Chapter 744

Seeing a thousand flame kirins charging forth, even Qiao Shihong, who had been hiding secretly nearby, couldn't help but feel worried, saying: "Can Yan Zunzhe break through this encirclement?"

He killed one flame kirin after another, yet countless flame kirins remained inexhaustible, endlessly replenished, even multiplying as they were slain—as if millions of kirins intended to tear Xiao Yan apart!

The true strength of this spirit array wasn't merely its ability to summon countless flame kirins to assault the opponent; when destroyed, it also unleashed heavenly flames that scorched everything before it.

What puzzled Zhuye, hidden within the array, was that the heavenly flames had no effect on the black-robed man—he seemed utterly indifferent to their burning, causing his seven-star sovereign-killing heavenly-grade low-level spirit array to lose much of its power.

Yet no one noticed that each time a flame kirin lunged and was punched apart, a wisp of pure flame was siphoned away.

After slaying one flame kirin after another, Xiao Yan's lips curled into a wry smile, as if he had grown bored.

Suddenly, he let out a long roar, stepped forward with both feet, and in that instant, a massive fire ruler appeared in his hand—not the Henggu Chi, nor even the Flame-Partitioning Wave Ruler, but a fire ruler forged from the condensed flames of the heavenly flame kirins.

"Slice!"

Xiao Yan let out another roar; at that moment, his right hand gripped the fire ruler, its posture resembling the Flame-Partitioning Wave Ruler. In an instant, the fire ruler erupted in searing light, and a streak of flame shot forth.

A whooshing sound of fire erupted; instantly, a thousand-zhang arc of flame, like a crescent moon stretching impossibly long, slashed straight toward the heavens, sweeping through countless foes.

The flame blade cut through all resistance, nothing could stand against it; the curved flame swept across the sky like a bulldozer, obliterating every single flame kirin above.

A pang! The massive flame blade struck the heavenly array above—fire erupted everywhere, space shattered and vanished, leaving behind a terrifying black hole. With a snap, Zhuye, hidden within the array, was thrown back, tumbling through the air before regaining his footing.

"How is this possible! He shattered a heavenly-grade spirit array without using spiritual energy!!" Seeing Zhuye flung away by the black-robed man's flame blade, Xin Xiangyang—who had retreated far earlier—cried out in disbelief, unable to believe what he witnessed.

Generally, a strong one arriving from a lower plane possessing a six-star sovereign rank was already formidable; though undeniably, some extraordinary talents from lower planes, after converting spiritual energy, eventually reached the highest levels.

But a lower plane is still a lower plane—its cultivation system and energy are far inferior; how could its cultivators possibly rival those of the Great Thousand World?

Yet now, he was being slapped hard across the face.

Regaining his balance, Zhuye looked down at the black-robed man, a faint smirk on his lips, and sent a soul resonance: "You are indeed strong. To possess such power coming from a lower plane, your lower plane must not be weak. Had you converted your spiritual energy, I would certainly be no match. But you have no such opportunity—and you know nothing of spirit arrays, wasting too much time. That is your downfall."

Wummm! Gonggonggong!! Suddenly, the ground shook violently; the shattered Celestial Altar beneath Xiao Yan erupted in divine light. With a hum, an even larger Celestial Altar appeared in the sky, and a beam of light shot down, forming a prison that sealed him within.

"This is the true power of my Three-Feng Altar Spirit Array—Heaven and Earth Dual Sealing!" Zhuye roared, pulling out a special array disc and spitting out a mouthful of essence blood. With a hum, an unimaginably terrifying spiritual energy descended, crushing down like immense gravity.

"Even an eight-star sovereign would find it hard to escape my spirit array!"

At this moment, Xiao Yan frowned. The spirit array masters of the Great Thousand World were indeed formidable—they could deploy arrays at incredible speed, and each array was intricately interlinked, immensely powerful. In the path of arrays, the Great Thousand World had advanced far, far beyond the Dou Qi Continent.

"I truly don't understand the spirit arrays of the Great Thousand World," Xiao Yan slowly raised his head, gazing at the boy above, a faint smile on his lips, and sent a soul resonance: "I am merely waiting for my body to adapt to this world. You, however, are merely waiting to die."

A hum! Suddenly, a purple-gold light surged from within the black robe, and a set of purple-gold armor seeped out from the man's skin. The moment the armor appeared, a roar of dragon and cry of phoenix descended.

Hooo! Hooo! Hooo!! Jiuu! Jiuu! Jiuu!!

A pillar of purple-gold energy shot straight into the sky; within the pillar, faintly visible were a massive purple dragon and a golden True Phoenix.

"Dragon Phoenix blood qi?!" Seeing this purple-gold pillar pierce the heavens, Zhuye's eyes widened in disbelief, his face darkening. Even in the Great Thousand World, True Dragons and True Phoenixes were among the supreme beings of the entire universe.

How could a mere lower plane possibly harbor such creatures?!

Though the blood qi erupted by the black-robed man was still far from reaching the level of True Dragon or True Phoenix, it was already at the Divine Beast tier.

As the Dragon Phoenix blood qi surged, the heavenly and earthly energies previously suppressed by the spirit array began boiling again. The purple dragon and golden True Phoenix within the pillar opened their mouths and, as if starving for countless eons, devoured spiritual energy from all directions.

Xiao Yan had not cultivated any Great Thousand World cultivation methods, nor had he opened his Sovereign Sea; yet, just as spiritual beasts in the Great Thousand World and demonic beasts on the Dou Qi Continent both cultivated their bloodlines, he too cultivated his true form, not even practicing Sovereign body techniques.

Coincidentally, Xiao Yan possessed the Dragon Phoenix bloodline—a bloodline he had obtained through dual cultivation in a blood pool within the Manhuang Ancient Domain with Zi Yan. Though far weaker than Zi Yan's, it still granted Xiao Yan some of the Dragon Phoenix bloodline's power.

Spiritual energy within a ten-thousand-zhang radius transformed into streams of energy, pouring ceaselessly into the mouths of the purple dragon and golden True Phoenix. As each stream entered, the eyes of the dragon and phoenix flickered with a spark of vitality—as if they might awaken.

A boom! The Dragon Phoenix's eyes flashed, and they burst from the energy pillar, opening their jaws to tear into the spirit array, swallowing the dense network of seals. Their teeth ground together—crack! —snapping countless luminous spirit array runes, devouring the entire Celestial Altar whole.

"So this is spiritual energy? It does seem quite good," the body beneath the hood glowed faintly, trembling slightly, as a unique force flowed through a special bloodline within him.

Having lost all his Dou Qi, he naturally experienced no conflict with spiritual energy.

Beneath the hood, a flash of cold light—ripping! —a pair of golden Ancient Phoenix Wings emerged, absorbing some spiritual energy, becoming even more agile.

"Watch closely," Xiao Yan chuckled. Instantly, his Dragon Phoenix Ancient Armor unleashed a torrent of terrifying power. At that moment, Xiao Yan transformed—his skin sprouted scales, purple streaked with golden hues.

At that instant, the Ancient Phoenix Wings flared, and Xiao Yan vanished—a shuu! —strangely transmigrating through space. Even the powerful spirit array could not imprison him—as if nothing could bind him.

In an instant, his body flashed—a streak of black light. A bang! Before Zhuye could react, he spewed blood violently—a fist wrapped in dragon scales struck his abdomen. The monstrous physical force bent his body, spewing blood, hurling him backward. Before he could even land, the black-robed man's DragonClaw seized his throat, hoisting him high into the air.

"You!!" Zhuye was terrified—his speed was so fast, even a seven-star sovereign like him couldn't perceive it! He opened his mouth to speak, but Xiao Yan squeezed—bones cracked. He couldn't breathe, his body paralyzed, his face turning ashen white.

"Is this what the Great Thousand World calls a spirit array master? The array may be strong, but your body is so weak?" Xiao Yan's lips curled upward, his voice laced with mockery.

Undeniably, the Three-Feng Altar Spirit Array was indeed powerful. Had his body not been tempered by twenty-three Infernal Flames, even he could not have shattered the flame kirin array so easily—he would have needed time. But without the array, a spirit array master's combat power plummeted. In his estimation, if Xing Tian could fully convert spiritual energy, his strength would surpass his own.

"You seem to have quite a bit of Sovereign Spirit Liquid. Ten million isn't enough to buy your life. One hundred million—I'll spare you."

Xiao Yan's lips curled into a brilliant smile. Though he didn't know what ten million Sovereign Spirit Liquid meant, when it came to haggling, negotiating deals, Xiao Yan might not match Ya Fei, but he knew how to demand the sky.

Weapons in the Great Thousand World were also graded: the lowest were Spiritual Artifacts, meant for those below Sovereign rank; Sovereigns wielded Divine Weapons; beyond those were Sacred Artifacts—objects that even Earth Supremes would covet and fight over.

Thus, one could imagine the value of one hundred million Sovereign Spirit Liquid.

Hearing Xiao Yan demand one hundred million Sovereign Spirit Liquid, Zhuye's eyes bulged. Had he not been choking, he would have screamed curses—no ordinary lower-plane Earth Supreme could afford one hundred million Sovereign Spirit Liquid; how could a seven-star sovereign, an eight-star Spirit Array Grandmaster, possibly possess such a sum?

"Hehehe, you are indeed strong. Next time, I'll make you reveal the whereabouts of the World Embryo." Zhuye flipped his hand, pulling from empty space a black bead the size of a baby's fist.

The moment the black bead appeared, it erupted with intense spirit array energy—within it was sealed a powerful spirit array! Such black beads could store pre-arranged arrays, ready for instant use without time-consuming setup.

"Tsk." Xiao Yan clicked his tongue; his Ancient Phoenix Wings snapped shut, wrapping his body like a bell.

Gonggonggong!! Sacred light erupted from the black bead, wildly radiating—each beam of sacred light was as real as solid matter, washing over Xiao Yan.

When the sacred light faded, the sky cleared, and Zhuye had vanished. Only a faint Heavenly Array resonance remained: "Tell me your name. I will return to reclaim my belongings!"

By opening his spirit array Storage Space, Zhuye had revealed where his treasures were kept. Xiao Yan, who had once traveled far and wide with Zi Yan, had acquired some skill in thievery—he immediately swept away every treasure within Zhuye's spirit array space.

"Soul Palace, Yan Zunzhe. I hope next time you have one hundred million Sovereign Spirit Liquid." Xiao Yan's voice faded as he erased the faint Heavenly Array resonance.

Xiao Yan gazed at the several unidentified treasures floating before him, his eyes settling on a Jade Bottle—inside flowed a river of Sovereign Spirit Liquid. This quantity surely exceeded ten million.

"Who knew the Heavenly Tomb could be used to fish for a Heaven Sovereign's secret treasury?" Xiao Yan smiled in satisfaction. The world never lacked greedy people—others' greed brought him profit; he gained tens of millions of Sovereign Spirit Liquid without leaving his place. How marvelous.

Xiao Yan glanced sideways, then his Ancient Phoenix Wings flared—within moments, he caught up to Xin Xiangyang, who couldn't even transmigrate through space. One slash of the Ancient Phoenix Wings, and another headless corpse fell.

Though Xiao Yan had gained tens of millions of Sovereign Spirit Liquid, his wealth was vast—he was a Sovereign after all. Even a mosquito's leg is meat.

"Xing Tian, handle these invaders. Leave no survivors." Xiao Yan's voice was calm, devoid of mercy.

A boom as earth shattered—Xing Tian burst forth from beneath the Celestial Altar. Even Sovereigns had perished under his hands; how much less these grave-robbing ants who had entered the Heavenly Tomb?

Seeing Xing Tian, the headless god of death, reappear, those who had not yet escaped the Heavenly Tomb turned pale with terror.

"Run!! Escape quickly!!"

"Ah!"

"It's those energy beings!"

Gray mist rose once more from the land of the Heavenly Tomb; within the mist, countless energy beings lunged like hungry wolves at the cultivators of the Great Thousand World. To these energy beings, the SpiritFlesh of these cultivators brimmed with abundant Spiritual Energy, driving them instinctively to devour it.

Not only the first layer, but even the second layer's energy beings surged forward to feast.

Xiao Yan walked through the mist; the Heavenly Tomb lay entirely under his control, and the mist affected him not at all. He walked to Qiao Shihong, who had hidden nearby, removed his Hood, and said, "Let's go. The show's over—I have some questions for you."

Looking at the young man before him, who always wore a faint smile, Qiao Shihong finally realized this person was an Emperor!

"G-Great Lord, do you wish to unify the Ning Tian Continent?"

Xiao Yan pondered for a moment, then nodded. "We could use this continent as a base, but we are from the Lower Plane—there will inevitably be resistance. Besides, the Ning Tian Continent is no small land."

"No rush. Let the bullets fly for now."

It's the end of the month—readers with Monthly Tickets, don't forget to cast them! Today's update: 8,000 characters.

(End of Chapter)