Lotus Pedestal

"This poor monk shall accompany Fellow Daoist." Master Huaiyin seemed to have an interest in Fire Rhinoceros Island as well. Delighted to have assistance, Poison King turned toward Old Devil Fan. Old Devil Fan wore a sour expression, clearly having little enthusiasm for Fire Rhinoceros Island. Dishou Mountain held far greater appeal for him, so he said, "The two of you had best be quick. Once I reach the foot of the mountain, I will not wait long." After agreeing on a method of contact, the three split up. Old Devil Fan headed straight for Dishou Mountain to scout ahead. Master Huaiyin and Poison King took a detour toward Fire Rhinoceros Island. Even without a map of the Wuxiang Immortal Sect, the two could discern the clues. They had already entered the sect's heartland, and neither the surrounding halls nor the restrictions were ordinary. After flying for a time, they arrived at the flame vein. Seeing the ruined state of Fire Rhinoceros Island, both focused their gazes, looks of surprise flashing across their eyes. "That great battle long ago was even more brutal than the rumors claim." Poison King sighed, looking around the flame vein. "This place should be the Fire Phase Hall, one of the five branches of the Wuxiang Immortal Sect, yet it was reduced to such a wretched state." Master Huaiyin was less sentimental. His eyes shone sharply as he surveyed Fire Rhinoceros Island. Looking toward the convergence of the magma cascades, he pointed out in a single breath, "The floating island's Central Palace is already in ruins!" As he spoke, he turned toward Dishou Mountain. "The halls upon the mountain appear intact, and their restrictions show no sign of disorder." The two places formed a stark contrast. Poison King hummed in agreement. "Old Devil Fan was right. This floating island was virtually smashed to pieces. Even if it was once the cultivation ground for the Fire Phase branch, it must have been looted bare. Searching the island would only be a waste of time. Anyone hoping to find Wuxiang treasures must look upon the mountain." "What method does Fellow Daoist intend to use to harvest the fire poison?" Master Huaiyin took a step forward, standing at the edge of the flame vein and gazing down at the sea of crimson fire. Whether in scale or purity, the flame vein here ranked among the top three Master Huaiyin had seen in his entire life, but compared to other flame veins, it possessed nothing particularly extraordinary. He had no idea where the fire poison Poison King spoke of might be. Poison King looked up toward the upper reaches of Fire Rhinoceros Island and said, "Some flame veins develop conditions where flames accumulate and mutate due to unique environments, taking vast stretches of time to evolve into fire poison. I have located several such places in the outside world, but none were ideal. This island's formation draws upon the power of the flame vein automatically, so it will inevitably converge in one place." "So we must still ascend the island," Master Huaiyin said in realization. Poison King nodded. His gaze swept past the relatively intact northern section of the floating island and finally rested on the Central Palace, pointing at the spot where the magma cascades converged. "Ascending via the crimson chains would be the safer route, but breaking the restrictions would take too much time. The fiery aura there is fierce, yet it offers a shortcut." Master Huaiyin's expression grew slightly solemn. "Going against the flow, the surge of origin qi might be more than the floating island's remnant formation can withstand." Poison King dismissed the concern. "No matter! With the energies stirred up, it will be easier for me to sense the scent of fire poison. Let us conclude this quickly. If I cause Master to miss an opportunity upon the mountain, it would be my sin." "This poor monk desires nothing, so gains and losses mean little to me." Master Huaiyin spoke with an open heart. At their realm, every word and deed carried cause and consequence. He had left the Western Lands and come to Zhongzhou to seek a spiritual item to break through his bottleneck; encountering the emergence of the Wuxiang Immortal Sect's remnant manor was merely an unexpected coincidence. There was no news of that spiritual item here, and the manor was unlikely to contain any treasures useful to a body cultivator, so why fret over gains and losses? Besides, seizing the initiative did not always guarantee victory. Poison King voiced his admiration, but his mind remained unchanged. Committing the layout of Fire Rhinoceros Island to memory, he arrived at a conclusion similar to the incarnation's and flew toward the magma cascades. Master Huaiyin strode forward, his monk's shoes stepping directly onto the surface of the magma. With every step, he left behind a distinct footprint that lingered for a long time without dispersing. The monk's shoes were not magical treasures, merely ordinary mortal cloth, yet stepping across the magma left them entirely unharmed. Master Huaiyin's control over his physical force had already reached perfection! As they drew close to the magma cascades, blast after blast of fiery waves surged toward them. This was not just the simple heat of magma. It carried the fiery aura accumulated over ten thousand years within Fire Rhinoceros Island, fused with the power of the remnant formation. It was extraordinarily fierce, such that even an expert of Poison King's stature dared not be careless. Pausing briefly, a grey vortex formed out of thin air above his head, expanding wider and wider until it transformed into a toxic cloud hovering above. Summoning the toxic cloud to shield himself, Poison King nodded to Master Huaiyin and surged upward close along the magma cascade! *Whoosh!* The toxic cloud soared into the sky. At first, they faced only the pressure of the fiery aura, which the toxic cloud could easily withstand. But as they climbed higher, the flow of qi grew increasingly chaotic. Disparate, violent forces tangled together, each presenting a distinct barrier. Over the past ten thousand years, these forces had fused with the remnant formation to achieve a spontaneous equilibrium. With two uninvited guests abruptly barging in, that balance shattered at once. *Crash!* The magma cascade suddenly split apart, and boiling magma poured straight down upon them. Poison King remained unhurried. He pointed upward, and the toxic cloud flashed with grey light, turning incomparably thick and heavy. *Boom!* The toxic cloud shuddered, bracing against the falling magma through sheer force. Moreover, green light flashed at the center of the toxic cloud, and a small green arrow abruptly shot out. It vanished deep into the magma in a flash, followed by a thunderous roar as it punched a path straight through, throwing the surrounding energies into utter turmoil. Just then, Poison King heard a Buddhist chant beside him, accompanied by clear, radiant Buddhist light. Master Huaiyin raised his right fist. His physical body gleamed with faint Buddhist radiance, his fist resembling cast gold as he swung it forward with an airy lightness. In an instant, countless fist shadows blotted out the sky. Furthermore, each fist shadow appeared precisely where the eruption of energy was at its most violent, suppressing the surges and guiding the aftershocks outward to minimize the impact on Fire Rhinoceros Island. Doing so significantly slowed the island's collapse. "This poor monk is unversed in formations and restrictions. While Fellow Daoist breaks through, this monk shall handle the aftermath," Master Huaiyin's voice rang like a great bell. Poison King offered his thanks and pushed forward to break through with total confidence! *** Upon Fire Rhinoceros Island. The incarnation was intently analyzing the remnant formation. Following a passage from the underground palace, he returned to the surface through the fire dragon sculpture and entered a palace that had not yet completely collapsed, finally confirming the position of the formation eye. Yet upon finding the formation eye, the sight left him dumbfounded. Fire Rhinoceros Island had no hidden palace; the formation eye was built openly within a palace hall. However, that hall could hardly even be called a ruin anymore. Back then, this had undoubtedly been the site of the most intense battle. Only a few surviving fire-jade foundations remained to hint at the palace's former scale; everything inside had been blasted into fine powder. The crimson immortal pendant was naturally nowhere to be seen. Unwilling to give up, the incarnation searched the nearby surviving halls for clues. At the very least, finding a few inheritances of the Fire Phase Hall would offer some small consolation. Yet after a thorough search, he came up empty-handed. That was until the tremors caused by the two men forcing their way through reached the island. Sensing the disturbance, the incarnation's expression shifted slightly. Sensing more closely, he was quite surprised. The disturbance was actually coming from the magma cascade. No wonder the warning measures he had left behind had failed to trigger. The magma cascade was not far from the formation eye. The incarnation flashed back to the vicinity of the formation eye, concealing his aura and channeling energy into his eyes. Piercing through layers of flame, he saw the magma cascade violently shaking, waves surging in all directions. The intruders were relying entirely on immense strength to force a path up through the magma cascade. The scene there was far too chaotic to make out their figures. *At a time like this, who hasn't gone to Dishou Mountain?* he wondered. Zhu Wudao had leaked the Deity Transformation opportunity, and Mo Xingdao was present as well. Su Zinan and the white-robed man were also unaccounted for. Could it be one of them? He quickly dismissed his own guess. The intruders unleashed some unknown divine ability, causing the magma cascade to violently reverse and create a pocket of vacuum, allowing them to surge upward a considerable distance. Through the gaps in the magma cascade, the incarnation finally caught a few glimpses. There were actually two people inside the magma! A grey cloud spread out there, accompanied by what seemed to be flickering Buddhist light. *Buddhist light... Which eminent Buddhist monk has arrived?* The incarnation was astonished, never expecting it to be someone who hadn't entered earlier. The eminent monks of Ganlu Zen Monastery were still in Jinyu Province. Even if they had received the news immediately after the remnant manor opened, they could not have made it here in time. He had no idea who this newcomer could be. And what about the other one? The incarnation recalled that fleeting glance. That grey cloud had given him a bone-chilling sensation that took a long time to settle, nothing like a Buddhist cultivator. Yet now was not the time to ponder the matter. The two were advancing far too quickly; they would reach Fire Rhinoceros Island and run into him directly in no time. Unlike Bingyi Palace, there was no flag formation here for him to control. His true body could not arrive in time either. He might barely contend with a single great cultivator, but facing two, he had no choice but to retreat! *The situation is growing chaotic, and the variables are multiplying!* the incarnation sighed inward. Dividing their forces had been meant to prevent Fire Rhinoceros Island from being picked clean by latecomers, but he hadn't expected them to arrive so fast, and two great cultivators at once. Though he hadn't found any treasures, the Fire Jade Centipede had certainly profited. Without lingering, the incarnation retreated immediately, returning to the underground palace via the fire dragon sculpture. During this time, the Fire Jade Centipede had been voraciously devouring fire spirits, yet the phantoms above the Flowing Fire Phantasm Pool had not thinned in the slightest. Each time it devoured one, a new fire spirit was born within the spirit pool. It was just that newly born spirits were crimson, only gradually transforming to gold over time. When the incarnation returned, he saw that the Fire Jade Centipede had already reached near the bottom of the pool. Only a few of the strongest golden fire spirits remained below; all the rest were crimson. At that moment, the centipede was perched atop the head of a crimson fire phantom, its body swollen several times over into a plump ball, stretching open its tightly overlapping back armor. Its originally slender hundred legs now looked more like fine fuzz on either side of its body. Drowsy and sluggish, it was the very picture of being stuffed to bursting. Forget refining the flowing fire in the pool, it couldn't even devour the remaining fire spirits. Stretched to its absolute limit, it paddled its short little legs and looked back at the incarnation with a pathetic, pleading gaze. The incarnation looked at it with utter disdain. "I gave you a chance, and you couldn't deliver!" He reached out and summoned the Fire Jade Centipede back into his palm, finding it surprisingly heavy. Looking at the spirit pool, he pondered briefly before flicking his fingers to shoot out several slender beams of Ice Soul Divine Light. *Whoosh!* The divine light shot toward each of the golden fire spirits, freezing them solid before they could even react. The next instant, the divine light contracted, leaving behind fist-sized lumps of ice that fell into the incarnation's palm. Golden light flickered at the center of the ice lumps, encasing fire spirits that had been shrunken countless times over. Though it looked effortless, this was a method the incarnation had deliberated over for a long time. These golden fire spirits had been nurtured for many years. Had it not been for the restrictions of the spirit pool holding them back, they would have developed sentience long ago and become powerful spirits capable of summoning wind and rain. Even so, they had absorbed the purest power of the Flowing Fire Phantasm Pool. If the Fire Jade Centipede could digest them all, it would surely reap immense benefits. It was just a pity that the incarnation had no way to collect the flowing fire in the pool, and with danger imminent, he had no time to consider things more carefully. While gathering the ice lumps, the incarnation cast a casual glance at the spirit pool and let out a soft exclamation. Forcibly sealing the fire spirits just now had agitated the pool's restrictions, causing the newly born fire spirits to collapse and dissolve, stirring up rolling waves of fire within the pool. At the very bottom of the pool, beneath the flowing fire, something seemed to be resting. Any treasure dropped into the pool ought to have been reduced to ashes. What could have resisted the burning of the flowing fire and survived to this day? Earlier, fearful of disturbing the golden fire spirits, he hadn't searched the bottom of the pool. The incarnation flicked the Fire Jade Centipede. The centipede rolled over with difficulty, paddling its short legs as it flew into the pool, returning shortly after with an object coiled in its grasp. "The shape isn't right!" The incarnation was disappointed. This item was not the crimson immortal pendant from the Taiji Immortal Terrace. Instead, it was a treasure shaped like a lotus pedestal, though it possessed only an outermost layer of lotus petals. Further inside was a ring of fiery red flames. The flames seemed both real and illusory. After being baked by the flowing fire of the pool for ten thousand years, the treasure had not lost its color. The incarnation could sense neither temperature nor energy fluctuations from it, realizing that the red flames were not spiritual fire, but the outward manifestation of the treasure itself. The red flames formed a circle, seemingly meant to cradle something, yet the center was empty, leaving only a smooth, rounded indentation. The incarnation attempted to pour true essence into it, but there was no response. It resembled neither a magic treasure nor a spirit treasure. He could not tell what purpose it served. Yet having survived at the bottom of the pool for so many years, it was undoubtedly extraordinary. The incarnation shook his head, deciding not to dwell on it. Stowing the lotus pedestal away for now, he ordered the Fire Jade Centipede to search the pool once more, but nothing else remained. Without further hesitation, the incarnation retreated out of the underground palace. Along the way, he opened up the centipede's senses. With the fire spirits removed, all interference was gone, yet there were no other treasures that caught the centipede's interest. This corroborated the incarnation's suspicion that the immortal pendant had already been carried outside. Curiously, the Fire Jade Centipede had grown inexplicably restless during this time, perhaps suffering from excessive internal heat after devouring so many fire spirits. Unable to make sense of it, the incarnation could only soothe the centipede and quicken his pace. As he retreated, he erased his tracks as much as possible, pulling back from the Central Palace area. His mind drifted back to the lotus pedestal he had just acquired; for some reason, it felt oddly familiar, and a sudden thought struck him. *Why does the indentation in the center of that lotus pedestal look so much like the Ruyi Orb...?* Just then, thunderous roars echoed across Fire Rhinoceros Island as it violently convulsed. A surge of fire erupted amid the boundless flames. Though far less imposing than the pillar of eerie blue light from the destruction of Bingyi Palace, it still reached several thousand feet into the sky before slowly falling back. As the wave of fire surged, two figures took advantage of the momentum to land upon Fire Rhinoceros Island, heading straight into the Central Palace. *Thud!* Master Huaiyin touched down, brushing away the drifting crimson flames around him. Before he could even survey his surroundings, he saw Poison King look overjoyed, eagerly dashing toward the distant halls. Without asking questions, Master Huaiyin strode after him. Before long, the two found the shattered fire dragon sculpture amid the rubble. Poison King swept his gaze over it, raised his hand, and smashed the sculpture, exposing the well beneath the pedestal. Descending down the shaft, they quickly arrived at the underground palace. The sight of the underground palace met their eyes. Seeing the Flowing Fire Phantasm Pool brimming with golden flowing fire, Poison King burst into loud, resonant laughter. "Heaven aids me!" The laughter was deafening. Poison King flicked his sleeve, sending a thin black line shooting into the Flowing Fire Phantasm Pool, where it vanished in an instant. Not long after, the luster of the golden flowing fire seemed to dim slightly, and a faint black line could be seen swimming within the pool, flickering in and out of view.