As Nan Yan and her companions departed, they released the unsealing order to unlock Nan Yi’s prison pillars. However, due to the copper pillars’ unique origins, the process of breaking their seal would take half a day.
An hour later, the first copper pillar restraining Nan Yi rumbled as it sank into the ground, its attached iron chains disintegrating and scattering.
“Nan Yi, that’s my unsealing order!” roared Huo Wuji, a demonic cultivator from Si Zhou, from a nearby black island. “Once I’m free, I’ll raze your Yin Zhou to the ground!”
Other imprisoned Tribulation Passing stage cultivators nearby gleefully mocked him. “What a spectacle today! Old Huo Wuji, you might as well stay put. Where will you hide your face if you leave?”
“Now, now, we shouldn’t say that,” another chimed in. “In this world, the capable prevail. Those young ones were simply more clever in their deception. Without Mr. Yigu’s qin to accompany him, Brother Huo will have to howl alone. We should be understanding.”
“Alas, our poor ears! No more of Mr. Yigu’s qin music, only an old reprobate’s roars. What a pity!”
These centuries-old cultivators traded barbs, each more venomous than the last, enraging Huo Wuji and causing thunderous rumbling on his island.
Meanwhile, Nan Yi’s attention was elsewhere. The pillars’ restrictions limited their divine sense to just a few miles, making it difficult to trace Nan Yan and her group.
Nan Yi gently plucked the strings of the Listening to Madness qin. The strings felt as cold as deep-sea currents under his fingers. Lost in thought, he noticed a small blue fish emerge from beneath the Qin bridge. Semi-transparent and ethereal, it darted between the strings before settling on his fingertips, gently swishing its tail.
This was the soul fragment of a mermaid, whose obsession in life had forced it to remain with the one it wished to accompany eternally, at the cost of future reincarnations.
“So, you heard it too. That was my sister’s descendant,” Nan Yi said softly, raising his hand. “If you were still here, you’d probably love this child.”
He closed his eyes and clenched his fists. “Jiao Niang, how many more must die before this ends? Back then, I shouldn’t have let my sister go to Fan Zhou… I should have gone myself. Why must the innocent suffer for the tribulations that should be mine alone?”
His voice grew hoarse. The mermaid soul, sensing his distress, floated to his brow, gently touching his furrowed forehead.
For over twenty years, the wind on this lonely island had never felt so cold.
After the most crushing moments passed, Nan Yi’s chaotic thoughts found a focus. Feeling the cool touch on his brow trying to lift his gloom, he said, “Jiao Niang, my sister still has descendants. Wait for me a little longer. Once I’ve ensured her safety, I’ll join you soon.”
As the second pillar fell and its chain broke, Nan Yi felt the long-standing pressure dissipate. The vast spiritual power befitting a Tribulation Passing cultivator rushed in from all directions, replenishing his depleted body.
“Mr. Yigu will be free today,” the surrounding cultivators remarked enviously.
Suddenly, a faint explosion echoed from Mount Fengyao. Despite its subtlety, the Tribulation Passing cultivators’ heightened senses immediately detected it.
“Ha! Those brats touched something they shouldn’t have. They’re doomed!” Huo Wuji gloated from afar. “Karma comes swiftly. They got off easy.”
Nan Yi’s heart skipped a beat. Concentrating his divine sense, he perceived traces of dissipating spiritual energy and spotted a fox demon struggling in agony, its shadowy form flickering unstably.
He quickly realized that Nan Yan’s group had used an advanced spirit projection technique. Though something had gone awry, as long as their physical bodies were safe, they should be fine.
“Young Yin, focus on your core and control your demonic nature,” Nan Yi advised, plucking virtual strings in the air. He guided the out-of-control Yin Ye with his divine sense while using the Quiet Night Lament qin melody to soothe him.
Under the qin’s influence, the fox demon’s eyes gradually calmed. It drifted towards Nan Yi’s island, curling up on the shore and falling into a deep slumber.
“This demon’s species differs from the celestial foxes,” Nan Yi mused, surprised at how quickly he had calmed the raging demon. As he approached, he saw the giant white fox slowly fading away, having accepted too much of its inheritance and needing to return to its physical body to recover.
“The celestial fox clan is known for their violent and greedy nature, but his spiritual energy contains a hint of Buddhist power. It seems to help him resist the bloodthirsty nature of demons, likely due to A’Yan’s influence.”
Indeed, it was Nan Yan’s influence. Before her seclusion, she had dragged the fox spirit all over the mountains to experience Buddhist life – cleaning temples one day, begging for alms the next. For a time, Yin Ye, the quintessential seductive fox spirit from rural romance tales, was forced to live as an ascetic monk.
Suddenly, a nearby cultivator transmitted a message to Nan Yi. “Mr. Yigu, Huo Wuji’s constant raving was a distraction. He secretly used a blood demon spirit division technique… He’s likely gone after your young friends’ physical bodies.”
Nan Yi was startled as Huo Wuji burst into laughter in the distance.
“The unsealing order must be written on the sacred scroll. You still need a day to fully break free, which is plenty of time for me. Once I find the scroll, I can reclaim the order! I’ll capture those brats and tear them apart before your eyes to avenge my son!”
“Huo Wuji!” Nan Yi shouted.
Meanwhile, when Nan Yan opened her eyes, she felt as if awakening from a drunken stupor. Her head throbbed dully, forcing her to lie on the ground for a while until the dizziness subsided. When she finally looked up, what she saw nearly scared her back into unconsciousness.
“I saw you open your eyes. Why did you fall asleep again?” Nan Yan reluctantly opened her eyes once more to find her elder brother holding a dark-faced cultivator whose features were indiscernible due to severe burns.
“Can’t I take a quick nap?” Nan Yan asked. “And who is this… this devotee with the unrecognizable face?”
“I just saw a demon crawl up to this dark cultivator, and then he suddenly came back to life,” her brother explained. “Isn’t this like the saying, ‘A dying man bolts upright, unaware a demon’s come to call’?”
Nan Yan remained silent, eyeing the dark cultivator suspiciously. His charred face made it impossible to read his expression. “What kind of demon was it?” she inquired.
“I’m not quite sure. Let me draw it for you.” Mu Zhanting picked up a dry twig and sketched an abstract creature on the ground.
After studying the drawing for a moment, Nan Yan couldn’t connect it to any mirage demon she knew. She turned to the burned cultivator and asked, “How did you come back to life?”
The dark cultivator was a spirit fragment of Huo Wuji. He had barely implanted his soul fragment in the body when Mu Zhanting caught him off guard. In mere moments, the Tribulation Passing cultivator suffered the humiliation of capture.
Seething with anger but realizing Nan Yan hadn’t recognized him, Huo Wuji replied, “In my Si Zhou, we have secret life-preservation techniques. The depths of demonic arts are beyond the comprehension of youngsters like you.”
“Is that so?” Nan Yan’s expression stiffened as she noticed Ji Yang, who had also just opened his eyes. He had concealed his demonic aura, imperceptible to Mu Zhanting but clear as day to her.
Of all the dark cultivators she wished to eliminate, this karmic bond was the one she couldn’t argue down, fight off, or let go of.
Ji Yang, aware of her stare, averted his gaze and said demurely, “The Bodhisattva’s intense gaze disquiets my heart.”
Nan Yan’s glare intensified… She was angry but determined to maintain her composure.
Huo Wuji, harboring intense hatred for the man impersonating Li Chi, concealed his malice and asked strategically, “Where have you taken the imperial son?”
Ji Yang studied the dark cultivator briefly before smiling. “We’re just rootless rogue cultivators. How dare we provoke the Demonic Way? Naturally, we’ve hidden him somewhere safe. But I’m curious – isn’t Si Zhou sending too many people to the treacherous Demon Sealing Array?”
Huo Wuji’s eyes darkened. “You seem well-informed, though this isn’t exactly a secret among the regions.”
“Oh?” Ji Yang responded. “Is it about the Destroying Iron?”
While Nan Yan looked puzzled at the mention of Destroying Iron, Mu Zhanting’s interest was piqued.
“Is it time for the Destroying Iron?” he asked.
“What’s that?” Nan Yan inquired.
“It’s a divine ore… or rather, a celestial treasure born from the Great Solar Fire Essence,” Mu Zhanting explained. “This essence is the strongest fire in existence. It extinguishes every 3,000 years and reignites 3,000 years later. When it dies out, it produces the Destroying Iron, embedding a spark of its fire within. After another 3,000 years, the fire essence reignites from the Destroying Iron. Only a few secret realms on earth contain traces of this fire essence, and the Demon Sealing Array is one of them.”
Nan Yan realized, “Can this material be used in weapon forging?”
“No one has ever forged it, but Destroying Iron has a unique property – it ignites upon contact with blood. Even if a true immortal is struck by a weapon made from Destroying Iron, their immortal soul would be completely incinerated. It can only be used once. Legend has it that in ancient times, a great expert forged a spear with Destroying Iron that once killed a true immortal from beyond the void.”
Nan Yan fingered her prayer beads. “This iron carries the karma of killing. For every action, there’s a consequence. Obtaining it will surely bring complications.”
Mu Zhanting argued, “Fortune favors the bold. Better we seize the Destroying Iron than let dark cultivators threaten the righteous path with it. Having it in our hands is the safest option.”
Nan Yan understood his concern. Used effectively, Destroying Iron could threaten even tribulation-passing cultivators. Especially now, with the war between Chen and Si regions at a critical juncture, if Si Zhou’s Dragon Lord were to be ambushed, the situation could turn dire.
Ji Yang turned to Mu Zhanting. “You’re interested in the Destroying Iron too?”
“As long as it’s not in Si Zhou’s hands, that’s fine. I’m more interested in the Great Solar Fire Essence. It’d be a waste to let it extinguish – I’d rather try to harness it for myself.”
As a heavenly fire-attribute cultivator, no spiritual treasure suited Mu Zhanting better than the Great Solar Fire Essence.
Ji Yang said, “I need a piece of Destroying Iron to kill someone.”
“Who?”
“I can’t say yet. Let me keep that a secret for now.”
Mu Zhanting patted the dark cultivator’s head. “Alright, let’s cut to the chase. Trade the location of the Destroying Iron for your life. Surely, you Si Zhou dark cultivators aren’t above such a deal?”
Huo Wuji inwardly sneered at their naivety, though Ji Yang’s calm demeanor slightly unnerved him. He said, “Swear a soul-binding oath that you’ll let me go once you obtain the Destroying Iron, and I’ll lead you there.”
Mu Zhanting agreed readily, planning to simply abandon the dark cultivator later, and quickly swore the oath.
Nan Yan, however, hesitated. She looked at the dark cultivator and said, “Those who persist in evil are beyond the reach of Buddhist teachings. Unless you also swear to abandon your evil ways after escaping, I won’t kill you, but I will strip you of your cultivation.”
This was a principle most Buddhist cultivators adhered to.
Huo Wuji narrowed his eyes. “Why don’t you two fight it out? See what’s more important – the Destroying Iron or this girl’s principles?”
As the tension mounted, Ji Yang spoke up:
“There’s no need for that. You simply want to survive. If you guide us to where the Destroying Iron is born, we’ll spare your life. If this Bodhisattva insists on killing you, I’ll stop her.” Though addressing the dark cultivator, Ji Yang’s gaze rested on Nan Yan, as if implying something more. “If I break this oath, may the demons of my heart haunt me, never leaving me in this life or any future ones.”