Next Life, Remember: Never Enter a Formation

The moment Xie Hua and the Dou Wang activated their Dou Qi, their shock turned to terror. At that instant, the Dou Qi within their bodies completely slipped out of control, pouring out through their bodies and draining downward.

Just then, Gu He abruptly halted in midair and spun around. With a thought, the puppet shot forth like an arrow loosed from a bow, its spirit weapon sword turning into a streak of cold light as it cleaved straight at Xie Hua. As the puppet launched its sneak attack, light flashed in Gu He's hand, and the Flamefire Sword Huo Yuhao had given him appeared in his grasp. He thrust his sword at the two men.

"Die! Thousand-Flame Sword Aura!"

At the same time, a strand of spiritual power fused with bone-piercing cold silently pierced toward their souls.

Facing the attack, the Chu Yun Empire's Dou Wang hurriedly gathered what little Dou Qi he had left for defense. Yet what none of them expected was that the instant Gu He attacked, a sharp glint flashed in Xie Hua's eyes. He rapidly unleashed his Dou Qi, disregarding the intensified loss it caused. With a flap of his Dou Qi wings, he forcibly broke free from the suction and rushed beyond the formation's range. At the same time, he tossed an inconspicuous little stone at the sword edge pursuing him from the puppet.

As the puppet split the stone apart, a strange energy erupted. Though it was not especially powerful, it successfully delayed the puppet for a moment, preventing it from catching up to Xie Hua.

The Chu Yun Empire's Dou Wang had already been somewhat weaker than Gu He. With his Dou Qi draining away, his hasty defense, and Huo Yuhao's sneak attack, his vision immediately swam. His body shuddered uncontrollably, and the Dou Technique he had cast in haste crumbled at the first impact against Gu He's Thousand-Flame Sword Aura.

Pfft! Several flaming sword shadows pierced through the Dou Wang's body. He let out a brief, despairing scream, unable to sustain his Dou Qi wings any longer. His body fell, snapping countless branches on the way down.

Seeing the Chu Yun Empire's Dou Wang lose his ability to fight, Huo Yuhao and Gu He did not relax. They kept watch on Xie Hua, the Dou Emperor who had escaped the formation, ready to face his counterattack. Yet in an instant, their solemn expressions turned to astonishment. The old man had not hesitated at all after leaving the formation. He immediately fled toward the northwest of the Magic Beast Mountain Range, in the direction of the Chu Yun Empire.

On the cliff, the two Dou Lings who had long been stunned by the sudden turn of the battle finally came to their senses. Just as they turned to flee, the puppet that had failed to catch Xie Hua blocked their path. One sword strike each, and their lives were taken in an instant.

"Ha ha ha!" Gu He laughed loudly as he landed beside the Chu Yun Empire's Dou Wang with Huo Yuhao, finally venting the frustration that had been bottled up inside him.

"You wanted me to surrender without a fight? You wanted me to hand over everything I had gained? You even wanted me to go to the Chu Yun Empire and become your Pill King? Weren't you all so impressive? Why is one of you lying there now, while another ran off with his tail tucked between his legs?"

"Brother Gu He, stop yapping already. Don't you know villains die from talking too much? Finish him off! Finish him off!" Xiao Yan's voice came through Mental Sharing. It turned out Huo Yuhao had linked up with Gu He through Mental Sharing from the very beginning.

Looking at the Chu Yun Empire's Dou Wang, who could no longer speak, Gu He found it rather dull and casually ended him with a slash. Then, at Xiao Yan's forceful insistence, he added several more strikes and used Soul Power to crush the soul that was about to dissipate. Once he was certain there was no possibility of the man coming back to life, he removed the Storage Ring from his hand.

Seeing Huo Yuhao standing silently to the side, Gu He seemed hesitant to speak. Countless questions filled his heart.

After the Chu Yun Empire's Dou Wang was completely dead, Huo Yuhao severed the Mental Sharing connection and connected with Yao Chen instead.

"Teacher, to be safe, please deal with the Dou Emperor who escaped."

"Killing a Dou Emperor who is determined to flee is no easy task! You're making things difficult for your teacher!" Yao Chen seemed unwilling to take on such troublesome work.

"So Teacher can't beat a Dou Emperor?" Huo Yuhao was clearly provoking him.

"Your teacher is old. What if these old arms and legs get injured? I'm not going. No."

"Teacher, after the formation drained him, even if only temporarily, his strength has dropped by at least two stars. My spiritual imprint is also on him. If you chase him now, he won't be able to escape." Seeing that provocation did not work, Huo Yuhao began reasoning with him instead.

"Although you didn't make a move, once he returns and informs the Dou Zong of his sect, they may trace things back through Senior Gu He. Your identity could be exposed as well."

"That's quite a stretch." Hearing the resolute killing intent in Huo Yuhao's voice, Yao Chen did not know whether to laugh or cry. "You're afraid that boy Gu He will get into trouble, aren't you? Fine, fine. I'll go."

After saying that, Yao Chen sensed the fluctuations of Huo Yuhao's spiritual imprint and flew off in pursuit of Xie Hua.

Though he had countless questions, when Gu He saw Huo Yuhao's group of three, the first words that came out of his mouth were still, "Why have you three entered the core region again? Don't tell me it's still only the three of you this time!"

"It's still just the three of us, Brother Gu He." Xiao Yan answered with a smile. He then glanced at the pink flames on the corpse and said, "Looks like Brother Gu He didn't get what he wanted!"

Gu He had been about to scold them for their dangerous behavior, but when he saw Huo Yuhao's calm expression and remembered that they had saved his life, he ultimately could not bring himself to say it.

"Forget that, Brother Gu He. Hurry and see what loot we got!" Xiao Yan's voice was filled with curiosity.

"Sigh." Gu He sighed, erased the soul imprint on the Storage Ring, swept it with his Soul Power, and handed it to Huo Yuhao.

"I can't use any of it anyway. It's yours." At that moment, the puppet returned carrying the Storage Rings of the two Dou Lings. Gu He erased their soul imprints one by one and gave them to Huo Yuhao as well.

Huo Yuhao hesitated slightly, but he did not refuse out of politeness. He directly accepted the three Storage Rings. Then he asked Gu He, "Senior Gu He, what was that thing the Dou Emperor threw out to stop the puppet earlier?"

Gu He was taken aback. He had been focused solely on the battle at the time and had not thought much of it. Only when Huo Yuhao mentioned it did he realize that the stone had clearly contained no Dou Qi fluctuations, yet it had been able to delay an attack from a Dou Emperor-level puppet.

Gu He immediately picked up the split stone and examined it carefully for a moment. Then realization dawned on him, and he explained to the three, "This is a high-grade Absorption Stone."

"An Absorption Stone can block a Dou Emperor's attack?" Xiao Yi Xian asked.

"Of course an Absorption Stone can't." Gu He explained, "This high-grade Absorption Stone contains a Spirit Core. A Spirit Core is an extremely rare treasure of heaven and earth, and only high-grade Absorption Stones have a chance of containing one."

The gray stone passed from hand to hand among them.

Gu He continued, "A Spirit Core contains its own space, filled with powerful spatial force. Once it is destroyed, that spatial force erupts and can indeed hinder attacks at the Dou Emperor level. I never expected that old man to have such a method."

Gu He sighed in admiration, then smiled bitterly. "A Spirit Core is essential for an alchemist to subdue Heavenly Flames. A piece like this is worth more than ten million. He really was willing to part with it."

"Is it still useful now?" Xiao Yan asked.

"No. Once it has been split apart like this, neither the outer Absorption Stone nor the Spirit Core inside can be used anymore."

"It's useless now..." Xiao Yan nodded thoughtfully, glanced at Huo Yuhao, and said to Gu He, "How about giving it to us as a memento?"

Not caring about such a trivial matter, Gu He tossed the Absorption Stone, now split into two pieces, to Xiao Yan. Then he said, "Let's leave first. Yuhao just simulated the aura of the Amethyst Winged Lion King. It may very well draw it here."

Xiao Yan caught the broken stone and curiously pressed the fractured surfaces together. They fit perfectly. After playing with it for a short while, he casually handed it to Huo Yuhao.

Huo Yuhao took it and put it away. He then spread out his flying spirit weapon and carried Xiao Yi Xian. Gu He grabbed Xiao Yan by the collar, and together they flew out of the core region of the Magic Beast Mountain Range.