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

As the cheers from both sides gradually faded, Tang San, who had been lost in his own world, finally noticed something was amiss and opened his eyes in surprise.

"Why aren't you injured?!" Tang San roared as he looked at Zhu Zhuqing, who was completely unharmed.

Chapter 408 Am I late?

The giant tiger glanced at the hysterical Tang San, then at the milky-white droplet that had fallen onto the black soil, and finally opened its jaws. "What...do you think it can do?"

"Of course it's meant to pierce your heart and then explode inside it!" Tang San roared, his pale face, which should have been stiff and expressionless, twisted in pain. "This was an attack that drained all my strength, how could it not even break through your protective aura! What the hell are you doing!"

Just as Tang San said, after this attack, his body was completely empty, with no energy left. That's why Zhu Zhuqing was completely bewildered when she discovered that Tang San's "Guanyin's Tears" move hadn't even broken through her protective aura. After all, when the enemy had given their all but failed to inflict any damage or even any follow-up... anyone would be confused and perplexed.

Looking at the hysterical Tang San, Zhu Zhuqing frowned slightly. This wasn't the first time she'd seen Tang San in such a frenzied state, but compared to his defeat at Xiao Yan's hands last time, this time he was even more insane...

He was so frantic it was like he was acting.

'Is there some kind of backup plan…' Subconsciously, Zhu Zhuqing's gaze shifted to her surroundings. 'The wind hasn't stopped yet…!' Feeling the howling black wind around her, Zhu Zhuqing unconsciously drifted off into thought, and then, in the next instant, she suddenly remembered something—

This relentless storm was initially instigated by Tang San!

"Demon Devours the World!"

The moment Zhu Zhuqing realized this, Tang San suddenly roared, and a towering black aura emanated from the surrounding land, which had long been tainted by demonic energy, giving rise to an indescribable chilling evil.

Under the erosion of this black mist, the surrounding space collapsed without exception.

"Go back!" The giant tiger that Zhu Zhuqing had transformed into roared, and then a black and white bead was spat out from its mouth. Faintly, one could see the flow of blood on the surface of the bead.

As the black and white bead gradually appeared, a flow of energy, like the ebb and flow of yin and yang, emanated from it, finally encountering some resistance from the surrounding demonic energy that seemed to want to swallow the world.

"It's too late!"

As the energy representing the rise and fall of Yin and Yang appeared, Tang San's eyes burned even brighter. What did the Ghost King and the destruction of the world have to do with him? Strength, only strength is the key to everything, and the only thing in this world that could allow him to reach or even surpass the level of the Ghost King in the shortest amount of time was this black and white bead that condensed the last bloodline and inheritance of the Dark Sacred Tiger!

Two enormous dark hands burst forth from the overwhelming demonic energy. One slammed down on the group who had not yet retreated back into the elemental barrier, while the other defied the resistance of the yin and yang energies and reached out to grab the black and white bead in front of Zhu Zhuqing.

Although Tang San appeared extremely disheveled at this moment, there was no doubt that his overt scheme had succeeded—

To resist the Demon Devouring World he unleashed with all his might, Zhu Zhuqing, who had not fully mastered the Dark Sacred Tiger's inheritance and was not at her peak, had to rely on the black and white beads that contained the Dark Sacred Tiger's inheritance. Once Zhu Zhuqing released the beads, Tang San could control the demonic energy to attack Qian Moyun, Gu Yuena, Di Tian, ​​and others who were meant to help but ultimately became a burden, while simultaneously controlling the demonic energy to forcibly seize the black and white beads.

If Zhu Zhuqing manages to "protect" the black and white beads through her own strength, then the other survivors who could hold off Bibi Dong and Poseidon would perish under Tang San's attack. If Zhu Zhuqing wants to rescue Qian Moyun and the others, then Tang San can take this opportunity to severely injure Zhu Zhuqing...

"I'm dying!" Tang San desperately squeezed every last bit of power from his demonic body. "Make your choice: save yourself, or save them!"

"So this is what the target was?" Seeing Tang San's reckless attitude, Bibi Dong's face flashed with realization. "Looks like we should celebrate Lord Tang San's victory."

Qian Moyun and the others, caught in the struggle between Yin and Yang energies and demonic energy, noticed Zhu Zhuqing's awkward situation. Then, a hint of relief appeared on almost everyone's face—

Although they've managed to contact Xiao Yan, it seems he's running out of time. But if they wait a little longer, Xiao Yan should appear, right? Maybe then they can still save some people?

Just when everyone thought everything was destined and there would be no more twists or changes, a wisp of flame suddenly rose from the dim sky. The next moment, all the people and demons in the demonic energy, the yin and yang energies, and the two energies that were clashing together were frozen in mid-air.

"This takes a lot of time to process..."

At the last moment, Xiao Yan, who had finally been sent to this world by Dan, felt his Dou Qi disappearing like flowing water in his body. As he sighed, a purplish-red flame landed on the demonic energy. In the blink of an eye, the vast, sea-like demonic energy and the pitch-black earth were completely ignited, and the flame swayed and landed on Tang San, Bibi Dong, and Poseidon.

Snapped!

As the snap of the fingers ended, everything around resumed its flow—

As Qian Moyun and the others lamented that their time was up, they suddenly noticed the purplish-red flames on the towering demonic energy. Their composed expressions were momentarily unsure whether to turn into surprise or joy.

Tang San's ferocious expression transformed from excruciating pain into resentment and rage after he noticed the flames on his body and the surrounding demonic energy. However, before he could utter the name of the one who caused it, the purplish-red flames completely engulfed him.

As for Bibi Dong and Poseidon... they didn't even have time to react before they were completely engulfed by the purplish-red flames. The Black Pavilion that allowed them to "reborn" was also completely swallowed up by the purplish-red flames that spread endlessly in all directions.

With a soul force as powerful as the heavens, Xiao Yan swept across everything within a thousand miles. After confirming that there was no trace of the alien demons, he finally turned his gaze to Zhu Zhuqing, who was staring blankly at him and hadn't even taken back the black and white beads that represented the inheritance of the Dark Holy Tiger, as well as Qian Moyun and the others who still had somewhat comical expressions on their faces, seemingly unaware of what had happened at the last moment.

"Am I late?" Xiao Yan smiled somewhat awkwardly after confirming that there were survivors in the elemental barrier not far away, in addition to the dozen or so people on the other side. "I didn't expect that the Ghost General... should I call it the Ghost King now? I didn't expect it to be able to break through the seal."

The moment Xiao Yan's voice fell, Zhu Zhuqing's eyes suddenly rolled back, and she plummeted straight towards the ground.

Chapter 409 The Fake King

After confirming that Zhu Zhuqing had only fallen into a coma due to excessive consumption of her soul power, Xiao Yan breathed a sigh of relief. He then fed Zhu Zhuqing the Spirit Nourishing Pill before standing up and walking out of the makeshift wooden house.

After gently closing the door, Xiao Yan turned around and looked at the people standing in front of him.

"Is Zhuqing alright?" The first to speak was Ning Rongrong, who had been unable to contain herself any longer. If someone hadn't been holding her hand, she would have rushed into the makeshift wooden hut long ago.

"Her soul power was over-exhausted, so I've already given her the gentlest soul power-restoring pills. She just needs to rest for a while..." Halfway through his sentence, Xiao Yan paused for a moment after noticing the growing anxiety on everyone's faces except for Qian Moyun.

“Soul power is what you know as mental power, but in my world, mental power is usually called soul power,” Xiao Yan said, trying to keep his tone gentle. “The Spirit Nourishing Pill is an eighth-grade, three-colored pill, the highest-grade pill I can refine to restore mental power… Even in my world, ninth-grade pills are just legends.”

The Nourishing Spirit Pill is an eighth-grade, three-colored pill. It was prepared by Xiao Yan before his soul power broke through to the mid-stage of the Heavenly Realm, because he felt that his soul power might be insufficient during the process of absorbing the Three Thousand Burning Flames. The medicinal power is very gentle and will not bring any pressure to the user.

Hearing Xiao Yan's detailed explanation, the anxious expressions on everyone's faces finally faded away.

"What about the demonic energy within Zhu Zhuqing's body?"

Although it was somewhat shameful to be chased from the God Realm to the Douluo Continent by the Ghost King, Qian Moyun was also the most aware of the corrosive nature of the demonic energy. Even the life and kindness of the God King could not withstand the corrosive effect of the demonic energy. So after learning that Zhu Zhuqing did not have any more serious injuries, Qian Moyun pressed for details.

“It’s been purified,” Xiao Yan nodded. “If any of you are still affected by the demonic energy, you can tell me directly.”

"Among the survivors, apart from Zhu Zhuqing, none of the people whose bodies were invaded by the demonic energy survived until the next day," Dugu Bo said with a long sigh of relief. "If you had arrived a few seconds later, you might not be here today!"

"Including the time for explanation, I only wasted less than a minute," Xiao Yan smiled helplessly. "Besides, don't you know I have time-related abilities? As long as you haven't been digested yet, even if your heads are cut off, I can bring them back."

"Don't say things that send chills down my spine!" Dugu Bo shuddered, as if he could already see his head being ripped off. "Change the subject, change the subject!"

Xiao Yan smiled and shrugged.

Led by Qian Moyun, they arrived at a secluded place. Xiao Yan looked at everyone before him—two Dou Zong, eight Dou Huang, more than ten Dou Wang, and dozens of Dou Ling—and asked,

"So, can you tell me what exactly happened? How did the Ghost King break free from the seal? Qian Moyun, why are you in Douluo Continent? And how did your strength increase so much? And... why is Zhu Zhuqing cultivating Yuan Power?"

When Xiao Yan noticed the power within Tang San's body, which was a mixture of Yuan Power and Demonic Qi, he could roughly guess how the Ghost King had broken free from the seal. However, this was just a guess, and he still needed to understand the actual situation.

The appearance of Qian Moyun and the group led by Gu Yuena, whose strength increased at a strange speed and who were also cultivating Dou Qi, left Xiao Yan somewhat puzzled. Not to mention that among the group of people cultivating Dou Qi, there was also Zhu Zhuqing who cultivated Yuan Qi.

After exchanging glances, Dugu Bo sighed softly and said, "Then, let me explain what happened in the Heaven Dou Empire..."

For the next period of time, Dugu Bo began by recounting the turmoil that broke out in the Star Luo Empire. He then explained in detail the defeat of the Tian Dou Empire's army after the Otherworldly Demons first revealed the name of the Ghost King. Countless kingdoms and duchies were destroyed, and countless cities and people were swallowed up by the Otherworldly Demons' army. Next came the defeat of the major Soul Master forces. Finally, he suggested that they go to the Star Dou Great Forest for refuge.

“At that time, I thought you were still in the Star Dou Great Forest,” Dugu Bo said with a helpless smile, “thinking that you might have the ability to resolve this disaster that swept across the entire continent, but I never expected…”

“I didn’t expect that you and Lin Dong had already left Douluo Continent,” Gu Yuena added. “However, it is precisely because they came to the Star Dou Great Forest that they have been able to persevere until now.”

Dugu Bo, Ning Fengzhi, and the others nodded with wry smiles.

“When the Ghost King appeared and destroyed the two great empires, we still held our ground in Wuhun City,” Qian Renxue said. “However, at that time, only my mother and I had the strength to stop the Ghost King’s army. After our ancestors came to Douluo Continent, we joined forces to break through and came to the Star Dou Great Forest.”

"The cold of the far north cannot stop the advance of the demons. After several of our 100,000-year-old brethren perished, we chose to ask Emperor Tian for help," the Snow Empress said softly. Beside her was only the Ice Empress, a soul beast who also came from the far north.

"Half of the Ghost King's soul entered the God Realm without anyone noticing, following the artifact of the Asura God, and devoured the Asura God from the very beginning," Qian Moyun explained even more simply, "My relationship with the gods of the God Realm wasn't very good. By the time I discovered the chaos in the God Realm, only three 'gods' remained: me, Life, and Kindness, who were not under control and were able to move freely."

However, life and kindness were quickly corrupted by the demonic energy. I had no choice but to release the Golden Dragon King who was sealed in the God Realm and let him bring the core of the God Realm to the Douluo Continent. After confirming that the Golden Dragon King had left the God Realm, I immediately destroyed the passage from the God Realm to the Douluo Continent and came to this continent by following the statue left in the Spirit Hall.

After we gathered in the Star Dou Great Forest, I passed on the cultivation technique I possessed to everyone and fully released the energy contained within the core of the God Realm. It was at that moment that everyone's strength increased rapidly… although their strength remained unchanged for the next few years.”

The continuous explanations from the group helped Xiao Yan understand the series of events that occurred after the appearance of the Ghost King, and also explained why everyone's strength had increased so dramatically. However—

"Where is the seal on the Ghost King?"

"Blood sacrifice. Tang San sacrificed the blood of all the lives of the Star Luo Empire, and then destroyed the seal left by the Dark Holy Tiger, which had become somewhat unstable after Zhu Zhuqing took away the last inheritance," Qian Moyun said softly.

"The final legacy of the Dark Holy Tiger?"

Recalling what he had seen since arriving in Douluo Continent—the black and white beads floating in front of Zhu Zhuqing—Xiao Yan nodded silently. He had forgotten that the seal still contained the inheritance of the Dark Sacred Tiger. In this way, the questions of how the Ghost King broke through the seal and why Zhu Zhuqing cultivated Yuan Power were also answered.

"One last question," Xiao Yan looked at Qian Moyun and Gu Yuena, "was that alien demon really the Ghost King?"

"...What do you mean?" Qian Moyun frowned slightly and asked, puzzled.

“There are no such creatures as alien demons on the continent where I live. Apart from Douluo Continent, the first time I saw such a creature was on Tianxuan Continent... which is the world where Lin Dong lives. And if I’m not mistaken, the Dark Sacred Tiger and the Ghost King were both captured by her from Tianxuan Continent and then thrown onto Douluo Continent.”

Although it wasn't explicitly stated who "she" was, Xiao Yan felt that Qian Moyun would definitely understand.

"Yes, that should be it." Qian Moyun nodded, understanding who Xiao Yan was referring to.

"Although the Tianxuan Continent and the Dou Qi Continent where I live cultivate different kinds of power, the difference between the two is not significant. For example, Zhu Zhuqing is actually at the Reincarnation Realm, while I am a Dou Zun with similar strength to her... a Seven-Star Dou Zun."

Qian Moyun nodded, somewhat puzzled.

"The race of Otherworldly Demons... the King level corresponds to the Reincarnation Realm on the Tianxuan Continent, which is the Dou Sheng on the Dou Qi Continent..."

As Xiao Yan finished speaking, everyone who had learned about the Dou Sheng level from Qian Moyun's explanation instantly froze, a sense of foreboding creeping into their hearts.

"Furthermore, depending on their strength, the Demon Kings are divided into True Kings and False Kings. False Kings are at most at the peak of the Five-Star Dou Sheng, while True Kings are at least Six-Star Dou Sheng," Xiao Yan continued, as if he couldn't understand the expressions on everyone's faces. "But, whether it's a True King or a False King... neither of them are people that Zhu Zhuqing, who is only equivalent to a Seven-Star Dou Zun, can deal with."

"Before our ancestors came to Douluo Continent, my mother and I were able to hold off the Ghost King together," Qian Renxue immediately reported.

“Back in the God Realm, I only faced the Ghost King’s clones, each of which had the strength of a one-star Dou Zong,” Qian Moyun quickly added. “However, after I came to Douluo Continent and improved the strength of all the survivors, the strongest Ghost King we saw was at most an eight-star Dou Zun, capable of suppressing Zhu Zhuqing, but unable to seriously injure her… This is what I thought before I could seriously injure Zhu Zhuqing before it disappeared.”

"Disappear? Where else could it go besides Douluo Continent?" Xiao Yan was slightly puzzled.

"The God Realm is connected to many planets, and Douluo Continent is just one of the many planets connected to the God Realm... a planet with very mediocre strength," Qian Moyun said in a somewhat dry voice.

"So, at most an eight-star Dou Zun before leaving?" Xiao Yan nodded. "And his strength gradually recovers as the number of lives he devours increases?"

The worst-case scenario is that the Ghost King devours all the planets connected to the God Realm... or even all the planets in this world with life, and then restores his strength to its best state, becoming equivalent to a nine-star Dou Sheng. If that happens, all Xiao Yan can do is immediately contact Dan and take away everyone who is still alive.

However, if the situation were better—for example, if the Ghost King was just a fake king, or if he was a true king but only barely passed the mark—Xiao Yan felt that even if his strength were fully restored, he would still have the power to fight...

"Never mind, I'll just..."

"The Ghost King is a false king, equivalent to a false king at the second level of reincarnation. He devoured the lives of people in the God Realm and Douluo Continent only to break the seal of the Dark Holy Tiger and release his true form little by little."

Just as Xiao Yan glanced at the crowd in front of him, sighed, and was about to call Dan to take everyone back to the Dou Qi Continent, a somewhat weak voice suddenly rang out from not far behind him.

"Zhuqing, are you alright?!" Seeing the person who came, Ning Rongrong stood up happily and ran towards Zhu Zhuqing.

“It has recovered somewhat,” Zhu Zhuqing smiled, then looked at Xiao Yan and continued, “Tang San’s blood sacrifice can only tear a hole in the seal. To truly break the seal, all the energy in the seal needs to be consumed… That’s why it needs Tang San to absorb the power in the seal.”

After noticing Tang San's desire for the Dark Sacred Tiger's inheritance, Zhu Zhuqing finally understood why Tang San's strength had increased so dramatically, and why, although Tang San's body clearly contained demonic energy, it didn't feel like a demon at all when she sensed it.

"Tang San continuously absorbed the power within the seal, while the Ghost King consumed life and depleted the power within the seal, gradually restoring its original strength. Therefore, three years ago, when it left Douluo Continent, it possessed the strength of the Reincarnation Realm." After taking a heavy breath, Zhu Zhuqing revealed all the remaining information in one breath.

The Second Reincarnation Realm... does that mean that the early stage of a Five-Star Dou Sheng is only at the peak of a Four-Star Dou Sheng?

After learning about the Ghost King's strength at his peak, Xiao Yan suddenly became excited—

If he goes all out now, he'll be around the level of a three-star Dou Sheng. If we take into account the "Flame Ancestral Symbol's" effect on the Otherworldly Demons, it seems... not impossible for him to challenge the Ghost King at his peak with the strength of a three-star Dou Sheng.

"Do you want to try to completely kill the Ghost King?" Gu Yuena suddenly asked, looking at the silent Xiao Yan.