Whose Doom Has Come?

Cradling the heavy lotus bud in his hands, Jia Yu might have turned it over and over to admire it had it been half a quarter-hour ago, but now he had no leisurely mood for such things. Lowering his head, he immediately blew onto the blossom. This was an essential step for competitors: once the Overlord Lotus was found, one had to blow open the bud before the rest of the Lotus Fragrance Festival's festivities could proceed. Only then could the Overlord Lotus be severed and harvested. The ambusher, of course, was Fan Sheng. He saw Jia Yu's actions, but the wager had been struck between Zhongsun Mou and He Lingchuan; whoever won or lost was none of his concern. He had only one objective: To kill He Lingchuan. And so Jia Yu was able to bend down undisturbed and blow a vigorous breath into the lotus bud. Receiving the breath of human life, the bud slowly bloomed at a pace visible to the naked eye. Blood-red petals, stripes of reddish gold, and a lotus receptacle shimmering gold amid green—all revealed themselves one by one. The entire lotus was over three chi in diameter, larger than a washbasin. To call it the Overlord Lotus was indeed fitting. Golden light flashed across the flower's surface and then shot straight into the sky! Even under the overcast sky, this golden beam was exceptionally conspicuous. The onlookers waiting eagerly atop and around Chaohu Pagoda immediately pointed at the pillar of golden light and shouted: "It's lit! It's lit! Someone found it!" The crowd erupted in excitement: "It's only been three quarters of an hour this time? That's way too fast!" "Finding it this fast defies reason. Could someone have cheated?" "I wonder which team took first place?" A busybody slapped his forehead. "What about that massive wager? Who won and who lost? I hope the Cen estate won!" "Even if they won, they wouldn't give you a single copper!" "But I can win money today!" Amid the crowd's commotion, the pillar of golden light suddenly dissipated. This was another strange occurrence, sparking endless speculation. In previous years, the pillar of light lasted at least the time it took to drink a cup of tea before vanishing. Fortunately, the subsequent sequence remained unchanged: The more than one hundred thousand lotus buds in the labyrinth seemed to receive a command, smiling in full bloom all at once. Even in the weir beneath Chaohu Pagoda, over a hundred water lilies instantly burst into flower. Such a wondrous spectacle, even if experienced once every year, still drew thunderous applause. "The lotuses have bloomed!" In Baishaqu's summers, the lotuses throughout the city would not blossom to their hearts' content until this very moment. The prime season for viewing lotuses began today and would last around forty days. During this time, new lotus buds would continue to sprout, no longer governed by the Overlord Lotus. At this moment, Magistrate Tian beamed with smiles and said to the distinguished guests in the pagoda, "The lotuses are in bloom. Please, everyone, make your way below to attend the ceremony." The Lotus Fragrance Festival was only now officially opening. The venue below the pagoda had long been prepared, waiting for the VIPs to take their seats. Taking the cue, the crowd began descending the pagoda. As for the wager between the special envoy of the Crown Prince and the Inspector from Lingxu City, the stakes still lay on the table, watched over by a designated attendant. *** No one knew that before anyone could sever the Overlord Lotus in the Lotus Palace, it snapped on its own with a soft *crack*. Cradling the lotus in his hands, Jia Yu was momentarily at a loss. The Overlord Lotus was in hand, but the skiff had been chopped to pieces, and the Crown Prince's special envoy was being hunted down. How was he supposed to get back? Another boat rowed up from across the water, carrying a guard from the Cen estate. Earlier, they had tailed He Lingchuan the entire way; Fan Sheng had slipped into the water while the guard remained on the boat awaiting rendezvous. Seeing what Jia Yu held, the guard immediately poled his boat over, intending to snatch it by force. *** After throwing his weight against the boat, He Lingchuan rolled smoothly into the water the next second, not forgetting to toss out an object as he fell. His posture resembled an alligator sliding into the water—far from graceful, but swift and practical. Water was the finest cover; any incoming strike would have more than one layer of its power stripped away. He had tested this beforehand: the water depth in the Lotus Palace averaged around five chi, and the northeast corner where they entered was slightly deeper, around six chi. Only lotuses blessed by the lotus demon could grow into colossal behemoths like these, rising well above the surface even in water six chi deep. This was deeper than ordinary lotus ponds, giving him plenty of room to thrash about. He Lingchuan wouldn't claim to be an unrivaled swimmer, but chasing fish in murky water was child's play to him. What lotus pond didn't have silt at the bottom? Grand as this Lotus Palace was, it was no exception. The moment he plunged into the water, he first churned up the silt. Mud and sand swirled up, blinding Fan Sheng above to his whereabouts. Yet right at that moment, dozens of palm-sized shadows suddenly surged from the surrounding water, snapping at his entire body and paying special attention to vulnerable spots. These creatures had the bodies of pomfrets, but their underfins and bellies were blood-red. With mouths closed, they looked harmless, but the instant they opened wide, they revealed razor-sharp fangs sharper than shaving blades. Their attack speed was terrifyingly swift, lunging five times in a single second—meaning five bites tearing into a person, their caudal fins violently lashing side to side with every strike to rip away larger chunks of flesh. A single piranha like this was easy enough to handle, but dozens swarming together were an absolute nightmare for anyone in the water. Fortunately, a faint teal light emanated around He Lingchuan. The soul-snatching mirror's master-protecting power automatically activated, reducing the penetrating damage to less than a tenth. Even so, it cried out in his head, "Hey, think of something fast! I can't hold out long—these things are vicious!" Even a tenth of the damage stung fiercely. He Lingchuan couldn't help cursing it: "What good are you, then?" Holding the pearl in his mouth allowed him to breathe underwater without hindering his ability to curse. Naturally, he knew well that the mirror's barrier was already impressive; in the Thousand Stars City ruins, it had even withstood Uncle Da's full-power barrage. It was faltering quickly now only because the combined attack power of these piranhas was too overwhelming. These things were either minor demons or summoned beasts, ninety percent likely unleashed by Fan Sheng. Before the race started, the local water spirit had already ordered all fish to leave. He Lingchuan cursed furiously in his heart while kicking harder to swim away. The school of piranhas gave chase relentlessly, attacking like mad. "Hurry, hurry, hurry! Think of something!" the mirror urged incessantly. "Ow! That hurts!" The piranhas had to breach the mirror's defense first before they could inflict severe wounds on He Lingchuan. But countless ants could bite an elephant to death; against such rapid gnawing enhanced with origin power, even the mirror couldn't bear it. Fast as He Lingchuan swam, before he had made it two zhang, a sudden alarm blared in his heart. Fusheng had already become one with him; the treasured blade was warning him that danger approached from— Above! *** Below Chaohu Pagoda, the dignitaries had already reached the sandbar by the lake. The skiffs plucking lotus tallies would not return so soon, so the ceremonies of the Lotus Fragrance Festival had to proceed first. The sand here was naturally fine and white, requiring no manual grooming. The sandbar was flat and expansive, offering an unobstructed panorama of Chao Lake. Over the past ten years, seven Lotus Fragrance Festivals had opened right here. This year was no exception. Serving as the backdrop, the weir was now ablaze with blooming lotuses. Beside the sandbar stood a large cluster of pavilions and covered corridors, normally meant for sightseers to rest, which now served as seating for the honored guests. Commoners and merchants stood behind, packed shoulder to shoulder. Magistrate Tian struck the chimes, drawing the audience's attention, and offered a few opening remarks with a wide smile. These were the same three routine speeches as always; he could recite them backward without notes. Next came Zhongsun Mou, taking the stage in an unhurried, graceful manner to deliver his speech. Thunderous applause rang across the venue. The surrounding bailiffs and claqueurs planted in the crowd clapped with particular fervor, getting everyone swept up in the cheer. Though Zhongsun Mou had been plagued with anxieties lately, he had no intention of missing an occasion like this. The text he had composed was ornate and flowery, carrying a unique charm when read amidst clear water and the fragrance of flowers. As the jiaoren's voice carried across the sandbar, a child standing behind the covered corridor tugged at his mother's hem. "Look over there." The mother had her eyes half-closed, listening to the ornate, parallel prose from the stage, drifting toward sleep. She paid him no mind, so the child tugged persistently. "What is it?" The child pointed toward the weir across from them. "There's something in there." The mother glanced over; lotuses were swaying in the breeze. "What something?" "It looks like something moved under the lotuses." "Nonsense." No sooner had the words left her mouth than the fine sand of the sandbar bulged slightly—right beneath Zhongsun Mou's feet. He, too, sensed something amiss, but without pausing his recitation, he merely glanced down. From below, an abyssal maw suddenly yawned open. Before he could react, darkness swallowed his vision. To everyone watching from the front, one second the Lord Inspector was standing properly on the sand, and the next, a colossal creature burst from beneath his feet and swallowed him whole from bottom to top. In hardly the blink of an eye, the Lord Inspector was gone. The monster was astonishingly round and massive, larger and rounder than a granary. It blocked the line of sight for most of the guests in the pavilion. It was a colossal... snail? Strange patterns covered its hard shell. Yet how could a beast carrying a snail shell have four legs? Wait—wait a minute, Lord Inspector was eaten by it! The onlookers were stunned. Nobles, guards, commoners, and bailiffs alike fell completely silent for a moment. Wu Kai cried out in horror, "Lord Zhongsun!" Cen Boqing slammed his hands on the table and shot to his feet. The beast had appeared in front of the weir, right where Zhongsun Mou had been standing. Cen Boqing felt its tentacle-like eyestalks staring straight at him, as though flaunting its defiance. Zhongsun Mou's bodyguards snapped out of their shock and rushed forward. When their master was delivering his address, they naturally hadn't joined him on the stage. If anything happened to Zhongsun Mou, no good fate awaited them upon their return. Their eyes nearly split with fury, and two of them hurled their weapons without a second thought. They aimed for the behemoth's eyes and lower jaw, but the monster's eyes suddenly retracted, and the spear struck nothing but air. The other weapon, a saber, did slash into the beast's cheek, sinking two chi deep and spurting viscous fluid. Yet the creature was simply too enormous; the flying blade was like a toothpick pricking its cheek. Painful as it was, it was nowhere near a fatal wound. Another spear came hurtling through the air—Cen Boqing had drawn his own weapon and hurled it like a javelin, bellowing, "Kill it!" His strength, accuracy, and speed far surpassed those of the guards. The monster suddenly opened its mouth, shooting out a crimson cord that deflected the spear midair. What in the world was that? Cen Boqing could tell that the crimson cord was its tongue. What sort of abomination was this, bearing the eyestalks of a snail yet the tongue of a toad? Cen Boqing gritted his teeth, while Uncle Wu turned pale. Was this the monster Mai Xuewen used to hunt demons? The spearhead clattered to the ground before the pavilion. Guests and commoners cried out and scrambled backward, while bailiffs and guards from various factions rushed forward. Yet it was too late. Burying its head into the sand with a plunge, the monster's massive bulk sank rapidly. Various divine abilities and magic artifacts struck its shell, ringing out with dull clangs, but none could pierce through, leaving only faint white scratches behind. The monster burrowed swiftly into the depths of the sand, as smooth and effortless as a fish slipping into the water, vanishing in the blink of an eye.