Chapter 37: Your Life Is Hard Enough

The Dragon Emperor abandoned the Dragon Claw, and the Phoenix abandoned the Fire Gathering Vessel, using the explosive power of divine artifacts to forcefully disperse the power of the calamity thunder.
Now, the power of those two bolts of calamity thunder was only one-tenth of its original strength.
The Five-Clawed Golden Dragon soared rapidly through the starry sky. Its massive dragon head met the impact of the calamity thunder, with all the vast golden energy within it converging on the dragon head to directly confront the fierce aura within the thunder.
The calamity thunder contained two elements—both beneficial and dangerous. As long as the fierce aura could be broken, the Soul Flower would not be harmed by it; instead, the beneficial elements within the thunder could help the Soul Flower coalesce and take shape.
On the dragon head of the Five-Clawed Golden Dragon, the two types of golden energy collided violently, forming two nearby spheres of golden light, which radiated in all directions.
The Flame Phoenix did the same, resisting the calamity thunder with its own body, but compared to the Five-Clawed Golden Dragon, it was even more direct.
The Flame Phoenix retracted the flames on its body’s surface. When colliding with the calamity thunder, it even spat out flames—flames of pure ash mixed with strands of Black Tidal Divine Fire. This Black Tidal Divine Fire immediately cleared away the fierce aura in the calamity thunder, swiftly purifying it.
At this moment, the powerful demon souls from the Golden Dragon Alliance and the Phoenix Alliance arrived in the starry sky, watching from afar as their leaders underwent the calamity trial.
“The clan leader is truly amazing. He can withstand such a formidable divine trial.”
“The Phoenix is equally amazing. She can spit out divine fire and easily resist the attack of the calamity thunder.”
“The two leaders are about to successfully pass the divine trial. Their strength must have increased greatly. If they were to confront Qu Yi again, do you think Qu Yi still has a chance to resist?”
“Stop dreaming. After passing the divine trial, they will soon ascend. The two leaders will surely focus on cultivation, understanding the process of the trial, and observing changes in their souls—they won’t have the time to deal with Qu Yi.”
“It’s a pity no one can deal with Qu Yi. Does that mean that after the two leaders ascend, no one in the three realms will be able to hold Qu Yi in check?”
…
The powerful warriors of both alliances watched their leaders go through the trial while discussing among themselves.
Roar!
Clang!
In the starry sky, the calamity thunder disappeared, replaced by two loud roars that filled the entire sky, radiating pride, confidence, and dominance.
The Dragon Emperor and the Phoenix reverted to human form and joined the powerful warriors of both alliances.
The remaining ninety-some warriors from the Golden Dragon Alliance and the Phoenix Alliance watched their respective leaders excitedly, their eyes shining as they kept calling out.
The Dragon Emperor waved his hand, asking everyone to be quiet.

“Members of the Golden Dragon Alliance and the Phoenix Alliance, I and the Phoenix only have one year left before ascending to the divine realm. Before that, I can only tell you to find a way to avoid Qu Yi’s pursuit and then try to leave this divine realm,” said the Dragon Emperor with bitterness.

Speaking such disheartening words in front of his subordinates was like slapping himself in the face for the Dragon Emperor. Yet, he couldn’t just leave without saying anything to these Dragon Clan warriors and the Phoenix Alliance warriors; he had to share his true feelings as a final farewell.

“Ah…”

Hearing the Dragon Emperor’s words and seeing the Phoenix’s indifferent expression, the warriors of both alliances immediately understood that their leaders no longer intended to protect them. Now, they could only rely on their own strength to escape Qu Yi’s pursuit.

At that moment, a loud voice rang out in the sky.

“Dragon Emperor, Phoenix, it was you two undergoing the tribulation just now. Fortunately, I got to see you both before you ascend to the divine realm.”

It was Qu Yi’s voice, coming from afar.

The tribulation process of the Dragon Emperor and the Phoenix had caused such a huge disturbance that it disrupted the energy of an entire galaxy. Naturally, some cultivators remained in this galaxy, which allowed Qu Yi to detect their whereabouts.

Qu Yi rushed over, but the planet he arrived on via the Boundless Stars was quite far from the area where the two were undergoing their tribulation. He hadn’t witnessed their ordeal when he flew there on his own.

Upon hearing Qu Yi’s words, the Dragon Emperor and the Phoenix grew tense and immediately flew away, ignoring the safety of the warriors from both alliances.

They had just gone through the divine tribulation, their divine essence was nearly depleted, and their souls had been refined by the thunderstorms, leaving them unable to use magic. Their only option now was to flee.

Seeing their leaders choose to run away, the warriors of the Golden Dragon Alliance and the Phoenix Alliance didn’t dare stay either. They immediately scattered in all directions like streaks of light, trying to escape as far as possible.

Qu Yi sneered at this sight.

“You bunch of bastards, why are you so afraid of me? I won’t eat you raw. Well, since you want to run, I’ll have to send people after you,” he shouted, as if it were unacceptable for these warriors to flee.

Immediately afterward, the five Lords—Gold Lord, Wood Lord, Water Lord, Fire Lord, and Earth Lord—whose appearances had changed—appeared in the sky. Each carried two divine artifacts and quickly chased after the five warriors in the sky.

The five Lords could only pursue those five people; they didn’t have the strength to deal with others.

Qu Yi himself had already used the space jump technique to chase after the Dragon Emperor and the Phoenix.
※※※
Jin Zun caught up with a powerful Upper Heavenly Soul Fiend from the Golden Dragon Alliance. Wielding a golden-patterned sword in his right hand and a Sealing Golden Pearl in his left, he attacked simultaneously.
Golden light patterns that descended from the sky, along with the sealed Golden Element Spirit Realm, appeared in the starry sky and surrounded the Upper Heavenly Soul Fiend, preventing him from escaping and forcing him to fight back.
This Upper Heavenly Soul Fiend transformed back into its beast form—a Golden Scaled Jiao.
Faced with the attacks from all sides—first the powerful trapping spell of the golden light patterns and then the fierce attacks from the sealed Golden Element Spirits—the Golden Scaled Jiao realized that to deal with one threat, it would inevitably face attacks from the other. So, it curled up into a ball, concentrating its Golden Element energy to form a Golden Element Spirit space around itself for protection.
Yet, the Golden Scaled Jiao never expected the golden light patterns to be so powerful; they easily pierced its spirit space, followed by the sealed Golden Element Spirit Realm, which struck its body instantly.
In no time, the Golden Scaled Jiao’s body was torn apart, its vital energy severely damaged, and its combat strength greatly reduced.
Jin Zun didn’t intend to kill it. Flying closer, he delivered a punch that knocked the Golden Scaled Jiao unconscious. Its fate was already sealed—it would become food for the Five Elements.
In the other directions, Mu Zun, Shui Zun, Huo Zun, and Tu Zun each pursued an Upper Heavenly Soul Fiend. Thanks to their two divine weapons each, they easily injured the four fiends and captured them alive.
The Five Lords gathered again with their spoils, waiting in the starry sky for Qu Yi’s return.
Qu Yi continued chasing the Dragon Emperor and the Phoenix. The distance between them never narrowed as they moved through the depths of the Meteor Domain Divine Realm, crossing through galaxies one after another.
The Dragon Emperor and the Phoenix had endured divine tribulations, refining their souls, allowing them to quickly absorb primal energy in the starry sky to replenish their demonic energy, which was why Qu Yi couldn’t catch up to them. However, constant flight prevented them from focusing on understanding the changes in the Soul Flower, which was a huge drawback for them.
For cultivators, the soul is of utmost importance. Without this year to observe the subtle changes in their souls, the Dragon Emperor and the Phoenix would never again have such an opportunity, and their future achievements would surely not be outstanding.
“How hateful!”
“Detestable!”

The Dragon Emperor and the Phoenix flew away through the stars, constantly cursing Qu Yi, but it was useless. Qu Yi still followed calmly behind, showing no intention of giving up.
“Dragon Emperor, Phoenix, we’re all old friends. Let’s sit down and talk.”
“Dragon Emperor, Phoenix, you’ve already succeeded in passing the divine calamity, while I still lack experience. As old friends, could you please stop and tell me about the process of the divine calamity?”
“You two, stop running day and night like this. Do I look like some fierce beast? Why are you so afraid of me?”
…
Qu Yi, on the other hand, remained relaxed. He never stopped chasing the Dragon Emperor and the Phoenix and would occasionally speak to disrupt their focus, preventing them from paying attention to the evolution of the Soul Flower.
The pursuit continued across the stars for half a year.
In a certain region of the stars, the Dragon Emperor, who had been tense all along, suddenly showed a fierce expression. He threw a punch, sending a golden spiritual body rushing toward the Phoenix beside him, knocking her straight into Qu Yi’s path.
“Phoenix, don’t blame me,” the Dragon Emperor said indifferently, without even turning around.
Truly ruthless!
To slow down Qu Yi’s pursuit, the Dragon Emperor even sacrificed the Phoenix by sending her at Qu Yi, allowing himself to escape unharmed.
As expected, when Qu Yi saw the Phoenix approaching, he immediately drew out his divine artifact, the Glorious Light Seal.
“Dragon Emperor, you despicable wretch! I’ll curse you for life…” the Phoenix cried out in pain, filled with regret.
But Qu Yi paid no attention to her feelings. With the power of chaos, the golden Glorious Light Seal emitted an extremely bright golden light, as if a star suddenly appeared in the sky, enveloping the Phoenix.
“Phoenix, your life has been hard enough,” Qu Yi said with a faint smile as he launched his attack.
A shrill cry of pain came from within the golden light. Clearly, while trying to resist the damage inflicted by the Dragon Emperor, the Phoenix was utterly unable to withstand the damage from the Glorious Light Seal, her body already severely damaged.
Qu Yi retracted the Glorious Light Seal and saw the Phoenix in tattered clothes, her demonic energy completely exhausted, her aura extremely weak.
“Very good. Finally, I’ve captured a league leader alive,” Qu Yi said with a laugh as he flew over and grabbed her.
The Phoenix looked at Qu Yi with a pitiful gaze, trying to beg him to spare her, completely devoid of her former noble demeanor.
Qu Yi smiled slightly before immediately sealing the Phoenix inside the Dimensional Sphere.

Since they have schemed against themselves, they must be punished; Qu Yi will not let the Fire Phoenix go unscathed.