Deep within the Black Flame Mountain Range, the scorching air warped the view. The enormous volcanic crater resembled the gaping maw of a primordial beast, endlessly spewing searing currents and the stench of sulfur.
Yet at this moment, this land that should have been filled with slaughter and contention had fallen into an eerie dead silence.
The Cang Xuan Sect's ten Boundary Setting Flags had been firmly planted at the richest nodes of the Flame Marrow Vein within the crater. They emitted a gentle yet unquestionable glow, shrouding the core region for a hundred miles around.
Beyond the barrier, countless cultivators watched from the distant mountains, their eyes filled with fear, unwillingness, and profound disbelief.
Just moments ago, that ice-blue radiance, like a miracle—or rather, a nightmare—had swept through the area, instantly turning hundreds of elites charging at the forefront into rigid ice sculptures and utterly crushing everyone's will to compete.
Li Qingchan stood beside one of the Boundary Setting Flags as her ice-blue Genesis Qi slowly receded. Her cool gaze swept across the mineral vein that now belonged to the Cang Xuan Sect, yet there was little joy in her heart. Only overwhelming shock echoed within her. Subconsciously, she turned to look toward the source of it all.
Mo Lin still stood where he had been, looking lazy as ever. He even yawned in boredom, as though that earth-shattering strike just now had merely brushed a speck of dust from his clothes.
Sensing Li Qingchan's gaze, a teasing smile curled across his lips as he slowly strolled over.
Wherever he passed, Zhao Zhu, Bai Li, and the other Cang Xuan Sect disciples lowered their eyes in reverence and proactively made way. The atmosphere was so solemn that it nearly congealed.
"Senior Sister Li," Mo Lin said as he stopped