Getting Close to His Senior Brother, the Life Devouring Pill

Xiao Yan, whom Han Feng had dismissed as an ant, showed not a trace of fear under the pressure of a Peak Dou Emperor. Instead, he looked perfectly at ease.

A roundhouse kick wrapped in pure Dou Qi came whipping toward Han Feng with a sharp sonic boom.

Empowered by the Ox Talisman, the kick was fast and vicious. The air exploded in its wake.

The devastating blow struck Han Feng squarely, without a hint of mercy.

Though Han Feng stood two entire major realms above Xiao Yan, the kick sent him flying like a kite with its string cut. He crashed into the nearby ruins, throwing up clouds of dust.

As the dust slowly settled, Han Feng lay sprawled among shattered bricks and tiles. Countless bones were broken, and his body hung limp. He was finished.

Blood rose in his throat, and he coughed up a mouthful. His chest heaved as he struggled to breathe.

"You're only a Dou Ling... How can you be... this strong?" Han Feng gasped, disbelief filling his eyes.

He could not fathom how a mere Dou Ling had completely ignored his pressure, let alone unleashed such terrifying strength.

"I have my teacher's careful guidance to thank for that." Xiao Yan walked over and looked down at Han Feng in the rubble, wearing an infuriating smile.

He had deliberately credited Yao Lao. He wanted to see that bastard's face twist with shock and jealousy.

"You!" Han Feng looked at Yao Lao, who floated nearby, and let out a hoarse growl.

So that old man really had kept an untold number of secrets from him back then.

"What do you think? Come to think of it, I have you to thank for meeting my teacher." Xiao Yan raised a foot and pressed it onto Han Feng's head, taking his time as he spoke in a mocking tone.

"T-Teacher..." As the foot bore down harder, grinding his face against the broken bricks, Han Feng could only force out a halting plea.

Yao Lao merely floated there in silence, his expression unmoved.

Xiao Yan saw no reason to waste more time. With a slight twist of his foot, he ended Han Feng's life as cleanly as crushing an ant.

The moment his body died, Han Feng's soul fled the ruined corpse and raced toward the edge of the estate.

Xiao Yan made no move to chase him. He only smiled and called after him, "Don't waste your strength. Teacher sealed off this space long ago."

Sure enough, Han Feng's soul had barely flown any distance before it slammed into an invisible spatial barrier. No matter how frantically he battered it, the barrier did not budge.

Only then did Han Feng truly despair. He dropped to his knees in midair and kowtowed to Xiao Yan and Yao Lao like a beaten cur, promising to serve them like an ox or a horse, even to be their dog.

If it meant staying alive, he would say anything.

"Teacher... I'll leave the rest to you." Without another glance at Han Feng, Xiao Yan turned and bowed solemnly to Yao Lao.

He pulled the Storage Ring from Han Feng's corpse with a wave of his hand, then walked away from the ruins.

Whether Han Feng lived or died was a decision for Yao Lao to make.

As for Xiao Yan, it was time for his daily shopping spree—without paying.

By the time Xiao Yan had searched the Maple City estate from top to bottom and stripped it clean,

he returned, thoroughly satisfied, to find both Han Feng's soul and his corpse gone. Yao Lao alone stood amid the ruins with his hands clasped behind his back.

His expression was complicated, as though he had just weathered a painful storm of emotions.

A cluster of deep-blue flame hovered above his palm.

It was the Heavenly Flame Han Feng had refined: the Sea Heart Flame.

When Xiao Yan returned, some of the gloom finally lifted from Yao Lao's face.

He held out the Sea Heart Flame. "Let's go. We'll find somewhere secluded, and I'll help you refine this flame."

Xiao Yan took the Sea Heart Flame. Feeling the immense power within it, his eyes flashed with excitement, and he nodded firmly.

Master and disciple wasted no time. Once Yao Lao lifted the spatial seal, they left Maple City at once and flew toward the remote, desolate mountains.

Guided by Yao Lao's vast Soul Power, they reached a lonely stretch of wilderness deep among overlapping peaks.

"Well now, an unexpected bonus." Yao Lao seemed to sense something and chuckled as he stroked his beard.

"What is it, Teacher?" Xiao Yan asked, turning his head as they flew.

"There's a well-hidden cave up ahead. I can sense something inside." Yao Lao emerged from the ring and pointed toward an unremarkable cliff face.

Xiao Yan's interest stirred. If even Yao Lao had noticed something, the cave might well hold a remarkable treasure.

He immediately picked up speed and shot toward the spot Yao Lao had indicated.

Past several layers of natural cover—tangled vines and scattered rocks—they found a concealed cave entrance.

After sensing the area for a moment, Yao Lao nodded. "This place is secluded. It'll do nicely for refining the Heavenly Flame."

Xiao Yan nodded and raised the Sea Heart Flame for light. Blue fire washed over the stone walls as he made his way inside.

There were no dangerous seals or traps in the cave, only a natural passage through the rock.

At its end, Xiao Yan finally found what Yao Lao had sensed.

Beside a heap of bones weathered by many years lay a few tarnished old objects and a wooden box coated in thick dust.

Xiao Yan beckoned, and a gentle force lifted the wooden box steadily into his hand.

He blew the dust from its lid and slowly opened it, revealing its contents.

A jade case and an ancient-looking scroll.

The sight of them alone gave Xiao Yan an inkling of what he had found.

He drew a deep breath, picked up the scroll, and unfurled it. His Soul Power reached inside as he studied it closely.

Once he had absorbed everything recorded in the scroll, an excited smile spread across his young face.

"What is it, you brat?" Xiao Yan's reaction had piqued Yao Lao's curiosity, and he pressed him for an answer.

Xiao Yan picked up the jade case and cradled it like a treasure. "This is a peak seventh-tier pill—the Life Devouring Pill! Anyone at or above Da Dou Shi who takes it can advance straight to Dou Wang!

"The drawback is that it consumes the user's life force. After taking it, they have only three years to live.

"But if they reach Dou Emperor within those three years, their lifespan will increase dramatically, completely negating the drawback."

"Damn, that's powerful!" Even with all he had seen, Yao Lao drew a sharp breath at the Life Devouring Pill's astonishing effect.

Then he remembered its equally startling drawback and sighed. "What a shame. The cost really is too high."

Without that deadly three-year limit, its effects alone would be enough to raise an army of Dou Wang, provided they had sufficient Medicinal Herbs and pills that extended lifespan.