The morning mist had yet to lift from Black Seal City when the scent of medicine from the street corner mingled with the smell of blood.
No one dared ask questions. After all, this was Medicine Emperor Han Feng's territory.
The two white marble lions in front of the manor still had bloodstains on their paws from a few days ago, not yet scrubbed clean.
Passing merchants hurried by with their heads bowed, not daring even to glance toward the manor.
For the past few years, Han Feng had thrown his weight around the Black-Corner Region. His status as a sixth-grade alchemist was his protective charm.
Slaughtering a village or two, capturing people alive to make pills!
Collecting souls!
In the eyes of others, it was simply, "The Medicine Emperor does as he pleases. No questions asked."
After all, this was a lawless land!
Han Feng did all this mainly to curry favor with the Soul Hall, his powerful backer!
With his status as a sixth-grade alchemist and disciple of Venerable Yao,
as well as the Soul Hall's protection,
he was utterly arrogant!
He had tried to cover his tracks somewhat, but any Dou Wang or Dou Emperor with high enough cultivation could piece things together!
But today, that arrogance, so suffocating it left people gasping, was crushed to pieces by three sudden waves of pressure.
First, the apothecary owner in the western part of the city noticed something was wrong. The pestle in his hand clanged into the stone mortar.
There was no wind, yet the roof tiles rustled as they fell.
The herbs in the jars curled up into clumps on their own, as if something had clenched them in its fist.
Then a cry of alarm came from the city center. Someone pointed at the sky, their voice trembling beyond control:
"Dou... Dou Zong! That's a Dou Zong's aura!"
Three auras hung above Han Feng's manor like three abyssal mountains, churning the clouds.
The Dou Qi between heaven and earth descended into chaos.
The wooden beams of the towers near the manor creaked as if they were about to collapse at any moment.
The demonic beasts flying low in the sky plummeted straight to the ground before they could even cry out.
They hit the ground with no strength left even to twitch.
The townspeople lay face down, afraid to look up. They could only peer through the gaps between their fingers:
Three figures stood high in the air.
Golden Dou Qi, so dense it seemed almost solid, swirled around Great Elder Su Qian on the left.
He wielded no weapon. His aura alone made the air tremble faintly.
The elder in the middle was wrapped in scarlet flames, distorting the air around him with its heat.
The morning dew evaporated into steam before it could reach him.
Hu Gan on the right had not even revealed his Dou Qi, yet when his gaze swept down,
even the stone carvings on the manor walls seemed ready to crack.
"Those are three elders from Jia Nan Academy! That's Hu Gan... He broke through to Dou Zong?!"
"My heavens! Three Dou Zongs at the gates—Han Feng is finished this time!"
The whispers had barely spread before Han Feng appeared on the manor rooftop.
He wore a brocade robe and carried himself with an air of nobility!
But all his arrogance had vanished. His face was pale as paper:
How was this possible?
How had those two both become Dou Zongs overnight?
And why had they come after him?!
What unsettled him even more was the sudden sound of orderly footsteps outside the manor.
The guards under his command had all cowered in the courtyard, too frightened even to raise their heads.
"Elder Su Qian, Vice Principal Hu Gan..."
Han Feng forced himself to stay calm, but his hands trembled as he clasped them in greeting:
"I didn't know the three of you were coming. Forgive me for not welcoming you sooner."
"If you've come for pills, I have a freshly made fifth-grade Recovery Pill here. Perhaps..."
"Shut up!"
Hu Gan's roar cracked like thunder. Scarlet Dou Qi exploded with a BOOM, hurling several tiles from the manor roof into the street.
The shattered tiles hit the stone pavement and sent sparks flying:
"Do you think we don't know about the filthy things you've done?"
"Three days ago, an entire village was slaughtered!"
"Three hundred people in Qingfeng Village, from infants under six months old to elders of seventy—you made pills out of them just because you felt like it?"
"You even extracted children's souls to make pills. You call yourself an alchemist?"
Han Feng's pupils contracted sharply.
He had kept the matter of Qingfeng Village extremely secret. How had Jia Nan Academy found out?
He was about to make excuses when Su Qian was already charging at him.
Golden Dou Qi gathered around his fist, forming a gauntlet half a foot thick. He used no fancy moves.
He simply wrapped his physical strength in the might of a Dou Zong and punched toward the manor rooftop.
The glazed roof tiles shattered instantly. Wood splinters and broken stone rained down.
Even the roof beams shifted half an inch from the force of the punch.
Elder Huo attacked at the same time. He formed a seal with both hands as scarlet flames gathered in his palms.
With a fierce thrust, he sent hundreds of fire arrows shooting from the flames, blanketing Han Feng.
Before the arrows even hit the ground, they burned black pits into it.
Hu Gan circled around to the side, a long sword of Dou Qi taking shape at his fingertips, its blade glinting coldly.
With a flicker of his steps, he appeared behind Han Feng, the sword tip aimed straight at his heart.
The three had worked together for years. With one move, they sealed off every avenue of escape.
Terrified out of his wits, Han Feng shrieked and pulled a black token from his Storage Ring, crushing it in his fist:
"Lord of the Soul Hall! Save me!"
At the same time, he shouted into the courtyard:
"Black Sha! White Tu! Are you dead? Get out here!"
The moment the token crumbled, a sinister aura seeped out of thin air.
An old man in black robes floated beside Han Feng. The ghost-patterned mask on his face shifted with each breath.
Gray-black soul energy curled in his withered palm as the pressure of a Three-Star Dou Zong spread out.
He blocked Su Qian's punch:
"Jia Nan Academy, you dare lay a hand on someone from the Soul Hall?"
At the same time, two figures rushed out of the manor:
Black Sha, a Dou Emperor, stood on the left, his build burly and a huge axe in his hand.
Dried blood still stained its blade.
White Tu, a Dou Emperor, stood on the right, dressed in white and twirling a poison needle in his hand.
A sinister smile hung on his face.
Several Dou Wangs followed behind them, each carrying a weapon, their Dou Qi surging.
In an instant, they formed a protective ring around Han Feng.
"So what if there are three Dou Zongs?"
Black Sha grinned and swung his giant axe at Su Qian:
"You dare make an enemy of the Soul Hall? Have you got a death wish?!"
The axe swept through the air wrapped in black Dou Qi, making it howl as a deep ravine split the ground.
Its wind sliced through the nearby tree trunks, cutting them clean in half.
Su Qian neither dodged nor evaded. Golden Dou Qi surged along both his arms as he reached up to catch the axe with his bare hands.
CLANG! The sharp clash of metal on metal made people's eardrums ache.
Golden and black Dou Qi collided, and the resulting shockwave sent the surrounding Dou Wangs flying.
Black Sha felt tremendous force race down the axe handle. His arm felt as if it had been smashed by a hammer.
The axe nearly slipped from his grasp. His palm split open, and blood ran down the handle:
BOOM!!
"Dou Zong power is no topic for a mere Dou Huang to dispute!"
Su Qian snorted. His left hand suddenly seized the axe handle, while Dou Qi gathered in his right.
He struck Black Sha in the chest with his palm.
Golden Dou Qi instantly broke through Black Sha's defenses and slammed into his heart like a heavy hammer.
Black Sha grunted and spat out a great mouthful of blood.
His body flew backward like a kite with its strings cut, smashing into the manor's stone wall and leaving a huge crater.
He went still:
In just two moves, a Five-Star Dou Emperor had been killed with bare hands!
On the other side, White Tu shot his poison needles at Hu Gan. They carried green Dou Qi and left several afterimages in the air.
Hu Gan shifted his feet and swept his Dou Qi sword through a flourish. Every needle was knocked aside.
Before they even hit the ground, a casual slash of Dou Qi from him reduced them to powder:
"Using poison? Aren't you afraid of dirtying my hands?"
As the words left his mouth, Hu Gan flashed in front of White Tu.
His sword thrust toward White Tu's throat, and White Tu stumbled backward in terror.
But Hu Gan was too fast. The sword tip had already touched his collar.
White Tu hurriedly shielded his throat with Dou Qi, but the sword pierced it with ease, and his green Dou Qi dissipated instantly.
A Dou Zong against a Dou Huang was nothing but a crushing mismatch!
Elder Huo dealt with the Dou Wangs. He clapped his hands, and scarlet flames instantly turned into a net of fire,
trapping all ten-odd Dou Wangs inside.
The Dou Wangs hastily resisted with their Dou Qi, but as soon as the flames touched it, they screamed in agony.
Their Dou Qi caught fire like paper. Before long, several Dou Wangs were rolling on the ground,
howling as they turned into charred corpses.
The remaining Dou Wangs were scared out of their wits and turned to flee.
But Elder Huo crooked a finger, and the fire net tightened with a BOOM.
The flames swallowed all the remaining Dou Wangs, leaving not even their bones behind.
With the underlings dealt with, Su Qian, Elder Huo, and Hu Gan closed in around the Soul Hall elder again.
The old man's expression darkened as the Soul Banner in his hand shook violently.
The vengeful souls on the banner howled, sending hundreds of soul blades at the three of them:
"You really mean to make an enemy of the Soul Hall?"
"A lackey of the Soul Hall dares talk about enemies and allies?"
Su Qian did not stop. Golden Dou Qi gathered in both hands as he sent two palm strikes flying.
The palm strikes tore through the air and shattered all the soul blades in an instant.
"Give me your life!!"
Elder Huo formed a seal with both hands, and the scarlet flames transformed into a fire dragon.
It opened its jaws and lunged at the old man. Wherever the dragon passed, the air grew scorching hot.
When the flames touched the soul energy, black smoke hissed up.
The old man hurriedly controlled the Soul Banner to shield himself. The vengeful souls on the banner condensed into a soul shield.
But the fire dragon bit down, and the soul shield instantly cracked. The Soul Banner was charred black as well.
Hu Gan took the opportunity to circle behind the old man and thrust his Dou Qi sword toward his heart.
The old man hurriedly turned, but he was still too slow. The sword pierced his shoulder.
Gray-black blood sprayed out.
Su Qian seized the opening and closed in, gathering all his Dou Qi in his right fist.
He smashed it into the old man's chest:
Golden Dou Qi erupted in an instant, and the old man spat out a mouthful of black blood.
The Soul Banner fell to the ground, and the aura of a Three-Star Dou Zong weakened in an instant.
"Three against one! What kind of skill is that?!"
The old man howled, trying to detonate his soul energy and take them all with him.
But Elder Huo had been ready. The fire dragon bit down on his body.
Scarlet flames instantly engulfed him. Before long, the old man's screams faded, leaving only a pile of black ash.
Seeing that the Soul Hall elder, Black Sha, and White Tu had all been dealt with, Han Feng didn't dare linger. He turned to leap down and escape.
But before his feet touched the ground, a dark figure blocked his path.
It was a boy in black, who looked young and had the aura of a Dou Wang at best.
Yet when Han Feng met his eyes, a chill ran through his entire body, as if a venomous snake had fixed its gaze on him.
"Who are you? How dare you block my way?"
Han Feng shouted, trying to sound fierce, but fear showed through. Blue flames rose in his palm—his Sea Heart Flame, the ace up his sleeve.
This Heavenly Flame had been with him for ten years, helping him refine countless high-grade pills. It was also his trump card for slaying powerful enemies.
At that moment, the flames surged, and a wave of blue fire instantly swept over the area around him.
Even the surrounding air crackled as it burned, while the ground melted into lava.
But the youth said nothing. He only slowly raised a hand.
Dark-red blood qi suddenly poured out of the youth's body, like floodwaters bursting through a dam.
In an instant, it covered everything within a thousand meters!
The blood qi was so thick it looked like clotted blood paste, sticking to the air and refusing to disperse.
A pungent stench of blood rushed into their nostrils, making their stomachs churn.
Even more horrifying, countless phantom vengeful souls were wrapped in the blood qi:
Some were missing arms, while others had no heads.
Some had their bellies split open, their organs dragging outside them. Every one of them had its mouth open in a howl.
Their shrieks were sharp enough to pierce eardrums, and even the clouds in the distance had been dyed dark red.
As soon as the domain took shape, Han Feng felt his whole body grow heavy.
It was as if he had suddenly been thrown into a ten-thousand-zhang-deep sea, his limbs pulled down by an invisible force.
Even lifting a finger took all his strength.
The Dou Qi inside him was in even greater disarray. The Dou Qi that had once flowed smoothly—
now seemed stuck fast in glue, scraping painfully through his meridians.
His Dou Emperor cultivation had actually been forcibly suppressed to the level of a Three-Star Dou Wang!
"What... what kind of damned domain is this?!"
Han Feng cried out in terror, then hurriedly urged the Sea Heart Flame into action. The blue fire instantly transformed into a ten-zhang-long fire dragon.
Its claws trailed afterimages of flame as it slammed into the barrier of the blood qi domain.
He refused to believe his Heavenly Flame couldn't burn through even a single domain!
But the moment the fire dragon touched the blood qi, it was like striking an iron wall.
Blue flames crackled and fell away, while the dragon's claws were instantly corroded by the blood qi, sending up wisps of white smoke.
Before Han Feng could react, dozens of Blood-colored Tentacles suddenly shot out from the blood qi.
They wrapped around the fire dragon and yanked hard, tearing it to pieces.
It turned into sparks that scattered and vanished into the blood qi.
Only then did the youth move, his steps as light as if he were walking on clouds.
With every step, the blood qi parted on its own to make a path, without so much as a ripple.
He loosely clenched his right hand, and the blood qi instantly gathered into a ten-zhang-long spear.
Its tip gleamed coldly, while tiny blood snakes coiled around its shaft.
They flicked out their forked tongues, their chill as venomous as poison.
"The Sea Heart Flame is decent. Too bad it can only show its true power in my hands."
The youth's voice was cold as ice, devoid of emotion:
"Don't even think of begging for mercy. I came here for your Heavenly Flame!"
"Your life is just an extra."
Han Feng shuddered. So his opponent hadn't come for Qingfeng Village at all.
He simply wanted the Sea Heart Flame!
That realization threw him into complete panic. He hurriedly fished a Sixth-Grade Pill out of his Storage Ring!
And swallowed it!
This was his life-saving Explosive Flame Pill. It could make his Dou Qi erupt to three times its normal strength in an instant.
The moment the pill entered his mouth, the blue flames surged, and waves of fire roiled around Han Feng.
Though he still couldn't fight back, at least he could control his Heavenly Flame now!
"Boom!!!"
He gripped his hands together, and the Sea Heart Flame gathered into a massive shield of fire.
The shield was covered in densely packed alchemical runes.
He had reinforced it with his alchemist's skills!
Its defensive and offensive power was formidable!
"Want to steal my Heavenly Flame? It won't be that easy!"
Han Feng roared as he shoved the flaming shield forward. It crashed toward the youth with an overwhelming wave of heat!
The ground split open into a deep trench, and lava flowed down through it.
But the youth merely raised his left hand a little. An eerie Red Lotus bloomed at his fingertip.
The moment the Red Lotus Karma Fire appeared, the surrounding blood qi boiled.
Even the air warped in the heat, and the light of the Red Lotus turned half the sky red.
Han Feng's blue flames began to tremble violently, like subjects before their king.
The Red Lotus drifted gently toward the flaming shield. Before it even touched, the runes carved into the shield began to melt.
The blue flames seemed to have met their natural enemy, frantically shrinking back.
"Impossible! How can a Heavenly Flame be suppressed?!"
Han Feng's eyes nearly bulged from their sockets, but in the next instant, the Red Lotus struck the shield with a tremendous boom.
The flaming shield exploded, sending blue fire splashing in every direction.
But before it could hit the ground, the Red Lotus Karma Fire ignited it. The flames turned red and doubled back toward Han Feng.
Han Feng hurriedly dodged, but a gigantic blood-red hand suddenly reached out from the blood qi.
It was dozens of zhang across, blood snakes coiled around its fingers, and it seized his body in a crushing grip!
"Crack! Crack!" The sound of breaking bones echoed through the blood qi.
Han Feng spat out a mouthful of blood, and the blue flames instantly dimmed:
His Dou Qi was being scorched by the Red Lotus Karma Fire, and his meridians were beginning to burn.
The Sea Heart Flame trembled violently inside him, completely beyond his control.
The youth slowly walked up to him and pressed his left hand against his shoulder. The Red Lotus Karma Fire at his fingertip spread down over it.
Han Feng screamed in agony as his skin instantly burned black.
The youth's right hand passed through the blood-red palm and plunged straight into Han Feng's chest.
Han Feng could feel the Red Lotus Karma Fire's heat in his opponent's fingertips.
The moment they touched his skin, the flames made his very soul tremble. His heart was clutched tight.
Every beat brought excruciating pain.
"No! My Sea Heart Flame!"
Han Feng roared, trying to urge his Heavenly Flame to fight back.
But the Sea Heart Flame seemed to have recognized its master. It trembled violently inside him, then began to devour his meridians instead.
The youth's hand tightened slightly, and Han Feng could feel his heart slowly deforming.
The breath of death enveloped him.
"From this day on, your Heavenly Flame is mine."
The youth's voice sounded beside his ear, so cold it held not a trace of warmth.
The next second, Han Feng felt his heart crushed in a brutal grip.
"Bang!"