Chapter 267: Magic Fire Displays Its Power

Volume Three

A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality: Volume Three

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“Fall back! Everyone, retreat to the grand formation!” Seeing the flames on the large flags growing thicker, Lu Tianmeng suddenly shouted in desperation, then swiftly withdrew, heading towards the grand formation behind them.

Upon hearing this, the cultivators beside him instinctively followed their leader in retreat.

Seeing this, Xuan Le likewise gave the order to retreat without hesitation.

However, the cultivators on Han Li's side, with the exception of a few who held a clear advantage and could disengage at any time, were all desperately entangled by their opponents, making it impossible for them to escape. Han Li's opponent also launched a frantic offensive, attempting to pin him down.

But Han Li sneered, withdrew his other artifacts, and conjured his White Scale Shield. He skillfully returned to the grand formation, enduring the opponent's assault. This left the cultivator from the Heavenly Fiend Sect no choice but to stop outside the formation, looking chagrined.

Xuan Le saw that more than half of his team were still outside the formation, unable to break free, and were fighting even more fiercely. He knew the situation was dire. He considered going out with other cultivators to offer some aid, but just as he moved, Lu Tianmeng grabbed him.

"It's too late! The Azure Sun Demonic Flame has already been summoned by the enemy!" Lu Tianmeng said, shaking his head, his face ashen.

Only then did Han Li, who also heard the remark, notice that arm-thick azure flames were shooting out from the tips of the large flags held by the red-robed figures. More than a dozen streams of azure fire surged into the sky, converging into a colossal azure flame orb several zhang in diameter. It gently floated in the air, swaying slightly, dazzling to behold.

"This...?"

Xuan Le paused in surprise, then was about to speak. However, the subsequent actions of the red-robed figures immediately made his expression turn exceedingly grim.

The red-robed figures pointed their flag tips individually at the cultivators from the Seven Sects who were still entangled outside the formation. Immediately, the massive fire orb emitted a muffled "thump" and transformed into more than a dozen smaller fireballs, each several feet long, which then shot directly towards these cultivators.

These azure fireballs were incredibly fast, and in a blink of an eye, they fiercely hurtled towards the Seven Sects' cultivators.

These individuals had naturally noticed the transformation of the large fire orb earlier. Most of them instinctively used various magical artifacts to confront the azure fireballs, while a very few employed talismans for Daoist spell attacks, all attempting to strike down the objects.

Unfortunately, since this azure flame was called "Azure Sun Demonic Flame," it truly lived up to its terrifying name!

Whether it was an attack from a magical artifact or a Daoist spell, upon contact with the azure fireballs, they were silently and completely dissolved, like moths drawn to a flame.

Witnessing this unbelievable sight, the cultivators' faces turned ashen white.

Before they could fully grasp the situation, more than a dozen fireballs simultaneously struck them. Their protective shields and barrier-type spells immediately disintegrated upon contact. The cultivators themselves instantly vanished under the demonic flames, leaving not a single trace in this world.

The remaining cultivators who had not yet been attacked, seeing this horrific scene, no longer had any hesitation! They risked being severely injured by the Heavenly Fiend Sect cultivators opposite them, or even abandoning their entangled magical artifacts altogether. They fled directly towards the grand formation.

As a result, two or three cultivators panicked and died directly under their opponents' artifacts.

Thus, upon initial contact, the Seven Sects, defending the spiritual mine, had already lost nearly a dozen Qi Condensation stage disciples and one Foundation Establishment stage cultivator, suffering heavy casualties!

But the power of the Azure Sun Demonic Flame was not limited to this!

Under the control of the red-robed figures, these azure fireballs once again merged into a single entity. Immediately after, it transformed into a wave of azure flames, surging directly towards the Four Fiends Formation.

At this, everyone hiding within the formation blanched. A sense of dread spread among all the cultivators.

Seeing this, Xuan Le's brows furrowed deeply. He asked Lu Tianmeng directly:

"Brother Lu, what exactly is this azure flame? How could a Foundation Establishment cultivator possibly unleash such terrifying true fire? This grand formation's restriction should be able to withstand the impact of this flame, right?"

Lu Tianmeng couldn't help but smile wryly after hearing the barrage of questions. But seeing the other cultivators fixedly staring at him, he reluctantly explained:

"To be frank, fellow Daoists, I only occasionally witnessed the horror of this Azure Sun Demonic Flame during a border battle back then! As for whether it can breach the Four Fiends Formation, I truly have no way of knowing! However, I later heard from some elders that this demonic flame cannot be casually unleashed. It not only requires these 'Raging Flame' cultivators to practice the Azure Sun Demonic Flame Art, but each release also comes at the cost of their own cultivation decreasing. That's why it's so difficult to resist!"

Lu Tianmeng's words caused Xuan Le and the other cultivators to exchange glances, their faces showing dismay.

At this moment, the azure flames collided with the grand formation's four-colored restriction, emitting a deep roar that drew everyone's attention.

They watched as the azure wave continuously struck the four-colored light barrier, wave after wave, causing the barrier to ripple incessantly. But it had, at last, withstood the terrifying demonic flame, allowing the Seven Sects' cultivators within the formation to temporarily breathe a sigh of relief.

However, Han Li and the others did not relax for long before anxiety crept in again.

Because as time slowly passed, the four-colored light barrier, under the repeated scourging of the azure flames, gradually dimmed, clearly indicating that the grand formation was about to break. Although the red-robed figures were also waving their large flags with sweat pouring down their faces, they could clearly hold on for another short while without any problem.

At this point, all the cultivators within the formation racked their brains, desperately pondering strategies to repel the enemy or escape.

Judging from the situations at other attacked spiritual mines, cultivators from the Seven Sects who fell into the hands of the Demonic Dao might not be killed immediately, but they would swiftly be transported to the enemy's rear. No one knew how the Demonic Dao would treat captives.

However, the Seven Sects and the Six Demonic Dao Sects had been locked in battle for so long that their enmity ran as deep as the sea! How could they easily show preferential treatment to enemy captives? Moreover, the enemy was particularly skilled in vicious methods like soul extraction and spirit refinement, which greatly distressed the Seven Sects' cultivators!

Thus, surrender was not even mentioned unless it was an absolute last resort.

"I know of an underground passage that leads directly tens of miles away; it should be enough for us to escape!" The elderly Yu Xing, who had been stationed there for over a decade, suddenly spoke with a calm expression.

These words were like a boulder dropped into a calm lake, stirring up a thousand ripples. Xuan Le and the other cultivators were first startled, then became excited.

"Brother Yu, is that true?"

"Excellent! Now we can escape!"

"We're saved!"

The Seven Sects' cultivators, who had been filled with trepidation, instantly looked revitalized, overcome with joy!

Han Li was also exceptionally surprised and delighted. After all, he too had no way to deal with the azure demonic flames; even if he wanted to fight to the death, he probably wouldn't know where to begin.

Xuan Le and Lu Tianmeng, suppressing their excitement, confirmed the existence of the underground passage with Yu Xing. Without further hesitation, they issued the order to retreat!

As for the spirit stone mine, there was no need to worry; the enemy would, at most, completely destroy the entrance, preventing the mine from resuming its spirit stone supply in the short term. The Demonic Dao cultivators couldn't take a single bit of the spirit stones contained within the mine itself. Even the mortal miners were generally unharmed by either warring party.

So all they needed to do was pack up and leave.

Just like that, Han Li and the more than fifty cultivators guarding the mine, led by Yu Xing, entered an underground tunnel within the spirit stone mine. However, the moment they stepped underground, everyone felt the entire canyon tremble slightly.

"The Four Fiends Formation has been breached!" Xuan Le stated emotionlessly.

Immediately, the cultivators quickened their pace significantly.

Inside the tunnel, it was brightly lit by the moonlight stones in the cultivators' hands. From the rough, uneven walls of the passage, it was evident that the tunnel was entirely man-made, which surprised the cultivators.

According to Yu Xing, this tunnel was originally a very long branch of a spirit stone vein. Therefore, without realizing it, the spirit stone collectors had excavated such a long underground tunnel, directly opening an exit at the other end.

Fortunately, the tunnel was so long that it remained fresh in Yu Xing's memory. Otherwise, there truly would have been no way to escape today!

The other cultivators nodded repeatedly in agreement.

But at this very moment, the tunnel suddenly began to shake violently. Amidst several deafening rumbling sounds, it started to collapse bit by bit.

To the horrified gazes of the cultivators, countless amounts of dirt and massive boulders directly buried everyone beneath them. The entire underground world turned pitch black once more.

Several hours later, the wall of a natural stone cave in the underground world burst open with a "whoosh," creating a large hole. Then, a lizard-like puppet beast rushed out of the hole, cautiously surveyed its surroundings, and then leaped back into the hole.

After about the time it takes to eat a meal, the lizard mechanism-beast burst out of the hole in the wall again. This time, however, a person crawled out right behind it: Han Li, who had miraculously survived the collapse.

Han Li stood up, looked around at his surroundings, and an expression of gratefulness for surviving such a calamity appeared on his face.