Chapter 18: Blood Lotus

Chapter 18: Chapter 18: Blood Lotus

The next day, Sui Sui brought Shi Qing with him to the library of The Wenjian Sect.

As the number one sect in the Human Realm, the Wenjian Sect’s library was naturally enormous. The towering structure occupied a vast stretch of land, its ancient halls connected by covered walkways and stone bridges. Countless shelves filled with neatly arranged jade slips and books could be seen through the open windows, giving the entire place a quiet and scholarly atmosphere.

The library itself was divided into four pavilions—the East, West, North, and South Pavilion—with each pavilion consisting of two floors.

As soon as they stepped through the entrance, the two were stopped by an elderly man seated before the main gates.

His long silver hair draped loosely over his shoulders, and although age had left countless wrinkles upon his face, there wasn’t the slightest hint of frailty about him. Instead, his sharp eyes swept over the pair like drawn blades, carrying an invisible pressure that made both Sui Sui and Shi Qing instinctively stiffen.

It was as though every secret they held had been laid bare beneath that piercing gaze.

Neither of them dared to step forward.

The old man merely glanced at them before speaking in a cold, emotionless voice.

"Hand over your identity tokens."

Sui Sui froze for a brief moment before hurriedly feeling around his robes. Only then did he remember that every disciple carried an identity token issued by the sect. He quickly retrieved it and carefully handed it over with both hands.

The old man accepted the token without another word.

He lowered his eyes, casually examined it for only a brief moment, then returned it almost immediately.

"Alright," he said flatly. "You may enter."

His gaze shifted between the two of them once more.

"As probationary disciples, you may only enter the East and West Pavilions. The North and South Pavilions are off-limits."

"Yes, Senior."

The two accepted their identity tokens before respectfully bowing. Only after putting some distance between themselves and the entrance did Sui Sui finally let out the breath he had been unconsciously holding.

"That old senior is terrifying..." Shi Qing muttered under his breath.

Sui Sui silently nodded in agreement.

Visiting the library, Sui Sui only had one goal—to find a way to remove the restrictions imposed by his Extreme Yin Physique.

Unfortunately, he had no idea where to begin.

After asking a few disciples on duty for directions, Sui Sui decided to head to the West Pavilion. According to them, that pavilion housed books related to the human body, anatomy, constitutions, and other subjects concerning the physical form. If there was anywhere that might contain information about his condition, it would most likely be there.

Compared to the other sections of the library, the West Pavilion was relatively quiet. Only a handful of disciples could be seen browsing the shelves, allowing Sui Sui to search without much interruption.

He carefully selected several books that seemed related to unusual physiques and meridians before making his way to a small wooden table tucked away in an inconspicuous corner.

Although books could be borrowed from the library, Sui Sui wasn’t confident that he had chosen the right ones. Rather than making repeated trips back and forth, he decided it would be more efficient to skim through them first before deciding which volumes were worth taking with him.

The first book Sui Sui picked up was a compendium on the various types of Spiritual Bones.

The opening Chapters contained only basic knowledge that he had already learned from the novel, explaining the five common Spiritual Bones and their corresponding elemental affinities. Although useful, none of it was related to the problem he was trying to solve.

Just as he was beginning to think he had picked the wrong book, a passage halfway through caught his attention.

According to the text, there were rare cases in which a person appeared to possess no Spiritual Bones or Soul Force at all. However, the author emphasized that such diagnoses were not always accurate.

Sui Sui immediately straightened in his seat.

Could this be related to his condition?

Without wasting another second, he quickly turned the page.

The following section listed several unique physiques that could produce this phenomenon. As his eyes swept across the page, they eventually stopped on a familiar entry.

Extreme Yin Body.

His breathing unconsciously slowed as he continued reading.

According to the book, the conventional method of identifying one’s Spiritual Bones and Soul Force was based on the innate Yang Primordial Energy present within a cultivator’s body. However, those born with an Extreme Yin Body possessed overwhelmingly dense Yin Primordial Energy instead. Because of this imbalance, the standard method of examination often failed, leading others to mistakenly conclude that they possessed no Spiritual Bones at all.

Sui Sui lowered the book slightly, deep in thought.

So that was the reason.

It wasn’t that this body truly lacked Spiritual Bones or Soul Force. Rather, the usual methods of testing simply couldn’t detect them.

Following that lead, Sui Sui continued searching through the shelves for books related to the Extreme Yin Body.

One volume led to another, and before he knew it, the sun had already crossed the sky. He remained seated at the same table from morning until late into the night, so absorbed in his research that he barely noticed the passing hours. Shi Qing, who had accompanied him earlier, had long since grown bored and left to attend to his own affairs, leaving Sui Sui alone in the quiet library.

By the time the last rays of sunlight disappeared beyond the windows, Sui Sui had finally pieced together a breakthrough.

According to the ancient texts, there were three known methods capable of unlocking the potential of an Extreme Yin Body.

The first method was the most direct.

Dual cultivation with someone possessing an Extreme Yang Body.

The pure Yang essence of such a person could gradually melt away the dense Yin energy obstructing the meridians, allowing one’s Spiritual Bones to awaken and cultivation to proceed normally.

Sui Sui only glanced at the explanation before silently closing the page.

"...Not happening." He immediately dismissed the idea.

He wasn’t willing to sacrifice his dignity simply to gain the ability to cultivate. Besides, the only person with an Extreme Yang Body whom he currently knew was Yizhou. Even if Sui Sui were shameless enough to propose such a thing, whether Yizhou would agree was an entirely different matter.

The second method required cultivating a very specific cultivation technique.

At first, Sui Sui’s eyes lit up with hope. Compared to the first method, this sounded much more realistic.

Unfortunately, that hope didn’t last long. The following paragraph explained that the technique in question was the sacred cultivation manual of the Nine-Tailed Fox Beast Clan.

As one of the beast races with the greatest affinity for Yin energy, it was only natural that they possessed such a cultivation method. However, it was considered one of their most closely guarded inheritances. Let alone obtaining a copy, even finding traces of it would be extraordinarily difficult.

With a disappointed sigh, Sui Sui crossed out the second option in his mind.

That left only the final method.

Unlike the previous two, this one revolved around a rare spiritual herb known as the Blood Lotus.

However, before a Blood Lotus could be obtained, one first had to find a Frost Lotus.

The Frost Lotus was a unique spiritual plant with transparent, crystal-like petals that grew only in bodies of water bathed in moonlight for countless years. It bloomed just once every hundred years, making it an exceptionally rare sight.

Ironically, despite its rarity, the Frost Lotus itself possessed almost no medicinal value. Aside from its beauty, it offered little benefit to cultivators, which meant very few people actively sought it out.

The Blood Lotus, however, was an entirely different matter.

According to the records, a Frost Lotus could evolve into a Blood Lotus if it were nourished with half the blood of a person possessing an Extreme Yin Body.

Only after absorbing enough Yin blood would the lotus undergo its transformation.

Once it bloomed as a Blood Lotus, it would become an incomparably precious panacea capable of dispelling bodily blockages and healing numerous conditions that ordinary spiritual medicines could not.

After deciding on the method he wanted to pursue, Sui Sui carefully returned every book to its proper place before leaving the library.

By the time he stepped outside, the sky had already grown dark. A cool night breeze drifted through the stone pathways, carrying with it the faint rustling of leaves. Looking up, Sui Sui was slightly startled to find the moon already hanging high above the sect.

"I really stayed there that long..."

No wonder his shoulders felt sore.

Completely absorbed in his research, he hadn’t noticed the passage of time. He hadn’t even stopped to eat a proper meal throughout the day. Fortunately, he had packed a few pastries in his storage pouch before leaving that morning, so his stomach wasn’t protesting too much.

Stretching his stiff limbs, Sui Sui slowly made his way back toward the probationary disciples’ quarters.

At this point, all he wanted was to take a hot bath, crawl into bed, and sleep until the next morning.

For some reason, however, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he had forgotten something important.

He frowned slightly as he walked.

What was it?

He thought about it all the way back to his room, yet nothing came to mind.

It wasn’t until he pushed open the door and saw the familiar figure quietly waiting inside that realization finally dawned on him.

"..."

Oh.

Right.

He still had to feed Yizhou his blood.