"This is the last way I can repay your kindness, young man." Ma Hongjun's voice was no longer loud as before, but carried a strange penetrating power, resounding directly in Toji's mind, filled with vicissitudes and self-mockery.
"Third Brother, ha, I've wanted to follow my wife to the afterlife for a long time. This Divine Realm is cold, hypocritical, and full of scheming. I, Ma Hongjun, am not happy staying here at all."
His enormous fiery wings fluttered gently, stirring up a scorching wind that could incinerate everything, and his words were filled with an overwhelming sense of regret and self-reproach:
"I hate myself, I hate myself for not working hard enough, for being playful, lazy, and always looking for shortcuts. If... if I had worked harder back then, if I had been strong enough, I should have inherited the First-Level God who controls the source of all fire, the Godhood of Fire God."
"But... I couldn't do it. At the most crucial moment of inheriting the Godhood of the God of Fire God, I failed! My foundation was unstable, and my potential was exhausted... I could only settle for second best and barely managed to inherit the Godhood of the Phoenix God, Second-Level Deity!"
"Among all the Beast God, apart from the long-extinct Dragon God, all other divine beasts, no matter how noble their bloodline, can only be Second-Level Deity. I am the same; Second-Level Deity, a Second-Level Deity!"
Ma Hongjun's voice suddenly rose, filled with pain and resentment.
" Second-Level Deity is not qualified to bring relatives whose cultivation is insufficient to ascend to the Divine Realm! My wife remains forever on the Douluo Continent, and I am all alone! I have come to this so-called eternal Divine Realm!"
"But... what's the point of someone being here, living forever?"
The phoenix's flames rippled violently, mirroring the turmoil in his heart.
"Throughout the endless years, besides the hatred for my own incompetence, all that remains in my heart is the deep longing for her. My former desires and pursuits have long been worn away in eternal solitude. What remains is only that yearning and love for her, gnawing at my soul day and night."
"If, if I had known back then that I couldn't inherit the God of Fire God's Godhood, couldn't bring her into the Divine Realm, then I, Ma Hongjun, would rather not become a god. I would rather grow old with her on the Douluo Continent, return to the earth together, at least we could be together."
Two phoenix tears, composed purely of flames yet imbued with endless sorrow, slid from the burning phoenix eyes, dripping into the boiling magma below. They evaporated instantly, leaving behind two Jiujiu traces of grief.
Ma Hongjun looked up at the sky and let out a phoenix cry that was both mournful and resolute to the extreme.
The next moment, the enormous golden-red fire phoenix, which condensed the power of the entire magma hell, with the power to incinerate everything and the determination to destroy everything, swooped down on Toji below like a falling apocalyptic meteor.
The terrifyingly high temperature caused even Toji's Qi and Blood to hiss and groan.
Just before the devastating attack struck, Ma Hongjun's final divine thought, filled with urgency and warning, pierced Toji's mind once more:
"Young man, the ironclad laws of the Divine Realm absolutely forbid gods from killing each other. Tang San's treacherous scheme is to force me to die at your hands, using the death of Second-Level Deity as a pretext to trigger the Divine Realm Center. At that time, even Destruction God King might not be enough to completely protect you."
Toji pupils suddenly contracted, and he instantly understood.
I see.
What a clever scheme to use someone else to do the dirty work!
What a hypocritical and sanctimonious Tang San!
He wouldn't even lend a hand to his own brother's wife, and now he's even going so far as to use his brother's life to eliminate his rivals.
"Thank you for the reminder." Toji's voice was low and solemn, his heart filled with icy killing intent at Tang San's repulsive methods.
The God-Level Blood and Qi within his body roared like a volcano about to erupt.
In that case, I need to avoid accidentally killing him, otherwise, the Destruction God King really can't help me.
A colossal fire phoenix tore through space, incinerating everything in its path; it was already within reach.
In Ma Hongjun's phoenix eyes, burning with flames, lay a final sense of relief and a final entrustment:
"Show me your full potential!"
Ma Hongjun cry, filled with endless sorrow and determination, accompanied by the golden-red Phoenix Divine Fire that incinerated everything, descended with a deafening roar, like the final judgment.
The terrifying heat caused even the gods watching from afar to feel their souls burning, as if they were about to be set ablaze.
Faced with this desperate attack that could severely injure or even kill an ordinary First-Level God, Toji's eyes remained eerily calm.
After the fierce battle with the Hell White Tiger, he had thoroughly understood the rules governing the operation of the Divine Realm energy. The God Level Bloodline Power within his body, after its leap, was as smooth and unobstructed as an extension of his own arm.
"They all say you're the strongest Second-Level God." Toji's deep voice was clearly audible amidst the roaring explosions of flames, carrying a pure, absolute confidence in his power. "Unfortunately, your flames... are too weak."
He didn't even use the newly evolved artifact.
Just as the Destruction fiery phoenix was about to devour him...
A strange force field, condensed to its extreme and interwoven with dark gold and blood, suddenly expanded from Toji's body.
This is not an energy shield, but an absolute power domain formed by the extreme compression of his vast Qi and Blood.
The Phoenix Divine Fire, powerful enough to incinerate stars, violently crashed against this thin layer of dark gold force field.
The anticipated violent explosion did not occur. The earth-shattering golden-red flames, upon contact with the force field, seemed to encounter an invisible chasm, emitting a teeth-grinding, teeth-grinding sound, like cold water being poured into boiling oil.
Flames licked, pounded, and exploded wildly.
But it couldn't budge that force field in the slightest.
It couldn't even cause the dark golden luster to fluctuate in the slightest.
It was as if it wasn't fire at all, but merely a harmless light and shadow effect.
"What?"
Incredible horror erupted from the enormous eyes of the Flame Phoenix.
Ma Hongjun could sense that his Phoenix Divine Fire was not being neutralized or devoured, but rather... it was simply impossible to penetrate it!
The opponent's force field level was completely superior to his divine fire; that was a fundamental difference.
Just as ordinary fire cannot ignite divine iron.
"Thank you for reminding me. In that case, I'll let you suffer a dignified defeat."
Toji the cold words were like a final verdict, and he moved.
There was no dodging, no parrying, but rather... a charge against the flames.
His figure transformed into a dark golden lightning bolt that tore through the sea of fire.
Wherever he went, the raging Phoenix Divine Fire was forcibly pushed aside, as if in fear of his presence.
He instantly traversed hundreds of meters of sea of fire, appearing directly in front of the giant head of the Flame Phoenix.
Toji pulled his right fist back, and dark golden Qi and Blood swirled wildly towards the center of his fist, making it seem as if a compressed dark sun was being held aloft on his entire fist.
He delivered a simple and brutal punch to the phoenix's crown on its forehead, the crown that shone the brightest and contained the most divine fire.