The instant the flame entered his body, Hun Qing felt the same soul-deep agony as Gu You. Even more shocking, the Dou Qi within him was rapidly evaporating. The flame's effects matched the descriptions of the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame, yet the other man could have killed them both in an instant and hadn't. Still, they were little more than fish on a chopping block now. All they could do was leave their fate to heaven...
During their brief exchange, Hun Qing had been unable to gauge Zhang Nian's strength at all. Or perhaps the golden wings behind him and the flame in his hand had already subdued both Saints who had come here. Hun Qing couldn't help feeling bitter. He had always considered himself a genius, but today he'd seen just how far he fell short.
"Whoosh!"
A figure appeared before him. Hun Qing couldn't even be bothered to look up.
"Heh heh, want to live?"
Zhang Nian's teasing voice came from above. It also gave Gu You, sprawled behind him, a glimmer of hope. He called out ingratiatingly, "My lord, would you be willing to spare us? I can give you all my treasures. I only ask that you spare our lives!"
"Spineless..." Hun Qing lowered his head and cursed inwardly. He shared the same thoughts, but he didn't want to beg. As a member of the Soul Clan, he liked to think he had at least a little backbone...
"Oh?"
A Dou Sheng Expert's Storage Ring was certainly worth looking forward to. Gu You was only a Half-Saint, but Zhang Nian expected there to be plenty of seventh-grade pills in his ring. He could give them to Cailin or Yao Ye later and have them transform into even more potent pills.
Seeing that Zhang Nian was interested, Gu You didn't hesitate. He quickly erased his soul imprint from the Storage Ring, slipped it off his finger, and tossed it over. The black ring traced a graceful arc through the air, caught by an invisible force of space, then slowly settled into Zhang Nian's palm.
He looked down at Hun Qing and slowly curled his lips into a playful smile. "And you?"
"Hmph!"
Hun Qing turned his head aside, as if daring Zhang Nian to kill him. Gu You, behind him, was frantic. "Deputy Hall Master, we were in the wrong from the start. We should apologize and give in. Hand over the Storage Ring. That's better than losing our lives..."
Gu You knew full well that if he went back empty-handed, he might as well have died here. How could the Soul Hall possibly let him off?
He raged inwardly, A live dog is better than a dead lion! Don't you know how powerful this flame is? It'll burn your soul to nothing. And then you expect to come back to life? Come back to life, my ass!
Zhang Nian didn't actually want to kill him, but he still wanted Hun Qing to experience that soul-deep agony. With a thought, the Nanming Li Fire inside Hun Qing's body flared up fiercely. Zhang Nian wasn't even unleashing its full power, but the heat was enough to make Hun Qing cry out.
"Ah!!"
The intense pain soon sent Hun Qing rolling around on the ground. Not a trace of Dou Qi remained in his body. His face was as pale as paper, and he felt as though the blood in his organs was about to dry up. Worst of all, his soul seemed on the verge of being burned to ash. This was a double torment of body and mind.
"Fine! I'll give it to you!"
Staggering, he raised his hand and deftly slipped the Storage Ring from his finger, releasing a faint wisp of soul power.
"Gah..."
Even the act of using his soul power now brought a wave of sharp pain. Gritting his teeth against it, he handed over the ring. It still contained the Ninth-Grade Treasure Pill the Hall Master had just given him...
As soon as he surrendered the ring, the flame inside his body weakened considerably, returning to its original state: preventing him from gathering Dou Qi while causing a faint, constant ache.
"What do you want from us?!"
Feeling what was happening inside his body, Hun Qing was stung by the humiliation and shouted in anger. He'd already handed over the Storage Ring. What more did Zhang Nian want?!
Zhang Nian glanced at Hun Qing on the ground. This man was a real nuisance. But it wasn't time to fight the Soul Clan yet. He wasn't likely to draw someone like Hun Tiandi out, but attracting high-star Dou Shengs would still be a disaster for the entire Jia Ma Empire. If Zhang Nian had been alone in the world, he wouldn't have cared. But he wasn't.
"From now on, I don't want to see anyone from your Soul Hall or the Soul Clan again. Understand?"
His icy words lingered in their ears. Gu You, showing no backbone at all, readily agreed. "You can rest assured, my lord. No one from the Soul Hall or the Soul Clan will appear before you again!"
In truth, he was already thinking coldly, When I get back, I'll tell the Hall Master everything. Next time, we'll send an army of Dou Shengs from the Soul Clan! I refuse to believe that many Dou Shengs won't be enough to take you down!
Hun Qing understood the same thing. Giving in once only made it easier to give in again. After what had just happened, he had no desire to experience that soul-searing agony a second time.
"I promise, too."
Hearing how firmly they agreed, Zhang Nian knew exactly what they were thinking. "I know what's on your minds. It doesn't matter. This flame will remain inside your bodies. If I see anyone from the Soul Hall again, whether you had anything to do with it or not, you'll experience..."
Zhang Nian paused. With a wicked smile, he stared at the two men sprawled on the ground and stirred the flame in his mind once more.
This time, the Nanming Li Fire was pushed to its limit, and the pain rose to its peak. Both men squeezed their eyes shut. For that instant, they truly felt close to death. They couldn't even cry out.
This flame!!
It lasted only an instant. Zhang Nian couldn't let them actually die here, but their souls had certainly been damaged. The Nanming Li Fire was far more powerful than the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame. Even a brief burst was enough to leave their souls drained.
"That's roughly what it'll feel like. You can decide for yourselves. You can gamble that, thousands of miles away, this flame won't be able to hurt you at all. Of course, I'll make you experience it once every three days."
What did he mean...?
Gu You froze.
Even after returning to the Central Plains, they wouldn't be able to get rid of this flame?
Wouldn't that mean they'd be at someone else's mercy forever?
He didn't believe it. There were so many powerful and talented people in the Central Plains. Surely someone could deal with this flame...
Besides, he was talking about thousands of miles away. He could still control it from that far? Had the flame become sentient or something?!
"Rest assured, we won't tell anyone. No one from the Soul Hall or the Soul Clan will find out."
Gu You pledged solemnly.
Zhang Nian didn't care whether he was telling the truth. He smiled nonchalantly.
"Then that's for the best."
He withdrew his power, and the Dou Qi in both men began to recover.
The barrier opened. Zhang Nian's figure flashed and disappeared, leaving only the two men who had just managed to get back to their feet.
"Deputy Hall Master, were you able to gauge his strength?"
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