Chapter 566: Chapter 564: Sacred Fire (Please Subscribe)_1
Wanhua Island.
Fang Xi donned the guise of ’Qing Hezi’ once again and, following the route of that day, arrived before the ancient teleportation array.
The cultivator guarding the array was still that fierce Nascent Soul practitioner.
"Qing Hezi, sir..."
Upon seeing Fang Xi, a smile squeezed its way onto the cultivator’s face, "You wish to return to the Western Desert?"
"I would ask for your assistance, sir."
Fang Xi smiled faintly and tossed over a storage bag along with the proper credentials.
The fierce cultivator accepted the storage bag, examined it briefly, and nodded in satisfaction.
The ’spiritual object’ provided by ’Qing Hezi’ was twenty to thirty percent more than the required amount, clearly a bribe for him.
In truth, cultivators stationed at the ancient teleportation array enjoyed the convenience of communicating between worlds and were indeed rich as could be.
But the wealthier they were, the more they adhered to ’rules’.
This ’Qing Hezi’ knew how to play the game, and he was very pleased.
Fang Xi stepped onto the ancient teleportation array; the cultivator skillfully installed the spirit stones and activated the array.
After a burst of silver light, Fang Xi disappeared from atop the ancient teleportation array.
...
Heaven and earth spun.
In a flash, the world around him changed.
The moist air disappeared, replaced by a dry climate.
Fang Xi frowned slightly as he stepped off the ancient teleportation array.
The cultivator guarding this teleportation array was still that disheveled, hemp-clothed cultivator, ’Sang the Brother’.
"So it’s ’Qing Hezi’, sir. We haven’t met in over a decade. Are you returning from your travels? You seem to have made quite a fortune."
Sang the Brother caught sight of Fang Xi, was startled for a moment, and then burst into a smile.
To a Nascent Soul cultivator, indeed a dozen years was a very brief period; their travels could last hundreds of years.
"Indeed, I have gained a little."
Fang Xi exchanged polite pleasantries and prepared to leave Piaomiao Peak.
After all, this was the main temple of the Sacred Fire Sect, protected by a Transcendent God ancestor and even a fifth-order array!
Biding too long in this place always left Fang Xi feeling uncomfortable.
’Alas... when one is under the eaves, one must bow their head,’ he sighed to himself.
However, Sang the Brother laughed and said, "You’ve arrived just in time, sir. Recently, it’s our Sacred Fire Sect’s centennial ’Sacred Fire Festival’, and even Ancestor Huo has personally exited seclusion..."
"The Sacred Fire Festival?"
Fang Xi’s interest was piqued as he knew it to be a significant holiday of the Sacred Fire Sect, with celebrations held throughout many of its subordinate forces—a grand event in the Western Desert.
The shops in Shao Yang City would offer special discounts and then hold several large auctions to stimulate popularity.
"A festival celebration? If there’s a large auction or a private exchange meeting for Nascent Soul level cultivators, I would indeed like to participate."
Fang Xi expressed his interest.
"Haha... those are just side dishes; the main course is within our Sacred Fire Sect. During the ’Sacred Fire Festival’, all eighteen Sacred Fire messengers and many Nascent Soul elders of our sect who aren’t on important missions will return to the sect and await the glory of the Sacred Fire’s purification..."
Sang the Brother said enthusiastically, "During this time, there is also the rare spectacle of ’Heavenly Fire Shines the Sun’ that cannot be missed..."
Fang Xi rubbed his fingers together, his voice suddenly turning cold, "Sir, it seems you’ve omitted something?"
"That’s right, the Sacred Fire Festival is the key date when the Sacred Fire draws the True Power of the Great Sun, increasing its might significantly—such an opportunity comes once every hundred years. To protect it, not only has Ancestor Huo and many cultivators personally exited seclusion, but the sect’s Great Array is also fully activated, forbidding cultivators from entering or leaving."
An embarrassed expression surfaced on Sang the Brother’s face, "Thus, I must apologize for inconveniencing you, sir, to stay here for three days... Similar situations have occurred before, and we have handled them the same way. Of course, bathing in the radiance of the Sacred Fire is the highest honor of the Sacred Fire Sect, and we will provide an extra ’Sacred Fire Token’... After three days, I will personally escort you out of the array."
Fairly speaking, this way of handling things wasn’t bad.
If there was blame to be assigned, it was only that Fang Xi had returned at an inopportune time.
’Couldn’t they have at least given notice on the other side... and save those few spirit stones? Well, maybe it’s just that the ancient teleportation array isn’t used much, and there have been very few special cases in the past... Besides, they still offer compensation in the end, so what can a regular Nascent Soul cultivator do?’ Fang Xi rolled his eyes internally but maintained a smile on his face: "To us cultivators, what are a mere few days? I was just about to take a good look at the Heavenly Fire Shines the Sun spectacle. As for the Sacred Fire Token? Isn’t that the rumored token which upon presentation at any Sacred Fire Sect’s affiliated shop grants one the same privileges as a Sacred Fire Sect’s Nascent Soul elder? I must truly thank you for this..."
"Hehe, not at all!"
Sang the Brother escorted Fang Xi out of the teleportation hall.
Surrounding Piaomiao Peak at this time were numerous jade platforms hanging in the air, linked by countless thick chains, adorned with all manner of intricate patterns.
On each of the jade platforms, there were many cultivators seated in meditation.
They included practitioners of Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, and Core Formation...
But Piaomiao Peak wasn’t the most dazzling sight.
The truly eye-catching one was, of course, the highest Bright Peak!
At the top of the peak, a tri-color flame shone more brightly and brilliantly than ever, with scorching rays of light descending upon it.
Sang the Brother sent out a Voice Transmission Talisman, and before long, Jue Yanzi transformed into a streak of fiery light and rushed over.
Upon seeing Fang Xi, a smile appeared on his face, "Qing Hezi, sir."
"Sir Jue Yanzi,"
Fang Xi nodded in greeting. His Divine Consciousness swept over Jue Yanzi briefly and he noticed a significant increase in Jue Yanzi’s Magic Power; clearly, he had benefited from the advantage he gained from Fang Xi last time.
"Brother Jue Yanzi, I’ll leave this esteemed guest in your care from now on,"
Sang instructed before returning to the teleportation hall on his own.
"Haha... Qing Hezi, your luck is something else."
It was apparent that Sang had already explained the situation through the Voice Transmission Talisman, causing Jue Yanzi to struggle to suppress a chuckle: "I was supposed to notify the other side in advance these past few days. Sang probably wanted to take a shortcut and never imagined you’d teleport over. That ’Sacred Fire Token’ must’ve come from Sang himself."
"So that’s how it is..."
Fang Xi scanned his surroundings and couldn’t help but reveal a hint of a smile, "Speaking of which, I rushed over last time and didn’t get a chance to properly visit your Sect’s gates. I wonder if you could show me around?"
"This... The Sect’s prohibitions are quite strict recently, but if it’s just a few less important places, naturally there’s no problem."
After pondering for a moment, Jue Yanzi readily agreed and led Fang Xi to a location: "This place is known as ’Fire Mountain,’ the prime peak for alchemy in our Sect..."
Fang Xi looked at the fiery red peak before him and couldn’t help but exclaim, "Truly a great place..."
As he walked, nano-robots transformed from the Green Barley Sword quietly seeped out from the soles of his shoes under ’Tai Yi’s control and entered the nearby soil.
The situation was still fine, so of course, Fang Xi couldn’t fall out with them.
But to be cautious, he still had to make some necessary defensive preparations.
After taking a tour, by the time they finished, most of the day had passed.
Jue Yanzi then invited Fang Xi to a jade platform.
These platforms were suspended one after the other between peaks, and the number of cultivators on them was growing more and more.
"This is the best spot for sightseeing... and, when the Sacred Fire Shines the Sun, there’s an additional benefit,"
Jue Yanzi said with a smile.
’Actually, I’d prefer not to have this benefit; I just want to leave as soon as possible since a longer night brings more dreams...’
Fang Xi thought ruefully, but a grateful expression appeared on his face, "Thank you, Sir."
He sat down cross-legged and waited silently.
With his current mastery of the ’Turtle Breath Skills,’ there was a high chance he could conceal himself, so he wasn’t too worried and focused entirely on playing the role of ’Qing Hezi.’
The next day.
Night ended and dawn arrived, with the Great Sun rising!
Streaks of dawn’s purple Qi flowed from the Great Sun, falling onto the peak of Sacred Fire!
Boom! Boom!
On a jade platform, several strongmen grasped drum mallets and vigorously struck the vast drumhead.
On the drumhead were fiery patterns.
Boom! Boom!
With every dull drumbeat, those patterns would flicker with Radiance, transmitting wave after wave.
"The Sacred Fire blazes fiercely, illuminating all directions, the hearts of heaven, earth, and man, evil spirits and monsters..."
One after another, cultivators of the Sacred Fire Sect dressed in white robes rose. They formed strange seals with their hands and kept muttering something.
Even the Core Formation and Nascent Soul cultivators did the same!
Fang Xi and a few other invited guests felt it inappropriate to keep sitting and also stood up, watching the Sacred Fire Sect’s cultivators chanting mantras.
And Fang Xi slightly narrowed his eyes.
He looked up into the void as if he could see faint flames emerging from the tops of the cultivators’ heads, flowing along some mysterious prohibition channel, converging towards Sacred Fire Peak!
The ’flames’ above the heads of Qi Refining cultivators were the feebler, those of Foundation Establishment cultivators were slightly stronger, and the Sacred Fire envoys and Nascent Soul cultivators were like ’torches’!
Countless ’flames’ gathered together, serving as the finest kindling, making the three-colored flames at the top of Bright Peak suddenly blaze intensely.
Blazing!
The outer layer of crimson flames surged violently!
Then the ground shook violently!
From beneath Fire Mountain, streams of Earth Vein Fire were constrained by powerful Prohibitions, transforming into fire dragons, fire ravens, fire snakes... among other forms, rushing up through the inner passages of Bright Peak like a volcanic eruption!
At the top of Bright Peak, the luminous radiance of the five-tier ’Three Yang Holy Fire’ was scorching. Initially almost entirely crimson flames now saw strands of golden fire layers being born anew!
"What a Great Array!"
Fang Xi felt admiration and looked up into the sky, "First, Human Fire, then Earth Flames... next, it should be Heavenly Fire, right?"
He finally understood how the ’Three Yang Holy Fire’ came to be.
As expected, a figure appeared in midair, an unremarkable-looking old man with eyebrows and hair as if on fire, burning fiercely, none other than Ancestor Huo!
Ancestor Huo raised his hand to summon, and all the Fire Formation Spiritual Power between heaven and earth was drawn in, transforming into beams of Fire Formation Divine Light.
The Three Yang Holy Fire shook suddenly as the intense flames seemed about to overshadow the Sun’s radiance halfway up the sky.
Unbeknownst to everyone, the ritual had already taken half a day, moving from early morning to noon, the time when the light from the Sun Star was its most ferocious!
From the burning red Sun Star above, a deep blue core of the flame, fluid like water, flowed down and was absorbed by the Three Yang Holy Fire, bringing the three colors into perfect balance.
Heavenly Fire, Earth Flames, and Human Fire converged, eclipsing all other lights in the world.
This was—Sacred Fire Shines the Sun!