The Ancestral Dragon had never imagined that Yuanfeng would truly dare to kill Ao Lie right before his eyes—not only a provocation to the dignity of the dragon clan's progenitor, but a full declaration of war against the entire dragon clan!
Fury blazed in his dragon pupils, almost incinerating the firmament. His previously solid human form shattered completely in his rage, transforming instantly into his ten-thousand-zhang true dragon body.
It was a colossal creature that blotted out half the sky.
His dragon scales, crafted like golden-crimson glazed jade, each the size of an ordinary house, shimmered with dazzling light. Pure dragon energy flowed between the scales, leaving tiny indentations in the void when it touched down. His dragon whiskers, like clouds hanging from the sky, whistled through the air as they fluttered, each strand containing immense water fortune power—sweeping gently to stir up towering waves. His massive dragon pupils, blood-red as crimson, roiled with destructive fury; wherever his gaze fell, the air twisted and burned. His dragon claws, thick as celestial pillars, glinted with cold golden light—with each swing, the void tore open into pitch-black rifts, and chaotic energy seeping from the rifts destabilized the surrounding space.
"Yuanfeng! You have killed three of my dragon clan's Dragon Kings and trampled on our dignity! Today, I shall behead you to serve as a warning to others!"
The Ancestral Dragon's roar exploded like ten thousand thunderclaps, its soundwaves sweeping across the entire South China Sea airspace. The blood sea below surged into hundreds-of-zhang waves, and the corpses floating in the tides were torn to shreds, dissolving into a sky-full of blood mist. Among the dragon and phoenix clansmen hovering in the distance, many had their souls shattered instantly by the soundwaves, their bodies collapsing softly into the blood sea without a sound. Survivors clutched their ears, blood oozing from their seven orifices, their faces as pale as paper—unable even to channel spiritual energy to resist.
Before the roar faded, the Ancestral Dragon's colossal body hurtled toward Yuanfeng like a shooting star. His dragon mouth opened, spitting out endless golden-crimson dragon energy—not ordinary power, but law-infused energy of world-creation. It condensed into countless golden-crimson light blades, raining down on Yuanfeng like a meteor shower. Each blade carried the power to tear heaven and earth, enough to crush the soul of an ordinary Golden Immortal. Wherever the blades passed, the void was sliced into fine cracks, the blood sea evaporated into thick steam, and even the sun's light was obscured by the terrifying aura.
Yuanfeng refused to back down. The Nanming Li Fire around her surged instantly to ten thousand zhang high, her seven-colored phoenix body spreading in the sea of fire with a wingspan of ten thousand zhang. Each phoenix feather glowed like glazed jade, its tip burning with ghostly purple Nirvana Fire. Her glazed phoenix eyes held no fear—only resolve and hatred. Three hundred years of confinement, the loss of her daughter, the agony of her clansmen's slaughter—all transformed into the power of flame, pushing her aura to its peak.
"Ancestral Dragon! Today, we fight to the death!"
Yuanfeng's voice carried sky-burning anger. She flapped her wings violently, and the Nanming Li Fire around her condensed into a sky-burning fire wall. This was no ordinary flame—it fused her three hundred years of resentment and origin, its temperature high enough to melt chaotic black stone. Ghostly purple flames rolled on the fire wall's surface, exuding an aura of total destruction. Facing the Ancestral Dragon's golden-crimson dragon energy blades, Yuanfeng spat a mouthful of origin fire at the wall. The seven-colored flame surged like a flood, meeting the golden-crimson dragon energy head-on.
The moment flame and dragon energy collided, the entire South China Sea airspace erupted!
Golden-crimson dragon energy and seven-colored flame intertwined, forming a vast domain of destruction. The golden-crimson blades pierced the flame, only to melt midway into golden liquid, dripping down. The seven-colored flame devoured the dragon energy, yet was also torn apart by the law-infused power within, letting out hissing screeches. Two extreme forces clashed and devoured each other, sending shockwaves rippling wildly outward from the collision point.
Seawater evaporated instantly into steam, forming thick clouds—which were burned to ashes by the high temperature as soon as they formed. Before the ashes could disperse, they were swept away by the shockwaves, lifting the blood sea below to reveal the seabed's rock layers. Under the dual impact of high temperature and shockwaves, the rock layers cracked and melted into boiling magma, flowing along the seabed's gullies, boiling the surrounding seawater and sending up clouds of bubbles.
The dragon and phoenix clansmen watching from afar suffered a catastrophe. Those closest to the collision point were torn to pieces instantly, not even a wisp of soul remaining. Those farther away were caught in the aftershocks of flame and dragon energy—bursting into flames or having their meridians shattered by invading dragon energy, screaming as they fell into the blood sea. Feng Qi was thrown several li away, his chest wound reopening, blood soaking his robes. He clutched his parasol staff tightly, barely stabilizing his body.
Feng Qi looked down at the domain of destruction, his eyes filled with grief and powerlessness. Within that area were not only dragon clan soldiers, but also many Phoenix Clan juniors who hadn't had time to evacuate—young fledglings and seriously injured elders, unable to escape. In that moment of origin collision, they were all torn to nothingness, leaving no trace behind. The air reeked of charred flesh, mixed with the metallic-sweet scent of dragon and phoenix blood—nauseating.
"Clan Leader..." Feng Qi whispered, his voice choked with emotion. He knew Yuanfeng had been driven to madness by bloodlust; there was no turning back from this war.
Within the domain of destruction, Yuanfeng and the Ancestral Dragon's figures darted through flame and dragon energy. The Ancestral Dragon's colossal body twisted nimbly, his dragon claws slashing at Yuanfeng repeatedly—each strike carrying world-creating power. The void tore open into pitch-black rifts, and chaotic energy seeping from them slowed Yuanfeng's movements slightly. Yuanfeng, relying on her agile form, weaved through the gaps between his claws. Her phoenix claws, infused with Nirvana Fire, struck repeatedly at the weaker points in his scales—leaving charred marks with each attack.
"Hiss——"
Yuanfeng's phoenix claw struck precisely at the Ancestral Dragon's abdomen, where his scales were relatively thin. Nirvana Fire erupted instantly, charring his scales with a hissing sound. The Ancestral Dragon roared in pain, swinging his massive tail like a celestial pillar toward Yuanfeng. She flapped her wings hastily to dodge, and the tail grazed her feathers, shattering a patch into burning fragments that dissipated into the air.
A deep, bone-deep wound was left on Yuanfeng's wing. Blood dripped from the wound, hissing as it fell into the magma below. Enduring the agony, she flapped her wings again and charged at the Ancestral Dragon, spitting a mouthful of ghostly purple Nirvana Fire straight for his eyes. The Ancestral Dragon snapped his eyes shut, and the flame burned against his eyelids, sizzling his scales. Though it failed to harm his eyes, it temporarily blinded him.
"Strike while the iron is hot—take your life!"
A fierce glint flashed in Yuanfeng's eyes. The flame around her surged again as she channeled all her remaining spiritual energy into her phoenix claws, which glowed with ghostly purple light. She lunged for the Ancestral Dragon's head—this strike, using all her strength, might severely wound him if it landed.
But just as her claws were about to touch his skull, the Ancestral Dragon suddenly opened his eyes, a fierce glint in his blood-red pupils. Ignoring the pain in his eyelids, he opened his dragon mouth wide, and a golden-crimson dragon breath erupted from within—more terrifying than any previous attack, containing half his origin power, enough to destroy half the South China Sea.
Yuanfeng's expression changed drastically. It was too late to dodge. She could only condense the sky-burning fire wall again, placing it before her. The moment the dragon breath hit the wall, it shattered like paper. The golden-crimson dragon breath struck Yuanfeng's body unimpeded.
"Pfft——"
Yuanfeng spat a mouthful of blood, which turned into a cloud of mist in the air, ignited by the dragon breath and dissolving into flame. Her body flew backward like a broken kite, her ten-thousand-zhang phoenix form appearing limp. Many of her feathers were scorched and torn by the dragon breath, revealing mangled flesh beneath. Her meridians were severely damaged by the dragon breath, her spiritual energy growing chaotic, and even the Nanming Li Fire dimmed slightly.
The Ancestral Dragon fared no better. Though he had severely wounded Yuanfeng, he had consumed a massive amount of origin power. The wound on his eyelids still burned, and the flesh beneath the charred scales on his abdomen throbbed with pain. He looked at the retreating Yuanfeng, his killing intent intensifying. His colossal body charged at her again, his dragon claws gathering all his strength, attempting to behead her in one strike.
"Ancestral Dragon! We are both innate divine beasts—today, we settle this with life and death!" Yuanfeng's voice was resolute. She knew there was no turning back. If she failed to kill him today, the Phoenix Clan would face total annihilation. She suddenly burned all her remaining origin, her seven-colored phoenix body turning translucent, as if on the verge of dissipating—only the wisp of Nirvana Fire burning brighter, forming a ghostly purple light shield around her.
Burning one's origin meant mutual destruction. Yuanfeng's aura surged to its peak in an instant, even surpassing her prime. Instead of dodging, she charged straight at the Ancestral Dragon's claws. The Nirvana Fire around her transformed into a massive flame sword, its blade glowing with ghostly purple light, carrying an aura of total destruction, slashing toward the Ancestral Dragon's claws.
"Seeking death!" The Ancestral Dragon's killing intent blazed hotter. He also channeled the dragon clan's origin, and a brilliant light film appeared over his golden-crimson body—the dragon clan's most fundamental defense, capable of withstanding attacks from innate supreme treasures. His dragon claws gathered all his strength, reaching for Yuanfeng's head. "Today, the Phoenix Clan shall perish with you!"
The full-powered strike of two innate powerhouses collided with a thunderous crash in the South China Sea airspace.
There was no earth-shaking boom—only a deathly white light, the spectacle of origin energy erupting completely. Within the white light, time seemed to stand still, and space began to twist and collapse. Yuanfeng's seven-colored phoenix body and the Ancestral Dragon's golden-crimson dragon body began to disintegrate simultaneously: Yuanfeng's wings turned to flame one by one, burning and dissipating in the air; the Ancestral Dragon's scales transformed into dragon energy, spreading and vanishing into the void.