The next day.
Lei Realm, Thunder Valley.
Although Thunder Valley is named after thunder, it actually has absolutely nothing to do with thunder or lightning or anything related to thunder.
Deep within Thunder Valley, in a pavilion.
"Oh, what a coincidence! I never expected to meet Miss Xun Er here. We are truly destined to meet." Huo Xuan, who was drinking tea in the pavilion, put down his teacup and greeted Gu Xun'er.
"Huo Xuan, what are you doing here!"
"These past few days, I've been feeling really bored staying in the Lei Clan, so I came out for a walk and happened to come here. I found the scenery in Thunder Valley to be quite beautiful, so I couldn't help but stop and take a look."
"Huo Xuan, who allowed you to come here!" Gu Xun'er's expression suddenly turned very ugly, and she immediately shouted coldly.
"Of course I was invited by the Lei Clan. Why wouldn't you welcome me to witness your Engagement Ceremony?"
Huo Xuan remained calm in the face of Gu Xun'er's cold rebuke. He swept his hand across his Storage Ring, and a White Porcelain Jade Bottle flew out from Storage Ring.
"And I've also brought along Brother Xiao Yan you've been longing for."
When Gu Xun'er saw Huo Xuan take out the jade bottle containing Brother Xiao Yan's soul, and thought that it was because of him that Brother Xiao Yan was in this state, her anger surged up.
"Boom..."
Gu Xun'er quickly activated the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame within her body. The golden flames enveloped her fist, and without hesitation, she slammed the fist, which was burning with the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame, towards Huo Xuan.
The fist enveloping the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame swept through the air, leaving a trail of golden flames. Terrifyingly high temperatures permeated the surroundings, and even the space around them began to show signs of slight distortion.
Faced with the sudden attack, Huo Xuan reacted quickly, dodging Gu Xun'er's attack in a flash.
But Gu Xun'er remained relentless. She raised her palm, and a golden flame slowly rose from it, instantly emanating a terrifyingly high temperature...
Gu Xun'er snorted coldly, and the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame in her hand began to dance merrily like a golden fire sprite.
Under Gu Xun'er's control, the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame transformed into dozens of golden fire spikes, which, carrying a scorching aura, attacked Huo Xuan.
"Overestimating their abilities..."
Huo Xuan murmured, and then a dazzling array of flames suddenly erupted from his body. With a Huo Xuan wave of his hand, a Seven-Colored Flame met the dozens of flame spikes formed by the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame.
"Hiss!"
The two collided, instantly producing a series of sharp hissing sounds. The dozens of flame spikes formed by the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame were instantly burned into nothingness by Huo Xuan's seven-colored Strange Fire.
A pale face appeared on Gu Xun'er's pretty face. She was shocked. She had realized Huo Xuan's strength.
High-level Dou Zun!
No! It might be more than that!
Three years ago, she was just a Dou Zong, while Huo Xuan was a Dou Zun expert. In order to defeat Huo Xuan, she has been cultivating day and night for the past three years. Hard work pays off. With the advantage of her bloodline and the full support of the Gu Clan, she finally became a Dou Zun expert.
She thought that although she couldn't defeat Huo Xuan after emerging from seclusion, with the fourth-ranked Strange Fire and the power of the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame, she could at least remain invincible.
However, to everyone's surprise, Huo Xuan's cultivation level did not stagnate at all; on the contrary, it improved rapidly!
Three years ago, the guard who accompanied her told her that Huo Xuan was a Four Star Dou Zun at that time. In just three years, his cultivation level has increased by at least five stars!
Among the younger generation of the Eight Clans, Huo Xuan is undoubtedly the strongest!
"Although the Strange Fire is powerful, with your strength, you cannot fully unleash its potential. It is said that the first master of the legendary Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame burned the space created by a Dou Sheng into nothingness when he used this fire. You are far from that level..."
"Whether I can unleash the full power of the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame is not up to you Huo Xuan! I'll show you the true power of the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame!"
Taking a deep breath, Gu Xun'er's jade-like hands clasped together, forming a complex and intricate hand seal, like a lotus blossoming. As the hand seals shifted, dazzling golden flames, like a sun, erupted from Gu Xun'er's body, spreading across the sky...
Golden flames swirled across the sky, making the entire sky seem to burn at that moment.
"Golden Emperor Sky Burning Formation!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Gu Xun'er hands quickly formed a series of strange hand seals. As her clear and cold shout fell, the golden flames that swirled in the sky suddenly began to writhe strangely. Then, more than a dozen golden fire pillars shot down from the sky, the fire curtain extended and finally connected with each other, like a cylindrical fire array that spanned heaven and earth.
Looking at the golden flames that filled almost every corner of the formation, Huo Xuan's expression changed slightly. Even with the formation blocking his way, he could still feel how terrifying the temperature inside the fire formation was!
Even a powerful expert with the strength of Nine-Star Dou Zun would probably be unable to withstand the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame Array. After all, the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame is a terrifying Strange Fire that is said to burn even Dou Qi.
"Gu Xun'er, if you make any further rash moves, I will kill Xiao Yan immediately!"
Huo Xuan raised his left hand, and a Strange Fire rose from his palm. Then, with his right hand, he slowly guided the white jade porcelain bottle into the Strange Fire...
"Don't want!"
Upon seeing this, Gu Xun'er's expression changed, and she hurriedly spoke up.
As she finished speaking, the Golden Emperor Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame Gu Xun'er's Golden Emperor Golden Emperor Sky Burning Formation began to rapidly dissipate...
"That's right, be a good boy and listen to me, or your Brother Xiao Yan will be destroyed because of this."
"Huo Xuan, besides those conditions from back then, what do you want in return for releasing Brother Xiao Yan?"
"Well? Let me think about it carefully?" Huo Xuan said, putting on a serious thinking look.
"Alright, I'll compromise. I don't want the complete Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame anymore. Just give me a wisp of the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame's original flame, and I'll release Xiao Yan."
"This deal is incredibly worthwhile. You can save Brother Xiao Yan, and the Gu Clan won't have to lose their inherited Strange Fire. So, do you agree?"
To be honest, Gu Xun'er was unwilling to give Huo Xuan anything, but she had no choice. Brother Xiao Yan was in his hands, so she had to comply. If it could save Brother Xiao Yan, she was willing to give Huo Xuan of the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame's Source Flame.
"Huo Xuan, you'd better keep your word. If you dare to lie to me, I will definitely mobilize all the power of the Gu Clan to annihilate your Flame Clan!"
Gu Xun'er gritted her teeth and summoned the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame from within her body. She gently pressed one palm onto the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame, and the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame immediately began to tremble violently. After a moment, Gu Xun'er finally managed to extract a wisp of the original flame from the Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame.
"Take it!"
Gu Xun'er glanced coldly at Huo Xuan, then tossed the wisp of Source Flame in her hand toward Huo Xuan.
Seeing this, Huo Xuan raised his hand and summoned a wisp Source Flame Dou Qi that entangled the Source Flame, drawing it into his palm.
The Golden Emperor Sky Burning Flame ranks fourth on the Heavenly Flame Ranking. Even a wisp of its primordial flame is comparable to the Strange Fire ranked fifteenth or lower on the list. After obtaining the Source Flame, Huo Xuan quickly absorbed it into his body.
"Huo Xuan, now that you have obtained the Source Flame, shouldn't you release Brother Xiao Yan?"
"Of course." As soon as she finished speaking, Huo Xuan tossed the White Porcelain Jade Bottle in her hand to Gu Xun'er.
Seeing this, Gu Xun'er quickly caught it steadily.
"Brother Xiao Yan, Xun'er has finally... finally rescued you..." Gu Xun'er said softly, looking at the White Porcelain Jade Bottle in her hand.
Then Gu Xun'er pulled out the stopper from the bottle, and a moment later, a weak soul floated out of the bottle, but it was not Xiao Yan.
"Miss... how come it's you..." the weak soul said with some difficulty.
"Yang... Yang Ling, what happened to you...?"
Looking at the weak soul in front of her, Gu Xun'er found it hard to believe that these souls were the same Dou Zun who had been ordered by her to assassinate Huo Xuan back then.
"Gu Xun'er, are you surprised?"
"Huo Xuan, what do you mean by this!" Gu Xun'er shouted angrily at Huo Xuan.
"Hmph! I didn't mean anything by it. I just wanted to tell Miss Xun Er that there's no such thing as having it all; everything comes at a price!"
As he spoke, Huo Xuan waved his left hand, unleashing a terrifying Dou Qi from his palm. The Dou Qi struck Yang Ling's weakened soul, and with a scream, Yang Ling's soul body was instantly annihilated...
"Huo Xuan... I was wrong last time... I apologize to you..." With that, Gu Xun'er bowed deeply to Huo Xuan, saying, "I... I'm sorry..."
"Alright, I've apologized. Now you should release Brother Xiao Yan."
"Release Xiao Yan? Why should I release him?" Huo Xuan asked curiously.
"Huo Xuan! How dare you play me!"
"You think I'm playing a trick on you?"
"When have I ever played a trick on you?"
"I never said I would release Xiao Yan as long as you apologized. You're just being delusional." A faint, cold smile appeared on Huo Xuan's lips.
"You... you... despicable... you shameless!" Gu Xun'er was so angry that she could barely speak.
"Thank you for the compliment."
"I will continue to develop these strengths in the future."
"How about this, Gu Xun'er? From now on, you can send me a batch of high-grade pills or Cultivation Methods and Combat Skills regularly. Once I get them, I'll continue to prolong Xiao Yan's Xiao Yan. After I've had my fill of tormenting him, I'll let him go, okay?"
"Huo Xuan, how come I never discovered you were such a despicable, shameless, and brazen person before!"
"You didn't notice before, but you should have noticed now," Huo Xuan said with a smile.
"Huo Xuan! You!"
"Snort!"
Enraged, Gu Xun'er turned and left. Huo Xuan's shameless actions today had already shattered her understanding of the world. She knew that there was no way to save her Brother Xiao Yan today, and staying here would only increase her anger. Therefore, she resolutely decided to leave.
"Alright, Lei Dong, they've gone far enough. Don't you want to come out?"