Three Sects Besiege the City, Karmic Fire Burns the Maple! (2-in-1 Chapter)

The morning mist had yet to disperse in Black Seal City, and the scent of medicinal herbs drifted over, mingled with the stench of blood.

No one dared to ask questions; after all, this was the territory of the Medicine Emperor, Han Feng.

The two white marble lions before the manor gate still had bloodstains on their claws that hadn't been wiped clean from days prior.

Passing merchants lowered their heads and hurried by, not even daring to glance toward the manor.

Han Feng had been running rampant in the Black-Corner Region for years, his status as a Tier 6 Alchemist serving as his protective talisman.

Slaughtering a village or two, capturing living people to refine into medicine!

Collecting souls!

In the eyes of others, it was merely "the Medicine Emperor acts as he pleases, no explanation needed."

After all, this place was a lawless land to begin with!

Han Feng did all of this primarily to cozy up to the Soul Hall!

With his status as a Tier 6 Alchemist and a disciple of Venerable Yao!

And under the protection of the Soul Hall.

He could be described as arrogant to the extreme!

Though he made slight attempts to cover his tracks, any Dou King or Dou Emperor with a high enough cultivation level could deduce the truth!

But today, this arrogance that made people struggle to breathe was ground into dust by three bursts of pressure that suddenly crashed down.

First, the shopkeeper of a pharmacy in the west of the city noticed something wrong, his pestle clattering into the stone mortar.

Even though there was no wind, the roof tiles began to rattle and fall.

The herbs in the jars curled into balls on their own, as if gripped by something.

Immediately after, cries of alarm erupted from the city center, someone pointing at the sky, their voice trembling uncontrollably:

"Dou... Dou Ancestor! It is the aura of a Dou Ancestor!"

Three auras, like three abyssal mountains, hung over Han Feng's manor, churning the clouds.

The Dou Qi between heaven and earth turned into a chaotic mess.

The wooden beams of the pavilions near the manor creaked and groaned, as if they would collapse the next second.

Magical beasts flying at low altitudes plummeted to the ground before they could even let out a cry.

They hit the earth, lacking even the strength to twitch.

The commoners lay on the ground, not daring to look up, only peering through the gaps in their fingers:

Three figures stood high in the sky.

To the left, Great Elder Su Qian was surrounded by dense, golden Dou Qi.

Without using a weapon, his aura alone caused the air to vibrate slightly.

The elder in the center was wrapped in crimson flames, the surrounding air distorted by the heat.

The falling morning dew turned to steam before it could even reach him.

To the right, Hu Gan did not manifest his Dou Qi, but the way his gaze swept down.

Even the stone carvings on the manor walls seemed on the verge of cracking.

"It's the three elders from Jia Nan Academy! That's Hu Gan... has he broken through to Dou Ancestor?!"

"My god! Three Dou Ancestors blocking the gate; Han Feng is finished this time!"

The whispers hadn't spread for long before Han Feng's figure appeared on the roof of the manor.

He wore a brocade robe, exuding an air of nobility!

But the arrogance on his face was long gone, his complexion as pale as paper:

How is this possible?

How did these two become Dou Ancestors overnight?

And why have they come to target me?!

What panicked him even more was the sound of rhythmic footsteps suddenly echoing from outside the manor.

His own guards were so terrified they huddled in the courtyard, not even daring to lift their heads.

"Elder Su Qian, Vice Dean Hu Gan..."

Han Feng forced himself to remain calm, his hands trembling as he cupped them in a salute:

"I did not know the three of you were arriving; please forgive my lack of a proper welcome."

"If you require medicine, Han has some freshly made Tier 5 Recovery Pills here, perhaps..."

"Shut up!"

Hu Gan's roar was like a thunderclap, his crimson Dou Qi exploding outward, ripping several tiles from the manor roof and hurling them into the street.

The shattered tiles struck the stone road, sending sparks flying:

"Do you think we are unaware of the filthy deeds you have committed?"

"Three days ago, an entire village was slaughtered!"

"Three hundred souls in Qingfeng Village, the youngest not even half a year old, the oldest seventy—you say you were refining medicine, so you just went ahead and did it?"

"You even extracted the souls of children for your refining; do you even deserve to be called an alchemist?"

Han Feng's pupils constricted.

He had handled the affair at Qingfeng Village with extreme secrecy; how could Jia Nan Academy have found out?

Before he could attempt to quibble, Su Qian had already surged forward.

Golden Dou Qi condensed into half-foot-thick gauntlets upon his palms, devoid of any flashy techniques.

Relying solely on physical strength bolstered by the pressure of a Dou Ancestor, he smashed a fist toward the roof of the mansion.

The glazed tiles of the roof shattered instantly, and wood splinters and debris rained down like a downpour.

Even the main roof beams were shifted by half an inch from the force of that single blow.

Elder Huo acted simultaneously, his hands forming seals as crimson flames coalesced in his palms.

With a fierce push, hundreds of fire arrows erupted from the flames, shrouding Han Feng in a dense, inescapable net.

Before the arrows even touched the ground, they burned deep, charred pits into the earth.

Hu Gan circled to the side, his fingertips condensing into a long sword of Dou Qi, the blade shimmering with a cold light.

With a flicker of his footsteps, he arrived behind Han Feng, the sword tip aimed directly at his heart.

The three had cooperated for many years, and with a single move, they had sealed off all of Han Feng's paths of retreat.

Terrified out of his wits, Han Feng shrieked as he fished a black token from his Storage Ring and crushed it fiercely:

"Lord of Soul Hall! Save me!"

At the same time, he roared toward the courtyard:

"Black Sha! White Tu! Are you dead? Get out here!"

The moment the token crumbled into dust, a chilling aura emerged from the void.

A black-robed elder drifted beside Han Feng, the ghost-pattern mask on his face shifting with his breath.

Grey-black soul energy coiled around his withered palms as the pressure of a three-star Dou Ancestor unfurled.

He blocked Su Qian's fist:

"Jia Nan Academy, you dare touch someone from the Soul Hall?"

Simultaneously, two figures charged out from the mansion:

On the left was the Dou Emperor Black Sha, burly and wielding a giant axe.

Dried blood still stained the edge of the blade.

On the right was the Dou Emperor White Tu, dressed in white and toying with a poison needle.

A sinister smile hung on his face.

Behind the two followed several Dou Kings, all brandishing weapons, their Dou Qi surging.

In an instant, they shielded Han Feng in the center.

"So what if there are three Dou Ancestors?"

Black Sha grinned, swinging his giant axe toward Su Qian:

"You dare make an enemy of my Soul Hall? Do you have a death wish!"

The giant axe carried black Dou Qi, causing the air to howl as it cleaved a deep trench into the ground.

The wind from the axe swept past, snapping the nearby tree trunks in half.

Su Qian did not dodge or evade; golden Dou Qi surged violently over his arms as he raised his hands to meet the giant axe head-on.

"Clang!" The crisp sound of metal striking metal made one's eardrums ache.

Golden Dou Qi collided with black Dou Qi, the resulting shockwave sending the surrounding Dou Kings flying.

Black Sha felt a massive force travel up the axe handle, as if his arm had been struck by an iron hammer.

The giant axe nearly slipped from his grip, his thumb web instantly split, and blood began to drip down the handle:

"BOOM!!"

"How dare a mere Dou Emperor presume to judge the power of a Dou Ancestor?"

Su Qian let out a cold snort, his left hand suddenly locking onto the axe handle while his right hand condensed Dou Qi.

He slammed a palm into Black Sha's chest.

The golden Dou Qi instantly shattered Black Sha's defensive barrier, striking his heart like a heavy hammer.

Black Sha let out a muffled groan and spat out a mouthful of blood.

His body flew backward like a kite with a broken string, slamming into the stone wall of the mansion and leaving a massive crater in its wake.

There was no more movement.

In just two moves, a five-star Dou Emperor had been killed instantly with bare hands!

On the other side, Dou Emperor White Tu fired poison needles at Hu Gan, the needles trailing green Dou Qi and leaving several afterimages in the air.

Hu Gan shifted his feet, his longsword dancing to create a flurry of sword flowers that deflected all the poison needles.

Before they even hit the ground, he casually cleaved them into powder with a strike of Dou Qi.

"Using poison? Aren't you afraid of dirtying my hands?"

As the words fell, Hu Gan's figure flashed and appeared right in front of White Tu.

The longsword thrust toward his throat, sending White Tu scrambling backward in terror.

But Hu Gan's speed was too great; the tip of the blade had already touched his collar.

He hurriedly used Dou Qi to protect his neck, but it was easily pierced by the longsword, and his green Dou Qi dissipated in an instant.

A Dou Ancestor against a Dou Emperor was nothing short of a total crushing!

Elder Huo, meanwhile, dealt with the Dou Kings; he clapped his hands together, and crimson flames instantly transformed into a net of fire.

It enveloped all dozen or so Dou Kings within it.

The Dou Kings hurriedly used their Dou Qi to resist, but the moment the flames touched their Dou Qi, it burned them until they shrieked in agony.

Their Dou Qi ignited like paper, and within moments, several Dou Kings were rolling on the ground.

They wailed as they were reduced to charred corpses.

The remaining Dou Kings were scared out of their wits and turned to flee.

But Elder Huo hooked his finger, the fire net tightened, and with a "bang," the remaining Dou Kings were all swallowed by the flames, leaving not even bones behind.

With the cannon fodder cleared, Su Qian, Elder Huo, and Hu Gan surrounded the Soul Hall elder once more.

The elder's expression was grim, and the Soul Banner in his hand shook violently.

The vengeful spirits on the banner shrieked, firing hundreds of soul blades toward the three of them.

"Do you truly intend to make an enemy of the Soul Hall?"

"A lackey of the Soul Hall, and you dare speak of enemies and friends?"

Su Qian did not stop; he gathered golden Dou Qi in his hands and struck out with two palm shadows.

The palm shadows whistled through the air, shattering all the soul blades in an instant.

"Give me your life!!"

Elder Huo formed seals with his hands, and the crimson flames transformed into a fire dragon.

It opened its massive maw and lunged at the elder; wherever the fire dragon passed, the air was scorched searing hot.

The soul energy hissed and emitted black smoke upon touching the flames.

The elder hurriedly manipulated the Soul Banner to block in front of him, the vengeful spirits on the banner coalescing into a soul shield.

But when the fire dragon bit down, the soul shield shattered instantly, and the Soul Banner was scorched black.

Hu Gan seized the opportunity to circle behind the elder, his longsword thrusting toward the elder's heart.

The elder turned in a panic, but he was a step too slow, and the longsword pierced through his shoulder.

Gray-black blood sprayed out.

Su Qian took the chance to close in, gathering all his Dou Qi into his right fist.

He slammed it fiercely into the elder's chest.

The golden Dou Qi exploded instantly, and the elder spat out a mouthful of black blood.

The Soul Banner fell to the ground, and the aura of the three-star Dou Ancestor weakened instantly.

"Three against one, what kind of skill is that!"

The elder roared, attempting to detonate his soul energy to perish together with them.

But Elder Huo had been prepared; the fire dragon bit down on his body.

The crimson flames instantly engulfed him, and the elder's screams ceased after only a moment, leaving behind nothing but a pile of black ash.

Seeing that the Soul Hall elder, Black Sha, and White Tu had all been dealt with, Han Feng dared not stay a moment longer; he turned to leap down and flee.

But before his feet could touch the ground, a black-clad figure blocked his path.

It was a youth in black, looking not very old, with an aura only at the Dou King level.

Yet, when Han Feng met his eyes, he felt a chill run through his entire body, as if he were being stared down by a venomous snake.

"Who are you? You dare block me?"

Han Feng roared with a blustering show of bravado, blue flames—the Sea Heart Flame, his trump card—erupting from his palm.

This Heavenly Flame had accompanied him for ten years, helping him refine countless high-grade medicinal pills, and was the ace up his sleeve for slaying powerful enemies.

At this moment, the flames surged violently, and a wave of blue fire instantly washed over his entire body.

Even the surrounding air was scorched, emitting a crisp "hissing" sound as the ground melted into magma.

Yet the youth said nothing; he merely raised his hand slowly.

Dark red blood energy suddenly gushed out from the youth's body like a burst dam.

In an instant, it enveloped everything within a thousand-meter radius!

The blood energy was as thick as congealed blood paste, clinging to the air and refusing to dissipate.

A pungent, bloody stench rushed straight into the nostrils, churning the stomach.

Even more terrifying was that the blood energy was wrapped in countless phantoms of vengeful spirits:

Some were missing arms, others had no heads.

Still others had their bellies ripped open with their organs dragging outside, each one opening its mouth to shriek.

The sound was so sharp it could pierce eardrums, even staining the distant clouds a dark red.

As soon as the domain took shape, Han Feng felt his entire body sink.

It was as if he had been thrown into the deep sea, his limbs dragged by an invisible force.

Even lifting a finger required all his strength.

The Dou Qi within him was in complete chaos, the once-smooth flow of energy now feeling as if it were stuck in glue, grinding painfully against his meridians.

His cultivation as a Dou Emperor had been forcibly suppressed to the level of a three-star Dou King!

"What... what kind of cursed domain is this?!"

Han Feng screamed in terror, violently urging the Sea Heart Flame, which instantly transformed into a ten-zhang-long fire dragon.

The dragon's claws, trailing fiery afterimages, slammed fiercely against the barrier of the blood energy domain.

He refused to believe that his Heavenly Flame couldn't even burn through a single layer of a domain!

But the moment the fire dragon touched the blood energy, it was like striking an iron plate.

The blue flames fell away with a crackling sound, and the dragon's claws were instantly corroded by the blood energy, emitting bursts of white smoke.

Before Han Feng could react, dozens of Blood-colored Tentacles suddenly reached out from the blood energy.

They coiled around the fire dragon's body and gave a fierce tug, tearing the dragon into fragments.

It dissolved into specks of sparks, vanishing into the blood energy.

Only then did the youth move, his footsteps as light as if he were treading on clouds.

With every step he took, the blood energy automatically parted to create a path, not even causing a ripple.

He gripped his right hand in the air, and the blood energy instantly condensed into a spear a zhang long.

The tip of the spear glinted with a cold light, and tiny blood snakes coiled around its shaft.

Their tongues flickered, carrying a venomous chill.

"The Sea Heart Flame is not bad, but it is only in my hands that it can truly be put to use."

The youth's voice was as cold as ice, devoid of any emotion:

"Don't bother begging for mercy; I came here solely for your Heavenly Flame!"

"Your life is just something I'm taking along the way."

Han Feng shuddered; so the opponent wasn't here for Qingfeng Village at all.

He simply wanted his Sea Heart Flame!

This realization sent him into a complete panic, and he frantically fished a Grade Six medicinal pill from his Storage Ring!

He swallowed it!

This was his life-saving Explosive Flame Pill, capable of instantly erupting with triple his usual Dou Qi.

The moment the pill entered his mouth, the blue flames surged, and the waves of fire around Han Feng churned.

Although he still couldn't resist, he could at least mobilize his Heavenly Flame!

"BOOM!!!"

He clenched his hands, and the Sea Heart Flame condensed into a massive flame shield.

The shield was engraved with dense, intricate alchemical runes.

He had reinforced it using his methods as an alchemist!

Its defensive and offensive power was immense!

"You want to snatch my Heavenly Flame? It won't be that easy!"

Han Feng roared, thrusting the flame shield forward; the shield slammed toward the youth, carrying a monstrous heatwave!

The ground split open into a deep trench, and magma flowed down along the fissure.

The youth merely raised his left hand indifferently, a bewitching red lotus igniting at his fingertips.

The moment the Red Lotus Karma Fire appeared, the surrounding blood energy instantly began to boil.

Even the air was scorched until it distorted, the glow of the red lotus painting half the sky in crimson.

Han Feng's blue flames began to tremble violently, like a subject encountering its sovereign.

The red lotus drifted gently toward the flame shield; before it even made contact, the runes on the shield began to melt.

The blue flames recoiled frantically, as if they had encountered a natural predator.

"Impossible! How can a Heavenly Flame be suppressed?!"

Han Feng's eyes were wide enough to split, but the next second, the red lotus collided with the shield with a deafening "bang."

The flame shield shattered instantly, blue flames splashing in every direction.

Yet, before they could even hit the ground, they were ignited by the Red Lotus Karma Fire, transforming into red flames that turned back to consume Han Feng.

Han Feng dodged in a panic, but a massive blood-colored palm suddenly reached out from the blood energy.

The palm was dozens of zhang wide, its fingers entwined with blood snakes, and it gripped his body fiercely!

"Crack! Crack!" The sound of shattering bones echoed through the blood energy.

Han Feng spat out a mouthful of blood, his blue flames dimming instantly:

His Dou Qi was being scorched by the Red Lotus Karma Fire, and his meridians began to burn.

The Sea Heart Flame trembled violently within him, refusing to obey his commands at all.

The youth walked slowly toward him, pressing his left hand onto his shoulder as the Red Lotus Karma Fire at his fingertips spread along the shoulder.

Han Feng screamed in agony, his skin instantly scorched to a charred black.

The youth's right hand passed through the blood-colored palm and plunged straight into his chest.

Han Feng could feel the temperature of the Red Lotus Karma Fire at the other's fingertips.

The moment it touched his skin, it made his very soul tremble, his heart held firmly in a tight grip.

Every beat was accompanied by piercing, heart-wrenching pain.

"No! My Sea Heart Flame!"

Han Feng roared, trying to urge the Heavenly Flame to resist.

But the Sea Heart Flame seemed to have recognized a new master; it trembled violently within him, instead beginning to backfire against his meridians.

The youth's palm exerted a slight force, and Han Feng could feel his heart slowly deforming.

The aura of death enveloped him.

"Your Heavenly Flame, from this day forth, is mine."

The youth's voice rang in his ear, cold and devoid of any warmth.

The next second, Han Feng felt his heart being squeezed ruthlessly.

"Bang!"