“I wonder who exactly is going to win! Who’s going to be eliminated!? Even the top 16 experts have no way of knowing!”
“The thing I’m most curious about is whether that Fang Mu will be able to enter the top 8!”
In the starry sky palace, the Patriarchs were also paying close attention.
By this point, many people had already forgotten about the main reason why the arena matches of the trial by fire were being held to begin with. Whoever took first place would have a chance to be taken in by the Three Great Daoist Sects as a disciple. The three Patriarchs from the Three Great Daoist Societies did nothing to remind anyone of this.
It was almost as if the taking of disciples wasn’t very important at all.
Light glittered in front of Meng Hao and next, he was standing on a light green leaf. In front of him, a thin, emaciated figure appeared.
Although he was skinny, amorphous flames spread out around him as he walked forward. They were invisible, but Meng Hao could feel them, as if what was walking toward him was not a cultivator, but a flame Devil!
Within his eyes, flames could be seen flickering. He wore a long black robe, and his hair floated around him. He stood there, his energy surging, growing more and more powerful. In the blink of an eye, the air around him began to ripple and distort.
This was the Chosen from the Bones of the Flamedevil, one of the Five Holy Lands… Chen Hao!
Back in the ten stages of the trial by fire, the masked Li Yan had repeatedly performed just behind Meng Hao. He had been defeated by Chen Hao, although he had ended up seriously wounding Chen Hao in the process.
Meng Hao looked at him calmly, and Chen Hao looked back at him.
Neither of them spoke. The flames in Chen Hao’s eyes burned bright, and the air around him distorted as the invisible flames burned. The flames seemed capable of scorching anything and everything as they shot toward Meng Hao.
No observer could see the fire, but by using divine sense, Meng Hao was able to sense them clearly. What he saw was an illusory body of flames rushing toward him.
“This is not the fire of the five elements!” Meng Hao thought, his eyes glittering. The fire of the five elements was a natural law of Heaven and Earth. In fact, the fire wielded by the young woman from the Five Colors Sect had contained that natural law. However, the flames unleashed by Chen Hao from the Bones of the Flamedevil had no natural law, but instead, a strange will!
After examining it closely for a moment, he realized that it seemed to be bound by some sort of summoning contract, as if… some all-powerful being had bestowed the power of the flames. It was as if this flame was actually a type of life force flame.
Meng Hao’s expression was normal as he clenched his right hand into a fist. As soon as he punched out, a vortex appeared, which sent ripples spreading out. Explosive rumbling could be heard as it slammed into the flames, and was then completely submerged by them.
“Eee?” said Meng Hao, falling back for the first time. Chen Hao’s eyes overflowed with the desire to fight, and as Meng Hao retreated, he advanced, performing an incantation gesture that caused more roaring flames to appear around him. Shockingly, they transformed into the shape of an enormous mouth that bit toward Meng Hao.
The sight of Meng Hao retreating caused quite a stir in the outside world. This was the first time they had ever seen him back up in a fight.
However, as the flame mouth closed in on him, Meng Hao stopped in place and set his jaw. A look of anticipation gleamed in his eyes as he performed an incantation gesture. Then, he punched out repeatedly, using the Nine Heavens Destruction once again.
Booms rattled out in all directions as Meng Hao then transformed into a vulture that shot toward Chen Hao like black lightning. Chen Hao’s face fell, and he performed an incantation gesture. Immediately, a set of flaming armor appeared around him. He reached out with his right hand in a grasping motion, causing an enormous flame spear to materialize. His hands closed around it, and he stabbed it toward the incoming Meng Hao.
The scream of the spear was ear-splitting, and countless erupting volcanos appeared around it as it shot toward Meng Hao in shocking fashion.
Meng Hao snorted coldly as mountains of his own appeared and linked together into an equally shocking mountain range, although it appeared as a huge river to onlookers. It slammed into the volcanoes, causing a huge boom to rise into the air. It was at this point that Meng Hao’s shocking Dharma Idol appeared behind him.
In that instant, Chen Hao tilted his back and roared. His own incredible Dharma Idol appeared, a corpse which was covered in scales and emanated black flames. It immediately began to contend with Meng Hao’s Dharma Idol.