Wen Qingye took a step onto the long corridor. CRACK. The wood, weathered by years in this environment, let out a strange sound the moment he stepped on it.
The crisp sound echoed endlessly within the stone cavern. Step by step, Wen Qingye made his way down.
The only sound in the stone cavern was Wen Qingye’s footsteps on the wood; there was nothing else.
After about the time it takes an incense stick to burn, Wen Qingye felt he had reached the bottom level. And just as his foot came down for the next step...
WHOOSH!
The surrounding area suddenly burst with light, becoming as bright as day. Everything around him became crystal clear.
The place where Wen Qingye had landed was a semicircular platform. Before him stood a colossal door imprinted with the ancient tiger-stripe pattern of the Qinghuo Clan. Next to the door sat a stone statue.
"What is this thing?" Qing Ruo’ai muttered, looking at the stone statue. "A dragon’s head, deer antlers, a lion’s eyes, a tiger’s back, a bear’s waist, snake scales, horse hooves, and an ox’s tail... could it be the legendary Qilin?"
Wen Qingye gazed at the statue and nodded. "At the dawn of creation, the Phoenix was the leader of the birds, and the Qilin was the sovereign of the beasts. It is also said that when Chaos first parted, there was the Phoenix, King of Birds, and the Qilin, Beast King. The Qinghuo Race reveres fire. This statue is undoubtedly a Qilin. I just wonder if it contains a trace of the Qilin’s Origin Fire."
As he said this, Wen Qingye had already reached the side of the colossal door.
Two bright lanterns also hung beside the colossal door, each carved with a lifelike Qilin.
THUD!
Wen Qingye placed his hands on the colossal door and gave it a forceful push. A cloud of dust instantly billowed out, but the door didn’t budge.
"What a heavy door!"
Wen Qingye’s eyes narrowed. Primordial Qi erupted from his body and surged into his arms, augmented by the fifty-thousand-jin force of his Rock Law.
BOOM!
This time, it wasn’t just dust from the colossal door that flew up; great clouds of it rose from the ground as well. The Stone Gate had finally budged, but only slightly.
’As long as it moves, that’s enough.’
Wen Qingye clenched his jaw and again pushed against the colossal door with all his might.
RUMBLE!
The colossal door budged again, but it still refused to open completely.
Again!
After countless pushes with all his might, a crack finally appeared in the Stone Gate.
"AOWL!"
The next moment, a beast’s head appeared in the crack. Startled, Wen Qingye stumbled back.
The Demon Beast’s head was about the size of a human’s, but its eyes were as large as fists and its ears were extremely sharp. Its teeth gave off a foul, fishy stench, and its short, small body was the size of a monkey’s.
"What kind of monster is that?" Qing Ruo’ai asked, looking at the Demon Beast in the crack.
"A Bone-Eroding Beast!"
Wen Qingye frowned. "This kind of Demon Beast’s teeth, claws, and even its fur can corrode a person’s skin, muscles, and bones. They’re terrifying."
’Looks like I’ll have to force my way through,’ Wen Qingye thought, his brow twitching as he took a small step back.
SWOOSH SWOOSH!
Immense Primordial Qi surged toward Wen Qingye. For miles around, the ambient Primordial Qi stagnated, then began to roil with boundless black currents.
In the next moment, a dark silhouette appeared before Wen Qingye. It gradually solidified into what looked like a giant iron gate, surrounded by a strange radiance and a sinister aura.
"Undying Seal Technique, Fifth Form: Look Back in Hate Before the Netherworld Gate!"
He formed a seal with his hands, and a jet-black Seal Technique shot from his palms. It passed straight through the iron gate and smashed heavily into the Stone Gate ahead.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The Seal Technique smashed into the colossal door, and the very air around it trembled.
And the colossal door was blasted wide open.
WHOOSH! WHOOSH!
Two jet-black shadows shot toward Wen Qingye, their speed incomparably, blindingly fast.
Wen Qingye drew the Bladeless Heavy Sword from his back. He gave the front a cold glance, tightened his grip, and swung the sword in a heavy arc.
The jet-black Bladeless Heavy Sword swept through the air with the might of a Thunderous Force, vast and boundless.
CRACK! CRACK!
The two dark figures were sent smashing against the stone wall with a sickening crunch of bone. The two Bone-Eroding Beasts died gruesome deaths before they could even scream.
"That scared the life out of me!" Qing Ruo’ai said, patting her chest. "I thought for a moment you were going to make this lady go kill them."
Wen Qingye shook his head with a smile, then dragged his Bladeless Heavy Sword toward the opening of the colossal door.
The colossal door now stood wide open, and Wen Qingye stepped inside.
Before him was an exceptionally bright hall—no, it couldn’t be called a hall. This place was far more massive.
Above was the boundless sky, making the space feel even more expansive and immense.
The chamber was enclosed by purple stone walls that refracted a blinding violet light. Directly in front of Wen Qingye was a massive platform, made from a special material that was clearly extraordinary at a single glance.
At the four corners of the platform stood four strangely shaped Demon Beast statues, and raging flames now emanated from them.
In the center was a sizable pool filled with a red liquid. The liquid radiated such extreme heat that even from a distance, Wen Qingye could feel the temperature steadily rising.
Qing Ruo’ai looked at the four statues and said slowly, "Fire Fox, Fierce Rhino, Blazing Fire Ape, and Extreme Flame Bird. These four are all Demon Beasts that cultivate the Fire Dao."
’This must be an altar.’
Wen Qingye approached the pool step by step, a wary look in his eyes.
FWOOSH!
In the blink of an eye, the four Demon Beast statues opened their massive jaws, and four streams of red flame shot madly toward Wen Qingye, scorching the very air around them.
Even though Wen Qingye had been on high alert, he couldn’t react in time. His only choice was to thrust his Bladeless Heavy Sword out to block.
WHOOSH!
Instantly, a tremendous force slammed into the Bladeless Heavy Sword, knocking Wen Qingye back several steps. A scorching heat immediately followed, surging toward him.
Wen Qingye’s skin and face flushed crimson. In just three breaths’ time, he felt as if he were about to be incinerated.
’This flame... it’s Samadhi True Flame.’
In moments, Wen Qingye’s entire body was drenched in sweat. His skin glowed red, scalding hot.
CLANG!
Wen Qingye slammed a fist on the body of the Bladeless Heavy Sword, and a violent shockwave instantly radiated outward from its blade.
The four streams of flame recoiled wildly. As the backlash struck the four statues and made them tremble, Wen Qingye seized the opening, leaping toward the Fire Fox statue.