Chapter 392: The Curtain Falls
As the three Hall of Souls Heavenly Venerables launched their combined attack, countless spectators around the hall involuntarily held their breath.
They could clearly sense that Xiao Yuan's base cultivation was only at the four-star Dou Zun level. Though his earlier sneak attack had demonstrated terrifying physical strength and combat prowess, facing the all-out assault of three five-star Dou Zuns—this surely wouldn't be easy!
But Xiao Yuan showed no sign of panic. If the Hall of Souls had sent one of their top ten Heavenly Venerables, perhaps he'd be wary. But just three ordinary five-star Dou Zuns? They didn't qualify to make him nervous.
"Heavenly Flame Triple Transformation—First Form, Second Form, Third Form!"
Xiao Yuan decisively activated the Heavenly Flame Triple Transformation. After completing all three stages, his aura surged straight to the level of a seven-star Dou Zun—stunning everyone, including Tang Zhen, the Valley Master of Burning Flame Valley.
To boost one's strength by three stars instantly—it was as if this technique had been tailor-made for Xiao Yuan!
Xiao Yuan's soaring power turned the expressions of the three Hall of Souls experts ugly.
In the Dou Zun realm, the difference between each star was vast. With Xiao Yuan now overpowering them significantly, their hopes of injuring him vanished—and they now had to worry about whether they'd survive at all.
Remembering the horrific end of the Sky Underworld Sect's Dou Zun in the black domain, their hearts trembled. They pushed their Dou Qi to the limit, pouring everything into their final moves.
But in front of overwhelming power, Xiao Yuan had no lack of means to counterattack.
His momentum shifted dramatically. A dense, murderous aura surged from within his body.
The killing intent rapidly spread. Xiao Yuan's eyes snapped open, releasing a solid wave of killing fog. It formed a massive dark cloud in front of him, and from within it, a hundred-meter-wide shadowy hand burst forth, clawing toward the Hall of Souls' attacks.
This giant hand emanated a soul-shattering aura—formed from Xiao Yuan's years of life-and-death battles and his heavenly-level soul power. Even the crowd felt their hearts constrict. Weaker cultivators trembled with fear, knowing that if they faced this attack directly, they would be killed instantly.
Having unleashed the strike, Xiao Yuan retreated to the outside of the hall, no longer bothering to act.
Clearly, he believed this one blow was enough to decide the fight.
He was right.
Even if someone like Mo Yu were present, they'd have to treat this move seriously. Though Star Reacher and the Black-White Venerables were powerful, they were no match for a foundational technique of the Sky Underworld Sect executed by a seven-star Dou Zun of Xiao Yuan's caliber.
Under countless shocked gazes, the black giant hand shredded the final attacks of the three Hall of Souls elders. Then, it slammed into them, knocking them into the expanding black void left by the Dou Saint skeleton's Heaven-Tier Dou Technique.
Three miserable screams echoed briefly—then were cut off. The Hall of Souls team, who had only just made their grand entrance, was completely annihilated.
Moments later, the swirling black void trembled violently. It pushed to the edge of the grand hall, then slowly collapsed, vanishing entirely.
All that remained was a hundred-zhang-wide crater. The once-glorious main hall had been erased without a trace.
Gulp.
The survivors swallowed hard, cold sweat trickling down their backs. When they looked at Xiao Yuan now, it was with awe and deep fear.
That hundred-meter-long spectral hand... Not one person present could've blocked it. This was a man they dared not offend.
Xiao Yuan's gaze, however, locked onto something above the pit.
There, suspended in midair, floated the white jade skeleton. The red glow in its eyes had faded—it was now truly dead.
"The Heaven-Tier Dou Technique…"
Xiao Yuan's eyes burned with desire.
"Good thing you warned us," Venerable Tianhuo said, still shaken. "If that Dou Saint skeleton had struck again… even I might not have survived it."
"That one move must have been the rumored Heaven-Tier Dou Technique. And that was just a fragment of the Dou Saint's soul. If a living Dou Saint had used it… the entire ruin, or even half the Bone Mountain Range, might've been destroyed."
Cai Lin said quietly.
Xiao Yuan nodded. He had personally witnessed its destructive power.
"Heh… a lot of people had bad luck today," Zi Yan said, chuckling with a hint of schadenfreude.
Xiao Yuan looked around the plaza. Most of the crowd was gone. The few survivors were drenched in sweat, visibly shaken—clearly traumatized.
"Too bad… the scrolls were all destroyed too," Qinglian said regretfully.
"The real treasure here isn't the scrolls," Xiao Yuan replied with a smile, eyes burning as he gazed at the jade skeleton. "It's that Dou Saint skeleton."
Aside from holding the Heaven-tier technique, the skeleton itself was priceless. Anything left behind by a Dou Saint was a supreme treasure.
"Most of the survivors are damaged or weakened," Venerable Tianhuo noted. "We and Burning Flame Valley still have our full strength. We came out the best."
"Time to collect the prize."
Xiao Yuan smiled, and with a flash of green lightning underfoot, he shot into the crater and swept the skeleton into his storage ring.
After all the chaos, all of Xiao Yuan's enemies had been wiped out. Only Burning Flame Valley remained as a major faction—but they had no intention of contesting the skeleton.
Xiao Yuan had declared from the beginning: the skeleton was for reviving Yao Lao.
Burning Flame Valley respected that. Xiao Yuan was Tang Zhen's son-in-law, and Yao Lao's need made it a worthy cause.
More importantly, this was an opportunity to befriend Xiao Yuan, Xiao Yan, and Yao Lao—three genuine eighth-tier alchemists!
With Burning Flame Valley giving way, the other factions didn't dare raise objections.
After all, Xiao Yuan had just wiped out three five-star Dou Zuns with frightening ease. Most of the remaining cultivators were at best three-star Dou Zun. What could they do?
With the Dou Saint skeleton secured, Xiao Yuan saw no reason to stay. He gathered Cai Lin, Tang Zhen, and the Burning Flame Valley elites and departed.
Once the two dominant forces exited the ruins, most others followed. Some stubborn ones remained behind, hoping to find leftover treasure.
But as Xiao Yuan exited the Bone Mountain Range, he sensed spatial fluctuations ahead. A powerful aura emerged.
He immediately grew cautious—had Feng Qing'er survived and brought reinforcements?
But the spatial rift opened… and a burly man stepped out, heading straight for Zi Yan.
"Little girl, Uncle Hei didn't arrive too late this time, right?"
A booming laugh accompanied the muscular man's arrival.
"So the Taixu Ancient Dragon Clan really can traverse void space with ease," Xiao Yuan thought. "Their control over spatial power is unmatched."
"You're late! Xiao Yuan already finished the fight! I'm telling the elders on you when we get back!"
Zi Yan pouted.
Hearing that, the big man looked miserable. Clearly, this had happened before.
"Luckily, Xiao Yuan was here," Zi Yan added. "If anything had happened to the Dragon-Phoenix Origin Fruit… no punishment would've been enough."
"Ehehe…"
Uncle Hei scratched his head sheepishly. He knew full well the importance of the Dragon-Phoenix Origin Fruit. If it had fallen into the Heavenly Demon Phoenix Clan's hands, the elders wouldn't let him off lightly.
"This is Hei Qing," Zi Yan said, turning to introduce him. "He's from the Taixu Ancient Dragon Clan."
"Greetings, Senior Hei Qing."
Xiao Yuan greeted him respectfully. Though Hei Qing didn't look particularly old or strong, he was clearly an ancient monster who had lived for countless years.
"So you're Xiao Yuan… A descendant of Xiao Xuan, eh? Not bad. No wonder the Xiao Clan was once one of the Eight Ancient Clans."
Hei Qing grinned.
"You knew my ancestor?" Xiao Yuan blinked in surprise.
"Back when I met Xiao Xuan, I was about the same age as Zi Yan."
Hei Qing laughed—then frowned and looked at Zi Yan. "You've grown up already? Did he give you a Transformation Pill?"
"I brewed one for her to try. Didn't think it would work so well."
Xiao Yuan admitted.
"What a shame. Grown-up Zi Yan isn't as fun. Still—thanks for looking after her. Our clan will repay you."
Hei Qing smiled, but his gaze was serious.
"You're too kind, Senior Hei Qing. She's a joy to be around. Helping her is no trouble."
Xiao Yuan replied sincerely.
"She's very important to us. Getting her safely to Central Plains and reconnected with the clan—this is a great favor. One we won't forget."
Hei Qing said solemnly.
"Alright, enough chatter. Let's keep it simple: our clan owes you a favor. You can exit the Beast Region by heading east. But Zi Yan will return with me now."
"What?! I'm not going! It's boring there!"
Zi Yan protested, shaking her head vigorously.
"Don't blame me—it's the elders' orders. They say you've played enough. You haven't finished your inheritance yet. And now that the Dragon-Phoenix Origin Fruit is involved, you have responsibilities."
Hei Qing shrugged.
Zi Yan pouted, clearly unhappy.
"With your current strength, you're just a burden to Xiao Yuan," Hei Qing said gently. "Once you complete the inheritance, you'll be strong enough to truly help him."
Zi Yan paused—then looked down and muttered, "...Fine. You win."
Xiao Yuan admired Hei Qing's persuasion. Rough as he looked, the man knew how to hit where it mattered.
Hei Qing grinned at Xiao Yuan knowingly, then turned to Xiong Zhan.
"You too, big guy. You're a Dragon-Bear—a subordinate race of ours. Come with me and you'll benefit."
"Hehe. Yes, sir!"
Xiong Zhan nodded eagerly. He couldn't resist the presence of a true Taixu Ancient Dragon.
"Then we'll part ways here."
Xiao Yuan cupped his fists with a smile.
"Zi Yan, take care and train hard," Cai Lin said, ruffling her hair.
Zi Yan could only nod gloomily.
Without a sound, the space beside Hei Qing twisted, forming another rift.
"Let's go."
Hei Qing waved and stepped in. Xiong Zhan followed. Zi Yan lingered.
She approached Xiao Yuan, dropped a drop of violet-gold blood into his hand—shaping into a dragon imprint.
"With this, I'll always find you—wherever you are. When I return, you owe me lots of pills!"
She stared into his eyes with rare seriousness.
"Alright. I'll give you all the eighth-tier pills you want."
Xiao Yuan smiled, ruffling her hair again.
Zi Yan pouted, slipping from his hand.
"I'm not a little girl anymore! Hmph!"
And with that, she stepped into the spatial rift, her figure fading into the void.
(END CHAPTER)
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