Chapter 208: Ask Not The Heavens Regarding Slaying the Flower

　　Despair and bitterness welled up within the heart of the large, violet-robed man. He immediately lost all will to fight back. Being at early Foundation Establishment, he simply didn’t have the courage to attempt to fight with someone of the great circle of Foundation Establishment.

　　As Meng Hao calmly approached him, he retreated backward several paces. Without hesitation, he clasped hands and saluted.

　　“Greetings, senior,” he said. Then to the others, “Hey you, why haven’t you paid respects to the Elder?!” Mumbling and trembling, the Second Brother Huang hurried over and bowed deeply to Meng Hao.

　　His heart quivered with fear. How could he ever have imagined that what he previously believed to be a weak little lamb could instantly transform into a devilish fiend that could slaughter him hundreds of times over?

　　Third and Fourth Brothers, as well as the yellow-robed man, immediately joined the violet-robed man. Trembling, the five brothers all bowed repeatedly to Meng Hao.

　　The most bitter and regretful of all, of course, was the yellow-robed man….

　　He glanced over at the violet-robed man to find him staring over with an expression of deep, venomous hatred. The yellow-robed man’s eyes darkened, and he very nearly fell into a coma out of fright.

　　Coughing lightly, Meng Hao sat down onto the crystal throne. The five men were now standing where he had been just moments ago….

　　The old painter stared in frightened awe.

　　The violet-robed man’s heart was filled with anxiety and his scalp was numb. “Sir….” he said. He was just now wrapping his mind around what had happened. His body trembled.

　　Meng Hao looked at him and said, “I can see that you have some problems with your Cultivation base. You’ve been stuck with only one Dao Pillar for years. How about this: I have a medicinal pill that would be very beneficial.” He lifted up his hand, in the middle of which was a medicinal pill.

　　It was a very common pill for the Foundation Establishment stage. However, its effectiveness was a bit….

　　“How many Spirit Stones are you willing to pay for it?” asked Meng Hao coolly.

　　“Uh….” The violet-robed man gritted his teeth, then pulled out his bag of holding and handed it over to Meng Hao. Meng Hao frowned slightly, causing the trembling violet-robed man to turn and glare ferociously at the four men other behind him. Each and every one was shaking in their boots. One by one, they pulled out all of their belongings. In the end, the violet-robed man procured all of the items and wealth they had saved up over the years in their Immortal’s Cave, as well as the cave itself, and offered it to Meng Hao. All in exchange for one medicinal pill.

　　His expression the same as ever, Meng Hao collected up the various valuables. Then he glanced at the yellow-robed man, who looked back sullenly, and then the Second Brother Huang.

　　“I heard you mention there’s a teleportation portal here?”

　　“Yes, yes there is,” replied Second Brother Huang. Not daring to leave out any information, he quickly gave a full description: “Actually, we didn’t bring the portal here; it’s a natural function of the Immortal’s Cave, which we accidentally discovered. It works, but it will only teleport to one fixed location.” His heart was filled with virtual agony, as well as complete enmity for the yellow-robed man. “Dammit, Fifth Brother,” he thought, “who is this that you brought back with you? He’s some kind of Patriarch!!”

　　Meng Hao nodded. He had already used his Spiritual Sense to confirm the location of the teleportation portal. Looking back at the five men, he suddenly waved his arm. Unable to resist, the five of them were instantly swept up. All they could see was a blur as they entered the world of the blood-colored mask which lay inside Meng Hao’s bag of the Cosmos.

　　Everything was the color of blood. The meat jelly was in the midst of educating the Li Clan Patriarch, who sat there, emaciated, a blank, agonized look in his eyes. He looked more dead than alive, his body slack.

　　The meat jelly immediately noticed Meng Hao appear with the five Huang Clan men. Its eyes filled with excitement, and he instantly cast aside the Li Clan Patriarch.

　　“Bullies!” he cried, flying over. “I smell bullies! They’re all bullies, all immoral!!” It flew a few circles around the five Huang Clansmen, who were clearly disoriented and terrified. The meat jelly was getting more excited.

　　Meng Hao cleared his throat and said, “Senior, these are the bullies I promised to bring you a few days ago. They need education from you to bring them back from the path of wickedness.”

　　“Excellent, excellent,” said the meat jelly with a nod. “You kept your word, as shall I. First, let me count.” It flapped its wings as it settled onto the shoulder of the large, violet-robed man.

　　“One… two… three…” The meat jelly began to count, starting with the violet-robed man and the proceeding onto the Second and Third Brothers. When its eyes fell upon the Fourth Brother, it suddenly stared in shock. “One… two?” It flapped its wings as it reached the yellow-robed man. Suddenly, an angry, humiliated expression appeared on its face. It spun and glared at Meng Hao. “Liar!!”

　　Meng Hao gaped at the meat jelly.

　　“Look!” roared the meat jelly furiously. “One, two, three, one, two!! You’ve brought me two bullies, and I asked for three! I wanted three bullies!!” It clearly believed itself to have been swindled.

　　Meng Hao stared with wide eyes. Suddenly, everything became clear. This damned meat jelly really could only count the numbers one, two and three?

　　Without hesitation, Meng Hao quickly swept up the yellow-robed man as well as the Fourth Brother. Instantly, they disappeared.

　　“That was just a little mistake,” said Meng Hao quickly. “Why don’t you count again?”

　　The meat jelly carefully began to count again. “One, two, three… Haha! There are three! Three bullies. Excellent, excellent.” Excited once again, it beat its wings and flew around in a few more circles. Suddenly, a glow like lightning shot out from it toward Meng Hao.

　　Meng Hao didn’t evade. The lightning glow slammed into him, melding with his Spiritual Sense.

　　“This is my will of lightning,” said the meat jelly, which had already landed on the shoulder of the violet-robed man. “You can use it to change forms one time. Make sure to bring back some more bullies!” It looked at the violet-robed man with a friendly expression. “Hey. Hello. My name is Ultimate Vexation. What’s your name?”

　　The large, violet-robed man stared in shock. Not waiting for him to reply, Meng Hao quickly left the blood-colored mask. He could only imagine what would happen after the man responded. A sea of suffering awaited him….

　　Back in the Immortal’s Cave, Meng Hao sat there, a thoughtful expression on his face.

　　“The meat jelly can only count from one to three…. Very useful.” After a moment, he looked over at the old painter, who sat there with a dull expression on his face.

　　“Senior,” he said softly, “what village are you from? I can take you back home.”

　　The man looked scared. He hesitated for a moment, then said in a trembling voice, “But… my painting isn’t finished yet. Do you mind if I paint you?” His eyes shined with anticipation.

　　Meng Hao was shocked for a moment. Then his eyes narrowed, and he looked closely at the old man. No matter which way he looked at him, the man seemed mortal. After a while, Meng Hao nodded. “Thank you so much, sir,” he said, continuing to sit there on the crystal throne.

　　The old man took a deep breath, and then lifted the paintbrush, hand trembling. Looking at Meng Hao, he began to paint.

　　Time passed slowly. It took about four hours, during which time Meng Hao waited patiently. The man painted earnestly, and Meng Hao sat without moving.

　　After a while, the old man put down his paintbrush. He eyed the painting in front of him, and a satisfied expression filled his eyes. He looked up at Meng Hao and smiled.

　　“Finished,” he said. “Why don’t you take a look? Does it look like you?” His face was filled with anticipation.

　　Meng Hao smiled. He stood up and walked over to stand next to the old man. What he saw on the canvas was a young man sitting upright in a chair, surrounded by mountains. You couldn’t say that the painting wasn’t good, but there was something about it that just didn’t seem right. It only bore a thirty percent resemblance to Meng Hao.

　　“Very good,” said Meng Hao, smiling and nodding his head. “What are these two marks here?” He lifted his hand to point at the painting, where two long, thick marks could be seen. Meng Hao wasn’t sure what they meant.

　　“What’s above all of us?” asked the old man, smiling.

　　Meng Hao looked at him in surprise. Then, he smiled. “The sky,” he said quietly.

　　“Think about it for a moment,” said the old man, gazing at Meng Hao. His smile seems to contain some sort of hidden meaning. He looked completely different than he had just moments ago. Meng Hao thought for a moment, and then looked up. His eyes glittered as his vision passed through the Immortal’s Cave to look up at the sky outside.

　　After some time passed, Meng Hao lowered his head. The instant he did, his pupils constricted. The old man… was nowhere to be seen!

　　An archaic voiced suddenly filled the Immortal’s Cave, causing Meng Hao’s body to quiver. His Spiritual Sense suddenly scattered. “Because of the ten thousand year old will of the World Tree, my residual self is here today. It is fate that I came here today to paint for you. I have sealed the true form of the Resurrection Lily, refined its nature talent and fused it with your spirit. While it is sealed, it cannot harm you. Furthermore, you will be able to draw upon the Resurrection Lily’s nature talent of plants and vegetation. When enough time passes, you can cast away my residual will which seals the flower. Every ten thousand years, I commit one person to memory. Furthermore, a person who exists in my memory cannot be exterminated by the Karmic Severing of those surnamed Ji.”

　　A long moment passed before Meng Hao took a deep breath. His eyes shone brightly as he turned once again to look at the painting. He gasped and stared in shock.

　　The image on the painting was not that of Meng Hao, but of a… Resurrection Lily!

　　It looked savage, unwilling, and even insane. It appeared to be sealed inside the painting! The image was incredibly lifelike!

　　There were also some words written on the painting.

　　The day the Resurrection Lily blooms with seven colors, the flower falls, Immortal Ascension, one thousand years. Karma is hidden in the Immortal Mountain. Ask not the Heavens regarding the path to slaying the flower.

　　Painted in the Southern Domain, Planet South Heaven, for my young friend.

　　Shui Dongliu. 1

　　1. Shui Dongliu was previously mentioned in Chapter 194 and Chapter 197