Chapter 618: The Power of the Demon Fire

【Original scenes 608, 609, 610, 611, 612 have been heavily revised, so chapter comments will not match.】

Xiao Yan possesses the Burning Scripture and Xu Wu Tong Yan Tian Zi Huo; even the Nightmare Mist summoned by the Pure Lotus Demon Saint cannot invade his body, nor can he control it like Xiao Chen did.

But even though it could not control Xiao Yan, the Nightmare Mist still created a nightmare!

"You say this is an illusion!" Xiao Chen's heart leapt—he had already broken free of the Nightmare Mist! He had regained his consciousness!

"We are all real, Ancestor Xiao Chen—you have truly regained your senses," Xiao Yan said softly, his gaze fixed on the white-robed man. "But we are indeed trapped in an illusion. This is the most terrifying aspect of the Nightmare Mist: if we continue following the Pure Lotus Demon Saint's design, we will sink deeper and deeper until we become its Fire Slaves entirely. Even if we fight and kill it here, we will still remain trapped within the illusion."

Xiao Yan stared at the false Pure Lotus Demon Saint before him—this was the most terrifying thing about the Nightmare Mist: you could never know when it truly ended.

If Xiao Yan's guess was correct, the Pure Lotus Demon Saint had already written the entire "script": after Xiao Yan broke the initial Nightmare Mist, he was arranged to meet Xun Er, using the real Xun Er to make Xiao Yan believe he had truly escaped the illusion.

This was the most terrifying thing about the Nightmare Mist: it used real things to lower your suspicion, making you believe you had truly escaped the Nightmare Mist.

Then the two of them teamed up to overcome trials, and by sheer luck, they encountered the Ancestor of the Xiao Clan, who awakened Xiao Chen using the Xiao Clan Mark, after which Xiao Chen brought them here.

This entire sequence was like completing a video game: difficult obstacles, luck, and finally reaching the boss room.

And judging from the Pure Lotus Demon Saint's earlier words—"Defeat me, and you will obtain the Demon Fire's origin"—Xiao Yan suspected the Pure Lotus Demon Saint would arrange a fierce battle, after which he and Xun Er would barely manage to defeat the Pure Lotus Demon Saint and refine its Origin Flame Seed.

Then their strength would surge, they would leave the Demon Fire Space, restore the Xiao Clan, and dominate the world—happy ending, perfect conclusion.

But the truth was, even defeating this fake "Pure Lotus Demon Saint" or escaping the Demon Fire Space was all arranged by the Pure Lotus Demon Saint—everything was the Nightmare Mist's design!

Like a nightmare, it traps you in a beautiful dream, yet everything within the dream is real: Xun Er is real, Xiao Chen is real, he himself is real—but the world is false!

This was the strongest illusion Dou Technique created by the Pure Lotus Demon Saint: the Nightmare Mist!

Those Fire Slaves are probably still lost in the beautiful dream of "obtaining the Pure Lotus Demon Saint."

But the Pure Lotus Demon Saint, for all its planning, overlooked one thing: Xiao Yan's Fused Strange Fire contained Xu Wu Tong Yan Tian Zi Huo!

Xu Wu Tong Yan and the Pure Lotus Demon Saint shared a special connection, because both were the only Strange Fires on the Dou Qi Continent—this "onlyness" was the link. They had always been rivals, each seeking to devour the other and become the strongest Strange Fire on the Dou Qi Continent.

So Mao Wu knew at a glance: this so-called Pure Lotus Demon Saint was fake, because that connection could not be faked.

This was Heavenly Emperor Fire!

"Over these thousand years, you've been crafting this illusion. Of course, had I not possessed Xu Wu Tong Yan Tian Zi Huo, you would have won decisively this time."

"No matter how real it seems, an illusion is still an illusion. Once you reveal a flaw, it collapses on its own," Xiao Yan said in a low voice.

"Damn it! You're asking for death!"

As Xiao Yan spoke, the white-robed man's handsome face twisted in fury. He roared, moved instantly above Xiao Yan, clenched his fist, and transformed milky-white flame into a colossal flame spear. With a swing of his arm, the spear tore through Space, radiating a destructive aura, and shot straight toward Xiao Yan and the others.

Xiao Yan smiled at the faint white-robed figure, then channeled his Dou Qi, formed a hand seal, and his shoulder-bound Mao Wu transformed—from Spirit Flame back into a pool of pitch-black flame.

Xiao Yan's eyes hardened, his heart sank: "Strange Fire Dou Technique—Heavenly Fire Swallows the World!"

Facing the false Pure Lotus Demon Saint's assault, Xiao Yan remained calm, standing with hands behind his back. His left hand opened, and instantly, the power of the Great Heaven Creation Palm and Xu Wu Tong Yan Tian Zi Huo erupted. In an instant—hum—the entire space birthed a terrifying black hole.

Endless Black Flame surged in all directions. The spear of the Pure Lotus Demon Saint pierced Xiao Yan's body—but inflicted no damage whatsoever. Finally, the Black Flame surged like a tidal wave, engulfing the Pure Lotus Demon Saint entirely.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—Black Flame splattered everywhere. The entire space began slowly burning away, revealing a void passage. At the end of this Void passage, Xiao Yan finally sensed the true Origin of the Pure Lotus Demon Saint.

Xiao Chen hadn't lied to Xiao Yan: after passing this trial, they would reach the true Demon Fire Origin Space—but first, they had to pass through the Nightmare Mist.

Now, Xu Wu Tong Yan had devoured part of the Nightmare Mist, finally revealing the true Strange Fire Space. Xiao Yan even sensed the presence of Cai Lin, Xiao Yixian, Zi Yan, and Qing Lin—they were still trapped in their own Nightmare Mist illusions.

But Mao Wu was not the Origin Swallowing Flame; fully dismantling all Nightmare Mist illusions would take too long. With the Yan Clan and other Dou Emperor Families still trapped, this was the perfect moment for Xiao Yan to seize the Pure Lotus Demon Saint's Origin Flame Seed!

Behind Xiao Yan, Xun Er watched as he dismantled the Nightmare Mist with his own power—her eyes filled with deep admiration.

"Brother Xiao Yan, you're incredible."

Hearing Xun Er's praise, Xiao Yan awkwardly scratched his nose, took a deep breath, straightened his posture, turned, and said calmly: "It's nothing. If the true Pure Lotus Demon Saint had cast this Nightmare Mist, I couldn't have broken it. It's just that this one didn't master it well enough."

As Xiao Yan unleashed his Strange Fire Dou Technique, the entire illusionary space began to be devoured and erased.

Mao Wu's eyes widened, sucked in deeply, and with Xiao Yan's Dou Qi supporting it, its mouth became a bottomless black hole, swallowing every last wisp of the Nightmare Mist's white mist.

The entire space twisted, deformed, then shattered piece by piece—along with all other Nightmare Mist illusions.

"Pure Lotus Demon Saint, you are indeed powerful—but this illusion alone won't do. Bring your true body here. Break!" Xiao Yan changed his hand seal again. Black Flame spewed from Mao Wu's mouth, transforming into an endless Sea of Fire that surged toward the true body of the Pure Lotus Demon Saint.

"Hmph!"

Facing the Black Flame spat by Mao Wu, the Pure Lotus Demon Saint's face darkened. It swept its hand, and endless milky-white flame erupted into a sea of Strange Fire. Black met white—BOOM—the cleansing force and the devouring force exploded instantly.

In that instant of spatial explosion, Xiao Yan suddenly felt a wave of dizziness surge through his mind. He snapped his eyes open.

His eyes opened to a Magma Sea. From within the magma, milky-white flames occasionally erupted. These milky-white magma stretched endlessly to the horizon—as if this entire space were nothing but a sea of magma.

Above the Magma Sea, massive floating rocks hovered. Xiao Yan and Xun Er stood upon one of these rocks. Not far behind them, a giant silver ring slowly rotated.

"We're out?"

Seeing this unfamiliar Earth Domain, Xun Er exhaled in relief.

"This isn't another illusion, is it?" Xun Er glanced around, her voice tinged with fear. The previous events had left them terrified—who could have imagined that all their hard work inside was utterly useless?

"The Pure Lotus Demon Saint doesn't have that kind of power," Xiao Yan smiled, also releasing a deep breath. Escaping that damned illusion felt as if his Spiritual Soul had grown lighter. The Nightmare Mist—no wonder it was the Pure Lotus Demon Saint's signature technique. It was terrifying indeed.

"Roar!"

As Xiao Yan exhaled, Xiao Chen beside him suddenly let out another low roar, his face contorted in struggle. He spoke hoarsely and urgently: "The Pure Lotus Demon Saint is controlling me again!"

Seeing this, Xiao Yan's expression shifted slightly. Though Xiao Chen was a Fire Slave of the Pure Lotus Demon Saint, he had resisted its control through his immense strength. If they could find a way to remove the Pure Lotus Demon Saint's control over him, he would be an immense asset. Right now, Xiao Yan's side lacked the most: peak experts capable of standing alone.

But thinking of it was one thing; achieving it was another. Xiao Yan had already witnessed the terror of the Pure Lotus Demon Saint—how easily could he remove its control over Xiao Chen?

Just as Xiao Yan was at a loss, Xiao Yixian's voice came suddenly.

"Perhaps the power of a Dan Beast could temporarily suppress the energy within him."

A distortion in Space appeared. Xiao Yixian, clad in a white robe, floated forward like a celestial fairy. Two pills—one white, one green—emerged from the void, transforming into two peculiar Dan Beasts.

Xiao Bai and Tuan Tuan exhaled threads of Dan Qi, possessing healing and calming properties.

"Fortunately, his own Cultivation Realm is high enough to resist most of the Pure Lotus Demon Saint's power. Otherwise, even the Dan Beasts couldn't suppress it," Xiao Yixian sighed in relief.

As Xiao Yixian appeared first, a series of sharp whistles followed, as figures burst from the Void.

From the floating rocks around them, figures leapt out, hovering in the Sky, gasping heavily, their faces etched with terror.

"Xiao Yan!" A distortion in Space erupted with purple light—Zi Yan, Cai Lin, and Qing Lin emerged from Zi Yan's Void Space.

It seems the Pure Lotus Demon Saint has grouped them together.

"It seems your tearing of the illusion triggered a chain reaction, pulling everyone out as well," Xun Er said.

"We alone cannot subdue the Pure Lotus Demon Fire," Xiao Yan smiled faintly, his gaze fixed on the Magma Sea not far away—there, the magma slowly rose, forming a pillar nearly a hundred zhang tall that lifted from the Magma Sea and halted only when it reached eye level with the crowd, its surface churning as a handsome man clad in white robes appeared before all eyes.

Seeing this true figure, Xiao Yan and the others' expressions turned utterly grave—Mao Wu had already told him: this, now, was the true Pure Lotus Demon Fire, the original body!

Gazing at the white-robed man suddenly standing atop the magma pillar, the entire space fell utterly silent; countless gazes, greedy and blazing, fixed upon him—those present, with their sharp eyes, could instantly see that this man's true form was the genuine Pure Lotus Demon Fire!

"Pure Lotus Demon Fire, I never expected that within a thousand years, you would have refined the Nightmare Mist of the Pure Lotus Demon Sage to this degree—truly remarkable."

On a rocky outcrop, the Lord of the Soul Hall, clad in black robes, lifted his head and stared at the Pure Lotus Demon Fire with a slightly displeased expression—he too had been trapped in the illusion; had the illusion not suddenly shattered at the last moment, even he would not have realized he was still within it.

The Soul Hall had planned based on the Pure Lotus Demon Fire's strength from the previous millennium, unaware it possessed the Nightmare Mist ability, and thus had no prepared Treasures to defend against spiritual illusions—unwittingly, they fell for it.

The Yao Clan's Elder Yao Wan Gui fixed his intensely fiery gaze on the Pure Lotus Demon Fire; greed continuously spread from his heart—he had cultivated to this level and had never heard of any Strange Fire capable of constructing such an illusion, undetectable even by him; his prior experience had made him acutely aware of the Pure Lotus Demon Fire's terror, yet precisely because of this, his greed had doubled and tripled.

Hearing Yao Wan Gui's words, many around him nodded, their faces tinged with fear as they stared at the Pure Lotus Demon Fire—its displayed abilities were too terrifying.

Cai Lin walked solemnly to Xiao Yan's side and said: "Xiao Yan, even if we join forces, we may not capture the Pure Lotus Demon Fire, let alone with other Dou Emperor Families interfering."

At that moment, Xun Er whispered through spiritual transmission: "Brother Xiao Yan, have you used the Pure Lotus Demon Fire to burn the Residual Map?"

"Use the Pure Lotus Demon Fire?" Xiao Yan's heart startled, then instantly he realized it made sense.

After all, this is a Residual Map left by the Pure Lotus Demon Sage—it must have another purpose; perhaps the key to activating it is to enter the Demon Fire Space and use the Pure Lotus Demon Fire to unlock it!

(End of Chapter)