"This mission was a success. Once we return to the Inner Academy, you should all receive a generous amount of Fire Energy to cultivate in the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower."
Elder Huo Dian looked at the four students following him, a look of satisfaction on his face. Although these four had only recently been promoted from the Outer Academy to the Inner Academy, their performance on this mission had been excellent.
The group of five was now on the road back to Jia Nan Academy. In less than an hour, they would reach the boundaries of Heping (Peace) Town. Once they stepped into Heping Town, the mission would be officially over, and they would be safe.
"We have Elder Huo to thank for his help! As mere Dou Shis, the four of us wouldn't have finished this so easily," one student chirped.
"Exactly! Without Elder Huo holding the line, those thugs in the Black-Corner Region wouldn't have given us any face."
"Elder, after this, we should all be ready to charge into the Da Dou Shi realm!"
As they drew closer to the safe zone, even the veteran Huo Dian allowed his guard to drop slightly. However, in the Black-Corner Region, there is a saying: Tragedy strikes at the peak of joy.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Suddenly, an unnatural gale swept past them. In an instant, fine blood-red gashes appeared on the skin of all five people, including Elder Huo Dian.
"Enemy attack! Form a perimeter!" Huo Dian barked, immediately shielding the four lightly injured students behind his Dou Qi. The students, though shaken, snapped into a defensive stance, proving the Academy's superior training.
"Jiejiejie... if it isn't Elder Huo Dian? What luck to trap you and your four little fledglings today!"
With a classic villainous cackle, a gray-robed figure materialized, blocking the path to Heping Town. Huo Dian's heart sank as he recognized the man.
"Jing Gui! You dare strike at Jia Nan Academy? Have you forgotten what happened to your brother?"
At the mention of his brother, Jing Gui's face twisted with loathing. "You hypocrite! My brother died at the hands of you self-righteous bastards. Today, I take my revenge! Once I wipe you out, I'm leaving the Black-Corner Region forever. Let your Academy chase me to the ends of the earth!"
Jing Gui had clearly planned this. While it was suicide to stay in the region after killing Academy personnel, if he fled to the distant corners of the continent, the Academy's reach would eventually fail.
"Hmph! Your brother was a lowlife who intercepted our students and defiled the young women among them," Huo Dian retorted, his aura flaring. "He reaped what he sowed! Who is to seek justice for our murdered students if not us?"
"Silence! This world is governed by the Law of the Jungle," Jing Gui roared. "My brother was stronger, so they died. It was their honor to fall to him!"
"Oh? Then by your logic, your brother dying to the Academy was also just the 'strong' eating the 'weak,' wasn't it?"
Jing Gui sputtered, unable to find a retort. "Fine! Talk all you want, but today you five die! You can explain your 'logic' to my brother in the underworld!"
Jing Gui erupted with the power of a Dou Huang. Huo Dian realized they were in a desperate situation.
"Listen to me," Huo Dian whispered to his students. "I will stall him. Run! Do not look back. I'm only a Dou Wang; I can't hold him for long. If you reach Heping Town, you have a chance!"
"Elder!" the four cried out in unison. One student even tried to step forward to fight.
"GO!" Huo Dian unfurled his Dou Qi wings and physically shoved the four students a significant distance away. Understanding his resolve, the students turned with tear-filled eyes and sprinted toward the horizon.
"Jiejiejie... nobody is leaving today! Ghost Arrows of the Ethereal Wind!"
Jing Gui lunged, his palms striking out. Dozens of pitch-black arrows of concentrated energy rained down, covering both Huo Dian and the fleeing students.
It's over, Huo Dian thought. He had expected Jing Gui to toy with them first, but the Dou Huang had opened with a lethal Dou Technique. A Dou Wang stood no chance against such an onslaught.
"You said nobody is leaving today?"
Just as the black arrows were about to shred the group, a calm, indifferent voice echoed directly in Jing Gui's ear.
"I'm sorry, but today... I'm placing them under my protection."
"Who? Who is playing tricks in front of me? Come out!"
As Jing Gui scanned the surroundings with a face full of suspicion and unease, a curtain of Dou Qi, seemingly woven from pure starlight, materialized in front of Huo Dian and the four students.
Puff! Puff! Puff!
When those pitch-black Dou Qi arrows collided with the starlight screen, they failed to elicit even a ripple on its surface. Instead, they were purified instantly. To the five Jia Nan Academy members, it looked as though terrifying black arrows had turned into snowflakes falling into a furnace—evaporating into nothingness.
Jing Gui realized immediately that his high-level Dou Technique had been neutralized without a trace. The voice he had heard earlier, combined with this effortless defense, told him one thing: the hidden interloper possessed a cultivation level at least equal to his own.
His brow furrowed deeply. "Friend, this is a private grudge between me and Jia Nan Academy. I hope your excellency does not interfere. Once they are dead, I will offer a heavy reward. Surely, your excellency does not wish to lightly offend a Dou Huang expert?"
In the Black-Corner Region, being a Dou Huang usually granted one the right to be arrogant. Had he stopped at the first half of his sentence, Xiao Lin might have simply chased him away. After all, Xiao Lin only wanted to use the students as a bridge to reach the Academy's upper management.
But the moment Jing Gui uttered that veiled threat, he signed his own death warrant. In the Jia Ma Empire, Xiao Lin had to hide ("Gou") to avoid the Soul Hall. But out here, under a new identity and in the middle of a world-tempering journey, he would not tolerate being threatened by a mere bandit.
A phantom-like figure flickered and appeared mid-air, standing less than twenty meters away from Jing Gui.
Jing Gui's pupils dilated in absolute shock. It wasn't just him; the five Academy members, now huddled together, stared with jaws dropped.
"Huo... Elder Huo," the lone female student whispered, tugging at Huo Dian's sleeve, her eyes fixed on the newcomer. "That person... is a Dou Zong, right?"
Gulp.
Huo Dian swallowed hard, his voice trembling. "Standing in the void without the need for Dou Qi wings... yes, that is the unmistakable mark of a Dou Zong!"
In the current Jia Nan Academy, aside from the legendary and elusive Principal Mang Tianchi, there were only three known Dou Zongs, including First Elder Su Qian (who had only recently broken through). A Dou Zong was the absolute "ceiling" of power in the Black-Corner Region. Seeing one appear so suddenly was like seeing a god descend to earth.
"What Can You Do to Me?"
Xiao Lin casually picked at his ear, looking down at Jing Gui with a gaze of utter disdain.
"I think I heard you say just now," Xiao Lin remarked nonchalantly, "that I wouldn't 'lightly offend' a Dou Huang? Well, today, I've decided I really want to offend one. What can you do to me?"
"M-misunderstanding!" Jing Gui stammered, his earlier bravado vanishing like smoke. He began to back away slowly. "Great Lord, it was my ignorance! I spoke without thinking! Since your lordship wishes to protect them, I will leave immediately!"
Revenge for his brother? Forgotten. In the face of a Dou Zong, survival was the only thing that mattered.
"Is that so?" Xiao Lin gave a 'brilliant' smile that made Jing Gui's soul shiver. "Too bad. I'm a man of my word. I said I was going to offend a Dou Huang today, and I plan to keep that promise."
Jing Gui didn't wait for another word. He flapped his Dou Qi wings with frantic desperation, turning into a streak of light as he bolted in the opposite direction. Resistance? He was a 3-Star Dou Huang; trying to "touch" a Dou Zong was pure suicide.
The Falling Mountain
"This guy... running away like I'm some kind of monster," Xiao Lin complained, though his hands were already moving.
He gathered his Star Dou Qi in the palm of his hand. In an instant, a massive seal radiating brilliant starlight condensed in the air.
"Starlight Heaven-Suppressing Seal!"
With a low shout, Xiao Lin hurled the seal. As it flew toward the retreating Jing Gui, the seal expanded rapidly, growing from the size of a carriage to the size of a small mountain.
"NO!" Jing Gui screamed in despair. He unleashed every defensive Dou Technique he knew, trying to shatter the descending starlight.
It was futile. The gap between a Dou Huang and a Dou Zong was a vertical cliff. The starlight mountain slammed down, crushing the 3-Star Dou Huang into a literal meat pancake on the valley floor.
Another Sovereign had fallen to Xiao Lin's hand.