Xiao Xuan laughed. "Miss Nangong, sorry for making you worry. I'm fine!"
Nangong Ling'er had once been born into the Nangong Family of the Eastern Region.
But later, the family declined. Her parents took her to settle down in a remote village, yet they still failed to live out their lives in peace.
Moreover, Nangong Xian'er's talent and comprehension were not bad either. Though she could not compare to the clan's top geniuses, she was roughly on par with its ordinary geniuses.
To give her the ability to protect herself, Xiao Xuan had taught her to cultivate as well, passing on the Eight Sounds of the Heavenly Dragon without holding anything back.
After cultivating for more than two years, with the help of Xiao Xuan, a seventh-grade alchemist, she had now reached the Da Dou Shi realm.
Hearing this, Nangong Xian'er's pretty face flushed red, leaving Xiao Xuan utterly confused.
"Miss Nangong, now that I've made a breakthrough, I plan to head to the Central Plains to train.
"You're too weak. Even in this barren place, you're still only considered weak.
"If you go to the Central Plains, where experts gather like clouds, your life will be in danger at any moment.
"Here are three strikes containing my power. Use them only at a critical moment between life and death.
"With these three full-power strikes of mine, barring any unforeseen circumstances, you'll be invincible in this Northwestern Region.
"Your talent is decent, but there is still a certain gap between you and the true top geniuses.
"But talent alone is not enough to make one strong. Perseverance and temperament are what matter most.
"These are the pills I refined over the past two years. There are pills from the fourth to the seventh grade, and you'll need them for cultivation.
"Alright. I hope we meet again in the Central Plains!"
With that, he tore open space, stepped inside, and vanished.
Nangong Xian'er, who had been putting on a brave face and smiling, immediately had tears slide down her cheeks.
"What an idiot!
"Don't worry. I'll definitely cultivate hard and go to that so-called Central Plains to find you."
The Tianqing Mountains lay ten thousand li away from the Black-Corner Region.
This place was home to the only city within a thousand li that possessed a Space Wormhole leading to the Central Plains—Tianya City.
Tianya City was also one of the most prosperous places within ten thousand li.
Because he planned to travel through the Central Plains, Xiao Xuan had learned quite a bit about it.
The Central Plains Continent was incredibly vast. Thus, many large cities within the Central Plains had established so-called "Space Wormholes" to shorten travel time.
The builders of these "Space Wormholes" were mostly peak experts or senior figures belonging to the city. Therefore, if the senior who constructed a Space Wormhole belonged to a certain family, that Space Wormhole would become the property of that family.
Of course, even families with tremendous influence would not dare monopolize such a public means of transportation at will. Few families would do something so foolish.
After all, the annual profits brought in by a single Space Wormhole could reach a terrifying figure, enough to support an entire family inside and out.
Thus, in the Central Plains, the appearance of every Space Wormhole would make countless factions green with envy.
But aside from powerful families and sects, everyone else could only stare longingly.
After all, not just anyone could invite a Dou Zun expert and expend tremendous effort to build a Space Wormhole. Therefore, Space Wormholes in the Central Plains symbolized both wealth and power, and those who could possess them were mostly renowned first-rate factions.
Bang...
"Which bastard, don't...
"Cough, cough... It's nothing, it's nothing. Please continue, seniors. I've disturbed you."
Xiao Xuan had been deep in thought and failed to notice that he was about to emerge from the Space Wormhole he had torn open.
The moment he came out, he was caught in the aftermath of two attacks colliding and was sent sprawling face-first onto the ground.
The attacks were even stronger than those of a Five-Star Dou Zun like himself.
Realizing he could not beat them, Xiao Xuan immediately chose to back down from the bottom of his heart.
Looking up, he saw two young men who appeared to be around thirty.
Yet although their auras were still at the Dou Zun realm, they were definitely at least Eight-Star Dou Zuns.
As for why he was so certain, it was simply because he had seen plenty of such people in his clan.
He turned around and prepared to slip away, making the two men, who had stopped fighting, burst into laughter.
"Haha, what an interesting little brother.
"That was our fault just now. We didn't expect a Dou Zun to tear through space and appear here.
"I'm Tang Xiao, and this fellow is Dan Chengzi. He's a peak eighth-grade alchemist. We're both independent cultivators."
Tang Xiao and Dan Chengzi—Advanced Dou Zuns in their thirties. Even in the Central Plains, they could be considered rare geniuses, perhaps even peerless geniuses.
He had not expected to encounter two of them today.
"Cough, cough. You two brothers must be laughing at me.
"This little brother is Xuan Xiao. Greetings, brothers."
One did not slap a smiling face. If they could apologize to someone weaker than themselves, then either they had ulterior motives, or their character was not bad.
While remaining secretly vigilant, he smiled on the surface.
"We thought the two of us had exceptionally rare talent.
"Who would have thought that little brother's talent would be even more terrifying than ours? You're in your twenties, aren't you? Judging from your reaction just now, your Dou Qi fluctuations are at least at the Five-Star Dou Zun level."
Xiao Xuan said, "You flatter me. I traveled for many years and obtained some treasures that improved my cultivation.
"Are you two heading to the Black-Corner Region after leaving the Central Plains?"
Tang Xiao shook his head. "No. A place like that is of no use to cultivators at our level.
"Having reached our current realm, it's very difficult to improve further. So we travel everywhere in search of opportunities."
From their initial mutual wariness to their later conversation, they gradually became familiar with one another.
Though there was some difference in age, they were in the same realm, and they truly had plenty to talk about.
After the group drank together in Tianya City, they found they got along so well that they were only one chicken sacrifice away from becoming sworn brothers.
After bidding farewell, Xiao Xuan continued his travels.
"It is said that the Beast Ruins are a relatively famous dangerous place within the Wild Ancient Domain.
"For some unknown reason, the cold energy there is extremely dense, and frigid mist blankets the sky and covers the earth.
"If one wanders about recklessly, one will only become lost within it. Moreover, the mountains contain many powerful and exceptionally bloodthirsty magical beasts, making them quite troublesome to deal with."
"It is said that this Beast Ruins contains Heavenly Rank Dou Techniques and countless cultivation methods and pills.
"But more importantly, something seems to be different about the ruins this time. Those who entered to explore have vanished without a trace. No one knows what accident occurred."
As soon as Xiao Xuan entered Manhuang Town, he heard numerous rumors about the Beast Ruins.
Hearing them, Xiao Xuan quietly left.
Dense Cloudmist shrouded most of the mountain range, making it impossible to see what lay within.
Moreover, that Cloudmist seemed to contain an incomparably vast energy. Even Xiao Xuan could not help feeling chilled beneath that immense power.
No wonder no one dared fly in from above. The path through the sky was practically a road to death.
Within the dense Cloudmist, vast energy surged violently. In the end, it even produced sounds like crashing ocean waves.
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