When Fang Wei started flying higher into the sky earlier, Meng Hao awoke from meditation, not naturally, but because he had felt the intense sensation of something calling to him, something very familiar.

That sense of familiarity came from Fang Wei.

It was a sensation like nothing else, and it came specifically from Fang Wei’s second and third Dharma Idols. It was now obvious that they were calling out to Meng Hao’s blood.

He had felt that there was something familiar about Fang Wei’s aura from the very beginning. He’d had his speculations, but it wasn’t until now that those speculations were validated. [1. Meng Hao mentioned in chapter 897 that he sensed something familiar about Fang Wei]

From Fang Wei’s second and third Dharma Idols, Meng Hao got the feeling that… they actually belonged to him.

They were… manifestations of his Nirvana Fruits!

Now that the truth had presented itself in front of Meng Hao, he was unexpectedly calm. The entire clan had witnessed the Grand Elder giving him “his” Nirvana Fruits, so bringing up the subject would be useless.

Meng Hao smiled, a cold smile that contained no anger, but rather, calmness.

He slowly stood up, then began to fly upward, relying on no magical items to resist the sunlight and heat. He put the matter of the Nirvana Fruits aside for now, and instead focused on a Daoist incantation.

Withering Flame Demon Magic True Self Dao!

Flame Character Incantation!

A blistering heat rose up inside of him that rapidly spread throughout his entire body. The heat turned into a sea of flames that spread out from Meng Hao, raging up to merge with the violet sunlight and absorb its heat.

His Dharma Idol appeared behind him, and it was also surrounded by a sea of flames, making it look incredibly shocking.

In that moment, his fleshly body seemed to be on the verge of making a breakthrough as he madly absorbed all of the intense heat around him.

Within his mind was not just the Flame Character Incantation; he also had the Withering Character Incantation and the Self Character Incantation. These three Daoist incantations all seemed to merge together inside of him. Under the intense heat, Meng Hao’s body began to wither, and yet, within that withering was an intense life force. [2. Meng Hao acquired the Withering Flame Demon Magic True Self Dao in the Demon Immortal PaG.o.da in chapter 584. He reached a culmination of enlightenment about it in chapter 720, outside the Ancient Dao Lake. He used the “Self Character Incantation” to create his second true self, starting in chapter 733. He combined the “Withering Character Incantation” with his Blood Demon Grand magic in chapter 770, and killed a Dao Seeking expert with the same incantation in chapter 774. It was mentioned quite a few other times, these are just some of the highlights.]

In fact, as he withered, more violet sunlight and even more intense heat were incited by the Flame Character Incantation, causing his body to recover. The withering was then focused inside of him, transforming into a true black hole.

Meng Hao’s Flame Character Incantation rapidly solidified as it absorbed the vast amounts of violet sunlight, causing the incantation to become thoroughly completed.

“The Withering Flame Demon Magic True Self Dao contains seven incantations,” Meng Hao murmured. As of this moment, he gained more understanding of this Daoist magic that he had picked up in that primordial Demon Immortal Sect.

“Even so, it doesn’t quite measure up to the Fang Clan’s Reincarnation Incantation.” Meng Hao sighed. The One Thought Reincarnation Incantation was one of the four great Daoist magics of the Fang Clan, and was famous throughout the entire Ninth Mountain and Sea.

Those four great Daoist magics were Daos of the clan, and even Meng Hao couldn’t study them unless he exchanged enough merit points for it. Even then, he wouldn’t personally be able to master them without the help of a Patriarch-level expert.

“Fire…. Light….” Meng Hao was suddenly lost in thought, and began to see images in his mind. Within the vision, he saw a spherical ma.s.s of fire and light that was like a sun, or an eye.

It was none other than… the Essence of Divine Flame beneath the lands of South Heaven!

That was the most intense ma.s.s of fire and light that Meng Hao had ever seen in his entire life!

He closed his eyes and began to recall his experience with the Essence of Divine Flame. Things began to grow clearer as he remembered returning to the third level of the underground land. In the moment that he had acquired some of that Essence, what he had seen was not the light of a sun, but rather… the flaming eye formed by the Essence of Divine Flame!

In the same moment that Meng Hao was experiencing this vision, back in the lands of South Heaven, in the third level of that underground land, a place guarded by all the bizarre beasts, within a world of flames, the eye of the Essence of Divine Flame suddenly… opened!

The moment that the eye opened, it seemed to form a resonance with the image of the Essence of Divine Flame that existed in Meng Hao’s mind. Rumbling sounds could be heard, and Meng Hao’s energy level suddenly began to rise.

At the same time, the sea of flames around Meng Hao suddenly turned black. They swirled around him, transforming into an enormous spherical globe.

Meng Hao existed in the very center of that globe, held up by his Dharma Idol. From a distance, it almost looked like he had… become a sun!

This sun was far bigger and more realistic than the sun created by Taiyang Zi’s divine ability, and the heat it radiated was boundless.

Down in the ancestral mansion, the faces of the Elders who were watching the scene instantly flickered with shock. Even the Grand Elder, who had remained completely calm this entire time, felt his eyes going wide.

“That’s… a projection! A projection of the sun!”

“What divine ability is Fang Hao using!? I can’t believe he’s created a projection of the actual sun!”

“In all the past years, only two people have ever created a projection of the sun during the rise of the East Ascension Sun, and they were Patriarchs, tens of thousands of years ago! And yet Fang Hao… is actually doing just that!”

Deep down in the Fang Clan ancestral mansion, in a stony cavern, seven archaic old men sat cross-legged.

These seven were all incredibly famous figures. If they emerged into the outside world, they would cause a huge stir in the starry sky, and could suppress all living things.

They sat cross-legged in meditation, and looked as if no aura of life existed in them whatsoever. The color of their clothing was varied, and currently, the old man who wore a crimson robe suddenly opened his eyes.

He slowly raised his head, and his gaze penetrated through the rock and stone into the outside world.

“The aura of Essence….”

Back outside, in the 90,000-meter position up in the sky, Meng Hao slowly opened his eyes. To those looking on, it appeared as if he was surrounded by a projection of the sun. However, Meng Hao knew that this was not the case. Instead… he had used his memories of the Essence of Divine Flame, as well as the Flame Character Incantation, to borrow the power of the sun and copy its image.

He looked up at Fang Wei in his position at the 180,000-meter mark, and his expression became even more placid than before. Then, he lifted his right leg and then pushed it down, propelling himself high into the air!

It was one movement, but it caused ma.s.sive rumbling to fill the air. The void rippled, and even the sun high in the sky seemed to distort. At the same time, the sun surrounding Meng Hao began to expand.

The path that stretched out in front of Meng Hao’s eyes seemed to shrink, as if the intervening 90,000 meters were nothing more than a single meter!

One movement spanned a single meter… but caused him to leap 90,000 meters! [3. Because of how I convert the measurements to meters, and also because of how Chinese uses special words for certain units of measurement (they have a unique word for 10,000), this sounds a lot cooler in Chinese. “Zhang” is about 3 meters and “chi” is about 1/3 of that, in other words, one meter. The direct translation would be: It seemed as if a three 10,000 zhang distance had become three chi! One movement was three chi… but he stepped three 10,000 zhangs!]

He pa.s.sed Li Ling’er, superseded Sun Hai and Taiyang Zi, and appeared directly above Fan Dong’er!

He… moved directly to a height of 180,000 meters. When he appeared next to Fang Wei, Fang Wei’s eyes widened, and he shook visibly.

Meng Hao was now radiating boundless violet light in the shape of a sun. It was a sight that shook Heaven and Earth, leaving everyone astonished. People watching from down below even had the mistaken impression that the sun had descended!

“You!!” said Fang Wei. This was the first time he had become fl.u.s.tered. His face flickered, and he was so shaken by Meng Hao that he involuntarily retreated backward.

Fan Dong’er was panting as she stared up at Meng Hao. She had to admit that as of this moment, Meng Hao was shocking even to her. He had formed a projection of the sun, and crossed 90,000 meters in a single movement! It was terrifying!

Zhou Xin of the Sublime Flow Sword Grotto looked on with a sharp gaze, virtually unable to believe the feeling of defeat that existed in his heart.

Li Ling’er took a deep breath as she gaped in shock. She knew that Meng Hao was Fang Mu, and she knew that with his latent talent, he was the number one figure in the Ninth Mountain and Sea. Even still, she was once again completely shaken by him.

Gradually, Meng Hao’s position in her mind was reaching the pinnacle, like a huge mountain that was impossible to supersede.

Song Luodan trembled and bitterly lowered his head. Taiyang Zi stared blankly for a long moment before sighing.

“It is a blessing to be able to live in the same age as him, and thus, bear witness to his actions. It is a curse… because his brilliance casts everyone else in shadow.”

w.a.n.g Mu’s fists were clenched tightly, and deep inside, he wanted to fight. His gaze was defiant as he repeatedly told himself that his surname was w.a.n.g, and that the surname w.a.n.g… had a very special meaning!

To be a Chosen of the w.a.n.g Clan meant that you didn’t lose to anyone!

Sun Hai was shaken, and chuckled bitterly. He actually had no desire to compete with Meng Hao, and yet, he still sighed.

Meng Hao hovered at the 180,000-meter position. Here, the sky was deep violet, almost black. It was so dark that only by looking closely could you pick up the violet hues. In addition, the sunlight was vastly more powerful than at the 90,000-meter position, so much so that it seemed capable of melting the body.

Even magical items would be instantly transformed into a liquid that would quickly become nothing more than steam.

However, Meng Hao’s expression was calm. He was like a black hole, furiously absorbing the sunlight and heat. The sun that surrounded him looked just as magnificent as the sun that hung up above in the Heavens.

Meng Hao turned to look at the grim-faced Fang Wei.

“Fang Wei,” he said calmly. “Do you want to have a little compet.i.tion? Let’s see… who can go the highest!”

Fang Wei’s eyes widened as he stared at Meng Hao.

“We don’t even need to bet anything specific,” Meng Hao said with a slight smile. “However, the winner will get to punch the loser. Once. It’s just that… I really feel like punching you.”

Fang Wei snorted coldly, declining to say anything in response. Instead, he responded with action. The three Dharma Idols behind him suddenly exploded with power, and he himself shot high up into the sky.

Meng Hao’s expression was the same as usual. As soon as Fang Wei flew up, he followed, and the two of them turned into bright streaks of light that shot upward.

In the blink of an eye, they had reached 210,000 meters!

Meng Hao’s entire body was covered in flames. The sun which surrounded him was still in place, despite the fact that the light and heat here was ten times as powerful as it had been at the 180,000-meter position. Fang Wei was trembling, and the Dharma Statues behind him fell to pieces. Gritting his teeth, he slapped his bag of holding to produce a medicinal pill, which he immediately swallowed.

It was a Skypalace Sunspirit Pill, and as soon as he consumed it, he threw his head back and roared, then shot even higher than before.

225,000 meters. 240,000 meters!

The sky was now completely black. Fang Wei’s body was in flames, and fissures were spreading out across his skin. Even with the Skypalace Sunspirit Pill, he was incapable of staying at such a height for very long.

Meng Hao’s sun was beginning to collapse, and his body withered. His flesh and blood appeared to be evaporating and dispersing. The intensity at the 240,000-meter position was ten times as powerful as before, and the heat and light had reached a terrifying level. However, even as his body withered, he looked over at Fang Wei with a cold gaze.

“What’s wrong?” he asked. “Can’t keep up?”

To Fang Wei, this incredible heat and light was terrifying. It was the same for Meng Hao. However, there was something unique about Meng Hao; however ruthlessly he treated others… he treated himself even more ruthlessly.

Meng Hao also had a Skypalace Sunspirit Pill, and yet, he didn’t consume it. He wanted to use Fang Wei’s arrogance to bring him down, to openly, and without any tricks, mess with him until he was destroyed and brought to ruin!

He also wanted to damage Fang Wei’s Dao heart, by defeating him without even needing to consume a single medicinal pill. It would be like a mortal blow to Fang Wei.

Considering Fang Wei’s level of intelligence, how could he not understand that Meng Hao was leading him on? This was obviously… a battle for the position of number one Chosen in the Fang Clan!

As of this moment, all of the Fang Clan’s experts, all of the Elders, and even the Grand Elder, were paying rapt attention!