A Conversation with Su Qian, Recent Plans

Inside the Jia Nan Academy.

Xiao Yan was sitting in his small courtyard, with the sun shining in. The energy of the surrounding world was absorbed into his body, and his cultivation level slowly increased.

At one point, he opened his eyes, looked towards the courtyard gate, and stopped cultivating.

"Great Elder Su Qian, please come in," Xiao Yan said.

As he finished speaking, the courtyard gate opened, and Su Qian, with his white beard and eyebrows, walked in with a somewhat sorrowful expression.

"Elder Yan Xiao." Su Qian nodded in greeting and sat down on the stone bench opposite Xiao Yan.

Xiao Yan had been eagerly anticipating absorbing the Fallen Heart Flame for a long time. Seeing Su Qian sit down, he went straight to the point. "Great Elder Su Qian, as agreed, I will absorb the Fallen Heart Flame after its next outburst. Do you remember?"

Su Qian did not break the contract, nor would he dare to. Otherwise, with the power of a Seventh-Rank Alchemist, Jia Nan Academy would not fare well either.

He nodded, a worried look on his face. "Elder Yan Xiao, I naturally remember this agreement."

I just didn't expect it to riot so soon; I thought it wouldn't riot for at least a few months."

Xiao Yan did not refute.

In his memory, the Fallen Heart Flame in the original story wouldn't erupt for at least another six months.

According to this timeline, he originally intended to develop Yan City, finish up this mess, and at the same time improve Zi Yan's favorability. After obtaining Zi Yan's Heart Blood Essence, he would then focus his energy on the Fallen Heart Flame.

Now, while the riots of the Fallen Heart Flame didn't exactly disrupt his plans, they were certainly a bit unexpected.

"Considering the differences from the original work, I'm the only variable left."

So... is it most likely due to the Fire Spirit Body? I wonder what the Fallen Heart Flame will do when it sees me."

As Xiao Yan pondered, his anticipation for meeting the Fallen Heart Flame grew ever stronger.

After all, the Fallen Heart Flame was one of the few Heavenly Flames in the original story that possessed its own sentience. He was very curious about what he was and what he represented in the eyes of these sentient Heavenly Flames, and how the Fire Spirit of the Heavenly Flames would treat him.

"Elder Yan Xiao, regarding the Fallen Heart Flame, I hope you can give Jia Nan Academy some more time. Without it, the academy will inevitably have to reform, and we need to prepare in advance. What do you think?" Su Qian asked, trying to persuade him.

Xiao Yan pondered for a moment, somewhat conflicted.

He naturally wanted to do it as quickly as possible so that he could awaken his Heaven-Swallowing Talent for the Fallen Heart Flame as soon as possible.

But he also knew that Su Qian's reasons were quite valid.

Moreover... Jia Nan Academy is also a very good partner. He will inevitably have to deal with the Jia Nan Academy for some time to come, and he is currently one of the guest elders.

Since that's the case...

"Elder, I'm giving you this face."

"My Vientiane Auction begin in a month and a half, so I'll use that as a boundary. Before the auction starts, I request to absorb the Fallen Heart Flame, is that alright?" Xiao Yan asked.

Su Qian actually felt that the time was still too short, but he didn't push his luck and thanked Elder Yan Xiao, saying, "Thank you very much, Elder Yan Xiao."

He didn't continue the conversation about the Fallen Heart Flame, but changed the subject, saying, "Elder Yan Xiao, I heard that you killed that Medicine Emperor Han Feng, renamed his Feng City to Yan City, and also established the Tian Shu Alliance?"

Xiao Yan nodded and smiled, "That's right, does Great Elder Su Qian want the academy to join the Tian Shu Alliance?"

Su Qian quickly shook her head. "No, no, no, I don't have that authority. Only the dean is qualified to make this decision."

Xiao Yan had already anticipated Su Qian's answer and didn't mind. He then asked the question that had been bothering him, "Great Elder Su Qian, I've been at the academy for a while now, and apart from Hu Gan, the vice Outer Academy, I've never seen the dean of the Outer Academy or the vice dean and dean of the Inner Academy. Where are they?"

Upon hearing Xiao Yan's question, and considering his status as a guest elder of the academy, Su Qian replied, "He is the dean of the Outer Academy. He has entered a deep seclusion, also known as a death seclusion. No one knows when he will emerge. His lifespan is short, so he only wants to break through his cultivation level as soon as possible to extend his lifespan. He stopped caring about the academy a long time ago."

"As for the Inner Academy, the position of vice dean is concurrently held by the Outer Academy, while the dean has gone to travel on the mainland and only occasionally sends back some messages, sigh." Su Qian looked like she had a headache.

Xiao Yan resolved a doubt in his mind. He recalled the Outer Academy dean who had never appeared in the original novel and guessed that his cultivation level was likely higher than Su Qian's, but that had nothing to do with him.

Xiao Yan reached into the Nether Sea Storage Ring and took out two exquisite black cards, handing them to Su Qian: "Elder, these are Black Card from the Vientiane Auction House. You can get discounts when you buy things with Black Card, and you can also participate in the Vientiane Auction. You can go and take a look then."

The other one was for Vice Dean Hu Gan.

Su Qian took the Black Card, paused for a moment, and then laughed, "Elder Yan Xiao, your Black Card is very popular throughout the entire Northwest Continent right now."

Many forces from outside the Black-Corner Region have also gotten involved.

"This Black Card is worth more than a single Tier 5 Medicinal Pill; you've given Hu Gan gift."

Xiao Yan waved his hand, not caring. He could produce as much as he wanted for the things he released himself. If it weren't for the need for scarcity marketing, he wouldn't have been so stingy as to only give Su Qian two tickets.

"By the way, Elder Yan Xiao, Hu Gan took the Break-Ancestor Pill and is currently in seclusion to break through, so I'm thanking him on his behalf," Su Qian said.

Xiao Yan offered his blessings. "Then I wish Hu Gan Dean Hu a successful breakthrough."

Su Qian nodded, thought for a moment, and said, "Elder Yan Xiao, Elder Huo from the Alchemy Department has recently wanted to see you, but he was too embarrassed to bother you, so he asked me to inquire whether it would be convenient for him to ask you for some advice."

Xiao Yan considered his plans.

Han Feng was dealt with, and the Sea Heart Flame was obtained. The process is complete.

Establishing his own power base in the Black-Corner Region to provide himself with a continuous supply of resources to help him rapidly improve his cultivation is currently underway, and he has nothing else to do at the moment.

Acquiring the Fallen Heart Flame is progressing rapidly; just wait patiently. There's no need to do anything else in the near future.

Obtain Zi Yan's Heart Blood Essence to awaken your Heaven-Swallowing Talent using the Ancient Void Dragon Royal Bloodline. Progress is currently slow and requires proactive efforts.

Through Xiao Xun'er, resources were exchanged with the Tou She Ancient God Jade and the Ancient Clan, or more precisely, with Gu Yuan. Currently, Xun'er is being difficult and needs to be coaxed.

Thinking about it this way, Xiao Yan realized that he had suddenly become much busier over the past month and a half.

To get closer to Zi Yan, appease Xiao Xun'er, and also to get guidance from Elder Huo as requested by Su Qian...

Xiao Yan had a three-birds-with-one-stone idea pop into his head, and he said directly to Su Qian, "Elder, no matter how much guidance I give, it's not as good as him learning by watching me refine medicine with his own eyes."

"There must be many Medicinal Herbs in the academy."

"I plan to start practicing medicine making in public at the academy tomorrow. What do you think?"