Burning Heaven Demon Saint

"A thousand years of time! At last, someone has come!" An aged voice rang out, its excitement unmistakable.

Jiang Ming stopped in his tracks and looked at the bronze coffin before him. "Who are you?"

"I am the Burning Heaven Demon Saint!"

"Demon Saint? Demon Saint! You're in the Saint Realm!" Jiang Ming said in surprise.

"Haha, brat, didn't expect that, did you? A thousand years ago, I roamed Central Province, invincible wherever I went, defeating every Saint without equal!" the Burning Heaven Demon Saint said smugly.

"Then why are you hiding in a coffin, in such a remote place as the Azure Region?" Jiang Ming asked honestly.

"You... I was harmed by treacherous villains and had no choice but to hide here."

"That doesn't sound right. Saint Realm cultivators only have a thousand years of lifespan. Could it be that you've already kicked the bucket?"

"What does 'kicked the bucket' mean? That is correct, Saints only have a thousand years of lifespan. I was gravely wounded and recuperated here, but my lifespan ran out, so I could only perish."

"Perished? Am I talking to a ghost right now?"

"Not so. I am of the Burning Heaven Flame Phoenix Clan. By relying on the innate divine ability of Nirvana, I can live a second life."

"Oh, then good luck with that." Jiang Ming turned to leave.

"Little friend, stop!" the Burning Heaven Demon Saint called urgently.

"Is there anything else?" Jiang Ming asked. He had not expected this to be merely a Saint Realm cultivator. He had never even heard of this Burning Heaven Demon Saint, so he was probably no great figure. There were plenty of Saints in the Spirit Realm; it was not as if Jiang Ming had never seen one. His own father was a Saint.

"To be frank, the conditions for Nirvana are harsh. I need a Strange Flame from this world to nourish me. I hope little friend can lend me your Divine Flame." The Burning Heaven Demon Saint was helpless as well. Nirvana required sufficient heat; apart from Strange Flames, ordinary fire simply could not reach such temperatures. If he did not succeed in Nirvana soon, he would die inside the egg and become the legendary Egg King.

"This?" Jiang Ming stretched out a hand, and crimson Sunfire ignited upon his slender fingers.

"Yes, yes! Whatever little friend desires, I can satisfy you!" the Burning Heaven Demon Saint said urgently.

"Emmm, what do you have?" Jiang Ming asked. Honestly, what good stuff could a wild Demon Saint possibly offer?

"Come closer. There is a storage ring inside the bronze coffin. It contains my thousand years of savings, and I can give it all to you." The Burning Heaven Demon Saint was helpless. After all, these were the only things he had.

Jiang Ming opened the bronze coffin and saw a red egg inside, as large as an ostrich egg. A storage ring lay beside it.

"This egg is you?" Jiang Ming asked curiously.

"That is indeed me. The storage ring beside me is little friend's reward. I am currently undergoing Nirvana, so the storage ring has no restrictions. Little friend may inspect it as you please."

Jiang Ming picked up the storage ring. "Aren't you afraid I'll take your things and run off?"

"I am, but what else can I do?" The Burning Heaven Demon Saint gave a bitter smile. Accidents always came too suddenly. He had not made the slightest preparation, leaving him unable to undergo Nirvana now and forced to rely on another's help. Even his life and death rested in someone else's hands. "But I believe little friend is not that sort of person. Besides, I can teach little friend the divine abilities of the Burning Heaven Flame Phoenix Clan."

"Can we humans learn the divine abilities of your Demon Race too?"

"Little friend has mastered a Strange Flame, so you can indeed learn my clan's divine abilities," the Burning Heaven Demon Saint said with certainty.

"Oh."

"Does little friend not believe me?" Seeing Jiang Ming's complete lack of interest, the Burning Heaven Demon Saint asked.

"It's not that. I just don't need them." As he spoke, Jiang Ming opened the storage ring and looked inside. "Emmm..." It was all ordinary cultivation arts and divine abilities, with only one or two at the Saint level. The spirit stones were decent enough—tens of thousands of Supreme-Grade Spirit Stones, even several Spirit Crystals—as well as some spiritual materials used for crafting spirit artifacts.

"Does little friend have some issue?" the Burning Heaven Demon Emperor asked upon seeing Jiang Ming's expression.

"Are... Demon Saints all this poor?" Jiang Ming hesitated before speaking the truth.

"..." After a moment of silence, the Burning Heaven Demon Saint said, "Cultivation requires enormous resources, but I do have many Saint-level cultivation arts and divine abilities. Little friend may look through them."

"No need." Jiang Ming refused. Everything he learned was Emperor methods—why would he learn Saint methods? Besides, he had plenty of Saint-level divine abilities and cultivation arts in his storage ring. They were all translated copies his mother had given him. Basically, every cultivation art and divine ability of the Jiang Clan was in his storage ring, except Emperor Level ones.

Burning Heaven Demon Saint: "..."

"You're a phoenix?" Jiang Ming asked.

"Yes, a Heaven-Burning Flame Phoenix." The Burning Heaven Demon Saint was in low spirits. With no backup plan left, he felt he might not survive after all.

"How about this? Keep your junk for yourself. I'll help hatch you, and you can be my mount. What do you say?" Jiang Ming thought it over. A phoenix ought to look pretty cool.

"Impossible, little friend. Seeing that you are so young, I presume you do not know what a Saint represents."

"Oh." With that, Jiang Ming walked away.

"Wait, change your condition!"

Jiang Ming turned and left.

"Don't go, I agree!" The Burning Heaven Demon Saint was on the verge of tears. Living was better than dying.

"Good!" Jiang Ming picked up the Burning Heaven Phoenix Egg. Sunfire flared in both hands as he continuously roasted the phoenix egg.

"That's enough, that's enough! It's a little hot!" the Burning Heaven Demon Saint cried excitedly. After a thousand years, he could finally undergo Nirvana.

"You're afraid of heat?" Jiang Ming asked curiously. Someone who used fire was actually afraid of heat? Then what the hell was he using fire for?

"Of course. One is very fragile during Nirvana." The Burning Heaven Demon Saint threw caution to the wind. In any case, from now on, he could only depend on the youth before him.

"How long until you hatch?" Jiang Ming asked. If it took too long, he would find another mount.

"Three years! Little friend's firepower is fierce. I can undergo Nirvana at the fastest speed."

"Fine." Jiang Ming put the phoenix egg into his storage ring. Ordinary storage rings could not store living creatures, but Jiang Ming's storage ring was an Imperial Heir Ring of the Jiang Imperial Clan. Not only could it store living beings, it was also a symbol of an imperial heir.

After settling everything, Jiang Ming returned to Border City.

"Young master!" Jiang Naicha and the other maid stepped forward and bowed. After the beast tide ended, the two had waited at the city gate for Jiang Ming's return.

"Mm." Jiang Ming nodded in response, clasped his hands behind his back, and strode into Border City.

"Thank you, benefactor young master!" The city gate guards immediately stepped forward and bowed when they saw Jiang Ming. Jiang Ming nodded in reply and entered the city.

Since the beast tide had ended, Border City's gates stood wide open, brimming with the air of daily life. People came and went through the streets, every household and shop had opened its doors, and Jiang Ming strolled along the street, feeling the warmth of mortal life. It was something the Spirit Realm did not possess.

"Young master!" The moment Wu Jie learned that Jiang Ming had returned, he hurried over and was about to kneel.

"Don't!" Jiang Ming said speechlessly, immediately stopping him. "That habit of kneeling whenever you see someone isn't good. Change it."

"Yes." Wu Jie bowed. "From now on, young master will be Border City's city lord. May I ask young master's honored surname?"

"I will not remain in Border City. You can manage Border City in my stead. I came this time only to say farewell." Jiang Ming did not refuse. Under all heaven, could there be any soil not belonging to the Jiang Clan? In truth, Jiang Ming had returned only to pick up his two maids.

"Yes."

Now that he had picked them up, they could depart. Border City did not raise demon beasts, so Jiang Ming could only set off in an ordinary carriage. Nalan Yu drove the carriage, while Wu Jie led a group of city guards to see Jiang Ming off.

"Oh, right. My surname is Jiang—the Jiang of the Jiang Clan."