Inside the tent, Guan Qinghan propped her chin in her hand, staring blankly at the flickering candlelight, letting out a soft sigh.

"Sister Guan, are you thinking of Brother Mo Ye?" Dugu Xiaoyi quietly sat down beside her. After a few days apart, the usually bright and innocent girl had noticeably thinned, and an inexplicable weight of worry now shadowed her eyes.

The moment she spoke, a sudden jolt of realization struck her. Did she truly hope Sister Qinghan’s answer was yes or no? The thought then occurred that by calling Guan Qinghan 'Sister Guan' and Jun Mo Xie 'Brother Mo Shi,' wasn't she subtly pairing them together? She quickly backtracked, "...Uh, are you truly thinking about... Mo Xie?"

Guan Qinghan turned, offering a gentle, warm smile. "Little Yi, why ask that? What answer do you wish for?"

Dugu Xiaoyi pouted. "Of course, yes... Uncle San Jun wants to pair you two up. If you don't think of him, who would you think of? Back then, no one favored him, yet I was the one who chose him. Why is everyone trying to steal him now..."

As the words left her lips, a genuine surge of grievance welled up, and her eyes instantly reddened.

Guan Qinghan’s bright eyes flickered. "Little Sister Xiaoyi... rest assured... However, it has been so long since he left and hasn't returned. It truly makes one... worried. It’s the kind of familial concern a sister-in-law feels for her brother-in-law, nothing more."

Dugu Xiaoyi’s pout grew even higher. "But you aren't his sister-in-law anymore... You are family, and you have the advantage of proximity... Of course, you don't need to overthink things, hmph... This guy just disappears whenever he pleases. When he gets back, I’m going to teach him a good..."

Suddenly, her eyes lit up as a brilliant idea struck her, causing her to stop mid-sentence. A flush of color instantly flooded her cheeks. The more she considered it, the more restless she became, fidgeting awkwardly for a moment before hastily jumping up. "I need to step out for a moment," she said, bolting out of the tent with the speed of a frightened rabbit.

Guan Qinghan watched her hurried retreat with a puzzled expression, finally unable to suppress a light laugh. Following the soft chuckle, she returned to her own thoughts, sighing again, gazing lost at the candlelight and murmuring, "What should I do? What am I to do? I... am truly... a cruel fate..."

While everyone worried about Jun Mo Xie, the Young Master was currently plunged into a crisis of immense proportions.

His risky move to employ the Chaos Fire against Li Jue Tian, while successful—the result even exceeding his wildest disbelief, effortlessly turning the Second Supreme Being into a mere pile of ash—came at a catastrophic cost. The backlash from the Chaos Fire left Jun Mo Xie himself wishing for a swift death.

When he struck to kill Li Jue Tian, the latter was certainly incapable of retaliation. Yet, Jun Mo Xie knew keenly that every move he made was under the intense scrutiny of the three most powerful peak experts present: Venerable Mei, Lei Bao Yu, and Bu Kuang Feng.

To eliminate the near-dead Li Jue Tian then was not difficult. The true challenge lay in executing the kill under the gaze of all parties, which carried the tremendous risk of exposing his true identity. If even one of his actions failed to align with the persona of the 'Super Expert' he was portraying, those three would undoubtedly move to unmask him completely.

At that point, the Jun Family would face utter annihilation—a catastrophe from which no rescue would be possible.

But any effective measure carried a significant risk of exposure, which was why Jun Mo Xie ultimately gambled on the Chaos Fire. To eradicate the menace of the Blood Soul Manor permanently, Jun Mo Xie was willing to stake everything.

Although the Young Master was prepared to endure the Chaos Fire's backlash, he never anticipated it arriving so swiftly, or with such savage intensity. It was a torment that nearly overwhelmed his iron-strong nerves.

Jun Mo Xie had always prided himself on his resilience; he believed that no torture on earth could force him to divulge what he wished to keep secret. He was certain he could withstand any cruelty, with death being the absolute worst outcome. During his previous life's anti-interrogation training, he had already endured every form of torture known.

With such inherent arrogance, any physical or mental agony was merely an experience to be logged. Therefore, Jun Mo Xie habitually acted on impulse, doing exactly as he pleased—whether indulging in carefree jest and disdain or maintaining a cold, solitary aloofness. What pleases me, I shall do.

Because in this world, there was nothing left that he feared, dreaded, or held in awe. This was why, despite being a mere profligate, he could speak to His Majesty the Emperor with casual banter, and why, possessing only the cultivation of Yu Xuan, he dared to curse the Supremes with unrestrained ferocity. What can you do to me?

Even if you could do something, so what?

I have survived the most extreme suffering this world offers, and I do not even fear death. What else is there to fear?

It is like showing off bravado—it requires foundation. Only with capability and sound psychological fortitude can one truly act boastful. Without them, aspiring to arrogance is merely a joke!

A princeling sent down to a county or among the common folk can indulge in endless arrogance; a billionaire can act with impunity before the middle class and the poor. Why? Because no one can genuinely threaten them; they have no fear. Even when boasting, they don't worry about the boast backfiring!

But could a beggar possibly show off in front of Li Ka-shing? That scenario is utterly unimaginable.

Jun Mo Xie's audacious confidence was built on an even stronger foundation: he feared nothing and cared for nothing. Why shouldn't he act this way? I possess the Hongjun Pagoda; even if all the experts in the world conspired against me, they could not kill me. With such a powerful backing, why should I not be bold?

My progress in cultivation has allowed me to achieve in three months what others take decades of grueling effort to attain. With such immense capital, why should I not be superior? If I declare myself the second greatest genius in this world, who dares claim to be the first?

Thus, Jun Mo Xie had always been proud and arrogant, viewing the world with a dismissive gaze. He believed there was no existence left that could threaten him, nothing he needed to fear, and no restraint he required.

But now, he knew he was wrong—spectacularly wrong!

Because... there are pains that the soul itself cannot endure, let alone a living mortal body. Physical suffering, even the breaking of limbs or scraping poison from the bone, Jun Mo Xie believed he could meet with a detached smile. But spiritual agony is enough to break even a Great Golden Immortal.

Like now... the backlash of the Chaos Fire.

He was currently curled up in the deepest concentration of spiritual energy within the Hongjun Pagoda, clutching his head and writhing in pain...

He never imagined the Chaos Fire's retribution would be this tyrannical. Some things, no matter the necessity for the risk, should simply not be attempted...

When the Chaos Fire was first launched, Jun Mo Xie felt no discomfort—perhaps even a faint, ethereal sense of ecstasy! But the instant he extinguished Li Jue Tian and drew the Chaos Fire back into his body, Jun Mo Xie felt his entire world—both his spiritual and conscious realms—turn upside down.

This extreme, intense agony was utterly impervious to the restorative spiritual energy of the Hongjun Pagoda. Because the Chaos Fire is the most fundamental fire essence of the cosmos, it was currently burning the very core of his soul...

Jun Mo Xie bit down, enduring the torment, his facial muscles violently contorted. He felt his soul being drawn out inch by inch, then set ablaze inch by inch. It seemed as if a thin flame had ignited deep within his heart, slow and deliberate, scorching his fragile core, slowly cooking it, yet keeping him alive to clearly experience this most cruel and unbearable torture...

It was as if a long-extinguished fire deep within his brain matter had suddenly reignited, slowly building momentum until the very essence of his mind began to boil, yet his consciousness remained. Especially his pain receptors, amplified a millionfold at this moment.

The black robe around him was rolled into a ball and stuffed in his mouth, now chewed to pulp. He wanted to pass out, but dared not, for unconsciousness meant no awareness to resist the backlash of the primal fire, which would leave him utterly destroyed, much like Li Jue Tian—suicide by his own hand. Thus, his only recourse was rigid endurance, clinging desperately to the last thread of clarity within his spirit. If that clarity vanished, Jun Mo Xie would cease to exist in this world, or any world.

Compared to the burning sensation of the Chaos Fire, tortures like the Tiger Bench, chili water, or inserting poisoned bamboo splinters between twenty fingers... these were but the stinging of gnats. Or rather, if those were mosquito bites, this backlash was being crushed by a massive leg. The disparity in scale was immense.

Sweat poured off him in streams, instantly evaporating into a fine mist.

"Ah—!" Jun Mo Xie threw his head back and roared, rising stiffly only to fall back just as rigidly, his body twisting on the ground in a manner that defied all known limits of human anatomy...

This suffering persisted for a full day and night...

The dark flames of the Chaos Fire danced merrily beneath the Creation Furnace, seemingly cheering the agony Jun Mo Xie endured...

Only the Heaven-Opening Creation Art persisted, circulating relentlessly through Jun Mo Xie’s meridians. The dense spiritual energy within the Hongjun Pagoda poured into his channels like a whale sucking water, washing away impurities again and again. This single influx surpassed all previous inputs combined; it equaled the sum of all spiritual energy he had absorbed before.

The milky-white energy in the air above was sucked down as if by a powerful vortex, constantly producing a shhh sound, surging endlessly and relentlessly into Jun Mo Xie’s body, wave after wave, as if it would never end.