Yao Lao

Xiao Xuan had passed cultivation methods on to them in the hope that they could grow stronger as quickly as possible. After all, his failed attempt to reach Dou Di alone in his previous life had taught him something.

The Xiao Clan's development was the responsibility of the entire clan.

Only when the whole clan grew strong would it truly be strong.

And that was not something Xiao Xuan alone could accomplish.

Human effort had its limits. No matter how powerful one person became, it was not enough, even if he broke through to Dou Di and awakened the Dou Di Bloodline.

If the clan itself did not grow stronger, even the richest Dou Di Bloodline would eventually run dry.

This time, he hoped to make the entire Xiao Clan strong again from its very roots.

Granted, Xiao Zhan and these other descendants were in a truly sorry state.

But with his guidance, the Xiao Clan would rise again, step by step.

Xiao Xuan had already passed down the Xiao Clan's inherited cultivation methods. What came next was up to Xiao Zhan and the others.

They had to switch cultivation methods and advance their realms.

As for how much they could improve, that would depend on their comprehension and abilities, as well as the remnants of the Xiao Clan's Dou Di Bloodline within them.

Afterward, the Xiao Clan elders all bade farewell to Ancestor Xiao Xuan and returned to switch their cultivation methods.

Only Xiao Xuan and the father and son, Xiao Zhan and Xiao Yan, remained in the Xiao Clan's council hall.

Xiao Zhan and Xiao Yan had not left. Clearly, they still had something to say.

Xiao Zhan knelt directly before the ancestor and said, "Ancestor, I have one more favor to ask."

Xiao Xuan glanced at him and said, "I can more or less guess what you want to say. You stayed behind because of Xiao Yan, didn't you?"

How profound was Xiao Xuan's cultivation? In truth, the moment he first laid eyes on Xiao Yan, he had already detected the problem.

His cultivation had stalled, and his talent had vanished.

Xiao Yan had fallen from a prodigy to the Xiao Clan's useless failure, unable to absorb Dou Qi. Xiao Xuan had noticed all of this long ago.

Xiao Yan was Xiao Zhan's own son, so his condition naturally weighed heavily on Xiao Zhan's heart.

Of course, that was why he had stayed behind.

For three years, Xiao Zhan had tried countless methods and sought out who knew how many renowned physicians and grandmasters to examine Xiao Yan, but none had been able to solve the problem.

Xiao Zhan had already fallen into despair. He had never expected Ancestor Xiao Xuan to return at this moment.

He placed his hopes in Ancestor Xiao Xuan.

The ancestor was a mighty Dou Sheng. Perhaps he would have a solution.

This was Xiao Zhan's last hope.

And now, the instant Xiao Zhan knelt, Xiao Xuan had named the very matter he wished to ask about.

In that instant, hope flared even brighter within Xiao Zhan.

Could the ancestor have discovered it long ago?

If he had, perhaps he really could solve it.

Xiao Zhan said, "Ancestor, my son Xiao Yan was a prodigy in our clan. He began cultivating Qi at four, far ahead of the other children in the family.

"At ten, he reached ninth stage Dou Qi, and at eleven, he condensed a Qi cyclone and became a Dou Zhe. He was the youngest Dou Zhe our Xiao Clan had seen in a hundred years, standing firmly above every other youth of his generation!

"But for some unknown reason, his talent suddenly vanished three years ago, without the slightest warning. Not only did his cultivation regress, but his body could no longer retain even a trace of Dou Qi. The Dou Qi he painstakingly absorbed would circulate through his body once, then inexplicably disappear without a trace."

"Please intervene, Ancestor, and help my son Xiao Yan."

Xiao Zhan dearly loved Xiao Yan. For his son's sake, he knelt on the floor and begged the ancestor.

Xiao Yan was deeply moved. His father was the person he felt he had let down most.

Listening to Xiao Zhan, Xiao Xuan nodded and said, "I know everything you have described. Xiao Yan's talent is indeed impressive. One could say he is the most gifted member of the Xiao Clan's younger generation today.

"There is, of course, a reason for his condition. You could not detect it only because the person responsible used rather sophisticated means, and his strength far surpasses that of the current Xiao Clan."

"But before me, he has nowhere to hide."

With that, Xiao Xuan extended a hand, curled his five fingers into a claw, and made a slight pulling motion through the air.

A terrifying suction erupted from his palm. As a Dou Sheng's aura spread, he forcibly drew a remnant soul out of the black ring Xiao Yan wore on his finger.

Xiao Xuan said, "You still dare hide in my presence? Get out here!"

A white remnant soul was pulled straight out of the Black Ring, then seized in Xiao Xuan's grip.

Xiao Xuan said, "Do you know what happens to those who harm a descendant of my Xiao Clan?"

Xiao Xuan was genuinely furious, and not merely because Xiao Yan was a member of the Xiao Clan's direct line.

More importantly, Xiao Xuan could see Xiao Yan's talent and potential. He could sense the Xiao Clan Bloodline within Xiao Yan, and it was likely the richest among this current generation of the Xiao Clan.

Otherwise, he would not possess such astonishing talent. Much of it stemmed from the Xiao Clan's Dou Di Bloodline.

Xiao Yan's condition was clearly an ancestral reversion, with an increase in the concentration of his Dou Di Bloodline.

Yet this prodigy of the Xiao Clan, the family's hope, had a remnant soul parasitizing him and draining his Dou Qi. Had Xiao Xuan not intervened, this parasite would have ruined one of the Xiao Clan's hopes.

How could Xiao Xuan not be furious? He was ready to crush the remnant soul to death on the spot.

The remnant soul clearly had not expected Xiao Xuan to be so terrifying either. He had concealed his aura and form as thoroughly as he could, yet Xiao Xuan had still discovered him.

Now, held in Xiao Xuan's grasp, the remnant soul fell silent as a cicada in winter, doing everything he could to convey goodwill.

He said, "Senior Xiao Xuan, spare me! I was not deliberately hiding, nor did I deliberately seek to harm a descendant of your clan. I truly had no other choice. There were reasons for what I did."

"Please give me a chance to explain, Lord Xiao Xuan!"

The remnant soul had nearly been crushed to death by Xiao Xuan. Barely clinging to life, he pleaded for mercy.

Xiao Xuan glanced at him. He had intended to crush him outright, but after hearing this, he wanted to hear what reasons the soul could offer.

Xiao Xuan loosened his grip slightly, giving the remnant soul a chance to explain.

The remnant soul immediately began explaining himself.

He said, "Lord Xiao Xuan, to tell you the truth, my name is Yao Chen. My clan shares common roots with the Xiao Clan. I am a descendant of the Yao Clan, one of the Eight Ancient Clans of the Central Plains.

"Because the Yao Clan's Dou Di Bloodline within me was weak, I left the clan to make my way alone. Later, I improved my alchemy and broke through to the Dou Zun realm, becoming an eighth-tier alchemist, among the finest on the continent.

"But I misjudged someone and took in a treacherous disciple who betrayed his master and defiled his lineage. He joined forces with the Hun Clan to harm me, destroying my physical body. Only a wisp of my remnant soul escaped, eking out an existence within this Black Ring.

"I absorbed Xiao Yan's Dou Qi not because I wished to harm him, but because my soul was so weak that it needed Dou Qi to nourish it. That was why I 'borrowed' it for three years. I never intended to hurt him.

"I had planned to take Xiao Yan as my disciple once I recovered somewhat and devote myself to nurturing him, repaying him for the Dou Qi I consumed over these three years. I never expected you to discover me first, Lord Xiao Xuan."

"I, Yao Chen, offer you all my apologies!"

Yao Chen spoke with utter sincerity on his face. When he finished, he bowed deeply to Xiao Xuan, and even bowed to Xiao Yan and Xiao Zhan to show his remorse.

Xiao Zhan and Xiao Yan were stunned by Yao Chen's words.

They had never imagined that the Dou Qi problem that had plagued Xiao Yan for three years had actually been caused by Yao Chen.

Moreover, this Yao Chen had once been an exalted figure on the Dou Qi Continent.

A Dou Zun, an eighth-tier alchemist!

Either title alone marked someone as a towering figure on the Dou Qi Continent.

Such an important figure had actually been living as a parasite within Xiao Yan.

For a moment, neither Xiao Zhan nor Xiao Yan knew what to say.

Xiao Yan's expression was especially conflicted as he considered how an eighth-tier alchemist and Dou Zun expert had drained his Dou Qi for three years.

For a moment, he could not tell whether he had been fortunate or spectacularly unlucky.