Chapter 80: The Transformation

The air trembled with raw power as Li Feng stood at the heart of the collapsing temple, his hands clenched into fists, his breath ragged. The Coiled Dragon's energy surged through him, wrapping his form in an ethereal aura of gold and sapphire flames. Every fiber of his being felt stretched, as if the spirit of the ancient guardian was fusing with his own.

Opposite him, Shen Longwei loomed like a nightmare brought to life. His body had fully embraced the abyssal corruption, his form grotesquely twisted. His once-human features were now barely recognizable—dark tendrils slithered from his skin, his eyes burned with soulless black fire, and his voice was no longer his own.

"You were always meant to be a pawn, Li Feng," Shen Longwei sneered, his voice layered with something ancient and malevolent. "The Coiled Dragon's legacy is wasted on you. It should have been mine!"

Li Feng ignored his words, focusing instead on the power surging within him. This wasn't just about victory. It was about survival. About ensuring that whatever darkness Longwei had unleashed did not consume the world.

From the crumbling periphery of the temple, Mei Lian and Yan Shun watched in horror. Zheng Wei, still weak, tried to push himself upright, his voice hoarse. "Li Feng… if you take in too much of that power—"

"I know," Li Feng murmured under his breath. He had seen glimpses of what would happen if he lost control, if the Coiled Dragon's spirit overwhelmed his own. But there was no other choice.

A deafening roar split the air as Shen Longwei launched forward, a monstrous blur of shadows and flame. The sheer force of his movement cracked the ground beneath him. Li Feng met him head-on, their clash sending a shockwave so powerful that the temple walls shattered outward.

Mei Lian was thrown off her feet, barely catching herself before hitting the rubble. "This isn't a fight anymore," she whispered. "This is something else entirely."

Yan Shun gritted his teeth, drawing his blade even though he knew this battle was beyond them. "We can't just stand here. We have to—"

Another explosion of force cut him off as Li Feng and Shen Longwei exchanged blows, their speed beyond anything human. Every strike cracked the very air, sending arcs of golden and abyssal fire spiraling through the ruins. The temple's final collapse had begun, its once-sacred halls now a battleground between two beings that barely resembled mortals anymore.

The celestial alignment above reached its zenith, and the world itself seemed to hold its breath. The Jade Abyss groaned, the ground splitting open to reveal endless depths of swirling energy. The battle was tearing reality apart.

Shen Longwei grinned, his monstrous form flickering like a living shadow. "You feel it too, don't you? This power isn't meant to be controlled. It's meant to be taken. To be consumed."

Li Feng inhaled sharply, steadying himself. He had spent his entire life believing in balance. In discipline. In control. But here, at the edge of oblivion, he realized the truth.

It wasn't about rejecting power.

It was about mastering it.

His grip tightened around the energy flowing through him, and for the first time, the flames did not burn. They did not resist him. They became him.

A brilliant, golden dragon surged from his back, its eyes gleaming like twin stars as it coiled around him, merging with his form. His aura flared, consuming the darkness that Longwei had unleashed.

"No," Li Feng said, his voice carrying the weight of the dragon's spirit. "Power isn't taken. It is earned."

With a final step forward, he thrust his palm outward. The Coiled Dragon's power erupted, a surge of celestial energy slamming into Shen Longwei with the force of a falling star.

The warlord screamed, his monstrous form beginning to unravel. The abyssal energy recoiled, unable to withstand the purity of the dragon's might. Shen Longwei's body convulsed, fractures of golden light splitting his corrupted shell apart.

The final shockwave sent Mei Lian, Yan Shun, and Zheng Wei tumbling backward. As the dust settled, only two figures remained standing in the ruined abyss.

Li Feng. And what remained of Shen Longwei.

A deep silence followed. Then, Shen Longwei let out a low chuckle, his voice weaker now, but still tainted with amusement. "You think this is the end?"

Above them, the celestial alignment pulsed, and the earth trembled anew.

Li Feng's blood ran cold.

The battle was not over.

Not yet.

As the celestial alignment reaches its peak, an ancient presence stirs beneath the Jade Abyss, something older and more dangerous than either of them had imagined. The ground splits further, and a voice—deep, ancient, and powerful—whispers through the ruins, calling Li Feng's name.