Chapter 139: Chaos Turns Into A Mess
Facing Mo Tianxing, who was roaring in anger, the masked man showed no signs of fear. Instead, there was a look of determination in his eyes, clearly intent on perishing together. This was understandable—when facing a true Dou Zong powerhouse, if he held anything back, he would surely die at the opponent's hands.
But just as the masked man was about to gamble his life, Mo Tianxing's rapidly rising aura suddenly shot off into the distance. His figure... was clearly running away!
"?!"
Seeing this, the masked man's pupils narrowed slightly, his face filled with disbelief.
It wasn't just him. The onlookers were also stunned by this scene. Mo Tianxing, a Dou Zong, was actually forced to run away from someone who wasn't even a Dou Zong. If word of this got out, Mo Tianxing would become the laughingstock of the entire Black-Corner Region.
Among the crowd, however, there were a few clever individuals. For example, Su Qian, the Grand Elder of Jia Nan Academy's inner courtyard, didn't feel any contempt when he saw Mo Tianxing running. Instead, he admired Mo Tianxing's decision. Seeing that things were going wrong, he chose the smartest course of action. As for his pride, surviving was the most important. Who cared about face?
Moreover, Mo Tianxing had forced the masked man to reveal all his cards. Now, the Dou Huang cultivators around them couldn't contain their desires.
Those were Royal Extreme Pills and Breaking Sect Pills!
If they could swallow them, they could save countless years of hard training and even enhance their talents. Once they became Dou Zong, becoming a Dou Zun would no longer be a distant dream.
Human nature is greedy. Desire is never satisfied...
At this moment, the masked man also sensed the strange atmosphere and glanced at the surrounding Dou Huang cultivators. Without hesitation, he transformed into a streak of light and fled in the opposite direction. As for chasing Mo Tianxing... a true Dou Zong could run freely. How could a half-step Dou Zong like him stop him?
Moreover, if he could escape this time, as long as he had time to swallow the Breaking Sect Pill, he would be able to break through to Dou Zong. After that, he could take revenge, making it much safer.
Looking at the fleeing masked man, the onlookers could no longer hold themselves back. Even the Golden and Silver Elders hesitated for a moment before choosing to follow.
"Grand Elder, aren't we going after him?"
The Third Elder from the outer academy couldn't help but ask.
Su Qian furrowed his brows, glanced at the direction of Black Seal City, and said solemnly, "The situation is too complicated. It's best if we don't get involved. Don't forget the rules of Jia Nan Academy. We've always stayed out of the disputes in Black-Corner Region!"
They could participate in the auction, and even if they bought the pills, they could take them back openly. But if they participated in the later conflict, it would violate the tacit understanding between Jia Nan Academy and the Black-Corner Region.
"Grand Elder is right. Although it's unfortunate, we've missed the best opportunity. Who would have expected Mo Tianxing from the Black Emperor Sect to intervene suddenly, and that man bringing out a beast corpse... we certainly don't have the capital to compete," Hu Qian sighed, as though resigned to fate.
He, too, was very eager for the Breaking Sect Pill, but he wasn't like the ruthless people of the Black-Corner Region. He had his own principles and restraint.
Not everyone in the world is chasing power—some things are far more important than that.
"Let's go. We've been out for a while. It's time to return. Don't forget, the admissions for this year have already begun. You, the outer academy, have plenty of work ahead!" Su Qian lightened the mood and joked.
Hu Qian smiled in response and nodded. Then, with the Third Elder, they used their Dou Qi wings and flew back toward Jia Nan Academy.
Not long after they left...
Yao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian appeared at the scene. He looked toward the direction where Su Qian and the others had left, his dark eyes calm, and muttered, "They really are from Jia Nan Academy."
"This Black-Corner Region is the only place where they seem to follow some rules. Boy, when are you planning to infiltrate Jia Nan Academy? The day they start recruiting students isn't far off." Yao Lao's soul body floated out of the Bone Flame Ring. With his hands behind his back, he observed Yao Yan with curiosity, eager to see what kind of shock Yao Yan would bring to Jia Nan Academy once he entered.
"Students? I'm not interested in being anyone's student."
Yao Yan smiled, his tone confident and calm.
His demeanor naturally attracted the attention of both Yao Lao and Xiao Yi Xian. The two looked at him curiously as he chuckled and teasingly said, "I'm the type to teach others, I enjoy passing on knowledge."
Yao Lao: …
Xiao Yi Xian: …
Both were left speechless by his words. They looked at Yao Yan's young face and were momentarily silent.
Xiao Yi Xian, not wanting to listen to more of Yao Yan's jokes, placed her hands on her slender waist, her cold gaze still locked on the direction where the masked man had fled. Her brows furrowed slightly, and she asked, "What are you going to do about that?"
"Follow him. If we find him badly injured and willing to surrender, we'll give him a healing pill. If not, we'll just kill him... After all, Black-Corner Region is full of Dou Huang cultivators." Yao Yan smiled gently as he spoke.
If he was going to build his own power, he couldn't follow the usual path, especially in a place like Black-Corner Region!
The reason he threw out the pills in the first place was to shake up Black-Corner Region.
Unfortunately, he hadn't lured out Han Feng yet. He might need to take a trip personally.
Thinking of this, Yao Yan glanced at Yao Lao. This old man hadn't mentioned the matter, which meant he hadn't figured out how to deal with the child he raised, even though the child had betrayed him and allied with others to harm him.
Not everyone in this world is cold and heartless. For some, family is more important than anything else.
Yao Lao was definitely one of those people.
Since he hadn't brought it up, Yao Yan wouldn't press the issue. After all, he wasn't yet at the Dou Huang level. Once he broke through to nine-star Dou Wang, it wouldn't be too late to find Han Feng and take the Heavenly Flame from him.
Then, he could begin devouring the Fallen Heart Flame!
That Fallen Heart Flame, which had already condensed the heavenly flame, was the real feast for Yao Yan.
...
...
"Cough, cough... A bunch of lunatics. Is it really that serious? It's just two pills!" A dry, thin man leaned against a rock wall, clutching his sunken chest with one hand. He coughed up blood continuously, his face contorted with rage as he cursed unwillingly.
Having survived alone in Black-Corner Region for many years, he considered himself fairly strong, but the scene before him was something he hadn't seen in a long time.
And that survivor from the Earth Demon Sect—he was a ruthless one, throwing the pills out and making the battle behind even bloodier. Whoever got the pills became the target of everyone's attack. At first, there was some rationality, but by now, everyone was out of their minds.
"Indeed~ Two pills and you all go crazy. I can't understand it. But compared to the pills, I find your souls more delicious, hehehe~"
Accompanied by a creepy laugh, an icy energy suddenly enveloped the Dou Huang cultivator. A pitch-black hand shot out from the stone wall, pierced through his chest, and dark mist began to pour out from the arm, slowly engulfing the man's body.
"You?!" The thin Dou Huang's eyes widened in terror as he looked at the black hand that shot out of his chest. His body felt like it was frozen in ice, and the Dou Qi that he had been controlling now seemed to freeze, losing all control.
"Whoosh~"
The black arm emanated an incomparable devouring force, as if it regarded all soul bodies as food, greedily consuming the soul of the body. One could even hear the soul's painful screams.
If the man had been at full strength, he wouldn't dare be so reckless, but now that the man was at the end of his strength, it gave him the opportunity to strike.
They were like venomous snakes hiding in the dark—either they didn't strike, or they would deliver a fatal blow.
Soon, the life force of the Dou Huang was slowly devoured, turning into a cold corpse that fell to the ground. At the same time, a soul was pulled out from the body. Most of its essence had been consumed, leaving only a fragment of its purest soul, which was the task of the Soul Hall and its purpose.
Every soul contained a portion of its purest essence. If this essence could be extracted in a special way, it could strengthen the soul of the one who took it.
Of course, this last process wasn't easy. Not everyone could recklessly devour these essences, like the Soul Masters and Protectors. Most of them had secret methods for devouring others' souls, and these methods often had huge side effects. The greatest danger was not the memories of the people they devoured, but the fact that their own souls would no longer remain pure.
But low-level Soul Masters didn't deserve the right to purify them...
"Third one... Really delicious~" The Soul Master from the Soul Hall laughed sinisterly as he molded the Dou Huang's soul essence into a ball and placed it in his belt pouch. The pouch had been specially treated to store soul bodies. The soul inside would fall into a deep coma, so there was no need to worry about the person resisting.
"Whoosh~"
At that moment, a dark soul body appeared from the ground, respectfully bowing to the Soul Master and saying, "Master, I found the target!"
"Good. This body is yours now. You should know how to send the message. Let's make things more chaotic. This disturbance can't stop so soon~" The Soul Master sneered and tossed the corpse to the other soul. His indifferent tone gave the impression that he was used to such things.
"...Understood." The soul trembled slightly before quickly turning into black mist and entering the Dou Huang's corpse. Moments later, the body, which hadn't completely cooled yet, was controlled, and its eyes reopened. However, the skin had turned pale and lifeless.
...
The chaos caused by the Royal Extreme Pill and the Breaking Sect Pill grew more intense, and with the arrival of the Soul Hall, the scope of the disturbance widened. Many factions were dragged into the mess, and rumors spread that the Breaking Sect Pill had fallen into the hands of a certain faction. The peak Dou Huang cultivators, in a bloodthirsty rage, immediately attacked, annihilating entire sects.
Some might still have reason, but faced with this "zero-dollar purchase" event, once they tasted the sweetness, who could suppress their greed? As time passed, the pills' whereabouts became unimportant. The real question was, who was the next target?
When Yao Yan heard this news, he was momentarily stunned. He hadn't expected things to escalate like this. It seemed that Black-Corner Region had descended into chaos without him needing to intervene.
"Truly a bunch of talents..."
After hearing Yuan Yi's words, Yao Yan snapped out of his daze and couldn't help but sigh. He was reminded of a beautiful country from his past life, where there seemed to be similar customs. But then again, Black-Corner Region was a place that thrived on black-market dealings. It was just that no one had ever gathered so many people together before, nor had there been a target to provoke them.
Now, with the Royal Extreme Pill and Breaking Sect Pill, they had a reason to act together, and as they found the situation more and more advantageous, the excitement was undeniable.
"It seems like someone is pushing things along from behind. The number of Dou Huang deaths in this period is a bit too high."
Hearing this, Xiao Yi Xian became concerned about something else. She had been keeping Yao Yan's words in mind, preparing to select a few people to become future subordinates. But with people killing each other more and more recklessly, those she had selected were killed before they could even interact with her. It was absurd, almost like someone was deliberately hunting these Dou Huang cultivators.
Could there be others with the same idea as them?
"Once the bodies are almost all dead, they'll calm down... But this method feels familiar. Looks like those guys couldn't resist acting." Yao Lao gently stroked his beard as he floated by Yao Yan, his tone serious.
The Soul Hall... Yao Yan murmured in his heart. Only the Soul Hall could operate on such a large scale and affect most of Black-Corner Region.
In the original story, the Soul Hall had its hands in nearly every "villainous" faction. Anyone with potential was marked by them and turned into their puppets... The Soul Hall seemed to have a special secret technique that could greatly increase someone's power, but the side effect was a drastic change in personality—almost losing their original self, leaving them vulnerable to manipulation.
This method was nearly identical to the Void Devouring Flame.
Yuan Yi, however, didn't know who Yao Lao was referring to. He kept his head down, a wise man wouldn't ask questions he shouldn't know the answers to.
"Since things have escalated to this point, we should get involved too. I plan to set my sights on the Demon Flame Valley. Yuan Yi, send someone to spread the word that the Breaking Sect Pill and Royal Extreme Pill have fallen into the hands of the Demon Flame Valley... Also, get in touch with the Golden and Silver Elders, see if they're willing to become my subordinates. As a reward, I'll give each of them a Breaking Sect Pill."
Yao Yan paused for a moment, his gaze turning cold as he looked at Yuan Yi. He spoke faintly.
(END CHAPTER)
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