The moment Lu Xuan sensed Princess Xingyue’s life force fading within the purple flame barrier, a cold gleam flashed through his eyes, and an undisguised fury rose to his face. His aura, like a powder keg set alight, erupted without restraint.
“You old fool! You’re asking for death!”
In that instant, the Netherflame Dark Blade in Lu Xuan’s hand blazed with profound black light, swiftly entwined with a terrifying purple-black flame. This purple-black fire danced in the void, burning with savage intensity, like a world-ending inferno. The searing heat it radiated seemed capable of reducing all things to ashes.
BOOM!
A sharp, tearing sound split the sky as the purple-black flame abruptly detached from the blade, transforming into an awe-inspiring beam of saber light that spanned heaven and earth. This towering, several-dozen-meter-high slash of purple-black flame, carrying power that could annihilate all, streaked mercilessly toward Wen Fengyuan.
Under this fearsome attack, the once-solid ground crumbled like a fragile sheet of thin ice. In mere moments, the intense heat of the purple-black flame melted the hardened earth. With a shuddering tremor that shook the very foundations of the land, a massive chasm ten meters wide gaped open before their eyes, spewing thick smoke as if leading straight into an endless abyss.
“Lu Xuan!”
Wen Fengyuan’s aged face was lit crimson by the dazzling purple-black flames. Rage blazed in his eyes as he wildly swung the bronze ruler in his hand. Countless torrents of primordial power, like surging white floods, shot forth from the ruler in a desperate attempt to block Lu Xuan’s all-encompassing flame saber.
The bronze ruler in Wen Fengyuan’s hand radiated arcane light unceasingly, each swing drawing forth immense power from heaven and earth. Those countless white torrents, carrying an overwhelming, unstoppable momentum, hurtled straight toward Lu Xuan’s flame slash.
But these seemingly formidable streams of power proved utterly insignificant before Lu Xuan’s purple-black flame. The moment the two forces collided, the white torrents were devoured like moths flying into a fire, vanishing into nothingness.
Although Wen Fengyuan’s all-out attack came perilously close to his former peak strength, it appeared pathetically feeble before Lu Xuan’s absolute might. The primal forces he desperately poured forth were crushed with no resistance under Lu Xuan’s purple-black flame.
Lu Xuan’s flame saber light descended like divine judgment, covering the heavens and earth with apocalyptic might. In the next instant, Wen Fengyuan’s figure looked pitifully small beneath the purple-black flame’s glare, as if he could be swallowed whole at any moment.
A flicker of clarity cut through Wen Fengyuan’s frenzied eyes, replaced by fury and resentment. He could not accept that a Primordial Spirit True Person like himself could be rendered so powerless before a junior like Lu Xuan.
The humiliation twisted his aged features. He swung his bronze ruler with even greater desperation, determined to fight to the death. But no matter how he struggled, the situation remained one-sided. His primordial power was like a drop in the bucket against Lu Xuan’s purple-black flames—utterly useless.
At last, Wen Fengyuan ceased his futile resistance. Despair began to creep into his heart.
Lu Xuan’s gaze remained cold as ice, devoid of pity for Wen Fengyuan’s struggles. His purple-black flame saber pressed forward without pause, bearing down relentlessly.
With the blade light so close, Wen Fengyuan’s luxurious silk robes began to smolder and ignite without any external flame. Wisps of white smoke rose from his aged skin, as though his entire being was being incinerated by this terrifying force.
But then, at this critical moment of life and death, the despair on Wen Fengyuan’s face abruptly shifted into a deep, biting mockery. He looked at Lu Xuan with contempt and scorn, as if gazing at a foolish, ignorant child.
The next second, Wen Fengyuan let out a cold, sinister laugh.
“Heh heh heh… You insolent brat! It seems you still have no idea just how terrifying a Primordial Spirit True Person can be!”
His voice dripped with smug satisfaction.
“Against a Primordial Spirit True Person at the major achievement of the Divine Mansion Realm, you dare to be so arrogant? You even sealed off this space with your own Primordial Spirit power! Fine. Since you refuse to leave me any path to survival, then you’ll serve as my burial offering!”
As his frantic words faded, an intense white radiance burst from Wen Fengyuan’s forehead. In an instant, a miniature ethereal projection of his Primordial Spirit, identical to his own form, emerged from his brow. This palm-sized spirit phantom streaked through the void with eerie agility and quickly sank into the bronze ruler in his hand.
The moment Lu Xuan sensed Wen Fengyuan’s abnormality, his expression shifted sharply, and a strong sense of wariness arose within him.
A thought flashed through his mind: Spiritual consciousness and Primordial Spirit can actually enter a ritual artifact? What is this old bastard trying to do?
Though Lu Xuan possessed immense power, he did not fully understand all the techniques available to a Primordial Spirit True Person. Wen Fengyuan’s actions had clearly exceeded his expectations, unsettling him slightly.
A major-achievement Divine Mansion Realm martial artist’s Primordial Spirit could separate from the body, but entering a ritual artifact was a different matter entirely. The primal power of heaven and earth within such artifacts was purified to an extreme degree. Once a Primordial Spirit entered, it would be cleansed and dissolved by that pure essence, leading to unpredictable consequences.
After Wen Fengyuan’s Primordial Spirit merged with the bronze ruler, complex runes emerged across its surface, emitting a pulse that made the heart tremble. The Seven-Pattern Moon Artifact’s aura surged to its peak, as if infused with boundless energy.
So this was Wen Fengyuan’s plan—to destroy himself by fusing his Primordial Spirit with the Haoran Ruler. Using the full force of his own spirit, he intended to detonate the artifact’s primordial power and take Lu Xuan down with him.
Having completed his gambit, Wen Fengyuan’s voice rang out with madness and finality.
“Lu Xuan! Even if I die, I will never let you off!”
Lu Xuan’s earlier sealing of the space now became a double-edged sword. Once Wen Fengyuan’s Primordial Spirit detonated the Moon artifact, this enclosed domain would become ground zero for total annihilation.
In the next heartbeat, the purple-black flame saber light was completely swallowed by a blinding white radiance. It seemed as though everything within this realm was being consumed by that overwhelming force.
In the face of that terrifying white light, Wen Fengyuan stared fixedly at Lu Xuan, his eyes filled with venom and grievance. He wanted to etch Lu Xuan’s image forever into his memory.
But what Wen Fengyuan faced next was the merciless, crushing force of the primal power of heaven and earth. The white light surged forth like a tsunami, consuming his figure entirely in an instant. His physical body, under that immense force, dissolved without a trace, like winter snow melting in the sun.
BOOM!
Then came a deafening explosion, as if the heavens themselves had shattered. The shockwave broke through all barriers, rolling forward with unstoppable fury.
In that same moment, endless violent winds and raging waves of force swept in from all directions. Wherever these cascading layers of destruction passed, everything was dragged into a chaotic vortex.
The white torrents of primal power, intermingled with Lu Xuan’s purple-black flames, rampaged wildly, annihilating everything within the sealed space.
“Damn it!”
Witnessing this cataclysmic scene, Lu Xuan’s face showed no trace of relief—instead, a shadow of unease crossed his features. Naturally, he was not worried for his own safety. With his invulnerability and his ability to traverse great distances in an instant, he could easily evade this devastating force.
What truly concerned Lu Xuan were the citizens of Mingxin Prefecture and the Black Bird Guards stationed near the Wen family estate. If the aftershocks of this power surge broke through the flame wall he had set, every living being and structure within a ten-li radius would face total destruction.
Realizing the severity of the consequences, Lu Xuan did not hesitate. In a flash, he appeared beside Princess Xingyue. With a casual wave of his hand, he reinforced the purple-black flame barrier protecting her, ensuring she would not be caught in the blast.
Even though Wen Fengyuan had already crushed her heart, Lu Xuan still needed to keep her body intact. Otherwise, when he returned to the capital, he would have no way to answer to the Chief Director.
Having done that, Lu Xuan’s gaze sharpened. His figure stood firm as a towering mountain before the raging white torrent. Then, he channeled the full might of his Divine Mansion’s primordial power in a desperate attempt to suppress the rampaging flood.
The power within his Divine Mansion erupted like a volcanic explosion, surging forth as an overwhelming, unstoppable force. This pure, intense purple flame clashed violently with the white torrent, producing a deafening roar.
Purple-black fire and white flood intertwined across the sky, unleashing blinding light and terrifying energy fluctuations. Within the sealed space, the collision of these two forces shook the very fabric of reality, as if the invisible space itself could shatter into fragments at any moment.
Lu Xuan stood tall amid the mingled white and purple radiance, veins bulging on his forehead—a sign that he was pushing himself to his absolute limit.
Within the Wen family estate, the fierce sounds of battle gradually subsided. The Black Bird Guards ceased their actions. Mu Yun stood at the forefront, his robes bearing several prominent sword slashes, his usually tidy white hair slightly disheveled. Yet his gaze remained steady and composed, as if everything was still under control.
Beside Mu Yun, two guards each carried a wooden box. Inside were the severed heads of the Wen family’s core members—Wen Lingyun, the family patriarch, and Wen Mochen, the imperial son-in-law.
Suddenly, hurried footsteps approached. Three Earth-rank Black Bird Guards in crimson uniforms, leading a large contingent of soldiers, surged forward like a tide to stand before Mu Yun. The lead guard, an elderly man with a tall, sturdy frame, strode forward quickly, clasped his fists respectfully, and reported in a resonant voice:
“Vice Chief Director! My men and I have thoroughly searched the Wen residence from top to bottom. We can now confirm that aside from the Wen family patriarch, Wen Fengyuan, who is not present, all other members of the Wen clan have been executed!”
“Wen Fengyuan, is it…” Mu Yun murmured softly, then slowly turned his gaze toward the distance.
There, a dazzling yet mysterious purple light raged violently—a massive, square-shaped space of purple flame, like some forbidden fiery domain spanning the heavens and earth. The surging flames formed impenetrable curtains, obscuring everything within. Even Mu Yun, a half-step Divine Mansion Realm martial artist, could not peer through the purple flame barrier.
Mu Yun stared at that enigmatic space, completely wrapped in purple fire. Though his sight was wholly blocked, his expression remained utterly calm, without a trace of worry.
He was intimately familiar with the immense, unique power radiating from that area. That scorching energy carried the unmistakable signature and imprint of Director Lu. Without a doubt, this purple flame enclosure was a seal set by Lu Xuan himself.
Suddenly, a clear, composed voice thundered without warning over the Wen estate, piercing directly into everyone’s ears with startling clarity.
“Vice Chief Mu! Immediately take all Black Bird Guards and evacuate all civilians within a ten-li radius. This is not negotiable!”
The voice was resolute and brooked no argument. It added sharply: “Remember—you have only half an hour!”
This voice…!
Mu Yun’s heart jolted violently. In an instant, he recognized it—it was Director Lu!
Before he could even recover from his shock, the mysterious space encased in purple flame began to visibly expand, growing outward by the second. At a glance, it looked as if a terrifying primordial beast was imprisoned within, struggling desperately to break free, ready to unleash its cataclysmic power at any moment.
“Move!”
Mu Yun threw his head back and roared with all his might.
“Everyone, hear my command! Act immediately! Within half an hour, all civilians within ten li must be evacuated!”
For the first time, Mu Yun’s usually calm and steady face revealed a hint of barely concealed fear. If even Director Lu—a martial artist of terrifying, unfathomable power—could not fully contain this runaway force, Mu Yun did not need to think twice to grasp the danger. The power about to erupt would be nothing short of an unpredictable natural disaster.
