Yao Lao

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Yao Lao (曜老)
Gender	Male
Occupation/Role	Alchemist; Xiao Yan’s teacher, adviser, and occasional combat supporter 29 32 40 42
Status	Exists as a remnant soul; resides in Xiao Yan’s Storage Ring 38 41
First Appearance	Mentioned in Chapter 11 as having advised Xiao Yan the previous night; directly speaks in Chapter 21 11 21

Background / History

Yao Lao had visited the Tagor Desert before his journey with Xiao Yan. He had also met Xiao Yan’s mother several times and knew that she came from beyond the local region, although she never disclosed her precise origins 21 34.

Han Feng is identified as Yao Lao’s traitorous disciple. His alchemy is described as having surpassed his teacher’s, but he covets Yao Lao’s Flame Mantra and later attempts to steal it from Xiao Yan. The supplied account does not explain the circumstances of his betrayal 49.

Appearance

Yao Lao manifests as an aged, translucent soul body. His form becomes fainter after heavy expenditure of soul power and more solid as he recovers 29 30 32.

• Aged face: His expression turns grave when discussing the Misty Cloud Sect’s interest in Xiao Yan’s mother 34.
• Public disguise: Appears as a withered old man in gray robes, with cloudy eyes and an aged, raspy voice, while posing as an ordinary alchemist 38.
• Insubstantial body: Wipes away nonexistent sweat after constructing a formation and later strokes a nonexistent beard 29 40.

Personality

Yao Lao combines teasing familiarity with practical caution. He jokes about Xiao Yan’s extraordinary luck during their desert travels, but becomes serious when identifying dangerous energy fields, poisonous creatures, and Heavenly Flame formations 21 22 27 28.

He values composure and perseverance more than raw talent. After the Green Lotus Core Flame absorption, he praises Xiao Yan’s ability to remain mentally steady through extreme pain, drawing on his experience of watching other geniuses fail similar trials 30.

His protective instincts can override concern for his own condition: when Xiao Yan appears close to collapse, Yao Lao pours all his soul power into stabilizing his meridians. He is also pragmatic about violence, ultimately accepting Xiao Yan’s killing of the mine bandits as necessary for survival and openly approving a scheme to turn hostile factions against one another 29 30 38.

Abilities & Skills

Alchemy

Yao Lao supplies medicinal treatment and uses pill refinement to support Xiao Yan’s cultivation and access to resources 32 42.

• Refines Body-Tempering Pills using residual Green Lotus Core Flame, then recommends them to stabilize Xiao Yan’s cultivation 32.
• Offers to refine pills that Xiao Yan can exchange for fire energy at Jia Nan Academy 42.
• Recognizes qi-gathering grass as useful for stabilizing low-level Dou Qi 11.
• Helps assess the Golden Sand Giant Lizard’s core as a possible pill-refining material 40.

Soul Power and Dou Qi Support

Yao Lao can extend his perception beyond the ring and directly channel energy into Xiao Yan 25 29 38.

• Detects concealed underground creatures and identifies their earth-attribute energy 25.
• Sends gentle white Dou Qi into Xiao Yan’s meridians to remove the remaining Bone-Eroding Black Miasma 29.
• Creates an internal barrier against the Green Lotus Core Flame and guides its power toward Xiao Yan’s dantian 29.
• Senses the Misty Cloud Sect elder watching from the Xiao Clan hall’s roof 38.
• Restrains the Golden Sand Giant Lizard, giving Xiao Yan an opening to attack its neck 40.
• Limit: Sustained formation maintenance and energy transfer exhaust his soul body; rest and slumber allow him to recover strength 29 32 42.

Formation Expertise

Yao Lao understands formations used to contain and suppress Heavenly Flames 28 29.

• Identifies a simplified Heaven-Burning Formation, explaining its Heavenly Flame catalyst, earth-vein energy, and explosive intersections 28.
• Constructs a Flame-Gathering Formation from dozens of earth core fire crystals to weaken the Green Lotus Core Flame before absorption 29.
• Maintains the formation while simultaneously stabilizing Xiao Yan’s meridians, at considerable personal cost 29.

Heavenly Flame and Survival Knowledge

Yao Lao provides practical guidance throughout the desert expedition and contextualizes later flame discoveries 22 27 39 42.

• Directs Xiao Yan toward darker sand and heated rock fissures as signs of geothermal water 22.
• Identifies Spirit-Locking Sand as an energy-absorbing material used in sealing formations 27.
• Explains how to guide the residual Green Lotus Core Flame with Dou Qi and store it in a jade bottle 30.
• Relates legends connecting the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame to an ancient Dou Di, while warning that collecting its map fragments will be difficult 39.
• Recognizes that absorbing the Heavenly Flame beneath Jia Nan Academy’s refining tower could benefit the Flame Mantra 42.

Relationships

• Xiao Yan — Student and traveling companion. Yao Lao provides medicine, instruction, and protection, but Xiao Yan conceals his Emperor Realm Soul, system, and full strength from him. Yao Lao later helps preserve Xiao Yan’s weak public identity without knowing the extent of the deception 29 38 42.
• Han Feng — Traitorous disciple whose desire for Yao Lao’s Flame Mantra drives his attacks on Xiao Yan 49.
• Xiao Yan’s mother — Former acquaintance. He knew she came from elsewhere but did not know her exact background 34.
• Xiao Zhan — Xiao Yan’s father. During Yao Lao’s staged interrogation, Xiao Zhan objects to his harsh treatment of Xiao Yan and ends the questioning 38.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Arc	Yao Lao’s involvement
Magical Beast Mountain Range	His advice about qi-gathering grass supplies Xiao Yan with a plausible reason to gather herbs while secretly investigating pursuers 11.
Tagor Desert exploration	Guides Xiao Yan toward water, points out the Corrosive Sandworms’ vulnerable bellies, and suspects that someone may be controlling the Human-Faced Demon Spiders 22 23 24.
Lizardman territory	Warns about concealed energy and supplies escape advice. After the settlement’s destruction, he questions the convenient disturbances and warns Xiao Yan about the danger of manipulating underground lava 25 26.
Green Lotus Core Flame	Explains the seal’s dangers, treats Xiao Yan after the black-robed elder’s defeat, and oversees the successful flame absorption. He interprets Xiao Yan’s displayed advancement as a rise from third-stage Dou Qi to four-star Dou Shi 28 29 30.
Return to Wutan City	Recommends discreet caravan travel and continued concealment. Later poses as an ordinary alchemist to test Xiao Yan publicly while a Misty Cloud Sect elder watches; afterward, he confirms that the performance exposed no Dou Ling fluctuations 32 38.
Renewed desert journey	Helps investigate a record of a primordial flame, supports the Golden Sand Giant Lizard battle, and recognizes the importance of another Demon Flame map fragment 40.
Jia Nan Academy	Awakens in the Inner Academy and asks why he can no longer sense Xiao Yan’s aura. He accepts a vague account of Xiao Yan’s admission and offers alchemical help to obtain fire energy 41 42.

Notable Quotes

“To keep your mind steady through pain that burned your heart and gnawed at your bones—that strength of character is rarer than talent.” 30

“Two birds with one stone, making them bite each other like dogs? … That’s a nasty trick. I like it.” 38