Chapter 1380: The Burning Crown

A raging fire ignited across the void above the Boundary River Domain, its glow illuminating virtually every corner of the realm, and even the black torrential rain pouring from the heavens was being evaporated by this tremendous blaze.

The sight was far too shocking for the eyes.

Countless gazes, filled with shock and horror, stared at the raging inferno reflected in their pupils.

Within the great fire, three layers of the supreme and noble King's Crown were burning, and the dense Origin Qi spread out across the heavens and earth; at this moment, the Affinity within countless people across the Boundary River Domain was trembling and stirring.

Even faintly, the Affinity Rank of some people had gained a sliver of subtle elevation.

All of this was because of those three layers of King's Crown that had been set ablaze.

These three layers of crown were transformed from Li Li Jingzhe's foundation, and the Affinity within had long since condensed into Origin; now that it was burning, it naturally blessed the heavens, the earth, and all living beings.

In the void above the Boundary River Domain, Divine Tiger King Zhao Zong and White Elephant King Zhu Yuan also watched the raging fire with complex expressions, for within those flames emanated a power that even made them shudder.

That was the resolute eruption of Li Li Jingzhe, this Three-Crown Void King.

"He actually burned his own King's Crown."

A thick sense of admiration rose in the eyes of Zhao Zong and Zhu Yuan; at this moment, even Divine Tiger King Zhao Zong, who was at odds with Li Li Jingzhe, let out a soft sigh.

Li Li Jingzhe's resolve was something they all felt ashamed to compare themselves to.

They asked themselves: if it had been them, perhaps they would have thought more about how to retreat unscathed, rather than staying here to fight that Human Embryo to the death.

After all, to speak a cruel and realistic truth, the value of a single Three-Crown Void King was probably higher than everyone here combined.

Above Abyss City.

Qin Jiujie, however, watched this scene coldly, muttering to himself: "What a foolish old fool. He clearly had so many chances to leave alone, yet he insisted on abandoning himself for the sake of some worthless juniors."

Li Li Jingzhe burning his King's Crown to fight the Human Embryo in a final death match was undoubtedly good news for him; it would be best if both sides perished together, as that would not only eliminate the threat of Li Li Jingzhe but also slightly thwart the schemes of the Returned One Society, preventing the situation from deteriorating beyond control.

The raging fire illuminated the heavens and earth; within the blaze, one could see a majestic golden dragon coiled, endless azure winds sweeping through, and a golden giant bamboo standing like a pillar supporting the sky, spewing forth vast Lei Guang.

These were precisely Li Li Jingzhe's three Affinities.

"Father!"

Li Li Qingpeng and Li Li Jinpan stared at the aged figure within the terrifying flames that illuminated all the heavens, their eyes reddening at this moment, with tears welling up within.

"Grandfather..."

Li Luo's eyes had long since grown moist, and the intense pain in his heart surged out like a tide, as if it would tear his very body apart; his gaze fixed intently on the aged figure within the prairie fire, as if to brand it into the deepest depths of his heart.

In the more than two years since coming to the Dragon Fang Lineage, he had long regarded this usually stern and solemn old man as his closest kin; and regardless of whether it stemmed from the guilt he once felt toward Li Taixuan, the old man's care for him had allowed Li Luo, who had always felt somewhat adrift and rootless over the years, to experience that blood-is-thicker-than-water familial affection.

Li Li Jingzhe held no King's dignity toward him; there was only the kindness of a grandfather.

In the mouths of outsiders, the Dragon Fang Lineage Head, who had always cared most about rules, had repeatedly broken the constraints of those rules for his sake.

Although he had only been at the Dragon Fang Lineage for a little over two years, compared to those unreliable parents, Li Li Jingzhe's sense of responsibility was countless times greater than theirs.

How could such affection fail to be etched into Li Luo's memory?

Amid the extreme grief, Li Luo seemed to see that, within the fire burning with Origin Qi, the old man turned his head and cast a gentle gaze his way.

That gaze was full of smiles.

The next moment, the Origin fire sweeping across the entire sky above the Boundary River Domain suddenly swelled, within which countless Origin Golden Beads seemed to condense, and then swept directly toward the gray-robed Human Embryo.

The gray-robed Human Embryo's pupils were dark and deep; one could see vast gray-white energy surging forth from within its body in mighty waves, actually evolving into a painting of billions of human figures—a portrait of all living beings.

That scene was vivid and lifelike, as if it were truly a realm of living creatures.

And at this moment, those billions of living beings showed fear on their faces, emitting despairing wails, until finally their bodies shattered, countless gray vapors surging out, forming an incomparably massive white giant wheel in the sky above.

As the giant wheel turned, an aura of destruction emanated from it.

But the sweeping Origin fire showed no hesitation whatsoever, colliding directly with that white giant wheel; at the moment of impact, the white giant wheel was instantly obliterated.

The gray-robed Human Embryo's face darkened, and it stepped back.

But the moment its foot retreated, it saw space shatter; whether before or behind, Origin fire roared forth.

As if it were a sea of fire with no path of retreat.

Completely surrounding it.

Finally, the Origin fire traced back to the main body, igniting the gray robe on the surface of the Human Embryo's body.

Seeing this scene, the Human Embryo ceased its struggle; the Origin fire was one of the most terrifying flames in the world, a means sufficient to pose an extreme threat to King-level powerhouses.

Now that the Origin fire had ignited this body of its, there was no possibility of extinguishing it.

Unless it too, in a manner of sacrificial burning, destroyed this Human Embryo body.

But the price of that was too great; it would affect the main body.

Li Li Jingzhe could stake his life, but it could not.

Thus, after an initial moment of hesitation, the Human Embryo calmed down, allowing the Origin fire to burn its body, gradually incinerating it into nothingness.

Its gaze fixed coldly on the aged figure within the Origin fire, saying: "Li Li Jingzhe, you burn your King's Crown to perish together with me—do you truly think that can change anything?"

"Without your protection, the Faceless Underworld King can still slaughter clean those juniors you wished to protect."

"Afterward, once he uses the flesh and blood of your juniors as nourishment to nurture the Welcoming Black Lotus, my Ghost Embryo and Beast Embryo can still descend."

"So in the end, your resolve accomplished nothing."

"Truly pathetic."

Yet facing its mockery, Li Li Jingzhe's expression remained calm throughout, offering no rebuttal.

The figure of the gray-robed Human Embryo grew ever fainter within the Origin fire, ultimately turning to nothingness and dissipating into thin air.

And at the instant the Human Embryo turned to nothingness, from the distant void beyond, the mysterious giant eye at the Boundary River Hollow let out a low rumble, within which a hint of wrathful intent seemed to emerge.

Under this sliver of wrath, the entire Boundary River Domain trembled.

Clearly, the Human Embryo's defeat had greatly angered that Three-Eyed Dark Embryo Great Demon King who was spying on the Boundary River Domain from the Boundary River Hollow.

A cold and terrifying gaze seemed to pierce through the void, projecting onto Li Li Jingzhe's body.

The Origin fire that swept across the heavens and earth, even burning away the black rain, gradually extinguished.

Li Li Jingzhe's figure emerged; on the surface of his body, faint cracks appeared, like porcelain on the verge of shattering.

And everyone could feel that the oppressive pressure originally emanating from Li Li Jingzhe's body was also receding at an astonishing speed.

"Hehe, Li Li Jingzhe, Li Li Jingzhe, who would have thought that the esteemed Head of the Dragon Tooth Pulse has now become a dying man." At this moment, a chilling, mocking laugh filled with murderous intent rang out.

It was the Faceless Nether King, who had been suppressed within the Golden Dragon Claw.

And as Li Li Jingzhe's aura faded, the Golden Dragon Claw formed from his severed palm gradually grew dim.

Qin Baiyan and others retreated in horror.

The Faceless Nether King waved his sleeve, and cold gray-white qi surged out, directly corroding the Golden Dragon Claw, before he leisurely stepped out from within it.

The Golden Dragon Claw that had previously been able to suppress him could no longer restrain him.

The Faceless Nether King raised his head, and a blood-red eyeball drilled out from his blank face.

That eyeball looked mockingly at Li Li Jingzhe, who was covered in cracks in the void above, and said, "Li Li Jingzhe, at this moment, can you still suppress me?"

Li Li Jingzhe did not answer.

"If you cannot, then I shall, while you still linger, kill all of your descendants right before your eyes, leaving not a single one alive."

The Faceless Nether King spoke with a grin, extended a finger to lightly tap the void, and a ring of spatial ripples instantly spread out.

And where the spatial ripples passed, everyone discovered in horror that they seemed to be insects frozen in amber, unable to move a single bit.

The Faceless Nether King then took unsteady steps, walking toward Li Luo step by step.

He deliberately walked very slowly, clearly wanting Li Li Jingzhe and Li Luo to experience the final despair.

In the void above, Li Li Jingzhe ignored the Faceless Nether King, slowly raised his head, and gazed with deep eyes toward the direction of the Boundary River.

At some location within the surging Boundary River, crystalline layers had appeared.

Those were caused by him scorching with the Source Fire when he previously unleashed his Origin Fire.

After the crystallization of the Boundary River, the familiar fluctuations he had sensed earlier were approaching at extreme speed.

Bang!

The void seemed to tremble once, and then Li Li Jingzhe saw that at the location of the crystalline layers, a slender fist, pale yet containing extremely terrifying power, suddenly blasted through and emerged in that instant.

Gazing at this scene, a trace of relieved smile finally appeared in Li Li Jingzhe's eyes.