Library of Heaven's Path

At this moment, Zhang Xuan really felt like crying. If there was a hole he could dive into right now, he would do so without the slightest hesitation.

He had to execute his Time, Spatial, and Soul Quintessences, and even so, he only managed to absorb two needle tip-sized seed of flames so far. Furthermore, he even felt accomplished for being able to do so…

But in the next moment, his clone appeared and swallowed an entire bundle of it whole…

Furthermore, what the heck was with that fellow's expression? Was that fellow putting up an attitude with him? Was that fellow looking down on him?

Screw you! You are only a clone! You get it? A clone!

Which part of being a clone do you not understand?

Can you open your eyes and realize that I'm the main body? There's an unbreachable gap in the standing between the main body and the clone… Realize that!

Thinking of standing, Zhang Xuan's complexion turned even more awful…

He had challenged that fellow ever since he appeared, but it seemed like every fight had ended with a tragic loss on his part… In terms of standing, it did really seem like he had none of that before his clone…

In the midst of wallowing in his sorrow, Zhang Xuan suddenly raised his head and looked at his clone with unreadable eyes. For the first time, he felt that it wouldn't be so bad to see his clone being torched to death by those black flames.

But contrary to his wish, what he saw was the other party burping leisurely, "Delicious!"

Hula!

After which, he dived right into the clouds and vanished.

"What?"

Watching the entire sight from start to end, the Dragonbone Divine Spear rattled in stupefaction. It was almost as if it had used up its entire lifetime worth of surprise today.

The fact that its master had a clone wasn't really a big deal. Many experts had forged a clone out of themselves, and even Kong shi had one as well… However, this was the first time he had seen one which was even cockier than its master!

More importantly… that was the Empyrean Heavenly Flame which even it was afraid of! Yet, not only was that fellow unfrightened by it, he even charged right into its midst… Was he not afraid of being burned down to cinders?

In his moment of shock, he saw a pair of thighs poking out from the clouds, and a hand was scrubbing it leisurely.

Pilipala!

A huge bundle of black flame was being spread equally over a body by a hand, and the sound of deafening explosions could be from above heard now and then. However, it didn't seem like the owner of the body was terrified at all. On the contrary, he was releasing pleasured moans instead, clearly enjoying the entire process…

"T-this… Is he still a human?" the Dragonbone Divine Spear cowered in fear.

To be honest, it was still a little apprehensive as to whether it had made the right choice submitting to Zhang Xuan or not. After all, it was the personal weapon of the renowned Ancient Sage Ran Qiu, a legendary existence in history! However, after seeing the prowess Zhang Xuan's clone, it suddenly felt its pride being utterly crushed.

If even the clone wasn't being choosy with his master, what rights did it have to be choosy?

With such a thought in mind, the Dragonbone Divine Spear turned its gaze toward Zhang Xuan and saw the latter trembling with a livid look on his face.

"Who's afraid of who? Hmph!"

Sou!

Before the Dragonbone Divine Spear could process what was going on, it saw the Primordial Spirit of its master dashing right into the clouds, vanishing from sight within the blink of an eye.

"..."

The Dragonbone Divine Spear was utterly frenzied.

The reason why the clone of its master dared to charge into the clouds could be attributed to the superior material used to make it, but as for its master… What in the world was he planning to do charging in with just his Primordial Spirit?

Was he tired of living?

If he were to die… Should I acknowledge his clone as my master instead? the Dragonbone Divine Spear pondered seriously as it began planning out its contingency plans.

…

How could Zhang Xuan possibly tolerate being looked at so contemptuously by his clone?

Without any hesitation, he dashed right into the clouds.

Boom!

Before he knew it, countless bundles of flames were already gushing in his direction.

My clone does have a much stronger body than mine, especially since he's made out of the Nine Hearts Lotus. However, in terms of souls, he's on the same footing as me. Since he's able to endure the black flame, I should be able to do it too…

It might have been a spontaneous decision on his part to charge into the tribulation clouds, but it definitely wasn't a reckless one.

He had already calculated the risks and decided that it was feasible before heading in.

After obtaining the subsequent levels of the Heaven's Path Soul Art, it was automatically shared with his clone when he entered the Myriad Anthive Nest. While he had been cultivating his soul, his clone had been doing the same as well. In other words, his clone had also achieved a breakthrough to Aureate Body realm as well, just like him.

Since his clone was able to withstand the black flame, why couldn't he do it too?

He must have missed out some crucial information.

Thus, he began to observe his clone not too far away. His clone was shrouded in the midst of black flames, doing backstroke at one moment, front crawl in the other, dog paddle in the next, and lying leisurely in the '太' shape after… It was as if he was out for a holiday, enjoying himself.

The black flame continued to burn around him. Soon, his body began to emanate golden light, and his Primordial Spirit also grew significantly more resilient than before.

I get it! Zhang Xuan's eyes widened as realization dawned upon him.

The Dragonbone Divine Spear said that the Aureate Body Ordeal is divided into the Scorching Soul Tribulation, Scorching Spirit Tribulation, and Scorching Heart Tribulation… I always thought that the Scorching Soul Tribulation is the very first phase, and the others will appear subsequently. That could have been true for ordinary heavenly flame tribulations, but for the Empyrean Heavenly Flame, all three appear at once!

The heat of the black flame is indeed formidable to the point that it's nearly unbearable, but it hasn't reached the level where it's completely intolerable to me yet. After all, I have cultivated my soul with the Heaven's Path Soul Art, and my Primordial Spirit has been tempered by many lightning tribulations. In terms of resilience, my Primordial Spirit already on par with most Great Sage artifacts…

However, I was fearful of the black flame. I used all kinds of ways to avoid absorbing it… This must have been a test of my determination!

My clone was able to charge unhesitantly in because he had absolute confidence in his physical body, and without fear in his heart, the prowess of the black flame is significantly reduced!

This is similar to how walking in the dark could be a frightful experience to those who hold fear in their hearts. They would constantly check on their surroundings, fearing that someone would do them harm. However, if one were to tread forward with an open mind, the night would no longer be as terrifying of an entity to one anymore…

As these thoughts flashed across Zhang Xuan's mind, he opened his Primordial Spirit wide in the face of the incoming bundles of black flame. At the same time, he also dissipated the golden light around his Primordial Spirit, leaving himself completely vulnerable to the black flames. It was as if he had already given up on himself.

Tzzzzz!

The flames began to sear his Primordial Spirit. Yet, due to his calmer state of mind, the black flame wasn't as excruciating as before. Instead, under the tempering of the flames, his Primordial Spirit was swiftly being tempered.

It's indeed as I have expected! Seeing that it was effective, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.

The heavenly flame was a mystical force of nature. It didn't just sear one's body but one's spirit and state of mind as well.

The more afraid he was of the black flame, the greater its prowess would be. That was because its target wasn't just his Primordial Spirit but his mind and consciousness.

Fear made one's mind vulnerable, making it easy to plant thoughts and delusions into one. And for cultivators of their level, thoughts were no longer mere thoughts anymore.

Thus, when he abandoned his fear and embraced the black flame, the prowess of the black flame diminished instead.

Nevertheless, despite the diminished prowess of the black flame, he still felt stabbing pain assault his Primordial Spirit, leaving him feeling as if it would be torn apart at any moment.

I should focus on tempering my Primordial Spirit for the time being…

Despite the pain, Zhang Xuan opened his Primordial Spirit wide and frenziedly absorbed the flames from the surroundings.

Boom!

The flames entering his Primordial Spirit swam around it relentlessly, tempering it with the amazing heat it was emanating. His Primordial Spirit gradually turned completely golden in color, and the light it emanated was growing brighter and brighter. It was almost as if he was turning into a living Buddha.

Let me see if I can eradicate the Innate Fetal Poison now!

Upon feeling that his Primordial Spirit had gotten used to the temperature of the black flame, Zhang Xuan began concentrating the black flame toward the Innate Fetal Poison.

Gugugu!

As if having encountered something terrifying, the Innate Fetal Poison retreated fearfully.

Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up in response and continued driving the black flame toward the Innate Fetal Poison, cornering it.

Jijiji!

With an alarmed shriek, the Innate Fetal Poison finally reached its limits and dashed out of his Primordial Spirit. It escaped in the form of black smoke before vanishing completely from sight.

The Innate Fetal Poison had already gained its own consciousness, or else there was no way it could possibly escape from the onslaught of the Heaven's Path zhenqi.

"Finally!!" Seeing that the Innate Fetal Poison had finally escaped, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.

The Innate Fetal Poison had been a time bomb to him ever since he discovered its existence. He had lived his life in fear that he would die at any moment, and it had been his greatest motivation to continue cultivating as well.

But today, he was finally free of this burden!