Just then, Xiao Ning felt a sudden light before his eyes. The expected attack did not come. He looked around and saw that the old figure had disappeared.
"Hmm...is this...energy depletion?"
Xiao Ning's guess was correct. After all, that figure was not the real body, but only an insignificant consciousness left behind by the ancient emperor Tuoshe. After persisting for a thousand years, it even exchanged dozens of blows with Xiao Ning before exhausting its energy and dissipating with the wind.
All that remained was that translucent flame, concealing a faint human figure, swaying gracefully in mid-air, radiating great light.
Xiao Ning reached out and held the flame in his palm. With a squeeze, the flame turned into sparks and disappeared.
Gazing at the blurry figure in his palm, Xiao Ning thought for a moment, then flicked his finger, sending a dazzling light into the figure and into the depths of its consciousness.
Then, he raised his palm and slapped the figure, which instantly disappeared into the body of the tall man in front of him.
The tall man's body trembled violently, and after a short while, his empty eyes gradually became clear.
"I should thank you for sparing my life, but the trick you left in my soul makes it impossible for me to be happy!"
The tall man glanced at Xiao Ning, and after a long while, his pair of incredibly fierce and majestic golden eyes widened.
He had witnessed everything that had happened, but he was unable to do anything about it, including the methods Xiao Ning had left deep within his soul.
He had a premonition that if Xiao Ning made a single thought, his soul would immediately fall into a desperate situation, and it was not impossible for his soul to be scattered.
In other words, he had just escaped one wolf's den only to fall into another tiger's jaws.
This tall man was Zhu Kun, the old dragon emperor of the Taixu Ancient Dragon Clan. His strength was at the peak of the Nine-Star Dou Sheng realm. Because he coveted the Ancient Emperor's Cave, he was tricked by the Ancient Emperor Tuoshe and trapped in the Ancient Emperor's Cave for over a thousand years.
It was precisely because of this that Xiao Ning was able to place a restriction within the soul of the Nine-Star Dou Sheng Old Dragon Emperor with his Tongxuan Realm cultivation.
Otherwise, if he were at his peak, Xiao Ning's cultivation level would really be insufficient.
Seeing that his trick had succeeded, Xiao Ning smiled slightly and said to Zhu Kun, "I left myself a backup plan just to avoid any unforeseen complications. You'd better not try to expel that restriction, or you'll regret it if it causes any bad consequences!"
This restriction comes from the "Dragon Elephant True Technique" and is called the Dragon Elephant Restriction. It is created by using magic power to form hand seals and spiritual power as a guide to set up a restriction that attaches itself to the depths of the opponent's soul.
Those struck by this move have their life and death entirely in the hands of the master of the restriction. With just a thought, even if they are separated by the ends of the earth, the restriction can be activated and their soul annihilated.
Those who are no higher than three realms are subject to the control of the master of the restriction for life, and their life and death are entirely in the master's hands. Only those who are more than three realms higher can expel this restriction.
It can be described as extremely vicious.
There are many such unorthodox techniques in the "Dragon Elephant True Techniques". Xiao Ning had not paid attention to them before, but now that he suddenly encountered this old mudfish, he used them on a whim, treating him as a guinea pig.
Xiao Ning had his reasons for doing this.
In an era when Dou Di was no longer present, a nine-star Dou Sheng realm expert was already the pinnacle of combat power on the entire Dou Qi Continent. Under normal circumstances, it would be difficult to even meet one, let alone command one.
At this moment, the old mudfish was in a period of weakness, with only one-tenth of its strength remaining, presenting a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
If we don't make an example of him, we'll be doing ourselves a disservice.
Subduing him would give us an extra top-tier combatant, increasing our chances of dealing with the impending crisis. Why not do it?
As for killing dragons and eating their flesh, that would be a terrible waste.
Upon hearing Xiao Ning's words, Zhu Kun's eyes widened, and he stared intently at him.
"If you think you can command me, that's wishful thinking!"
"If you know what's good for you, release me now, or I'd rather die than be driven by humans!"
Hey, has this old mudfish gone mad from being locked up?
Xiao Ning frowned: "Are you out of your mind? Can't you see the situation? You're the fish on the chopping block now, and I'm the butcher. You don't know any better. Looks like you're still too young and haven't been beaten up before!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a thought flashed through his mind, and an invisible force emanated from him. The previously arrogant Taixu Ancient Dragon Emperor's pupils shrank, and a look of pain appeared on his face.
A few breaths later, he felt a piercing pain in his brain, and he swayed as if he was about to collapse, with large beads of sweat falling like raindrops.
After a few more breaths, Zhukun could no longer stand and collapsed to the ground, rolling around in agony and howling in pain.
But he just wouldn't back down.
Xiao Ning, however, remained unhurried, crossing his arms and observing coldly to see how long he could hold out.
After a while, the pain gradually subsided. Zhu Kun let out a long breath and lay on the ground in a starfish position, as if he had collapsed.
The next second, an even greater pain than before struck, making Zhu Kun curse.
"Holy crap, it's happening again..."
He only managed to utter half a curse before he was plunged into an ocean of pain from which he could not escape.
Xiao Ning laughed and said, "Don't rush, this feeling can continue until your soul collapses. Each time it gets stronger than the last, so enjoy it slowly. This is just the beginning!"
At this moment, Xiao Ning's smile appeared like a demon in Zhu Kun's eyes.
He didn't know how much time had passed; he was completely unaware of the passage of time. He only felt that his soul had become extremely weak, almost on the verge of collapse.
"I give up..."
He weakly uttered a sentence before fainting.
"Heh! Trash, I thought you could last a long time, but you didn't even make it past the ninth round, ptooey!"
Xiao Ning curled her lip in disdain.
With a flick of his finger, a surge of magical power flowed into his body, instantly waking Zhu Kun.