"Ah—!"
Huo Mian could not stop himself from crying out. The pain was too unbearable, so intense that even he could not maintain his composure. What was even more terrifying was that this strange flame clung to him relentlessly, refusing to be shaken off. It was as if it had stuck to his very soul, pursuing him mercilessly. Huo Mian's face twisted in agony, a mix of shock, rage, and sheer torment.
The sight made the old white-haired man's heart jolt violently.
"This is… the Red Lotus Karma Fire?"
The legendary flames of Hell itself? His eyes widened in horror as realization struck. He immediately lunged toward the figure of Song Wanníng's clone.
"You are that wretched woman Song Wanníng?"
He shouted furiously, his eyes filled with venom and malice. Yet beneath the anger was jealousy. He had risked much to enter the Underworld, only to gain nothing. He had been injured several times and left empty-handed.
But Song Wanníng? She not only won the favor of King Yama but had even obtained the supreme treasure of the Underworld—the Red Lotus Karma Fire.
"What? Red Lotus Karma Fire?"
Huo Mian froze. His expression instantly turned pale as death. For he knew that once tainted by this flame, it would burn away all karmic sins upon the body. And he had killed so many people. The mere thought made him nearly lose his mind. The fire's heat swelled and devoured, and he howled miserably, no longer caring about appearances.
"Ah—let me go—!"
He shrieked, leaping madly about in despair. The Red Lotus Karma Fire seared his Primordial Soul directly, leaving him unable to channel his qi or flee. He was nothing but a clown, writhing helplessly for all to see.
Meanwhile, Song Wanníng's clone had already engaged the Mahayana white-haired man. Because her true body's cultivation had advanced, the clone's strength had risen accordingly. Seizing the moment when the white-haired man was still unaware, she suddenly closed in and drove a fierce punch into his shoulder. The moment her fist connected, a sharp crack rang out, and his entire shoulder was pulverized into fragments.
"Ugh—!"
He groaned in pain, unable to retract his strike before Song Wanníng surged forward again, aiming another crushing punch at his head.
The force in her fist howled through the air, and the white-haired man's heart lurched. He dared not meet her head-on. He dodged instinctively, slipping aside. But a golden furnace flew out, followed by Xiao Jin and Yi'er, together sealing all escape routes.
The white-haired man snarled, but when he glanced at Huo Mian's miserable condition, unease surged within him.
This woman was far too uncanny. Every encounter with her brought disaster.
He no longer even thought of seizing the Flower of Rebirth. A chilling sense of danger swept over him, stronger than even when facing King Yama.
Safety first. He had to retreat.
But Song Wanníng had no intention of letting him go. The moment he produced a talisman to flee, she willed forth a space rune. A burst of white light flared, and though he thought himself teleported away, he found himself appearing directly in front of her.
Not good!
His heart clenched in dread. In the very next instant, her fist smashed into him.
"Pfft—!"
Her strike nearly obliterated half his body, flesh and bone collapsing inward grotesquely.
"Hiss—!"
Already writhing in agony, Huo Mian's eyes widened in disbelief.
Wasn't Song Wanníng only at Out-of-Body stage?
How was this possible?
A single punch nearly destroyed a Mahayana cultivator. Why would Huo Jinchuan and his son ever provoke such a terrifying figure? Were they insane?
Panic welled within him. If he had known, he would have summoned reinforcements instead of facing her like this.
Boom—!
The shockwave shattered nearby cliffs and splintered countless trees. The white-haired man was hurled back over twenty meters, barely managing to stabilize himself. His eyes flickered with fear.
Not only was this woman's body monstrously powerful, but her spell was equally terrifying. And there was something strange in her aura—a fearsome force that made his spiritual power itself recoil on contact.
He had never experienced such a thing. Regret gnawed at him. If she had revealed such strength from the start, he would never have dared provoke her. This woman's cunning ran deep. Now, with the situation clear, he had only one thought left—escape!
Again he tried, but once more he was drawn back, teleported directly before Song Wanníng. His heart quaked. He darted frantically toward the tunnel entrance. If he could not flee, he would hide in the Underworld instead. But as he slipped into the tunnel, a devastating punch crashed into his chest.
Bang—!
"Pfft—!"
The strike smashed him apart, hurling him backward with his heart crushed to pieces. Life drained swiftly from him. His body collapsed with terror frozen on his face. He fumbled for medicine, but his body failed before he could take it.
"How… how could this be?"
His Yuányīng burst out of his sea of consciousness in panic, staring at the mangled corpse below in disbelief. A thousand years of bitter cultivation, honored as a mighty Zhēnzūn, one step away from ascension.
Now ruined. His body gone, leaving only a Nascent Soul to cling pitifully to existence. What awaited him was either possession of another body, or utter annihilation. His path forward was all but destroyed. The white-haired man howled inwardly, eyes bloodshot as he glared at Song Wanníng, his face twisted with hatred.
Huo Mian, meanwhile, was ashen with fear.
Two identical figures.
As he looked at the restored form of the clone, realization dawned.
"It was you… you stole my Huo family's treasure, didn't you?"
It had not been Huo Jinchuan who stole it at all, but this woman masquerading as him!
His eyes bulged, rage twisting his features. And every moment, the Red Lotus Karma Fire burned deeper into his Primordial Soul. His head felt as though it would explode, the agony driving him to roll and scream in despair. He tried to send messages to his clan, but all transmissions were blocked.
Too terrifying.
This woman was too terrifying.
Regret consumed him. He did not want to end up like the white-haired man, destroyed utterly.
"Tch, at least one member of the Huo clan has some brains. You are not as foolish as Huo Yang."
Song Wanníng emerged slowly from the tunnel, lips curled in a mocking smile. Her eyes shone with satisfaction as she glanced at the Red Lotus Karma Fire blazing in glory. Delight stirred in her heart.
To have a force capable of subduing a Mahayana cultivator on its own—this was a peerless weapon at her side.
Looking at Huo Mian writhing in agony, then at the white-haired man's frantic despair, Song Wanníng's smile only deepened.