Chapter 423: Deadly Poison

“Is this Sevenstar Lotus very famous? What special uses does it have?” From behind the group of cultivators came Han Li’s calm, unhurried voice.

Hearing this voice, Cultivator Jian and the others felt a chill in their hearts, their minds immediately clearing somewhat as they turned to look at Han Li with some unease.

They had all witnessed the power of the Gold Devouring Beetles. Even if these few joined forces, they likely wouldn’t be a match for those strange insects. Now that they had discovered something so precious, they subconsciously felt somewhat uneasy.

Even Jin Qing, who had strongly invited Han Li to come along, showed a trace of hesitation.

With Han Li’s shrewdness, one look at their expressions told him roughly what they were thinking, and a hint of self-mockery flashed in his eyes.

But he quickly concealed this flicker of emotion, his face still showing no sign of awareness as he continued asking, “The name Sevenstar Lotus is quite peculiar! I’ve read quite a few ancient texts! How come I have no impression of it at all?”

The cultivators opposite exchanged glances, and it was Hu Yue who coughed dryly before smiling and explaining to Han Li, “It seems Fellow Daoist Han has always buried himself in hard training, rarely engaging with matters outside cultivation. Even if you searched through all the spiritual herb texts, you probably wouldn’t find the name Sevenstar Lotus. However, in those legends passed down orally, the Sevenstar Lotus appears frequently. It’s said that if mortals consume it, they can return from death and regenerate flesh on bare bones. If cultivators take it, their cultivation can greatly advance, even leaping an entire stage. This is a legendary immortal treasure!”

After saying this, even though Hu Yue had grown somewhat wary of Han Li, he couldn’t hide the excitement on his face.

“Really? Is it that miraculous?” Han Li narrowed his eyes, as if somewhat disbelieving.

“That we don’t know. If we hadn’t seen this Sevenstar Lotus with our own eyes today, we wouldn’t believe such a thing truly exists in this world! But it’s certainly true that some cultivators would spend vast amounts of spirit stones to buy it,” Hu Yue said with a low chuckle.

“Is that so?” Han Li nodded faintly, then stopped looking at the Sevenstar Lotus. Instead, he lowered his head to examine the extremely white skeleton, showing considerable interest.

Seeing Han Li so indifferent, without any intention to seize it for himself, the others secretly breathed sighs of relief.

“Fellow Daoist Jian, you go and pick the Sevenstar Lotus! After we auction it, we’ll divide the spirit stones equally. Fairy Shi, please check if there are any formation restrictions near the pool,” Hu Yue said, taking the opportunity to subtly signal to Cultivator Jian and Shi Die.

After hearing this, these two looked thoughtfully at Han Li before agreeing.

Feeling that Han Li’s strength was too formidable, these few had unconsciously united, developing a sense of exclusion toward Han Li.

Jin Qing showed a flicker of hesitation upon hearing this, as if he wanted to say something, but after thinking it over, he ultimately didn’t speak.

Meanwhile, Han Li was half-crouched beside the skeleton, carefully examining something, his expression normal. This made Hu Yue, who had been cautiously watching him, relax slightly.

“There are no restrictions near the pool. Fellow Daoist Jian can pick it with peace of mind,” Shi Die said confidently after checking with several magical instruments.

Hearing this, Cultivator Jian immediately stepped forward joyfully.

“Be careful. I’ve heard the Sevenstar Lotus can’t be touched with magical instruments or the like—it must be picked by hand. Otherwise, it will immediately wither!” Hu Yue’s expression shifted as if he remembered something, and he hurriedly spoke to warn.

Cultivator Jian waved without looking back, indicating he already knew. At this moment, his attention was entirely focused on that Sevenstar Lotus bud.

Standing by the pool built from crystalline beautiful jade, Cultivator Jian bent slightly and carefully extended two fingers toward the tricolored bud.

Shi Die and the others held their breath along with his picking motion, watching his every move without blinking.

“Huh!” he uttered a sound of surprise.

“What’s wrong?” Hu Yue and Shi Die asked simultaneously, their faces full of concern. Whether they were worried about the picker or the picked item was hard to say.

“It’s a bit strange. Why is this flower root so tough? It seems very hard to pull up,” Cultivator Jian said, withdrawing his fingers and flexing them slightly with a puzzled expression.

“If you can’t pull it up, just pinch it off directly!” Hu Yue suggested after a slight roll of his eyes.

“Pinch it directly? That would greatly reduce the Sevenstar Lotus’s value!” Shi Die shook her head, her face full of disapproval.

“Wait, let me use Giant Strength Art and try again,” Cultivator Jian said, taking out a yellow talisman and slapping it on himself. Then he gripped firmly about three inches below the bud with all five fingers and prepared to pull hard.

“Stop!” Han Li, who had been studying the skeleton, suddenly spoke to stop him without even looking up.

Hu Yue and the others felt their hearts sink, growing suspicious and uneasy.

Cultivator Jian also felt a chill in his heart, but looking at the dazzling bud so close before him, he hardened his resolve and acted as if he hadn’t heard, putting fierce strength into his hand. Yet the Sevenstar Lotus remained motionless as if cast from iron.

This made Cultivator Jian even more anxious. Almost without thinking, he tightened his five fingers, changing from pulling to pinching.

This time the bud finally responded, trembling slightly a few times before suddenly retracting into the pool and disappearing without a trace.

With a “plop,” the unprepared Cultivator Jian was pulled into the pool by the great force from the stem, splashing milky white water everywhere.

Fairy Shi, who was relatively close, immediately had several drops hit her face.

Instantly, a scream followed!

“It’s poisonous, this water is poisonous!” the female cultivator cried out in shock and anger, covering her face with her hands. She hurriedly reached into her storage bag, pulled out a red medicine bottle, and poured a handful of fiery red pills into her small mouth in panic.

In that moment when she took the medicine, Hu Yue and Jin Qing caught a glimpse of a face covered with yellow blisters and festering flesh, and they couldn’t help but gasp in shock.

Even Han Li’s face changed slightly upon seeing it.

Fairy Shi had only been splashed with a few drops, yet she had ended up like this. What about Cultivator Jian, who had fallen into the pool?

At this thought, Jin Qing and the others looked toward the jade pool filled with milky white water.

Since falling into the pool, there had been no news of him—no screams were heard, nor did he struggle and call for help. They felt somewhat creeped out!

By now, Shi Die had finally stopped moaning. She tore off a corner of her dress to tightly cover her head, then sighed in temporary relief before looking toward the pool, her eyes full of venomous hatred.

“Gurgle”—a string of bubbles floated up from the depths of the pool. Then, a mostly rotten corpse floated to the surface.

Everyone’s faces turned pale. From the remaining clothing on the corpse, it was clearly Cultivator Jian’s body.

But now he was full of holes, his body revealing white bones everywhere. His eyes were hollow, the eyeballs long gone, a sight that made one’s hair stand on end!

“How could it become like this? How could Thousand-Year Stone Milk have such strange poison?” Hu Yue muttered in disbelief.

“Thousand-Year Stone Milk isn’t poisonous, but if someone added poison to the pool, that’s another matter,” Han Li said, standing up and slowly exhaling.

“Fellow Daoist Han! You shouted to stop earlier—did you already know the pool was poisonous?” Shi Die’s voice was somewhat hoarse as she asked Han Li coldly.

“Whether it’s poisonous or not, I didn’t know. But I did sense that this Sevenstar Lotus wouldn’t be so easy to pick. Look at this skeleton’s right hand!” Han Li said impassively, lightly tapping the skeleton at his feet with his toe.

Hearing this, Hu Yue and the others focused their gaze, revealing strange expressions.

The entire right hand bone of the skeleton was not only pitch black but also missing a small part of the index finger. The break was uneven, as if something had bitten it off.

Han Li didn’t look at the others’ puzzled expressions, nor did he explain further. Instead, a cold light flashed in his eyes as he stared fixedly at the pool.

In the milky white water, the “Sevenstar Lotus” had somehow floated back to the surface, still emitting gorgeous colors. But when Hu Yue and the others looked at it now, their gazes were as if looking at a venomous scorpion.

Without a word, Han Li spread his five fingers, and five small fireballs floated above his fingertips. Then he flicked his fingers slightly, and the fireballs arranged in a line shot fiercely toward the Sevenstar Lotus.

Jin Qing and the others were startled, but given what had happened earlier, they didn’t try to stop Han Li from acting.

The Sevenstar Lotus swayed left and right a few times in the firelight before abruptly retracting into the water. Then a black shadow flashed as something flew out of the water, shooting toward Han Li like an arrow.