Xiao Yan and Yao Chen's Shock

Along the way, wherever Shi Kang pointed, Shi Fei and Shi Long unhesitatingly took him there without asking a single question.

Shi Kang was quite satisfied with their absolute obedience.

This was how guards ought to be. They did whatever they were told without asking questions.

With two Half-Saint Experts carrying him along, the vast distance between the Northwest Continent and the Central Continent was nothing.

In less than a day, the three of them arrived smoothly at the Monster Beast Mountain Range in the Northwest Continent.

Standing above the mountain range, Shi Kang lightly tapped the air with his toes. His gaze swept over Shi Long and Shi Fei beside him, and a meaningful smile curled his lips. "You two, have you ever heard a saying?"

He paused, then drawled, "If you fall off a cliff and land in a cave, don't panic. Take two steps forward, and perhaps—you'll become an expert."

Shi Long and Shi Fei exchanged glances, neither understanding why the Young Clan Leader had suddenly brought up such a question.

Still, Shi Long answered honestly, "I have, Young Clan Leader. Over the continent's nearly ten-thousand-year history, there have indeed been many tales of people becoming experts through such fortuitous encounters."

Shi Kang put on an interested expression, his eyes gleaming. "Oh? In that case, why don't we verify it in this Monster Beast Mountain Range?"

Shi Long and Shi Fei looked at each other again and immediately understood what Shi Kang meant.

They promptly bowed. "Please wait, Young Clan Leader. We will search at once!"

Seeing how quick-witted they were, Shi Kang was even more satisfied.

He planned to reward them when they got back.

That was right. Shi Kang's target was the cave Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian had explored in the original story—or, more precisely, the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame Remnant Map hidden inside.

The Old Ancestor had said that the Myriad Spirits Body Refining Technique he cultivated could refine multiple Heavenly Flames. Before becoming a Dou Sheng, he could contain two; after becoming one, the strength of his physical body would allow him to add another one or two.

By that count, Shi Kang had room for three or four Heavenly Flames.

When Heavenly Flames refined the body, the stronger the flame, the more formidable the resulting body would be.

The danger was truly dangerous, but the old saying was right: wealth and honor were sought amid danger.

Therefore, Shi Kang also wanted to contend for the third-ranked Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame.

As long as it could make him stronger, he could not care less whether it disrupted Xiao Yan's path.

He would not yield an inch of any opportunity worth seizing—if he did not grasp them tightly, how could he protect the Stone Clan or stand against the Soul Clan?

As for Xiao Yan, Shi Kang had no plans to touch him for now. They had no grudge, so he would let the kid venture out on his own first.

He was also curious whether, with a transmigrator like himself interfering, Xiao Yan could still grow into the person he had been in the original story.

It would be best if he could grow stronger. In the future, they would have another hand to fight the Soul Clan, and Shi Kang could have him draw over the Origin Qi so everyone could charge toward Dou Di together.

If Xiao Yan failed to grow or offended him, it would not be too late for Shi Kang to make other plans—for instance, finding someone else to cultivate the Flame Mantra...

There was no helping it. He had no system. To truly break through to Dou Di, he either had to rely on the Origin Qi within the Tou She Ancient God Inheritance Statue, or wait for someone else to first become a Dou Di and bring the Origin Qi in.

As for the Emperor Grade Nascent Pill, Shi Kang knew it was a trap.

"If I could cultivate my body to the absolute limit and punch that statue to pieces, how great would that be..." Such an unrealistic fantasy suddenly surfaced in Shi Kang's mind.

Shi Kang shook his head, feeling that he was being too naive. That was an inheritance statue left behind by a Dou Di—how could it possibly be shattered so easily?

Sigh, he was thinking too far ahead.

The crisis of the Stone Clan's extermination had not even been resolved, yet he was already thinking about how to break through to Dou Di. It was far too early...

Shi Kang did not know the cave's exact location in the original story, but that did not matter. With two Half-Saint Experts searching without restraint, could such an enormous Monster Beast Mountain Range really hide a single cave from them?

Shi Long and Shi Fei immediately released their Soul Power, sweeping through the mountain range inch by inch without overlooking a single cliff.

Such errand-running work was best left to guards.

Shi Kang found a wind-sheltered boulder to lie against and continued pondering ways to deal with the Soul Clan.

The auras Shi Long and Shi Fei gave off were simply too overwhelming, stirring up a tremendous uproar throughout the Monster Beast Mountain Range.

Those nearby were pinned down by their pressure, unable to move.

Those farther away cowered and trembled inside their dens, not daring to so much as stick their heads out. The humans training in the mountains also hurriedly found places to hide, terrified of running into such great figures.

Among them was Xiao Yan, who was training in the mountain range.

At that moment, Xiao Yan was hiding in a cave, holding his breath and barely daring to breathe.

The cave entrance had been blocked by Xiao Yan with a huge boulder and disguised somewhat.

It was Xiao Yan's third day training in the Monster Beast Mountain Range.

Just moments ago, Xiao Yan had been fighting a second-tier Monster Beast when Yao Chen in his ring suddenly shouted for him to run and find somewhere to hide—because he had sensed Shi Long and Shi Fei's auras.

That was how Xiao Yan came to be trembling in this stone cave.

"Teacher, are those two really that powerful? Even you can't defeat them?" Xiao Yan asked in a low voice. Recalling the pressure that had nearly suffocated him, his heart still pounded.

Remembering the powerful auras he had just sensed, Yao Chen's expression was grave. "Very powerful. Even at my peak, I would not have been their match!"

Although little of Yao Chen's strength remained, his Soul Power was still formidable. Thus, he could sense that the two were absolutely experts who had entered the Saint Realm.

Xiao Yan's heart shook. He did not know how strong Yao Chen had been in life, but simply hearing him say that the Pill King Gu He was "not worth a damn" told him that his teacher was no ordinary person.

If even his teacher feared them, just how strong were they?

"Why would experts of that level come to the Northwest Continent?" Xiao Yan was even more confused.

Yao Chen shook his head as well, utterly perplexed.

Half-Saints were rare even in the Central Continent and seldom appeared in public. Why would they show up in the impoverished Northwest Continent?

And there were two of them. It was far too abnormal.

Once the two Half-Saint Experts began their search in earnest, it did not take long for them to determine the cave's location.

Fortunately, Shi Kang had told them to look for caves on cliffs, while the cave where Xiao Yan was hiding was nowhere near a cliff. Otherwise, Shi Long and Shi Fei would certainly have encountered Xiao Yan.

Led by Shi Long, Shi Kang arrived at that cliff.

The cave's Stone Gate had already been blasted open by the two of them. Shi Fei stood guard at the entrance, and when he saw Shi Kang arrive, he gave a slight nod.

After discovering three stone boxes inside the cave, the two had not opened them without authorization. Instead, they had retreated outside, with one standing guard while the other went to report.

This sense of propriety made Shi Kang like them even more.

"Young Clan Leader, we have checked the cave. There is no danger inside," Shi Long said quietly.

"Well done." Shi Kang praised him before stepping into the cave.

Inside was a spacious stone chamber. A stone chair stood in the center, and a skeleton lay quietly upon it. Three stone boxes rested directly before it.

Shi Kang glanced around, ignoring the scattered gold coins and herbs in the corner as he walked straight toward the stone boxes.

"Young Clan Leader, allow me to open them for you." Shi Long stepped forward ingratiatingly, showing excellent judgment.

Shi Kang waved his hand. In his previous life, he had loved unboxing deliveries and enjoyed that feeling.