Moonlight flowed like water, gently cascading over Yun Yun's shoulders.
Draping her in a dreamlike veil.
The surroundings were silent, with only the faint ripples occasionally spreading across the lake to break the night's tranquility.
Yun Yun slowly raised her head and looked toward Xiao Yan, amazement in her eyes.
"I truly didn't expect you to grow so quickly."
How long had it even been since they parted in the Monster Beast Mountain Range?
When they had first met, he had merely been at the peak of Da Dou Shi.
Yet now, even nine Dou Wang joining forces were nothing more than clay chickens and porcelain dogs before him.
In her lifetime, she would likely only ever see such a genius once.
Her fingertips gently brushed the flowing-cloud pattern inside the gilded ring.
"This is the reward I promised you in the Monster Beast Mountain Range."
Her voice was soft, melting into the moonlight. As she spoke,
her jade-like finger flicked lightly, and the ring streaked through the night sky, flashing with silver light against the darkness.
It landed steadily in Xiao Yan's palm.
Xiao Yan caught it and rubbed the slightly raised lotus carving on the ring.
His thoughts drifted slightly as Heavenly Flames danced in his eyes like burning fire.
He raised an eyebrow slightly and looked at Yun Yun.
"Sect Master Yun came all this way just for this?"
As he spoke, he tossed the ring into the moonlight, then raised his hand and caught it steadily.
His eyes merely watched Yun Yun in silence.
There was inquiry in his gaze as he waited for her answer.
Yun Yun suddenly turned around, presenting her back to Xiao Yan as her body trembled faintly.
A fierce struggle raged within her. After hesitating for a moment, she finally spoke softly.
"My master once asked me about you."
Her voice was very light, yet it struck Xiao Yan's heart like a heavy hammer, stirring towering waves.
"Though I don't know what he intends to do to you, you should still be careful."
Worry colored Yun Yun's words.
Her master had always stayed aloof from worldly affairs, yet after emerging from seclusion, he had only wanted information about a young man.
That left Yun Yun deeply uneasy.
Xiao Yan's pupils abruptly shrank as chaotic thoughts surged through his mind like a tidal wave.
Yun Yun's master, Yun Shan!
As the descendant of a minor family, Xiao Yan himself was of no use to Yun Shan.
Then it could only be the people behind him. But behind Yun Shan was—the Soul Hall!
Perhaps the abnormal speed at which his cultivation had risen had finally caught the Soul Hall's attention.
After all, his strength had skyrocketed far too quickly.
Even the Dou Di Bloodline of the Eight Ancient Clans could not be this outrageous!
Time suddenly became urgent. Since awakening the panel,
this was the first time Xiao Yan had felt such intense pressure.
Yun Shan and that Soul Hall lackey behind him could not do much to him.
With his abilities and trump cards, he might still be able to contend with them.
With the Emperor Tier Dou Technique Ghost Possession, he could even kill them in return.
But the enormous Xiao Family did not possess strength like his.
There were many elderly, weak, women, and children in the Xiao Family, and they simply could not evacuate in a short time.
If the Soul Hall made a move, the consequences would be unimaginable.
What he urgently needed now was strength—strength to break this deadlock!
Unfortunately, its fusion rate with the panel was only 1%, and it could not improve no matter what he did.
It was as though this world itself could not allow such a monster to appear!
If the fusion rate were one hundred percent, he would have grabbed Hun Tiandi by the neck long ago.
And asked him whether he ate beef!
Xiao Yan took a deep breath and calmed down.
He flipped his palm, revealing a Jade Bottle, and looked at Yun Yun.
"Thank you for the warning, Sect Master Yun."
His voice was steady and forceful, carrying a trace of gratitude.
"As a small token of thanks, this pill is called—"
"No need."
"Just be careful."
Yun Yun suddenly interrupted him, her sword aura shattering the lake's reflection.
"Take care."
Her figure flickered, and she vanished from where she stood.
Azure Dou Wings tore through the night, stirring a faint breeze.
Only a wisp of lotus fragrance remained coiling around Xiao Yan's fingers.
Xiao Yan turned his head, crimson flames slicing through the sky as he flew toward where he had come from.
"Elder Hai, take Xiao Yi Xian back to Desert City first."
He himself, however, turned and flew toward the depths of the desert!
Deep within the desert, inside a secluded rock cave.
The Green Lotus Core Flame condensed into a Wandering Dragon upon the Heavy Black Ruler.
The Wandering Dragon was lifelike, radiating scorching heat as though it could soar into the sky at any moment.
Xiao Yan pressed both palms against the cave wall as the Kirin Devouring Heaven Flame spread through the cracks in the stone.
"Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!"
Like agile fire serpents, it swiftly melted the entire mountain into a Red Crystal Furnace.
Under the intense heat, the rocks melted one after another, turning the entire cave crimson.
Old Yao's phantom appeared beside Xiao Yan, his hands rapidly forming seals.
Forest White Flame surged forth and formed a burning barrier.
"Focus!"
Old Yao shouted, his voice echoing through the cave.
Xiao Yan tilted back his head and swallowed the Flame Devouring Spirit Pill.
The instant the pill entered his mouth, its abundant medicinal power dissolved within him.
In an instant, it filled his limbs and bones!
The moment the medicinal power entered his body, the origin of the Green Lotus Core Flame was drawn out.
Xiao Yan only felt a scorching force, like a surging torrent, pouring into his body from his dantian!
His body trembled slightly as a hundred-zhang Kirin Phantom emerged behind him.
"ROAR!!!"
The Kirin threw back its head and roared, its cry shaking the surrounding lands!
A green lotus blossomed within his meridians, every petal engraved with the ancient words of the Kirin Sky Burning Art.
Those words flickered with faint light, resonating with the Heavenly Flames.
Continuously transforming Xiao Yan's meridians.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Magma erupted from the earth veins, carrying endless heat and power.
It condensed into an inverted Fire Rain Star River across the cave ceiling. The sight was magnificent.
Xiao Yan gritted his teeth and operated his cultivation method with all his strength, sweat soaking through his clothes.
It was not that absorbing the Heavenly Flame posed any difficulty for him.
It was simply because his cultivation had risen too quickly, and he was having trouble adapting to it.
Dou Ling Nine Stars...
Dou Wang One Star...
Dou Wang Two Stars...
"Crack!"
The barrier of the Earth Tier Intermediate Cultivation Method shattered during the eighth circulation.
The cultivation method advanced—to an Earth Tier Advanced Cultivation Method!
A powerful force erupted from Xiao Yan's body.
Crimson-gold Flowing Fire burst from Xiao Yan's seven orifices. His hair ignited without suffering the slightest damage, and he looked like a Kirin reborn through flames!
Old Yao looked at the lotus mark between the youth's brows.
A smile curled at his lips, and his eyes were filled with gratification.
Cultivation at Dou Wang Two Stars, and a cultivation method at Earth Rank High.
This was a true peerless monster!
Crimson-gold Flowing Fire streaked across the sky.
When Xiao Yan returned to Desert City beneath the dawn light, sunlight shone over him.
Coating him in a layer of golden radiance.
But the moment he entered the city, he sensed something abnormal in the air.
The chill emitted by Hai Bodong's Ice Wings had swept through the entire Stone Desert City.
Making this already scorching city seem as though it had entered winter.
Xiao Yan frowned and quickly headed toward the Desert Iron Mercenary Group's headquarters.
The moment he stepped into the main hall, he saw—
Xiao Yi Xian clutching a torn corner of her sleeve, lightly biting her lower lip, her face somewhat pale.
Purple light flickered in her pupils. The instant she saw Xiao Yan, she spoke anxiously.
"Yesterday afternoon, Qing Lin followed the Herb Gathering Team out of the city to search for medicinal herbs."
Her voice trembled slightly, clearly revealing how worried she was.
"But there has been no news from her."
"The mercenary group sent people to search for them—"
"But in the end, only a team of herb gatherers' severed limbs returned."
As her words fell, a terrifying pressure erupted from Xiao Yan's body.
Sweeping through the surroundings like a mountain-toppling tidal wave.
"I truly didn't expect this."
"Even after I've displayed such strength, there are still people rushing to their deaths!?"
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