Accidental Discovery

Accidental Discovery

"What, you only just remembered me now?"

Yao Wan coughed softly and spoke in an even tone.

How could Xiao Yan have forgotten who had helped him clear his meridians and circulate his qi earlier? He coughed lightly.

"Uh... many thanks, Miss Wan..."

"Other than that worthless word of thanks, do you have nothing else?"

As she spoke, Yao Wan slowly withdrew her palm.

"Uh... Miss Wan, well..."

Xiao Yan gave an awkward smile, but did not know what else to say.

"Hm...? Wait, what is this?"

Yao Wan raised her fingertips, only to notice that the Living Flame in her palm seemed to have strengthened—or rather, "grown" somewhat.

"That is exactly right."

"Father, you wanted to see me?"

"Hehe, Yan'er is here. Come, sit."

Xiao Yan let out a breath of stale air and muttered unconsciously.

Xiao Yan's mind worked quickly. Since his Dou Qi was insufficient, the simplest and most direct method would be to refine a Heavenly Flame and raise the level of the Fen Jue.

Xiao Yan nodded. He was not some clueless fool; such a fool could never have achieved a breakthrough to Dou Zhe within a year.

Looking at Xiao Yan, Yao Wan hesitated briefly before explaining.

Old Yao stroked his beard unconsciously and said, "It is not a bad idea, but both your cultivation technique's level and your Dou Qi cultivation are far too low. You simply cannot meet the needs of nurturing the girl's Living Flame."

An old man, along with a young man and woman.

"Grow? Heavenly Flames can grow too?"

"Has time passed so quickly..."

Old Yao explained at the right moment, "Besides, the Living Flame in the girl's hand cannot strictly be considered complete. At most, it is merely a newly ignited spark, so naturally it still has plenty of room to grow."

"Of course they can. All Heavenly Flames are formed from the gathering of heaven and earth's energy. From nothing to something, that is naturally growth."

Then, Xiao Yan shifted his gaze, stood beside Xiao Zhan, and spoke.

"Miss Wan, who are you looking down on!"

"Mm... then I need to devour Heavenly Flames to evolve the Fen Jue?"

Xiao Yan muttered unconsciously, then suddenly realized something and smiled. "Then does that mean the Fen Jue can also help Miss Wan nurture her Heavenly Flame?"

Xiao Yan's breathing halted. His chest felt unbearably stifled, and though he instinctively wanted to refute her, he did not even have the confidence to do so.

Xiao Yan asked unconsciously.

After meeting a true Heavenly Pride Daughter like Miss Wan, Xiao Yan's standards had unconsciously risen by quite a bit. Mere two Dou Zhe were not enough to leave him dumbstruck.

"So that's how it is."

The familiar faces were all there as usual. The only difference was the arrival of three strangers, who were presumably the honored guests his father had mentioned yesterday.

With that, Xiao Yan clasped his fists in farewell and left.

An aged voice came from outside the door, seemingly unwilling to give Xiao Yan any time to think.

Only Xiao Yan and Yao Wan remained in the room once more, and the atmosphere in the guest room became awkward as well.

After passing through a small path, Xiao Yan entered the reception hall.

"Enough. That brat will definitely find a Heavenly Flame someday."

Old Yao ultimately could not help but interject.

Seeing his teacher come to his rescue, Xiao Yan was immediately deeply moved.

"...My Living Flame seems to have grown a little after coming into contact with your Fen Jue, though the reaction is still very faint."

"Alright... I'll go right away."

If he wanted to help her nurture her Heavenly Flame, Xiao Yan would at least need to absorb one or two Heavenly Flames first.

As soon as she finished speaking, Xiao Yan heard a knock at the door.

Yao Wan wanted to say more but stopped herself. Everyone understood what she meant, so there was no need for her to keep talking and hurt his pride.

Xiao Yan nodded lightly, then opened his door and stepped outside.

"I have never heard that the Fen Jue has such a use..."

After returning, Xiao Yan once again went an entire night without sleep. When he opened his eyes again, it was already daytime the next day.

"Miss Wan, I actually..."

"What is it, Miss Wan?"

Xiao Yan raised his brows and unconsciously glanced at the three elders.

Xiao Yan's expression immediately fell.

"Alright, cultivate properly. I do not mean to mock you. But if you want to see the vast world beyond, rather than remain a frog at the bottom of a well in the Jia Ma Empire, it will still depend on your own efforts."

Xiao Yan's gaze swept across the two of them, calm and unruffled.

Xiao Zhan smiled. When Xiao Yan looked up, he discovered that there was an additional seat of honor at the side compared to usual.

"Alright, stop looking at me like that. Cultivate diligently. Otherwise, with your current strength, even the lowest-ranked Heavenly Flame would burn you straight to ashes."

"The help I can give you is ultimately limited."

"Finding Heavenly Flames? No problem. We'll find them—"

Xiao Yan raised his brows. People of this caliber were not common in Wutan City.

"Third Young Master, the Clan Leader and elders have summoned you."

Yao Wan gave a soft snort. She truly had not expected Xiao Yan's first cultivation of the Fen Jue to bring her such benefits. But just as Old Yao had said, neither the current Xiao Yan nor the current Fen Jue could offer much help to her Living Flame.

Old Yao nodded.

Old Yao said irritably. After speaking, he returned to the Storage Ring and vanished.

After all, having the desire and having the ability were two different things.

Of course, he knew Yao Wan had not meant to laugh at him, but that only made his pride hurt even more.

"I understand, Miss Wan... Then get some good rest. I'll be leaving first."

The star-and-moon insignia on the old man proved that he was a Seven Star Great Dou Shi, while the young man and woman who had come with him were respectively a Five Star Dou Zhe and a Three Star Dou Zhe.

One Five Star and one Three Star—given more time, Xiao Yan might not be unable to reach such realms himself.

As for that old man, if his father had not received the Shi Ling Pill from Miss Wan, the old man's cultivation would have surpassed his father's by two stars.

"But finding Heavenly Flames..."

"Miss Wan surely will not say that I can do nothing but thank people now, right?"

Yao Wan suddenly stared blankly at Xiao Yan's face.

Yao Wan spoke softly.

"I say, Xiao Yan, can you even find a Heavenly Flame?"

"It is not that I look down on you. It is just that..."

"As for that young man and woman..."

"Let's wait until you have found a Heavenly Flame before discussing it."

Now that he had cultivated the Fen Jue, Xiao Yan shed his previous hesitant and troubled demeanor. A bright smile appeared on his face as he looked at Yao Wan.

These old geezers—did the sun rise in the west today?

But on second thought, it made sense. Miss Wan was backing him now. If these old geezers wanted to make things difficult for him, they would have to consider her feelings first.

Hmph.