"Don't worry, I won't let you down..." At the hoarse voice of the Bone Immortal Saint, Xiao Yan's face flickered with a cold smile. He slightly raised his hand, and the exquisite fire lotus, displaying five distinct colors, began to spin more swiftly. "Xun, step back a bit..." Xiao Yan turned to Xun, aware that the destructive force of the blazing fire lotus was overwhelming. Should she get too close, even he would struggle to withstand it. "Yes, Brother Xiao Yan, be careful." Xun nodded gently. With her keen senses, she could clearly sense the immense power of the fire lotus in Xiao Yan's hands, so she didn't hesitate—she moved swiftly and stepped back. "We should also step back further." Seeing Xun approach, Gu Qinqiang waved his hand and then, with a serious expression, led the group to retreat to a safe distance. "Xiao Yan, this might be your first encounter with a half-Saint-level powerhouse?" Then, allow me to reveal to you the immense chasm that exists between a Battle Sovereign and a Battle Saint... The black skeletal eyes gleam, and a hoarse, cold voice slowly unfolds. Xiao Yan offers a faint smile, bends his finger, and with a flick of his wrist, the Destroying Fire Lotus in his hand suddenly spins at high speed. After a brief moment, it swiftly condenses into a streak of fiery brilliance, bursting forth from the palm of Xiao Yan. Along its path, there is not a single sound, yet the space it traverses quietly collapses, leaving behind a rapidly emerging trail of vast, dark spatial imprints. Though the Destroying Fire Lotus does not produce a thunderous or dramatic impact, to true masters, this seemingly elegant bloom appears no less than a death's scythe—exuding an overwhelming sense of mortality. "Hmm…" Two pools of glowing green light, deep within sunken eyes, fixed upon the flaming lotus that had shattered the void ahead of it, slowly exhaling black mist from its mouth. "Ten-thousand-Souls Bone Armor!" A hoarse, elderly voice issued from the black skeleton, and at once, thick plumes of black mist surged forth from within its body in overwhelming waves, echoing with piercing, desperate cries. Clearly, these misty tendrils were formed from countless condensed souls. These souls, as soon as they appeared, adhered completely to the skeleton's body. With the influx of countless souls came a surge of dark light, and ultimately, a set of black-gleaming bone armor formed upon the black skeleton's body. On this armor, countless fine bone plates were embedded, each bearing a fierce, grim face. From a distance, these individual faces subtly coalesced into a vast, colossal face stretching ten zhang in width—this face, etched with expressions of profound suffering, was so haunting that it sent chills down the spines of onlookers. "The hoarse voice of the Bone Sage had just finished, and beneath the watchful gaze of his green-tinged eyes, the flame lotus suddenly surged forward, finally colliding powerfully against the massive bone armor under the collective gaze of all present. 'Boom!' At the very instant of impact, the heavens grew utterly still—so still that even the sound of the wind seemed to vanish completely. Yet this silence lasted only a moment. Then, a thunderous explosion, powerful enough to shake the very heavens, erupted suddenly in the sky. A colossal flame storm, stretching a thousand zhang in width, surged forth from the point of impact. The vast expanse of space shattered into countless dark voids. A fierce gale poured down from above, carrying sand and toppling stones. Everyone could clearly see the ground within a thousand zhang radius being violently scoured away, as if it were being ripped from the earth. Massive fissures, spreading like those of an earthquake, continuously emerged from deep within the earth. "Roar!" A storm of flame bursting with destructive power surged across the heavens. The colossal phoenix silhouette soaring above was caught in the wave, its massive form trembling violently before shattering into nothingness in a single explosive burst—right under the stunned gaze of the nine phoenixes. "Pfft!" As the phoenix form was shattered, the nine phoenixes expelled a gush of blood, their faces pale, clearly suffering a powerful impact. "Boom!" The storm of flame, radiating waves of destruction, surged wildly, delivering devastating blows to any creature within its expanding reach. The surrounding warriors, witnessing this, were so startled that they swiftly retreated, unwilling to draw near the area engulfed in flame. Xiao Yan stood far above the sky, gazing at the magnificent flame storm, his expression remaining unwavering. This was his first encounter with a half-Saint-level powerhouse. Though the power of the Devastating Flame Lotus was formidable, he also understood the true might of such half-Saints—these beings, akin to ancient immortals, were exceptionally strong even among the venerable ancient lineages like the Hún clan. If they had fallen so easily, then the stature of Saint-level warriors would indeed have been greatly underestimated. Upon seeing the black skeleton still standing firm in the sky, the stronger members of the Hún clan instantly burst with joy in their eyes, while on the other side, their hearts sank slightly—such a powerful assault had failed to even cause any injury. Was a half-Saint-level cultivator truly that formidable? Xiao Yan’s face remained taut, his gaze fixed unwaveringly on the massive black skeleton. He couldn’t believe that the destructive power of the Flame Lotus could fail to inflict even the slightest damage upon Bone Yōu! "Crack!" Under Xiao Yan’s intense observation, a subtle crack echoed from the surface of the sky-bound black skeleton, and suddenly, a fragment of broken bone armor fell down, dropping amidst a wave of astonishment. "Crack! Crack!" As the first piece of bone armor fell, more and more pieces began to drift down like snowflakes. The massive black skeleton quickly developed cracks across its body, and ultimately, with a loud burst, the great armor shattered into fine bone fragments, scattering like dust. Witnessing this, the joy on the Hún clan's faces instantly froze. The armor shattered, revealing the skeleton within—yet the black skeleton's once-steel-like form was now densely cracked. As a gentle breeze swept across the sky, the green, ethereal light within its eye sockets dimmed and faded away with a soft *pff*. *Pff!* As those two glimmers vanished, the black skeleton, under the collective astonishment of the onlookers, slowly turned to ash, vanishing into smoke within mere moments. *Pffish!* "The skeleton turned to ash. Suddenly, the bone specter's immobile form, which had remained still at a distance, spat out a gush of blood. Green light surged once more into its hollow eyes, and its face grew pale. Wiping the blood from its lips, the bone specter slowly raised its head, its voice stern: "Well then—no wonder those others have kept falling short time and again. Xiao Yan, you truly possess some skill. Though you may have wounded me severely, I shall still be able to claim your life!" "Crack!" As the bone specter's stern words fell, a golden flash erupted suddenly before it, like a thunderbolt, striking unexpectedly. It appeared as a solid golden fist, radiating a powerful gust of wind, and crashed directly into the bone specter's head. "Hmph!" The sudden lightning attack momentarily stunned the bone specter, but it quickly regained composure, forcefully suppressing its internal injuries. With its dry hands swiftly sweeping out, it met the massive golden fist with a resounding impact. "Clang!" The two collided with a crisp, resonant sound, echoing across the sky. The massive golden figure staggered back十几 steps, as if a palm mark about half an inch deep had been pressed into the golden armor of its fist—remarkable even for a severely wounded half-Saint. "You're still too green to kill me!" Bone-Shadow too was pushed back a step, yet quickly steadied himself, his gaze cold and sharp upon the golden figure ahead. With his keen eyes, he recognized that figure as Xiao Yan, having employed a specific combat technique. "Since you've already used your prideful Fire Lotus, then follow me now!" Bone You's expression carried a certain ferocity. He had never imagined that he would be seriously injured by a junior disciple. He realized now that he had indeed been overly confident. Had it not been for his soul escaping, he would surely have been obliterated by the terrifying fire lotus, suffering wounds that could never be healed. As soon as he finished speaking, Bone You suddenly grasped Xiao Yan with a powerful hand. A massive black hand materialized before Xiao Yan and immediately descended, seizing the golden light giant he had transformed into. "Shhh!" However, as the black hand descended toward Xiao Yan, ripples surged through the space around him, and soon a crack in the space appeared. From within, a familiar, elderly figure stepped forth slowly, his voice echoing gently. "Bone You, at your rank, do you not feel embarrassed to attack a junior disciple?"