Chapter 54: Subduing Six People

Within the Youhan Sect, Earth Soul Immortals of the first, second, and third stars were merely outer disciples, while those of the fourth, fifth, and sixth stars were inner disciples. Lower-ranked Earth Soul Immortals were core disciples, those of intermediate ranks became elders, and those of higher ranks became patriarchs. The sect leader, Luo Youtian, also belonged to the higher-ranked Earth Soul Immortals.

Luo Ning, Lan Fei, Hua Hai, Chi Yu, Liu Qing, and Chang Cheng were all at the third-star Earth Soul Immortal level, so they were only outer disciples. However, their status was far higher than that of the ordinary human-immortal disciples; they weren’t forced to do tasks like carrying goods or obeying orders. Instead, they had been promoted to administrators of branch factions, wielding considerable power.

When the six of them arrived at Tongzhou Hall, they found that only the hall master, Yun Zhouzi, was an Earth Soul Immortal—and even he was only at the third star. They immediately thought it was perfect. With their own strength, they could suppress Yun Zhouzi and thus oppress Tongzhou Hall at will, allowing them to claim most of the benefits that hall should have received.

So, as soon as Yu Wei left, the six of them posed a difficult problem to Yun Zhouzi, using it as an opportunity to establish their authority.

The Fire Lord realized their intentions and immediately decided he must subdue them.

At that moment, the Fire Lord returned alone to his cultivation cave.

As soon as he entered his cave, he stepped into the Dimensional Sphere and appeared before Qu Yi.

“This lord wants Yuwen Tianlan summoned. I want him to suppress those six arrogant guys,” the Fire Lord stated directly.

Upon hearing this, Qu Yi smiled and nodded, ready to summon Yuwen Tianlan, who was cultivating inside the Heart of the Soul Devouring Bloodline.

“Wait—a few more days, and Yuwen Tianlan will be able to break through to the sixth-star Earth Soul Immortal level. Wait a bit longer,” the God of Tools suddenly called out.

On Fangyang Star, Yuwen Tianlan had already sensed that he was about to break through to the sixth-star Earth Soul Immortal level. Due to the matter involving the Yulin mineral deposits, he had been forced to leave his cultivation to attack Zhu Li. Later, while inside the Dimensional Sphere alongside the Fire Lord in the starry sky, he cultivated for another ten years. This time, because of the discovery of the Soul Devouring Bloodline, Qu Yi placed Yuwen Tianlan inside its heart to help him accelerate his cultivation.

Indeed, Yuwen Tianlan was making rapid progress and was on the verge of breaking through to the sixth-star Earth Soul Immortal level.

Huo Zun and Qu Yi were stunned upon hearing the words of the Instrument God, then immediately burst into laughter. The current Yuwen Tianlan was Qu Yi’s greatest hidden weapon—whenever there was anyone who displeased him, Yuwen Tianlan would be sent to launch a surprise attack. Naturally, upon hearing that Yuwen Tianlan’s cultivation level was about to reach another breakthrough, Qu Yi was extremely pleased.
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The core of the Soul Devouring Bloodline was a magnified heart.
At this moment, inside that heart, Yuwen Tianlan sat quietly, completely naked, sensing the primal energy of wood in his blood and comprehending the final form of that primal energy—the Speed ofSpeed of Sound.
Suddenly, Yuwen Tianlan opened his eyes and shouted wildly, “I’ve finally understood the Speed ofSpeed of Sound!”
As soon as he spoke, a blue energy sphere appeared in his hand. The sphere shot out abruptly, but its speed gradually slowed down, while its strength remained constant.
The Speed ofSpeed of Sound was a speed that changed from fast to slow.
By now, Yuwen Tianlan had fully comprehended all forms of the primal energy of wood—the Speed of Birth, the Speed of Withering, the Speed of Stretching, the Speed of Bending, the Speed ofSpeed of Sound, and the Speed of Tightening. He had finally become a Six-Star Earth Soul Immortal.
“Hmph, he’s calling me.” Suddenly, before he could finish laughing, Yuwen Tianlan realized that Qu Yi was calling for him.
Without hesitation, he immediately took out his robes, put them on, then pierced through the ground and swiftly flew to the cultivation cave of Huo Zun.
“Did you call me?” Yuwen Tianlan asked right away upon arriving.
Huo Zun had already come out of the Dimensional Sphere and was alone in the cave. Seeing Yuwen Tianlan arrive, he smiled and said, “Yuwen Tianlan, congratulations on reaching the status of Six-Star Earth Soul Immortal. We’ve now arrived at the Yuhan Sect, and I need you to capture six members of that sect.”
Yuwen Tianlan immediately drew out his Wind-Embracing Sword and said coldly, “No problem. I won’t hold back against those from the Yuhan Sect.”
Qiu Mo from the Yuhan Sect had destroyed the Yuwen family, a memory that Yuwen Tianlan carried deeply in his heart. He harbored intense hatred toward the Yuhan Sect.
Huo Zun nodded in agreement upon hearing this.
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Luo Ning from the Sect Affairs Bureau was alone on a snow-capped peak at that moment, sitting quietly on an ice bed, practicing cultivation.
Huo Zun flew over alone, heading straight for Luo Ning’s peak.
The Soul Devouring Bloodline extended to every corner beneath the plateau, so it was easy for Huo Zun to locate the current whereabouts of the six executives. His first target now was Luo Ning.
Luo Ning opened his eyes and saw Huo Zun flying toward him, a smile appearing on his face.

“It’s only now that I understand Tongzhou Hall’s intentions. They really sent a disciple over—apparently to discuss profit distribution with me,” Luo Ning thought to himself. As a steward, Luo Ning would certainly not help Tongzhou Hall if there was no profit involved. Huozun landed on the snow peak and said with a bow, “Steward Luo Ning, the hall master sent me here to discuss some matters with you.” Upon hearing this, Luo Ning’s face lit up with a smile as he nodded and asked, “Oh? What matters are they?” Huozun showed a worried expression, scanned the surroundings, and whispered, “Steward, it’s not very appropriate to discuss matters here. We should find a quiet, secluded place where no one can overhear us.” Luo Ning gave a knowing smile, then took out an ice sword and plunged it into the snow peak. His Water Element energy penetrated the peak, creating a deep passage. “Let’s go down; it should be safer underground,” Luo Ning said with a smile as he retracted his sword. Huozun nodded and jumped into the passage first. When he reached the bottom, he saw that Luo Ning’s magic had already created a spacious cave. Luo Ning soon followed. At the same time, he quickly cast seals throughout the cave to prevent outsiders from eavesdropping on their conversation. “So, what’s the matter? You can tell me now, right?” Luo Ning asked with a smile. Seeing that the surroundings were sealed off, Huozun immediately smiled, a hint of mockery in his eyes. Luo Ning sensed something was wrong. But it was too late—Yuwen Tianlan suddenly emerged from the Dimensional Sphere, waving his Wind-Embracing Sword. A gust of wind, seemingly slow but actually swift, wrapped around Luo Ning and tightly bound him. This was Yuwen Tianlan using his “tightening then loosening” technique. “Who… who are you? How could you have an underling of a Six-Star Earth Soul Immortal?” Luo Ning cried out in panic. Huozun sighed, unwilling to answer, and simply gave Yuwen Tianlan a glance. “I know,” Yuwen Tianlan replied curtly, understanding Huozun’s gaze. He stepped up to Luo Ning, flattened his Wind-Embracing Sword, and swung it down, knocking Luo Ning unconscious. Huozun smiled faintly, approached the unconscious Luo Ning, and carried him back into the Dimensional Sphere. “Yuwen Tianlan, the second target—Huahai,” Huozun said with a smile. ※※※

In a valley within the Dimensional Ball, Luo Ning, Lan Fei, Hua Hai, Chi Yu, Liu Qing, and Chang Cheng—all six of them—kneeled on the ground. Huo Zun stood alone beside them. “Who are you? Why have you captured us six? What do you want?” Luo Ning shouted angrily, his face twisted in fury. Huo Zun had used the same method, following the directions indicated by his Soul Devouring bloodline to find the six attendants, and then, through Yuwen Tianlan, captured them all and trapped them inside the Dimensional Ball. Inside the ball, Qu Yi was the king, controlling everything. As soon as the six entered, they were subdued by the forces within the ball and forced to kneel. Thus, when they saw Huo Zun approaching, they were filled with rage. With their status in the Youhan Sect, it had never happened before that they would have to kneel in such humiliation before others. Huo Zun watched them with a calm smile, saying nothing. After shouting angrily for a long time and seeing that Huo Zun was merely mocking them, their anger faded, and they calmed down. “Good, now that you’ve vented your anger, I can speak,” Huo Zun said with a smile. Their hearts burned again, flames almost igniting in their eyes. “You six didn’t have to suffer such torment. If you had treated Tongzhou Hall properly, I wouldn’t have wasted time on you. Since you’ve made me waste my effort, you must be punished. First, I’ll imprint soul marks on you all, turning you into my slaves,” Huo Zun said calmly. “Never!” the six shouted in unison, their faces filled with terror. They were panicked because they realized there was no spatial barrier around them, yet no matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t stand up. They understood that Huo Zun’s power was beyond their ability to resist, and they knew they would surely become his slaves, which filled them with fear. Huo Zun didn’t bother with further talk. With a sweep of his divine awareness, he entered Luo Ning’s soul space and found his Soul Flower, imprinting his own soul mark on it. Luo Ning’s Soul Flower resisted briefly but found it unable to use any soul power, so it could only allow Huo Zun to imprint the mark. Then, Huo Zun imprinted his soul marks on the Soul Flowers of Lan Fei, Hua Hai, Chi Yu, Liu Qing, and Chang Cheng as well. The six attendants of Tongzhou Hall all became Huo Zun’s slaves.

“Very good. You six have finally been subdued by me. From now on, all your actions must follow my orders,” said Huozun with a smile.
The six of them looked gloomy, heads bowed in silence.
Huozun laughed heartily as various plans began to form in his mind.