Chapter 1062: The World-Ending Crimson Lotus? Not Even Close!

Boom—!!

The pitch-black Chaotic Divine Thunder swallowed the entire villa.

No time to mourn his newly transferred exquisite collectibles.

Zhang Hengyang instantly teleported away; Yi Lingxiu and Robert did the same.

On the other side, Ling Shuang, who had anticipated Xu Jingming's move, teleported Su Qingli a kilometer away, standing midair to observe the battle's evolution.

"Good, good, good! Xu Jingming, you dare strike first!"

Luke, far from alarmed, grinned with delight and soared into the sky, "You brought this on yourself! Solar Fall!"

Whoosh—

Endless pale golden flames converged, coalescing above his head into a massive fireball, ten meters in diameter, resembling a sun!

On the surface of this fireball, fire elements boiled like molten liquid, reaching temperatures of millions of degrees!

The radiated heat instantly vaporized anything nearby.

Farther objects were instantly ignited; within a twenty-li radius, everything became a sea of fire!

This was the terrifying power of a Rank 9 Upper-tier Ability User.

Fortunately, few had relocated near Zhang Hengyang's villa; otherwise, the radiated heat alone would have killed countless people.

Swish—

The fireball crashed down like a meteor toward Xu Jingming, who still stood on the ground.

But the next second,

Pitch-black lightning pierced heaven and earth!

That lightning did not strike downward—it surged upward from below, guided by the spear, piercing the clouds!

The instant the spear tip touched the fireball, the inferno capable of melting metal and iron split open silently like butter!

The split hemispheres collapsed into crimson light clusters in midair, then exploded into a rain of fire!

Amidst the intertwining flames and thunder, Xu Jingming's figure slowly emerged.

His entire musculature swelled and twisted like ancient bronze, his three-meter-tall frame standing like a demonic god.

Behind him, the Brilliant Jiyao Jiyao Lei Huan rotated slowly, like a divine halo.

"My Solar Fall!" Luke's heart lurched.

Solar Fall, an Element Fire SS+ rank combat technique, he had mastered to perfect proficiency.

Among all his combat techniques, its power was already considerable, and its casting time was extremely short.

He had expected at least to injure Xu Jingming—yet his fireball had been effortlessly sliced open by the opponent's spear!

"SS-rank at Rank 9 Upper-tier... seems not nearly as strong as imagined."

Xu Jingming looked at Luke, his tone heavy with profound disappointment.

This was not mockery—it was genuine disappointment.

This was merely Thunderstorm Form; he had not yet used any of his other techniques, including his Domain or Lei Shen Form.

"Arrogant! Just a twenty-year-old brat!"

Luke, enraged, saw the pale golden flames surrounding him erupt violently.

Flame Domain!

As an Ability User who had lingered at Rank 9 Upper-tier for ten years, he still had his strengths.

He had already attained the fifth layer of his Flame Domain!

But that wasn't all.

The boiling golden flames engulfed his body, forming a robe of fire-gauze.

The instant the gauze took shape, his entire aura surged violently!

"It's the Divine Flame Robe! Luke's self-created enhancement technique!"

"Domain plus a self-created technique—Luke's power has multiplied many times over."

Yi Lingxiu and Robert far away gasped in astonishment.

Luke's foundation was deep; though his self-created Divine Flame Robe was only rated SS-S rank,

because it perfectly suited him, its actual effect rivaled an SSR-rank technique.

"This is settled!" Zhang Hengyang's face lit up with joy.

"Xu Jingming, my foundation is not something you can match!"

Luke, radiating intense heat and blinding light like a sun, stared at Xu Jingming.

The smug expression on his face clearly showed he believed victory was assured.

So what if he was a genius? Foundation built over time isn't so easily erased!

"Foundation? Your power is indeed impressive.

But you're merely a frog at the bottom of a well—let me show you what true foundation truly is."

Luke's surge in power finally ignited Xu Jingming's battle spirit.

He merely thought, and the pitch-black thunder surrounding him, vast as an ocean, instantly retracted into his body.

Immediately, his originally three-meter-tall, muscular frame began to shrink.

Every ten centimeters his height decreased, his aura surged more than double!

In less than half a second, Xu Jingming's towering three-meter form returned to his original height of one meter eighty-nine.

A pitch-black thunder mark appeared on his forehead, spreading downward until it ended beneath his eyes.

His eyes filled with endless pitch-black lightning, deep and terrifying as black holes.

Pitch-black Chaotic Divine Thunder danced across his skin.

Every flash of lightning twisted and steamed the air with high-frequency vibrations.

Xu Jingming stood there, as if the World-Ending Lei Shen had stepped forth from a chasm in the abyss and torn open the veil of reality.

A terrifying pressure descended, causing Zhang Hengyang and others at a distance to instinctively hold their breath.

Compared to before, Xu Jingming's aura had surged nearly tenfold!

"Faking divine power—Flame Dragon Roar!"

Lu Ke snorted, sweeping his hand forward.

Pale golden flames coalesced into a colossal flame dragon, which then opened its maw and spat violently.

Boom—!!

The solidified flame surged toward Xu Jingming like a planet-destroying cannon.

"Thunder Art."

Xu Jingming uttered three words without expression.

A jet-black lightning bolt, like divine retribution, crashed down from the sky.

Sizz—!!

A single strike utterly erased the flame breath and the flame dragon alike.

The ground within a ten-li radius was scorched with spiderweb-like traces by the lingering lightning surges.

"Is this... Thunder Art?"

Zhang Hengyang, at a distance, nearly popped his eyes out.

Knowing Xu Jingming might strike, he had researched Xu Jingming's dossier beforehand.

He knew Thunder Art was an S-rank combat technique.

But Lu Ke's Flame Dragon Roar was an SSS-rank combat technique!

An S-rank technique erasing an SSS-rank technique—whose strength was superior was obvious at a glance.

"Impossible! How could you be this strong?!"

Lu Ke's incredulous cry rang out, then his expression hardened as pale golden flames surged around him, faintly coalescing behind him into the shape of a bud.

World-Ending Crimson Lotus!

An SSR-rank combat technique created by the Flame Divine Lord, its power boundless.

Logically, activating such a technique requiring casting time at close range before a Martial Saint was tantamount to suicide.

But Lu Ke had no other option.

What surprised him was that Xu Jingming did not attack him while he was casting.

Instead, he stood firm, seemingly uninterested in interrupting.

Lu Ke instantly understood Xu Jingming's intent.

He didn't regard him as worthy of notice—he wanted to test the World-Ending Crimson Lotus!

Such utter contempt stirred a wave of humiliation in him.

"Good, good, good, Xu Jingming, you will pay for your arrogance!"

Seconds later, the colossal World-Ending Crimson Lotus fully formed and erupted violently before Lu Ke's contorted face!

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!!...

Dozens of immense, hyper-condensed fire columns rose from within the World-Ending Crimson Lotus.

Sixty-four World-Ending fire columns slammed toward Xu Jingming!

The World-Ending Crimson Lotus: the higher its mastery, the more fire columns it unleashed upon full formation.

Basic mastery: 16 columns; Intermediate mastery: 32 columns; Advanced mastery: 64 columns.

He had achieved Advanced mastery!

"Run! Lu Ke is going all out!"

Zhang Hengyang's face darkened; he activated teleportation again, this time fleeing over ten kilometers away!

On the other side, Hearing Ling Shuang, though worried, first teleported Su Qingli ten kilometers away.

Boom—!!

All sixty-four fire columns, piercing heaven and earth, struck Xu Jingming; the gathered heat reached over ten million degrees!

The air screamed; the land wept; the area spanning over ten kilometers was affected.

Yet the next second,

Thunder roared as wild, jet-black lightning erupted violently, suppressing all surrounding flames.

At the heart of the fire columns, Xu Jingming emerged from the inferno like Lei Shen.

Behind him, the Brilliant Jiyao Jiyao Lei Huan rotated slowly; jet-black Lei Gang shimmered around his body.

He was unharmed—not a single hair scorched.

"Your World-Ending Crimson Lotus is nothing special."

Xu Jingming's obsidian eyes, as deep as black holes, fixed on Lu Ke; his voice rang with divine authority.