Old Yao Would Search Heaven and Hell as Well

Living off a woman?

Xiao Yi Xian fell into thought at his words.

That seemed a little difficult!

Well, living off a woman was hard to say, but other soft things...

Lowering her head to look at her modest little breasts, Xiao Yi Xian pursed her lips.

That did not seem very promising either!

No, what was she even thinking about?!

"I'll go make dinner. You two chat first!"

Too embarrassed to stay any longer, Xiao Yi Xian greeted Xiao Yan and Old Yao before hurrying away.

Watching Xiao Yi Xian disappear into the distance, Xiao Yan fell silent for a moment. He walked over to the small wooden cabin he had built together with her and sat down.

"Xiao Yi Xian was here just now, so there was something I could not say. Teacher, do you remember how you subdued the Bone Chilling Flame back then?"

Turning to look at Old Yao as he floated down, Xiao Yan spoke in a somewhat low voice.

"I do not remember very clearly. That was a long time ago, after all. In any case, it took a great deal of effort..."

Old Yao pondered for a moment, then shook his head.

"Teacher, you should remember the name Han Shanshan, right?"

Xiao Yan looked Old Yao in the eye and spoke seriously.

"Of course I remember. Back then, I left Holy Pill City to search for the Bone Chilling Flame. After many years, I finally managed to subdue it by sheer luck. When I returned to Holy Pill City, I learned that not long after I left, she had also departed Holy Pill City and vanished without a trace.

"I searched for her for many years but could not find her. I only accepted that traitorous disciple Han Feng because of her. Who would have thought I was raising an ungrateful wolf..."

At that point, Old Yao suddenly realized something, and his soul body fluctuated violently.

"Are you saying Han Shanshan's disappearance was connected to my search for the Bone Chilling Flame?"

Old Yao's heart jolted, and he felt his entire soul trembling violently with excitement.

That was it. All these years, he had always felt as though something was missing from his heart. He never knew why, nor had he ever considered the coincidence in timing. Perhaps it truly pointed to something.

Given Han Shanshan's personality, if she had learned that he was going to obtain the Bone Chilling Flame, she would certainly have followed him in secret. But why did he not have even the slightest memory of it?

"Yes. At the time, she had actually already joined up with you and Venerable Feng..."

As he spoke, Xiao Yan slowly recounted an experience from Old Yao's past that he had forgotten.

The Bone Chilling Flame had been unexpectedly powerful. It had developed intelligence, and in order to grow stronger, it wanted to devour Han Shanshan's soul.

To save her, Old Yao unleashed the power of his Dou Emperor Bloodline, temporarily gaining the soul strength of a Dou Zun. His physical body, unable to withstand that surging soul power, collapsed. He erased the Bone Chilling Flame's consciousness and handed the Heavenly Flame over to Han Shanshan.

However, Han Shanshan was unwilling to watch Yao Chen perish like that. Through Yao Chen's bloodline, she sacrificed herself to gain the Medicine Emperor's aid and reconstruct Yao Chen's body. She herself became trapped within the River of Time, while the memories Old Yao and Venerable Feng had of seeing her were erased as a result.

The only thing she left behind in this world was this wisp of Bone Chilling Flame bearing her soul imprint.

"So that was what happened?"

Old Yao's soul body fluctuated, yet the Bone Chilling Flame suddenly emerged and soothed those fluctuations.

"No wonder I was able to awaken ahead of time. Aside from the fluctuations of the Myriad Beast Spirit Fire condensed from the Myriad Beast Soul, was it also the nourishment of this Bone Chilling Flame?"

Only at this moment did Old Yao suddenly realize that the eleventh-ranked Bone Chilling Flame was not merely possessed of the contrasting properties of extreme cold and extreme heat.

The Bone Chilling Flame was a flame of the soul. It grew stronger by devouring souls, so naturally, it could also nourish its master's soul.

He had never paid attention to it before and had failed to notice. But now that he knew, he used his soul power to carefully examine the interior of the Bone Chilling Flame and indeed discovered a familiar soul imprint!

This was undoubtedly good news.

Even though so many years had passed, since the soul imprint remained, it meant Han Shanshan's soul had definitely not dispersed.

It was just that a soul sacrificed to an ancient Dou Emperor was most likely no longer on the Dou Qi Continent.

To find her, he would probably have to break through to the Dou Emperor realm...

That... was probably impossible.

Being able to revive was already more than enough for him.

No one had managed to break through to the Dou Emperor realm in all these years. That alone showed just how difficult it was.

But no matter what, he would not give up!

If there had been no news, there would naturally have been nothing he could do. But now that he had news of her, even if he had to search heaven and hell, he would definitely bring her back!

"Thank you, Xiao Yan!"

With a solemn expression, Old Yao patted Xiao Yan's shoulder.

"Teacher, saying that is far too formal. A teacher for a day is a father for life. Since I became your disciple, I never intended to hide this from you. I simply did not know how to bring it up. After being so honest with Xiao Yi Xian today, I happened to have the chance to tell you about it."

Xiao Yan shook his head and spoke seriously.

Over these days, Xiao Yan had taken Old Yao's earnest teachings to heart. Old Yao truly treated him like his own child. Although Xiao Yan was only a green youngster compared to an old hand like Old Yao, he could still tell who treated him well and who did not.

"Mm, good child!"

Old Yao nodded at his words and smiled with gratification.

"However, seeing how hard you have been working, it should also be related to certain things that may happen in the future, right? Can you tell your teacher about them?"

After thinking for a moment, Old Yao spoke again.

Xiao Yan gave a bitter smile and replied somewhat helplessly:

"Then I'll keep it simple. Teacher, you should not be unfamiliar with the Ancient Eight Clans, right? The Xiao Clan is one of them. The Soul Clan—the people from Soul Hall—want a fragment of jade passed down through the Xiao Family. So even without your connection, I would still have ended up opposing Soul Hall.

"Teacher, you know how powerful Soul Hall, and even the Soul Clan, are, right? That is why I have to seize every moment to cultivate. Otherwise, once those people set their sights on me, I will no longer be able to live as peacefully as I do now."

Soul Hall, the Soul Clan...

Old Yao fell silent as well.

He had become neither human nor ghost precisely because of Soul Hall.

He had never expected that his disciple, too, would inevitably be targeted by Soul Hall.

Or even by the Soul Clan!

Although Old Yao had not obtained much information about the Ancient Eight Clans while he was in the Yao Clan, he had still heard a little about the Soul Clan.

It was a mysterious and powerful Ancient Clan, one that acted in an exceptionally strange and unpredictable manner.

No wonder Xiao Yan, only ten years old and having faced no setbacks or hardships, cultivated so diligently. Just thinking about being threatened by such a powerful hidden enemy was enough to make one unable to eat or sleep in peace!

Looking at the young man carrying such a heavy burden yet still wearing a gentle smile, Old Yao smiled and declared firmly, "Do not worry. With your teacher here, I will definitely help you become a true powerhouse as quickly as possible!"