Night fell.
Xiao Yan and Ya Fei had gone to a gathering.
Along a long, dark, deserted street.
Shen Shihuang walked slowly.
Then.
He stopped.
"Show yourself, sir."
As Shen Shihuang spoke, the shadows around him surged like flowing water. At last, in a patch of darkness, a figure appeared, shrouded in a black robe, its face impossible to make out.
"Although this old man doesn't know who you are."
"But if you intend to harm Young Master Xiao Yan, you will regret it."
The black-robed figure slowly stepped out of the darkness and stopped opposite Shen Shihuang, speaking in a calm voice.
Shen Shihuang looked at the black-robed man before him.
He smiled faintly.
"If I wanted to harm him, I would have done it already."
"More importantly, do you think you can stop me?"
At Shen Shihuang's words,
the black-robed man's body rapidly dispersed into a shadow, surging in from all directions. A glint of cold light flashed at Shen Shihuang's flank. "Why not find out?"
Whoosh!!
Shen Shihuang leaned slightly to the side.
He dodged the cold flash.
Behind him, the black-robed man appeared, swinging a blade down at Shen Shihuang in one fluid motion.
The force of the blade made Shen Shihuang feel a chill across his face.
"Not bad."
Shen Shihuang channeled Dou Qi into his right hand, moved swiftly, and clenched his fist.
"Tyrant's Fury!"
Boom!!
His fist slammed into the black-robed man's blade. With a loud bang, the black-robed man was sent flying by Shen Shihuang's punch, shattering the stone slabs along the street.
"You may have the strength of a Dou Emperor, but you're still nowhere near a Dou Zong."
Shen Shihuang had a rough idea of the power his Dou Zong strength possessed.
He spoke to the black-robed man.
The black-robed man lowered his blade and stood quietly opposite Shen Shihuang. "Then who exactly are you?"
Shen Shihuang shook his head.
"If you insist on asking who I am, to be honest, I don't even know who I am myself."
Black-robed man: "...!"
"Are you joking with me?"
Shen Shihuang replied seriously, "I'm not."
"I don't know how long I slept. When I woke up, I was simply me."
"If I had to put it one way, I suppose I'm just a passerby."
"Perhaps I'm only passing through this world."
"It's just that I have a few things to do in this world."
Black-robed man: "...!"
Damn it!
I only asked who you were. What the hell, are you giving me a philosophy lecture?
"But who are you?"
"Why are you following Xiao Yan?"
Shen Shihuang asked.
Black-robed man: "I'm only here at someone's request."
Shen Shihuang turned around and waved a hand. "Don't worry. I won't lay a hand on Xiao Yan. In fact, I think we might become good friends."
Obviously.
This young master still needed other Heavenly Flames. Without Xiao Yan, he'd probably have a hard time obtaining even one.
Just look at the state Xiao Yan had been in when he obtained a Heavenly Flame.
He'd practically traded his life for it.
And that was with Yao Lao making every possible preparation for him. Now look at Shen Shihuang—did he have a powerful alchemist by his side? No. Did he have anyone who knew how to subdue Heavenly Flames? No.
So.
Wasn't it much better to wait until Xiao Yan subdued one, then take some of its Origin Flame Seed energy?
"What a strange fellow!"
The black-robed man slowly blended into the darkness and vanished completely. If not for the shattered paving stones, it would have seemed as if no one had ever appeared there.
Shen Shihuang walked along the street.
A smile slowly appeared at the corner of his mouth.
He could guess who this black-robed man was.
The strongest Dou Huang expert in the Ancient Clan.
Xun'er's bodyguard, Ling Ying.
"Xiao Yan doesn't have the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python with him this time. I'm afraid he won't leave the Misty Cloud Sect so easily. Even if Ling Ying intervenes, there's no way he can manage it."
"When the time comes."
"It'll be the perfect chance for me to test the strength of a Dou Zong."
Shen Shihuang was already brimming with confidence.
With a high-tier Earth-grade Dou Technique in hand, his top-end combat power was no longer lacking. And with the Taisui Flame...
"One-Star Dou Zong Yun Shan."
"What can you possibly use to fight me?"
"Unless you reveal the Soul Hall Protector. But you wouldn't expose him over such a small matter, would you?"
After making his preparations for battle,
Shen Shihuang couldn't help sighing. "It really is perfect!"
"Brother Xiao Yan, I'll leave what comes next to you."
As he thought, Shen Shihuang had already arrived at the place where Xiao Yan and the others were gathering.
Well.
He had nothing better to do.
Might as well have a glass of free wine.
As soon as Shen Shihuang reached the entrance, he saw Ya Fei.
When Ya Fei spotted Shen Shihuang, she immediately hurried over to him. "You're here?"
"Mm."
"This is a gathering for alchemists. Can I go in?" Shen Shihuang asked, a little uncertain.
His first time.
He wasn't quite used to it.
Ya Fei rolled her eyes. "Do you think anyone here would refuse to let you in?"
A Dou Zong expert had arrived.
How could he possibly be turned away?
As if.
With Ya Fei leading the way, Shen Shihuang had only just walked through the entrance when he saw Teng Shan waiting there. "Young Master Shen."
"Mm."
Shen Shihuang nodded. "Do you have any good wine?"
Teng Shan immediately smiled. "Knowing you were coming, Young Master Shen, we naturally prepared some for you."
"This way, Young Master Shen."
At the seats,
almost everyone sitting there was an elder from one of the families. Teng Shan led the way to the Mittel Family's section, gave up his own seat, then stood beside Shen Shihuang to attend to him.
"Young Master Shen, although this wine isn't as good as the wine from my Mittel Family, it's still quite decent."
Teng Shan personally poured Shen Shihuang a cup as he spoke.
Shen Shihuang lifted his cup and surveyed the banquet.
At that moment,
Nalan Su also noticed them. Naturally, so did the other families. It was hard not to notice when Teng Shan, the Mittel Family's Great Elder, personally yielded his seat and poured the wine, while Ya Fei attended to Shen Shihuang at his side.
The younger people present also turned their eyes toward Shen Shihuang.
"Who's that guy?"
"That's the Great Elder of the Mittel Family! He's personally pouring wine for him?"
In a corner of the hall,
when Xiao Yan saw Shen Shihuang, his eyes narrowed slightly. "It's him?"
"I can't sense his strength. He must be far stronger than me. And his soul power feels so vast that I might as well be facing an ocean."
"Who exactly is he?"
Shen Shihuang said to Ya Fei, "You brought him here. You can't leave him out, can you?"
Only then did Ya Fei look toward Xiao Yan.
"Understood."
Ya Fei walked over to Xiao Yan with graceful steps, smiling as she said, "Little Brother Xiao Yan, you're curious too, aren't you?"
Xiao Yan nodded slightly.
"I'd have to be strange not to be curious."
Ya Fei spoke softly to Xiao Yan. "Little Brother Xiao Yan, there's only one thing I can tell you: he's currently staying with the Mittel Family."
"I can't say anything else. If I upset him, I won't be able to answer to my family."
Xiao Yan nodded.
"I understand."
Xiao Yan and Ya Fei's quiet conversation drew the attention of the others.
"That kid's gotten pretty close to Ya Fei, hasn't he?"
"Heh, we're in for a good show tonight. That fellow from the Mu Clan has come back."