Prologue

Dou Qi Continent.

The Soul Hall had slaughtered living beings on a vast scale, forcibly seizing their energy and reducing the entire Central Plains to ruins.

Countless gazes converged on the Heavenly Flame Plaza, where two figures stood drenched in blood.

"I will turn my body into heavenly flames and seal you away for a thousand lifetimes. Hun Tiandi, the calamity of the Dou Qi Continent ends here." Xiao Yan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and dazzling flames suddenly burst from his body.

"You're setting your own Dou Di body ablaze? Xiao Yan, you're courting death!"

Seeing what Xiao Yan was doing, Hun Tiandi turned pale with horror. He stared viciously at the dazzling flames engulfing Xiao Yan and let out a hoarse, savage laugh.

Xiao Yan merely smiled calmly at his laughter, the flames around his body growing ever more intense.

"Back then, when I lost all my Dou Qi and suffered the humiliation of a broken engagement, did I ever bow my head?"

"When I forced my way into the Magical Beast Mountain Range and faced nine deaths for a single chance at life, did I ever give up?"

"When heavenly flames burned my body and shattered every inch of my bones and sinews, did I ever retreat?"

"Let the calamity of the Central Plains end here!"

Across heaven and earth, countless people who learned that Xiao Yan was setting his Dou Di body ablaze fell to their knees, bowing low to bid farewell to the Flame Emperor.

Moments later, Xiao Yan's body transformed completely into a mass of dazzling flames. Before this blaze, all the other heavenly flames on the Heavenly Flame Plaza grew exceedingly dim.

They gave off low hums, as though they were subjects standing before their emperor.

With a sharp whoosh, the heavenly flames formed from Xiao Yan's body shot into the final stone pillar. In an instant, the Twenty-Three Fire Pillars stood together, forming a profound, mysterious formation upon the Heavenly Flame Plaza.

"No... a thousand years of my Hun Clan's planning, all ruined by your hands! Xiao Yan, I refuse to accept this! I refuse! I'll kill you!"

At the sight of that mysterious flame formation, Hun Tiandi's face turned deathly pale. But just as he tried to retreat, the enormous Heavenly Flame Plaza sucked him straight inside.

"No... I don't want to die..." Hun Tiandi let out a shrill, agonized scream.

Yao Lao, Cai Lin, Xun'er, Xiao Yi Xian, Zi Yan, and the others stared blankly at the Heavenly Flame Plaza. Moments later, they rushed like mad toward the plaza suspended in midair.

Douluo Continent, Fasinuo Province.

Within a secluded mountain ravine.

A primeval forest stretched out in a sea of lush green. The slopes on either side were gentle, and a breeze followed the river down the ravine, amid sheer cliffs soaring ten thousand fathoms high.

Beneath an ancient tree stood a man and a woman. The man exuded an overwhelming, domineering presence. His short hair stood upright like steel needles, his piercing eyes held the majesty of an ancient demon god, and bulging muscles covered his body.

The woman appeared to be in her thirties. A blue-and-gold gown covered her body, its noble elegance complementing her otherworldly beauty. Her deep-blue eyes were as flawless as blue crystals, and golden ribbons curled upward around the hem of her skirt.

Her belly, however, was heavily swollen, and a cold sweat beaded on her forehead. She looked as though she was about to give birth.

These two were Tang Hao and Ah Yin, who were being hunted by Spirit Hall.

"Ah Yin, hold on a little longer. The baby should be born soon." Tang Hao stayed at Ah Yin's side, gripping both her hands as he spoke with a deeply anxious expression.

At that very moment, a rift suddenly tore open in the sky, releasing several dazzling flashes of fire. In the blink of an eye, twenty-three brilliant flames fell through the opening.

"What is that?" Gazing at the twenty-three dazzling streaks of fire in the sky, Tang Hao furrowed his brow slightly and exclaimed in surprise.

While Tang Hao stood momentarily stunned, the most brilliant of those twenty-three flames transformed into a streak of red light and shot into Ah Yin's belly at tremendous speed.

It moved so quickly that neither Ah Yin nor Tang Hao noticed what had just happened.

The next second, the cries of two babies rang out through the forest.

"Waa~ waa~"

The remaining twenty-two streaks of fire fell into forests, seas, academies, cities, lakes, mountains, deserts... twenty-two different locations.

Star Dou Great Forest, Lake of Life.

It was hard to imagine that deep within a forest inhabited by countless ferocious Soul Beasts, there could be such a scene of birdsong and fragrant flowers.

Within a self-contained space in the Lake of Life, a large, snow-white fleshy cocoon was bound by golden light. Dozens of enormous Soul Beasts lay asleep around it.

A mass of golden flames descended from the sky and sank to the lakebed. The Black Dragon at their head suddenly opened his eyes, revealing a pair of icy, aloof golden pupils.

"Lord? What exactly is happening?" The Black Dragon prostrated himself, golden light blazing in his eyes as he spoke in an ancient draconic tongue.

"The world is about to change. Wait for the right moment!"

Deeper within this white space stood a silvery-white figure.

Spirit City, Elder Hall.

The enormous statue of the Six-Winged Angel emitted a brilliant golden light. It trembled slightly, a ceaseless pounding echoing from it.

An old man stood beneath the statue of the Six-Winged Angel. He was tall but not powerfully built, dressed in golden consecration robes, with long golden hair falling neatly down the back of his head.

Simply standing there, he inspired an urge to fall to one's knees in worship.

"A portent from the heavens? Is a new god about to appear on the continent? Has that fellow Tang Chen succeeded?" Watching the flames descend from the sky, Qian Daoliu's expression grew grave. He had no idea what had happened to make this statue, which held the angel inheritance, tremble.

Sea God Island.

Several masses of differently colored flames fell from the sky into the sea, causing the Sea God Trident within the Sea God Hall to tremble slightly.

At the sight before her, delighted surprise appeared on Bo Saixi's breathtakingly beautiful face. She believed that only the power of a god could cause such a reaction from the Sea God Trident.

"Tang Chen, you once swore to me that you would not return until you became a god. Now, I think it is finally time for you to come back." Bo Saixi gazed affectionately toward the continent across the ocean and murmured to herself.

In Bo Saixi's heart, among all the Peerless Douluo beneath the heavens, no one other than Tang Chen was likely to become a god successfully.

Now that a portent had descended from the heavens, she believed Tang Chen had successfully inherited a divine position.

Slaughter City.

A mass of blood-red flames descended from the sky and fell into the city, plunging the entire Hell Slaughter Arena into unprecedented chaos.

Possessed by the blood-red Nine-Headed Bat King, the King of Slaughter stared at the enormous blood-colored demonic sword trembling slightly upon the altar, his face suddenly filling with terror.

The slaughter aura he took such pride in vanished completely at that moment, as though it had encountered its natural predator. Apart from submitting to it, there seemed to be no other choice.

"What was that just now? My head hurts... it hurts!" The King of Slaughter clutched his crimson head with both hands and howled in agony. He seemed to have remembered something.

The view slowly returned to the valley.

"Hold on, Ah Yin. I'll get you and the children out of here."

"Hao, thank you."

Tang Hao was holding Ah Yin's hand as they raced out of the valley. Just then, a golden feather fell from the sky, landing directly before their eyes.

"They came after all." Tang Hao's gaze darkened, and he spoke angrily.

A mass of golden light descended from the sky, bathing the entire valley in brilliant gold. A middle-aged man beat the snow-white wings on his back and hovered above the valley.

"A peerless battle-soul hammer, the towering Clear Sky Sect."

"An heir to the greatest sect under heaven, yet you insist on defying heaven itself. Do you know that doing so will bring disaster upon your sect?" Qian Xunji pointed the Sun Saint Sword in his hand forward, his gaze sinister as he threatened Tang Hao below.

Their cold gazes met.

At those words, Tang Hao tightened his grip on Ah Yin's hand and sneered. "Defying heaven? Am I, Tang Hao, defying heaven's will? Or are you, Qian Xunji, claiming to be heaven itself?"

"How dare you!" Qian Xunji roared in fury. Nine Soul Rings-two yellow, two purple, and five black-spiraled upward from beneath his feet.

At the same time, Tang Hao's eight Soul Rings-yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black, black-slowly rose from beneath his feet, one after another.

"A mere eight Soul Rings. Why court your own destruction?"

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