"The fire sea hasn't fully reached shore yet."
Li Fei stood atop the Horn of the Rhinoceros, gazing down at the fiercely crimson, flowing sea of fire beneath her feet. Thick aquatic spiritual energy had long enveloped both her and Lei Xiuyuan, yet even so, the extreme heat waves still felt like they might melt them both.
The Eastern Sea's azure, enchanting waters had all been swallowed by Guixu, leaving only endless flames in the deep oceanic abyss now. Thick smoke intertwined with raging fire, creating a scene straight from the underworld. Only Li Fei's bottomless spiritual energy could barely withstand the fire sea's might. Without her presence, even the copper-headed, iron-boned Yaksa wouldn't dare cross this sea—they'd be severely wounded before flying even a hundred li.
Lei Xiuyuan leaped onto the Horn of the Rhinoceros, bending to rest his chin on her shoulder as he silently contemplated the boundless fire sea below. Li Fei grasped his hand and asked softly, "How did you escape from the Heavenly Thunder Fire Sea back then? Weren't you afraid?"
Lei Xiuyuan murmured, "Going to the Central Land alone but returning with two people—quite a bargain."
This wasn't some business transaction, yet he called it a bargain. Li Fei rapped him on the head. Ahead still lay the fire sea, and beyond it, the pitch-black, fathomless oceanic abyss. No one knew what might lurk within, but past these natural dangers, the mysterious overseas lands awaited them.
Her birthplace. Lei Xiuyuan's birthplace. And all those bizarre, fantastical sights and customs, along with the strange, temperamentally unknown Overseas Foreigners. Everything her Master had seen—and hadn't seen—she would experience them all carefully.
The Central Land where she'd lived for seventeen years gradually receded behind them. It was incomparably beautiful yet equally cruel. If given the choice, even now she would willingly abandon her identity as the Graftwood Seed, return to Green Mound, to that little courtyard, live incognito—even never using Immortal Techniques again, pretending to be an ordinary mortal through and through.
Yet they still departed, heading toward origins—origins utterly unfamiliar to her.
Unwilling to let sorrow and reluctance dominate her thoughts, Li Fei smiled. "Master said the island closest to the Central Land has a particularly delicious flower. When we arrive, before anything else, we must try that flower."
"You mean the Twelfth Life Flower?" Lei Xiuyuan spoke knowingly, mentioning a flower name she'd never heard before.
"Twelfth Life Flower?"
"Remember those flowers sealed in glass spheres we saw in that Guangshenghui town last time? Though those were fake, they weren't completely fabricated. The Thousands of Islands truly have such flowers, called Twelve Lives—they bloom and wither once every shichen (two hours), twelve times in a day, hence the name."
Li Fei found this fascinating and pressed, "Can you really eat them? Are they tasty?"
Lei Xiuyuan couldn't help laughing. "These flowers are extremely rare. It's said eating one induces hallucinations of having reincarnated twelve times over a full day. As for taste—I hear they're exquisite, though I've never tried them."
How could such strange flowers exist in this world? Li Fei had initially forced a smile and casually mentioned it, but his explanation genuinely piqued her interest. Truthfully, as long as Lei Xiuyuan was by her side, no matter where they went, the regrets in her heart wouldn't cut too deep. Even now, crossing this scorching, blistering fire sea, she could still keep smiling.Yet, they had been flying over the sea of flames for far too long. The remnants of the fire sea that hadn't yet reached the shore in the Eastern Sea's abyss only spanned four hundred li. By now, they should have traveled over a thousand li—so why was the fire sea still beneath them? From the extreme distance behind them came the faint sound of dragon cries, an all-too-familiar noise—the piercing howl of wind formed by the collision of scorching waves and cold gusts when the fire sea arrived.
Li Fei abruptly halted the Horn of the Rhinoceros, staring down at the fire sea in shock and uncertainty. The flames were rapidly flowing and surging back toward the open sea—the fire sea hadn't reached the shore?! It was retreating?!
A sudden sense of foreboding gripped her. She turned to look toward the direction of the Central Land's Eastern Sea. The colossal fire dragon that had spanned the heavens and earth, previously blocked by the Aura Wall, had vanished without her noticing. She could even sense, from the far distance behind them, countless spiritual energy fluctuations of Celestials rapidly approaching.
What was happening?!
Lei Xiuyuan's arms gradually tightened around her, his voice grave: "Those hiding in the sea abyss have all retreated... Is that thunderclouds?"
Li Fei narrowed her eyes. Indeed, the previously clear division between black and white in the eastern and western skies was once again being obscured by gathering clouds. While the fire sea retreated, thunderclouds coalesced and drifted toward them. The Celestials who had finished reading the stele inscriptions must have finally come to their senses. Seeing the fire sea receding, they were now giving chase.
The thunderclouds arrived with terrifying speed. In the blink of an eye, the entire sky darkened. Within the swirling masses of black and crimson clouds, muffled thunder rolled continuously, their overwhelming pressure like a giant hand pressing down, making it hard to breathe. Without hesitation, Li Fei urged the Horn of the Rhinoceros to fly at full speed toward the Central Land. The fire sea could still be dealt with, but a strike from the Heavenly Thunder would likely mean death or severe injury.
Yet no matter how fast the Horn flew, it couldn't outpace the gathering thunderclouds. The oppressive feeling grew stronger—the Heavenly Thunder was about to strike. Li Fei channeled the last remnants of her spiritual energy, preparing to cast a Spiritual Qi Net around Lei Xiuyuan, when suddenly he forcefully pushed her down onto the Horn, covering her completely with his body.
He only had time to say one thing: "Protect yourself!"
A bloody lightning bolt suddenly struck down. The Horn of the Rhinoceros trembled violently as three consecutive Heavenly Thunder strikes hit. Only after what felt like an eternity did the strange and terrifying thunderclaps finally erupt, shaking the Horn so violently it nearly threw them off. Li Fei's ears rang, her vision alternating between black and white. Lei Xiuyuan's body remained motionless above her, shielding her. Amid the violent tremors, she could barely make out his form, now radiant with golden light—brighter than she'd ever seen before.
Three more Heavenly Thunder strikes followed in quick succession, their crimson glow illuminating the heavens and earth. Li Fei felt something warm and wet dripping onto her face and chest—drop by drop, slowly at first, then faster. Her chaotic thoughts suddenly stilled.
A dense, water-like Spiritual Qi Net instantly enveloped the stubborn man above her, whose face was now covered in blood. She wrapped her arms around his limp body as his blood splattered across her face and clothes. Along with the blood fell something else—a slender, bloodstained horn.
Her heart stopped. Clutching the broken horn tightly, she whispered his name: "Xiu Yuan."Why? Why was the sea of fire retreating, and why had the Heavenly Thunder reappeared? It was as if they were waiting specifically for her. Six bolts of Heavenly Thunder—he had foolishly remained silent and used his body to block all six for her. Did he want to die right before her eyes? Always so stubborn, always like this. Whether as the cultivation disciple Lei Xiuyuan or the Yaksa Lei Xiuyuan, he had never changed. This infuriating habit of his.
Lei Xiuyuan’s short breaths brushed against her neck as he let out a low, self-deprecating murmur: "Not... a curse..."
Not a curse? What did that mean?
No one gave her an explanation. His head slumped heavily against her chest, and he fell still. The sea of fire beneath her feet surged upward, while the thunderclouds above descended like a heavy curtain. Li Fei could only hold him tightly, shielding him from the flames and thunder.
The heavenly fire scorched her body, countless bolts of Heavenly Thunder striking her. It felt as though her body had shattered into countless fragments, yet it remained intact. The only sensation left was in her hands, still clutching Lei Xiuyuan protectively against her chest. Was the Heavenly Thunder Fire Sea not a natural barrier but something waiting for her? Meant to destroy her?
Yet she did not die. She couldn’t even faint like Lei Xiuyuan had—only pain remained, an agony that tore through her heart and shattered her inch by inch, countless times worse than when Zhen Yunzi had tried to refine her alive. Every time she thought her body had split open, bleeding and charred, the next moment she would find herself unharmed, even her clothes untouched by the flames.
Why? Why? She didn’t understand.
But now, she no longer wanted to. Instinctively, the Source Spiritual Qi within her poured endlessly into the Spiritual Qi Net. She wouldn’t let Lei Xiuyuan die. No one could take him from her—not the Celestials of the Central Land who despised them, nor the most terrifying force between heaven and earth, the Heavenly Thunder Fire Sea.
The Celestials who had chased after them in haste watched in horror at the unbelievable sight before them. Only after reading the Spirit Stele Li Fei had left behind did they realize the sea of fire trapped within the Aura Wall had somehow retreated back to the Eastern Sea. The records and secrets she left behind did not satisfy them—instead, it drove them mad with even greater curiosity.
Seizing the opportunity of the retreating flames, the unwilling Celestials gave chase, pursuing them for thousands of miles. In the distance, thunderclouds gathered, and towering flames erupted from the sea abyss. Darkness and crimson merged abruptly, and the endless expanse of thunderclouds and fire shrank in an instant into a sphere only a few zhang in height. Within its hazy depths, two figures seemed to be trapped.
Though the sudden transformation of the Heavenly Thunder Fire Sea was shocking beyond measure, none dared approach. The overwhelming might that shook heaven and earth remained, and the terrifying peals of thunder continued—only now, they struck solely at the figures within the sphere. The raging sea of fire burned fiercely, its heat unbearable, yet it too was concentrated entirely on that one person.
After watching for a long while, Cuixuan Xianren suddenly spoke: "This must be divine retribution! Punishment for the sins of the Overseas Foreigners!"
Yet his words found little agreement. So-called divine retribution for sins was nothing more than the fragile fantasies of human hearts. All things in this world had cause and effect; the Heavenly Dao did not judge good or evil. The evil sown today would bear evil fruit tomorrow—every heavenly tribulation faced by cultivators was the result of their own actions.But when had Jiang Li Fei planted the seeds of this Heavenly Thunder Fire Sea?
No one knew, and no one was willing to leave. Countless other Celestials stationed along the Eastern Sea coast had also gathered to witness this strange phenomenon, drawn by the spectacle.
Sang Hua Jun frowned as he watched for a long while, then sighed softly, "What if she can't endure it and perishes within?"
Before his words faded, a delicate, luminous little horn suddenly flew out from within, spinning rapidly. While others might not recognize it, Cuixuan Xianren and those who had suffered before immediately cried out in alarm, "Danger! She's going to absorb spiritual energy! Retreat quickly!"
But the warning came too late. The Horn of the Rhinoceros spun faster and faster, and the Celestials felt the spiritual energy within their bodies draining at an unprecedented rate, being eagerly drawn into that whirling little horn.
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