A bunch of heretics dare to scheme against me

After some tracking, you and Zhenpin arrived in front of a cave.

This Holy Fire Cult didn't have a proper sect gate; their headquarters was simply located inside this natural, massive cave.

It wasn't hard to understand why.

They worshipped fire.

They set fires during the day, set fires at night, and even when they slept, they had to light a bonfire beside them.

Doing this 365 days a year, a single mistake would easily set a house ablaze.

They didn't mind if they burned themselves. They would just think the Fire God had blessed them—the more it hurt, the more the Fire God loved them.

But a house couldn't withstand catching fire every few days.

Therefore, they could only live in caves. Stones weren't afraid of burning.

"Benefactor Chen, now that we have found their lair, let's strike directly. With the combined strength of you and me, the current Holy Fire Cult should be completely vulnerable. We can crush them in an instant."

"Who said I was going to wipe them out?"

"Didn't you just say during the day that you wanted to enforce justice on behalf of Heaven?"

"I don't think so. I actually want to join them. I like fire a lot too!"

Saying this, you circulated the Heart Flame Mystic Art and casually struck out with a palm, spewing forth a tongue of fire.

Zhenpin looked at you with a strange expression.

"Benefactor Chen, I find it increasingly hard to see through you."

"Old monk, thank you for helping me find the Holy Fire Cult. If fate allows, we will meet again in the future. For the sake of the Sword Master, please refrain from attacking the Holy Fire Cult."

"Amitabha. Since the benefactor insists on jumping into the fire pit, this is a tribulation you must face. This poor monk will not interfere. Look out for yourself."

Zhenpin left. His final expression seemed to show great disappointment in you.

You shrugged, not caring at all.

You were already quite old. Your only hope for continuing to live now was to break through your cultivation realm, so that your starting point in the next simulation would be higher.

You made a strong entrance into the cave and performed a set of the Crimson Heart Fist for a group of Holy Fire Cultists who were gathered around a bonfire, doing some unknown kneeling and bowing rituals.

Because of the characteristics of the Heart Flame Mystic Art, an external martial art, every punch you threw carried fire. You looked like a street performer doing a fire juggling act.

The Holy Fire Cultists were terrified at first, as an outsider had suddenly barged in.

Then, they were pleasantly surprised.

You could unleash flames from your body, and the damage the fire caused you was practically negligible. You were simply a natural-born Holy Body for the Holy Fire Cult!

"I want to join the Holy Fire Cult!"

"You are the Holy Son!"

"Huh? Is the promotion really this fast?"

You successfully joined the Holy Fire Cult.

You first tried to blend in with them for a few days, just to go through the motions.

But this group of people was too bizarre.

They never ate proper food on a daily basis. Instead, they tossed their food into the fire until it was carbonized, and then swallowed it down along with the sparks.

They didn't drink water. They hunted wild beasts and drank their blood.

Their cultivation method involved burning themselves with fire.

They all grimaced in pain, yet their mouths kept shouting things like "Praise the Fire God."

Unless they left the cave, as long as they were inside, everyone had to keep a bonfire burning without letting it go out, even while sleeping.

They would suddenly jolt awake in the middle of the night just to add firewood.

"A bunch of lunatics..."

You often found it impossible to fit in simply because you were too normal.

Within a few days, you revealed your true intentions.

"Lord Cult Master, my cultivation has been stuck at the peak of the Soul Tempering Realm for a long time. I heard our Holy Fire Cult has a way to break through realms, is that true?"

The Cult Master, whose beard was completely white, showed a look of pleasant surprise upon hearing this.

"We do, Holy Son, we do! You are at the peak of the Soul Tempering Realm?"

"What's wrong? Does our Holy Fire Cult not even have a Soul Tempering Realm cultivator right now?"

"Sigh. You just arrived, so you don't know enough about the history of our Holy Fire Cult. During the calamity over forty years ago, our cult not only lost all its higher-ups and elites, but our cultivation techniques were also lost. Without the key techniques to elevate our faith, it is very difficult to improve our cultivation base with our current training methods."

How could it not be difficult? Who could get stronger by self-mutilating every day?

You had no interest in the history of the Holy Fire Cult; you only hoped they could do you a favor and help you break through.

The group of cultists readily agreed, saying it was no problem.

Inside the Holy Fire Cult's cave.

An array formation pieced together with charcoal was activated.

Sixty Holy Fire Cultists sat cross-legged around the perimeter of the array.

Behind each of them was a fiercely burning ball of fire.

"Brothers and sisters, today we shall ignite our bodies and minds to help the Holy Son break through his cultivation, in hopes that our Holy Fire Cult will prosper once again!!"

You were a bit astonished.

"Wait, this Myriad Fire Heart Devouring... isn't devouring my heart?"

"Of course not! It is to use the flames to devour us, transforming us into the power for your breakthrough!!"

It was actually the legendary method of sacrifice!

Although you couldn't bear it in your heart.

But thinking that they were an evil cult and leaving them in the world would only be a menace, turning them into an aid for your breakthrough could be considered them doing a good deed for this world.

The secret art began.

The cultists raised their hands high, lay on their backs, and allowed the raging fire behind them to ignite their entire bodies.

"Burn my broken body! To save the people of the world! Ignite my ambition! To glorify the Fire God!!"

They repeated this general outline of their doctrine, struggling to hold on amidst the flames.

Suddenly.

You felt something was wrong.

You couldn't move.

The crude array made of charcoal beneath you transformed into a cage, trapping you in place.

It felt as if something was draining away from your body.

The frivolous voice of the Myriad Soul Banner rang out.

"Buddy, you fell for it. They are dividing and devouring your vital energy."

You suddenly realized the truth.

Sure enough, high-end hunters always appear as prey!

That middle-aged man you met in Wutuo City was a bait himself!

This was the true ritual of the Holy Fire Cult to improve their cultivation!

The one to be sacrificed wasn't them, it was you!

You instantly flew into a rage.

"How dare you scheme against me, you bunch of heretics!!"

Unfortunately, the Alien Race's Father trait couldn't take effect here.

But you still had the Myriad Soul Banner.

"Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts!!"

As soon as the immortal artifact was deployed, its extraordinary power was undeniable.

This group of evil cultists, whose highest cultivation was no more than the Soul Tempering Realm, were directly annihilated by a single killing move from the Myriad Soul Banner, which released thousands of demon souls in a single devastating charge.

These people turned into a pile of mush on the ground without even uttering a single groan.

Their bodies were still burning, resulting in an on-the-spot cremation.

However, you left one alive, and that was exactly the Cult Master.

Watching you stand up completely unharmed from the Myriad Fire Heart Devouring Array, holding the Myriad Soul Banner that was coolly emitting black smoke, with ferocious demon souls coiling behind you, this Cult Master felt that you were even more evil than he was.

"You... you actually possess such a treasure... You hid it deeply. Heh, a miscalculation..."

This Cult Master was actually quite calm.

They often tricked people into joining the Holy Fire Cult, then fooled them into sitting on the Myriad Fire Heart Devouring Array to divide and devour them.

Having done this kind of thing so many times, as the saying goes, if you walk along the river often enough, your shoes are bound to get wet.

"It's a pity... My Holy Fire Cult was once one of the top major cults in Xiliang, but now it has been wiped out by a stinking monk like you."

Only then did you remember that you had just shaved your head bald.

[This guy thought he had been wiped out by the Buddhists, which obviously made him even more resentful.]

["I'll ask you one more time. Do you actually have a way for someone to break through from the Soul Tempering Realm to the Golden Body Realm?"]