Chapter 170: When the Sea of Fire Rises, All Living Beings Tremble!

Above Niankong Villa, the Great Demons of Enlightenment began to quickly divide into two rows.

One row consisted of over thirty individuals; if one looked closely, one could easily perceive that these thirty-some Great Demons had all attained the realm of Enlightenment perfection.

Looking closer still, one could see that these individuals were clearly carrying a sense of aged decay, and the one who had spoken the invitation was the same! These demons likely did not even know how many years they had lived themselves.

Adding to this the decay and aged air upon them, one could tell after just a few glances that if they did not gamble on this one chance, they would likely pass away from old age in a few more years.

Those who have attained Heaven and Earth Enlightenment have long lifespans, but this does not mean their lifespans are endless.

Even a Supreme will perish, let alone those of Heaven and Earth Enlightenment. It is just that the normal death of those of Heaven and Earth Enlightenment is not the exhaustion of their lifespan, but the constant erosion of their bodies by the Dao of Heaven and Earth, until they are forced to discard their physical forms to complete the Dao they cultivate.

Looking at these Great Demons of Enlightenment who had stepped out, most were beings already eroded by the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth.

As for the other row of over forty Heaven and Earth Enlightenment beings, although they did not want to test the power of a Supreme, they had not retreated too far; these Heaven and Earth Enlightenment beings had not yet been eroded much by the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth and still possessed considerable lifespan.

Being enemies with a Supreme that only existed in ancient legends, these Heaven and Earth Enlightenment beings did not want to lose their lives in vain.

Yet the Supreme Bone and Qilin Divine Blood were right there; they only moved slightly away, holding onto the intention of watching from the sidelines.

These Great Demons of Enlightenment were timid now, but if Gu Jiangming, this Supreme, were injured, these Great Demons would likely reveal their true nature the next moment and devour this Supreme, Gu Jiangming, until not even dregs remained.

As for Gu Jiangming, he merely glanced at the many Great Demons who had retreated to the side before withdrawing his gaze.

This scene was so bizarre and strange that in the eyes of ordinary people, the actions of these old demons would seem completely inexplicable.

After all, in the current situation, it was as if the moment Gu Jiangming appeared, these Great Demons had fallen into internal chaos of their own accord.

"Supreme..."

"If I had the power of a Supreme, would I be able to stop Mother from worrying about me so much, and also be like my father?"

In Niankong Villa, Gu Nianmo gazed at Gu Jiangming's figure, his eyes filled with a burning intensity.

Although he was young, he had seen since childhood that Niankong Villa was constantly eyed by Great Demons, and he constantly saw his mother, Liu Moxuan, covered in injuries.

Gu Nianmo knew these were injuries his mother sustained to protect him.

He had also thought countless times: if he were strong enough, could he instead protect his mother?

But Gu Nianmo never knew what realm he had to cultivate to, so that the many demons and monsters in this world would treat him with respect.

Until this moment, Gu Nianmo finally understood.

As long as you cultivate to become a Supreme, even if the person before you wishes to eat your flesh and sleep on your skin, they must still treat you with respect.

"Supreme..."

"A realm I have never heard of..."

"My son was born with a Supreme Bone; one day in the future, might he be able to catch up to his father?"

Wang Qinghe looked down at Gu Shengxi in his arms, his heart filled with anticipation.

And Gu Shengxi seemed to perceive the blood connection between himself and Gu Jiangming; held in Wang Qinghe's arms, he could not help but reach out toward Gu Jiangming, as if wanting Gu Jiangming, this father, to hold him.

"Supreme..."

"The erosion of the body by Heaven and Earth Enlightenment is already terrifying; as the limit of Heaven and Earth Enlightenment, the lifespan of Senior Brother..."

Unlike Wang Qinghe and Gu Nianmo who understood nothing, Liu Moxuan, who was herself of Heaven and Earth Enlightenment, looked at Gu Jiangming with an extremely complex expression.

Others could only see how majestic Gu Jiangming, this Supreme, was, but Liu Moxuan, this devoted Junior Sister, was instead worried about Gu Jiangming's body.

But when Liu Moxuan's gaze inadvertently swept over Wang Qinghe, she silently suppressed her worry once more.

The greatest crisis might be resolved, but what would become of herself, Wang Qinghe, and Senior Brother in the future? Furthermore, Wang Qinghe was someone she had brought home herself.

At this moment, Liu Moxuan was clearly still on the battlefield, but her thoughts drifted far away.

"Since you all are so eager to seek death, I, Gu, though untalented, shall satisfy your desire to seek death!"

Gu Jiangming had no leisure to care about what Liu Moxuan and Wang Qinghe were thinking; facing dozens of Great Demons of Enlightenment, Gu Jiangming was also under pressure.

If Gu Jiangming had truly fully mastered the Four Thousand Bureau in this era, even more Great Demons of Enlightenment would be nothing but clay chickens and pottery dogs in his eyes.

But the Supreme Realm, when all is said and done, is actually still Heaven and Earth Enlightenment, at most just half a step further than other Heaven and Earth Enlightenment beings.

Ordinary Heaven and Earth Enlightenment beings can be injured by an army below the level of Enlightenment; a Supreme is not immune to being injured by Enlightenment.

Even though there was pressure in his heart, when Gu Jiangming spoke, his words carried one part humility and nine parts arrogance.

It was as if these Great Demons of Enlightenment, who stood at the pinnacle of the world, were merely blades of grass in his eyes.

Yet, regarding Gu Jiangming's words, which mixed arrogance with humility, not a single one of these Great Demons of Enlightenment was angered.

The Daoist Master of Longhu Mountain, the Old Man Taicang, and Liu Moxuan had all left the battlefield, and the other Great Demons of Enlightenment who were not prepared to strike also retreated hundreds of miles, leaving this battlefield to Gu Jiangming and those old demons.

"Hum, hum, hum..."

It was unknown when it began, but the black clouds in the sky began to vibrate, and the soil on the ground began to tremble.

This was not a clash of combat; this was merely a clash of aura!

Gu Jiangming was single-handedly bearing the malice, killing intent, and battle intent of these dozens of old demons of Enlightenment, relying on his own aura to conversely suppress these old demons.

A clash of aura is not a futile effort; even mortals fighting must pay attention to seizing the initiative, let alone great cultivators of their realm. If Gu Jiangming's aura dared to fall slightly behind, these old demons would likely no longer conceal their boundless malice; with their aura triumphant, their full strength might be used as if it were eleven parts.

Conversely, if Gu Jiangming's aura alone overwhelmed the aura of the thirty-some old demons, these old demons would only have the thought that a Supreme is invincible planted deeper in their hearts, and their strength might only be able to exert eight or nine tenths.

Thunder and flames intertwined in the sky; within a radius of one hundred thousand miles around Niankong Villa, all living beings felt only one great terror gestating and lingering in their hearts at this moment.

This feeling was as if a terror that living beings could not face directly was about to descend.

The sky was trembling, the earth was shaking, and this was merely a clash of aura.

"Boom!"

This atmosphere enveloped the surroundings; within the four wilds, thousands of living beings held their breath tightly, and Heaven and Earth fell into a silence. In an instant, a massive sound erupted within Heaven and Earth.

This sound was like the first noise when Heaven and Earth were first opened, or like the roar of chaos breaking apart.

Some old demons who had not reached the perfection of Enlightenment could not withstand this terrifying clash of energy, and seven or eight old demons revealed their original true forms in this very instant.

There was no hesitation, and even less warning.

After those seven or eight Great Demons of Enlightenment revealed their true forms, they also uprooted mountains.

This was not a figure of speech; these Great Demons of Enlightenment truly uprooted several mountains on the outskirts of Niankong Villa, and as their hands touched the mountains, they smashed them down directly toward Gu Jiangming with a boom.

They had already lost the clash of Qi, but those old demons behind them had yet to be defeated.

When these seven or eight old demons each moved a mountain and smashed them down toward Gu Jiangming, it was clearly an attempt to rely on their own brute force to interrupt the clash of Qi between Gu Jiangming and those old demons, so as to gain the upper hand! Yet, seeing seven or eight mountain peaks descending upon his head, Gu Jiangming's expression did not change in the slightest.

He stood in the firmament, like an Immortal, like a demon god.

The seven or eight mountain peaks arrived overhead, yet they could not alter Gu Jiangming's expression by even a fraction.

To outsiders, it appeared as though Gu Jiangming was physically resisting the fierce onslaught of these seven or eight great demons.

But those Dao-enlightened great demons saw that when the seven or eight mountain peaks pressed down, a lotus flower mixed with gold and red colors clearly covered Gu Jiangming's body; the mountains pressed down, yet could not touch even a wisp of him.

"Boom—!"

A terrifying, booming sound instantly resounded throughout the Four Wilds and Eight Desolations, and as this terrifying roar exploded, wails and screams echoed incessantly between Heaven and Earth.

Those seven or eight Dao-enlightened great demons who had made their move had finally succeeded.

Although a Supreme is strong, he cannot forcefully withstand the momentum of so many who have attained the Dao, especially when seven or eight Dao-enlightened great demons employ such underhanded tactics.

Ordinary people only saw the lotus flower above Gu Jiangming's head resisting the mountains, but as that gold-red lotus rose, streaks of gold-red flames were clearly ignited within a three-hundred-mile radius of Niankong Villa.

These flames seemed as if they had always been in the vicinity of Niankong Villa, or as if they had been born along with the lotus.

Seven or eight great demons moved mountains to smash Gu Jiangming, and while Gu Jiangming remained unharmed, those specks of gold-red flame instead coiled around their bodies; in just a fleeting moment, these great demons seemed to suffer some unimaginable, heavy injury.

And beside Gu Jiangming, a sea of fire phenomenon appeared out of thin air.

Gu Jiangming had lost the first round of the Qi clash, but his actions were so decisive; as this sea of fire boiled, it actually enveloped all of those Dao-enlightened old demons directly within it.

Inside the sea of fire, gold and red flames constantly rose, brightened, and surged.

In a trance, the battlefield where Gu Jiangming and those old demons were located seemed to distort; it was unknown what these gold-red flames were, but they burned so intensely that Heaven and Earth could vaguely no longer endure it, causing Heaven and Earth to distort involuntarily.

The terrifying temperature steamed everything; those watching Dao-enlightened ones could only see that the few great demons who had attacked last were now also turning into flames, struggling, roaring, and wailing in that sea of fire.

Yet even so, those great demons were still constantly charging toward where Gu Jiangming was at this moment.

The painful wails coming from their mouths were not fake, but the peerless killing intent on their bodies was not fake either! A gale arrived suddenly; this wind was filled with a gloomy aura, as if it came from the Nine Netherworlds, as if it could blow all living beings in the world into white skeletons.

Red flames rose from the sea of fire, but the great demon who wielded the flames only had time to ignite them before being backlashed by the gold-red sea of fire.

Black thunder, white cold winds, and countless Daos and principles rose and evolved within this gold-red sea of fire at once.

There was no probing; as soon as all the Dao-enlightened great demons attacked, they brought their own principles to bear, intending to exhaust all their own terrifying means.

This sea of fire was too evil, so evil that the old demons swept into it had to do this just to protect themselves from being swallowed by the sea of fire! "This is, Karma Fire, and Merit Fire!"

"Madman, madman!"

"You, this Red Lotus Demon Venerable, are simply the biggest madman under Heaven!"

"There is no need for us to kill you at all; you, this Supreme, can live for at most a thousand years!"

"You turn sin into flames, rising as Karma Fire; you ignite the merit of the Human Race's preaching, turning it directly into your own Merit Fire."

"Sin and merit, these two different Daos and principles are intertwined in your body; you will not live long, you will not live long!"

A Dao-enlightened great demon, in the moment of his death, let out a heaven-shaking roar and howl; this great demon was about to turn to ash, and when his ignited eyes looked toward Gu Jiangming, they were filled only with endless fear and despair.

At this moment, he vaguely understood; he understood how Gu Jiangming had broken through to the Supreme realm.

This Human Race member before his eyes was simply a thorough madman; he had integrated two extremely opposing principles into himself, and he carried two existences that could never be intertwined within his own body.

He did not need any Supreme power at all; he only needed to release this evil flame, and it would be enough to ignite everything of all sentient beings in the world.

If you have committed many evils, this flame uses your sins as firewood, burning until your three souls are scattered and your seven spirits are destroyed.

If you have done good and accumulated merit, this flame uses your good deeds as firewood, burning until your physical body explodes, burning until your bloodline is annihilated! All sentient beings, as long as you have left a trace of your actions, even if you have only breathed a mouthful of air between Heaven and Earth, you must be reckoned with and ignited by this flame! This is the true, truly irresistible flame.

Whether it was those great demons or old demons, they had all seen the essence of Gu Jiangming's flame.

The gazes they cast upon Gu Jiangming were filled only with horror, filled only with fear.

They could not understand why such an unimaginably crazy existence existed in this world; by carrying sin and merit within himself, this guy himself must be being scorched by these flames every single moment.

What is he seeking?

Is he seeking his own Supreme realm?

No, these Dao-enlightened great demons and old demons all understood that this evil flame was clearly something Gu Jiangming could only barely carry after breaking through to the Supreme realm; in other words, Gu Jiangming had voluntarily taken this Karma Fire and Merit Fire into himself after breaking through to the Supreme realm.

Did he voluntarily seek death after breaking through to the Supreme realm?

But why? The old demons could no longer care about fighting Gu Jiangming; they only wanted to escape this sea of fire.

Even those great demons who had been watching from the sidelines were filled with infinite fear as they looked at Gu Jiangming at this moment.

They also understood everything, but it was precisely because they understood everything that the fear in their hearts became even more pronounced.

A Supreme, a Supreme who broke through on his own, even throwing away his own life to control such an incredible flame—what is he seeking? At this moment, every Dao-enlightened great demon between Heaven and Earth who saw this scene felt endless horror in their hearts.

They all understood, understood that after today, the world would change!!! (End of chapter)