Chapter 255: Purifying Lotus Dissolves Obstacles, Three Flowers Finally Merge into One

Huashan.

Outside the palace where Fang Longye resided, bamboo groves wound around the water, casting shade, while jagged rocks were intertwined like lotus lamps.

Cold light hung upon the ground, long and continuous, its brightness clear and shallow, layering upward to cover the surroundings.

Female immortals, in groups of two or three, stood guard outside in a posture of attendance, motionless as statues.

Among them, Bishao, who had been frolicking with others earlier, was also prominently included.

"I wonder if I can catch the Dragon Lord coming out of seclusion during this rotation?"

Bishao maintained a serene smile on her face, but in her heart, she was secretly calculating.

Their thoughts in guarding here were very simple: they intended to become a familiar face before the future son-in-law.

Do not think this is utilitarian; immortals and gods are also made of living beings, and it is normal to have desires.

Who doesn't want to progress?

For this reason, this gate-guarding duty was something they, the immortal attendants, competed to rotate through. It was simply gambling on who was lucky enough to happen to be on duty when the future son-in-law emerged from seclusion.

Not to mention Fang Longye's side, even where Yang Chan was in seclusion, it was the same.

One by one, the female attendants competed to beg the female scribes under Yang Chan to arrange for them to guard before their own Lady's palace.

After all, in this Daoist practice ground, there were at least a thousand female attendants performing their respective duties. If one counted those who served as temple keepers for the 'Lady of the Huashan Divine Peak' temples outside, there were even more.

Not every female attendant could leave an impression in the eyes of their master, Yang Chan.

As the saying goes, standing high allows one to see far.

Do not look at Yang Chan's cultivation of a Golden Immortal perfection and think it sounds like nothing. In reality, even without a so-called master's sect or elder brother, based on herself alone, she was already a person of name and standing in the eyes of ordinary immortals and gods in the Honghuang.

Even in major forces like the Dao and Brahma, the realm of Golden Immortal perfection was a solid, backbone force. Therefore, with her realm, it was very difficult for her gaze to fall upon the small people and matters around her.

There were many female attendants who, since becoming immortals and attaining the Dao, had never even been personally summoned by Yang Chan; they were all summoned by the female scribes she had appointed.

When all is said and done, all things in the world boil down to the word "strive." How many people truly do not strive or compete? One cannot blame them for being this way.

Time passed bit by bit, and Bishao calculated the time; her shift was not far from ending.

"It seems I won't be able to wait for the future son-in-law to come out of seclusion during this rotation!" she thought with no small amount of regret.

Who would have expected that not long after,

A soft sound was heard, and the entire palace seemed to boil; circles of halo light expanded in all directions, with a beam hanging down in the center.

It looked like a calyx, swaying incessantly.

At the same time, the sky was filled with hexagrams appearing and disappearing, rendering the surroundings into a wild, ancient new world.

A moment later—

The door opened, and Fang Longye walked out of the palace in a leisurely manner.

Only, there was not a trace of joy on his brow from ending his seclusion; instead, a hint of displeasure lingered, radiating a coldness that rushed toward one's face.

"Dragon Lord—"

Bishao and the other immortal attendants guarding before the palace hurriedly paid their respects when they saw Fang Longye emerge, their demeanor respectful.

"Hmm."

Fang Longye nodded and casually distributed some items as rewards; having no mood to say much to them, he headed straight out of the palace gate.

Within the practice ground, pines and bamboos were lush and green, obscured by mist and clouds; behind winding paths were pavilions, and before the pavilions were ponds where kingfishers resided, flapping their wings and calling out.

From time to time, slender and beautiful immortal maids, with bare jade feet, would linger under the flowers or row boats to pick lotuses, their laughter constant.

It was bright, peaceful, and beautiful, making one's spirit and bones feel clear; the restlessness in Fang Longye's heart was also smoothed away quite a bit.

"There are gains and there are losses!"

Fang Longye walked across a rainbow bridge and sat cross-legged by a lotus pond under the bridge, teasing the koi in the water, sighing in his heart.

Unlike the sure success he had imagined,

After entering seclusion, he had tried several times to merge the Three Flowers, but none had succeeded as easily as described in the classics.

After examining himself, he finally found the crux of the matter.

"Yin and Yang Great Vehicle Dragon Transformation Scripture!"

He gazed at the three or five koi surfacing, his words like pearls and jade.

He never expected that this secret technique would become an obstacle hindering his Golden Immortal perfection.

Merging the Three Flowers requires the practitioner's essence, Qi, and spirit to be pure and singular.

There cannot be a single trace of disharmony.

Yet the Yin and Yang Great Vehicle Dragon Transformation Scripture's main purpose is to smelt the essence of all things into one's own body, allowing the Bloodline and origin to undergo transformation, and finally to Reverse Innate.

Naturally, there were some hindrances.

Although the power gained from smelting all things with this secret technique was already pure enough,

It was clear that there would still be some imperceptible things deposited in his Bloodline and origin.

Strictly speaking, these subtle, imperceptible things were not impurities or filth, but rather deposits of creation that the secret technique had failed to completely refine and digest.

This was also why innate spiritual fruits like the Ren Water Flat Peach, which could refine a practitioner's essence, Qi, and spirit, were unable to help.

The purifying power brought by the Ren Water Flat Peach targeted the impurities and dust in the essence, Qi, and spirit that were harmful to the practitioner.

How could it possibly be effective against creations that were clearly beneficial to the practitioner?

These deposits of creation actually had no impact on his daily state.

Moreover, as his Bloodline sublimated and he reached the moment of Reverse Innate, they would turn into firewood to fuel his transformation, burning away completely.

By the time he transformed into an innate being, all deposited creations would naturally return to his body, and not a trace would remain.

"However—" Fang Longye's gaze was deep and focused, and he thought: "It is clear that the Three Flowers merging, this barrier of Golden Immortal perfection, was not taken into account by this secret technique."

"Oh, it is not that there is none."

Fang Longye thought: "The corresponding method is to seal the physical body, isolate the inside from the outside, and continuously perform Moving Objects of the heavenly cycle to practice fetal breathing internally."

"Grind and digest these accumulated fortunes, bit by bit."

"It's just that—" He flicked his sleeves and stood up, gazing at his surroundings, and thought to himself: "This amount of time is not short at all!"

If he had no choice, he would naturally have to do just that. But at present, he was not without other options.

It was just a matter of needing to try.

The previous Golden Immortal Great Accomplishment had brought him more than just an increase in power; it had given him unimaginable insights into Dharma techniques and divine abilities.

Among them—

The greatest gain in his eyes was incorporating some of the essence of the Nine-Turn Primordial Art, the exclusive divine art of the Giant Spirit clan, into his own Pure Lotus Divine Ability.

This gave the Pure Lotus Divine Ability an additional special ability—

By casting the Pure Lotus Divine Ability upon himself, he could draw upon his entire being, shedding the old self to gestate a new one.

Since he had not yet attempted it, he did not know if this special ability could solve his problem.

Although, according to his calculations, it was almost certain.

"Now is the time to test this special ability of the Pure Lotus Divine Ability!"

Having said this, he admired the beautiful scenery for a while to calm the restlessness caused by his failed advancement, then turned and returned to his cultivation palace.

Inside the palace.

Fang Longye had used the Pot Heaven Technique to expand it, making it appear exceptionally spacious.

It was vast and empty.

It was rare for Fang Longye to revert to his original form, manifesting a dragon body winding for a thousand miles, coiled within the empty hall, his exhaled breath turning into clouds.

Amidst the dense, five-colored clouds and swirling mist, he made up his mind. With a shift of his thoughts, he cast the Pure Lotus Divine Ability upon himself.

Within his sea of consciousness, a series of wondrous sounds arose, and a touch of green halo appeared. In an instant, it transformed into a Green Lotus immortal flower, crystal clear and glowing with brilliance.

Then, an incomparable devouring force surged toward him, continuously drawing upon everything in his body.

During this process, his scales gradually became withered and lost their luster, his flesh and blood shriveled away, revealing a ghastly skeleton as if he were draped in nothing but a layer of skin.

His exceptionally thick Essence, Qi, and Spirit, along with all the Dao essence and laws he had comprehended—everything, every last bit—was devoured by that seemingly insatiable Green Lotus in his sea of consciousness.

Until his physical form decayed, his Dharma power ceased to exist, and his soul was extinguished.

The entire body was like a withered skeleton, devoid of any vitality.

A ripple passed through, and it actually turned directly into fly ash.

Afterward—

Accompanied by a mysteriously resounding profound sound, a magnificent Hundred-Leaf Dharma Lotus appeared in the original spot.

It was grand and vast, covering the void.

The leaves were entirely green and jade-like, totaling one hundred and eight in number. Each leaf was covered in fine veins, crisscrossing and intersecting, blooming with radiance and deriving all sorts of bizarre and fantastical scenes.

Amidst the great display of Spirit Flower, one could see a giant cocoon over ten thousand feet in size resting upon the glowing Green Lotus, emitting a halo of Chaos.

Around the giant cocoon, various phenomena appeared from time to time.

At times, fire soared into the sky; at times, water lotuses filled the air; at times, the sound of golden weapons clashed; at times, ancient forests stood dense; at times, yellow sands raged; there was also the rotation of Yin and Yang, and suddenly, starlight shone brightly with thunder rumbling... and so on.

In the end, a Chaos phenomenon containing all things formed around the Green Lotus, spreading outward.

It was as if Pangu were gestating.

Thump, thump, thump—

A mysterious heartbeat, like the war drums of an ancient thunder god, emanated from the giant cocoon.

After a long while—

Accompanied by the first sound of creation echoing as if after the opening of the universe, the giant cocoon cracked open, and an ancient god with a dragon's head and a human body stepped out.

He raised his head and roared—

The Green Lotus beneath his feet swayed for a moment, then turned into a beam of light, suddenly folded, and fell into the ancient god's brow, manifesting as a Green Lotus-shaped Dao seal.

"Hahaha!"

Fang Longye maintained his dragon-headed human form, felt his changes, and could not help but laugh heartily.

He then shook his body and transformed into a divine dragon winding for over a thousand miles.

His dragon horns were crystal clear, the Dragon Pearl beneath his chin presented black and white colors, and within his enormous dragon eyes, seven-colored light flowed continuously, as deep as the universe itself.

Coiling in the void, a light flick of his dragon tail caused the space to tremble, with faint signs of collapse.

The posture of shaking the heavens and earth was fully revealed.

He examined himself for a long time before returning to his human form.

He suddenly laughed loudly: "Three Flowers merged into one, Golden Immortal perfection, it is this very day!"

The reality was indeed as he had calculated; after the transformation of the new self, the fortunes that had previously accumulated in his Essence, Qi, and Spirit, which had been difficult to digest completely, were all gone.

In exchange for a more powerful shell, he had also leveled the path to advancing to Golden Immortal perfection.

Without hesitation, he struck while the iron was hot.

After returning to the Cloud Couch and sitting down, Fang Longye first familiarized himself with his new self, then began the Three Flowers merging process once again.

This time, there were no more obstacles.

The Three Flowers floated above his head, shimmering with auspicious light: the Essence Flower was brilliant gold, full of vitality; the Qi Flower was silver-flashing, extremely agile; the Spirit Flower was lead-colored and dense, exceptionally profound.

Fang Longye sat silently on the Cloud Couch, his eyes slightly closed, his hands forming lotus finger seals resting on his knees.

It was as if he were circulating Qi and performing his art, or perhaps meditating to regulate his breath.

As time passed, the Three Flowers began to bob up and down above his head, moving closer toward his crown.

There is a saying in the world about Spirit, Essence, and Qi, and cultivation is the refining of Essence into Qi and the refining of Qi into Spirit; it can be seen that although the three are independent of each other, they originate from the same source, and their essence is one.

As long as the method is appropriate, and without his previous troubles, it is very easy to merge the Three Flowers into one.

Just like that, as time flowed bit by bit, the Three Flowers within the celebration clouds above Fang Longye's head swayed and began to merge.

Although the Three Flowers merged into one, they did not lose their individual characteristics.

The vitality of the Essence Flower, the agility of the Qi Flower, and the profundity of the Spirit Flower all fused together, transforming into a ball of light the size of a fist.

It continuously contracted and expanded.

In the end, accompanied by a sudden sound of celestial music, it blossomed like a peacock spreading its tail or a flower bud opening, transforming into a brilliant Dharma lotus of the immortal flower.

It was crystal clear, suffused with purple and green mist.

It was transcendent, unlike anything in the world, as if it were about to transcend the mysterious void.

It stirred the surrounding Aura, and for a time, Golden Flowers and beaded curtains fell continuously, scattering everywhere.

Cultivators seek longevity by nourishing essence, refining Qi, and preserving the spirit, harmonizing the dragon and tiger, and capturing the Kan to fill the Li; the Three Flowers are the concentrated manifestation of a cultivator's essence, Qi, and spirit, and are naturally closely linked to the cultivator.

Therefore, as the Three Flowers merged into one, Fang Longye's body trembled; he felt his essence, Qi, and spirit completely fuse into one, no longer distinguishable from each other.

Compared to the initial Three-Element integration when he ascended to Origin Immortal, this was a step further. It was a complete melding like water and milk, where the three parties could even transform into one another.

They were a seamless whole, with no further distinction.

Just as mentioned before, the relationship between essence, Qi, and spirit is not simple. It can be said that the three are equivalent to three branches growing from the same trunk, with no essential difference.

Just as his previous world proved: "Light is both a wave and a particle."

And spirit is likewise wave-particle dualistic. Just like the modern technology of his previous life, which can observe brain waves.

Mass can be converted into energy, and energy can also be converted into mass. Everything, in the final analysis, is composed of tiny particles.

"Just like this!"

Fang Longye wore a smile, murmuring to himself.

Having said this, his body suddenly dissipated, transforming into the billions of trillions of tiny particles that constitute all things.

Every single particle was inscribed with all of his own information. As long as one particle remained undestroyed, he could quickly recover, which could be called an undying body.

Compared to the previous Blood Rebirth, the improvement between them is more than ten thousand fold—moreover, these billions of trillions of basic particles can be combined at will. With his body gathering and dispersing at will, Great Divine Abilities like Thousand Changes and Fetal Transformation were learned without being taught, and understood as soon as he thought of them.

"So, this is 'all divine abilities and changes are fully self-contained'?"

Fang Longye gathered and dispersed, changing at will, whether into flowers, plants, trees, birds, beasts, fish, insects, or tripods, furnaces, and weapons.

After some experimentation, he re-gathered a shell that was suffused with glowing divine light, appearing even more perfect in bearing.

"Golden Immortal Consummation, just as expected!"

A difference of one step is like the chasm between heaven and earth.

This is more miraculous than Golden Immortal Great Accomplishment by an unknown amount!

"The transformation in power is also not inferior—" With the Three Flowers merged into one, the powers of essence, Qi, and spirit fused into one; although the power of the three did not increase, Fang Longye felt his power surge, becoming stronger than ever before.

Of course, this was an illusion after the power condensed; his overall power had not grown, and compared to Golden Immortal Great Accomplishment, it had not increased by even a fraction.

But as his realm rose, every move he made involved his essence, Qi, and spirit entirely.

When launching an attack, he no longer needed to go all out like before, nor did he need to be distracted by mobilizing his physical strength and Dharma power.

Nowadays, every strike he makes contains the power of the essence, Qi, and spirit.

Without the process of being distracted, every move is the power of the Three-Element integration, so he naturally feels that his power has undergone a transformation and surged.

"And this is not over yet!"

Fang Longye suddenly raised his eyes, looking at the product of the Three Flowers merged into one above his head.

(End of this chapter)