Xiao Yan Takes the Wrong Path! (Please Follow)

In a secluded grove in the Xiao Family's back mountain.

Xiao Yan sat cross-legged atop a bluish stone, his hands forming a strange seal as a pale yellow Dou Qi glow curled around his body.

Drawn by an invisible force, most of that glow flowed into his meridians, slowly advancing his cultivation.

The remaining portion silently flowed into the black ring on his finger and vanished.

His face was weary, yet his eyes gleamed with an almost obsessive excitement.

"Teacher, I feel like I'm about to break through to a Two-Star Dou Practitioner!"

Xiao Yan communicated inwardly with Han Feng inside the ring.

"Hmph. What is there to be happy about over becoming a mere Two-Star Dou Practitioner?"

An aged voice with a trace of chilliness rang out in his mind. It was Han Feng's soul.

"If your aptitude were not so dull, and the Soul Power you supplied were not so meager, how could your progress be this slow?

Do as I say. Give half of your daily cultivation gains to me to restore my soul. That is the price you must pay!

Otherwise, you can keep being the Xiao Family's worthless trash!"

A flicker of humiliation crossed Xiao Yan's face, but he quickly suppressed it.

He knew full well how powerful this mysterious soul was. Just the basic alchemy knowledge and Dou Qi control techniques Han Feng had casually taught him had benefited him immensely.

Although Han Feng had an eccentric temperament, harsh demands, and frequently berated him, he was Xiao Yan's only hope.

"Yes, Teacher. This disciple understands."

Xiao Yan answered respectfully and circulated his Cultivation Method with even greater effort, continuously sending refined Dou Qi into the ring.

The consequences of this method of cultivation, which drained his potential to nourish another, were obvious.

Although Xiao Yan's cultivation had returned to the One-Star Dou Practitioner level, his complexion always carried an unhealthy pallor.

His aura was also far less solid and vigorous than that of Dou Practitioners at the same level, appearing somewhat unstable.

But Xiao Yan did not care. As long as he could regain his strength and cast off the label of "trash," he was willing to pay any price!

"Enough. That is all for today's cultivation." Han Feng's voice interrupted him.

"Next, practice refining the Blood Coagulating Powder I taught you yesterday. Find the medicinal ingredients yourself.

You cannot even refine the most basic first-tier pill properly. You truly are hopelessly stupid!"

Xiao Yan silently put away his Cultivation Method and took out a crude Medicine Cauldron along with several portions of cheap medicinal ingredients.

He had only managed to gather these by scrimping and saving.

He ignited a Dou Qi flame and carefully controlled it as he placed the medicinal herbs into the Medicine Cauldron one by one.

His movements were stiff, his mind intensely focused, while fine beads of sweat seeped from his forehead.

Under Han Feng's occasional mockery and caustic instructions, he struggled to maintain the balance within the Medicine Cauldron.

At last, after wasting two portions of ingredients, he barely managed to condense the third portion into several dull-colored, irregular clumps of medicinal powder.

"It can barely be considered formed. The medicinal efficacy is probably less than fifty percent. Trash!" Han Feng judged mercilessly.

Xiao Yan panted heavily as he looked at the misshapen "Blood Coagulating Powder" in his hand, his fist clenching tightly.

He did not argue. He merely buried this failure and humiliation deep in his heart.

After resting for a moment, Han Feng's voice sounded again, carrying a strange undertone.

"Boy, you are now a Dou Practitioner, so you can be said to possess a tiny foundation.

I see that the fire-element Dou Qi in your body is dominant. You may have some affinity with an ancient and bizarre Cultivation Method."

"A bizarre Cultivation Method?" Xiao Yan was startled.

"That's right. This Cultivation Method is called the Flame Mantra." Han Feng's voice was tempting.

"Though it begins as merely a low Yellow Grade Cultivation Method, it possesses the ability to evolve by devouring Heavenly Flames! If you can find enough Heavenly Flames, it may even surpass a Heavenly Grade Cultivation Method!"

"Devour Heavenly Flames? Evolve?!"

Xiao Yan's heart jolted, and even his breathing grew rapid.

What kind of divine treasures of heaven and earth were Heavenly Flames?

This Cultivation Method could actually evolve by devouring them? It was practically tailor-made for him!

He seemed to see a broad path leading to the pinnacle of power!

"Teacher! Please teach this disciple the Flame Mantra!" Xiao Yan pleaded excitedly.

"Hmph, what is the hurry?" Han Feng snorted coldly.

"Though this method possesses tremendous potential, the cultivation process is extremely dangerous. Devouring Heavenly Flames is even more likely to end in death. Moreover, the Flame Mantra I obtained is incomplete and flawed."

Han Feng revealed the fatal flaw of its incompleteness, but his tone was dismissive as he emphasized its ability to evolve.

"Incomplete?!" Xiao Yan hesitated for an instant.

But then he thought of his current circumstances, the mocking gazes, and the figure he hated to the bone—Gu Long!

He needed strength. He needed any path that could make him stronger!

"This disciple does not fear danger! Please teach me, Teacher!" Xiao Yan declared resolutely.

So what if the Cultivation Method was incomplete?

He believed that through his own effort and opportunities, he would certainly be able to complete it!

"Since you insist, then I shall pass it on to you."

Han Feng seemed to sigh helplessly before imprinting a passage of obscure and complex cultivation formulas into Xiao Yan's mind.

Xiao Yan treated it like a priceless treasure and immediately immersed himself in comprehending the Flame Mantra.

He did not realize that the Cultivation Method in which he had placed such high hopes possessed a tremendous flaw at its very root, one that doomed it to never support him to the true pinnacle.

After finishing his cultivation, Xiao Yan dragged his exhausted yet excited body back to the Xiao Family.

As he passed that familiar little courtyard, he instinctively stopped and cast a sinister gaze inside.

In the courtyard, Gu Long sat beside a stone table, leisurely reading a scroll in his hand.

Gu Xun Er sat beside him with her chin propped in both hands, smiling as she watched him and occasionally told him some amusing story.

Gu Long would give a slight nod and respond with a few brief words.

Sunlight fell over the two of them, making the harmonious scene painfully glaring.

Xiao Yan's fists instantly clenched, his nails digging deeply into his palms.

It was this man! This man had taken away his stunning Xun Er and rejected his invitation in public.

Even more hateful, Gu Long had humiliated him so thoroughly that night!

The pain of every blow landing on his flesh, along with the fear it had brought him, remained vivid in his memory!

He had decided that Gu Long was the source of his humiliation!

The greatest obstacle standing between him and Xun Er!

"Gu Long!" Xiao Yan gritted his teeth as he repeated the name in his heart.

"Just you wait! Once my cultivation succeeds, once I master the Flame Mantra and devour Heavenly Flames! I will repay today's humiliation a hundredfold someday! Xun Er will definitely be mine!"

He did not dare linger, afraid that Gu Long would notice him. Filled with resentment and unwillingness, he hurried away.

Inside the courtyard, Gu Long appeared to be reading, but his Soul Power had already caught Xiao Yan's malicious stare and fleeing figure.

He set down the scroll, lifted his teacup, and took a sip, his gaze calm and undisturbed.

Xiao Yan's hatred was within his expectations. He was even pleased to see it.

A Xiao Yan driven by hatred, cultivating an incomplete Cultivation Method while having his Dou Qi constantly drained by his "teacher,"

was far easier to deal with than a Xiao Yan whose path was smooth and whose opportunities never ceased.

"A jumping clown." Gu Long felt no ripple in his heart.

He could not be bothered to pay attention to Xiao Yan's pitiful progress.

His attention was on the Dragon Domain he was building, as well as the powerful enemies of the Soul Clan he would need to face in the future...

In his eyes, Xiao Yan's obsession with revenge was merely the indignant shriek of an ant, utterly incapable of affecting him.

He turned to look at the smiling Xun Er beside him, and only then did his gaze truly soften.

"Brother Gu Long, what are you looking at?" Xun Er asked curiously.

"Nothing." Gu Long smiled faintly. "A bothersome insect just flew past."

Xun Er nodded as if she understood, then quickly turned her attention back to Gu Long and began chattering about another topic.

Inside and outside the small courtyard, it was as though there were two different worlds.

One was bright with sunlight, warm and harmonious; the other was cold and gloomy, where hatred bred.

At the fork in fate's road, the two went their separate ways, growing farther and farther apart.