Chapter 130: Emperor Flame

Akatsuki Jin pressed his advantage, striking with a palm that fused sacred flame and the Golden Crow divine form—a massive golden palm print surged forth with the might to burn all eight directions, crushing toward Huodou!

“Nether Soul Devouring!”

Huodou sensed mortal peril and roared as it condensed its Nether Ghost Realm into its mouth, forming an ultra-compressed sapphire fireball that emitted a wave of destruction and blasted it forth!

This was its core-origin ghost flame unleashed!

“BOOM!!!!”

The golden palm print and the sapphire fireball collided violently in midair!

Like two fireballs smashing together, a terrifying energy storm instantly swept across the entire arena, yet the defensive barrier only trembled slightly!

The blinding light forced spectators to instinctively shut their eyes.

Amid the chaotic energy flows, only Akatsuki Jin’s muffled groan and Huodou’s agonized shriek could be heard.

When the light faded, Akatsuki Jin knelt half-dead, blood trickling from his lips, his golden cloak torn to shreds, his aura chaotic—he clearly suffered severe internal injuries.

Opposite him, Huodou fared even worse: half its body’s sapphire scales had been incinerated by sacred flame, exposing charred flesh from which sapphire blood dripped steadily, its aura diminished by more than half.

Mutual destruction!

“Cough… cough… what a remarkable human prodigy!” Huodou gasped, its crimson eyes filled with shock and venomous hatred, “To force me to this extreme…”

Akatsuki Jin struggled to his feet, wiped the blood from his lips, his gaze still sharp: “Beast, what are your last words?”

“Last words? Hahaha!” Huodou burst into mad laughter, “Do Itachi think this is over? To die by this technique is your honor!”

It slammed its last remaining foreclaw hard against its own chest!

“Puff!”

A jet of sapphire essence-blood, infused with its life essence, spewed forth and merged into the surrounding Nether Ghost Flames.

Instantly, Huodou’s aura skyrocketed at an unnatural rate; its sapphire flames deepened into near-black, radiating a soul-shaking wave of destruction!

Its body swelled, black blood seeping from between its scales—it was clearly activating a forbidden technique with a terrible cost!

“Origin Forbidden Art—Nether Descent!”

Huodou roared as a blurred, colossal gate-like shadow, seemingly connected to the Nine Nether Realms, slowly materialized behind it!

From within the gate, endless ghost flames surged outward, stirring the arena’s celestial wrath into even greater fury!

“Bad! It’s going all out!” Ye Ting’s face darkened.

“This… is it drawing upon origin power? Doesn’t it fear being annihilated, soul and all?” Lu Wujiao’s expression turned grave.

Everyone held their breath for Akatsuki Jin.

Facing the terrifying pressure from the Nine Nether Realms, Akatsuki Jin felt an unprecedented threat of death.

He knew conventional methods could not block this strike!

He took a deep breath, a flicker of pain crossed his eyes, then was replaced by resolve.

Slowly raising his right hand, a faint yet radiant white flame emerged in his palm—seeming to contain the origin of all fire in heaven and earth, radiating imperial majesty.

Though tiny, the moment it appeared, every flame on the arena—whether the Burning Heaven Golden Flame or the Nether Ghost Flame—bowed submissively, dimming as if before a sovereign!

Even the surrounding space warped slightly from the presence of this wisp of flame!

“Is that… Emperor Flame?!”

On the high platform, the master of the Burning Heaven Pavilion, who had been meditating with closed eyes, suddenly opened them, his gaze blazing with disbelief, “This boy… he’s truly forged a trace of the legendary Emperor Flame prototype?!”

Lu Wujiao was also stunned: “Wu Jie only gained half-sage power to fight a sage after forging Emperor Flame—yet this child has done so at the Wanghou realm?!”

Ye Ting couldn’t help but marvel at the rising generation.

Emperor Flame—the sovereign of all flames, the origin of laws!

“Huodou, to die by this technique, Itachi’ve lived a worthy life.”

Akatsuki Jin’s voice was calm, yet carried an undeniable imperial authority.

He gently pressed the pure white Emperor Flame wisp to his forehead.

“Emperor Flame… Possession!”

“BOOM!!!”

Pure white flame instantly engulfed Akatsuki Jin’s entire body!

His hair and pupils turned pure white; he burned with immaculate white flames, like an Emperor of Fire descending from the heavens!

A terrifying imperial might, towering above all things, capable of incinerating the myriad worlds, erupted violently!

The Nether gate-shadow trembled violently under this imperial might, destabilizing!

“No… impossible! What power is this?!” Huodou screamed in despair, trembling with primal fear and soul-deep dread.

“It’s over.”

Akatsuki Jin raised his finger, wrapped in pure white Emperor Flame, and gently pointed it at the Nether gate and Huodou behind it.

“Emperor Flame… Annihilation.”

A thin, nearly invisible white thread of flame shot forth silently.

Where the thread passed, space was burned black, and even the celestial wrath was instantly vaporized!

It effortlessly pierced the terrifying Nether gate-shadow, which shattered like a bubble, piece by piece.

Then, in Huodou’s widening pupils, the white thread casually pierced through its forehead.

Time seemed to freeze in that instant.

Huodou’s massive body froze in place, its crimson eyes rapidly fading into dead gray.

Its Nether Ghost Flames vanished instantly; its terrifying aura receded like a tide.

White Emperor Flame spread from the small hole in its forehead, swiftly engulfing its entire body.

No explosion. No scream.

Huodou’s body vanished soundlessly within the pure white flame, leaving not even a wisp of ash.

As if it had never existed in this world.

The might of Emperor Flame—terrifying indeed!

The white flame slowly retracted into Akatsuki Jin’s body; his hair and pupils returned to their original color, but his face turned ashen, his aura plummeted, his body swayed precariously, and he spat out a massive gout of blood before collapsing to one knee.

Forcing the still-unmastered Emperor Flame prototype had inflicted massive backlash upon him.

But he had won!

“First battle: Human, Akatsuki Jin, victorious!”

The law’s voice sounded again, declaring the result.

After a brief silence, the human camp erupted in thunderous cheers!

“We won! Brother Akatsuki Jin won!”

“Emperor Flame! Was that the legendary Emperor Flame? So powerful!”

“First battle—a perfect start!”

Jiang Xia watched Akatsuki Jin struggling to stand on the arena, his eyes flickering with complexity.

Akatsuki Jin’s hidden card was stronger than he imagined—this technique, even he couldn’t be sure he could withstand it head-on.

The beast camp fell into deathly silence; several demon sages gazed toward the human prodigies with even colder eyes.

Supported by his companions, Akatsuki Jin staggered off the arena.

He glanced at Jiang Xia, forcing a weak smile, his voice faint yet carrying a warning:

“Jiang Xia… be careful… they’re… prepared…”

He then collapsed unconscious, swiftly carried away for treatment.

First battle: humans barely victorious, Akatsuki Jin severely wounded—but he had shown the beasts the resolve and formidable hidden strength of human prodigies.