Saints Above, All Else Are Ants!

Within Maple City,

inside the main hall of the Burning Heaven Pavilion.

Han Feng sat before the pill platform, refining a high-grade medicinal pill as pill flames flickered leisurely at his fingertips.

Suddenly,

the aura of heaven and earth instantly froze!

Buzz—

A Half-Step Dou Saint's pressure, as heavy as mountains and transcending heaven and earth, came crashing down like a mountain.

The pill flame at Han Feng's fingertips was instantly snuffed out.

The Dou Qi throughout his body froze solid, his meridians screamed with pain, and his soul felt as though an invisible hand had clenched it tightly.

He abruptly raised his head

and saw that sinister figure standing above Maple City.

After sensing the terrifyingly vast Dou Qi, like an endless sea, Han Feng's body could not stop trembling...

"Half-Saint... Half-Step Dou Saint?!"

As Yao Chen's former disciple,

he had once witnessed the strongest experts on the continent.

Han Feng understood better than anyone what this aura represented.

At the same time,

the Sea Heart Flame within Han Feng's body trembled frantically, as though it had sensed some immense terror.

It wanted to leave his body and bow in worship toward the heavens!

"How could this be..."

Sensing the changes in the Heavenly Flame within him, Han Feng froze where he stood. Cold sweat soaked through his robes, while monstrous waves surged in his heart.

A Half-Step Dou Saint,

and one who controlled a Heavenly Flame and was proficient in fire attributes, had come to Maple City. Who was he, and what did he want?!

At the same time Maple City underwent its enormous change,

the entire Black-Corner Region,

the foremost experts in every city and sect all sensed, at the same instant, that horrifying pressure above Maple City, as though a mountain had collapsed upon them.

Qing Luo's appearance this time did not grant Maple City exclusive treatment. His pressure blanketed the entire Black-Corner Region.

Black Mark City, Blood Sect.

Dou Emperor experts such as Fan Lao and Yuan Yi, the instant they sensed that pressure,

all had their knees uncontrollably slam into the ground.

Their heads pressed tightly against the stone tiles, and even breathing became immensely difficult.

Aside from those Dou Emperor experts,

even the Black Emperor Sect's leader, Mo Tian Xing, and the Demon Flame Valley's ancestor, Earth Demon Old Ghost—these two greatest pillars of the Black-Corner Region, both Dou Zong experts—

suffered damage to their bloodlines, spat out blood, and stared in terror at the sinister figure above Maple City.

Almost at the same time,

all hidden factions and top-tier combatants throughout the Black-Corner Region

were locked down by this Half-Saint's pressure!

This was

the gap between realms on the Dou Qi Continent.

In this world where strength reigned supreme, even differences within the same realm were worlds apart, while differences across realms were as distant as stars and mud.

Dou Emperors merely wielded energy sharing the same origin as heaven and earth.

Dou Zongs had only touched the threshold of space.

But Dou Saints...

Even someone like Qing Luo, who had only stepped halfway into the Dou Saint realm,

could contain the laws of heaven and earth, his very level of life elevated!

Not to mention that the Black-Corner Region had only Dou Emperors and Dou Zongs.

Even Dou Zuns,

facing Qing Luo, would be like fish on a chopping block, utterly incapable of resisting.

Saints above, all else were ants!

It could be said

that the moment Qing Luo made his move,

the outcome of this battle had already been decided.

Under the pressure of a Half-Saint, everyone in the Black-Corner Region lost even the right to mobilize their strength.

Gulp—

Han Feng drew a deep breath, walked out of the pavilion, and looked up at the sinister figure in the sky. His throat dry, he said,

"Senior... this junior is Han Feng. I do not know how I have offended you, yet you have troubled yourself to come to Maple City..."

Qing Luo smiled disdainfully, his voice carrying a faint saintly pressure.

"Offense? There is none. I came today for two matters!"

"Two matters..."

Upon hearing Qing Luo's words,

Han Feng's heart sank, and a bad premonition rose within him.

He could think of only one matter:

the Sea Heart Flame on his person. If there were two matters, could the other involve his master...?

At that thought,

Han Feng's face instantly turned pale.

"First, I want your Sea Heart Flame. Second, I need your head to repay a favor in exchange for a Cultivation Method!"

A Cultivation Method...

Upon hearing those two words,

the last hope hanging in Han Feng's heart finally died.

When he had left Falling Star Pavilion, he had known this day might come. He had made many preparations in secret for it.

The only thing Han Feng had not expected was...

that the one who came would be a Half-Saint?!

A Half-Saint!

Feng Xian, Falling Star Pavilion's vice pavilion master, was only a four-star Dou Zun.

Yet the one pursuing him was a Half-Saint?!

"Senior... this is a misunderstanding. I can give you the Heavenly Flame at any time, and that Cultivation Method—I have Cultivation Methods as well. As long as you do not kill me, I am willing to offer both the Heavenly Flame and Cultivation Methods to you!

Senior, this junior is already a Sixth-Grade Alchemist and is not far from becoming a Seventh-Grade Alchemist. As long as you spare me, I am willing to serve you like an ox or horse!"

His knees went weak, and he dropped heavily onto the bluestone ground before the Burning Heaven Pavilion's hall.

His head hung low, his back bowed.

His posture was humble to the extreme, and his voice trembled uncontrollably.

"You are unwilling?"

Qing Luo's voice rose slightly.

He eased the pressure suppressing the Black-Corner Region somewhat.

As the pressure lessened,

those Dou Emperor and Dou Zong experts felt that they could move their bodies again and regain a measure of control over their strength.

Immediately after,

a cold, sinister voice rang out from within the Black-Corner Region.

"Han Feng, you have some nerve! It is your fortune that the saintly senior wants your life! A mere traitor who betrayed his master's sect dares haggle before a Half-Saint?"

The speaker was Fan Lao of the Blood Sect.

At this moment, he had already understood why this saintly senior had descended upon the Black-Corner Region.

He wanted to use this

to earn the other party's approval and gain a chance to live.

As Fan Lao's voice fell,

from deep within the Sky Yin Sect came Yin Bone Old's hoarse, sinister laughter, echoing through heaven and earth.

"A Sixth-Grade Alchemist? In a saint's eyes, you are no different from grass! If Senior wants you dead, then obediently accept death. That is your only remaining value!"

At the same time,

two peak Dou Emperor auras shook simultaneously.

The Gold and Silver Elders shouted coldly in unison.

Their voices overlapped.

"Serve like an ox or horse? Are you worthy? It is already an immense mercy that Senior has allowed you to offer them up yourself. Do not cling to life and beg for more!"

Listening to the familiar yet cold voices

coming from every corner of the Black-Corner Region,

Han Feng's features twisted once again, and his body trembled uncontrollably.

Those people

had once treated him with great reverence in the Black-Corner Region. Now that he was trapped in despair before a Half-Saint, those hypocritical experts revealed their most disgusting faces one after another.

There had to be another way...

"Senior, I have many high-grade medicinal pills. I will give them all to you... Whatever you want, I will give it to you. I also have..."

Han Feng had barely begun to beg for mercy

when, before his words had fallen,

a powerful surge of Dou Qi tore through the air.

A figure in yellow robes flashed through the distant sky. It was Mo Tian Xing of the Black Emperor Sect.

He was desperate to curry favor with Qing Luo in the heavens.

Unwilling to give Han Feng even half a chance to explain himself, he gathered the full power of a four-star Dou Zong into his fist and smashed it into Han Feng's chest.

Bang—

Han Feng let out a miserable scream.

Like a kite with its string cut, he was hurled from before the Burning Heaven Pavilion's hall and crashed heavily onto the bluestone ground.

His breastbone shattered inch by inch.

Blood gushed wildly from his mouth, and the words of desperate pleading were forcibly choked in his throat.

Mo Tian Xing landed beside Han Feng in an instant.

He raised his foot and stepped on Han Feng's back.

Before Han Feng could struggle, a palm strike shattered his head cleanly.

With a raised hand, he drew it in.

The dark-blue Sea Heart Flame floated from Han Feng's corpse and landed in his palm.

He then snatched the storage ring from Han Feng's waist.

Holding the flame and storage ring in both hands, he bowed and raised his head toward the white-robed figure in the sky, his attitude exceedingly reverent.

"Senior, this junior has executed Han Feng on the spot and offers up the Heavenly Flame, Sea Heart Flame, along with all his possessions and Cultivation Methods!"