"Boom!"
Six figures radiating terrifying auras descended first over the Snake-People Holy City, like vultures scenting blood.
They tore through the sky and arrived above the city!
They were Yun Yun, Hai Bodong, the Dou Emperor from the Black Skull Tomb, and the Copper Flame Dou Emperor,
along with three others, including a mysterious Dou Emperor—the six human Dou Emperors!
Their eyes burned with greed as they fixed on the center of the Holy City.
Two flames soared into the sky, shining in radiant harmony:
"Hiss!"
The brilliant yellow Wind Fury Dragon Flame raged wildly, while the green Green Lotus Core Flame burned on without end!
At such close range, the auras of these two utterly different yet equally world-shattering Heavenly Flames swept over them.
Even these well-traveled Dou Huang experts felt their hearts race and their breathing grow quick!
However, in the very next moment after they arrived,
a figure of peerless grace, radiating icy killing intent, slowly rose into the air from the city's grandest temple, at its center.
The instant she appeared, it was as though she had stolen every color in the world!
A magnificent purple-and-gold brocade robe wrapped her alluring figure in all its breathtaking curves.
Yet she exuded a noble dignity and majesty that allowed no profanation.
Beneath the robe, a section of purple snake tail showed, swaying lazily.
It radiated a dangerous aura that made the heart tremble.
Her face was even more breathtakingly beautiful!
Her exquisite features seemed heaven's most perfect creation, naturally seductive and bewitching.
Her long, narrow eyes were a pale violet. Every glance brimmed with inborn allure,
yet also with a queen's coldness and majesty, as though she could make anyone willingly fall into death while lost in her enchantment.
She was none other than Queen Medusa!
But a closer look revealed a faint pallor on her peerlessly beautiful face.
Her aura also seemed less full and harmonious than the rumors claimed, with a slight, unsteady quality to it.
Clearly, subduing the Green Lotus Core Flame had cost her dearly, and her injuries had yet to heal.
"Humans, you have crossed the line!"
Queen Medusa's icy voice rang out, like colliding ice, laden with biting killing intent.
"This is the Snake-People Tribe's Holy City. Leave at once!"
"Otherwise, you'll be killed without mercy!"
Though she was in poor condition, the aura of a queen remained undiminished! Her violet eyes swept over each human Dou Emperor, as though they were a pack of reckless ants.
"Queen Medusa!"
Gu He stepped forward. His gaze passed over her pale face, and a flicker of understanding crossed his eyes as he spoke gravely.
"Heavenly Flames appear by nature, nurtured by heaven and earth. The capable are entitled to claim them!"
"Your Snake-People Tribe wants to keep both flames for yourselves? You must have quite an appetite!"
"Hand over the flames, and we may consider leaving. Otherwise..."
The Dou Emperor from the Black Skull Tomb cut in with a sinister voice like a blade scraping bone.
"Otherwise, today we'll wipe the Snake-People Tribe from the Tagor Great Desert!"
The six Dou Emperors' terrifying pressure bore down like a tangible force.
Every Snake-Person in the Holy City felt a suffocating terror!
Many of the weaker Snake-People collapsed to the ground, trembling.
A cold light surged in Queen Medusa's violet, serpentine eyes. Her tail whipped, and a formidable aura burst forth.
She forced back the pressure of the six Dou Emperors and gave a cold snort.
"Arrogant!"
"Do you really think my Snake-People Tribe can be bullied?"
"The Green Lotus Core Flame belongs to me. I will never hand it over!"
"And you won't be taking the Wind Fury Dragon Flame so easily, either!"
"So there's nothing left to discuss?"
The Copper Flame Dou Emperor had a fiery temper. Scarlet Dou Qi began to roil around him, warping the air with its scorching energy.
Just as both sides stood poised for battle, with a fight about to erupt—
"Alas..."
A long, aged sigh came from deep within the forbidden grounds behind the Holy City.
It carried the weight and weariness of time, yet also held a power that could not be underestimated.
Then four vast, surging auras—far stronger than Queen Medusa's current one—
awoke with a crash, like dragons that had slept for a thousand years!
Four streaks of light shot out from the forbidden grounds and landed beside Queen Medusa.
They transformed into four elderly women in ancient Snake-People garments, their faces aged and each holding a Snake-Head Scepter.
Their auras had all reached the level of high-tier Dou Emperors!
Though old, the pressure accumulated over countless years was enough to make one's heart tremble!
Each sweep of their gaze seemed to carry the weight of a thousand jun.
"Humans, you've gone too far."
The Great Elder at their head spoke with drooping eyelids. Her voice was calm, yet carried an unquestionable force.
"My Snake-People Tribe must keep at least one of the two Heavenly Flames."
"Otherwise, even if you win, you'll pay a price you can't bear!"
"I doubt any of you wants to fight to the death with four old women like us, does you?"
Five Snake-People Dou Emperors, including the injured Queen Medusa,
faced six human Dou Emperors!
They were slightly outnumbered, but the Snake-People had four high-tier Dou Emperors in perfect condition, and the advantage of home ground.
If they truly fought to the death, the humans would gain nothing. Some might even die here!
The human Dou Emperors' expressions turned grave, and their momentum faltered.
They exchanged glances, their eyes shifting as they weighed the gains and losses.
Was it worth risking their lives for the Heavenly Flames?
For a moment, no one dared make the first move.
An eerie silence settled over the standoff.
An invisible haze of gunpowder filled the air, as though the next moment might set it off.
But just then, among the human camp, two of the four Dou Emperors besides Yun Yun and Hai Bodong, who had remained silent all along,
slowly stepped forward.
One was the sinister-looking Dou Emperor from the Black-Corner Region, the man from the Black Skull Tomb.
The other was the Copper Flame Dou Emperor, with bronzed skin, from a neighboring nation.
They exchanged a smile. Far from showing fear, they looked utterly confident of victory.
The Black Skull Tomb Dou Emperor chuckled sinisterly.
"Heh. You four Snake-People elders certainly put on a grand show."
"Under normal circumstances, we might have to think twice."
"But today..."
The Copper Flame Dou Emperor boomed in reply:
"But today, we brothers are taking both Heavenly Flames!"
As soon as he finished speaking, they each flipped a hand!
A strangely shaped jade talisman appeared in each of their palms. They crushed the talismans at once!
"Please, show yourselves!"
"Buzz! Buzz!"
The instant the talismans shattered,
four streaks of light suddenly shot up from the desert beneath them!
Four terrifying auras, every bit as powerful as any already present, descended!
Four figures appeared out of nowhere, like ghosts, taking their places behind the Dou Emperors from the Black Skull Tomb and Copper Flame.
All four wore loose cloaks that concealed their faces.
But the pressure of their Peak Dou Emperor auras swept out without restraint, as overwhelming as prehistoric beasts!
Four Peak Dou Emperors!
"Allow me to introduce myself."
The Black Skull Tomb Dou Emperor laughed smugly, greed glinting in his eyes.
"I'm Mo Fa, an elder of the Black Skull Tomb—and a Sixth-Grade alchemist."
"This is Copper Flame, also a Sixth-Grade alchemist."
Alchemists!
Sixth-Grade alchemists, no less!
The others suddenly understood. No wonder they could summon such powerful allies!
An alchemist's connections and influence were never to be underestimated!
A single high-grade pill was enough to make many experts fight for them.
Mo Fa continued:
"My friend Copper Flame and I will each take one of the Heavenly Flames. That seems only fair."
"As for the rest of you..."
His gaze swept over Gu He, Yun Yun, Hai Bodong, and the other mysterious Dou Emperor.
"If you help us claim the Heavenly Flames, each of you will receive an Imperial Extreme Pill once it's done!"
"On top of that, I'll refine one Sixth-Grade Pill for each of you, free of charge! What do you say?"
At those words, Gu He, Yun Yun, Hai Bodong, and the mysterious Dou Emperor
all showed a dramatic change in their expressions!
An Imperial Extreme Pill! A precious Sixth-Grade peak pill that could directly raise a Dou Emperor's strength by one star!
And a promise from a Sixth-Grade alchemist to refine a pill! It was a generous offer, to say the least!
Gu He struggled with the choice. He had come for the Heavenly Flames, and now he had to take orders from someone else.
But he glanced at Yun Yun beside him and saw her nod in agreement.
Then he looked at the four unfathomable Peak Dou Emperors on the other side.
In the end, he gave a bitter sigh and nodded.
"The Misty Cloud Sect... agrees."
He knew that with the strength the Misty Cloud Sect had sent, fighting head-on would be suicide.
An Imperial Extreme Pill in return wasn't a bad deal.
The mysterious Dou Emperor also nodded slowly, evidently tempted by the Imperial Extreme Pill and the promise of alchemy.
Hai Bodong cursed the two men inwardly for their cunning—they had been hiding such a trump card.
But outwardly, he could only pretend to be tempted and nod in agreement.
He had already decided to put in little effort and watch how things unfolded. Ideally, both sides would suffer heavy losses, allowing him to profit from the chaos.
With that, the humans' strength instantly swelled to ten Dou Emperors!
Mo Fa, Venerable Tong Yan, and the four Peak Dou Emperors they had brought,
along with Yun Yun, Hai Bodong, and the mysterious Dou Emperor...!
Ten against five! And four of them were Peak Dou Emperors!
The situation reversed in an instant, becoming overwhelmingly one-sided!
The Snake-People Tribe's side, including the four elders and Queen Medusa, turned ashen!
Not only were their opponents twice as numerous, but their strongest fighters completely outclassed them!
Queen Medusa clenched her fists so tightly that her violet nails nearly dug into her palms. Her eyes blazed with fury and resentment.
A vicious glint flashed through the eyes of the two alchemists. With so many experts gathered here,
if they seized the chance to... wipe out the Snake-People Tribe, the wealth and resources they could plunder
might well be worth as much as a Heavenly Flame!
"Kill them! If they won't know their place, wipe them out!"
Mo Fa barked and struck first, a pitch-black ghostly claw ripping through the sky.
It carried a chilling, corrosive aura as it lunged straight for the Snake-People Great Elder!
The battle erupted in an instant!
"Boom!!!"
The ten human Dou Emperors plunged into the fray like tigers among a flock of sheep.
All manner of powerful Dou Techniques rained down on the Snake-People Holy City!
Dou Qi surged everywhere, energy ran rampant, and the sky was dyed in every color.
The four Snake-People elders roared and struck their serpent staffs against the ground.
A gigantic serpent-shaped energy barrier instantly rose, shielding the heart of the Holy City!
At the same time, the four of them linked their auras and formed an intricate formation.
With the formation's power, they managed to hold back the first wave of the frenzied assault! Light flowed across the barrier, continuously repelling the attacks from outside.
Queen Medusa also forcibly suppressed her injuries, her purple hair whipping in the wind.
A long whip of purple energy coalesced in her hand. With a howl that tore through the air, she lashed it fiercely at her enemies!
Every strike contained terrifying power, forcing several Dou Emperors to dodge again and again.
However, a subtle change had taken place on the battlefield.
Hai Bodong's eyes flickered. The ice Dou Techniques he unleashed looked ferocious, but their power had actually diminished considerably.
When they struck the serpent-shaped barrier, they merely raised a spray of ice crystals, doing no real damage at all.
He kept circling the edge of the battlefield, watching the movements of every side with wary eyes as he searched for the most advantageous moment.
The mysterious Dou Emperor was much the same. His attacks were limp and lifeless, as if he were merely going through the motions.
From time to time, he glanced toward the two Heavenly Flames, clearly working out his own plan.
Even Gu He and some of the Dou Wangs held back when they attacked.
They released only a few inconsequential Dou Techniques at crucial moments.
Because these people were not giving their all, the humans' numerical advantage among the Dou Emperors still only allowed the two sides to fight to a standstill at first.
Though the Snake-People Tribe's barrier trembled, it showed no signs of collapsing anytime soon.
Seeing this, Mo Fa and Copper Flame flashed with displeasure.
But this was a critical moment, and they had no time to spare in pressuring those people.
They could only intensify their attacks, hoping to break the stalemate as quickly as possible.
Even so, the attacks of ten Dou Emperors were enough to destroy heaven and earth!
The Snake-People Tribe's barrier shuddered violently, and cracks began to spread!
The four elders maintaining the formation turned pale, fine beads of sweat appearing on their foreheads. They were clearly struggling to hold on.
They could feel the barrier's energy rapidly running out.
Yet at the edge of this chaotic, top-level battle, no one noticed—
Lin Chen was like an insignificant bystander.
He hovered silently in the distant sky, watching everything with cold indifference.
Mo Fa? He's got a few tricks up his sleeve.
Lin Chen chuckled inwardly.
Fight. The bloodier the better.
Once both sides are badly wounded, that'll be my chance.
Though he was confident he could stand against a Dou Emperor or even kill one, facing so many powerful opponents—
especially those four unfathomable Peak Dou Emperors—charging in to snatch the prize was hardly wise.
Letting the snipe and the clam fight while he reaped the reward was the way to go.
His gaze lingered mostly on the two Heavenly Flames.
Suddenly, he keenly noticed that Wind Fury Dragon Flame, which seemed to be spinning furiously in place as it clashed against the energy of the Snake-People Tribe's barrier—
its core essence was, in an extremely subtle and imperceptible way, slowly edging toward the nearby Green Lotus Core Flame, which Queen Medusa had suppressed and weakened...
Hmm? What's it trying to do? Devour the Green Lotus Core Flame?
Lin Chen's thoughts stirred, and he grew even more wary. When Heavenly Flames devoured one another,
it often triggered an even more terrifying burst of energy. He had to keep a close eye on them.
The Dou Wangs on the outskirts had long since fled in terror of a battle on this scale.
All they could do was watch in trepidation, not daring to go anywhere near it.
The battle had reached a stalemate, but the balance was soon broken!
The humans' Dou Emperors had the advantage in numbers, and Mo Fa, Copper Flame, and the others attacked with ferocious force.
Yun Yun became a gust of clear wind, her sword light sharp as she searched for a weakness in the barrier.
Perhaps she was too eager to break the stalemate. She darted too far forward, exposing a flaw!
"Now! Snake Spirit Bind!"
A fierce glint flashed in the eyes of the four Snake-People elders as the formation shifted.
Four serpents of purple energy shot out like chains, deftly slipping past Yun Yun's sword light.
In an instant, they coiled around her!
"Oh no!"
Yun Yun cried out as her Dou Qi was instantly sealed, leaving her unable to summon it.
Then a tremendous force struck her!
It was a combined attack from the Four Great Elders!
"Boom!!"
She spat out a mouthful of blood, her body flung violently away!
Like a kite with its string cut, she traced an arc through the air.
She was hurled clear beyond the bounds of the Holy City, plummeting toward the desert below.
A sandstorm swept over her in an instant, swallowing her from sight!
"Yun Yun!"
Gu He's eyes nearly burst with fury. Panic seized him, and he tried to rush to her aid.
But a quick-reacting Snake-People Dou Wang stopped him at the cost of his life!
All he could do was watch Yun Yun disappear into the sandstorm, consumed by worry.
And just as the four elders' combined strike sent Yun Yun flying, causing the formation to falter for an instant—
"Now's our chance!"
Mo Fa, Copper Flame, and the four Peak Dou Emperors they had brought with them all had the same fierce light flash in their eyes!
The six needed no words. In perfect unison, they unleashed their strongest attacks!
"Nether Ghost Claw!"
"Flame Emperor Heaven-Burning Palm!"
"Space-Splitting Slash!"
"..."
Six terrifying Dou Techniques, each powerful enough to level a city, converged into a devastating torrent.
They tore through the temporarily weakened serpent-shaped barrier and slammed toward the four Snake-People elders, who were momentarily drained from executing their combined attack!
"Boom!!!"
Queen Medusa shrieked in fury and shock, her eyes bloodshot.
She summoned every last ounce of strength to stop them, but it was already too late!
The light of destruction instantly swallowed the four aged figures!
Before you continue