Chapter 1653: The Innate Fetal Poison Flees

At this moment, Zhang Xuan felt like crying and wished he could find a hole to crawl into.

After dawdling and deploying all three true interpretations of time, space, and soul, he had only absorbed two sparks the size of a needle tip, and still felt quite accomplished...

But then, his clone charged up and swallowed an entire clump...

Worst of all... what kind of look was that? What attitude? What tone?

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

Do you even know what a clone means?

I'm the real body here—can you tell who's who and know your place?

Thinking about his place, Zhang Xuan's face grew even darker...

It seemed that ever since this idiot appeared, they had fought many times, and each time ended in his defeat... If we're talking about status, he had none.

Filled with sorrow, he looked up at the clone in the sky. To be honest, this was the first time he hoped the bastard would be burned to death by the flames.

But the clone just let out a burp and said excitedly, "Delicious!"

Whoosh!

He plunged headfirst into the dark clouds and vanished.

"Huh?"

The bone dragon beside him trembled uncontrollably, its bones nearly falling apart, with a look of utter shock.

Clones were nothing special; many strong cultivators had refined them, and even Master Kong had one. But this was the first time he'd seen a clone more arrogant than its original body!

And most importantly... that was the Supreme Heavenly Flame, which even he held in awe. This guy not only showed no fear but charged right in... Wasn't he afraid of being burned to ashes?

While still in shock, he saw a leg emerge from the dark clouds, and a hand rubbing it vigorously...

Crackle!

A large clump of black flame was rubbed evenly across the leg, making explosive sounds. The leg's owner, far from being scared, seemed to enjoy it, letting out comfortable moans...

"Is... is he even human?"

The bone dragon shrank its neck and trembled.

Earlier, it had felt that submitting to this guy was a loss, but now seeing his clone, it realized it was far inferior in comparison.

Turning to look at the original body standing still, it saw him fuming, his face turning green, trembling uncontrollably.

"Who's afraid of who? I'll go for it!"

Swish!

Before the bone dragon could react, it saw its master's soul also charge straight into the dark clouds, disappearing in an instant.

"..."

The bone dragon was completely dumbfounded.

The clone dared to charge in, perhaps because its refined material was strong, using its physical body to withstand the flames. But you... a soul body, what are you charging in for?

Afraid you won't die fast enough?

"If worst comes to worst... if he dies, I'll pledge allegiance to the clone?"

A hoof propping up its chin, the bone dragon plotted its escape route.

...

Unable to bear being looked down upon by his clone, Zhang Xuan charged straight into the dark clouds.

Boom!

In an instant, he saw countless black flames surging toward him.

"The clone's material is the Nine Heavens Lotus Fetus, harder than my physical body. But as a soul body, it's the same as mine. If he can endure it, so can I..."

Though dangerous, he wasn't flustered.

He hadn't charged in recklessly but after careful calculation.

He had obtained the cultivation technique, and upon entering the folded space, it automatically shared with the clone. As he cultivated, so did the clone. That meant his soul had broken through to the Golden Body realm, just like the clone's—both were at Golden Body.

Since that was the case, if the clone could withstand it, why couldn't he?

There must be something he hadn't noticed!

Looking at the clone not far away, he saw it swimming in the black flames—sometimes backstroke, sometimes freestyle, sometimes dog paddle, sometimes forming a big character, sometimes a 'tai' character... utterly carefree.

The black flames continuously scorched, causing his body to emit golden light, and his soul became tougher than before.

"I understand..."

A thought struck Zhang Xuan, and he suddenly realized: "The Dragon Bone Divine Spear said the Heavenly Flame Tribulation consists of soul-burning, spirit-burning, and heart-burning... So I always thought soul-burning was the first stage, and the others would appear one by one. But now it seems that while ordinary Heavenly Flame Tribulation might be like that, the Supreme Heavenly Flame Tribulation is different—all three appear simultaneously!"

"This flame is indeed unbearably hot, but not to the point of being completely unendurable. After all, I cultivate the Heavenly Dao Soul, and after countless lightning tribulations, my soul body is already as solid as a Saint artifact..."

"But facing a clump of flames, I was so afraid that I used every means to avoid it, not daring to absorb it... This must be a test of the Dao heart!"

"The clone, relying on the special nature of the Nine Heavens Lotus Fetus, charged in without fear, and the effect of the Heavenly Flame tempering the Dao heart disappeared, so it wasn't as terrifying as imagined!"

"It's like being alone in the dark: the more fearful you are, the more you feel someone is lurking around, ready to harm you. But if you're open and fearless, you don't sense anything..."

These thoughts flashed through his mind. Zhang Xuan no longer cared about the surging black flames. His soul suddenly expanded, the golden light within his body ceased to emit, as if he had completely emptied himself in an instant, no longer worrying about being burned to death.

Sizzle!

The flames immediately began to burn around his body. With his mind relaxed, he indeed felt less pain than before. Instead, under the flame's tempering, his soul became tougher.

"Indeed..."

Seeing that it worked, he breathed a sigh of relief and understood.

The Heavenly Flame Tribulation not only scorches the soul but also tempers the spirit and the mind.

The more afraid you are, the greater the flame's power, because it burns not your soul but your heart.

When you are fearless, its power diminishes.

But even so, his soul trembled under the scorching, pain assaulting him in waves, feeling as if it would tear apart at any moment.

"Forget it, let's temper the soul..."

Knowing that dwelling on it was useless, Zhang Xuan focused his mind, opened the acupoints of his soul again, and frantically devoured the surrounding flames.

Boom!

The flames entered his body and immediately surged through it. His soul, already golden, grew even more dazzling, shining brightly like a golden Buddha.

"Let's see if I can burn away the fetal poison!"

Feeling his soul gradually adapt to the temperature of the Heavenly Flame, Zhang Xuan wasted no time. With a thought, he directed clumps of scorching flames toward the location of the fetal poison.

Gurgle!

The fetal poison recoiled as if seeing something terrifying.

Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up, and he accelerated the influx of flames.

Squeak!

Letting out a frightened shriek, the fetal poison could no longer hold on. It rushed out of his soul, plunged through the dark clouds, and vanished.

The innate fetal poison already had its own consciousness; otherwise, it wouldn't have actively hidden from the Heavenly Dao True Qi.

"Finally rid of it..."

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

This thing, ever since he discovered it, felt like a time bomb, filling him with fear. It was also the greatest motivation for his diligent cultivation along the way. Today, it was finally completely resolved.