Nine Astra Skies

Ji Lei and the rest grew anxious as they saw Hei Ming slowly approaching Ye Chen.

"Brother Ye Chen, I'll save you!" Ye Qiu cried out. Raging purple flames erupted from her body. She took down two Mystique Venerable Rank fighters of the Wolven Kingdom who were in her way and rushed to where Ye Chen was.

"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh," another three Mystique Venerable Rank fighters of the Wolven Kingdom obstructed Ye Qiu's path again.

There were too many fighters in the Wolven Kingdom where they outnumbered the Leo King's Palace three to one. Ye Qiu and the others could not make their way to Ye Chen.

"Nobody can save you now!" Hei Ming threatened, then he suddenly frowned. Why was the nether poison not taking effect? He became slightly concerned.

As Hei Ming wondered about the implications, he saw Ye Chen grinning at him. "Did you think that your feeble nether poison is going to do anything to me? You're so certain that you'll emerge victorious and yet you're nothing but an ant to me. I can take your life anytime I want to."

"That's impossible unless you're at Daemon King Rank or have the special antidote manufactured by the Nether Snake Clan. There's no way you can neutralize the poison!" Hei Ming's expression turned dark. Blinding rays of light emerged from the Tier Six spirit artifact in his hand. "Even if you're somehow able to suppress its effects, you're doomed. Besides, you took a direct hit from my palm so you must've sustained severe internal injury. I'm curious to see how exactly you plan to take my life."

"Die!" Hei Ming swung his sword down at Ye Chen.

Ye Chen smirked. Even though he was inflicted by the so-called lethal nether poison, he had already neutralized it. Even though he was hit by Hei Ming's palm force, the silk shirt Ye Chen wore had absorbed a large portion of the impact, so he was not gravely wounded.

"If you want to die that badly, let me grant your wish!" A chilling flash appeared in Ye Chen's eyes. A burst of light erupted from Emperor Ming's Belt as the mighty Immortal Dark Phoenix soared into the skies.

The Immortal Dark Phoenix let out a mighty cry that echoed in the skies. It was engulfed in dark flames that clung to its magnificent body. When its piercing gaze landed on Hei Ming, Hei Ming became instantly frozen in place. He looked up, terrified. The depthless gaze of the Immortal Dark Phoenix made him tremble from the very depths of his soul as an unspeakable terror welled up from within his heart.

Hei Ming could not even move an inch from where he stood. The gaze of the Immortal Dark Phoenix had firmly locked him in place!

Ji Lei and the others thought that it was over for Ye Chen. They felt a pang of enormous guilt eating away at their hearts. At that moment, the situation was suddenly turned around as they saw the gigantic Immortal Dark Phoenix blazing with dark flames appearing out of nowhere. It was an astounding sight to behold.

"Could this be the legendary… Immortal Dark Phoenix?" Ji Lei was stunned.

"Is brother Ye Chen just like us, not human but a Celestial Beast? Not just any ordinary Celestial Beast but the legendary ancient bloodline of the Immortal Dark Phoenix?" Ye Qiu's eyes were dazzling with excitement. From deep within her soul, she could sense the tremendous weight of the Immortal Dark Phoenix's pressure.

The Immortal Dark Phoenix was an almighty divine bird! Many myths surrounded the existence of the Immortal Dark Phoenix. Each descendant of the Immortal Dark Phoenix was an almighty being. Each time they died, they would be reborn in the dark flames.

The cultivation base of Ye Chen's Immortal Dark Phoenix was just beginner Daemon King Rank but this was not the extent of the Immortal Dark Phoenix's capabilities. Each time they died, they would be reborn again and become stronger.

Nobody dared to incur the wrath of the descendants of the Immortal Dark Phoenix as they inherited the countless memories passed down on to them. In this manner, the secret technique was passed down to them from within the dark flames and imprinted deep within their souls.

"Ye Chen isn't human?"

They presumed that the Immortal Dark Phoenix was materialized from Ye Chen's Psyche. None of them had expected that the Immortal Dark Phoenix came from a piece of a feather on Emperor Ming's Belt!

A powerful aura expanded outward. All Mystique Venerable Rank fighters of the Wolven Kingdom in the vicinity could not even move a single muscle. They were frozen in fear when they saw the Immortal Dark Phoenix soaring above.

The Daemon Kings above had taken notice of the Immortal Dark Phoenix below them as well.

All of the Daemon Kings, whether it was the three Daemon Kings of the Wolven Kingdom or Tong Tian the Leo King were bewildered. The noble lineage of the Immortal Dark Phoenix was in such a realm that they could never even hope to reach.

Using his secret technique, Eye of Heaven, Tong Tian the Leo King noticed that there was something abnormal about the Immortal Dark Phoenix. It did not seem like it was materialized from Psyche!

Was this some kind of summoning technique? This technique might be able to fool the Daemon Kings present here for a moment, but they would see through it shortly.

"You… You're not a human but… But a… Daemon King Rank master!" Hei Ming looked at the Immortal Dark Phoenix in horror. He could not withstand the enormous pressure of the Immortal Dark Phoenix. It was difficult for him to piece together a sentence as this was absolute suppression!

In the presence of a Daemon King, Hei Ming truly was just an ant. It appeared that Ye Chen had been feigning from the very start as Hei Ming was never even considered as a worthy opponent! That would explain why Ye Chen remained so calm even after taking a direct hit from him. Hei Ming's nether poison may be lethal to opponents of the same rank but it was as good as useless on a Daemon King Rank master.

Hei Ming felt an immense pool of helplessness well up from within his heart.

"Please… Forgive… Me!" Hei Ming uttered with great difficulty. His eyes were two pools full of sorrow. Everything he had been through up till now from scheming with the three Celestial Daemon Kings of the Wolven Kingdom to waiting for the collapse of the Leo King's Kingdom were going to help him advance to Daemon King rank. However, all of these plans went up in smoke as he was nearing the end of his life.

"Wretched, traitorous b*stard, kill him!" Ye Chen yelled coolly. A torrent of dark flame emerged from the mouth of the Immortal Dark Phoenix. Hei Ming was instantly devoured in the flames.

Hei Ming was turned into ashes without so much as a shriek.

The Immortal Dark Phoenix flapped its mighty wings and breathed columns of flames into the camp of the Wolven Kingdom. A horrific scream followed wherever the mighty column of flames hit as all that remained after was a spot of charred ground. All the Mystique Venerable Rank fighters of the Wolven Kingdom fled in horror when they saw the approaching Immortal Dark Phoenix but none of them could hope to outrun the Immortal Dark Phoenix!

In the blink of an eye, up to thirty Mystique Venerable Rank fighters of the Wolven Kingdom had fallen victim to the Immortal Dark Phoenix! This was a complete one-sided massacre. The Mystique Venerable Rank fighters of the Wolven Kingdom could hardly put up a fight!

As Ye Chen was having his way with the Mystique Venerable Rank fighters of the Wolven Kingdom, a bird's sorrowful screech could be heard coming from above them. Purple-colored blood rained down from the skies above. The screech was full of sorrow and unwillingness.

"Tong Tian, I, Zi Ming will go ahead first. It's a great honor to serve the Leo King's Palace and knowing you for the last thousand years. I die with no regrets!"

In the skies above, a column of flames raged around the vicinity of the Purple Flame Avian.

Amid the raging flames, the Purple Flame Avian overlooked the lands below. There were so many things that he was reluctant to let go of yet. He wanted so desperately to see the Leo King's Palace safe and sound and to see his children and grandchildren grow up. Sadly, he was getting too old at a thousand and three hundred years old. The young would arise and take their place. After fending off the constant assault of three Daemon Kings, he had used up all the flames of his life.

This battlefield would be his final resting spot.

If Purple Flame Avian could, he would borrow another five hundred years from the heavens above. However life, as well as death, was dictated by heavens and not by men.

"Goodbye, old friend!" the Purple Flame Avian cried out one last time. A long, desolate sigh continued to echo in the skies.

The three Daemon Kings surrounding the Purple Flame Avian suddenly sensed the intense, blazing energy coming from the Purple Flame Avian. Their faces quickly turned.

"Run!"

"Get away!"

Just as the three Daemon Kings were about to retreat, the Purple Flame Avian exploded with an abrupt "boom". The resulting explosion instantly consumed the three Daemon Kings.

"This is the secret technique of the Purple Flame Avian Clan, Blazing Embers Technique. You won't get away from it so easily. This old one has lived for thousands of years. You should feel honored that I let the three of you come along in my final moment!" the old Purple Flame Avian said.

"Poof, whoosh, whoosh!"

The three Daemon Kings of the Wolven Kingdom were instantly ignited, purple flames clung onto every inch of their body. They shrieked horrifically and flew around like three bolts of meteor in the skies above. No matter how fast they flew, the purple flames still did not extinguish. It was not going to stop until there was nothing left of them but ashes.

Han Hong roared and formed pillars of Water-type Celestial Chi around him as he launched them toward the three Daemon Kings. They made great splashes on the Daemon Kings and formed a cloud of steam. After the cloud of mist scattered, the purple flames on the Daemon Kings continued to burn angrily.

Such terrifying purple flames!

Han Hong was stricken with terror. The bloodline of the Purple Flame Avian was far more superior than the Otter Clan. According to the legends, the Purple Flame Avian was a distant descendant of the ancient divine beast Purple Flame. Even if the bloodline was very thin, the blood of divine beasts was still vastly superior to the blood of ordinary mystical beasts.

"Grandfather!" Ye Qiu cried out. She transformed into a Purple Flame Avian and soared into the sky. Purple-color teardrops uncontrollably fell down her cheeks.

"Ye Qiu, come back!" Qing Yu quickly transformed into a six-tailed fox and leaped into the sky attempting to stop Ye Qiu.

Purple-colored feathers drifted in the skies above but the Purple Flame Avian was nowhere to be seen anymore. Ye Qiu's agonizing cry was drowned out by the purple rain.

Ye Chen remained silent and stood still. He felt a trace of Dao enlightenment in each piece of feather. All the mindless chaos in the world seemed to be drowned out at this moment. He extended his right hand and let a piece of feather gently land on his palm. Shortly after, it scattered into purple flames.

Countless purple feathers danced around Ye Qiu. Each piece of feather seemed to contain the consciousness of the Purple Flame Avian.

The three Daemon Kings were burned alive until nothing was left of them apart from ashes. The remaining Daemon Kings trembled in fear. The Blazing Embers Technique was truly terrifying!

"Zi Ming!" Tong Tian the Leo King roared with great despair in his voice, his eyes became bloodshot. Gold colored Thunder-type energy began to gush endlessly from the Leo King's Divine Hammer.

The other two Daemon Kings left in the Leo King's Palace - the Divine Elephant and the Green-scaled Pangolin - went into a frenzied state as well and attacked mindlessly.

They had known Zi Ming for thousands of years. The bond they shared was greater than the bond between siblings. They were overwhelmed with sorrow and sadness after the death of their old friend.

"Blood Wolf, even if the Leo King's Palace must perish, I'll drag you down to the grave with us!" Tong Tian the Leo King's voice broke out. Every word he uttered was full of sorrow. He put his all into each one of his attacks.

"Boom, boom, boom!" The energy of Leo King's Divine Hammer and the Demon Wolf Manic Blade clashed violently in the sky above.

The Blood Wolf Daemon King felt a grave chill crawling under his skin. Each rabid blow of Tong Tian the Leo King was filled with the intent of bringing both of them down together. After the long battle, Tong Tian the Leo King, the Divine Elephant, and the Green-scaled Pangolin were all at their final leg. The Daemon Kings of the Wolven Kingdom were worried that Tong Tian the Leo King, the Divine Elephant, and the Green-scaled Pangolin were going to cast some similar self-destructive technique.

Their primary concern was Tong Tian the Leo King. At his cultivation base, it would be greatly devastating if he were to cast some form of self-destructive technique.