In that very instant, Ji Bowen roared out in a sudden, wild bellow, "Jun Moxie, you come out! Get the hell out here! If you're a man, roll out here, you gutless coward, you beast who only knows how to use despicable tactics!",,
Ji Bowen, as a Saint Sovereign, when had he ever lost his composure like this? But now, he simply could not hold back any longer!
"Your threats don't scare us. The weakest among us are at the Saint level of cultivation; how could a mere fire manage to burn us to death? That's a colossal joke!"
"Even if you conjure up more water, so what? It can suppress us temporarily at most; no one will die. Can you sustain that for so long? The moment the water subsides even slightly, we'll all leap out! By then, our strength will be completely intact! With just you, Jun Moxie, even with heaven-defying divine powers, can you possibly deal with all forty-seven of us simultaneously?"
"Forget a mere Jun Moxie like you; even Elder Brother Gu Han couldn't manage that!"
But in that fleeting moment when he casually lowered his head, he already sensed that the surge of water had clearly stopped, yet not a single person emerged. Looking closer to examine the situation, he was truly shocked!
Profound Ice! It was actually Profound Ice!
How could Profound Ice suddenly appear in this location? The volcano was still erupting more than halfway through, the temperature was so scorching it felt like it could bake a man alive, yet Profound Ice had materialized here? Ji Bowen could hardly believe his eyes. He steadied himself and looked again, this time letting out an involuntary cry!
In the blink of an eye, the Profound Ice had transformed into Ice Marrow!
Faced with such an unimaginable miracle, Ji Bowen had only one thought: It's over!
Those forty people below could essentially be declared finished! Unless Jun Moxie himself changed his mind and released them, at most a very small few among them might cling to a thread of life!
To be enveloped within the Ice Marrow meant the danger level had reached a near-certain death scenario! Being wrapped up with his own brothers meant absolutely no one dared to make a single move!
Any reckless action would endanger his brothers and comrades!
Currently, the Ice Marrow was intact, so there was no immediate danger.
But the moment any rash movement occurred, or if external force intervened, causing the Ice Marrow to fracture, it would be equivalent to countless swords, sharp enough to cleave metal and iron, launching indiscriminate attacks in every direction—up, down, left, and right!
If they used their Profound Energy to protect themselves, they might shatter a portion of the Ice Marrow, but breaking it completely was impossible! Moreover, the shattered pieces of Ice Marrow wouldn't vanish; they would turn into even finer, sharper shards, the killing power of which might not diminish significantly!
Xia Changtian and Ji Bowen finally changed color in distress!
They finally understood Jun Moxie's malicious intent!
And they finally grasped how vicious Jun Moxie's so-called revenge truly was!
In the sky, only emptiness rippled, and Jun Moxie still offered no response.
But at this moment, the Chaos Fire began its descent. Although its downward momentum was slow, it continued its steady drop.
In truth, this slow, creeping descent was a far more torturous form of torment than a swift, clean end!
At this point, Xia Changtian once again felt something was wrong!
A fundamental wrongness!
The black flame, now only a few feet above his head, brought him an ineffable pressure of impending death! As a supreme powerhouse who had reached the Saint Sovereign level, it had been a long time since he experienced this delicate sensation of dancing on the edge of life and death.
With a sharp clang, the long sword was drawn. Xia Changtian focused his entire being, channeling his most formidable and vast surging Profound Energy, and violently lashed out. A three-zhang-long sword gleam slashed through the air, striking the Chaos Fire dead center!
The Chaos Fire in the sky still maintained its original descending speed, drifting down steadily. Such a powerful sword qi, even if it struck empty space, should stir up ripples and tear open spatial cracks. But this time, it clearly struck the Chaos Fire solidly, yet the Chaos Fire remained completely unmoved, not even altering its drifting speed, continuing its steady, hazy descent in a straight line.
Xia Changtian's pupils constricted, and a chill crawled over his entire body!
What in the world was this thing?
His sword strike, he believed, if aimed at a small mountain, even if it couldn't split it in two, should at least shear off a significant portion of the mountain! But this bizarre black flame, upon encountering such an attack, didn't even offer a flicker of reaction?
"This... this is too damn bizarre?!"
The flames continued to press closer, nearer and nearer...
Xia Changtian gritted his teeth, his long sword leveling out once more, moving slowly to make contact with the black fire cauldron hanging in the mid-air.
In the high sky, a clear sword cry suddenly rang out.
If one listened closely, it wasn't hard to detect that the sword cry was laced with a profound mockery.
Only the Blood of Yan Huang could produce such a humanized sound; this esteemed weapon danced in the air, displaying striking agility and liveliness.
As for the meaning of the cry, it was simple: Idiot, didn't you see that even I, your master, instinctively kept my distance when that fire appeared? And you dare to touch it with your sword? You truly don't know what's good for you! This humble sword mourns for its master...
Xia Changtian’s sword made contact with the Chaos Fire without any suspense, experiencing no resistance whatsoever.
Xia Changtian let out a slight breath of relief, pushing another ten percent of his Profound Energy, intending to swing the sword and blast this mass of Chaos Fire away!
But with that swing, the Chaos Fire remained calmly affixed to his blade, burning slowly, still proceeding at its unhurried pace, showing no change whatsoever.
The only thing truly changing was the sword itself...
That sword...
Xia Changtian suddenly felt a dreadful chill, and nearly spat out a mouthful of blood!
His sword, the blade that had accompanied him for nearly four thousand years, had actually... shortened!
What was happening? Why had it suddenly become shorter?
In his shock, the Chaos Fire continued to burn elegantly, creeping along the blade towards him. Wherever it passed, there was no incident, no smoke, no sign of burning, no... nothing at all!
The only change was that the three-foot-three-inch long sword was now half its original length!
It hadn't vanished into thin air; it was being... burned away! Just upon contact, half the sword was gone?!
"What the hell is this thing?!" Xia Changtian's soul nearly fled his body in an instant, sweat instantly drenching him. In his daze, he realized the bizarre flame was about to reach the hilt. His hand trembled, and he hastily tossed the remaining stub of the blade onto the ground.
Ji Bowen, standing nearby, attempted to stop the descent of the Chaos Fire using the same method. Naturally, he encountered the same situation. The treasured sword that had been his companion for years was incinerated in an instant. The two men exchanged a look, discovering the profound terror reflected in each other's eyes!
These two had guarded the Duotian Battlefield for over three thousand years; their ages and cultivation levels were comparable. Even when facing countless alien powerhouses, the word 'fear' never crossed their minds. But now, both of them felt a genuine sense of dread!
The Chaos Fire paid no mind to whether they were afraid or not; it had already reached their heads!
The two roared, suddenly shooting out at ground level. In this dash, they exerted every ounce of power a Saint Sovereign could muster, reaching their fastest speed ever. In the blink of an eye, they traversed nearly a hundred zhang of space, landing outside the range of the Chaos Fire's influence!
Watching the flames continue to descend at their unhurried pace, completely obscuring the entrance to the hundred-zhang-wide pit, both men were ashen-faced!
Because they had confirmed one thing: the forty brothers below were truly in mortal danger this time. If even they, the two of them, were helpless against this thing, what hope was there for others!
"This thing is called Chaos Fire. You two probably haven't seen it, have you?" Jun Moxie's voice drifted over, sounding ethereal and seemingly weary, even accompanied by a few faint coughs: "Ahem, Chaos Fire. This item has a slightly different attribute from ordinary fire; it is not repelled by or subject to the Five Elements. It simply is. To put it plainly: it ignites upon contact with water. It ignites upon contact with wood. It ignites upon contact with metal... In short, there is nothing in this world that Chaos Fire cannot burn. And the concept of 'unburnable' naturally includes the human body. Even Profound Qi and souls are no exception. I suppose that assessment is accurate because I truly haven't found anything in this world that Chaos Fire cannot burn!"
Jun Moxie explained patiently.
At these words, the seven remaining grandmasters outside simultaneously showed expressions of utter horror.
Looking at the large pit, their faces were etched with absolute grief and indignation!
Gu Han and Mo Wudao, observing the battle from a distance, both sighed sadly, their gazes fixed and their faces pale!
"Jun Moxie, you bastard, where are you? Come out! Get out here now!" Xia Changtian roared in anger. The arrogance befitting a Saint Sovereign had vanished completely, replaced only by sheer panic!
"Jun Moxie, hurry up and take back that damnable fire and let my brothers out!" Xia Changtian and Ji Bowen shouted together, their voices filled with alarm and urgency!
At this moment, the two men felt as if their hearts were being roasted!
The shortest time any of those below had spent with them was at least several hundred years!
Many among them were comrades-in-arms who had fought alongside them for a thousand or even two thousand years! Watching them fall into such a deadly predicament with no recourse, the two felt a pain in their hearts as if their very souls were trembling.
"Isn't it painful? Watching your brothers, with whom you've been for a thousand years, trapped in despair, and you are helpless, forced to stand by and watch them walk toward death? Does that feel good? Is it satisfying?"
A white shadow flickered suddenly, and Jun Moxie’s figure finally materialized in the mid-air. His eyes were cold and merciless as he gazed at Xia Changtian and Ji Bowen, as frigid as ice.
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