The flame was no longer silent.
It pulsed with every heartbeat, deep within Jiang Han's soul. Two thrones now burned in his core—Legacy and Remorse.
But neither of them would matter if he didn't survive what came next.
Because above them…
The sky cracked open again.
But this time, it wasn't one man.
It was an army.
---
The Sovereign Hunters Descend
"They're here."
Bo Ren's voice was tight, his staff already humming with soul wards.
From the rift above came armored figures—white, gold, and obsidian. Thirty elite Immortal cultivators, each wearing a radiant crest across their chest.
The Sovereign Hunter Division.
Led by a woman whose presence warped the realm around her. Her armor bore ten red stars—a marker of someone who'd personally slain ten sovereign-class enemies.
Her name was Commander Mei Xun.
Her eyes locked instantly on Jiang Han.
> "Target confirmed. Tier 3 Sovereign Awakening. Dual Flame Sigil detected."
She raised a hand.
> "Kill him. Extract the Embers. Cleanse the realm."
---
Run or Burn
Yue spun toward Jiang Han. "We can't take thirty!"
Bo Ren was already drawing emergency escape glyphs. "We need a voidpath—now!"
Zhao Kai stood ready. "If we can stall—just stall—I can rip a gate open."
Jiang Han said nothing.
Tian Xue looked at him, panic starting to rise. "What do we do?"
He looked toward the southeast, where the old maps showed chaos lands—untamed, unstable, unruled by sects.
He pointed.
> "We go there."
> "Into the Beast Flame Territory."
Bo Ren blinked. "Are you insane? That place eats cultivators."
> "Good."
Jiang turned, eyes blazing.
> "Let it try."
---
The Chase
They ran.
The sky shattered behind them with spellfire and divine chains. The Sovereign Hunters descended like hawks—screaming down on them with blades of light and flame.
But Jiang's soul burned brighter now.
Every blow that came close—he twisted around it.
Every arrow of fate—he bled past it.
Behind him, Yue was a blur of arrows and detonation glyphs, shielding Lin Yao and Tian Xue. Zhao Kai slammed stormlight spears into the mountain to block pursuit. Bo Ren laid illusion mines every five steps.
But the enemy pressed closer.
One Hunter leapt forward—blade drawn.
Jiang spun, activated Echo Reversal—the soul-based slash bounced back, ripping through the attacker's chest.
> "One down," Zhao Kai shouted.
> "Twenty-nine to go!" Yue snapped.
---
Into the Chaos Flame
They reached the ridge overlooking the chaos zone.
The land below was a patchwork of lava rivers, bone forests, and burning skies. Flame elementals howled in the distance. Nothing had form. Everything was alive.
Tian Xue gasped. "This place…"
Bo Ren said grimly, "It's not a realm. It's a wound."
Jiang Han stepped forward.
The fire reached out—drawn to him, curious.
Welcoming.
Zhao Kai blinked. "It… likes you?"
> "It recognizes me," Jiang said. "This flame has no master. No memory."
> "It's instinct."
He turned to his team.
> "We go in. We survive. And I claim the Third Flame."
Yue grinned, stringing her bow. "We do love making friends in the worst places."
Jiang Han jumped.
And the flames embraced him.
---
Meanwhile – In the Celestial Hall
Far above, in the Immortal Realm, a council watched the unfolding events in silence.
A robed figure leaned forward.
> "Two Embers lit. The boy moves faster than projected."
Another responded, voice like cracking glass.
> "Shall we intervene directly?"
The first replied, "Not yet. But alert the Heaven-Tier Reapers."
> "If he reaches Flame Four… we send the gods."