Wayfarer

Chapter 502: The Lotus Pond

Chapter 502: The Lotus Pond

Within the Yin-Yang Cauldron, the purple-furred monster knelt on one knee and bowed down. "Former general Zeng Daniu greets the young princess!"

"Please rise, General Zeng. My mother's dead, and you don't have to bow down to me any longer," Zhang Lingjun said immediately.

Zeng Daniu shook his head. "We generals have sworn to serve the princess to our death. Now that she has perished, Princess, we serve you. If you refuse our service, we'll accompany our princess to the underworld."

"Don't! General Zeng, I accept your service. Please rise." Zhang Lingjun helped him up.

"Yes, Princess!" Only then did Zeng Daniu rise.

"General Zeng, do you know why my mother would rebel?" Zhang Lingjun pressed.

"The princess didn't rebel. I don't know what happened that day, but she would never do so. Before then, she had been preparing a present for the Heavenly Emperor's birthday. Why would she do that if she were planning to rebel?"

Zhang Lingjun sighed in relief. She didn't believe that her mother would have rebelled, either.

"Do you know what happened that day?"

"I don't. We were stationed at the foot of Mt. Kunlun and awaiting orders. Without a summons, we didn't have the authority to ascend the mountain, nor to head into the Heavenly Palace at its peak."

"Do you know who might know anything?"

"I don't." Zeng Daniu shook his head.

Zhang Lingjun fretted anxiously.

"Princess, don't worry. General Zeng might be unaware of the situation, but someone has to know something. We'll keep on searching," Xiao Nanfeng said.

Zhang Lingjun nodded, then asked curiously, "Xiao Nanfeng, how did you awaken General Zeng?"

Xiao Nanfeng turned to Zeng Daniu. "That depends on General Zeng. How did he awaken?"

Zeng Daniu shook his head. "I don't know myself. After the Heavenly Emperor cursed us, we lost our consciousness. I could vaguely sense that my consciousness was being suppressed. Just now, whatever was suppressing me faded away, and I woke up."

Xiao Nanfeng stared at Zeng Daniu for some time before he said, "There was a golden lotus hood on your head, a cursed effigy that I destroyed. You woke up after that. I suspect that lotus hood was suppressing your consciousness."

"What lotus hood?" Zeng Daniu seemed perplexed.

Zhang Lingjun suddenly recalled the lotus hood that she too had seen.

Xiao Nanfeng manifested an image of the lotus hood with spiritual power.

"Ah, I remember! The princess once received such a hood back then."

"Oh?"

"Later, the princess placed the hood in the lotus pond to nurture it, and golden lotuses bloomed throughout the pond shortly thereafter. A few days before this whole mess happened, the pond of golden lotuses vanished."

"The golden lotuses vanished? Could they be what's suppressing all these purple-furred lifeforms?" Xiao Nanfeng frowned.

"I don't know myself..." Zeng Daniu trailed off, likewise frowning.

Zhang Lingjun considered her own memories. "I remember that pond as well. One day, I was planning to pick some golden lotuses from it, but my mother held me back. She even threatened the golden lotuses. I was too young then to understand what was going on, but thinking back, there was clearly something unusual there. Could my mother's death be related to these golden lotus hoods?"

"Let's consider the possibility that every purple-furred lifeform has such a golden lotus hood on them. If we're able to pluck them off, they might be able to wake up," Xiao Nanfeng said.

"We can try it," Zeng Daniu agreed immediately.

Zhang Lingjun nodded as well. "Right, we should test that. If it's true, I'll be able to awaken many of my mother's former generals. I'd like to have a look at that lotus pond, too. We might be able to find a new clue."

They quickly arrived at its exterior, a large, wide-open plaza filled with halls and pavilions, all of which were covered by layers of translucent purple barriers. This was the Palace of the Moon proper. Outside the palace were countless purple-furred monsters.

Upon seeing the horde of purple-furred monsters that numbered in the thousands, even Xiao Nanfeng was shocked. He was relieved that he had requested the support of the other cultivators; otherwise, he would have had a hard time trying to enter with Zhang Lingjun.

"Princess, the Palace of the Moon lies ahead. It's surrounded by a particularly strong barrier and guarded by countless purple-furred monsters. Whenever we approach, the monsters charge forward and attempt to stop us. There are even True Immortal monsters among their number, and they're particularly dangerous. That's why we've never been able to make it past the barrier. With the Palace of the Moon's access token, however, you can lead us in."

Zhang Lingjun suddenly pointed in a certain direction. "Let's head to the Lotus Hall first. There's a lotus pond over there."

Xiao Nanfeng immediately added, "Generals, the princess will unlock the barrier with the access token for the palace. Please guard her from the lifeforms headed her way."

"Got it!" the other cultivators said.

"Let's go!" Xiao Nanfeng shouted.

The cultivators flew off following Zhang Lingjun.

When the purple-furred monsters outside the palace discovered the cultivators, they roared in a threatening fashion before leaping toward them.

"Attack!" the cultivators shouted.

They struck down the monsters in the forefront, opening up a passageway for Zhang Lingjun. The monsters were sent flying one after another, but more continued to appear. There were even a few True Immortals among them.

The fighting raged on as the cultivators fought the monsters.

"Everyone, attack! Let the princess unlock the barrier!" they shouted.

Except for Xiao Nanfeng's group, everyone was focused on the fighting. They had been trying to get into the Palace of the Moon for years. Now that an opportunity had presented itself, it was obvious that they would try their best.

The fighting was so intense that people rapidly grew wounded, but they still managed to deliver Xiao Nanfeng and Zhang Lingjun to the forefront.

Zhang Lingjun retrieved her token and activated it. A ray of purple light struck the barrier.

The barrier began to vibrate. A small crack appeared.

"It's about to open up. Everyone, block the monsters and stop them from disrupting the princess!" someone shouted.

The fighting grew more intense. Even Ao Shuai and General Zhang were doing their best to hold off the horde of monsters.

The crack widened until it was a large hole thirty meters in diameter.

"Alright. Let's enter!" Zhang Lingjun said.

Zhang Lingjun, Xiao Nanfeng, Zeng Daniu, and Chang Bing's group were the first to enter. The other cultivators were overjoyed to see the barrier finally penetrable.

"Let's go!" someone shouted.

The cultivators rushed through the opening, as did a number of monsters that were held back by the cultivators working together.

The barrier slowly repaired itself and sealed up once more right as the last person made it in.

"Haha, we've made it inside! How many years have we tried to batter down this barrier?"

"Be careful. There are still a few purple-furred monsters in here, so don't grow overconfident."

"All the ones in here were the servants of the princess' manor, and they're not particularly strong. That's why they're easy to subjugate. I'm hoping to encounter as many as I can."

The cultivators were particularly excited. They glanced at their surroundings as they searched for treasure. The Palace of the Moon was a princess' residence, and the treasures here were sure to be immensely valuable.

Very quickly, the cultivators arrived at a huge pool, where three blooming golden lotuses could be seen.