In Chen Hao's mind, he saw clusters of dazzling red flames rushing toward the shadowy figure, and then he felt as if he was engulfed by scorching fires that burnt even the skin exposed to the air.

Afterward, it was as if the blazing inferno seeped into his body, scorching his bones. His heart thumped wildly as if trying to burst out of his chest, each beat seemingly fueling a new onslaught from the flames.

At this moment, Ye Yuqiao called Tang Jing and Tang Chao from upstairs. Seeing Chen Hao's body convulsing, struggling, his face so red it was purpling, and the cold sweat on his body being evaporated into a misty vapor, all three were taken aback.

"Chen Hao!" Ye Yuqiao grabbed his shoulder. In an instant, she felt an intense burning pain in her palm. She let go and exclaimed, "He's burning up!"

"This is bad!" Tang Jing immediately realized something upon seeing the "Return to Yang Spell" beside Chen Hao, "He must have practiced too many chapters of the Return to Yang Spell just now, which his body couldn't adapt to all at once. This guy, Chen Hao, we clearly told him he could only practice one chapter a day at most!"

Seeing Chen Hao in this state, Tang Jing didn't even want to imagine which chapter he had reached. Twelve years ago, when she first started practicing the Return to Yang Spell, she would progress at the rate of one line per day, finishing one chapter in about a month; after completing five chapters, the pace slowed to one line in seven days, to finish one chapter in three months.

After every five chapters, one could clearly feel the Yang Energy in the body increasing manifold. And as the chapters progressed, the difficulty of the practice also increased exponentially, significantly slowing down the pace. Up until now, Tang Jing had completed the thirtieth chapter. Because of her talent and opportunities, she hadn't made any progress for two whole years.

Tang Jing had accomplished the feat of reaching the thirtieth chapter of the Return to Yang Spell by the age of sixteen, a feat unprecedented. Before Tang Jing, the fastest among the Tang Family's ancestors who practiced the Return to Yang Spell reached the thirtieth chapter at eighteen, and that was a predecessor from over three hundred years ago.

Pausing for a moment, Tang Jing bit her left index finger, then bent down and reached forward, quickly drawing a blood-red rune on the front of Chen Hao's shirt. She had conceived of this rune five years ago during her cultivation of the Return to Yang Spell as a method to calm the Yang Energy within her body, to prevent damage to her internal organs from a sudden surge of Yang Energy during future practices.

Not long after Tang Jing drew the seal on Chen Hao, his face, which was red to purplish, gradually faded, receded, and finally turned deathly pale; his head tilted toward Ye Yuqiao beside him, and he collapsed into her arms.

Ye Yuqiao quickly opened her arms to catch Chen Hao, and gently called out his name in his ear. After a long while, seeing that Chen Hao did not respond and had fallen into a coma, Ye Yuqiao held him even tighter, her brows tightly furrowed, her heart aching for him.

Feeling the intense Yang Energy surrounding Chen Hao, Tang Jing was extremely shocked. In her view, Chen Hao had at least completed seven chapters, a feat that took her a year and a half to achieve!

"Yuqiao, don't worry, I've already subdued the Yang Energy he absorbed in his body," Tang Jing said.

Ye Yuqiao quickly let go of Chen Hao, stood up, and gently laid him down on the sofa, her expression stern as she said, "I wasn't worried about him! He brought this upon himself."

Tang Jing and Tang Chao exchanged awkward glances; they had seen just how worried and anxious Ye Yuqiao was for Chen Hao a moment ago. The two didn't understand why she would deny it when being concerned for her boyfriend, Chen Hao, was only human and entirely expected.

"Something's approaching!" Ye Yuqiao's expression suddenly became vigilant.

Tang Jing and Tang Chao followed Ye Yuqiao's gaze towards the entrance, only to see a Yin Soul dressed in all black entering through the door, with long hair draped over the shoulders, a scruffy beard, and a rough appearance. A long sword hung from his left waist and a leather whip was coiled at his right.

"Argh!" A beastly roar echoed from behind the Yin Soul, and the air in the living room seemed to tremble with the sound. Soon after, a majestic white tiger appeared beside the Yin Soul. Its tiger eyes wide open, a very thick and long tail swishing back and forth.

Ye Yuqiao squinted at the white tiger and asked, "Are you a Beast Tamer from the Netherworld?"

"Oh?" The Yin Soul chuckled in surprise, "The young lady is indeed well-informed, even aware of Beast Tamers from the Netherworld. However, I was only once a Beast Tamer; now, I am an Assassin!"

In the Netherworld, every Clan Leader of the Eight Great Clans would hire Beast Tamers to train their family's unique and rare beasts, to win the Netherworld Beast Battling Tournament held once every hundred years and raise the prestige of their family. For the commoners of the Netherworld, becoming a skilled Beast Tamer was the best and fastest way to join the upper echelons of society. Hence, Beast Tamer was the most common profession among the commoners of the Netherworld and also the most fiercely competitive.

Ye Yuqiao's eyes suddenly sparkled. Although she didn't remember this Beast Tamer, she remembered the white tiger. Over a hundred years ago, at a Beast Battling Tournament, this white tiger represented the Zhao Family and defeated various ferocious beasts, winning the title in one fell swoop.

"So, are you saying you were sent here by the Li Family, the Netherworld merchants from Dao County?"

"I'm not sure about that!" The Yin Soul's voice contained a hint of chill, "I have always focused on taking money to get the job done, never inquiring about the client's identity. I'm not here to kill anyone today, just to take this young lady away."

Both the Yin Soul and the white tiger beside him looked at Tang Jing, their four eyes gleaming with a cold light.

"Over my dead body will you take away my sister!" Tang Chao clenched his fists and glared angrily.

Suddenly!

The Yin Soul disappeared from sight, and the scent of Yin Qi on its body vanished along with it.

"Be careful!" Ye Yuqiao looked towards Tang Chao with an exclamation of alarm. Although she hadn't seen the Yin Soul, she had felt its faint presence closing in on Tang Chao at a certain moment.

"Hmph!" Tang Chao sneered, "You're too slow!"

With that, Tang Chao slapped towards the slightly forward diagonal space with his left palm, bringing with it a fierce palm wind. The Yin Soul hadn't vanished through invisibility; its Qinggong was just extremely fast. However, for Tang Chao, who had practiced martial arts with a hermit from a young age, this level of Qinggong was still too slow.

But Tang Chao had forgotten, his Inner Strength couldn't harm a Yin Soul. After he released the palm wind from his left palm, it screeched towards the wall, then whirled around upon impact.

A flash of sword light! The Yin Soul drew the sword at its waist and made a slight cut on Tang Chao's knee.

Tang Chao immediately fell to one knee, letting out a pained cry.

Just as the Yin Soul was about to strike Tang Chao with the sword a second time, the Yang Energy forcefully expelled from within Tang Jing suddenly attacked it.

The Yin Soul vanished once again, silently appearing behind Ye Yuqiao. But before it could raise the sword in its hand, it was struck by the Yang Energy Ye Yuqiao had forced out from within.

"Aooo!" A terrifying roar echoed, as if the entire world shook with that bellow!

Seeing the Yin Soul wounded, the cold light in White Tiger's eyes suddenly brightened, and after letting out a roar, it leaped over two meters from the ground, pouncing towards Ye Yuqiao.

"Swish!" A meter-long, bamboo-thick, golden arrow of Yang Energy flew from Tang Jing's hand, shooting towards the White Tiger, which had extended its sharp claws towards Ye Yuqiao while mid-air.

The White Tiger's horrifyingly large eyes suddenly looked towards Tang Jing; then, with a swipe of its paw, it broke the Yang Energy arrow in two.

Seeing this, Tang Jing was astonished! The Yang Energy arrow she had forged by exhausting a quarter of her Yang Energy was so easily neutralized by the White Tiger!

After breaking the Yang Energy arrow, the White Tiger landed in front of Ye Yuqiao. Its head jolted forward fiercely, hitting Ye Yuqiao and sending her flying against the wall, and then she collapsed onto Chen Hao, who was unconscious on the sofa.

"Aooo!" The White Tiger let out another roar that shook the heavens and earth, as if boasting of its unstoppable ferocity.

The roar still echoing in the air, the White Tiger continued to slowly advance towards Ye Yuqiao, its large eyes flickering with cold light and murderous intent.

"I'll go with you! Just make the White Tiger stop!" Tang Jing said at that moment, knowing that if things continued this way, Ye Yuqiao would be torn apart by the White Tiger.

The Yin Soul coughed lightly, its hand over its chest, floating in front of the White Tiger and smiling as it stroked its head.

After a pause, the Yin Soul moved in front of Tang Jing and coldly said, "Let's go!"

"Sister," Tang Chao gnashed his teeth, struggling to stand up while enduring the pain. He shook his head repeatedly, and a drop of sweat from his forehead fell into his reddened, angry eyes as he moved his head. "Don't go with him!"

Tang Jing shed tears and helplessly shook her head, choked up before she could say goodbye.

Tang Chao tried to step forward to stop them but fell to the ground after just two steps, only able to cry bitterly as he watched Tang Jing leave with the Yin Soul.

"Wait!"

In her despair, Tang Jing's face lit up with surprise—it was Chen Hao's voice!

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