Suddenly, a searing heat rushed in from every direction — heaven and earth alike.
In mere moments, countless people were drenched in sweat, barely able to endure it.
Sensing danger, the Huangfu Heavenly Clan's Patriarch immediately unleashed his martial power, while Shenhui hurriedly deployed a grand formation to shield them from that scorching aura.
Yet even so, many still found it unbearable.
"What the hell — what… what is this? Are we inside a damn alchemy furnace?!" Wang Qiang cursed loudly, though he couldn't conceal the panic in his voice.
Because as far as the eye could see, flames surged from both sky and earth. The sensation truly made it feel as though they were trapped inside an alchemy furnace.
The world itself had become a furnace!
"That fire has nothing to do with him," Chu Feng said, his brow deeply furrowed.
Xiahou Jue was a Fourth-grade Heavenly God — his strength was naturally formidable beyond measure.
But this technique of transforming the entire world into a blazing furnace bore none of Xiahou Jue's aura.
This furnace was more like a sacrificial formation — one that had always belonged to the Ancient Burial Mound.
He looked toward Xiahou Jue again and saw that the man's expression hadn't changed at all. He was completely unaffected by the flames.
"As expected, the instructions were accurate. The meaning is clear — you are to be refined," Xiahou Jue said, his grin growing more savage and triumphant. With a wave of his massive sleeve, a torrent of crimson qi transformed into numerous arrow-like projectiles that shot toward Chu Feng and the others like a torrential downpour.
But in the very next instant, those qi arrows shattered one after another, as though they had collided with an invisible wall.
Just as everyone looked on in confusion, a wall of black flame appeared out of nowhere — within it, countless blood-red eyes flickered and swirled.
It was that black flame that formed a wall sealing off heaven and earth. And it was this same black flame, which had been invisible just moments ago, that had intercepted and destroyed those crimson arrows.
"The New King?" All eyes turned to the New King.
Everyone could tell that was his doing.
But the most critical thing was that the New King's aura was no longer that of a First-grade Heavenly God — it was that of a Fourth-grade Heavenly God.
"Heavenly God realm — a jump of three full grades?!"
This sight left not only Xiahou Jue stunned, but even the array of experts on Chu Feng's side were utterly floored.
No wonder the New King had been so confident before.
His true strength had never been merely reaching the Third-grade Heavenly God level — he was capable of reaching the Fourth-grade Heavenly God realm.
"Who are you?" Xiahou Jue asked in a grave voice.
He had noticed the New King long ago.
But he had dismissed him as nothing more than some ancient demon descendant — not worth his attention.
That was no longer the case.
For the other party to leap from the First-grade all the way to the Fourth-grade Heavenly God realm in a single breath — this level of strength demanded he take it seriously.
"Who I am is none of your concern," the New King said. As he spoke, he extended his right arm with his palm open. From within that palm, a black spike slowly emerged.
The spike was long — resembling a spear — but it was clearly no ordinary weapon. It looked more like an extension of the New King himself.
Once the black spike appeared, the New King did not strike. Instead, he planted it upright beside himself.
Boom!
A massive pillar of black flame erupted skyward, and the New King's aura multiplied several times over.
"Ant. You are certain you wish to be my enemy?" the New King said, fixing Xiahou Jue with a gaze brimming with contempt.
That look sent a chill crawling down Xiahou Jue's spine.
"You… you are a junior?" Xiahou Jue asked again, his voice tight.
This was a crucial question.
He himself was a supreme genius — but even so, it had taken a lifetime of cultivation under the backing of the Prison Sect, and countless fortuitous encounters, before he had stepped into this realm.
If the other party truly was a junior, then the gap between them might not be enormous now — but in the future, the difference would become as vast as heaven and earth.
"Leave now, and I may spare your life," the New King said.
"Lord Xiahou Jue," someone urged. "This man is from an ancient race — his ancestors once swept through the ancient world. He is not someone we can afford to offend. If you withdraw now, there may still be a chance."