Chapter 153: Transformed into a Ephemeral Bloom

Anyone who realized this, when contemplating revealing the thought to the world, would immediately suppress it deep within their heart upon considering the towering presence of Absolute Island and its formidable power.

Prolonged repression naturally led to some changes in their mindset.

He was not an idiot, nor were the four fools around him—at least, they hadn’t been before.

“Once, they were prodigies too!” With a sigh, Wen Han glanced at the four beside him, his lament tinged with profound sorrow.

Though he could no longer recall their past deeds, it was clear that anyone who had made it here and elevated their strength to this level had once been a prodigy in their original world—an elite among elites, a true champion among prodigies.

Furthermore, although Wen Han was no match for Zhou Yi, his own strength was a source of pride. With such confidence, what right did ordinary pseudo-pills geniuses have to follow in his footsteps? After all, he held a status in the Third Realm; how could ordinary talents even catch his eye?

“They’ve come to this state…” Wen Han looked once more at the four, his gaze scanning their astonished faces, deepening his sorrow: “They are utterly broken now.”

“Yet, what right do I have to judge them? If not for this final moment of clarity, I might have ended up just like them.” After reflecting on their decline, Wen Han mocked himself: “Reckless, without reverence, driven solely by whims, thoughtless; if they wanted to mess with you, they did, without a second thought. No matter how formidable you are, you can’t surpass the strength of my backing!”

“Indeed, all who practice the Channeling Acupoint Infusion Method have united. With such power in this Third Realm, who could inspire our respect? Who dares to disrespect us?” Bitterly, Wen Han’s expression darkened: “Of course, our reckless impunity is backed by deep connections, but in hindsight, perhaps the greater reason is that we had long since abandoned our own lives.”

Though they outwardly valued their lives, in truth, their hearts were dead, transformed into salted fish. Over years of this, beyond habitual recklessness, it was no different from death itself.

“Perhaps, deep inside, we were all still awaiting death,” Wen Han thought, watching the four gradually change under his gaze, a familiar feeling quietly surfacing in his eyes, confirming his suspicion.

Boom!

Swish!

A sudden tremor shook Wen Han awake. Glancing down, his thoughts shifted inward: the blood surged violently, the flames of power extinguished. The magical energy once dissolved in every drop of blood had completely burned out.

After a moment of contemplation, a trace of nostalgia flickered in his eyes, yet his movements never faltered. Countless thoughts poured forth like rain, descending into a certain kind of blood.

Swish!

Each drop of blood transformed into a miniature space, each thought splitting into a tiny Wen Han, suspended in the air, linked to the blood by intent, controlling every drop.

“It’s confirmed—they truly harbor thoughts of death, and they are even anticipating it!” Wen Han’s face remained expressionless, sensing each thought settle into the blood, his mood suddenly stirred: “Because, even I am anticipating it—awaiting death!”

“Because we have long been dead.”

Zhou Yi’s stance straightened gradually. As Wen Han’s changes unfolded, a sharp gleam of blade energy flickered suddenly in his lowered palms.

“What is this feeling? What is this?” Squinting, Zhou Yi rubbed the small, inch-long magical dagger forming in his hand, pondering deeply. By now, Wen Han emanated a faint sense of danger. Ordinarily, Zhou Yi would have struck immediately to dispel this threat.

Yet, the strange sensation emanating from Wen Han, coupled with the subtle changes and the disappearance of any trace of the former idiocy in the four companions, stirred Zhou Yi’s curiosity immensely. A thought in his heart repeatedly urged restraint.

“I’ll see what you can do.” Discovering that the four were not as foolish as he had imagined, and sensing some discrepancy in Wen Han himself, Zhou Yi finally decided to let the matter unfold.

A little danger was just a little danger—nothing to worry about. No matter how things changed, could they possibly overturn the heavens?

With this mindset and his own formidable strength as confidence, Zhou Yi watched Wen Han’s transformation with curiosity.

Zhou Yi could not comprehend the changes or the emerging aura on Wen Han, but Du Gu Shang, standing beside him, seemed to understand. Though not as deeply as Wen Han, having survived long on Absolute Island and encountered so many like them, he gained some insight.

His body involuntarily straightened, eyes solemnly fixed on Wen Han and the four. Since the changes appeared on Wen Han, the four behind him also gradually transformed, the same aura manifesting on them.

“Has it really come to this?” Watching intently, Du Gu Shang felt an inexplicable sorrow. He sympathized deeply with Wen Han’s current plight. Though he had not yet reached such a state himself, he was intelligent and not weak in strength. Some truths, though unspoken, were understood.

“An ephemeron?” As he considered their condition, a vivid flower blossomed in Du Gu Shang’s mind—brilliant and orderly, its petals opened with an extraordinary beauty. Though not the most beautiful flower he had seen, it was the one that most deeply shook his soul.

Blooming, fueled by life itself, for a fleeting moment of dazzling splendor. The awe and shock stirred within him stemmed from the flower’s courage to bloom at all.

...

Buzz~~~

His body trembled incessantly. After Wen Han divided his thoughts and fused them into the blood, controlling every drop, countless whirlpools suddenly appeared in the spatial void—three hundred and sixty-five in total.

Crackle, crackle, crackle!

Three hundred sixty-five acupoint chambers emerged. Wen Han shattered them with his will, scattering fragments like flying petals. His body momentarily struggled to endure, his skin emitting continuous tearing sounds.

Pain—intense pain. To shatter all acupoints was excruciating, a torment that pierced to the bone and invaded Wen Han’s mind.

Ordinary people would have long succumbed to such agony—either crying out or losing consciousness—but Wen Han merely tugged at the corner of his mouth and bore it silently.