An Unforeseen Path

Gu Yuan's expression turned strange. He truly had not thought of that before, but after Xiao Yan brought it up, he felt it was quite feasible.

"You brat, your head is really full of schemes."

Gu Yuan shook his head with a laugh, then continued, "Within the Pill Region are the Five Great Families. The Patriarchs who founded those five families were all core members of the Pill Tower back then. Because of this, it is easy for the Five Great Families to secure a seat among the Pill Tower Elders."

"However, even if it is easy, that is only relative to alchemists outside the Pill Tower. Among the Five Great Families today, the Ye Family has been declining with each generation. If this continues, they will likely be removed from the Five Great Families."

"And you—a fifteen-year-old Sixth Grade Alchemist. Such talent is enough to drive the Ye Family mad. They will definitely be willing to approach you and ask you to help them preserve the Ye Family's status going forward."

"As for whether the Ye Family will be surnamed Xiao or Ye in the future, that is where your expertise lies."

Gu Yuan smiled and continued, "I can mobilize the Gu Clan's power to help you contact the Ye Family, then open a Space Wormhole from the Ye Family and connect it to this place. What do you think?"

"Thank you, Senior!" Xiao Yan hurriedly took out two Green Fate Fruits and handed them to Gu Yuan.

Gu Yuan accepted the Green Fate Fruits, then took out a head-sized wooden box and handed it to Xiao Yan.

"Senior, this is?"

"This is Green Wood Saliva, a high-grade wood-element Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure. It can hasten the maturation of Medicinal Herbs. If consumed by a person, it can not only prolong one's life, but also make the Dou Qi of those with a wood attribute purer. If used together with a Green Fate Fruit, it might directly grant someone an additional strand of Wood Power."

"However, Green Fate Fruits have great uses, and the Gu Clan is not solely under my command. Even after obtaining two Green Fate Fruits, I cannot take one out and use Green Wood Saliva to ripen it just to fulfill Xun'er's wish of becoming an alchemist."

After saying that, Gu Yuan looked at Xiao Yan with a meaningful gaze.

"...Senior, I did keep one Green Fate Fruit for myself, but I had intended to use high-grade Monster Beast Essence Blood to ripen it and strengthen my body." Xiao Yan said with a bitter expression.

"You want to strengthen your body? With your current physique, you can already punch a Monster Beast of the same tier to death. Besides, the Heavenly Flame is in your heart, equivalent to tempering your body at every moment. And you are still not satisfied?" Gu Yuan's expression was strange.

"Hehe, I have an idea. Hasn't the Dou Qi Continent gone tens of thousands of years without a Dou Emperor? Then I'll build my foundation from a young age. If I cultivate an Emperor Realm Soul and an Emperor-tier body in the future, I'll count as invincible beneath the heavens." Xiao Yan said with an awkward grin.

"..."

"..."╮(￣▽￣)╭

"Come to think of it, I really have neglected the cultivation of the physical body over the years—your idea is quite good." Gu Yuan tossed the wooden box to Xiao Yan, then took out another scroll. "This contains an Earth-tier High-grade body-tempering Dou Technique, the Peerless Prison Body. It requires the body to be tempered with the most violent powers in the world, such as Heavenly Flames and Pill Lightning. For ordinary people, cultivating it means death or grievous injury; for you, however, it is quite fitting."

"If you can master it, I am also willing to give you its advanced Dou Technique—the low-grade Heaven-tier body-tempering Dou Technique, the Limitless Void Shattering Body."

Xiao Yan's eyes widened, and the corners of his mouth involuntarily split into a grin as he reached out to take the scroll. "How could I possibly accept this?"

"It's fine. Consider it payment for your method of refining Heavenly Flames." Gu Yuan revealed a faint smile. "I am also quite curious how you refined a Heavenly Flame without using Na Ling."

"It is not really a secret. I do not understand how I did it either. I asked Teacher, but he seemed not to understand it either." Xiao Yan put away the wooden box and scroll, then told Gu Yuan about the process of refining the Heavenly Flame.

"So that's how it is—evolving alongside the Heavenly Flame and becoming one with it..." Gu Yuan felt that this explanation was fairly credible.

This brat's mouth was full of nonsense, and he had Xun'er completely fooled. Fortunately, he still had some sense and knew to keep his distance from Xun'er.

Take the Green Fate Fruits, for example. This brat probably had at least five of them in his possession. The two he sold were at most a small half of his stock.

With a soft sigh, Gu Yuan slowly said, "The pressure within the Gu Clan is immense. I sent Xun'er to the Xiao Family because I hoped she could have a relatively happy childhood. As for that mission, it was merely to appease the Elders within the clan."

"Now, it seems that Xun'er's childhood has indeed been carefree, and her nature remains rather innocent."

"However, she is my daughter after all. In the future, she will at least become an important Elder of the Gu Clan. I hope that during this period, you can teach her a little about deception and trickery—Xun'er is a bit too innocent right now."

"Senior, you cannot slander me like that!" Xiao Yan was greatly alarmed. "Who does not know that I, Xiao Yan, have a sincere heart, act openly and honestly, keep my word, and am a truly good person?"

"Yes, teach her that shamelessness of yours as well."

"..."_

"Alright, the Space Wormhole will probably reach this place within a year. Do not run around during this period. I have many affairs to attend to, so we shall meet again next time!"

Xiao Yan felt another moment of dizziness, and just like that, he returned to his original spot.

"Did you just meet that little girl's family?" Old Yao's voice sounded. Xiao Yan touched his chest, where an Ancient Ring was clearly hanging.

"I met her father. Her father said I have the potential to become a Dou Emperor and decided to support me vigorously." Xiao Yan said with a cheeky grin.

Old Yao was somewhat speechless, but he still asked, "What did you trade for?"

"A Space Wormhole extending from the Pill Tower. It will reach this place within a year at most. Besides that, we also exchanged some insights on cultivation. He was deeply inspired and gave me an Earth-tier High-grade Dou Technique."

"..." Old Yao had been rather moved upon hearing the first half, but the second half left him utterly speechless, and the words of emotion stuck in his throat.

"Teacher, he asked me to use Green Wood Saliva to ripen a Green Fate Fruit, then give it to Gu Xun'er. How exactly should I do that?" Xiao Yan took out the wooden box and the Green Fate Fruit as he asked.

"Green Wood Saliva? Wait, this wooden box is full of it?" Old Yao was stunned.

"Is there a problem?" Xiao Yan asked.

"Green Wood Saliva can serve as a main ingredient for an Eighth Grade Pill, and a fist-sized lump is enough. This head-sized amount of Green Wood Saliva is enough for more than ten portions of main ingredients."

Old Yao involuntarily floated out and continued, "Ripening a Green Fate Fruit does not require nearly this much. A fist-sized amount is likewise enough. He should not be unaware of that, so why did he give you so much?"

"He probably wants me to teach Gu Xun'er how to... conduct herself." Xiao Yan thought for a moment before answering.

Old Yao looked Xiao Yan over twice, then nodded. "There really are not many people as good at fooling others as you."

Sorry, I was too busy today, so the update was late.