"Half-step Dou Zong… th-this… how is this even possible?!"
Xiao Se's sudden surge in strength made even Han Feng—normally calm and composed—instinctively suck in a sharp breath of cold air.
However, Han Feng was ultimately the man hailed as the number one powerhouse of the Black Corner Region. Even when Su Qian had still been a full Dou Zong, Han Feng had dared to face him head-on. Now, standing before a Xiao Se who had only reached half-step Dou Zong, fear was the last thing he would allow himself to show.
Suppressing the shock in his heart, Han Feng clenched his palm tightly.
Deep-blue flames erupted and gathered at terrifying speed, instantly condensing into a solid-looking, dark-blue trident formed entirely from Exotic Flame.
Gripping the Sea Heart Flame trident in his hand, Han Feng's confidence surged. His eyes turned cold as he stared at Xiao Se's teasing expression.
"So what if you've forcefully raised your strength to half-step Dou Zong?" Han Feng sneered. "This kind of secret art that boosts power so suddenly can't last long. And it definitely comes with severe side effects. In the end, the one who dies will be you."
As his voice fell, a vast tide of deep-blue flames burst forth from Han Feng's body, flooding the sky like an endless ocean. The flames roared like monstrous waves crashing down, before pouring straight into the trident in his hand.
As the sea-like flames infused the weapon, the trident expanded violently, growing until it matched the size of the Exotic Flame greatsword in Xiao Se's hands.
Sea Heart Flame surged and burned wildly around the trident, waves of fire rolling and crashing with thunderous rumbling sounds, as if an entire ocean had been summoned into the sky.
"Brat," Han Feng said coldly, his lips curling upward, "today I'll show you the true strength of me—Han Feng, the Medicine Emperor."
With the massive Exotic Flame trident gripped tightly, feeling the overwhelming power coursing through it, Han Feng raised the weapon and shot toward Xiao Se like a blazing meteor.
Facing Han Feng's attack, Xiao Se's expression remained calm.
As he swung the Exotic Flame greatsword in a wide, sweeping arc—using the same Heaven-Piercing Eightfold technique—his left arm suddenly flashed with a crimson glow.
Fire Dragon King Left Arm Bone—First Soul Bone Skill: Fire Attribute Amplification!
The moment the skill activated, the pink flames around the greatsword surged violently.
The Exotic Flame greatsword and the massive Sea Heart Flame trident collided head-on.
In that instant, the sky erupted with a dazzling explosion of intertwined pink and deep-blue light, so brilliant it resembled a blazing sun suspended in midair, forcing everyone to instinctively avert their gaze.
The sudden burst of radiant light immediately drew the attention of everyone still locked in battle.
Many of the Black Corner Region powerhouses and Canaan Academy elders who had been fiercely exchanging blows couldn't help but stop altogether, turning their eyes toward the clash.
Under countless horrified gazes, at first, the pink and deep-blue lights remained evenly matched, neither overpowering the other.
But in the very next moment—
The pink light exploded outward, swelling to nearly ten times its original intensity.
The deep-blue glow was swallowed whole.
And the overwhelming force slammed directly into its owner—Han Feng.
Boom!
Han Feng was blasted out of the sky.
His pupils shrank violently as a mouthful of blood burst from his lips. His body crashed downward like a fired cannonball, slamming viciously into the ground.
The hard stone surface shattered instantly, forming a massive crater. Cracks spread outward like a spiderweb, deep and jagged fissures ripping across the earth for hundreds of meters—only stopping when they reached a point about twenty zhang from the Heavenly Burning Qi Refining Tower.
Almost simultaneously with the decisive outcome between Xiao Se and Han Feng, the Fallen Heart Flame—under Xiao Se's control—was "perfectly timed" and dragged back into the tower, disappearing once more beneath the seals.
"H-How is this possible?! Han Feng… lost to that kid?!"
The Gold and Silver Elders, who had just been fighting Su Qian fiercely in the sky, were equally shaken to the core.
The three of them stopped at the same time.
They had never imagined that, aside from Su Qian, Canaan Academy was hiding such a terrifying powerhouse.
If Han Feng died here, not only would they fail to get paid—but continuing to fight would be completely meaningless.
"Ha! Good kid!"
Compared to the Gold and Silver Elders' shock, Su Qian felt far more joy than surprise.
Han Feng had been defeated.
The Fallen Heart Flame had been successfully resealed.
And now, with the Little Doctor Fairy—a true Dou Zong—Xiao Se, who was comparable to a half-step Dou Zong, and Hu Qian, a peak Dou Huang, the previously unfavorable situation for Canaan Academy would be reversed in an instant.
"Not good, big brother!" Silver Elder shouted urgently. "Han Feng's been defeated by that brat! This one's dangerous—we have to grab Han Feng and retreat now, or we'll all be stuck here!"
"That makes sense," Gold Elder replied, nodding grimly. "But afterward, that brat Han Feng is going to have to double our payment."
As he spoke, his Dou Qi wings snapped open. He shot toward Xiao Se and the fallen Han Feng at full speed, with Silver Elder following closely behind.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Su Qian's voice thundered through the air.
He stepped onto empty space and chased after them without hesitation.
Seeing the Gold and Silver Elders rushing toward him and Han Feng, Xiao Se let out a cold smile.
Turning his head, he called out to the Little Doctor Fairy, Hu Qian, and the other elders behind him—who had already "completed" the sealing of the Fallen Heart Flame.
"Xian'er, Vice Headmaster Hu Qian," Xiao Se said calmly, "leave Han Feng to me. Please go help the other elders."
"Haha! Leave it to this old man," Hu Qian laughed loudly, snapping out of his shock. "I've been holding back against these trash for far too long!"
With that, he led several Dou Wang elders and charged straight into the battlefield.
At the same time, the Little Doctor Fairy intercepted the Gold and Silver Elders head-on.
As she crossed paths with Xiao Se, his voice reached her ears softly.
"Xian'er… for the next while, I'll be leaving everything outside to you."
"Mm."
The Little Doctor Fairy's nose stung, and she answered softly.
All her worry instantly transformed into raging fury.
Gray-purple poisonous Dou Qi surged violently from her body. Her palm curled into a claw-like shape as she struck forward with overwhelming force.
"Black Fiend Blood Poison Hand!!!"
With her cry, an enormous gray-purple hand appeared out of nowhere, blotting out the sky.
Its shape was grotesque and twisted, nothing like a normal human hand—more like the limb of some ancient demon. It carried an overwhelming aura of primordial evil and desolation.
Empowered by the Calamity Poison Body, this technique—originally only a low-grade Earth-tier Dou Skill—had now clearly reached the level of a mid-grade Earth-tier skill, if not surpassed it.
The sudden appearance of the colossal gray-purple hand completely exceeded the Gold and Silver Elders' expectations.
No matter how hard they tried, they could never have imagined that Canaan Academy would not only produce a monster like Xiao Se—who could defeat a peak Dou Huang with peak Dou Wang strength—but also reveal such a young Dou Zong expert.
"A—A Dou Zong?! How is this possible?!"
All arrogance vanished from the Gold and Silver Elders' faces.
They had already been struggling just to hold their own against Su Qian. Now another Dou Zong had entered the fight.
How were they supposed to fight this?
Fight their asses!
"Run!"
The thought surfaced in both of their minds at the same time.
Without the slightest hesitation, they crossed their arms and repeated the same move they had previously used against Su Qian—launching a powerful pale-green Dou Qi beam straight toward the descending gray-purple giant hand.
The pale-green beam slammed into the gray-purple hand.
The result was obvious.
Against the Little Doctor Fairy's furious strike, backed by a true Dou Zong's strength and the Calamity Poison Body, the Gold and Silver Elders were forced backward again and again, their defenses crumbling.
"How is this possible?! This little girl is actually stronger than that old bastard Su Qian!"
The two elders screamed in disbelief, desperately pouring every last drop of Dou Qi into their pale-green beam.
At this moment, they didn't dare relax even slightly.
If they did—
They would die on the spot.
A mid-grade Earth-tier Dou Skill unleashed by a Dou Zong… was no joke.
(End of Chapter)
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