Chapter 118: Fiery Wonder
Amory's furious roar echoed in his ears.
Tang Tian's heart tightened sharply. Without turning his head, he spoke in a low, firm voice, "Go help Amory."
Han Bingning cast a deep, meaningful glance at Tang Tian but said nothing. Her figure vanished instantly.
"I didn't expect you would force our hand in the end," the tall man said slowly as he approached Tang Tian, sighing. "Honestly, I'm quite surprised by you. From every aspect, truly surprising."
Tang Tian’s gaze fixed intently on the gray-hued soul general before him, ignoring the tall man completely.
His instincts for danger were extraordinary. The gray soul general radiated an overwhelming sense of threat that made his hair stand on end. Those eerie blood-red eyes were utterly devoid of emotion.
He couldn't discern the level of this strange soul general; the aura it emitted was unlike that of ordinary soul generals. Its formidable presence made Tang Tian wary of making any rash moves.
The tall man smiled lightly. "Well? My Huo Qi is quite impressive, isn't he? Like you, a master of close combat. Many renowned warriors have fallen at his hands."
Tang Tian glared fiercely at Huo Qi, remaining silent.
"I know you're from the Light Martial Association," the tall man said dismissively. "The Light Martial Association is a major power. We don't want to be enemies with you. If you withdraw your people today, this matter can be left behind..."
Suddenly, Tang Tian vanished.
Bang!
Huo Qi remained motionless, raising his palm expressionlessly to block Tang Tian’s punch. The clash of their strikes burst forth with a sharp, resonant sound.
The tall man’s voice carried a hint of regret. "Since you refuse to retreat, I have nothing more to say. Honestly, you will regret this choice."
Tang Tian paid him no mind. A flash of ferocity lit his eyes as his assault erupted like a violent storm.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
A relentless barrage of blows filled the air.
The tall man shook his head, sighing. "Huo Qi was born for battle. You are strong, but compared to Huo Qi, you are still far behind."
Before he finished speaking, a shadow flickered before Tang Tian, a fierce aura descending upon him.
A smirk curled at the tall man’s lips.
Darkness suddenly veiled the area, and Huo Qi appeared right in front of the tall man.
Smack!
Tang Tian’s surprise attack was intercepted by Huo Qi.
The tall man’s smile turned cold.
"Huo Qi, kill him."
Tang Tian felt his vision blur as a sharp pain struck his chest. He was hurled horizontally through the air. Mid-flight, he forced himself to stabilize his posture, landing awkwardly with a stagger, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
Such speed! Such power!
His instincts had failed him—he hadn't dodged it.
What level was this soul general? Why was it so strong?
Moreover, a chilling, sinister energy ravaged his body. Tang Tian had to expend great effort to neutralize it with his true energy.
Huo Qi advanced slowly toward him.
"Is that all you've got?" the tall man sounded disappointed. "That’s truly underwhelming. My Huo Qi is a growth-type soul general. Show some strength. Let my Huo Qi learn something, become stronger."
Tang Tian wiped the blood from his mouth, eyes fixed intently on Huo Qi. It had been a long time since he had been so thoroughly beaten...
Suddenly his vision blurred. Tang Tian’s pupils contracted sharply. He snorted coldly, bent his waist, and immediately raised his arm in defense.
Bang!
A surge of energy radiated from his palm. His arm tingled; his legs sank into the soil by an inch.
He blocked it!
Tang Tian’s heart leapt with joy, but before he could react further, an overwhelming sense of danger engulfed him. Instinctively, he bent his elbow and flipped his palm.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The assault came like a furious storm. Tang Tian could only brace himself.
His mind went blank; his arms nearly numb. He felt like a wooden stake being hammered relentlessly into the earth.
The soil reached his knees.
Without warning, a leg flicked like a whip, slipping swiftly beneath his arms, exploiting an opening.
Severe pain surged through him as he was thrown sideways, crashing heavily into the ground, gouging a deep furrow in the mud.
Bang!
A heavy boot stamped on his face, burying it in dirt.
"Is that all you’ve got?" the tall man’s voice, filled with regret, grew faint in Tang Tian’s ears, as if coming from a distant place.
Defeated...
Was this how he failed?
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The two masters’ intervention swiftly reversed the battle’s tide, filling Yu Mingwei with ecstatic joy. Tang Tian, once unstoppable, was now completely powerless. The combined efforts of the other four were no match for another master.
Today would be the day the Shangguan family perished!
"Break through! Leave no one alive!"
Yu Mingwei finally played his last card, and all the elite warriors around him surged forward in a thunderous attack.
Yet strangely, his elation cooled quickly. The terrifying power of the two masters filled him with dread. Even if they won this fight, the Yu family would likely become their vassals from then on.
But survival was all that mattered...
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Pain radiated from his cheek. Mud filled his mouth, and Tang Tian’s mind was a blank void. He had thought himself strong, never imagining he could be so easily crushed.
Huo Qi’s moves were too fast for him to track.
He had failed... utterly failed... no chance of victory... So vulnerable before a true master...
Yaya angrily lunged at Huo Qi but was swatted away like a fly.
Suddenly, a muffled groan pierced his ears.
Han Bingning!
Tang Tian felt as if struck by lightning, his spirit trembling. He knew Han Bingning was fiercely strong; if she was groaning this way, she must be injured.
Amory and Liang Qiu’s furious roars rang out almost simultaneously, mixed with Sima Xiangshan’s muffled grunt.
They were in danger!
Tang Tian’s head buzzed. They had come for him, fought for him, and now they were trapped in peril. The many details around him—the angry shouts of Shangguan Zhu, the heavy breathing of Shangguan Wei, the familiar screams...
Damn it!
Tang Tian clenched his fists involuntarily. His breath grew heavy.
Was this how it ended? Would he give up? Fail like this? Die along with so many others?
He was a fool... dragging everyone down with him?
No!
Absolutely not!
A roar exploded in Tang Tian’s heart, hot and fierce as molten iron flowing through his veins. He felt his body ignite.
His silver eyes, pressed into the mud, suddenly blazed as if filled with blood, fiercely crimson.
His distorted face twisted into a grimace.
Huo Qi immediately sensed the change and retreated hastily, but a shadow blurred on the ground, springing up like lightning. Countless leg strikes exploded before his eyes.
Huo Qi swung his palms rapidly.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
The dense clatter of fists and feet was suffocating.
Huo Qi’s expression remained calm; his palms moved so fast they were nearly invisible, guarding without the slightest flaw.
Smack!
A leg strike appeared suddenly and without warning in Huo Qi’s vision. He had no time to react before it landed solidly.
Huo Qi was flung like a heavy hammer, flying sideways.
Tang Tian roared, pushing off fiercely. With a sharp whistle, his form vanished into thin air.
Three crescent moon strikes, screaming sharply, rushed at Huo Qi. The airborne Huo Qi slammed his elbows together, shattering all three strikes. A furious crimson finger force shot up from below. Huo Qi twisted his body oddly, narrowly evading the strike.
Hmm?
A blurry figure appeared in the corner of Huo Qi’s vision.
No!
A transparent vacuum sphere imprinted on his chest—vacuum shock!
Smack!
The vacuum sphere shattered, countless streams of air cutting like blades into Huo Qi’s chest.
He trembled like a sieve, but his arms suddenly became like supple, boneless snake whips, snapping fiercely toward Tang Tian’s chest.
Tang Tian flipped his palm, blocking the two punches.
Though seemingly soft, the punches carried immense force, causing Tang Tian to stagger back several steps.
Huo Qi dropped to one knee with a loud smack. Slowly rising, he revealed a fist-sized hole in his chest—stark and terrifying.
The tall man’s face darkened. He stared at Tang Tian, his expression grim as he spoke deliberately: “Possessed...”
Tang Tian’s pupils were blood red, but unlike Huo Qi’s. Tang Tian’s blood eyes blazed like burning flames, fierce and wild. Huo Qi’s blood eyes resembled a bottomless blood pool, eerie and deadly.
Suddenly, a dazzling sword light illuminated the entire Yu estate.
“Brother Tang!”
Jing Hao’s roar echoed from afar, and in the blink of an eye, he appeared beside Tang Tian.
“Brother Jing, go help my friends!” Tang Tian said without turning back. “I can handle this!”
Jing Hao nodded without hesitation. “Be careful!”
With that, his North Crown Sword blazed with terrifying light as he charged at the mustachioed soul general, rescuing the imperiled Amory and the others.
The warriors following Jing Hao dove into battle without hesitation.
The Shangguan family, embroiled in fierce combat, quickly steadied their position.
Tang Tian finally cast aside his last doubts. His blood-red eyes flared like flames. He carefully placed the heavily damaged Peacock Blue into his water bottle weapon cabinet. If not for Peacock Blue’s protection during those heavy blows, he would have been seriously wounded.
The azure flames of the Celestial Furnace Gauntlet flickered dimly.
“Celestial Furnace!”
Tang Tian whispered with resolute determination.
The martial soul of the Celestial Furnace Gauntlet sensed his will and call.
Whoosh!
Azure flames erupted, spreading upward from the gauntlet to his shoulder. Tang Tian’s entire right arm was engulfed in azure fire.
He poured all his true energy into the gauntlet without reservation.
Fine cracks began to appear on the gauntlet’s surface.
Pop!
A fragment broke off, but instantly burned away in the azure flames, vanishing without a trace. One piece after another crumbled, consumed by the fire.
The azure flames enveloping Tang Tian’s right arm blazed even fiercer.
As the last fragment disappeared, the flames roared wildly, untamed.
When a martial soul burns, the full power of the mystic treasure erupts. However, this requires the martial soul itself to choose to burn. Martial souls possess intelligence; they instinctively resist self-destruction.
“Are you answering my call?”
An inexplicable surge of emotion filled Tang Tian’s chest; he was close to tears. After this punch, the Celestial Furnace Gauntlet would be gone forever. It had burned all its power.
Tang Tian seemed to see, decades ago, a rough forge in the azure flames, being hammered and shaped. The martial soul gradually awakened—simple and pure, just like the gauntlet.
“Celestial Furnace…”
Tang Tian slowly raised his head, his right arm blazing with azure fire, his gaze locked firmly on Huo Qi.
“This punch will not betray your will!”
Unbeatable War God Chapter 118: Huo Qi - Complete.