Not long after the strange runes appeared upon the thousand-burning-heat flame's forehead, Xiao Yan, filled with exhilaration, noticed that the dragon seal in his palm was gradually warming up. At the same time, a remarkably subtle sense of awareness suddenly surfaced within his heart. Shortly after this sense emerged, Xiao Yan paused, his gaze fixed upon the thousand-burning-heat flame, and for the first time, he seemed to faintly perceive the latter's emotions. "Roar!" As Xiao Yan was stunned by these changes, the Three Thousand Yan Fire, which had momentarily gone blank due to the appearance of the runes, also regained its clarity. Now it seemed to have understood something—cold, fierce glimmers surged from its dragon eyes, locking onto Xiao Yan with unwavering intensity. The runes on its forehead grew steadily brighter. Faced with the fierce gaze of the Three Thousand Yan Fire, Xiao Yan felt a sudden chill in his heart. He knew that the most dangerous moment was approaching. As Zǐ Yán had said, the Dragon Seal was relative—should he fail to control the Three Thousand Yan Fire, it would take control of him. And that, Xiao Yan absolutely could not allow. "Then come," Xiao Yan said, "I'd like to see just how fierce you can be." "At this point, it's a matter of life and death—Xiao Yan is no pushover either. His eyes flash with fierce determination; he has already absorbed two distinct hetero-flames. Can he possibly be defeated by this Three-Thousand-Yan-Flame today?" "Roar!" The Three-Thousand-Yan-Flame lets out a thunderous dragon-like roar, and the runes on its forehead burst forth with a brilliant golden glow, shining like a radiant golden sun rising steadily in this otherwise empty realm. As the golden light from the runes on the Three-Thousand-Yan-Flame grows ever more brilliant, Xiao Yan's subtle sense of intuition deepens. After a while, his vision blurs, and his spirit grows momentarily disoriented. When he regains consciousness, he finds himself in a completely unfamiliar space—surrounded by an endless expanse of purple-black flames, with himself at the very heart of it all. "Stupid human!" Within the deep indigo flame realm, a furious roar of dragon's voice suddenly echoed, followed by a gust of strong wind. Gradually, an exceptionally massive dragon emerged from the roaring fire, ascending into the sky and coiling there, its gaze cold and fixed upon Xiao Yan within the flames. Xiao Yan's eyes remained locked on the colossal dragon, its entire body shimmering with waves of indigo and black fire. After a moment, he drew in a deep breath of scorching air, and instantly understood—this was the soul realm of the Three Thousand Yan Fire, where the dragon sought to claim dominance over the Dragon Seal and thus control him. "A soul confrontation, then," Xiao Yan murmured. He raised his hand, glanced at it—slightly ethereal—and his face remained calm. With a subtle mental effort, a vast expanse of soul energy formed a lotus seat beneath him. Sitting cross-legged, his dark eyes fixed steadily on the Three Thousand Yan Fire within the flames, he coldly declared, "You base creature, show me what you've got!" "Roar!" "Heard this, the Three Thousand Yan Flame instantly roared in fury. Under the force of that roar, the deep purple and black flames within this space surged wildly, then poured forth in overwhelming waves toward Xiao Yan, creating a truly terrifying spectacle. Facing the relentless assault of the Three Thousand Yan Flame, Xiao Yan remained remarkably calm. At such a moment, it was not merely a battle of souls, but one of willpower—whichever one endured until the end would claim victory. Through years of training, Xiao Yan had cultivated an unshakable composure and calm resolve. Should the contest truly come down to a clash of wills, the outcome remained uncertain. As the deep purple and black flames surged toward him, a gentle ring of emerald flames gradually expanded from within Xiao Yan's body, eventually forming a complete, protective dome that fully encased him, standing firm as if a mountain, unyielding against the relentless onslaught." This decisive clash that would determine the fate of both parties has only just begun... In the void space, Gao Ying and the others at a distance stared with growing tension and bewilderment. There, Xiao Yan had suddenly ceased all his movements, and his eyes had closed completely. What was even more astonishing was that the purple-black fire dragon before him—normally so fierce—had also fallen into an eerie stillness, its body simply hovering in midair. If it weren't for the subtle pulses of vitality still emanating from both Xiao Yan and the dragon, everyone would have thought they had suddenly lost all life. "Heard this, Cao Ying's face slightly changed, her spirit engaged in a fierce inner struggle. Typically, only when one's spiritual strength reaches a certain level can such a confrontation occur; yet this battle is exceptionally intense—any lapse could inflict irreparable damage on the spirit, even leading to a gradual weakening of spiritual power over time. Thus, even among the truly powerful in spiritual strength, such soul battles are rarely undertaken without hesitation." "Now, worrying won't help. At this moment, disturbing any one of them would result in a counter-effect, with severe consequences. We can only wait for it to resolve naturally," Dan Chen said. Cao Ying furrowed her brows tightly, yet found no alternative but to silently sigh within herself. When Cao Ying and the others noticed the unusual state of Xiao Yan and the Three Thousand Yan Fire, the elder Mu Gu and the others also sensed it immediately, all of them pausing in surprise. Though they didn't understand why Xiao Yan and the Three Thousand Yan Fire had suddenly begun a soul-level confrontation, they clearly realized that now was the optimal moment to act. As long as they broke the soul standoff between Xiao Yan and the Three Thousand Yan Fire, both would inevitably suffer backlash—achieving a dual benefit. "You hold him there—I'll take the lead!" The elder Mu Gu's eyes flashed with determination as he gritted his teeth and declared. Upon hearing this, the black-robed elder who had been struggling fiercely against Qilong hesitated only briefly before firmly nodding his agreement. Their time was running out. If they failed to secure any gains, they would have no choice but to retreat. Seeing this, the Mu Gu elder immediately launched himself backward, retreating from the battle circle. As he seemed intent on escaping, Qiu Ling's expression darkened, and just as he prepared to pursue, the once-weakened Black Robe Sovereign suddenly erupted into a wildly frenzied counteroffensive, forcing Qiu Ling to focus his attention. "Cao Ying, hold him!" With the Black Robe Sovereign desperately dragging him, Qiu Ling's face grew pale and he urgently shouted. Upon hearing his command, Cao Ying and the others quickly nodded and moved—yet at that very moment, the two soul palace masters who had initially blended into the top ten swiftly darted forward, intercepting the three of them instantly. With their forces now fully engaged, the group could only watch helplessly as the Mu Gu elder swiftly charged toward Xiao Yan and the Three Thousand Yan Flames. "Hah! Xiao Yan, you've indeed provided me with a splendid opportunity," he chuckled. Gazing at Xiao Yan and the three thousand焱fire flames now mere steps away, Master Mu Bone's eyes flashed a cold, grim smile. Deep blue flames surged violently from his palm, and he delivered a resounding blow directly onto Xiao Yan's forehead. "Crack!" As Master Mu Bone launched his decisive attack, an unexpectedly powerful and vast surge of force suddenly tore through the void, crashing straight into his chest. "Pfft!" The sudden impact caused Master Mu Bone's face to pale instantly, and he spat out a thick stream of blood. His eyes widened in shock, his voice sharp with astonishment, "Xuan Kongzi?" "The efforts of the Hún Palace are truly impressive—such a large contingent of elite warriors has been dispatched this time..." As Master Mu Bone's voice trailed off, a calm, elderly, and resonant voice slowly echoed through the void, filling the otherwise empty space. With the sound's emergence, the stillness of the space subtly rippled, and then, gradually, a figure emerged. "The external delays have failed... Retreat!" Seeing it was Xuan Kong Zi, Master Mu Gu's eyes narrowed instantly. He gritted his teeth and decisively roared. With Xuan Kong Zi now present, their chances were truly gone. As soon as he spoke, Master Mu Gu swiftly pulled out a silver jade scroll from his storage amulet and shattered it without hesitation. A powerful surge of spatial energy erupted, forming a dark spatial rift. Even as Xuan Kong Zi appeared, the other three Honored Masters of the Soul Palace were equally startled. Without needing any further prompting from Master Mu Gu, the silver scroll materialized and, upon being crushed, several spatial rifts quickly emerged. "Since you've come, let's also make a few lasting memories..." With the four Soul Palace Masters fleeing so hurriedly, Xuan Kong Zi's face briefly flashed a cold smile. He clenched his fist and delivered a solid punch toward them, aimed through the air. "Pfft!" A single punch struck the void, and as space shattered, four remarkably terrifying intangible palm imprints pierced through the emptiness, landing upon the chests of the four figures in an exceedingly strange, erratic trajectory. Instantly, the sound of fractured bones echoed, and from each of the four, a gush of crimson blood mingled with fragments of internal organs erupted before they were violently driven headlong into the space rift, vanishing entirely. With just one strike, all four Douzun-level warriors were utterly defeated—truly a force worthy of being one of the three pillars of Dan Tower. Even at first glance, the four Douzun-level champions of Houn Palace were driven back in awe. As Xuangongzi prepared to speak, his expression suddenly changed—he observed the immense, dark purple and black dragon hovering in the void, which at that very moment suddenly expanded, its dark purple flames erupting continuously like those of a volcano. "The three thousand blazing flames are about to erupt..." gazing at the rapidly expanding dragon body, even Xuan Kongzi's composure could not help but let out a quiet breath of cool air.