Hun Miesheng's Countermeasures!

In the Soul Realm, atop a peak belonging to the Hun Clan.

Hun Miesheng, Hall Master of the Soul Hall, sat cross-legged upon a massive boulder, his eyes tightly shut and his hands formed into a peculiar seal before his chest!

Dense, white currents of energy swirled around him, flowing methodically into his body.

He was already at the mid-stage of a five-star Dou Sheng, yet he dared not rush to break through to the late-stage.

He had been consistently solidifying his foundation.

Having lived for so long.

He was, to some extent, afraid of death.

At this moment, his tightly shut eyes slowly opened.

"What is it?"

"Hall Master, our branch in the Dead Soul Mountain Range has been destroyed!! The several Dou Venerables, protectors, and even the souls collected over many years that had yet to be handed over—they are all gone!!"

The figure of an old man emerged behind Hun Miesheng.

His tone carried a deep, intense hatred.

He looked as if his own ancestral grave had been dug up.

Upon hearing this!

A terrifying aura swept out from Hun Miesheng's body.

An irrepressible killing intent surged upward!

It had been so many years.

This was the first time the Hun Clan had suffered such a loss!

To dare strike at a branch of the Soul Hall was to show no regard for the Soul Hall!

To show no regard for the Soul Hall was to show no regard for him, Hun Miesheng!

In the current Dou Qi Continent!

There were few people who could make him, Hun Miesheng, feel fear!

"Who is it!"

Hun Miesheng asked, his voice brimming with murderous intent.

The Dou Qi within his body surged wildly, giving the impression that he would rush off to exact revenge the moment he knew the culprit!

Indeed, that was exactly what he was thinking!

"The Ancient Clan! It was the people of the Ancient Clan!"

The Grand Heavenly Venerable said through gritted teeth.

Ever since the Xiao Clan was wiped out!

Friction between the Hun Clan and the Ancient Clan had been frequent.

But it had only ever been minor skirmishes!

Never had an expert above the Dou Ancestor level died!

Both sides had simply let it slide.

This seemed to have become an unspoken understanding between the two!

Who would have thought!

That the Ancient Clan would be the ones to break this tacit agreement first!

What were they trying to do?

Declare war on the Soul Hall?

If so!

Then he, Hun Miesheng, would accept!

However, the Dou Qi on his body slowly returned to calm.

The Ancient Clan still had a few tough nuts to crack!

He could not win in a one-on-one fight!

But he could not lose face in front of his subordinates!

Therefore.

Hun Miesheng clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, saying, "Good! Very good! It seems the Ancient Clan truly thinks that our Soul Hall, our Hun Clan, is easy to bully!!"

"Pass on my order! From this day forth, whenever you discover any lone Dou Venerables of the Ancient Clan—no! Anyone below a nine-star Dou Venerable, kill them without mercy! Furthermore, bring their souls back!"

Hun Miesheng said coldly.

At the same time, he hesitated over whether or not to report this matter to the Clan Leader!

On second thought, the Clan Leader was busy with ten thousand matters!

He only concerned himself with the big picture!

As for these trivial, petty matters, he could handle them himself!

Jia Nan Academy was a prestigious institution of higher learning founded by Mang Tianchi, an elder of the Lei Clan.

Even situated within the chaotic Black-Corner Region, it remained a beacon.

Many factions and clans across the Dou Qi Continent still vied to send their most outstanding descendants there to study and cultivate!

Every disciple who entered Jia Nan Academy was guaranteed to receive a tremendous boost to their strength!

And the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower was one of the fundamental reasons why Jia Nan Academy created such legends!

Sealed within the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower by Mang Tianchi was a Heavenly Flame ranked fourteenth on the Heavenly Flame Ranking.

The Fallen Heart Flame.

This Heavenly Flame was truly miraculous; it could help those of lower levels accelerate their cultivation speed.

It could be called a cheat code for cultivation!

To gain entry for cultivation, the disciples of Jia Nan Academy would risk their lives to earn Fire Energy!

Only then could they enter the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower for frantic cultivation!

On this day, the disciples of the Jia Nan Academy Inner Academy entered the tower to cultivate, just as they did every other day.

The elders of the Inner Academy were also patrolling the tower's safety according to their routine.

"These reckless little brats, they really don't care about their lives when it comes to increasing their strength!"

"Back in the day, weren't you and I the same?"

"That's true. In this world, without strength, one is worth less than dog shit! At least no one dares to step on dog shit so easily."

"Who can say otherwise? That is why, if one wants the ability to protect oneself in this world where the strong prey on the weak, one must cultivate without ceasing!"

Inside the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower, two elders chatted as they walked.

Suddenly!

Both men turned their heads simultaneously to look toward the very center of the tower!

To their horror, they discovered that wisps of formidable energy were continuously diffusing outward from within the energy barrier!

There were even... faint, low-pitched sounds of air explosions echoing out!

"Damn it! Don't tell me this beast is about to erupt again!"

One of the elders said with a hint of unease.

"It shouldn't..."

The other elder had not even finished his sentence.

Bang!

A surge of violent energy slammed heavily against the energy barrier!

Following closely, a faint, rhythmic sound like a heartbeat began to resonate.

Bang! Bang, bang!

Bang bang, bang bang bang...

The frequency of this sound was growing faster and faster!

The expressions of the two elders darkened!

"Not good, the beast is attacking the seal again!"

"Quick, evacuate the students!"

The two immediately split up to go to every cultivation room to evacuate the students.

Su Qian, an elder of the Inner Academy, sensed the anomaly and arrived at the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower with his men!

"Great Elder, what is going on? Didn't we just reinforce the seal at the beginning of the month?"

An elder at the Dou Emperor realm asked with a frown.

"I don't know. You all stay here and keep watch; I am going in to take a look!"

Su Qian knew that beneath this Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower lay a vast expanse of scorching magma!

What was sealed beneath the tower was the Heavenly Flame!

Over these years, this Heavenly Flame had constantly attempted to break through the seal!

Every time, they had managed to resolve the crisis using the seals left behind by the Dean.

This time, for some reason, the reaction was unexpectedly intense!

Su Qian's figure flickered as he darted into the energy barrier.

But just at that moment.

A fire python, its body nearly transparent and its full length impossible to discern, with a head a full ten feet wide and a body covered in formless flames.

It lunged upward violently from below!

"Skree!"

The fire python raised its massive head, emitting a piercing sonic wave, and opened its blood-red maw to snap at Su Qian!

Su Qian hurriedly retreated back into the tower.

"Reinforce the seal!"

Had he been even half a step slower just now, he would have ended up as fodder for that fire python!

Over a dozen elders struck simultaneously, their endless fire-attribute Dou Qi surging into the sealed energy barrier.

In the past, this would not have lasted long.

The fire python would have been suppressed!

But this time, the fire python acted as if it had been fed a stimulant, possessing an inexhaustible supply of strength!

It tilted its head back, once, twice...

It struck the seal again and again!

It was as if it would not rest until it had broken through the seal!

Finally!

Boom!

At the center of the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower, a surge of multicolored energy that could no longer be suppressed erupted from the opening!

It shattered the energy barrier with unstoppable force!

Boom!

Instantly, a pillar of blood-red magma, a full several dozen meters wide, erupted from the center of the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower, spewing outward in a torrential downpour!

In that very instant!

The energy throughout the entire Inner Academy suddenly surged into chaos!

Wherever the erupting magma fell, it transformed into a sea of fire in the blink of an eye!

Su Qian and the others all spat out a mouthful of blood as the seal failed.

They had all sustained varying degrees of injury.

Their auras were also significantly weakened.