Chapter 131: The Lotus Stone

As soon as he entered the archway, Lu Fang felt his field of vision shrinking rapidly; the pond, which should have been small, now loomed toweringly large, and the surrounding weeds rose over ten zhang above him.

Did I shrink this much?

Lu Fang was stunned—this was nothing like he'd imagined. The rabbit itself was small, so entering the archway should have made him thumb-sized.

Then why, with his own large body, did he shrink so drastically?

Could it be that the larger the object, the smaller it becomes inside here? As he puzzled over this, a pair of lantern-sized eyes appeared above him.

Lu Fang locked eyes with them—he froze. Was this the same rabbit? Holy shit! How huge is it now!

That meant his body was even smaller than he'd thought.

The rabbit, as if finding a new toy, lunged straight at Lu Fang.

Lu Fang swiftly retreated backward; under the Xuanjia's effect, his speed remained swift—he was now a Confucian Scholar, and his Book Spirit Yan Chixia had risen to Fifth Rank First Tier, naturally enhancing the Xuanjia's speed.

But the rabbit's body was simply too massive.

Lu Fang barely avoided being swatted by its claw—the mere wind blast from its strike sent him flying.

"Green Dragon Crescent Blade!"

Mid-flight, Lu Fang summoned the spectral shadow of Guan Yun Chang and slashed downward at the rabbit.

The blade qi tore through like dry grass—splitting the rabbit's front hoof clean in two. As an ordinary beast, it collapsed instantly after losing a limb.

Lu Fang swiftly dispatched it, exhaling in relief. At least his abilities weren't restricted here—if they had been, he might've died at the claws of a mere rabbit. Word of that would spread, and he'd be laughed out of the cultivation world.

After stowing the rabbit in his storage pouch, he turned to leave the archway and set up a formation outside to prevent other small beasts from entering.

But suddenly, a dread premonition stirred in his chest.

As if someone—or something—was watching him. The feeling was overwhelming, raising every hair on his body.

Glub glub glub… bubbles rose from the pond.

Lu Fang didn't even glance back—he shot toward the archway.

Simultaneously, a green-skinned monstrous fish leapt from the pond—a creature half-frog, half-fish. Its huge eyes rolled, fixed on Lu Fang's fleeing form, then opened its tooth-studded mouth and spat out several water arrows.

The water arrows descended like a wall from the heavens, blocking Lu Fang's path.

"Green Dragon Crescent Blade!"

Lu Fang instantly unleashed the technique, trying to cleave through the water wall—but it had little effect, only rippling the surface.

His body had become so tiny in this peculiar place.

As a result, all his supernatural powers had been drastically weakened—he couldn't even break a simple water wall.

CRASH!

The green monster fish lunged with its gaping maw—its speed far outstripped the rabbit's.

Lu Fang tried to dodge, but his tiny size left him no room—he was swallowed whole.

The fish chewed a few times, then wore a human-like grin. But after taking just a few steps, it suddenly halted—its belly swelled larger and larger. In barely ten breaths—BOOM! its body burst open.

Enlarged once more, Lu Fang's robes were tattered and corroded by the monster fish's stomach acid.

Had he not possessed the supernatural ability "Conceal Heaven and Deceive Earth," he would've been digested moments later.

Lu Fang dragged the half-eaten corpse of the fish out of the archway—and in an instant, he grew to immense size. Only after retracting "Conceal Heaven and Deceive Earth" did he return to his normal stature.

He thought, and nineteen yellow banners, each seven inches long and inscribed with Bagua patterns, materialized before him, shimmering with arcane light.

Under his command, the Minor Binding Banner Array spread into beams of light, enveloping the entire archway.

Though it couldn't affect anything inside the archway,

it could prevent others from entering.

Having finished, Lu Fang stared at the monstrous fish's body, now the size of a small peak, and murmured, "It seems the degree of shrinkage inside the archway isn't tied to one's original size."

He still hadn't figured out why.

Then Lu Fang felt numbness spreading across his entire body—patches of his skin began to ulcerate. No need to guess: the fish carried poison.

And it was potent poison.

Lu Fang had already ingested a fair amount of Book Fragrance after emerging—and still hadn't fully purged the toxin. How fierce it must be.

He swallowed more Book Fragrance, and the poison finally vanished.

After confirming no lingering effects, Lu Fang gazed into the archway, troubled again. What now? He didn't know if more monstrous fish—or worse—lurked inside.

After some thought, he ultimately decided to risk entering.

Earlier, though his body had shrunk, he had distinctly sensed the overwhelming abundance of Wanda Qi within.

The archway was like a paradise cave.

Lu Fang was certain: cultivating here would accelerate his progress manyfold. If he could even enter a state of sudden enlightenment, his advancement might be even faster.

But entering required a guardian.

He had two options: first, summon his Book Spirit Yan Chixia to guard him while he cultivated, preventing danger.

Second, remove the Minor Binding Array, enter the archway, then reactivate it.

After much deliberation, he discarded both. He remembered: if he entered the archway, Yan Chixia would shrink drastically—and his power would weaken too.

The same applied to the Minor Binding Array.

This left Lu Fang in a bind. Did he have to eliminate every potential threat inside the archway first?

After multiple attempts, Lu Fang found a safe spot within the archway: a stone shaped like a lotus platform. He'd stumbled upon it by chance, noticing the Wanda Qi here was exceptionally dense.

Moreover, it repelled all nearby life.

Fish from the pond, insects, grasshoppers—all kept their distance.

Yet Lu Fang could enter freely, without obstruction. Sitting upon the Lotus Stone, he ingested a small amount of Book Fragrance—and unintentionally absorbed the Wanda Qi, slipping into a profound state.

The Lotus Stone acted like a vortex, pulling the archway's dense Wanda Qi into Lu Fang's body with relentless force.

With every breath, the Wanda Qi around him coalesced into strange phenomena.

This state lasted an indeterminate length of time.

POP!

In the profound state, Lu Fang ascended to Sixth Rank Second Tier—yet he remained unconscious. His body, like a sponge, greedily absorbed every scrap of Wanda Qi within the archway.

Meanwhile,

before a ruined temple, a monk clad in Black Lotus Sect robes appeared.