Battle Through the Heavens 03: Ascension of the Flame God
Episode 7: The Broken Seal and the Flame God's Mark
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The clouds above the Black-Corner Region churned with a strange, fiery hue. The wind carried heat like a breath from a slumbering beast. Deep within the fallen ruins of the ancient Flame Spirit Temple, Xiao Yan stood motionless. His hand was pressed against the giant red stone slab that had begun to pulse — not with life, but with hunger.
His eyes narrowed. This is it… the final layer of the Flame God's Seal.
"Once I break this," he muttered under his breath, "the true test begins."
Suddenly—
BOOM!
A pillar of scarlet flame erupted from the slab, spiraling into the sky. It pierced through the clouds and illuminated the entire temple in an eerie red light. The temperature around Xiao Yan surged violently, but his body did not retreat. Instead, his eyes gleamed with anticipation.
"Come," he said. "I'm ready."
From the core of the stone slab, an ancient voice echoed—low, grating, and bound by time.
> "Mortal… bearer of Heavenly Flame… You dare awaken me?"
Xiao Yan stepped forward, his black robe fluttering against the turbulent heat. "I've come not to awaken you… but to inherit you."
For a moment, silence.
Then the seal cracked.
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The ground beneath Xiao Yan trembled. The ruins themselves seemed to shudder awake. From the broken stone, a flaming figure slowly emerged — neither man nor beast, but a manifestation of pure Flame Will. Its body roared like wildfire, and its eyes glowed like twin suns.
> "You seek the Flame God's Mark… You shall face the Trial of Blazing Descent."
The trial began without warning.
A wave of searing fire shot toward Xiao Yan. He instantly summoned the Bone-Chilling Flame Lotus, a fusion of two heavenly flames he had tamed in his past journeys. The lotus burst outward, absorbing the firestorm with an explosion of cold and heat colliding.
Boom!!
Smoke surged. The ground fractured.
Yet the Flame Will did not relent. It conjured five flaming beasts, each one infused with a different elemental fire — wind-fire, lightning-fire, soul-fire, magma-fire, and demon-fire.
Xiao Yan's eyes turned sharp. He took a deep breath, and from his palm, the Fallen Heart Flame ignited.
> "Come at me all at once!"
He flew into the center of the chaos, his body weaving through fire like a dancer in a storm. He unleashed the Flame God Nine Paths Technique, a technique he had deciphered from the temple walls days before.
Each path activated:
1. Blazing Step – increasing speed with every strike.
2. Inferno Fist – punches cloaked in flames that seared the soul.
3. Molten Guard – flames hardening into armor.
4. Ember Chain – capturing enemies in binding flame ropes.
5. Phoenix Ascent – launching him into the sky with wings of fire.
6. Scorching Domain – burning away illusions and falsehoods.
7. Volcanic Wrath – summoning molten eruptions beneath the enemy.
8. Soulfire Burst – burning away spiritual attacks.
9. Godflame Mark – the final skill, yet incomplete.
The fight raged on for what felt like hours. Sweat, blood, and willpower clashed under a storm of fire. But Xiao Yan stood strong.
At last, the final beast fell, shattered by a punch imbued with the triple heavenly flame core.
Silence fell.
The flaming figure of the Flame Will began to fade, but before it vanished, it spoke again.
> "You… are worthy."
Then, the mark appeared.
A symbol of divine fire etched itself on Xiao Yan's chest — the Mark of the Flame God. The moment it embedded into his skin, his aura surged wildly.
His Heavenly Flames reacted in unison, forming a mysterious flame ring behind him, resonating with the Flame God's power. It wasn't just symbolic — it was authority.
Flame beasts knelt.
The winds calmed.
The seal was broken, and Xiao Yan now bore the authority of the ancient Flame God.
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As he stood atop the ruins, his gaze turned far to the west — toward the Hall of Souls.
> "You've hunted me long enough… Now, it's my turn."
His robe fluttered, and in the crimson light of dusk, the newly crowned Flame God took his first step forward.
The world would soon remember his name — Xiao Yan.