Chapter 544: Instant Kill

The others were also furious; their Hua Sect had always sought no conflict with the world, and when Hua Jin served as acting Sect Master, she had actively strengthened ties with the Tian Ming Sect, causing them to lower their guard.

When Yun Yun encountered the Tian Ming Sect, she had deliberately avoided them, not wanting to bring trouble to Xiao Yan—this was why she missed reuniting with him—but she never expected the Tian Ming Sect to follow them relentlessly and launch a surprise attack, killing one of their Elders.

"Several Elders, this is not the time to discuss this. The Tian Ming Sect is chasing us without pause—they clearly intend to leave none of us alive here. If we cannot escape this disaster, how can we ever fight them to the death?"

Yun Yun let out a soft sigh and shook her head. She had now fully adapted to her role as Hua Sect's Sect Master; her speech carried the bearing of a superior, and with the aid of Xiao Yan's Elixir, she had fully absorbed Hua Po Po's Dou Qi, elevating her own strength to the Nine-Star Dou Zun level—the strongest in the Hua Sect group.

Originally, the Hua Sect group, including herself, had two Nine-Star Dou Zuns and had no fear of the Tian Ming Sect—but just now, during the surprise attack, the other Nine-Star Dou Zun was wounded, and the Tian Ming Sect now also possessed two Nine-Star Dou Zuns; naturally, they were no longer a match.

"Watch out!"

"Hehehe, Sect Master Yun Yun, why resist any longer? Besides, it's your fortune that our Vice Sect Master takes an interest in you." Suddenly, a powerful gust of wind surged toward them, followed by a shrill, eerie laugh that made Yun Yun's face grow grim.

As the old man appeared to block them, a rapid whistling sound erupted behind Yun Yun and the others; soon, a dozen figures swiftly stepped through the air, landing on an open patch of ground behind them, cutting off all escape for the Hua Sect members.

"Hehe, Sect Master Yun Yun, I told you—you cannot escape."

The dozen figures slowly stepped forward; their leader, a middle-aged man with pale skin, wore an opulent purple brocade robe. He smiled at Yun Yun in the distance, openly and brazenly scanning her up and down, his tongue involuntarily licking his lips.

Such a paragon was truly rare—if he could make her his private concubine, how many would envy him?

"Liu Cang, do you wish to provoke a full-scale war between the Hua Sect and the Tian Ming Sect?" Yun Yun's face darkened with fury as she coldly shouted.

"I truly don't wish for that. Some of the old recluses within the Hua Sect are quite troublesome, hehe—but no matter. Kill the rest, imprison you in our Tian Ming Sect, and they'll never know."

"Hehe, Vice Sect Master, better act quickly—delay may bring complications. This Manhuang Ancient Domain is filled with Fierce Beasts, and many other Factions have agents here too; if discovered, it'll only cause more trouble." Behind Liu Cang, a man holding a purple fan chuckled. His face was unmistakably that of the Yao Hua Xie Jun.

"I heard you have a beautiful disciple who is the Sect Master of the Yun Lan Sect. When the time comes, mother and daughter serving one man—that would make a fine tale."

Whether Yun Yun or Nalan Yanran, both were now Sect Masters of unparalleled status—naturally, countless others coveted these two master and disciple.

"Keep that fine tale for yourself to hear in the Underworld." Suddenly, a cold voice came from behind, followed by a swirl of Black Flame burning through Space; from the Black Flame corridor emerged two figures—a man and a woman.

When Yun Yun saw the man in the black robe appear, her heart trembled slightly, and she sighed inwardly.

"Master, are you alright?" Nalan Yanran held the Jing Ling Bai Hu; a whirlwind surged around her as she arrived beside Yun Yun.

Even though she was now Sect Master of the Yun Lan Sect, before Yun Yun she was still that little girl who used to cling and pout.

"Yanran." Yun Yun's gaze held a touch of affection as she gently stroked Nalan Yanran's hair, her expression slightly awkward as she looked at Xiao Yan.

He came.

Seeing the two master and disciple standing together—their beauty making the Manhuang Ancient Domain seem as if spring had bloomed—the Tian Ming Sect's Vice Sect Master Liu Cang couldn't help swallowing hard, completely ignoring Xiao Yan's presence.

"Good, good! I've decided—I want these two beautiful master and disciple!" Liu Cang's mind and eyes, clouded by beauty, failed to notice that beside him, the Yao Hua Xie Jun had turned deathly pale, his legs trembling.

He had thought the same thing back then—and was later defeated. If Hua Jin hadn't been acting Sect Master then, he would have died in the Hua Sect.

"Damn it! How could we possibly run into this again!" The Yao Hua Xie Jun nearly cursed aloud. The Manhuang Ancient Domain was affected by ancient energy, severely suppressing Soul Force Perception—and this domain was so vast! How could they possibly run into this?!

Xiao Yan turned his head and glanced at Yun Yun; after a brief glance, he smiled and said, "You two haven't seen each other in a long time—catch up. I'll deal with these annoying flies first."

Yun Yun wanted to step forward to help, but the next second, Xiao Yan unleashed the terrifying aura of a Two-Turn Dou Zun.

"Two-Turn Dou Zun!!"

When Liu Cang felt the aura erupting from Xiao Yan, he finally snapped back to reality. Though he was Vice Sect Master of the Tian Ming Sect, he relied on power and influence—his actual strength was only Dou Zun Di Feng, even below a One-Turn.

The Yao Hua Xie Jun was even more terrified, his face turning ashen. How long had it been? How had he become a Two-Turn Dou Zun?!

Even absurdity has limits!

A whooshing sound of flame rose as a pale white flame appeared in Xiao Yan's palm; the moment it appeared, the temperature of the entire space plummeted sharply.

"Dou Technique of the Flame—Ten Thousand Bones' Furious Ice!"

Bone Spirit Cold Fire merged into Xiao Yan's palm; the next instant, he slammed his palm onto the ground.

Xiao Yan's Dou Qi surged violently; the power of heaven and earth halted at that moment. A crackling sound echoed as the entire earth, even the surrounding Space and Shan Mai, instantly froze over with frost—as if heaven and earth itself had been sealed, unable to tear through Space to escape.

From the frozen ground, countless skeletons carved from ice rose up; their ice was harder than steel, and deep white flames floated in their hollow eye sockets.

Not just the ground—the very Space above them now revealed countless white phantoms, each radiating waves of chilling cold, as if the entire Sky had been surrounded by these eerie ice phantoms.

Sssss! After emitting a series of hissing cries, the ice phantoms lunged at the Tian Ming Sect members.

"What the hell are these things?!"

"Get away!"

The Yao Hua Xie Jun and others were startled, each unleashing Dou Techniques to strike the ice phantoms. Boom! Boom! Boom! Individual ice phantoms shattered—but the next instant, their icy shards turned into mist, reforming like the phantoms themselves, then burrowing into the bodies of the Tian Ming Sect members.

Once inside, everyone immediately felt their Dou Qi freeze solid, unable to circulate properly—as if sealed.

Not just Dou Qi—even their SpiritFlesh froze. Their bodies stiffened. The Tian Ming Sect members' faces turned instantly pale; their breath became icy mist, frost forming on their skin.

Crackle! Crackle! Countless ice skeletons seized their feet, more and more crawling up from the ground, climbing over them—as if dragging the Tian Ming Sect members into the Underworld. The scene was utterly terrifying and uncanny!

"This this"

"Help! Save me!!"

"Quick! Take an Elixir and flee this place!"

The remaining Nine-Star Dou Zun elder of the Tian Ming Sect shouted, immediately swallowing an eighth-rank Elixir. The warmth spread through his belly, slightly relieving the freezing force.

With a snap of his fingers, Xiao Yan smiled faintly and murmured, "Explode."

The ice skeletons clinging to the Tian Ming Sect members suddenly raised their heads together; their hollow eyes blazed with deep white flame. Their jaws clacked rapidly—crack, crack, crack, crack—and in the instant Xiao Yan spoke, the pale white flame erupted violently.

Boom! Boom! Boom!!! The terrifying explosion of pale white flame instantly engulfed all members of the Tian Ming Sect. When the Sea of Fire receded, only a massive ice mountain remained—inside it, the entire Tian Ming Sect was frozen solid, their terrified expressions clearly visible through the transparent ice.

Meow! Mao Wu appeared from Space, opened his mouth, and sucked the entire ice mountain into the Void Space.

Xiao Yan reflected: Buddha Fury Lotus was too wasteful. He needed a technique that could kill enemies while sealing their Soul Bodies—and Bone Spirit Cold Fire's Dou Technique was perfect.

Bone Spirit Cold Fire was the inherited Flame of the Medicinal Sovereign; though ranked eleventh, it had helped him greatly when he was weak—providing Flame Energy to elevate the Fire Scripture's rank, and aiding him in his youth to resist a portion of the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame.

It had been one of his greatest allies throughout his journey.

"All… all of the Tian Ming Sect are dead!" The Hua Sect Elders stared in stunned silence. The very elders who had just been hunting them—two Nine-Star Peak Dou Zuns—had been instantly obliterated in a single strike!

They couldn't even escape!

"Even a Two-Turn Dou Zun shouldn't have such terrifying power!"

"I heard Master Xiao Yan killed the Nine-Turn Dou Zun Sky Scorpion Elder half a month ago—I thought it was exaggerated, that he had help… but now…"

Many of the Hua Sect's Elders witnessed Nalan Yanran's ascension to Sect Master back then, so they naturally knew Xiao Yan. The main thing is, Xiao Yan was still a Six-Star Dou Zun a year ago—how could you possibly have undergone a second transformation in the blink of an eye!!

No one would believe someone broke through to Six-Star in just one year!

Of course, others took a year; Xiao Yan took nearly four.

Powerful strength naturally breeds fear. In the eyes of the Hua Sect Elders, Xiao Yan was like a demon summoning Ghost Darkness from the Underworld, filling them with dread.

But in Yun Yun's eyes, Xiao Yan was not terrifying—just fond of putting on airs.

Xiao Yan turned back and saw Nalan Yanran and Yun Yun both giving him exasperated side-eyes, as if saying: "We know how great you are."

"Hehe, seems I've given you too little time to reunite." Xiao Yan chuckled, then pulled out several Elixirs and handed them to the injured Hua Sect Elders—his maneuver to win hearts was masterful.

Yun Yun sighed inwardly, glanced down at Nalan Yanran, then looked again at Xiao Yan. She had deliberately avoided him, yet in the end, she could not escape.

Seeing Xiao Yan instantly eliminate the reckless members of the Tianming Sect, Cai Lin and the others approached from afar.

These trash were more than enough for Xiao Yan alone.

Seeing Yun Yun, Cai Lin couldn't help but shoot Xiao Yan a cold glance. When he founded the Yan Alliance and courted her Snake People Empire, she had already seen through his hidden motives.

But Cai Lin said nothing—she had exchanged Spiritual Souls with Xiao Yan, so she knew full well what had happened between him and Yun Yun in the Mo Shou Shan Mai. The faint ripples and warmth nearly shared in that Cave were unforgettable for a sixteen-year-old boy like Xiao Yan.

If she were Xiao Yan, she wouldn't forget either.

Seeing Cai Lin's arrival, Yun Yun merely nodded from afar. Though both were among the four Founders of the Yan Alliance, each carried her own pride and would never force affection upon the other.

For a moment, an odd silence settled over the scene.

Seeing this, Hai Bodong and the Heavenly Flame Elder, two old men, barely suppressed their laughter and exchanged a knowing glance, communicating via Soul Force.

"If that Gu Clan girl shows up too…"

"Then it'll be complete."

"Hahaha, little Yanzi, this path of love is far harder than Cultivation!"

Hai Bodong and the Heavenly Flame Elder had eaten more salt than Xiao Yan had eaten rice—they had long known that someone with Xiao Yan's talent and warm heart would inevitably be surrounded by romance.

Seeing the inexplicably awkward silence in the crowd, Xiao Yan was drenched in cold sweat, embarrassed, silently screaming for help!

Xiao Yan's pleading gaze turned to Xiao Yixian, who cast him a sidelong glance, then quietly turned away without offering any aid. Even Xiao Yixian, usually gentle and kind, abandoned him now.

But someone would inevitably "step in."

The Hua Sect's Nine-Star Dou Zun Elder, after taking the Elixir, naturally felt obliged to repay Xiao Yan, smiling warmly: "Hehe, thank you, Master Xiao Yan, for saving us. Otherwise, we wouldn't have known what to do."

Xiao Yan naturally had to take the offered ladder!

"Hehe, Elder, you're too kind. The Hua Sect and Yan Alliance are closely allied—coming to each other's aid is only natural. Moreover, though Yun Yun is no longer Sect Master of the Yun Lan Sect, she once helped me and owes me nothing—I could never stand by and let her die. That would be ungrateful and unjust."

Xiao Yan's words were Water Without Leak, instantly dissolving the awkwardness.

If you think I did wrong, you're framing me as ungrateful and unjust!

"How long have you been in the Manhuang Ancient Domain?"

"Nearly five days. But we had no clear route, so progress was slow. Along the way, we stirred up a pack of extremely powerful Fierce Beasts, and were ultimately ambushed by the Tianming Sect—leading to Elder Qinghua's death. Sigh." The Elder spoke with sorrow.

(End of Chapter)