Demon Fury Nine Arts

Flame-Treading Sky-Soaring Step was a mid Earth Tier movement Dou Technique that could only be cultivated with fire attribute Dou Qi. Once unleashed, it let the user stride through the clouds as though walking on level ground. At full mastery, one could move freely even through magma, and when pushed to its limit, its speed rivaled that of a high Earth Tier movement Dou Technique!

With Flame-Treading Sky-Soaring Step, Xiao Yan's speed already surpassed that of ordinary Dou Huang experts. After all, this movement Dou Technique was said to rival those of high Earth Tier, so its speed was naturally extraordinary. Even though Xiao Yan had yet to cultivate it to full mastery, it was more than enough to deal with this magical beast.

However, Flame-Treading Sky-Soaring Step consumed no small amount of Dou Qi. If the Flame Mantra had still been at Black Tier, it could probably have sustained the technique for only a few minutes. Fortunately, after advancing to Earth Tier, the Flame Mantra's Dou Qi reserves had increased more than tenfold. With the Qi Recovery Pills he had refined beforehand as well, he had no need to worry about exhausting his Dou Qi.

After evading the Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion's attack, Xiao Yan swiftly gathered power for his own strike. Violet-black flames immediately enveloped his heavy ruler. The Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion naturally sensed the move Xiao Yan was preparing and swung its enormous pincers rapidly, trying to interrupt him. Yet with the speed of Flame-Treading Sky-Soaring Step, it could not land a single hit.

As the Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion turned around again, Xiao Yan aimed at its back and slammed his ruler viciously against its exceptionally hard shell. "Flame Splitting Wave Ruler!"

Xiao Yan had not immediately unleashed the Demon Fury Fire Lotus for two reasons. First, using it consumed an enormous amount of his energy; if he encountered danger afterward, he would be in trouble. Second, the space here was too cramped. Unleashing the Demon Fury Fire Lotus in a place like this would probably blast the entire tomb complex into collapse, making it difficult for him to escape. Besides, he had yet to obtain the Heavenly Scorpion Poison Dragon Beast's magic core, so naturally, he would not simply blow this place apart.

The violet-black ruler light slammed into the Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion with a scorching gust. With a thunderous crash, countless fragments and splashes of blood burst from its body. In agony, it let out a pained roar and lashed its tail, driving the huge, razor-sharp stinger straight toward Xiao Yan's heart.

Clang! The scorpion's tail did not pierce Xiao Yan's body as the Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion had expected. Just as it was about to strike him, a suit of armor formed from violet-black flames appeared over his body. This was no ordinary Dou Qi Armor, but armor created by compressing heavenly flames to their utmost limit.

Yet the scorpion's tail possessed extraordinary strength. Even with his heavenly flame armor formed, Xiao Yan was still hurled hundreds of meters away by the impact. As he flew backward, violet-black flames suddenly ignited in his dark eyes. Then two streaks of violet-black flaming light shot from them, hurtling straight toward the Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion.

The sudden attack startled the Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion. Having just had its defenses broken by Xiao Yan's Flame Splitting Wave Ruler, it naturally dared not rely on its bodily toughness to withstand this attack as it had before. It immediately marshaled its energy and formed a barrier before itself, attempting to block the strike.

What the Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion had not expected was that its defense offered no resistance whatsoever against those two streaks of flaming light. The instant they struck the seemingly sturdy energy shield, it melted away. After effortlessly destroying the shield, the two violet-black streaks did not pause in the slightest, plunging straight into the Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion's body.

The Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion's enormous body immediately began to shake violently. In that instant, it felt as though countless steel needles had pierced its mind. The excruciating pain sent its whole body thrashing and rolling wildly through the burial chamber.

Xiao Yan did not press his advantage, because there was no longer any need. As he watched the Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion descend into madness in the burial chamber, he took out a handful of medicinal pills and stuffed them into his mouth. That succession of attacks had clearly taken a considerable toll on him, but the results were gratifying.

That final soul attack was one of the Dou Techniques Xiao Yan had created in his previous life, a terrifying move specifically targeting the soul. Like the Demon Fury Fire Lotus, it required the power of flames to unleash. But while the Demon Fury Fire Lotus attacked the physical body, this move struck the soul.

Back when Xiao Yan had been the Demon Fury Sage, this technique had made countless enemies tremble at the mere mention of it. Its name was-"Annihilation Flame Eyes."

In his previous life, Xiao Yan had been a supreme expert with one foot already in the Dou Di realm, and naturally possessed many powerful Dou Techniques. The nine most terrifying among them had been called the "Demon Fury Nine Arts" by the people of that era. Every one of these nine arts had been created by Xiao Yan himself, and each possessed power at least equal to high Heaven Tier, with some even surpassing Heaven Tier.

Of course, that did not mean Xiao Yan possessed only these nine Heaven Tier Dou Techniques. In fact, he had mastered more than a hundred Heaven Tier Dou Techniques. It was simply that those known as the Demon Fury Nine Arts were his most terrifying moves.

In Xiao Yan's era, few could withstand the might of the nine arts. Even the handful of other Peak Dou Sheng experts had regarded Xiao Yan's Demon Fury Nine Arts with immense dread.

The Demon Fury Fire Lotus he had used earlier was the art Xiao Yan employed most frequently among the nine, as well as the signature technique that had made his name. Annihilation Flame Eyes was another profound Dou Technique among the nine arts, a move Xiao Yan had developed by combining soul force with the power of heavenly flames. Once unleashed, it could make an enemy's soul burn of its own accord.

Thus, many opponents struck by this move appeared completely uninjured on the surface, while their souls had already been burned into nothingness. It could be called an exceedingly vicious technique.

In his previous life, Xiao Yan had worked with Hun Dai'er on a few rare occasions. One of those had been to confront the Hun Clan's leader at the time. Even that clan leader, who possessed an emperor realm soul, had been wounded by Annihilation Flame Eyes, creating an opportunity for them to claim victory.

However, the other moves of the Demon Fury Nine Arts were beyond the current Xiao Yan's ability to use. With his present strength, even unleashing a Quasi-Heaven Tier Dou Technique would drain his Dou Qi in an instant, let alone those other techniques, which were thousands of times more terrifying.

He could use the Demon Fury Fire Lotus and Annihilation Flame Eyes only because he had created those two moves when he had still been relatively weak in his previous life, and their power depended on the flames fused into them. Otherwise, if they were truly like the techniques he had used at his former peak, Xiao Yan would never have dared to employ them against his enemies.