No Such Thing as Breaking Off the Engagement!

"Uncle Nalan, are you here to break off the engagement?" Xiao Yan suddenly asked with a half-smile.

"Break off the engagement? What kind of joke is that? Why would we break it off?"

Nalan Ruo looked utterly bewildered.

Break off the engagement? Was he sick? Why would they break it off? This was a five-year-old Dou Zhe! As long as he did not die young, becoming a Dou Emperor was practically guaranteed. Even the legendary Dou Zong realm was not beyond his reach.

Besides, the boy was already so, so... well, sturdy at five years old. It would not be easy for him to die young even if he wanted to. And although Yun Yun, the newly appointed sect leader of the Misty Cloud Sect, had recently expressed interest in taking Yanran as her disciple, that was still far from certain. Even if it happened, Xiao Yan would still be Yanran's best possible husband.

Damn it, whoever in the Nalan Clan dared call off this engagement, he would break that bastard's legs. His father would surely support him too. Er, unfortunately, his father was already bedridden and paralyzed. How tragic!

"Oh, Uncle Nalan, you aren't here to break off the engagement?" Xiao Yan asked with an unconvinced look.

"No, no, no, Young Master Yan, you misunderstand. Breaking off the engagement is impossible. We could never break it off, not in this lifetime." Nalan Ruo frantically shook his head.

"Yan'er, you truly misunderstood Mr. Nalan this time. Mr. Nalan came here for his father, Lionheart Marshal Nalan Jie."

Xiao Zhan's voice came from behind them, helping Nalan Ruo out of his predicament.

"Yes, yes, yes! I came this time because of my father, Nalan Jie!" Nalan Ruo shouted as though he had suddenly remembered something.

"My father is truly too miserable!" Nalan Ruo said with a grief-stricken face.

At this point in time, could it be that Nalan Jie had been poisoned? Xiao Yan wondered.

"Three months ago, Father fought a Fifth-Tier Magical Beast, a Branding Poison Python, in order to harvest a heavenly treasure called Seven-Illusion Green Spirit Saliva. Although Father ultimately killed it with his formidable strength as a five-star Dou Wang, he was unfortunately struck by the Branding Poison Python's final attack before it died. Its deadly toxin, Branding Poison, invaded his body."

"On the Dou Qi Continent, there were no shortages each year of Sixth-Tier Magical Beasts and human Dou Emperors being poisoned to death by Branding Poison Pythons despite being stronger than them. If their numbers were not so scarce as to be practically negligible, many of the continent's experts would likely turn pale at the mention of this toxin."

"Because of the Branding Poison, Father has been paralyzed in bed for three months. His Dou Qi cultivation has also been burned down from a five-star Dou Wang to a three-star Dou Wang. If he is not treated soon, not only will he fall below the Dou Wang realm, his life will also be in danger."

"Father was still alive only because he was barely holding on with his immense Dou Qi cultivation. He was already close to losing consciousness entirely."

"Even Pill King Gu He could do nothing? He is a sixth-tier Alchemist," Xiao Zhan asked doubtfully.

"Forget Pill King Gu He. We have asked Fa Ma, the president of the Alchemist Guild, the imperial family, the Misty Cloud Sect, and every other major family in the Imperial Capital we could ask. The Nalan Clan has exhausted every option, but everyone is helpless." Nalan Ruo frowned.

"Then what can our Xiao Clan do for Old Master Nalan? Elder Xiao Yun, the highest-ranked Alchemist in our Xiao Clan, is only a third-tier Alchemist."

Xiao Zhan asked even more puzzledly.

"Father, Elder Xiao Yun will soon become a fourth-tier Alchemist," Xiao Yan said with a grin.

Xiao Zhan rolled his eyes at Xiao Yan.

"Clan Leader Xiao, do you still remember Master Xu Yi, the fourth-tier Alchemist from the Imperial Alchemist Guild who came to Wutan City two years ago?"

"Heh! Of course I remember. It left quite an impression." Xiao Zhan smiled strangely.

"Hehe, although Xu Yi kept silent about why he returned to the Imperial Capital in such a sorry state after leaving Wutan City last time, he had longstanding ties with the Nalan Clan. So, our Nalan Clan already knows that a Dou Wang expert has emerged in the Xiao Clan. Nalan Ruo offers his congratulations to Clan Leader Xiao Zhan. The Xiao Clan has returned to the ranks of the great clans."

Nalan Ruo clasped his hands toward Xiao Zhan.

"Haha, I never expected the Nalan Clan to be the first to learn of it. I had planned to give you a surprise." Xiao Zhan laughed heartily.

"Then what can our Xiao Clan's Dou Wang do?"

"After Pill King Gu He examined Father's body, he said that the Branding Poison had begun to invade Father's bone marrow. Even the sixth-tier Beast Flame in his possession could not drive out the Branding Poison. Only the legendary Heavenly Flames could completely resolve it."

"However, the Nalan Clan searched all of the Jia Ma Empire and never found any of those legendary Heavenly Flames. Upon hearing that a Dou Wang expert had emerged in the Xiao Clan, my elder brother believed that this esteemed expert might possess a Heavenly Flame or know something related to one, so he sent me here."

"So Uncle Nalan merely came to try his luck." Xiao Yan smiled.

"Ahem, you cannot put it that way. After all, the Nalan Clan and the Xiao Clan are old family friends. It is always good for us to visit one another from time to time." Nalan Ruo said without so much as a blush.

"The Nalan Clan should currently have a stalk of Seven-Illusion Green Spirit Saliva. It is a precious medicinal herb that nourishes the soul. I need to retrieve it for my teacher, as it would be of great use in restoring my teacher's strength. Or perhaps I could make a trip to the Nalan Clan and remove Nalan Jie's Branding Poison for him. Hehe, while I am at it, I could meet my little fiancée."

Xiao Yan smiled, seemingly interested in making a trip to the Imperial Capital.

"Haha, Mr. Nalan may have made this trip for nothing. Our Xiao Clan does not have any Heavenly Flames, and neither does the Clan Elder," Xiao Zhan said firmly.

"Father, Heavenly Flames? I have one." Xiao Yan suddenly spoke up.

"Er..."

Xiao Zhan's brow twitched as he abruptly turned around. A Cyan-Gold Flame Lotus floated quietly above Xiao Yan's palm.

That aura? Is that a Heavenly Flame? So it really is! Just what else has this brat been hiding from me?! Xiao Zhan raged inwardly.

"Hehe."

Xiao Zhan looked at Nalan Ruo with an awkward expression.

Nalan Ruo had no time to pay attention to Xiao Zhan. He was staring at the bewitchingly beautiful Cyan-Gold Flame Lotus in Xiao Yan's hand with wild delight.

"It truly came without any effort! Ah, my poor father is finally saved. How tragic!"

Nalan Ruo stared at the cyan-gold Heavenly Flame in Xiao Yan's hand for a long while before finally recovering his senses and smacking his lips.

"Clan Leader Xiao, honestly, you had a Heavenly Flame and kept it hidden away. That is far too unfriendly of you. After all, Old Master Xiao Lin and our old master were close friends for many years when he was alive."

"Hehe, Mr. Nalan, this is all a misunderstanding. A misunderstanding..."

As Xiao Zhan explained, he shot a fierce glare at Xiao Yan, who was snickering at the side.

"Uncle Nalan, the Heavenly Flame in my hand is the Green Lotus Core Flame, ranked nineteenth on the Heavenly Flame Ranking. I can agree to go to the Imperial Capital and remove Old Master Nalan's poison, but you must agree to three conditions."

Xiao Yan withdrew the Heavenly Flame in his hand, thought for a moment, then spoke with a smile.