The Yan World.
After Huo Xuan and the others returned to the Flame Clan, they discovered that something was amiss in the Yan World. Huo Xuan wandered aimlessly through the Yan World and eventually found a group of people in a vast square in the center of the Yan World. Huo Xuan's gaze lingered on their foreheads. They were divided into two groups. One group had a strange pattern imprinted on their foreheads, while the other group had a lifelike boulder pattern imprinted on their foreheads.
"Are these the Spirit Clan 'Clan Mark and Shi Clan's Clan Mark?"
"How come the Spirit Clan and the Shi Clan are in our Yan World?" Huo Zhi was slightly surprised. In her impression, the Spirit Clan and the Shi Clan were all closed off from the outside world, and were even close to completely cutting off contact with the outside world.
Unless there are important matters, such as the Gu Clan's once-every-twenty-year Heavenly Tomb Journey, or the struggle for the once-in-a-millennium Purifying Lotus Demon Flame, neither of their races would easily leave their own territory. Yet now they have actually appeared in the Yan World...
"Something bad may have happened. Let's go ask about it."
Upon hearing this, Huo Zhi naturally had no objections. Looking at that group of people, Huo Xuan took the initiative to go forward.
"Friends from the Spirit Clan and the Shi Clan, may I ask you something?" Huo Xuan stepped forward and asked in an extremely polite manner.
A handsome young man in a blue robe and a muscular man stepped out from the crowd. The young man in the blue robe spoke first, "May I ask who you are...?"
"My name is Huo Xuan."
Upon hearing Huo Xuan's introduction, the young man in the blue robe's expression immediately turned somewhat strange. "So you're the Young Clan Leader of the Flame Clan, a genius the Flame Clan sees only once in a thousand years!"
"I wouldn't presume to call myself a genius. And I don't even know how you address me?"
"I am Ling Ci of the Spirit Clan." Ling Ci then pointed to the muscular man beside her and said, "This is Shi Mo of the Shi Clan."
"Brother Ling Ci, why have you come to our Yan World? Has something happened?"
"Brother Huo Xuan, how could you not know about such a big thing? You've really failed as the Young Clan Leader." Shi Mo said from the side of Ling Ci.
"Well... I was away from my clan for training some time ago and have only just returned to the Yan World, so I am completely unaware of what has happened recently."
"I see. Brother Huo Xuan, you'll understand once you see this..." As he spoke, Ling Ci took out a silver-white jade sticker from his Storage Ring. The sticker was actually imprinted with the Clan Mark of the Gu Clan and the Lei Clan.
Huo Xuan quickly reached out and took it, his hand clenching slightly as he absorbed all the information from the Huo Xuan slip into his mind.
"This is troublesome..."
Upon hearing this, Huo Zhi was slightly taken aback. She immediately took the jade token from Huo Xuan's hand. A moment later, Huo Zhi's expression turned somewhat unpleasant. However, she was wearing a veil, a light red veil that covered her face, so no one seemed to notice anything unusual on the surface.
The jade slip contained the message that Gu Xun'er Gu Clan and Lei Dong of the Lei Clan were a perfect match, a match made in heaven. The previous engagement between the two clans was too hasty, so after some discussion between Gu Yuan and Lei Ying, they decided to hold a grand Engagement Ceremony for them in the Lei Realm a month later, and hoped that everyone could come and witness it.
What does this mean? The meaning is quite clear: the Gu Clan and the Lei Clan have now decided that Lei Dong and Gu Xun'er will definitely be husband and wife in the future. Their being together means that the Gu and Lei Clans will definitely form an alliance.
Three years ago, the Flame Clan, the Medicine Clan, and the Void Ancient Dragon Clan allied to barely defeat the Gu Clan. Now, the Gu Clan and the Lei Clan have formed an alliance. If another great war breaks out in the future, the Flame Clan's situation will be far from optimistic...
Inside the Council Hall, Yan Jin sat high on the main seat, his gaze sweeping over the two figures beside him.
The man on the left in the first position is a middle-aged man dressed in a blue robe with a slightly handsome appearance. He is the patriarch of the Spirit Clan, Ling Qi!
Besides being the patriarch of the Spirit Clan, Ling Qi is also the strongest member of the Spirit Clan, possessing strength reaching the Six Star Dou Sheng Late Stage.
Sitting to the right of the head of the table was a middle-aged man with grayish-white skin. The man's Dou Qi was very thick and solid. From a distance, he looked like a rock. Apart from his grayish-white skin, which looked like stone, he was not much different from an ordinary middle-aged man in his forties.
He is Shi Po Tian, the patriarch of the Shi Clan!
Although Shi Po Tian and Ling Qi are both Six Star Dou Sheng experts, Shi Po Tian's strength is slightly better than Ling Qi's. Shi Po Tian has already stepped halfway into the ranks of Seven Star Dou Sheng. Although he has not yet truly reached the level of Seven Star Dou Sheng, Shi Po Tian's strength is not something that Ling Qi, a Six Star Dou Sheng, can match.
"Yan Jin, that's how things are. What do you think we should do?" Ling Qi asked.
The alliance between the six races still exists, and they are all still members of the Six Clan Alliance. There is no hierarchy within the Six Clan Alliance, but the Gu Clan crave power. Although it was the Gu Clan that proposed the establishment of this Six Clan Alliance, they are not the leaders of the Gu Clan.
In the Six Clan Alliance, the six clans are equal in status. However, now that the Gu Clan and the Lei Clan have formed an alliance, the Gu Clan's strength has increased, and it is likely that in the future, all their actions will have to be under the command of the Gu Clan.
"Gu Yuan wants to take advantage of this opportunity to ride roughshod over us, but of course we can't let him have his way!" Yan Jin said.
"If Gu Yuan can form an alliance, why can't we? With the Flame Clan, the Spirit Stone Two Clans, and the Medicine Clan, the combined power of these Four Clan Alliance might not be weaker than the Gu-Lei Alliance!"
"Hmm, Flame Clan, this is a good idea." Shi Po Tian hesitated for a moment, then slowly said, "Flame Clan, since we are going to form an alliance, there are some things I hope you can tell me truthfully."
"What is it? Shi Clan, please ask. I will not hide anything and will tell you the truth."
"Three years ago, the Gu Clan claimed that the Xiao Clan was destroyed by the Flame Clan. I, Shi, believe that this could not possibly be unfounded. I wonder what explanation the Flame Clan has for this?"
Upon hearing this, Yan Jin was slightly taken aback, then stared at Shi Po Tian. He hadn't expected Shi Po Tian to bring up the old matter again, but he hid it well and didn't show any shock.
"What does Shi Clan mean by this? Does the Shi Clan also suspect that our Flame Clan was behind this?"
"Flame Clan Yan has misunderstood. I did not mean that. I only hoped that Flame Clan could tell me the truth."
"To be frank?" Upon hearing this, Yan Jin said with slight anger, "Isn't Shi Clan implying that the Xiao Clan was wiped out by our Flame Clan?!"
Upon hearing this, Ling Qi hesitated for a moment before speaking up, "The Flame Clan Yan, since we are going to form an alliance, there should be no secrets between us. Based on the current situation, it is highly likely that the destruction of the Xiao Clan was orchestrated by the Flame Clan."
"After the Xiao Clan was destroyed, all the other clans sent a large number of powerful individuals to search for the Xiao Clan lost Tou She Ancient God Jade, but your Flame Clan was the only one who did not... We are not questioning you, we just hope that you can tell us everything that the Flame Clan knows..."
"Tell you? If I tell you, you two will probably turn on me immediately..." Yan Jin thought to himself.
They are all old foxes who have lived for thousands of years. How could Yan Jin not know what Ling Qi and Shi Po Tian are thinking?
If Yan Jin were to tell them that they were responsible for the annihilation of the Xiao Clan, he would be certain that they would turn on him the next moment. After all, there is an alliance among the Eight Clans, and the Eight Clans cannot arbitrarily wage war against any race, let alone annihilate a clan. If the matter of the Xiao Clan were to spread, the Flame Clan would not have a good ending.
The Hun Clan serves as a cautionary tale. They disregarded the alliance and resolutely waged war against the Hun Clan Xiao Clan, which resulted in Xiao Xuan's death. The Hun Clan was subsequently condemned by the other seven clans.
However, the other seven clans only condemned the Hun Clan's actions at the time, and did not take action against the Hun Clan under the pretext of avenging Xiao Xuan. This was because the Hun Clan was extremely powerful, and at that time, apart from the Gu Clan, who dared to attack the Hun Clan? The first bird to stick its head out gets shot, and the other seven clans were unwilling to be the first bird to stick its head out. Therefore, the other seven clans did not pursue the matter relentlessly.
However, if this matter were to happen to the Flame Clan, the outcome would be quite different. The Flame Clan is not as powerful as the Hun Clan. If this matter were to be exposed, the other clans would not care about being the first to stick their necks out. Under the call of the Gu Clan, they would definitely unite to attack the Flame Clan.
"Hehe, you guys are really suspicious. But no matter how much you interrogate us, it's useless. Our Flame Clan knows nothing about the annihilation of the Xiao Clan."
"You suspect the Xiao Clan was destroyed by our Flame Clan, but where's the evidence? You need to produce convincing proof!" Yan Jin's sharp gaze swept across their faces as he continued, "As for why our Flame Clan didn't send anyone to search for the whereabouts of the Tou She Ancient God Jade, it's because we felt it would be futile. We believed the Tou She Ancient God Jade held by the Xiao Clan was not meant for our Flame Clan..."
Upon hearing this, Ling Qi and Shi Po Tian fell into deep thought. They still had some doubts in their hearts, but unfortunately, they could not produce any evidence.
"What? Have you two become mute? Why aren't you saying anything? Keep talking!"
"Flame Clan, we were just asking casually. Please don't take what we just said to heart." Ling Qi was the first to react and hurriedly said, "The Xiao Clan is just an abandoned Ancient Race. We were wrong in this matter. We would not be so aggressive because of an abandoned Ancient Race. Flame Clan, please don't ruin our friendly relations because of the Xiao Clan."
At this moment, Shi Po Tian also realized that he might have really angered Yan Jin this time. He hurriedly explained, "Ling Clan Leader is right. This is all my fault. Flame Clan Yan, please don't take it to heart."
"Of course not." Yan Jin didn't press the issue further, after all, it really was their doing, and if they investigated any further, they might really be exposed...
"Now let's get down to business. I think the sooner the alliance is established, the better. Let's finalize it now."
"This..."
Upon hearing this, Ling Qi and Shi Po Tian both fell silent, seemingly preoccupied. After a moment, their gazes turned to Yan Jin.
"Flame Clan Yan, I have thought this through carefully. The alliance is no small matter. The Shi Clan is not a place where I can make a single decision. I need to return to the clan and discuss this matter with the elders. Please wait a while, Flame Clan."
"I am in the same boat. There is nothing I can do about it. Please forgive me, Flame Clan. Once our Spirit Clan has reached a decision, we will inform Flame Clan as soon as possible."
"If that's the case, then I won't insist. The alliance isn't urgent; you two can discuss it properly when you get back," Yan Jin said helplessly.
"Flame Clan, we take our leave." After saying this, Ling Qi and Shi Po Tian immediately left the Council Hall and returned to their respective homes.
"Well..."
After Ling Qi and Shi Po Tian left, Yan Jin sighed softly, his brows furrowed. "It seems the annihilation of the Xiao Clan has created a considerable rift between us and the other major Ancient Race!"
The Spirit Stone Two Clans is out of the question; they're now ordered to find another way...