The Sacred Blood Winged Flood Dragon was absolutely a king-level existence among dragon-blood demon beasts.
And this one was of divine growth tier.
At first glance, this Sacred Blood Winged Flood Dragon appeared black, but its true color was a deep crimson, its entire body surging with overwhelming power.
With this divine-growth-tier dragon blood demon spirit alone, Nie Li was already one of the most important young geniuses in the Feather God Sect.
The Sacred Blood Winged Flood Dragon was a full third larger than the Frost Dragon Beast, and its overwhelming power bore down on the Frost Dragon Beast so heavily that the creature could barely breathe.
Although Nie Li was only at the Four Life realm, a divine-growth-tier dragon blood demon spirit was enough for him to disregard two or three rank differences.
Seeing this, Flameless Venerable clenched his fists tightly. So Nie Li had fused with a third demon spirit — and it was a divine-growth-tier dragon blood demon spirit at that. It seemed he had been underestimating Nie Li all along. He had never expected that Nie Li had hidden his cards so deeply.
He was beginning to understand why the Heavenly Cloud God Venerable valued Nie Li so highly. With such immense potential, once Nie Li fully matured, he would likely become the most powerful existence in the Feather God Sect.
A thousand years ago, the Feather God Sect had been on the verge of decline when a brilliantly talented founding ancestor rose like a comet, elevating the sect to become the most dazzling among hundreds of god sects — and it had been well preserved through the subsequent Great Destruction.
Over the past century, the Feather God Sect had gradually shown signs of decline once more. Several of its leaders had been seeking any opportunity for a turnaround, even going so far as to personally nurture talents from the middle academy. Nie Li had only recently joined the sect, but his meteoric rise was astonishingly fast, easily inviting speculation.
The Heavenly Cloud God Venerable would surely spare no effort in nurturing Nie Li — and might even pass down the Heavenly Cloud Divine Art to him.
Unlike other divine cultivation arts, the Heavenly Cloud Divine Art had always been passed down to a single successor. If Nie Li learned it, Flameless Venerable would be deeply resentful — after all, he had followed the Heavenly Cloud God Venerable for so many years.
A flash of viciousness passed through Flameless Venerable's eyes. No matter what, he had to crush Nie Li before the young man could rise.
At that moment, Long Tianming harbored the same thoughts. He had done so much, step by step, advancing toward his goal. Now this Nie Li had suddenly appeared — a sudden variable that filled him with an extremely unsettling feeling.
He would not let anyone disrupt the web he had woven.
Fortunately, Flameless Venerable had sent people to test Nie Li's strength. Otherwise, he would still have been kept in the dark, dismissing Nie Li as insignificant. If he waited until Nie Li became a genuine threat, it would already be too late. He needed to eliminate Nie Li as quickly as possible.
It was fortunate that Flameless Venerable was now stepping forward on his behalf — otherwise he would have had to personally suppress Nie Li. In the past, he had considered Situ Beiyan the greatest threat, but now he realized Nie Li posed an even greater one.
Situ Beiyan gazed at Nie Li in the distance with deep, contemplative eyes, falling into quiet thought. He too had never expected things to turn out this way.
"Situ Beiyan," Long Tianming took a sip of tea and said, glancing over, "I think perhaps we can set our differences aside for now. You must have sensed his potential as well. Once he matures, he will undoubtedly threaten your position as Sect Master successor."
Hearing this, Situ Beiyan shook his head. "Long Tianming, I understand what you're getting at, but you've misjudged me. My rivalry with you isn't about selfishly grasping for the Sect Master position. I want to see which of us is more suited for it. If a new genius emerges, I will absolutely not suppress him. He might become a figure like that founding ancestor, leading the Feather God Sect to glory — why would I stand in his way?"
Long Tianming let out a derisive laugh. "Situ Beiyan, don't make me laugh. As if you're that selfless. If the Heavenly Cloud God Venerable said that, I'd believe it in a heartbeat. But when you say it — do you really think I'd believe you?"