Chapter 54: Chapter 53: Profound Origin Heaven and Earth, The Blazing Scarlet Fire

As the eerie phenomenon of Wealth Village dissipated, a tiny, bean-sized wisp of flame, as if imbued with spirituality, shot toward the Mud Ball Palace between Song Ciwan’s brows!

Song Ciwan didn’t know what this was, so her first instinct when facing the unknown was to summon the Heaven and Earth Scale. With a turn of her Qi Absorption Technique, she swiftly collected the small, bean-sized flame onto its Balance Plate.

A brief description of the item immediately appeared on the Balance Plate: [Netherworld Demon Flame, Level Three Stars. Forged from the greed, anger, ignorance, and hatred of the Mortal World, along with lingering resentments. Refined in the world’s filthiest corners by the scorching of eerie Essence Qi. The Demon Flame incinerates souls, possesses a corrupting effect, and can be sold.]

After reading the description, Song Ciwan thought, ’Just as I suspected.’

’It was a good thing I didn’t try to grab it directly! This Demon Flame is Level Three Stars—my first time ever encountering a Three-star Level item. It’s hard to say how powerful it is, but I’m sure that touching it directly without the proper countermeasures would be dangerous.’

Of course, now that the Demon Flame had been absorbed by the Heaven and Earth Scale, it could only be sold. Song Ciwan had no way of taking it back out.

Therefore, there was nothing left to study. She sold it directly: [You have sold one Three-star Level Netherworld Demon Flame and obtained one of the three Samadhi True Flames: the Heart Sutra Fire.]

The Samadhi True Fire has three components: the Upper, Middle, and Lower Obscuring flames.

Although their names and effects are different, none is inherently superior to the others. If all three were to combine, there would surely be a qualitative transformation! However, that was a distant prospect, so there was no need to dwell on it now.

What Song Ciwan obtained was the Upper Obscuring Heart Fire. In that instant, a slender, intangible yet substantial flame coalesced from the void and leisurely drifted into the Mud Ball Palace between her brows!

The Mud Ball Palace, the abode of the Divine Soul.

Song Ciwan couldn’t perform Divine Soul Internal Observation yet, but she could clearly sense that as the wisp of flame settled, the Heart Demon Seed also residing in her Mud Ball Palace suddenly trembled slightly.

This Heart Demon Seed had devoured the Heart Demon of the Giant Village Chief and had already grown from the size of a fingernail to the size of half a copper coin.

Its form was still illusory, and if one were to inspect it closely, they would see a slight turbidity within the seed.

That wisp of Heart Sutra Fire landed beneath the Demon Seed. The flame silently and gently enveloped the illusory seed. As it burned slowly, Song Ciwan felt a cleansing comfort, as if dust were being washed away.

It was an absolutely marvelous sensation.

The Insight Technique panel displayed: Side Door Taoist Skill: Void Illusion Demon Sword, First Layer: Heart Demon Illusion (Skilled 536/1000).

Intermediate Taoist Skill: Samadhi True Fire (Incomplete, Heart Sutra Fire), Beginner (5/100).

Just then, Aunt Zhou quietly slipped out of the crowd and approached Song Ciwan.

She looked at Song Ciwan, her expression hesitant and bewildered.

It was because Song Ciwan’s appearance had changed.

Initially, when Song Ciwan had followed the Paper Soul Puppet’s guidance to the shores of Bibo Lake, she had actually disguised herself as the Yellow-faced Youth.

Later, when Bibo Lake underwent its great upheaval and Song Ciwan and Aunt Zhou fell into the Deceitful Realm, her memories and Power were suppressed. Her Magic failed, and she naturally reverted to her original appearance.

Being in her true form, without a disguise, always made Song Ciwan feel habitually uneasy. Thus, when no one was looking, she had quietly changed her face again.

Her current face was about thirty percent similar to her real one, but compared to her original features, this face was much more plain. Combined with the effects of A Grain of Sand in the Sea, she was now truly someone who would disappear in a crowd.

But Aunt Zhou hadn’t lost her memory; it was just jumbled. Now, looking at Song Ciwan, she fell into a state of profound self-doubt.

’Who am I? Where am I? Was everything I just saw real or fake? Was it a dream or an illusion?’

’Is this person before me the same Miss Song who shared my hardships?’

Song Ciwan gave her a slight smile and raised a finger to her lips in a hushing gesture.

A wisp of aura from the Dream-Entering Technique leaked out and circled around Aunt Zhou, making her already jumbled memories even hazier.

Aunt Zhou was a little dazed, but she still nodded instinctively and returned Song Ciwan’s smile.

She was certain now. The young lady in men’s clothing before her must be the same Miss Song who had shared her hardships.

’It must be my own muddled head that can’t even remember a face clearly,’ she thought. ’And everything that’s happening is just too horrifying and chaotic...’

Aunt Zhou’s heart was still pounding with fear. She edged a little closer to Song Ciwan while cautiously peeking at the crowd of people retching on the ground.

Some people, having finished vomiting, scrambled to their feet and tried to run away from the center. But the ground was covered in too many fat, white objects, and as they ran, a sickening squelch of flesh being crushed underfoot echoed everywhere.

"Ah!" 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"Help!"

SPLAT!

The person screaming for help fell to the ground again, their face and head smeared with bursting white maggots...

It was too disgusting. A sight too gruesome to behold.

More people began to scream in terror. Others, still not fully lucid, rolled about with swollen, twisted bodies, their deformed heads bobbing as they grunted amidst the pile of white things...

Aunt Zhou averted her gaze, panicked and bewildered. "Miss Song, what should we do? These people... can they still be saved?"

Truth be told, Song Ciwan didn’t know how to handle this situation either. Although the eerie phenomenon of Wealth Village had dissipated, some of its negative effects were clearly still ongoing.

She also had no clue how to leave this strange place.

Song Ciwan said in a low voice, "Aunt Zhou, don’t be hasty. Just watch..."

Watch what?

Among the chaotic crowd, a slender, graceful woman who stood out from the rest was being pushed and shoved... Her expression was first one of confusion, then dawning realization, then shocked fury, and finally, a deep blush washed over her lovely face.

It was the Chi Hua Fairy!

She had been injured by the backlash from collecting the Golden Dragon Blood earlier, so when she fell into this Deceitful Realm, she was caught completely off guard before she could react.

Her memories and Magical Power were completely suppressed. In a daze, she too had been persuaded to pick up her chopsticks—even though she hadn’t eaten much.

BLECH!

The Chi Hua Fairy had never been so mortified in her entire life. She clutched her chest and dry-heaved uncontrollably a couple of times.

Of course, nothing actually came up.

In fact, the moment she came to her senses, the filth had been incinerated by the Magical Power within her body.

Nevertheless, a sense of shame and indignation so strong she could have died still consumed her. After retching twice, she raised a hand, and a Jade Talisman appeared in it.

"Profound Origin Heaven and Earth, blaze with brilliant red fire! By the decree of this Spiritual Treasure Talisman, cleanse all filth and illusion..."

Her face was flushed red and her delicate brows were fiercely arched. She formed a hand seal and let out a sharp cry: "Hah!"

With a point of the Jade Talisman, red light burst forth, transforming into countless crimson petals that danced beneath the gray-blue sky.

As the petals landed on the ground, the fat, white filth instantly vaporized into smoke.

The petals then fell upon the people. Those they touched straightened up from their retching. Their swollen bodies gradually subsided under the petals’ influence, and the looks of agony on their faces began to fade.

Beside Song Ciwan, Aunt Zhou was completely stunned.

Song Ciwan, too, found it to be an eye-opening experience. ’So that’s how you can use fire!’

’This was the difference between a self-taught practitioner like her and a disciple from a proper Sect. She had learned many kinds of Magic, but it seemed she always lacked a certain knack for application at crucial moments.’

’But that was all right. She could still learn!’

Song Ciwan slowly regulated the True Qi in her body while continuing to operate the Heaven and Earth Scale to complete the transaction she had started earlier.