Battle Through the Heavens: Xiao Yan, who was kidnapped to another world

Hai Bodong gazed into the distance for a moment, then slowly looked away and sighed.

In the past six months of battle, Hai Bodong has refined all the pills brought by Xiao Li and Xiao Ding. At this moment, he is a genuine peak Dou Huang expert, and he is not too far from Dou Zong. If the Jia Ma Empire were not under siege by the three empires and he could not spare the time as a peak Dou Huang, he would have found a secluded place to try to break through to Dou Zong.

“I have sent people to the Black Corner Region many times to search for Xiao Li and Xiao Ding,” Princess Yaoye sighed, “but there has been no good news. I don’t know if they haven’t been found or if they were attacked by the people of the three great empires on the way…”

For more than half a year, she, the eldest princess of the Jia Ma Empire, has been the commander of the army. She has put a lot of effort into dealing with the attacks of the three great empires. And this was before all the Dou Zong experts of the three great empires were present. Now, all three great empires have sent Dou Zong experts. If anything goes wrong, the Jia Ma Empire will become history.

“Sigh, if only they had left later, or if only the army of the Izumo Empire had arrived earlier,” Fa Ma sighed. “But the army of the Izumo Empire arrived at the border the day after they set off, and at first it was only the Izumo Empire’s troops… Now we don’t know if we can contact Xiao Yan through Xiao Li and Xiao Ding.”

Upon hearing Fa Ma's words, Jia Xingtian, Yun Yun, Nalan Jie, and the others who were also on the city wall gave a wry smile. At first, when only the Chuyun Empire was involved, they were all relaxed and carefree, but after the Luoyan Empire and the Mulan Empire joined the war, they became quite miserable.

Although they could ask Lionheart, who was also on the city wall today, to help Xiao Yan and his senior brother and master at Canaan Academy, the number of Dou Zong in the three empires made them dare not let the only two Dou Zong of the Jia Ma Empire leave.

"Speaking of which, it seems the Snake-People haven't caused any trouble in the past six months?" Suddenly remembering something, Hai Bodong turned his head to look at Yao Ye.

“Yes, that’s right,” Yao Ye nodded. “As you said, Elder Hai, we have already informed them that Queen Medusa is still alive and is with Xiao Yan. They are no longer forcing the imperial experts to issue warnings as often as before.”

"It's a good thing, I suppose. If the Snake-People were to cause trouble within the Empire's borders right now, we'd be caught in a pincer movement," Jia Xingtian said with a wry smile. "Then..."

Before he could finish speaking, a thunderous drumbeat came from afar and quickly spread throughout the entire fortress.

"They're about to attack!"

Upon hearing the urgent drumbeats, everyone's expression turned solemn.

Shortly after the drums sounded, the earth began to tremble. In the distance, an endless sea of ​​people surged toward the fortress like ocean waves. The thunderous sound of their footsteps echoed across the sky, creating an extremely heavy pressure on people's hearts.

"All Dou Wang experts, disperse to various defensive lines and be on high alert against the Dou Wang experts on the other side!" Yao Ye turned his head with a solemn expression and shouted.

Upon receiving her command, a chorus of responses rang out, and then figures flashed out like lightning.

As the fortress entered a state of preparation for battle, the dark sea of ​​people surged forward amidst the deafening sounds of fighting. Above the sea of ​​people, streaks of light flew by, revealing the powerful figures from the three great empires, who were also the ones who greatly increased the pressure on the Black Mountain Fortress.

When the seemingly endless, dark mass of people was still nearly a thousand meters away from the fortress, it suddenly stopped. In mid-air, streaks of light flashed, and figures with wings on their backs floated up into the sky, looking at the heavily defended Black Mountain Fortress with cold smiles on their lips.

"Haha, I didn't expect that even now, your Gama Empire still refuses to surrender. We clearly stated from the beginning that, apart from the Gama royal family, the status and treatment of all those who surrender will not change in the slightest." As the armies faced off, a powerful laugh suddenly rang out, echoing in the sky.

"However, since none of you are willing to surrender, you should know the attitude of our Luoyan Empire towards prisoners of war, right?"

Soon, the laughter subsided, and a dazzling golden light burst forth from the army and shot into the sky, then hovered in the air. Behind it, a pair of exceptionally large golden goose wings emitted a bright golden light, making the man dressed in gold appear like a god.

After the man in golden robes appeared, a deafening cheer erupted from the dark-skinned army, clearly indicating that this man held extremely high prestige in their hearts.

Looking at the arrogant man in gold, Lionheart slowly stepped forward. "What, aren't the others coming out? Or do you, Yan Luotian, think you can defeat us all by yourself?"

"Heh, who doesn't know that you and Jia Xingtian have been called the Shield of Jia Ma in the past six months?" Yan Luotian sneered. "So this time, in order to completely shatter these two shields, we have arranged enough manpower!"

"Don't say we're outnumbering you. If we don't have enough people, we're not confident we can fight you two!" Just as Yan Luotian's voice fell, three streams of light of different colors burst out from the army below, eventually transforming into three smiling old men who appeared in mid-air.

"And who's the last one? Come up here too." Jia Xingtian walked to Lionheart's side, his gaze falling on the army below, and said in a calm voice.

"Ugh, this is such a hassle. Can't you just leave me alone? Don't you know that poison masters are among the weakest in battles of the same level?" A helpless voice came from the army, and then a middle-aged man with very deep nasolabial folds appeared in the sky.

"Hey, who told Sect Master Shi that you're the strongest?" Despite being allies, Yan Luotian still made way for the middle-aged man after he appeared. "A four-star Dou Zong... If we didn't know that Sect Master Scorpion was still alive, we would be worried that after you unified the Chuyun Empire, you would also annex both of us!"

On the other side, the three elders of Mulan retreated a considerable distance. Although they were no weaker than Yan Luotian with the help of their secret techniques, they were still only at the peak of the Dou Huang realm. The middle-aged man's poisonous Dou Qi was something they could not withstand.

“So, I’m just a weak poison master,” Shi Rui, the Poison Sect Master with a hooked nose, sighed, speaking as if he were compassionate towards the world. “Why are you all so afraid of me?” His gaze fell on Lionheart and Jia Xingtian, as if he truly believed he was telling the truth.

Even though they already knew that at least three Dou Zongs from the three great empires had come, Lionheart and Jia Xingtian's expressions still darkened slightly when they actually saw them and felt the aura of a four-star Dou Zong emanating from Shi Rui.

With the help of the pills provided by Xiao Yan, Lionheart and Jia Xingtian are now at the peak of the two-star Dou Zong level. If it were only Yan Luotian and the three elders Mulan, they would still have a very high chance of winning. However, after Shi Rui, who is said to have broken through from one-star to four-star Dou Zong in two years, joined them, their chance of winning is almost zero.

"Damn it, these shameless bastards! They are supposed to be powerful figures with considerable reputations in the Northwest region, yet they dare to gang up on us!" Hai Bodong cursed angrily as he looked at the group of people appearing in the sky.

Yun Yun's expression also turned somewhat grim. After a moment of contemplation, she gritted her teeth and said, "How about the two of us go out and help Lionheart and the others hold them off for a while? As long as we can temporarily stall Elder Mulan or Shi Rui..."

"Please calm down. If you also make a move, the other powerful figures of the three great empires will certainly not stand idly by. In that case, it will cause the great war to break out earlier. Moreover, neither the three elders of Mulan nor Shi Rui can be held back so easily..." Yao Ye advised solemnly.

"Then what should we do? Are we just going to watch?" Hai Bodong asked, his brows furrowed.

"Sigh, now we can only hope for a miracle..." Yao Ye smiled bitterly. With their top combat power completely at a disadvantage, even if she were a master strategist and could wipe out the armies of the three great empires without losing a single soldier, the only thing waiting for their Jia Ma Empire in the end would be annihilation.

Upon hearing this, Hai Bodong, Yun Yun, and Fa Ma clenched their fists in resentment. However, they all understood that they were at a disadvantage in every aspect and that their only option was to wait for a miracle. After all, the number of Dou Zong experts, Dou Huang experts, and Dou Wang experts far exceeded theirs. Whether the battle broke out now or later, it would be an absolute disadvantage for them.

Above the sky, Lionheart and Jia Xingtian had already engaged in combat with Yan Luotian and the others.

For the two of them, the only thing to be thankful for at this moment was that Shi Rui, because of his identity as a poison master and his strength as a four-star Dou Zong, was also being watched closely by Yan Luotian and the three elders of Mulan. Therefore, the only ones who directly fought against the two of them were Yan Luotian and the three elders of Mulan who had used the Three Beasts Savage Technique. Shi Rui only occasionally made a move and could be considered a support role outside the battle circle.

However, even if Shi Rui didn't make a move, Lionheart and Jia Xingtian had to focus most of their energy on him, which meant that when facing Yan Luotian and the three elders of Mulan, the two of them were at a slight disadvantage.

laugh!

Suddenly, Shi Rui twitched his fingertips, and two streams of emerald green venom shot out from his fingertips, heading straight for the spines of Lionheart and Jia Xingtian, who were facing away from him.

The two, who had been watching Shi Rui's every move closely, naturally wouldn't miss this action, but just as they were about to slip away—

"Jin Xingtian!"

"Ba Man Luo!"

Yan Luotian and the three elders of Mulan attacked simultaneously, unleashing a powerful fighting technique towards Shixin and Jia Xingtian.

"Heh, without those city walls, can the Jia Ma Empire withstand our army's attack?" Just as Lionheart and Jia Xingtian were about to ignore the two fighting techniques, Shi Rui's sinister voice entered their ears.

Upon hearing these words, both of them froze slightly, then their fighting spirit surged forth, seemingly preparing to withstand the two fighting techniques and the two streams of venom that Shi Rui had spewed out.

"Looks like we just happened to arrive at the right time?"

Suddenly, the void space rippled violently. As a spatial wormhole opened, a familiar voice entered Lionheart and Jiaxingtian's ears.

Immediately afterwards, the two streams of venom and the two fighting techniques suddenly burst into flames and quickly vanished without a trace in the crimson fire.

Upon witnessing this bizarre scene, the five people, led by Shi Rui, instantly retreated a hundred meters, warily watching the pitch-black spatial wormhole.

"If you hadn't crafted that Heavenly Demon Puppet first, we would have arrived long ago!" A dissatisfied voice came from the wormhole.

"Since we have the materials and recipe for this, we should naturally give it a try," the young man's voice rang out again. Then, four figures walked out of the spatial wormhole. "Two-star Dou Zong? It seems that you and Elder Jia haven't wasted the past six months, Lionheart!"

Looking at Xiao Yan emerging from the wormhole, along with Little Fairy Doctor and Medusa beside him, Lionheart and Jia Xingtian both breathed a sigh of relief. Now, even if Scorpion Biyan of the Ten Thousand Scorpion Sect of the Chuyun Empire were here, they could still win.

Chapter 359 The Great Battle Ends

On the city wall, Yao Ye, Yun Yun, and the others were stunned when they heard the somewhat familiar voice, and then their faces lit up with joy.

"Xiao Yan finally caught up!" Hai Bodong couldn't contain his excitement and laughed loudly.

Based on Xiao Yan's performance on Yunlan Mountain, Hai Bodong believed that when Xiao Yan appeared, Queen Medusa must have been by his side. In addition, Xiao Yi Xian had not returned after going to Canaan Academy. As long as Xiao Yan made it, the disadvantage in today's battle would be completely reversed!

Fama, standing to the side, also breathed a sigh of relief and secretly wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. Although he appeared at the last minute, at least he made it in time.

Yun Yun, who also found the voice somewhat familiar, somewhat like the Rock Owl she had seen in the Monster Mountain Range, paused after hearing Hai Bodong's words, then shook her head with a wry smile. According to the rumors circulating in the Jia Ma Empire over the past six months, there was no way that the Rock Owl would have come here specifically because of the Jia Ma Empire's crisis; clearly, she had simply misremembered.

As everyone breathed a sigh of relief, four figures emerged from the spatial wormhole.

"Wait a minute, isn't something wrong?" On the city wall, Hai Bodong's face twitched violently as he watched Xiao Yan's retreating figure. "Xiao Yan... he's already a Dou Zong?"

"A Dou Zong?!"

All eyes were on Hai Bodong.

"Why are you looking at me? Aren't your senses stronger than mine?" Ignoring the gazes of the others, Hai Bodong rolled his eyes at Fa Ma. "Try sensing it yourself. I have a feeling that I'm sensing something wrong..."

“In my perception… Xiao Yan is also a Dou Zong,” Fa Ma’s lips twitched. “At first, I thought I was mistaken, but now it seems… perhaps, Sect Master Yun, you… Sect Master Yun?”

The people around them followed Fama's gaze to Yun Yun, and then everyone noticed that Yun Yun was somewhat distracted.

"W-What's wrong?"

Under everyone's gaze, Yun Yun, who realized that the Xiao Yan they were talking about seemed to be the Yan Xiao she had met before, finally came to her senses, smiled somewhat awkwardly, and asked.

"Did Sect Master Yun also sense Xiao Yan's strength?" After suppressing his curiosity, Fa Ma asked.

"Hmm... Hmm, Dou Zong," Yun Yun nodded after a moment's hesitation, "But... it must have used some kind of secret technique, right?"

Secret technique?

No one believed that there was a secret technique in the world that could elevate someone who was a one-star Dou Ling just over half a year ago to a Dou Zong.

Hai Bodong also didn't believe it, but unlike the others, he didn't believe that Xiao Yan was using a secret technique. After all, he was the only one present who knew that Xiao Yan had already reached the Nine-Star Dou Ling level more than half a year ago and that he could maintain his Dou Huang strength for a long time after using the secret technique.

"So... Xiao Yan is already a Dou Zong without using any secret techniques?" Knowing Xiao Yan's strength even better, Hai Bodong couldn't help but gasp. "Since when are breaking through to the Dou Wang, Dou Huang, and Dou Zong realms so easy?"

Thinking about how, with the help of the pills provided by Xiao Yan, he had barely managed to reach the threshold of Dou Zong in the past six months, Hai Bodong became even more determined to cling to Xiao Yan's coattails.

*

'It's that guy...'

The moment Xiao Yan stepped out of the spatial wormhole, Shi Rui's eyes narrowed slightly.

A little over a year ago, nearly two years ago, Shi Rui was just a peak one-star Dou Zong. Although he was not far from two stars, it was absolutely impossible for him to break through one after another in less than two years and reach the level of a four-star Dou Zong.

What brought about this change in him was the "ritual" that took place once every few years or even decades in the Izumo Poison Swamp. During that ritual, he obtained the fruit that Xie Biyan had mentioned, which could provide enough vitality. Moreover, before leaving, he also remembered the face of an ordinary person who had been targeted by Li Zong.

'Is that Li Zong?' Shi Rui thought to himself as he looked at Xiao Yan not far away.

When Xiao Yan was asked to stay by Li Zong, Shi Rui's first reaction was that Li Zong wanted to use Xiao Yan as his new body... In other words, Li Zong wanted to possess Xiao Yan.

'If it's Li Zong, it seems to explain the changes in the Poison Swamp over the past year or so...'

Before the ceremony was fully completed, a massive explosion occurred in the Izumo Poison Swamp, killing countless poison masters. After the explosion, the Izumo Poison Swamp was no longer an area that could be entered with the help of a guide; instead, it became a complete dead zone.

When Shi Rui broke through to the three-star Dou Zong level, he went there once, but due to a strong premonition of death, he did not go in.

If Li Zong possessed Xiao Yan's body, it would not only explain why that Great Dou Master had become a Dou Zong in less than two years, but also explain why the poisonous swamp had become a complete dead zone.

'So, is it possible for me to beat him right now?'

Now that he had confirmed that the guy on the other side was Li Zong, Shi Rui immediately had a wicked idea. Just one fruit had allowed him to quickly rise from a one-star Dou Zong to a four-star Dou Zong. So, what if he could take down Li Zong and gain control of all the fruits in the Poison Swamp?

The thought of conquering the Poison Swamp, devouring all the fruits within, crushing Scorpion Rock, annexing all empires, suppressing the Heavenly Serpent Palace, and becoming the sole ruler of the Northwest Continent fueled Shi Rui's burning ambition.

*

"You... cough, who is this...?" Lionheart breathed a sigh of relief as he looked at Xiao Yan who came out of the spatial wormhole. Just as he was about to complain, he suddenly sensed a terrifying aura from Zi Yan. He immediately coughed and asked cautiously.

“Zi Yan, her true form is also a magical beast,” Xiao Yan couldn’t help but laugh as he looked at the cautious Lionheart. “However… this girl’s bloodline is much stronger than yours… even if your bloodline evolves a few more times, it may not be able to surpass hers.”

"Hmph!" Upon hearing Xiao Yan's introduction, Zi Yan crossed her arms and gave a soft snort, which could be considered a reluctant agreement with Xiao Yan's words.

"I see..." Lionheart believed Xiao Yan's introduction completely, after all, he could see through Zi Yan's current strength at a glance - Dou Huang, even weaker than he was before he met Xiao Yan.

However, this "weak" magical beast was able to completely overwhelm him in terms of aura, which was enough to show that her bloodline was extremely noble.

"Xiao Yan, your strength..." After Lionheart fell silent, Jia Xingtian couldn't help but ask, "Has it improved too quickly?"