Concealed beneath the sea, Ye Feipeng held his breath and watched the earth-shattering battle between Crimson Flame and the Soul Formation Immortal Lords above, still feeling hesitant.
His current strength far surpassed what Zhang Haobo possessed in his past-life memories.
Yet the actual combat power displayed by Crimson Flame and the Immortal Lords was also vastly greater than in the previous life.
If that were all, he would not be so conflicted.
The real issue was that another hunter lurked upon the battlefield.
Zhang Zhiliang!
That Soul Formation formation master had gleaned his past-life memories and would certainly never pass up this chance at Dao Integration.
Looking at the vast, terrifying array formed by countless, densely packed silver cubes, Ye Feipeng felt an involuntary chill creep into his heart.
How could a figure like that ever settle for merely playing support?
Sure enough, subsequent events validated Ye Feipeng's suspicion.
In fact, Zhang Zhiliang was even more despicable than he had imagined.
He had sealed the battlefield with an array, leaving the other Immortal Lords and Crimson Flame to slaughter one another while he waited to reap the spoils.
He had even invited another Dao Integration Immortal Venerable to hold the fort for him...
If that Dao Integration cultivator named Heiya stepped in, Ye Feipeng would have zero chance of victory.
Should he still take the risk and force a move?
For a moment, Ye Feipeng's resolve wavered once again.
Yet that trace of hesitation gradually faded as the Soul Formation Immortal Lords trapped within the Liangyi Microcosmic Formation fell one by one, as the anima of Heaven and Earth, Crimson Flame, grew weaker by the minute, and as Zhang Zhiliang approached successful Dao Integration.
A glint of crimson flashed in his eyes. Gazing at the utterly weakened Crimson Flame, an irresistible surge of greed rose in his chest.
*The arrow is on the bowstring—it must fly!*
*Things have reached this point; there is no backing out now!*
*With the Vast Sea Pearl's assistance, I used the Kun Devour divine ability to swallow nearly a third of the Congyun Sea.*
*With the Kunpeng bloodline fully ignited, even I don't know what kind of terrifying monster I will become once I enact the Shocking Peng Transformation.*
*Zhang Zhiliang read my memories. With his meticulous mind, he has surely laid contingencies against me.*
*But it's useless!*
*I won't bother tangling with him at all. To hell with the anima of Heaven and Earth, strange formations, and Zhang Zhiliang—I will swallow them all in a single gulp!*
*Then I'll unleash the Peng Flight divine ability to swiftly flee the Congyun Sea and head to Nanming Sacred Beast Mountain. There, the power of sacred beast bloodlines is amplified manyfold. I'll find a place to hide and slowly digest them all!*
*Just ten years—no, three years—and I can completely digest everything in my stomach!*
*When that time comes, I will be the new Crimson Flame Immortal Venerable!*
...
Countless thoughts flashed through Ye Feipeng's mind in an instant.
His blood boiled with excitement, his vision filled with images of masses bowing before him following his successful Dao Integration.
Ye Feipeng's eyes turned blood-red.
Shocking Peng Transformation, activate!
His exotic beast bloodline erupted like a violent volcano, coursing through his entire body in an instant.
The Vast Sea Pearl frantically mobilized its own power and that of the Congyun Sea to construct a body for Ye Feipeng.
Silently, an ancient beast several thousand li long—a Kunpeng—reappeared beneath the waters.
A massive shadow engulfed Zhang Zhiliang, the innumerable array coronets, and Crimson Flame alike.
Then Ye Feipeng surged upward, opening his maw wide.
He swallowed them all in one bite.
Letting out a melodious, ancient cry, the gargantuan beast vaulted into the air, blotting out the sky and sun.
Below on Wanxian Island and across the entire Congyun Sea, every cultivator fortunate enough to witness this spectacle wore a look of sheer terror.
Beneath the beast's shadow, both cultivators and islands seemed utterly insignificant.
Suspended in midair, the giant creature did not plummet back into the sea.
From its back unfurled two pairs of colossal wings.
In a flash, its form shifted into that of a monstrous black bird.
Its wings spread wide, resembling clouds hanging from the heavens.
With a furious flap, the gale it whipped up swept across the entire Congyun Sea in an instant.
Directly beneath the beast, Wanxian Island bore the brunt of the Kunpeng's might, trembling like a willow leaf in the wind.
The waters churned for ten thousand li as the Kunpeng soared into the heights.
In the blink of an eye, it flew high into the Ninth Heaven.
From within its belly, muffled rumblings and powerful impacts seemed to echo endlessly.
Yet the Kunpeng's body was far too massive; such attacks could not shake it in the slightest for the time being.
As for Immortal Venerable Heiya, who was holding the fort for Zhang Zhiliang, he showed no intention of intervening.
He merely transformed into a one-eyed crow covered in pitch-black feathers, gazing up with keen interest at the departing Kunpeng.
The Kunpeng beat its wings once more.
In the eyes of the gathered cultivators, the colossal beast dwindled until it was barely visible, reduced to a mere speck of black.
And it continued hurtling rapidly toward the southwest.
Only then did the cultivators of the Congyun Sea recover from their shock.
"What... what was that?"
"Such a terrifying monster was hiding beneath the Congyun Sea?"
"A Kunpeng! That must be the ancient beast Kunpeng, long thought extinct!"
"It actually swallowed Zhang Zhiliang and the anima of Heaven and Earth together?! Does that mean this Kunpeng will become the new Crimson Flame Immortal Venerable?"
"Alas, what a pity. Zhang Zhiliang exhausted every scheme, only to end up in a beast's belly. In the end, it was all for nothing!"
...
*Could the ultimate victor of this life really be Ye Feipeng?*
*The Congyun Sea, the beast Kunpeng... with multiple serendipities stacking up, combined with foresight and advance planning, he truly possesses the capital for Dao Integration.*
*However, fleeing immediately after swallowing Crimson Flame...*
*He probably lacks the strength to digest her on the spot.*
*But how will this play out?*
*If Crimson Flame doesn't die for now, will Mo Sha still descend?*
*Is the Congyun Sea still going to be destroyed or not?*
Li Fan, like the other cultivators, looked up into the sky with an unreadable expression.
Just then, another resounding, melodious cry from the Kunpeng drifted into everyone's ears.
It sounded thoroughly delighted and supremely triumphant.
The cultivators sighed and buzzed with chatter.
Just as the Kunpeng was about to vanish completely beyond the horizon...
A sudden change occurred.
Li Fan's eyes narrowed, his posture snapping upright.
High above in the boundless firmament, purple qi suddenly drifted in from the west.
Rosy clouds blanketed the sky, arriving in a flash.
In the blink of an eye, they covered the entire vault of heaven.
A figure composed entirely of faint purple qi sat cross-legged atop the rosy clouds, occupying half the sky.
The purple figure gazed toward the direction where the Kunpeng was disappearing and let out a cold scoff.
"Heretical filth, you still dare come out to court death!"
The voice was bizarre, sounding like a fusion of a tender child and a chilling middle-aged man.
Yet it carried supreme majesty, reverberating like rolling thunder across the world.
Every living soul who heard it felt their heart leap in dread and unease.
As the purple figure spoke, he pointed casually toward Ye Feipeng.
A bolt of divine purple lightning crashed down violently from the Ninth Heaven.
Striking the Kunpeng dead center!
A howl of agony rang out, and the Kunpeng's fleeing form ground to an abrupt halt.
Then, as if robbed of all momentum, it plummeted rapidly toward the earth.
Chapter 304