Council Hall.
Yan Jin sat at the head of the main hall, and the other elders were all present, none of them absent.
"Huo Xuan, you're back."
Huo Xuan had just arrived at the entrance of the main hall when Yan Jin spotted him.
"Huo Xuan greets the clan leader and all the elders!" Huo Xuan bowed respectfully.
"Huo Xuan, your strength has improved a lot again... It seems that you have successfully subdued the Three Thousand Burning Flame of the Alchemy Tower..." Yan Jin said with a hint of envy in his voice.
He had witnessed Huo Xuan's growth firsthand. Huo Xuan began cultivating at the age of four, became a Nine Star Dou Zhe at eight, became a Five Star Dou Wang at fifteen, and then advanced to Dou Emperor in the same year.
He reached the Dou Zong at eighteen, became a Dou Zun at twenty, and now Huo Xuan is only twenty-four years old, yet he has already reached the Three-Star Dou Zun Peak!
Huo Xuan's rapid cultivation speed is partly due to his talent and God Grade Bloodline, but the most important factor is the unique cultivation technique he practices called the Flame Mantra.
He had considered cultivating the Flame Mantra, but it was just a thought. He was already Dou Sheng Expert, and if he were to switch to cultivating the Flame Mantra, he would need to abandon all his cultivation. He didn't have the courage or determination for that.
"Clan leader, has the Lei Clan decided to form an alliance with the Gu Clan?" Huo Xuan asked.
Upon hearing this, Yan Jin was taken aback at first, then nodded slightly and said, "The Lei Clan's decision this time is reasonable. The Gu Clan is stronger than our Flame Clan. The Lei Clan has discussed this, and most people are inclined to support the Gu Clan. The minority must obey the majority..."
"The minority obeys the majority... I see..." Huo Xuan stood there, stunned, and murmured to himself.
Indeed, in this dog-eat-dog world, the strong are respected, and only the strong are honored, while the weak...
"Alright... Huo Xuan, you can go now," Yan Jin said.
"Huo Xuan has taken his leave."
After Huo Xuan left the main hall, a middle-aged man with a somewhat rugged appearance spoke up, "Clan leader, the Flame Clan's current predicament is largely due to Huo Xuan. If he hadn't acted on his own initiative to destroy the Xiao Clan and incurred the hatred of the Gu Clan, how could our Flame Clan have ended up in such a state?"
"Huo Yi, what do you mean by this!" Huo Zhen shouted.
"What do I mean? Isn't my meaning already very clear? The reason our Flame Clan has ended up in this state is all thanks to your precious son, Huo Xuan!"
"Huo Yi, watch your mouth! Don't you dare slander my son!"
"Hmph! Slander? Hasn't your son done enough bad things? Huo Zhen, don't think I don't know that your son takes advantage of his status as the Young Clan Leader to bully his fellow clansmen at will!" Huo Yi rebuked him mercilessly.
"Huo Yi! Stop spouting nonsense!"
"Heh, Elder Huo Zhen, are you denying it? Don't you know what happened to my Child Flame Cheng?" Huo Yi said indignantly, "My son was originally a dazzling genius in the Flame Clan, but now look what your son has done to him!"
"In my opinion, Huo Xuan should be stripped of his status Young Clan Leader and imprisoned for a few more years."
Hearing this, Huo Zhen's anger intensified. He was never good with words, and he could never win an argument with Huo Yi. Hearing Huo Yi suggest treating his son this way only fueled his rage. "Huo Yi! I know exactly what you're up to! You want to strip my son of his position as the Young Clan Leader so your son can take his place? Don't forget who our Flame Clan's other prodigy is? With your son's talent, do you really think that's possible?"
"Snort!"
"Elder Huo Zhen, you are judging others by your own petty standards. I just feel that Huo Xuan is not suitable to be the Young Clan Leader, and as for that girl Huo Zhi, don't think I don't know that she has no ability whatsoever! Entrusting the future of the Flame Clan any one of them would be a grave mistake..."
"Huo Yi! You've gone too far!" At this moment, Huo Zhi's Father also stepped forward and reprimanded Huo Yi.
"I'm telling the truth, Huo Ye. Don't you know your daughter well? She has absolutely no foresight when it comes to handling things. All she thinks about is Huo Xuan and the Strange Fire. How can I not worry about the future of the Flame Clan if I entrust it to her?"
"Huo Yi! Are you trying to declare war on us?" Huo Zhen stood up and glared at Huo Yi.
Seeing Huo Zhen stand up, Huo Ye did the same.
At this moment, the air in the main hall suddenly seemed to freeze.
"Shut up!"
Yan Jin slammed his hand on the armrest of his chair, his face contorted with rage. "Do you all think I, the clan leader, am dead?!"
Yan Jin's outburst startled everyone, and Huo Zhen and the others whispered, "Clan leader, please calm down."
Yan Jin stared intently at the three of them, his face contorted with anger for a long while before slowly retreating. After a moment of contemplation, he said, "Huo Xuan does tend to act without considering the consequences... Elder Huo Zhen, you need to keep a close eye on Huo Xuan."
"Yes."
Seeing this, Huo Yi hurriedly said, "Clan leader, I think we should still cripple him..."
"Enough!" Huo Yi was interrupted by Yan Jin before he could finish speaking.
"Huo Xuan is my carefully groomed successor. I will definitely hand over the position of clan leader to Huo Xuan in the future. As for the affairs of the Gu Clan, I, Yan Jin, will take the blame for Huo Xuan."
"But Chieftain..."
"Boom!"
Before Huo Yi could finish speaking, a fierce burst of Dou Qi slammed into him, and instantly, Huo Yi was sent flying out of the main hall.
Huo Yi is an extremely power-hungry person. Yan Jin is not a fool. Why is Huo Yi targeting Huo Xuan and Huo Zhi like this? Isn't it to make his son the Young Clan Leader?
"Don't think I don't know what you're up to. Huo Xuan is my Yan Jin's only successor! No one is allowed to even think about taking the position of Young Clan Leader!" Yan Jin's gaze swept across the hall as he said, "Remember to tell Huo Yi later that from now on, he is no longer an elder."
"Yes, Chieftain."
After leaving the main hall, Huo Xuan immediately prepared to go into seclusion to cultivate. He still possessed the lifelong fighting Dou Qi of Flower Granny, which he had taken from Yun Yun. Keeping this Dou Qi in his body would not be of much benefit to him.
A Dou Zun expert strength at least at the eight-star or even nine-star level, the power she left behind was enough to shatter an ordinary Dou Zun expert to pieces...
Yun Yun was able to coexist with these Dou Qi for a long time because of the seal, but there was no seal in his body. Therefore, he had to quickly refine all of these Dou Qi to prevent Dou Qi from causing any harm to his body.
A secluded place.
"Flower Sect Master, all your life's Dou Qi belongs to me..."
After muttering to himself, Huo Xuan smiled and quickly sat cross-legged. He changed his hand seals and began to absorb the powerful Dou Qi within his body.
Huo Xuan had high expectations for this refining process. After all, Flower Granny was a Peak Dou Zun expert. If Huo Xuan could successfully refine all the Dou Qi she had accumulated throughout her life, then Huo Xuan's strength would definitely increase by leaps and bounds!
Huo Xuan closed his eyes tightly, and then a wisp of faint black flame slowly rose from his skin, causing the temperature inside the cave to gradually increase.
Huo Xuan a thought, Eight Desolations Destruction Flame, transforming it into a terrifying firestorm within his body. Once formed, the storm swept across the Dou Qi within him, refining Dou Qi under the intense heat into purer Dou Qi...
As time continued, streams of pure Dou Qi within Huo Xuan's body surged forth continuously, flowing like a flood through Huo Xuan meridians...
As the Dou Qi merged into his body, Huo Xuan felt that he had touched the barrier of the Three-Star Dou Zun Peak, and his aura began to rise.
This is exactly what Huo Xuan wanted to see, because he desperately needed great strength right now.
With Huo Xuan's current Three-Star Dou Zun Peak, refining the Dou Qi left behind by Flower Granny was not particularly difficult; everything went smoothly. The only thing needed was time...
Through Huo Xuan's refinement, the pure Dou Qi within his body slowly merged with Huo Xuan, being continuously condensed and compressed by Huo Xuan...
Five days passed in the blink of an eye during this refining process. In these five days, the remaining Dou Qi within Huo Xuan's body was finally completely refined. The immense Dou Qi merged with Huo Xuan, and his cultivation level began to rise steadily...
Peak of the Four-Revolution Dou Venerate!
Peak of the Five-Star Dou Zun!
Peak Six-Star Dou Zun!
The Dou Qi left behind by Flower Granny enabled him to break through and reach the peak of the Peak Six-Star Dou Zun!
At the foot of the mountain, Huo Zhi sat in the pavilion, waiting for Huo Xuan. At this moment, she looked worried.
"Huo Xuan, Brother, your strength has improved again, congratulations..." Upon seeing Huo Xuan emerge from seclusion, Huo Zhi immediately came to Huo Xuan's side to congratulate him.
"The gap between me and Huo Xuan, Brother is widening. I guess I need to go into seclusion for a while, otherwise my father will scold me again..."
"So many years have passed, how come your father's temper hasn't changed..." Huo Xuan said, "Didn't he torment you enough back then?"
"Huo Xuan, Brother, how dare you bring up those days!" Huo Zhi said with a hint of anger.
Although Huo Zhi's tone carried a hint of anger, she didn't mean to blame Huo Xuan. It was just that Huo Xuan's mention of the past reminded her of that tragic period of her childhood.
When Huo Xuan spoke of those days, she was referring to the tragic period of her childhood. Speaking of a tragic childhood, one cannot help but mention Huo Xuan, because my own childhood began because of Huo Xuan, and also ended because of Huo Xuan...
"Alright, if there's nothing else, let's go."
"Huo Xuan, Brother, Father told me that not long ago, Elder Huo Yi proposed to the clan leader that you be removed from your position as the Young Clan Leader," Huo Zhi suddenly said.
"What?"
"Huo Yi said the reason the Gu Clan became enemies with our Flame Clan was because you attacked the Xiao Clan back then, so..."
"How did it go?" Huo Xuan asked.
"Fortunately, the clan leader didn't intend to do that. On the contrary, Huo Yi lost his position as an elder because of this incident."
"Huo Xuan, Brother, the clan leader also asked me to tell you that he hopes you can take some time to go to the Ling World during this period..." Huo Zhi said.
"The Ling World... I understand..."
Back at his place, Huo Xuan found his father wasn't home. After a brief greeting to his mother, he went straight to his room.
Huo Xuan returned to her room, closed the door, lay down on the bed, pulled the blanket over her head, and covered it with her hands.
Although everything appears calm on the surface for the seven clans, undercurrents are surging beneath the surface...
Moreover, it seems that all of this was caused by himself. If he had only killed Xiao Yan and had not gone after the Xiao Clan or coveted the Tou She Ancient God Jade, wouldn't there have been so many problems?
If he hadn't tried to bring Gu Xun'er and Lei Dong together, the Flame-Lei Alliance would still exist. Having lost the Lei Clan, they only have the Medicine Clan as their ally. But who can guarantee that the Medicine Clan will stay with them forever?
The ancient Gu Clan remains a menace, constantly eyeing the Flame Clan Gu Clan, but they are also a lifeline, as only with the Gu Clan can the Hun Clan be restrained.
He is now starting to doubt whether what he did was right.
"Knock! Knock! Knock!" After some time, there was a knock on the door.
Upon hearing the knock, Huo Xuan put away her worried expression and quickly got out of bed to open the door.
"Father, it was you all along."
Upon seeing the person outside the door, Huo Xuan felt no surprise. He knew his father must have come to see him about the Gu Clan.
Although Huo Xuan appears indifferent and seemingly unaffected, Huo Zhen, as his father, knows that his son is deeply confused at this moment.
"Xuan Er, I've come to talk to you about the Gu Clan..."
"I'm sorry... Father, I..." Huo Xuan only managed to utter six words before he could no longer speak.
"This isn't your fault. If I were in your shoes, I would have done the same thing when it came to dealing with the Xiao Clan..." Huo Zhen comforted him. "The clan leader has already told me that he will take the blame for you regarding the Gu Clan's affairs..."
"As I said before, next time, think carefully about the causes and consequences before you act..."
"Understood." Huo Xuan nodded, then watched Huo Zhen leave.
Watching Huo Zhen's figure gradually disappear from sight, a resolute glint flashed in Huo Xuan's eyes. He had lived in the Flame Clan for over twenty years, and naturally, Huo Xuan did not want to see his homeland destroyed. Now, the Gu Clan and the Hun Clan were his number one enemies.
Since they don't want the Gu Clan or the Hun Clan to destroy the Flame Clan, they should work hard...
Although we don't know how things will develop in the future, everything depends on human effort. Effort doesn't guarantee success, but without effort, success is impossible.