Spirit gathering in the Ancient Realm, Thunderflame's allegiance

In the third month after news of the Boundary Realm Pill's successful refinement spread across the Central Plains, Xiao Yan received a gold-embossed invitation from the Ancient Realm. Five large characters in ancient seal script read "Spirit Gatherer Competition," while intricate Spatial Runes adorned its edges. This grand event was held once every hundred years in the Ancient Realm, inviting experts from across the Central Plains who excelled at communing with the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. The winner would earn the right to cultivate in the Spirit Source Pool, the Ancient Realm's sacred ground.

"Spirit Gatherers..." Xiao Yan traced the runes on the invitation, a flicker of interest in his eyes. Spirit Gatherers were essentially special alchemists capable of precisely controlling the energy of heaven and earth. Their energy-manipulation techniques might help him understand the five Heavenly Flames within him more deeply. More importantly, the pure spiritual energy contained in the Spirit Source Pool would be enough for him to attempt a breakthrough to Peak Dou Zun.

"The Ancient Realm has always kept itself closed off. Why would it suddenly invite experts from outside?" Yao Qing Lin held an ancient book, her brows slightly furrowed. "This book says the Ancient Realm's Spirit-Gathering Art dates back to antiquity and seems to share an origin with the Otherworldly Demon Hall's sacrificial arts. Could they also be preparing for the World-Devouring Demon's arrival?"

Xiao Yan put away the invitation. "Whatever their purpose, this is an opportunity. The Ancient Realm's grasp of spatial laws far surpasses that of the Central Plains. Perhaps they have a way to deal with the Outer Demons." He turned to Wang Yue. "The Wang Family has longstanding ties with the Ancient Realm. Can you arrange for us to enter?"

Wang Yue nodded. "Father received an invitation long ago and specifically reserved places for us. However, the Ancient Realm's spatial passage only opens to those at Dou Zun or above. We need to gather at the 'spatial node' in the Northern Region first." She took out a Jade Pendant. "This is an entry token for the Ancient Realm. It can keep us from being swallowed by spatial turbulence."

Three days later, at the Northern Region's spatial node, dozens of experts from across the Central Plains gathered before a massive Teleportation Array. There were quite a few familiar faces among them. Ye Feng of the Ye Family had recovered his strength and was exchanging insights with several Spirit Gatherers. Several elders of the Pill Tower were also present, led by Xuan Kongzi, who had come to personally guide the participating Pill Tower disciples.

"My young friend Xiao Yan, it has been a while." Xuan Kongzi approached with a smile, his gaze sharpening slightly as it settled on him. "Your aura has grown stronger again. It seems the Demon Flame has benefited you greatly." He lowered his voice. "The Ancient Realm's Spirit-Gathering Art is indeed connected to Otherworldly Demons. They are said to have a wisp of Heaven and Earth Thunderflame suppressed within their sacred ground. That is the key to countering the World-Devouring Demon."

Something stirred in Xiao Yan's heart. "Heaven and Earth Thunderflame? The thunderflame ranked eleventh on the Heavenly Flame Ranking?" Xuan Kongzi nodded. "Precisely. This flame was born amid the lightning of the nine heavens and contains power of utmost yang and unyielding might. It perfectly complements your Demon Flame. If you could obtain it..."

Before he could finish, the Teleportation Array suddenly blazed with dazzling light. The Ancient Realm's guide emerged, treading upon a spatial rift. He wore silver battle armor, and his aura was unfathomable. "Follow me, everyone. The spatial passage is about to open." Everyone stepped into the Teleportation Array. Xiao Yan stood shoulder to shoulder with Yao Qing Lin and Wang Yue, watching the space around them begin to warp.

The teleportation took far longer than expected. Xiao Yan could feel countless fragments of space brushing past him, laced with dense lightning power. When his soul power touched that lightning, the Demon Flame within him suddenly grew restless. Black-and-gold flames leaped through his meridians, actually resonating with the lightning outside.

"What's wrong?" Yao Qing Lin noticed the change in him and asked with concern. Xiao Yan shook his head and was about to reassure her when a bolt of purple lightning suddenly burst from a spatial rift and shot straight toward him! It carried the familiar aura of a Heavenly Flame, its violence imbued with a will to destroy everything. It was none other than Heaven and Earth Thunderflame!

"Watch out!" Wang Yue drew her sword to intercept it, but Xiao Yan stopped her. He could sense that this thunderflame was not attacking out of malice; it was searching for a host. "Flame Mantra!" Xiao Yan shouted in a low voice. The five Heavenly Flames within him erupted simultaneously, gold-and-black flames intertwining with lightning in midair to form a brilliant bridge of light.

Heaven and Earth Thunderflame seemed drawn to this power. Purple flames poured along the bridge of light into Xiao Yan's body. Unlike the pain he had experienced when fusing with the Demon Flame, the thunderflame actually separated itself from the Demon Flame upon entering him. The former surged through his meridians like a raging lightning dragon, while the latter remained still as water, slowly releasing purification power.

"Two Heavenly Flames... coexisting peacefully?" Xuan Kongzi watched from the side, dumbstruck. "Could your Flame Mantra fuse Heavenly Flames without limit?" Xiao Yan had no time to answer. He was fully focused on guiding the thunderflame, trying to bring it under his control. The instant the thunderflame and Demon Flame reached a balance within his dantian, his aura soared again. The pressure of a Seven-Star Dou Zun spread outward, shaking the entire spatial passage.

"The spatial passage is destabilizing!" The Ancient Realm guide's expression changed drastically as he poured all his strength into stabilizing the formation. "Suppress your aura, quickly!" Xiao Yan hurriedly reined in his aura. Heaven and Earth Thunderflame calmed with it, becoming a small purple flame in his palm, its glow complementing the black-and-gold Demon Flame.

When they finally reached the Ancient Realm, everyone looked at Xiao Yan differently. Ye Feng stepped forward, his tone complicated. "You actually managed to subdue Heaven and Earth Thunderflame... It seems the champion of this competition has already been decided." Xiao Yan smiled faintly. "The competition hasn't begun yet. Who will bring down the deer is still anyone's guess."

The scenery of the Ancient Realm surpassed anything in the Central Plains. Islands floating in the sky were shrouded in spiritual mist, enormous waterfalls cascaded from the clouds, and the spiritual energy in the air was so dense it seemed on the verge of liquefying. The Spirit Gatherer Competition was held in an immense plaza. At its center stood a stone pillar that reached into the heavens, covered in Spirit-Gathering Art runes.

"Brother Xiao Yan, look at the runes on that stone pillar." Yao Qing Lin pointed at it. "They look very much like the emblems on the Ancient Demon Suppression Warriors' armor!" Xiao Yan examined them closely and found that those runes indeed contained power capable of suppressing demonic qi. Several passages even seemed faintly aligned with the cultivation formulas of the Flame Mantra.

The competition consisted of three rounds. The first tested the contestants' ability to sense the purity of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Within the time it took an incense stick to burn, they had to extract the purest spiritual energy from spiritual mist mixed with demonic qi and channel it into a testing crystal. Xiao Yan activated the Flame Mantra, sending Heaven and Earth Thunderflame and Demon Flame into action together. The thunderflame burned away the demonic qi, while the Demon Flame purified the impurities. The two powers worked in perfect accord, quickly extracting a mass of pure white spiritual energy that made the testing crystal burst with dazzling light.

"Full marks!" An uproar swept across the plaza when the judge announced the result. The Ancient Realm's gifted Spirit Gatherers wore grave expressions. They had never seen such an efficient method of purification. Xuan Kongzi stroked his beard, his eyes filled with satisfaction. "This boy always manages to surprise us."

The second round tested precision in controlling spiritual energy. Contestants were required to use the Spirit-Gathering Art to stimulate the growth of a thousand-year-old tree, making it flower and bear fruit within the time it took an incense stick to burn. Xiao Yan once again displayed astonishing talent. Instead of directly forcing its growth, he first used the thunderflame to stimulate the ancient tree's vitality, then used the Demon Flame to regulate its internal channels, and finally supplied energy with the Four-Symbol Heaven-Burning Flame. In just half an incense stick's time, the withered tree blossomed with golden flowers and bore crystalline fruit.

"Full marks again!" The judge's voice rang with disbelief. "Contestant Xiao Yan's Spirit-Gathering Art has already reached a realm of divine mastery!" The Ancient Realm's elders whispered among themselves, their gazes toward Xiao Yan filled with amazement and curiosity.

On the day of the final, all the Ancient Realm's senior figures gathered in the plaza. The final required contestants to repair an ancient spiritual artifact: a damaged staff covered in spirit-gathering runes, yet corroded by dense demonic qi and emanating an ominous aura. "Whoever can purify the demonic qi within the staff and restore its spirituality will be the champion." As the Ancient Realm's Grand Elder announced the rules, his gaze deliberately passed over Xiao Yan.

Xiao Yan took the staff, six Heavenly Flames dancing simultaneously at his fingertips. He could sense that the demonic qi within it shared an origin with the World-Devouring Demon, yet was even more ancient. Rather than purifying it rashly, he first used his soul power to commune with the spirituality within, then guided Heaven and Earth Thunderflame and Demon Flame into it together. The thunderflame burned the core of the demonic qi, while the Demon Flame purified its lingering traces. Like the twin poles of yin and yang, the two powers enveloped the demonic qi perfectly.

When the final trace of demonic qi was cleared away, the staff suddenly erupted with dazzling light. The gemstone at its tip projected a beam that formed an image in midair: a scene from the Ancient Era, when the Ancient Realm's ancestor had combined the Spirit-Gathering Art with Heaven and Earth Thunderflame to battle the World-Devouring Demon. At the end of the image, the ancestor sealed the thunderflame in the Spirit Source Pool, leaving a prophecy: "When flames of six colors gather and lightning appears once more, the World-Devouring Demon's end will be near."

"The prophecy... has come true!" The Ancient Realm's Grand Elder trembled all over with excitement and bowed deeply to Xiao Yan. "My young friend Xiao Yan, the Ancient Realm owes you a great gift. The doors of the Spirit Source Pool will always be open to you!" Throughout the plaza, the people of the Ancient Realm knelt in reverence, regarding Xiao Yan as the hope of saving the world.

Holding the restored staff, Xiao Yan felt the resonance of the six Heavenly Flames within him, his heart filled with emotion. He finally understood that the Flame Mantra's true secret was not the limitless fusion of Heavenly Flames, but achieving harmony in the energy of heaven and earth through their balance. That harmony might well be the key to opposing the World-Devouring Demon.

That evening, the Ancient Realm held a grand celebration banquet for Xiao Yan. During the feast, the Grand Elder handed him a Spatial Jade Slip. "This contains the spatial coordinates held by the Ancient Realm and can take you directly to the Spirit Source Pool. The spirit liquid in the pool can not only raise your cultivation, but also help you gain complete control over Heaven and Earth Thunderflame." He paused, his tone growing grave. "The World-Devouring Demon's Vanguard Force may arrive ahead of time. We must be prepared."

Xiao Yan accepted the Jade Slip, determination flashing in his eyes. "I'll increase my strength as quickly as possible. Once I emerge from the Spirit Source Pool, I'll unite the forces of the Central Plains and the Ancient Realm to face this challenge together." Outside the window, the Ancient Realm's night sky was filled with stars. One purple star shone particularly brightly, as though heralding the coming of thunder and the approach of a storm.

Xiao Yan's Spirit Gatherer Competition had ended, but his battle had only just entered its most critical stage. Six Heavenly Flames circulated within him, and the Flame Mantra operated on its own, showing faint signs of a breakthrough to Peak Dou Zun. He knew the Spirit Source Pool would be the key to increasing his strength, as well as his final preparation for confronting the World-Devouring Demon.

When the first rays of sunlight fell upon the Ancient Realm, Xiao Yan stepped alone into the spatial passage leading to the Spirit Source Pool. His figure vanished into the light, leaving only the resolute silhouette of his departing back and a destiny that was about to be rewritten.