61: Chapter 59 Iterative Soul Skills!

Atop the sharp claw blades, a layer of dark green venom instantly covered them, gleaming with a heart-palpitating cold light.

With a movement of his figure, the Gray-clothed man transformed into a gray afterimage, reaching the ultimate speed, and instantly pounced in front of Lin Yan, his venom-coated sharp claws carrying a bloody wind, fiercely grasping toward Lin Yan's heart!

This strike was fast, accurate, and ruthless, obviously revealing an intent to kill!

Facing the fierce strike of the Spirit Saint, Lin Yan's expression did not change, and he didn't even move his footsteps by half a fraction.

Just at the instant when the sharp claws were about to touch his chest, the second spirit ring on Lin Yan suddenly lit up!

Nine-colored flowing light bloomed, and the dazzling Flame Spirit Armor instantly enveloped his entire body!

However, compared to before, this set of Flame Spirit Armor now had undergone tremendous changes.

The emerald Phoenix Flame Spirit transformed from the Life Spirit Fire, condensed into the Flame Spirit Weapon — the Life Belt, which became the new core of the entire armor!

As for the former Blood-Burning Battle Halberd, it had now been replaced by the ice-fire war halberd burning with the Extreme Cold Mysterious Ice Fire!

As for the beast fires composing the other parts of the Flame Spirit Armor, in order to rebuild the energy cycle with these two different types of spiritual fire as the core, some replacements and adjustments naturally occurred.

After merging the two different fires, the current Flame Spirit Armor's amplification of his four-dimensional attributes of defense, speed, Spirit, and elements reached 350%!

As for the amplification of recovery and attack, it reached a terrifying 600%!

"Clang——!"

The venom-coated sharp claws fiercely grasped onto the Flame Spirit Armor, producing a piercing sound of metal clashing.

Sparks flew in all directions, yet it only left behind a shallow scratch!

The dark green venom on the sharp claws, the moment it contacted the Flame Spirit Armor, was completely burned away by the Ultimate Fire, not even leaving a trace behind.

"What?!"

The expression of the Gray-clothed man drastically changed, his eyes filled with disbelief.

Although this strike of his did not use full force, it was still enough to severely injure ordinary Spirit Kings.

Yet landing on this youth, it actually couldn't even break through the opponent's defense?

How could this be possible!

Without waiting for the Gray-clothed man to react, the war halberd in Lin Yan's hand, entwined with the power of ultimate ice and fire, had already swept out horizontally!

"Chi——!"

The war halberd cleaved through the air, producing a piercing sharp whistle. On the halberd blade, the two completely opposite forces of extreme cold and extreme heat collided and exploded; wherever it passed, the air emitted crackling explosions!

The pupils of the Gray-clothed man shrank abruptly, and alarm bells rang loudly in his heart!

"Second Spirit Ability, Lizard Shadow Escape!"

"Third Spirit Ability, Poisonous Mist Permeation!"

At the critical juncture, the Gray-clothed man dared not hold back anything at all, as one yellow and two purple spirit rings lit up one after another.

His figure abruptly became illusory and blurred, drifting to the side like Gui Mei, while simultaneously opening his mouth to spew, a thick grayish-green poisonous mist surged out, instantly spreading and completely enveloping a radius of over a dozen meters.

Within the poisonous mist, it contained strong corrosiveness and paralyzing effects, and the surrounding vegetation that came into contact with it withered and rotted instantly!

Lin Yan's expression was indifferent, without a trace of change, and that all-inclusive poisonous mist, upon approaching three chi outside of him, was directly burned completely away by the extreme high temperature!

"Third Spirit Ability — Withered Glory Tribulation Flame Domain!"

Boom——!

The moment the words fell, centered around Lin Yan, a terrifying, suffocating coercion instantly spread outward.

The sky suddenly darkened, and the churning dark red tribulation clouds rapidly gathered above the dense forest!

Within the Domain, the Gray-clothed man only felt his whole body sink, his overall attributes instantly suppressed by 30%, the operation of the Soul Power within his body became extremely sluggish, and even his vitality and Soul Power were flowing away continuously!

"This... is this a Domain?!"

Although the Gray-clothed man had long known from his employer about the general situation of Lin Yan's first three Spirit abilities, at this moment, personally feeling the terrifying might within it, he still exclaimed in shock, his face immediately covered with solemnity.

"Kid, don't think that having some crappy Domain means you can be arrogant!"

"Today, this lord will let you know that a Spirit Saint is not an existence you can contend against!"

The Gray-clothed man roared angrily, a trace of madness flashing in his eyes.

"Seventh Spirit Ability — Spirit Avatar!!!"

Boom——!

The moment the words fell, the seventh spirit ring on the Gray-clothed man suddenly lit up, erupting with a gloomy and terrifying light!

His physique surged and expanded at a speed visible to the naked eye, and his originally withered and thin body now became even more ferocious and bizarre.

Gray scales overlapped layer upon layer, covering his entire body, every single scale gleaming with a dark green poisonous light, emitting a nauseating, foul stench.

His hands completely transformed into sharp claw blades, with nails half a foot long, flashing with cold light as if they could tear everything apart.

Behind him, a thick venomous tail whipped about, with a sharp poisonous sting at the tail tip, gleaming with a dark green cold light, at a glance containing deadly poison!

And his head completely turned into the appearance of a lizard, his triangular eyes becoming even more vicious and cruel, with a bifurcated tongue protruding from his mouth, making a hissing sound.

The whole person — or rather, the entire venomous lizard — had its height abruptly surge to over five meters, standing there like a small mountain, emanating a tyrannical Aura!

This was the Spirit Avatar of the Gray-Scaled Venomous Lizard!

After releasing the Spirit Avatar, the Aura of the Gray-clothed man surged several times, his overall attributes greatly enhanced, and even the suppression of the Domain was forcibly offset by a portion.

"Kid, go and die for me!!!"

The Gray-clothed man let out a hoarse, angry roar, his voice sounding like two pieces of ragged cloth rubbing together, extremely harsh to the ears.

His huge physique fiercely kicked off the ground, causing the entire ground to tremble because of it.

"Bang!"

Dust flew everywhere, and the figure of the Gray-clothed man bounced out like a cannonball, carrying a bloody wind as he fiercely pounced toward Lin Yan.

His speed was a full fold and more faster than before!

The five-meter-tall huge physique, yet its speed was astonishingly fast, forming a strong visual impact!

"Spirit Avatar?"

Lin Yan raised his eyebrows, with not a trace of retreat in his eyes, only a Battle Intent so thick it couldn't be melted away!

"Well timed!"

Lin Yan let out a low shout, advancing instead of retreating!

Gripping tightly the ice-fire war halberd in his hand, upon the halberd blade, the Extreme Cold Mysterious Ice Fire leaped more and more violently!

And just at the instant when the huge body of the Gray-clothed man was about to pounce right in front of him—

"Emperor Descends Upon the World!!!"

Boom——!

An abyssal, vast, and domineering emperor's coercion erupted from Lin Yan's body, resembling a Dominator of all fires descending from the Nine Heavens, looking down upon all living beings!

Under this terrifying emperor's coercion, the surrounding air seemed to have frozen!

At the same time, enduring this sudden coercion like a blow to the head, the pouncing momentum of the Gray-clothed man suddenly stagnated!

"Twelve Forms Halberd Technique — Dragon Form!"

The Twelve Forms Fist created by Lin Yan was already an integration of "Nurturing — Refining — Striking", and now he executed it with the war halberd, the ice-fire war halberd in his hand abruptly turning into a dragon!

The halberd body meandered like a flood dragon leaving the sea, and the halberd tip flicked out, precisely pointing toward the head of the Gray-clothed man!

At the critical moment of a hair's breadth, the Gray-clothed man suddenly woke up, raising his huge venomous claws upward to block.

"Clang——!"

The sound of metal clashing was deafening!

The terrifying force shockwave spread in all directions, the surrounding giant trees were uprooted, the ground cracked, and dust flew!

The surging Extreme Cold Mysterious Ice Fire on the war halberd instantly spread along the venomous claws, and the power of Emperor Descends Upon the World blessed within it simultaneously and barbarically invaded his Spirit Sea!

Different fires burned, consciousness oscillated, and the Gray-clothed man instantly let out a painful wail!

Yet before the retreating body of the Gray-clothed man could steady itself, Lin Yan's figure had already chased up like Gui Mei.

"Tiger Form!"

The war halberd swept horizontally, like a fierce tiger descending the mountain, domineering and rigid, carrying an unmatched momentum!

The halberd blade cleaved through the air, producing a roaring sound like a tiger!

"Dammit!"

The Gray-clothed man's expression changed drastically, hastily erecting his venomous claws again—which had been ravaged and pitted by the Extreme Cold Mysterious Ice Fire—to block.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

A series of booming sounds rang out, and blue flame lights splashed and flew everywhere!

And all objects around that were splashed by the fine ice flames were first abruptly frozen, and then in an instant burned into powder from the inside!

The war halberd descended like a violent storm, every halberd containing different changes, impossible to guard against!

"Leopard Form!"

"Snake Form!"

...

"Bird Form!"

The dominance of the Dragon Form, the rigidity of the Tiger Form, the agility of the Leopard Form, the softness of the Snake Form, the clever nimbleness of the Bird Form...

Every form had a unique charm, and every halberd concealed murderous intent!

This halberd technique, evolved from the Twelve-Shape Fist, inherently possessed both cunning and power. Now, bolstered by the power of Emperor Descends Upon the World, its might has doubled, and it is fiercely peerless!

"Bang!"

Being slightly careless, the Gray-clothed man was swept in the waist and abdomen by a halberd strike from Lin Yan. His huge body flew backward like a kite with a broken string, smashing heavily onto a giant tree!

"Crack——!"

The giant tree, as thick as two people could embrace, snapped in response, and wood chips flew everywhere!

"Pfft!"

The Gray-clothed man spat out a mouthful of grayish-green toxic blood, his eyes filled with disbelief.

He actually... was being suppressed and beaten by a Spirit Ancestor?!

Yes, fighting up to this point, although Lin Yan had not displayed his fourth spirit ring, the Gray-clothed man had long since detected his true Rank.

But even if he wasn't a Spirit Elder, a Spirit Ancestor suppressing and beating a Spirit Saint... wasn't this absurd enough?!

"Brat, you are courting death!"

The Gray-clothed man was completely enraged, ferocity bared in his eyes.

"Fifth Spirit Ability——Venom Tail Pierce!"

"Sixth Spirit Ability——Venomous Dragon Drill!"

One purple and one black spirit ring lit up successively!

The thick venomous tail behind him suddenly whipped out, the poisonous stinger at its tip gleaming with an eerie green cold light. Like a venomous dragon emerging from its cave, carrying a fishy wind, it fiercely pierced toward Lin Yan's back!

At the same time, his dual claws crossed, transforming into a spinning venomous dragon drill, charging in to slaughter him head-on!

Front and rear pincer attack, going all out with full force—a mortal trap!

"Interesting."

A trace of excitement flowed across Lin Yan's face, and the Battle Intent in his eyes grew even denser.

"First Spirit Ability——Flame Swallowing!"

As the first Spirit Ability was activated, Lin Yan's Aura began to skyrocket once again at a terrifying speed!

All-attribute enhancement——700%!

This was the brand-new might of the first Spirit Ability after the Emperor Flame fused two types of otherworldly flames!

With the ultimate enhancement stacked, Lin Yan only felt as if endless power was surging within his body!

His figure flickered like lightning, dodging the venomous tail pierce by a very narrow margin.

"Monkey Form!"

At the same time, the war halberd in his hand whirled like an ape fishing for the moon, fiercely hacking at the core of the venomous dragon drill!

"Break!"

With a soft shout, majestic power, the Ultimate Fire power, and Emperor Descends Upon the World—three layers of might converged together, erupting boomingly along the war halberd!

"Boom——!"

The moment the two collided, space seemed to freeze at that very instant!

The next instant, the Gray-clothed man's sixth Spirit Ability abruptly collapsed, and his entire body flew backward once again, slamming heavily onto the ground and creating a huge deep pit!

"Cough cough……"

The Gray-clothed man crawled out from the pit, grayish-green toxic blood continuously overflowing from the corner of his mouth, and his Aura also became chaotic.

Feeling the Aura on Lin Yan that skyrocketed once again, the look he gave Lin Yan was filled with terror and disbelief.

This brat…… what kind of monster is he anyway!

The Gray-clothed man was both shocked and fearful in his heart, a chill rushing straight from the soles of his feet to his crown.

He knew he had kicked an iron plate!

Moreover, it was the kind of iron plate hard enough to shatter oneself to death!

No, he couldn't keep fighting like this!

If he kept fighting, he was afraid he would really plant himself here today!

Where there's life, there's hope!

Thoughts spinning rapidly, the Gray-clothed man instantly made a decision in his heart——escape!

Must escape!

As for the reward promised by the employer……

His life was almost gone, what did he need money for!

"Brat, you just wait for me!"

The Gray-clothed man roared fiercely of faint heart, pretending to be desperate as toxic mist churned and crazily surged toward Lin Yan.

Taking advantage of the toxic mist obscuring vision, his figure suddenly turned, exploding all his Soul Power under his feet, and he turned and ran!

"Want to run?"

Lin Yan sneered, a trace of disdain flashing across the depths of his eyes.

Fighting to this extent, and you still want to run?

Too late!

"Life Tribulation Flame!"

Boom——!

The moment the voice fell, within the heavy tribulation clouds in the sky that were like lead blocks and pressed down so hard people could hardly breathe, an eerie emerald color was nurtured at a speed visible to the naked eye!

The Life Tribulation Flame rolled and shuttled through the cloud layer, a vast, majestic, and terrifying pressure resembling heaven's wrath crashing down from the firmament!

This was——the might of heavenly punishment!

Under this pressure, the Gray-clothed man, who was fleeing wildly, suddenly stalled in his tracks!

He only felt as if a ten-thousand-zhang high mountain was pressed upon his back, his legs felt as if they were poured with lead, and every step he took cost enormous effort.

Not only that, his Soul was trembling; under this heaven's wrath fire tribulation, he could barely even generate the thought of resisting!

"This…… what is this again?！!"

The Gray-clothed man raised his head to look at the sky in terror, his eyes filled with absolute shock and horror.

Is this really a power that a Spirit Ancestor can possess?!

"Descend!"

Lin Yan raised his hand and pointed, his voice indifferent and majestic, like a Heavenly God wielding the fire tribulation, reading out the final judgment.

Boom——!

The moment the voice fell, within the tribulation clouds, a huge cyan-green pillar of fire plummeted crashingly down!

This was not ordinary flame, but evolved from the Life Spirit Fire——the Life Tribulation Flame!

It was the flame of heavenly punishment that burned life and judged life and death!

"No——！！!"

The Gray-clothed man let out a shrill scream to the extreme, desperately urging his Soul Power to raise his speed to the absolute limit, even sparing no expense to burn his essence blood, wanting to escape this terrifying tribulation flame.

But no matter how he escaped, that cyan-green pillar of fire always clung to him like bone-gnawing maggots, unable to be shaken off and impossible to dodge!

"Spirit Avatar!"

"Lizard Shadow Escape!"

...

"Venomous Mist Permeation!"

The Gray-clothed man roared hysterically, releasing all his Spirit abilities and all his power in one go!

His body skyrocketed once again, his scales became heavier and thicker, the toxic light grew richer, and his entire person transformed into a true giant venomous lizard beast!

But all of this was in vain!

"Rend——!"

The cyan-green Life Tribulation Flame crashed down!

There was no earth-shattering explosion, nor any world-destroying shockwave.

What existed was only a silent, yet terrifying to the extreme——burning of life!

The moment the Gray-clothed man's heavy toxic armor came into contact with the Life Tribulation Flame, it withered and dissolved at a speed visible to the naked eye, just like snow meeting the blazing sun.

His muscles atrophied, his bones softened, and his vitality was frantically plundered away by the tribulation flame like a breached flood!

And that plundered vitality in turn fed back into the Life Tribulation Flame, making the tribulation flame burn even more vigorously and fiercely!

"Ah——！！"

The Gray-clothed man let out a heart-rending scream, his voice filled with endless pain and despair.

He could clearly feel that his vitality was flowing away rapidly, and his body was shriveling and withering at a speed visible to the naked eye.

His huge five-meter-tall body rapidly shrunk, from five meters to four meters, then to three meters, two meters……

In just a few breaths' time, he transformed from a tyrannical and ferocious giant venomous lizard beast into a thin-as-matchsticks, decrepit old man.

His facial skin was wrinkled like old tree bark, his hair was gray and dry, his eyes were turbid and devoid of light, and he couldn't even stand steadily.

"Bang!"

The Gray-clothed man collapsed heavily onto the ground, twitching all over, his Aura as weak as a candle in the wind, about to extinguish at any moment.

He raised his head with difficulty, looking at the youthful figure standing beneath the tribulation clouds in the sky, his eyes filled with endless terror and remorse.

"Spare…… spare my life……"

The Gray-clothed man was breathing faintly, his voice hoarse and weak, entirely lacking his previous gloomy ruthlessness.

Lin Yan slowly descended, landing in front of him, looking down at him from a high position, his gaze as indifferent as if looking at an ant.

The tribulation clouds gradually dissipated, and the sky returned to clear skies.

As if the terrifying scene resembling heavenly punishment just now had never appeared at all.

But the dying gray-clothed old man on the ground silently recounted the reality and shock of that scene just now!

"Now, can you tell me who sent you?"

Lin Yan's voice was as calm as water without a single ripple.

The Gray-clothed man trembled all over, his face full of struggle.

But thinking of the tribulation flame just now that was like heavenly punishment, his last bit of courage to resist completely dissipated.

"I…… I will speak……"