Outside the national treasury, the main gate had already been shattered by a single punch from Su Chen.
Now, not even a trace remained.
Through the massive hole where the gate once stood, the wreckage inside was clearly visible.
Piles of precious herbs had been reduced to dregs, floating lifelessly in the Indestructible Dharmakara Cauldron.
The most valuable treasures—those worth a fortune, and even some beyond any price—were now nothing but dust.
Only the dense aroma of medicine still lingered heavily in the air.
As Su Chen slowly stepped out through the “gate,” a subtle fragrance, distinct from the herbal scent, drifted gently toward him.
In the very next instant, a graceful figure appeared in his sight.
Her gently furrowed brows stirred something deep within the soul—an instinctive desire to brave fire and water, just to erase the sorrow from her face.
She wore a specially tailored official uniform—instantly recognizable to any noble or high-ranking official in the imperial capital of Dayan.
It was none other than the Flame Phoenix, the War Goddess of Yan!
Right behind her came the eunuch sent by the emperor.
Unlike the battle-hardened Flame Phoenix, the eunuch didn’t possess such a strong heart.
At the sight of the scene behind Su Chen, he nearly suffered an internal rupture from sheer shock.
“This… This is the imperial treasury of the Yan court!”
“This madman—does he not fear the emperor’s wrath?”
“The treasures stored here were gathered from across the world! Even ten of his lives wouldn’t be enough to pay for a single one!”
Though his voice rang with constant shouting, it couldn’t conceal the trembling of his entire body.
First the Tenfold Sky Prison, now the royal treasury—
Disregarding the Dayan Empire entirely, where had this monster come from, to commit such brazen acts without the slightest hesitation?
The eunuch had rushed here too quickly.
In an attempt to prove his loyalty to the emperor, he had followed the Flame Phoenix without thinking it through.
Now, he was caught in a dilemma with no way forward or back.
He looked ahead at the Twelve Seals that had once protected the treasury—
Twelve gates forged from otherworldly metals, now all blown into hollow ruins.
And clearly—
Each opening was clean, symmetrical, and identical in shape.
These gates hadn’t been broken over time.
They had all been smashed apart by a single punch!
“With such power… can even the Flame Phoenix stop him?”
Despair crept into his heart and regret turned his insides green.
***
[Host, this woman has a Liuyan Jingyue Body. That physique makes cultivation twice as effective with half the effort. Judging by her appearance, she’s barely in her twenties—yet already in the Nascent Soul realm!]
[What’s more, her aura is restrained and refined. Her foundation is rock-solid—this isn’t someone who blindly rushed to breakthrough after breakthrough!]
[She’s a true prodigy. Talent, discipline, patience—she has it all!]
[You must take her as a disciple. She’ll bring you immense benefits. If you let her go, it’ll be a huge loss!]
The system, now in its tiny chibi form, lit up the moment it saw the Flame Phoenix.
It suddenly felt as if its dim, forgotten existence had finally found hope.
“Not interested,” Su Chen replied flatly.
“If a disciple is that powerful, what’s the point of having a master?”
[If you think she’s too strong… just cripple her. Problem solved!]
“Now that… I might consider.”
[…]
[Are you the devil!?]
The Flame Phoenix calmly observed the man who had not only destroyed her Tenfold Killing Array, but also committed an unforgivable crime.
His indifferent expression made her eyes narrow slightly.
The next moment, her ever-serene face revealed a fleeting ripple of emotion, so subtle it could easily be missed.
But her gaze unintentionally shifted to the Indestructible Dharmakara Cauldron inside the treasury—
To the figure half-soaked within it, face flushed red, eyes shut tight like a dozing kitten.
For the first time, a hint of softness flashed across her usually icy features.
A trace of pity, perhaps—though it vanished almost immediately.
Her expression returned to its usual cold calm.
“Who are you,” she asked, eyes returning to Su Chen.
“And why would you commit such a grave offense?”
Her voice was neither warm nor hostile.
Far more civil than those Imperial Guards who charged in shouting and ready to kill.
***
But in the very next moment, the relaxed and equal atmosphere brought by Flame Phoenix vanished completely.
The entire space seemed to be affected by some mysterious force, constantly radiating a terrifying, oppressive aura.
Then, the space itself appeared to freeze, then twist, and finally shattered into pieces as if it were solid matter.
No one had time to react in shock.
A soft wind rose from the ground.
A man with a dark expression suddenly appeared where the space had collapsed.
The moment he arrived, even heaven and earth seemed to roar in fury.
“You dare to destroy the National Treasury and waste the treasured resources of Great Dayan?
Such a crime deserves death!”
His voice boomed like thunder from the nine heavens.
As soon as he finished speaking, he raised his hand, forming a massive palm in the air, a palm infused with the wrath of heaven and earth, descending toward Su Chen.
He was going to suppress Su Chen!
If that strike landed, Su Chen would be utterly destroyed—body and soul.
A cruel smile of delight crept onto the man’s face.
“It’s… the Dao Protector!” Flame Phoenix’s eyes narrowed sharply.
Even the eunuch trembled uncontrollably under the Protector’s overwhelming presence.
To them, encountering a Dao Protector was like meeting a natural predator.
Under such terrifying pressure—
“This technique is interesting… it’s targeting the soul directly.”
“But to annihilate my body and snatch my soul? You? You’re not worthy.”
Su Chen’s lips curled into a slight smile—a smile filled with scorn.
Then, he merely extended a single finger.
That finger pointed gently at the massive hand.
With a whoosh—the hand shattered into the wind.
“Urgh—!”
The Dao Protector coughed up blood from just that one light touch!
“What… how is this possible!?”
The Dao Protector cried out in disbelief.
He had actually been defeated… in one move!?
Even Flame Phoenix could hardly believe it.
But as she blinked, the truth remained—undeniable and in plain sight.
“To think he defeated a Dao Protector in one move… that man is a peak Divine Soul Realm cultivator!”
A bold idea suddenly formed in Flame Phoenix’s mind: ‘Maybe… he really can take her away…’
At that moment, an aura rose into the sky—deep as an abyss and dangerous beyond measure.
“I underestimated you just now. But this time, I’ll make sure you know what it means to live in agony,
begging for life and death alike!”
With thunder and lightning in his voice, the Dao Protector slowly stood up from the ground.
His eyes were now completely bloodshot, radiating a murderous rage.
***
But in the very next second—
A foot came crashing down from the sky, landing easily atop the Dao Protector just as he was reaching the peak of his power.
“Boom—!”
Dust flew everywhere.
It was the same foot—now planted firmly on the Dao Protector’s face, as if he was nothing.
The eunuch trembled even harder.
The Dao Protector’s bloodshot eyes were pinned to the ground, trapped beneath that foot.
He couldn’t even resist—couldn’t even move.
“One chance to live.”
Su Chen looked down coldly as he stepped on the Dao Protector’s face.
“Tell me—who injured my disciple, and how can she be healed?”
To the eunuch and the Dao Protector, this was the pressure of an unstoppable force—overwhelming and merciless.
The eunuch didn’t even dare to speak.
He tried to reduce his presence, terrified of being noticed by Su Chen.
The Dao Protector, his face pressed into the dirt, couldn’t utter a word.
“You must be talking about Ruo Ximeng, right?”
Flame Phoenix turned her gaze toward a certain figure and said with a calm smile:
“Her becoming your disciple is a great blessing for her.”
“But… her meridians are broken, her potential exhausted. Living in this world is nothing short of constant suffering.”
“While you may think you’re helping her, how can you be sure you’re not just hurting her instead?”