"Old man, you old bastard, get out here right now!"
Han Feng shouted, almost delirious, as if his mind had truly snapped and he had gone crazy. But he still received no response. Only the Dou Venerate-level soul energy continued to influence his fight, making him certain that it was Yao Lao who had come.
"Don't bother. Isn't it better to just give up? As for your subordinates and allies, I've already made arrangements. There are others to deal with them."
Yan Qingshan's figure shimmered in the wind, and in an instant, he transformed into a dark wind. The wind gathered and dispersed, and a multitude of demonic shadows once again surrounded Han Feng.
At this time, outside Han Feng's manor, two figures glowing with silver light in the darkness completely sealed off the area where the pill-refining chamber was located. When Elder Ying Shan, the Gold and Silver Elders, and many more powerful experts appeared, not a single one dared to step forward to rescue Han Feng.
None of these people were fools. Anyone capable of creating a spatial barrier right under Elder Ying Shan's nose had to be a Dou Venerate-level expert in person. Furthermore, just by getting close, they could sense a deadly threat. The closer they got, the clearer it became.
The beings in the shadows were issuing a threat, but no one, including Elder Ying Shan, dared to show any displeasure. This was because the two auras threatening them were both at the Dou Ancestor level, and one of them was even on par with Old Ground Demon Ghost. How could they dare to get angry? It was already good that they hadn't run away.
"Han Feng, you have no chance now..."
With a cold laugh, the scenery in Han Feng's courtyard suddenly changed. It was as if it had been twisted into a ghostly and eerie spirit realm. A blood-red moon hung high overhead, casting a chilling, cold light down upon them.
The surrounding demonic shadows drifted and shifted, like resentful ghosts. Han Feng was wrapped in countless shadows and became even more panicked.
"Damn it, what kind of Dou Technique is this? Do such strange illusions really exist in this world?"
Han Feng was surrounded by a red glow, and he could feel the coldness coming from within his heart. The blurry illusions around him were impossible to distinguish from reality. At this moment, he was completely trapped in the illusion that Yan Qingshan had created. His eyes, his senses, and even his soul were deceived. He couldn't tell the difference between the illusion and reality at all.
"Han Feng, you've done so many evil things. Give me back my life..."
"Han Feng, why did you betray me..."
"Han Feng! Han Feng! Han Feng..."
A multitude of voices echoed in Han Feng's ears, each one sounding like the wailing of a ghost from the netherworld. The demonic shadows turned into what seemed like solid black mist.
These black mist shadows seemed to transform into figures he was familiar with. His revered teacher, Yao Chen, appeared in front of him. These illusions and voices made it impossible for him to focus. One after another, past memories echoed in his mind.
At this moment, he was completely consumed by madness, unable to distinguish reality from illusion. He felt an almost overwhelming urge to bury his head in his hands and vent his feelings.
"Aaaahhhh..."
Han Feng spread his arms and roared to the heavens. His mighty blue flames erupted with full force, like a blue mushroom cloud rising in the darkness. A glimmer of light burst forth from the night. Han Feng's final realization brought him a moment of clarity, but it also cost him his last chance to fight back.
"Han Feng, you lose!"
A figure suddenly appeared in front of him. As he reached out, the surrounding space seemed to twist, and the ghostly scene was sucked into an invisible vortex in his right hand. The courtyard, with its bright, crescent moon, returned to memory.
Han Feng was much more lucid now, but he had no chance left. The space around him fluctuated. A blood-red palm print mixed with a soul fluctuation imprinted itself on his chest.
At that moment, the air around him became solid, heavy as a giant rock pressing down on him. The sounds of insects and birds vanished. Everything seemed to have been petrified. He couldn't even shake his head or blink.
Puff…
A palm, seemingly slow but in fact incredibly fast, accurately struck Han Feng's chest. He was sent flying like an ignited cannonball, crashing heavily to the ground, utterly unable to fight back.
"Are you... really his disciple?"
Han Feng lay on the ground, looking up at Yan Qingshan, who walked over and took his storage ring. He asked the question he had in his heart. At this moment, he was severely injured and powerless. Aside from the Sea Heart Flame, he had no strength left to resist.
"Of course... not."
Yan Qingshan looked down at Han Feng with a smile, glancing at the blue storage ring in his hand. He spoke leisurely, "While Venerable Yao is also a Dou Venerate, he isn't the senior Yao Lao. What you saw before was just a trick, a setup I designed to make you lose your focus."
"I have to say, your strength is pretty good. If I had faced you head-on, it would have been a lot more difficult to take you down.
But I wasn't lying about everything. Yao Lao did find a new disciple and passed on the Flame Mantra, and he's preparing to help him subdue a heavenly flame. But I was the one who got to the Green Lotus Core Flame first."
"Cough... cough... you old bastard..."
After hearing Yan Qingshan's words, Han Feng grunted twice, as if he was out of breath. He then looked at Yan Qingshan again and said, "You told me all this, so you must have a purpose, right? What do you want? As long as you let me go, I'll give you anything.
You should know my status. I'm the number one alchemist in the Black-Corner Region. If you let me go, I can get you Dou Spirit Pills, Mighty Huang Pill Pills, Zong-Breaking Pills, and even seventh-grade pills."
"Han Feng, you still haven't figured out the situation. I'm the one in control here. What right do you have to bargain with me now?"
Yan Qingshan chuckled, and a wisp of invisible flame entered Han Feng's body. "I know you're not a tough guy and that you're very afraid of death. So..."
"Aaaah..."
Han Feng's face contorted. As the wisp of the Fallen Heart Flame entered his body, he felt his soul being scorched. The soul-deep pain was unbearable. And because he had been so emotionally unstable just now, his Sea Heart Flame was completely unable to resist the external heavenly flame's power.
An alchemist's soul perception is sensitive, but at this moment, it became the source of his extreme suffering. A sensitive soul perception also meant that his feeling of pain was magnified countless times. This made it impossible for him to bear the waves of severe pain.
"Stop it, stop! What do you want from me..."
Han Feng couldn't take it anymore and finally begged for mercy. But Yan Qingshan's actions didn't stop. He continued for another minute before he finally ceased.
"You called out a little too late. You should have begged for mercy the moment I started."
Yan Qingshan said faintly, "You should have a deep impression of that feeling now. To avoid that kind of suffering, give me the Flame Mantra that you mastered and a wisp of the Sea Heart Flame's sub-flame. I can spare your life. Otherwise, we can continue..."
As Yan Qingshan spoke, he raised his hand. Another wisp of invisible flame slowly drifted down from his pale storage ring, its target, of course, being Han Feng.
Han Feng had planned to continue being stubborn. After all, he had suffered a lot to obtain the Flame Mantra and the Sea Heart Flame. But at this moment, seeing that Yan Qingshan was acting as soon as he spoke, without any hesitation, he was terrified.
"Stop! I'll give it to you! I'll give you everything..."
Han Feng screamed in terror. His psychological defenses had completely collapsed. In other words, he was never a man of strong character to begin with.
Back when he was Yao Chen's disciple, he had a promising future, but he ruthlessly tried to kill his teacher because of a small dissatisfaction in his heart. This person's character was deeply flawed.
Later, he was killed by Xiao Yan and captured by the Hall of Souls. To save his life, he willingly offered the Sea Heart Flame. This showed that in his heart, his own life was the most important thing. This type of person is actually very easy to deal with once you break their psychological defenses.
Yan Qingshan threatened in a calm voice, "Speak! The incantation for the Flame Mantra. Don't try any tricks on me. Don't forget, you only have a fragmented version. I know who has the full version, so if what you say doesn't match up later, your soul will be scattered."
"I'll tell you! I'll tell you..."
A trace of struggle flashed in Han Feng's eyes. He had gone through a lot of hardships for the Flame Mantra, so he was naturally unwilling to give it up. But with a movement of Yan Qingshan's palm, the lingering invisible fire python seemed ready to breathe fire again. He quickly began to recite.
"What was the line before that..."
"Before 'Gather fire and condense into one'..."
"And here, why is the transition so abrupt..."
A chilling blue light gleamed in Yan Qingshan's eyes. The Dawn AI database rapidly ran, inputting and deducing each line of the fragmented Flame Mantra that Han Feng was reciting. Yan Qingshan seemed to remember everything perfectly, suddenly picking a line and questioning Han Feng. After multiple times, he almost made Han Feng confused.
At this moment, Han Feng felt a lingering fear. Thankfully, everything he said was true. If he had made even one small fake addition in the middle, it would have been exposed in this round of questioning, and he would have faced another round of torture.
"The sub-flame of the Sea Heart Flame."
After confirming that Han Feng wasn't playing any tricks with the fragmented Flame Mantra, Yan Qingshan gave him a faint glance and spoke, not giving him a chance to hesitate or resist.
A trace of struggle showed in Han Feng's eyes, and then, with a pfft, he spat out a mouthful of blood. The Sea Heart Flame floating in front of him split in two, and a small, blue wisp of flame drifted toward Yan Qingshan.
"Can I... go now?"
Han Feng saw Yan Qingshan collect the wisp of flame. He lowered his head and spoke softly, his hoarse voice desperately trying to hide his resentment.
"I only said I'd spare your life. I didn't say I'd let you go!"
Yan Qingshan shot out a black iron chain, accurately locking it around Han Feng's neck. He then pulled him out of the courtyard like a dog.
"Starting today, the Black Alliance is disbanded. Feng City will be taken over by my Qingwang City. Does anyone have an objection?"
Yan Qingshan dragged Han Feng out of the courtyard. Ying Shan, the Gold and Silver Elders, and the others were surprised to see the two of them appear, but then, Yan Qingshan's words completely changed their expressions.
"You..."
A high-rank of a Black Alliance faction was about to speak. A figure appeared behind him, and a bright, silver-colored arm pierced through his chest from behind. The arm, which shone silver in the moonlight, was not stained with a single drop of blood. After it was withdrawn, the Dou King fell to the ground forever.