"Four Strange Attributes?"
The sight of twin flames and dual thunders swirling around Lan An's body drew a shocked gasp from the Dan Clan's Twin Ancestors, Dan Tian Xing and Dan Yan Ji.
They couldn't fathom it. In their brief seclusion, a prodigy like this had emerged. A youth barely in his twenties, already at Late Fusion Realm, was astonishing enough. Now, wielding four Strange Attributes, even their millennia-honed composure faltered.
"No wonder he caught that woman's eye," Dan Yan Ji muttered, biting her crimson lips. Lan An's talent was terrifying.
If she'd met him first, she'd have fought to take him as her disciple. A pang of envy surged, her resentful gaze flickering toward Wu San Niang, who lounged smugly on her throne.
"Hmph, this shocks you? If my Little An unleashed everything, you'd die of fright," Wu San Niang thought, her crossed legs bouncing lightly, her pride barely concealed.
Huo Li, facing the brunt of Lan An's aura, felt dread seep into his heart. But with his attack fully charged, retreat was impossible. The Underworld Flame Shatters Mountains, a high-tier technique, strained his suppressed Late Fusion Realm body, even with two top-grade pills. Once unleashed, it couldn't be recalled.
"To this point, I'll risk it all!" Huo Li gritted his teeth, his face pale from exertion.
The massive fireball above him, like a blazing sun, consumed nearly all his fire energy, its power growing cataclysmic.
Finally, as his energy drained, Huo Li unleashed his lethal strike.
"Die, brat!"
The fireball vanished at terrifying speed, visible only to Refining Void experts and above, piercing space with world-ending force to engulf Lan An.
"Haha, vanish, genius!" Huo Li sneered, his eyes glinting with greed, as if Lan An's Strange Fires were already his.
Lan An's gaze remained indifferent, his body unmoving. Within his eyes, flames and thunder fused perfectly. In his palm, a delicate, flawless object formed just as the fireball swallowed him.
Then—
"Danger!" the Twin Ancestors shouted in unison, sensing something amiss, warning Huo Li.
"Hmph, meddlers!" Wu San Niang snorted, her brow furrowing, but she made no move to interfere. She knew the outcome was sealed.
And so it was.
Before the crowd's shrinking eyes, a heaven-shaking explosion erupted, sending shockwaves that shattered space. But it didn't come from Lan An, engulfed by the fireball. Instead, it radiated from Huo Li's massive frame.
Intertwined flames and thunder detonated, a colossal blast fracturing space around Huo Li, spreading in all directions.
"Minor Cosmic Array," Bach Vo Sinh said calmly, his hands weaving lightly. Countless starry runes formed a Cosmic Array, sealing the duel's range to protect Sea Continent's space.
The crowd marveled silently. Worthy of Headmaster Bach, crafting profound arrays with a gesture—truly terrifying. None noticed the faint shock in his eyes. Lan An's explosion had shaken his array, a feat even Refining Void self-detonations couldn't achieve. As a Level Eight Formation Master, vastly surpassing Lan An, this was unthinkable.
"This youth…" Bach Vo Sinh stared at Lan An, shrouded in flames, his eyes flickering with unspoken thoughts.
The Minor Cosmic Array not only contained the attack but allowed outsiders to witness the aftermath. Gasps of shock echoed.
"How is this possible?"
Before Lan An stood a colossal wooden turtle, its body cloaked in Devouring Heaven Wood, blocking Huo Li's fireball entirely. Though the fireball's fading force destroyed the turtle, Lan An's robes remained untouched.
"Strange Wood? Someone explain this!" Dan Yan Ji's eyes widened, her lips parted in disbelief.
A youth with so many Strange Attributes was unprecedented in Viet Dragon Star's history. Dan Tian Xing clenched his fists, a flicker of greed in his Tribulation Crossing eyes, though Wu San Niang's presence forced him to swallow it.
"Child of Heavenly Fate. Multiple Strange Attributes are expected," Heavenly Secret Palace elders muttered, convincing themselves.
As Lan An's enemies grew stronger, the Wooden Turtle's role diminished, but in same-level combat, it remained an impregnable fortress. Underworld Flame Shatters Mountains, enhanced by top-grade pills, was formidable, but still a Fusion Realm attack. Destroying the turtle was its limit.
Lan An stood unscathed, not a hair out of place. And Huo Li?
"No… this must be a dream!" Huo Li's hoarse, dazed voice echoed, his bloodshot eyes staring at his ravaged body.
Half his face was obliterated, exposing a white skull. His robust frame was shattered, reduced to scraps of flesh clinging to broken bones. His blood was gone, his limbs reduced to nothing. "Wretched" couldn't describe his state.
"How can he be this strong?" Huo Li rasped, pain forgotten, only shock remaining.
An Integration Realm expert, suppressed and enhanced by top pills, utterly defeated by a junior. Silence gripped the crowd.
"Heavens, someone explain!" a Refining Void expert clutched his head, baffled.
The crowd shared his confusion. Why was Lan An, the target, unharmed, while Huo Li neared death?
"That move again?" A Lian Ya stared at Lan An's back, recalling her sparring match with him, where she'd suffered the same technique.
"Invisible, formless… assassination. He held back against you," the Elf Queen sighed, suppressing her Pseudo Heart of Nature, drawn to Lan An's Devouring Heaven Wood.
A Lian Ya nodded. During their spar, Lan An hadn't used Strange Fires, yet still pressured her at Peak Refining Void. Huo Li's fate showed the attack's true lethality.
"Huo Li isn't weak, nor are the Ascension Flame and Golden Combat Pills useless. This youth is simply too monstrous," the Elf Queen said, her lips curving as she gazed at Lan An.
Even she, in Huo Li's place, would have suffered.
Far off, Cheng Bi's face grew serious. "A Spirit Grade technique? Mid-tier?"
U Ji, Bao Qiao, and Le Huan frowned, unfamiliar with the move. "No, at least High-tier Spirit Grade," Tian Die Dao corrected, her voice brimming with intrigue. Even Wu San Niang lacked such a technique. Who gave it to him?
"Nice hidden cards, kid!" Wu San Niang licked her full lips, pride swelling as she watched her disciple.
The crowd's thoughts didn't matter to Lan An.
"Still alive?" he muttered, slightly disappointed.
"His body is Integration Realm, after all. Shadowless Thunder Lotus is already impressive. Don't get greedy, Young Master," Jin Ni pouted.
Indeed, it was the High-tier Spirit Grade technique: Shadowless Thunder Lotus. While Huo Li poured everything into his attack, Lan An hadn't idled. Using Mysterious Flame-Thunder Art, he fused four Strange Attributes into a translucent lotus in his palm. Unlike his spar with A Lian Ya, this enhanced version, infused with Strange Fires, pierced space to assassinate Huo Li silently.
Shadowless Thunder Lotus had once troubled A Lian Ya, a top-15 Golden List prodigy at her peak. Now, with Strange Fires, it would have reduced a normal Late Fusion Realm cultivator to ash. Huo Li's Integration Realm physique barely kept him alive, but he teetered on death's edge.
Lan An's eyes gleamed with excitement. Beyond Huo Li's Great Strength Earth Flame, he coveted the Integration Realm soul. Devouring it would skyrocket his Soul Force.
No time for hesitation. Lan An vanished with Speed Shift, his fist clenching as Star-Burst Fist formed. Huo Li's crazed eyes flared, ready to restore his Integration Realm cultivation for a desperate counter.
"Who gave you such guts?" Wu San Niang's mocking voice transmitted.
Huo Li shuddered, his skull and broken bones rattling, on the verge of collapse.
"Show mercy!" an aged, pleading voice rang out as Lan An's Star-Burst Fist neared Huo Li.