Selecting Medicinal Ingredients, Soul Jade Fragment!

"You old popsicle, I'll **** your ****!"

Jia Xing Tian scrambled up from the pit in a sorry state, his tattered gray robe smeared with dirt.

He pointed at Hai Bodong, who was leisurely descending in the distance, his beard trembling with rage:

"Despicable! You're utterly despicable!"

"With something like this, why didn't you tell me sooner!?"

"What about me?"

Hai Bodong flicked a finger at his ice-blue robe, brushing off dust that wasn't there.

In a tone feigning calm, he barely suppressed a hint of amusement:

"Didn't you say yourself you wanted to guide the younger generation?"

"Surely the esteemed Imperial Family Guardian of Jia Ma can't even manage to guide a junior?"

Jia Xing Tian's old face flushed crimson. Just as he was about to explode:

"You..."

He caught sight of Xiao Yan watching him with a faint, knowing smile.

The fury on his face instantly faded. Awkwardly, he straightened his tattered robe.

His expression smoothed into placid composure:

"Master Xiao is not only unmatched in alchemy, but his combat prowess is peerless as well!"

"This old man, I am in awe!"

Must maintain dignity before the master—can't let him get a crude impression:

Damn it, Hai Bodong!

I'll deal with you later!

Meanwhile, the crowd around them stood frozen in place!

Liu Ling's elegant folding fan, which he'd been waving all along, had snapped in his unconsciously tightening grip!

The splintered wood scraped his skin, yet he felt nothing:

A Dou Emperor, lost to a Dou King?

And utterly crushed at that!?

Every word here is normal, so why, when strung together,

can't I make sense of it?

Yao Yue's small lips parted slightly. The sachet she'd been fiddling with had already fallen to the ground:

How is that possible!!

That's Grandpa Jia Xing Tian!

One of the strongest in the Jia Ma Empire!

Beaten by someone around her age?

Facing a Dou Emperor's salute, Xiao Yan naturally didn't act arrogantly.

Returning the gesture, he walked straight toward Xiao Yi Xian.

He paid no heed to the stunned, bewildered gazes around him.

The girl's moon-white dress fluttered gently in the night breeze, her long hair cascading like a waterfall.

Xiao Yan stepped forward and, under everyone's watchful eyes, gently took her hand:

"Let's go."

"Please, Master!"

Nalan Jie hurried forward to lead the way. As his Dou Qi wings unfurled, they stirred a light breeze.

With his poison fully purged, he could now freely tap into his Dou King cultivation!

Though his body was still a bit weak.

No help for it—Xiao Yan had poured in his power without holding back.

As their figures vanished from the scene, the crowd finally snapped back to reality.

They bowed in a respectful farewell:

Nalan Family, Underground Vault:

A hundred zhang below ground, a heavy black-iron door was engraved with intricate array patterns.

Nalan Jie stepped forward, pressing his hand onto the palm-and-wing imprint at the center of the stone door!

Dou King-level spiritual energy poured in:

Crack! Crack!

The heavy giant doors began to move.

As the doors slowly opened, a wave of medicinal fragrance rushed forth:

"Seven Illusions Azure Spirit Saliva, Dragon Blood Ganoderma, Nine Netherworld Grass."

Xiao Yan tapped his fingertips lightly, and one by one, rare medicinal herbs flew into his Storage Ring.

After taking a few more herbs he needed, he prepared to leave.

But just as he took a step, his soul perception suddenly caught a peculiar fluctuation.

He halted:

"That is—"

Xiao Yan's gaze fell on the deepest part of the treasury, on a crystal cover.

A jade fragment lay quietly within, its surface shimmering with faint fluorescence.

Seeing this, Nalan Jie spoke softly in explanation:

"This jade fragment was obtained by our ancestor from a relic."

"Though it seems ordinary, it is indestructible."

"Unfortunately, we've studied it for years and never unraveled its mystery."

Xiao Yan nodded, raised his hand, and pressed it against the crystal cover.

Spiritual Power surged like a tide into the jade fragment!

Hum!

In an instant, his soul trembled lightly!

In his mind, a golden scroll unfurled.

Golden light blazed bright!

He seemed to see countless runes swirling before his eyes.

Each one contained profound and mysterious meanings.

If this was a cultivation technique, its difficulty of practice was extremely high!

"This is—"

A voice suddenly rang out in his mind.

Old Yao's usually calm tone carried a rare hint of surprise:

"This seems to be... a soul cultivation technique?"

"In a remote place like the Jia Ma Empire, there's actually a soul technique here."

"But this technique is unusual—it doesn't seem like an ordinary soul cultivation method!"

"Rather, it resembles the methods of the Soul Hall."

"Could it be... a soul attack technique?!"

Xiao Yan's heart shook:

He had long reached the Spirit Realm Soul, yet he never had a suitable soul cultivation technique to practice.

But he wasn't in a hurry—after all, once he reached the Central Continent later, soul techniques, though rare, would still be easy for him to obtain if he wanted them.

But soul attack techniques? Those weren't so easy to come by!

"Master?"

Nalan Jie, seeing Xiao Yan silent for so long, asked cautiously.

Xiao Yan withdrew his hand, a sharp gleam flashing in his eyes:

"I want this jade fragment."

He paused:

"As compensation, I can refine a Sixth-grade Pill for the Nalan Family."

"S-Sixth-grade?!"

Nalan Jie nearly bit his tongue, quickly waving his hands:

"Master jokes—this jade fragment is useless to us."

"Please, take it as you wish!"

Xiao Yan, however, gently shook his head. He had only helped Nalan Jie expel the poison, yet he had taken several rare medicinal herbs in one go.

To be honest, just removing the poison wasn't worth that price.

It was mostly because of his status as a Sixth-grade Alchemist.

And the boundless potential ahead of him—people eager to build a connection.

All those factors combined were why they offered him such generous compensation.

But even so, he'd already chosen his reward.

Suddenly going back on it to ask for one more thing meant he had to offer something in exchange.

Otherwise, it would go against his own principles.

Seeing Nalan Jie's reluctant expression, it was clear he wanted Xiao Yan to owe him a favor.

But favors were far more costly than alchemy.

Xiao Yan thought for a moment, then pulled a white moon porcelain bottle from his Storage Ring.

He tossed it to Nalan Jie casually.

"This Sixth-grade Pill will help you break through to Dou Emperor."

"Consider it the trade for this jade piece."

Nalan Jie caught the bottle Xiao Yan threw over, a bit stunned.

His pupils couldn't hide the excitement.

His hands were even trembling slightly.

With his talent, the chance of breaking through to Dou Emperor was far too slim.

He never imagined that today, with just a worthless jade piece, he could exchange for such an opportunity.

Nalan Jie didn't lose his composure. He quickly thanked him.

"Many thanks, Master!"

In the inner district of Jia Ma Holy City, lights blazed bright.

Xiao Yan brought Xiao Yi Xian to the largest inn in the city.

After settling the girl in, he entered his own room alone, sat cross-legged on the bed.

The jade piece floated in his palm as Xiao Yan slowly closed his eyes.

When his Spiritual Power surged into it again, the technique unfurled like a scroll in his mind.

Every rune seemed to come alive, turning into streams of light that sank into his sea of consciousness.

Hum!

His soul let out a clear tremor.

If an ordinary person had this massive flood of information slammed into their mind, passing out on the spot would be the mildest outcome.

But in Xiao Yan's eyes, these incredibly complex runes

seemed to cut straight to the truth, laying the essence bare before him.

Though he didn't recognize a single one, he effortlessly grasped their true meaning.

His mind was clear and bright. From the outside world, strands of strange energy slowly converged and flowed in.