Soul Hall's Scheme

"Swish~"

A mass of black mist slowly coalesced upon the main seat. The person who arrived was none other than the Hall Master of the Soul Hall, Hun Miesheng, a four-star Dou Sheng mid-stage powerhouse. In a distant era, he had once led his subordinates to slaughter dozens of sects overnight. Five powerhouses who had reached the peak of the two-star Dou Sheng realm perished at his hands. It was this very battle that forged his illustrious reputation and established the Soul Hall as the undisputed hegemon of the Central Plains, to the point where even Danta dared not easily oppose them.

The reason for ending his seclusion early this time was that news had arrived from his subordinates in the northwest of the continent regarding the discovery of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame, which ranked third on the Heavenly Flame Ranking. One must know that this flame was no ordinary object. The Soul Clan already controlled the second-ranked Nihility Devouring Flame; if they could also seize this Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame, their strength would rise to another level. The last person to possess this flame was the powerhouse from an even more ancient era, the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint. How could this not tempt him?

He figured that if he could truly facilitate this matter, his status and standing within the clan would inevitably rise to a higher level.

"Come in. There is a very interesting matter in the northwest. The branch hall master stationed in the northwest of the continent has traveled a great distance to send word that in a place called the Jia Ma Empire in the northwest continent, the third-ranked Heavenly Flame, the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame, has been discovered."

"Hiss..."

"The Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame?"

"Hasn't this flame not appeared on the continent for a thousand years?"

"Isn't it rumored to have been hidden away by the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint? How could it appear in the northwest continent?"

The mere mention of the four words "Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame" triggered discussions among the countless people in the great hall. Everyone knew very well what the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame signified. The Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint, who had once shaken the continent, had relied on this flame to become a peerless powerhouse who suppressed all sides.

"For the specific situation, let the branch hall master stationed in the northwest continent answer this question."

Hun Miesheng waved his hand, signaling Mo Ke, who was standing at the back of the hall, to come forward and explain the situation.

"Respected Heavenly Sovereigns... I am Mo Ke, the branch hall master of the northwest continent." Looking at everyone, he felt a bit flustered as dozens of auras locked onto him the moment he appeared. He hurriedly spoke: "It is like this: I was originally executing the higher-ups' plan to control the core forces in several empires, but the protector who went to the Jia Ma Empire suddenly returned and told me that there was a Dou Sheng powerhouse in that remote country."

Dou Sheng?

Hearing these two words, the expressions of some of the Heavenly Sovereigns present shifted slightly. Once one reached this level, they were not so easy to deal with. The opponent's strength was also an unknown variable; if it were a low-star Dou Sheng, it would be fine, but if it were a high-star one...

"However..." Mo Ke's words took a ninety-degree turn, which also aroused the dissatisfaction of most people. Everyone had gathered here not to listen to him tell stories.

"We didn't gather here after all these years to listen to your stories. Get to the point!" The Second Heavenly Sovereign, Gu You, urged with a hint of dissatisfaction in his tone.

"Yes..." Mo Ke bowed and apologized, his speaking speed quickening as he said: "I followed that protector to the Jia Ma Empire and saw the place where that self-proclaimed Dou Sheng powerhouse resides..."

"A Dou Sheng powerhouse can open up a space of their own; how could a nine-star Dou Ancestor like you spy on them?" The Fourth Heavenly Sovereign, Xue He, spoke up to point out the flaw. In his view, the words of the person before him were full of holes. If this were the case, the information was likely false. It would be better to just kill such a person and send someone else to guard the northwest continent.

"If that were the case, it would indeed be so, but that so-called Dou Sheng powerhouse did not open up a space, but rather established a spatial barrier outside the mountain gate. It was at that moment that I saw the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame standing above the spatial barrier. The flame was milky white, so it must have been snatched by that person before it had fully formed."

Mo Ke quickly recalled what he had seen and heard that day in his mind, then added:

"By the way, that day I had taken a pill to hide my aura, and I also had treasures distributed by the Soul Hall on my person to prevent being detected by the opponent. Logically, if it were a Dou Sheng powerhouse, I should not have had the chance to return alive... I risked my life to test it, and I am certain that the person has absolutely not reached the Dou Sheng realm!"

After listening, the various Heavenly Sovereigns analyzed it in their hearts. If this were truly the case, then this lucky Dou Zun had a reason to hide in the far-off northwest continent. After all, the existence of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame would plunge them into endless pursuit unless they could be like the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint of the past, cultivating in seclusion and only emerging to make a name for themselves after their strength had advanced by leaps and bounds. In fact, that person had indeed done just that, but had been accidentally bumped into by people from the Soul Hall.

"In that case, it is quite reasonable."

"Indeed, but this flame is not something a Dou Zun without any background can covet."

"We should still play it safe. The journey to the northwest continent is long, and the time wasted going back and forth is significant. If we go, we should capture that person in one fell swoop; otherwise, if we alert the enemy, it will be difficult to handle if they run."

Listening to the murmurs below, Hun Miesheng, as the Hall Master of the Soul Hall, also pondered. Through Mo Ke's words, there was no way to determine the opponent's true strength, but they should not have reached the Dou Sheng level. After all, powerhouses liked quiet environments, and opening up a space was not a difficult task for a Dou Sheng powerhouse.

"Since that is the case, Second Heavenly Sovereign Gu You and Saint Hun Qing, you two should make the trip. Try to capture them alive. Of course, if the opponent would rather die than submit, destroy their physical body and just bring back their soul."

Hun Miesheng's words set the tone for the matter. A one-star Dou Sheng plus a Half-Saint powerhouse should be enough to capture the opponent. Moreover, the speed at which the two traveled would be much faster, as Dou Sheng powerhouses could open spatial wormholes themselves, simultaneously shortening the distance between them as much as possible.

This was exactly how Zhang Nian had traveled when he obtained the Dou Sheng Experience Card.

After receiving the order from Hun Miesheng, the branch hall master Hun Qing opened a spatial passage, and the two figures passed through the spatial wormhole, quickly rushing toward the Jia Ma Empire in the northwest continent.

On the other side

After a month of cultivation, Zhang Nian's cultivation had successfully reached the early stage of a two-star Dou Sheng. This was thanks to Cailin's day-and-night cultivation and the massive returns brought by the pills he had given to Yao Ye.

"Phew, I am finally a proper Dou Sheng powerhouse now. However, if I want to break through that final shackle, I need my soul to reach the Emperor Realm, and I also need that precious Source Qi of the Emperor..."

His thoughts inevitably turned to the Tuoshe Ancient God Cave. Although he had obtained one of the eight ancient jade pieces, the other clans were all tough nuts to crack, and it would take some time to open the secret treasury...

Wait a minute!

Zhang Nian suddenly thought of a point. If he just bestowed high-grade pills upon his disciples, and once the return rate reached a certain level, would he be directly rewarded with Emperor-grade pills? Why bother plotting for the Tuoshe Ancient God Cave? He could just eat Emperor-grade pills to his heart's content!!

[Ding!...]

The familiar electronic sound rang out, and Zhang Nian immediately felt a sense of foreboding. This damn system, it wouldn't be cooking up some new trouble for him, would it!