Paragon of Sin

The fire energies within the world that clashed with the remaining extreme water energies started to vibrate rapidly as the ambient heat intensified. The worldly reaction prompted the three Highlords' expression to simultaneously tense; their eyes flashed as Highlord Scarletflame hurriedly shouted: "Nirvanic Segregation!" 

As if they were completely aware of Bai Lin's following action, they concisely reacted, reinforced their wills, and then pumped out over ninety percent of their spiritual power into the chains intermixed heavily with their mystic power. They all settled on a single specific hand-seal and deeply growled as veins popped on their faces, grotesque and throbbing! 

Bai Lin's explosive cry was followed by her three hundred meter-sized fiery form quivering and trembling endlessly, shrinking and expanding at odd angles at a rapid rate that it seemed she resembled a heart pumping blood. The chains tethered to her form shook, but they were thoroughly attached. 

The Tang Matriarch left fist tightly tensed. She took a very minor step forward, contemplating intervening immediately, but she held off in the end and retracted her step. Her eyes flickered with undisguised concern, "She can still use Nirvanic Segregation in her state!" They had only exchanged a few moves with this Fire Phoenix, yet the more they saw, the more abnormal they realized she was from the detailed records of those ancient beings when Fire Phoenixes were at the height of their power. 

She was even questioning the validity of those records! 

The Tang Matriarch finished her thought: "Still, the Aqua Spirit Chains refined by these three should be enough to stall her." The Spiritual Chains ensnaring Bai Lin weren't just byproducts of the Highlords' immense spiritual power, but actual high Mystic-Earth grade armaments they had refined into their Mystic Souls alongside innate extreme water energies. Otherwise, the Nirvanic Flames would've long since incinerated them.

Bai Lin didn't hesitate to drive her bloodline energies to their maximal limit, bringing out one of her core abilities! With the chains shackling her, the slithering mystic runes intent on entering her body, and that Voidship that might be able to launch another attack at any time, she no longer felt the need to consider the personal cost to escape! If this continued, not only would she be captured by these unknown villains, but she would be forced to abandon Wei Wuyin! 

Her golden-colored eyes barely contained her incredible resolve. It was unquestionable. It was inextinguishable. Memories were conjured within her mind…

-----

Stab!

"Ha!" A silver-eyed youth exclaimed exhaustedly, sending the tip of his blood-drenched saber into a warm corpse. The youth stood upright with shivering legs, his head tilted back and his chest heaving violently. The smell of heavy, sweet blood suffused the very air. 

"Lord Wei!" A male figure with blonde hair and green eyes strolled into view, announced his presence, arrived a few meters from the silver-eyed youth and respectfully kneeled tiredly before him. "The unit has captured the surviving attackers; what shall we do with them?" 

The silver-eyed youth breathed out for a few seconds, turning his gaze towards a particular direction. 

Bai Lin's eyes were focused entirely on the silver-eyed youth as the world in her view was littered with corpses of his enemies. Therefore, when those eyes of his that were as brilliant and gorgeous as the stars in the sky focused on her, her thoughts momentarily stilled. 

The silver-eyed youth gave a faint smile, then lowered his head, his entire body lost its weakness, and he grabbed the saber with vim and vigor. It was pulled out of the corpse and an arc of fresh sanguine blood formed in the air, cleaning the saber of blood and revealing it sharpened form. 

"Kill them all."

The blonde-haired male wasn't shocked by this response, nodding as he rose and sought to leave, relaying that order, but he halted for a brief moment with a befuddled expression. A question formed that itched in his heart, so when he turned, he asked: "Lord Wei, if you don't mind me asking…how did you do it?" 

Their unit had been ambushed en route by an enemy that had countered them in every way, and even his opponent had means to suppress his Aquatic Qi. He was a goner, so was everyone else in the unit. Yet somehow, in miraculous and bloody fashion, Lord Wei had turned it around with a few simple and direct actions and orders. Even now, he couldn't figure out how the enemy faltered so easily despite their excessive preparation. 

The silver-eyed youth walked towards Bai Lin, a faint smile on his face, but the exhaustion within those eyes of his was present, yet it was strongly hidden behind a wall of self-confidence and firm willpower. 

"Han Yu…we, not I, didn't do anything that we couldn't do; they, however, were prepared for everything that we should do. That's how we did it; that's why we're alive and most of them aren't." The silver-eyed youth said, petting Bai Lin as she let loose a soft cry of elation. But a warm spiritual sense invaded her body, clearly inspecting her internal injuries. 

"..." Han Yu revealed a confused glint in his eyes, unsure what that meant. 

"When you figure out what that means, you'll become an even greater fighter and a better tactician. No one, not even the most prepared enemy, will be able to gain an advantage against you. Especially if they're prepared." After saying this, the silver-eyed youth revealed a relieved smile. 

Han Yu thought for a moment, realizing it was a little too profound for his thoughts. He left with haste, no longer dwelling. Regardless of what led to it, they had survived and claimed victory. As for their enemies? They were either corpses or at their mercy.

When Han Yu left, the silver-eyed youth closed his eyes, petting Bai Lin's neck with a quivering hand, "Plans are rigid. Choice is fluid." Those words lingered in Bai Lin's thoughts, and while she wasn't able to understand them, she felt that those words carried some importance.

-----

Those memories resurfaced. In particular, those words of Wei Wuyin. She hadn't understood what that meant before or why Wei Wuyin wasn't direct with explaining, but as she recalled all the events that happened on that day, reminded of their perilous situation turned into a miraculous victory, and facing this terrifying situation, she was enlightened! 

The reason why Wei Wuyin had overcame such a situation, claimed victory in the end, wasn't because he was so overwhelmingly powerful that his opponents couldn't react or respond, but that they had expected him to act and operate in a certain way. It was a flaw in their thinking; they were rigid. A direct result of their own formulated strategies and plans!

He didn't do anything that he couldn't do, but he did everything they hadn't expected him to! 

Timing!

She grasped this profound detail of combat. Since those above were expecting her to act in a certain way, follow a certain planned route, then she would flip the script! 

The Tang Matriarch was already shocked that Bai Lin was abnormal, feeling concerned about their plans, but as Highlord Scarletflame had mentioned before, they were fully prepared with various plans in place to subdue this Fire Phoenix. This was not a simple matter of spending a few weeks but an endeavor that had been devised for centuries. 

They wouldn't fail. 

Her inner confidence resurged. 

They couldn't fail. 

Yet as man makes plans, the Fire Phoenix laughs. 

Abruptly, the temperature of ten thousand miles in every direction, even the Dark Void's chillness, was rising at an extremely rapid rate. The air distorted within the atmospheric environment of Blueglow and fixed space started to become hazy and indistinct in certain areas. 

The Voidships had gotten into position and, with a few more seconds, were ready to deploy the array to entrap the Fire Phoenix, ensuring them the most favorable and advantageous circumstance to subdue the Fire Phoenix and claim it for themselves.

However…

Simultaneously, all the Highlords, including the Tang Matriarch, had their pupils contract! They directed their gazes towards the same location, noticing that the restrained Fire Phoenix that was struggling to escape, about to perform Nirvanic Segregation in a state as textbook as could be, had changed. The color of her flames was no longer scarlet-gold but dark red. She was burning her blood essence to stimulate her strongest state!

"IMPOSSIBLE!" Tang Matriarch's mind erupted in disbelief as she realized Bai Lin's near-suicidal actions, and her heart raced without warning as she hurriedly shot forth from the ship with haste. Her speed was exceedingly fast, and she arrived beside Highlord Scarletflame in the blink of an eye. Her beautiful countenance was incredibly pale as the spatial aura emanating from her body was extremely wild, fluctuating with tremendous power.

Highlord Scarletflame hadn't expected this, still taken aback by the abrupt rise in temperature and the dark red flames of her target. Her eyes widened as a hand unceremoniously grabbed her shoulder. She felt the chains vanish from her back, forcefully severed by a foreign power, and her vision blurred as spatial power enveloped her. 

She had just expended 90% of her mystic and spiritual power using the Eternal Shackles, seeking to severely restrain Bai Lin for an extended period, perhaps sufficient enough to be captured; furthermore, all of her fire energies was extinguished, so she couldn't divert any of her attention or redirect her power, and neither could the other two. She was unable to do anything but watch.

The timing was horrendous.

Kree!

Without warning, Bai Lin's dark red flaming form expanded like a balloon, and then…

「Fire Phoenix Bloodline: Nirvanic Outburst」

BOOM!!!

In a matter of moments, the entire planet was flooded by dark red flames, including the two Highlords. And those two? With their fire energies gone, their mystic and spiritual power focused on restraining Bai Lin; they had no defenses to guard against such a violent, torrential flood of Nirvanic Flames.

The flames exceeded the atmospheric limits of the planet, reaching a few Voidships that were too close, that were too slow in their retreat, and they were enveloped in those dark red Nirvanic Flames fueled by Bai Lin's strongest energy source!

Everything was scorched.