Chapter 62: The Fire of Defiance

That tyrannical flame caused Xuan Lie's Mountain-Breaking Saber to shatter inch by inch, and seven demon cores exploded simultaneously!

"Impossible!!!"

"Two different divine flames fusing together? This is defying the heavens! This is a rebellion against the heavenly Dao! It is absolutely impossible!"

He stared fixedly at the black and white intertwined ball of chaotic fire in Xiao Yi's palm, roaring at the top of his lungs.

At this moment, it rotated as perfectly as a Tai Chi yin-yang fish, emitting a primal aura that made even those in the Soul Transformation Realm palpitate with fear.

Was this simply a fusion? This was clearly breaking the ironclad law that different divine flames generate and restrain each other, forcefully giving birth to a completely new path amidst a desperate situation!

"For a full year, the agonizing pain of countless body-tempering sessions! The nourishment of countless drops of vital essence! Today, it is finally complete!"

Xiao Yi suddenly raised his head, and the chaotic fire in his palm instantly surged by thirty feet.

He took a step forward, the chaotic fire whipping up a boundless wave of heat that could truly boil the seas and incinerate the mountains.

"Remember this well, this fire is named 'Heaven-Defying'!"

"And this Heaven-Defying fire shall escort you into the cycle of reincarnation!"

Before his voice faded, the Heaven-Defying fire had already surged forth like a mad dragon emerging from the sea, pouncing with an earth-shattering and world-destroying might!

Xuan Lie hurriedly raised his natal defensive magic treasure, the "Mystic Water Dragon-Patterned Shield," to block in front of him.

He thought to himself, "My Mystic Water Dragon-Patterned Shield can withstand attacks from the fifth layer of the Soul Transformation Realm head-on; it is utterly impossible for this brat's fire to break through it!"

However, the millennium-old mysterious runes engraved on the shield lit up instantly, but the moment they touched the Heaven-Defying fire, they melted like snow under the sun. The dragon patterns shattered inch by inch, and the entire shield exploded into countless fragments amidst the waves of fire!

That defensive spiritual artifact, which boasted the ability to withstand attacks from the fifth layer of the Soul Transformation Realm head-on, exploded like a paper lantern in the fiery waves!

"No—!!!"

"This dragon-patterned shield is my ultimate trump card for saving my life! It can even block attacks from the fifth layer of the Soul Transformation Realm! How could this be?!"

However, Xuan Lie was given no time to dwell on it, as the Heaven-Defying fire had already completely surrounded him.

"Ah......"

"I am not reconciled! I spent five hundred years in bitter cultivation just to reach the Soul Transformation Realm, only to die at the hands of a Void Integration cultivator—!!"

Xuan Lie's miserable screams were swallowed by the sea of fire. His body, at the fifth layer of the Soul Transformation Realm, failed to last even three breaths before being burned until even his primordial spirit turned to flying ash.

Right at this moment, Xuan Yan's Soul-Devouring Flame Net had already swept overhead, the deep blue sparks hissing and crackling.

Without even looking back, Xiao Yi flicked his backhand, and a ball of Heaven-Defying fire shot out like a meteor piercing the sky, striking the exact center of the flame net with pinpoint precision.

"Boom—!!"

The sky-covering flame net shattered instantly, and the backlash caused Xuan Yan to spit out a mouthful of black blood.

"My Soul-Devouring Flame has never failed! And it specializes in devouring other divine flames... How could this happen?!"

Terrified beyond measure, he turned to flee, only to find that Xiao Yi had already appeared before him like a ghost, the Heaven-Defying fire in his palm burning fiercely.

"Flee! Do you think you can escape?"

With a flick of Xiao Yi's fingertips, the ball of fire went straight for Xuan Yan.

Xuan Yan frantically summoned his close-fitting defensive magic treasure, the "Crimson Gold Demon-Suppressing Armor."

The spiritual light circulating on the armor was just about to illuminate when it was pierced straight through by the Heaven-Defying fire.

The surface of the golden armor instantly charred, all runes extinguished, and the entire armor twisted and deformed in the blazing flames, ultimately turning into a heap of scrap metal.

This Soul Transformation elder, famous for his Soul-Devouring Flame, had his defensive magic treasure burned to ashes from the inside out the moment he summoned it, and even his natal gourd shattered into fine powder!

"What?!"

Xuan剑子 (Xuan Jianzi) was just about to urge his sword domain into action, but out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Xuan Yan failing to even complete a full scream before turning to flying ash within the Heaven-Defying fire.

The two Soul Transformation elders, who had been overwhelmingly arrogant just a moment ago, hadn't even lasted twenty breaths!

"Xuan Lie... Xuan Yan... Two Soul Transformation Realm experts, just like that... gone?! This Xiao Yi... exactly what kind of monster is he?!"

His pupils suddenly contracted, his blood seemed to freeze instantly, and the hand gripping the sword hilt trembled uncontrollably, even his voice carrying unbelievable panic.

After the shock, an extreme terror and madness surged into Xuan Jianzi's heart.

He knew he had no way out; if he retreated today, the Immortal Alliance's reputation would be utterly ruined, and he wouldn't be able to escape punishment either!

Xuan Jianzi abruptly executed a sword incantation, the spiritual energy around him churning wildly, and the "Canglan Sword Dragon" within his sword domain abruptly changed direction.

Thousands of sword blades intertwined in mid-air into a dozen-feet-long azure dragon, pouncing toward Xiao Yi with earth-shattering might!

"Canglan Sword Sea - Heaven-Shattering Slash!"

Xuan Jianzi roared as he unleashed his ultimate sword technique.

This sword technique was a killer move he had comprehended over a century of painstaking effort. Not only did the sword dragon condense his lifelong insights into the sword Dao, but it also fused three drops of his natal sword blood.

The fierce qi circulating on the blade edges was sufficient to instantly kill an ordinary cultivator at the fifth layer of the Soul Transformation Realm!

Yet Xiao Yi merely glanced at it indifferently, the Heaven-Defying fire in his palm suddenly contracting, transforming into a slender yet exquisitely condensed thread of fire.

The surface of the fire thread was intertwined with pale golden and deep blue double patterns. Although it looked weak, it carried a primal might capable of incinerating all things in existence, like a streak of light piercing through the darkness, heading straight for the center of the sword dragon's brow!

"Screech—!!"

The instant the thin thread collided with the sword dragon, the sword dragon Xuan Jianzi was so proud of shattered inch by inch within the Heaven-Defying fire.

Along with the sword domain barrier he had laid down, it shattered with a "bang" like paper mache!

"How is this possible... My sword..." Xuan Jianzi's pupils widened to the limit, his eyeballs covered in crimson blood veins, and his natal flying sword "Cangming" shattered to pieces in his grip.

The Heaven-Defying fire rapidly spread along the sword tassel, instantly wrapping around his wrist, and crazily racing up his arm across his entire body, completely enveloping Xuan Jianzi in the blink of an eye!

"Ah—!!!"

A shrill, miserable scream echoed through the entire valley. Xuan Jianzi didn't even have a chance to struggle before he was instantly reduced to flying ash within the Heaven-Defying fire, leaving not even a wisp of a remnant soul or a scrap of clothing behind!

Silence fell upon the entire audience! A dead, grave-like silence!

"Goodness gracious! Killing a Soul Transformation expert while in the Void Integration Realm is already outrageous enough, but to slaughter three at once?! Could this Xiao Yi be the reincarnation of an ancient fire god?!"

"T-Three Soul Transformation experts... all killed in seconds?! Is this Heaven-Defying fire the nemesis of gods and demons?! Isn't this way too tyrannical?!"

"A third-layer Void Integration cultivator facing three Soul Transformation experts head-on, and annihilating every single one of them... This is practically rubbing the Immortal Alliance's face in the dirt!!"

"The Xuantian Sect... This Xuantian Sect is truly defying the heavens! Who would dare provoke them from now on? Even if you gave me a hundred times my courage, I wouldn't dare! This Xiao Yi is destined to become the myth of the Eastern Region in the future! No, a legend! A legend that makes all cultivators go weak in the knees just hearing his name!"

The jaws of the observing cultivators practically hit the ground, and some rubbed their eyes vigorously as if they were hallucinating.

The smoke and dust from Xuan Jianzi turning to flying ash had not yet dissipated, while the black and white fire in Xiao Yi's palm was still dancing. His gaze swept toward the crowds from the Myriad Thunder Valley, Azure Peak Sword Sect, and Nether Gu Palace, and a chilling killing intent enveloped the entire area like a physical substance.

With a sudden flip of his palm and a downward press, the Heaven-Defying fire in his palm surged violently, transforming into three balls of fire carrying the might to incinerate the heavens, shooting toward the three factions respectively.

The disciples of Myriad Thunder Valley tried to mobilize their thunder power to defend themselves, but the fire threads had already wrapped around their thunder weapons, instantly melting the iron implements, and the flames spread across their bodies, reducing them to flying ash in barely a breath;

The cultivators of the Azure Peak Sword Sect drew their swords to parry, but the sword bodies were pierced through by the fire threads like paper, incinerating both man and sword together;

The disciples of the Nether Gu Palace hurriedly tossed out their gu insect pouches, but the moment the poisonous gu showed themselves, they were roasted to charred crispness by the waves of fire, turning into nothingness along with their bodies.

In merely a flash, hundreds of people from the three major forces were completely annihilated, leaving not even a remnant soul behind.

"Anyone who dares to make an enemy of the Xuantian Sect today shall meet this very fate! Within the Eastern Region, if anyone dares to harm a single hair of my sect's disciples again, I, Xiao Yi, will incinerate their entire bloodline!"

Xiao Yi raised his hand to recall the fire, his voice exploding like thunder within the valley. As his gaze swept across the audience, all the cultivators present involuntarily dropped to the ground and trembled, none daring to meet his eyes.

When his voice fell, he turned to look at the injured Su Wan, Lin Wan'er, and Zhao Hao, his expression softening slightly: "Let's go, back to the Xuantian Sect."

The three stepped forward quickly, ascending into the air alongside Xiao Yi.

Their figures swept past the dead, silent valley, leaving behind a crowd of shaken cultivators still lingering in terror.