Xiao Yan’s and Yao Lao’s expressions changed slightly when they saw Protector Wu turned his eyes and change his target to the two of them. Earlier, he came to a draw with Yao Lao. However, now that he had swallowed the spirits of Yun Shan and the couple of Misty Cloud Sect’s Elders, his strength had soared. With this increase of strength, Yao Lao would definitely have difficulty contending with him. Given Xiao Yan’s current seriously injured condition, it was impossible for him to last even one exchange with Protector Wu. Hence, if he forcefully tried to fight, not only would he be unable to give the slightest support to Yao Lao but would also cause Yao Lao to have to divert his attention to protect him.

“Fight with him!” Xiao Yan clenched his left hand tightly and grit his teeth viciously. He had already come to a decision in his heart. If this fellow really wanted to harm Yao Lao, he would cause this person to feel terrible even if he had to risk his life.

Yao Lao slowly grabbed Xiao Yan’s hand just as this thought lingered in the latter’s heart. He smiled and spoke faintly, “Leave him to me. You should go over to Hai Bodong’s side.”

Xiao Yan was startled. He turned his head and looked at Yao Lao’s face which contained a slight smile. He clenched his teeth and spoke softly, “Teacher, you...”

“Relax, even though his strength has soared greatly, it will not be easy for him to kill me.” Yao Lao smiled and shook his head. He did not wait for Xiao Yan’s reply as he suddenly struck a palm on Xiao Yan’s shoulders. A gentle force erupted before pushing him to Hai Bodong’s position.

“This protector has said that neither of the two of you will escape today.” Protector Wu laughed coldly as he looked at Xiao Yan who was being protected by Hai Bodong’s group. Those crimson eyes under the black cloak shot toward the indifferent face of Yao Lao as he spoke sinisterly, “Yao Chen, do you think that you are still a match for me given my current strength?”

“I’m afraid that if you don’t pay something, it is really impossible for you to get my old spirit...” Yao Lao flicked his finger and a cluster of dense white flames surfaced from his palm. They immediately curled up. The hot temperature caused the space to feel a little distorted.

“This protector has already paid the price...” The crimson eyes under the black cloak darkened slightly as Protector Wu replied in a dense cold voice, “Hence, it is time for you to hand over your spirit!”

Yao Lao’s heart sank as he sensed the dark, cold gaze that was filled with killing intent under the black cloak. It was indeed as he had expected. There was indeed an extremely great sequelae when this fellow forcefully swallowed the spirit of an expert like Yun Shan...

Yao Lao did not continue to say any nonsense after his heart slightly sank. Powerful Spiritual Strength surged out in all directions. Although it was extremely difficult to witness it with his naked eyes, he was able to clearly sense the frightening pressure that had spread over the sky.

“Tsk tsk are you planning to go all out? However, it is too late now!” Protector Wu merely laughed strangely when he saw the actions of Yao Lao. He immediately waved his sleeves and a strange black fog swiftly surged out of his body. Finally, it agglomerated into a deep-black cloud layer. It was difficult for even the sunlight from the sky to diffuse into it. After a moment, the color of the sky above the Misty Cloud Sect had become dark.

Protector Wu had blotted out the sun the moment he attacked. This caused quite a number of experts to be greatly shocked. This strength... was really too terrifying.

The black clouds lingered. Protector Wu appeared to become invisible as his trace was strangely lost. In an instant, the entire sky had become extremely quiet. This kind of unusual environment caused one’s pores to open wide was something that even an elite Dou Huang would feel uneasy about.

An unusual dark wind quietly drifted past. Yao Lao, whose entire body was wrapped by that dense white flame, suddenly shrank his eyes. He immediately turned around and ruthlessly threw a punch toward the empty space behind him.

When the fist moved, the powerful Spiritual Strength that was spread all over his body also moved with it. His shriveled fist appeared to have carried the fluctuation of this space as it contained an incomparably powerful wind and smashed forward violently.

“Bang!”

A black figure strangely surfaced where his fist had been launched. Both fists collided and a substance-like ripple force spread out in all directions. Finally, it brought about thunder-like roars.

Chi! Chi!

Both fists crossed each other and two human figures once again strangely vanished in front of a countless number of gazes. When they next appeared a moment later, they were over a hundred meters away. In that instant, thunder rolled in the sky as the human figures flashed. Each time a human figure appeared, the hearts of a countless number of people below felt chilled and frightened because of the extremely powerful thunder-like explosions that erupted.

Black clouds rolled in the sky and some force would occasionally cause them to ripple. Only then did a crack line appear in the thick black clouds, allowing a thread of sunlight to scatter into the place. However, despite it being sunlight, it caused everyone to feel that there was no heat at this very moment.

From a treetop, Xiao Yan looked at the sky where the shocking thunder sound kept being emitted. His expression was quite ugly. Although he was currently in a seriously injured state, he was still able to sense the battle situation in the sky more clearly than other people because of his outstanding Spiritual Perception.

Yao Lao’s strength was indeed strong. Even though he was in a spiritual state, he was still able to borrow the strength of the ‘Bone Chilling Flame’ to fight with Protector Wu after the latter had used his Secret Technique. However, he had clearly fallen into a disadvantage during the attack. From the looks of the situation, Yao Lao would definitely be defeated if this were to continue a little longer.

Xiao Yan was unclear about the actual fighting strength of an elite Dou Zong. Hence, he was unable to identify how many Dou Zong stars Protector Wu reached after using the Secret Technique. However, according to his estimation, it was likely that Protector Wu was above six stars. After all, the current Yun Shan was already an elite two to three star Dou Zong. Yao Lao’s strength was clearly a little greater. However, the current Protector Wu was able to suppress Yao Lao in this manner. It was not considered surprising that he possessed such strength.

“Xiao Yan, what do we do?” Hai Bodong knit his brows and stared at the sky. He could vaguely sense that Yao Lao’s situation was a little bad but he did not have any sure-fire way to understand the situation. Although his current strength was near the peak of the Dou Huang class, he still did not have much ability to intervene in a battle between the Dou Zong class.

Xiao Yan’s face was gloomy, but he was unable to come up with a solution. Things would be fine if he was currently not seriously injured. By using the ‘Angry Buddha Lotus Flame’ that was merged from three ‘Heavenly Flame’ again, he would at the very least be able to hurt Protector Wu a little even if he could not kill him. At that time, this would provide some help to Yao Lao. However... with his seriously injured body, he could forget about using an ‘Angry Buddha Lotus Flame’ formed from three ‘Heavenly Flames’. He did not even possess the ability to protect himself.

“Let’s wait and see first...” Xiao Yan’s voice was dark and solemn as he spoke. After which, he ceased speaking. His gaze stared into the sky as his heart became ruthless. If it really came to that point, he would intervene even if he really did have to stake this life of his!

Hai Bodong could only quietly sigh when he saw Xiao Yan acting in this manner. He lifted his head and observed the battle under the black clouds. His fist was tightly clenched. Given his relationship with Xiao Yan, it was naturally difficult for him to just watch Yao Lao be captured. Hence, when it really came to that time, he could only stake this set of old bones and give it a try.

Lightning flashed in the sky. Another crack line was formed in the black cloud due to the frightening ripple force. A thread of sunlight dispersed down. Two figures coincidentally interected abruptly under that pillar of light. A low, deep, stern cry sounded and the two people rushed forward like two cannon balls before violently colliding under the pillar.

“Bang!”

A loud thunderclap resounded over the sky. The ears of a countless number of people were shaken until they felt a piercing pain. Some fresh blood actually seeped out of the ears of some of the people who were inferior in strength. The sonic strength that the frightening intersection of these two people created was not inferior to the damage that Xiao Yan’s ‘Lion Tiger Gold Shattering Roar’ created at its maximum strength.

The loud sound rang and the two human figures suddenly flew back. A slight soft, low, muffled groan was emitted and it accurately fell into Xiao Yan’s ears. The latter’s heart immediately sank. Yao Lao was injured!

Following this fierce collision, the black clouds that spread over the sky had become much thinner. Sunlight seeped through the thin black clouds and scattered in, expelling some of the darkness on the open ground.

“Tsk tsk, you are indeed worthy of being the Yao zun-zhe that is renown throughout the continent. You are still such a hard nut even at this stage. However, how long can you maintain this kind of battle for?” The black shadow was suspended in the sky. After which, Protector Wu looked at the increasingly illusory Yao Lao and laughed in a sinister manner.

“The old me also does not believe that you can continue in this condition of yours.” Yao Lao spoke with an expressionless face. Although the condition within his body was extremely terrible, he did not reveal even the slightest sign of it.

The red glint under the black cloak flickered. A moment later, Protector Wu suddenly laughed out in a dark, dense manner, “I am also quite stupid. Instead of capturing that softie that I can easily capture, I have come to look for you, a person with thorns. Since you treat that little fellow so well, would you not surrender if this protector were to capture him?”

Protector Wu sinister laughter had just sounded when his body flashed without waiting for Yao Lao to respond. He drew through the air and rushed toward the spot where Xiao Yan was located.

“Despicable!” Yao Lao’s expression instantly changed when he saw Protector Wu’s actions. He let out an angry cry and did not care about the intense rippling of Spiritual Strength with his body. His figure turned into a vague shadow as he hurriedly rushed over.

Protector Wu’s speed was so quick that it was somewhat frightening. His body had already appeared at a spot not far from Xiao Yan when his voice had just sounded earlier. In two breaths, he was already in close proximity!

The expressions of Hai Bodong and the others changed when they saw Protector Wu suddenly rushing over. Due to the latter’s strength, Nalan Su, Mu Zhen, and the other expert Dou Wangs all withdrew in fear. Only Hai Bodong, Jia Xing Tian, and a few others felt a little better.

Hai Bodong and the others were startled by the sudden change of Protector Wu’s attacking target. However, Hai Bodong reacted a moment later. He clenched his teeth and moved his body, appearing in front of Xiao Yan. Behind him, Jia Xing Tian and the other experts hesitated for a moment before the few others except Old Yin Gu and the other two experts from the Black Corner Region all clenched their teeth and charged forward.

“You overestimate your abilities. Get lost!”

The black figure rushed and arrived. Protector Wu let out a dark and cold cry when he saw Hai Bodong and the others blocking in front of him. He immediately waved his sleeves and the unusual black fog immediately rushed out. It transformed into an enormous hand that violently slammed toward Hai Bodong and the others. Although the few people hurriedly join hands to receive the enemy, they were sent flying after a mere exchange in the face of the enormous gap.

Protector Wu let out an unusual smile after sending Hai Bodong and the other experts flying with a blow. His body flashed and appeared in front of Xiao Yan.

“Brat, obediently call those things from your Xiao clan out. This protector can still let you die in a simple and direct manner!” A shriveled bone-like face was revealed under the black cloak. At a glance, it was somewhat frightening. A pair of ghost-like claws suddenly extended out while one’s voice left his mouth before immediately grabbing toward Xiao Yan who was unable to resist.

The ghost claw was swiftly enlarged in Xiao Yan’s eyes. He clenched his teeth intently and the little remaining Dou Qi within his body swiftly flowed, maneuvering the Glazed Lotus Core Flame in a desperate attempt to counterattack!

Given Xiao Yan’s current strength, everyone clearly understood what the final outcome was while he tried to contend against Protector Wu. Hence, everyone present could only open their eyes and wait for the next moment where Xiao Yan fell into Protector Wu’s hands.

The ghost claw rushed through the empty air and instantly reached Xiao Yan’s throat. However, just as it was about to contract, the space suddenly fluctuated. A white-jade-like long hand immediately flashed out. The jade fingers curled and formed an unusual arc. With a flick of a finger, a frightening wind shot out and violently struck Protector Wu’s hand claw. The frightening force that was contained in it actually shocked Protector Wu until his body trembled slightly.

Using the moment when Protector Wu’s body trembled, the hand directly grabbed Xiao Yan’s robe before rushing back.

“Who is it? You actually dare to intervene in the matters of our ‘Hall of Souls’!” Protector Wu’s expression instantly turned gloomy when his attack was blocked. He raised his head and looked at the beautiful, bewitching beauty.

The bewitching woman glanced at Protector Wu indifferently. Those words that slowly left her mouth were the same as back then.

“His life is mine...”