209: The final burn

"Just you?" Fire Old roared, pushing his burning Divine Soul power to its limit. The golden flames around him surged, forcing the Nether Qi back half a foot.

He formed hand seals, and the golden flame long saber, condensed from Law, reappeared. Where the blade passed, even the black light on the Soul Retrieving Rope sizzled.

Initially, Fire Old, with his absolute control over the Law of flames, was able to suppress the two Soul Reaping Envoyss.

Each slash of the golden flame long saber caused the Soul Reaping Envoyss' black shadows to twist, as if they could dissipate at any moment.

But the cost of burning his Divine Soul was ultimately immense. In just a few dozen rounds, Fire Old's silver hair at his temples had turned scorched black, and the golden flames around him visibly dimmed.

"He's about to collapse!" The Soul Reaping Envoys on the left keenly sensed the change. Its Soul Retrieving Rope suddenly transformed into a sky full of black shadows, a mix of real and illusory, making it hard to distinguish.

The Soul Reaping Envoys on the right seized the opening, its Soul Retrieving Rope piercing like an arrow straight towards Fire Old's back. The resentful spirits entanglement around it let out piercing shrieks, specifically designed to erode a Cultivator's Divine Soul.

"Puff!" Fire Old was too slow to dodge and was grazed on the shoulder by the Soul Retrieving Rope. His red robe was instantly corroded with a large hole by the Nether Qi, and the flesh on his shoulder withered at an eerie speed.

He grunted, his body swayed, and the Law fluctuations on the golden flame long saber also became chaotic.

"Teacher!" Li Xingyan watched with eyes splitting, struggling to rush over, but he was firmly trapped by the residual Nether Qi, making it incredibly difficult to even move a finger.

Fire Old looked back at him, a resolute glint in his eyes, then he abruptly turned, using his remaining strength to hurl the golden flame long saber at the Soul Reaping Envoys on the left, forcing it to retreat temporarily.

Seizing this momentary opening, he rapidly formed hand seals, and the remaining golden flames around him suddenly converged into a crimson light gate.

"Go!" Fire Old's voice carried an unprecedented weariness, yet it was exceptionally firm.

He slammed a palm onto Li Xingyan's chest, forcefully pushing him into the light gate. "Remember, Cultivate well and see this world three thousand years from now for this old man!"

"Trying to leave? No way!" The Soul Reaping Envoys on the right reacted extremely quickly, its Soul Retrieving Rope pursuing the light gate like a shadow, but Fire Old blocked it with his body.

Li Xingyan looked back from within the light gate, only to see Fire Old's shoulder blades simultaneously pierced by two Soul Retrieving Ropes. His once tall figure stiffened abruptly, and the Divine Fire in his glabella suddenly extinguished.

He wanted to roar, to rush back, but he could only be carried away by the power of the light gate, watching helplessly as Fire Old's figure was completely swallowed by the two black shadows. The last thing that entered his sight was his teacher's withered hand, reaching out to him, but ultimately falling powerless.

"Teacher—!" His heart-wrenching cry was cut off by the light gate. Li Xingyan felt as if a piece had been gouged out of his chest, tears mixed with blood rolling from the corners of his eyes.

And that crimson light gate, carrying him, rapidly traversed through the distorted space, heading towards an unknown distance.

After Li Xingyan's aura completely disappeared behind the spatial rift, the two Soul Reaping Envoyss slowly retracted the Soul Retrieving Ropes that had pierced Fire Old's shoulder blades.

The broken red-robed body lost its support, transforming into specks of golden light that dissipated into the air, leaving only a dim, lusterless ring that clinked as it fell into the mud.

"Hehe, Lord of Myriad Fires's remnant Divine Soul has ultimately become our achievement," the Soul Reaping Envoys on the left shook the golden Soul Fire hanging from its Soul Retrieving Rope, its tone full of triumph.

The Soul Reaping Envoys on the right glanced at the ring on the ground, its voice cold and hard as ice: "It's good that this kid escaped. Leave a loose end, lest Lord Yama thinks the credit is too small." He turned to look at the dying Ox-Head and Horse-Face not far away, "Trash, aren't you going to get lost?"

How could Ox-Head and Horse-Face dare to voice any complaints? Dragging their crippled bodies, they scrambled and crawled into the shadows deep within the swamp. The earth-shattering battle just now had greatly injured their Origin Qi. If they were to further anger the Soul Reaping Envoyss, they might not even have a chance at Reincarnation.

The two black figures exchanged glances, and with a swirl of Nether Qi around them, they vanished into the thick mist like ink drops in water, leaving behind a faint whisper: "The Abyss Rift is about to open. The Divine Souls of this world will sooner or later be in the hands of the Underworld..."

As they departed, the suffocating pressure above the swamp gradually dissipated, but the Law power that erupted when Fire Old burned his Divine Soul was imprinted on this land like a brand.

Deep within the Misty Swamp, countless eyes hidden in the darkness quietly withdrew.

Inside a hollow of a thousand-year-old ancient tree, the nine-headed venomous python, which Li Xingyan had once forced back with a fire lotus, now had all nine snake heads cowering under its scales, trembling. The sight of golden flames burning the sky just now instinctively terrified it, and it no longer dared to harbor any thoughts of prying.

At the bottom of the black water pool in the center of the swamp, a giant turtle with a dark armored shell slowly closed its eyes. It could feel that the Law power leaked from the battle just now was enough to form a Jedi in the surroundings.

In the mist layer further away, several auras belonging to Soul Transformation Stage Yao Beasts instantly retracted. They had originally wanted to see if they could pick up some scraps, but they were so scared that their Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering by Fire Old's final burst of power.

On a bluestone in the deepest part of the swamp sat a young man in white robes, as pure as snow.

His face was handsome and refined, with an air of detached wisdom that came from seeing through worldly affairs. He was none other than Bai Ze in human form. During the most intense part of the battle, he had continuously twirled a white jade chess piece between his fingers. It was only at the moment Fire Old burned his Divine Soul that the chess piece trembled slightly.

"Lord of Myriad Fires... Three thousand years. I didn't expect him to still be alive," Bai Ze gazed in the direction where Fire Old's Divine Soul had dissipated, a hint of complexity in his eyes.

As an ancient Auspicious Beast, he understood all things and naturally recognized that powerful flame Cultivator who had once stirred up monstrous waves in the Cangming Realm.

He just hadn't expected that the other party would willingly be taken by the Soul Reaping Envoyss for the sake of a Golden Core Stage Disciple.

In fact, at the last moment, if Fire Old had wanted to escape, he would have had the chance.

Only when the Soul Reaping Envoyss' aura completely vanished did Bai Ze slowly rise, his robes fluttering in the damp, cold mist.

He looked down at the space distorted by the Law power, then gazed in the direction where Li Xingyan had disappeared, gently tapping the chess piece in his palm: "The Abyss Underworld's claws have reached here. It seems the balance of the Cultivation world will soon be unsustainable..."

He paused, his gaze falling on the forgotten ring, but he had no intention of picking it up. "That kid possesses three types of exotic flames and was protected by Lord of Myriad Fires at the cost of his life. In the future, he will likely walk a path even more difficult than his teacher's."

With that, Bai Ze's figure flickered, disappearing like a dewdrop melting into the morning mist, leaving only a faint chess mark on the bluestone, as if no one had ever been there.

And his earlier whisper, carried by the drifting mist, vaguely reached the ears of certain Yao Beasts still prying, making them even more hesitant to act rashly—the Karma that even an existence like Bai Ze paid attention to was definitely not something they could interfere with.

For a time, this kingdom of Yao Beasts, constantly engaged in battles, fell into an unprecedented silence.

Only the wailing of the wind sweeping across the swamp recounted the thrilling duel that had just taken place, and the lingering might left by the old man who had burned his Divine Soul to protect his Disciple.