With the speed of withering a decayed tree, Xiao Yan killed Hun Mingsheng without lingering too much on his fallen body. Hun Mingsheng’s current strength held absolutely no threat for Xiao Yan. Having stepped into Emperor-tier soul realm, Xiao Yan could look down completely upon him. Gently snapping his fingers, Xiao Yan cast an indifferent glance at the lifeless corpse before flicking his sleeve, reducing the body into fine dust. Then he raised his head, frowning as he stared at the chaotic battlefield in the skies above.
A battlefield of such scale was truly rare even for Xiao Yan these past years. The terrifying might that the Hun clan displayed once again brought a solemn expression to Xiao Yan’s face. The allied forces here were a joint force of four great factions—the Gu Clan, Lei Clan, Flame Clan, and Tian Er Alliance—containing quite a formidable number of experts. Even so, the battle remained stubbornly deadlocked.
Xiao Yan’s gaze swept across the battleground, then rose towards the sky darkened by swirling miasma. Constantly emerging from within this ominous fog were members of the Hun Clan. At present, any expert not reaching the Seventh Star Dou Saint tier simply could not capture Xiao Yan’s attention. Yet strangely, something lurking within that gloomy haze stirred unease deep inside him, giving Xiao Yan a faint sensation that even more alarming presences were hidden there. Only due to his imperial-level soul perception did he notice this subtle disturbance, but it also further clouded his expression. It seemed the Hun Clan’s power had indeed become terribly fearsome.
“If we go on like this, today will surely be one grueling battle,” Xiao Yan muttered thoughtfully before abruptly shifting his eyes to the north of the battlefield, where the black mist was densest. Vast waves of powerful energies surged within, signaling a cluster of elite Hun fighters dwelling inside. Indeed, several prominent experts from the three Clans and Tian Er had already met their fate in this place.
“Hun Feng…”
Gazing at a particularly youthful silhouette among those figures, Xiao Yan’s eyes gleamed coldly. This individual was said to be the most outstanding talent among the Hun Clan’s younger generation; capturing him might provide leverage to put pressure on the enemy.
This thought crossed Xiao Yan’s mind briefly before he chuckled disdainfully, his figure moving swiftly into a streak of darkness and shooting toward that ominous patch of fog.
BOOM!
Hun Feng coldly grabbed the skull of a Flame Clan expert. Watching terror crawl over his face, Hun Feng’s gaze darkened with cruel satisfaction as he clenched his fist, crushing the victim’s head between his palm amid a spray of blood and gore. He tossed the corpse away casually.
“Inconsequential,” Hun Feng muttered indifferently after wiping his hand. Four Hun Clan elders surrounded him, each possessing Fourth Star Dou Saint power. From this, it was clear how important the Hun Clan considered Hun Feng to be.
“Master Hun Feng, perhaps we should retreat farther back; the nearby region has many elites from the three Clans,” one gray-haired elder spoke cautiously after observing their surroundings. Although key adversaries were occupied elsewhere, caution was never ill-advised.
“Aye… withdraw,” replied Hun Feng. Although displeased amidst his exhilaration, he relented and nodded to retreat.
“Ha ha! Master Hun Feng, do you really think you can walk away just like that after killing someone?” Just as Hun Feng turned, a voice suddenly echoed with amusement overhead. Startled, he looked up to see a young man in black clothes smiling at them from the sky.
“Xiao Yan? You managed to escape Hun Mingsheng’s pursuit alive?” Seeing the black-clad figure, Hun Feng flinched slightly but sneered.
“Pursuit?” Xiao Yan blinked in mild confusion. Apparently, he had slain Hun Mingsheng too quickly for anyone to fully register what happened.
“Young Master Hun Feng, retreat! Xiao Yan has reached Imperial Soul Rank—his might surpasses his cultivation tier alone. Most likely, Hun Mingsheng has already fallen to him.”
An elder among the four, with snowy-white hair, observed Xiao Yan’s demeanor and realized immediately Hun Mingsheng was lost.
At these words, Hun Feng involuntarily twitched his face. Years ago during the Demonic Fire incident, Hun Feng felt no fear toward Xiao Yan—but now, after only several short years apart, Xiao Yan exerted a pressure rivalling that of his senior Elders within the Hun Clan.
“We’re leaving!” Though angered, Hun Feng knew resisting was futile given the current gap. He shifted his form and sped upward through the dark clouds, closely followed behind by his four protective elders who kept wary glances locked on Xiao Yan.
Seeing the five trying to escape, Xiao Yan smirked and curled his palm forward. Blazes shot forth from his palms—four radiant flame orbs—that formed large fire lotuses midair before streaking like lightning toward the fleeing elders.
“Attack!” Realizing Xiao Yan gave chase, the elders grew frosty-eyed, releasing chain-like tendrils reminiscent of deadly vipers from their sleeves. However, just as they struck, the fire lotuses collided into them, instantly sticking fast and refusing to dislodge despite frantic struggling.
BOOM!
As the elders attempted to discard the chains, the fire lotuses exploded violently. Four brilliant ribbons of blazing heat ran along the chains and instantly engulfed their hands, searing straight into their bodies.
CRACKLE—WHUMP!!
Instantaneously, the robes of the four elders dissolved into ash while bright pink flames roared from every pore, producing piercing crackles and screams of agony.
Coolly weaving among the burning opponents, Xiao Yan merely snapped his fingers. Four razor-sharp gusts sliced outward, making each of the four elders spit copious blood as they plummeted earthward—intercepted below by the triumphant three Clans’ warriors.
Witnessing how easily four mighty Four-Star Dou Saints had been defeated at Xiao Yan’s hands, Hun Feng finally understood real dread and redoubled his attempt to flee at full burst-speed.
“I told you… you cannot run,” came a voice icy beyond imagination right behind him the moment Hun Feng moved. Wide-eyed with shock, Hun Feng retaliated furiously—summoning blackish flames as he lashed out a palm-blast aimed for destruction.
CRASH!
The strike barely flew forth when it smashed against an invisible barrier. With a tremendous bang, Hun Feng’s own bones snapped inward. Energy backlash forced blood rushing into his throat—but he choked it down forcefully, shaken by sheer fear at how mismatched their levels were.
Still reeling internally, he tried to activate secret techniques to boost speed. But then—a cold hand gently rested itself around his throat, chilling him rigid instantaneously.
“ANCESTOR, SAVE ME!”
Stiff and paralyzed, Hun Feng shrieked pitifully.
“Ancestor?”
Furrowing his brow, Xiao Yan scanned the battlefields in the sky rapidly. Hun Tiandi, Xu Wu Tun Yan, and the Hun Clan’s Four Fiend Saints were already embroiled—yet now another mysterious ancestor emerged? Whom could this be?
BOOMING RUMBLES echoed throughout the air as the skies churned fiercely above. Out from the black vortex descended a decrepit old figure appearing both ancient and near death himself, yet simultaneously exuding a presence matching even that of Gu Lieren—Gu Clan’s Lord of Darkness himself!
*Eighth-Star Dou Saint?!*
Even Xiao Yan tightened visibly with surprise at detecting that aura. So the Hun Clan still possessed masters hidden this strong?
“This junior would kindly ask that my unworthy descendant may be released…” The aged form walked calmly forward in slow steps, landing before Xiao Yan with an amiable smile creasing an ancient, wrinkled face.
“Who exactly are you?” Xiao Yan retorted icily.
“Heheh… This elderly servant is Hun Yuantian—one failed elder whose end met long ago beneath your forefather Xiao Xuan,” the elder answered softly with slight humor, yet unmistakable malice coiled into that last utterance.
“You don’t seem very… ‘undead,’” Xiao Yan narrowed his brows further. There was something unnatural about this figure’s arrival; suspicion lingered thick.
Moreover, just *how many* unknown, dormant masters had they stashed away? Could there exist others equal or greater than this one? If so, even combined armies might fail entirely against the Hun clan. For a rare moment, anxiety prickled Xiao Yan’s otherwise steely resolve.
Chuckle echoing quietly through the air, Hun Yuantian offered no immediate explanation:
“I suggest we trade terms: Hand him back to me. Your allied armies still lack the weight necessary to contain my kind.”
“Do they now?” Xiao Yan arced one eyebrow skeptically—and squeezed tighter around Hun Feng’s neck. Purpled-faced, the latter writhed helplessly in reply.
Observing this defiance stoically, Yuantian sighed, unphased by any show of coercion. Dark vapor wafted subtly off his body while his skeletal hand turned festering and rotten.
He moved leisurely—an airy motion of the palm—as though brushing against mere breeze rather than wielding peril itself. Yet within the desiccated claw that hovered forward drifted an eerie aura, distinctly suffused with death’s grim chill…
“Well Xiao Yan… If gentle persuasion falls on deaf ears…”
“…Then perhaps dying is all you’ll ever listen to.”
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