Chapter 375: Tossing Doubao

“What kind of world-ending sorcery is this? Just looking at it makes me feel like my very soul is being drawn in!”

“Exactly! And yet, those two—one old, one young—are still drinking tea and chatting away! Honestly, there’s not a trace of panic on their faces!”

“No kidding! That white-robed man doesn’t even seem like he plans to make a move yet—he’s waiting for the other guy to fully charge up his technique first! Since when do people fight like this? Who lets their opponent finish preparing a secret technique before attacking?”

“They’re being way too careless! Plenty of people have capsized in calm waters. If they keep underestimating him like this, they’re bound to suffer a huge loss.”

The spectators, all feeling stifled under the oppressive presence of the massive cauldron, voiced their concerns. Almost nine out of ten believed that the white-robed man was taking things too lightly. Even if he didn’t end up completely overwhelmed, he’d surely get burned for his arrogance.

Yet, amidst the doubt and worry, the tiger demon remained utterly unfazed. To him, those two in the arena could definitely handle whatever terrifying technique Duan Chen had up his sleeve.

By the time a cup of tea had passed, the pitch-black cauldron looming over the arena had lowered its inky radiance to just three feet above their heads. A little more time, and that thick black glow would engulf everyone.

The Void Emperor, watching with great interest, turned to Gu Ning’an. He was curious—after waiting so long, what clever method was he planning to use to counter Duan Chen’s desperate attack?

Seeing that the moment had arrived, Gu Ning’an glanced at Doubao, who was perched on his shoulder, and smiled. “Full yet?”

Doubao puffed up his round belly. “Full.”

“Well then, time to get to work.”

With that, Gu Ning’an grabbed Doubao and casually tossed him straight toward the cauldron!

Doubao shot forward like an arrow from a bow, staring at the rapidly approaching cauldron with growing doubt. Did I eat too much…?

Beside them, Hua Erniang immediately tried to intervene, but Doubao was flung so fast that she had no time to react.

Watching Doubao fly through the air, the Void Emperor seemed to recall something, but the answer danced just out of reach…

As Doubao fully disappeared into the pitch-black cauldron, Gu Ning’an finally spoke: “Doubao, circulate your spiritual energy, absorb some of the surrounding yin energy, then breathe it back out.”

The moment those words left his mouth, the Void Emperor’s eyes widened in realization. Slapping his thigh, he burst into laughter. “Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant, Mr. Gu!”

“How did I not think of this?!”

Gu Ning’an simply smiled, taking another sip of tea without elaborating.

Half a cup of tea later, tiny specks of white light began to flicker within the cauldron’s dark depths.

As the white lights grew in number, the black glow inside the cauldron surged violently, bubbling and churning like boiling water.

Buzz—buzz!

Flapping his wings energetically, Doubao emerged from the cauldron completely unscathed and quickly returned to Gu Ning’an’s shoulder.

The moment he landed, the massive three-legged cauldron—previously pitch black—began to tremble violently.

Boom!

With a deafening explosion, the cauldron shattered in midair, sending fierce winds howling outward in all directions.

The thick black glow collapsed instantly, dissolving as if it had never existed.

Once the dust settled, a figure floated down from midair, looking weak and insubstantial.

Duan Chen’s body had grown almost completely transparent, his form on the verge of fading into nothingness.

Just by absorbing some yin energy, stirring it up inside, and then breathing it back out… Doubao actually managed to break through Duan Chen’s terrifying sorcery?!

Doubao, full of curiosity, turned to Gu Ning’an. “Sir, why did that work?”

Before Gu Ning’an could answer, Void Emperor—too excited to hold back—jumped in. “Mr. Gu saw through Duan Chen’s problem—his yin energy was too overwhelming!”

“The spiritual energy in your body comes from the stars and moon. It’s yin-aligned, but it also contains traces of lunar yang.”

“When you mixed the power of the stars and moon with Duan Chen’s yin energy, then released it back…”

“It disrupted the balance completely, causing his technique to collapse on its own!”

“A counter like this—only someone who fully understands the yin-yang balance of all things could have come up with it!”

Hearing this, Doubao nodded in a half-understanding manner.
“Mr. Gu, amazing!”

Behind them, Hua Erniang’s expression was filled with shock. She couldn’t have imagined in her wildest dreams that Duan Chen’s terrifying killing move, which had crushed her so completely that she couldn’t even resist, was resolved just by Mr. Gu casually tossing a ‘Doubao (Steamed Bun)’!
Just how strong was Mr. Gu…?

Looking at the white-robed man before her once more, Hua Erniang still felt as though she was peering at a blurred flower in the mist.

Meanwhile, up in the stands, the tiger demon was dancing around excitedly, grabbing random spectators and exclaiming,
“Did you see that? Did you see that? What did I tell you?”

After his antics, he quickly became an annoyance to everyone around him. If the stands hadn’t been so packed, the surrounding spectators would have gladly changed seats just to get some peace.

“A man may be killed, but he cannot be humiliated!”

“Today, you have all bullied and humiliated me. I admit my strength is lacking!”

“But mark my words—even if I lose all my cultivation, I will never let you off easily!”

With a furious roar, Duan Chen conjured a small black cauldron the size of a palm from his now-illusory body. This cauldron was the ‘vault’ he had cultivated, a vessel used to imprison vengeful ghosts and wandering spirits.

It was a part of his soul—and also a part of the countless spirits trapped within it.

Then—

BOOM!

The cauldron shattered into countless fragments, and in that instant, all the vengeful spirits within were unleashed!

In the blink of an eye, spectral shadows filled the sky like a tidal wave, surging into every corner of the dueling arena!

Any living being within their sight became their target for devouring!

Fortunately, most of these spirits first attacked those closest to them—Gu Ning’an’s group—so the spectators in the stands weren’t their immediate focus. Additionally, since most of the audience consisted of demon cultivators, there wasn’t a large-scale massacre just yet.

Then, from somewhere in the stands, a voice suddenly shouted—

“Run! Save yourselves!”

Hearing this, a large number of spectators immediately activated their movement techniques and scattered in all directions.

However, some realized that running would only draw the spirits’ attention, so they chose to stay put, holding their breath and waiting for the right moment to escape.

Near the railing, the tiger demon casually swatted away a wandering spirit, clicked his tongue, and muttered,
“Tsk tsk tsk, so impatient.”

“Didn’t you see that the two great figures down there haven’t even made a move yet?”

“It’s just a mere few hundred thousand vengeful ghosts—is that really worth running and hiding?”

After saying this, the tiger demon stepped onto the railing and shouted toward the Void Emperor,

“Old brother, I’m coming to find you!”

With that, he leaped into the arena and charged headfirst toward Gu Ning’an’s group…