BZZZ! BZZZ!
Wherever Nie Tian flew, the rolling flames unleashed by the Flame Dragon Armor turned the starry river into a sea of flames, which spread towards and consumed the Domain-corroding Flames.
Compared to the orange flame spark, the Flame Dragon Armor’s effect on the Domain-corroding Flames was considerably weaker. However, thanks to it, at least Nie Tian didn’t have to worry about the Domain-corroding Flames.
SHEW!
Hou Chulan’s wooden air-transportation spiritual tool, whose speed she had pushed to the limit, finally met with Nie Tian.
It flew right past his side, while Nie Tian plunged into a sea of Domain-corroding Flames behind it like a burning man.
His arrival caused changes to the Domain-corroding Flames that were pursuing Hou Chulan’s wooden air-transportation spiritual tool.
As the Flame Dragon Armor’s flames infiltrated them, the flesh aura connection between them and the Fiend seemed to be suddenly cut off.
The Fiend saw the unfavorable situation and scrambled through different bloodline magics in attempts to summon the Domain-corroding Flames back, lest all of them be devoured by the orange flame spark.
Wreathed in blazing flames, Nie Tian turned his head and summoned the orange flame spark. “Come here!”
At this moment, the Domain-corroding Flames that had chased after the Star Boat had already been completely consumed and refined.
Like a bright lantern, the flame spark whizzed to Nie Tian, flickering with a mysterious fiery light.
As soon as the flame spark arrived, doom fell upon the Domain-corroding Flames the Flame Dragon Armor had locked down in this area.
One cl.u.s.ter after another, they were consumed at an alarming rate.
The flame spark continued to swell and shrink like a man’s belly that undulated as he ate and digested food at a shockingly fast speed.
At this moment, the Fiend realized that he had lost all control over the Domain-corroding Flames.
Facing the joint attack of Jing Feiyang and many other experts, he fled in the direction he had come from, screaming miserably in the outsiders’ language as he did.
WHOOs.h.!.+ WHOOs.h.!.+ WHOOs.h.!.+ WHOOs.h.!.+
It wasn’t long before a group of Phantasms appeared in the distance where he was heading.
Almost all of them were at the eighth or ninth grade.
Only one was at the seventh grade.
It turned out to be an acquaintance of Nie Tian’s.
That handsome Phantasm stood atop a skull made of countless discarnate souls. Nie Tian’s image suddenly appeared in the prismatic crystal between his eyebrows.
Holding a grayish-brown skull in one hand, he said with a grim face, “It’s you?!”
Nie Tian went blank for a moment before suddenly recognizing the Phantasm. “Froste!”
Then, with a nasty grin, he said, “I didn’t think I’d run into you here. It was you who’s been secretly communicating with Qiu Hanshan from the Earth Spirit Sect about setting up Martial Sister Hou, right?”
He noticed the skull Froste was holding.
It and the one Qiu Hanshan had held were a set of Phantasm communication tools refined with their secret magics.
It was through the two halves of a discarnate soul that had been refined into them that Froste had communicated with Qiu Hanshan.
After hearing Nie Tian’s words, Froste realized that Nie Tian must have discovered Qiu Hanshan’s secret. “Meeting you here, I guess I miscalculated...”
He knew about the Spirit Pearl in Nie Tian’s hand better than anyone. He had suffered losses because of it back when they had their first encounter in the Shatter Battlefield.
“I’m curious as to whether Qiu Hanshan had worked with your people for a long time, or you persuaded him to work for you recently,” Nie Tian said aloud.
Froste snorted disdainfully. “Our connection goes way back, although our cooperation was limited to trades at first. But later, I told him that you killed Qiu Ji and the other Earth Spirit Sect disciples in the Shatter Battlefield. So you played a role in his rebellion as well. Of course, we also threatened to expose his connection with us over the years if he refused to work with us.
“After serious consideration, he eventually agreed to join our cause, and lure the Divine Daughter of the wood element sect of the Five Elements Sect to this place.”
Froste briefly explained the story behind Qiu Hanshan’s rebellion, and pointed out that Nie Tian killing his only son had played an important part in his rebellion.
“You sure are full of surprises, hybrid b.a.s.t.a.r.d,” Froste said with a frown. “It’s hard to believe that you actually found a way to deal with the Fiends’ Domain-corroding Flames. I thought that, with the help of the Domain-corroding Flames, we would have been able to take out your entire group without staining our blades with your filthy blood.”
He shook his head, looking rather pitiful.
Surprisingly, a battle didn’t break out right away.
As Froste’s subordinates arrived successively, the human experts that had been chasing after the Fiend held their place.
On the one hand, they were waiting for Hou Chulan and the other experts to arrive.
On the other hand, they knew that the Domain-corroding Flames hadn’t been completely cleansed yet. If they started a battle now, the remaining flames might still cause them trouble.
Meanwhile, Froste didn’t make any moves because he was waiting for the rest of his people to arrive.
Far less composed than Froste, the Fiend exclaimed, “Young monarch! My Domain-corroding Flames are being refined and consumed! Please give the order to fight now!”
Domain-corroding Flames were very precious and rare, even throughout the entire Fiend race. His heart ached as he watched them being absorbed by the orange flame spark.
“Considering that they’ve failed to play the role they’re supposed to, there’s no point in keeping them anymore. Let them perish.” Froste said coldly. “It was your words that with the help of those flames, I’d be able to kill any human force that dares to come here without breaking a sweat.
“Take a look for yourself. These Five Elements Sect disciples’ domains are only slightly damaged. They didn’t unravel a single domain!”
The Fiend fell indignant listening to his mocking words. “Young monarch, our Domain-corroding Flames have never failed before when fighting humans in the starry river. How could I know we’d encounter this freak who actually had something that can refine Domain-corroding Flames this time?”
Nie Tian’s expression flickered. “Young monarch...”
He hadn’t expected that Froste, who he had first met in the Shatter Battlefield, actually came from such a powerful background.
Only the descendants of tenth grade grand monarchs could be referred to as young monarchs.
Froste’s father must be a Phantasm grand monarch. No wonder he had so many powerful Phantasms as his subordinates.
“Froste, descendant of Grand Monarch Nether River…” Hou Chulan said softly. “I can’t believe it was you who instigated Qiu Hanshan to set me up.”
Nie Tian’s expression flickered with astonishment. “Grand Monarch Nether River?!”
Unlike Grand Monarch Dark Nether who had shown up in the Domain of Nether Heaven, Grand Monarch Nether River was generally regarded as the most powerful Phantasm!
While Grand Monarch Dark Nether was at the early tenth grade, Grand Monarch Nether River was said to have entered the late tenth grade a hundred thousand years ago!
Grand Monarch Nether River was also the Chief of the entire Phantasm race.
Even across the countless domains and numerous races in this starry river, Grand Monarch Nether River was a revered overlord.
Throughout the human race, only the sectmasters of the Ancient Fragmentary Star Palace, Void Spirit Society, Heaven Span Pavilion, and Five Elements Sect could match Grand Monarch Nether River in battle.
Even vice sectmasters like Luo Wanxiang couldn’t be placed on par with Grand Monarch Nether River.
Outsiders and humans had fundamental differences in rearing descendants.
Reproduction came easy to humans.
However, powerful human experts could have dozens of children, yet still not give birth to a single one with outstanding talent.
For that reason, none of the Ancient Fragmentary Star Palace, the Void Spirit Society, or the Heaven Span Pavilion chose future sectmasters from the children of their current sectmasters.
After all, the odds of powerful experts’ children to be talented were terrible.
Meanwhile, reproduction didn’t come easy to outsiders. The higher their grade, the harder it was for them to reproduce.
It was fairly easy for sixth and seventh grade outsiders to reproduce, but it was much more difficult for eighth and ninth grade outsiders to reproduce. It was even more difficult for tenth grade grand monarchs to reproduce.
However, every descendant of a tenth grade grand monarch would be born with incomparable talent.
Therefore, descendants of grand monarchs like Froste would enjoy much better odds at becoming grand monarchs themselves than lowborn Phantasms.
The prosperity of outsider clans had close connections to their ancestors’ bloodlines.
For this reason, ancient outsider clans would usually thrive over very long periods of time. The descendants of their grand monarchs would carry and pa.s.s on powerful bloodlines generation after generation.
As Grand Monarch Nether River’s descendant, Froste had great odds at becoming a Phantasm grand monarch after a few dozen millennia, as long as he didn’t die prematurely.
As Nie Tian’s train of thought came to this point, it suddenly occurred to him that Pergson the Bonebrute and Gutas the Demon, who he had met in the Shatter Battlefield, were probably grand monarch descendants as well.
“No wonder Pergson holds that unique treasure, the Bone Shatterer,” Nie Tian thought to himself. “Even the ninth grade Grand Patriarch Bone Crusher prioritized his safety in the Domain of Nether Heaven. His father must be a Bonebrute grand monarch, perhaps Grand Monarch Withered Bones.
“But my father who gave me this unique bloodline... Is he a human? Or a hybrid just like me? Thanks to my bloodline, I managed to emerge triumphant repeatedly, become a Son of the Stars, and earn my current reputation and strength.
“Grand Elder Mo Heng seemed to attach great importance to it after finis.h.i.+ng examining my Blood Essence. Did he find something?”