Folded the three ribs into the sutra, Xiao Yan struggled to calm the rapidly beating heart. As his gaze lifted, he saw the three figures—Zhai Xing, Huang Xuan, and Bing He—their aura of fierce determination surging forward. "Xiao Yan! Hand over the Battle-Saint's remains!" Zhai Xing roared, his body suddenly accelerating. With a powerful palm thrust, he clenched the space between himself and Xiao Yan, causing the surrounding space to collapse instantly, forming a crumpled prison. "Then take them." Purple-brown flames surged from Xiao Yan's body, shaking the collapsing space apart. With a simple point of his foot on the void, he swiftly retreated. At the same time, the Battle-Saint's remains, which he had been holding, were thrown with force into the air, landing in the astonished eyes of the onlookers. Seeing Xiao Yan actually hand over the Battle-Saint's remains, Zhai Xing was momentarily stunned, yet did not hesitate. He reached out and caught the remains once again in his palm. "Old ghost, devouring a single body alone is not a good practice!" As the old ghost's hand reached for the Saint of Battle's remains, two sharp voices suddenly echoed in his ears. Instantly, two large hands shot out from behind, seizing him firmly on the bone sea and pulling with tremendous force. "Crack!" Under this overwhelming force, the Saint's remains emitted a series of cracking sounds, trembling subtly throughout its entire body. "This is precisely what my Soul Temple seeks—how dare you interfere?" The old ghost's face turned stern, his single arm tightly gripping the remains, his internal qi surging wildly, channeling powerful strength into his palm. At the same time, he roared in anger. "Hmph. While others fear your Soul Temple, my Heavens' Phoenix Clan does not!" To the old ghost's challenge, the Phoenix Xuan sneered, increasing his grip rather than easing off. The space in his palm began to crack with fine, dark fissures. Master Ice River's gaze flickered, his face cold, and he paid no attention to the old ghost of Star-Plucking. Indeed, the Spirit Palace was powerful, but men die for wealth, birds for food. For this battle for the Saint's remains, could they truly afford to offend them? Should he obtain this relic, and later uncover the secrets of ascending to Saint rank, even the Spirit Palace would dare not challenge him. "Four Dao Saint-level masters, each at the peak of their strength, exerted their full power simultaneously. Even then, the Dao Saint's remains could not withstand the pressure. Amidst the stunned gazes of onlookers, a loud 'crash' echoed as the four were launched backward. The pale white skeleton shattered instantly, disintegrating into countless fragments that cascaded down from the sky. 'You've got to be kidding!' The Star-Plucking Ghost's face turned ashen upon seeing the skeleton destroyed. He glanced down at the skull and the arm he now held, his mouth twitching with frustration. His mission had been to return a complete Dao Saint skeleton—yet what he now had was merely a skull and a fragment of an arm. 'Dao Saint skeletons—seize them quickly!' As the skeletons fell from the sky, they spiraled down and landed across the plaza. The once-disheartened masters, now seeing this, burst into joy. One after another, they leapt into the air, rushing to grab the scattered bones with renewed vigor." Xiao Yan watched this scene and was also stunned. He had only pulled out three slender ribs, yet these people were even more determined, tearing the bone fragments right into pieces. "Yet looking at the old star-wielder's expression, it seems he is unaware that the bone remains of a Battle Saint conceal a Heavenly Rank Battle Technique. Otherwise, he wouldn't have left them so untouched." Xiao Yan glanced at the old star-wielder, gripping the skull and arm, his face stern and furrowed, and found himself thinking deeply. "Perhaps when the Spirit Palace's master was assigned this task, he wasn't told about the secret of the Heavenly Rank Battle Technique." Xiao Yan blinked his eyes, a quiet chuckle forming in his mind. The Heavenly Rank Battle Technique had been hidden so well—had it not been for his good fortune in suddenly spotting it, he would never have imagined that the technique was embedded within the three ribs of the bone remains. "Still, these Battle Saint bone remains are quite valuable. Even if they can't obtain a complete set, they must secure at least a portion." Regarding the durability of these remains, Xiao Yan had personally experienced it—he had only managed to snap three of the most slender ribs by relying on the scorching heat of three thousand lotus-heart flames, and even then, he had to exert his full strength. Even so, he could only manage to break them; if he wanted to shatter them completely, he would likely be completely helpless. As his gaze swept across the sky, Xiao Yan quickly locked onto a relatively thicker fragment of bone, which appeared to be a right arm of the remains. This section was notably harder than the rest and had sustained only minor damage. However, the interest in this arm was not solely his own—several other powerful figures had also clearly identified it as their target, swiftly converging upon it with determined movements. "Hey..." Seeing this, Xiao Yan couldn't help but smile. With a subtle tap of his foot against the void, silver glimmers flashed across his palm, and in an instant, he materialized like a ghost right at the bone arm, seizing it effortlessly with his hand. "Shh!" The sudden intervention of Xiao Yan caused the powerful fighter, who had been charging straight toward the bone arm, to momentarily stagger, steadying himself midair. His expression grew slightly somber, but recalling Xiao Yan's strength and the presence of the young healer nearby, the fighters could only grit their teeth, reluctantly turning and swiftly moving toward the scattered bone fragments. Glancing at these determinedly retreating figures, Xiao Yan gently weighed the bone arm in his hand. It wasn't heavy at all—quite light and delicate. Up close now, he noticed something remarkable: the bones bore an unusual, naturally formed pattern, faintly glowing with a luminous radiance, truly extraordinary. Xiao Yan gazed at the bone arm, pondered for a moment, then suddenly flicked his finger— a slender streak of purple-brown flame emerged at his fingertip and was gently placed beneath the bone. Since the bone itself was naturally pale jade-white, and with the reflection of the flame, it seemed to become translucent, revealing faintly within it a substance that flowed like liquid. "This... is the essence of a Battle Saint?" Seeing such a subtle liquid, Xiao Yan's hand trembled slightly. Perhaps... the old ghost tasked with gathering stars had been seeking this very thing. "There should be such a liquid within each of these bones..." Noticing this, Xiao Yan swiftly turned around, gazing at the scattered bone fragments falling across the plaza. With a sweeping motion of his robe, a sudden surge of suction erupted, drawing numerous bone fragments toward him. Xiao Yan's actions naturally stirred considerable dissatisfaction among the powerful figures. However, as they glared at him, the small healers and their companions suddenly moved, materializing in the air and encircling Xiao Yan. The impressive array of strength instantly dispelled their doubts. Xiao Yan gazed carefully at the floating bone fragments before him, inspecting them closely, and found that not all of the bones contained the essence of a Battle Saint. Nevertheless, after careful selection, he identified four bone fragments that showed traces of liquid presence, and gently placed them into his storage relic. These items might prove useful in the future—anything left behind by a Battle Saint was a rare treasure indeed. Casually tossed aside the bone fragments lacking the essence of Saint-level combat, Xiao Yan swept his gaze across the sky and noticed the old man known as the Star-Plucking Ghost gathering bone fragments with a steadily darkening expression. Those fortunate enough to secure bone fragments had become his targets as well; under forceful seizure, they were left furious, some even being knocked unconscious on the spot. Witnessing the old man's ruthless demeanor, the stronger individuals who had collected bone fragments on the plaza hurriedly stepped back in alarm. After pursuing several such individuals, the Star-Plucking Ghost found his harvest unsatisfactory. With a shift of his somber gaze, he now turned directly toward Xiao Yan in the sky. Xiao Yan smiled slightly, curled his finger and lightly tapped—it was then that three clusters of unusual flames slowly emerged before him. To the eyes of Zhai Xing, the three flames of different hues caused his expression to shift between calm and agitation. His lips twitched several times, his anger nearly overwhelming his composure, yet ultimately he managed to hold back. Now, Xiao Yan had already ascended to the level of Battle Sovereign, and with his equally strong companions, even if Zhai Xing gave his full strength, he would still come up short. Moreover… the sheer power of Xiao Yan’s terrifying fire lotus still left him with a lingering sense of awe. Last time, if not for his timely summoning of the Black and White Sovereigns at the final moment, he truly would have perished at Xiao Yan’s hands. "Zhai Xing, here's an offer for cooperation—would you like it?" As Zhai Xing weighed his chances of victory, a cold smile spread across the face of the Phoenix Pavilion, who spoke out loud with confidence. Hearing the old monster speak, Xiao Yan's expression immediately darkened—had the heavenly phoenix clan finally reached their limit? "What kind of cooperation?" the star-gathering old ghost said calmly. "We'll team up to capture this young man. In return, I'll give you the Saint Bone Remains. All I need is one thing taken from them—something vital to me..." said Huang Xuan with a cold smile. The Dragon-Phoenix Primordial Fruit was of utmost importance to the heavenly phoenix clan. No matter what it took, they would absolutely have to secure it today! Upon hearing this, the star-gathering old ghost narrowed his eyes, and after a moment, fixed a scornful and venomous gaze upon Xiao Yan in the sky, then gently nodded. "Very well. Deal made."