"What on earth is this?!"
A tempest of shock erupted in Yao Chen's heart.
He had lived for so long and seen countless treasures, yet he had never encountered a supreme treasure so bizarre, so terrifying!
It could suppress him with ease? He had no room to struggle or resist at all?
Even the Bone Spirit Cold Flame, ranked eleventh on the Heavenly Flame Ranking, had been suppressed where it stood, unable to move in the slightest?
Just what kind of outrageous magical treasure was this?!
Yao Chen even had a premonition—
With just a gentle shake of that Black Banner, his soul would be sucked inside and become one of those hideous faces!
[ Ding— ]
[The host used an unparalleled treasure to forcefully suppress the Destined Protagonist's ring-bound old man, thoroughly terrifying him!]
[Congratulations, Host. You have received 300 Super Villain Points!]
"Elder Yao."
Xiao Yan's calm voice rang out.
He slowly walked up to Medicine Elder, holding the Ten Thousand Soul Banner, a faint smile playing at the corner of his mouth.
"I told you, I didn't want to fight. I didn't want to make an enemy of you."
"But why did you insist on refusing to listen?"
Medicine Elder stared fixedly at Xiao Yan, his eyes full of shock and unwillingness.
Yet at that moment, he didn't even have the strength to speak.
That invisible force had bound him fast, and even his entire soul form was trembling.
Xiao Yan looked at Medicine Elder's fear-stricken expression and shook his head.
"Now, can we finally have a proper talk?"
Xiao Yan's gaze fell on Medicine Elder, meaningful and inscrutable.
"Actually—"
"Who I am and where I come from don't matter to you at all!"
"There's no need for you to keep digging!"
"So let's make a deal instead!"
"Hand over the Flame Mantra of your own accord, and I can find an opportunity to restore your body. I'll also help you take revenge and kill Han Feng and Elder Mu Gu!"
At this, Medicine Elder's pupils contracted slightly.
This kid even knew about the Flame Mantra?
Who on earth was he?!
But now, he had no choice.
"Of course—"
"I don't want to lay a hand on you because I respect you, Elder."
"But I believe you understand this as well!"
"If I insist on taking it by force, none of your tricks will be able to stop me..."
With that, Xiao Yan reached out and gently shook the Ten Thousand Soul Banner in his hand. Wisps of strange, rule-bound aura, accompanied by a wisp of black smoke, immediately spread out.
Hiss—
Yao Chen's heart lurched in terror, and his eyes widened.
He could clearly sense that the wisp of black smoke was far more powerful than he could have imagined. It seemed to be a strange force capable of refining and devouring his soul form.
Just a trace of its aura had already caused part of his soul's power to disappear?
Yao Chen had no doubt that if he dared to refuse—
The next moment, he would be completely refined and devoured.
Whoosh!
Just as he was trembling with fear,
The terrifying pressure suppressing him suddenly vanished into thin air.
Then,
A calm voice drifted into Yao Chen's ears.
"This junior has already shown his sincerity!"
"So, Elder Yao, what will you choose?"
Medicine Elder's expression shifted slightly. He naturally understood what Xiao Yan meant.
Although the other party had stopped using the "Black Banner" to suppress him and he had regained his "freedom"... thinking of the terrifying power of that "Black Banner," he didn't believe he could escape.
He studied the "familiar" yet "unfamiliar" young man before him again, his expression impossibly complicated.
He could sense that the other party truly had no "hostility" toward him.
Given the methods the other party had just displayed, forcibly taking the "Flame Mantra" from him wouldn't be difficult.
Of course, Medicine Elder was also certain that if he continued to refuse to cooperate, the other party would most likely stop "holding back."
At that thought,
Medicine Elder had already made up his mind.
He took a deep breath and let out a helpless sigh. "Fine. I'll cooperate with you. I hope you won't go back on your word!"
He had no choice!
Other than agreeing, he had no options left.
He had spent all this time hiding in the ring, clinging to life. What for?
Wasn't it because he still had a blood feud to avenge? Because he hadn't personally killed that treacherous disciple? Because he couldn't accept how things had turned out?
Since he couldn't protect the Flame Mantra even if he fought Xiao Yan to the death, why invite his own destruction?
[ Ding— ]
At the very instant Yao Chen agreed,
The system's notification rang in Xiao Yan's ears.
[Host, beautifully done!]
[Who would have thought that after the host resorted to every unscrupulous means, threats, inducements, and harsh torture, the Destined Protagonist's ring-bound old man would be forced into humiliating submission and hand over the heaven-defying opportunity that could change one's fate—the Flame Mantra!]
[Awesome, Host! You're unbelievably awesome!]
[The current protagonist of this world has lost the guidance of his ring-bound old man, "Yao Chen." Luck value -1,000! He has lost the heaven-defying opportunity to change his fate, the Flame Mantra. Luck value -3,000!]
[Host's luck value +4,000!]
[Additionally, because you subdued the ring-bound old man of the protagonist of this world and stole the protagonist's Flame Mantra, you have gained a total of +100,000 Super Villain Points this time!]
[In recognition of the host's exceptionally dazzling performance, an additional premium reward has been triggered—the Myriad Dao Soul-Nurturing Jade. It can nurture the soul, calm the mind, increase comprehension, and ignore inner demons... while continually tempering the soul's strength!]
???
"Holy shit?!"
Hearing the system's notification in his ears, Xiao Yan froze on the spot, his mind reeling.
How much?!
A hundred thousand?
One hundred thousand Super Villain Points?!
Had he heard that right?
The points he'd received before had all been counted in "hundreds"!
Just a few hundred points had already let him draw an incredible treasure like the "Red Lotus Karma Fire." With a hundred thousand points...
Xiao Yan felt his breathing grow a little quicker.
Still,
After his brief shock, Xiao Yan could understand.
After all—
Whether it was Medicine Elder, his "ring-bound old man," or the Flame Mantra, that heaven-defying cultivation art, both were core opportunities that had enabled the original Xiao Yan to change his fate!
He had "stolen" both of them...
It was admittedly a little absurd to say he'd stolen things from himself, but this really was a major blow to the "Destined Protagonist Xiao Yan" that couldn't be ignored!
It was only reasonable for it to yield this many Super Villain Points!
"Hell yeah!"
Xiao Yan couldn't help pumping his fist in his heart.
This was the real deal... exhilarating!
With just a few hundred points earlier, he'd drawn the "Red Lotus Karma Fire" and the "golden trait—Strictest Father of Alien Races."
This was nearly a hundred thousand points!
He could only imagine how many good things he'd be able to draw!
He didn't dare imagine it. He really couldn't!
At that very moment,
Xiao Yan smiled as he looked at Medicine Elder before him. That gaze, that expression, made him seem just like a walking mountain of gold.
The longer he looked, the more handsome this old geezer seemed.
With Xiao Yan staring at him so intently, Medicine Elder felt his heart inexplicably skip a beat.
Could this kid... have some kind of unusual fetish?
He instinctively drifted backward, only to find Xiao Yan's gaze still locked firmly onto him. That fiery stare even made a former Dou Zun like him feel a little uneasy.
"Ahem..."
Medicine Elder gave a light cough, forcibly suppressing his discomfort.
Things had come to this. He had no other choice.
He spread out his hand.
A pitch-black scroll slowly materialized in midair.
The scroll was made of a peculiar material, neither cloth nor silk. Dark-red patterns faintly flowed across its surface, radiating an ancient and mysterious aura.
It was none other than—the Flame Mantra!
Medicine Elder looked at Xiao Yan with a complicated expression and said solemnly,
"Kid, this is what you wanted."
Xiao Yan's gaze fell on the scroll, and a flicker of surprise passed through his eyes.
So this was the Flame Mantra!
The supreme cultivation art that had allowed Xiao Yan to defy fate and ultimately become the Flame Emperor in the original story!
Its grade might not be high right now, but as long as it fused with enough Heavenly Flames, it could keep evolving until it reached an unimaginable level!
Even in the Great Thousand World, the Flame Mantra was a top-tier cultivation art!
"But—"
Medicine Elder changed tack. He looked at Xiao Yan gravely, his tone carrying a sincere note of advice.
"Although I don't know how you learned of the Flame Mantra, I must give you a serious warning."
"This art is quite peculiar and extremely perilous."
"It requires absorbing and fusing with Heavenly Flames, and all the Heavenly Flames of the world are violent by nature. For an ordinary person, refining even one is as hard as scaling the heavens. How much more difficult would it be to fuse with several?"
"Forcefully refining them, even the slightest misstep, would leave you doomed beyond redemption!"
Medicine Elder fixed his gaze on Xiao Yan and spoke one word at a time.
"Besides that, the Flame Mantra has another major drawback—it is exclusive."
"Only someone who has never cultivated another technique can cultivate it."
"If you've already cultivated a technique, you'll have to cripple all your cultivation and start over!"
Otherwise, if he'd obtained the Flame Mantra back then, he wouldn't have left it unpracticed for so long, much less handed it down to Han Feng.
At this point,
Medicine Elder paused, his gaze on Xiao Yan growing more probing and meaningful.
"You—"
"You're already a Dou Wang. I imagine you secretly cultivated a technique long ago."
"Have you truly thought this through?"
"Are you really willing to give up your hard-won Dou Wang cultivation for a technique that you might not even be able to master?"
Medicine Elder's voice was low, but every word struck like a hammer, pounding against Xiao Yan's heart.
Though he feared Xiao Yan, and though he had been forced to hand over the Flame Mantra, deep down he still retained the instinct to guide promising juniors and nurture talent that had belonged to the once-renowned Venerable Yao.
Xiao Yan was a fifteen-year-old Dou Wang. What kind of monstrous talent was that?
His future was surely bright!
If Xiao Yan really crippled his cultivation for the Flame Mantra, only to end up with nothing...
That would truly be a shame!
At this,
Xiao Yan paused briefly, then couldn't help laughing.
A hint of admiration entered his gaze as he looked at Medicine Elder.
Just as expected of Medicine Elder.
He truly was a man of fine character.
Even though their relationship wasn't exactly harmonious, and even though Xiao Yan had just used the Ten Thousand Soul Banner to suppress him mercilessly, he was still willing to tell him about the Flame Mantra's drawbacks and even offer him advice.
Such breadth of heart and such bearing truly lived up to the name "Venerable Yao."
He really was the good mentor and friend of the "Destined Protagonist"!
"Don't worry, Medicine Elder."
Xiao Yan smiled and reached out to pick up the black scroll.
It felt cool to the touch, and he could faintly sense the profound fluctuations contained within.
"This junior has never cultivated a Dou Qi technique before."
Whoosh!!!
As soon as he said this—
"What?!"
Medicine Elder was instantly stunned, his face full of disbelief!
He stared wide-eyed at Xiao Yan, as if he'd seen a ghost!
"You... you've never cultivated a technique?!"
"How is that possible?!"
Medicine Elder's voice turned several degrees sharper, and all the composure he'd shown moments ago vanished.
"You never cultivated a technique, so how could you possibly break through to Dou Wang?!"
Before you continue