Generous Gifts, Xiao Yan Moved to Tears

"Second Brother?" The instant Hun Cang recognized him, delight appeared on his face.

After searching for quite a while and ultimately fighting the Amethyst Winged Lion King, he had never expected Xiao Yan to come looking for him on his own.

Hun Cang landed on the ground and waited for Xiao Yan to approach.

A few breaths later, Xiao Yan arrived. Just as he was about to step forward, his gaze was first drawn to the enormous figure beside Hun Cang.

"This is the Amethyst Winged Lion King?!" Xiao Yan's eyes widened, his face full of disbelief. He circled the magical beast once before finally coming before Hun Cang.

Hun Cang nodded, confirming his words.

Xiao Yan exclaimed, "Holy shit, Big Brother, you're way too awesome!"

Yesterday, he and Yao Chen had watched a Dou Emperor fight the Amethyst Winged Lion King. That female Dou Emperor had not been weak, yet she had still failed to gain the upper hand against the Amethyst Winged Lion King.

Now, her strength had been sealed, and she was waiting in a cave for it to recover. She even had to fend for herself when it came to food and drink.

Thinking of this, the admiration in Xiao Yan's eyes as he looked at Hun Cang grew even stronger.

"Second Brother, what are you doing?" Hun Cang smiled faintly, looked Xiao Yan over, and asked.

Xiao Yan rubbed his nose and said awkwardly, "It's all that damn old man's fault. He said he wanted to strengthen my physique and made me stand under a waterfall to be pounded by the water. For convenience, I just didn't wear any clothes."

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The moment he finished speaking, Yao Chen flashed out of the ring and raised his hand, delivering several blows to Xiao Yan's head.

Xiao Yan hurried behind Hun Cang and grumbled, "Old man, don't go too far. My big brother came to see me. Watch out, or I'll expose every single thing you've done to abuse me these past few days."

At those words, Yao Chen was so furious that his hair seemed ready to stand on end one strand at a time. He shouted, "You ungrateful brat! This old man kindly taught you, and not only do you refuse to appreciate it, you even slander me and want to complain about me?"

"Cut it out. You're the one who owes me. If you hadn't sucked away my Dou Qi back then, would I have ended up like this?" Xiao Yan put one hand on his hip while holding a fish in the other, pointing at Yao Chen.

The fish turned out to have quite the temper. It flicked its tail, landing a perfect fish-tail strike on his balls.

"Ow, fuck!" Xiao Yan curled up in pain.

Several black lines dropped across Hun Cang's forehead as he watched the scene.

"What brings you all the way to the Monster Beast Mountain Range?" After laughing at Xiao Yan's misfortune, Yao Chen turned to Hun Cang.

Hearing Yao Chen speak, Xiao Yan endured the pain and looked curiously at his big brother as well.

Hun Cang smiled. "I need to borrow your Bone Spirit Cold Flame."

"What do you need a Heavenly Flame for?" Yao Chen froze for a moment. If it were for alchemy, Hun Cang could have brought it up back in Wutan City, but he had never said anything.

"To conduct an experiment," Hun Cang said casually.

"An experiment?"

Xiao Yan and Yao Chen spoke in unison. Then, the two glanced at each other and looked away with great displeasure.

The corners of Hun Cang's lips rose involuntarily. He shook his head slightly and took out the Green Lotus Core Flame and Sea Heart Flame.

"These are the nineteenth-ranked Green Lotus Core Flame and the fifteenth-ranked Sea Heart Flame?" As an alchemist who possessed the Bone Spirit Cold Flame and had dealt with Heavenly Flames for many years, Yao Chen recognized what Hun Cang had taken out at a glance.

Heavenly Flames?! And two of them? Xiao Yan forgot all about the pain, instantly straightened up, and moved closer to Hun Cang, his gaze burning as he stared at the two clusters of flame.

It was hard for Xiao Yan not to be excited. His Burning Art was still waiting for Heavenly Flames to raise its level.

A low-grade Yellow-tier technique was simply too weak. His Dou Qi recovery speed could not keep up with its consumption at all, and he had to rely on Qi Recovery Pills just to sustain a battle.

"Calm down. You'll get Heavenly Flames eventually, but you're still too weak to absorb them. If you force it, there's a good chance the Heavenly Flame will burn you to ashes." Noticing Xiao Yan's expression, Hun Cang smiled and patted his shoulder, speaking half in jest and half in earnest.

With Hun Cang's current strength, he could not guarantee that Xiao Yan would be able to absorb a Heavenly Flame perfectly.

Therefore, even though he desperately wanted to see what reward the system would give him for gifting a Heavenly Flame, he could only restrain himself.

After all, Xiao Yan was his medium for farming rewards from the system. He could not just get him killed in one go.

Xiao Yan revealed a moved expression, mist gathering in his eyes as he said in a trembling voice, "Big Brother, you're too good to me. You've given me so much—how am I supposed to repay you in the future?"

Beside them, a trace of envy appeared in Yao Chen's gaze as he looked at Xiao Yan.

Why was I born so many years too early? If I'd had a big brother like this back then, how would I have fallen to such a state?

Hun Cang smiled at Yao Chen and said, "The Burning Art is a flawed technique after all. I'm not comfortable letting my second brother cultivate it recklessly, so I intend to find someone to test it on first. Understand?"

Yao Chen nodded. Then, under his control, a wisp of eerie white flame appeared before Hun Cang and Xiao Yan.

"Hun Cang, the Bone Spirit Cold Flame ranks eleventh. Even after controlling it for so many years, I still have to use it carefully. You mustn't be careless. Be careful not to burn yourself while playing with fire," Yao Chen warned worriedly after handing it over.

He was still thinking about Hun Cang's promise to him—that body comparable to a Half-Saint.

Hun Cang smiled calmly, formed seals with both hands, and pointed with a finger. The Bone Spirit Cold Flame immediately curled up, just like the other two Heavenly Flames.

Seeing this, Yao Chen's pupils contracted, and shock flashed through his eyes.

What kind of method was this? With a single hand seal, he could make a Heavenly Flame that struck fear into people become so obedient?

If I'd possessed such a method back then, why would I have been plotted against by that disciple, forced to destroy my own body and ultimately flee in the form of a soul?

Yao Chen's thoughts drifted away, but Xiao Yan's voice sounded again at that moment.

"Big Brother, you're still the best. This rotten old man has played with fire his whole life, yet his methods aren't even as good as yours. He's really lived like a dog. Big Brother, why don't I just take you as my master?"

What kind of words were those? Was that even something a human being would say?!

Yao Chen was so enraged his soul nearly exploded. With a flash, he appeared behind Xiao Yan and planted a kick squarely on his backside, sending him sprawling face-first into the dirt.

Hun Cang's eye twitched. He pretended not to see it; after all, Xiao Yan and Yao Chen had been loving and fighting each other for ages. This was hardly the first time.

With the Heavenly Flame in hand, Hun Cang's objective for this trip had essentially been achieved. He stopped the two from bickering, then took out the lotus pedestal and lotus seeds that had contained the Green Lotus Core Flame.

Just as Xiao Yan was about to ask something, he heard Yao Chen let out a surprised sound and looked over curiously.

Yao Chen stared fixedly at the lotus pedestal and muttered, "This is the lotus pedestal that gave birth to the Green Lotus Core Flame! It takes at least a thousand years for the earth's fire to gather before such a thing can form. For a fire-attributed cultivator, having this would increase their cultivation speed by not merely tenfold, but at least three or fourfold."

"As expected of Venerable Yao—your eye is truly sharp." In high spirits, Hun Cang praised him. A hint of anticipation flashed through his eyes as he turned to Xiao Yan. "Second Brother, this is for you. Keep it safe."

"Big Brother..." Xiao Yan had already been mentally prepared when Hun Cang took out the item, but hearing his elder brother say it aloud still left him unable to suppress his emotion. His lips trembled, and he was too moved to speak.

Hun Cang proceeded to take out several other items, and Yao Chen explained each one to Xiao Yan in turn.

In the end, Xiao Yan could no longer hold back. He hugged Hun Cang and burst into tears.

To be reborn into this life and have such an elder brother—he could die without regrets...

Listening to the system prompt in his mind, Hun Cang could not stop the corners of his lips from rising as he soothed Xiao Yan.