John had obtained the Crimson Hell Domain technique in one of the scrolls he found in Damon's spatial ring. Normally, disciples were not allowed to keep the most important techniques of the Bloodfiend Sect, but Damon as one of the Three Emperors was different.
No Elder at the Bloodfiend Sect thought that he would perish in the wastelands, and so they were unconcerned with the technique falling into the wrong hands. However, things had not gone according to plan, and now John, disguised as a Bloodfiend Sect member, was using their signature domain art.
The Crimson Hell Domain was a domain art on the level of the Heavenly Lightning Domain. However, when it had been used against John, his unique cultivation situation had rendered most of it useless.
Other cultivators were not like John, and would not be able to ignore its affects as he had done so far.
With himself placed at the very center of the domain, John felt his own body heat up and become more powerful. His eyes opened slightly as he finally realized the truth of the Crimson Hell Domain.
'This! Its stealing their power, their Qi, and giving it to me! That's what I felt when the domain was used on me. I thought it just slowed down my body and blood, but it was actually slightly siphoning it instead and sending it back to the user. How profound!'
John had looked down on the domain slightly due to his history of ignoring it, but after using it personally for the first time, his perspective completely changed.
Clearing his thoughts and focusing on his two enemies before him once more, John stared down on them as if they were ants. His body surged with incredible power, while the Ashcort Patriarch and Whitecrest City Leader felt themselves weakened by the domain.
"Shit, it's the Crimson Hell Domain," the Whitecrest City Leader exclaimed. "What should we do?"
The Ashcort Patriarch grit his teeth, trying to wrack his brain for ideas. Neither he, nore the Whitecrest City Leader, had a domain art of their own. Domain arts were some of the most valuable arts in the cultivation world, and only the peak powers would have them.
Since neither of them had a domain, they would not be able to negate John's Crimson Hell Domain. All they could do was fight with their full power, and hope it was enough.
"We have no choice. We must fight within his domain," the Ashcort Patriarch replied before speeding towards John. The Whitecrest City Leader followed behind closely, ready to assist at any moment.
John watched the two of them speed towards him. Their speeds were clearly slower than before, a sign of the domain affecting them. Not only that, but John felt the siphoning affect of the domain grow stronger as his opponents got closer to him, surprising him once more.
'Its the most powerful in close combat range? Perfect!'
A large smile appeared on John's face as he sped forward straight towards the Ashcort Patriarch. His scythe slashed out with incredible power, unleashing a Crimson Blade Slash in an instant, its power far greater than normal due to the Crimson Hell Domain.
Boom!
The Crimson Blade Slash collided with the combined attacks of his two enemies, who had mustered their full strength in the latest attack. A large explosion of Qi appeared high in the sky, the shockwaves from it rocking the land below.
John sped through the explosion, and appeared directly in front of the Whitecrest City Leader, who was still recovering his balance from the previous attack. His fist pierced towards the Whitecrest Leader's chest, its speed far too fast to block.
Bang!
Fist collided with chest, sending the The Whitecrest Leader crashing down to the mountainside below. Blood spewed out of the City Leader's mouth, as some of his ribs cracked from the force of the impact.
Boom!
His body slammed against the mountain, creating a large explosion of rock and earth. The Ashcort Patriarch suddenly appeared behind John, intent on taking advantage of this opening. He slashed his saber out towards John's back with all his might, leaving nothing behind.
With his other hand, John slashed his scythe out to his side, sending out an attack without even looking at the Ashcort Patriarch.
Boom!
The attacks collided, and the Ashcort Patriarch was knocked back hundreds of yards, unable to withstand the might of John's casual attack. He tumbled head over heels through the air several times before finally managing to control his tumbling Qi and stabilize himself.
Che!
The Patriarch's eyes opened wide in shock, as a blood red scythe blade pierced directly through his chest from behind. The Patriarch slowly tilted his head to the side to look over his shoulder, still unable to comprehend what had just happened.
He saw John standing behind him in the air, his cold, ruthless eyes staring directly into the eyes of the Patriarch.
"I have plans for the Whitecrest Leader, but as for you, your grudge with me is far too much to leave alone. You can only blame your useless son for this," John's cold voice echoed in the Patriarch's mind.
Blood gurgled from his lips as he opened them to respond, but a surge of Qi from John's scythe blade exploded out within the Patriarchs body, destroying his organs and snuffing out his life in an instant.
While the Patriarch was a Meridian Forging cultivator, he was the absolute weakest of all Meridian Forging cultivators, having just broken through days before. Not only that, but within the Crimson Hell Domain, he was weakened even further. This combination had allowed John to kill him easily.
John quickly stored the now lifeless body of the Patriarch, before he looked down at the shattered mountainside below. The Whitecrest Leader, still recovering from the last attack, was slowly climbing out of the rubble.
His body flashed, and he quickly appeared before the Whitecrest Leader. Fear appeared on the Whitecrest Leader's face, but he did not beg for his life.
"I'll give you one opportunity to live," John said to the man. "Your Whitecrest City now belongs to me. You will become a subordinate of mine, and act as its overseer in my absence, but the city is now under my control. Do you accept this offer, or do you accept death?"
The Whitecrest Leader grit his teeth upon hearing John's words. His grand ambitions of expanding his own empire had crumbled in less than a day. A sigh escaped his lips as he replied, his head slightly bowed.
"Your subordinate accepts!"