The blindingly fierce sword light, as intense as the scorching sun, flashed past.
In that moment, it was as if a true sun had descended upon the world. Apart from the powerful Su Cheng and Bibi Dong, everyone else watching felt a sharp pain in their eyes. Blood-tinged tears welled up, making it impossible to look directly at the dazzling brilliance.
Even the spiritual power waves sent out by the supreme Douluo Qian Daoliu from afar were scattered by the energy's aftermath.
This situation was not only because the power of the sun was too strong, but also due to Qian Renxue's insufficient control, leading to excessive energy leakage.
At this point, Qian Daoliu could no longer sit idly by.
He had not anticipated Qian Renxue would go to such extremes.
Even with his years of cultivated temperament, he couldn't help but feel restless and anxious, both worried and pained for his granddaughter, finding her actions undeserving, while also resenting Su Cheng for his lack of devotion and causing disappointment.
In an instant, he dashed out of the Douluo Hall, heading towards the academy.
Given Qian Daoliu's reaction, Su Cheng, who was much closer, was even more shocked.
Was this strike powerful?
For Su Cheng, it wasn't particularly challenging to deal with.
Even if Qian Renxue could fully control the immense power within her, such a domineering and extreme attack was quite single-tracked in combat, far inferior to Su Cheng's own actual battle capabilities.
Moreover, Qian Renxue's aura was unstable, making it clear she couldn't control the subsequent trajectory of the strike.
With Su Cheng's mastery over power, he could easily intercept and prematurely detonate it without harm.
In terms of raw power, Qian Renxue had indeed reached the strength of a second-level deity.
However, in actual combat, she couldn't defeat any second-level deity, and even against a third-level deity, the outcome would be uncertain.
Although she possessed the memories and experience of becoming the Angel God, such experience requires the body's reaction as support.
Currently, her physical foundation and soul essence were merely at the potential transformation stage, needing time to materialize fully, and she was still quite a distance from reaching the true god level.
Unlike Su Cheng's innate power, which unified his entire energy into one cohesive force, each enhancement represented a genuine leap in strength.
This underscores why endlessly increasing energy is meaningless.
Without sufficient accumulation, the efficiency of energy use is naturally abysmally low, potentially even becoming a hindrance in a battle of the same level.
A child wielding a heavy divine sword recklessly might not be as effective as a handy dagger.
Of course, given her level of power, annihilating a hundred or eighty supreme Douluo with a single strike would still be effortless.
At this moment, Zhu Zhuqing had no time to think further.
As the real killer move descended, it became clear that the earlier divine power was merely an appetizer.
Her eyes went blind from the intense light, her mind blank, frozen in place.
She couldn't even sense her own existence anymore.
After the sword strike, the light behind Qian Renxue's wings dimmed, disintegrating into countless points of light that vanished. The blazing white flame in her eyes extinguished, and her long hair slowly fell.
In the next moment, the sword in her hand disappeared, and her figure split into two, transforming into two figures dressed in radiant gold and silvery-gray armor.
The once immensely powerful aura instantly plummeted.
Though still strong, it no longer carried the previous terrifying might.
From a distance, Bibi Dong, who was trailing behind, looked on in horror.
She understood Su Cheng better than Qian Renxue and Zhu Zhuqing did, especially in matters of the heart.
She guessed what he would choose to do next.
"Su Cheng!! No—"
Her sharp, ear-piercing scream hadn't yet finished.
The transparent sword light suddenly deflected, falling directly in front of Zhu Zhuqing.
Su Cheng had no choice.
The five-colored light swirled, and the innate domain unfolded.
However, against the terrifying sword light before him, this layer of the domain was almost effortlessly pierced through upon its emergence.
Releasing his grip, the Eternal Sword fell to the ground.
He couldn't use the sword to block.
Doing so would kill Qian Renxue.
In the next moment, his hands, shrouded in transparent energy, enveloped the blinding white sword light from both sides.
The perfect and pure innate power met the domineering and scorching power of the sun.
Not through direct collision, but by striving to buffer and dissolve it.
But it was almost useless.
The power of the sun was inherently extremely violent, even more dominant than the innate power by several degrees.
The innate power excelled in balance, not particularly outstanding in either defense or attack, especially when used in this way.
"Hiss—"
Accompanied by an almost inaudible sound, the energy on his hands was rapidly burned and evaporated, followed by the skin and flesh…
The sword light slightly slowed and weakened, but then inevitably pierced into his body.
"Mm…"
Su Cheng couldn't suppress a muffled groan.
The instant pain almost made him give up resistance.
Fortunately, it avoided vital organs, preventing immediate death.
Even so, the continuous influx of solar power still rapidly devoured his vitality.
The burning sensation outside quickly turned to numbness.
This terrifying energy, capable of incinerating everything, rampaged unchecked within him, attacking his organs, meridians, bones, and even his soul...
From Qian Renxue's sword strike to Su Cheng's immediate decision to take it head-on, everything happened in an instant.
When everyone regained their sight, they were struck speechless by the terrifying scene before them.
A massive flame, several meters high, burned fiercely on the ground.
No, within the faintly blue skyward white flame, a man's silhouette, kneeling on one knee, could be vaguely seen.
To be precise, the white flame seemed to be emanating from his body, as if he were the very source of the fire.
This pillar-like blaze brought a scorching heat, far surpassing the previous heat waves emanated by Qian Renxue.
The stone-paved ground quickly melted, forming a deep pit.
Without Qian Renxue's control, the immensely powerful solar power finally revealed its ferocious fangs before these mortals.
When the sun hangs high in the sky, it's revered as the source of life.
But such a presence can only be observed from afar by mortals, for those who dare approach are doomed.
The numerous academy soul masters, regardless of their cultivation levels, all felt an unbearable burning pain throughout their bodies at this moment.
Even their souls seemed to be aflame.
They had to mobilize their entire soul power to barely resist being scorched by the heat waves.
Zhu Zhuqing stared blankly at the blaze before her, and the indistinct human figure within.
For a moment, she couldn't comprehend what had just happened.
"No, how could it be…"
"Why…"
The two tall figures, identical in appearance except for their clothing and hair color, murmured softly, their eyes brimming with tears and filled with panic.
They were about to rush into the flames to find that person, save that person, or share the terror of the sun's fire with him.
But someone was faster.
A dark green figure descended from the sky, completely ignoring the scorching heat of the white flames, directly entering the blaze and holding the figure within.
Underneath the dark green mask, tears streamed uncontrollably down Bibi Dong's face, only to be quickly evaporated.
She had no time to care about others.
Whether it was Qian Renxue, Zhu Zhuqing, or the academy members watching, they had all disappeared from her sight.
Her eyes were fixed on one person.
In her perception, Su Cheng's life force was rapidly fading.
The final scene of her dream seemed to reappear before her eyes.
"No..."
In just a moment, the arms holding Su Cheng's body had turned black, like withered, charred wood, rough and ugly.
Even Bibi Dong, who had unleashed her true martial spirit and whose strength surpassed that of ordinary peerless Douluo, suffered such a fate upon contact.
One could only imagine what the state of Su Cheng's body was like after taking that sword head-on.
"I will help you. Hold on..."
Deep within her invisible soul.
The sacred and pure lotus pond bloomed peacefully as usual.
But at the bottom of the lotus pond, there was a vast, deep layer of sludge.
Now, with Bibi Dong's intense emotional turmoil, the sludge began to churn and roll.
It then started to slowly climb up from the roots of the lotus flowers...
However, before anything further could happen, large bursts of fire suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
On the vast expanse of clean lotus flowers, clusters of flames suddenly ignited.
Soul burning!
Bibi Dong's delicate eyebrows furrowed sharply, and the intense pain made her face turn pale.
But this was the only solution she could think of.
Her strength was indeed formidable.
However, compared to Su Cheng's innate power or Qian Renxue's solar power, she was still far behind.
Never had she regretted so much as she did now.
Why did she slack off in her training during this period? Why didn't she try to merge with the innate power...
She pressed her forehead against Su Cheng's.
Her soul power poured out without reservation.
If this really is another dream, then this time, I can choose to end it with you.
Outside the fiercely burning flames, noticing Bibi Dong's figure involved, the two Qian Renxue didn't think much.
In fact, they were completely panicked now.
Without any eye contact, they simultaneously prepared to move.
"Wait."
Suddenly, a figure landed behind Qian Renxue, placing both hands on their shoulders.
Qian Daoliu had arrived.
"Acting rashly will only create more trouble for Su Cheng and distract him from taking care of you. Just wait for a while, and trust him."
He used a delaying tactic to stop Qian Renxue from approaching while scanning the crowd, "All academy teachers, immediately take the students away from here!"
With a wave of his hand, he used his domain to block some of the heatwave.
Seeing the grand elder himself appear, the teachers breathed a sigh of relief.
They were already struggling to hold on.
As for the students, their performance was even worse. Except for Zhu Zhuqing, most were barely holding themselves up.
Soon, the young soul masters were gradually taken away, but Zhu Zhuqing stood still, looking soulless and unresponsive to any calls or pulls.
Seeing this, the teachers were at a loss.
Qian Daoliu glanced at her, then at his two heartbroken granddaughters. After some hesitation, he waved his hand, indicating they should leave her be for now.
He then turned his gaze back to the two figures in the flames, sighing inwardly.
Seeing Su Cheng's life hanging by a thread, his previous anger dissipated.
Aside from today's events, he actually admired Su Cheng.
Young and promising, with outstanding talent, although he subtly influenced the inheritance of the Angel God position, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing for Qian Renxue to find a better path.
It was just a pity that his handling of emotions left much to be desired.
Pain!
Extreme pain!
Su Cheng had completely lost the ability to perceive the changes outside.
Even if Qian Renxue attacked Zhu Zhuqing again, he couldn't stop it.
Fortunately, Bibi Dong was behind him, so she should be able to control the situation.
The clothes and soul tools he wore were instantly burned to ashes.
His body hair and connective tissues had long since turned to ash.
The hands that initially faced the divine might were charred black, with all the skin and flesh necrotic. If not for the innate power flowing within, his hands might not have been salvageable.
As for the continuous intense pain, it didn't come from these tissues.
In fact, he couldn't feel the burning pain on his skin anymore.
For ordinary people, when pain reaches a certain threshold, the brain blocks the signals to protect itself.
However, at his level of cultivation, such a situation was impossible. Pain serves as a significant aid in both combat and training.
The true cause was the blazing white flames burning inside him; the pain from his surface wounds paled in comparison.
Even with his perfect innate power protecting his body in the second stage of his Eternal True Body, he couldn't avoid severe injuries.
The solar power was overwhelmingly dominant, crushing his innate power in a direct confrontation.
Even his main meridians had turned a molten gold color, with some minor meridians completely fused together.
This was true internal burning; his whole body seemed to be melting.
But all these injuries combined were nothing compared to the pain of soul burning.
In his soul, spots of blazing white fire continuously ignited.
Though few, they were relentless, slowly and steadily eroding his soul, and his innate power couldn't extinguish them.
This was the terror of high-level power.
The flames within, without, and in his soul resonated with each other, even using their battleground as fuel.
Unless all the flames were extinguished simultaneously, he could only wait for them to burn out on their own.
However, judging by the current situation, Su Cheng would likely perish before that happened.