Yuan ignored him, raising his hand and holding it flat, palm up. Seeing this, the giant leech carefully placed the blue bead into Xu Yuan's palm. Having done so, the giant leech looked up toward the withered, colossal tree, and a violent surge of Source Qi erupted from within its body! Then, its massive body collapsed limply backward, crashing onto the lake and throwing up a tremendous wave! "..." The Saint's remnant soul drifted out slowly, watching trails of crimson blood seep from the giant leech and dye the lake red. "It committed suicide?" "Yeah." Xu Yuan kept his eyes on the giant leech. After a long silence, the Saint's remnant soul muttered to himself, "With the Meishen cherry tree dead, the beast guarding it naturally has no reason to live on alone. But the question is... why did it offer you a treasure?" Saying this, the Saint stared at Xu Yuan and asked with heavy gravity, "Xu Yuan, are you Jinghe?" Xu Yuan turned back to glance at the Saint's remnant soul, his gaze enigmatic. "What do you think?" "..." The Saint's remnant soul stared back at Xu Yuan. As they locked eyes, Xu Yuan suddenly raised his hands in a French salute and grinned. "Just a joke, don't take it seriously. Of course I'm not Jinghe." He paused, then pointed at the monstrous giant leech, lowering his tone: "Because he is." Ten thousand years ago, the Qionghua Sect planted this Meishen cherry tree through a blood sacrifice. Fair maiden and noble youth—one became the cherry tree, the other the leech. The falling blossoms nourished the leech; the Leech King protected the tree. Right before each other's eyes, yet worlds apart. The sect fell, its halls emptied, yet ten thousand years flowed by just as before. This was one of the Easter eggs hidden within Cangyuan's intricate plot. "I fulfilled their wish, and they showed their gratitude. That's all." Putting away the Meteorite Ice Bead, Xu Yuan picked up the few Meishen flowers lying at the base of the cherry tree, stored them in a jade box, and tossed it into his Sumeru ring. Just as he prepared to enter the interior of the dead cherry tree through its hollow, the Saint's remnant soul gave a light cough. "Ahem. Dare I ask how my young friend came to know such things?" Even ancient records could not possibly document what just transpired; there was no way this kid could have read it in any text. Xu Yuan raised an eyebrow, glancing askance at the Saint's soul with an amused look. "Old Man Luo, you're calling me 'young friend'?" "..." The Saint's soul furrowed his brow, hesitating slightly. "...Old friend?" "Pfft—old friend?" Xu Yuan snorted and shook his head with a laugh. "Old Man Luo, how about you just call me Senior Xu?"