Someone Else as Teacher

After her breakthrough, Hun Ruoruo's strength had reached the level of an Eight-star Dou King. Even without concealing herself, she could still roam freely through the Monster Beast Mountain Range.

With the barrier around them concealing their realm, she could not be bothered to activate any Disguise Dou Technique. She had clearly had enough of the cautious life in Wutan City.

Her Black Wings spread and vanished in a flash. In the next moment, she had already put them away and arrived beside the meditating Xiao Yan.

After briefly checking Xiao Yan's physical condition, the girl could not help but sigh. A rare, strange expression appeared on her face.

"Even this, you dared to absorb?"

The Dou Qi that had spilled out during her breakthrough was no ordinary compressed Dou Qi. It was a fusion of Soul Force and Dou Qi. An ordinary vortex simply could not contain it. The fact that his vortex had not exploded by now was already nothing short of a miracle.

"Sigh, absorbing everything will only harm you."

Hun Ruoruo helplessly shook her head. After hesitating repeatedly, she finally extended her fair little hand and pressed it against Xiao Yan's back, separating the blue-violet Dou Qi into blue Dou Qi and pale violet Soul Force before guiding them back into his vortex.

Once the vortex returned to normal, Xiao Yan's complexion immediately improved considerably. Though he did not know what had happened outside, he understood clearly that he was at a crucial point in his advancement and absolutely could not let himself be distracted.

Seeing Xiao Yan's expression return to normal, Hun Ruoruo discreetly withdrew her hand, then transmitted her voice to Old Man Yao. "Senior Old Man Yao."

A moment later, Old Man Yao, who had been recuperating, slowly awakened. His Soul Body condensed out of the Storage Ring.

The moment he sensed the energy fluctuations between heaven and earth, his brows furrowed tightly as he urgently said, "Not good!"

"Senior Old Man Yao, it's already taken care of." Hun Ruoruo's eyes curved into crescents, carrying her usual mischievousness.

Old Man Yao froze. Looking at Xiao Yan cultivating intently beside him, he immediately felt somewhat unable to save face.

He cleared his throat and said, "You girl, you actually possess such means. No wonder when I previously offered to pass on my insights into Water attribute Dou Qi, you kept beating around the bush to refuse."

"However, Soul Force and Dou Qi can actually merge. Such a miraculous technique that turns the mundane into the extraordinary is likely beyond the level of an Earth-tier Cultivation Technique, isn't it?"

"Just a little trick."

"Hehe, you girl." Old Man Yao smiled. He did not have too many concerns about the girl's little thoughts.

"After recuperating for this period, refining a Tier 6 Medicinal Pill should not be difficult. However, at most, I can only refine one."

"And after that, this Soul Body of mine will likely have to fall dormant for a short while. Xiao Yan's cultivation will have to continue relying on you."

Hun Ruoruo pondered for a moment before saying, "I have finished Soul Clearing Pills here. Senior Old Man Yao only needs to refine the Earth Spirit Pill. The medicinal ingredients and Magic Cores are already prepared."

As she spoke, she wrapped the ring in her hand with Dou Qi and sent it toward Old Man Yao.

Taking the Storage Ring, Old Man Yao skillfully swept his gaze over the dazzling array of medicinal ingredients within and could not help nodding in satisfaction.

There were two sets of every material. For ordinary Alchemists, three sets were usually best, but for a high-level Alchemist like him, one chance to fail was clearly enough. Any more would instead be excessive.

Old Man Yao knew that she definitely had more than two sets of ingredients, but this seemingly casual gesture still pleased him greatly.

Soon, when his gaze swept over the place where the medicinal pills were stored in a corner, he could not help but ask in surprise.

"Girl, why are there two Soul Clearing Pills here?"

"You want to wash your hands of it, but I don't want to keep acting as his teacher."

Hun Ruoruo casually waved her hand and turned to walk toward the cave.

"One is for him, and one is for you. After refining the Earth Spirit Pill, take the Soul Clearing Pill. With your soul realm, I imagine you will recover completely in less than a month. During that time, I'll be responsible for Xiao Yan's cultivation."

Watching the girl's retreating figure, Old Man Yao's pale golden pupils narrowed slightly. He remained silent.

A familiar sense of fullness rose within him. The Dou Qi in Xiao Yan's vortex had been completely filled, without even the slightest gap remaining.

He opened his eyes and looked at the overlapping images before him. Shaking his head, he rose to his feet.

"Cultivating at the Dou Zhe stage really is far, far faster than at the Dou Qi stage."

After passing the foundational Dou Qi stage, one's cultivation would usually enter an extremely exaggerated explosive growth period. The duration of this state was often inseparable from the foundation one had built during the Dou Qi stage.

Xiao Yan, who had already condensed Dou Qi at the ninth level of Dou Qi, was an even greater freak. In merely one week since advancing to Dou Zhe, he had already touched the threshold of two-star Dou Zhe.

Naturally, much of this was thanks to Hun Ruoruo's Dou Qi. The breakthrough of an expert who had suppressed their cultivation for a long time was absolutely a rare opportunity that could only be encountered by chance.

The swollen sensation in his Soul Force gradually faded. Xiao Yan's gaze slowly focused, and the overlapping images before his eyes dispersed as well.

He stood and looked to his side, only to see an ancient-looking Giant Sword slanted into a massive boulder nearby, looking utterly out of place.

The Giant Sword was completely black. Its edge and spine were incredibly rough. If not for the handle below that could be gripped, it would have looked exactly like a crudely forged lump of iron.

The youth examined the Giant Sword, which was roughly as tall as he was, and immediately clicked his tongue in wonder.

"If such a massive thing were used in battle, one would likely be defeated by an opponent's speed advantage before even getting the chance to display any techniques. It's far too flashy and impractical."

Halfway through his words, Xiao Yan suddenly stopped. His gaze involuntarily fixed on the left side of the boulder.

At the angle between a crack in the rock and the sword's edge, a line of delicate small characters had been densely engraved.

After staring for a while, cold sweat appeared on his forehead. He repeatedly compared the Giant Sword with his own height, then said in disbelief, "That enchantress wants me to carry this thing while cultivating and fighting, and I even have to walk back to the previous valley myself?"

It was not as though he had never cultivated while carrying heavy objects, and he was quite accustomed to it. But battle was far from as easy as cultivation. Once burdened with such a weight, his usual control over his center of gravity and speed would be severely affected. He likely would not even be able to unleash forty or fifty percent of his strength.

After thinking it over, Xiao Yan decided to ask Old Man Yao first. After all, he had long become deeply familiar with just how strange Hun Ruoruo's thoughts could be.

Thus, he subconsciously reached out to touch his ring.

Then his left hand touched the finger of his right hand.

After a long while, Xiao Yan smiled in realization.

She must have known that if she wanted to mess with him, she definitely would not leave behind any obvious flaws.

Trying to rely on Teacher's help was clearly unrealistic.

After thinking it over, he decided to take down the Giant Sword first and figure things out afterward.

After all, if Hun Ruoruo had brought it out as something to help him cultivate, it was surely no ordinary item. Leaving it here unattended still made his heart ache a little.

Half an Hour later.

After several attempts, Xiao Yan finally pulled the Giant Sword free. Amid the sound of crumbling rocks and billowing dust, it slammed heavily onto the ground.

"Seems I still underestimated this Giant Sword's weight. Tsk, tsk. When it was stuck in the stone crevice earlier, I didn't notice it. Compared to a Giant Sword, this looks more like a Giant Ruler."

Glancing at the massive object with no sword tip, Xiao Yan shook his head and looked around. His face immediately took on a helpless, sighing expression.

He seemed to be lost.