You don't want your secret to be revealed by others, right?

"Xiahong Wuyuan?"

The Tian Ku Bodhisattva sat cross-legged atop the lotus throne composed of skulls and fierce ghosts, looking down with compassion at the flames below, and softly said, "Is it really you? Have you now become such a pitiful fugitive, always hiding, never showing? Why not end it all here and now? I, a humble monk, will preserve your divine soul so you can spend eternity within this Myriad Souls Yin Lotus. What do you say?"

Prince Xun hovered in the air, sneering at the flames below.

No matter how powerful a great cultivator was, they could never be a match for a saint-level adversary!

Even when that Seventeenth Prince publicly beheaded a saint-level adversary a few years back, it was only because that Seventeenth Prince was innately terrifying and wielded a divine artifact.

The key point was that the Seventeenth Prince also held an imperial decree, granting him the power of Heaven and Earth in Jingzhou!

Otherwise, even with a divine artifact, one could only barely contend against a saint-level adversary for a few rounds in battle.

And we were outside Jingzhou!

As long as the cost of sins was disregarded, a saint-level adversary could unleash their full power.

"Xiahong Wuyuan, surrender yourself."

The Tian Ku Bodhisattva sighed and said, "I am not the only one here today."

As he spoke, the sound of something tearing through the air was heard, and beams of light continuously flew in from all directions—over thirty streams of light, each exuding the aura of a great cultivator.

"Xiahong Wuyuan? Is it really you?"

"Over a hundred years… you've finally shown yourself."

"The world will be your tomb, Xiahong Wuyuan; be buried here."

"A dethroned Prince, no longer under the protection of national fortune, and you dare to show up? Do you still think you're the Prince of old?"

"Ladies and gentlemen, although the Tian Ku Bodhisattva is overseeing this, let's arrange a formation anyway to prevent this scoundrel from making a desperate counterattack."

These dozens of great cultivators were all high-ranking figures from various factions, mostly from the Demon Path and left-hand paths, with few from the Three Religions or the Ancestor Hall.

After all, such individuals were used by the prince factions to cut weeds and eliminate the roots, better suited for hiding in the shadows.

"Boom!"

Dozens of torrents of the power of Heaven and Earth surged forth as the dozens of great cultivators communicated with the power of Heaven and Earth to quickly establish a pre-prepared array with array path treasures.

The chaotic torrents of the power of Heaven and Earth rapidly integrated into the blood-red barrier, immediately making the barrier sturdier.

Though their cultivation levels varied, these dozens served as a foundation for the array; though not agile, they acted as one entity, ideally suited for setting this kind of trapping array. Even a saint-level adversary would need to exert all-out assaults to break it.

"Wait."

The Sect Leader of the Primordial Sect and others were startled and never expected this situation, they immediately soared up, hastily calling out, "We are not enemies of the Primordial Sect. Let us go."

The Tian Ku Bodhisattva and the assembling dozen of great cultivators said nothing and allowed them to leave.

After all, the Primordial Sect was one of the Daoist Sacred Lands.

They were just concerned the Prince of Tianxuan would become a Saint and wanted to eliminate the issue at its root.

As the few from the Primordial Sect left the great array, the Tian Ku Bodhisattva kept his eyes fixed on the flickering flames below and on Hong Xi, preventing them from using this as a chance to escape.

However, the flames, suspected to be the Prince of Tianxuan, showed no sign of fleeing.

"Xiahong Wuyuan, die."

The Tian Ku Bodhisattva softly spoke, tapping the lotus platform under him. Instantly, a massive skull opened its sinister white jaws, spewing out terrifying specters.

Prince Xun curled his lips in a smile, "Heavenly Ghost King?"

Nine specters exuding astonishing aura, each far more powerful than him!

In sheer destructive power, these Heavenly Ghost Kings, bolstered by the yin lotus, each exhibited the might of the eighth layer of the Tianxia Building!

Even the Tian Ku Bodhisattva himself could, if uninhibited by Heaven and Earth Law, only display power equivalent to the eighth layer of the Tianxia Building.

"Go, seize his soul."

The Tian Ku Bodhisattva ordered softly, and the nine Heavenly Ghost Kings roared, charging towards the flames below.

Dark clouds covered the sky, and dense, dark qi spread forth.

The nine Heavenly Ghost Kings seemed to transform this place into a ghostly underworld, filling the air with the sound of wailing souls.

Under the terrifying aura, the grand hall below had already crumbled into ruins, leaving nothing but the ball of flame and Hong Xi upon the mountaintop.

"Wooo..."

Boundless rancor and resentment surged up as the nine Heavenly Ghost Kings simultaneously pounced towards the flames below.

However—

"Boom!"

The flames suddenly vanished, reappearing in nine identical blazing clusters in front of each Heavenly Ghost King.

Whirling fiercely like wheels of wind and fire, the terrifying golden flames swept over the nine Heavenly Ghost Kings in an instant.

"Aaaaaaaaah—!"

The golden flames seemed to contain a peculiar power. Upon contact, the Heavenly Ghost Kings reacted as if they had encountered their worst nightmare, letting out the most anguishing cries that shook the entire area.

In just a fleeting moment, the nine Heavenly Ghost Kings had dissolved into wispy black smoke within the golden flames, disappearing without a trace.

Prince Xun and others froze.

"This..."

"How could it be?"

"In an instant... annihilated?"

"What kind of fire is that?"

Each great cultivator was suddenly stupefied.

These nine Heavenly Ghost Kings, in terms of sheer power, each matched the eighth layer of the Tianxia Building, lacking only the profound techniques of a cultivator. No cultivator present could defeat just one Heavenly Ghost King head-on.

Not to mention, this was nine Heavenly Ghost Kings!

Even a powerhouse of the eighth layer of the Tianxia Building would have had a bitter struggle, right?

Yet...

The person suspected to be Xiahong Wuyuan resolved it all in an instant?

"Taiyang Fire? Pure Yang Fire?"

Tian Ku Bodhisattva's expression did not change, only narrowing his eyes slightly, "And employing the Heaven and Earth Law, such domineering flames..."

A ghostly spirit feared nothing more than the Taiyang Fire, such Pure Yang Fire!

True to form, it was their bane.

Even with a gap of one or two major levels of strength, ghostly spirits wouldn't dare touch such flames.

Moreover, more than a hundred years ago, the Prince of Tianxuan had already been a top-tier powerhouse of the seventh layer of the Tianxia Building.

Using Taiyang Fire and disregarding sins to wield the Heaven and Earth Law, it wasn't surprising he could destroy these nine Heavenly Ghost Kings.

But...

To simultaneously eradicate nine Heavenly Ghost Kings in an instant was indeed terrifying.

At least he'd never heard of anyone below sainthood who could achieve that, perhaps that Seventeenth Prince, with the Divine Artifact Battle Saber, might have a chance?

That momentary transformation into nine, wasn't speed, but some divine power technique, or some strange magic treasure?

In an instant, nine avatar-like entities were able to wield the power of Taiyang Fire.

It truly was unbelievable.

"Enough."

The Tian Ku Bodhisattva shook his head slightly, "Definitely not easy to provoke. I'll have to take matters into my own hands."

He lightly tapped the skull lotus platform beneath him, and immediately various ghostly spirits flew out, swirling everywhere until the sky was filled, creating a scene akin to hell.

"Come."

The Tian Ku Bodhisattva suddenly opened his mouth, his lips tearing into a great chasm like the maw of an abyss, swallowing all the ghostly spirits into himself.

His own aura began to rise progressively, crazily surging!

"Boom!"

In the blink of an eye, his aura had peaked.

The Tian Ku Bodhisattva stood, exuding terrifying power and aura, and looked indifferently at the flames below, saying, "Prince of Tianxuan, it is quite impressive that a great cultivator like you can command Taiyang Fire, but I am not a spirit. Your Taiyang Fire is of no threat to me."

At this moment, from the flames below, came the childlike voice:

"I cannot handle you, but... what about her?"

In the next instant, boundless bloodthirstiness suddenly pervaded.