Translator: AnubisTL

Spirit Devouring Demon Flame!

Upon hearing these words, Li Qing's heart stirred slightly.

He was no stranger to this name. Long ago, when he had resolved to cultivate the Crimson Blaze Heaven-Burning Art, he had meticulously researched various heavenly spirit fires.

Information about the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame quickly surfaced in his mind.

This spirit fire could manifest in multiple forms, making it an exceptionally bizarre and demonic flame.

Ancient texts recorded that it could assume the shapes of various Demon beasts, its flame color shifting frequently between green, purple, and red—truly a volatile and ever-changing entity!

Moreover, the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame possessed a formidable ability that proved invaluable in battles between cultivators: it could shatter spiritual energy!

Yes, shatter spiritual energy!

Ordinary spiritual energy techniques would be instantly devoured by this Demon Fire, their power converted into the flame's own might.

In simple terms, if an opponent dared to use a standard spiritual energy barrier to defend against this flame in battle, their protective shield would instantly dissolve, utterly incapable of withstanding the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame's assault.

Once subdued, this flame would dramatically enhance one's combat prowess, allowing them to effortlessly rival most opponents of the same cultivation realm.

Li Qing narrowed his eyes, his gaze fixed on the spirit fire. He had already resolved to claim this heavenly spirit fire, the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame, for himself.

Having just entered the core formation realm, he lacked sufficient protective measures. Subduing this flame and bringing its fire seed back to the Great Wilderness Domain to rekindle it would be an immense boon to him.

Although heavenly spirit fires aren't ranked in any strict order, some undoubtedly offer greater benefits to cultivators. A flame like this, capable of directly enhancing one's combat prowess, couldn't possibly be anything less than exceptional!

With this in mind, Li Qing respectfully inquired:

"Senior, may I ask if the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame's fire seed is located within the mountain's core? I've long harbored a deep curiosity about this heavenly spirit fire and wish to witness firsthand the legendary flame that was renowned before the End of Dao Era!"

But before he could finish, the old woman below scoffed mockingly:

"Hmph, young whelp! Do you even know why this secret realm is called the Spirit Devouring Realm?"

Li Qing paused, his mind instantly connecting the name to the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame hidden within the mountain's core.

Before he could respond, the old woman, still concealed within the volcano's depths, continued:

"Boy, have you ever wondered why the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame has persisted here for so long, yet none of us old fogies have ever subdued and refined it?"

The question struck Li Qing to the core.

Yes! Why is that?!

His obsession with the heavenly spirit fire had blinded him to the bigger picture. Now, with a clearer mind, he finally grasped the problem.

This was no ordinary flame—it was a heavenly spirit fire! Whoever could refine and subdue it would experience a meteoric rise in power, becoming virtually invincible among cultivators of the same rank.

Before the End of Dao Era, countless core formation realm true lords knew of this spirit fire's existence.

So why hadn't they tried to subdue it? Was it because they didn't want to?

That was clearly impossible.

"Senior, could there be something else peculiar about this Spirit Devouring Demon Flame?" Li Qing asked, his curiosity piqued.

Before long, the old woman below spoke up, her tone puzzled. "You know about the Spirit Devouring Realm? Didn't that Yue Qiusheng tell you the truth about this fire?"

"Or did you offend him, and he deliberately withheld this information?"

Li Qing clicked his tongue, at a loss for words.

He couldn't blame Yue Qiusheng. Fellow Daoist Yue had simply died too abruptly, leaving him no time to inquire about the heavenly spirit fire.

Now, he was completely in the dark.

Finally, he spoke, "Sect Leader Yue... encountered some problems during his cultivation and was ultimately devoured by a strange blood lotus."

Li Qing could swear that Yue Qiusheng's death had nothing to do with him; Yue Qiusheng had chosen to feed himself to the lotus.

Upon hearing the news of Yue Qiusheng's death, the old woman below erupted into a hearty laugh. "Hahaha! Good riddance! That treacherous villain should have died long ago!"

Clearly, their relationship was far from amicable, likely stemming from old grudges from before the End of Dao Era.

Li Qing had no interest in these ancient grievances. He remained silently atop the volcano, waiting for the old woman to continue.

The hearty laughter seemed to have drained much of her energy. After a long pause, she sighed, "Alas, my great limit approaches. There's no harm in revealing this place's secrets to you now."

"The Spirit Devouring Realm was established by a peerless cultivator of immense power. The Spirit Devouring Demon Flame was a spirit fire under his control."

"Over the years, after this place became masterless, it became a weapon-refining site for cultivators from the Autumn Mountain Domain. Anyone seeking to refine a magical artifact could come here and harness the spirit fire's power."

"But do you know why we never refined this fire seed and claimed it for ourselves?"

Immediately afterward, the old woman truthfully explained the reason to Li Qing.

It turned out that when the great cultivator created this space, they had connected the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame to the Boundary Stone used to establish this small world.

If the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame were forcibly taken, the entire space would collapse and disintegrate into nothingness.

At that moment, anyone within the space would be crushed to death by the collapsing void.

In other words, forcibly refining and taking the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame would also trap Li Qing here, preventing his escape.

Upon hearing this, Li Qing's gaze involuntarily shifted toward the direction he had come from.

That was the exit of this space, a vast distance from the mountain. Even the fastest Wind Spiritual Root cultivator would require considerable time to fly there.

Within that brief span, the space would likely collapse countless times.

"So that's the situation..." Li Qing's eyes flickered with uncertainty. He then asked, "Why not try setting up a teleportation array? Couldn't we use its power to instantly escape to the spatial exit?"

The old woman chuckled softly.

"You even know about teleportation arrays? It seems your understanding of the immortal dao is quite extensive. But teleportation arrays aren't something you can just set up on a whim, are they?"

"We've consulted many renowned masters of the Array Dao, but unfortunately, activating a teleportation array requires a stable spatial environment."

"In a space on the verge of collapse, even forcibly activating a teleportation array would likely lead to certain death."

Upon hearing this, Li Qing nodded in understanding. His knowledge of array formations was limited, and he hadn't realized the intricacies involved in teleportation arrays.

Even if a stable teleportation array could be established, what then?

In the Autumn Mountain Domain, multiple core formation realm cultivators coveted this heavenly spirit fire. Who would stand idly by while you smoothly claimed the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame?

Left here, the heavenly spirit fire remained a shared resource, accessible to all.

But if someone were to privately claim it, they would become the target of universal condemnation.

In short, no one dared to commit such a flagrant act of public resource appropriation.

Thus, the Spirit Devouring Realm became a tacitly acknowledged secret realm, and no one dared to covet the heavenly spirit fire any longer.

But Li Qing refused to accept this. Having finally discovered a heavenly spirit fire, he had no intention of giving up so easily.

In the silence, Li Qing's pupils flickered with a restless light, his mind racing with countless thoughts.

If I can refine the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame, I'll immediately travel back to the Great Wilderness Domain.

Besides, I still have the Black Furnace. This mysterious forge once withstood void turbulence. Perhaps this daring plan could actually work!

The audacious idea surfaced in Li Qing's mind, his fists clenching involuntarily.

But this raised a critical question: after he returned to the Great Wilderness Domain and the space here collapsed into annihilation, where would he reappear when he attempted interdimensional travel again?

This was a grave matter!

What form would the secret realm take after its spatial annihilation?

How would he ever return to the World of Eternal Night?

Overwhelmed by these complex thoughts, Li Qing found himself in a dilemma.

He surmised that if he proceeded with this plan, there would be only two possible outcomes for future attempts to return to the World of Eternal Night.

First, the annihilated space would transform into a chaotic realm teeming with void turbulence. Without sufficient cultivation strength, any attempt to traverse it would likely end in disaster.

As for the second outcome, the space here would be annihilated, completely transforming into nothingness. When he traveled through again, he might end up in some unknown part of the World of Eternal Night.

The former scenario was naturally not what Li Qing wanted. He was unwilling to abandon such a vast world, which still held countless resources and daoist arts awaiting his discovery.

In fact, his remarkably smooth progress on the dao had been largely due to the abundant resources of the World of Eternal Night.

It was only natural that he found it difficult to part with this place.

Should he give up on this spirit fire?

Li Qing sank into deep contemplation. It was rare to encounter a heavenly spirit fire that could be subdued under certain conditions, and without the threat of external interference. To abandon it now would be equally regrettable.

"Alas, there is no perfect solution in this world," Li Qing sighed inwardly, his eyes gradually hardening with resolve.

Taking a deep breath, he spoke: "Senior, would you be willing to leave this secret realm? I can take you to the outside world, where you can cultivate the Red Moon Dao and escape the torment of your lifespan's great limit."

After a long silence, a frail, aged voice drifted up from below:

"Your intentions are commendable, but I must decline. The so-called Red Moon Dao is nothing more than a heretical path, a demonic art. I refuse to cling to life in such a wretched state."

"Let me pass away peacefully here."

Her resolve to die was clear, and no one could save her now.

Despair, they say, is greater than death itself. Long ago, she and several close daoist companions had chosen to enter this secret realm to escape the ravages of the End of Dao Era.

Within this secluded realm, they built simple dwellings, shared their daoist arts, and exchanged insights on cultivation, each benefiting greatly from their collective wisdom.

Yet the End of Dao Era had inevitably seeped into this secret realm. Faced with the dwindling spiritual energy that worsened day by day, they encouraged one another, clinging to hope for the future, convinced they could weather this dark age.

Alas, hope is beautiful, but reality is mercilessly cruel.

She witnessed her fellow daoists, those who had shared her humble dwellings, wither and perish one by one, their lives fading away in their crude wooden huts, leaving behind only lingering regrets.

In the end, she was the only one left alive in the secret realm.

She gathered the relics of her fallen companions, not out of greed, but simply to honor their memory.

Year after year, she meticulously recorded the death anniversaries of each fellow Daoist. On these solemn days, she kept company with the Spirit Devouring Demon Flame, burning their relics to ashes.

In truth, she should have died long ago. The only reason she had clung to life was the burning resolve in her heart.

She endured for the sake of those who had perished before her eyes, wanting to witness the resurgence of spiritual energy and the end of the End of Dao Era, to finally quell the lingering regrets in her heart.

But when the secret realm finally opened, the news that awaited her was still one of despair.

In the volcanic cave, the light in the old woman's eyes gradually faded.

Memories of her cherished companions from their cultivation days flashed before her eyes, the glorious years of their past vividly replaying in her mind.

Who wasn't a Heavenly Prodigy in their youth? Otherwise, how could they have reached this point?

She possessed her own pride, refusing to stoop to cultivating so-called demonic or heretical paths that would transform her into something neither human nor ghost.

But deep down, living alone as a withered leaf of a bygone era, she was weary.

As Li Qing prepared to leave, he finally asked, "May I ask for Senior's name?"

After a moment, a final reply echoed from below: "What use is a name when death is near? Let everything be buried with the past. Dust to dust, ashes to ashes—it's fitting."

"..."

Hearing these words, Li Qing felt a pang of sorrow.

A once-renowned figure, unwilling to even leave behind her name, must have been utterly disillusioned with this End of Dao Era.

Regardless, she had revealed the secret of the spirit fire to him. After a moment's thought, Li Qing clasped his hands in a deep bow toward the volcano's crater:

"Junior Li Qing bids Senior farewell!"

He knew that by the time he returned, she would likely have passed away in meditation.

"Jing'er, let's go."

(End of the Chapter)

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