Chapter 316 - 172: Ye Xuantian Arrives in the Southern Wilderness, Blazing Sun Meteor

"These damn bastards!" A murderous glint flashed in Shen Qing’s eyes. Dao Rhythm surged around him as Sword Intent blossomed, causing space itself to twist.

"Brother Ye, did you come here to slay demons as well?" Shen Qing asked.

Ye Xuantian nodded slightly and then said softly,

"That is one reason."

"The second is that I’m here on orders from those old men in the Sect to look after my genius junior brother."

Of course, he had come to the Southern Wilderness for a reason that was even more important than those two.

But Shen Qing was slightly taken aback, his face immediately showing interest.

"Oh ho, what kind of monstrous talent is this, that he requires the great prodigy, Brother Ye, to personally look after him?"

A complex emotion flashed in Ye Xuantian’s eyes upon hearing this.

’If I recall correctly, in my past life’s memories, there was clearly no such prodigy in the Sect. Perhaps his reputation wasn’t prominent at the time, and he hadn’t yet had the chance to mature before he was annihilated along with the Sect in that great crisis.’

’Or perhaps, since my rebirth, I’ve turned the gears of fate, causing a few butterfly effects. This has led to many things happening in the Celestial Essence Realm that don’t match my previous life.’

’But I’m certain of one thing: those mortal enemies of the Sect, those terrifyingly powerful experts from Outside Celestial Essence Realm, the true culprits behind the Sect’s complete destruction, will definitely descend. And that day might even arrive sooner!’

At this thought, a heavy feeling rose within Ye Xuantian. An immense, invisible pressure, like that of a great mountain, bore down upon him.

’This time, I will absolutely not let the Sect that raised me be destroyed! Absolutely not!!’

’There are still several decades. As long as I can recover my strength to a level above the Harmonization realm, I’ll have a fighting chance!!’

As these thoughts flashed through his mind, the corners of Ye Xuantian’s mouth curled up. "This person’s talent," he said calmly, "is likely no less than my own."

Shen Qing’s pupils contracted, and a look of shock spread across his face.

"Your junior brother is that much of a monster?!"

’I’m all too aware of the talent of the man standing before me. He’s only in his forties.’

’To me, that’s so young! He’s a full hundred-plus years younger than I am.’

’Yet his strength is unfathomable, perhaps even far greater than mine!’

’Sometimes, looking at him, I feel like I’ve wasted my nearly two hundred years of life. I’m supposed to be a prodigy in my own right, so why is the gap between us so enormous?’

"Brother Ye, your Sect is truly overflowing with talent, producing one prodigy after another!" Shen Qing said with a wry smile.

"Indeed." Ye Xuantian didn’t refute his words, instead nodding slightly.

Because not long ago, in Central Earth, he had met another very interesting junior brother named Xiao Chen.

...

「At this very moment.」

In Central Earth, a vast and remote distance of several billion li from the Southern Wilderness...

In the skies above a certain remote mountain range, the heavens were a pristine, washed-out blue, with pale clouds drifting by.

A crimson streak of light raced across the firmament, emitting a crisp rushing sound. A closer look revealed a figure in a black Profound Robe. He was powerfully built with ink-black hair and a handsome face, an air of determination radiating from his features. Flames blazed around his body, and his Cultivation had shockingly reached the True Martial Realm Ninth Layer Peak!

’Master, how much farther to those ruins?’ Xiao Chen asked mentally, feeling a bit of fatigue after flying nonstop for a month without a moment’s rest.

[’We’re close.’]

An old, deep voice resonated in Xiao Chen’s mind.

[’However, you’ll first have to deal with the trouble right in front of you.’]

The old voice continued.

’Trouble?’

’What trouble could there be?’ A trace of confusion flickered in Xiao Chen’s eyes. His determined gaze swept forward, seeing nothing but drifting white clouds and the crisscrossing mountain ranges below.

The mountains rose and fell like an endless ocean of waves, one range after another.

Streams flowed through the gaps between them, flanked by vast groves of towering ancient trees that soared to the clouds. Their massive canopies blocked out the sun, their trunks so thick it would take dozens of people to encircle them, and their countless branches hung straight down like a thousand waterfalls.

However, Xiao Chen quickly understood.

In the distant void, three streaks of light tore through the sky, whistling as they cut through the air. In a flash, they arrived before Xiao Chen, surrounding him in a triangular formation.

The leader was a tall, burly young man with knotted muscles, wearing a tight-fitting black shirt. His gaze was fierce, and blasts of True Essence Qi surged around his body, causing the void to tremble faintly.

"Kid, you think you can just kill our people and run away?" the burly man in the black shirt said viciously, his eyes filled with malice.

"That’s right, don’t run, big brother. This little one wants to have a taste of you," said a beautiful woman to the side, who was wearing a short pink skirt. She was petite, with a wasp waist and perky hips. Her features were bright and full of life, giving off a naive yet spirited air as she spoke with a hint of innocent seductiveness.

On the other side, a tall, skinny young man with narrow eyes, dressed in a gray robe, licked his lips.

"So you’re the one who can run so damn fast, huh!"

"That’s right, don’t run, big brother, okay?" the petite woman in the short pink skirt chattered on.

"Run? Why would I run?!"

"I was about to test your limits!"

Seeing their ill intentions, a cold glint flashed in Xiao Chen’s eyes. Terrifying flames erupted around him. He took a sharp step forward, sending ripples through the air. Then, his figure shot forward like a bolt of lightning tearing through the sky. Clenching his hand into a fist, he gathered a mass of flames and instantly appeared before the woman in the short pink skirt at extreme speed.

Before she could even react, his fist, blazing with raging flames, shot forward. It seared through the void and instantly pierced the chest of the woman in the short pink skirt.

"So... fast!"

A look of horror appeared on the woman’s face, her eyes filled with shock. She hadn’t even had time to feel the searing pain from her body.

A fiery glint shone in Xiao Chen’s eyes. He intensified the Fiery Flaming True Essence in his hand, and terrifying flames erupted from within the woman’s chest, shooting toward the sky. The horrific blaze instantly incinerated her, leaving her to dissipate into the world as ash.

And all of this happened in the blink of an eye.

「The next moment.」

A fiery light flashed in the eyes of Xiao Chen, who was suspended in mid-air. A vast and powerful True Yuan erupted from within him, causing the world around him to feel as if it were being struck by a torrential flood.

Terrifying flames spread for hundreds of li across the sky, turning the firmament into a crimson world. The raging inferno seemed poised to burn the very void to nothing, forming an Endless Fire Domain to refine heaven and earth.

"Celestial Flame Meteor!"

Xiao Chen formed a profound Seal with one hand.

The raging flames in the sky instantly coalesced into two fireballs as large as blazing suns. They then seared through layer upon layer of space, descending like meteors from beyond the heavens. With the power to annihilate all creation, they blotted out the sky as they fell to deliver the final blow to the two remaining men!!

"This... This!"

"How can he be this terrifying?!"

The two men stared as the two flame meteors, hundreds of li wide, fell from the Heaven-Burning sky. Searing through space, the terrifying aura they emitted paralyzed the men, leaving them unable to move an inch. Their faces were filled with horror, their hearts plunging into an abyss, swallowed by endless fear.

"NO!!"

Before the word could even fade, the two men were completely annihilated by the sun-like spheres of flame, turning to ash and scattering into the void.

Xiao Chen floated in mid-air, dispersing the flames that coiled around him. His robes fluttered, and his black hair danced in the wind. His determined eyes watched everything calmly, as if nothing had happened at all.

"Master,

you call this trouble?"

...

「Southern Wilderness Domain, Qingyuan Mountain Range.」

「Holy Origin Secret Realm, inside the One-Star Tower.」

The sky was dim, as black as ink, with clouds as heavy as mountains. The terrifying Sword Intent from a Sword Qi that had sliced hundreds of li across the sky still lingered, threatening to tear the heavens in two. Great swathes of dark clouds had been blasted apart by the aftershocks, allowing sunlight to pour down and shine through the darkness.

The ground below had collapsed. Crisscrossing fissures, like ferocious, angry dragons, covered the shattered landscape!!

[One-Star Tower, Ninth Layer successfully cleared. Continue?]

The cold voice of the Tower Spirit echoed from the sky.

Gu Yun, floating in mid-air, wondered if he was hearing things.

He could have sworn he detected a hint of warmth and a trace of anticipation in the Tower Spirit’s cold voice.

’I’ve already made it this far. I want to see what my limit is. Just how far can I go?’

’Besides, the Tower Spirit had sent me a message before. If I can pass the tenth floor and clear the One-Star Tower, not only will I receive a powerful surge of energy to help me break through to the Realm of Tongxuan, but I’ll also get a reward far beyond my wildest imagination. With such a huge opportunity before me, I have to give it my all.’

At this thought, a look of rock-solid determination flashed in Gu Yun’s eyes. Arcs of thunder began to crackle around him. His aura surged as he spoke in a steady, firm voice:

"Continue!"