Reborn as Huo Yuhao, but also in Battle Through the Heavens

Chapter 64, 9 Steps Away from Ice Flame

"Hey!"

A clear phoenix cry rang out. The instant Xiao Yan poured the core of his beast fire into the Nine Heavenly Flames, the ice-blue phoenix opened its mouth and inhaled, devouring Xiao Yan's beast fire completely.

At this moment, the feeling it gave Huo Yuhao and the others changed. It seemed no longer just flames, but possessed true life, every feather on its body clearly visible. In those pupils composed purely of flames, a clear trace of intelligence flashed.

Boom!

Just then, thunderclouds roared, and a blinding bolt of lightning struck down from the sky, landing squarely on the fiery phoenix.

Sparks flew everywhere as the fiery phoenix roared to the sky, controlling the surrounding Nine Heavenly Flames to surge upwards in an attempt to counter the heavenly lightning.

"This is... a heavenly tribulation!" Huo Yuhao exclaimed, then his eyebrows furrowed as he raised his hand to manipulate the energy of heaven and earth to support the Flame Phoenix.

Yao Chen's soul power also surged forth, preparing to shield the Flame Phoenix from the heavenly lightning, just as he had done countless times before when resisting the Pill Tribulation.

"Hey!"

A sharp phoenix cry rang out as the Flame Phoenix manipulated a portion of the Nine Heavenly Flames to prevent Huo Yuhao and Yao Chen from providing assistance. A firm and clear belief emanated from its consciousness: it must overcome this challenge itself to truly become a different kind of flame.

"Teacher?" Huo Yuhao bit his lower lip.

"This, perhaps, is its destiny!" Yao Chen withdrew his hand from his sleeve. "Only by relying on its own strength to overcome this baptism can it become the twenty-fourth different flame on the Dou Qi Continent!"

The fire phoenix's counterattack seemed to have angered the heavenly tribulation, and the subsequent heavenly lightning bolts were increasingly powerful. With each strike, large swaths of fire feathers were shattered from the fire phoenix.

Huo Yuhao and the other two clenched their fists, but could only stand aside, hoping that it could overcome the heavenly tribulation.

"Keep going! You have to get through this!" Xiao Yan's voice suddenly rang out, filled with expectation for his companions.

Huo Yuhao turned to look at Xiao Yan, remained silent for a moment, seemingly influenced by Xiao Yan's gaze. He turned back, his eyes fixed on the fiery phoenix dancing in mid-air.

"Keep it up!" The voice wasn't loud, but it was enough for it to hear.

"Screech!" Responding to the blessings of Huo Yuhao and Xiao Yan, the Flame Phoenix flew even more gracefully, with pillars of fire constantly striking against the heavenly lightning under its control.

As the last bolt of lightning struck, all the icy blue fire feathers of the Flame Phoenix scattered and fell onto the scorched earth, ravaged by the aftershocks of the lightning and fire.

The Flame Phoenix no longer had its icy blue fire feathers; its entire body had turned bright red. Its aura had greatly weakened, yet it gave Huo Yuhao and the other two a more realistic feeling.

The dark clouds in the sky dispersed, and the Nine Heavenly Fires on the ground were all extinguished, leaving only scattered sparks of mortal fire. In mid-air, a beautiful fiery phoenix circled and cried out, its voice filled with the joy of new life.

Huo Yuhao and Yao Chen stopped providing it with the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, yet it did not disappear. Instead, it existed completely and independently in the world as a unique flame seed.

The three of them kept their eyes glued to it, unable to look away for even a moment.

However, in a short while, the joy in its voice vanished, turning into mournful cries that seemed to resonate directly in the depths of the three people's hearts.

"What happened? What went wrong?" Xiao Yan asked anxiously.

"This... I don't know either."

The fiery phoenix landed on the ground, wailing incessantly, its newly formed body becoming unstable again.

At this moment, Huo Yuhao, who was in harmony with the heavens and man, keenly sensed that there seemed to be a spiritual essence remaining in the ashes on the ground.

Hearing the mournful cries of the Flame Phoenix, Huo Yuhao had a sudden inspiration and immediately mobilized ice attribute energy to inject into the ashes. At the same time, he quietly condensed his spiritual power and integrated his spiritual seed into it as well.

Sparks of icy blue appeared, converged, and in an instant, reignited. A phoenix of ice flames, radiating a chilling aura, was reborn from the ashes.

Two phoenixes sang and danced in harmony, their joy clearly visible in their voices. Streams of red and blue light emanated from their tail feathers, stretching endlessly.

The surrounding sparks reignited instantly, and the rings of flames no longer bowed down to them, but seemed to be drawn to them, yearning to merge into them.

"With the emergence of this strange fire, all other fires submit!" Yao Chen exhaled a breath of turbid air. "Could this be two different strange fires? Or perhaps they coexist like the Yin-Yang Twin Flames?"

Huo Yuhao and Xiao Yan extended their hands together.

The bright red flame phoenix landed lightly in Xiao Yan's palm; the icy blue ice flame phoenix, its biting coldness subsided, rested on Huo Yuhao's hand. Both of them clearly felt a strange connection originating from the depths of their souls quietly emerge.

"They are two different kinds of flames, and they are also born together." Huo Yuhao and Xiao Yan smiled at each other.

……

"What did you say?" Instructor Ruolin was shocked. She could no longer maintain her gentle demeanor and her face showed an expression as if the sky had fallen.

"Is Xiao Xun'er also asking for leave?" She leaned on the table, her vision blurring.

"I'm sorry, mentor." Huo Yuhao lowered his eyes, his fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of his clothes, his voice slightly embarrassed: "Xun'er's family has encountered some issues, and she has already left the Xiao family. She won't be able to go to Canaan Academy for another year."

"How am I supposed to explain this to the academy!" Instructor Ruolin looked dejected. She had finally discovered four geniuses, and now half of them were gone. She could already imagine the expressions on the faces of the academy elders, and how her promotion and raise would be delayed again.

"I'm sorry, mentor." Huo Yuhao bowed slightly and apologized again, "I will explain to the academy on your behalf."

"Fine! Fine! Are you sure they'll come in a year? Are you and Little Fairy Doctor sure you won't take leave?" Instructor Ruolin waved her hand and went to find a corner to be herself.

"Mentor, I promise there won't be any more problems."

"Okay, let me have some peace and quiet."

Seven days passed quickly. With Instructor Ruolin's constant worry, Huo Yuhao and Little Fairy Doctor successfully boarded the flying magical beast of Canaan Academy without any further mishaps.

"Brother Yuhao, what's wrong with Xiao Yan lately? He's been grinning like an idiot one minute and looking depressed the next. Could he have a split personality?" Inside the carriage, Little Fairy Doctor leaned close to Huo Yuhao and whispered in his ear.

"A few days ago, he successfully fused with the strange fire, and his cultivation technique advanced to the advanced stage of the Profound Rank." Huo Yuhao used simulation to prevent the students in the carriage and Ling Ying, who was hiding in the shadows, from discovering their movements.

"Wow! There's a strange fire near Wutan City?" Little Fairy Doctor covered her mouth, somewhat surprised.

"We created it together with our teacher," Huo Yuhao explained in a low voice.

"You didn't include me in such an interesting activity," Little Fairy Doctor pouted.

"There was a little accident at the time, so we didn't have time to call you." Huo Yuhao patted Little Fairy Doctor's head and comforted her softly, "I promise I'll definitely bring you next time."

Little Fairy Doctor blushed slightly, but didn't dodge Huo Yuhao's hand: "Then it's settled, let's pinky swear."

Just then, Xiao Yan's unusually excited voice rang out: "Can you hear me? Potato, Potato, it's me, Sweet Potato!"

"Hey? Xiao Yan, weren't you supposed to be absent?"