"Trying to escape? Did you ask my permission?"
A glint of annihilation shimmered in Chen Xiaoming's eyes. Two beams of silver divine light burst forth, instantly stabilizing the turbulent spatial currents disturbed by the Soul Hall's Vice Hall Master, rendering the chaos still and silent.
Swish!
With a sharp step, the vice hall master's figure darted backward, eyes filled with utter shock. Something was off—Chen Xiaoming's strength clearly didn't match what he had previously revealed.
His opponent was supposedly only at the Late Four-Star Dou Saint level. How could he so casually neutralize his chaotic spatial turbulence?
Chen Xiaoming cast him a cool glance and chuckled darkly. He had waited an entire week in this cursed place. After such a long wait, if this man escaped…
Would that not be a complete slap in the face?
Even if he was shameless, that would be taking it too far.
"Let's not waste any more time."
With a faint murmur, Dou Qi surged from Chen Xiaoming's body. The silver light reformed into a massive palm and struck out. These villain types rarely lasted more than two chapters. He'd already let this one live far longer than usual—time to wrap it up.
"You want to kill me? Dream on!"
A surge of black mist erupted from within the vice hall master, forming countless dark chains that blotted out the sky and locked down the heavens.
Dark mist coiled around each chain, saturated with a chilling aura amidst vast Dou Qi. In the blink of an eye, the entire space was swallowed by these chains. Each one weighed like a mountain, bursting with sonic booms as they lashed about.
"Bind!"
The vice hall master shouted, and the black chains rapidly contracted, spiraling toward Chen Xiaoming. Faces twisted with malice emerged from the mist, their anguished howls shaking the heavens.
Swish!
At the same time, the vice hall master stomped down again, his body retreating at high speed. A cruel smirk crept across his lips as he suddenly self-detonated, black mist dispersing in all directions, ripping apart the space anew.
Kill him? In his dreams! As the Vice Hall Master of Soul Hall, he might not have other skills, but when it came to escape techniques—he was top-tier. Laughing coldly to himself, he prepared to vanish again.
But just as he made his move, a silver light suddenly surged around him. The space froze once more.
His expression changed drastically.
From the gap in the chains, he saw Chen Xiaoming walking out, cloaked in silver brilliance. The chains that once sealed the sky now cracked open.
"How disappointing."
Chen Xiaoming shook his head. He had even left a window for escape. If the guy couldn't seize that, well… he only had himself to blame.
Looking at the expression in Chen Xiaoming's eyes, the vice hall master was seething.
Seeing the man's visible frustration, Chen Xiaoming paused, then shrugged and reached out.
"Didn't give you one? Oh well, doesn't matter now."
His voice was light, but to the vice hall master, it was the tolling of a death knell. A suffocating sense of death gripped his soul.
"Damn it!"
He tried to reform his body from black mist, but barely managed a third of it when the silver palm struck.
Pop. Pop. Pop.
The silver palm swept through, obliterating the mist instantly. The meager attacks he could muster were no more than a drop in the ocean.
Boom.
With a final strike, Chen Xiaoming shattered his foe's remaining form. As he clenched his fist, the vice hall master's soul was caught.
Staring at the writhing spirit, cloaked in sinister black energy, Chen Xiaoming frowned. Then, without a word, he crushed it in his grip—utterly annihilated.
"So ugly. Best to erase it completely."
Swish!
With a single step, Chen Xiaoming soared into the void above. Gazing down at the filth below, he gave a flick of his foot, tearing open space and vanishing. He didn't want to spend even a second longer there.
Just as he vanished, in the darkest corner of that ruined dimension, a strand of black mist quivered faintly.
"Jie jie jie... kill me? Dream on."
The vice hall master's voice echoed again.
When he had self-detonated earlier, he'd already prepared for the worst. A fragment of his being had slipped into the shadows, hiding and waiting.
After all, a proper villain doesn't die so easily. Like a cunning rabbit with many burrows—he too had contingencies.
Boom.
Just as he began to gloat, the void split open. A colossal palm, covering the heavens, descended from above.
The barriers of space fractured like glass. The world collapsed layer by layer.
"No—!"
He screamed, desperately trying to flee, but the palm came too fast. In an instant—it slammed down.
Boom!
The entire space shattered, scattering into fragments, drifting forever in the chaotic void.
Burial Corpse Mountain Range.
A spatial rift opened.
Chen Xiaoming stepped through, and before leaving, casually struck downward.
This foul place no longer needed to exist. Everyone was dead anyway. No point in letting the space remain.
Consider it an act of kindness. He'd given Soul Hall's people a luxury underground villa—with full services included.
After all, in this day and age, killers who not only erase bodies but also provide permanent housing? They're rare.
Watching the void collapse behind him, Chen Xiaoming waved his right hand. Countless glowing soul fragments emerged—remnants of those imprisoned by the Human Division of Soul Hall.
"Go."
With a single word, he turned away. He wasn't some great benevolent hero. He couldn't possibly care for so many souls.
His figure drifted into the distance.
Behind him, the freed souls knelt in reverence. Offering deep bows, they scattered into the winds.
Chen Xiaoming exhaled softly, sensing it all behind him. He shook his head and didn't dwell on it.
Reaching into his robes, he retrieved a glowing orb, pulsating with rich soul energy. He knew exactly what it was—the Soul Source painstakingly gathered by Soul Hall.
Originally meant for Xiao Yan, yet now, fate had delivered it to him.
And since it had come to Chen Xiaoming, returning it was out of the question.
He wasn't Xiao Yan's dad, after all. First come, first serve.
Tucking the orb away, Chen Xiaoming looked up at the sky in the distance.
"Phew... I guess it's time to head home."
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