The storm finally subsided, and Fan Tian was the first to emerge. He knelt on one knee, drenched in blood and gasping for breath. His body had endured countless impacts, his aura was noticeably unstable, and his secret technique had long since expired.
The two men from the Spirit Clan had not fared well either. One was grievously wounded, but the other still maintained the strength of a Six-Star Dou Zong. The staying power of a Dou Di bloodline was truly terrifying.
"Splendid. You make an excellent whetstone. We live as we please in the Central Plains. Those stronger than us don't dare attack us, and those weaker are easily dispatched. Finding a fight where we can really let loose is no easy thing." The long-haired young man limped out, blood coating the corners of his mouth. The short-haired young man had already lost consciousness under Fan Tian's final, all-out strike.
"I'll take your soul back to the clan, torment it day and night, and refine it into a spirit puppet to do my bidding!" the long-haired young man roared.
They had played every trump card they possessed in this battle. For a moment, he had even considered crushing his Spatial Jade Slip to summon a Dou Zun expert from the clan.
In the end, they had held on. Their opponent had fought two against one and suffered grievous injuries. His aura was feeble, his fighting strength spent, while the long-haired young man still possessed the strength of a Six-Star Dou Zong.
"Remember, the man who killed you was Ling Ruohai of the Spirit Clan."
The young man who called himself Ling Ruohai gathered his Dou Qi into his right hand, then leaped forward, aiming straight for Fan Tian's face.
This blow would utterly crush his opponent. Never before had victory after a life-and-death struggle felt so exhilarating.
Clang!
His massive fist abruptly stopped less than a centimeter from Fan Tian's face. Ling Ruohai's heart lurched, and terror filled his eyes. Fan Tian had seized his right wrist in an iron grip, preventing him from advancing even a fraction farther.
Then Fan Tian slowly raised his head.
His blood-red eyes looked almost feral. Dark-purple patterns kept appearing across his face and skin, while the black devouring markings on his body writhed like living creatures. At the same time, an aura rivaling that of a Nine-Star Dou Zong surged out of him, pinning Ling Ruohai firmly in place before him.
Every pore on Ling Ruohai's body trembled. His once-infallible Dou Di bloodline seemed to have encountered its natural predator and could no longer muster any power. The milky-white clan mark on his brow dimmed at a speed visible to the naked eye, a sight almost unheard of.
"What's going on? Who exactly are you?"
"Why is my bloodline trembling?"
Ling Ruohai shouted. The strength he had gained through his emperor mark instantly reverted to its original level. Before Fan Tian's terrifying, uncanny aura, his Dou Di bloodline not only failed to help him, but even slowed the speed at which he gathered Dou Qi.
"Spirit Devouring!" Fan Tian roared. Empowered by his vast Dou Qi, the eerie dark-purple devouring markings instantly breached Ling Ruohai's defenses, crawled onto his body, and seeped through his skin.
"Aah!"
The excruciating pain made Ling Ruohai clutch his head and howl uncontrollably. The moment the devouring markings entered his body, every blood vessel felt as though countless tiny needles had pierced it. Then the markings began voraciously drawing out his blood, continuously devouring the mysterious runes and Dou Di imprints hidden within it.
Along with his blood, they devoured his soul power and the immense Dou Qi he possessed as a Dou Zong.
As his blood was drained away, Ling Ruohai's pupils abruptly dilated. Broken, tuneless cries squeezed from his throat, and within moments, he had become a desiccated corpse.
The black devouring markings left Ling Ruohai's shriveled shell and crawled onto the unconscious short-haired young man in the blink of an eye.
The same scene played out again. The short-haired young man only had time to give one agonized scream before becoming a second desiccated corpse.
After devouring the two men, the dark-purple markings obediently returned to Fan Tian's body.
"Nngh!"
A tingling numbness swept through Fan Tian's entire body, as though a powerful expert were pouring strength into him. His Dou Qi soared, and even his normally unshakable soul power began to grow.
Only a few breaths had passed between his activation of Spirit Devouring and the two men becoming dried corpses, yet Fan Tian had completely reversed the situation.
"Spirit Devouring is actually this powerful! No wonder the Ancient Races turn pale at its mere mention."
Fan Tian vaguely sensed that his Spirit Devouring ability was even stronger than the nihility devouring flame's in the original novel. The nihility devouring flame had merely consumed the essence of the Tunling Clan's last leader, gaining the ability to extract Dou Di bloodlines. The Tunling Clan essence granted directly by the system, however, possessed abilities that went far beyond that.
Presumably, one was the genuine article, while the other was a knockoff.
They were different, after all.
Even Ling Ruohai's and his companion's memories had appeared in Fan Tian's mind. Their cultivation methods and combat skills, along with their insights into cultivation, had become part of him together with their Dou Di bloodlines.
Bang!
I can't hold it back anymore. I'll break through first.
Fan Tian sat cross-legged and circulated his Dou Qi to attack the bottleneck. Less than a month had passed since he reached the late Five-Star Dou Zong stage, yet with that immense Dou Qi behind him, he easily crossed the barrier and officially entered the Six-Star Dou Zong realm.
His aura did not stop rising after the breakthrough, however. His powerful Dou Qi continued surging forward, only stopping once he reached Late Six-Star Dou Zong.
The enemy stockpiles grain, while I stockpile guns. The enemy is my granary.
Fan Tian's blood-red eyes gradually returned to normal. Without his noticing, most of the injuries to his body had already healed.
"These Ancient Races think so highly of themselves and monopolize the continent's finest cultivation resources. I bet they never imagined a day like this would come!"
After devouring the two men, Fan Tian felt neither guilt nor any sense of wickedness. Without this ability, he would probably have been the one to die here today.
Had they captured him, given the way these people behaved, his fate would hardly have been any better.
Fan Tian collected their Storage Rings and began rummaging through the spoils.
Cultivation methods, Dou Techniques, pills, and a heap of unfamiliar objects-Fan Tian picked out five Spatial Jade Slips, activated Spirit Devouring again, and devoured them completely.
These things were no joking matter. If he mishandled them, the consequences would be unthinkable.
In fact, he could devour the space in this area to render the Spatial Jade Slips useless. This ability was even stronger than the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan's power to suppress space. With Fan Tian's current strength, however, he could not maintain it for long, and an opponent powerful enough could break free from within.
Fan Tian brought himself back into fighting condition. He was in no hurry to leave. He was waiting for someone.
Half a day later.
An azure figure suddenly appeared overhead.
Holding a feather fan, Ling Feng surveyed the area with a grave expression.
"Strange. Didn't I tell those two to wait until I arrived before making their move?"
The clan mark between Ling Feng's brows flickered. Milky-white light shone from it, then spread outward in every direction.
This was an ability unique to the Spirit Clan.
"Found them." In a few bounds, Ling Feng arrived beneath a large tree.
Two desiccated corpses lay side by side beneath it, their deaths gruesome. Ling Feng covered his nose with his hand, his expression growing somewhat graver. He could not understand it. Both men were descendants of Dou Sheng elders in the clan and certainly had no shortage of Spatial Jade Slips. How had they met such an end?
"Useless trash! You've disgraced the Spirit Clan!"
Ling Feng cursed. Everything had always gone his way in the Spirit Clan. Not only did he possess eighth-tier bloodline talent, but his father was also the Spirit Clan Leader, a Six-Star Dou Sheng.
When had he ever been made to suffer a setback?
"Stop cursing. You'll be joining them soon enough."
A grating voice sounded beside his ear. Then Fan Tian emerged from the void, staring coldly down at Ling Feng.
Ling Feng turned to stare at Fan Tian, his lip curling. Unhurriedly, he took a jade slip from his Storage Ring and crushed it hard.
The jade slip instantly shattered, and an exceptionally powerful spatial fluctuation began spreading outward.
"Brat, you've got guts, daring to wait here for me. Today, I'll show you what it means for A Mayfly Beholds the Azure Sky!"
Before you continue