novelraw Chapter 441 - 440 - Phoenix vs Dragon
Chapter 441 - 440 - Phoenix vs Dragon
Ethry floated in the air as dark specs began to become Lira and Han. Lady Gua was nearby but what hope did a tier 6 dragon have against a Star Tier?
Normally, Gua would have prevented such foolishness but Ethry was different. She was a Divine Dragon. A battle between beasts was not solely decided by cultivation realm but by bloodline purity.
In the case of a Divine bloodline, only another Divine bloodline could stand up to it. Han would never dream of using his bloodline in a battle but Lira had proven to be a winner at all costs type of beast.
Lady Gua, despite having a fairly pure bloodline of her race, was nowhere near divine. She was a Heaven grade bloodline at best.
"She is weak." Ethry's pale silver eyes flickered with disdain as the aura of Lira washed over them. She tried to smack Ethry out of the sky but her bloodline suppression had no effect. Lira's eyes narrowed but then she sneered as her aura flattened all the trees beneath her!
Ethry's eyes went wide but Lady Gua held her back. Lira was very good at goading people and Han's frown made it evident he did not approve. The damage to the trees and other plants was extensive but no beasts were nearby.
Generally, Heaven Realms would not fight so close to the ground for that very reason but Lira had simply swatted that part of the Mengcong. Ethry seethed as platinum lightning sparked around her.
Lady Gua felt her body shiver in its presence. Despite only being tier 6, her bloodline was terrified of Ethry's power!
"You bring a useless welp to face us? Have you fallen so low since slumming with cultivators?" Lira's voice was pleasant but her words were vile. Lady Gua simply smiled and then stood aside as Ethry finally came forward.
Her body bulged as she fully transformed into her sinuous form. Han was nodding approvingly but Lira only sneered.
"A welp is still a welp. I do not car–" Lira suddenly found her throat locked as a bloodline aura filled the air between them. Her bloodline, despite being a phoenix derivative, wailed at the purity of the dragon in front of her!
"HA HA HA! A Divine grade bloodline! Excellent!" Han's own bloodline flared but that only made Lira more irritated. If there were a comparison, Ethry was very pure, Han was strong, but hers was pathetic compared to either!
The fire element was much closer to the phoenix thus Han's race was closer in purity to their ancestor. He could not overcome Ethry, but he could repel her suppression. A glint of acknowledgement entered the vertically slit platinum eyes.
"ROAR!" Ethry's voice broke Han's aura like it was paper but he smiled wider! Lira was enraged at them. They acted like she did not matter!
"It seems they are happy with things, how about we get on with things you old crone?" Lady Gua's stinging words only made Lira angrier. She then cooled down and smiled at the naive spider.
"You think this will be a simple fight? I came for you all!" Her voice echoed and a massive flight of Light Ravens and Fire Hawks descended on the Mengcong. It was not, however, on the frontlines but the sect itself!
Lady Gua frowned deeply but they had few flyers to combat true birds. The flare of Qi told her the formations were working but for how long against such powerful foes?
Han was deeply disappointed but he could not countermand Lira at that point. Her strength had beaten his. The only reason he lived was his death would open a slot for a Fire Hawk to rise.
"Weak." Ethry spoke again but had no concern for the sect. They would live or die, she could not protect them. Besides, they were hardly defenseless.
A massive column of emerald light flared as another dragon appeared!
"IMPOSSIBLE!" They could feel it from there. Lira was knocked out of the sky as she had been gloating but Han was always on the lookout for an attack. The aura was technically weaker than Ethry but the purity would not compare.
It was Origin Essence! A progenitor! Han felt his blood boil in excitement and turned to Ethry.
"COME! I must beat you to face that one!" Ethry actually seemed to smile as she shot into the sky. Han followed suit but Lira destroyed the area around her. The broken trees were now turned into splinters.
Further, she sent out attacks that spread the carnage to several forces stationed nearby.
Lady Gua had had enough!
The dead could not be saved but no further damage would be allowed. Webbing flew but it was full of earth and fire!
She had not fully integrated the 4th element into her dantian but she had comprehended enough to add it to her webbing. It was a strange feeling to control fire that was her weakness. Her body trembled but her mind focused on her enemy.
Lira was immune to fire thanks to her bloodline but earth was a different matter.
The tensile strength far surpassed Lady Gua's usual webbing and she was yanked into the sky like a toy. Her humiliation was far more distressing than the fact Lady Gua showed a 4th element.
Afterall, both Han and Lira had 5 elements!
It was the last element that eluded them both for so many centuries that they could not advance. Lira was able to slip the fire in the webs into her grasp and shatter the bonds.
"You will die today and become the final sacrifice for my ascendance!" Lira was crazed as she took on the massive shape of a bird with a wingspan of over 3 kilometers. Her Qi felt crushing but now that she was so far up, it hardly affected the surface.
The dark feathers lined in sparkling gold gave her race their name. Light Qi was shining blindingly from her whole body but Lady Gua had little time to appreciate it. She was avoiding wind slashes and lightning bolts!
The only element not used was her other weakness, water. It was good to know Lira's limits but her skill with the others was so well honed that no openings were available. Lady Gua in her human form, however, was too small and fast to hit!
Han and Ethry were having a very different battle. One his from him would shatter her body to a bloodmist but her bloodline was like a barrier he could not cross.
"They fight well, but your people are dying." Ethry knew. She could feel the battle below. Lind was strong but trying to suppress so many Sky Realms was impossible. The most he could do was slow them down!
"Your kind are honorable, they will lose like that." It was true. The majority of the casualties were from the Light Ravens. The Fire Hawks attacked openly and thus presented easy targets to the bears and other beasts to unleash attacks.
"Victory through combat. It is our way." Han was slowly moving closer but it was taking a toll on him. His brow was covered in sweat and his Qi was depleting to move closer. Ethry, for her part, was hardly taxing her Qi yet she could not push any harder.
The difference in realms was too great!
"ATTACK HER ALREADY! HELP ME KILL THIS SPIDER!" Lira's voice boomed but they ignored her. Ethry found a kindred spirit in Han. She was annoyed he followed such a craven weakling but she understood how beasts worked.
Common ancestors could lead to alliances but strength became even more important. Purity of bloodline was not enough. If an actual phoenix was before them, the war would have ended before it began but instead it was the rival for the skies, a dragon.
The desire to see who was stronger flowed in them both! Han was happy! His blood sang to face a true dragon! If he was to die that day, he would have no regrets! He was stuck far outside the reach of even his wings but it was time to get serious!
Han bulged as flames exploded around him. A harsh beak with ruby eyes replaced his head as feathers of fire actually covered his massive body. Ethry's eyes narrowed at the scars on his body but the power was like night and day.
Assuming a human form was a restriction for aether beasts. Ethry was a bit of an exception due to her special circumstances, but to normally achieve human form would be to restrict the raw power in their core and condense their body down.
Only restricting the massive amount of Qi in their body would allow the transformation. Once in human shape, there was a severe upper limit they could not cross or their bodies would be injured.
The only way to return to full power was to return to their natural state.
Han's power was already superior to Ethry but his bloodline was suppressed by her and his human form. Now that he was in his burning covered form, he could move forward once more.
Unlike a true phoenix, his wings were not made of flames but merely surrounded by them. While it was supremely hot, to Ethry it was simply a warm breeze. It was not an attack, simply Han's natural state.
The hawk had massive black talons but she noticed one was missing a claw. His human form had not had such a visible wound so it must mean his feet were hurt that way.
Ethry felt respect for the hawk in front of her but she was now the one feeling pressure. Her tier 6 power was nothing in front of Han and her bloodline was powerful but not invincible.
"The battle is good, but the challenge is over." Han was no longer as restrained as he could now reach Ethry. He was about to have his burning wings ensnare her when a pillar of prismatic light exploded from her!
It was dragon breath!
Han snorted as it could not harm him at that strength but then he felt a change in the air! He looked up and saw black clouds gathering and he suddenly realized he had made a grave error.
The Heavens favored Divine bloodlines but it did not allow them many special favors aside from celebratory tribulations. The only other power was one that had only happened a few weeks ago!
"It was yo–" Han never finished as the bolt struck him down. The dragon's flame was not an attack, it was Ethry calling to the Heavens! Han felt pain but he also felt clarity.
His fire could burn so well but it could be more. He could be more. He was a descendent of the phoenix and now Heaven had punished him but also given him tempering.
"I UNDERSTAND!" He could never grasp darkness. It had eluded him all his life but at the twilight of his time, he could see how darkness was merely the reflection of light. His dantian began to sparkle with the Qi of all 6 elements as the stars moved inside it.
The sundered Sky Core was what made the stars but now the stars were gathering with increasing speed as the pressure built inside Han. Darkness was the contrast, the shape that surrounded light and flame. It was as much a part of his elements as all the others.
Tears fell as he looked at the exhausted prismatic dragon in the sky.
"I shall remember this! Come find me when the time comes for you!" A pale moon formed ringed in fire, water, earth, air, light, and dark! His moon was imprinted with a faint glimmering of phoenix fire but he could no longer stay!
A Moon Tier was afforded only one fate, ascension from the mortal realm!
A shaft of light spread open the skies and all froze as Han was pulled up. He looked at the war and frowned one last time.
"ALL FIRE HAWKS! I AM ASCENDING! MY LAST ORDER IS TO AID LADY GUA!" A cry of joy came from the Fire Hawks while Lira screamed in rage. It was not fair, how had a dying fool made it when she could not?!
Han left the mortal realm and found his youth again. New battles awaited!