The Demonic Flame Crystal was almost like a black hole of energy.
When Lanling threw it into the volcanic magma, it immediately began to devour everything around it.
This was a massive volcano. Although it had long fallen dormant, the magma within still contained an astronomical amount of fire energy.
Yet in less than three days, all the magma inside the dormant volcano had been completely consumed.
That vast ocean of magma had become nothing but cold, solid rock.
Even so, the Demonic Flame Crystal had only just begun to warm up.
It continued sinking, deeper and deeper, almost reaching the Earth’s core.
At the Earth’s core lay an almost inexhaustible source of blazing energy.
Like a bottomless energy black hole, the Demonic Flame Crystal continued to devour, devour, and devour!
It consumed energy for a full ten days.
The energy within it exceeded a certain balance point, and it suddenly exploded.
The cold crystal transformed into a raging Demonic Flame.
Its energy was limitless, far surpassing the destructive power of a nuclear bomb.
That terrifying energy incinerated everything.
Wherever it descended, everything ignited. The rocks that had long cooled and solidified melted once more into blazing magma.
The magma grew in volume, more and more.
In the end, it exceeded the total energy the volcano had possessed before falling dormant.
At once, the sleeping volcano became an active one.
Yet the Demonic Flame continued erupting wildly!
Almost in an instant,
The inferno burst through the thick layers of rock, pierced hundreds of metres of seawater,
And shot straight into the sky!
“Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!”
An endless pillar of flames surged hundreds of metres into the air.
The skies above the Scarlet Loathing Sea were instantly swallowed by fire.
The sheer shock of that sight was beyond words.
What erupted was no longer even magma.
The temperature was so terrifying that the magma itself was reduced directly to ashes.
It was the middle of the night, yet the brilliance of the inferno illuminated the heavens as brightly as daylight.
The waters of the entire Scarlet Loathing Sea evaporated and disappeared within moments.
Nothing remained except endless flames, burning wildly across the heavens.
At that moment, heaven and earth truly changed colour. It looked as though the end of the world had arrived!
A sea boiled by flames, the heavens consumed by fire!
…
A miracle, a true miracle!
Scarlet Loathing Khan wet himself on the spot.
Not from humiliation, but from sheer terror.
Then he stood frozen on the shore of the Scarlet Loathing Sea, staring blankly at this miracle in complete disbelief.
The flames had erupted from the centre of the Scarlet Loathing Sea and soared into the heavens. They had not spread to the shore.
However, all the seawater had instantly turned to steam and vanished. The heat was unimaginably terrifying.
In almost an instant, Scarlet Loathing Khan’s skin had been scalded.
The pain was unbearable, yet he paid it no attention. He simply stared blankly at the sea of flames covering the sky.
Meanwhile, Xieli Khan’s wife had fallen into a state bordering on madness. Completely ignoring the agony caused by the boiling steam, she knelt at the shore and repeatedly kowtowed while shouting,
“Great Moon Demon God! Great Sea Demon Fire God!”
At the same time, the surviving members of the Xieli Tribe were overwhelmed with ecstasy, shock, and joy.
The miracle before their eyes proved beyond doubt that their faith had been correct. Lanling truly was the Moon Demon God. Naturally, he was also the Sea Demon Fire God.
The god they worshipped truly was the common god of all centaurs!
The miracle Lanling had performed in the Xieli Tribe before had already been astonishing. He had transformed Xieli II into a horse, and his demonic blood had instantly healed severe injuries.
But this miracle surpassed everything.
It truly harnessed the power of heaven and earth.
He had actually boiled the entire Scarlet Loathing Sea dry.
He had truly set the heavens ablaze!
No one knew there was a volcano beneath the Scarlet Loathing Sea.
All they saw was the entire sea instantly becoming a boundless inferno.
Flames boiling the sea, flames burning the heavens!
If this was not divine power, then what was?
If this was not a miracle, then what was?
Clearly, the Scarlet Loathing Tribe had enraged the great god, causing him to unleash the power of heaven and earth to punish them by taking away the sacred waters they had treasured.
While the Xieli Tribe was overcome with joy, the centaurs of the Scarlet Loathing Tribe were consumed by shock and fear.
Lanling truly was the Sea Demon Fire God, the common god of all centaurs.
He had truly boiled away the Scarlet Loathing Sea.
He had truly reclaimed it through divine power.
They were not afraid because they would be punished.
Rather, they were terrified because they had truly blasphemed the great Sea Demon Fire God.
Like the Xieli Tribe, the Scarlet Loathing Tribe’s reverence and devotion towards the Sea Demon Fire God were beyond comparison. They constantly raided other tribes simply to gather offerings for him and build his golden statue.
The reason Scarlet Loathing Khan had been so furious before was because he believed Lanling had insulted their great deity.
No words could describe the centaurs’ loyalty to the god of their faith.
They were willing to sacrifice everything, even their own lives, for their god.
The Xieli Tribe worshipped the Moon Demon God because they hoped to be reborn as noble centaurs in their next life rather than ordinary horses.
So what did the Scarlet Loathing Tribe seek from the Sea Demon Fire God?
They firmly believed that one day everything in the world would perish.
Mountains, rivers, oceans, deserts, and forests would all be destroyed.
Just as their ancient homeland beneath the sea had been completely annihilated.
But as long as the Sea Demon Fire God existed, no matter how the world ended, the centaur race would survive and continue.
The great Sea Demon Fire God would create a new world and a new homeland for them.
He would also transform their bodies to suit that new world.
For example, to allow them to live upon the land, he had granted them the lower bodies of warhorses.
In the future, when they needed to live in the skies, he would surely give them wings.
Even more than that, the shamans of the Scarlet Loathing Tribe had prophesied that if even the heavens were destroyed one day, the Sea Demon Fire God would grant them eternal bodies of energy, allowing them to roam and survive throughout the universe.
To the Scarlet Loathing Tribe, the Sea Demon Fire God was not only their creator, but also their saviour.
His greatness and power could never be described with words.
Yet their Scarlet Loathing Tribe had dared offend and blaspheme against him.
Instantly, endless terror, endless remorse, and endless torment flooded their hearts.
The centaurs of the Scarlet Loathing Tribe, together with those from more than a dozen other tribes, all knelt down.
More than twenty thousand centaurs knelt in perfect formation, facing the direction of Lanling’s stone coffin.
Every centaur tribe worshipped a different deity.
Yet the god before them was the common god of all centaurs.
A god possessed countless incarnations.
He could be the Sea Demon Fire God.
He could be the Moon Demon God.
Naturally, he could also be the deity worshipped by any other tribe.
The centaurs of every other tribe now believed without the slightest doubt.
Lanling had already proven that he possessed the powers of both the Moon Demon God and the Sea Demon Fire God.
If any tribe dared stand up now and say to Lanling, “If you wish to become our tribe’s god, then show us your divine power.”
That tribe would immediately be wiped out without exception!
…
The spectacle of flames boiling the sea and burning the heavens finally came to an end.
The flames disappeared, leaving only endless ash drifting through the sky.
The enormous Scarlet Loathing Sea had vanished completely.
Not a single drop of water remained.
Even the crack that had once connected it to the Eastern Sea had been sealed by molten rock created by the inferno.
Seawater would never flood back in again.
The Scarlet Loathing Sea had disappeared forever.
Scarlet Loathing Khan, his entire body covered in wounds, remained kneeling motionless upon the shore.
Xieli Khan’s wife said, “Scarlet Loathing, don’t forget Master’s words. If everything came true, if the Scarlet Loathing Sea was truly burned away, then you were to seek Master’s forgiveness.”
Scarlet Loathing Khan raised his head and looked at her.
Blood coloured tears streamed from his eyes as he said in a trembling, hoarse voice,
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. Wise and courageous wife of Xieli, please forgive my sins!”
“It is not my forgiveness you should seek, but Master’s mercy,” Xieli’s wife replied.
Scarlet Loathing Khan nodded.
Instead of standing, he continued forward on his knees towards Lanling’s stone coffin.
The survivors of the Xieli Tribe surrounded the coffin.
As Scarlet Loathing Khan approached on his knees, they silently moved aside to make way.
When he reached the coffin, he slammed his head against the ground in a deep kowtow.
“Great Moon Demon God, Great Sea Demon Fire God, supreme lord of all centaurs, eternal saviour of the Scarlet Loathing Tribe, my everlasting guiding star, I, the ignorant and foolish Scarlet Loathing, beg your forgiveness!”
Scarlet Loathing Khan burst into uncontrollable tears.
“Open the coffin,” Lanling’s voice came from within.
Scarlet Loathing Khan stepped forward with utmost reverence and slowly lifted the lid.
Lanling stood up.
He had no head.
His severed head rested in his hands.
“Do you now know your wrongdoing?”
Lanling’s voice echoed across the entire shoreline.
“Your servant knows his sins!”
Scarlet Loathing Khan collapsed to the ground, sobbing.
“Sigh.”
Lanling placed his head back upon his neck.
Instantly, his body became whole again.
Not even the slightest scar remained.
“Do you know why I severed my own head?” Lanling asked.
“Your servant does not know,” Scarlet Loathing Khan answered.
Lanling said, “You committed an unforgivable crime by slaughtering your fellow centaurs. I cut off my own head for half a month to atone for your sins, sacrificing a thousand years of my lifespan.”
Hearing this, Scarlet Loathing Khan felt as though a knife had pierced his heart.
He collapsed completely, crying uncontrollably.
“Master, kill me. Please kill me!”
At this moment, Scarlet Loathing Khan truly wished for death.
He had been deceived by Naishu into committing monstrous crimes.
Not only had he slaughtered his fellow centaurs, he had also offended the great Sea Demon Fire God.
If death alone could atone for his sins, then he truly no longer wished to live.
“Scarlet Loathing, I can forgive you for offending me and destroying my statue,” Lanling said.
“But slaughtering your fellow centaurs of the Xieli Tribe is absolutely unforgivable. Do you understand?”
“Yes!”
Scarlet Loathing Khan replied,
“But all the blame rests upon me alone. Please spare my people.”
Lanling looked towards the warriors of the Scarlet Loathing Tribe, then towards the elderly centaur elder.
Immediately, every centaur knelt lower, expressing their utmost reverence and devotion.
“That’s right. The centaurs of the Scarlet Loathing Tribe were still wise enough. At the crucial moment, they prevented you from committing an even greater crime.”
Lanling nodded towards the elderly elder.
The old elder immediately felt dizzy with joy.
He was almost overwhelmed with happiness.
He had received praise and acknowledgement from the great Sea Demon Fire God himself.
It had also been he who stopped Scarlet Loathing Khan from committing an even greater sin.
He swore that, at that moment, he had truly heard the call of the ancient power flowing through his blood.
Surely it was because of his unwavering devotion that the great Sea Demon Fire God had awakened his bloodline.
Lanling said, “I cherish every centaur. I truly do not wish to execute you. However, your capital crime cannot be forgiven. Do you understand?”
“This humble servant understands.”
Scarlet Loathing Khan knelt with his forehead pressed to the ground.
“I am willing to die to atone for my sins, although I know that even ten thousand deaths would never be enough.”
“The Scarlet Loathing Tribe needs a new Khan. Name your successor,” Lanling said.
Scarlet Loathing Khan replied,
“I recommend my younger brother. Although his martial skills are only slightly inferior to mine, he is braver, more righteous, and more compassionate.”
He beckoned with his hand.
Another enormous centaur warrior stepped forward and knelt before Lanling.
“Your servant Chihuo greets Master!”
Chihuo, Scarlet Loathing Khan’s younger brother, indeed possessed a square, dignified face and bright, determined eyes.
His physique was no smaller than his elder brother’s, showing that his martial strength was no weaker.
Only to preserve his elder brother’s authority had he deliberately lost by half a move every time they sparred.
“Chihuo, from today onwards, you are the Khan of this tribe,” Lanling declared.
“And this tribe shall officially be renamed the Chihuo Tribe.”
“We obey your command!”
The two brothers, Scarlet Loathing and Chihuo, knelt together.
“Wife of Xieli, come here,” Lanling called.
She approached on her knees.
Her entire body had been scalded by the steam, covered in terrible burns.
She had suffered this disaster solely to uphold Lanling’s authority.
Lanling bit his finger and gently smeared a drop of his demonic blood onto her forehead.
A miracle occurred.
All the wounds across her body disappeared without a trace.
Before everyone’s eyes, she recovered completely.
Once again, the crowd was utterly astonished.
Previously, this would have been called evil sorcery.
Now, it was called divine power.
Tears streamed uncontrollably down Xieli’s wife’s face.
From this day forward, the blood of the great Moon Demon God flowed within her body.
Boundless happiness filled both her body and soul.
Every centaur around her looked on with deep envy.
Lanling looked over the kneeling centaurs covering the ground.
“Mighty centaur race, you are the whip of destruction in my hands. Now I shall lead you to destroy this old world and build a new one. Are you willing to follow me? Are you willing to become the whip of destruction in my hands?”
“We are willing!”
More than twenty thousand centaurs roared in unison.
“Good. Then from this day onwards, follow me into battle, into slaughter, and into destruction!”
Lanling declared.
“I will lead you to trample across thousands, tens of thousands, and hundreds of thousands of miles beneath your iron hooves!”
“Long live the great Moon Demon God! Long live the Sea Demon Fire God! Long live the common god of all centaurs!”
The voices of more than twenty thousand centaurs shook the heavens.
Lanling looked at the deposed Scarlet Loathing Khan and said,
“Scarlet Loathing, I will still execute you. However, you shall be reborn in another form. You will become one of my Death Warriors and accompany me in conquering the world. Are you willing?”
Scarlet Loathing Khan’s body trembled violently.
His eyes filled with overwhelming joy.
“I am willing. As long as I can continue fighting for you, even if I become a vengeful spirit and suffer the torments of hell, I am willing!”