The "Burial Heaven Seal" coalesced, emanating wails of despair as if countless malevolent spirits howled within. The temperature plummeted, suffusing the space with a bone-chilling cold.
"Blazing Sky Palm, one strike to burn the heavens, annihilate the world!"
Tianhuozi stepped forward, his face flushed with exertion as his blood boiled violently, as though his veins coursed with molten lava. With a guttural roar, he raised his hand and slammed it downward.
A massive hand, over sixty feet wide and composed entirely of condensed fire essence, formed instantly. The searing heat radiating from it was enough to distort the air, evoking the presence of an ancient fire god. It descended with destructive force.
The collision of these two powers sent shockwaves rippling through the void. Blood spurted from Tianhuozi's nose and mouth, his body riddled with cracks as his flesh tore apart. His robes were soaked with blood, but his steps didn't falter. With a roar, he pressed forward, his resolve unbroken even as new wounds appeared with each movement.
"Enough!"
The Blood Abyss Ancestor sneered, his voice filled with malice. "If you can withstand my third move, I'll abandon my name as the Blood Abyss Ancestor!"
Having been thwarted twice, his fury reached its peak. With a guttural growl, his hands moved in a flurry of intricate gestures, conjuring countless intertwining seals. These seals merged, forming an ominous black sigil, its surface etched with sinister patterns and a blood-red character for "Burial" that seemed to drip with fresh gore.
"Burial Heaven Seal!"
This technique consumed an enormous amount of power, and even the Blood Abyss Ancestor, standing at the peak of the Nascent Soul late stage, paled and labored for breath. His strikingly handsome but eerie face turned grim as he channeled every ounce of his strength into this technique.
As the Burial Heaven Seal hovered menacingly, the Blood Abyss Ancestor let out a cruel laugh. "This strike will destroy your body and soul, banishing you to eternal torment!"
With a command, the sigil soared upward, radiating a dreadful, oppressive force. It locked onto Tianhuozi with a chilling inevitability, sapping the air of vitality and causing his already weakened aura to waver further. Yet, in the face of certain annihilation, Tianhuozi's expression remained calm.
Turning away from the impending attack, his gaze met that of Ziyan Fairy. Her lips were pressed into a tight line, her eyes a tumultuous storm of emotions—worry, regret, and a touch of sorrow.
Seeing her concern, Tianhuozi's heart eased, a serene smile gracing his lips. His eyes lingered on her, conveying unspoken words of longing and resignation, before he turned back to face the looming Burial Heaven Seal.
Ziyan's eyes widened, her body trembling as if she wanted to speak, but no words came. As she watched his resolute figure, the resentment she had harbored for so long melted away, replaced by a quiet sadness.
Five Steps to Oblivion
Step One: Burning Resolve
Tianhuozi stepped forward, his qi churning wildly within him.
Born into poverty, he entered the path of cultivation at the age of eight, joining the Blazing Sky Sect. Tirelessly diligent, he achieved Foundation Establishment in just two years, becoming the sect's most exceptional disciple. Taken under the tutelage of Windfire Daoist, he devoted himself entirely to cultivation, avoiding worldly distractions. At twenty-three, he shattered the sect's record by forming his Golden Core and became a core disciple.
That spring, accompanying his master to a memorial for the Wind Chime Palace Lord, he met Ziyan Fairy for the first time. The moment he laid eyes on her, his heart was captured. Love consumed him, leaving him restless and sleepless for months. His master, moved by his plight, personally arranged a proposal to the Inviting Moon Palace, but Ziyan rejected him.
Step Two: Fiery Ascension
Tianhuozi's expression grew more tranquil as he took his second step.
The proposal's failure ignited a fire within him. Determined to prove himself worthy, he pushed his cultivation to its limits, braving death numerous times. Decades later, at the age of 230, he emerged as a Nascent Soul cultivator. His confidence soared.
That summer, he arrived at the Inviting Moon Palace once more, this time as a Nascent Soul expert. Surely, this would earn Ziyan's approval. Yet, when she descended from the heavens, her demeanor remained cold and indifferent. Without a word, she turned away, leaving him standing alone.
The news spread like wildfire through the six sects, and Tianhuozi became a laughingstock—a tale of hubris and humiliation.
Step Three: Sacrificial Flame
With his third step, Tianhuozi's body withered, his flesh drying and cracking as though aging centuries in an instant. Yet the aura radiating from him only grew stronger, filling the space with an oppressive might.
For the next century, he secluded himself in the Heart Questioning Cliff, meditating on his failures. His master's dying words revealed the true reason for Ziyan's rejection: her cultivation technique, the Inviting Moon Dance, demanded she preserve her pure yin essence. Any union would be reserved for a Nascent Soul cultivator of the highest echelon, potentially even an immortal.
Overwhelmed with shame, Tianhuozi realized how far beneath her he truly stood. His dreams of love had been folly from the start.
Step Four: Cracking the Core
With his fourth step, Tianhuozi's Nascent Soul began to fracture, cracks spreading across its surface. The raw energy contained within began to surge outward, threatening to explode.
A century later, fate reunited him with Ziyan in the perilous depths of the Unfallen Ruins. Though his heart still ached, he dared not voice his feelings. When the Blood Abyss Ancestor threatened her life, Tianhuozi acted without hesitation, disregarding the consequences.
He knew he had been a pawn in the Ancestor's schemes. He knew his actions had brought calamity upon the six sects. And yet, for Ziyan's sake, he would bear it all without regret.
Step Five: A Blaze Eternal
With his final step, Tianhuozi's body and soul burned as one.
Four hundred seventy-six years of cultivation, four centuries of love, and countless sacrifices culminated in a single, blinding moment of glory. He rose like a meteor streaking across the heavens, burning brighter than ever before.
"Even if my body is destroyed and my soul scatters to the winds, I will protect you. This is my Dao. This is my fate."
Tianhuozi's final attack collided with the Burial Heaven Seal, shattering the void with its brilliance. For one fleeting moment, he shone as the brightest star in the heavens. Then, he was no more.
All that remained was silence.