The courtyard wall of the Qingzhu Pavilion has collapsed more than halfway, with rubble and broken bamboo branches scattered all over the ground.
The air was filled with the smells of blood and burning, along with a lingering stench of decay.
That was the lingering aura of vengeful spirits left after the Blood Soul Great Hand Seal exploded.
The two remaining Dou Wang exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of retreat in each other's eyes.
They released the hand seals that maintained the restriction and simultaneously flew out of the bamboo forest, their speed so fast that they almost left afterimages.
Xiao Yan did not give chase.
He gripped the gun in his right hand and gently pressed his left hand into the air.
Chains formed from condensed Cold Fire shot out from the void, wrapping around their necks and ankles, binding them tightly.
The two remained frozen in place, their fleeing posture gone, the light in their eyes quickly fading, as if a pause button had been pressed.
A moment later, they lost their balance and fell to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Their chests were still rising and falling, they were still breathing, but their pupils were already dilated.
At this point, all six of Yin Li's men had been dealt with.
Yin Li stood still, glanced at his subordinates lying on the ground, and then looked at Xiao Yan.
His right palm trembled slightly, and most of the bloody light in his palm dissipated, leaving only a faint trace of blood at his fingertips.
This palm strike had drained nearly half of his Dou Qi.
The Blood Soul Great Hand Seal is his trump card, sufficient even to deal with Seven-Star Dou Huang of the same level.
Now, his killing move has been countered by a young man, and he has also lost the lives of six of his men.
This battle has already been lost.
Yin Li took a deep breath and swallowed back the metallic taste that rose to his throat.
Now that things had come to this, he understood that it was impossible to repay Tang San.
His Dou Qi surged wildly through his meridians, and with a sudden stomp of his feet on the ground, his body transformed into a blood-red shadow, shooting towards the depths of the bamboo forest.
Xiao Yan moved at the same instant he set off.
Two figures sped through the bamboo forest, one after the other, their movements creating a flurry of bamboo leaves and a series of explosive bursts of energy.
Yin Li steeled his resolve and suddenly swung his right hand behind him.
Three finger-length bone nails flew out from his sleeve, shooting towards Xiao Yan's face in a triangular formation.
The bone nail was entirely black, with a faint green phosphorescence at its tip.
Xiao Yan reached out with his left hand, and flames erupted. The movement seemed casual, but the three bone nails were completely destroyed in the raging flames, turning into scrap metal.
Yin Li cursed and accelerated again.
Xiao Yan watched as Yin Li's figure was about to disappear into the night.
"You think you can leave like this?"
Xiao Yan made a grasping motion with his left hand in mid-air, his fingers slightly bent, as if he were grabbing something in Yin Li's direction.
" Cold Fire - Netherworld Lock!"
Chains of Netherworld Lock extended outwards, enveloping Yin Li.
The moment the Netherworld Lock touched Yin Li's body, Yin Li trembled violently, and his flying figure suddenly stopped.
He withstood the binding force of the chains with the strength of his soul, and struggled to break free from most of the chains' Entanglement, but at the last moment, his left foot was still bound by a chain.
It was that brief pause.
Xiao Yan compressed his remaining Soul Power to a high degree and poured it all into the Netherworld Lock.
Countless illusory chains extended from the phantom, spreading along the main chain and enveloping Yin Li in a cocoon of chains.
The Cold Fire on the chains suddenly erupted.
That chill penetrated to the bone and went straight to the soul.
Yin Li felt as if his mind had been frozen at that moment. His Dou Qi circulation speed dropped sharply, and his limbs were so stiff that even raising his hand was several times slower.
He tried to struggle, but with his soul frozen, his body was powerless.
His fingers twitched slightly, trying to grasp the last escape talisman hidden in his sleeve, but as soon as his fingertips touched the edge of the talisman, the Netherworld Lock bound him even tighter.
A moment later.
Yin Li was thrown into the very center of the open space at the Qingzhu Pavilion.
He was curled up on the ground, his black robe riddled with holes from the Heavenly Flames, revealing charred flesh beneath.
The majesty of the Seven-Star Dou Huang was completely gone; at this moment, he looked even more wretched than a beggar on the street.
Xiao Yan stood in front of him, looking down at him.
Xiao Yan's breathing became slightly rapid, but his eyes remained calm.
He had consumed nearly 60% of his Soul Power in this battle, and the Soul Power in his meridians was almost depleted, but his back remained straight, his spear planted firmly on the ground, and the flame patterns on the spear flickered, reflecting his face in the night.
"You seem surprised," Xiao Yan said.
Yin Li raised his head with difficulty, a hint of disbelief still lingering in his eyes:
"You... are not Three-Star Dou Emperor."
"Who told you I'm Three-Star Dou Emperor?" Xiao Yan said calmly. " Lin Zhenshan?"
At the edge of the bamboo forest, Lin Zhenshan trembled upon hearing his name called, and his whole body hunched over.
He was slumped under a broken bamboo stalk, his crotch soaked with sweat. He had urinated in fright when Xiao Yan unleashed his Cold Heart Lotus Explosion.
Xiao Yan turned to look at Lin Zhenshan.
Lin Zhenshan's teeth started chattering when he saw that look.
"Second Master Lin, shouldn't you come and take a look?"
Xiao Yan smiled, his tone as calm as if he were inviting him for tea.
Lin Zhenshan stood up shakily, his legs feeling as heavy as lead.
He walked up to Yin Li, each step extremely difficult, as if he were walking on a knife's edge.
When he saw Yin Li's miserable state, all the color drained from his face in an instant.
Yin Li is Seven-Star Dou Huang.
Now, the Protector Blood Hand was tied to the ground like a dead dog, covered in wounds, and unable to even stand up.
Tang San, who had accomplished all of this, stood calmly in front of him, his breathing perfectly steady.
Lin Zhenshan.
Yin Li, piercing voice was forced out through clenched teeth, each word dripping with blood, "You lied to me."
Lin Zhenshan opened his mouth as if to say something, but only a hoarse sound came out of his throat.
He turned to look at Xiao Yan, his lips trembling so much that he couldn't utter a single word for a long time.
Xiao Yan met his gaze, his tone calm. "Second Master Lin, how do the people from the Yellow Springs Pavilion know where I live?"
Lin Zhenshan's pupils suddenly contracted.
Before he could answer, Xiao Yan raised his left hand, his ten fingers slightly spread.
A beam of pale, Cold Fire silently pierced into Lin Zhenshan's brow.
Lin Zhenshan's body stiffened abruptly, and his gaze quickly became unfocused.
His mouth was wide open, his tongue was stuck out stiffly, and a strange gurgling sound came from deep in his throat, like a drowning person desperately trying to breathe.
Xiao Yan looked down at Lin Zhenshan, who was slumped on the ground, his eyes showing neither anger nor contempt.
Lin Zhenshan swayed, then collapsed to the ground like a lump of mud, his eyes rolled back, and muffled sobs were still coming from his throat.
Xiao Yan turned his gaze to Yin Li and said:
"I have no grudge against the Yellow Springs Pavilion, and it was purely coincidental that I saved Lin Zhentian."
Even if the Yellow Springs Pavilion wanted to deal with me, they couldn't possibly arrive this quickly, could they?
Besides, is the Yellow Springs Pavilion really so domineering? They attack a Dou Emperor without even needing to gather intelligence?
This is something Xiao Yan can't figure out.
Even if he made an enemy of the Yellow Springs Pavilion because he saved Lin Zhentian.
But within a day, the other party contacted him directly, wanting to silence him.
Yin Li gritted his teeth and remained silent. His lips were already stained red with blood, but his eyes still held a fierce look.
Xiao Yan didn't ask any more questions. He pointed his finger out again, and the scorching flames traveled along Yin Li's skin, drilling into his body.
Yesterday's pain caused Yin Li to writhe and scream on the ground.
I said!
Finally, under the agonizing pain of being burned alive, Yin Li relented.
They framed the Han Clan of Tianbei City for the crime.
With Lin Zhenshan's cooperation, Yin Li's plot was to first eliminate Lin Zhentian and his wife, as well as Lin Wan'er, and then fake the presence of assassins from the Han Clan at the scene.
The Han Clan and the Lin Clan are sworn enemies. If this is done, everyone will assume that the Han Clan was behind it.
By then, the Lin Clan will be wiped out, the Han Clan will be blamed, and the Yellow Springs Pavilion will reap the benefits.
Lin Zhenshan will take over all of the Lin Clan's businesses afterward—as a puppet supported by the Yellow Springs Pavilion.
In their original plan, Xiao Yan was intended to be Dou Emperor henchman used as a scapegoat.
Xiao Yan withdrew his finger and remained silent for a while.
Lin Zhenshan colluded with the Yellow Springs Pavilion to kill his brother and seize power. Yellow Springs Pavilion then took advantage of the situation to swallow up the Lin Clan, and the Han Clan became the scapegoat. A vicious scheme that killed three birds with one stone.
Unfortunately, they overlooked one thing: they were not pushovers.
Xiao Yan squatted down, took Yin Li's Storage Ring off his finger, wiped away the remaining Soul Imprint, and probed inside to scan it.
Pills, crystal cards, several cultivation technique scrolls, a large bag of high-level Magic Core, and several internal tokens and scrolls from the Yellow Springs Pavilion.
Even the Earth Tier Low Grade " Blood Hand Seal " secret technique that Yin Li possessed was included, sealed away simply with a blood-red jade.
Moreover, Xiao Yan also found a separate gray jade slip stored in his Storage Ring.
Xiao Yan took it out, examined it, and a look of surprise appeared on his face.
It was a special cultivation method called " Soul Refining Technique," which could cultivate Spiritual Soul Power, but unfortunately it was only a fragment.
But Xiao Yan understood how rare cultivation techniques were.
Therefore, even though this Soul Refining Technique is only a fragment, its value is still immeasurable.
Xiao Yan packed up all of Yin Li's belongings and put them into the Black Dragon.
He looked down at Yin Li, a hint of murderous intent flashing in his eyes.