บท 219: Chapter 224: Battle in the Ancient Cave!
After several minutes, Void Swallowing Flame and the others at the forefront arrived first.
On an ancient, vast plain, an ancient stone hall had stood since time immemorial. This hall, quietly situated on the boundless plain, exuded an ancient aura that echoed between heaven and earth.
Looking at the ancient stone hall, Soul Heaven Emperor and the others had burning glints in their eyes.
Before this stone hall was an immense plaza. On either side of the plaza, massive pillars reaching thousands of feet to the sky stood, exuding a majestic and imposing aura.
The plaza covered an extensive area. The giant stone columns were like pillars supporting the sky; there were twenty-two in total. On twenty of them, there were faint, withered flames, but the two in the center were empty.
Void Swallowing Flame and Soul Heaven Emperor led their group to the center of the plaza. Staring at the empty stone columns in the center, Void Swallowing Flame's expression was complex; he looked bewildered, pained, and even terrified.
Soon, Soul Heaven Emperor retracted his awe-struck gaze from the bizarre flame plaza. Uninterested in these strange flames, he turned to Void Swallowing Flame and asked gravely, "Void, where is the Imperial-grade infant pill?"
Void Swallowing Flame snapped out of his reverie at Soul Heaven Emperor's words. He glanced toward the end of the plaza, where the stone hall was currently engulfed in thick fog, making it impossible to see inside.
With a sweeping motion of his mouth, Void Swallowing Flame unleashed a powerful suction, devouring all the surrounding fog, revealing a giant shadow that enveloped the plaza.
What appeared was a colossal stone statue, rising ten thousand feet tall, depicting an elder—the very image of the ancient emperor, Tuoshe.
Astute observers would notice that this place only had the stone columns representing the last twenty-two on the Exotic Flame Ranking, while the first-ranked Emperor Flame was conspicuously absent.
At the end stood Tuoshe Ancient Emperor's stone statue. Further realization would make it clear that Tuoshe Ancient Emperor had revealed his origins—he was the Emperor Flame formed by fusing twenty-two different exotic flames.
This statue stood commandingly between heaven and earth, exuding an unparalleled might. Under this pressure, even Soul Heaven Emperor felt as though he were under a great mountain's weight, with most members of the Soul Clan dropping to their knees as the hard stones beneath them shattered into powder.
Struggling to utilize their tribe's markings and fighting spirit, they gradually managed to stand again.
Looking up at the statue, a fear from the core arose—what kind of power is this for a mere statue?
In the next moment, their pupils contracted sharply.
Around the statue, numerous glowing orbs floated, creating a brilliant spectacle from afar.
Inside these orbs of light were ancient scrolls, brimming with intense spiritual energy, each one at least of the Heaven-tier level in terms of martial arts techniques and combat skills.
"These are... martial arts techniques and combat skills? All at the Heaven-tier level?!"
Hundreds of Heaven-tier martial arts techniques and combat skills were treasures even within the ancient clans and the Soul Clan, but here they lay as though discarded like cabbages.
Despite the allure of Heaven-tier techniques and combat skills, they couldn't captivate Soul Heaven Emperor. Only one thing could truly attract his desire!
"This place hasn't been this lively in a long time!"
A sudden elderly voice startled everyone. They turned their eyes swiftly, and finally fixed their gazes on the shoulder of the stone statue, where an old figure stood with hands behind his back, looking down at them with indifferent eyes, as if looking at ants.
"Tuoshe Ancient Emperor?"
The old figure's voice caused an uproar among the crowd. Turning their gaze, they saw a face and colorful hair reminiscent only of Tuoshe Ancient Emperor!
"Tuoshe Ancient Emperor isn't dead?!"
The experts of the Soul Clan stared in awe at the elderly figure exuding supreme power, sending chills down their spines.
"What's going on?" Soul Heaven Emperor, his face grim, looked at Void Swallowing Flame and asked heavily.
There was indeed a fearful aura on this elder—one he recognized from the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor's jade, proving this guy wasn't just putting on airs but was truly formidable. How could he not panic at such a result?
If Tuoshe Ancient Emperor wasn't dead, weren't they just seeking death by coming here for treasures?
Void Swallowing Flame looked up, intently staring at the old figure before speaking, "He is not Tuoshe Ancient Emperor. He is the Imperial-grade infant pill."
"Because he possesses a trace of Tuoshe Ancient Emperor's aura, he has taken this form."
The Soul Heaven Emperor was momentarily stunned by these words before his eyes gleamed with a strange light, gradually locking onto the old figure.
It dawned on him that a ninth-tier pill could take human form, let alone the legendary Emperor Pill.
The old figure on the statue looked smilingly at Void Swallowing Flame, but his smile vanished as he understood the words he heard. Furiously, he shouted, "Void Swallowing Flame, what are you doing?"
He could hardly believe it. After all the effort he had put into sending Void Swallowing Flame out, the latter returned full of malice rather than rescue intentions. Anyone would be infuriated being betrayed like a white-eyed wolf, let alone this Imperial-grade infant pill with the 'mightiest' power in the Dou Qi continent.
Void Swallowing Flame frowned slightly at his roar and replied, "What do you mean, 'what am I doing'?"
The infant pill shouted vehemently, "You scoundrel! If it weren't for my help in tearing apart the binding with the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame, how could you have escaped? You promised to rescue me back then. What are you doing now?"
The imperial pill's vehement outburst left the Soul Clan members shocked. Everyone, including the Soul Heaven Emperor, turned their gazes towards Void Swallowing Flame in amazement. Who would have thought Void Swallowing Flame and the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame had such a history, explaining his intricate knowledge of the ancient emperor's cave?
Void Swallowing Flame's expression changed subtly before frowning deeply. After contemplating for a moment, he still couldn't recall this part from his memory. Finally, he said indifferently, "Sorry, I have no memory of what you said. However..."
At this point, he paused, then smiled wickedly, "However, I am indeed here to rescue you this time. Come with me!"
The infant pill's face turned grim in response, and after staring at Void Swallowing Flame for a while, his expression shifted drastically. Looking at the statue beside him, he muttered through gritted teeth, "So this is your plan..."
Returning to his senses, Void Swallowing Flame looked at the infant pill and said with a smile, "Since you claim I promised to take you out, then follow us!"
"Hmph! I fear you are after me, aren't you?" The infant pill sneered looking at Void Swallowing Flame. The sight of Soul Heaven Emperor's undisguised greedy eyes made it clear to him what their true intentions were.
Void Swallowing Flame smiled slightly, then his face quickly turned cold. He moved swiftly and shouted, "Attack!"
"Boom!"
As his words fell, Soul Heaven Emperor was the first to strike, shooting forward with a surge of immense Dou Qi, which transformed into tides and fiercely attacked the infant pill.
"Trivial tricks!"
Facing the attack of a nine-star Dou Sheng peak like Soul Heaven Emperor, the infant pill sneered coldly. With a light point of his finger, the surging tidal energy was split apart!
Soul Heaven Emperor's eyes narrowed, his expression grave, realizing the infant pill's combat power far exceeded his expectations.
"Attack together!"
Seeing this, Void Swallowing Flame frowned. Lacking certain memories of the infant pill, he couldn't have known its strength in advance. He could only call upon the many strong Soul Clan members to attack. These experts flew forward; with each exchange, the energy in the surroundings grew wild, and waves of attacks that could tear the heavens continuously targeted the infant pill.
The infant pill faced the layered assault without flinching. Each motion exuded a terrifying aura, blocking the most threatening offenses from Soul Heaven Emperor and Void Swallowing Flame. With casual gestures, it easily dealt with other Soul Clan experts attempting to surround it.
"You are no match for me. I can take you all down and escape by myself."
The infant pill cleared the field swiftly. Apart from Soul Heaven Emperor, none of the Soul Clan experts could withstand even a single blow. Even Soul Heaven Emperor struggled, relying on numbers to simply entangle the opponent. But if this continued, the Soul Clan members would be wiped out without inflicting any harm.
Once the minions were wiped, neither Void Swallowing Flame nor Soul Heaven Emperor could stand against the pill. Escaping would be the best they could hope for.
"Boom!"
Several figures in the sky were fighting fiercely, but fortunately, the space here was robust. Even high-level Dou Sheng clashes couldn't tear it apart.
Terrifying waves of destruction surged from the sky, threatening to destroy everything.
"So strong... what's happening inside? Why are there waves of battle energy?"
Outside the Strange Flame Plaza, Xiao Yan and others arrived, following the Soul Clan. Feeling the spatial fluctuations from deep within the plaza, they exclaimed in shock.
"Is the Soul Clan fighting amongst themselves?" Yao Dan looked deep into the Strange Flame Plaza, somewhat gloating.
"Not infighting," Xiao Yan interjected as everyone wondered. Staring deeply into the plaza, he slowly said, "It's the Imperial-grade infant pill."
"Hiss—"
With Xiao Yan's words, everyone gasped, momentarily stunned.
"The imperial-grade infant pill is fighting the Soul Clan!"
Hearing Xiao Yan, Yao Chen understood and said gravely, "Even ninth-grade pills can take human form. Adding Lord Lao Zu, this six-star Dou Sheng's strange pill is already at the epitome of existence. The combat strength of the formed Emperor-grade pill will be terrifying. The Soul Clan won't easily subdue it."
"Then we must rush in; we can't let Soul Heaven Emperor succeed." Hearing this, Gu Yuan's eyes brightened, but his urgency was clear.
Seeing this, everyone nodded and quickly moved, darting past the strange flame stone columns toward the center. No matter what, they couldn't let Soul Heaven Emperor obtain the Imperial-grade infant pill.
As they reached the center of the plaza, they saw an old man with colorful hair and a cold expression. His hands moved, unleashing a dense scent of pill fragrance. Under the influence of the fragrance, the fighting spirit within the Soul Clan experts burned quickly, increasing their casualties.
"Emperor Pill Palm!"
The infant pill in the sky opened his eyes wide, roaring as he soared. Then he pressed his palm down toward the crowd below.
A radiant orb, about the size of a human head, emerged. With its appearance, the surrounding energy seemed to turn into boiling oil, burning immediately.
The boundless sky filled with roaring flames, turning the world into a furnace. The power of that single palm made even strong Soul Heaven Emperor, Void Swallowing Flame, and the newly arrived Gu Yuan's faces change drastically.
As the infant pill's cold face pressed down its palms, the flames in the air rushed into the radiant orb in its palm, and as the hands pressed down, darkness enveloped the land. Only the radiance from the orb in the infant pill's hand shone with destructive glory.
"Annihilate!"
With the palms pressing down, darkness fell, and only the radiant orb in the infant pill's hand shone with devastating brilliance. The orb pulsed and descended rapidly, barely half a breath before arriving above everyone in the grand hall.
Even Xiao Yan and the others who had just arrived were not spared.
To the infant pill, everyone here, regardless of their intentions, was an enemy that coveted him. As enemies, they would all be wiped out together.
Even with everyone here attacking together, it would merely take more effort!
This confidence came from the terrifying power within him, approaching infinite Dou Di-quality strength.
The next chapter ends here.
ความคิดของผู้สร้าง 
Geriatric_Vibes
Geriatric_Vibes TL Note - Read up to 50+ chapters ahead for some really good novels (according to my taste) and other perks on my Patreon - patreon .com/geriatricvibes. Thanks a lot for the support
สถานะพลังงานรายสัปดาห์
-- การจัดอันดับด้วยพลัง 
-- หินพลัง