Sealing Technique! Three Essence Seal Fire Mark

Xuan Jin's voice echoed through the hall, every word striking clearly into everyone's hearts.

The ring!

The root of the problem was actually the ring Xiao Yan never took off!

Xiao Yan froze where he stood. Instinctively, he clenched his right hand, feeling the bone-deep chill of the ring.

"Master, th-this is impossible."

"This ring is the only keepsake my mother left me."

Xiao Zhan also came back to his senses, his face filled with disbelief.

"Master Xuan, could you have made a mistake? This ring truly belonged to Yan'er's mother. How could it..."

He wanted to ask how there could be a problem with it, but the words reached his lips and were swallowed back down.

After all, the man before him was an alchemy master whom even Dou Wang experts sought to flatter. How could he possibly question the man's judgment?

Only Xiao Xun'er had a glimmer flash through her clear eyes.

The soul power of a high-ranking alchemist far surpassed that of ordinary people, allowing them to perceive subtle details others could never notice.

Perhaps this Xuan Jin had truly seen something!

The scrutiny in her heart quietly shifted into a trace of anticipation.

Xuan Jin ignored the explanations of the father and son. He merely looked at Xiao Yan, his tone calm.

"Whether it is or not, one test will tell."

He extended a finger toward the ring.

"Take it off. I will place a seal upon it and temporarily cut off its connection to you."

"Then try cultivating again and see whether the Dou Qi in your body still disappears."

Xiao Yan's body shuddered violently.

"Brother Xiao Yan."

Xiao Xun'er's gentle voice sounded beside his ear. "Give it a try. No matter the outcome, Xun Er will stay with you."

Xiao Yan raised his head, and light rekindled in his dejected eyes.

"Alright!"

Xiao Yan removed the ring and handed it over. "Then I'll trouble you, Master Xuan."

"Thank you, Master Xuan!" Xiao Zhan and Xiao Xun'er bowed at the same time.

Xuan Jin took the icy ring but did not act immediately.

He could sense the soul within the ring.

A wisp of flame quietly appeared at Xuan Jin's fingertips, dancing around the ring like a mischievous sprite.

Three Essence Seal Fire Mark!

With a flick of his finger, three hair-thin flame runes formed a triangular pattern and instantly entered the ring!

The entire process was as swift as lightning. Xiao Zhan, Xiao Yan, and the others merely saw a blur before their eyes and had no idea what had happened.

Only Xiao Xun'er, relying on the mysterious golden Dou Qi within her body, barely caught a trace of its path. The shock in her heart deepened.

His control over flame was actually so exquisite!

Within the dark space inside the ring.

Yao Chen's soul was like a man suppressed beneath three mountains of flame, unable to move.

The three flame runes had separately locked down his perception of the outside world.

Although the sealing power was not particularly strong and seemed as though it could be broken free from at any moment, the purity and tyranny contained within those flames left him not daring to make the slightest move.

"The Pill Tower's Sealing Technique!"

Yao Chen was completely certain that the young man outside was absolutely a core direct disciple of the Pill Tower!

And his status was exceptionally high!

Otherwise, he could never have learned the "Three Essence Seal Fire Mark"!

Inside the hall.

After finishing everything, Xuan Jin looked as though he had merely brushed away some dust.

He tossed the ring, now devoid of any abnormal aura, lightly in his palm.

"Your ring is indeed rather unusual."

He looked at Xiao Yan, the corner of his mouth curving upward.

"I wonder if you would be willing to trade it to me?"

At those words, both Xiao Zhan and Xiao Xun'er were stunned.

Xiao Yan himself stood rooted to the spot.

Trade it?

Xiao Yan fell silent for a moment, then shook his head. "My apologies, Master Xuan."

"This is a keepsake left by my mother. It means far too much to me, and I cannot trade it."

Though his tone remained respectful, his attitude was resolute.

Xuan Jin seemed to have expected that answer and did not get angry.

"No matter."

He tossed the ring back to Xiao Yan.

"If you change your mind someday, you may go to the Miter Auction House and find Manager Ya Fei."

Xuan Jin paused, then added,

"Of course, that is assuming I am still in the Jia Ma Empire."

Having said that, he no longer looked at Xiao Yan. Instead, he lifted his teacup and tasted the tea by himself, as though he had only mentioned it in passing.

Yet those words made Xiao Yan's heart leap.

The implication was that this master could leave Wutan City at any time, perhaps even leave the Jia Ma Empire.

Then he...

He had no time to dwell on it. Clutching the ring tightly in his hand, he sat down cross-legged.

This would settle it once and for all!

Time inside the hall seemed to stop at that moment.

Everyone's gazes focused on the black-clad youth seated cross-legged.

Xiao Zhan clenched his fists tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force. Without blinking, he stared at his son.

This was the closest he had come to hope in three years.

Xiao Xun'er held her breath as well. A trace of tension appeared in her clear eyes, one she had not even noticed herself.

Ya Fei sat upright in her chair, a professional smile on her face, but her alluring eyes were also filled with curiosity.

Could this "waste" young master of Wutan City truly be reborn at the hands of this mysterious master?

Xiao Yan closed his eyes and forcibly calmed his mind.

Following the cultivation method he had long memorized, he began cautiously drawing in the Dou Qi energy of heaven and earth.

One strand, then another...

Thin Dou Qi flowed into every part of his body with his breathing.

The sensation was both familiar and strange.

For three years, every time he cultivated, this Dou Qi had vanished without a trace after entering his body, like mud sinking into the sea.

But this time...

The Dou Qi circulated through his meridians without the slightest obstruction.

When the first strand of Dou Qi successfully entered the long-dried vortex in his lower abdomen, Xiao Yan's body suddenly trembled.

It had not disappeared!

The Dou Qi had not disappeared!

He could clearly feel that faint strand of Dou Qi resting quietly within his vortex, no longer leaking away!

Xiao Yan could scarcely believe it. Overwhelming joy surged into his heart in an instant. After three years of effort, he had finally received his reward. He could finally cultivate again!

He immediately increased the speed of absorption. The Dou Qi between heaven and earth seemed to have found an outlet, gathering endlessly into his body.

His dried-up vortex was like land parched by a long drought, greedily absorbing every strand of energy.

Though it was only the faint fluctuation of Dou Qi Level One, the feeling of being able to retain Dou Qi within his body was undoubtedly the greatest blessing he could receive.

He felt the hope he had regained within him, felt his vortex filling bit by bit.

Three years of humiliation, three years of unwillingness, three years of pain and despair...

At that moment, all of it turned into scalding tears that surged uncontrollably from his eyes.

"I... I can cultivate again!"