Fire-Seed Golden Lotus

"Roar!" A dragon's roar shattered the air. Without anyone realizing when, the Flood Dragon King had revealed his true form, manifesting as a colossal flood dragon. The chains woven of true demonic qi were deeply embedded into his flesh. It had been a very long time since the Flood Dragon King was reduced to such a wretched state. His exceptionally sturdy flood dragon body had been wounded with effortless ease by Demonic Qingzhu; every single chain cut as sharp as the keenest blade. Scales shattered, and blood poured in torrents. *Boom!* A burst of golden light erupted across the Flood Dragon King's body. Every scale shimmered with dazzling gold as he fought against the true demonic qi. Some chains were blasted loose or sheared apart by the golden light, but countlessly more surged forward in endless waves, sinking into his flesh and bone like gangrene. The true demonic qi invaded his body, slicing away at his dragon scales and tearing groans of agony from his throat. The Flood Dragon King felt immense frustration. Had Demonic Qingzhu not been so terrifyingly fast, he would never have fallen into such dire straits, driven to a dead end in a mere blink. Fighting back with wild desperation, he conjured the phantom silhouette of a golden dragon. This was an ancestral secret art of the flood dragon clan, one whose formidable might Lingzhuzi and the others had once experienced firsthand. Yet seeing the golden dragon silhouette emerge, Demonic Qingzhu's blood-red pupils did not waver in the least. With an icy glare, he closed his fingers into a fist. Knowing he was outmatched, the Flood Dragon King struggled violently while clutching the Heavenly Phoenix Plume tightly in his dragon claw, pouring everything into activating the treasure. The crimson crystal barrier was on the verge of being pierced through by the flames. Yet Demonic Qingzhu was simply too fast. Before the golden dragon silhouette could fully take shape, the true demonic qi strangling it tore it apart, shattering it into pieces on the spot. *Crack! Crack!* The chains bound tightly around the Flood Dragon King. His body contorted, his bones shifted out of place, and the true essence within him ground to a halt. The Heavenly Phoenix Plume's radiance dimmed. The true demonic qi and chains lunged like specters toward the claw gripping the Heavenly Phoenix Plume. Demonic Qingzhu had seen through the Flood Dragon King's designs; he intended to seize the feather for himself. *Boom!* A tremendous crash rang out. The dragon claw split open, flesh separating from bone as it twisted in an unnatural angle. The Flood Dragon King lost all strength to hold the treasure. The flames died out. The Heavenly Phoenix Plume slipped from his grasp! In that instant, the Heavenly Phoenix Plume became the center of everyone's attention. The Grand Shaman, Old Devil Fang, the Demon Lord, and Lingzhuzi—four top experts whose strength rivaled the Flood Dragon King's—surged forward in unison. With a gentle flick of Lingzhuzi's horsetail whisk, the hairs dissolved into a sky full of stardust, locking down a swath of space like a sweeping river of stars. Carrying a boundless, ancient aura, it was a mighty Daoist art. The Demon Lord's true body merged into the Taiyin Heavenly Ghost Divine Light, flowing like the waters of the Underworld. Flanking opposite Lingzhuzi, he struck straight for the Heavenly Phoenix Plume. Peals of thunder rumbled from within the Grand Shaman as his flying light flashed like lightning. Faintly trailing behind him was the phantom of a green silkworm, tinting the lightning green. That green silkworm was none other than the Grand Shaman's natal insect gu. It was a spiritual silkworm, though not the primordial divine silkworm spoken of in Witch Clan legends, but rather the Spring Thunder Silkworm, ranked among the top ten on the Witch Insect Registry. The Spring Thunder Silkworm let out a soft trill. The bolts of lightning resembled fine threads spun from the silkworm, their momentum not falling short of the Demon Lord's or Lingzhuzi's in the slightest. The least conspicuous among them was Old Devil Fang. He produced no treasures whatsoever, merely transforming into a streak of yellow light as he pounced toward the Heavenly Phoenix Plume, yet his speed was a hair faster than even the Grand Shaman's. They had remained still until provoked, but once in motion, they struck like thunderbolts, filling the entire space with dazzling, wondrous radiance. Qin Sang and the young boy and girl hid in a corner, shivering. Both he and Bai fell silent, completely at a loss regarding their current predicament. The might of Demonic Qingzhu and the ancient demon's split soul was simply too terrifying. Even if the Demon Lord and the others joined forces wholeheartedly, it was hard to say how much of a chance they stood. Whether the appearance of the Heavenly Phoenix Plume was a blessing or a curse remained uncertain; those experts clearly had their own designs now. Tension covered Qin Sang's face as he watched the center of the fray. From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the raised platform. Atop the platform, the blood coffin and the sword qi clashed, already inseparable. The aftershocks whipped up a frightful tempest that no one dared approach. While using the Heavenly Eye divine ability to observe the situation, he extended his divine sense into the Qianjun Ring, checking if there were any treasures that could save his life. The Three Lights Jade Liquid could heal wounds. Yet here, where the slightest misstep would leave him without even ashes, it would likely be of little use. Just then, Qin Sang discovered the lotus seed he had obtained from Old Devil Mou. The lotus seed was translucent, appearing as though carved from crystal. It was the only thing left behind after Old Devil Mou died. Qin Sang recalled that it had originally been hidden inside the Dongming cold flame. He had no idea what kind of treasure it was, but Old Devil Mou had refused to abandon it even when heavily injured. After obtaining the lotus seed, Qin Sang had intended to examine it closely, only to be interrupted by the Nine Phoenix King. *I seem to remember there was a secret art...* Unable to do anything else, Qin Sang simply summoned the lotus seed and extended his divine sense inside. Astonishment soon surfaced on his face. "*Fire-Seed Golden Lotus*! To think it's such an extraordinary fire-controlling secret art! It allows one to subdue ownerless spiritual fire and condense a fire seed within the purple palace using the origin soul. Moreover, practicing this art provides immense benefits to one's divine sense. Old Devil Mou's divine sense surpassed other cultivators of the same rank—no wonder he managed to escape with his life! This lotus seed is similar to the bone flute; it serves as the vessel for the secret art and can also aid in cultivation, increasing the odds of success. It bears Old Devil Mou's mark, but now that he's dead, refining it won't be difficult given enough time..." ... The Heavenly Phoenix Plume tumbled through the air. The Flood Dragon King's eyes nearly split with rage. Yet the power Demonic Qingzhu displayed filled him with even deeper despair. Right at that moment, the Demon Lord and the others closed in, their sights set uniformly on the Heavenly Phoenix Plume. Unexpectedly, a streak of azure light arrived before any of them. Having rescued the Nine Lives Mysterious Turtle, the Demon-Suppressing Stele sped over without pausing for a breath to contest the Heavenly Phoenix Plume. Yet someone was even faster. *Whoosh!* True demonic qi swept up the Heavenly Phoenix Plume. Demonic Qingzhu suppressed the Flood Dragon King's resistance, a faint trace of mockery flashing in his blood-red eyes. He intended to claim the plume for himself and cut off any chance of escape for these people. *Buzz!* Fairy Nangui and her companion unleashed the full power of the Demon-Suppressing Stele. The true demonic qi seemed to boil, sizzling and crackling violently. The Demon-Suppressing Stele was inherently meant to restrain ancient demons. Its azure light tore open a gap in the true demonic qi like rotten wood, turning into a sharp blade that slashed fiercely toward Demonic Qingzhu. Demonic Qingzhu, however, showed no fear. With a wave of his arm, vast billows of true demonic qi rolled forth, forming layer upon layer of shrouds that surged without pause, seeking to wear down the azure light. Even the Demon-Suppressing Stele failed to frighten Demonic Qingzhu off. It looked as though the Heavenly Phoenix Plume was about to fall into Demonic Qingzhu's hands. Suddenly, the bloody light in Demonic Qingzhu's eyes flickered, and he cried out in shock and fury, "How dare you!" Immediately following that, the aura on Demonic Qingzhu fluctuated wildly, and his true demonic qi grew abruptly unstable. Within his body, Qingzhu's true soul had not been consumed by Demonic Qingzhu after all. He had long merged into one with the sword soul, taking refuge inside the spirit sword fragment. Shielded by this treasure, he had been bitterly holding on, pouring every ounce of strength into interfering with Demonic Qingzhu at this critical juncture. *An opening!* Witnessing this, everyone shouted inwardly in wild delight. None of them knew how Qingzhu had managed it given the immense disparity in strength, but they would never let such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity slip away. *Boom!* The Demon-Suppressing Stele blasted apart the true demonic qi. The Nine Lives Mysterious Turtle darted ahead of the crowd, snatching the Heavenly Phoenix Plume into his grasp before retreating in a flash under the cover of Fairy Nangui and her companion. The gap in strength was simply too vast; Qingzhu's resistance was crushed by the demonic soul an instant later. The Flood Dragon King also sought to seize the chance to escape, roaring repeatedly and struggling with all his might to snap the chains binding him.