The gods are three feet above your head

Clang!

Lan Kaishan swung his pair of flesh-and-blood palms, clashing with Yan Shengheng. His strength was formidable; even facing this menacing demon, he remained composed and measured in both attack and defense.

Frost-white, icy cold spread across his palms. Surging inner force rolled forth, actually suppressing the pitch-black claw imprints Yan Shengheng had sent at him.

What Lan Kaishan cultivated was the Six Doors' prison-suppressing martial art, the Extreme Cold Prison Suppression Art. His inner force was profoundly yin and frigid,

capable of freezing and corroding an opponent's meridians and blood qi, while also condensing ice into armor to protect the body. It united offense and defense, a supreme art for suppressing vicious evils.

"You're quite good. Kneel and submit now, and I may consider leaving you an intact corpse," Yan Shengheng suddenly said coldly.

Lan Kaishan's expression was stern. Without uttering a word, his palm technique grew increasingly fierce, transforming into gusts of freezing force that swept forth, determined to kill this great enemy.

"What a pity!"

Yan Shengheng sighed softly. His chilling inner force suddenly gathered, and an illusory lotus faintly emerged three feet above his head.

In an instant, pitch-black radiance surged from around his body. Then,

wisps of ink-black mist seeped out from the lotus above his head, forming a shadow over ten feet tall that stood behind him.

"Innate Realm!"

Lan Kaishan was horrified. Yan Shengheng, whom he had been fighting, was an Innate Warrior—and no ordinary one, but an Innate Warrior who had condensed a Qi Flower.

As the saying went... there were gods three feet above one's head!

When the Three Flowers appeared above an Innate Warrior's head, it meant their essence, qi, and spirit had grown strong enough to reflect their own deity, which could manifest between heaven and earth. Its might was far beyond what Houtian martial artists could resist.

"Netherworld Cold Shadow Claw!!"

Yan Shengheng grinned savagely and stepped forward. Chilling inner force gathered over his claw imprint, swelling wildly with the wind before crashing toward Lan Kaishan.

Crack!

With that step, countless savage ravines split across the entire hall, the cracks spreading all the way to the long street outside.

Rolling black inner force surged in. Horror appeared on Lan Kaishan's face; he felt like a lone skiff upon a raging sea.

On the verge of capsizing!!

Just then, an aged figure appeared behind Yan Shengheng like a ghost. In an instant, an aura ten times more terrifying than Yan Shengheng's spread forth.

It was Eunuch Huang. At this moment, he looked even more like a great demon than Yan Shengheng did.

Eunuch Huang's aged eyes were cold and merciless. His withered palm descended, directly piercing through Yan Shengheng's formidable inner-force defense and landing upon his flesh.

Yan Shengheng's face instantly filled with terror. He only had time to circulate his inner force with all his strength and twist his body aside.

Rip!

Blood splattered, staining his armor red. One of Yan Shengheng's shoulders,

along with its flesh, tendons, and bones, was forcibly torn off by Eunuch Huang. White bone jutted from the wound as blood streamed down.

"Old eunuch slave, you're courting death!"

Yan Shengheng roared. Surging inner force flooded through his entire body, gathering upon the demonic shadow behind him like a whale swallowing the sea.

The demonic shadow, over ten feet tall, smashed down a fist.

The air exploded with a boom. A shriek like that of a waterfowl rang through midair as the shockwave was madly compressed, its ripples directly shattering the entire hall.

Beams, pillars, carved windows, and the painted dome all turned to dust.

Eunuch Huang's gaze sharpened. He spun and retreated, using a single palm to meet the demonic shadow's heavy fist head-on, then borrowed the tremendous force of the collision to fly rapidly backward.

However, his brows suddenly furrowed.

For Yan Shengheng had actually used the recoil of the impact to flee backward even faster.

Eunuch Huang hurriedly halted himself,

but at that moment, Yan Shengheng suddenly bellowed, "You dare ruin Lovesickness Tower's great undertaking! Old eunuch, my lord will never let you go!"

Eunuch Huang's expression abruptly darkened and shifted.

At that moment, the once magnificent hall collapsed with a thunderous rumble,

Lan Kaishan climbed up from the ground. His entire body was covered in ice armor, allowing him to block Yan Shengheng's claw.

He looked toward the hall, then dropped to one knee and pressed a palm against the ruined ground. Terrifying cold qi spread madly in every direction,

and in the blink of an eye, froze the tottering remains of the hall into an ice sculpture.

Under the sunlight, it was dazzling beyond measure!

Lan Kaishan rose to his feet and looked ahead. A ghastly pit several yards deep lay there, still retaining traces of chilling qi.

"Innate Realm..." he muttered, his heart filled with unwillingness.

Zhu Xiu and those senior eunuchs had suffered grave injuries. The other soldiers and the candidate princes had also been badly hurt.

The remaining people descended into chaos.

Eunuch Huang's expression remained dark and uncertain. His gaze swept over the injured scattered everywhere, and he suppressed the urge to pursue the enemy.

In their present state, if anyone else launched a sneak attack and he was not here, they would likely be wiped out at once.

After weighing the matter, he could only remain where he was and first arrange treatment for everyone.

However, amid the chaos, no one noticed that Su Qingyang had vanished at some point.

In a remote alley of Great Harmony City, the road was damp and cold.

Yan Shengheng sped onward, using his remaining inner force to seal the wound on his shoulder and stop the bleeding, all while vigilantly watching behind him.

Seeing that Eunuch Huang had not followed, Yan Shengheng visibly relaxed and could not help cursing under his breath:

"Damn old dog. Back then, Master spared your life out of mercy, yet today you've ruined my great undertaking!"

Then he stopped, found an empty and abandoned courtyard, and vaulted inside. He planned to hide for the time being and tend to his wounds, then make further plans once night fell.

The instant his feet touched the ground,

a warm, large hand settled upon his shoulder.

Yan Shengheng immediately froze. An uncontrollable terror surged through his heart, because the aura beside him was terrifying beyond measure...

like a monstrous beast that could swallow the heavens!!

He stiffly and slowly turned his head to look back.

Boom!

Yan Shengheng's pupils contracted violently. It was as though thunder had exploded beside his ears, and an expression of utter disbelief appeared on his face!!

"It's you!!"

"How... how is that possible!!"

Yan Shengheng even reflexively blinked his eyes, but the figure before him remained exactly the same.

At that moment, Su Qingyang stood at his side. His dark eyes looked down at him indifferently, like a master examining a toy in his hand.

"Who exactly are you?"

"You are definitely not the Sixth Prince!"

Su Qingyang raised a hand and dusted off the dirt on his chest, saying blandly:

"Who sent you?"

Yan Shengheng's gaze flickered. Yet in the next instant, he suddenly threw a punch and let out a shrill howl:

"My Lovesickness Tower's master possesses vast divine powers. If you kill me today, he will definitely not let you go."

"Ah!"

A faintly regretful sigh sounded leisurely beside Yan Shengheng's ear.

Su Qingyang shook his head slightly. "Wrong."

Then, ignoring Yan Shengheng's incoming fist, he casually flung him into the courtyard.

Su Qingyang slowly stepped forward, lowered his eyes to look at him, and said calmly, "My time is limited. I'll give you only one chance to make a move. Don't disappoint me."

Yan Shengheng braced himself against the ground and barely rose. Blood continued to seep from the torn wound on his shoulder. His eyes were vicious as blades as he stared fixedly at the unfathomable young man before him.

"Hahahaha!"

"Fine! Then I'll... come at you!"

Boom!!!

The entire small courtyard abruptly exploded,

and terrifying inner force erupted like a volcano. Yan Shengheng wore a frenzied, bloody grin as his chilling inner force surged forth mightily, making even the air tremble and wail.