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"I heard that Hun Huzi personally taught you alchemy, which allowed you to break through to the 8th-tier..." Xiao Yan faced Mu Gu without a trace of panic, despite the latter's strength far surpassing his own.
"Then you should be able to sense it, right? Where this Soul Command Token came from and who activated it. With your Spiritual Strength, that shouldn't be difficult to discern." Xiao Yan grinned from ear to ear. The Soul Command Token indeed carried Hun Huzi's spiritual fluctuations.
Whether bestowing the token, activating it, or even engraving the 'Yan' character on it, Hun Huzi himself had done it all. There was no way to fake this.
Mu Gu nearly shattered his teeth from clenching them so hard. How could he possibly not recognize that spiritual fluctuation? He had been struggling at the peak of the 7th-tier, unable to refine a tier 8 pill that could attract colored Pill Lightning, when Hun Huzi had personally guided him once. That guidance had allowed him to successfully step into the 8th tier.
To him, Hun Huzi was an idol, a shining beacon. How could he not recognize his spiritual aura?
Xiao Yan saw Mu Gu's constipated expression, as if he desperately wanted to strangle him but didn't dare, and knew the time was ripe.
"How about this? You are my senior in the Hall of Souls, after all. Since you want that Pill Gathering championship, I'll just let Hun Huzi know that I won't participate this time around." Xiao Yan spoke in a casual manner, slowly raising the Soul Command Token as if about to use its communication ability to withdraw from the competition.
"Stop!" Mu Gu's expression changed abruptly as he hastily shouted.
Xiao Yan paused his movements, sighed softly, and looked at Mu Gu. "Senior, what exactly do you want? You can't kill me, yet you won't let me withdraw from the Pill Gathering. So, why don't you give me a suggestion?"
He was now absolutely certain that Mu Gu greatly revered Hun Huzi. It was actually quite normal. No matter what, Hun Huzi's attainments in alchemy were exceptionally high. For someone like Mu Gu, idolizing him wasn't strange at all.
His words had made his intentions very clear: 'I'm going to tell on you.'
Undeniably, his current strength couldn't match Mu Gu's. He estimated that even Venerable Tian Huo, borrowing the power of the Fallen Heart Flame, still wouldn't be able to defeat Mu Gu.
The Hall of Souls was one of the top organizations on the Dou Qi Continent. Mu Gu was an 8th-tier alchemist, and his Spiritual Strength had reached the Soul State. Even if his Qi Method wasn't Tian Class, it was at least a High Di Class one.
His Dou Techniques could even include Tian Class ones. Such a figure was formidable even among Dou Venerates.
If Little Fairy Doctor and Cai Lin had both broken through to the Dou Venerate realm, Xiao Yan wouldn't be wasting words with him now. He would just take care of him directly.
Would he still need to borrow Hun Huzi's name to intimidate him? He would have just started fighting and killed Mu Gu, not caring whether Hun Huzi would blame him or not.
Because Xiao Yan was confident he could definitely win the Pill Gathering championship!
Mu Gu, on the other hand, had always lacked confidence. His plotting against Venerable Yao back then was the best proof of that.
Xiao Yan knew his ploy of borrowing the tiger's might had succeeded when he saw Mu Gu's hesitation, his face contorted in conflict.
…
Outside the Black Fog.
The battle between the Yan Alliance and the North-Western Alliance had reached a fever pitch.
The Yan Alliance launched a full-scale counterattack. Not only had the members of the Yan Alliance in Jia Ma Sacred City and the empire's army joined the fray, but even disciples of the Misty Cloud Sect, the Snake-People Tribe, and elite members of the Xiao Clan had fully mobilized. It was truly an all-out offensive.
The Yan Alliance's assault was like a hot knife through butter. Although their Dou Kings and Dou Emperors were no match for the faction experts of the North-Western Alliance, their top combat strength was superior.
Cai Lin and Little Fairy Doctor especially. They were simply killing like madwomen, unstoppable by anyone.
"Damn it! Do you even know who that Venerable is? How dare you make an enemy of him!" She Tianhuang gritted his teeth as he struggled to hold his ground. His understanding of Spatial Strength was simply too lacking. Apart from his Dou Qi reaching the Dou Venerate level, everything else remained at the Dou Ancestor realm. How could he possibly be a match for Venerable Tian Huo?
After a dozen or so exchanges, he was already on the verge of collapse.
Venerable Tian Huo chuckled wryly at his words. "Are you trying to say that the black-robed man is an Honorable Elder from the Hall of Souls?"
"And that by offending the Hall of Souls, I'll eventually face retribution, right?"
!!?
"Y-You... you already knew? Then why—?!" She Tianhuang was dumbfounded. So, you knew all along?
Venerable Tian Huo was amused. If not for Xiao Yan being an alchemist affiliated with the Alchemist Association—which was hostile to the Hall of Souls—and thus unable to reveal his identity, he would have directly announced that Xiao Yan was also an Honorable Elder of the Hall of Souls, just to scare She Tianhuang senseless.
Clearly, this was an internal conflict within the Hall of Souls. It didn't matter who fought whom.
"Hmph! An Honorable Elder from the Hall of Souls? This old man isn't afraid," Venerable Tian Huo snorted coldly, wasting no more words. The space around his body began to fluctuate more and more intensely. Under these ripples, the surrounding rubble trembled violently before rapidly disintegrating into countless fine grains of sand.
A sinister glint flashed in She Tianhuang's eyes as he observed Venerable Tian Huo's confident demeanor. Venerable Tian Huo was indeed strong, but he was only a 1-star Dou Venerate. As long as he could hold out until Mu Gu took care of Xiao Yan, victory would still belong to them!
"Mystic Serpent Blood Nether!"
She Tianhuang's face reddened. He spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, and as the crimson liquid shot out, he quickly formed hand seals, his Dou Qi circulating frantically.
Many of the magical beasts' techniques were related to their bloodlines, and this move was evidently She Tianhuang's bloodline beast technique!
Infused with a large amount of Dou Qi, the blood condensed and wriggled rapidly. Soon, a massive blood python, a hundred meters long, slowly appeared in the sky.
This blood python was enormous. Countless blood threads crawled over its surface, and its scales emitted a bloody glow. Its inverted triangular snake pupils looked incredibly lifelike, as if it were a living being.
The moment the blood python appeared, She Tianhuang's face turned pale, and even strands of his hair whitened. It was clear this move overdrew his bloodline's strength to unleash it. One could imagine its power.
Not far away, members of the Yan Alliance frowned slightly at the sight. As expected of the former Mansion Lord of the Sky Serpent Mansion, he actually possessed such a strange technique. However, it seemed the price for using it was steep.
Venerable Tian Huo hovered in the sky, looking at the blood python with a hint of surprise. Its might was quite formidable, likely equivalent to a powerful High Di Class Dou Technique!
"If you retreat now and no longer interfere in this matter, I believe the Venerable from the Hall of Souls won't trouble you," She Tianhuang stared intently at Venerable Tian Huo, whose robes fluttered without wind, and spoke in a deep voice.
"No, no, no. If I leave now, the Venerable will definitely not let me off," Venerable Tian Huo hurriedly shook his head, inwardly thinking that Venerable Yan wasn't someone to be trifled with.
"Hmph! Then you're digging your own grave!" A cold gleam flashed in She Tianhuang's eyes. He refused to believe that a mere 1-star Dou Venerate like Venerable Tian Huo could contend with Mu Gu.
"DIE!"
She Tianhuang pointed his finger fiercely at Venerable Tian Huo with an angry shout. The massive blood python let out a piercing hiss. Its cavernous maw gaped wide, and viscous liquid dripped from its mouth.
Sizzling sounds echoed as the droplets hit the ground, corroding deep pits that emitted wisps of white smoke. The blood python was extremely venomous; after all, She Tianhuang's true form was that of the serpent race, inherently poisonous!
The terrifying blood-colored python lunged at Venerable Tian Huo, aiming to devour and poison him to death!
Venerable Tian Huo's expression turned solemn. He currently had no Heavenly Flames or other fire seeds on him, so he couldn't use his strongest Dou Technique, the Five Ring Flame Expelling Technique.
"Having reached the Dou Venerate realm, if one can skillfully utilize Spatial Strength, it's no weaker than any Dou Technique," he murmured.
"Spatial Annihilation!"
As his soft utterance fell, the space in this area fluctuated violently. The space around the giant python twisted rapidly, and faint spatial folds began to appear.
Crack!
Just as the spatial folds emerged, that area of space directly developed black fractures. Venerable Tian Huo had actually summoned spatial turbulence!
The terrifying turbulence directly twisted and severed the giant python, slicing its body into pieces as if cutting a sausage!
The countless blood chunks were then swallowed by the black spatial rifts.
Only a massive blood-colored snake head remained by the time the blood python, condensed from She Tianhuang's essence blood, reached Venerable Tian Huo. It still gaped its maw, but from afar, it appeared somewhat comical.
Venerable Tian Huo extended his palm and pressed it against the snake head's forehead. With a flick of his finger, the blood python exploded into blood droplets, scattering in all directions.
"You've just entered the Dou Venerate realm. Don't overestimate yourself." Venerable Tian Huo placed one hand behind his back, his gaze calm and inscrutable.
One must know that in his prime, Venerable Tian Huo had been a 5-star Dou Venerate. Although he had only recovered to the 1-star stage now, his experience was not something a newly advanced Dou Venerate could compare to. He already had a very deep understanding of space.
SPLURT!
Blood spurted from She Tianhuang's mouth as he suffered a backlash from the destruction of the technique condensed from his essence blood. He was clearly injured.
He had been suppressed by Venerable Tian Huo from the very beginning, and his wounds were even more severe now. His figure slid down from the sky, his feet tapping the ground a dozen times before he gradually stabilized.
His face had aged somewhat, and a layer of paleness had surfaced on his cheeks. It was obvious he was no match for Venerable Tian Huo.
"This person's control over Spatial Strength has actually reached such a level!!" Not far away, the Sect Leader of the Profound Lion Sect, Shi Nian, exclaimed with a greatly changed expression.
"This control over space far exceeds that of a 1-star Dou Venerate. He's much stronger than She Tianhuang," Ting Hao of the Thunderbolt Sect nodded in agreement.
The sect leaders who hadn't joined the battle couldn't resist coming to watch upon hearing that Xiao Yan and Medusa had appeared. They hadn't expected the battle to be so one-sided.
"That She Tianhuang is done for..."
Before the words could fade, Venerable Tian Huo formed hand seals once more. Space condensed instantly as he deployed a Space Lock to trap She Tianhuang. He intended to slay him on the spot and thoroughly crush the North-Western Alliance, lest the night grow long and dreams many.
She Tianhuang was utterly panicked when he sensed Venerable Tian Huo's chilling killing intent. He had just broken through to the Dou Venerate realm and had many ambitions and dreams. He didn't want to die here!
"VENERABLE, SAVE ME!!" She Tianhuang no longer cared about saving face and directly cried out for help.
Surprisingly, he actually received a response.
"The Venerable is here!" A gust of wind carrying searing heat swept over She Tianhao's head. A massive black ruler rapidly enlarged before his eyes.
BANG!
Xiao Yan grabbed the Heavy Xuan Ruler with both hands and smashed it violently into She Tianhao's face, sending him flying!
A Venerable had indeed arrived, but it was Venerable Yan.
Little Fairy Doctor and the others all breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Xiao Yan appear safe and sound. The black fog overhead had strangely vanished at some point.
"It's settled?" Venerable Tian Huo asked.
"Of course," Xiao Yan grinned. Mu Gu didn't dare make a move against him. Though he had been bluffing, as he had no soul jade piece from Hun Huzi nor could he summon him, his hints, backed by the Soul Command Token, had convinced Mu Gu that he was under the other party's protection.
In the end, Mu Gu was caught in a dilemma. He could only leave behind a threat, saying that he would definitely become the Pill Gathering champion, before departing, lest Xiao Yan actually tattle on him!
"Impossible! How are you unharmed?! Where is Venerable Mu Gu?!" She Tianhuang struggled to his feet, his face pale as he stared incredulously at the unscathed Xiao Yan.
He couldn't fathom how an 8-star Dou Emperor had survived against a 3-star Dou Venerate. Moreover, he appeared completely unharmed!
Isn't the Hall of Souls known for capturing alchemists? Xiao Yan is an alchemist, so why didn't they capture him?!
Not only She Tianhuang, but also the Dou Ancestors and Dou Emperors of the North-Western Alliance who were still fighting revealed expressions of shock. Xiao Yan had actually emerged alive!
"How is this possible! A Venerable from the Hall of Souls actually spared Xiao Yan???" Qiu Ping wiped his eyes, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
A Venerable from the Hall of Souls letting a 7th-tier alchemist with a Heavenly Flame go! If this news spread, people would mock Qiu Ping, thinking he hadn't fully woken up and was still dreaming.
In truth, he too felt like he was dreaming.
"You're talking about that old fellow Mu Gu? He said he left the soup boiling at home and forgot to turn off the fire, so he went back," Xiao Yan laughed, shrugging as he casually fabricated an utterly nonsensical excuse.
Even Venerable Tian Huo couldn't help but give Xiao Yan a side-eye. That excuse was ridiculous.
But in reality, no matter what Xiao Yan said, everyone would find it unbelievable. On second thought, perhaps this reason wasn't entirely unacceptable.
The powerful experts from the various factions who had come to spectate all looked at each other.
"That Dou Venerate left? In that case..."
"The Sky Serpent Mansion is doomed."
"Tianhao! We're leaving!" She Tianhuang didn't dare stay in this place any longer. This Xiao Yan was too strange!
Cai Lin and Little Fairy Doctor were on a killing spree, especially Little Fairy Doctor. The ferocity of the Woeful Poison Body allowed her to kill a large swath of enemies with just a wave of her hand.
"Don't let them escape!"
Xiao Yan hurriedly shouted just as She Tianhuang created a spatial passage, intending to take his son and leave.
He absolutely wouldn't let these two off. Moreover, the soul body of a Dou Venerate was incredibly valuable.
Venerable Tian Huo didn't need a reminder. He quickly reacted, stretching out his palm toward that pitch-black spatial passage. With a fierce clench of his hand, invisible ripples spread out, and the spatial passage actually began to rapidly collapse.
She Tianhuang's face changed drastically. A cold gleam flashed in his eyes, and gritting his teeth, he planned to leave first, not intending to pay any heed to the charging She Tianhao in the distance!
Venerable Tian Huo frowned. This old fellow was truly ruthless, willing to forsake even his only son.
"FATHER! SAVE ME!!" She Tianhao hastily called out when he saw that he was about to be abandoned.
But She Tianhuang couldn't afford to care. If he didn't leave before the spatial passage fully collapsed, escape would be nearly impossible.
Xiao Yan hadn't expected She Tianhuang to be so heartless. Just as he prepared to use Abyss Submersion to try and keep him there, a ray of green light suddenly shot from the distance!
The moment he was enveloped by that green light, She Tianhuang's heart trembled. Faint green flower patterns appeared on his forehead, and a layer of green light covered his eyes.
Xiao Yan immediately seized the opportunity. Lightning flashed beneath his feet as he activated the Three Thousand Lightning Movement, his left and right hands simultaneously forming seals.
Open Mountain Seal! Sea Flipping Seal!!
Xiao Yan formed the hand seals and circulated the Flame Mantra. With a loud shout in his heart, two palm seals—one from the left, one from the right—struck out together.
Although Xiao Yan's strength was only at the 8-star Dou Emperor stage, how could a Tian Class Flame Mantra be a joke? The two palm seals appeared and heavily imprinted on She Tianhuang's chest with terrifying Dou Qi, coupled with the power of a High Di Class Dou Technique.
In battles of this caliber, a moment's distraction could be fatal.
SPLAT!
After She Tianhuang was sent flying by the God Seal Technique, Venerable Tian Huo formed another seal. Immense Spatial Strength transformed into invisible chains that bound She Tianhuang in an instant.
A whistling sound approached rapidly. A seven-colored light streaked across the sky as Cai Lin erupted with a brilliant glow, a seven-colored serpent sword condensing in her hand.
Fury blazed in her eyes. Although most of the Snake-People Tribe had survived, the tribe she had painstakingly built had been destroyed by the Sky Serpent Mansion.
How could she, the ruler of that tribe, not be enraged?!
"Heaven Swallowing Serpent Strike!"
SPLURT!
Cai Lin's attack was unstoppable. Even though She Tianhuang hurriedly used his Dou Qi to protect himself, her sword pierced straight through his heart.
"ARGH!!"
As Cai Lin struck, the black flames of the Nihility Devouring Flame emerged before She Tianhuang. Xiao Yan's Soul State Spiritual Strength surged forth, and countless black chains shot out from the void, piercing into the heavily injured Dou Venerate.
"Come out!"
With a fierce pull, Xiao Yan dragged a large portion of She Tianhuang's soul body out with the chains.
"DAMN YOU!! I WON'T LOSE!!" She Tianhuang struggled frantically, actually breaking several soul chains with a palm strike.
The might of a Dou Venerate was truly terrifying!
"Qing Lin!" Xiao Yan shouted. He knew who the earlier green light belonged to.
Buzz!
Another ray of green light shot over from the distance. Qing Lin, standing in the air, opened her third eye!
A thin beam shot straight at She Tianhuang's soul. With a thud, the light in his soul body's eyes vanished, and with a swoosh, it was absorbed into Xiao Yan's Soul Command Token!