From the end of the world

Chapter 671 VS Xuanming 3
Just as dozens of fiery dragons were about to complete their encirclement, dozens of fireballs, resembling miniature stars, suddenly rose from below.

These giant fireballs weren't Xuanming's moves, but rather cards I had secretly prepared. When Xuanming's sky sea of ​​fire completely engulfed the cities on the ground, my sea of ​​fire across the ground didn't disappear; it simply sank underground, silently compressing and accumulating power.

Xuanming's flames differ from mine in that, although they are generated by his soul's will, they cannot be a complete extension of his soul. I can transform between flames and soul; one could even say that my flames and soul are two sides of the same coin. This is a quality possessed only by those in the realm of spiritual manifestation, which Xuanming does not have.

The surrounding sea of ​​orange flames, while concealing Xuanming's accumulation of power, also made him more unaware of what was happening outside the flames, especially when he was focused on attacking me. This sea of ​​fire was, in a sense, a closed barrier; while trapping me, it also imprisoned itself within it.

That being said, if I were to actually use this external force to deal with Xuanming, he would immediately detect it, thus preventing me from finding an opportunity to strike. At this moment, I choose to use this force against these fiery dragons.

Dozens of large fireballs and dozens of fire dragons clashed and intertwined, some exploding and disappearing after colliding with each other. I seized the opportunity to break through and attacked Xuanming again. However, the gap between us became apparent once more at this moment—Xuanming maintained his distance from me while using only half of his fire dragons to hold back all my large fireballs, while the other half once again surrounded me.

It's not because his fiery dragon is more powerful than my fireball. If we compare the conflict between our two forces to a battle of troop deployment, then when both sides are evenly matched, the general's battlefield experience becomes crucial.

This was a problem I was aware of before the battle. My opponent was an ancient, battle-hardened Great Impermanence, while I was a new generation Great Impermanence. Although I had considerable experience fighting opponents of similar skill, it was no match for Xuanming. So, how could I reverse this disadvantage?
—To be honest, I no longer have this disadvantage.

Before I had fully digested the power and experience of the Great Demon of Calamity, the blessing from the small bowl mainly helped me fight in a state of complete digestion. Not long ago, I used the power of the blessing to truly transform that experience into my own abilities. Since the blessing no longer enhances my early mastery of power and experience, in what aspects is it enhancing me now?
The answer lies in my intuition and inspiration. Right now, I'm in a state of exceptional performance.

When a person is in peak mental condition, they might suddenly experience a stroke of genius during intense competition, unleashing a move far exceeding their usual performance. Sometimes, even seasoned veterans are caught off guard by a novice's ingenious idea. And with the added blessing, these moments of inspiration are as frequent to me as breathing. Xuanming's battlefield experience is certainly far richer than mine, yet I am able to catch up with him in this incredible state.

This isn't the first time I've entered this state. Long before I gained the experience of the Great Demon of Calamity's power, the Little Bowl's blessing mainly helped me by providing "extraordinary performance." Now it's just a return to the mode that was meant to be.

In a normal battle, even with exceptional performance, the side with more flaws is unlikely to truly bridge the experience gap in this way. However, in a battle between two powerful beings, the scope for skill and tactics is inherently limited. The advantage gained from experience can be offset by extraordinary intuition and inspiration.

I deliberately feigned an insurmountable predicament. Considering that we can easily discern each other's true intentions from magical conflicts nowadays, Xuanming might see through my acting.

However, since he was able to continue using stealthy ambush tactics in this state of conflict before, there was no reason why I couldn't. I tried to conceal my true thoughts, and just as the fiery dragon was about to complete its encirclement again, some of the dozens of large fireballs behind me suddenly broke free from the other half of the fiery dragon and rushed towards me at high speed.

Xuanming's face showed an unexpected look of surprise.

He might have anticipated that I could turn the tide, but he likely thought I had other trump cards up my sleeve. He never expected that I, who usually relied on brute force, would break through the impasse using the most unlikely "skill." The encirclement of the fiery dragon was breached by the incoming fireball. Seizing the moment he wavered, I sprinted to his side and rammed into him.

Xuanming immediately gathered flames, and a wall of fire suddenly appeared between us. Its density was so high it didn't seem like fire at all; it was practically an impenetrable fortress. This wasn't a hastily deployed defense; he had clearly prepared for an emergency.

However, it was clear that this defensive force was only half-prepared, and besides, fire is inherently weaker than defense. I crashed into the wall of flames, piercing through it in one fell swoop. Xuanming didn't have time to make a further defensive or evasive move, and I struck him squarely. This impact resulted in an explosion that shattered mountains and rivers.

Xuanming was blasted far away by the explosion. As a fellow Great Impermanence who manipulates fire, I didn't think he would die so easily from the flames and explosion. Moreover, the impact was weakened by the wall of flames, making it unlikely to be a decisive blow. The surrounding orange sea of ​​fire showed no signs of receding, so I pressed my advantage and gave chase.

The next instant, Xuanming, who was flying backward, came to a stop in mid-air. He looked at me sharply, and a shockwave formed by flames shot out from the orange sea of ​​fire at an extremely fast speed, forcing me to dodge.

Immediately afterwards, countless fire shockwaves came from different directions. I quickly dodged and at the same time launched large fireballs to counteract the unavoidable fire shockwaves.

Xuanming seemed to finally be unable to suppress his emotions, and he spat out a mouthful of blood with a pained expression.

For the first time, I have inflicted effective damage on Xuanming!
This outcome is the turning point; the scales of victory will tip in my favor from here, and I am certain of this.

“How come… you clearly didn’t have this ability last time, so why can you react like that now?” Xuanming looked at me with a heavy gaze. “…Is that so? So you had a way to deal with my offensive from the very beginning. Before, I hit you with a surprise tactic, but this time you caught me off guard!”

No sooner had he finished speaking than I pretended to be barely managing to handle his attacks, secretly manipulating several large fireballs to circle behind him. As if he had eyes in the back of his head, he suddenly turned around and unleashed several fire shockwaves, shattering them all.

“Just as I had a preconceived notion about you at first, you also had a preconceived notion about me. But, Xuanming, you should have already realized with your own body that I am not an opponent you can underestimate,” I said.

“I never underestimated you, but you have truly exceeded my expectations,” Xuanming said. “Now, there is no difference between us that is worth mentioning. Strength, skill, thinking… it’s all the same.”

"But don't forget, I entered this place before you. This is my home turf, and your defeat was inevitable from the start."

I retorted sharply, "Before you spout such nonsense, wipe the blood from your mouth. Your first attack didn't do me any real damage, but my attack has deeply wounded you. Who is truly at a disadvantage? The one who is defeated is you."

"Are you saying... because I was injured first, I was at a disadvantage?" Xuanming laughed.

Isn't that how it is? That was the only thought in my mind. In a life-or-death battle, the side that bleeds first will also see its strength decrease, becoming more easily overwhelmed, and the disadvantage will accumulate like a snowball. If it were fighting other Great Impermanences, perhaps we could still find a way, but we are Great Impermanences whose strength and attributes are roughly the same. "Who gets injured first" is the easiest turning point to determine the difference in victory or defeat.

“Zhuang Cheng, if you are the flame, then I am the one who controls the flame.” He revealed a solemn expression. “Now, let me tell you what the true meaning of flame is.”

(End of this chapter)