Xiao Yan looked up, his eyes slightly narrowed, staring at the blinding light above. On the light, terrifying energy was frantically gathering.
Nalan Yanran stared intently at Xiao Yan below, who hadn't made any move and was quietly watching her. He seemed to disdain her move and could easily block it, which made her anger surge again. She
took a deep breath, her jade hand tightly gripping the now extremely heavy cyan longsword. She slowly moved it downwards at a speed that was almost imperceptible. As the longsword moved, the ripples spreading out became stronger and stronger.
Soon, when the energy on the longsword reached its peak, Nalan Yanran finally stopped suppressing it. A fierce look appeared on her pretty face. With a crisp shout, the already blinding sunlight on the longsword suddenly surged again. For a moment, the strong light on the sword even covered the blazing sun in the sky.
"Wind's Ultimate: Sunset Radiance!"
As the delicate shout faded, terrifying energy finally erupted. Sharp sword energy descended from the sky, sweeping towards Xiao Yan with overwhelming force. Under the pressure of the fierce sword energy, the hard floor cracked, splitting into fissures that stretched to the far end of the plaza.
The sword light arrived in an instant, striking Xiao Yan. A powerful explosion then erupted in the plaza, creating a massive mushroom cloud. The shockwave surged outwards, spreading across the entire stands, causing everyone to be buffeted by the powerful blast.
"So...so strong!"
"It...it hit?"
"That Xiao Yan took such a terrifying blow, is he dead?"
"Heh, he deserves to die. He doesn't even know his own strength, daring to come to the Yunlan Sect to find Senior Sister Nalan."
...
Nalan Yanran also had a smile on her face at this moment, with a mocking look in her eyes. She was very confident in her move. This was the core fighting technique of the Yunlan Sect, personally taught to her by the sect master - the Xuan-rank high-grade
"Extreme Wind: Sunset Radiance!"
She didn't believe that Xiao Yan could survive such a terrifying blow. She would make Xiao Yan pay the price for his contempt!
Everyone thought that Xiao Yan had been blasted into dust, and some people had already come down from the stands to clean up the battlefield.
However, as the smoke in the square slowly dissipated, a figure gradually emerged from the thick smoke, wearing armor formed from Dou Qi. A red and green flame rose from his body, and his face still had that indifferent expression.
Everyone stared in utter shock at the unharmed Xiao Yan, their faces filled with disbelief.
Nalan Yanran's pupils constricted, her breathing quickened, struggling to accept the scene before her. Then, seeing the strangely familiar flames beside Xiao Yan, she gasped in surprise, stammering,
"You...you're Yan Xiao?!"
The powerful figures from the Jia Ma Empire and the elders of the Alchemist Guild, perched atop the giant tree not far away, were also astonished.
"Yan Xiao...Xiao Yan...Yan Xiao...So that's how it is."
"This kid really hid it well!"
"Not only is he a young fourth-grade alchemist, but he's also a genius with such terrifying talent in cultivation. Nalan Yanran is completely dumbfounded."
"Heh, Nalan Jie, such a good marriage for your Nalan family, ruined just like that, what a pity, what a pity."
Listening to the surrounding chatter, Nalan Jie remained silent, his face grim.
"Your current strength is nothing to me,"
Xiao Yan said calmly. Then, his Dou Qi surged, energy ripples spread around him, and the two-colored flames on his body rose.
"Heavenly Fire Three Transformations!"
A loud shout came from his mouth, and then his aura suddenly surged and continued to rise. "Nine-star Great Dou Master..."
"One-star Dou Spirit..."
...
"Three-star Dou Spirit!"
Soon, Xiao Yan's aura stabilized at the three-star Dou Spirit level. A terrifying temperature emanated from the leaping flames around him, an indescribable heat sweeping across the entire stands, causing everyone to sweat profusely, their throats to dry, and their vision to become distorted by the intense heat emanating from the center of the plaza.
"With my strongest form, I'll bring this matter to a perfect close, and show you just how vast the gap between us truly is,"
Xiao Yan said calmly. His words revealed unparalleled confidence.
Nalan Yanran, upon hearing Xiao Yan's words, gave a bitter smile, making no further moves, nor was she capable of doing so.
Xiao Yan waved his hand, and the flames on his body rapidly spread, surging towards Nalan Yanran. Wherever the flames passed, a thick layer of charred ash remained on the ground. It seemed the flames were about to engulf Nalan Yanran.
"Stop!"
"Stop!"
Two furious shouts suddenly rang out.
Yun Leng, the Grand Elder of the Yunlan Sect on the stands, seeing Nalan Yanran unable to resist, slammed his fist on the table and roared, his Dou Qi surging as he prepared to save her.
However, a figure was faster than him.
A cyan figure flashed past like a streak of light, instantly grabbing Nalan Yanran, who was about to be engulfed by the sea of fire, and shielding her behind him.
Then, she slapped his palm against the encroaching sea of fire. Instantly, the sea of fire was pulverized by the palm imbued with terrifying wind-attribute Dou Qi.
Xiao Yan was first stunned, then scrutinized the cyan figure protecting Nalan Yanran.
A curvaceous figure, a simple dress encasing her full body, her black hair styled in an elegant phoenix hair ornament, her beautiful face contorted with anger, and the aura of a Dou Huang powerhouse emanating from her.
Upon seeing this woman, Xiao Yan instantly understood. This woman was none other than Yun Yun, Nalan Yanran's master, the sect leader of the Yunlan Sect, and one of the top ten powerhouses of the Jia Ma Empire—a Dou Huang!
"This duel between the two of you was neither right nor wrong, so why did you resort to such ruthless tactics! Your attack just now was clearly intended to kill Yanran! If you don't give me a reasonable explanation today, don't even think about stepping out of the Yunlan Sect!"
The woman in front of Xiao Yan spoke angrily, and the Dou Huang aura emanating from Yun Yun pressed down on Xiao Yan as she spoke.
Seeing this, Xiao Yan remained calm. Instead, he smiled and, amidst the astonished gazes of the crowd, turned and slightly clasped his hands in a respectful gesture towards the entrance of the Yunlan Sect, saying,
"I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you two again this time, Senior Lü Man and Senior Bai Ya!"
As Xiao Yan's voice fell, two auras of peak Dou Huang level instantly rose outside the Yunlan Sect's gate, suppressing the entire plaza and causing everyone present to feel breathless and tremble.
Then, a green figure and a gigantic serpentine beast, tens of feet long with eight wings on its back, slowly appeared above the Yunlan Sect plaza. For a moment, the entire plaza fell silent; no one dared to utter a sound.
...
PS: Let Xiao Yan show off a little; this might be the only time he shows off in this book.