A month later.
Shen Shihuang bid farewell to Queen Medusa and arrived in the imperial capital of the Jia Ma Empire.
At an inn.
Shen Shihuang sat there, slowly sipping tea as he looked at the words appearing before him.
"Sign-in System."
"Host: Shen Shihuang."
"Sign-in location: None."
Three lines. It was simple.
Ever since his first sign-in, Shen Shihuang hadn't heard another peep from the system. He had no idea where the second sign-in would be, either.
"Ten Thousand Year Technique."
Shen Shihuang felt the power within his body. The Ten Thousand Year Technique was a high-level Earth-tier technique—not a low-ranked one by any means. But it had one special trait.
It could grow.
The conditions it needed to grow, however, left Shen Shihuang at a loss.
Soul bodies!
As long as it absorbed enough soul bodies, the Ten Thousand Year Technique would grow and advance in rank.
"If that's the case, does that mean I'll have to take on Soul Hall missions?"
Shen Shihuang felt rather helpless.
Soul bodies were the souls left behind when powerful people died. Collecting them was no easy task. What's more, turning the souls of people who had no grudge against him into fuel for his technique—
Shen Shihuang found that hard to accept.
He wasn't some saint.
But if he did that, how would he be any different from those people in Soul Hall?
He had to be a decent person, didn't he?
"Looks like I'll have my hands full from now on."
Shen Shihuang didn't believe he'd never have an enemy. The souls of those enemies could become fuel for his technique.
"One needs the energy of the origins of all kinds of Heavenly Flames."
"The other needs soul bodies..."
Shen Shihuang couldn't help but marvel. Both were incredibly powerful, but what they needed seemed better suited to a great villain. It didn't quite fit a model young man like him.
"Xiao Yan, it's all up to you."
Shen Shihuang cheered Xiao Yan on in his heart. Once he got on good terms with Xiao Yan, he could borrow a little of the Origin Flame Seed from the Heavenly Flames Xiao Yan acquired. That wouldn't be a problem, right?
Of course it wouldn't!
"But a timely gift of charcoal beats adding flowers to brocade."
Shen Shihuang made up his mind: he'd set his first meeting with Xiao Yan at the Misty Cloud Sect.
Without the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python by his side this time, getting down Misty Cloud Mountain would be much harder for Xiao Yan than before. And there was also Yun Shan, a Dou Zong.
Tsk, tsk.
Xiao Yan, you'd owe him this favor for sure.
After settling the bill, Shen Shihuang returned to his room.
At the same inn.
"Elder Hai, do you have the feeling that someone's been following us along the way?"
After finishing his cultivation, Xiao Yan asked, puzzled.
At the doorway.
Hai Bodong nodded. "I've had that feeling too. I sensed it back at the Mo Clan, but it was faint, and I couldn't be sure."
"Still, from what I can tell, that person doesn't seem hostile toward us."
Xiao Yan nodded.
Even so, he stayed on his guard.
The three-year agreement was almost upon him. He didn't want anything to go wrong.
"However..."
Hai Bodong hesitated before speaking. "I don't know what grudge you have against the Misty Cloud Sect, but it's still the most powerful force in the Jia Ma Empire. If you can reconcile with them, those people from the Misty Cloud Sect will still give me some face."
Xiao Yan gave a bitter smile.
"Thank you for your concern, Elder Hai. But I'm afraid there's no reconciling what happened between me and the Misty Cloud Sect."
"Don't worry, Elder Hai. I'll keep my promise to you."
Hai Bodong shrugged. "All right."
"I'm going out to take care of something. If you need me, send a signal, and I'll come right away."
Xiao Yan nodded. "Understood."
Not long after Hai Bodong left, a woman in a bright red cheongsam slowly approached Xiao Yan's door.
"Little Brother Xiao Yan, are you ready?"
Xiao Yan wore an eye patch.
He opened the door.
"Sister Ya Fei, I'm ready. Let's go!"
Ya Fei, alluring from head to toe, smiled softly. "Be careful."
Xiao Yan nodded. "I will. Thanks for your help, Sister Ya Fei."
In another room.
Shen Shihuang let out a quiet breath. "Looks like I'll have to wait a while longer. There's still the Alchemist Conference."
He wasn't particularly interested in Xiao Yan's affairs.
It was only a matter of detoxifying Nalan Jie.
The Nalan Family.
As soon as Xiao Yan arrived, he saw a familiar figure.
"Sister Ya Fei."
The young, pretty woman didn't have Ya Fei's mature allure, but she had a charm all her own.
"Yanran, this is Mr. Yan Xiao, whom I found for you. He may be able to remove the poison from your grandfather's body," Ya Fei said to Nalan Yanran with a smile.
The instant Xiao Yan saw Nalan Yanran,
His body suddenly tensed.
Then he smiled wryly to himself. Why am I nervous?
"Hello, Mr. Yan Xiao," Nalan Yanran greeted him.
Xiao Yan gave a quiet acknowledgment and nodded.
"When should we begin?"
Seeing that Xiao Yan acted as if she weren't there, Nalan Yanran blinked in surprise. She knew what she was like. Her looks might not be peerless, but no man had ever stayed so calm after seeing her.
Nalan Yanran looked at Ya Fei.
Ya Fei smiled softly. "Don't take it to heart, Yanran. Mr. Yan Xiao is just like that."
Only then did Nalan Yanran feel a little reassured.
I knew it.
So he's the problem.
"Please come inside, Mr. Yan Xiao."
On the street.
Watching Xiao Yan go inside, Shen Shihuang turned and headed in the opposite direction. That was one of the liveliest parts of the imperial capital. Since he was here, he might as well have a good look around.
"I never thought I'd end up in this world."
On the road,
Shen Shihuang walked slowly, turning things over in his mind. He'd originally been a high school graduate on Earth. After getting his college entrance exam results, he'd planned to go out and celebrate. Instead, a car had sent him flying.
When he woke up again, he'd become Queen Medusa's husband...
"I don't know how I ended up in this world, but the Taisui Flame and the system probably have something to do with it," Shen Shihuang guessed.
The Taisui Flame's birth fit his experience far too well. As he saw it, the flame had likely appeared because of some accident when he came to this world, then fused with him.
"Actually, this world isn't so bad."
Shen Shihuang felt the power within his body.
Now that he had the makings of a strong cultivator, there was nothing bad about this world for him.
The only thing to fear was being a good-for-nothing.
"Sign-in System updated sign-in location."
"Host, please go to the Nalan Family to sign in."
"No time limit."
"Note: The system will update the next sign-in task only after the host completes each sign-in."
Hearing the voice by his ear,
Shen Shihuang stopped walking.
"The Nalan Family?"
Shen Shihuang immediately turned around.
He headed for the Nalan Family.