Chapter Thirty-One: The Divine Fire of Nine Essences

Several thousand Fire Witch Guards were enough to wipe out a mid-sized tribe in the Wilds. The Giant Spirit Clan ranked only slightly above average among the hundred tribes of the Wilds, barely able to match the Fire Witch Guards. The outcome was balanced, with only a slight advantage at best. Should both sides fight to the death, the carnage would be unimaginable, with countless casualties—one misstep could spell the annihilation of an entire clan.

Yet now, suspense had all but vanished. With the emergence of the Ninefold Divine Fire, the Giant Spirit Clan stood no chance of resisting.

The Ninefold Divine Fire was a spark of primal chaos, born at the dawn of creation when Pangu opened the Wilds. It surpassed even the True Solar Fire by half a measure; in the current Wilds, it ranked just below the Heavenly Punishment Fire, the Ancient Demonic Flame, and the All-Heaven Divine Fire. Its power was unrivaled—a single ember could incinerate seas and melt mountains, obliterating anything in its path. Not even the indestructible Great Golden Immortals could touch it; otherwise, their bodies, souls, and true spirits would be reduced to ashes. Only the Threefold Divine Water could extinguish it.

“However, for all its might, the Ninefold Divine Fire is but a trivial thing before a cultivator of the Hunyuan realm—merely a flick of the wrist to dispel it.” Though Qingxu’s cultivation was still shallow, he had some understanding of the Hunyuan realm. It was divided into Hunyuan Loose Immortal and Hunyuan Great Golden Immortal—the former a quasi-saint, the latter the ultimate pursuit of all living beings, a Hunyuan Saint.

From Primordial Celestial Reverence, Qingxu had learned that Hunyuan Loose Immortals could comprehend the laws, their words manifesting reality; they could create minor worlds and become their masters, wielding unfathomable powers. It was said that with a single thought, the three thousand heavens entered their minds, their insight piercing all. In the myths of the previous world, the founder of the Lesser Buddhist Sect, Shakyamuni, upon opening his wisdom eye, surveyed all the Wilds—thirty-three heavens above, eighteen hells below, the Three Realms laid bare before him, endowed with incredible power. Yet Qingxu understood that Shakyamuni was still a step behind a Hunyuan Loose Immortal, at best a half-step between a Great Golden Immortal and a quasi-saint.

Having glimpsed the mysteries of the Hunyuan realm, Qingxu felt somewhat despondent. Daoist Duobao possessed the virtues of Shangqing, Taiqing, and Nirvana—embodying both Buddhist and Daoist traditions, founding a sect and becoming its chief, blessed by the vast fortune of the Lesser Buddhist Sect. Even with all these advantages, he still fell short of a Hunyuan Loose Immortal. One could imagine how arduous the path to enlightenment truly was!

Leaving aside Qingxu’s wandering thoughts, the Fire Witch Guards had begun to wield their divine fire arts, intending to rely on the Ninefold Divine Fire to reduce the Giant Spirit Clan and the tens of millions of miles of red rocky hills to ashes.

Thousands of Fire Witch Guards formed a battle array, their imposing aura converging as one, murderous intent flooding the skies. Witch power surged like a tsunami, sweeping away everything in its path; no steel or stone could stand against it.

Scorching heat suffused the land for ten thousand miles, clouds above stained gold and crimson.

Just the aura alone changed the celestial phenomena?

“The mere presence of the Ninefold Divine Fire shakes heaven and earth; should it be fully unleashed, its power would surely surpass the Jade Purity Purple Sky Divine Thunder that Primordial’s avatar used in the Demon Realm!” Qingxu could not help but marvel, his mind focused on the Taiqing Immortal Talisman and the Central Xu-Earth Apricot-Yellow Banner. Should danger arise, he would immediately use them for protection. The place where he hid was several hundred miles from the site of the Giant Spirit and Fire Witch clash—more than enough to escape.

If it were just the Central Xu-Earth Apricot-Yellow Banner, Qingxu would not be so bold, but the Taiqing Immortal Talisman was different. With its peak Great Golden Immortal defensive power and the strength of the Three Purities incarnations, either would guarantee his safety.

“May the Sacred Fire descend!”

Thousands of Fire Witch Guards spoke as one, their voices unified and thunderous, as if uttered by a single being.

With their words, brilliant gold and crimson light radiated from their bodies, increasing the heat of heaven and earth tenfold in an instant. A third of the red rocky hills was engulfed; under the golden-crimson glow, trees and flowers withered, vitality drained away, and even the red earth was tinged with scorched black.

The terrifying heat struck, leaving Qingxu drenched in sweat, water evaporating swiftly from his body, his blood and essence diminishing.

“It’s terrifying. The mere light of the Ninefold Divine Fire possesses such might—if it were to attack, how many in the world could withstand it?” Shocked, Qingxu fully activated his Three Purities power and immortal essence, wrapping himself in the Xu-Earth incarnation. If he could avoid using the Taiqing Immortal Talisman and Central Xu-Earth Apricot-Yellow Banner, he would; otherwise, once sensed by the Fire Witch Guards or the Giant Spirits, escape would be his only option.

Yet Qingxu’s curiosity was piqued even more by Zhu Rong’s true objective. What secret did the Giant Spirit Clan hold? What was their so-called clan-protecting treasure? What was the story behind the Yellow Turban Strongmen? These unresolved questions weighed heavily on his mind.

The light of the Ninefold Divine Fire was indeed formidable, but Qingxu was, after all, a mid-stage Earth Immortal—his immortal essence not to be underestimated, especially when combined as one with the Three Purities.

He could withstand the Ninefold Divine Fire’s glow with his own strength; aided by the Xu-Earth incarnation, it was no trouble at all.

Among the innate Five Elements, earth was best at defense—bearing all things, nurturing life, granting the protection and vitality of the vast earth. Thus, though the Xu-Earth incarnation was only at early Earth Immortal stage, its defensive ability likely surpassed Qingxu’s own; now, wrapped around him, the Ninefold Divine Fire’s glow had no effect.

“Everyone, attack together! We must not let them unleash the Ninefold Divine Fire, or we are finished!” The Giant Spirit chieftain, Dafeng, shouted anxiously. He strode forward, fists clenched like twin mountains, charging toward the Fire Witch Guards with a fierce aura—a resolve that placed life and death aside.

Dafeng understood well the terror of the Ninefold Divine Fire; such overwhelming power was not something the Giant Spirits could withstand!

“Kill!”...

At the chieftain’s command, hundreds of thousands of Giant Spirits surged forward like a tide, assaulting the Fire Witch Guards. They were empty-handed, wielding no weapons, yet in Qingxu’s eyes, each was a silver or bronze fortress charging ahead, capable of shattering mountains with a single blow.

The Giant Spirits were naturally tall and robust—three, five, eight, or even ten yards high. A single Giant Spirit was already a giant; hundreds of thousands charging together was utterly terrifying.

The commander of the Fire Witch Guards, seeing this scene, allowed a cruel, cold smile to curl his lips, making him look savage and dreadful.

“Overestimating yourselves. How could you withstand the might of the Sacred Fire? Still, this saves me a lot of trouble!”

A deep roar echoed...

Before the Giant Spirits could reach the Fire Witch Guards, a towering wave of golden-crimson fire shot straight into the heavens, piercing the constellations. Within the golden-crimson fire that covered tens of thousands of miles, a massive ball of flame floated in the air, its heat causing the void to ripple, as if on the verge of melting.

Almost at the moment the Ninefold Divine Fire appeared, a surge of terror filled Qingxu’s heart, despite being hundreds of miles away. He could clearly sense the destructive, domineering power of the flame.

Above, in the void, a cloud of golden-crimson fire thousands of yards tall suddenly appeared, spanning tens of thousands of miles. As moments passed, the cloud expanded rapidly; within a few breaths, it enveloped all hundreds of thousands of Giant Spirits, not missing a single one. At the same time, an overwhelming force descended, pressing upon every Giant Spirit with the might of heaven and earth.