Sunset Red Plain.
It was a vast plain in the Motian Domain stretching a thousand li across, devoid of lofty peaks and scarred by few ravines.
By all accounts, it should have been a splendid place for cultivation.
Yet throughout the Motian Domain's millennium of history, no force of any real standing had ever established a stronghold here.
The sole reason was that the spiritual veins in this region were fragmented and chaotic, lacking any coherent system. They simply could not support the encampment of a larger sect or clan.
All that could be found here were scattered rogues and minor clans scraping by on the margins of survival.
Yet everything changed the moment the Luotian Sect took dominion over the Motian Domain.
The once-desolate Sunset Red Plain suddenly burst with activity.
People surged like woven silk, carriages and mounts streamed like dragons, and every day countless streaks of flying light came and went.
All of this transformation stemmed from a single grand undertaking: an immortal city was to be raised here!
Led by the upper Luotian Sect, thirteen Golden Core sects pooled manpower and resources, and word had it that forces from outside the domain were investing funds as well, seeking to secure a share of the spoils.
The bustling scene of today was born from that grand endeavor.
Building an immortal city was no overnight feat. It required surveying the flow of feng shui, gathering and anchoring spiritual veins, laying down great formations, and selecting skilled immortal-architectural masters to plan the layout within the walls...
Yet no matter how sluggish the pace might have been under ordinary circumstances, when driven by a collective of immortal cultivators wielding extraordinary personal might, progress far outstripped anything mortal minds could fathom.
From settling upon the site to finalizing the blueprints and breaking ground, barely two or three years had passed, and the most crucial ramparts had already taken impressive shape.
From here, all that remained was to carve out the thoroughfares, map the city layout around the spiritual veins channeled by Golden Core cultivators, and the framework would be largely complete.
At this critical juncture, every cultivator involved worked with feverish enthusiasm, eagerly anticipating the day the Red Plain Immortal City was inaugurated.
When that day came, the spectacle was sure to be magnificent beyond measure.
Rogue cultivators would flock to seek shelter, merchant caravans from every quarter would gather, and resources from heaven and earth, north and south, would flow continuously in and out...
Yet amidst this bustling spectacle, Shalongzi, the Luotian Sect powerhouse overseeing the construction, appeared utterly absentminded, seemingly indifferent to this grand event everyone else so eagerly awaited.
He leaned against a massive tree outside the walls, chewing on a stalk of wild grass, his gaze fixed on the distance.
He seemed to be looking at the majestic immortal city nearing completion, yet also at the hazy twilight sun descending upon the city battlements, his eyes faint and unfocused.
A streak of flying light swept across the sky, circled once, and flew back down.
The light descended, and a disciple stowed his flying sword, walking over in high spirits as he called out, "Martial Uncle, the master of the Firm Rock Gang is hosting a banquet for all parties today! Will you—"
Before he could finish, Shalongzi cut him off with visible impatience.
"Get lost. I'm in no mood for that."
The disciple faltered. Wiping the smile from his face, he crept over cautiously and squatted beside him.
"What troubles Martial Uncle?"
Shalongzi offered no answer, only grinding the wild grass between his teeth until green sap bled from the stem.
The disciple ventured carefully, "Is it... because of the Supreme Elder?"
The man's jaw locked mid-chew. He snapped his head around with a murderous glare, frightening the disciple so badly that the young man fell flat on his rear.
Seeing him tumble, Shalongzi realized he had startled him. Years of campaigning across the lands had coated him in a suffocating baleful aura, something a junior who had barely reached the Foundation Establishment stage could not easily withstand.
Spitting out the grass, he reined in his aura, rose to his feet, and casually pulled the youth back up.
Then came a heavy sigh.
Gazing at the Red Plain Immortal City, which currently possessed little more than outer walls, Shalongzi murmured, "All they think about is how to carve up the profits once the city is built, yet they've forgotten who the greatest contributor was in conquering the Luotian Domain.
"They say when drinking water, one shouldn't forget the well-digger. Yet barely three years have passed, and who still cares about Martial Uncle Luo?"
The disciple scratched his head. "Perhaps it's because rumors spread long ago that the Supreme Elder would eventually leave the Luotian Sect. Even if his destination turned out different, everyone had already braced themselves mentally, so they don't dwell on it as much!"
"A different destination?"
Shalongzi let out a mocking sneer. Ascending to a sacred land was one thing; vanishing with life and death unknown was entirely another. How could that be called merely a 'different destination'?
Yet he would not argue with a junior.
Everyone viewed Luo Chen through a different lens.
To the rest of them, he was an exalted, rarely seen Nascent Soul True Monarch—a figure to be revered from afar, beyond the reach of personal closeness. But to Shalongzi, Luo Chen was the third closest person in his life, behind only his mother and his master.
In fact, after his mother passed away and under his master's harsh and demanding tutelage, Luo Chen had felt more like a gentle, nurturing mother to him.
Long ago, when he had just entered his master's tutelage and had to endure the brutal flesh-tempering of Foundation Establishment, he was still very young and often on the verge of breaking. It was Martial Uncle Luo who comforted him with kind words, using glorious tales of his father's prowess in the Qi Refining stage to inspire him.
Though he later learned his father was never actually that formidable—and had been quite the scoundrel before becoming Dao companions with his mother—the encouragement had saved him.
During the Howling Moon opening war, Martial Uncle Luo had constantly kept him by his side, giving him personal guidance and even moderating the strength of enemies specifically so Shalongzi could hone his skills.
Not to mention that whenever good things came along, Martial Uncle Luo always gave him priority.
Even with other exceptional talents of his generation in the sect, Martial Uncle Luo had always placed him first.
Such a benevolent senior had vanished just like that, without a trace or explanation.
And it was nothing like the previous time.
Back then, at least Sect Master Sima had insisted with absolute certainty that he was alive.
Yet this time...
"Never mind. Go to the banquet in my stead! If the Firm Rock Gang makes any extra requests, don't agree, but don't refuse outright either. Just stall them."
The disciple blinked, nodded, and turned to leave.
Once he was gone, Shalongzi squatted down again and reached toward a healthy stalk of wild grass.
"Three years..."
"Hm?"
What met his fingers was sleek and rock-hard.
Shalongzi's fingers twitched, and he yanked his hand back, fixing his eyes on the ground.
A single dragon horn was slowly pushing up through the soil like a bamboo shoot.
Then a pair of infuriated eyes emerged.
"Little brat, who gave you permission to touch my horn?"
Shalongzi's mouth fell open in disbelief. "Black... Black..."
"Call me Lord Black King!"
Black King snorted, puffing out a blast of hot steam.
"Lord Black King, you're alive!" Shalongzi gasped, his expression alternating wildly between shock and joy as a sudden realization dawned upon him.
Though within the Luotian Sect both Lord Black King and Elder Tianxuan referred to Martial Uncle Luo as master,
everyone knew that strictly speaking, Elder Tianxuan was not truly Martial Uncle Luo's spiritual pet. Martial Uncle Luo had never taken her soul blood, much less branded her with a slave seal.
Lord Black King, however, was a genuine spiritual pet.
If his master fell, he would inevitably suffer the backlash and perish as well!
Now that Lord Black King had appeared, didn't that mean...
"Keep your voice down!"
Black King opened his jaws and exhaled a stream of source energy, conjuring a sound-isolating boundary.
Such basic magical arts he had mastered from his master long ago.
His lips twitched as he relayed the message in meticulous detail to Shalongzi.
Finally, Black King said with utmost gravity, "Mark my words: the news that Master is alive may only be told to your master. Do not breathe a word of it even to Master's two Dao companions or his disciples!"
Baffled, Shalongzi opened his mouth to press for answers.
Black King cut him off impatiently. "Don't ask why. Your master will understand."
Shalongzi nodded. As long as his martial uncle was alive, nothing else mattered.
"I'm off!"
"Lord Black King, aren't you returning to the Luotian Sect?"
Black King paused, then let out a derisive snort. "How could I? The moment I show my face, Master's situation will be exposed."
Shalongzi reflected on this; indeed, it made sense.
Yet where on earth was Martial Uncle right now, and why was he so adamant about concealing his whereabouts?
And why withhold news of his survival from his two closest Dao companions?
Black King, having already departed, would offer no answers to these lingering questions.
And a short while later, within his master's heavily warded cave abode, Wang Yuan did not give him the full answers either upon learning the news.
Yet it was plain to see that the ever-steadfast Wang Yuan carried an added measure of calm assurance.
"Go inform Sect Master Li to suspend the Immortal Ascendance Gathering scheduled for two years from now. Our Luotian Sect will recruit no new disciples for the time being."
Curious, Shalongzi asked, "What about Elder Lingfengzi? I heard he has recalled many Piaomiao Sect disciples who were scattered abroad, and he even intends to expand the Piaomiao Hall."
Wang Yuan's face darkened. "No matter. I will deal with him myself. For now, with the sect lacking its leader, it is all too easy for spies from other factions to infiltrate our ranks. All matters shall wait until he returns."
Shalongzi understood at once.
Of course, he remained perplexed as to why this news had to be kept from Martial Aunt Sima Huiniang and Martial Aunt Gu Caiyi.
Wang Yuan pondered briefly, then said in a low voice, "Perhaps because Sima Huiniang has only recently given birth. Her emotional control is not what it used to be, and the secret could easily slip. As for Gu Caiyi... heh, perhaps he is still trying to keep things balanced between them!"
***
Wang Yuan's guess was accurate; Luo Chen did indeed harbor such concerns.
Furthermore, his disappearance was both a trivial matter and a momentous one.
As long as he ultimately returned, it would matter little.
Yet where he had gone during this absence was a grave issue.
If word got out that he had returned to Mount Cangwu, particularly in this delicate period right after the close of the human-demon war in the Eastern Desolation, it could easily stir up treacherous waves.
Especially regarding the Mingyuan Sect—given Patriarch Heize's style of conduct, there was no telling what moves he might make.
During that climactic battle, Sovereign Jiuling and the others only knew he had fled; none had witnessed him departing 'peacefully' alongside Qingshuang.
With his glorious achievement of slaying Huang Man on the spot, returning later and claiming he had been grievously wounded and had merely spent years convalescing in seclusion would easily brush past scrutiny.
His journey to Mount Cangwu was something best left unmentioned.
As for why he had notified Wang Yuan alone?
Luo Chen feared that his absence would plunge the hard-stabilized Luotian Sect back into chaos.
Wang Yuan was his most trusted confidant and possessed ample seniority. His only former shortcoming—his cultivation realm—had been smoothed away by sheer strength following his battle against Old Ghost Motian.
So long as Wang Yuan possessed the confidence that Luo Chen was alive, he could maintain a firm grip over every matter in the Luotian Sect, great and small.
Ever since dispatching Black King to deliver the message, Luo Chen had been striving to switch back to his original primary cultivation art.
His self-created *Wither-Bloom Dao Scripture* was by no means lacking.
Even in the outside world, it could serve as the foundational heritage of a Nascent Soul upper sect.
Yet this technique blended too many discordant elements and was forged around the Wither-Bloom Divine Fire as its guiding core. The deeper he cultivated it, the more profoundly he fell under the flame's sway.
When he had previously suffered assimilation by heaven and earth and birthed an inner demon, he had assumed it was merely the aftereffect of executing the divine ability, Wither-Bloom Dao Finger.
Looking back now, how could it not have been the covert influence of the Wither-Bloom Divine Fire?
After all, such an extraordinary flame of heaven and earth was no different from a fifth-rank sapient spirit, fully capable of communing with the primordial qi of heaven and earth.
Switching back to the *Heavenly Phoenix Nirvana Scripture* would overturn this dilemma.
That art was a supreme fire-attribute scripture capable of commanding all flames under heaven!
Naturally, for a Nascent Soul cultivator, switching one's natal cultivation method twice in succession was a grave taboo in cultivation.
Yet for Luo Chen, the impact was far less severe.
Before ever transitioning to the *Wither-Bloom Dao Scripture*, he had originally cultivated the Golden Core chapter of the *Heavenly Phoenix Nirvana Scripture*; doing so now was merely rekindling an old affinity.
Yet a manageable impact did not mean the transition would proceed smoothly!
At the end of the day, this art was the ancestral scripture of the Phoenix clan.
Luo Chen did not possess a phoenix physique, and the transition ran headlong into an unyielding bottleneck.
He had even attempted to expend system achievement points to force an entry, but to no avail.
For the technique Monarch Qixia had bestowed upon him was the complete, unabridged scripture!
No one had thoughtfully sectioned it off into neat Nascent Soul or Soul Formation chapters for him.
To force an entry through the system, he would have had to invest achievement points spanning four or five major cultivation realms beyond his own.
The system's entry requirement had always multiplied tenfold with each major realm. That meant it would demand at least hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of achievement points—and how could Luo Chen possess such an astronomical reserve?
Thus, he could only rely on his own comprehension, painstakingly pondering and studying it bit by bit.
This process required an immense reservoir of worldly spiritual energy for support; without it, sustaining forward progress would be nearly impossible.
This was precisely why Luo Chen had chosen to remain on Mount Cangwu.
This cave abode in Duzhen Hall was truly the finest spiritual ground he had ever encountered in his life.
The density of its spiritual energy was virtually unrivaled in the mortal realm.
Perhaps only the legendary fifth-rank spiritual lands could surpass it.
Through repeated, reckless attempts, Luo Chen drew closer and closer to initiating the technique.
Yet the closer he drew, the more acutely he felt an invisible barrier blocking his path like an iron gate.
Even though he went so far as to reshape his meridians and alter his acupoints, he remained incapable of crossing that final threshold.
*Could Monarch Qixia have deceived me?*
Inside the cave abode, Luo Chen's expression shifted between dark and bright.
He began to suspect whether Monarch Qixia had used a technique he could never possibly practice to swindle the Dao Combining Pill recipe from his hands.
Yet there was simply no need for her to do so!
Before a powerhouse of her stature, Luo Chen was entirely at her mercy. Why would she stoop to trickery?
Luo Chen turned his focus inward toward his sea of consciousness.
*Could it be that one must truly complete the Golden Core chapter's Nine Tribulations and Three Nirvanas before fully stepping through the gateway of the true scripture?*
Nine Tribulations and Three Nirvanas: following the Magic Power Nirvana came the Physical Nirvana, and after that, the Soul Nirvana.
The Magic Power Nirvana had thoroughly converted his entire pool of magic power to the fire attribute.
The Physical Nirvana had forged his Fire Spirit Body.
And if the Soul Nirvana succeeded, then according to the scripture's records, he would attain a 'Fire Soul.'
Once that was accomplished, his essence, qi, and spirit would achieve absolute purity, allowing him to command all flames in the future and forging an unobstructed path toward the Mahayana stage.
Yet how could nirvana ever be simple?
The first Magic Power Nirvana should have been fraught with peril, but Luo Chen had circumvented it through an expedient trick.
That time, he had used system achievement points to force an entry—equivalent to boarding the carriage first and paying the fare later—so no true threshold had ever stood in his way.
The second Physical Nirvana... the danger had been indescribable. Had Luo Chen not surpassed ordinary mortals by possessing the physique of a desolate beast during the Golden Core stage—complete with the innate talents of flesh rebirth and limb regeneration—he would have perished without a doubt.
This third Soul Nirvana would surely prove far more perilous than the first two.
*Is placing oneself in mortal peril to find life anew what defines nirvana?*
*Or is it by distancing oneself from inverted delusions that one attains ultimate nirvana?*
*Or perhaps it resides in the wondrous accord, an accord rooted in dark unity, where external things differ not from the self and the self differs not from external things—the mystic union of self and object, returning unto the Boundless? Is that true nirvana?*
Luo Chen could not make sense of it. These interpretations leaned heavily toward the doctrines of the Buddhist path.
Though his learning was vast and his breadth of experience immense—having achieved deep mastery across the demon, Daoist, and fiendish lineages—the Buddhist tradition was the one domain in which he possessed scant understanding.
Yet a living man could not let himself be choked by a single obstacle.
Luo Chen had always possessed a flexible mind.
Soul Nirvana, was it?
It was not as though he lacked the nerve to try.
With a thought, his primary soul drifted smoothly out from his sea of consciousness, moving far away from his physical body.
Within the sea of consciousness, his strongest secondary soul took the dominant position.
He had to attempt it!
If he succeeded, he would welcome an earth-shattering transformation.
Even if he failed, he would at most lose a single secondary soul.
Chanting the mnemonic verses of the *Heavenly Phoenix Nirvana Scripture*, Luo Chen mobilized his Nascent Soul magic power to permeate his entire body. Within his sea of consciousness, vast swathes of scattered golden soul essence ignited into flames, enveloping that first secondary soul.
Nirvana or ruin—all hung on this single gamble!
The instant he initiated the final nirvana of the Nine Tribulations and Three Nirvanas, an invisible ripple began to emanate from the mountain peak of Duzhen Hall.
Birds took no fright; worldly mortals remained entirely unaware.
Only within Tongxuan Hall did a woman in a scarlet dress, who had been idly fingering a small white flower, raise a slender brow.
"Elder Sister, what is it?" Qingshuang sensed something amiss, yet could not tell where it originated, assuming her sister was displeased because the Void-Storing Flower had not yet matured.
Monarch Qixia waved her hand dismissively. "It has nothing to do with you. Though the Void-Storing Flower is not yet mature, take it and nurture it within your body, nourishing it with the true intent of the spatial laws. When this flower reaches full maturity, that shall be the day you achieve the Soul Formation stage. But heed this: while nurturing this flower, flaws will appear in your Leakless Body, so it is best not to engage in battle with anyone."
Qingshuang nodded. She had harbored similar intentions, yet had not dared put them into practice.
Now backed by her sister's endorsement, she could proceed without reservation.
Still, why had her sister's expression shifted just a moment ago?
Monarch Qixia paced out of the hall, her gaze looking down upon the peak below.
"Decisive, at least..."
A look of approval crossed her face, but before she could finish her thought, her brows drew together.
"Attempting nirvana through a soul-division technique—what kind of 'placing oneself in mortal peril to find life anew' is that? Has this fellow grown addicted to taking shortcuts?"
With a displeased flick of her sleeve, she turned back toward the hall.
Earlier, she had thought that if he successfully switched cultivation arts, she might consider reserving the position of Master of Duzhen Hall for him.
Now, that notion was utterly dispelled.
For Luo Chen was bound to fail!
Could such a man truly be worthy of inheriting Demonic Lord Liantian's alchemy legacy?
Yet when the ninth day arrived, the grand doors of Tongxuan Hall burst open with a resounding boom.
Clad in her scarlet dress, Monarch Qixia stared with shock toward the heights of Duzhen Hall.
There, an ethereal golden flame was curling lazily into the sky!
Chapter 888