Chapter 674

"Though faint, the Xu Kong Zhi Di of the Yao Realm carries the aura of Xu Wu Tong Yan— that mysterious figure must have been Xu Wu Tong Yan. It likely devoured the entire Yao Realm; the Stone Clan and Ling Clan were also swallowed by it," Gu Yuan said gravely.

The final attack of the Yao Di's residual soul, which ended in mutual destruction, also inflicted heavy injuries on Xu Wu Tong Yan, causing its aura to leak out.

"Xu Wu Tong Yan has grown so powerful—even after recovering from its former wounds, it has become strong enough to devour an entire realm."

Upon hearing Gu Yuan's words, the entire hall fell silent; no one spoke. None had expected the Soul Sovereign to conceal such secrets—and what weighed most heavily on their minds was the existence of Xu Wu Tong Yan.

Xiao Xuan had slain several Eight-Star Dou Sheng back then, and Gu Yuan had even severely wounded Xu Wu Tong Yan—yet only a thousand years have passed, and the Soul Sovereign has not only recovered, but Xu Wu Tong Yan's power has surged wildly.

Even Gu Yuan did not know how the Soul Sovereign achieved this.

Of course, Gu Yuan did not know that Xu Wu Tong Yan had secretly devoured the Black Annihilation King and absorbed his power, causing all of this.

"The Soul Sovereign's attack on the Ling, Stone, and Yao Clans must have two purposes: one is to harvest bloodline power; the other, naturally, is the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade. It seems… Hun Tian Di can no longer contain himself," Gu Yuan raised his head, his gaze fixed on the empty space, his piercing eyes as if piercing through space itself to see what he envisioned.

Hun Tian Di's collection of bloodline power is his backup plan—if Xiao Yan fails to refine the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill, Hun Tian Di will follow Xiao Xuan's path.

Blood Sacrifice Seven Clans, absorb all Dou Emperor bloodlines, then use the trace of Source Qi within the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill to break through!

Xiao Xuan's breakthrough into Hun Tian Di had been witnessed firsthand—he was only one step away from success, needing nothing but Source Qi.

If Xiao Xuan could do it, then Hun Tian Di can too! But this requires a Blood Sacrifice of his own Dragon Clan Subordinates—Hun Tian Di would not resort to this unless utterly desperate.

"Hun Tian Di," the Black Annihilation King murmured the name—its aura was overwhelmingly majestic, and indeed, he possessed the strength to match it. On this Dou Qi Continent, the only one who might stand against him was perhaps the man before him—Gu Yuan.

"Clan Leader, how should we respond now? The Soul Sovereign already holds four Ancient Jades—not counting the Xiao Clan's, it should be five. They will surely spare no effort to seize the rest. When they open Tuoshe Ancient Emperor's cavern, no one on the Dou Qi Continent will be able to oppose them—everyone's life and death will rest in the Soul Sovereign's hands," Gu Lie, the Black Annihilation King, stared intently at Gu Yuan and spoke gravely.

Unconsciously, they had already reached such a desperate situation—the Soul Sovereign's slow-boiling-frog method was gradually evaporating their strength; if this continued, the most tragic outcome would inevitably unfold.

Gu Yuan's face was as cold as water; no one knew what he was thinking. The other Gu Clan Elders remained silent. Though the events unsettled them, if they truly intended to go to war with the Soul Sovereign… it would be an extremely brutal battle—this war might bring victory, or it might bring defeat.

Victory means survival; defeat means utter annihilation!

Such a choice—even for a figure as mighty as Gu Yuan—was difficult to make swiftly.

"Of the Ancient Eight Tribes, apart from the Soul Sovereign, only three remain. If we lose one more… we will be left with nothing but to wait for death!" After a suffocating silence lasting several minutes, Gu Yang spoke gravely from the side.

All eyes slowly turned toward Gu Yuan at the head of the hall, awaiting his decision.

Under the weight of countless gazes, Gu Yuan slowly sighed, raised his head, and smiled: "Fight, and we may survive. Continue waiting uselessly, and the fate of the Ling, Stone, and Yao Clans will soon be ours!"

"Send word to the Yan Clan and Lei Clan—invite their Clan Leaders to discuss matters of survival!"

Upon seeing Gu Yuan's decision, the many Gu Clan Elders in the hall wore complex expressions—they understood that from this day forward, the Gu Clan's peace would vanish forever. After a thousand years, the two most powerful super-factions on the Dou Qi Continent would clash once more—and this time, it would truly be a life-or-death struggle!

Win, and live; lose, and die!

Gu Yuan's decision spread swiftly through the upper echelons of the Gu Clan. In an instant, the entire Ancient Realm grew tense; many powerful figures were dispatched to Zhong Zhou to closely monitor every move of the Soul Sovereign.

At this moment, within the vanished Yao Realm.

Xiao Yan handled it with ease. Having already refined Jing Lian Yao Huo, refining the Turtle Spirit Earth Flame, Nine Underworld Wind Flame, and Life Flame was cautious—but utterly without incident, no danger whatsoever.

Xiao Yan's refinement lasted barely half a month. During this time, the energy from the Devouring Heaven Soul Pill and the Nine Mystical Golden Thunder was finally fully refined, transforming into roaring Dou Qi that merged into his body.

When Xiao Yan completed the refinement of the final Life Flame, he slowly opened his eyes—and all golden thunder instantly dissolved into threads of energy, flowing into his body.

Gently stepping onto the ground, Xiao Yan closed his eyes and sensed his body, a satisfied smile spreading across his face. The outcome of this refinement was exactly as he had expected. With the Elixir and the Infernal Flames, his cultivation had not only stabilized at Mid Seven Star Dou Sheng, but his Dou Qi was now extraordinarily condensed.

The Nine Grade Profound Pill refined by Hun Xu Zi was indeed of high quality—it had propelled him up one full Star. Combined with the energy of the Nine Mystical Golden Thunder, Xiao Yan's cultivation had surged to Mid Seven Star Dou Sheng.

This effect was truly worthy of admiration—the power of the Nine Grade Profound Pill and the Nine Mystical Golden Thunder was indeed extraordinary.

Of course, without the unique body-refining effects of the fusion of the Three Infernal Flames, and without the boundless Life Force of the Life Flame, Xiao Yan could not have refined the Elixir so swiftly.

"But unfortunately, at this level, the body has become highly sensitive to Elixir energy. Even if I consume another Nine Grade Profound Pill in the future, I won't gain such results—even a Nine Grade Golden Pill likely won't boost me this much, and I no longer have the Infernal Flames."

Clenching his fist, Xiao Yan felt a pang of regret. Ordinary Nine Grade Golden Pills probably couldn't elevate his cultivation this much anymore; otherwise, he would have considered refining several more.

After all, normally, advancing one Star at the Dou Sheng level would require at least a decade of cultivation.

But the Medicinal Materials and Pill Formula for a Nine Grade Golden Pill were extremely hard to find, and most importantly, Hun Tian Di would never allow Xiao Yan to grow strong enough to threaten him.

Undoubtedly, Hun Tian Di was wary of Xiao Yan.

"Sigh, I suppose the other three clans are already in chaos by now," Xiao Yan shook his head. He had sent Xing Tian away from the Yao Realm to return to the Yan Alliance and report his safety—but he had no knowledge of the outside situation.

Still, he had a general idea.

Whoosh—Xiao Yan swept his hand, and seventeen distinct flames surrounded him.

Xuwu Tongyan Tianzi Huo, Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Flame, Yin-Yang Twin Flame, Green Lotus Earth Core Flame, Wind Fury Dragon Flame, Sea Heart Flame, Falling Heart Flame, Bone Spirit Cold Fire, Nine Dragon Thunder Gang Fire, Three Thousand Yan Flame, Xuanhuang Flame, Jinglian Yaohuo, Fire Cloud Water Flame, Red Lotus Karma Flame, Turtle Spirit Earth Flame, Nine Underworld Wind Flame, Life Flame.

Though You Ming Du Huo and Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame were absent, and Xu Wu Tong Yan was only a child flame—not the Origin Flame Seed—this number of Infernal Flames was likely unmatched since the time of Tuoshe Ancient Emperor thousands of years ago.

Xiao Yan's mind flickered—and the seventeen Infernal Flames began to merge. Before him appeared a new Infernal Flame of terrifying power.

"Seventeen Infernal Flames fused together form the Number One Heavenly Flame—the Emperor Flame. But even after refining the Turtle Spirit Earth Flame, Nine Underworld Wind Flame, and Life Flame, I still feel no upgrade in the Burning Scripture."

Looking at the new Infernal Flame formed from seventeen flames, Xiao Yan felt a tinge of regret.

Every time the Burning Scripture evolved, Xiao Yan could sense it—even a minor upgrade from low to mid-grade brought clear strengthening of his Dou Qi.

But at the Emperor Rank, the Burning Scripture's evolution crawled like a tortoise. Two of the three flames were among the top ten, and one was Life Flame—Ranking Fifth. Even so, the Burning Scripture had not upgraded even a single sub-rank.

Emperor Rank Cultivation Methods aren't rare—every Dou Emperor Family's Ancestor was a Dou Emperor. Xiao Yan guessed that both Hun Tian Di and Gu Yuan cultivated Emperor Rank methods.

The Imperial Soul Scripture must still have room to improve—but the final form of the Imperial Soul Scripture belongs only to Hun Tian Di; neither Xu Wu Tong Yan nor Xiao Yan could ever possess it.

"Now, I must refine a Pill that aids in breaking through to the Imperial Soul. Eight-Star Dou Sheng must be Hun Tian Di's limit."

Xiao Yan was no fool. Hun Tian Di would never allow the Xiao Clan to produce another Xiao Xuan. Refining the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill requires certain strength—but that strength must not reach Nine Star Dou Sheng.

Xu Wu Tong Yan has devoured countless resources and Spiritual Soul essences, yet its power remains only at the early stage of Nine Star Dou Sheng.

Thus, it was not hard to deduce Hun Tian Di's limit.

"Hun Tian Di dares to so brazenly annihilate the Yao Clan—he must possess an even stronger trump card," Xiao Yan began to ponder. With his current strength, even the Four Demon Saints combined could not match him.

On the surface, the Soul Sovereign had only the Four Demon Saints and Xu Wu Tong Yan—no Eight-Star Dou Sheng at all.

All of the Soul Sovereign's former Eight-Star Dou Sheng had been slain by Xiao Xuan in that battle against the Xiao Clan.

Yet Xiao Yan finally shook his head. With Hun Tian Di's cunning, he would never believe the Soul Sovereign's true strength was limited to the Four Demon Saints and Xu Wu Tong Yan. There must be a greater secret weapon—so devastating that even the alliance of the Gu, Lei, and Yan Clans could be annihilated.

"Forget it—who becomes a Dou Emperor is none of my concern. Besides, maybe when Hun Tian Di becomes one, he'll vanish like Tuoshe Ancient Emperor did," Xiao Yan shrugged, maliciously cursing that Hun Tian Di would vanish the moment he achieved Dou Emperor status—bringing great terror.

While Xiao Yan devoted himself within the Yao Realm to studying Pill Alchemy and refining a Pill to aid his breakthrough to the Imperial Soul, after much deliberation, the remaining Lei Clan and Yan Clan finally agreed to form an alliance with the Gu Clan.

Among the Ancient Eight Tribes, excluding the Xiao Clan, which fell first, the Gu Clan and Soul Sovereign should be the strongest, and after them come the Yan Clan and Lei Clan; their bloodlines have never shown signs of depletion, so their clans are filled with talent—though still inferior to the Gu Clan and Soul Sovereign, they far surpass the Yao Clan, Stone Clan, and Ling Clan, and perhaps precisely because of this, they were not among the first to be destroyed by the Soul Sovereign.

The saying goes: pick the softest persimmon to squeeze; clearly, the Yan Clan and Lei Clan do not fall into this category—but once the softer persimmons are crushed, it will inevitably be their turn.

Today, the Gu Clan was unusually lively; the clan leaders of the Yan and Lei Clans had secretly arrived, an event of considerable weight even for the Gu Clan, so the Formation Momentum was arranged with great solemnity, granting both clan leaders ample face.

Upon the grand hall of the Gu Clan, seated at the lower seats beside Gu Yuan were the clan leaders of the Yan and Lei Clans.

A middle-aged man clad in crimson robes sat upon the high seat; he appeared no older than forty, his features rugged, his eyebrows a fiery red, as if two strands of flame burned upon his brow—and what startled observers was his eyes, entirely crimson, as if two gemstones of flame had been embedded within them; when he swept his gaze, the very air seemed to warm.

This man was Yan Jin, clan leader of the Yan Clan. 【Original work: surname Yan, not Huo.】

On the other side sat a man as towering as an iron tower, his skin slightly dark; he delivered an overwhelming visual impact—visibly, it seemed as if dragons writhed beneath his skin, a terrifying sense of power subtly spreading, causing those near him to tremble in their steps.

Naturally, he was Lei Ying, clan leader of the Lei Clan.

Interestingly, Lei Ying was of the same generation as Xiao Xuan, and once fought Xiao Xuan, ultimately suffering a crushing defeat at his hands.

Both possessed the Eight Star Dou Sheng Late Stage realm, weaker only than Gu Yuan, Hun Tian Di, and Swallowing Flame.

"Gu Yuan," said Yan Jin in a low voice, "you claim Swallowing Flame has already attained an Imperial Soul and even the Nine Star Dou Sheng realm—is this true?"

Gu Yuan nodded and said, "Without an Imperial Soul, he could never have deceived all of us, ignored the Barrier formed by your three combined forces, and silently devoured the entire Yao Realm. Moreover, Swallowing Flame may have concealed other powers—otherwise, after I severely wounded him, he could never have recovered so swiftly and broken through to an Imperial Soul."

An Imperial Soul—even Gu Yuan himself had only achieved it through a precious Secret Treasure left by his clan in ancient times. No one could have imagined Swallowing Flame would also possess an Imperial Soul.