Yun Yun: Yanran Is Beyond Saving

Another half month passed. Xiao Yan's aura had steadily improved, and he was faintly on the verge of breaking through to a two-star Dou Zhe. He stared thoughtfully at a sketch laid out on the table in his room.

The two main circles marked on it contained some information: Green Lotus Core Flame, Tagor Desert; Fallen Heart Flame, Jia Nan Academy.

With his current strength, he could fully enroll in Jia Nan Academy.

Jia Nan Academy only admitted students under twenty.

Although there was no lower age limit, students generally went to Jia Nan Academy after their coming-of-age ceremony at sixteen. Children who were too young were not advised to enter the academy.

Jia Nan Academy was located in the Black Corner Region, a place of extreme chaos where murder and robbery were as commonplace as daily meals. If students were too young, they could easily suffer psychological trauma, which would be detrimental to their growth.

It was not impossible for him to insist on going to Jia Nan Academy.

But Xiao Yan did not believe that the academy's Dou Emperors would personally give him one-on-one guidance. And the Fallen Heart Flame in the Inner Academy was not something a tiny Dou Zhe like him could covet.

As for the Tagor Desert... it was not a good destination either.

Without Old Yao's Heaven-tier Dou Skill, Ghost Possession, Xiao Yan could not possibly set his sights on the Green Lotus Core Flame. Queen Medusa was a peak Dou Emperor, a terrifying powerhouse. Even with her strength, she had nearly been burned alive by a Heavenly Flame. What was the difference between a mere Dou Zhe like him seeking out a Heavenly Flame and courting death?

Thinking of this gave Xiao Yan a headache.

Originally, he had planned to cultivate as much as possible over these two years and reach the Dou Master realm. Then, when Old Yao was ready to absorb his Dou Qi, he would blow up on the old man.

But then he considered it. What if the old man had no sense of fair play and drained all his Dou Qi while he slept? Wouldn't he be completely screwed?

Now that he had become Yun Yun's disciple, Xiao Yan's urgency to awaken Old Yao had not lessened at all. It had only increased.

It was not because he looked down on Yun Yun, a Dou Emperor powerhouse, as his teacher.

The main reason was that he wanted to learn alchemy sooner.

If he could have come into contact with alchemy five years earlier, then given his talent, by the time the Alchemist Grand Meeting or the Pill Gathering came around, his alchemy prowess would definitely let him beat everyone there senseless.

What was more, practicing alchemy would help strengthen his soul power and improve his precise control over Dou Qi.

That would also give him a greater advantage in battle when using Dou Qi.

With that in mind, the best places for a little experience would be Green Mountain Town or the Monster Mountain Range.

Besides that, there was also... the family marketplace.

Every now and then, there would be troublesome customers or pickpockets causing trouble there.

That could also help him gain a little practical combat experience.

One could not cultivate Dou Qi by shutting oneself away and training blindly. What was the point of cultivating Dou Qi without fighting? Besides, he felt that he was about to break through; he was only missing a final opportunity.

Should he ask his teacher what she thought?

With that thought, Xiao Yan casually shattered the sketch on the table into powder with a burst of Dou Qi. He waved his hand, scattering it into dust and sending it out the window, then pushed open the door and headed for the side courtyard to find Yun Yun.

"You want to gain some practical combat experience?"

Yun Yun was somewhat stunned when she heard Xiao Yan's request.

As far as she knew, there had never been a one-star Dou Zhe as young as ten who would think about gaining combat experience.

"Yes. At full strength, I can already use the Fire Origin Sunset Sword."

Xiao Yan nodded seriously.

"No, I do not recommend that."

Yun Yun's expression turned somewhat solemn.

"Do not let the fact that you have become a Dou Zhe fool you. Your body is still far too immature. Ordinary fights would be one thing, but if you begin engaging in intense battles now, they could easily affect your physical development. They might also leave behind hidden injuries that would be extremely difficult to treat, damaging your foundation. The losses would outweigh the gains.

"Although I have never encountered a genius like you, combat experience can be cultivated later. What matters most to you now is still cultivating Dou Qi and studying Dou Skills."

When Yun Yun saw Xiao Yan's thoughtful expression, her face softened considerably. She said gently,

"Since you truly wish to gain combat experience, I can suppress my cultivation and spar with you a little. However, be careful. Even if I suppress my cultivation to the Dou Zhe realm, my body and battle experience will still be those of a Dou Emperor powerhouse."

"Alright, then let's fight now."

Xiao Yan visibly grew excited upon hearing that.

"Huh?"

Yun Yun froze for a moment, then flipped her palm and produced a strange azure longsword.

The next moment, the longsword was resting against Xiao Yan's neck.

Xiao Yan: "???"

"You lost." Yun Yun smiled faintly and said softly, "An enemy will not notify you before attacking."

"Uh..."

Xiao Yan was speechless.

That had indeed been his own oversight. But Teacher Yun's sword had truly been fast. He had not reacted at all. In fact, when she made her move, he had not sensed even the slightest hostility before the sword was already at his throat.

"I have learned my lesson."

Xiao Yan nodded slightly and humbly accepted Yun Yun's instruction. Then he heard a young girl cry out in surprise.

"Ah! Teacher, Xiao Yan, what are you doing?!"

Nalan Yanran had just finished cultivating and was thinking of coming outside for a breather, balancing work and rest, when she saw Yun Yun "menacingly" holding her sword to Xiao Yan's neck while Xiao Yan stood with his head lowered like he had done something wrong.

Gasp. Did Xiao Yan offend Teacher? Was Teacher about to cleanse the sect?

Nalan Yanran recalled the relationship between her teacher and Xiao Yan in her previous life. Her imagination suddenly ran wild, conjuring up some utterly cringe-worthy scenes.

"We were sparring."

Xiao Yan turned his head unhurriedly and said.

"That's right. Xiao Yan wanted to accumulate practical combat experience, so I sparred with him."

Yun Yun casually put away the sword at Xiao Yan's neck into her Storage Ring. Seeing the panic and shock in Nalan Yanran's eyes, she felt somewhat puzzled. Why was this girl reacting so strongly?

So they were sparring...

Nalan Yanran immediately realized that she had greatly misunderstood the situation. Fortunately, no one had noticed. Her little face reddened slightly as she hurriedly tossed out a random compliment.

"So that's what it was. Xiao Yan, you are amazing. You actually dared to spar with a Dou Emperor powerhouse like Teacher."

"I was defeated instantly before I even got to make a move..."

Xiao Yan said gloomily, somewhat speechless.

"That is still amazing. Not everyone has the courage to challenge a Dou Emperor powerhouse. That kind of bravery is not something just anyone possesses."

Nalan Yanran's words sounded wildly exaggerated, with the flavor of a mindless bootlicker.

But she herself knew just how much she had admired and longed for Xiao Yan back then, when he faced Yun Leng, the Great Elder at the Dou Wang level, head-on.

Even when facing their ancestor, a Dou Zong, he had shown no fear whatsoever.

Even after she learned that Venerable Yao's soul had been backing him up, she still felt that Xiao Yan at that time had been domineering and captivating.

For the sake of his family, even if it were a Dou Emperor, he would kill them.

And she could originally have been his family in name and in truth.

"Ah..."

Seeing Nalan Yanran like this, Yun Yun knew that this silly girl was destined to fall into Xiao Yan's hands in this life.

She truly did not understand how Nalan Yanran had fallen so deeply in such a short time.

Yanran was beyond saving. Maybe she should find a way to pass the Misty Cloud Sect on to Xiao Yan instead...

Nalan Yanran's praise made Xiao Yan's scalp tingle. He felt that she was developing in the direction of Xiao Mei, which left him slightly astonished. Could it be that she really likes me?

Unfortunately, he was not the Xiao Yan she knew.

(Third update. Please send some recommendation votes and add it to your collections!)