nagpurpolice Chapter 30 Flame Servant
Chapter 30 Flame Servant
The Extreme Blazing Wasteland is located deep within the Burning Heaven Mountains in the northeastern part of the Spirit Realm. It is a scorched earth that burns year-round. Ten thousand years ago, Yan Shi perished here. His life essence burned the land within a hundred miles into crimson crystals, the embers of which still remain to this day. The air is filled with the pungent smell of sulfur, and the ground is so hot that it could fry raw meat. The temperature increases the further one goes in.
The four rested briefly on the outskirts of the mountain range. Su Qingyuan used her Frost Condensation Sword Intent to create a thin barrier of cold mist to keep out the high temperature, but the closer she got to the core, the more her spiritual energy was consumed. Han Tie and Xiao Lie were both at the early stage of the True Condensation Realm, and their protective spiritual energy could not withstand the natural heat waves of the desolate place for long, and would most likely be exhausted halfway through.
"The core area is twenty miles ahead." Ling Chen unfolded the demonic core fragments he had found on the Wasteland Beast King. The fragments resonated stronger and stronger. "Qingyuan and I will go in. You two will guard the outer perimeter. If any demonic cultivators approach, respond using the sword talisman signal we agreed on beforehand."
Xiao Lie and Han Tie exchanged a glance and nodded.
"Three days," Su Qingyuan said. "If they don't come out in three days, seal the mountain pass according to Elder Jianxuan's backup plan."
Ling Chen gripped the Severing Thoughts tightly, and the two stepped into the Extreme Flame Forbidden Land side by side.
Deep within the desolate land, the flames were no longer red. From crimson to orange-yellow, from orange-yellow to incandescent, they finally transformed into a nearly transparent pale blue. The pale blue flames burned silently, their temperature so high that even the air itself seemed to distort slightly. The crimson crystals beneath their feet, repeatedly forged by millennia of flames, were harder than refined iron. The edges of Ling Chen's robes had begun to char and curl, and fine beads of sweat appeared on Su Qingyuan's forehead. The barrier of icy mist, which had originally stretched for several meters, was constantly shrinking under the pressure of the intense blue heat. Even the ice-type spiritual power of a Heavenly Spirit Root level couldn't hold out for long here.
"arrive."
In the very center of the pale blue sea of fire, a sword is stuck in the scorched earth.
Entirely crimson, the sword's blade was wreathed in flames. From the hilt to the tip, concentric rings of dark gold patterns flickered like breath, each flash drawing heat from the surrounding blue flames into the sword and releasing it back into the blade, creating visible waves of heat. The hilt had no tassel; Yan Shi had forged the entire sword with his life essence—burning away a tenth of his life force for every inch forged. He didn't believe in the afterlife, so he left no attachments.
Just as Ling Chen's hand was about to touch the hilt of the sword, the flames on the Burning Heaven Sword suddenly surged. Blue flames detached from the sword and condensed in the air into a slender and blurry human figure. The figure wore crimson armor, which was covered with cracks, and the face was indistinct, with only a pair of eyes burning with golden flames clearly visible.
The afterimage of Yan Shi.
Unlike the gentle sword spirit left behind by the Sword Servant in the Broken Thoughts—the Flame Servant's afterimage showed no smile, and his golden flame eyes held no extra warmth, only a scrutiny that had traversed ten thousand years.
"Who goes there?"
"Ling Chen, the reincarnation of the Celestial Venerable."
The afterimage paused for a moment. Golden flames danced in his pupils, as if confirming something. Then he spoke coldly, his tone devoid of sorrow or nostalgia, carrying only the stern, critical judgment of a blacksmith inspecting a weapon: "Have both the sword servant and the ice servant pledged allegiance to their masters?"
"Yes." Ling Chen held the Broken Thought horizontally in front of him, while Su Qingyuan simultaneously raised Frost Condensation. The two servant swords sensed the aura of the Flame Servant's afterimage, and their blades simultaneously emitted a clear and melodious resonance.
The blazing flames trembled violently, and the golden flames turned to Su Qingyuan. For the first time, the voice had warmth—an extremely faint warmth, like the hesitation at the last moment before a hammer falls: "Han Li—you are still alive."
Su Qingyuan's hand holding the sword trembled slightly. That wasn't her name, yet it caused something deep within her frozen soul to crack open, leaving a tiny fissure.
Without waiting for her response, the afterimage turned back to Ling Chen, its tone regaining its usual coldness: "Now that you have obtained two swords, you should know the rules. Each servant's sword has its own trials. Severing Thoughts tests comprehension, Frost Condensation tests loyalty, and Heaven Burning—"
He raised his hand, and blue flames detached from the sword, condensing into a straight path of fire before Ling Chen. At the end of the path of fire was the Burning Heaven Sword itself, each ring of dark gold patterns on its blade spewing heat waves powerful enough to melt refined iron.
"The Blazing Sky tests your will. Walk this fiery path, pull out the Blazing Sky, and you will be the new master recognized by the Flame Servant. If you fail—the flames will burn you to a crisp, just like every failure of the past millennia in trying to pull out this sword. The Flame Servant has no useless master, and the Celestial Venerable has no weak servant. Begin."
The afterimage stepped aside, arms crossed over his chest, his posture distant and wary. He was probably prepared to watch this reincarnated Celestial Venerable struggle in the flames, just like every other attempt over the millennia.
Ling Chen took a deep breath, sheathed the sword, gently pushed Su Qingyuan outside the fire path, and then took his first step.
A sharp pain surged from the soles of his feet, instantly carbonizing the soles of his shoes. The second step: the hem of his robes caught fire. The third step: his skin began to burn. The temperature of the blue flames far exceeded that of ordinary flames; it burned not only his flesh—every flame was drilling into his meridians and pouring into his dantian. The chaotic spiritual energy had limited resistance to this extreme flame, which was formed from the Flame Servant's life essence and bore the imprint of his will. This will would not show leniency simply because he was a reincarnation of a Celestial Venerable; on the contrary, it was more severe than it was for any other trial participant. The seventh step: Ling Chen's protective spiritual energy was burned through, and the flames directly licked his skin. The ninth step: he knelt on one knee.
The lingering shadow of the Flame Servant, who had been coldly watching, finally reacted—he took a slight half-step, and a barely perceptible hesitation flashed in his fiery eyes.
"That's all? Stand up."
Ling Chen gritted his teeth, propped himself up, and continued forward. With each step, the flames grew more ferocious. By the fifteenth step, the flames had burned through his spiritual energy defenses, directly searing his meridians. The pain was completely different from the memory replay during the Sword Servant's inheritance—the Sword Servant allowed him to see her memories, while the Flame Servant made him endure the fiery purgatory he himself had suffered on the Conferred God Platform ten thousand years ago. Not just seeing, but experiencing it firsthand.
By the time he reached his twentieth step, Ling Chen's consciousness was already fading, and his body moved forward mechanically. In the flames, he saw fragments of Yan Shi's memories—
The young Flame Servant knelt before the Celestial Venerable, forehead touching the ground, his posture completely different from the Sword Servant's. The Sword Servant's apprenticeship was out of admiration, the Ice Servant's was out of following, but the Flame Servant's was out of challenge. He raised his head, his golden eyes staring directly at the Celestial Venerable, his tone arrogant as if he were speaking to the Supreme Being of the Three Realms: "This disciple doesn't understand any grand principles. I only believe in one thing—never abandon in dire straits. I stand here today not to become your disciple, but to defeat you. Either accept me, or defeat me."
The Celestial Venerable wasn't angry, but merely asked, "How high a temperature can you withstand?" Yan Shi gave a cold laugh, stepped into the sword-forging furnace, and personally set himself ablaze. He stood in the furnace for three days and three nights, until his life essence burned the flames from crimson to pure blue, and then from pure blue to a deep azure. The moment the sword-forging furnace exploded, he emerged from the fire, holding the entirely crimson Burning Heaven Sword in his hand. Every ring of dark gold patterns on the sword was forged from his own life.
"From this day forward, Yan Shi will be the last line of defense under the Heavenly Venerable. If you retreat, I will die."
The scene shifts. At the Conferred God Platform. When the Demon Lord's attack struck, the Sword Servant had already perished, the Ice Servant was unable to break free due to activating the array's foundation, and the Celestial Venerable himself, having sealed the Demon Lord, could no longer withstand any further damage. The Flame Servant did not retreat a single step. He shielded the Celestial Venerable with his own body, the Burning Heaven Sword held horizontally, taking the Demon Lord's blow head-on. The golden flames gradually extinguished under the cover of demonic energy, and the Burning Heaven Sword flew from his hand and plunged into the scorched earth. The Flame Servant looked down at his shattering body and gave a final laugh. He said to the Celestial Venerable, "This time I didn't retreat; does that count as not abandoning you in dire straits?" The Celestial Venerable, holding his broken body, said in a hoarse voice, "Yes."
Yan Shi closed his eyes. There was no afterlife, nor was there any need for one. He only hoped that his death would protect the Heavenly Venerable as he walked the rest of his path.
The fragments of memory dissipated.
Ling Chen realized that he had unknowingly reached the end of the Fire Path. The Burning Heaven Sword was right in front of him, its crimson blade within reach.
The lingering shadow of Yan Shi stood rooted to the spot, his silence lasting longer than ever before. Then he slowly shook his head, a crack appearing in his usually cold tone for the first time: "...You really made it through."
Ling Chen gripped the hilt of the Burning Heaven Sword. Flames surged from the sword into his meridians, colliding, intertwining, and then merging with the chaotic spiritual energy in his dantian. The third seal on the Myriad Dao Returning to Ruins Diagram trembled violently in the resonance between the chaotic spiritual energy and the Burning Heaven Fire. The crack, barely opened only by the return of the Heavenly Venerable's origin, was burned away from the inside by the extreme flames—the Burning Heaven Fire did not break the seal, but instead refined and purified the stubborn impurities within it that could not be softened by the chaotic spiritual energy. After the impurities were burned through, the seal quietly shed itself like a cicada shedding its skin. The third seal was fully opened. The Myriad Dao Returning to Ruins Diagram unfolded completely in his dantian. The Five Elements, wind and thunder, ice and fire—countless origins of the Great Dao awakened simultaneously within the scroll. The chaotic vortex was no longer confined to the center of his dantian, but spread and extended along his meridians, reconstructing his spiritual energy channels into a true Myriad Dao Body.
His cultivation level hadn't skyrocketed, but the essence of his spiritual power had transformed from simple Qi Gathering Realm chaotic spiritual power into the "Origin of All Paths"—capable of devouring, transforming, and generating all laws. This wasn't a breakthrough in realm, but a leap in the level of life itself. Su Qingyuan watched him from outside the Fire Path, her icy blue eyes reflecting the sky-piercing flames of the Burning Heaven Sword. She had also just seen a fragment of memory—the seal within the Frost Condensation Sword resonated when the Flame Servant's memories were awakened, and the Ice Servant's own memories were also loosening.
The lingering shadow of Yan Shi walked up to Ling Chen. Golden flames flickered one last time in his pupils before slowly fading. His tone remained calm, but each word seemed to have been forged anew: "This lingering shadow is about to dissipate. Master—"
He paused. This was the first time he had called Ling Chen "Master." Then he took a step back, clasped his hands in a standard military salute. At this moment, he wasn't speaking to a reincarnated Celestial Venerable, but to someone he had tested with his life and who had passed the test.
"Master. Burning Heaven is here, Flame Servant has returned to his position. The three Servants are now complete, the seal should be established. If there is ever a day when the Demon Lord is sealed again—do not disappoint us."
The afterimage merged into the Burning Heaven Sword. The blue flames receded back into the blade, and the dark gold patterns on the sword's surface transformed from dull to brilliant, pulsating in concentric circles like a heartbeat. Burning Heaven emitted a clear and melodious sword cry, which resonated simultaneously with the swords of Severing Thoughts and Frost Condensation. Ten thousand years after the Flame Servant's fall, the three Servant Swords were finally reunited.
Su Qingyuan stood outside the Fire Path, the tip of her Frost Condensed Sword hanging low to the ground, her expression unreadable. But her left hand had somehow found its way to her storage pouch at her waist, feeling through the fabric the shard of ice crystal that had broken off from the tip of her Frost Condensed Sword during the battle at the Supply Hall. She remained silent.
Ling Chen slowly pulled the Burning Heaven Sword from the scorched earth, remained silent for a moment facing the sword, and then raised it above his head. The chaotic light of the Myriad Paths Returning to Nothingness Diagram intertwined with the crimson flames of Burning Heaven, the dark gold of Severing Thoughts, and the icy blue of Frost Condensation, exploding into a pillar of light that shot into the sky above the Extreme Flame Wasteland. The pillar of light tore through the hazy sky of the Spirit Realm, illuminating the direction where Xiao Lie and Han Tie were waiting three hundred miles away.
"The Heavenly Blaze returns to its rightful place," he said.