An Attempt

The true body of the Ancestral Holy Fire was unruly and wild, raging with overbearing, unbridled arrogance. This was Qin Sang's first time coming into close contact with the Ancestral Holy Fire's true form and experiencing its genuine power. The closest he had ever been before was near the mountain summit, when he had refined astral jade. What he had seen and felt back then was merely the green shadows manifested from the fire's overflow. Only upon seeing the fire's true body did he realize its might far exceeded that. Among all the spiritual fires Qin Sang had encountered, the Ancestral Holy Fire was second only to the Nine Nether Demonic Fire and the Nanming Primordial Fire. Compared to the true Ancestral Holy Fire, the Dongming Cold Flame fell short. Perhaps back when the founding ancestor of the Qingyang Demon Sect had first sealed it within Shengang Peak, the Ancestral Holy Fire truly had been comparable to the Dongming Cold Flame, as the ancestor's cultivation in life was not far off from Master Dongming's. The Qingyang Demon Sect's founding ancestor had been one of the foremost cultivators in the Xiaohan Realm during his time. Master Dongming, on the other hand, had perished upon failing to break through into the late Nascent Soul stage. As the Ancestral Holy Fire ceaselessly absorbed Qingyang astral qi over the years, gorging on such vast amounts of energy, its power naturally grew alongside it, even undergoing a qualitative transformation. Only then did the problem become too entrenched to reverse, leaving the Qingyang Demon Sect helpless and even Xiang Qing incapable of handling it. Master Dongming was merely a figure of a past generation; the Dongming Cold Flame had been trapped on an isolated island in the Demon Sea, and shortly after emerging into the world, it was seized by Old Devil Mou, having had no endless supply of cold flame to feed upon. Qin Sang circled the Ancestral Holy Fire, evaluating whether he could subdue it. It was an ownerless fire, based originally on the Qingyang Demonic Fire; its intrinsic nature was certainly inferior to the Nine Nether Demonic Fire. Constrained as it was by the astral jade grand formation, there was great hope. "It is worth a try." After pondering for a long while, Qin Sang gave his answer, though he refrained from making any absolute promises. Hearing this, Xiang Qing could not help but be overjoyed; that Qin Sang would say even this much had greatly exceeded his expectations. A dignified Demon King would hardly spout nonsense. No one would dare claim complete certainty in subduing the Ancestral Holy Fire. He and Bing Han had gathered all kinds of secret techniques and joined forces to try several times, nearly suffering backlash each time, yet they could never completely suppress the fire. They could only restrain its true form here, to say nothing of refining it. Having seen the true body of the Ancestral Holy Fire with his own eyes, Qin Sang still dared to attempt it, which meant he had to have some genuine confidence. Qin Sang walked up to the jade platform, summoned the Twelve Demonic Banners, planted them into the ground, and then sat down cross-legged. Xiang Qing watched Qin Sang's every move with wide eyes. He held a fire seal clasped in his palm so that he could respond immediately if Qin Sang provoked the Ancestral Holy Fire and caused a catastrophe. Bing Han stood to the side as well, flames swirling around her jade-like fingers, with a faint, slender fire talisman flickering in and out of view. Having set up the formation, Qin Sang tapped his glabella to summon the fire seed. The fire seed was formed from the Nine Nether Demonic Fire, condensed into the shape of a lotus seed. It appeared ethereal and illusory, still far from coalescing into a true lotus seed. Both Xiang Qing and Bing Han could sense the aura of the lotus-seed-shaped fire seed, which was identical to that of the demonic fire within the demonic banners. They were intensely curious about Qin Sang's fire-controlling secret technique, but unfortunately, nothing could be discerned from the fire seed alone. Ignoring them, Qin Sang stared intently at the Ancestral Holy Fire. Mobilizing the demonic fire from the banners and guiding it with his divine sense, he wrapped the fire seed in flames and sent it floating forward. Seeing this, Xiang Qing adjusted the astral jade grand formation's layout to admit the fire seed, while simultaneously joining forces with Bing Han to activate the formation and suppress the Ancestral Holy Fire. Compared to the Ancestral Holy Fire's true body, the nascent fire seed appeared extraordinarily minuscule, like a flickering candle beside the bright moon. Fortunately, the presence of the other Nine Nether Demonic Fire allowed it to withstand the fire's impact. Qin Sang moved with extreme caution, carefully executing the secret technique to steer the fire seed closer to the Ancestral Holy Fire. The Nine Nether Demonic Fire held a hierarchical suppression over the Ancestral Holy Fire, yet the effect seemed to backfire—the Ancestral Holy Fire swayed even more violently, its aura growing noticeably more volatile. At this sight, all three felt their hearts clench. Qin Sang hastily pulled the fire seed back to wait until the Ancestral Holy Fire stabilized before probing again, all the while commanding the Heavenly Eye Butterfly to monitor the fire's subtlest fluctuations. Time crept past. The three remained motionless, like carved wooden statues. Under their close coordination, the fire seed drew ever closer to the true body of the Ancestral Holy Fire. At this point, Qin Sang halted its advance. Closing his eyes tight, he channeled the Fire Seed Golden Lotus with all his might, gently sending forth streams of restrictions. Before long, Xiang Qing noticed with delight that the deep-green true body of the Ancestral Holy Fire seemed drawn to the fire seed, forming a protrusion. A wisp of the Ancestral Holy Fire touched the fire seed and appeared to be consumed by it. Disaster struck without warning! That wisp of Ancestral Holy Fire suddenly trembled, causing its main body to show signs of erupting and lashing against the grand formation. The three felt a jolt of alarm. Fortunately, their coordination was seamless. Xiang Qing and Bing Han drove the grand formation, while Qin Sang immediately withdrew the fire seed to avoid the backlash. Only when the Ancestral Holy Fire calmed down once more did the tension on their faces recede. "There truly are countless wonders in this world. Fellow Daoist Mingyue's secret technique can actually refine an ownerless spiritual fire directly. By gradually whittling down the Ancestral Holy Fire's strength like this, Fellow Daoist Xiang will surely find suppressing it much easier. Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Xiang, on finally having a way to resolve your sect's hidden crisis!" Bing Han first praised the Fire Seed Golden Lotus, then offered her congratulations to Xiang Qing. Xiang Qing's face was alight with joy. Although the first attempt had failed, every sign pointed toward Qin Sang's method having a real chance of success. "During this period, I shall trouble Fellow Daoist Mingyue to expend great effort!" Xiang Qing cupped his hands to Qin Sang, then produced a jade slip. "This secret technique is used to purify and refine the Qingyang Demonic Fire. It will be helpful to you in refining the Ancestral Holy Fire, so you might as well study it. However, it is one of the core secret arts within our sect's foundational dharma, a matter of paramount importance. I hope you can understand—please swear an oath first that you will never transmit it to anyone else." "Tempering the essence... Could this be your sect's secret technique for refining a fire seed?" Qin Sang's heart stirred, and he asked. Xiang Qing nodded. "Indeed. Our sect has passed down fire seeds from generation to generation, but they are not absorbed directly. The Qingyang Demonic Fire cultivated by each person carries their own unique imprint. The spiritual fire grows alongside the cultivator, the two having long since fused into one. The auras within the Ancestral Holy Fire are even more motley—one might even say chaotic. If you employ this secret technique to purify the Ancestral Holy Fire first, you can alleviate the fire's rejection, which should improve your chances of success. Furthermore, there is another advantage. While absorbing someone else's spiritual fire directly can boost your strength rapidly, it leaves behind hidden dangers. By using this secret art to purify the spiritual fire, retaining only its purest power before refining it into your body, the short-term gains may not be as massive, but you will be able to improve steadily in the future, and the chance of the fire turning on you later will be greatly reduced." This matter concerned the very survival of the Qingyang Demon Sect. The higher Qin Sang's chances of success, the greater the hope of suppressing the Ancestral Holy Fire. Not only would this resolve his sect's looming disaster, but Xiang Qing would also be able to enhance his own strength later by refining the fire himself. Since this served three purposes at once, Xiang Qing naturally had no reason to be stingy with the secret technique. Qin Sang swore the oath and eagerly took the jade slip. Sinking his divine sense into it, he quickly scanned its contents. Listening to Xiang Qing explain the secret art's effects, Qin Sang recalled several thoughts he had once had while practicing the Fire Seed Golden Lotus as he examined the jade slip.