Heisuo put away the long whip, and the ghost fire merged into one again.
Then, the ghost fire began to grow larger, expanding continuously until it transformed into a humanoid monster engulfed in eerie blue flames.
This massive humanoid flame monster was thousands of times larger than the previous ghost fire.
“What’s going on? Has the martial soul evolved?”
“No, that’s not it. It doesn’t seem like an evolution. I’ve never seen anything like this before.”
“Ling Xiao, you think you’re the only one with secret techniques? I, Heisuo, am a disciple of the Demon Flame Heavenly Sovereign. Whatever you have, I have too!”
The humanoid monster formed by the blue flames had no legs, just a mass of fire below, with only the upper body resembling a human.
Its eyes, mouth, and ears were visible, and its towering figure, over ten metres tall, touched some of the underground palace’s structures, instantly incinerating them to ashes.
“This is the Death Dark Flame! One of the twelve divine fires, the Death Dark Flame!”
Guanghan Heavenly Sovereign suddenly exclaimed, “I see, I see! The Demon Flame Heavenly Sovereign went to such lengths to deal with a mere outer disciple, even passing a sliver of his martial soul’s divine fire to his disciple. No wonder the ghost fire martial soul mutated so suddenly!”
Few knew that the Demon Flame Heavenly Sovereign’s martial soul was the Death Dark Flame, one of the twelve divine fires.
His title as Demon Flame Heavenly Sovereign was no coincidence.
“Kid, surrender. You can’t possibly withstand the Death Dark Flame. Even just a sliver of this divine fire is enough to burn you to nothing!”
Jinguang Heavenly Sovereign suddenly shouted, “Rest assured, if you agree to take me as your master, win or lose today, I’ll ensure your safety. No one will harm you!”
“Thank you for your kindness, Jinguang Heavenly Sovereign, but I already have a master. Please don’t force the issue.”
Ling Xiao responded calmly, neither servile nor overbearing.
“Such a pity, such a pity. If you won’t take me as your master, I have no reason to help you.”
Jinguang Heavenly Sovereign sighed repeatedly.
“Ling Xiao, though Jinguang’s opportunism isn’t gentlemanly, he’s not wrong. The Death Dark Flame isn’t something you can resist,” Guanghan Heavenly Sovereign said, frowning.
“What joy is there in life, what fear in death? Today, I, Ling Xiao, want to see just how terrifying this Death Dark Flame is!”
Ling Xiao feared death too.
But he couldn’t fear battle!
If he cowered at the sight of the Death Dark Flame, how could he ever collect the twelve divine fires in the future?
“Fool who doesn’t know his place!”
The blue flame monster finally took full form, an overwhelming aura of destruction surging from Heisuo’s body.
At that moment, several inner disciples fell to their knees.
It was as if they saw the Demon Flame Heavenly Sovereign himself!
As if they witnessed the Death Dark Flame incinerating everything.
Heisuo’s terrifying aura kept climbing, growing stronger.
Boom~~
The ground couldn’t withstand this fearsome power and collapsed into a massive crater.
Green Valley Manor was ruined.
But it didn’t matter; the demonic lair was empty anyway.
At that moment, the terrifying aura drew the attention of other sect disciples and experts still in Green Valley.
“That’s the aura of Mortal Realm Fourth Stage Peak!”
Someone exclaimed.
Just a martial soul mutation, just a sliver of the Death Dark Flame integrated into it.
Yet Heisuo’s strength had skyrocketed to Mortal Realm Fourth Stage Peak in an instant!
This aura was simply too terrifying!
Too astonishing!
“It seems Senior Brother Heisuo wasn’t lying about not using his full strength. This must be his true trump card, far stronger than the Seven-Star Ghost Fire Lamp!”
“Indeed, who would’ve thought he’d obtained a sliver of the Death Dark Flame, carrying the aura of the Demon Flame Heavenly Sovereign? Most martial artists would probably collapse just feeling this aura. Ling Xiao’s got some guts!”
“Too bad, no matter how tough he is, it’s useless. Heisuo now is beyond what Ling Xiao can handle. He’s done for.”
More and more people knelt on the ground.
Not because of Heisuo’s strength, but because of the terrifying aura he kept releasing.
That aura, flowing endlessly, belonged to the Demon Flame Heavenly Sovereign!
This must be the perk of being his disciple.
Xu Ying and Wang Feng hadn’t unleashed such an aura before, likely because they died too quickly to do so.
Heisuo at Mortal Realm Fourth Stage Early was already terrifying enough, and the Seven-Star Ghost Fire Lamp was powerful enough.
But now, Heisuo at Mortal Realm Fourth Stage Peak—how strong would he be?
Could Ling Xiao withstand even a single attack from Heisuo now?
Ling Xiao’s gaze locked onto the massive flame monster behind Heisuo.
He knew full well that neither Guanghan nor Jinguang Heavenly Sovereigns were joking.
After the ghost fire martial soul fused with the Death Dark Flame, it underwent a special mutation, boosting Heisuo’s strength to Mortal Realm Fourth Stage Peak in one leap.
And that wasn’t the most terrifying part!
The most frightening was the flame monster’s incinerating power, capable of reducing the underground palace’s structures to ashes with ease. How high must that temperature be?
Even Ling Xiao’s “Heaven-Burning” technique was no match for this, was it?
Mortal Realm Fourth Stage Peak, huh?
Not easy to deal with!
Ling Xiao thought to himself.
Though he understood that Heisuo’s strength boost wouldn’t last long, and the ghost fire martial soul’s mutation was likely temporary, he still had to face this powerful Heisuo head-on.
Elder Jin finally showed a smile.
From the start of Ling Xiao’s fight with Heisuo until now, this was his first time smiling.
Because now, he was certain Ling Xiao was doomed.
But while pleased, he was also somewhat surprised.
For Ling Xiao to force Heisuo to use the Death Dark Flame to trigger the ghost fire martial soul’s mutation—this kid was not to be underestimated.
If left unchecked, such a person would surely grow into a terrifying existence.
Normally, Elder Jin would treasure such talent, but this kid had offended him and become his enemy, so he couldn’t be spared.
Elder Tu also sighed quietly. Such an outstanding child, with a bright future, possibly a pillar of the Moonlight Sect one day, was about to fall here.
If Elder Jin had acted, he could have intervened or persuaded him.
But this was a fight between Heisuo and Ling Xiao, giving him no reason or right to step in.
At this moment, no one believed Ling Xiao had a chance of winning.
Even Guanghan Heavenly Sovereign, who had always supported him, thought he was doomed.
That’s why she urged him to surrender.
If Ling Xiao didn’t, she’d have no grounds to intervene, and if she did, Elder Jin would surely act too.
So, whether Ling Xiao survived now depended entirely on whether he would bow his head and admit defeat.
As for the inner disciples, they felt it was a pity. For Ling Xiao to push Heisuo this far was truly impressive.
But alas, he was still going to die.
