Han Feng kept shouting, but no one came. His hope slowly died.
He stood there, still proud, looking at the crowd around him. He had already accepted he wouldn't live through this. But his pride would never let him die like a beaten dog.
"Han Feng, when you broke into my academy, did you ever imagine you would die here?"
Su Qian's eyes held a cold smile, his gaze sharp as a blade.
"The winner becomes king, the loser a bandit. Without help from some mysterious power, what could your academy possibly have done to me?"
Han Feng met Su Qian's stare, mockery still clinging to his voice.
"But that is how things stand. You have already lost. Nothing remains for you now except death."
Su Qian fell silent at those words. It was true. Without Pure Heaven Divine Palace backing him, he would have had no way to deal with Han Feng—unless those two hidden old monsters chose to come out of their seclusion.
"You people must be from Pure Heaven Divine Palace, am I right? I know every faction in the Black-Corner Region. I know who belongs where. Even that Heavenly Serpent Mansion, which barely shows its face, I know well. But your Pure Heaven Divine Palace appeared out of thin air, and I still haven't managed to dig up a single thing about your true origins."
Han Feng looked at Xiao Tian and the others. His voice was low, but certain.
"That's right. We are Pure Heaven Divine Palace."
Xiao Tian didn't bother denying it. Letting the name ring out here would stir things up in the academy. It would plant a seed in the students' minds.
"We're here because you were the first to harbor ill intentions toward our Pure Heaven Divine Palace."
Xiao Tian didn't pull his punches. He threw the accusation straight at Han Feng.
"So that's it. No wonder."
Han Feng thought of Earth Demon Old Ghost, who never showed his face. That old ghost must have met a very ugly end.
Just then, a thick black mist erupted, spreading in all directions.
"Save me!"
Han Feng's eyes erupted with desperate, clawing hope. He screamed at the top of his lungs.
"Hehehe. Pathetic. Save you? I have no interest in that. But your soul… and your Heavenly Flame… those, I am very interested in. You're going to die anyway. Why not just offer yourself to me?"
Xiao Tian watched the black mist, unmoving. He signaled the others to stay still too. He wanted to see this play out—let the dogs tear each other apart.
Black chains materialized, one after another, right in front of Han Feng.
The chains shot forward and pierced straight through his body.
Han Feng stared down, disbelief written across his face. He tried to speak, but blood came flooding out of his mouth instead of words.
The chains retracted fast, dragging a transparent soul body out with them. Inside that soul body, a cluster of blue flame still flickered.
The students around the battlefield stared at the black mist-covered scene, standing on tiptoes, some with eyes literally glowing—probably using some kind of pupil Dou Technique to see through it.
Han Yue's heart seized with anxiety. She started walking toward the black mist.
Xiao Yu grabbed her hand, stopping her.
"Xiao Yu, let me go. I have to go there. Even if I die, I want to die in front of Xiao Tian. Dying with him—I'd have no regrets."
Han Yue's Dou Qi flared, shaking off Xiao Yu's grip. She strode quickly toward where Xiao Tian had been standing.
She had only taken a few steps when a slender figure in green appeared beside her and held her still.
"With your strength, you shouldn't go. He is perfectly safe in there. Nothing threatens him."
The voice was cool and clear, but carried a strange gentleness.
Han Yue looked up and saw a delicate, beautiful face touched with nobility.
—
Inside the arena, Protector Xuan pulled the chains back, holding Han Feng's soul body in his hand.
"You dog! I curse you to die a terrible, agonizing death!"
Han Feng's soul kept spewing curses without pause.
Protector Xuan didn't even bother to listen. He shoved Han Feng's soul into a soul bag and prepared to escape.
"Hehehe. Thank you for your generous contribution."
He was already imagining the rich rewards the Hall of Souls would heap on him once he delivered Han Feng's soul and Heavenly Flame.
He turned to leave, fully confident. His movement technique, his secret hiding art—unless a Dou Zun appeared, no one could completely stop him. Sure, there was an Eight-Star Dou Zong here, but he could still escape even if it cost half his life. The price would be steep, but the prize was worth far more.
Just as he moved to vanish—Bang!
He crashed headfirst into the space in front of him.
"What the hell is going on?!"
Protector Xuan reached out and tapped the empty air. A solid knocking sound echoed back.
"Hehehe. You sure love your little 'hehehe,' don't you? Go on. Keep going."
Xiao Tian lifted his head. His eyes seemed to pierce straight through the layers of space, locking onto the now-panicked Protector Xuan.
"Boy, you're asking for death!"
Enraged, Protector Xuan sent chains shooting straight at Xiao Tian.
Every chain struck the space right in front of Xiao Tian. Sparks scattered. Nothing got through.
Before Protector Xuan could attack again, a massive purple palm appeared above him and came crushing down. Thick poison gas and pale purple flames clung to its surface.
"You dare attack him? Then die."
Xiao Yi Xian's voice rang through the air, utterly emotionless.
"A Dou Zun?! Damn it! How is there a Dou Zun in this barren, forsaken corner of the world?!"
"Netherworld Soul Absorption!"
Souls flew out of his bag and straight into his mouth—Han Feng's soul among them.
As Han Feng dissolved into nourishment, he laughed like a madman. "Protector Xuan, you dog! I never thought you'd die this soon! Good! Good! Hahaha!"
And so Han Feng became food, his power feeding Protector Xuan's own. The curtain finally fell on the Medicine Emperor of a generation. His whole life had been tangled with the Hall of Souls—from scheming with them to murder his own master, to being watched by their agents, to finally dying at their hands. Full circle.
Protector Xuan's strength skyrocketed, blasting from a Four-Star Dou Zong all the way to Eight-Star Dou Zong. He thrashed with the chains wrapped around his body, desperately trying to push back the giant hand crushing him. It was useless. Like throwing pebbles into the sea. Not even a ripple.
"Annihilate."
The giant palm closed completely.
At Xiao Yi Xian's command, the hand squeezed tight. Protector Xuan's body—nothing but a soul construct—burst into specks of light and scattered into the sky. The giant hand dissolved into purple mist and faded away.
Xiao Tian flicked his finger. The Three Thousand Burning Flame roared to life inside the sealed space Xiao Yi Xian had made.
"Ah! Ah! Ah!"
A shriek of pure agony echoed from within. A tiny wisp of soul writhed and twisted inside a cluster of dark purple flames.
—
When Protector Xuan finally died, the black mist slowly thinned and vanished, revealing Xiao Tian and the others.
A deep blue flame materialized in front of them, already trying to flee. Xiao Tian waved his hand. silver light flickered in his right palm, and his Eternal Heaven Pearl sucked the Sea Heart Flame straight in.
The Gold and Silver Elders, still sprawled on the ground, tried to crawl away while everyone's attention was fixed on Protector Xuan.
Old Mo, who had been watching them the whole time, finished them without a second thought. Metallic Dou Qi shredded their bodies to pieces, then ground them into fine powder. The wind carried them away.
—
Su Qian watched as it all finally ended. The academy was saved. The battle had seemed fierce, and yet… it hadn't felt that fierce. The academy itself barely took damage. The destruction from all this fighting wasn't even as bad as when the Heavenly Flame erupted.
He thought of Han Feng's endless hidden cards. If Pure Heaven Divine Palace hadn't stepped in, his academy would have turned into a river of blood by now. That woman who struck last—he had tasted death in her presence. If she had turned on him, he would have been erased in an instant.
—
The scene shifted.
Xiao Yan followed the Fallen Heart Flame down, down, into the underground world.