Chapter 293: Robbing Demon Flame Valley
"Oh?" Upon hearing Xiao Yan's words, Su Qian's previously grim expression shifted, replaced by a faint smile.
"It seems Elder Xiao Yan has a certain interest in Demon Flame Valley," Su Qian remarked.
Xiao Yan nodded nonchalantly. "First Elder, let me take care of this. I'd like to see what kind of nerve Demon Flame Valley has to kidnap elders from Jia Nan Academy."
"Hoho, if Elder Xiao Yan is willing to act, that would be fantastic," Su Qian said, his smile widening.
With Xiao Yan's current strength, even the academy's headmaster would find it difficult to suppress him. As for the elders of Demon Flame Valley, who were merely Dou Kings, they were nothing but ants in front of Xiao Yan. Even the so called Earth Demon Elder, a high level Dou Emperor and contemporary of the headmaster, wouldn't last more than a few exchanges against Xiao Yan.
Su Qian's smile deepened at the thought. "In that case, we'll leave it to you, Elder Xiao Yan."
"Of course," Xiao Yan replied with a faint smile. "In fact, this trip would be a good opportunity to train some of our students. Let the ones who accompanied me last time join me again."
Su Qian naturally had no objections to this small request.
Soon, a team of ten students, including Lin Xiuya and Han Yue, was gathered. This time, however, Xiao Yan made no effort to conceal his strength. With Han Feng dealt with and the Sea Heart Flame in his possession, there was no longer any need to keep a low profile.
With a casual wave of his hand, Xiao Yan enveloped the group in his Dou Qi. Another flick of his wrist opened a spatial wormhole right before them.
As the students watched him manipulate spatial power with such ease, they felt a mix of awe and gratitude. Traveling under the protection of such a powerhouse was truly a rare opportunity and a stroke of luck.
Their envious gazes fell on Han Yue, who had recently advanced to the Dou King realm. She had clearly gained a lot from her association with Xiao Yan, and many students couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy, especially a few female students.
"Why can't I be as lucky as Han Yue? If Elder Xiao Yan showed the slightest interest, I wouldn't hesitate to... cooperate in any way he wanted," one of the female students thought with a sigh.
For a young and talented hero like Xiao Yan especially one whose presence could aid their cultivation he was nearly impossible to resist.
By now, Xiao Yan had already led the group into the spatial tunnel.
"Here, Elder Xiao Yan. This is the location," Lin Yan said, pointing toward the image reflected by Xiao Yan's spatial feedback.
Each step Xiao Yan took within the spatial tunnel covered dozens of miles. In less than the time it takes for half an incense stick to burn, they arrived at a dense forested valley thousands of miles away a journey that had taken Lin Yan three days and three nights previously.
The valley was shrouded in dense foliage, concealing it well. Deep within, plumes of smoke rose into the air.
Near a campfire, over a dozen individuals dressed in dark purple robes lounged lazily. The weakest among them was at the Dou Spirit level, while the three leaders had already reached the Dou King stage.
Such a group would be considered an elite force in the Black Corner Region, enough to instill fear in most. Unfortunately for them, their captives included a particularly confident elder from Jia Nan Academy.
"Do we have any hope left, Elder Hao?" a despondent outer court student asked, looking at the elder bound to a tree.
"Don't worry. The academy will send help soon," Elder Hao replied with a calm smile. Though bound in chains and his Dou Qi sealed, his demeanor remained unshaken.
If this had been before, he might have felt helpless against the combined strength of Demon Flame Valley's elders. But now, he was confident.
"With Elder Xiao Yan on our side, these fools will be groveling before us in no time," Elder Hao thought, a sly smile spreading across his face.
The students, unaware of Xiao Yan's feats in the Inner Academy, were growing increasingly despondent. Seeing Elder Hao grinning foolishly, they assumed the recent head injury had taken its toll.
Meanwhile, Fang Yan, the Great Elder of Demon Flame Valley, noticed Elder Hao's odd expression.
"Hao Ren, what's so funny? You'd better pray your academy coughs up the ransom, or I'll have no choice but to kill you."
"Hmph," Elder Hao snorted, his expression full of disdain. "Fang Yan, if you know what's good for you, you'll release me now, kneel, and beg for mercy. Serve me a proper meal, and I might consider sparing your pathetic lives. Otherwise, when reinforcements arrive, you won't even have the chance to beg."
Fang Yan was dumbfounded by Elder Hao's bold words.
"Is this old fool insane? Second Brother, go slap some sense into him," Fang Yan ordered.
"Got it, Big Brother. I'll make him see reason." The second elder of Demon Flame Valley sneered as he stood, cracking his knuckles.
Elder Hao's calm façade cracked slightly as he realized his bravado might have come too early. "Uh oh, looks like I'm about to get smacked."
But just as the second elder approached, the air in the valley rippled, and a spatial rift suddenly appeared in the center of the camp.
A black robed figure stepped out, followed by ten students.
The arrival of the black robed youth caused a visible shift in the atmosphere. Fang Yan and his subordinates froze, their faces pale.
Meanwhile, Elder Hao's sly grin stretched to his ears.
"Jie jie, your days are numbered, you three old fools!" Elder Hao couldn't help but burst into arrogant laughter.
"A spatial wormhole! Could it be that Jia Nan Academy has a Dou Venerate among its ranks?" The three elders of Demon Flame Valley exchanged wary glances, unease evident in their expressions.
What they couldn't fathom was that the young man who had just stepped out of the wormhole was, in fact, the Dou Venerate himself. Xiao Yan's youthful appearance was so misleading that even being a Dou Emperor seemed implausible.
"What's done is done! I don't believe a mere boy could overturn the situation!" Fang Yan sneered, glancing at his two brothers.
"Second and Third Brother, attack now! We'll take them down quickly and retreat to the valley. With the Valley Master's protection, I refuse to believe Jia Nan Academy would dare send a Dou Venerate after us!"
Upon hearing this, the second and third elders exchanged grim looks, nodded, and transformed into two dark shadows, rushing to ambush Xiao Yan.
"These three old fools truly have no sense of self preservation," Elder Hao remarked with a broad grin.
As Xiao Yan stepped out of the spatial wormhole and saw their actions, a smirk of amusement appeared on his face.
With a casual wave of his hand in mid air, a crisp slap, slap, slap resounded.
In an instant, the three dark shadows were sent flying backward like cannonballs.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The three elders of Demon Flame Valley slammed into the cliffs of the valley, creating deep craters in the rock.
As the smoke cleared, their swollen faces and bloodied mouths, complete with shattered teeth, painted a picture of disbelief and shock.
"Impossible! How could a mere boy possess such strength?!"
The three exchanged horrified glances.
To dispatch all three of them so effortlessly, not even an ordinary Dou Ancestor could manage such a feat. Could it be that this young man was truly a Dou Venerate?
The thought sent waves of confusion and dread coursing through their minds.
When had Jia Nan Academy gained such a young powerhouse? Or was this youth some old monster who had mastered a technique to retain a youthful appearance?
Unconcerned by their astonishment, Xiao Yan casually flicked his fingers, sending three streams of Dou Qi into their bodies. In an instant, the three elders' auras deflated like punctured balloons, leaving them utterly powerless.
With just a simple move, Xiao Yan sealed their cultivation entirely.
Seeing this, the students following behind Xiao Yan, despite already being aware of his overwhelming strength, couldn't help but feel another jolt of awe.
As for the minions of Demon Flame Valley, they looked at Xiao Yan as if he were a ghost, their faces pale with terror.
The abducted outer court students, on the other hand, gazed at Xiao Yan with expressions of shock and admiration. His arrival was like that of a divine savior descending from the heavens.
Without paying attention to the various reactions around him, Xiao Yan sent out another dozen streams of Dou Qi. In the blink of an eye, the remaining Demon Flame Valley members were stripped of their strength, unable to even resist.
At the same time, the Dou Qi streams undid the seals and bindings on Jia Nan Academy's people, freeing them entirely.
"Elder Hao, my apologies for being late," Xiao Yan said with a warm smile as he turned to the elder.
Elder Hao's face lit up with a grin so wide it seemed to reach his ears.
"Hehe, not late at all, Elder Xiao Yan. You arrived at just the right moment!"
A short while later, the tables had turned completely. Jia Nan Academy's members sat comfortably around the campfire, while the members of Demon Flame Valley were now tied up to one side. The phrase "what goes around comes around" seemed fitting for the situation.
Elder Hao, grinning mischievously, approached Fang Yan, the great elder of Demon Flame Valley.
"Do you know what you did wrong?" he asked, his tone almost mocking.
"I do, I do!" Fang Yan nodded hastily, his face full of panic.
"You knew, yet you dared to kidnap me!" Elder Hao roared, slapping Fang Yan twice across the face, sending stars spinning in his vision.
Turning to the second elder, Elder Hao asked, "Do you know what you did wrong?"
After a moment's hesitation, the second elder stammered, "I... don't know."
Slap! Slap!
Two more crisp slaps landed on his cheeks.
"Clearly, you're beyond redemption!" Elder Hao scoffed.
Finally, Elder Hao turned to the third elder.
"And you? Do you know what you did wrong?"
The third elder gulped nervously and suddenly had an idea. He opened his mouth but remained utterly silent.
Slap! Slap!
Elder Hao smacked him too.
"Did your voice box stay home today?!"
As Elder Hao indulged in his righteous vengeance, Xiao Yan had already disappeared from the scene, carrying a captive from Demon Flame Valley to another location.
This new site was a sprawling, narrow valley, much larger than the previous one. Stretching for hundreds of miles, it was filled with dense energy and served as the headquarters of Demon Flame Valley, one of the Black Corner Region's oldest powers.
From above, Xiao Yan studied the location with a faint smile.
"This would make an excellent branch for the Yan Alliance in the Black Corner Region," he remarked.
With the Yan Alliance's rapid growth, Xiao Yan anticipated that once he reached the Dou Saint realm, the alliance would dominate the northwestern continent. The fertile Black Corner Region was too good an opportunity to pass up.
"Time to loot!"
Hovering in the sky, Xiao Yan's voice boomed like thunder, infused with boundless Dou Qi, echoing throughout Demon Flame Valley.
The entire valley was instantly thrown into chaos.
Dozens of figures shot out from various parts of the valley, each one brimming with anger and indignation.
"Who dares disturb Demon Flame Valley?! You must be tired of living!" shouted a Dou King who seemed to be in charge.
Before his words even finished, an overwhelming aura erupted from Xiao Yan's body.
The terrifying pressure engulfed the valley, forcing all the Dou Spirit and Dou King experts within a thousand meters to collapse to the ground, unable to move.
A stunned silence fell over the valley.
The youthful figure hovering above them radiated an aura so vast it felt unfathomable.
Ignoring their expressions of terror, Xiao Yan's gaze shifted to a specific direction in the valley. His voice, laced with the power of his soul, boomed once more.
"Earth Demon Elder, if you don't come out, I will destroy everything!"
(End of Chapter)
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