"Place your bets."
Hun Miesheng sat high on his throne like a sovereign emperor, coldly overlooking the five Heavenly Venerates.
The intent was clear to all.
Only now did the five Venerates truly understand why Hun Miesheng had invited them here today.
To break away from the Soul Clan and claim power for himself.
"Hun Miesheng, are you rebelling against the clan? How dare you joke about the Clan Leader!"
The Great Heavenly Venerate snorted coldly, his eyes sharp.
Rebel?
Hun Miesheng chuckled. He casually raised his hand and crushed the peak Dou Huang soul body into nothing.
Wearing a harmless smile, Hun Miesheng looked down on the five Venerates.
"Submit, or die. Choose."
"You..."
The Great Heavenly Venerate's face flushed with rage, then twisted into a sneer.
"If the Soul Clan learns of this, by clan law, you'll be soul-extracted and tortured. I'd like to see how many lives you have to spend!"
"Don't forget, Soul Hall is just a tool of the Soul Clan on the continent. If they want to erase Soul Hall, it's as easy as flipping a hand!"
"You don't need to worry about that."
Hun Miesheng's cold laugh echoed.
"The Soul Clan? Hun Tiandi? All of them are nothing but ants beneath my feet!"
"My Soul Hall will shroud this entire world. I will stir the heavens of the Dou Qi continent and block out the sky with one hand!"
Clang—
Clang—
Before his voice had even faded, a black chain lashed through the air with a roar.
Bang!
A figure was thrown from the void in disarray.
It was Gu You, looking quite battered.
Hun Miesheng stood with his hands behind his back.
"None of you are leaving today."
He pointed at the soul bodies bound by black chains above the great hall.
"If you oppose me, your fate will be the same as theirs."
The five Venerates' expressions turned grim.
Hun Miesheng clearly had no intention of letting them go.
They might very well fall here today.
"Hun Miesheng! You still haven't recovered from your injuries at the Sea of Undead, have you?" The Great Heavenly Venerate's eyes flickered as he suddenly shouted.
Hun Miesheng froze.
'How does he know I was wounded there?'
If the original Hun Miesheng hadn't been injured in the Sea of Undead, his soul might never have had the chance to enter this body.
"Ghost Devour!"
Taking advantage of that brief hesitation, the Great Heavenly Venerate vanished.
Thousands of black ghostly figures swarmed forward, clawing madly toward Hun Miesheng!
The aura of death and destruction filled the entire hall!
A fatal killing move right from the start!
Ding. System Notification: Main God Boundary Stele – Divine Guardian effect activated.
Detected: Threat-level dark attribute energy. Power Level: Two-Star.
Eligible for suppression.
Would you like to suppress?
Hun Miesheng paused.
If the system hadn't reminded him, he might have forgotten.
Inside a ten-li radius of the Main God Boundary Stele, he was effectively a god.
"No."
Hun Miesheng sneered.
He could cheat, but he didn't need to.
With his power alone, crushing these clowns was more than enough.
His eyes turned pitch black.
Boom.
A wave of black fire exploded.
The Void Devouring Flame surged forward and instantly swallowed all the ghostly apparitions.
The intense flames coiled into a massive fire serpent, its black pupils gleaming with devouring light.
"Come out!"
Hun Miesheng's soul force at the Great Perfection of the Heavenly Realm turned into countless blades, piercing every corner of the hall.
A dark figure crashed to the ground with a thud.
It was the Great Heavenly Venerate!
All five Venerates were struck by the soul attack and collapsed to the ground, groaning in pain.
Hun Miesheng shook his head.
"Not one of you can fight."
"If you've got anything else, bring it out now. Otherwise, you won't get another chance."
The five Heavenly Venerates stared at him in horror as he hovered above them like an emperor.
This was their first time fighting the Hall Master—and they hadn't expected such a terrifying gap in strength.
"Everyone, no more holding back. Use everything you have! Form the Fivefold Soul-Locking Array!" the Great Heavenly Venerate shouted.
The five of them inhaled deeply and released five black chains that crossed through the air.
The collision of Dou Qi shattered the golden pillars inside the hall.
The grand hall split open with trenches several zhang deep.
The entire structure began to collapse.
"Damn it!" Hun Miesheng's mouth twitched.
"Follow me."
He ripped space apart with a palm and stepped outside the collapsing hall.
The five chains followed closely, weaving together into a massive web that formed a cage around him.
The five Venerates were delighted.
"Attack! Kill Hun Miesheng!" the Great Heavenly Venerate shouted.
Black Dou Qi converged from all directions onto the cage.
The pressure twisted space itself, creating flashing beams of light.
"Die, Hun Miesheng!"
"The Hall Master position needs a new owner!" the Great Heavenly Venerate shouted darkly.
Just then, a sigh echoed softly.
"Sigh..."
"This is the best you can do?"
Before the words had finished, the cage exploded with a bang.
Chains shattered, and the backlash sent all five flying backward for hundreds of zhang.
Hun Miesheng stepped calmly out of the void, a faint smile at his lips.
"My turn."
"Sixfold Command: Soul Suppression!"
He slammed his palm downward.
Six massive devouring serpents erupted, swallowing the incoming Dou Techniques before slamming into each Venerate.
Blood bloomed in the air.
All five crashed from the sky.
"Not good!" The Great Heavenly Venerate's aura faltered. Sensing danger, he tore space and tried to escape.
"Trying to run?"
A black chain burst forth, binding him tightly.
Gu You, Blood River, Hun Jun, and Qiu Di weren't even Dou Shengs. They were already half-dead from the previous strike.
Hun Miesheng suspended them all in the air, then clenched his hand.
The overwhelming force nearly crushed their bodies. Agonizing pain tore through their every nerve.
"Hall Master, mercy!" Blood River screamed.
"Gu You is willing to surrender!"
"Qiu Di will serve you as a slave, a dog—anything!"
"I... I will follow Hall Master too! Just spare me!" the Great Heavenly Venerate cried out, biting down hard.
"Heh."
Hun Miesheng chuckled coldly and grabbed the Great Heavenly Venerate by the neck.
"If only you'd said that at the beginning."
"Tsk. Too late now." Hun Miesheng's eyes sharpened, and he pressed his palm to the man's head.
"Hall Master, mercy—!"
"Aaahh!"
A shriek rang through the heavens as Hun Miesheng forcibly extracted the Great Heavenly Venerate's soul.
Soul Extraction.
In Soul Hall, it was worse than death.
Ding. System Notification: Villain Points +2000.
"Now it's your turn." Hun Miesheng looked at the other four.
"Spare us, Hall Master!"
"Aaahhh!"
Ding. System Notification: Villain Points +8000.
...
Hun Miesheng casually tossed the half-dead souls to Gui Lao.
Looking at the five broken bodies before him, white light gathered in his hand.
Five wooden puppets appeared in his palm.
Puppet Control Technique.
(End of Chapter)