Spoils

At Tang Zhen's command, the experts of Blazing Flame Valley sprang into action, forming another solid defensive line outside the protective circle Human Form by the Five Elements Sect Blazing Flame Valley.

At this moment, with the combined efforts of the Five Elements Sect and the Blazing Flame Valley, a small, relatively safe area was carved out for Lin Ming in the chaotic and bloody hall.

Meanwhile, Xiong Zhan, who was fiercely fighting the Xiong Zhan.

As Ancient Dragon Bear known for its physical strength and power, it usually relies on its thick skin and terrifying strength to overpower its opponents and brute force its way through battle.

But today, he's met his match!

This puppet is not only incredibly strong and has amazing defense, but most importantly, it has no sense of pain and doesn't care about getting hurt. Every attack is all-out, trading injury for injury. This desperate fighting style makes even Xiong Zhan, who is used to head-on clashes, feel extremely troubled and frustrated.

"Bang!"

It was another unpretentious exchange of punches, with shockwaves surging.

Xiong Zhan felt a force of recoil travel up his arm, making his entire right arm numb and his Qi and Blood surge. He couldn't help but stagger backward.

Although the puppet was also shaken back a few steps, the Killing Intent in its gray eyes did not diminish at all. The moment it regained its footing, it stomped the ground like a tireless machine and charged forward again with a sharp gust of wind, its stone fist aimed straight at Xiong Zhan's face!

"Damn it!"

Xiong Zhan cursed inwardly, but he could only suppress the soreness and numbness in his arm. He frantically circulated his Dou Qi, and dark golden light once again condensed on his fist, preparing to take the fierce blow head-on again.

However, just as Xiong Zhan was gathering his strength, and his fist was about to collide with the stone fist again—

Lin Ming, who had been sitting cross-legged in the center of the double protective circle with his eyes closed and a powerful Soul Fluctuation emanating from his body, suddenly opened his eyes!

At this moment, an undisguised joy emerged from the depths of his eyes, and then quickly spread across his entire face.

Lin Ming, inside the protective circle, suddenly stood up, his gaze sharp as lightning, fixed on the puppet about to collide with Xiong Zhan, and uttered a low shout containing strange Soul Fluctuation:

"Stop!"

The voice wasn't loud, but it seemed to carry an invisible force of rules, clearly penetrating the core of the puppet's "perception."

A miracle has happened!

As Lin Ming finished speaking, the imposing and Killing Intent puppet suddenly stopped in its tracks, as if a pause button had been pressed!

The stone fist that was about to strike Xiong Zhan's face stopped abruptly less than half a foot from Xiong Zhan nose, and the violent energy surrounding it receded rapidly like a tide.

Finally, its gray body swayed slightly in mid-air before standing firmly, neither advancing nor attacking.

The murderous intent that had been burning fiercely in those greyish-white eyes was now like a wild horse that had been reined in, no longer galloping wildly, but instead showing a blank and dazed expression, quietly hovering there, as if waiting for the next command.

It worked?!

Seeing this sudden turn of events, both Xiong Zhan, who was right next to them and almost got hit, and the Five Elements Sect and Blazing Flame Valley members who were on full alert all showed deep shock and disbelief.

Lin Ming actually managed to forcibly erase the soul imprint left by the Dou Sheng Expert and take control of this powerful "Ancient Human Puppet"!

Upon seeing the Ancient Human Puppet, which had previously been ferocious and filled with Killing Intent, now hovering quietly in mid-air like the most docile guard, obeying Lin Ming's commands, the people from the Five Elements Sect and the Blazing Flame Valley, after a brief moment of shock and stunned silence, instantly showed uncontrollable joy and excitement on their faces.

"Success! The Sect Master has really controlled it!" A member of the Five Elements Sect exclaimed excitedly, his gaze towards Lin Ming filled with fervor and worship.

Wow! Lin Ming, you're amazing!

Zi Yan was the first to jump up, her big golden eyes sparkling with excitement, and she praised him generously:

"This is a Dou Venerate level Puppet! And it's some kind of Ancient Human Puppet, yet you managed to handle it! This has greatly increased our strength!"

Qing Lin also flushed slightly, her emerald eyes gazing at Lin Ming with trust and admiration, as she softly echoed, "Brother Lin Ming's Soul Power is truly amazing."

Hearing the undisguised praise from the two girls beside him, Lin Ming also showed a faint smile. Successfully controlling an Ancient Human Puppet was indeed something to be happy about.

So much so that at this moment, with a slight thought, the floating Puppet slowly descended to the ground, standing beside him like the most loyal guard. Although its gray eyes were still empty, the violent Killing Intent had been subdued, leaving only absolute obedience.

With this Puppet joining them, their ability to protect themselves and compete in this chaotic hall will undoubtedly be elevated to a new level.

In another relatively quiet corner of the main hall, the Starfall Pavilion group was also closely monitoring the situation.

Xiao Yan's gaze would frequently sweep towards the direction where Lin Ming and the others were.

Now, when he saw that Lin Ming had actually succeeded in subduing an Ancient Human Puppet that he himself had tried to defeat but felt helpless in such a short time, the muscles on his face twitched slightly, and his pupils were once again filled with deep shock.

"This guy... is he... is he really that freakish...?"

Xiao Yan felt a mix of emotions. He couldn't help but recall when he first entered this Ancient Ruins. At the magnificent gate, Lin Ming had casually subdued ten Dou Zong- level guardian Puppet with a wave of his hand, which had made Xiao Yan's eyelids twitch at the time.

That's why, when the chaos first broke out and an Ancient Human Puppet was chasing others not far from their Starfall Pavilion, Xiao Yan did have some thoughts about it.

He believed his Soul Power was among the best of his generation, and he had also received meticulous guidance from his teacher, Old Yao, so perhaps he could give it a try.

Taking advantage of a lull in the Puppet's attack, his powerful Soul Power quietly surged forth, like a serpent emerging from its hole, and cautiously invaded the puppet's body.

Then, after some investigation, his Soul Power entered the Puppet's body.

But as soon as he entered, before he could even explore its core structure, he "saw" a scene that shook him to his core—

Deep within the Puppet's Energy Core lay not simple control runes, but Soul Imprint as majestic as an ancient mountain, radiating boundless majesty and stability!

The mark was as vast as the sea and indestructible. Just sensing its existence made Xiao Yan's Soul Power feel a bone-chilling cold and an immense sense of oppression, as if an ant were looking up at the sky!

He had no doubt that if he tried to forcefully break through that mark, he would suffer a devastating backlash; even a broken soul would be the least of his worries!

"The mark of Dou Sheng... it is indeed terrifying!"

Xiao Yan was shocked and instantly understood the origin of this thing. At the same time, he immediately gave up the idea of controlling and subduing this Puppet.

With his current Spirit Realm Soul power, trying to shake or remove this "mountain-like" mark personally laid down by Dou Sheng Expert would take an unknown amount of time and effort, taking forever, and the success rate would be extremely low, making it a losing proposition.

But now, Lin Ming actually did it! And in this chaotic battle, it didn't seem to take much time at all!

"Is the gap between us... really that vast..."

As Xiao Yan gazed at Lin Ming's calmly smiling profile, his hands unconsciously clenched slightly, and he once again deeply felt the chasm-like gap between him and Lin Ming.

This is not only related to alchemy and Dou Qi cultivation, but also to the profound and unfathomable Soul Realm.

An indescribable sense of urgency and a more determined desire to catch up quietly grew in his heart.

Meanwhile, in another direction of the main hall, Profound Nether Sect Master of the Chen Tiannan, fixed his gloomy gaze, which was almost dripping with water, on Lin Ming and the newly subdued Puppet beside him.

His face was even more ashen than before, even revealing a hint of despair and hopelessness.

Chen Tiannan already knew about the strength of Lin Ming and his group.

The Five Elements Sect already has an unfathomable Sect Master like Lin Ming, as well as fierce figures like Qing Lin and Xiong Zhan, plus several Dou Zong elders. Their overall strength far surpasses that of the Profound Nether Sect.

He himself was only at the Peak Dou Venerate, which was no match for the opposing side.

He had originally hoped that the chaos in the main hall, or the conflict between other forces and Lin Ming, would provide an opportunity to strike secretly and avenge Elder Xuangu's death.

After all, anything can happen in chaos.

However, seeing Lin Ming so easily subdue an Ancient Human Puppet with strength comparable to Dou Venerate in such a short time, his last bit of hope was instantly shattered!

The opponent's strength was already suffocating him, and now he suddenly had another Dou Venerate- level henchman who was fearless of death and pain and absolutely loyal!

How can we fight like this? How can we avenge this?

A deep sense of powerlessness and despair, like a cold, venomous snake, coiled around Chen Tiannan's heart, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.

So much so that at this moment he stared intently at Lin Ming Mingxia, the resentment and hatred in his eyes almost tangible, but more than that, there was a sense of dejection and fear after recognizing reality.

He knew that unless a miracle occurred, or a stronger force was willing to deal with Lin Ming, his Profound Nether Sect would probably have to swallow this deep-seated hatred.

The chaos within the main hall continued, with scrolls flashing and scrolls flying, and killing and fighting taking place. However, the impact of Lin Ming's successful control of an Ancient Human Puppet was like a pebble thrown into a lake, creating ripples in the complex power structure.

When the gazes of all the various factions swept over the quietly standing gray Puppet, they all carried a deeper sense of apprehension.