The Flame Realm.
Deep within the earth's core.
"So the Gu Clan's divine-grade bloodline came out slightly ahead?"
A middle-aged man in crimson robes sat cross-legged, his eyebrows a vivid scarlet.
His long crimson hair fell over his shoulders, his features sharp and stern. A Dou Sheng halo hovered behind him.
He was Yan Jin, patriarch of the Yan Clan, with the cultivation of a peak eight-star Dou Sheng.
The Fire Fairy nodded slightly and said gravely, "Hun Yan and Gu Dao are still as hostile as ever. Both sides remain wary of each other."
"But the Soul Clan has always secluded itself from the world. Could their sudden decision to send someone to the Emperor Clan Tournament today be some sort of signal?"
Yan Jin brushed back the hair beside his ear, concern showing on his face. "That fellow has probably almost recovered from his injuries."
He frowned, then said more calmly, "It might be a good thing for the Soul Clan to emerge and keep the Gu Clan in check."
In his view, there were only two late-stage nine-star Dou Sheng experts on the entire Dou Qi Continent. For the other Emperor Clans to survive, they had to use the Soul Clan to restrain the Gu Clan, and the Gu Clan to restrain the Soul Clan.
The Fire Fairy flicked a finger, and a white jade box appeared before Yan Jin.
"This is the Ninth-Tier Profound Pill Old Man Shennong just finished refining!"
She paused. "Are you confident this time?"
Yan Jin reached out, opened the jade box, and seized the pill, which was the size of a longan.
The Ninth-Tier Profound Pill seemed to possess intelligence. It struggled to escape, but before Yan Jin, all its efforts were futile.
"The barrier to nine-star Dou Sheng isn't so easy to break through."
Golden Cicada Flame patterns appeared on Yan Jin's chest, and his eyes turned crimson, like two fiery gemstones.
After the Emperor Clan Tournament ended, Shen Luo moved to the Fire Spirit Peak where the Fire Fairy lived.
Now he sat cross-legged, his chest rising and falling gently, as though an ancient beast were breathing.
His eyes were closed, and a pitch-black rune slowly emerged between his brows.
The black Devouring Ancestral Talisman resembled a bottomless abyss, pulling all the surrounding light into itself.
With a muffled grunt from Shen Luo, the Devouring Ancestral Talisman became like a vast, ravenous maw, devouring everything.
The natural energy outside surged toward him from every direction, as though summoned.
Whether fire-attributed energy or energy of another attribute, the Devouring Ancestral Talisman refused nothing.
The natural energy, thick as liquid, was devoured and refined by the Devouring Ancestral Talisman, then transformed into pure Dou Qi that flowed throughout Shen Luo's limbs and bones.
The Heavenly Tyrant Body immediately gave a low hum and began greedily absorbing that endless energy.
After an unknown amount of time, the Devouring Ancestral Talisman's terrifying devouring power gradually faded.
Shen Luo opened his eyes and stretched, his bones cracking all over. His cultivation had reached mid-stage one-star Dou Zong.
"As expected of a space created by a Dou Di. The natural energy here is several times denser than in the Shennong Mountain Range," Shen Luo murmured.
The Heavenly Tyrant Body's demand for natural energy was far too great for his high-grade Earth-tier cultivation technique alone to satisfy.
Yet cultivating with the Devouring Ancestral Talisman caused too much of a disturbance, so he had come straight to the Fire Fairy's Fire Spirit Peak to cultivate.
It also made it easier for him to play with fire.
By his rough estimate, the Heavenly Tyrant Body required around ten times as much energy as others did. Only by relying entirely on the Devouring Ancestral Talisman's outrageous devouring power and a supply of pills could he barely sustain the Tyrant Body's needs.
Seemingly sensing something, Shen Luo slowly rose.
At some point, the Fire Fairy had appeared before him. "You were perfectly comfortable in the Flame Realm. Why do you suddenly want to leave?"
The Fire Fairy's expression was icy, her mountainous curves trembling like surging waves.
After finishing the pill, Old Man Shennong had gone into seclusion, intending to break through to late six-star Dou Saint in one push. Shen Luo, however, wanted to travel the continent.
Old Man Shennong had tossed him several Spatial Jade Slips and told him to be careful in everything he did.
He had already taught his disciple everything from his lifetime of learning that needed to be taught. Not only was this disciple exceptionally gifted, but he also possessed wit and composure far beyond his peers.
He felt completely at ease.
Independent cultivators ultimately trained their disciples differently from the great factions. A master led you through the door, but cultivation depended on the individual. In his view, without undergoing trials and finding opportunities, Shen Luo would struggle to reach his own heights. The realms below Dou Sheng would naturally pose no problem, but if Shen Luo wanted to advance beyond that, or go even farther, he would have to rely on himself.
"What, you don't want me to leave?" Shen Luo smiled at the poised, dignified, and gracious woman before him.
Lately, whenever he was not cultivating, he had been with the Fire Fairy. Now that they were about to part, he naturally felt reluctant.
"Such a glib tongue." The Fire Fairy's face flushed as she extended a slender, jade-like hand toward Shen Luo's forehead.
Shen Luo hurriedly dodged, circled behind her, and wrapped an arm around the beautiful woman's slender waist. He pressed his face against her smooth, fair back, greedily breathing in her alluring fragrance.
The Fire Fairy seemed long accustomed to such behavior from Shen Luo. Two rosy blushes appeared on her exquisite cheeks, but her status was far from ordinary, after all. Her expression turned cold, and she snapped, "Shen Luo, you're becoming more and more presumptuous!"
Shen Luo did not answer. His large hand began wandering upward until it finally climbed onto those towering peaks. "Aunt Ling, how did you forget again? When no one else is around, you're supposed to call me Luo'er."
The beautiful woman's expression changed, her cheek twitching. "How many times has Aunt Ling told you? You're still young. Don't entertain thoughts of things that can never happen."
A trace of anger rose in Shen Luo's heart, and his large hand began wantonly kneading those peaks. "Aunt Ling, you're being naughty. You'll be punished for that."
The Fire Fairy seemed to remember something. Her delicate body trembled slightly, her chest heaving, before she reluctantly said, "Luo... Luo'er, Aunt Ling... was wrong."
"That's more like it. Aunt Ling, you're a mighty late-stage seven-star Dou Saint. You have to keep your word."
The Central Plains.
Somewhere in the void.
A thousand-foot rift suddenly appeared overhead.
Dressed in red robes and wearing shoes with ten-centimeter heels, the Fire Fairy stepped out slowly.
"Luo... Luo'er, this is as far as Aunt Ling will take you. Your talent may be decent, but your strength is still too weak. Whatever happens, you must never act recklessly."
Standing behind the beautiful woman, Shen Luo began surveying their surroundings. "I know. With the things you and my master gave me, what is there to worry about?"
Shen Luo straightened his clothes. While they were traveling through space, he had clung tightly to the Fire Fairy's waist, taking full advantage of the opportunity.
His master, Old Man Shennong, was the strongest independent cultivator on the Dou Qi Continent, and he also had the Fire Fairy backing him. Only a handful of people on the entire continent could afford to disregard him.
Moreover, as a transmigrator, he possessed wisdom and experience far beyond his peers. Even those old monsters would not find it easy to scheme against him.
He gave the Fire Fairy's full, plump bottom a light squeeze, then flew into the distance without hesitation.
Without strength, everything was an illusion, a bubble waiting to burst!
The sweet embrace of a woman was a hero's grave!
What was his would never escape!
The Fire Fairy remained where she stood, watching the young man's silhouette gradually disappear, an unreadable expression on her face.
"Luo'er, if one day you exhaust your potential and cannot reach that height, don't worry. Come to the Flame Realm. Aunt Ling will find a way to break through your defenses."
Before you continue