After all, in their eyes, only the truly gifted could successfully reach the central stone platform, and Seraphina was not considered among them.
On the central stone platform, the various prodigies watched Seraphina’s successful arrival with slightly narrowed eyes.
Seeing Seraphina pass safely, Leo turned to Ethan and said, “Mr. Cameron, shall we begin?”
Ethan nodded and quickly formed a hand seal.
Since it was a bet, Ethan would not hold back. He immediately displayed the Yates family’s body refining technique.
Golden light burst from Ethan’s body, and golden runes appeared on his robe, making him look as if he were made of pure gold.
After activating the golden rune battle robe, Ethan still felt uneasy and condensed a thick spiritual shield around himself.
Leo was not to be outdone. With a thought, the Nine-Petal Ice-Soul Lotus within him began to spin.
A white shield emitting terrifying cold enveloped Leo.
“Please, Mr. Cameron,” Leo said as he flashed onto the stone path.
Seeing Leo stand there so casually, Ethan’s expression darkened. He snorted and stepped onto the path as well.
The stone path was at least two meters wide, enough for both of them to walk side by side.
As soon as they stepped onto the path, blue flames containing terrifying heat began to burn towards them.
Ethan’s thick golden shield visibly thinned at a rapid pace.
The white shield around Leo also emitted faint white steam.
Feeling the heat penetrating through, Ethan’s expression changed slightly. He thought to himself, “What powerful flames. No wonder those prodigies rushed to the central stone platform at full speed.”
Ethan realized that the longer he stayed on the path, the more spiritual power he would consume. It was not something an ordinary cultivator could endure.
Without further thought, Ethan channeled his spiritual power to replenish his shield and walked quickly towards the central stone platform.
After covering about a third of the distance, he instinctively turned to look at Leo.
What he saw made his face harden.
Leo was walking leisurely on the path, his eyes curiously observing the Nether Flame burning around him.
His demeanor was relaxed and carefree, as if he were enjoying the scenery rather than competing.
Realizing that the competition was about who could stay on the path the longest and reach the central stone platform last, Ethan gritted his teeth and slowed down.
The Nether Flame continuously burned his spiritual shield, consuming it at an alarming rate that shocked Ethan.
Although he slowed down, he could not proceed as gracefully as Leo.
Despite the Nether Flame’s power, Leo could resist it relatively easily with the Nine-Petal Ice-Soul Lotus protecting him.
The Nine-Petal Ice-Soul Lotus in his dantian spun gently, maintaining the white shield around Leo. The shield shimmered with spiritual fish-like shadows, appearing quite mystical.
Twenty seconds later, they reached the middle of the stone path, with Ethan still ahead and Leo behind.
Ethan’s expression was grave while Leo remained composed, creating a stark contrast.
At the same time, Leo’s eyes continuously scanned the small lake as if searching for something.
“Elder Quincy, Ethan…” Aliza admired Ethan immensely but now saw him in a difficult situation.
Elder Quincy’s face darkened. He hadn’t expected Leo to be so resilient. If this continued, Ethan would surely lose and might not even reach the central stone platform.
Elder Quincy’s old eyes flickered as he couldn’t help but transmit a message to Ethan: “Ethan, the Pill Sovereign’s opportunity is most important. You can temporarily set aside this competition with that boy.”
Hearing Elder Quincy’s transmission, Ethan gritted his teeth and nodded.
“Damn it! Whether that boy is pretending or has some trick up his sleeve, I’ll wait for him at the end of the path. After all, it’s about who reaches the central stone platform last!”
With a plan in mind, Ethan stomped hard and sped up towards the front.
Seeing this, Leo’s lips curved into a smile.
When he reached two-thirds of the way along the path, Leo’s deep gaze looked beneath the lake’s surface while releasing his divine sense.
“The Nether Flame’s true form should be under this lake,” Leo murmured to himself.
According to Ancient Tyrant Pill Sovereign’s words, since the Nether Flame was his legacy item, he designed this path to test cultivators’ endurance under its burning effect.
In other words, only by passing through the path could one qualify to initially refine the Nether Flame.
Unable to locate the Nether Flame’s true form with his divine sense, Leo slightly increased his speed.
A dozen seconds later, just ten meters from the end of the path, Ethan stopped and looked back.
Seeing Leo also speeding up, a hint of satisfaction flashed in Ethan’s eyes as he thought: Boy, you can’t keep up your act any longer!
Soon, Leo caught up to Ethan and stood beside him in line.
Ethan stared at Leo without taking another step forward.
The blue Nether Flame continued burning. Ethan’s golden shield had become very thin, but he kept his eyes fixed on Leo.
A few seconds later, Ethan’s face turned extremely grim because Leo’s expression remained unchanged.
Ethan’s spiritual power was nearly exhausted.
With a low sound, Ethan’s golden shield shattered under the Nether Flame’s burning.
Now Ethan had to rely on his physical strength to resist the flames’ scorching heat.
But under the heavenly spiritual fire’s terrifying temperature, Ethan’s body couldn’t hold out for long.
Soon, golden runes on Ethan’s face and arms began to fade rapidly.
As the runes faded, Ethan’s skin turned red and his robe started to burn.
Ethan gritted his teeth and endured while Leo watched him calmly.
“Damn bastard!” Ethan cursed inwardly with an ugly expression.
After a few more seconds of enduring, Ethan finally let out a scream of pain.
He couldn’t hold back any longer and rushed onto the central stone platform.
Upon landing on the platform, Ethan staggered like a drunkard.
The exhaustion of his spiritual power nearly caused him to collapse. Additionally, his skin had suffered some burns.
Seeing Ethan on the platform, Leo had no reason to stay on the path. He also rushed onto the platform and stood beside Ethan.
“Mr. Yates, you lost,” Leo said with a smile as he looked at Ethan.
“You…!” Looking at Leo’s smiling face, Ethan seethed with anger and gritted his teeth in hatred.
“Ethan actually lost to that boy!” In the crowd, Brody’s face looked grim.
Aliza couldn’t help but doubtfully say, “That boy must have used some trick. There’s no way he’s stronger than Ethan!”