Showdown atop the Cave Dwelling

Seeing Xiao Yi Xian insulted like that, Xiao Yan's face suddenly darkened. He let out a turbid breath that rose into a cloud of white mist.

"Xiao Yi Xian, hold on tight!"

With a low shout, Xiao Yan wrapped an arm around the beauty's slender waist and somersaulted into the air, quickly breaking free of the encirclement.

"Stop them! Throw your weapons!"

A sharp shout rang out as Mu Li ordered his men to intercept them.

The mercenaries did not hesitate. They promptly hurled their weapons, sending them shooting straight at Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

A blade tore through the air, its edge flashing. Many more accompanied it, howling toward them on fierce winds.

"Oh no! There are too many weapons. I don't think we can dodge them all!"

Xiao Yi Xian tightened her grip around Xiao Yan's waist, her head pressed against his chest. Catching sight of the surrounding blades and spears out of the corner of her eye, she could not help crying out in alarm.

"Don't worry, I'll protect you!"

Faced with the weapons raining down from all directions, Xiao Yan showed no fear. Instead, he turned his head and calmly reassured Xiao Yi Xian.

In his previous life, he had roamed the continent, facing enemies like the Misty Cloud Sect, the Hun Clan, and the Hall of Souls. He had been through countless life-and-death battles; a scene like this was hardly enough to frighten him.

He opened his palm, and seven-colored flames rose from it. Xiao Yan instantly controlled them, transforming them into a bundle of threads.

With a forceful flick, he sent the seven-colored threads hooking around a distant spear and yanked it toward him.

Catching the spear, he tested its weight, then leaped with the beauty in his arms, drifting through the air as he stepped on the weapons flying diagonally toward him.

As he drew closer to the mercenaries, Xiao Yan spun the spear into a circular barrier before him.

Air surged and fierce winds howled!

The weapons that flew close struck the barrier and were repeatedly deflected, crashing hard into the nearby cave walls and rocks, where they quivered.

"Damn it! This brat's control of Dou Qi is too skilled! Quick, everyone, attack with your Dou Techniques now! Don't give him a chance to catch his breath!"

Seeing Xiao Yan break their barrage of weapons as smoothly as flowing clouds and water, Mu Li's expression changed drastically. He hurriedly turned and shouted the order.

As Xiao Yan drew steadily closer, beads of cold sweat appeared on the mercenaries' foreheads. They had not expected this young man to be so troublesome.

"Yes, sir!"

No one dared delay. They formed arcane hand seals and gathered Dou Qi onto their fists and feet, waiting for Xiao Yan to descend.

"You want to wait until I get there and gang up on me?"

Xiao Yan sneered. After using the spear tip to deflect the last sword, he swiftly hurled the spear, piercing straight through one man's chest.

Puchi!

Wisps of red mist sprayed from the wound. The man smelled blood and felt the cold shaft piercing his heart. His vision gradually blurred, and he finally fell to the ground.

"Brother Hu Tou!!!"

Seeing this, several of his companions nearby abruptly narrowed their pupils and cried out his name in shock.

Then he saw Xiao Yan in the air again. His eyes filled with killing intent, and the Dou Technique in his hands was ready.

Boom-!

The youth lightly tapped the end of the spear with his toe, using his weight to drive the shaft farther in and pin the dead man's body firmly in place.

"Everyone, attack!"

Mu Li roared and was the first to leap forward, kicking out in midair, his foot smashing straight toward Xiao Yan's face.

At the same time, the Wolf Head Mercenary Group swarmed him, unleashing their fists and feet without mercy as brilliant, multicolored Dou Technique light burst forth.

One man clambered onto the cave wall and used the gecko-climbing Dou Technique he prided himself on to reach a spot directly above the youth. Clenching a dagger between his teeth, he jumped down toward him.

Another mercenary picked up a precious saber from the ground and charged in, pouring Dou Qi into it as he slashed.

He concentrated all his blue-purple Dou Qi onto the fine edge within the saber's gleam, revealing its icy sharpness.

Ten more men lunged at him barehanded, their momentum fierce.

Surrounded by densely packed figures, Xiao Yi Xian shut her eyes tightly in the youth's arms and trembled. She already felt pain all over and dared not watch what came next.

But Xiao Yan remained unafraid. He merely spoke calmly: "Buddha's Fury... Samsara, Buddha's Fury... Fire Lotus!"

The instant his words fell, a ring of fire suddenly rose around Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian.

The ring blazed with many colors, formed from the flames of some two hundred magical beasts and Little Bone Spirit Cold Flame.

Whoosh-!

The flames spun one after another, expanding abruptly at speed.

In the space of a snap of the fingers, the ring of fire engulfed the battlefield and swept toward the Wolf Head Mercenary Group with tremendous force.

The ring of fire moved ever more violently, and everything in its path began to break down.

The light of everyone's Dou Techniques began to recede as soon as it drew near, until it dissolved into nothingness.

"That's impossible! Why is my Dou Technique disappearing?"

The scar-faced mercenary stared at the Dou Qi growing dimmer on his fist and roared in horror, unable to believe the illusion before his eyes.

The others were the same. The light of their Dou Techniques gradually fell apart, and even the weapon in the saber wielder's hand suddenly broke into several pieces.

Just then, flames suddenly rose beneath Xiao Yan's feet again, forming a vortex that wrapped around him and Xiao Yi Xian.

The flames farther out spread rapidly, forming several petals that closed together into a giant lotus.

The next moment, the giant lotus collided with the mercenaries as they came crashing down.

As the lotus shattered, a dazzling burst of colored light erupted, illuminating the entire cave.

Bang!!!

A violent explosion resounded through the depths of the cave dwelling, whipping up a raging wave of fire.

More than fifty members of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group were thrown to the ground in an instant.

The blast also caved in the ground, sending hundreds upon thousands of cracks spreading across it like a crisscrossing spiderweb.

Thick smoke billowed upward. The Fire Lotus petals slowly dispersed, revealing two figures inside.

Xiao Yi Xian's eyelashes fluttered. Realizing she had not been hit, she finally ventured to open her eyes.

But the sight before her left her utterly stunned.

The scene was in complete chaos, with figures lying all over the ground, their bodies twisting and twitching.

Weapons and gold coins scattered through the air.

Most of the throne in the distance had also been destroyed, and even the skeleton lying on it had fallen completely apart.

Xiao Yi Xian was not the only one shocked. Yao Lao, inside Xiao Yan, was just as astounded.

He had not yet taught Xiao Yan any Dou Techniques, and the Xiao Clan certainly possessed no Dou Techniques this powerful.

That meant Xiao Yan had created these two Dou Techniques himself.

Two Dou Techniques that could combine and unleash hundreds of Beast Flames and Little Bone Spirit Cold Flame.

Their power could probably rival the full-force strike of a Peak Dou Ling expert!

"This brat is truly full of surprises."

Yao Lao had deliberately refrained from telling Xiao Yan the Wolf Head Mercenary Group's whereabouts at first, so that he could temper himself.

Unexpectedly, he had not only tested Xiao Yan's potential, but also discovered a whole new continent.

Although the battle had lasted only a few instants, he remembered every crucial detail.

In particular, Xiao Yan's extremely seasoned fighting style, his movements as smooth as flowing clouds and water, and the combination of those two Dou Techniques that had astonished him.

"My disciple Xiao Yan has the makings of a Dou Di!"

At that moment, Yao Lao clenched his fists, overcome with excitement.

He had not expected to discover another disciple of such extraordinary talent after Han Feng.

This time, Yao Lao had made up his mind to nurture Xiao Yan into a Dou Qi expert and alchemist even more accomplished than himself.

And now, his ambition was no longer limited to the mere Dou Sheng realm, but aimed at the pinnacle of Dou Di, which existed only in distant legends!