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At the critical moment, a figure in coarse hemp robes appeared above the heads of the Demon-Slaying Alliance and others. With a wave of his sleeve, the massive black hand condensed by Qian Renhan instantly crumbled.
The figure narrowed his eyes slightly and said, "You've already reached the level of a five-star Dou Sheng and beyond. Your growth is impressive. Once I'm done handling the Xiao Clan's matters, I'll deal with you."
This robed figure was naturally Gu Yuan, who had left the Ancient Tribe to find Xiao Yan. Knowing Qian Renhan's power and the grudges between them, Gu Yuan could not possibly allow him to drain the entire Demon-Slaying Alliance below for nourishment—even if many Soul Palace members were among them.
"Gu Yuan? Why is he here?"
Before Qian Renhan could think further, space above the Nine Nether Yellow Spring silently shattered without making a sound. A black flame, formless and untraceable, appeared from the broken space.
As soon as this flame emerged, it triggered a chain reaction. Massive portions of the space began to burn away under its terrifying temperature, crumbling like paper. The icy depths turned scorching hot, even making Dou Sheng-level experts feel suffocated—as if the cold spring had transformed into a volcanic crater on the verge of eruption.
"So I've finally found you. So this is where you were hiding."
The black flames gathered together, forming the silhouette of a middle-aged man with black hair and black robes. His entire body was wreathed in dark flames, strange black runes covering his body. His pupils, resembling black holes, radiated a terrifying devouring force, exuding an aura of ancient dread and eerie power.
"Flames... This aura far surpasses mine. Could it be—Void Swallowing Flame!"
Beneath the Nine Nether Yellow Spring, Qian Renhan coughed up the fifth drop of Demonic Saint Blood that he had already half-refined, storing it carefully. Like a cannonball, he burst out of the spring, sending up waves a thousand meters high—sprays of water mixed with shattered, earth-yellow crystals from his body.
As he launched from the spring, Qian Renhan's bones cracked thunderously. Without a word, he threw a fierce punch—Ancient Emperor Fist.
The punch, laced with pitch-black Dou Qi, easily shattered space. It roared forward like a man-eating tiger, lunging toward Void Swallowing Flame.
After being tempered by four and a half drops of Demonic Saint Blood, Qian Renhan wasn't even sure what level his physical body had reached—but he was certain it far surpassed his cultivation level.
Void Swallowing Flame, seeing that Qian Renhan was only at the late peak of seven-star Dou Sheng, originally intended to toy with him like a cat playing with a mouse—testing his depth, nature, potential, and combat experience to determine whether he was worthy of challenging the Soul Heaven Emperor. Whether he was or not, Void Swallowing Flame still planned to seize control of Qian Renhan as quickly as possible—hoping to obtain his even more perfect devouring power.
Don't be fooled by Void Swallowing Flame's prestige in the Soul Tribe, where he held a position rivaling that of the Soul Heaven Emperor and was revered by many. The truth was bitter. He had served the Soul Tribe for millennia, yet remained stuck at early nine-star Dou Sheng, with no growth in a thousand years. Repeatedly crushed by the Soul Heaven Emperor, his soul realm stuck at Great Perfection of the Heavenly Stage—still no match for the Emperor's Imperial Soul Realm.
The Soul Tribe had always been wary of Void Swallowing Flame. According to the original story, the Soul Heaven Emperor only allowed him to break through to the Imperial Soul Realm because they needed him to gather the soul essence necessary to resurrect the elders who died in the war with the Xiao Clan a thousand years ago—and only after the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade was fully assembled and the Ancient Emperor's Mansion located.
If Void Swallowing Flame could seize that power, the Dou Sheng elders he had planted Sub-Flames in would become his stepping stones to the peak of nine-star Dou Sheng—and the moment he'd finally break from the Soul Tribe's grip.
But if he couldn't, and Qian Renhan's potential met his expectations, then Void Swallowing Flame would invest in Qian Renhan instead.
When he felt the sheer power of Qian Renhan's punch, Void Swallowing Flame's pupils contracted. He formed a hand seal, causing the black runes covering his body to glow as palm-sized black flames erupted. The flames gathered into a massive shield to block the Ancient Emperor Fist.
Boom! With a deafening crash, the space around them exploded outward in all directions by the kilometer. The entire abyss shook, and the underground tunnels carved by the Nine Nether Earth Python Clan collapsed.
Behind Qian Renhan, the Fallen Angel Wings reappeared. Formerly pitch black, the wings had changed after being tempered by Heavenly Demon Phoenix blood. Now, dark as ink, they shimmered with strange red-blue veins—like countless tiny blood vessels.
After absorbing four and a half drops of Demonic Saint Blood, even the bone structure of the Fallen Angel Wings had transformed into a sunset-like red. A single flap could now shatter space, unleashing wind blades capable of slicing through Dou Sheng-level experts.
Qian Renhan flapped his wings, performing Heavenly Phoenix Steps, and his speed skyrocketed. Void Swallowing Flame was completely unable to escape his close-range attacks, falling into Qian Renhan's rhythm.
Underground, rocks came crashing down as members of the Nine Nether Earth Python Clan all reverted to their beast forms and fled upward at full speed. On the surface, countless flying magical beasts witnessed an array of geological disasters. Landslides were the least of it—more terrifying were the massive fissures splitting the ground, forming bottomless chasms, while thousand-meter peaks sprang up as if two continental plates were colliding. The "plates" were none other than Qian Renhan and Void Swallowing Flame beneath the surface.
"Ancient Emperor Fist!"
"Great Annihilation Finger!"
"Yellow Spring Finger!"
Qian Renhan went all out, unleashing powerful close-combat Dou Techniques one after another toward Void Swallowing Flame. With each attack, the Beast Domain's landscape shifted violently.
In the past, these techniques would be cast by forming seals, condensing Dou Qi, and projecting it as punches or palm imprints. But now it was different—Qian Renhan fused the Dou Qi into his limbs and attacked physically. The Dou Qi fluctuated within his fists like a storm. He was fighting just like Huang Tian—using the body as a weapon.
Void Swallowing Flame, engaged in this close-combat brawl, wore an expression of extreme gravity. Every move he made was with full strength. In disbelief, he thought, "Did this guy transplant bones from some ancient nine-star Dou Sheng magical beast? How is his body this ridiculously strong?"
Void Swallowing Flame could clearly feel that Qian Renhan's physical body strength had reached the pinnacle of early nine-star Dou Sheng. If not for Qian Renhan's inferior cultivation technique, Void Swallowing Flame might've already been overpowered.
Achieving this level of physical strength with just four and a half drops of Demonic Saint Blood—if Qian Renhan used all the blood, he might reach the mid-stage peak of nine-star Dou Sheng.
Of course, no matter how potent, blood essence couldn't compare to the beast itself. Qian Renhan didn't possess the monster race's naturally superior skeleton, skin, and physiology. Yes, a half-emperor could easily kill a mid-stage nine-star Dou Sheng with a slap—but for Qian Renhan, this was already more than satisfying.
"Could he be like me—a being born of heaven and earth? My flames are actually being devoured by his Dou Qi!"
As a Heavenly Flame, Void Swallowing Flame's experience surpassed even the Soul Heaven Emperor's and Gu Yuan's in certain domains. While others believed Qian Renhan's strange strength came from a bizarre cultivation technique, Void Swallowing Flame realized in one exchange that this wasn't the case.
Qian Renhan's Dou Qi quality was only at the level of a beginner Heavenly Technique—and it even carried traces of the Ancient Tribe. If he cultivated a human method, then his Dou Qi should be tied to his internal spiritual root. But humans don't have devouring roots.
That left only one possibility: Qian Renhan, like him, was a being born of the heavens—a lifeform with a unique natural ability, like his devouring, Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame's purification, or Three Thousand Burning Flame's immortality.
These strange, powerful traits could only manifest in beings born of heaven and earth—like Heavenly Flames!
As for whether Qian Renhan was a magical beast, Void Swallowing Flame ruled it out completely. There had never been a magical beast like him recorded in Dou Qi Continent history. If he were a beast, his body attacks would have long revealed his true form.
Against Qian Renhan's relentless physical assault, Void Swallowing Flame was under absolute pressure. After all, he was a flame—how could he have a solid body? And his strongest advantage—flame devouring Dou Qi—was now being restrained.
You could say that Void Swallowing Flame, whose abilities let him challenge nearly anyone in Dou Qi Continent, had finally met his match—a kindred spirit who completely countered him.
(End of Chapter)