Ultra Bomb?

The desert was both magnificent and awe-inspiring. Just over a single dune, one side teemed with the bustling life of a city, while the other stretched into an endless, deadly wasteland. At this moment, a tiny figure was slowly making its way across the sands. Yet wherever that figure passed, the desert turned a blood-red hue. This was the result of frenzied slaughter, tainting even the wielder's spiritual energy blood-red. Even Su Min, who had long been mentally prepared, furrowed her brows deeply at the sight.

"Such thick killing intent... it's already entered the realm of malevolent spirits. Yet it can still move under the blazing sun—must be because of that thing."

She squinted up at the sky. The desert was at its hottest, high noon. The surface temperature had reached seventy degrees Celsius or more; a normal person would quickly dehydrate and die under this sun. Yet that horrifying monster strode slowly across the burning sands as if nothing was amiss.

Soon, thanks to her extraordinary eyesight, Su Min caught a clearer glimpse of it—a body pieced together from countless bones. It stood over five meters tall, and even the skull was formed by compressing and fusing together fragments of bone. At each joint gleamed metal components, shining in the sunlight. From its shoulders down to its ribcage, it bore six arms, and at the end of each arm glinted a razor-sharp blade.

Su Min could easily imagine how terrifying it would be when that creature unleashed all six arms at once. She couldn't help but glance at Hui Ming, who stood nearby gripping his Water-fire Staff.

"You fought that thing bare-handed before?"

At this moment, she felt the need to reassess Hui Ming's strength. Against a monster like this, ordinary weapons would have been useless, instantly shattered by its overwhelming power. To survive without the aid of spiritual artifacts or treasures was impressive in itself.

"My master once taught me the Arhat Golden Body," Hui Ming replied. "Thanks to that, I barely survived. Once deployed, the Arhat Golden Body renders one invulnerable to blades and resistant to fire and water. Otherwise, I couldn't have withstood those attacks." As he spoke, he shook the Water-fire Staff in his hand, visibly relieved to have such a weapon now.

"Arhat Golden Body, huh..."

Hearing that, Su Min immediately recalled it—a renowned defensive art among Buddhist cultivators. Once activated, it grants formidable defense and amplifies one's offensive power considerably. For Hui Ming to have been taught such a core technique, it seemed he had been nurtured as a core disciple.

"You go first. I need to find its weak spot."

With danger looming, Su Min issued the order without hesitation. Since he had the Arhat Golden Body to protect him, Hui Ming was clearly the vanguard. Meanwhile, she had plenty of techniques at her disposal and could strike a fatal blow when the opportunity arose. Moreover, in this sweltering heat, her flames would burn even more fiercely.

~Edit and rewritten by Rikhi, Reiya_Alberich, ReiNyam~

With that thought, an intense fire erupted around Su Min. In an instant, her hair and pupils turned a vivid crimson. With a light tap of her foot, she soared a hundred meters into the air, appearing like a crimson sun from below. Now she began gathering the scattered fire-element spiritual energy from the atmosphere. As the wielder of Nanming Lihuo, one of the most versatile and destructive alien flames, her combat power was anything but weak.

"Alright!"

Watching Su Min soar skyward in a blaze of fierce heat, Hui Ming understood she was preparing for a decisive strike. He himself was filled with anger and resentment—having almost lost his life for lack of a proper weapon, now he had a perfect outlet. Without hesitation, he transformed into a streak of light and charged forward. The next moment, amid the swirling desert sands, the metallic clash of battle rang out across the dunes.

At just the first clash, sword energy exploded outward in all directions. Hui Ming's skin gleamed with a dazzling golden hue, and the shockwaves shredded his clothes to tatters, exposing his muscular, V-shaped torso.

"What terrifying sword energy!"

Watching the exchange, Su Min sucked in a breath. The monstrous creature unleashed six or seven arms in a frenzy, and every strike carried a blade of deadly sword energy. If not for Hui Ming's golden body defense, his body would have already been riddled with wounds. But the surrounding environment fared worse. Smooth sand dunes were torn open by invisible slashes, gaping wounds gouged into the earth. Relying on his Water-fire Staff, Hui Ming deflected all the deadly strikes, enduring the lesser blows with sheer toughness.

"He won't last long."

Soon, Su Min noticed his state. Though the Arhat Golden Body was powerful, it couldn't last indefinitely. Excessive damage or spiritual exhaustion would cause it to collapse. Without it, Hui Ming wouldn't survive long against this abomination.

"But... you've bought me enough time. Vermilion Bird Possession!"

Taking a deep breath, Su Min unleashed her true strength. Her spiritual power surged forth. The flaming wings on her back, initially over a meter long, instantly expanded two- to threefold. Blazing flames roared around her, enveloping her completely. In a flash, a massive firebird emerged, dominating the sky.

This was Su Min's self-created technique based on the Vermilion Bird's legacy—enveloping herself in Nanming Lihuo and unleashing its most primal, ferocious state. In this mode, the flame's destructive power reached its peak.

Su Min named it the Vermilion Bomb—half-jokingly calling it the "Ultra Bomb." The next instant, the flaming bird plunged toward the earth like a falling star. Below, Hui Ming, still struggling to hold out, suddenly felt a searing, terrifying heat descend from the heavens. He dared not hesitate—he swung his staff, absorbing the impact just enough to hurl himself backward at top speed.

He had barely retreated a dozen meters when—

Boom!

A deafening explosion shook the desert. The shockwave and heat blast sent Hui Ming flying, rolling helplessly across the dunes until he slammed into a sandy ridge and finally came to a stop. But he barely noticed his own condition, staring wide-eyed at the inferno before him. This was a desert—there shouldn't have been anything to burn. Yet the flames blazed furiously across the sands, undying.

How could he not be shocked?