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**
The vast plaza fell into an eerie silence.
Countless eyes stared in horror at the mass of black mist hovering in the air.
The chilling sound of chewing echoed strangely over the still square.
Everyone could vaguely imagine the terrifying scene unfolding within that fog—something grotesque and unspeakable.
And just imagining it was enough to send a shiver down their spines.
"Master, he… is he actually—?"
Xiao Yan's gaze was locked on the black mist as he asked with a hint of shock through voice transmission.
"That guy probably just devoured Yun Shan's soul alive," Yao Lao answered, his expression darkening.
He could clearly sense a cold and sinister energy rapidly growing inside the black fog.
Hearing that, Xiao Yan's face changed slightly, his emotions turning a bit complicated.
He hadn't expected Yun Shan to meet such a miserable end.
"People from the Hall of Souls are incredibly strange… I didn't think they could actually consume souls so directly to enhance their power."
Yao Lao's voice was low and serious.
"But this kind of secret art must come with heavy consequences. Even if he manages to successfully devour Yun Shan's soul now, the price he'll pay afterward won't be small."
"Otherwise, he wouldn't have waited until this desperate moment to use it."
Both Xiao Yan and Wei Yang nodded silently.
Devouring someone else's soul wasn't something you could do casually. It involved the very essence of one's spirit. Mess up, and you could destroy yourself.
"Are we just going to stand here and watch? Should we stop him?"
Xiao Yan gripped the Heavy Xuan Ruler tightly, frowning.
"I'll try."
Yao Lao narrowed his eyes as a cold gleam flashed through them.
With a flick of his sleeve, a dense wave of Bone Chilling Flame surged outward, sweeping directly toward the black mist.
Wherever it passed, the scorching heat in the air plummeted into a deathly chill.
The snow-white flames tore through the void—yet just before striking the black mist, it suddenly trembled violently.
A surging tide of frigid, dark fog exploded outward and clashed with the flames.
Chi chi chi—
The two forces corroded one another… and then both vanished into nothingness.
Yao Lao frowned slightly.
Wei Yang also raised an eyebrow.
"Interesting," he murmured, still calm, making no move to interfere just yet.
But behind his back, his right hand—hidden beneath his wide sleeves—was slowly and silently forming a pitch-black sun in his palm.
"Jie jie jie… Yao Chen, with your current strength, how could you hope to break my Hall of Souls's secret technique?" A strange, bone-chilling laugh echoed from within the black fog.
Having successfully devoured Yun Shan's soul through his secret art, the massive energy boost had slightly restored Protector Tie's confidence.
But… he knew it still wasn't enough.
Suddenly, his voice grew louder, booming across the sky: "Since Yun Shan is dead, there's no longer any need to support the Yun Lan Sect… So, everyone—assist me!"
The moment those sinister words rang out, many of the Yun Lan Sect elders' faces changed drastically.
Without hesitation, they turned and tried to flee in all directions.
But before they could get far, a strange suction force erupted from within the black fog.
That force blanketed the entire plaza. It didn't harm ordinary people—but the fleeing Yun Lan Sect elders? Their bodies suddenly froze midair.
Then, as if they'd turned into lifeless puppets, they stood still—faces contorted with pain and horror.
"What are you doing?!"
Yun Yun's expression changed dramatically at the sight of the elders' pained and twisted faces.
She quickly realized what was happening, and sorrow crept across her delicate features.
Around the square, everyone's pupils shrank in shock.
"Jie jie… They all accepted power from my Hall of Souls. Otherwise, how could your Yun Lan Sect rise in strength so quickly over the past three years?"
"Since they've reaped the benefits, now that Hall of Souls needs something in return, it's time for them to pay the price."
"There's no such thing as a free lunch in this world."
The cold, eerie laughter echoed once more from the black mist.
Protector Tie made no effort to hide the Hall of Souls's secret arts—he exposed their cruelty right out in the open.
"Release!"
A sharp, commanding shout suddenly rang out.
The bodies of nearly ten Yun Lan Sect elders immediately went limp and collapsed to the ground.
At the same time, illusory soul forms began to rise slowly from their skulls—ascending into the air, drifting toward that terrifying black mist.
Everyone watched in horror.
Yun Yun's body trembled slightly. Her beautiful face gradually filled with sorrow.
This… this was the fate of being used—then mercilessly discarded.
Just then—
Fwoosh!
As if on cue, Xiao Yan, Yao Lao, and Wei Yang all made their move at the exact same moment.
With a unified sweep of their arms, a torrent of flames burst forth.
Black, emerald-green, and bone-white fire surged out in three terrifying waves.
Black Sun Burning Heaven Flame, Glazed Lotus Heart Flame, and Bone Chilling Flame—the trio of flames blazed forward from three different directions, flooding the sky like a storm.
"What?!"
Even before the flames arrived, the searing heatwaves hit like a tidal wave, forcing a shriek out of Protector Tie.
The three flames crashed together in the center like tidal waves converging from different seas.
And just like a chain reaction had been triggered—
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The entire space trembled and boiled. The air distorted, twisted, cracked, and rumbled like the world was coming undone.
Waves of energy ripples spread rapidly in all directions.
The three heavenly flames were fierce and unwilling to yield, fiercely repelling and colliding with one another.
Their destructive auras clashed wildly. The force they unleashed was terrifying—something reminiscent of Xiao Yan's Angry Buddha Lotus Flame.
In just a split second, the dozens of soul forms rising into the air were obliterated into ashes. Protector Tie didn't even get a chance to absorb them.
And then, the tricolor flame storm engulfed the black mist completely, setting it ablaze.
"Block it!"
Protector Tie let out a high-pitched, trembling shriek.
Being at the epicenter of a triple fusion of Heavenly Flames—this kind of scenario would strike fear into even the bravest hearts.
He went mad. Desperate.
From the black mist, torrents of ghostly vapor surged outward, trying to resist the firestorm's devouring power.
"Damn it! You're forcing me—YOU'RE FORCING ME!" Protector Tie roared through clenched teeth.
He tore open a Soul Bag and hurled it wide.
Instantly, countless ghostly, translucent soul bodies flew out of it—flitting and swirling like a swarm of moths—and fused straight into the black mist.
And from within, the dreadful chewing sounds returned, louder and more frenzied than before.
With each bite, Protector Tie's aura of cold, sinister energy grew more volatile, more overwhelming.
"Aaargh!!"
Deep within the black fog, two blood-red beams of light flared like demonic eyes.
Protector Tie's voice shrieked across the entire mountain, filled with agony.
That hoarse, agonized scream sent goosebumps crawling across every person's skin—it was the sound of someone being devoured alive… or devouring others.
Eventually, the black mist churned and boiled like lava—vomiting out rings of black air into the sky.
After a few moments, the black mist suddenly began to shrink back rapidly—as if no longer willing to fight the Heavenly Flames.
It receded. And at last—
A figure slowly emerged before the crowd.
Wrapped entirely in a pitch-black suit of armor, the man stood silently at the heart of the battlefield.
The armor was blacker than ink, forged from some unknown material, and it was covered in strange, arcane patterns.
On closer inspection, those patterns were twisted, agonized human faces—carved into every inch of the plating.
And the largest, most detailed face among them?
It was Yun Shan's.
The sight sent chills through everyone watching.
That armor—those screaming faces—made their blood run cold and their limbs freeze in dread.
Protector Tie now stood at the very center of the three-colored sea of fire, letting it burn around him.
But the power he now radiated had become over ten times stronger than before.
That suffocating, dark aura spread through the flames and even forced the fiery sea to retreat slightly in fear.
Finally, that sinister energy blanketed the entire Yun Lan Mountain.
In that instant, what had once been a blazing mountaintop—its heat so intense it lit up the sky—was turned into a realm of icy death.
Even the sky, dyed crimson by the glow of the flames, darkened with gloomy clouds. A chilling wind began to howl through the heavens.
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