Chapter 86: YaoLi

"What the hell is this?!"

With a boom, Xiao Yan activated the Exploding Step and leaped backward at high speed to evade the attack.

Seeing the three different types of magical beasts before him, Xiao Yan was surprised—his Eight Extremes Crush hadn't smashed them to death with a single punch!

If the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King knew Xiao Yan's thoughts, he'd probably spit at him. You're just a Dou Master—do you think you can one-punch kill a Third Grade Magical Beast? Are you insane!?

Even crossing ranks doesn't work like this!

"These magical beasts are all those who entered Shou Zhong over the past three hundred years seeking the Ten Thousand Beasts Spiritual Flame—and died. Without exception, they all found the Ten Thousand Beasts Spiritual Flame, but their spiritual souls were corrupted by the tainted flame and fused with the ghostly shadows of Shou Zhong, becoming Beast Slaves." The Purple Crystal Winged Lion King shrank his body and quietly leaned against the wall, watching Xiao Yan get beaten, showing no intention to help.

Give him a slice of watermelon and he'd become a spectator.

"Damn, no wonder their bodies are so tough—even my Eight Extremes Crush, perfected to its peak, couldn't shatter their flesh!" These beasts had reached the location of the Ten Thousand Beasts Spiritual Flame, received its enhancement, but ultimately failed to inherit it and instead had their spirits erased, becoming Beast Slaves of the Ten Thousand Beasts Spiritual Flame.

The Eight Extremes Crush, perfected to its peak, rivals a low-level Earth-Rank Dou Technique. Don't be fooled by Xiao Yan's low cultivation realm—his combat power exceeds that of an ordinary Third Grade Magical Beast.

The hidden force of the Eight Extremes Crush can instantly kill weaker Third Grade Magical Beasts.

"Fierce Lion Roar!" A layer of energy resembling a Dou Qi Gauze Garment wrapped around Xiao Yan's entire body. He flicked his storage ring, and the Black Weighted Ruler appeared in his hand.

His palm gripped the Black Weighted Ruler tightly. As his spirit tensed, threads of Dou Qi began flowing from the vortex within his body, surging through his veins to provide his master with sufficient battle power.

At this moment, Xiao Yan transformed entirely—holding the Black Weighted Ruler, he stood towering and immovable, the ruler in hand, weight immeasurable, unmoving as a mountain, nothing in the world able to shake him.

Roar! Roar! Roar!! A beast slave resembling a crocodile charged forward, its scales gleaming with cold light, seemingly capable of withstanding any attack.

Xiao Yan's eyes hardened; his Soul Force surged outward. In his vision, the world changed instantly—the charging beast slave's movements slowed to a crawl, its blood vessels and flowing blood visible in perfect clarity.

With a light flick, both hands gripped the Black Weighted Ruler and executed an upward slash—no technique, just the most basic upward strike, simple and unadorned. A heavy thud rang out as the strike struck the beast slave's chin, launching it into the air and exposing its unarmored belly.

Instantly shifting technique, his right hand formed a claw—Black Tiger Grabs Heart—and drove deep into a single point on the belly. A whoosh of Black Flame ignited, and a piercing ghostly scream erupted from within the beast slave.

Xiao Yan pulled the ghostly shadow from the beast slave's body and hurled it into the air; Mao Wu appeared mid-air and spat a cluster of Black Flame that continuously burned the shadow.

These ghostly shadows resembled humans more closely than those outside Shou Zhong, and when burned by Void Swallowing Flame, they emitted agonized screams—possessing greater sentience!

Boom! Xiao Yan unleashed two Exploding Steps, dashing in a Z-pattern to the second beast slave's position.

He leapt high and brought the Black Weighted Ruler down with utter plainness. It wasn't even a slash—it was more accurate to say Xiao Yan pressed down with all his strength.

He was using his entire body's weight to crush the beast slave.

Like a mountain collapsing from above, the already immense weight of the Black Weighted Ruler, combined with the Dou Qi channeled through Fierce Lion Roar, crushed the beast slave beneath it with terrifying force.

Soul Force Perception locked onto the ghostly shadow within the beast slave; his five fingers pierced in and ripped the shadow out with Black Flame.

"Flame Division: Devouring Wave Ruler!"

Xiao Yan didn't even turn his head—his Soul Force had already sensed the final beast slave lunging. In the instant he spun, without a word, he unleashed Flame Division: Devouring Wave Ruler!

Black Flame enveloped the entire Black Weighted Ruler.

Instantly, the forces of heaven and earth surged. As Xiao Yan brought the Black Weighted Ruler down, the cave cracked beneath it, and even space itself showed faint, microscopic fissures.

This was the power of Void Swallowing Flame—it had burned through a tiny tear in Space!

This power was terrifying—seemingly in that instant, the black flame blade could cleave through space itself.

Boom! Boom! Boom!!! The Flame Division: Devouring Wave Ruler, infused with Void Swallowing Flame, was utterly terrifying—the chaotic cave was split open with multiple holes. Not only did the ghostly shadows inside the beast slaves vanish, but even their flesh, strengthened by the Ten Thousand Beasts Spiritual Flame, disappeared into nothingness.

The Purple Crystal Winged Lion King stared in shock at Xiao Yan, who was panting heavily—his heart was utterly stunned.

"The power of this Dou Technique!! If not for his weak cultivation realm, he could've split this entire cave open!"

Xiao Yan swallowed a Third-Rank Great Qi Restoration Pill to replenish his Dou Qi. Earth-Rank Dou Technique plus Void Swallowing Flame—this consumption was truly immense.

But the power was unmatched—no Dou Master below Star Seven could withstand this strike.

"A high-level Dou Spirit's Soul Body? But it's slightly different." After restoring his Dou Qi, Xiao Yan looked up at the three burning ghostly shadows.

These shadows differed slightly from those outside—at least, their sentience was higher, and they screamed when burned.

Normally, a Dou Spirit who hadn't cultivated Soul Force couldn't produce a Soul Body—but due to Shou Zhong's peculiar nature, powerful beings who refused to die, fused with resentment, became such ghostly entities.

Mao Wu watched the three shadows nearly charred, opened his mouth, and swallowed them whole.

Meow~o(=∩ω∩=)m

He even let out a satisfied burp.

"High-level Dou Spirits are still too lowly—if I could swallow a Dou King's ghostly shadow, Void Swallowing Flame's power would rise another tier, and I might kill a Nine-Star Essence Refining with Flame Division: Devouring Wave Ruler." Xiao Yan calculated silently.

At that moment, Xiao Yan suddenly felt a powerful Soul Perception sweeping toward him from the cave ahead—this Soul Perception was extremely strong, rivaling that of a Fifth-Rank Alchemist!

Xiao Yan had no time to think—he retracted Void Swallowing Flame, pulled the hood of his Soul Robe over his head, wrapped himself completely, and instantly vanished into the dark shadow beside him.

Barely one second after Xiao Yan hid, two figures appeared as if teleporting.

When the figures appeared, Xiao Yan clearly saw them—an old man and a young man, the latter wearing a robe embroidered with the character "Yao" on the chest.

"Yao? Someone from the Alchemist Guild? No—Ya Fei told me the Alchemist Guild's badge is an Alchemy Cauldron, not a character." Xiao Yan frowned, and suddenly recalled the words Hun Lao Gui had whispered to him via Soul Resonance before leaving the Soul Sacrifice Old Shop.

【If you need a Strange Flame, beware the Yao Clan and Yan Clan—both Dou Emperor Families.】

"Are these two from the Yao Clan? Here for the Ten Thousand Beasts Spiritual Flame!!"

The man in the "Yao" robe glanced left and right, utterly ignoring the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King nearby.

"Strange—I clearly sensed the fluctuation of a Strange Flame just now. Why has it vanished?" The man muttered in confusion.

The old man glanced at the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King nearby and said coolly, "YaoLi, did you sense the Purple Crystal Beast Fire?"

Waves of Soul Force swept across the area, but no matter how hard YaoLi probed, he found nothing.

"Impossible—this trash flame, Purple Crystal Beast Fire, even deserves comparison to a Strange Flame? I'm a Fifth-Rank Alchemist—I couldn't possibly make such a basic mistake."

Roar!! The Purple Crystal Winged Lion King bellowed furiously: "Brat, you want to die?!"

YaoLi sneered coldly, almost mockingly: "MuLao, what's he saying? I don't understand."

Instantly, a Dou Emperor aura far more terrifying than Yun Yun's erupted from the old man.

"High-level Dou Emperor!"

(End of Chapter)