The billowing flames ignited the buildings along the street, creating a sea of fire where the directions east, west, south, and north were indistinguishable amid the rolling smoke.


    The crackling sound of fracturing wood, occasionally accompanied by leaping flames, added to the hellish quality of the city.


    "What the hell is that?"


    Shi Jian’s face looked extremely grim as he hurriedly fled through the crevices of the fire. The temperature in the air had already exceeded a hundred degrees, but it still hadn’t affected him.


    Previously, he had used the corpse control technique and deliberately used the Qi Redirecting Talisman to fix his own Qi onto the animated corpse, simply as a test to see if there were any experts around.


    But how could he have known that such a ghostly thing would appear!


    Pioneer?


    Damn it!


    When he heard that voice that had killed Shao Jian, Shi Jian, anxious for his loved one, was naturally moved and touched, but a pull of Qi in the next moment told him something was wrong.


    But the other party was already heading in his direction to kill him!


    "Damn it, if my injuries were healed, how could I let you run amok like this!"


    Shi Jian’s face flushed slightly, and involuntarily, he held his ribs as he ran faster.


    But he heard ’bang~’ ’bang~’ collision sounds behind him.


    It seemed as if the opponent had charged straight into the fire, smashing through the buildings along the way. Combined with the oppressive feeling of being locked in by Unity of Heaven and Man, Shi Jian could only let out a helpless sigh.


    He launched two talismans and stuck them on his legs, instantly increasing his speed.


    "Still running?"


    Tao Yu was somewhat surprised that the distance between them was actually growing.


    But in the next instant, his face, under Demonization, turned fierce, and his entire body started to be enveloped by black mist, while Inherent Time Control with double Acceleration kicked in!


    Whoosh~


    Tao Yu closed the gap with a speed that made Shi Jian find hard to believe.


    The strange sense of distortion instantly caused Shi Jian’s face to change drastically.


    "The power of time? How is that possible!"


    Once he felt that speed, he knew he couldn’t escape, and immediately his face turned vicious as he bit his tongue.


    Spurt~


    A spray of blood shot into the void, seemingly solidifying in the air. Then he raised his hand and rotated it into the blood mist ahead of him, and bolts of lightning began to burst from his body.


    First came the blue lightning, which then turned into blood-red lightning!


    In the sky above, dark clouds covered the firmament, with the shape of lightning serpents moving within them.


    Strong winds appeared, further fueling the fire within the city!


    Shi Jian, his body flickering with lightning, released a pre-charged strike ahead of time, and a sky thunder in the heavens also synchronized with his attack, both bolts of lightning slamming heavily onto the Black Iron Heavy Sword.


    But what followed was a silence so profound that all things fell quiet, and the world fell into stillness!


    An extreme sense of deadly crisis enveloped Shi Jian’s heart, and then it exploded with a thunderous boom.


    Bang~


    Shi Jian, now only half a body, charred, was blasted dozens of feet away, crashing into a burning attic and being buried amidst it.


    Meanwhile, Tao Yu, without any pause, picked up the Black Iron Heavy Sword, now even more refined and gleaming from the sky thunder, and charged into the flames with his Demonization body and protective True Yuan.


    With a casual flick, he lifted the burning structural beam blocking his path, sending fiery fragments scattering in all directions.


    Tao Yu also saw Shi Jian, whose body was blackened and reduced to only half.


    Even in this state, Shi Jian’s body still flickered with bursts of lightning, a display of strength that even Tao Yu found astonishing.


    He himself could not even take one of his own minor three-fold strikes.


    How could this guy still be clinging to life, and even have some strength left?


    "Cough cough... Who would’ve thought, I’d end up like this..."


    Even on Shi Jian’s charred face, one could still see an expression of decline, as if reflecting on something.


    "Be wary of Ai..."


    Splat~


    Tao Yu didn’t give him the chance to speak further, ending him with a single sword strike.


    But then he paused, wondering if the guy was trying to warn him about something?


    Be wary of Ace? The Pirate King?


    That’s impossible, why should I be wary of him?


    But he didn’t finish his words, he might have only mentioned a part of a name...


    Feeling the Yuan Force starting to gather on the corpse, Tao Yu confirmed that the man was dead.


    "Considering the circumstances, his strength was truly formidable; to take a minor three-fold strike and not die immediately, his peak strength must have been greater than mine."


    As the Yuan Force gathered, Tao Yu tore away the charred and tattered remnants of his clothing to find a severely damaged ancient text tucked inside.


    "He actually had a secret manual on him? What a pity."


    Tao Yu felt regret, but it was impossible to hold back against such an adversary.


    However, he then discovered with some surprise that the Yuan Force was actually moving towards the very small remnants of the charred secret manual.


    He swiftly picked it up in his hands.


    [Fragmented Maoshan Sect Daoist Arts]: Contains a complete Lightning Rushing Thunder Fist, along with a small amount of fragmented spells and legacy, can absorb ten thousand Yuan Force...


    When one door closes, another opens...