A Cunning Scheme Succeeds

After returning to his own courtyard, Xiao Yan held Little Fairy Doctor and lay down on the bed for a good sleep. He did not get up until noon the next day, stretching lazily.

Xiao Yan had indeed been exhausted these past few days.

Looking at Little Fairy Doctor still sleeping beside him, Xiao Yan could not help poking her tender little cheek with a finger. Feeling her soft body and peaks still pressed against him, the newly awakened Xiao Yan could not help reacting.

He hurriedly suppressed the desire in his heart. No matter what, their first time should not begin while she was asleep, right?

Careful not to wake Little Fairy Doctor, Xiao Yan cautiously got out of bed.

Looking at Little Fairy Doctor's slender, exquisite curves on the bed and recalling the hidden fullness beneath them, Xiao Yan calculated their ages. On the Dou Qi Continent, where people generally matured early, many people their age already had children old enough to run errands.

"Perhaps it's about time?" Xiao Yan could not help thinking.

He took several deep breaths and forcibly cast aside the alluring thoughts in his heart.

"Creak."

Just as Xiao Yan had rid himself of those wicked thoughts, the door was pushed open by a small figure.

"Young Master, you're awake. Shall I have food brought in?" The little girl who entered was Qinglin, the one who had bumped into Xiao Yan yesterday.

"Good. I've slept all day and I really am hungry. Have the servants bring it over. But remember to keep the noise down. Xian'er is still sleeping," Xiao Yan instructed, then suddenly realized something. "Have you been guarding this place the whole time? How did you come in right after I woke up?"

"Young Master, according to the group's arrangements, someone must always stand guard whenever a captain or vice-captain is resting. Qinglian and two others are assigned to guard you. It just happens to be Qinglian's shift now." Qinglin—no, she should be called Qinglian now—answered timidly. Her emerald eyes unconsciously lifted as she stole glances at Xiao Yan's expression.

"I see." Xiao Yan smiled gently and lightly rubbed Qinglian's little head. "Do you like the name Qinglian?"

"Mhm." Qinglian nodded like a pecking chick and replied softly.

"That's good." Xiao Yan took a bag of gold coins from his Storage Ring and placed it in Qinglian's hands. "Give this to the other two guards. Tell them to arrange all your shifts during the day from now on. You're still young, so you need enough sleep at night."

"Ah, th-this won't do! Qinglian can't accept this!" Qinglian waved her hands repeatedly and tried to push the gold coins back to Xiao Yan.

"There's nothing wrong with it. These coins aren't only for you. Those two have worked hard guarding this place for so long as well. This bag is also my reward for them. Take it!" Xiao Yan forcibly stuffed the coins into Qinglian's hands. Before she could refuse again, he added, "All right, hurry and have them bring the food. I'm starving. Don't forget to tell them to be quiet."

As he spoke, Xiao Yan pushed Qinglian out the door.

With a bang, he locked the door.

"Done talking with the little girl?" The moment Xiao Yan shut the door, he heard Little Fairy Doctor, who had somehow awakened, still lying on the bed and smiling at him.

"Uh... when did you wake up?"

"Right when you said to keep it down because Xian'er was still sleeping." Little Fairy Doctor shot him a slightly resentful look. "Honestly, you know to tell others to be quiet, yet you were talking so loudly yourself."

"Uh... th-that was an accident, wasn't it?" Xiao Yan said awkwardly. "Then you didn't know about what happened before that, right?"

"What happened before that? What are you referring to?" Little Fairy Doctor asked doubtfully. Her eyes carried a hint of scrutiny, as though asking whether he had done something to betray her. Yet beneath the blanket, her small hand could not help clenching, while an imperceptible blush appeared on her pretty face.

"Oh, nothing. It's just... I changed clothes, and I wanted to know whether you saw it," Xiao Yan said without even blinking.

"Pah! Who would watch you change clothes!"

Although Xiao Yan's clothes had not changed in the slightest since before he went to sleep, the two tacitly chose not to dwell on the matter.

Having rested for an entire day, all their previous fatigue had vanished. Naturally, Little Fairy Doctor had no reason to remain in bed any longer.

She got out of bed and changed clothes beneath Xiao Yan's unblinking gaze. After giving him one annoyed glare, the servants delivering their meal arrived.

They quickly finished lunch. Having wasted an entire day, it was time for the two of them to do something proper.

"I plan to rest this afternoon and get myself into peak condition. Tonight, I'll refine the Green Lotus Core Flame," Xiao Yan said.

Little Fairy Doctor gave him a worried look. "I've always heard that a person can only refine one Heavenly Flame. Will refining two at once like this really not cause a problem?"

"Don't worry. I told you before, the cultivation method I practice is rather special. I can refine multiple Heavenly Flames for my own use. Nothing will happen." Xiao Yan held Little Fairy Doctor's small hand with one hand and comforted her. But when he saw that she was still worried, with those delicate and moving eyes, the lustful flames he had only barely suppressed began rising again.

Swallowing hard, Xiao Yan said somewhat unnaturally, "Well, refining multiple Heavenly Flames does have a slight side effect."

"A side effect?" Hearing those words, Little Fairy Doctor became even more worried. She asked anxiously, "What side effect?"

"Well, I'm not too sure either. I just have a feeling there might be one. How about you guard me tonight while I refine the Heavenly Flame?" Xiao Yan's gaze drifted slightly.

Little Fairy Doctor felt that something was off. Xiao Yan seemed inexplicably guilty, but she did not think too deeply about it and agreed directly.

"Fine."

That night, inside the courtyard's dedicated cultivation chamber.

Xiao Yan had already adjusted his body to peak condition. Looking at the cyan fire lotus within the Bone Flame Ring, a trace of conflict flashed through his eyes.

Is what I'm doing really appropriate? But then he thought, It's only a matter of sooner or later. What is there to hesitate over?

"Creak!"

The cultivation chamber door opened from outside. Accompanied by a fragrant breeze, Little Fairy Doctor's graceful figure walked in.

Little Fairy Doctor was especially beautiful tonight. Bright moonlight spilled through the newly opened crack in the door and onto her slender body. She wore a pure white gauze dress with no other ornaments, save for a thin cord at her waist that outlined her narrow willow waist and the curves above and below it. Her hair, usually tied up slightly, was fully let down now, and there seemed to be droplets of water not yet wiped dry upon it.

"You took a bath?" Xiao Yan asked in surprise.

"Mhm." Little Fairy Doctor's voice was so soft that Xiao Yan nearly did not hear it. Seeing Xiao Yan's slightly dazed expression, she reached out and shut the door. The room was immediately left with only Little Fairy Doctor and Xiao Yan.

"Aren't you going to refine the Heavenly Flame yet?" Little Fairy Doctor walked to another meditation cushion in the room, sat down cross-legged, and urged him.

Her bell-like voice shot through Xiao Yan's spine like lightning, making him shudder.

At that moment, Xiao Yan's heart suddenly calmed.

He took the Green Lotus Core Flame from the Bone Flame Ring. The instant it appeared, the flame spontaneously condensed into the shape of a green lotus.

Serene, beautiful, and captivating, yet carrying heat sufficient to vaporize even steel, it instantly turned the previously cool cultivation chamber into a massive furnace. The droplets of water left on Little Fairy Doctor after her bath evaporated in an instant, only for beads of sweat to emerge immediately afterward, trailing from her cheeks down her neck and into the valley below.

Although Xiao Yan had only refined one Heavenly Flame before this—the Volcanic Rock Flame—he had refined it in several stages. Thus, he possessed extremely rich experience in refining Heavenly Flames. Furthermore, he had an even stronger Heavenly Flame protecting him this time, one stronger than the Green Lotus Core Flame he was about to refine. Xiao Yan's approach was therefore exceptionally bold.

Without making any preparations, Xiao Yan thrust his right hand directly into the blazing cyan flames. He fiercely reached toward the tiny wisp of Green Lotus Core Flame origin within the flames and gripped it without hesitation. Even as the extreme heat burned away his flesh and skin, incinerating his blood and bones, he merely furrowed his brow and let out a low groan.

"Ha!" With a soft shout, Xiao Yan pulled his hand back together with the Green Lotus Core Flame origin, then directly stuffed it into his mouth.

The violent flame origin began charging wildly through Xiao Yan's body the instant it entered. Blood, bones, meridians—everything seemed on the verge of being reduced to ashes before it would settle down. But how could Xiao Yan allow it to run rampant? A crimson flame, stronger and hotter than the cyan fire, rose from Xiao Yan's dantian and swiftly surged over to surround the cyan flames.

If this had been outside, the Green Lotus Core Flame might have been able to resist by drawing upon its immense Heavenly Flame energy. But here, the Green Lotus Core Flame had only a strand of its origin left and was absolutely no match for the Volcanic Rock Flame, ranked two places above it. Not to mention, Xiao Yan was operating the Flame Mantra and stacking the odds against it.

Before long, the previously arrogant Green Lotus Core Flame was defeated. Like a captured prisoner, it was escorted by the Volcanic Rock Flame along the circulation path of the Flame Mantra. Soon, the Green Lotus Core Flame completed one full circuit under escort and finally returned to Xiao Yan's dantian together with the Volcanic Rock Flame.

A sense of sudden enlightenment spread from the depths of Xiao Yan's soul. At that instant, the Flame Mantra automatically evolved. Many circulation paths that had never existed before emerged, continuously expanding and extending—from Mid Black Tier to High Black Tier, then Earth Tier!

But just as the Flame Mantra was about to reach Earth Tier, it suddenly lacked the necessary momentum. The cultivation method's evolution came to an abrupt halt. No matter how fervently Xiao Yan prayed, it was useless. It remained at a level above High Black Tier but below Earth Tier. If he had to define it, it would be a Half-Step Earth Tier cultivation method.

Though it was still ultimately a little short, Xiao Yan did not lose heart. After all, the Volcanic Rock Flame ranked seventeenth, a full three places below the fourteenth-ranked Falling Heart Flame. It was only reasonable that it could not reach Earth Tier.

Setting aside the regret in his heart, Xiao Yan turned his attention to the two Heavenly Flames he had refined.

Within his dantian, two Heavenly Flames, one cyan and one crimson, stood facing each other. The crimson flame was somewhat stronger, but not strong enough to utterly crush the cyan flame. Though both Heavenly Flames had already been refined by Xiao Yan, they still confronted each other tensely, eager to fight within his dantian. Only the Flame Mantra standing between them restrained that impulse.

But this could not continue. To eliminate the hidden danger of having the two Heavenly Flames coexist and wield their greatest power, he had to completely fuse them into one.

With a shift of his mind, the Flame Mantra within Xiao Yan's body began circulating rapidly. A steady stream of Flame Mantra Dou Qi was poured between the two Heavenly Flames.

At a thought, the Flame Mantra's restraint over the two Heavenly Flames instantly vanished. The Green Lotus Core Flame and Volcanic Rock Flame slammed into each other as if they had encountered mortal enemies. The cyan and crimson Heavenly Flames continuously crushed and pressed against one another, each pushing its own power to the limit.

The Green Lotus Core Flame was ultimately a little weaker than the Volcanic Rock Flame, and it was also the newcomer in Xiao Yan's body. In the end, it was gradually suppressed by the Volcanic Rock Flame. But Heavenly Flames had always been violent by nature. Even if it could not win, it would rather perish together!

The collision and slaughter between the two Heavenly Flames quickly stirred up raging waves within Xiao Yan's dantian. Scorching storms swept through it ceaselessly, and even Xiao Yan's Dou Qi vortex became somewhat unstable. Xiao Yan quickly focused his mind and operated the Flame Mantra with all his strength, condensing Dou Qi. Vast amounts of Flame Mantra Dou Qi poured into them as he cautiously mediated the conflict between the two Heavenly Flames, soothing their emotions like children.

The two originally violent Heavenly Flames gradually calmed under Xiao Yan's soothing. They no longer seemed as repulsed by one another as before. Xiao Yan let out a breath of relief and continued advancing their fusion.

Perhaps the Flame Mantra's function was even more miraculous than Xiao Yan had imagined. No major problems arose during the fusion afterward.

Just when Xiao Yan believed success was at hand, a terrifying and violent aura emerged from within the two Heavenly Flames and rapidly expanded.

Xiao Yan's heart skipped a beat. He immediately mobilized more Flame Mantra Dou Qi to mediate, but it was still useless. The two Heavenly Flames were like a married couple already headed for divorce, unable to come together no matter what. Left with no choice, Xiao Yan could only separate them first.

Just as Xiao Yan was feeling somewhat dejected, he suddenly noticed that the confrontation between the two Heavenly Flames seemed to have weakened considerably. This discovery immediately lifted his spirits.

After resting briefly to recover some Dou Qi and mental energy, Xiao Yan attempted the fusion again. Though he still failed at the final hurdle this time, Xiao Yan could feel that the rejection between the two Heavenly Flames had weakened by another fraction.

Cultivation had never been smooth sailing. Much of the time, it relied on repeated, painstaking effort.

Time passed quietly. Xiao Yan did not know how many times he had attempted to fuse the Heavenly Flames. Once again, he injected a strand of Flame Mantra Dou Qi into the two Heavenly Flames.

Buzz!

A strange fluctuation suddenly spread out, jolting the somewhat dazed Xiao Yan awake.

At the center of his dantian, above the Dou Qi vortex, a fused lotus of cyan and crimson flames stood upon an illusory volcano. It radiated terrifying heat, yet contained no hint of violent chaos.

It succeeded?

Joy surged through Xiao Yan's heart as he controlled this wondrous Heavenly Flame and sent it into the Na Ling within his Dou Qi vortex.

As the Heavenly Flame entered the Na Ling, an unusual lustful fire emerged from it and spread throughout Xiao Yan's entire body in an instant.

Xiao Yan had expected this. He did not resist much and allowed the wicked energy to fill his body.

Slowly opening his eyes, a scorching glint of fire flashed out and left a mark on the ground before Xiao Yan. However, Xiao Yan paid no attention to that.

With the wicked energy spreading through him, Xiao Yan's eyes took on an unhealthy blood-red color. Driven by desire, he looked toward the fresh and elegant beauty not far away.

Xiao Yan walked toward Little Fairy Doctor one step at a time. Little Fairy Doctor seemed to have anticipated this scene as well. Though her face was flushed as though it might bleed, she still threw herself into Xiao Yan's arms.

The lingering flames burned away Little Fairy Doctor's dress, leaving only her flawless body before Xiao Yan's eyes.

"Xian'er."

"Mhm."

"Roar."

"Ah~"

As a beastly roar rang out, a soaring melody began to echo, and neither slept through the night...