Chapter 1673: Innate Fetal Poison Escapes

At this moment, Zhang Xuan felt like crying, wishing he could find a hole to crawl into. After painstakingly activating all three True Meanings—Time, Space, and Soul—he had, until now, only managed to absorb two needle-tip sized flames, yet he still felt a great sense of accomplishment…

Yet, his clone charged in and swallowed an entire cluster of flames in one go...

The most crucial part was... what kind of look did this idiot have? What attitude? What tone?

Damn it, you're just a clone! A clone! A clone!

Do you even understand what "clone" means?

I'm the main body, dammit! Can't you distinguish between superior and subordinate, or know your place?

As soon as he thought about status... Zhang Xuan's expression turned even uglier...

It seemed that ever since this idiot appeared, they had fought numerous times, and each encounter had ended in his defeat... If anyone truly lacked status, it was him...

Filled with sorrow, he looked up at the clone in the air. Honestly, it was the first time he had ever wished this idiot would be burned to death by the flames.

Yet... the clone burped, its face beaming with excitement: "Delicious!"

Whoosh!

It plunged headfirst into the dark cloud and vanished.

"Roar-ga?"

The bone dragon to the side trembled incessantly, its entire skeletal structure practically rattling apart, and it wore a ghastly expression, as if it had seen a ghost.

Clones were not uncommon; many powerful cultivators had refined them, even Master Kong had one. But... this was truly the first time it had witnessed one more audacious than the main body!

The most crucial part was... that was the Supreme Celestial Flame, which even it held in utmost reverence. Yet this fellow, not only showed no fear, but even charged right into it... Wasn't it afraid of being burned to ashes?

While still in shock, it then saw a leg emerge from the dark cloud, and a hand rubbing it vigorously back and forth...

Crackling and popping!

A large cluster of black flames was rubbed evenly, making crackling and popping sounds against the body. Yet, the leg's owner not only showed no fear but was instead utterly engrossed in enjoyment, letting out comfortable groans...

"Is this... is this even human?"

Its neck recoiled, and the bone dragon trembled uncontrollably.

Previously, it had felt it was a loss to submit to the individual before it. Only upon witnessing this clone did it truly understand that, in comparison, it was vastly inferior.

It turned its head to look at the main body, who stood frozen in place, his face pale with fury and his body trembling incessantly.

"Who's afraid of whom? Let's go for it!"

Before the bone dragon could even react, it witnessed its master's Witch Soul also charge straight into the dark cloud, vanishing from sight in the blink of an eye.

The bone dragon was utterly bewildered.

The clone dared to charge in, perhaps due to the strength of its refined material, enabling it to resist the flames with its physical body. But you... what are you doing charging in with just a Witch Soul?

Are you in such a hurry to die?

"If worse comes to worst... if he dies, should I acknowledge the clone as my master?"

Propping a claw against its chin, the bone dragon began contemplating its escape route.

Unable to tolerate the clone's disdain, Zhang Xuan immediately charged into the dark cloud.

Boom!

In the blink of an eye, countless black flames surged towards him.

"The clone's material is the Nine Heavens Lotus Embryo, which is tougher than my physical body. However, its soul body is identical to mine; if it can withstand this, I definitely can too..."

Though the situation was dangerous, he felt no anxiety.

He had charged in not out of recklessness, but after careful calculation.

He had acquired cultivation techniques, which were automatically shared with the clone upon entering the folded space. As he cultivated, so did the clone. This meant that just as his Witch Soul had broken through to the Golden Body realm, so too had the clone, both reaching the Golden Body.

If that was the case, if the clone could endure it, why couldn't he?

There must be something he hadn't noticed!

He looked at the clone not far away, and observed it swimming leisurely within the black flames: at times backstroking, at times freestyling, at times dog-paddling, at times sprawling out like a giant character, and at other times forming the character '太'... it seemed indescribably comfortable.

The black flames continuously scorched it, causing its body to begin emitting golden light, and its soul became even more resilient than before.

"I understand..."

With a jolt of understanding, Zhang Xuan had a sudden realization: "The Dragonbone Divine Spear mentioned that the Heavenly Flame Tribulation is divided into burning the soul, burning the spirit, and burning the heart... So, I had always assumed that burning the soul was the first stage, with the rest appearing successively. Now, it seems that while ordinary Heavenly Flame Tribulations might indeed be like that, the Supreme Heavenly Flame Tribulation is not... instead, all three appear simultaneously!"

"This flame is undeniably scorching and difficult to resist, yet it hasn't reached the point of being completely unbearable. After all, I cultivate the Heavenly Dao Witch Soul and have undergone countless lightning tribulation refinements; my soul body is already as sturdy as a Grand Saint divine weapon..."

"But... facing a cluster of flames, I fearfully resorted to all sorts of evasive maneuvers, not daring to absorb it... This must be a test of my Dao Heart!"

"The clone, relying on the unique properties of the Nine Heavens Lotus Embryo, charged straight in without fear. This actually negated the Heavenly Flame's effect of refining the Dao Heart, making it far less terrifying than I had imagined!"

"It's just like being alone in the darkness: the more anxious you feel, the more you sense someone lurking around, ready to harm you at any moment. But if you possess a clear conscience and no fear, you won't feel anything at all..."

These thoughts flashed through his mind, and Zhang Xuan no longer paid attention to the surging black flames. His Witch Soul suddenly expanded, and the golden light within his body ceased to emit. It was as if, in an instant, he had completely emptied himself, no longer caring whether he would be burned to death.

Sizzling and crackling!

The flames immediately began to temper his body, and with his mind relaxed, he indeed felt the pain was no longer as excruciating as before. Instead, under the tempering of the flames, his soul grew even more resilient.

"Indeed..."

Seeing that it truly worked, he breathed a sigh of relief, and Zhang Xuan simultaneously gained a complete understanding.

The Heavenly Flame Tribulation not only scorched the soul body but also had a tempering effect on the spirit and state of mind.

The more fear one harbored, the greater the power of the flames, for they did not scorch the soul body but rather the inner self.

When fearless, its power, conversely, diminished.

However, even though diminished, his soul body still trembled incessantly under the scorching flames, and waves of pain assaulted him, making him feel as though he could be torn apart at any moment.

"Never mind that for now; I'll focus on tempering my soul body..."

Knowing it was futile to dwell on these thoughts, with a shift in his mental focus, Zhang Xuan's soul body's acupoints reopened, furiously devouring the surrounding flames.

Boom!

The flames entered his body, immediately circulating incessantly. His soul body, already golden, became even more dazzling, its radiance brilliant, resembling a golden Buddha.

"Let's see if I can burn away the innate toxin!"

Feeling his soul body gradually adapt to the Heavenly Flame's temperature, Zhang Xuan no longer hesitated. With a shift in his mental focus, clusters of scorching flames surged towards the innate toxin.

Gurgling!

The innate toxin seemed to have encountered something terrifying, continuously retreating.

Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up, and he accelerated the influx of flames, controlling them with greater speed.

Screeching!

With a startled shriek, the innate toxin could no longer endure. It whistled out of his soul body, plunged through the dark cloud, and vanished from sight.

The innate toxin, being congenital, already possessed its own consciousness; otherwise, it would not have been able to actively hide from the Heavenly Dao True Qi.

"Finally, I'm rid of it..."

Seeing it flee, Zhang Xuan breathed a sigh of relief.

Ever since he discovered this thing, he had viewed it as a ticking time bomb, filled with dread, and it had been his greatest motivation for cultivating diligently along his path. Today, it was finally and completely resolved!