Dark crimson flames filled the air with extreme heat. Under such terrifying blazing fire, anyone lacking sufficient strength would likely be reduced to ashes in an instant.
For a Soul Master like Ye Ruilin, who was only level eighteen, it should have been utterly impossible for him to withstand such extreme flames.
Yet the Primordial Art cultivated innate fire—the Bingyang True Fire!
Compared to the terrifying bloodline flames controlled by the Burning Heaven Flame Lion, it was not inferior in the slightest. It might even surpass them.
"How could Bingyang True Fire possibly be compared to acquired flames like yours?"
Ye Ruilin smiled confidently, utterly unafraid of the flames burning around him. He even seemed to be enjoying them somewhat.
Bingyang True Fire was incomparably tyrannical. If one wished to temper the body with it, one had to proceed with extreme caution.
But the Burning Heaven Flame Lion's flames were different. They were an excellent choice for tempering the body and removing impurities from within.
A faint burning pain came from the surface of his body, followed by countless black-gray impurities accumulating within him.
"Boss, are you alright?"
The instant he saw Ye Ruilin surrounded by flames, Ma Hongjun swiftly appeared beside him.
A trace of ferocity flashed through his eyes.
The enraged Ma Hongjun was just about to attack when he noticed that something seemed off about Ye Ruilin's expression.
He actually seemed to be enjoying himself?
Suspecting that he had seen wrongly, Ma Hongjun examined him carefully once more and confirmed his guess.
The flames enveloping his arms slowly vanished, and he quickly moved closer to Ye Ruilin.
His gaze remained warily fixed on the Blazing Lion King in the distance.
"Hong Jun, you can also try using these flames to temper your body."
Ye Ruilin turned to look at Ma Hongjun beside him, a smile on his lips.
Ma Hongjun had complete faith in his boss's words.
Without hesitation, he walked to Ye Ruilin's side and stepped into the flames.
The Blazing Lion King's fierce gaze instantly revealed human-like confusion.
It seemed unable to understand why prey would willingly walk into its killing move.
Yet the flames that had once allowed it to dominate the entire plain, its invincible weapon of slaughter, seemed to have lost their former ferocity at this moment.
The two human Soul Masters it regarded as food showed no sign of pain whatsoever.
The Blazing Lion King let out a savage roar.
Then its huge body darted nimbly toward Ma Hongjun.
As the ruler of the lion pack, it possessed even keener instincts.
Of the two humans, the one before it seemed to have a far weaker aura.
Ma Hongjun had not expected the Blazing Lion King to make him its primary target.
Battle intent flashed across his face. Instead of retreating, he advanced, charging swiftly toward the Blazing Lion King.
"Boss, just watch."
"Since it's my soul ring, I should naturally put in some effort too."
"Rongrong, try out the Martial Soul Fusion Skill between you and Boss."
With a hearty laugh, Ma Hongjun moved with incredible agility. In a flash, he arrived at the Blazing Lion King's side.
Ning Rongrong, watching from the side, nodded seriously.
The White Qilin at her side rushed straight toward the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. After a burst of dazzling light, the Mysterious Yellow Merit Pagoda appeared in Ning Rongrong's palm.
"Luck Conversion."
As the Mysterious Yellow Merit Pagoda in Ning Rongrong's hand released a dazzling mysterious yellow radiance—
That light swiftly fell upon Ma Hongjun.
Ma Hongjun immediately felt as though his mind had become clearer, while his speed and strength both increased somewhat.
Feeling his power rise, he swung his right fist and smashed it viciously into the Blazing Lion King's hind leg.
The Blazing Lion King's physical defenses were not particularly strong. Feeling the pain from its body, it immediately turned and bit down at Ma Hongjun's arm.
Its movements were swift, taking only the blink of an eye.
But Ma Hongjun was faster. Seeing the Blazing Lion King's gaping maw—
He threw a fierce punch.
Bingyang True Fire wrapped around his fist. When the two collided, the terrifying heat made the Blazing Lion King roar in pain.
Ma Hongjun followed up by raining punch after punch onto the Blazing Lion King's body.
Although his strength had increased considerably, the Blazing Lion King was, after all, a Soul Beast more than five hundred years old.
Aside from its initial carelessness, which had allowed it to suffer several heavy blows—
It quickly adjusted afterward.
Whenever Ma Hongjun tried to attack, the Blazing Lion King would deftly evade his strikes.
It even managed to bite at Ma Hongjun's arm several times.
Fortunately, Ma Hongjun's luck attribute seemed to have improved greatly, and he narrowly avoided danger every time.
This caused Ning Rongrong, watching from the side, to have her heart leap into her throat several times.
After seeing him evade danger repeatedly, Ning Rongrong could not help marveling at how greatly the Mysterious Yellow Merit Pagoda enhanced luck.
Ma Hongjun also realized the benefits that this boost in luck brought him.
Coupled with the fact that the Blazing Lion King was a formidable opponent, he immediately developed the desire to hone his skills.
"Boss, don't worry about me. Let me get some proper practice in."
Ma Hongjun had only cultivated for a little over a month, but his progress was extremely obvious.
Whether it was his combat experience or his grasp of the Nine Heavens Burning Fire Art—
He had improved rapidly through these two battles.
Previously, he knew only how to attack with brute force. Yet through evading again and again, he had learned to draw upon the power of his Martial Soul.
Watching Ma Hongjun's movements grow increasingly crisp and efficient, Ye Ruilin nodded in satisfaction.
In the Shrek Seven Devils of old, Ma Hongjun had merely been a lecherous fat man of average talent within the team.
But Ye Ruilin knew that as long as he was given the chance and room to grow—
Ma Hongjun would definitely reveal his extraordinary talent.
Tang San would never give Ma Hongjun such an opportunity, so Ma Hongjun among the Shrek Seven Devils could only serve as Tang San's foil.
Under the overwhelming fortune of Tang San and the others, he would never understand just how outstanding his own talent truly was.
The three Title Douluo standing at the rear watched the battle between the three youngsters.
"Looks like that Ye Family brat really struck gold."
"Who would have thought that merely passing through an ordinary commoner village would uncover such a genius?"
Bone Douluo spoke in a sour tone.
Upon hearing this, Old Wu wore a proud yet reserved smile, struggling to suppress the urge for the corners of his mouth to rise.
"The Young Master has always been the best."
"With the Young Master's Martial Soul abilities, finding treasures is nothing unusual."
Old Wu was never modest when it came to Ye Ruilin.
In his heart, the Young Master was the finest of them all.
Seeing the smug air radiating from the old fellow, Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo felt their hands begin to itch.
They truly wanted to give the old fellow a harsh lesson.
But considering the relationship between the two sides, they could only suppress the restless urge in their hearts.
They could not act, or it would damage the relationship between Rongrong and the Ye Family brat.
They were still counting on Rongrong to win over the Ye Family brat and make him the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's son-in-law.
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