C2016
"Ruby Hand!"
"Yuan Lianyao!"
Cultivators from the Everlands scattered across the Ashlands passed through the refined wall of the Starpierced Armor, gazing in shock at the flame meteor streaking across the starry sky.
Yuan Lianyao's alluring figure was enveloped by innumerable flames, making her appear as the True God of fire in this realm.
A burning Crimson Star shifted its course in response to her movements, drawn to her as if by a magnet, hurtling towards her position.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Flames from all corners of the Ashlands, like splendid rivers of fire, were drawn to her, surging from their stars and cascading towards her like fiery waterfalls.
On many a star, Mountains of Flames erupted like furious beasts, belching forth torrents of flame.
Fire-attribute alien beasts, as if marionettes on strings, were compelled by her presence, puppeteered towards her in flight.
Cultivators who practiced fire magic and Otherkin with hidden fire bloodlines experienced an involuntary terror upon Yuan Lianyao's arrival in the Ashlands.
Countless onlookers, transfixed by Yuan Lianyao transforming into a flame meteor, were left trembling, speechless.
"Witch!"
Blood Warriors from the Shura and Starborn, mourning the deaths of their kin, attempted to intercept her.
These Otherkin warriors, regardless of their bloodline level, spontaneously combusted with a mere glance from her, reduced to charred remains.
Thus, they perished in flames.
Yuan Lianyao moved as if she were in a land devoid of others, rampaging through the Ashlands, drawing ever closer to Tyria.
Wielding a fire shield in one hand and a flame blade in the other, she radiated an aura of invincibility in the eyes of the Ashlands' denizens, inducing a sense of suffocation.
At that very moment, nearly all the tenth level Heirs of Blood, God-Kings, and cosmic giant beasts had departed for the Stellar Oblivion.
Her abrupt incursion threw the Ashlands into disarray, and a message was swiftly dispatched to the Stellar Oblivion.
The God-Kings there, along with several cosmic giant beasts, were immediately informed of her rampage through the Ashlands.
"That's not Yuan Lianyao. It's the Earthfire from the Everlands!"
Emerging from the towering Space-Time Archway were Zhong Chichen, the Seven-Colored Dragon, the golden dragon god, and the now fully grown little spinosaurus.
Holding the Book of Time, Zhong Chichen watched the encroaching blazing fire and murmured to himself, "I'll start by containing it."
He stepped off the pale golden surface of Tyria and into the outer Star River. The increasingly thick tome, brimming with the profound truths of space and time, was turned page by page in his hands.
With each page, a separate dimension of space and time materialized.
These numerous dimensions overlapped and intertwined, creating a complex and mystical space-time even more intricate than the Secret Realm of Time.
Dozens of bizarre space-times, under Zhong Chichen's command, seemed to possess spiritual wisdom, proactively eroding the area assaulted by the blazing fire.
The flame meteor, stirred by the blazing fire, vanished as if it had been swallowed by a black hole in space.
More flames drawn by the blazing fire, originating from the Ashlands—firefalls and burning rivers—were fragmented under the overlapping dimensions.
Even the blazing fire that had taken over Yuan Lianyao became dispersed within this maelstrom of space and time.
Its limbs were strewn across various dimensions, and its thoughts and consciousness were equally divided.
"We're in the Ashlands; I can still trap it here for a while," Zhong Chichen said with a furrowed brow. "But this isn't Yuan Lianyao. It's the embodiment of the world's fire magic. I'm uncertain how long I can hold it."
Zhong Chichen wasn't addressing Loong Jie or the little spinosaurus at his side, but rather Yu Yuan.
Thanks to the Life Keychain within him, Yu Yuan could see everything Zhong Chichen was doing from his vantage point in the Stellar Oblivion.
Zhong Chichen's timely arrival on Tyria, his wielding of the Book of Time, and his targeting of the Fire Spirit, which retained only a fraction of the Blazing Fire's spiritual wisdom, were all in accordance with Yu Yuan's directives.
"Mr. Zhong, what exactly has transpired in the Everlands?" someone asked.
"Wasn't there still time before the agreed moment with Taishi?"
"Has the battle already commenced?"
Some cultivators from the Skyreach Consortium, Starmoon Sect, and Forgeroses burst through the wall and inquired with urgency.
Zhong Chichen nodded slowly and said with gravity, "The moment he set foot in the Everlands, the battle had already begun."
...
Land of Terror.
Samantha, emerging from the Abyss, unleashed dense lightning to annihilate the ghosts and spirits drawn to Youyu, yet she found it insufficiently satisfying.
This peculiar being, with a small frame resembling an ancient vine, spoke in the human tongue, "Below, in the area that purifies souls, numerous Terra Fiends and unsettling ghosts have amassed."
"They too must perish."
*Crack!*
Robust lightning bolts shot from her diminutive form, resembling Evil Gods bellowing from the Abyss, seeking hidden pathways along the Lunar Meridian.
Moments later.
Near the desiccated Seven-Colored Lake, a gathering place for Qiyan, the Earth Fiend, and a host of ghosts, lightning rained down from the heavens.
*Boom!*
A thunderous roar that scattered the spirits of the ghosts preceded the sight of thousands of lightning bolts, like scythes wielded by the Thunder God, cleaving through the Terra Fiends and intangible ghostly spirits.
Deep underground, the half-seen Earth Fiend and some alien souls still faithful to Yu Zhu met their end.
The anguished howls of the Terra Fiends and alien souls echoed with nowhere to flee, a symphony of despair vibrating through the earth's depths.
...
"I can no longer see."
Across the Stellar Oblivion, Kaiya's phantom image, conversing with Yu Yuan, suddenly shrank.
Creak!
The heavy stone door, long shut, swung open abruptly.
Kaiya's towering, corporeal figure stood outside the door, her separated devil soul swiftly reintegrating into her body.
"The Terra Fiends and numerous Ghost King alien souls are being slaughtered in the Defiled World."
"There's an Otherkin adept in lightning and thunder, a veritable nemesis to ghosts, wreaking havoc in the Everlands, slaughtering all the ghosts and alien souls allied with us," Kaiya stated, unable to contain her restlessness, her voice icy. "We must go now."
"The spiritual link between me and the Dragon Slaying Stage has been severed through the Hellmouth passage," Yu Yuan announced.
"Understood."
As Kaiya spoke, the central Starway was already surrounded by the God-Kings Taishi, Taixu, Tianqi, and Xuanli.
Ann Ziqing, the Secular Bird Queen, the Abyssal Leviathan, the Abyssal Greater Basilisk, and Sky Fiend Youqian, with Reid also present.
"In the Ashlands, Yuan Lianyao of the Ruby Hand is cloaked in blazing fire, intent on assaulting the Tyria Main Planet," Kaiya's gaze swept over the assembly, finally resting on the Secular Bird Queen. "I'm hoping you can assist in looking after Zhong Chichen in the Ashlands."
Chen Qinghuang hesitated for a moment.
Then, Yu Yuan's Solar Spirit Body emerged from the palace, adding, "Once the Ashlands issue is resolved, with Zhong Chichen present, entry into the Everlands will be swift."
Chen Qinghuang then nodded in agreement.
...
In the Darkpinion Astral Domain.
The Dark Phoenix, having searched various Astral Domains of the Origin Realm for Yuan Le and the Untamed without success, reappeared at the Phoenix Shrine.
"Hall Master!"
The White Tiger, the golden deer, and the tenth-level Iron-winged Bird rushed to update her on recent events.
The Sun-Swallowing Frog had vanished from the Darkpinion without a trace, as if snatched by some spatial force.
Moreover, the fire phoenix had not yet returned.
She had surmised that Yuan Le's true form had not arrived and had hoped to seize the chance to find and partially destroy him within the Origin Realm. A flicker of concern crossed her exquisite features.
But it vanished as quickly as it had appeared.
"They possess life essence within my Phoenix Shrine. Regardless of any mishaps, once Yuan Le perishes, I will resurrect them upon my ascension to the eleventh level."
The Dark Phoenix reassured the Beast Gods.
Suddenly, she noticed Yu Zhu's expression, softening her gaze considerably before asking, "What's wrong?"
"Below the Rainbow Ocean, in the Defiled World where I once dwelled, the ghosts, Terra Fiends, and alien souls are being massacred. They're nearly all gone," Yu Zhu reported.
"Does this impact you?" inquired Zhiya.
Yu Zhu shook her head, explaining, "The Way of Heaven of the Lunar Meridian is no longer my focus since my bloodline has degraded. Now, I draw upon the Phoenix Clan's bloodline and the original imprint within my soul to forge my unique path."
"Even so, I can still sense the disturbances in the Defiled World," Yu Zhu said slowly. "But once all the ghosts there have perished, I'll lose that connection."
Having learned the truth and transformed into the purple phoenix, her emotions toward Qiyan, the fiend, and the defiled alien souls who once stood by her, had significantly waned.
The Dark Phoenix, feeling reassured, paused to think before speaking. "I will certainly journey to the Everlands, but only after visiting Boulderdawn. I must wait for Yu Yuan's Solar Spirit to arrive first."
