Fist Name, Burning Heaven!

However, Xiao Jie knew he could not afford to remain entangled for so long; testing the waters once or twice was sufficient. It was time to get serious. With that, Xiao Jie spoke to Medusa, who remained suspended in the air.

"Heh, I wonder if Queen Medusa is satisfied with my current strength? Your Majesty, there is no need to continue these futile probes to stall for time. I know your intentions—you merely wish to delay until the eight great tribes of the Snake-People arrive to pin me down, correct? While I do not fear them, I have no desire for unnecessary trouble. I estimate the leaders of those eight tribes will need another two quarters of an hour to arrive. Let us conclude this battle within that time!"

Having said this, Xiao Jie raised his right hand, and the fire-attribute energy around it condensed rapidly. This was Xiao Jie's most frequently used Earth-tier low-grade Dou Technique: the Heaven-Burning Palm! For someone like Xiao Jie, who possessed a Heavenly Flame, this palm technique was exceptionally formidable. By executing an Earth-tier low-grade technique with power exceeding its rank, it shared the same origin as the Heaven-Burning Fist and Heaven-Burning Finger, known for "burning the heavens and earth, shattering mountains and rivers with a single palm!"

As Xiao Jie raised his right hand, everyone present could feel the surrounding fire-attribute energy surging rapidly toward his palm. A few seconds later, Xiao Jie struck out, and a giant, deep-green flame palm surged toward Queen Medusa at incredible speed!

Queen Medusa had noticed the shift in fire-attribute energy the moment Xiao Jie raised his hand. Watching the energy converge, she did not show weakness; she raised her hand to unleash the Snake-People's signature technique, the Earth-tier high-grade Dou Technique: Myriad Serpent Devour! Countless slender, purple snakes instantly manifested in the void, swarming from all directions to envelop the giant flame palm.

High in the sky, the energies of the two techniques collided with a crackling roar. However, Xiao Jie's technique seemed to hold the upper hand. A mangled, half-formed flame palm with two fingers remaining tore through the energy, maintaining its speed as it lunged at Queen Medusa. Her expression shifted, and she dodged, narrowly escaping the lock of the remnant flame palm. With a thunderous boom, the space where she had just been standing seemed to ripple from the lingering energy of the strike!

Queen Medusa's expression darkened. She had not expected this man's technique, bolstered by a Heavenly Flame, to be so potent. This palm strike had clearly reached the limit of a Dou Emperor.

The reason the Heaven-Burning Palm was so powerful was naturally the augmentation of Xiao Jie's Heavenly Flame. Having swallowed three Heavenly Flames to fuse into the Mysterious Yellow Lotus Core Flame, it ranked at least within the top fifteen on the Heavenly Flame Ranking. When combined with the Heaven-Burning Palm, it elevated the technique to the power of an Earth-tier high-grade skill, despite only consuming the Dou Qi of an Earth-tier low-grade technique. Xiao Jie was quite satisfied with this and smiled at Queen Medusa again.

"If this is the extent of Queen Medusa's strength, then it seems you will not be able to keep me here today. I must admit, I am truly disappointed. I traveled all the way to the Holy City of the Snake-People in the depths of the Tager Desert not only to behold your beauty, but more importantly, to test your strength. It seems I overestimated you; your fierce reputation does not seem to match your legendary beauty."

Xiao Jie spoke again, hoping to provoke Queen Medusa into unleashing her full power, for he knew that in her strongest combat state, her scales would shimmer with seven colors, unlike her current appearance.

Sure enough, hearing Xiao Jie's contemptuous tone, Queen Medusa could no longer maintain her graceful and noble composure. Colorful Dou Qi emerged from her body, and her eyes turned into a dreamy, kaleidoscopic hue like glazed glass. Her long black hair transformed into writhing, hissing snakes, sharp fangs appeared in her mouth, and the tail beneath her purple brocade robe shimmered with seven colors.

Her voice, still alluring, echoed out.

"Boy, every human who has seen me in this form has already been killed by me. You shall be the next!"

With that, Queen Medusa let out a roar at Xiao Jie, and an invisible sonic wave surged toward him. A deep cyan flame barrier manifested in front of Xiao Jie, and he opened his mouth to respond with his own sonic technique, the Mad Dragon Roar. This was the first time Xiao Jie had used this Earth-tier low-grade sonic technique since mastering it. Combined with the Yin Yang Profound Dragon Pill he had consumed, the technique carried a trace of true dragon might.

The two invisible sonic waves collided in mid-air, causing the very space to distort. A massive explosion of energy erupted from the center of the clash, and a deafening boom echoed throughout the entire Tager Desert.

Across the Tager Desert, eight Snake-People experts, all at least at the Dou King level, heard the explosion from the depths of the desert and pushed their speed to the limit, rushing toward the Holy City.

In the sky above the Holy City, the clash of sonic techniques between Xiao Jie and Medusa seemed to favor the Queen.

After the two energies collided, Xiao Jie let out a muffled groan and retreated several steps, while Medusa only stepped back half a pace.

After all, Xiao Jie was only a four-star Dou Emperor, while Queen Medusa had been immersed in the peak of the Dou Emperor realm for a long time. Although he had the advantage of a Heavenly Flame and high-tier techniques, it could not bridge that gap. The reason he had pushed her back with the Heaven-Burning Palm earlier was that she had not been using her full strength, and Xiao Jie had the advantage of the Mysterious Yellow Lotus Core Flame, which countered the yin-attribute nature of the snake-kind, combined with the power of an Earth-tier technique.

Now that Queen Medusa was serious, Xiao Jie was immediately forced onto the back foot. Fortunately, his soul realm was powerful; otherwise, that strike alone would have left him severely wounded. In a place like this, a severe injury meant only one path: death. Seeing Xiao Jie falter, Shi Jian and Hai Bodong called out in concern.

"Brother Xiao, are you alright? If you cannot hold on, let us leave immediately! It won't be long before the leaders of the other eight tribes arrive!"

"Indeed, Brother Xiao, we do not have much time left. We must leave this place at once."

As they spoke, they prepared to intervene, but the Dou King Hua She'er blocked Hai Bodong. Not far away, another Dou King-level expert approached rapidly—it was Yue Mei, the charm-snake who had first discovered the trio. Seeing the situation on the field, she immediately stepped forward to block Shi Jian, preventing him from interfering in the battle between Xiao Jie and Medusa.

Seeing out of the corner of his eye that one of the tribal leaders had already arrived and knowing the other seven would soon follow, Xiao Jie took a deep breath and spoke to Queen Medusa.

"It seems this sparring session must come to an end. Let us decide the victor now! Green Lotus Transformation!"

Xiao Jie's tone shifted from lazy and casual to stern. As soon as he finished speaking, his aura surged rapidly from the four-star Dou Emperor level all the way to the nine-star Dou Emperor level! This was the first transformation of the Heavenly Fire Three-Mysterious Transformation: the Green Lotus Transformation. Xiao Jie used an enhanced version of the Green Lotus Core Flame, fused from two separate flames. By merging two identical Heavenly Flames, the power was enough to rank in the top fifteen of the Heavenly Flame Ranking, and using this flame for the first transformation caused his cultivation to skyrocket by five stars!

Feeling Xiao Jie's suddenly surging cultivation, a flash of shock crossed Queen Medusa's slender eyes. She stared at him as if facing a formidable enemy, for she saw Xiao Jie raise his right hand. This time, his palm was not open; his fist was clenched tight. The surrounding fire-attribute energy surged toward his fist even faster than before, the speed of absorption clearly exceeding that of his previous palm technique.

Nearby, Shi Jian, Hai Bodong, and the two Snake-People Dou Kings all watched the sky in shock.

Sure enough, a few seconds later, Xiao Jie's voice rang out once more.

"This fist is called... Heaven-Burning!"