The raging flame emperor filled the sky, clusters of fire coalescing into clouds that blanketed the heavens, the flames omnipresent, stretching into every corner of the firmament.

The planet Raging Flame was inherently a blazing world of life, but when the "Sacred Sun Heavenly Flame" and the "Star Devouring Fire" met here, poised to consume each other, the temperature of Raging Flame became truly terrifying. Breaking through the defensive zone established by the Bone Clan, upon entering Raging Flame, he was stunned by the inferno that filled the sky.

Above, the entire expanse was nothing but thick, roaring flames; the earth was cracked open, and some low-lying riverbeds had long since dried up, revealing the silt beneath. Plants withered and died one after another under the extreme drought that afflicted everything on the planet. Unless one was an expert of profound cultivation or a Sky Scholar proficient in flame power, remaining on this star for too long would certainly not be a comfortable experience.

"Outsider! This is the forbidden territory of my Bone Clan. Those who trespass are enemies of my Bone Clan. You must leave immediately!" A somber voice suddenly boomed from the peak of a mountain. Behind that peak stood a row of dwellings constructed purely from piled animal bones. A bone-thin man from the Bone Clan stood ramrod straight upon the summit, fixing a cold stare upon Ji Changkong descending from above.

Having landed on Raging Flame, his worry for Shang Bingjie intensified. The scorching heat here was obviously unsuitable for Sky Scholars like her. He had no idea how she had managed during this time, but he knew she could not have been faring well.

The vicinity was crammed with mountain ranges, one melding into the next. Every few peaks, there stood a bone structure belonging to the Bone Clan. It was clear this entire area was a restricted zone for them, and these Bone Clan members existed specifically to prevent strangers from entering, especially at this critical juncture.

"Scram!" With a cold snort, Ji Changkong moved his thought, and waves of light condensed from the power of the Five Elements descended, enveloping all the Bone Clan structures.

The bone man roared, and about a dozen clansmen emerged from the buildings. Most possessed cultivation at the Subtle Ingress or Nirvana stages; not a single one had reached the Free Will Realm.

The dozen or so Bone Clan members instantly drew out various bone weapons and cursed as they launched their attacks against the light waves condensed from the Five Elements power.

Alas, their strength was severely limited. These attacks dissolved into bone dust upon striking the Five Elements light waves. Not a single bone weapon could pierce the light waves condensed from the Five Elements power, making it naturally impossible to harm Ji Changkong.

Having enveloped the Bone Clansmen, Ji Changkong merely snorted and paid them no further mind. He paused on this very mountain peak, ignoring the shouts and cries of the surrounding Bone Clansmen, and unleashed his Divine Sense, beginning to search for Shang Bingjie's trace.

The Divine Manifestation Realm possessed power comparable to deities. With his Divine Sense released, it spread out in almost an instant. The various auras on every mountain entered his mind; he grasped the surroundings perfectly, as if they were in the palm of his hand.

When he arrived, he had vaguely sensed Shang Bingjie was in a nearby area. With a clear target, the search via Divine Sense became much simpler.

Before long, Shang Bingjie's familiar, cool aura manifested within his Sea of Consciousness: she was on a solitary, isolated hill, fifty thousand miles away.

"Found you!" Suddenly opening his eyes, Ji Changkong’s figure shot forth like a meteor piercing the heavens, hurtling toward the distant location.

On a scorching mountain peak, the rock glowed a dark crimson; it was utterly barren. The towering ancient trees that once stood there had all withered. Under the unique scorching power of Raging Flame, the dried husks of those ancient trees spontaneously combusted, causing flames to cluster at the mountainside and base, echoing the fiery cloud layer in the sky.

On the sheer cliff face of the peak, a solitary, cool figure stood silently, seemingly having held that posture for an unknown duration. She, who never usually sweated, now bore a thin sheen of perspiration on her forehead. Wisps of mist curled around her plain white robes—a normal phenomenon caused by the clash of cold and heat energies.

One hundred years.

On this single desolate mountain, she had remained for a full century!

During this century, she had dedicated herself to arduous cultivation. Possessing extraordinary talent, she had used this hundred years to finally step into the Nirvana Realm. In the Nirvana Realm, she had consumed that Nirvana Pill, and her current cultivation was already vastly different from before, nearing the peak of the Nirvana Profound stage. It was precisely this that allowed her to linger on this star for so long without collapsing from exhaustion.

However, as the temperature of Raging Flame rose higher and higher, her cultivation of opposing energy proficiencies became increasingly arduous. In recent times, she distinctly felt her realm regressing rather than advancing, and even the refined essence within her body began to subtly weaken. Unbelievably, she had even started to sweat.

Yet, she never once considered leaving. She held onto a single thought: He said he would come find me.

Years passed, and she had waited bitterly for over a hundred years. She didn't know how much longer she would have to wait, but the resolve to keep waiting had never wavered. Her body grew progressively weary and weak, and her will seemed to fray. These past few days, she constantly thought of the past, of a certain person, contemplating whether her unannounced departure after entering the Ten Directions Heaven had been right or wrong. She thought much, but found no answer. In her trance, the figure she had constantly thought of for a hundred years reappeared before her eyes.

She had grown accustomed to it. She smiled faintly and murmured softly, "…You’ve appeared again. You’ve been appearing more frequently lately. My mind must be getting worse, otherwise, you wouldn’t be floating in front of me every day. I know this is all just an illusion, but I truly wish this illusion could last forever…"

"…Bingjie…"

"A sound. I'm hearing a voice now, too. Heh, the temperature of Raging Flame must be getting higher; my hallucination has become this vivid. It must be that…" she thought secretly.

Suddenly, a massive force surged towards her. Before she could react, she felt herself being held tightly, the terrifying strength giving her a suffocating sensation, causing her whole body to tremble uncontrollably.

In her daze, a wave of coolness flooded her entire being, and she slowly regained awareness. When that unique scent enveloped her nose and mouth, her delicate body couldn't help but tremble repeatedly, clinging desperately to the person holding her with what felt like the strength of a lifetime. She knew she had waited long enough.

Outside the heavens of Raging Flame.

After an exchange of dazzling light and fierce confrontation, the Bone Clan members gained the upper hand. The Anti-Bone Alliance had paid a heavy price yet still failed to drive the Bone Clan back. Though the Anti-Bone Alliance had suffered a setback this trip, they were not yielding, showing no intention of compromise. The two sides haggled and glared angrily just outside the star of Raging Flame. Granny Yu and other experts from different races watched coldly, each pursuing their own schemes.

After an unknown period, a tremendously fierce wave of fiery energy suddenly erupted from within Raging Flame. The dense flames swirling outside the planet seemed drawn by some attraction, all rushing back toward Raging Flame.

From the outside, many noticed that the flames in the sky above Raging Flame had also begun to stir, rapidly converging toward a specific area.

Two distinctly obvious entities of flame suddenly revealed themselves above the planet, and even those far outside Raging Flame could sense the aura of those two Origin Fires.

"What's happening?" A Free Will Realm expert from the Three-Eyed Clan exclaimed in shock, "Why are the Origin Fires suddenly soaring out from the depths? This is highly irregular. Normally, conflicts between Origin Fires are kept very discreet; any intelligent Origin Fire knows that experts from various clans covet them."

"Who knows," a master from the Wood Clan shook his head, equally perplexed. "Only by entering Raging Flame can we know exactly what transpired."

As the suggestion to enter was made, the eyes of the onlookers lit up; they were clearly intrigued.

The Bone Clan members nearby were still shouting loudly, forbidding the Anti-Bone Alliance from stepping into their forbidden territory and issuing threats.

"Ignore the Bone Clan!" Someone suddenly shouted. Instantly, the gathered experts from various races, who had merely been observing, seemed to reach a silent consensus and rushed toward Raging Flame.

"Do not enter!" The Bone Clan experts, who had just suppressed the Anti-Bone Alliance, cried out in alarm, beginning to gather their strength to form a new defense to stop them.

However, these onlookers hailed from powerful surrounding stars, and several of them had reached the Divine Manifestation Realm. Their power was utterly incomparable to that of the Anti-Bone Alliance. Once these figures mobilized, the Bone Clan’s defensive strength appeared woefully inadequate.

The defense was torn apart, forcibly destroyed. Although the Bone Clan members struggled desperately, their defensive power was clearly insufficient once the crowd of onlookers joined the fray.

Soon, figures broke through the Bone Clan's defenses and poured onto Raging Flame, rushing toward the area they had sensed.

Granny Yu paused for a moment before giving instructions to the bevy of enchanting young women beside her: "Those with Nirvana Realm cultivation, follow me to check the situation. Those who have not reached the Nirvana Realm must stay put honestly. Do not go anywhere without my order, and be careful!"

"Understood, Granny Yu," the brightly dressed young women nodded in unison.

"Mmm," Granny Yu nodded, then conjured a curtain of water, enveloping the few young women, transforming into a swift current rushing toward Raging Flame.

What was happening? Was it because of that boy? There seemed to be a strange fluctuation emanating from him. Could his arrival have triggered the abnormal movement of the two Origin Fires? While flying toward Raging Flame, Granny Yu frowned, her mind racing with speculation.

Suddenly, Granny Yu seemed to recall something; her expression shifted, her eyes widened sharply, and she exclaimed, "I understand now! It's him! This kid must be Ji Changkong, the one who caused such a ruckus on Golden Sea Island!"