Chapter 61: The Fusion of Heavenly Flames

"I never expected the power of the fifth tier of the Soul Formation realm to be so immense!"

Blasted backward repeatedly by the blade Qi, Xiao Yi spat a mouthful of dark blood, fine cracks spreading across his Heaven-Burning Battle Body. Overwhelmed by shock, he thought to himself, "Is the gap really this vast? Is the boundary between the Void Return realm and the Soul Formation realm truly an insurmountable chasm?"

Taking advantage of the moment, Xuan Yan, who had been watching from the sidelines, launched an attack on Xiao Yi.

"Xiao Yi, today I shall let you witness my true might!"

"Xuan Lie will pin him down while I launch a sneak attack from the flank. This Xiao Yi is undoubtedly doomed! My Soul-Devouring Strange Fire specifically counters all other strange flames; let's see how arrogant he can remain!" Xuan Yan sneered sinisterly at the sight.

Tilting his crimson gourd, he unleashed the Soul-Devouring Strange Fire from its spout, which instantly transformed into a blazing web that blotted out the sky.

This particular strange fire was specialized in devouring other flames and could directly incinerate a cultivator's spiritual origin.

Having just been battered by the "Dome-Splitting Star-Shattering Slash" to the point where his blood churned like a stormy sea, Xiao Yi felt a sweet, metallic taste rise in his throat as the fiery net descended upon him from above. Yet, he clenched his teeth fiercely and refused to take a single step back.

"This flame... it actually makes my own strange flames tremble with dread? But I am a disciple of the Profound Heaven Sect, and I must never fall here!"

He could feel the Heaven-Burning Emperor Flame emitting a mournful cry under the erosion of the Soul-Devouring Strange Fire, while the azure flames of the South-Ming Leaving Fire shivered uncontrollably.

This was no mere fire; it was an abyss capable of consuming the origins of all spiritual flames!

Su Wan and the other two attempted to rush forward to support Xiao Yi.

"Daring to slay members of my Immortal Alliance, your lives shall serve as sacrifices for my sword!"

At that moment, Xuan Jianzi unleashed his Sword Domain, sending tens of thousands of sword shadows surging toward Su Wan and her companions like a tidal wave.

Hand seals flashing through his fingers, the myriad sword shadows within the domain suddenly coalesced into a "Canglan Sword Dragon."

Its body was formed of countless blades, and its dragon breath carried a frost capable of freezing and fracturing the void itself.

Su Wan's Tai'e Purple Lightning Sword trembled violently within the sea of swords. The thunder summoned by her Innate Sword Physique was shredded layer by layer by the sword shadows. She let out a muffled groan as several sword projections pierced her shoulder, crimson blood staining her pristine white robes.

"I cannot fall! Senior Brother Xiao is still at the vanguard, and I must aid him!" she thought, biting her lip.

"We must risk it all! Even if every ounce of spiritual energy is exhausted, I must buy time for Senior Brother Xiao!"

Although Zhao Hao's Array-Shattering Spear was able to breach a portion of the sword net, the immense pressure from Xuan Jianzi's natal sword caused his spiritual energy to fracture. The spear shaft bent as if ready to snap, and blood from his burst tiger-mouth palms trickled down along the metal.

Lin Wan'er's golden Dao seal had barely deflected three rounds of sword shadows before its radiance dimmed. A sharp pain shot through her Innate Dao Fetus as she staggered backward, a faint crack actually appearing right between her brows upon her Dao seal.

"Even if the Dao Fetus is damaged, I must hold on! We are the Four Great Disciples of the Profound Heaven Sect, and we must never yield!" Lin Wan'er resolved firmly.

"Canglan Sword Sea! Elder Xuan Jianzi's renowned Sword Domain! Those three youngsters are finished!"

"That 'Canglan Sword Dragon' is a fatal technique capable of instantly obliterating ordinary Soul Formation experts at will; how could three mere Void Return cultivators possibly withstand it?"

"Are the Four Great Disciples of the Profound Heaven Sect about to be utterly wiped out? What a tragic waste of such boundless talent..." Exclamations erupted from the observing crowd as they gazed at the four swaying, precarious figures, unable to restrain their sighs.

The four figures, who had appeared so imposing just moments ago, were instantly plunged into a desperate, reversal-defying predicament.

Xuan Lie's Mountain-Severing Blade cleaved downward once more. The hastily summoned fire shield of Xiao Yi shattered into fragments with a deafening crash, and the blade aura grazed his shoulder, stripping away flesh and exposing bone.

"With this single strike, your soul and body shall be utterly annihilated!" Xuan Lie laughed wildly, murderous intent blazing in his eyes.

The demonic nucleus embedded in the Mountain-Severing Blade erupted with dazzling blood-red light, and the phantom of the blade's spirit materialized into a ferocious, gigantic beast. Carrying a residual momentum of terrifying magnitude, it slashed directly toward Xiao Yi's neck.

He had calculated precisely that Xiao Yi had just suffered heavy trauma and his spiritual energy was scattered; this single blow would be enough to sever his head and completely eliminate any future troubles!

*Splat—*

The very instant the blade aura grazed his shoulder, Xiao Yi felt as though half his torso had been torn apart. Blood gushed like a fountain, dyeing his chest crimson.

Had he not reacted with lightning speed, his life would surely have been forfeited to that preceding blow.

At this moment, gravely injured, Xiao Yi felt a bone-shattering agony accompany every breath he drew. A roar echoed within his mind: "So painful... But I cannot die! Junior Sister Su and the others are still counting on me! The reputation of the Profound Heaven Sect must never be ruined in my hands!"

"Senior Brother Xiao!" Disregarding her own injuries, Su Wan channeled every remaining ounce of her spiritual energy into the Tai'e Purple Lightning Sword, causing it to burst forth with brilliant thunder as she slashed toward Xuan Lie. Yet, Xuan Lie merely waved a hand, swatting her away like a fly. She slammed heavily against the rock wall, her longsword flying from her grasp.

Zhao Hao and Lin Wan'er were likewise caught by the shockwaves of the sword sea and crashed heavily to the ground, their breaths growing faint and feeble.

Stepping forward, Xuan Lie pointed the tip of the Mountain-Severing Blade directly at Xiao Yi's throat. "It is over!"

"It's finished, completely finished! All Four Great Disciples are done for! This kind of absolute suppression by the Soul Formation realm is simply insurmountable!"

"Sending a few Void Return disciples to attack the Myriad Thunder Valley—Sect Master Ye was simply too arrogant."

"That fierce tenacity Xiao Yi displayed earlier was quite terrifying, but what a pity. In the face of an absolute gap in cultivation realms, even the hardest bones must be crushed to dust!"

"The Profound Heaven Sect has lost after all. The chasm between the Soul Formation realm and the Void Return realm is ultimately impossible to cross."

Observing cultivators shook their heads and sighed, their words filled with a sense of lingering regret.

Xiao Yi watched helplessly as Su Wan slammed into the rock wall and Zhao Hao and Lin Wan'er collapsed to the earth, unable to rise.

Xuan Lie's Mountain-Severing Blade descended with the crushing pressure of the fifth tier of the Soul Formation realm, the fierce wind of the blade stinging his skin raw!

"For a whole year, I burned away all distractions within the spiritual veins of the Profound Heaven Sect, tempering my body with twin flames nine hundred times—was it only to bend my knee before an old dog like you?"

"My Master once said that the bones of the disciples of the Profound Heaven Sect are cast in iron, and their blood is forged in fire!"

"You wish to slay me? First ask this pair of strange flames whether they agree!"

Before his voice had even faded, a dazzling, multicolored radiance suddenly erupted from within his body.

The Heaven-Burning Emperor Flame and the South-Ming Leaving Fire within him ceased their mutual clash; at this brink of death, they intertwined into a helical spiral.

At this very moment, the profound insights of the *Heaven-Burning Fire Scripture* that he had comprehended over the past year in the Myriad Methods Pavilion, the battle-body willpower he had honed within the spiritual veins, and even his Master's domineering declaration that "Even if the heavens fall, I shall hold them up"—all these fused seamlessly into one.

"Ah—!"

A roar that tore through his lungs exploded from his throat. What surged within his chest was no longer fear, but a wild, incandescent fury at having his dignity trampled into the dust.

"You have injured my fellows and driven me to a desperate dead end? Then taste the power I have traded a year of blood and tears for! This is not the end—it is your execution day!" Xiao Yi bellowed.

"Fire Spirit: Chaotic Tribulation! Break for me—!"

The Heaven-Burning Emperor Flame and the South-Ming Leaving Fire engulfing Xiao Yi's form surged violently. The two strange flames, which should naturally have been mutually repulsive, fused instantly, swirling around him into a black-and-white intertwined vortex of fire.

At the very center of the vortex, countless abstruse, flaming runes materialized out of thin air.

These were precisely the primal mysteries recorded within the *Heaven-Burning Fire Scripture*.

Now, spurred by the unyielding will of his battle body, they transformed into chains of fire that pierced through heaven and earth, dragging every shred of ambient spiritual energy from the surroundings into himself.

Ye Chentian's domineering words—"Even if the heavens fall, I shall hold them up"—seemed to have taken on physical substance.

This infused the Chaotic Tribulation Fire with three parts of dauntless courage and seven parts of unbridled arrogance.

Could this truly be called mere fire?

It was clearly the primordial chaos essence capable of incinerating the heavens and reversing the cycle of life and death!

The moment the black-and-white tribulation fire manifested, the surrounding space began to dissolve with a soft, sizzling hiss.