For most cultivators, once they survived the eighth stage of the Divine Ability Realm—the Wind and Fire Tribulation—they could largely suppress their heart-demons. From that point onward, the danger of deviation all but vanished. Yang energy flourished, yin receded, and the body steadily transformed toward pure yang.
For Ancient Giants of the Longevity Realm, this was even more absolute. Their heart-demons were long since crushed. They refined Immortal Realm vitality into pure yang essence; unless struck by catastrophic upheaval or driven insane, heart-demons simply could not arise.
Their physical bodies, tempered and reforged by immense quantities of immortal qi, had become vessels of pure yang—like living divine artifacts. Dark, insidious heart-demons had no place to cling.
And yet—
Daoist Long and Daoist Mu, both on the verge of cultivating an undying body, found their heart-demons violently awakened by a single talisman.
Illusions flooded their senses. Nightmarish visions piled upon one another. They were dragged into a dreamscape they could not escape. It was something utterly unheard of.
"How—how can our heart-demons be stirred like this?"
Daoist Long roared within the illusion. "Even someone three or four realms above us could at most suppress us with brute force. No one should be able to truly ignite our heart-demons!"
Both Ancient Giants frantically mobilized the immense reserves of mana stored within their consciousness.
Waves of pure yang energy surged from their bodies, attempting to burn away the invading demons of the mind—but it was useless. The heart-demons only grew stronger.
Then flames erupted across their bodies.
Scarlet lotus tribulation fire.
Black, howling tempests—Nightmare Dragon Winds.
They had been dragged back into a Wind and Fire Tribulation.
"Mu Daoist!" Daoist Long bellowed. "We've been ambushed by an unimaginably powerful existence! Someone has forcibly triggered our heart-demons and reawakened our internal tribulation!"
Daoist Long roared again, pure yang energy exploding outward as he wrapped himself in blazing radiance, forcibly suppressing the tribulation inch by inch. His breathing turned ragged—just moments of renewed Wind and Fire Tribulation had already burned away a terrifying amount of his cultivation.
The higher the realm, the heavier the heart-demons—and the more catastrophic the tribulation they invoked.
"Move! Join forces!"
Daoist Mu was equally extraordinary. With a thunderous shout, he tore open a patch of space above his head by sheer force of will. Endless torrents of pure yang energy poured down, instantly suppressing the tribulation raging across his body and scattering much of his heart-demon.
Daoist Long was affected as well. The two synchronized, spinning together in a vortex of scorched air and dissipating flames, fleeing at full speed into the distance.
In an instant, the black clouds scattered. The howling winds vanished. Sunlight poured down once more.
"Eh? Why did the clouds disperse?"
"It looked like it was about to rain."
"That was strange… demon winds and demon clouds?"
People on the streets stared upward, whispering in confusion. The storm had come too fast—and vanished just as quickly.
"They… left?"
Fang Han stood frozen, stunned beyond belief.
Daoist Long and Daoist Mu—two Ancient Giants—had just sealed the land and blotted out the heavens, preparing to refine an entire region and force him out. And yet a single talisman burned by a shabby fortune-teller had driven them into madness and sent them fleeing in terror.
He turned to look at the old man—
Gone.
The fortune-teller had vanished without a trace.
Fang Han's heart slammed violently.
With his current cultivation, even Ancient Giants could not disappear from his side without him sensing it. If someone could come and go so silently, how could he ever defend himself if that person turned hostile?
"Even I misjudged him," Yan said gravely. "That old man was terrifying. He was waiting for you—everything calculated in advance. Fang Han… a truly frightening figure."
Yan paused, then added, "There's writing on the table."
Indeed, on the fortune-telling stall lay a sheet of paper, ink still fresh.
The successor of the Yellow Springs Emperor—truly extraordinary.
A pity that you have only cultivated the Five Emperor Demon God Arts, and not the Ninety-Nine Grand Samsara Techniques that shook all heavens and worlds.
I came to the Xuanhuang Great World to discuss the Dao with the Six Great Demon Emperors, yet aside from Ying Xiantian, none truly understand what 'demon' means.
I intervened this time only to drive away Daoist Long and Daoist Mu, for fear you might perish midway and fail to complete the Ninety-Nine Grand Samsara Techniques—thus costing me the chance to witness them.
Your future tribulations are many. Take care, young one.
At the bottom were four characters:
Heart-Demon Elder
"Heart-Demon Elder…" Fang Han murmured. "Who is this? I've never heard of such a person."
"I haven't either," Yan admitted. "But beyond the Xuanhuang World lie countless heavens and worlds. The universe is vast beyond measure—unknown cultivators are inevitable. This Heart-Demon Elder is clearly a top-tier figure of the Demonic Path. The one who taught Jiao Fei the Heart-Demon Curse Sword may well have been him."
"That's possible," Fang Han nodded. "He showed no malice. He even hopes I'll complete the Ninety-Nine Grand Samsara Techniques someday and discuss the Dao with him."
He sighed softly.
"Unfortunately, those techniques are still sealed within the Yellow Springs Treasury."
Then he asked, "Yan—how does the Grand Samsara Technique compare to Linglong Immortal Venerable's Grand Wish Technique?"
"On par," Yan replied after a pause. "Both are supreme Daos—beyond divine abilities. Once cultivated, they can awe the cosmos. Compared to them, things like the Great Devour, Great Destruction, or Great Severing are far inferior."
Yan continued slowly, as if recalling ancient secrets.
"Within the Gate of Eternal Life in the Immortal Realm, three thousand Grand Daos emerged. Each is an ultimate law beyond all divine abilities. The Grand Wish Technique and the Grand Samsara Technique should rank within the top ten."
"Only top ten?" Fang Han's heart stirred. "Then what ranks first?"
"The Great Destiny Technique," Yan said solemnly. "A supreme law said to govern all existence. Every being, every world—including the Xuanhuang World—has its destiny. No one has ever successfully cultivated it. The Yellow Springs Emperor sought the Immortal Realm partly to find it. It is said to be the overarching principle of the three thousand Grand Daos."
Fang Han took a deep breath.
"Besides Destiny, Wish, and Samsara—what else lies among the three thousand?"
"No one truly knows," Yan said. "But mastering even a few would let one roam heaven and earth without restraint. That is what it means to attain the Dao. Feng Baiyu's True Void Yin-Yang Dao—its true name is the Great Yin-Yang Technique—likely ranks near the bottom of the top ten. Your Five Emperor Demon God Arts, the Great Five Elements Technique, is also within the top ten. The Great Salvation Zen Light—perhaps the Great Salvation Technique—should rank within the top hundred."
"Three thousand Grand Daos…" Fang Han murmured. "To possess even one is enough to dominate the world. If someone mastered all three thousand… what would they become?"
"That's beyond us," Yan said quietly. "That's something only immortals ponder. Perhaps… eternal life itself."
Yan's tone shifted sharply.
"Our danger has passed. Shall we return to the Feathered Immortal Sect? It's time to deal with Hua Tiandu."
"Hua Tiandu…" Fang Han's eyes hardened. "He has elders protecting him, and he's in seclusion. Even if I find him, I can't kill him yet. I need more power."
He clenched his fists.
"But Daoist Long and Daoist Mu have been gravely wounded by their heart-demons. They're retreating to recover. This is the perfect moment."
His voice turned cold and ferocious.
"I need massive amounts of vitality to condense my Heaven-and-Earth Dharma Form. If I kill even one Ancient Giant and devour his essence, it will be enough—not only to form my Dharma Body, but possibly to break through to the realm of Defying Fate. I might even enter the Longevity Realm before Hua Tiandu."
Yan laughed sharply. "Exactly. Strike while they're wounded. Otherwise, once they recover, we gain two terrifying enemies and lose a golden opportunity."
Fang Han nodded, eyes blazing.
"Heaven grants opportunity—if I don't take it, it becomes calamity. Let's go. Daoist Mu can sense me through wood qi… and I can sense him through the Wood Sovereign Art."
He shot into the sky.
At this moment, Fang Han's mana had fully recovered. His spirit was blazing.
He was at his absolute peak.
And now—
The hunter would become the hunted.