At sea, there was a ship, enormous, magnificent, dazzling like a moving palace, luxuriously adorned within.

This ship sailed from afar, and whether by careful timing or not, it arrived just before the Divine Fire Domain opened.

Gong Shaoci was on this ship, gathering with friends. Groups of two or three people were scattered throughout, some sitting and drinking tea, others chatting together, and some strolling on the deck.

Young Master Nan was also there, dining with a few friends. Fine wines and exquisite dishes were served, while nearby, a cook sliced up lively fish into sashimi.

A woman, dragged by her hair like a dead dog, was hauled up. As she tried to struggle to her feet, someone kicked her back down to the ground; she cried, whimpering.

At the table, as people moved their chopsticks and raised their glasses, some casually glanced her way before continuing with their meals, while others curiously watched, wondering what was going on.

The man who dragged the woman up was the backer of Divine Fire Palace. He walked to a man by the dining table who was mid-chew, pointed at the battered woman on the ground, and said, "Sir, we have found out that the news about Shi Chun staying in the Divine Fire Palace was leaked by this woman."

The man then glanced at Young Master Nan and said, "Young Master Nan, here's the explanation you wanted."

Young Master Nan smiled lightly, "She is of no use to me, I just wanted to remind you that someone in the Divine Fire Palace was leaking guest information. You handle your own internal affairs; I don't need any explanation."

The man then tilted his head and said indifferently, "Drag her away to feed the fish."

The battered woman immediately cried out in agony and was dragged away to the stern of the ship, to the water-exposed terrace, where someone pushed her head underwater. A knife flashed in the water, severing her neck, only releasing her when she moved no more.

Blood stained the seawater in the night, quickly attracting bloodthirsty creatures. Suddenly, with a splash, something pulled the body under the waves.

In the brightly lit dining hall, the chef chopped off a fish head with a single slice.

Passing by, Young Master Nan reached the ship's rail outside the hall, where a man quietly reported the situations of Tong Mingshan, An Wuzhi, and Zhu Xiangxin to him.

To be precise, it was about the sect personnel who had contacted these three men.

Young Master Nan smiled slightly upon hearing this, "The original sects of those three really came knocking."

The man asked, "Do we need to..."

Young Master Nan waved his hand, "No need to act, just keep an eye on them, so I can find them whenever I need. Leave the rest, I'll handle it myself."

The man, surprised, asked, "What matter requires your personal attention?"

Young Master Nan: "Nothing much, Shi Chun asked me for a small favor. By the way, is Shi Chun alright over at Qi Yun Valley?"

The man replied, "No issues. He came out for a bit earlier, had a meal with Mulan Qingqing, it seems Mulan Qingqing was treating..."

"With whom did he dine?" Young Master Nan asked in astonishment, turning his head.

The man said, "Mulan Qingqing from Su Yuan Sect, the daughter of Mulan Jin."

"How could those two meet without fighting? What kind of meal could they possibly have together?" Young Master Nan said, puzzled.

The man continued, "Not sure. Midway through the meal, Gong Shaoci got involved, inviting Shi Chun and Lan Qiaoyan and her daughter to dine together, and Mulan Qingqing left."

"Gong Shaoci…" Young Master Nan muttered, then immediately asked, "What about the people from Jieyun Mountain, have they settled down?"

Meanwhile, someone else was probing for Shi Chun's whereabouts at Divine Fire Palace inn. It was discovered that the people from Jieyun Mountain were responsible. Knowing the grudge between Jieyun Mountain and Shi Chun, Young Master Nan worried that Jieyun Mountain might resort to their old assassination tactics. Therefore, he sent someone to warn them—if anything happened to Shi Chun on Li Huo Island, it would be reported to the Divine Fire Covenant, letting them weigh the consequences of opposing the Artifact Refining Sects of the world.

The man said, "Not sure if the warning worked. After learning that Shi Chun checked into Qi Yun Valley, Jieyun Mountain's people arranged a meeting with Artifact Refining Sects attending from Sheng Province. Not sure what they discussed, but given past behaviour, it's assumed they plan to harm Shi Chun within the Divine Fire Domain."

Hearing this, Young Master Nan snorted, barely holding back his anger, finding the group from Jieyun Mountain quite interesting. It seemed they didn't dare act on Li Huo Island, but were preparing to make their move within the Divine Fire Domain instead.

If it weren't for the fact that Jieyun Mountain had indeed produced some promising disciples in the Royal Court of Shengshen Continent, he would have just killed these ignorant fools right here.

After a moment's thought, he pulled out a mother-and-child talisman, directly messaging Shi Chun: "People from Jieyun Mountain are coming for you, having contacted Artifact Refining Sects within Qi Yun Valley. They might harm you, be careful."

Shi Chun quickly replied: "Which Artifact Refining Sect?"

Young Master Nan immediately asked the people around him, "Which Artifact Refining Sects did Jieyun Mountain meet?"

The man thought for a moment and said, "Not just one, but four. The sect leaders of four Artifact Refining Sects attending from Sheng Province met, specifically Heavenly Furnace Sect, Fengluo Sect, Refining Castle, and Seven Star Island."

Young Master Nan instantly relayed the message: "They are Heavenly Furnace Sect, Fengluo Sect, Refining Castle, and Seven Star Island. Be careful on your end. I will also warn those four sects."

A little later, Shi Chun replied: "Thanks for your kindness, but no need to warn them, leave them be."

No warning? Bringing trouble into the Divine Fire Domain? Young Master Nan, surprised, sent a message asking, "Are you sure?"

Shi Chun replied: "I have my plans."

Since he had said so, Young Master Nan did not doubt and replied, "Alright, just be careful yourself."

On the other side, Shi Chun immediately found Tong Mingshan and others, instructing them to split up and find out where those four sects were staying, mainly to identify some people...

Deep into the night, atop the highest peak of Qi Yun Valley, on an open terrace, seven men and one woman formed a circle under the stars, among which stood three elders including a female; the rest were middle-aged men.

Suddenly, a variety of flame-like auras emerged from the eight people in the formation, who all simultaneously turned their heads toward a certain part of the starry sky, with someone announcing, "They're coming, we can prepare now."

Thus the tranquility inside Qi Yun Valley was suddenly broken, a spellcasting voice loudly called, "Those entering the Divine Fire Domain, assemble and prepare!"

With repeated shouting, members from various sects began to emerge, their heads poking around in confusion—why so late at night?

According to the rules issued beforehand, all others were strictly prohibited from going outside, only attendees could gather in the valley.

In other buildings, there were still people peering out from windows and doorways, but Mingshan Sect's building was truly emptied in an instant.

About thirty thousand people gathered quickly in the valley and soon, metallic magic artifacts resembling lotus lanterns were distributed among them.

Those who had read the Divine Fire Covenant knew, this signified the official entry into the Divine Fire Domain, and although the timing was not set by humans but estimated, the precise timing depended on the will of the heavens.

In an instant, all attendees' nerves became tightly wound.

Standing among the crowd, Shi Chun held a lotus lantern, his right eye activated with superpower, scanning the surroundings, attempting to find the accomplices from the Demon Path as Feng Chi had mentioned.

The Demon Path hadn't disclosed which sects' attendees were their allies; according to Feng Chi, neither had they exposed to the others that the Mingshan Sect was an ally from Shi Chun's side.

Only upon entering the Divine Fire Domain and signaling each other would the two sides meet and formally make acquaintance.

Shi Chun, using his right eye's superpower, looked around, but there were too many people—it was crowded, and for the time being, he could not discern who possessed the demonic flame in their body, or perhaps the Demon Path's accomplices didn't necessarily manifest demonic flames.

Meanwhile, from the distant sky came a buzzing roar as a huge shadow flew from the direction of Li Huo Sect, hovering above the valley summit; lit by moonlight, it revealed itself as a gigantic metallic ring, large enough to encircle a mountain.

The people in the valley looked up in awe.

For individuals like Shi Chun, who were not from Artifact Refining backgrounds, the ability of such a massive metal object to float in the air was indeed shocking.

Wu Jinliang, carrying a gourd, clicked his tongue in wonder, "What is this thing?"

Tong Mingshan replied, "The Divine Fire Spirit Gate, the very gateway to the Divine Fire Domain, forged long ago by several Artifact Refining Masters, normally housed at Li Huo Sect."

As soon as these words fell, many eyes once again turned toward the highest peak.

On the peak's terraced platform, the eight individuals erupted with soaring ethereal flames of various colors; three flames consisted of three colors, and five consisted of two colors.

Due to the angle from below, those at the base of the mountain could not see the people atop, but those from Artifact Refining backgrounds within Qi Yun Valley all showed envious expressions.

Wu Jinliang curiously asked again, "Sect Leader, what is that?"

He was the quickest among the group to adapt to addressing Tong Mingshan formally, whereas others still struggled occasionally, he had already smoothly adapted.

An envious Tong Mingshan explained, "Those are the predecessors who once entered the Divine Fire Domain and absorbed the Divine Fire; eight ethereal flames, eight people who absorbed Divine Fire, nineteen colors in total, among them, three people each absorbed three types of Divine Fire, the others two types each."

Zhu Xiangxin exclaimed, "If I could even absorb one type, I would consider my life fulfilled."

An Wuzhi commented, "Easier said than done; it depends on each individual's fate and fortune."

Shi Chun shifted his gaze from above and glanced at the two men.

On the highest peak's terrace, the eight individuals gestured with their arms in casting motions, their soaring ethereal flames striking the floating giant metallic ring like columns of light.

Instantly, ancient runes on the ring rotated, resembling serpents slithering out of a light hole, then disappearing into darkness—as the entire massive ring emitted a mysterious and oppressive aura, spinning faster and faster, dazzling those who watched.

By now, the valley was wind-whipped, as fierce as a hurricane.

The peculiar buzzing roar was uncomfortable to the ears, as if some ancient and ferocious beast was growling in the depths.

"Rise!" ordered the leading elder, the other seven quickly manipulated the ethereal flames following his gestures.

Buzz—the gigantic ring, as if tossed into the air, continued moving and adjusting its position under the guidance of the eight ethereal flames, seemingly searching for something.

The great commotion was unmistakable; anyone on the island would find it hard to remain undisturbed.

Xiang Laner, Feng Chi, Duan Xiangmei, Bai Shuchuan, Mulan Qingqing, and others emerged from the inn, including Lan Qiaoyan and her daughter.

People from various inns across the island ran out to look towards the sky, where they saw the column of light originating from a steep cliff top.

On the sea, guests aboard a palatial and luxurious ship also walked onto the deck to watch, Gong Shaoci leapt up, rushing to find Lan Qiaoyan and her daughter, unaware that the start time had been moved to the evening.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.