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In the vast void, Xiao Yan and his group had already approached the location of the Three Thousand Burning Flame. Qiu Ling spoke in a deep voice:
"Everyone, there is a battle between Saint-level powerhouses taking place in the Star Domain. The entire area is extremely dangerous. The best thing we can do now is retreat to the outer edges and wait for the Pill Tower's rescue. The opportunity to subdue the Three Thousand Burning Flame—the Pill Tower will preserve that for everyone."
Hearing this, the gathered alchemists all nodded, including Xiao Yan. No matter how much he hoped to benefit from the clash of titans like a fisherman profiting from a fight between the snipe and clam, one must assess their own strength. The reason the Jia Nan Academy succeeded in seizing the Fallen Heart Flame was because of Yao Lao's support. But now, he was alone. The residual force from a Saint-level battle alone could instantly reduce him to ashes.
In the chaotic space torn apart by the battle—
The Soul Hall Vice Hall Master let out a sinister "Jie Jie Jie" laugh.
"I didn't expect your cultivation technique to be of Heaven-rank Low Tier. What a pity. If it were of the same level as mine, with your advantage in cultivation base, you could have pushed me back. But now, you can only fight me to a standstill."
Having dealt with the Ancient Clan for many years, the Vice Hall Master naturally understood the power of their signature Dou Technique, the Imperial Seal Art. His own cultivation was at the late stage of Three-Star Dou Sheng, while Qian Renhan had reached the peak of Three-Star Dou Sheng. Both unleashed the same level of Dou Technique equally. The reason behind the deadlock was self-evident.
"You should know that Heaven-rank techniques can absorb Dou Qi from the world to recover during combat. While there's only a one-tier difference between Low and Mid Heaven-rank techniques, the recovery speed differs by threefold. If we continue like this, the victor will undoubtedly be me."
Hearing this, Qian Renhan sneered,
"Then let's try again. I'll show you what it truly means to fight above your level!"
"Great Annihilation Finger!"
Qian Renhan gently pointed his finger, and above the Vice Hall Master's head, the space tore open. A massive finger, glittering with countless starlights, pressed down fiercely.
"Another Ancient Clan Dou Technique."
The Vice Hall Master scoffed and was about to counterattack when he suddenly felt his entire body tightly gripped by an ethereal palm—this was a heavily weakened version of the Ancient Emperor's Sky-Grasping Claw.
"You can actually use two Dou Techniques at once?!"
The Vice Hall Master looked at Qian Renhan, who had one hand clenched into a fist and the other extended in a pointing gesture, in disbelief. It was well known that the higher the level of a Dou Technique, the more Dou Qi it required. That Dou Qi also had to flow through specific meridians via seals. A cultivator attempting to use two techniques simultaneously would risk a chaotic backlash and death.
But Qian Renhan possessed something no other Dou Qi Continent cultivator had—a Soul Core. After his soul power transformed into Dou Qi, it was renamed the Dou Core. With two Dou Cores and perfect dual-focus control, he could seamlessly channel Dou Qi throughout his meridians.
Although Great Annihilation Finger and Sky-Grasping Claw were both high-level techniques, some of the meridians they used overlapped. To handle this, Qian Renhan had to drastically weaken one of them. If the true Sky-Grasping Claw was a quasi-Heaven-rank technique, then this severely weakened version didn't even qualify as Earth-rank. It couldn't even shatter space.
But that didn't matter. Just trapping the Vice Hall Master for even half a second was enough. In battles between experts, a moment's hesitation could be fatal.
Dou Qi exploded from the Vice Hall Master's body as he broke free from the restraints. Staring up at the colossal finger crushing down on his crown, his eyes narrowed. Any high-tier Dou Technique required time to activate. Now, after being trapped for half a second, he no longer had time to use one of equal strength to defend.
His hand seals changed rapidly. A black cloud surged upward from his head, spreading out at astonishing speed. From within the black cloud, countless agonized wails echoed. If one looked closely, they could faintly see numerous figures writhing within.
"Heavenly Demon Blood Gu—Devour! Come forth, Soul Gu Toad!"
From the black cloud, a blinding blood-red light erupted like a bolt of lightning, tearing through the cloud and shooting toward the Great Annihilation Finger at a speed faster than the eye could follow.
The two forces collided. The blood light was instantly knocked back thousands of meters. A horrifying screech echoed through the space, leaving a thousand-meter-long rift carved through the Star Domain.
Within the blood light was a creature that looked like a giant toad. Its body was a deep crimson, and across its flesh were bulging lumps. Upon closer inspection, these bulges were actually twisted, grotesque human faces.
"Soul Gu Toad!"
The Grand Elder of the Little Pill Tower stared at the grotesque form of the Soul Gu Toad, his face full of revulsion and fear. The creation of such a creature was an extremely bloody and cruel process—fusing numerous souls together and forcing them into mutual slaughter, followed by special material refinement. The result was the Soul Gu Toad.
It bore some resemblance to a puppet, but unlike puppets, it retained a semblance of consciousness. Unfortunately, this intelligence was entirely ruled by its violent and bloodthirsty instincts.
Once released, the Soul Gu Toad would go on a wild killing spree. It had even been known to turn on its master in its frenzy. Only those with ruthless methods and a complete disregard for life would dare to refine such a creature.
While the Grand Elder was filled with disgust, Qian Renhan nearly licked his lips. The thick scent of blood and malevolent energy pouring from the Soul Gu Toad was like a heavenly treasure to him. Absorbing this creature would be enough to elevate his cultivation by an entire rank.
"My attack isn't over yet."
A surge of powerful late-stage Heavenly Realm soul force erupted from between Qian Renhan's brows, transforming into a massive python that lunged at the Vice Hall Master. This technique, naturally, was something he had learned during his first encounter with Cao Ying.
"If it's a battle of soul force, you're no match for me!"
The Vice Hall Master unleashed his own soul power, no weaker than Qian Renhan's. It took the shape of a ferocious tiger and clashed with the python. After only a few strikes, the python was torn apart, and the tiger pounced at Qian Renhan.
It was clear—when it came to soul force and soul-based Dou Techniques, Soul Hall truly reigned supreme.
But Qian Renhan's soul attack had merely been a feint.
The real strike came from his Shura Sword, which had mysteriously vanished from his hand earlier. Behind the Vice Hall Master, space twisted—and a crimson streak of light shot out like a meteor, slashing horizontally toward his neck.
"Splurt!"
A deep, bone-revealing gash appeared three inches below the Vice Hall Master's neck—dangerously close to puncturing a lung. Qian Renhan, personally trained by the Dragon Emperor Zhukun, a peak Nine-Star Dou Saint, had prepared this ambush meticulously. Escaping it would be no simple matter.
"You... you dare ambush me?!"
The Vice Hall Master growled coldly, his face twisted in pain. The sword aura lingering in the wound was wreaking havoc inside his body.
The Soul Gu Toad, which had been knocked away earlier, swiftly returned to his side and snatched the Shura Sword into its mouth.
"If you had the ability to ambush me, I'd call that skill. But now—take it back."
Qian Renhan reached out. The blood-red eye on the hilt of the Shura Sword snapped open, its blade flashing with crimson light. With a sharp shriek, it tore itself free from the Soul Gu Toad's mouth and flew back into his grasp.
The Vice Hall Master's storage ring flashed. In his hand appeared a rare pill emitting a thick medicinal fragrance and surrounded by nine-colored pill lightning—a top-tier healing elixir of the eighth tier.
He consumed it without hesitation.
Qian Renhan's eyes narrowed.
"A tier-eight healing pill with nine-colored pill lightning... The rarest of its kind. Only Soul Hall would use something so precious mid-battle."
With the pill's medicinal effects, the Vice Hall Master's torn wound swiftly began to mend. Together with the Soul Gu Toad, he charged forward once more.
Qian Renhan unfurled twelve wings behind him, the Shura Sword in hand, and met the charge head-on.
The battle erupted once more.
Terrifying shockwaves of Dou Qi exploded in all directions, constantly tearing apart the surrounding space. The entire Star Domain seemed on the verge of being obliterated by their clash.
As for Old Demon Tianming, he had already been vaporized by the aftershocks of their first exchange.
(End of Chapter)