"Five-star Dou Zong, huh… Seems like if I want to go any further, I'll need to hunt down one of the top-ranked Heavenly Flames." Xiao Yan shook his head slightly, a bit helpless. Although he still had one left with Queen Medusa, the Green Lotus Core Flame was too low in the ranking. Even if he refined it, he wasn't confident it would raise him even one star.
Still, that didn't mean he would give up on the Green Lotus Core Flame. After all, if he wanted to evolve Flame Mantra into a Heaven Rank technique, the energy of these Heavenly Flames was indispensable. While refining the Fallen Heart Flame had just pushed Flame Mantra from mid Earth Rank to high Earth Rank, there was still a long way to go before it could touch the Heaven Rank.
"Hu..." Taking a long breath, Xiao Yan suddenly felt a surge of heat rise within his body. But this time, he had prepared well in advance. Before the demonic fire could erupt, he retrieved a cold-infused pill from his storage ring and swallowed it. The moment it entered his body, a frigid current burst forth, forcibly dispersing the chaotic fire.
'Once bitten, twice shy. I'm not falling for the same trick again.'
After suppressing the demonic fire, Xiao Yan took out several fragmented maps. These were the incomplete map pieces to the Purifying Lotus Demonic Flame. The first two were obtained from the Magical Beast Mountain Range and Hai Bodong, while the third came from the storage ring of the Eight Gates' sect master, whom he had killed in the Returning Ruins Domain. Now, only one piece remained. Once the flame space opened, he would be able to seek out the Purifying Lotus Demonic Flame.
Unfortunately, the final piece could only be found in the Central Plains. There was no hope of obtaining it here in the Black-Corner Region. Still, with Xiao Yan's current strength, he was now qualified to venture into the Central Plains. Of course, before that, he needed to tie up a few loose ends—like the Bodhisattva Body Transformation Saliva and the Green Lotus Core Flame.
"Looks like the trip to the Central Plains will have to wait a bit longer." Xiao Yan put away the flame map pieces. Just as he was about to head back to Jia Nan Academy, he suddenly felt an overwhelming aura speeding toward his location. His face shifted slightly, and he instantly retracted all his puppets and the Green Lotus Throne into his storage ring.
The moment he finished, the ceiling above his head exploded.
Chains rained down from the sky like venomous serpents, violently lashing toward Xiao Yan. Facing the sudden ambush, he clenched his palm. The Heavy Xuan Ruler appeared in his hand, wrapped in ghostly blue flames. With a burst of scorching force, he slammed the ruler down upon the incoming chains.
"Flame Splitting Tsunami Ruler!"
The collision of the heavy ruler and the black chains released a terrifying shockwave. An attack strong enough to harm a nine-star Dou Zong was completely overwhelmed by the power of the chains. Even Xiao Yan himself was blasted backward by the energy carried within them.
Feeling the immense force vibrating through his arm, Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes.
'Dou Zun…'
The space around him suddenly twisted. Several invisible barriers formed around his body, sealing off all escape routes.
Above, a woman in black stood midair atop the chains, her gaze cold and sharp as it locked onto him.
"Xiao Yan, is it? I've been looking for you for a long time. Jie jie…"
At the sight of Xiao Yan, Hun Moli felt like she could cry tears of joy. After all this time—enduring toxic mists, wandering volcanic caverns, crawling through deserts, diving into oceans—what had she been chasing?
Wasn't it this wretched brat?
She almost wanted to pinch herself to make sure this wasn't a dream. It had been… just too hard.
"You're from the Hun Clan?" Xiao Yan's expression turned grim as he sensed the oppressive aura around the black-clad woman. With his Spirit Rank soul realm, he could immediately tell—her strength hovered around five-star Dou Zun. Compared to him, she was an entire realm higher. This kind of power would rank among the Heaven Sovereigns even within the Hall of Souls, a class far superior to mere Protectors.
"Oh? How'd you figure that out?" Hun Moli tilted her head slightly, surprised that Xiao Yan could see through her so quickly.
"Simple. Who else but you Hun Clan folks laughs that awfully?" Xiao Yan exhaled slowly. He was glad he had already broken through to Dou Zong and refined multiple Heavenly Flames. Otherwise, against someone like this, he wouldn't have had even the slightest chance of resisting.
He looked at her again and asked, "You were sent by Hun Dai'er, weren't you?"
Based on what Xiao Yan knew about the Hun Clan and Hall of Souls, there was no reason they should've been targeting him at this stage. Even if they were after the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade held by the Xiao Clan, they should've gone after his father, not him.
Besides, both the Hun Clan and Hall of Souls were massive organizations. That structure created a strange effect—missions often trickled down through several layers. A task initially assigned to a Dou Sheng might, by the time it was executed, end up in the hands of a mere Dou Zong.
But the woman before him clearly didn't fit that pattern. Her strength far exceeded the limits of this region. A five-star Dou Zun appearing here could easily sweep through most factions in the Black-Corner Region within a single day. Unless the Headmaster of Jia Nan Academy returned, no one could stand against her.
This sort of approach didn't match the style of the Hall of Souls.
Only Hun Dai'er, that woman, would send someone of this caliber to eliminate him when his strength was still insignificant. Of course, Xiao Yan also knew it wasn't that Hun Dai'er didn't want to send a Dou Sheng—she simply didn't have the authority to do so yet.
Back when he was still weak, Hun Dai'er wasn't yet the all-powerful Matriarch of the Hun Clan from his previous life. But even so, her starting point had been far, far ahead of his.
"You actually know the young lady?" Hun Moli looked at Xiao Yan in astonishment. She was certain Hun Dai'er had never once stepped foot outside of Hun territory. This Xiao Yan hadn't even been to the Central Plains yet. How could the two of them possibly know each other so well?
"So she's here too…" Xiao Yan sighed softly.
Ever since his rebirth, he had expected this possibility. That's why he had quickly left the Xiao Clan right after advancing from Dou Zhe. Not just to grow stronger—but also to guard against this exact kind of attack.
And yet, they had still come knocking.
"But maybe this is for the best. Without her… this world would be far too boring."
Xiao Yan slowly tightened his grip on the Heavy Xuan Ruler.
Hun Dai'er had been reborn as well.
For him, that was both a disaster—and an opportunity.
In their past lives, he and Hun Dai'er had clashed for hundreds of years without settling the score.
Now, in this life… it was time to end it all.
(End of Chapter)
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