Soul Hall Protector

"How is that possible?" The Ice Wolf Ant Emperor's compound eyes suddenly contracted, and his legs weakened involuntarily. How could he have imagined that Venerable Yao Han Feng, revered by countless people, was such a person in private?!

"Why is it impossible?" Zhou Ziyang shook the pill in his hand, an evil smile curling across his lips. "Charity auctions, fabricated pretexts—this way, he can win over all the factions and clans and obtain donated medicinal ingredients from the Pill Tower. Once the pills are refined, he has the merchant guild auction them off, then has us steal them back and return them to him. The pills are returned in full, while the auction proceeds are split thirty-seventy. We who do the dirty work get thirty percent, while Venerable Yao gets seventy percent. Not only does he acquire a massive amount of medicinal ingredients from the Pill Tower without spending a thing, he also gets enormous amounts of gold and fame."

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Such scheming, such a sinister plot. I was shocked when I first learned of it too." Zhou Ziyang sincerely admired just how sinister Venerable Yao Han Feng was. Even a vicious and cunning fellow like him, who routinely exploited commoners and bullied low-level magical beasts, felt inferior before Han Feng.

However, Zhou Ziyang had no contempt for Han Feng whatsoever. Instead, he admired him wholeheartedly and regarded him as an idol. Even thirty percent of the gold was an immense fortune, and whether he even got that thirty percent depended on Venerable Yao's mood. He still had to kneel and beg for it.

"Heh heh heh, why waste words with him?" A familiar laugh echoed from all directions. The next moment, a black chain tore through the air and shot straight at the Ice Wolf Ant Emperor.

"Ice Emperor Heavenly Dipper!" Facing the incoming chain, the Ice Wolf Ant Emperor unleashed his ice Dou Qi. An ice ring that instantly froze everything in all directions swept outward, turning every rock and tree into ice sculptures as countless icicles flew forth.

"Heh heh heh, a petty trick."

With a puff, the strange chain pierced directly through the ice ring, ignoring its freezing power and stabbing through the Ice Wolf Ant Emperor's body.

The next moment, a figure wrapped in a black robe strode through the air. There was no need for an introduction. That familiar laugh and that black-robed appearance left no doubt—the newcomer was from the Soul Hall!

Zhou Ziyang's expression changed slightly when he saw the newcomer. His snake tail tensed, his scales drew tight, and his pupils fixed on the black-robed figure. Though he was at the peak of the Dou Emperor realm, the other party was stronger—a Soul Hall Protector. Even the weakest Human-tier Protector possessed Dou Zong cultivation.

"Heh heh heh, I'll be taking your soul and essence blood." Protector Lin gave a sinister smile and casually flicked the chain in his hand. He actually ripped out the Ice Wolf Ant Emperor's soul, along with the magical beast bloodline within his body!

"Aah!!" Accompanied by a miserable scream, the Ice Wolf Ant Emperor's once-brawny body rapidly shriveled. Its flesh turned grayish white, and even the secret technique maintaining its reduced size was undone. Yet the instant the secret technique was released, its enormous body turned to ash and was completely annihilated.

"Tch, these magical beast souls are so weak. They can't even compare to the soul of a fifth-tier alchemist. They're not worth many soul points." Protector Lin clicked his tongue as he looked at the glowing orb containing the soul, deeply dissatisfied with the soul of a sixth-tier magical beast at the peak of the Dou Emperor realm.

After all, he had painstakingly left the Soul Hall to hunt souls for the sake of the Soul Hall's rewards. Who would work if there were no rewards?

With a sweep of his sleeve, Protector Lin collected the soul orb and the bloodline blood mass, leaving only the pill bottle containing the Yin-Yang Mysterious Dragon Pill floating in the air. No matter how much he wanted it, he did not dare take it. Venerable Yao held no ordinary position in the Soul Hall. Or rather, an eighth-tier alchemist held an extraordinary position anywhere.

Watching the Ice Wolf Ant Emperor, who was at the peak of the Dou Emperor realm, get wiped out without any ability to resist, Zhou Ziyang broke out in a cold sweat. He had heard that Venerable Yao would send someone to assist him in case of unforeseen circumstances, but he had never expected it to be a Soul Hall Protector!

How was Venerable Yao connected to the Soul Hall too?!

Zhou Ziyang put on an incomparably respectful expression and took out all the pills. "Lord Protector, I am Zhou Ziyang, Crown Prince of the Six-eared Spirit Python Empire and also Venerable Yao's partner. These are all the remaining pills."

Zhou Ziyang held up the pill bottles with his snake tail and humbly presented them before the Soul Hall Protector like a eunuch.

Protector Lin put away all the pill bottles, then slowly raised his head to look at the fawning Zhou Ziyang. A malicious glint flashed beneath his hood. "It seems you still have something you haven't handed over to Venerable Yao."

"Something else?" Panic immediately appeared on Zhou Ziyang's snake face, and his gaze flickered.

Rumble!! A terrifying soul force erupted from Protector Lin's body as countless chains shot from the void in every direction toward Zhou Ziyang.

"Spirit Snake Emerges from the Cave!" Zhou Ziyang was greatly alarmed and roared. Countless small energy snakes flew out and slashed toward the chains, but the moment they touched those strange soul chains, their energy was drained away.

"What kind of Dou Technique is this?!" Zhou Ziyang's scalp went numb at the sight. He used a movement Dou Technique and continuously dodged and shifted, but those chains still pierced his scales, sending blood splattering. Zhou Ziyang screamed, "Protector Lin, is there some misunderstanding? I've already returned all the pills. I'm Venerable Yao's ally!"

"Heh heh heh, reclaiming the pills is merely incidental to my visit. You are what Venerable Yao wants." Protector Lin smiled, his gaze fixed firmly on Zhou Ziyang, leaving him no chance to escape.

Hearing Protector Lin's words, Zhou Ziyang finally understood. He himself was the dish on the table. Venerable Yao had probably already found out.

"Hand over the Heavenly Flame, and perhaps I can spare your life."

Not far from where the two were fighting, Zhu Jin and Old Turtle stood atop a mountain sealed off by spatial power, watching the battle in the distance.

"Master, just as you said, they really started fighting." Old Turtle was rather astonished. He could not understand how they had suddenly turned on each other!

Zhu Jin narrowed his eyes slightly. "I had Xie Dong and the others investigate. After the Black-Yellow Flame was taken, Zhou Ziyang announced that he was entering seclusion to recover from his injuries. The Black-Yellow Flame is not an especially powerful Heavenly Flame. Peak Dou Emperor cultivation is enough to seize it, but the serpent race's bloodline is inherently cold and yin in nature, making them especially afraid of Heavenly Flames. Therefore, he would inevitably suffer backlash from the flame when taking it. So there is a high probability that he took the Black-Yellow Flame."

"Furthermore, he paid a high price to purchase my cauldron capable of sealing flames. His purpose was likely to complete an ancient secret technique."

"An ancient secret technique?" Old Turtle tilted his turtle head in confusion.

"The serpent race possesses an ancient secret technique that allows them to use a Heavenly Flame to complete a transformation and return their bloodline to its ancestral origin. But this technique has only a slim chance of survival. He wanted to use the Black-Yellow Cauldron's ability to suppress flames to help himself complete the technique more smoothly. And if possible, he likely also intended to swallow Venerable Yao's Yin-Yang Mysterious Dragon Pill. With a pill to preserve his life, rebuilding himself after destruction, and the power of a Heavenly Flame, his chances of completing the technique would be very high." Zhu Jin explained calmly, then shook his head. "Unfortunately, he does not understand Han Feng."