Ye Wushuang was clearly as young as her, and he had even been able to enter the Heavenly Dao Tower—shouldn’t he have been an Immortal Realm expert?
How had he suddenly become an Immortal King Realm powerhouse?
Huo Lingshan couldn’t make sense of it.
Before, she had only sensed that Ye Wushuang was incredibly strong. Combined with the fact that he seemed to harbor no ill will, she had decided to team up with him.
Never had she imagined he would be this powerful.
The moment his Immortal King aura surged forth, she was both shocked and exhilarated.
For the first time, she truly believed they might reach the depths of the Fire Prison.
“Fairy Sister, I’m counting on you now!”
Ye Wushuang didn’t respond much to her words. Instead, he cautiously stepped into the eighth layer of the Fire Prison.
The moment he did, he immediately sensed his Immortal King mana barrier being violently burned away.
In an instant, the protective shield was breached, and the ferocious flames licked directly at his body.
The sudden change made his expression darken.
Fortunately, by the time the flames reached him, their intensity had weakened.
And thanks to his already considerable mastery of the Eight-Nine Heavenly Art, the flames didn’t deal him any serious harm.
Yet, like maggots clinging to bone, they clung tightly to his body, relentlessly scorching him without pause.
The sight made Huo Lingshan’s face pale.
“No wonder so many experts perished in the eighth layer—these flames are just too vicious!”
“Indeed. This place is no joke.”
Though Ye Wushuang hadn’t gone all out in defense, the fact that these flames could instantly burn through his Immortal King mana barrier and sear his flesh spoke volumes about their lethality.
It was easy to imagine that an ordinary Immortal King who ventured here would fall victim to these flames and be reduced to ashes.
Among that pile of bone powder, there were undoubtedly remains of Immortal Kings.
The thought made Ye Wushuang even more cautious.
“First, let’s find a safe spot so I can acclimate to these flames.”
While the fire here could breach his defenses and even posed a potential threat to his life, Ye Wushuang also sensed that it could greatly benefit his Eight-Nine Heavenly Art.
If he used these flames to temper his body, his cultivation would advance significantly.
Thus, he decided to first find a place to strengthen himself.
After all, once they crossed the eighth layer, they would reach the deepest part of the Fire Prison—the ninth layer.
The flames there would undoubtedly be even more terrifying.
Without proper preparation, they might truly be burned to death.
Huo Lingshan had no objections.
Relying on her keen perception, she began guiding Ye Wushuang.
However, in the eighth layer, her senses weren’t as effective as before.
She could still detect danger, but the range at which she could sense the undying wraiths—now far more powerful—had drastically shortened.
Previously, she could detect them with enough time to react, but now, these wraiths could close the distance in mere breaths.
The undying wraiths here were no longer the weaklings from the outer layers—they were genuine Immortal King-level, even Immortal Emperor-level entities.
Their strength far surpassed Huo Lingshan’s, raising the danger level significantly.
Still, her perception was leagues beyond Ye Wushuang’s.
Without her, he might have stumbled into an Immortal King wraith within minutes, forcing him into battle.
While that might not have killed him, it would have drained a substantial amount of his mana, making further progress impossible.
Thus, following her guidance, they soon found a relatively safe spot.
Of course, along the way, they still encountered an Immortal King wraith they couldn’t evade in time.
The moment it appeared, Ye Wushuang acted decisively.
With a single sword strike, he annihilated the wraith, scattering its soul to the winds.
The sheer power of that slash left Huo Lingshan utterly awestruck.
Not only was Ye Wushuang an Immortal King—he was a supreme expert even among them.
Slaying a peer with one strike was a feat far beyond ordinary cultivators.
Her confidence in him soared.
Once they secured a safe location, Ye Wushuang did something even more shocking.
He dispelled his Immortal King mana barrier entirely, allowing the eighth layer’s flames to directly sear his flesh.
The moment she saw this, Huo Lingshan cried out in alarm.
“Don’t—!”
But her warning came too late.
Before she could finish, Ye Wushuang had already withdrawn his protection.
The next instant, the raging flames engulfed him completely.
“Ah—!”
A pained scream tore from his throat as the fire consumed him.
The flames were too vicious—like bloodthirsty beasts, they devoured him whole, intent on reducing him to ashes.
Like maggots burrowing into bone, they gnawed at him ceaselessly, subjecting him to endless torment.
This fire didn’t just scorch his flesh—it burned his marrow and organs.
Had his Eight-Nine Heavenly Art not reached a high level, he would have been incinerated on the spot.
He felt like Sun Wukong trapped in the Eight Trigrams Furnace—enduring unbearable agony, teetering on the brink of death.
Yet, gritting his teeth, he forced himself into a meditative state, channeling the flames to temper his body.
Once he entered deep cultivation, everything changed.
Though the inferno still raged around him, Ye Wushuang sat motionless, as if numb to the pain, wholly immersed in his training.
His Eight-Nine Heavenly Art progressed at an astonishing rate.
This desperate situation, while perilous, provided an unparalleled opportunity for growth.
Soon, he was completely absorbed in the process.
Meanwhile, Huo Lingshan watched in stunned silence.
She never imagined that someone as powerful as Ye Wushuang would still push himself to such extremes.
To temper his body in the jaws of death—such courage was beyond ordinary people.
