The Heavenly Ancient Mountain Range, the Gu Clan's sacred land, was shrouded in mist. At the summit of its main peak, the Ancient Spirit Heart Lotus Pond glimmered with a faint blue-green light. When Xiao Feng and the others arrived, Gu Yuan was already waiting with the Gu Clan Elders. His gaze fell on the unconscious Gu Xun'er, and his brow furrowed. "Xun'er is injured this badly... Hun Dan really is ruthless."
"Senior Gu Yuan, I beg you to lend us the Ancient Spirit Heart Lotus." Xiao Feng knelt on one knee. "My younger brother and I need to refine the Emperor Flame to stand against the Soul Clan."
Gu Yuan studied the young man before him, then let out a long sigh. "Long ago, I fought Hun Tiandi alongside Xiao Xuan. He once used the Emperor Flame to keep me alive. Consider this repayment of that debt." He waved a hand, and a blue-green lotus, several yards tall, rose from the center of the pond. Ancient runes flowed across its petals. "The heart lotus can cleanse your souls and help you suppress the Emperor Flame's backlash. Whether you succeed, however, will depend on your own fortune."
Xiao Yan entrusted Gu Xun'er to the Gu Clan maids, then stepped into the heart lotus with Xiao Feng. The moment the flower closed around them, a cool sensation poured down from their heads, suppressing seven-tenths of the Emperor Flame's scorching heat. Xiao Feng circulated the Burning Heaven Technique. The markings of his Emperor Scale resonated with the heart lotus's blue-green light, forming a crystal-like film over his skin.
"This is... the Ancient Spirit Heart Lotus's Soul-Tempering Membrane." Gu Yuan's voice sounded in their minds. "It can protect your souls. Remember, you must face your inner fears during the refinement. Otherwise, you'll be trapped in the illusion forever."
Xiao Feng nodded and exchanged a glance with Xiao Yan. They circulated their Heavenly Flames at the same time. The Fallen Heart Flame and Flame Emperor Fire collided inside the heart lotus, sending ripples of energy through the pond and dyeing its waters violet and crimson. Gu Yuan was startled. He had known that the Xiao Clan twins were exceptionally gifted, but he hadn't expected them to control two Heavenly Flames at once.
In the illusion, Xiao Feng found himself back in the laboratory on Earth, his white coat stained with bright red chemicals. He reached for a test tube, only to see Xiao Zhan's soul tablet floating inside instead of liquid. "Third Brother, save me..." A familiar voice came from behind him. He turned and saw Xiao Yan pinned to a cross by a Soul Clan secret art, Soul-Devouring Insects swarming around him.
"Xiao Yanzi!" Xiao Feng cried out. The Emperor Flame surged forth on instinct, but his Dou Qi felt mired in a swamp, sluggish and unresponsive. Only then did he realize that the illusion was magnifying his fears—his fear of losing his family, his fear of being unable to protect the Xiao Clan.
"Third Brother, wake up!" Xiao Yan's voice pierced the illusion. "This is the heart lotus's trial!"
Xiao Feng's eyes snapped open. He found his hand resting on Xiao Yan's shoulder, their Dou Qi already blending without their knowledge. He drew a deep breath and used Soul Movement Three Thousand. His soul power cleaved through the illusion like a sharp sword, revealing the Ancient Spirit Heart Core at the center of the heart lotus.
"Strike together!" Xiao Yan shouted. The Heavy Xuan Ruler, wreathed in Flame Emperor Fire, slammed into the heart core, and Xiao Feng's Fallen Heart Flame followed close behind. The core shattered with a crash. Amid the burst of blue-green light, a scene appeared: Xiao Xuan and Gu Yuan fighting in their youth.
"Xuan, look out!" In the scene, Gu Yuan swung his sword to block Hun Tiandi's attack. "The Emperor Flame isn't fully grown yet. Don't face him head-on!"
"Yuan, today is the Soul Clan's last day!" Chaotic-colored flames blazed around Xiao Xuan. "Even if I fall, I'll open a path for the generations to come!"
As the scene faded, Xiao Feng and Xiao Yan both felt their minds shudder. A profound Dou Technique flooded into their thoughts—the Dual Emperor Sky-Breaking technique, created together by Xiao Xuan and Gu Yuan!
Ding! Host has passed the Gu Clan trial and received the inheritance of the "Gu-Xiao Combined Attack Technique." Cultivation has advanced to the mid-stage of Dou Zong!
Xiao Yan has gained the "Heart Lotus Soul Cleansing" effect. Flame Emperor Bloodline compatibility has increased to 60%!
The heart lotus bloomed once more, and Xiao Feng and Xiao Yan stepped out into the air, their Dou Qi surging around them like a tide. Gu Yuan stared in astonishment. The young man's aura was already no weaker than that of the Dou Zong elders under his command. "Impressive, Xiao Clan youngsters! If Xiao Xuan had received this opportunity, what could have stopped him from becoming a Dou Di?"
Before he had finished speaking, a thunderous rumble came from the Gu Clan's border. A Gu Clan scout came stumbling over. "Clan Leader! The Soul Clan Army is at our gates! Leading them... are Dou Zong puppets!"
Xiao Feng looked toward the horizon. Amid a sea of Soul Clan banners, several Dou Zong puppets approached through the air, their bodies wrapped in the black mist of the Soul Burial Abyss. Bone tablets bearing the names of Xiao Clan members hung conspicuously from their chests. They were Soul Corpses, created by Hun Dan using the power of the Soul Burial Abyss!
"How is Miss Xun'er?" Xiao Yan asked urgently.
"She took a Soul-Returning Pill and is out of danger for now," a Gu Clan maid replied. "But the system energy inside her is still corroding her..."
"Repel the enemy first!" Xiao Feng clenched his fist, golden light glinting across the markings of his Emperor Scale. "Xiao Yanzi, let's try our new combined attack!"
The two flew into the sky on their swords, their Dou Qi forming a yin-yang symbol around them. Seeing this, Gu Yuan joined the fight with his sword. "In this battle, the Gu Clan and Xiao Clan stand together!"
Though the Soul Clan puppets had no minds of their own, they wielded the destructive power of Dou Zong experts. Every strike raised a hundred-yard wave of black mist. Xiao Feng and Xiao Yan exchanged a glance, then unleashed Dual Emperor Sky-Breaking together. A pillar of violet-and-crimson light shot into the heavens and blasted the foremost puppet to dust!
"Attack!" the Gu Clan Elders cried as they charged in. Ancient Spirit Cold Flame and the Xiao Clan's Heavenly Flames intertwined, cutting the Soul Clan Army into several sections. Hun Dan stood atop a Bone Dragon in the distance. Watching his puppets fall back, he flashed a venomous look. "Xiao Clan, Gu Clan, you think you've won? The true power of the Soul Burial Abyss..."
Before he could finish, the ground suddenly split open. Countless skeletal hands reached out from the pitch-black mist, tearing apart the Gu Clan's protective formation. Xiao Feng's pupils shrank. The energy contained in that mist exerted even greater pressure than the Emperor Flame!
"It's the Soul Burial Abyss's Nine Nether Bone Mist!" Gu Yuan cried. "It can corrode Dou Qi. Retreat at once—"
Before he could finish, the bone mist was upon them. Xiao Feng instinctively raised an Emperor Flame shield, but it quickly dissolved in the fog. Gritting his teeth, Xiao Yan forcibly burned his bloodline. The Flame Emperor Fire surged three yards high, briefly driving back the bone mist.
"Third Brother, get the clan members out of here!" he roared. "I'll hold them off!"
"Don't be ridiculous!" Xiao Feng flung a burst of Heavenly Flame behind him. "Our mother died protecting you. If I let you risk your life again today, how could I face our ancestors?"
At that critical moment, Gu Xun'er appeared at the mountain gate. She held the repaired Progenitor Ancient Jade, whose soft green light kept the bone mist at bay. "Xiao Yan, Xiao Feng, use the combined attack on the source of the mist!"
Xiao Feng understood at once. He and Xiao Yan unleashed Dual Emperor Sky-Breaking again. The pillar of light pierced the bone mist and struck Hun Dan in the distance. The Bone Dragon let out a mournful cry. Blood trickled from Hun Dan's mouth, but he still grinned and tossed out a black jade slip. "Even if I die, I'll drag you down with me! Soul Burial Abyss, open!"
The jade slip erupted with blinding light. The ground split open even wider, and a gigantic skeletal hand reached out from the abyss, its palm holding a fragment of a black Ancient Emperor Jade—the Nether Chapter in the Soul Clan's possession!
The system alert rang out:
Ding! Ancient Emperor Jade: Nether Chapter detected. "Bloodline Resonance" triggered!
Warning! The Soul Burial Abyss seal has been completely broken. Host is advised to retreat immediately!
Seeing this, Gu Yuan made his decision at once. "Xun'er, activate the Gu Clan teleportation array! Young Master Xiao, take Xiao Yan and go first. I'll hold them off!"
Xiao Feng gritted his teeth, carried Xiao Yan on his back, and leaped into the teleportation array. Before the light faded, he saw Gu Yuan swing his sword at the skeletal hand, only for the bone mist to coil around his ankle as his figure was slowly swallowed by darkness...
As the teleportation array's light went out, Xiao Yan suddenly grabbed Xiao Feng's wrist. "Third Brother, Senior Gu Yuan..."
Xiao Feng stared at the starry sky beyond the teleportation array. The markings of his Emperor Scale throbbed violently with rage. "Hun Dan, Soul Burial Abyss... Whatever scheme you're plotting, the Xiao Clan will tear you to pieces!"
The system alert rang out:
Ding! Host has obtained information about the Ancient Emperor Jade: Nether Chapter fragment. The "Explore the Soul Burial Abyss" quest has been unlocked.
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