Ji Xiang decisively abandoned his sword and retreated rapidly. The Taiyi Sanyuan Sword was severed and discarded by the Fire Lord. In just two exchanges, two magical artifacts were destroyed. As Ji Xiang retreated, he flung the Tianpeng Ruler from his hand again!
But the Fire Lord's voice suddenly appeared by Ji Xiang's ear:
"Your strength is considerable, far exceeding the Fourth Realm. It is indeed true that you carry the incense offerings of countless people, possessing a divine nature!"
"However, I am already half an Earth Immortal, like the red sun in the nine heavens. Though you also possess the incense offerings of the populace, you are merely like the pine and cypress on the ninth earth. I am as high as the heavens, beyond reach, and my sunlight cannot be avoided."
"All things grow towards the sun."
"No matter the origin of the people's incense offerings you carry, today, they all belong to me. The unfinished great fire of the Forbidden City will be rekindled with your incense offerings!"
The Fire Lord sighed, having already taken a step forward, a step that covered a thousand paces.
The Tianpeng Ruler fell to the ground.
The vast incense offerings spread out like an ocean.
Blood streamed from her head, covering half her face, the wound inflicted by the Jinjizi. Previously, when Song Zhongzheng was struck by the Jinjizi, his head had split open like a melon. Yet, the Fire Lord had merely bled!
Her physical body was incredibly resilient. At this moment, she was before Ji Xiang, her palm gently pressing down. The great wind and rain, the life and death of all beings, seemed to be within her grasp.
This was a form of sorcery!
But Ji Xiang's hands had already switched positions within his sleeves. A golden light shot out, and the Jinjizi, having absorbed another tenth of Ji Xiang's primal energy, struck out for the second time!
However, this time, when the Jinjizi struck the Fire Lord, although she still did not evade, she was not as panicked as before.
She endured the blow head-on. Her chest caved in, and blood flowed from her seven orifices.
An ordinary person would have died from such an impact, yet she acted as if unharmed, only her body appearing slightly hunched. Her proud chest had collapsed significantly, flattened like an airfield, but she remained unconcerned.
Three flowers appeared above her head.
The "Three Flowers Gathering on the Crown" signified the condensation of the "Glory" of the human body, achieved through refinement. For the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Realms, all the essence, qi, and spirit of the current human body are condensed to form one "Glory." When three "Glories" are gathered, one can enter the Seventh Realm, known as the "Three Flowers Gathering on the Crown." At this stage, the physical body, primal energy, and spirit have reached the first peak of the cultivation stages.
The most noticeable change was that she could speak even with half her head flattened, and she could still talk and laugh with a hole in her chest. The life force of the human body became extremely powerful. As long as the total amount of primal energy in the body was sufficient, all injuries could be slowly healed over time.
"Some sorceries can only be used once. If they fail the first time, they won't work the second."
The Fire Lord sighed, "A good magical artifact, it comes and goes quickly. Otherwise, I would have captured it just now. A pity, its power is great, but it is still not enough to kill me."
"This is because your magical power is too weak, thus the artifact's might is also diminished when driven. The gap between us is too vast."
"Do you have any other tricks? If not, after playing a few moves with you, you should die."
Before Ji Xiang could react, the Fire Lord, having endured the Jinjizi's blow, continued her advance without losing momentum. In an instant, her fingers touched Ji Xiang's cheek and then slid to his neck.
Two breaths.
The wind and rain in the world momentarily faltered.
Ji Xiang's throat was crushed by the Fire Lord.
"Nothing more than this."
The Fire Lord had broken all the meridians and bones in Ji Xiang's neck. Ji Xiang's head lolled to the side. The Fire Lord flicked her hand, sending Ji Xiang's body flying far away.
In the fierce wind and rain, only the blazing flames on the Fire Lord's body shone brightly, like a guiding lamp in the dark world.
The Fire Lord felt it was a pity, but since Ji Xiang was unwilling to join her sect, she could not be lenient. There was no time for her to slowly recruit followers; after all, the Emperor was waiting for her to burn him.
The Unmanifested Karma Fire was the most important. The unexpected events tonight were already enough.
The Fire Lord now extended her hand, and Ji Xiang's "physical body" immediately ignited in raging flames, flickering unceasingly in the wind and rain, attempting to channel the people's incense offerings into the nearly extinguished conflagration.
Her footsteps landed on the bluestone slabs, splashing into puddles. After two or three steps, the surrounding illusions vanished. The Fire Lord stood facing Emperor Wanli and his retinue. Her shadow and the firelight were reflected on the shimmering water surface.
She stopped at this moment.
Because Ji Xiang's voice came from behind:
"I have heard that gaining without effort is a calamity of the body."
The Fire Lord suddenly felt the power within her rapidly draining. The incense offerings she had brought were all abandoning her. Moreover, this vast quantity of the people's incense offerings seemed to have formed shackles, rendering her immobile!
The people's incense offerings, at this moment, suddenly ceased to serve her. She was engulfed by the incense offerings, as if a person had fallen into a swamp!
The Fire Lord immediately turned back, looking at Ji Xiang's "corpse." The flames she had released earlier had all vanished. And it was at this moment that something that greatly shocked her happened.
Ji Xiang's "corpse" actually sprang upright from the ground!
Ji Xiang moved his neck, appearing completely unharmed. The national prestige had neutralized the Fire Lord's flames, just as Song Wuji had been unable to burn the Southern Commandery Guard with fire back then. Ji Xiang was not dead, so the national prestige could not fail. Furthermore, within the Forbidden City, his body was immune to all negative effects, and burns were one of them.
At this moment, his hands emerged from his sleeves, forming a hand seal. Simultaneously, he did not hold back his words:
"You are not yet an Earth Immortal and have no right to be arrogant. Until you form a Golden Core, you are no different from me!"
Of course, these were just Ji Xiang's boastful words. Having just sprung from the ground, he had to say something to intimidate the opponent, as even if he lost in strength, he could not lose in words.
The Fire Lord's beautiful eyes widened. For a moment, she was speechless to describe the current situation, and even didn't know how to speak at this moment.
Or rather, how could he speak when his throat had been crushed by her!
But for Ji Xiang, as his throat was being crushed by the Fire Lord, he had been silently reciting the "Duren Sutra." This time, he only needed to recite it three times, and his throat immediately returned to normal.
Ji Xiang formed the White Crane Seal, and upon seeing the White Crane hand seal, the Fire Lord immediately knew what Ji Xiang was about to do!
"You are forming the Three Hand Seals in reverse; you intend to dismantle my incense offerings!"
Forming the Three Hand Seals normally was an act of offering incense. Forming them in reverse, in the Daoist tradition, was to dismantle someone else's incense offerings. Those with magical power would not easily dismantle another's incense offerings, as it would create mortal enmity.
"You are too naive. You also carry the people's incense offerings. If you dismantle my incense offerings, won't I dismantle yours?"
The Fire Lord's expression turned grim. She exerted all her strength, transforming into her divine form!
Her face and left hand were hidden within the blazing flames. She used the power of Zhu Rong, forcefully resisting the people's incense offerings. Amidst the incense offerings that surrounded her, she formed the Lamp Lighting Seal with both hands.
The two changed their hand seals almost simultaneously.
Lamp Lighting Seal, Great Compassion Seal, White Crane Seal.
The incense offerings around the Fire Lord immediately turned into a violent storm. The yellow smoke and clouds began to break free from her control. It was at this moment that Ji Xiang spoke:
"Jade Hua scatters its aura, nine fragrant mists curl; incense clouds densely weave, piercing through the nine heavens."
"Attendant Incense Jade Maiden, ascending to the Emperor's presence; Grant me longevity, to be an immortal in this world."
The incense energy that had broken free from the Fire Lord immediately surged towards Ji Xiang. Ji Xiang opened his mouth wide, instantly swallowing the wind and clouds. All the people's incense offerings were consumed by Ji Xiang!
The Fire Lord was stunned at this moment. She had also formed the Three Hand Seals in reverse, but there was no trace of yellow incense energy on Ji Xiang!
"What is happening? Where are the people's incense offerings on you?"
Ji Xiang mocked her, "My incense offerings are male, and yours are female. When the female encounters the male, she comes when I beckon. Your hand seal is useless against me!"
Witnessing these several bizarre scenes, even the Fire Lord felt a strange fear rising in her heart.
Humans fear the unknown!
"You are not human?"
"What is your origin!"
The Fire Lord finally harbored a sense of dread towards Ji Xiang, and she discovered that her strength was rapidly declining!
The loss of the people's incense offerings meant she could no longer maintain her half-Earth Immortal status and was reverting to the strength of the Seventh Realm!
"I am indeed not human!"
"I am a celestial being!"
Ji Xiang bared his teeth and smiled, chanting amidst the wind, rain, thunder, and lightning:
"I descend from the azure sky of the highest heavens."
"I come from the Great Fuliu Land!"