Upon hearing the words, the young soldier's back stiffened. He slowly turned around but dared not approach. The situation was urgent, and seeing his hesitation, Xie Lian felt a rush of anxiety. He tried to suppress it and said, "Don't be afraid. I won't harm you. Come quickly!"
Finally, the young soldier moved. He rushed to within two feet of Xie Lian and then stopped abruptly. Xie Lian took a silent breath, reached out a hand, and said, "...Help me up and take me away."
The young soldier carefully took hold of his hand. It felt as if a person on the brink of death had found some relief, and Xie Lian's whole body relaxed as he leaned against the soldier.
Immersed in the land of gentle warmth, Xie Lian's body temperature had risen, and he was burning hot. Surprisingly, the soldier's palm was just as hot and was slightly trembling.
After leaning on him for a moment to gather some strength, Xie Lian drew a breath and stood up straight with effort. He didn't want someone smaller than him to bear his full weight. As they took a few unsteady steps, the flower spirits called out, "No, Crown Prince! Don't leave. 'He' is waiting for you on the road. If you leave here, you'll run into 'him'."
"'He'?"
Xie Lian asked, "'Who is 'he’?"
The flower spirits seemed to hesitate, showing a trace of fear as they murmured, "‘He’ is ‘he’.”
The flowers nodded among themselves, saying, "‘He’ is the one who brought us here."
Although they did not dare reveal this person's name or identity, a half-crying, half-smiling mask immediately appeared in Xie Lian's mind. He said, "You mean if I leave now, the person who brought you here will ambush me on the road. But if I stay here, he won't come looking for me, right?"
The flower spirits nodded in agreement, their chatter assenting. Unnamed anger rose in Xie Lian's heart.
Not killing him, just trapping him in such a mortifying situation—was this meant to play him or what? It would be better to come out and fight to the death!
Calming himself slightly, he suppressed his indignation. It seemed the other party had no intention to defeat him head-on, but merely wished to deplete his spiritual power, downgrade his status, and lose followers.
The flower spirits' words may not be entirely true, but even if not, thinking carefully, even with the boy's support, they might not return safely. If the adversary purposely threw a few women in their path, the situation would be even worse and more embarrassing.
Weighing his options momentarily, Xie Lian exhaled a hot breath, closed his eyes, and said, "Take me to the cave over there."
The boy complied, helping him through a ground littered with scattered bodies to the mouth of a cave. Xie Lian whispered, "Stop."
The young soldier halted. Even lifting his hand made Xie Lian tremble. "Where is your sword?" he asked.
The soldier, supporting Xie Lian with his left hand, freed his right to lift his sword. Xie Lian bared part of his arm, pale under the moonlight, resembling cold jade. The soldier's breath hitched, but Xie Lian paid no notice and softly instructed, "Stab me with it."
The hand holding that battered sword immediately faltered, and Xie Lian said, "Don't be afraid. Just stab, stab a bit deeper. I need to set a formation; I have no other spiritual tool at hand; blood is necessary."
The soldier, however, said, "Your Highness, please use my blood!" As he spoke, he raised his arm and slashed it with his sword without reservation. Xie Lian said, "No need! Your blood..." but it was too late. A deep gash appeared on the soldier's arm, and blood streamed forth. Xie Lian sighed, "...You...fine."
His divine blood was a priceless treasure; how could a mortal's blood compare? But touched by the soldier's earnestness, he couldn't bear to tell him it was a futile effort. So he said, "Thank you, but I still need a bit of my blood for a guide."
He took the sword and with shaking hands, cut his own arm after several attempts. The crimson divine blood flowed down his white arm, tracing arcs on the rocky ground, almost forming two barriers—indeed, a waste of treasure. Xie Lian added some of the soldier's blood into the mix. After finishing, he felt increasingly dizzy and said, "...Let's go inside."
Within the cave, darkness loomed as the soldier retrieved a tinderbox from his coat pocket, striking it to illuminate their surroundings.
The boy's face was tightly hidden under a bandage, but Xie Lian, in his pitiful state, was fully exposed. Cold sweat dripped as his hair stuck to his wet skin, lips touched with blood, swollen and red from his earlier bite to infuse the sword with power. The firelight stung Xie Lian's eyes, and the heat burnt unbearably, prompting him to say, "Don’t light a fire, put it out."
The youth stomped on the flame, extinguishing it, and darkness enveloped them again. The young soldier helped Xie Lian to sit in a meditative pose inside the cave. After a brief pause, Xie Lian said softly, "There's a task I must ask you to do. Can you manage it?"
"..." The soldier knelt on one knee, saying, "I will do it even at the cost of my life!"
Xie Lian struggled to breathe quietly, forcing calm into his voice, "I've set barriers in this cave, two in total. The one outside prevents anything from coming in, and the one inside stops anyone from leaving."
After a few silent breaths, he continued, "Between the two barriers, there's enough space for one person. Stay there, guard the entrance. No matter what you hear outside, don't go out; likewise, no matter what happens to me inside, do not come in."
The boy seemed surprised. "Your Highness, you’re staying alone inside?"
Xie Lian replied, "Yes. I don't know what I might do... Regardless, you mustn’t enter."
Given the current circumstances, returning was impossible, and waiting for rescue seemed futile—who knows when help might come? Better to secure a territory, stand his ground, and think of a way to dissolve the intoxicating effects of the flower spirits. "The flower spirits' results are immensely seductive; they're likely to mature soon..."
At that moment, an overwhelming fragrance filled the air, cutting off his words. The soft, ambiguous aroma enveloped everything, while the flower creatures laughed delightedly, "My roots! My roots have grown!"
"The fruit has ripened!"
As the intense fragrance reached Xie Lian, his heartbeat quickened, blood rushed to his head, and he gritted his teeth, urging, "Quick, go out! Do not inhale the scent. Even if they approach, don't be afraid. Nothing can pass the bloodline, but as long as you remain in the formation, you can strike them with your sword."
The young soldier nodded resolutely, rushing out and standing between the two bloodlines at the cave entrance. Outside, the ground was strewn with corpses, making the clusters of flowers appear even more dazzling. An entire patch of them quivered slightly, as if the roots beneath were ready to break through the earth. Soon enough, something indeed emerged—a woman's head!
That "woman's" head sprouted from the ground, inhaling the fresh air above with visible relief, as its eyes narrowed in pleasure. Subsequently, the earth revealed half a rounded shoulder and an arm.
The enchantingly soft fruits of the flower spirits were borne underground, and the matured yields took the shape of various women.
When the timing for harvest arrived, dozens of naked beauties broke through the earth's surface, freely stretching under the moonlight, bodies bare and unrestrained. It was those tiny flowers that once exuded the scent, but now it was these seductive ladies that permeated the air. They brushed off the soil, smoothed their long hair, and walked towards the cave with enticing laughter, calling, "Crown Prince, here we come!"
Inside the cave, the heavy fragrance was suffocating. Xie Lian sat cross-legged with eyes closed, softly reciting the Tao Te Ching. However, it offered little relief as the flower spirits shamelessly chattered, endless sweet whispers echoing outside the cave like "darling heart" and "brother dear," creating a racket that muddled his mind.
He switched from silent recitation to aloud, "The five colors make eyes blind, the five sounds make ears deaf, racing and hunting make hearts mad, rare goods make people's actions harmful... Tranquility overcomes agitation; coolness overcomes heat; cleanse for the world to be correct... If they are good, I am good; if not good, I am still good..."
Unable to notice that the once fluent mantra became jumbled. Outside, the flower spirits clapped their hands, laughing, "Oh Prince, my lovely heart, why recite scriptures? You're not a monk...
Ah!"
A chorus of screams followed, suggesting the young soldier, though silent, was merciless with his sword against the flower spirits, causing them to scatter in panic, shouting, "An exterminator!"
Some yelled from afar, "You awful little ghost, ruthlessly ruining the flowers! You have no sense of pity!"
"So scary! He's so young, yet already so cruel. What will he become when he grows up!"
The flower spirits, driven by lust, attempted to squeeze into the cave without success, thinking the young soldier was the barrier. Having misunderstood, they giggled amongst themselves, planning, "Little brother, why block us from getting close? We’re only seeking a bit of fun with the Crown Prince, not mischief."
"Dear young guard, don't disrupt our frolic with the Crown Prince."
"This little lad looks strong enough but a bit young for the task. Perhaps he doesn't understand what 'fun' is?"
With the flower spirits' mocking giggles echoing, Xie Lian slightly opened his eyes to see a black silhouette standing firmly at the cave mouth, a young soldier, holding his ground like a tiny giant. Suddenly, a flower spirit burst into laughter, saying, "Oh, I see! Little lad, you must fancy someone like this?"
Seems like another new flower spirit had emerged. Silence cloaked everything outside. Even the young soldier seemed to hold his breath.
In the next instant, the flower spirits erupted in laughter so fierce that it nearly bowled Xie Lian over.
They clapped their hands and screeched, "Oh dear! You made something incredible! Look at this boy, he's completely stunned. I bet this is just right for him!"
"That's it! Who would’ve thought this little devil was a rock all along? But turns out wrong, he's daring for his age!"
"Utterly defeated, utterly defeated! How about it, young friend? Such a splendid sight, won't you indulge in some joy?"
"If you miss this opportunity, it won't come again. Do you want us to assist? Right here and now... hehe..."
The young soldier grew furious, speaking with icy rage, "You dare!"
At the same moment, inside the cave, Xie Lian was nearing his limit.
His mind and senses blurred into confusion, and he couldn't remain steady, nearly tumbling forward, though his hands barely kept his balance. In his unsteady state, he accidentally let out a soft, pained moan.