Jiang Shengyu summoned the Vacuous Devouring Flame and the Pure Lotus Demon Flame, then divided a portion of the Purifying Lotus Flame to shield Jiang Qingtong's body.
There was no need to worry about the flames burning her.
The two had tested it before—neither's soul skills were effective against the other. Jiang Qingtong could not imprint Jiang Shengyu's martial spirit, and Jiang Shengyu's flames could not harm Jiang Qingtong.
Avoiding the poisonous miasma, they entered the core region of Sunset Forest. Ahead, another valley came into view. Around it grew a kind of flower neither of them had ever seen outside.
An expanse of verdant blossoms shimmered with eerie light.
Jade Phosphorus Seven-Death Flowers! All of them were Jade Phosphorus Seven-Death Flowers! The valley they surrounded was shrouded in even deadlier poisonous fog—mists released from these very flowers.
Guarding the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, perhaps?
Sensing the intrusion of Jiang Shengyu and Jiang Qingtong, the flowers swayed their tendrils. Poisonous mists, as if given life, surged forward like waves, rushing to engulf the two.
Seeing the flowers take the initiative to attack, Jiang Shengyu showed no courtesy. He clasped the two differently colored ultimate flames in his hands and slammed them together.
A dazzling lotus of fire burst forth. Scattering like a celestial maiden flinging blossoms, each petal landed upon the fields of Jade Phosphorus Seven-Death Flowers, exploding into flame that instantly consumed everything nearby.
The poison mists had not even reached Jiang Shengyu and Jiang Qingtong before the firestorms of Vacuous Devouring Flame and Pure Lotus Demon Flame began swallowing the fields of flowers.
Jiang Qingtong instinctively took a step back behind Jiang Shengyu. He sighed lightly:
"Set fire to the mountain, spend life in prison. Guess I'll trouble myself to put it out."
As his voice fell, a soul ring sequence of one purple, three black, and one red rose beneath his feet. In the sky above, a golden halo unfolded, from which descended an enormous hand, vast enough to blot out the heavens.
The moment the Hand of Heaven appeared, Jiang Shengyu could even sense the fear emanating from the Jade Phosphorus Seven-Death Flowers.
They were no longer merely plants. Most here had already stepped into the realm of soul beasts—this valley was a settlement of Jade Phosphorus Seven-Death Flower soul beasts!
From the burning fields, white and yellow soul rings occasionally popped forth.
The Hand of Heaven slowly pressed downward, its palm suffused with a chilling aura of ultimate ice. With its descent, the aura spread.
The colossal hand struck heavily at the heart of the flower fields. A torrent of ultimate ice spread in all directions, extinguishing every flame in an instant and freezing the entire expanse.
The frozen fields detonated with golden light, shards of ice bursting apart. Within, the Jade Phosphorus Seven-Death Flowers were utterly annihilated by Jiang Shengyu's strike.
Countless ten-year and hundred-year soul rings rose, turning the flower valley into a field of rings.
Of course, in the deepest part of the valley, some Jade Phosphorus Seven-Death Flowers survived, their cultivation reaching the thousand-year and even ten-thousand-year level. Yet even they fared poorly under Jiang Shengyu's dual assault of ice and fire.
After crushing the flowers with a single strike, Jiang Shengyu drew the Twilight Sword, leisurely leading Jiang Qingtong deeper into the valley. The flowers near the valley mouth, with the instinct to avoid danger, dared not hinder them.
The outer Jade Phosphorus Seven-Death Flowers had only been child's play. The true threats were the plant-type soul beasts dwelling near the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well—each one possessed power on par with a ferocious beast.
The moment the two set foot upon the Yin Yang Well's domain, they both felt the unmistakable sensation of being watched.
Then, a gentle voice sounded by their ears:
"Humans, you've made far too much commotion just now! Don't go any further—the ones inside have terrible tempers!"
Startled, Jiang Shengyu froze, while Jiang Qingtong scanned their surroundings. Soon, she spotted a large pink flower swaying amidst the dark mist ahead.
"Was that you speaking?" Jiang Qingtong asked.
The pink blossom swayed.
"Yes, yes!"
The two approached the flower and gazed up at it. Jiang Shengyu said:
"If I'm not mistaken, you must be the hundred-thousand-year Aromatic Silk Beauty ?"
"Eh? You actually know me!"
The Aromatic Silk Beauty was astonished. Then it asked eagerly:
"Are you that person's descendant? Did you come to claim something?"
After so many years without speaking to humans, the Immortal spilled everything at once.
Only after speaking did it realize its mistake. It wobbled in alarm.
"Oh no! If you're not his descendants, then I've revealed a secret!"
At its less-than-brilliant display, Jiang Shengyu and Jiang Qingtong exchanged a glance. Stepping forward, Jiang Qingtong patted the stem and smiled.
"Don't worry—we've no interest in the secret you guard."
Hearing this, the Aromatic Silk Beauty asked in confusion:
"Then what are you here for?"
"We need to reach the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. Please let us pass," Jiang Qingtong replied.
"No! The ones inside will kill you!" The Immortal swayed stubbornly, refusing.
Jiang Shengyu chuckled:
"Relax, Big Pink Flower. We're not afraid."
"Who's Big Pink Flower! You're the Big Pink Flower! My name is Youyou!" The Immortal was indignant at the nickname. It scattered a cloud of pink pollen toward Jiang Shengyu.
The drifting pollen dispersed the remnants of the poisonous miasma around them.
"Hmph! Choke on that!" the Immortal huffed.
Its behavior was completely unlike that of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast. After millennia of life within the unique haven of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, it remained as pure and naïve as a child.
Jiang Qingtong waved away the pink pollen mist. The Immortal asked again:
"You truly intend to go inside?"
Both nodded firmly.
The Immortal hesitated, then said:
"Very well! I'll disperse the fog for you and show the way. But if you meet disaster inside, don't blame me…"
"We won't," Jiang Qingtong said with a shake of her head and a smile.
After it cleared the mist and pointed out the path, the two thanked the Aromatic Silk Beauty before proceeding onward.
The deeper they went, the more immense the presences they felt, divided as though yin and yang—yet resonating together.
Very soon, the sight of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well unfolded before them.
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