At the instant the mechanical palm closed, space seemed to be viciously twisted by an invisible giant hand. Chen Wuya felt his organs sink sharply, the intertwining blue-black light patterns before his eyes tearing apart in an instant, while a piercing hum rang in his ears.
The next moment, a wave of heat slammed into them.
The three of them plummeted from midair. Below lay a churning pool of scarlet lava, bubbles bursting endlessly and spraying crimson sparks. Chen Wuya had no time to think. Misaligned Force surged violently within him, flooding down both arms and into the soles of his feet. Just before he touched the lava, his true qi burst out in reverse, forcibly solidifying the surface magma into several jagged floating rocks.
"Watch your footing!" he growled.
Bai Zhi reacted with lightning speed. Using her momentum from the fall, she flipped and landed atop a floating rock. The instant her heel steadied, a jet-black vine shot from deep within the lava, heading straight for her ankle. With a flick of her wrist, her flexible sword swept out in an arc, severing the vine. A foul black mist sprayed from the break, twisting in midair into the shape of a human face before quickly dissipating.
Mo Feng landed on another floating rock, staggering before he managed to steady himself. He looked into the distance, his pupils contracting sharply. "That pillar... it's blood-red. It wasn't naturally formed."
Chen Wuya followed his gaze. Deep within the Devil's Den, a thick beam of bloody light shot straight toward the ceiling of the rock wall, the surrounding air warped by scorching heat. The pillar of light pulsed continuously, rising and falling like a living creature breathing.
"The Myriad Demons Cauldron?" he asked.
"Yes." Mo Feng's voice tightened. "Ancient records say it was