Chapter 622: The Nightmare Breaking Talisman and the Dou Saint Puppets
"Blood Axe Xiao Chen!"
As Mo Yu recognized the figure wielding the massive blood-red axe, Xiao Yan also identified the unique mark of the Xiao Clan. With a burst of movement, he flew forward.
During a brief lull in the battle, Xiao Yan seized the opportunity. Staring intently at the gaunt man, he cupped his hands and spoke in a respectful tone, "May I ask the name of this senior? I am Xiao Yan, a member of the Xiao Clan."
"Xiao Clan…"
Upon hearing those words, the gaunt man's movements immediately stopped. His indifferent eyes flickered with waves of emotion as he stared at Xiao Yan. Slowly, a strange sense of familiarity began to form in his heart—the unmistakable scent of shared blood.
"You... you're from the Xiao Clan?" the man asked hoarsely, his voice finally escaping his lips.
Xiao Yan quickly nodded, a hint of joy appearing on his face.
"Who am I?" the gaunt man asked in confusion.
"You are Xiao Chen, Blood Axe Xiao Chen!" Gu Nanhai suddenly called out.
"Xiao Chen..." The man's brows furrowed, and he muttered the name to himself.
"Elder Gu, do you know this senior?" Xun'er asked, astonished, as she approached.
"I've never met him, but I've seen that blood-red axe in the ancient records. There was once a prodigious figure from the Xiao Clan known for wielding a massive blood axe. His name was Xiao Chen!" Gu Nanhai explained. "Xiao Chen was a genius. He was Xiao Xuan's cousin, but he was a free spirit, unpredictable in temperament. Before he gained fame, many powerful figures fell to his axe. But one day, he mysteriously disappeared, and no matter how hard the Xiao Clan searched, they couldn't find him. I never expected him to be here."
"That's right. Our Thunder Clan also recorded his story. Shortly after his disappearance, rumors about the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame began to surface," Lei Jizhou added, frowning.
"So, this is Senior Xiao Chen. It seems that by staying here, he escaped the great catastrophe that wiped out the Xiao Clan. In a way, he was lucky," Mo Yu remarked as he looked at Blood Axe Xiao Chen, walking over to stand beside Xiao Yan.
If not for being controlled by the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame and turned into a Fire Slave, Xiao Chen would likely have been destroyed along with the rest of the Xiao Clan. He might never have seen the light of day again.
Xiao Yan remained silent, gazing at the man who seemed to be his ancestor. Xiao Chen's face showed signs of struggle, as if he were resisting something.
"He's trying to fight off the control of the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame," Lei Jizhou said in a low voice.
Xiao Chen's body trembled as he leaned on his giant axe, and pale white flames slowly seeped from his pores.
Seeing this, Mo Yu reacted quickly. He rushed to Xiao Chen's side and placed a firm hand on his shoulder. Black lightning instantly spread from Mo Yu's palm, wrapping around Xiao Chen's body. In the next moment, Xiao Chen's trembling stopped, and the pale flames that had been leaking from him slowly dissipated.
"Phew…"
Xiao Chen gasped for breath, his chest heaving. After a moment, he lifted his head and gave Mo Yu a grateful look. His gaze then shifted to the clan mark on Xiao Yan's forehead, and with a hoarse voice, he asked, "How is the Xiao Clan now?"
Hearing this, Xiao Yan fell silent. After a brief pause, he softly replied, "The Xiao Clan no longer exists."
With that, Xiao Yan briefly explained the current state of the Xiao family.
Xiao Chen remained silent the entire time, but his clenched fists slowly began to bleed. After a long while, his voice trembled as he spoke, "Even Brother Xiao Xuan is gone…"
Seeing Xiao Chen's reaction, Mo Yu understood his pain. Learning that your family had been wiped out would be heartbreaking for anyone.
"This is the Demon Flame Realm. Ancestor Xiao Chen, could you lead us to where the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame resides?" Xiao Yan asked softly after a moment of silence.
"You are no match for the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame," Xiao Chen replied, shaking his head, his voice still hoarse.
"Staying here offers no way out, either," Mo Yu smiled and added.
Xiao Chen lifted his head and exchanged glances with Mo Yu before slowly nodding. He then turned and began walking toward the final door.
"Let's follow him," Mo Yu said, glancing at Xiao Yan before they all quietly followed Xiao Chen.
Creak!
The group silently trailed behind Xiao Chen as he pushed open the massive door. Beyond it lay a long staircase stretching into the distance, with a huge altar visible at its end.
Looking at the altar at the end of the stairs, Xiao Yan smiled faintly and was the first to step onto the staircase, steadily walking toward the end. After a slight hesitation, Xiao Chen, Xun'er, and the others quickly followed.
Without a word, they climbed the steps. After about ten minutes, they finally neared the altar.
Mo Yu looked up and saw a massive throne standing silently on the altar. Sitting on the throne was a figure in a white robe. Milky white flames swirled around the figure, constantly shifting and transforming.
The figure in the white robe sat there silently, with no aura emanating from him, but to Mo Yu and the others, his presence was unnerving.
As soon as their feet touched the altar, the white-robed figure slowly opened his eyes. His handsome face broke into a smile that was both gentle and dazzling.
"Defeat me, and you will obtain the source of the Demon Flame. If not, you will remain here forever, becoming one of my Fire Slaves," he said softly, his voice warm and kind. Yet as his words echoed out, it felt as though the very space around them trembled.
Gu Nanhai and the others became grave, and deep down, they felt a sense of defeat. The man before them seemed unbeatable!
Mo Yu, however, seemed to have thought of something. Rubbing his chin, he glanced at Xiao Yan.
If his guess was correct, the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame wasn't invincible. The key to defeating it lay with Xiao Yan, for the fragments of the map formed by the flame were not just ordinary guides.
Sure enough, Xiao Yan let out a long breath, a tired expression on his face. His deep voice echoed across the altar.
"The Purifying Lotus Demon Flame... It seems you've inherited the legacy of the Purifying Lotus Saint. Without it, you wouldn't be able to master the Nightmare Mist to such an extent. I must admit, the illusions you create are even more realistic than the Bodhi Ancient Tree's. However, no matter how real an illusion is, it remains an illusion."
Xiao Yan's low voice reverberated across the altar. The gentle smile on the handsome man's face gradually stiffened.
"Nightmare Illusion, break!"
At that moment, Xiao Yan's face became serious. He raised his hand, and a drop of blood flew from his fingertips, quickly forming into a strange blood-red symbol.
"A Nightmare Breaking Talisman? How do you know that?!"
Seeing the blood symbol, the white-robed man's face immediately darkened.
"Oh, so that's the Nightmare Breaking Talisman granted to Xiao Yan by the remnant soul of the Purifying Lotus Saint, hidden within the map fragments," Mo Yu murmured, raising his eyebrows.
"Go!" Xiao Yan commanded, flicking his fingers. The blood talisman shot forward and stuck firmly to the space ahead.
Instantly, the space around them trembled violently. Under the excited gazes of the group, it finally exploded with a loud bang!
As the space shattered, Xiao Yan and the others suddenly felt a dizzying sensation deep in their minds, forcing them to quickly open their eyes.
When they opened their eyes, they found themselves in a sea of lava. From time to time, milky white flames would shoot up from the molten rock, which stretched as far as the eye could see. It seemed like this entire space was a sea of magma.
Massive floating rocks hovered above the lava, and Xiao Yan and the others stood on top of one of these stones. Behind them, a giant silver circle slowly rotated in the air.
"Did we make it out?" Xun'er asked, relieved as she took in the unfamiliar surroundings.
"Is this still an illusion?" Yao Lao asked cautiously.
"Haha, although the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame inherited the Purifying Lotus Saint's techniques, it's unlikely it can maintain this illusion after Xiao Yan shattered it," Mo Yu chuckled.
Xiao Yan nodded and added, "That's right. The Purifying Lotus Saint was once said to be the strongest being closest to the Dou Di level. But in the end, he was consumed by the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame, leading to his downfall. After his death, the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame inherited his abilities, including the Nightmare Mist technique. This ability allowed the Purifying Lotus Saint to trap an entire city of people in an illusion for hundreds of years. The Demon Flame inherited this technique, but the Nightmare Breaking Talisman gifted to me by the Purifying Lotus Saint's remnant soul is the key to breaking that illusion."
"I see..." The group finally understood why the powerful illusion had been so easily broken by Xiao Yan.
Roar!
Suddenly, Xiao Chen let out another low growl, his face filled with struggle. In a hoarse and urgent voice, he said, "The Purifying Lotus Demon Flame is trying to control me again!"
Mo Yu had already anticipated this. Without hesitation, he touched Xiao Chen's forehead, releasing a surge of soul power that quickly formed a black lotus on his forehead. As the black lotus took shape, the struggle on Xiao Chen's face slowly faded.
Although using the Black Lotus Soul Thunder to suppress the power of the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame was difficult, it could hold for a while.
"This will temporarily block the Demon Flame's control over you. To free you entirely, we must deal with the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame first," Mo Yu explained as he withdrew his hand.
Hearing this, Xiao Chen cupped his hands gratefully and said, "Thank you for your help."
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Before Xiao Chen could say more, several figures suddenly appeared from the floating rocks nearby. Among them were the Soul Hall Master, members of the Medicine Clan, and the Stone Clan. All of them hovered in the sky, breathing heavily, their faces filled with fear.
"It seems breaking the illusion caused a chain reaction, pulling these people out as well," Mo Yu said with a chuckle as he saw the newcomers.
"It's better this way. We can't defeat the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame on our own," Xiao Yan said with a slight smile, his gaze shifting toward the distant sea of lava.
From within the lava, a massive pillar of molten rock slowly rose up. The pillar was over a hundred feet wide and continued to rise until it was level with the group. As the lava rippled and swirled, a handsome man in a white robe appeared, standing atop the pillar.
When Mo Yu and the others saw this figure, their expressions grew solemn. This was clearly the true form of the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame.
"You managed to escape my illusion, which surprised me. But in the end, the outcome will remain the same."
The white-robed man's expression was emotionless as he gazed at Mo Yu and the others. With a wave of his hand, an invisible force spread out, and the distant silver circle in the sky slowly dissipated.
Seeing this, the group was stunned. The Purifying Lotus Demon Flame had just erased the spatial portal, clearly intending to eliminate them all!
"Demon Flame Refining Heaven!"
As soon as the portal vanished, pale white flames erupted from the white-robed man's body, spreading out rapidly. In the blink of an eye, they enveloped the entire area, creating a fiery prison that surrounded Mo Yu, Xiao Yan, and the others.
Four massive walls of milky white flame descended from the sky, connecting with the sea of lava below. From afar, it looked like a giant prison linking heaven and earth.
"He's trying to burn us all alive," Yao Lao said gravely.
"The Purifying Lotus Demon Flame is incredibly powerful. Right now, it's equivalent to a peak five-star Dou Saint. With the flame's unique abilities, it could even battle a six-star Dou Saint," Xiao Chen added solemnly.
"Peak five-star…" Everyone's faces darkened. Between each level of Dou Saint, the gap in strength was massive. And with the third-ranked Purifying Lotus Demon Flame, this battle would be incredibly difficult.
"To me, most of you aren't even worthy of becoming my Fire Slaves," the white-robed man said coldly, his voice eerie.
"Below Dou Saint, explode!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
As soon as the white-robed man uttered those words, chaos erupted across the sky. Nearly 80% of the Dou Zuns present exploded instantly, as if their bodies had been filled with hidden explosives.
"What a terrifying ability!" Mo Yu and Xiao Yan couldn't help but feel chills as they watched the sky empty of most of its people in the blink of an eye.
Fortunately, they hadn't brought the strong members of Yuan Mansion or the Heavenly Mansion Alliance with them. If they had, half of them would've died instantly.
"The ones who remain are worthy of becoming my Fire Slaves," the white-robed man said with a faint smile. With a wave of his hand, ten massive pillars of lava shot out from the sea below. The pillars burst open, revealing ten figures clad in milky white flame armor.
"They're all Dou Saints!" (End of the Chapter)
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