Chapter 17: Reversal! Han Qian’s Scheme!

This scene stunned everyone.

Gu Fan’s expression also turned solemn.

In the next moment, the Annihilation Evil Lotus appeared to have been invaded, twisting uncontrollably!

All its root tendrils thrashed about wildly.

In an instant, more than half of the rear courtyard was destroyed.

“City Lord, quickly communicate with the Evil Lotus! If this continues, everyone will be doomed!”

“Shut up! This City Lord is already trying to communicate! But the Evil Lotus isn’t responding at all!”

As he spoke, Shi Xuan glared at Gu Fan with a grim expression.

“Gu Fan! What did you do to the Evil Lotus?! Damn you!”

Just as he finished speaking, all the tendrils suddenly calmed down and slowly withdrew.

Shi Xuan thought the Evil Lotus had simply stabilized and stepped forward to re-establish a new connection.

Who would’ve expected that the moment he approached, a tendril instantly pierced through his right arm!

Shi Xuan let out a miserable scream, then immediately chopped off his right hand and flipped backward to dodge a second incoming strike from another tendril.

“What’s going on?!”

“Why is the Evil Lotus attacking the City Lord?!”

The Lin Family Head and the others were thrown into a panic.

The Evil Lotus was nurtured by City Lord Shi Xuan himself—how could it turn on its master?

Shi Xuan was also full of disbelief.

After nearly a year of cultivation, this was the first time such a thing had happened!

Gu Fan had no intention of acting at this point. Wasn’t watching the show more enjoyable?

Besides, he already had a general guess.

Now, he just had to wait for confirmation.

At this moment, laughter echoed from within the Evil Lotus.

“Shi Xuan! How does it feel to make a wedding dress for someone else?”

Upon hearing this voice, Shi Xuan’s face turned deathly pale.

Han Qian!

The voice belonged to none other than Han Qian, who was supposed to be dead!

“Impossible! What’s going on? I clearly killed you!”

At this moment, all the family heads were also grim-faced.

None of them expected that it would be Han Qian who had first merged with the Evil Lotus!

“Hahaha, surprised? Clearly, I was executed in public—so how did I manage to seize your Evil Lotus?”

Han Qian laughed maniacally, with a touch of madness, while the tendrils thrashed incessantly, sending sparks flying as they struck the ground.

“Shi Xuan, you really are too stupid. I was the first to discover this Evil Lotus. How could I not know it needed a Water Yin Constitution for cultivation? How could I not know that my wife possessed such a body? If I didn’t bring her to the banquet, how could I have given you the chance to make your move? Hahaha!”

Shi Xuan stepped back, slowly widening the distance, while speaking:

“So your wife becoming the root host of the Evil Lotus was part of your plan too?”

“Didn’t expect that, did you? All of this was my arrangement! I used a cultivation method obtained from ancient ruins to plant a mark inside my wife. As long as she became the Evil Lotus’s host, I could approach and use a secret technique to fuse with it!”

“You thought killing me would solve everything, but I had long used the Soul Splitting Technique to store half of my soul in a Sound Recording Stone. Once Gu Fan discovered the truth, he would naturally try to get close to the Evil Lotus! Everything was within my calculations! Hahaha!”

“And now! I have finally succeeded in gaining control of the Evil Lotus. As long as it lives, I shall be immortal!”

Shi Xuan and the other family heads behind him looked extremely grim after hearing this.

Unbelievable! Han Qian, who had always portrayed himself as a righteous, silent, and reserved man, turned out to be such a schemer!

His mind was terrifyingly deep!

“I once thought you were a devoted man, but now I see you’re the kind of scum who’d sacrifice his own family!”

“Hahaha…” Han Qian burst into laughter again.

He didn’t care about Shi Xuan’s contempt at all.

“This is destiny! It let me discover the Evil Lotus, and also revealed that my wife had the Water Yin Constitution. Such coincidences—aren’t they heaven’s will? How could I waste such a great fortune?”

As soon as he finished, the purple, enchanting Evil Lotus went into a frenzy.

Dozens of tendrils pierced the void, stabbing toward Shi Xuan and the family heads.

In an instant, the City Lord’s rear courtyard was filled with screams.

Shi Xuan fought back with all his strength, but missing an arm, he was quickly impaled by the tendrils and hung in midair.

Wails, screams, cries for help, and curses echoed throughout the courtyard.

“Haha! Devouring so many cultivators in one go will surely let it take form! By then, the world shall be mine to dominate!”

Shi Xuan, enduring immense pain, cast his hopes onto Gu Fan who stood off to the side.

“Once he’s done killing us, you’ll be next! If you won’t act now, when will you?!”

With those words, the other family heads all begged desperately.

“Master Gu! Quickly, act now! Han Qian won’t spare you either!”

“Save us! Master, save me! I’m willing to give up my entire fortune!”

Unfortunately, Gu Fan merely smiled mockingly, showing no intent to act.

Han Qian, while wary of Gu Fan, swiftly absorbed the spiritual energy of the others.

Moments later, a group of emaciated family heads and the City Lord were discarded to the side.

“I’ll leave you all barely alive. Such an exciting moment would be far too dull without witnesses, haha!”

Shi Xuan and the others, half-dead, lay on the ground, still hoarsely cursing.

At that moment, all the tendrils of the purple lotus beneath the ground began to glow.

In an instant, cries of anguish echoed throughout the entire small city!

All the civilians instantly turned into streams of flesh and blood essence, surging toward the main body!

It was devouring all of Luoyang City!

Gu Fan watched from the side without taking action—not because he didn’t want to save people.

But because he had known since the afternoon that all the people in the city were already connected to the Evil Lotus’s tendrils.

That also explained why no one had been watching his movements.

Because the entire city had been the watchers!

Finally, with a loud roar from Han Qian, not a single living soul remained in the city—everyone had been absorbed by the Evil Lotus!

The Evil Lotus trembled violently, rippling out waves of purple light.

Only then did Han Qian turn to Gu Fan with a puzzled look and ask:

“Gu Fan, I’m really curious—why didn’t you act just now? Are you that confident I wouldn’t touch you?”

Gu Fan still looked unconcerned and smiled as he replied:

“Would the Han Family Head?”

“Hehe, of course not. If you hadn’t brought me here, my plan wouldn’t have gone so smoothly.”

Gu Fan sneered inwardly a few times.

“Oh? It seems the Han Family Head is a man of principle.”

“Hehe, but there’s just one thing I need your help with.”

“What is it?”

Dozens of tendrils slowly crept toward Gu Fan.

Han Qian chuckled sinisterly:

“I’m just a breath of vitality away from being fully formed! I hope Master Gu will be kind enough to provide it!”

At this, the half-dead people beside them let out bursts of mocking laughter.

Their voices were hoarse, like Evil Ghosts murmuring from hell.

“Serves you right, Gu Fan… You won’t escape death either!”

“Hahaha… cough cough… having a Holy Sect disciple die with me suddenly feels great.”

“Han Qian deserves death… He ruined our shared plan for eternal life… But it’s all Gu Fan’s fault! If not for you… Han Qian wouldn’t have succeeded!”

“That’s right. I’m holding onto life just to see Gu Fan’s miserable end!”

“You ignored our cries for help earlier… Now… it’s your turn, haha…”

They gasped out their breath, mocking Gu Fan relentlessly.

In their view, if Gu Fan hadn’t come to Luoyang City, Han Qian might not have succeeded!

Now that death was certain, they were eager for Gu Fan to die with them!

But to everyone’s surprise, facing Han Qian’s encirclement, Gu Fan merely smiled.

“Actually, I also have a small favor to ask the Han Family Head.”

“I’m someone who enjoys growing flowers and planting grass, so…”

Gu Fan’s gaze gradually turned cold.

“So I must trouble the Han Family Head to hand over the Evil Lotus—and die.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep