"Pfft!"
The sudden attack blasted Earth Demon Old Ghost's chest inward with a sickening crunch. The Dou Technique he had been about to unleash shattered completely, and the resulting backlash added a fresh layer of pain to his already grievous wounds. As he staggered back, spitting blood, a powerful suction burst from Xiao Yan's palm, drawing the black ice crystal—within which the Fallen Heart Flame was sealed—into his grasp.
"Mister Earth Demon, many thanks for your generous gift." Xiao Yan's lips curled slightly as he stared at the icy black crystal in his hand. After such an exhausting effort, he had finally secured the treasure. And now, it was time to properly "thank" Earth Demon Old Ghost for his essential role in helping him seize it.
"Why?" Earth Demon Old Ghost didn't even glance at the Heavenly Flame he had lost. His face was frozen in shock as he turned his head stiffly, eyes filled with disbelief. Never in his wildest thoughts did he expect the Hall of Souls' Protector to suddenly strike him.
Hearing the question, a clear, cheerful laugh came from the black mist. "Why? Because you're just too stupid."
At those words, the horror on Earth Demon Old Ghost's face deepened—but not because of the insult. It was because the voice from within the black mist… was identical to Xiao Yan's!
As realization crashed over him, he whipped his head around to Xiao Yan. The youth gave a dry cough, then rasped in a familiar, hoarse tone, "Earth Demon Old Ghost, you really are a loyal mutt, aren't you? Jie jie..."
With Xiao Yan's familiarity with the Hall of Souls, mimicking one of their Protectors had been effortless. In his past life, his conduct was so similar to theirs—and given his habit of always wearing black robes—many had mistaken him for a Hall member.
"You…" Earth Demon Old Ghost's voice shook.
Now it all made sense. He'd been completely played!
There had never been any Protector from the Hall of Souls. From the very beginning, it had all been a farce. Every part of it—manipulating him to snatch the Heavenly Flame, wiping out Demon Flame Valley—had been orchestrated by Xiao Yan. How could he not be driven into a frenzy?
"I'm going to kill you!" he howled, eyes bloodshot with rage. He lunged at Xiao Yan, but before he got close, a ghostly blue light surged in Xiao Yan's eyes.
Two beams of flame shot forth, piercing directly into Earth Demon Old Ghost's eye sockets.
A tortured scream tore through the air.
And just like that, the once-dominant Dou Zong who had ruled the Black-Corner Region for years… lost all signs of life.
Now, Xiao Yan not only possessed another Heavenly Flame—his soul realm had advanced to the Spirit State, and his Soul Flame had fused into the Annihilation Flame Eyes. This already devastating Dou Technique had been elevated several levels further. Even a high-level Dou Zong like Earth Demon Old Ghost, who was multiple stars stronger than Xiao Yan, was slain instantly with no chance to defend.
Looking at the lifeless corpse, Xiao Yan shook his head slightly and waved his hand. The body disappeared into his Nether Sea Storage Ring.
'No matter what, it's still a high-level Dou Zong's corpse. It could be used to refine a puppet—or for something else. But now's not the time.'
Clutching the black ice crystal, Xiao Yan returned to Demon Flame Valley. Everyone here had already been wiped out, and the entire storehouse had been plundered clean. However, the valley's sturdy stone construction and quiet surroundings made it a rather suitable place for closed-door cultivation.
After finally securing the Fallen Heart Flame, there was no way Xiao Yan was going to return it to Jia Nan Academy. However, with Qing Lin and the others still waiting there, he couldn't return to Xiao Sect like he had after obtaining the Sea Heart Flame.
The best option—refine it here and now.
Summoning several of his crafted puppets and positioning them at the entrance for defense, Xiao Yan then lifted the seal on the Fallen Heart Flame. Due to prolonged suppression by cold energy, the once-dominant invisible flame now had a clearly weakened aura.
Of course, Earth Demon Old Ghost didn't have the skill to suppress it like this.
The reason it was so feeble now was because during the unsealing, Xiao Yan had secretly used a Soul Flame-infused Annihilation Flame Eyes to attack its spiritual intelligence—weakening it enough for Earth Demon Old Ghost to succeed.
After extracting the source flame from the ice crystal, Xiao Yan summoned the Green Lotus Throne, sat cross-legged atop it, and then drew the flame into his body.
Though the throne's boost wasn't as intense as it once was due to Xiao Yan's growth, it still offered a helpful edge. When refining a Heavenly Flame, every layer of protection counted.
As the Fallen Heart Flame entered his body, a wave of scorching heat exploded outward.
But for someone like Xiao Yan—who had already refined several Heavenly Flames—this level of heat was insignificant. Let alone the fact that he had cultivated the Little Glazed Gold Body and had already tempered his physique with magma energy.
No matter how hard the Fallen Heart Flame struggled, it couldn't escape. On the contrary, its remaining spiritual intelligence was forcibly erased by Xiao Yan's immense soul power.
Once the spirit was gone, the once-wild flame calmed. Under the guidance of Flame Mantra Dou Qi, it gradually began merging with the other Heavenly Flames in his body.
Normally, fusing Heavenly Flames was an extremely lengthy and difficult process. However, with Xiao Yan now at the Dou Zong level—and having thoroughly prepared in advance—this fusion was surprisingly smooth.
The Fallen Heart Flame posed no real resistance and was absorbed with ease.
Perhaps due to its nature as an invisible flame, the new fusion flame still retained a ghostly blue hue. The black, however, was now darker and more profound. There wasn't much visual change, so Xiao Yan simply continued calling it the Nine Nether Illusion Heart Flame.
This time, refining the flame didn't produce the explosive growth it had in the past. Thanks to prior training—and the residual power of the Dragon Saliva Fire Spirit Grass given to him by Zi Yan—he was already close to two-star Dou Zong.
Now, refining the Fallen Heart Flame only pushed him up by three stars before plateauing at the peak of four-star Dou Zong.
Xiao Yan wasn't surprised. After all, the gap between each Dou Zong star was much larger than between Dou Huang stars.
Sensing the powerful aura inside him, almost at the threshold of five-star Dou Zong, Xiao Yan's brows furrowed slightly. With a flick of his finger, he tossed an Earth Fire Lotus Seed into his mouth.
He could already feel the barrier of five-star Dou Zong. If he gave up now, breaking through later would require even more time and effort.
So—seizing the moment—he consumed the Earth Fire Lotus Seed. Using its refined energy, he made one final push.
And broke through—successfully advancing to five-star Dou Zong.
(End of Chapter)
---
This Fanfiction Has Been Completed on Patreon.
Support me if you like this Fanfiction.
Patreon,com/Fallen_Archangel_
(Remove comma for dot.)
Leave a 5 star Review and a Power Stone.