A Robbery and Murder About to Happen

Unlike when he entered Shennong City, Yao Yan deliberately concealed himself when leaving, using a bamboo hat to cover his face. His looks were simply too absurdly handsome—the kind that made men want to praise him and women want to love him. Men who praised him could not help turning from one to zero and becoming perverts, while women who loved him could not pull their collars high enough or fasten their waistbands tight enough.

That included, but was not limited to, nursing infants, menopausal old ladies, and perhaps even magical beasts causing a riot...

Though that was somewhat exaggerated, he really was handsome.

If he had lived in Wu Zetian's era, he would have been hauled into the palace to conduct import-export business without question.

For that reason, Yao Yan had no choice but to keep a low profile. It was not that he feared trouble, but that he worried about running into perverts. The Dou Qi Continent was certainly not lacking in such creatures.

"Let's go home first. I plan to enter seclusion for a while longer."

Yao Yan reached up and stroked Ling Er on his shoulder as he made the suggestion. He planned to cultivate the Indestructible Diamond Body Second Level to the beginner stage. By then, he would be able to withstand even an ordinary Dou Emperor or two. As for his Dou Qi, it had surged to the Six Star Dou Master level after absorbing the Spirit Clan Essence Blood. It needed to be tempered for a time, so there was no rush to break through.

Little Greenwood Fox Ling Er lay lazily on Yao Yan's shoulder, her pair of large ears drooping as she let out a crisp "yip," indicating that she had no objections.

She truly had no objections. As a lazy little foodie, all she needed was something to eat.

You really are among the finest of the Heavenly Flames... Ling Er's figure was reflected in Yao Yan's eyes, and a faint smile rested on his face. He was quite impressed by his own luck at unexpectedly obtaining the Living Flame. At the same time, he could not help marveling at the wonders of Heavenly Flames. A Heavenly Flame said to contain Destructive Power was instead brimming with ultimate vitality, and it was itself formed from Wood Element energy.

It could only be said that it truly deserved to be called a Spiritual Being nurtured by the Heaven and Earth of the Dou Qi Continent. One could even say that it had condensed from the Heaven and Earth Rules.

It was somewhat similar to the Eight Great Ancestral Charms from Wu Dong Qian Kun...

As for the deeper secrets involved, they were clearly beyond what Yao Yan could know at present. He rubbed Ling Er's little head, then strode into the distance. He could hardly wait to return and cultivate. With the Spirit Clan Dou Di bloodline supporting him, he could temper his body far more recklessly without worrying about hidden injuries being left behind.

It had to be said.

The immense vitality contained within the Spirit Race Bloodline and the power of Blood Qi contained within the Stone Clan Bloodline complemented each other. Together, they gave Yao Yan an exceptionally powerful physical talent. Perhaps he could cultivate the Indestructible Diamond Body Second Level to major mastery in a short time.

By then.

Even if he faced a Dou Zong expert, he would dare to go up and throw a couple of punches.

With that thought, his steps became even lighter, and he wished he could return to the Waterfall Cave immediately to enter seclusion and cultivate bitterly.

"Is that him?"

"It's him. Though he used a bamboo hat to hide his face, he didn't change his clothes. Most importantly, that Greenwood Fox on his shoulder... There isn't a second person in Shennong City raising one of those little things. We can't be mistaken!"

"Have we really decided? He's from the Yao Clan. Even if he's only from a branch family, he's still not someone we can afford to offend. Once..."

At the city gate, the mercenary leader clenched his fist, a vicious gleam flashing through his eyes. He cut off the other man's discouraged words and urged them on.

"What are you afraid of? We're robbing a fat sheep from the Yao Clan, especially a young brat out training. He definitely lacks real combat experience, so he'll be easy to handle. We'll end this quickly. After killing him and dividing the pills, we'll flee separately. With that brat's wealth, every one of us can raise our strength by a whole level."

Wealth moved people's hearts. Not everyone could remain calm in the face of enormous profits, especially mercenaries like them, struggling bitterly at the bottom. In the past, whenever they explored the Shennong Mountain Range or gathered herbs, they licked blood from the blade every moment. Risking their lives was commonplace.

Now, a job lay right before them. If it succeeded, the gains would be enough to let them break through to the next level.

The only risk was gambling with their lives.

Gambling that he had no backing, no one protecting him, and was merely an ordinary branch-family brat!

The mercenary leader continued to egg them on. "Take him out, and we'll split the pills and resources in his hands equally. Then we might have a chance to break through to Dou Wang... That's Dou Wang!!"

Dou Wang and those beneath Dou Wang were absolutely on two different levels, even in Shennong City.

It was like the difference between the Floating Island above the city and the city below.

One stood high above, soaring across the four seas and overlooking Heaven and Earth.

The other could only raise its head, like a frog at the bottom of a well, unable to see the boundless vastness of this world.

"...Then let's gamble. We'll end this quickly, divide the pills afterward, and flee separately. Whether we survive will depend on our own luck."

The young man with a feminine air fell silent for a moment before speaking coldly.

Fat sheep like Yao Yan were difficult to come by. When members of the Yao Clan went out to train in the past, powerful guards always accompanied them. Even the Lowest Strength among those guards was Dou Emperor. They were simply not people these men could provoke.

As for the Yao Clan's other members.

Those people either stayed in the Medicine World for years or held no status at all. Their circumstances in the Medicine World were little different from these mercenaries'—all poor, talentless people. When they went out, they gathered medicinal herbs and sought breakthroughs, essentially existing at the level of Herb Gatherers. There was no point robbing such people unless they had made some kind of gain.

Yao Yan was different. He was clearly someone of some standing among the Yao Clan's branch families. Whether it was his clothes, his appearance, or the way he bid at street stalls, he was the sort of young master who knew nothing of the world.

That was why they had gathered here.

The tall man standing behind the others had remained silent for a long time before raising a question. "Are you sure he has enough pills for all of us to split?"

He cared only about the final gains.

"I have reliable information. That brat doesn't lack pills, and he has a huge quantity of them. Besides, he's carrying two entire Storage Rings, and one of them is even a top-grade Storage Ring!"

The mercenary leader chuckled, Greedy Color spilling from his eyes.

The others did not doubt his words. This was not the first time the mercenary leader had organized something like this. Since he spoke so confidently, he had clearly obtained reliable information. The only question was Yao Yan's identity. They were not sure whether there was anyone behind him, and that was crucial. If they gambled wrong, they would almost certainly die.

Of course, if they gambled right, the rewards would be immense—enough to transform them completely and perhaps even save enough for ship tickets to leave the Shennong Mountain Range.

Just like Shennong City.

There was a Space Wormhole on the Floating Island above it, and one could take a Space Ship to other regions. However, tickets started at a million, a price enough to make people balk.

The Shennong Mountain Range was extremely unfriendly to low-level cultivators. Nearly all good resources had been monopolized by sects and the Yao Clan. Whenever ruins with even a little value emerged, Dou Zong-level experts would appear and seal off the area directly. That was not even mentioning the high-rank magical beasts within the mountain range. For the remaining scraps, those without talent like them still had to compete with Low-Rank Magical Beasts. Their circumstances were easy to imagine.

Yet they could not leave.

The young man with a feminine air gave a cold smile. "Then let's gamble. Hopefully, our luck won't be bad this time!"

As his words fell, the six men stopped hesitating and headed together in the direction Yao Yan had gone.

All six were Dou Spirit Level experts. They had worked together many times and had even once joined forces to kill a Dou Wang in poor condition. Unfortunately, that Dou Wang had been too poor, with barely anything valuable on him. He was far inferior to the Yao Yan they were dealing with today, though the risks of the two matters were entirely different.

But Yao Yan was so wealthy, while his strength was so weak. How could their group not be tempted?

And they were not the only group.

At the same time, two other groups had set their sights on Yao Yan!