Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

He stepped out of the tent, looked up at the sky, which was gray with low-hanging clouds, like a cotton cloth covering his head.

Why are you forcing us?

Half a year ago, one of the Seven Sons defected to an outside Core Formation force. Li Xuandu didn't blame him for leaving the dynasty—but he shouldn't have used the dynasty's future as a pledge of allegiance.

Li Xuandu had no choice but to kill him with his own hands. Those who could be selected as the Seven Sons of Heavenly Fire were all exceptionally strong. Li Xuandu had a plan to catch the man off guard, which is why he left that man's life on a barren beach.

He also spent half a year recovering from his injuries, and now Zhou Luo is dead.

Of the Seven Sons of Heavenly Fire, only five remain.

But that wasn't the worst news. He had received information a few days ago that one of the three people secretly preparing to form their core had already failed.

Preparing for the Core Formation requires a lot of resources and mental effort. That person staked everything on it, but in the end, he still fell short by just one step.

Of the seven sons, four remain, two in the open and two in the dark.

Li Xuandu stood outside the tent, looking at the sky, motionless for a long time. Was there really any hope for the future of the Tianhuo Dynasty?

He clenched his fists; even if there was nothing, he would fight his way out.

Ten days later, more bad news arrived: the other of the Seven Heroes, who were on the surface, was trapped deep within the Heavenly Fire Secret Realm and was in grave danger.

Li Xuandu didn't have time to think much before rushing over to the rescue.

When he arrived, he realized it was a trap. The man had betrayed him, just like the one from six months ago, and sold him out.

Li Xuandu was surrounded and seriously injured, but he fought his way out and escaped. His pursuers were like a group of sharks that had smelled blood, relentlessly chasing him.

He fled deeper into the secret realm, running for three days and three nights, his clothes stained black and red with blood.

He eventually fled to the ruins of a former city of the dynasty.

He has been here before.

Back when he was still in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, he guarded this city for three years. At that time, the city was still there, with patrolling guards on the city walls and vendors hawking their wares on the streets. The city was bustling with activity.

Now everything is gone, only a charred ruin remains, swallowed by the fire smoke, making it impossible to even discern directions. But he is familiar with this place, and he remembers which road leads to which place.

But he knew that he couldn't survive on just that.

There were fifteen pursuers, five at the peak of Foundation Establishment and ten at the late stage of Foundation Establishment, all of them Foundation Establishment experts. They followed him at a leisurely pace, like hunters driving their prey, step by step forcing him into a dead end.

Li Xuandu had already figured it out. If they really wanted to kill him, he wouldn't be able to escape. What they wanted was for him to be alive—or rather, to be used as bait to lure out the remaining Seven Sons of Heavenly Fire one by one.

Unfortunately, they miscalculated. He sent out a message as soon as he escaped, and he prepared for the worst, thinking that no one would come to rescue him.

He has confessed everything he needed to. Even if he dies here, the seeds of the Heavenly Fire Dynasty will still remain.

He struggled to his feet, leaned against a broken wall, wiped the blood from his face, and watched as the dark figures flew out of the fire mist one by one, forming a large encirclement that slowly began to close in.

Ten miles.

Bali.

Five li.

He gripped the half-damaged magical artifact in his hand, preparing for one last desperate attempt, when he saw a figure that shouldn't be there.

Zhu Yan.

Li Xuandu's pupils contracted sharply, and a hoarse roar escaped his throat: "Why are you here! Get out of here!"

Zhu Yan did not leave. He stood at the other end of the ruins, his gray robe fluttering in the wind.

His hair was completely white, his temples were gray, his eyes were sunken, his cheekbones were prominent, and his face had many wrinkles. Two years ago, he was a young man in his early thirties, but now he looks like an old man in his fifties.

He looked at the fifteen Foundation Establishment cultivators who had gathered around him, and at the massive array they had set up together, covering an area of ​​ten miles in radius, and said nothing.

He took a knife out of his storage bag.

Crimson Flame Demon Blade.

The blade is about four feet long and is entirely dark gold. The magical patterns on the edge pulsate like veins, and with each pulsation, a layer of dark red aura spreads out.

Zhu Yan gripped the hilt of the knife tightly, and the blade rang out, causing the pebbles beneath his feet to tremble.

This is the knife that best suits him.

When the country is destroyed and the family is destroyed, use this knife to fight your way out.

Zhu Yan stepped forward.

The fifteen Foundation Establishment cultivators sensed something, and the array suddenly lit up. Within a ten-mile radius, the fire mist was dispelled, replaced by a cold spiritual light.

Five top-grade second-tier magic weapons lit up simultaneously, aimed at him.

Zhu Yan did not stop.

He drew his knife.

In that instant, all the fire mist on the ruins was sucked away, and the fire-attribute spiritual energy within a ten-mile radius seemed to be grasped by an invisible hand, surging wildly towards the blade.

The Crimson Flame Demon Blade let out a long cry, and the demonic patterns on its blade shone so brightly that they were blinding. Hundreds of fiery blade lights exploded from the blade, like a blooming lotus flower.

The blades flashed everywhere, each carrying an intensely hot spiritual energy, and each one was locked onto a single person.

Those ten late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators were the first to give way. Their protective auras were as thin as paper in the face of the blade. One strike broke through their defenses, two strikes drew blood, and three strikes killed them.

Some people turned to run, but the Crimson Flame Domain had already been deployed—within a radius of ten miles, flames and blades were everywhere, making it impossible to escape, dodge, or block.

Those five Foundation Establishment Peak cultivators held out a little longer. Their magical artifacts were more refined, and their methods were more cunning. Some of them used defensive magic treasures, while others used life-saving secret techniques.

But Zhu Yan had become completely bloodthirsty. His blade became faster and heavier, each strike carrying a ruthless, all-or-nothing ferocity, each a life-for-life exchange.

The five attributes—Slash, Crimson Flame, Undying, Domination, and Bloodlust—unleashed immense power in his hands.

A tremendous battle erupted, with astonishing results: Zhu Yan slew five peak Foundation Establishment cultivators and ten late Foundation Establishment cultivators.

The final strike cleaved the entire formation, which covered ten miles, in two. The blade's light shot into the sky, splitting the fiery mist in two and revealing the hazy sky above.

In the ruins, there were dismembered corpses and shattered magical artifacts scattered everywhere. Blood seeped into the scorched earth, turning the ashes dark red.

Zhu Yan stood amidst the pile of corpses, his knife propped on the ground, panting heavily. His white hair was soaked with blood and clung to his face, making it impossible to distinguish which hair belonged to others and which to himself.

That battle was no less impressive than when Lin Zhao single-handedly killed seventy Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Of the seventy people Lin Zhao faced, most were in the early or middle stages of Foundation Establishment, while of the fifteen people Zhu Yan faced, ten were in the late stage of Foundation Establishment and five were at the peak.

In terms of combat strength, it's hard to say who is stronger.

However, the difference is that Lin Zhao was at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage back then, while Zhu Yan was at the peak of Foundation Establishment.

Lin Zhao is now in the late Foundation Establishment stage and has several complete magic treasures. If he were to face Zhu Yan now, Zhu Yan would definitely have no chance to fight back—unless he successfully forms his core.

But this battle also made everyone see Zhu Yan's potential.