The Burning Heaven Lord's gaze settled on a faint scratch on the valley's rock wall. It looked like a scar left by battle, but it was actually a mark left by the friction of Qin He's source-birth law against the rock as he laid the formation.
Pale red burning heaven law flowed through his eyes. The surrounding air grew hotter still, and even the smoke and dust drifting in the distance were burned away by invisible laws of fire.
"My lord, could there be an ambush?" Behind him, a Saint Tier guard tightened his grip on his spear. The flame at its tip flickered as he scanned the valley warily.
The Burning Heaven Lord did not answer. He merely raised his hand slowly, and that faint crimson flame appeared at his fingertip again. It fell to the ground, transformed into a tiny fire snake, and slithered toward the valley entrance.
The instant the fire snake touched the valley's edge, it jerked to a halt, as though it had struck an invisible barrier, then vanished into a wisp of smoke.
"There is indeed a formation."
The lean cultivator in Daoist robes spoke quietly, runes flickering at his fingertips as he tried to decipher the formation's patterns. "It's extremely well concealed and blends with the fire-aspected aura. Without your fiery eyes and golden pupils, my lord, it would have been impossible to detect."
The pressure surrounding the Burning Heaven Lord quietly mounted.
He could sense not only the lingering presence of starfall flame within the formation, but also a strange power mingled with demonic energy and golden light. That power was chaotic, yet it maintained an uncanny balance.
Just as he hesitated, a faint golden-black halo suddenly rippled through the formation.
Within that halo, a blurred figure slowly emerged.
Concealed amid the