348 Life Fires
Although Xu Qing had never truly fought against six fires, he was well aware of it and could even imagine it.
This was because he understood that at the Foundation Building realm, the appearance of every ball of fire would cause the cultivator’s combat strength to increase drastically.
Many times, he even felt that every additional ball of life fire in Foundation Building was like when he broke through to Foundation Building. It was as though he had crossed a major realm.
Xu Qing didn’t know if there were other worlds outside the starry sky of this world. If there were, would the various races in those worlds cultivate like them?
Were they also cultivating life fires at the Foundation Building realm? And, experiencing such a huge change with every additional life fire?
This was because Xu Qing felt that the difference between cultivators in the Foundation Building realm was too great.
For example, four fires could suppress and kill three fires easily unless the other party had an astonishing treasure. Moreover, this difference couldn’t be offset by quantity. This was completely different from when the cultivators were at Qi Condensation.
It was the same logic for six fires suppressing five fires.
At that moment, Xu Qing could only sense that Saintly Star had moved. However, he couldn’t see the other party’s figure at all.
Even though the three balls of life fire in his body rose and the power of the life lantern formed, and there was the physical strength enhancement from the Golden Crow, he could only barely see the blurry afterimage of Saintly Star appearing in front of him at an incomparably astonishing speed.
At the next instant, an extremely terrifying fluctuation that shattered the surroundings erupted in front of him.
A rumbling sound rang out, and Xu Qing’s entire body trembled violently. His body was sent flying like a kite with a broken string. His face was pale and blood flowed from his mouth, but he didn’t suffer any other injuries.
Outside his body, a light barrier was formed the moment Saintly Star arrived, forming a protective barrier that blocked this terrifying six-fire attack!
“So you’re relying on Nascent Soul protection. However, this protection is dim. How long can it last?” Saintly Star calmly spoke. He looked at Xu Qing and retracted his palm.
Xu Qing’s body landed on the ground and continued to be pushed back, leaving a long mark. He only stopped when he was hundreds of feet away. When he lifted his head and looked at Saintly Star, his gaze was icy cold.
At this moment, Xu Qing personally experienced how strong Saintly Star was. The feeling the other party gave him was basically no different from when the Starfish Race’s patriarch revealed his Golden Core cultivation.
It was the same speed and explosive power.
It was natural for the few highnesses of the First Peak to not be able to resist such combat strength and be defeated in one move.
Clearly, if they were in the outside world and not in the Seven Blood Eyes, they wouldn’t just be defeated but killed.
As such, Xu Qing was very clear that even with his current combat strength of five fires, if he didn’t have the protection of the jade slip Lord Sixth had given him, he would have died in that instant just now. Even the purple crystal would have no time to heal him.
The terror of the six fires wasn’t just these. The little black bugs that Xu Qing released could still only hide outside Saintly Star’s body and couldn’t break through the invisible defense formed by the power of his life lantern.
“In that case, the six fires… is equivalent to the power of the Golden Core with a heavenly palace?” Xu Qing recalled that when he read the information about Sima Ru from the Bizarre Hunting Sect, it had mentioned the heavenly palace.
Currently, he was no longer unfamiliar with the Golden Core realm. He knew that the Golden Core cultivated the Heavenly Palace and not just one.
For example, Sima Ru was in closed-door cultivation trying to form a second heavenly palace.
“Heavenly Palace Golden Core Realm. One palace is six fires?” Xu Qing fell into deep thought.
If outsiders were to hear what Xu Qing was thinking right now, they would be astonished.
This was because Xu Qing actually didn’t have the slightest worry at this moment. He even had the time to consider the power of the Golden Core’s heavenly palace.
“Interesting. You’re actually in the mood to think? In that case, let’s see how many times your protection can last.”
Saintly Star calmly took a step forward. One could only see afterimages as he directly arrived in front of Xu Qing and slapped out again.
However, this time around, Xu Qing counterattacked.
The instant the other party’s palm landed, the 92 magic apertures in Xu Qing’s body instantly rose, forming a piercing fiery light that shone outside. He then performed a series of hand seals with both hands and pressed forward.
With this push, a wisp of remnant soul in his magic aperture was released by Xu Qing.
Immediately, a rumbling sound echoed. Saintly Star’s speed was too fast and he directly appeared beside Xu Qing. He lifted his right hand and waved it indifferently. Xu Qing’s entire body trembled violently. As the jade slip’s protection trembled intensely, his body was sent flying again.
However, the remnant soul he had released earlier seemed to have some instinct. After it appeared, it headed straight for Saintly Star, emitting greed and madness.
“Too weak.” Saintly Star shook his head and waved his right hand to the side, wanting to erase the remnant soul.
However, the instant his right hand came into contact with the remnant soul, the greed in the remnant soul increased greatly. It actually ignored Saintly Star’s attack and drilled fiercely into his right hand.
This remnant soul was none other than the soul of the Bizarre Fiend Race that hadn’t died after Xu Qing captured and tortured it until now.
This race was mysterious and innately possessed a method of possession. Even though Saintly Star had the life lantern to protect him, it protected his body, not his soul.
Hence, the soul of the Bizarre Fiend Race ignored the protective barrier and entered Saintly Star’s body, crazily surging toward his soul, wanting to devour it.
“Interesting.” Saintly Star’s expression didn’t change at all, but the eyes of Miemeng bird behind him revealed disdain. It let out a cry before spreading its wings and pecked fiercely at Saintly Star’s body!
Its body was illusory and this peck directly passed through Saintly Star’s body. With a mournful cry, the remnant soul of the Bizarre Fiend Race, which had been tortured by Xu Qing for a long time and was incomparably fragile, was pecked and swallowed.
There seemed to be a black hole in Miemeng. After the remnant soul of the Bizarre Fiend Race was swallowed, it was suppressed in the black hole, preventing it from escaping. It kept on crying and screaming.
From the start to the end, Saintly Star’s expression didn’t fluctuate at all. It was as though this remnant soul was insignificant to him. He turned his head and looked at Xu Qing in the distance. He shook his head.
“Do you have any other methods? If not, the moment your protection collapses will be the moment of your death.”
“You’re very talkative.” Xu Qing licked the blood from the corner of his mouth. His eyes were cold as he calmly spoke.
Saintly Star didn’t speak. He lifted his right foot and was about to land it.
However, at this moment, his body suddenly trembled and his expression changed for the first time. He lowered his head and saw the last magic aperture out of the 120 magic apertures in his body; at some point in time, a shadow had appeared on it!
This shadow was like a living creature. At this moment, it crazily filled the magic aperture. Its speed was so fast that almost the instant Saintly Star’s expression changed and he sensed it, it had already covered the last one of the 120 magic apertures.
It was completely blocked!!
As this magic aperture was blocked, the fourth ball of life fire in Saintly Star’s body suddenly dimmed. Even the light on his body dimmed a little.
Moreover, this wasn’t over. In just three breaths of time, the fourth ball of life fire in Saintly Star’s body was extinguished!!
A ball of life fire was supported by 30 magic apertures. This was an eternal law of the Foundation Building realm.
No one was an exception. 119 magic apertures couldn’t support four balls of life fire!
This was the reason why Xu Qing dared to attack previously and even had the time to think about the Golden Core combat strength of the Heavenly Palace when facing Saintly Star who had the combat strength of six fires.
This was the greatest weakness of these heaven’s chosens from the Seven Sects Alliance after he studied them!
As long as one of their magic apertures was blocked or destroyed, the other party’s combat strength would instantly decrease by a ball of life fire.
The thing that could achieve this was the shadow that could extinguish life fires. No matter how strong Saintly Star’s cultivation was, the shadow could suppress one of his magic apertures by going all out!
This was Xu Qing’s method!
At that moment, as the shadow crazily adhered to the magic aperture like a plaster and desperately blocked it, the life fires in Saintly Star’s body went from four balls to three balls.
His expression turned gloomy. However, regardless of whether it was Miemeng’s attack or his life lantern’s fire, they couldn’t expel the shadow.
He understood how it appeared.
It had hidden in the remnant soul from before and entered his body. The remnant soul was only a cover to attract his attention. As for Miemeng, it only expelled the remnant soul and didn’t sense this shadow.
Hence, the shadow got this chance.
“Such a method…” Saintly Star looked at Xu Qing as killing intent flashed in his eyes.
“So what?”
“The weak are ultimately the weak. Even if I lose one life fire, I can still suppress you with the power of the five fires!” The combat strength of five fires erupted as he charged toward Xu Qing.
However, this time around, the killing intent in Xu Qing’s eyes was completely released.
This was because he could see all of the other party’s movements clearly. The other party’s speed was now the same as his. Hence, Xu Qing also moved.
His speed was extremely fast, like lightning. In the blink of an eye, he came into contact with Saintly Star in the mid-air.
Saintly Star’s eyes narrowed. Xu Qing’s speed surprised him.
He slapped down with his right hand. Xu Qing’s expression was calm and his eyes were cold as he punched out. As the two of them crossed paths, Saintly Star let out a cold snort. He performed a series of hand seals and flicked his sleeve; immediately, a huge force spread out and his fingers stabbed toward Xu Qing’s eyes.
Xu Qing’s left hand formed a seal and a dagger manifested, slashing at Saintly Star’s neck.
Saintly Star kicked toward Xu Qing. Xu Qing dodged it and leaped up, heading straight for Saintly Star’s chest. At the same time, he waved his hands and fiendish fire erupted in all directions.
A sharp glint appeared in Saintly Star’s eyes. He clenched his hands and smashed them down.
A loud sound rang out like a large bell!
A series of rumbling sounds continuously erupted in all directions, causing the weather to change and the world to tremble.
Xu Qing and Saintly Star’s figures couldn’t be seen clearly by outsiders. They could only hear rumbling sounds and terrifying fluctuations that kept exploding. Countless buildings on the ground kept collapsing, as though an invisible hand was sweeping over them.
It was incomparably intense.
At the next instant, Saintly Star’s figure appeared in the air and retreated by more than 100 feet. A hint of surprise appeared in his eyes as he stared fixedly at Xu Qing and suddenly spoke.
“There is something wrong with your body!”