Beating the Scarlet King

Hearing Jiang Che's words, Scarlet King flew into a rage instantly. Its three giant maws opened simultaneously, and its six scarlet eyes ignited with flames of fury.

"You seek death!"

Crimson-gold flames erupted from its entire body. Trees within a hundred-foot radius were instantly reduced to charcoal, the earth cracked open, and scorching magma surged out from the fissures.

Scarlet King crouched low, all three heads locking onto Jiang Che. That aura of ferocity condensed into something almost tangible, rising into the sky as a pillar of crimson-gold light that stained the clouds a dark, bruised red.

What was it? One of the Ten Great Fierce Beasts, the Scarlet King of the Star Dou Great Forest! Aside from Di Tian, not even Bi Ji or the King of Ten Thousand Monsters would dare speak to it in such a tone.

Yet this human before it, a mere greenhorn relying on the quality of his martial soul and soul ring configuration, dared to humiliate it to its face—and in front of the Emperor Auspicious Beast, no less!

"I will tear you into shreds and let your blood irrigate this scorched earth!"

Scarlet King's front claws dug violently into the ground, sending magma splashing everywhere. Its three heads gathered strength simultaneously, each giant maw condensing a ball of crimson-gold energy so hot it warped the very space around it.

The terrifying pressure of three hundred thousand years of cultivation was released without reservation. The soul beasts in the forest had long since fled in all directions, and even some ten-thousand-year soul beasts in the distance were pressed to the ground, trembling, unaware of why one of the forest's overlords had gone mad.

Scarlet King moved. Its three heads reared up, and three scorching crimson-gold fire pillars erupted from its maws, converging in mid-air into a torrent of flame capable of incinerating all things, crashing down toward Jiang Che.

That was the innate fire of a three-hundred-thousand-year Fierce Beast, what the soul master world called Ultimate Fire, carrying the violent and destructive power inherited from the bloodline of the Three-Headed Scarlet Demon Mastiff.

Wherever the flames passed, the air crackled and hissed; even space seemed to distort slightly in the high heat, and the soil on the ground instantly vitrified into a sheet of smooth glass.

"Seventh Soul Skill, Ice Dragon True Body!"

Jiang Che let out a low shout. His figure surged in a silver-blue radiance, crystalline dragon scales covering his entire body, and massive ice wings unfurled from his back, spanning over five meters.

His eyes transformed completely into silver-blue dragon pupils, and his nine soul rings shone brilliantly under the state of the Ice Dragon True Body.

"Sixth Soul Skill, Winter Guardian!"

The wings of the Ice Dragon True Body folded inward, and a three-inch-thick ice-blue shield condensed around Jiang Che, its surface coiled with lifelike ice dragon patterns.

The torrent of crimson-gold flame slammed into the Winter Guardian. The collision of ice and fire kicked up clouds of steam and ice shards, the temperature within hundreds of feet oscillating wildly between extreme cold and extreme heat.

The ice layer was melting, but the flames were also being extinguished. In the distance, Ice Empress had already brought Huo Yuhao away from the vicinity of the battle, and she too had released her Ultimate Ice to form a shield protecting herself and Huo Yuhao.

Jiang Che's Winter Guardian developed cracks under Scarlet King's full-force strike, but it did not shatter. He looked up, a cold glint flashing in his dragon pupils.

"Is this your full strength?" Jiang Che's voice echoed from within the Ice Dragon True Body, tinged with disappointment. "A three-hundred-thousand-year Fierce Beast, nothing more."

Before the words faded, the ice dragon wings on his back gave a violent beat, and he transformed into a streak of silver-blue light, charging head-on into the crimson-gold flames.

"Third Soul Skill, Ice Dragon Claw!"

His dragon-transformed right arm extended past his ice wings, five sharp claws gathering Ultimate Cold capable of freezing the soul, striking directly at the throat of Scarlet King's central head.

Scarlet King's pupils constricted. It had not expected this human to dare charge directly into its flame domain. Its three heads reacted in unison: the outer heads opened their maws to bite at Jiang Che's left and right wings, while the central head jerked backward, narrowly avoiding the lethal strike of the Ice Dragon Claw.

"Too slow."

Jiang Che's figure twisted eerily in mid-air. He folded his ice wings, slipping through the gap between the two outer heads like a swimming fish, and redirected his right claw, slashing fiercely into the neck of Scarlet King's left head.

"Crack!"

The sound of spreading ice crystals was clearly audible. The cold of the Ultimate Ice poured from his claw tips into Scarlet King's meridians. The neck of the head that had been burning with crimson-gold flames was instantly covered in a layer of ice-blue frost; the flames struggled briefly beneath the crystals before being extinguished entirely.

"Awoo!" Scarlet King let out a pained roar. The central and right heads unleashed pillars of fire simultaneously, forcing Jiang Che to release his grip and retreat.

Scarlet King stumbled back a few steps. Its frozen head hung limply, the scarlet light in its eyes dimming significantly.

It frantically channeled the crimson-gold fire within its body, attempting to melt the ice on its neck, but the cold of the Ultimate Ice clung like a maggot to a bone. No matter how it burned, it only melted the edges slightly before they refroze.

"This ice of yours..." For the first time, there was a hint of terror in Scarlet King's voice. "This is not ordinary Ultimate Ice; it is the origin ice breath of the Dragon Clan!"

Jiang Che did not answer. The Ice Dragon True Body hovered in the air, his silver-blue dragon pupils looking down at Scarlet King from above.

"Second Soul Skill, Dragon Transformation!"

"Fifth Soul Skill, Dragon King Charge!"

His second and fifth soul rings flashed simultaneously. Jiang Che's arms, legs, and torso were covered in even thicker crystalline dragon scales, making him look like a dragon-man war god carved from ice.

He dove from the air, his speed so great he left a trail of afterimages. His right fist gathered the tyrannical power of the Dragon King Charge, smashing straight toward the central head of Scarlet King.

Scarlet King roared and countered. The right head spat a pillar of fire, the central head opened its maw to reveal fangs, and its front claws swiped at Jiang Che with the power to tear through metal and stone.

But Jiang Che was too fast—so fast that Scarlet King's attacks couldn't even catch his afterimages.

He changed direction three times in mid-air, each time perfectly dodging the claw strikes and flames, finally appearing in the blind spot Scarlet King hadn't reacted to: directly beneath its abdomen.

"Bang!"

The punch of the Dragon King Charge landed solidly on Scarlet King's soft underbelly. The cold of the Ultimate Ice and the tyrannical impact force erupted simultaneously. Scarlet King's massive body was sent flying into the air by the blow, tumbling twice before crashing heavily to the ground, carving out a charred trench dozens of meters long.

Scarlet King struggled to stand, but the ice layer on its abdomen had already begun to spread. Furthermore, that punch had shattered its internal organs, causing scorching blood to spill from the corners of its mouth with every breath.

Jiang Che stood before Scarlet King and asked, "Shall we continue?"

Scarlet King's three heads lifted simultaneously, its six scarlet eyes staring fixedly at Jiang Che. There was anger and unwillingness, but more than that, there was an emotion it had never experienced before.

Fear!

Yes, fear. It was afraid. This human—no, this ancient ice dragon wearing a human skin—was simply not an opponent it could defeat.

"I..." Scarlet King opened the maw of its central head, about to say something.

Just then, a terrifying pressure that changed the very color of the heavens and earth descended from the depths of the firmament.