Chapter 397: One Against Five
Yao Lao's resurrection was not a short process, so Xiao Yuan and Xiao Yan remained within the stone tower, patiently waiting for his revival.
They waited for ten full days.
On this day, as the two brothers were cultivating the Great Heaven Creation Palm, the entire stone tower suddenly quaked violently. A cold voice, laced with killing intent, echoed through the sky:
"Starfall Pavilion, hand over Xiao Yuan, Xiao Yan, and Yao Chen. Otherwise, today shall mark your annihilation!"
Boom!
The voice rolled out like thunder, and both Xiao Yuan and Xiao Yan's faces changed drastically. They leapt to their feet, eyes coldly fixed beyond the stone platform.
"It's the Hall of Souls?"
Xiao Yan's face darkened.
"Most likely."
Xiao Yuan's expression was equally grim. After wiping out a Soul Hall squad in the Beast Domain, he had anticipated their retaliation.
He just hadn't expected it to come so quickly.
…
Atop Starfall Peak, every disciple stood up, eyes flickering with unease as they looked toward the distant sky. The meteor barrier of Starfall protected them from seeing outside clearly, but all of them could feel it—something catastrophic was coming.
In the plaza at the summit, Wind Venerable and the others had gathered, staring tensely at the sky.
"They've come…"
Tianhuo Venerable frowned deeply.
"There are many powerful auras outside. The Hall of Souls isn't holding back—this time, they truly intend to make an example out of Starfall Pavilion."
Cai Lin's tone was equally grave.
Wind Venerable nodded slightly. His expression was calm, but in his heart, he knew this day was inevitable.
He stepped forward and changed a seal in his hands. The star array trembled, and the illusion outside the barrier vanished—revealing the sky beyond.
Hiss—
Gasps sounded across the Pavilion.
Outside the barrier, a sea of black mist had completely surrounded them. In midair floated nearly a hundred figures on black clouds, their sinister gazes seemingly piercing through the formation to glare at those within.
"That's… the Eighth Heaven Venerate, Warden of the Earth! And… Tian Mingzi?"
Wind Venerable's face hardened. The Heavenly Underworld Sect had joined with the Hall of Souls. This was worse than expected.
"Master Wind… what do we do? The Hall has come in full force. This isn't just a manhunt…"
A Starfall elder's voice trembled slightly.
"Enough panicking!" Wind Venerable barked. "They want to massacre us to make a statement. Otherwise, why would they bring three Heaven Venerates?"
He scanned the thousands of Starfall disciples and then turned to the elders.
"We have no choice but to fight to the death. Will you run, or will you fight?"
The elders stood tall.
"We'll fight. Starfall is our home. We will die before we let it fall!"
"Well said. Then today—we fight back! Let's see how far the Hall dares push us!"
Wind Venerable's rallying cry lit a fire in their hearts.
…
Outside, Warden of the Earth sneered coldly.
"Wind Venerable, hand them over, or that flimsy barrier won't save you."
When no reply came, his smile deepened. He turned to Tian Mingzi.
"Let's take it down. We're making a statement today. We want every power in the Central Plains to see that the Hall and the Heavenly Underworld Sect are not to be trifled with."
Tian Mingzi gave a faint nod.
The two raised their hands and summoned invisible pressure. Three massive hands slammed down on the star barrier.
BOOM!
Ripples spread across the sky, the impact deafening.
A torrent of strikes followed from the two peak eight-star Dou Zuns. The barrier trembled violently, visibly on the verge of collapse.
Inside, all of Starfall tensed. Hands clenched around weapons.
"The barrier won't last much longer…" Wind Venerable muttered.
"There are five Heaven Venerates here, eight additional Dou Zuns, and countless Dou Zongs," he added grimly. "It's the three top Venerates we must worry about."
"Heh… not necessarily," Tianhuo Venerable laughed and stepped forward. His nine-star Dou Zun aura erupted like a blaze.
"Warden of the Earth and the four other Heaven Venerates are mine. Tian Mingzi—leave him to you, Elder Tianhuo. Xiao Yan, the remaining Dou Zuns are yours!"
As the others froze, a calm voice rang out.
A figure in white robes appeared in midair—Xiao Yuan.
"It's Xiao Yuan! He's out!"
Cheers rose from the Starfall disciples.
Seeing him, Wind Venerable's expression brightened. "You're here? What about Yao Chen?"
"Not yet. He still needs time."
Xiao Yuan's eyes flicked to the weakening barrier, then turned to Warden of the Earth, his gaze glinting like blades.
With a wave, he summoned the six Dou Zun puppet generals from Wind Lightning Pavilion and distributed them to Cai Lin, Qing Lin, and Xiao Yan.
Then he spoke calmly:
"Drop the barrier. Let them in."
Wind Venerable nodded and dismissed the star array. The black mist pressed in close.
In the sky above, Warden of the Earth grinned cruelly.
"Xiao Yuan… you won't escape this time!"
The sky dimmed. Tension exploded.
"I'll show you exactly what I'm capable of. You picked the wrong time to come knocking," Xiao Yuan replied coldly.
Humph!
Warden of the Earth's face darkened. His killing intent surged.
"Annihilate Starfall Pavilion!"
"YES!"
Hundreds of Soul Hall experts roared. Black chains screamed through the air like rain.
"Kill!!"
The entire sky turned into a battlefield. Starfall had become a furnace of blood and fire.
…
Xiao Yuan hovered calmly above it all. Any Soul Hall members who neared him veered off, instinctively avoiding him.
"Boy… I'll drag you back to the Hall myself. You'll beg for death before I'm done!"
Warden of the Earth charged forward like a bolt of black lightning.
Tian Mingzi followed, his powerful aura distorting the air.
But before he could act—
FWOOSH!
Tianhuo Venerable intercepted him with a wave of flame.
"Nine-star Dou Zun!?"
Tian Mingzi reeled. Starfall had hidden such a trump card?
BOOM!
Meanwhile, Xiao Yuan and Warden of the Earth clashed head-on like falling stars, releasing shockwaves that shattered nearby mountaintops.
Xiao Yuan had activated both the Threefold Skyfire Transformation and the Qi Palace Infusion Secret Art. His aura now rivaled the peak of the nine-star Dou Zun level!
Warden of the Earth had expected no more than a six- or seven-star Dou Zun.
He was wrong.
Now that he had seen Xiao Yuan's full power, he knew—
If he didn't kill him today, he never would.
He poured all his strength into every strike. Cracks split the sky.
But Xiao Yuan only smirked. Warden of the Earth wasn't even stronger than him.
He split into multiple lightning-speed avatars with the Three Thousand Lightning Illusion Body—each one charging one of the remaining four Heaven Venerates.
None of them were above six-star Dou Zun.
For a nine-star like Xiao Yuan? Even his clones could suppress them.
Seeing this, Warden of the Earth's expression darkened. Xiao Yuan was fighting him while holding back!
BANG BANG BANG!
Explosions rocked the sky.
A true storm had descended on the Central Plains.
(END CHAPTER)
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