Chapter 372: Strong and Overbearing

Feng Xichen clearly felt his Phoenix Domain being torn to shreds like a tattered cloth in an instant. In less than ten breaths, he even lost all connection to his Phoenix Flames. The Phoenix Flames, which he regarded as his pride, his glory, and even his very life—and which made him almost invincible among those of his level—were utterly defeated in the blink of an eye by a "mongrel" who was only at the Earth Profound Realm.

Everyone around them stared with eyes wide as saucers, each person so shocked they nearly lost consciousness. They had only heard rumors of Yun Che's power—his solo destruction of the Burning Heaven Clan, his grievous wounding of Ling Tianni—rumors that described his strength. Yet, a thousand such rumors paled in comparison to witnessing it firsthand. The power that erupted from Feng Xichen was true King Profound strength; he possessed not only Phoenix bloodline but also the royal bloodline of the Divine Phoenix Sect. His immense power was such that no one present even dared to estimate it.

Yet, his Phoenix Flames, even his domain, were easily crushed by Yun Che.

If Phoenix Flames from the Phoenix imperial family fared this way against Yun Che, then the profound flames of the Burning Heaven Clan were even more predictably useless!

Xiao Juetian's forehead was slick with hot sweat, his spine chilled, and cold air seeped through his teeth. Witnessing Yun Che's terrifying power firsthand, he felt both dread and relief—relieved that he hadn't stubbornly chosen to fight to the death, but instead swallowed his pride and compromised. Destroying the Burning Heaven Clan might have been extreme and malicious, but daring to challenge a prince of the Divine Phoenix Empire... this was undoubtedly a madman who considered no consequences!

Provoking a madman with such terrifying power, one who feared even the Divine Phoenix Empire not at all, would absolutely be self-destruction!

At that moment, Xiao Juetian made a firm decision: from now on, even if Yun Che trampled the entire dignity of the Xiao Sect underfoot, he would meet him with a smile, never again daring to offend him in the slightest.

The Blazing Star Fire continued to spread. After engulfing Feng Xichen's Phoenix Domain, it rapidly extended towards him.

Feng Xichen instantly recognized that these flames from Yun Che were Phoenix Flames. However, despite being Phoenix Flames, the intense heat and overwhelming oppressive force of Yun Che's Phoenix Flames caused Feng Xichen's body and bloodline to tremble simultaneously. His body was extremely compatible with Phoenix Flames, but Yun Che's Phoenix Flames, even before touching him, had already greatly distorted his defensive profound energy, and a painful burning sensation, like flesh being torn, emanated from his skin.

At this moment, Feng Xichen was on the verge of a mental breakdown.

"Impossible... Impossible! You're just a mongrel, a lowly mongrel at the Earth Profound Realm! How could you possibly defeat my royal Phoenix bloodline! Die for me!!"

Feng Xichen's clothes billowed, and a cluster of crimson flames surged wildly from his body. But before this cluster of flames could fully erupt, Yun Che's Blazing Star Fire surged forward like an angry tide, engulfing Feng Xichen.

In just five breaths, Feng Xichen's Phoenix Flames, which he had desperately rekindled, were suppressed until completely extinguished, and even his protective profound energy rapidly melted away. Feng Xichen was instantly horrified, feeling the crisis of death for the first time in his life. He let out a loud cry, profound power surging through his body, and retreated at his fastest speed, exerting all his strength to escape the range of the Blazing Star Fire. But before he could catch his breath, Yun Che's figure appeared before him like a phantom, the Dragon Fault already in his hand, striking directly at Feng Xichen's chest.

The two Divine Phoenix Sect guardians, one in black and one in red, were already almost beside themselves with shock after Feng Xichen's Phoenix Flames were completely defeated. Seeing Feng Xichen's predicament at that moment, they both paled, roaring: "Stop!!"

With that roar, both men simultaneously dashed forward like lightning, but just as they moved, a sudden chill enveloped them, their movements freezing for an instant. A white figure flickered into view: Xia Qingyue, her face veiled by ice, ice spirits swirling around her, stood before them. She spoke calmly and coldly, "Are you trying to gang up on us, or are you trying to bully the young with your age?"

Seeing a young girl, clearly not yet twenty, blocking their path, the two elders scoffed, roaring, "How dare a mere girl like you try to stop us! You're asking for death!"

Before their voices faded, the red-clad elder unleashed a palm strike, showering Xia Qingyue with a vast sheet of Phoenix Flames, intending to blast her away. But the Phoenix Flames, before reaching Xia Qingyue, suddenly halted, then rapidly dissipated, ultimately turning into scattered ice shards that rained down.

The two elders, one black and one red, were utterly shaken, unable to believe their eyes. At the same time, a chilling aura, as if from hell itself, suddenly assailed them, causing their bodies to stiffen abruptly. As ice spirits swirled around Xia Qingyue, the ground between the two elders suddenly cracked open, and a massive ice crystal tree burst forth, growing rapidly. In an instant, countless ice crystal leaves and snowflakes spread out, intertwining into a dense net of ice that trapped the two elders.

The overwhelming cold that enveloped their bodies far exceeded their imagination. They quickly ignited their Phoenix Flames, attempting to resist, but within the ice branches and snow leaves, their flames were extinguished almost as soon as they ignited. Some flames were even directly frozen into pure energy ice crystals.

When ice power was strong enough, it could indeed neutralize Phoenix Flames. Profound flames could indeed be frozen, but they had never heard of Phoenix Flames being frozen! Trapped within the ice branches and snow leaves, the two struggled with all their might, but even their combined strength was unable to break free for a time. Instead, their bodies grew increasingly stiff with cold, their blood almost congealing. They looked at Xia Qingyue, bathed in ice spirits like a snow fairy descended from the heavens, their shock immeasurable...

How could such individuals appear in the tiny Blue Wind Nation, which had the lowest power level among the Seven Nations of the Heavenly Profound Continent! Yun Che alone already completely defied common sense, and this girl, seemingly around Yun Che's age, was terrifying to this extent! Had Blue Wind been hiding its true strength for centuries?

The succession of shocks before them made this absurd idea involuntarily surface in their minds.

Meanwhile, Yun Che's Dragon Fault had solidly struck Feng Xichen.

Yun Che's greatest strength lay not in his Phoenix Flames, but in his heavy sword. However, Feng Xichen clearly did not know this. If he had fully evaded, he could have completely dodged Yun Che's attack. But despite being utterly defeated by Yun Che's Phoenix Flames, he naively believed that Phoenix Flames were Yun Che's strongest asset. After all, in terms of profound energy, Yun Che was only at the Earth Profound Realm. He absolutely refused to believe that a Yun Che, merely at the Earth Profound Realm, could surpass him in raw power. With a dark expression, he brought his jade fan across, profound energy surging, and struck towards Yun Che's heavy sword.

Ling Tianni, a sixth-level King Profound practitioner with a century of profound accumulation, had gone to great lengths to avoid a head-on clash with Yun Che's heavy sword. Yet, Feng Xichen, merely at second-level King Profound, chose to meet it head-on! The moment the Dragon Fault made contact with the jade fan, there was a cracking sound as the fan, embedded with thousands of precious fire crystals, was shattered into pieces. The Dragon Fault continued forward, striking Feng Xichen's chest.

Boom!!!

Feng Xichen's protective profound energy instantly shattered. Simultaneously, a flash of light suddenly erupted from his body, and a phoenix cry along with a burst of fire shot skyward. Intricate crimson patterns clearly appeared on Feng Xichen's chest, then rapidly vanished... The Dragon Fault's immense power was instantly reduced by seventy percent, while a massive rebound force sent Yun Che reeling backward.

"It's the Divine Phoenix Sect's protective King artifact... the Phoenix Treasure Robe!" Ling Yun murmured from the crowd. "There are twelve such Phoenix Treasure Robes in the Divine Phoenix Sect... I didn't expect him to have one!"

Although seventy percent of the power was negated, Feng Xichen still felt as if his chest had been struck by a million-pound sledgehammer. He spat out a mouthful of blood, flying backward, blood spraying in mid-air, his entire chest a bloody mess.

The eyes of the two elders, one black and one red, who were struggling within the Ice Serenity Tree, nearly popped out of their sockets... They naturally knew full well that Feng Xichen possessed a Phoenix Treasure Robe. Protective profound energy at the King Profound Realm, combined with the renowned Phoenix Treasure Robe, yet he was still sent flying and spitting blood... They could not believe how terrifying the power contained within Yun Che's strike truly was!

Was this the Yun Che they had dismissed as a mere mongrel, never once taking him seriously!?

How could he possess such astonishing power!! What kind of monster was this!!

"Your Highness!!" With a simultaneous roar, flames surged around their bodies, and they finally melted through the Ice Serenity Tree's restraints. Disregarding everything else, they quickly rushed to Feng Xichen, helping him up from the ground.

Feng Xichen's eyes were vacant, and his entire body felt weak. Protected by the Phoenix Treasure Robe, his injuries were not severe, but the psychological blow he received was a thousand times worse than his physical wounds. He was a dignified prince of the Divine Phoenix Empire, a figure who could dominate the entire Heavenly Profound Continent. In this small Blue Wind Nation, he could swagger around, disregarding even the Blue Wind Emperor, single-handedly crushing powerful sects at will. No one who saw him dared to offend him in the slightest...

His arrival in the Blue Wind Nation was supposed to be a display of power, where everyone he encountered would be nothing more than ants in his eyes...

Yet, in this very Blue Wind Nation, he had been utterly beaten, without any power to retaliate, and completely humiliated by someone younger than him, whose profound energy level was far below his, someone he had mocked and even called a "mongrel." This thoroughly disgraced him, a Divine Phoenix Prince, and indeed the entire Divine Phoenix Sect.

"Go... Go!!" Feng Xichen roared through gritted teeth, not even turning his head. Having lost all face and dignity, he simply could not bear to stay any longer.

Neither the black-clad nor the red-clad elder said anything more. They both looked back at Yun Che and Xia Qingyue once, then took Feng Xichen and prepared to leave.

"Wait!"

Just as they took their first steps, Yun Che's cold voice suddenly came from behind them: "Trying to leave? Heh! Did I give you permission?! You trespassed without an invitation, not only disrupting my wedding ceremony but also insulting my bloodline and even trying to kill me. Now you think you can just walk away? Do you take this place for an amusement park where you can come and go as you please!"

As Yun Che spoke, Cang Wanhe and the others were greatly alarmed. Feng Xichen and his two companions were about to leave, and they had been greatly relieved, wishing for nothing more than for them to depart immediately. This was arguably the best possible outcome, one they hadn't even dared to imagine. But to their surprise, just as they were about to leave, Yun Che intended to stop them.

The black-clad elder's steps paused. He turned around, sneering, "Yun Che! Do you really think you can afford to provoke my Divine Phoenix Sect?"

"Divine Phoenix Sect?" Yun Che sneered back, "I don't care if you're the Divine Phoenix Sect or some obscure cult, if you provoke me, I will make you pay a price you'll never forget! Whether I can afford to provoke the Divine Phoenix Sect, I don't know, nor do I need to know right now. Because all I need to be able to provoke right now is the three of you!!"

"You want to leave? Fine!" Yun Che extended his hand, pointing at Feng Xichen. "Leave his right hand and right leg, and then you can freely get lost!"