A furious shout exploded like thunder as someone raced toward them from outside the courtyard.
Azure Dou Qi surged into the sky, and a phantom lion's head roared beneath the stars. Xiao Zhan moved like the wind, followed by two Xiao Clan elders, both brimming with anger and powerful, surging auras.
The smile vanished from Xiao Zha's face. His eyes narrowed slightly, red light flickering in their depths.
Xiao Zhan... a Two-Star Dou Ling.
With two Da Dou Shi elders added to the mix, even if he played every trump card he had, he might not come out ahead against such a lineup.
What was more, this was the heart of the Xiao Clan. If the battle dragged on and drew other clan members over, escaping would become even harder.
For now, he needed to hide his brilliance and bide his time.
"Forget it..."
He slowly rose, lightly flicking the sleeve of his dark blue robe. That languid curve remained at the corner of his lips, but a dangerous glint flashed through his eyes.
"I'll remember what happened today. It seems I can't stay in this Xiao Clan anymore, either..."
The pitch-black markings on his fingertips lit up. All three puppets stiffened at once, then gathered around him like marionettes on strings.
Xiao Zha shot backward, activating the Flying Escape Technique. He became a dark blue afterimage and vanished into the shadows deep within the courtyard.
"Trying to leave?!"
Xiao Zhan roared in fury, and the phantom lion's head lunged with a roar toward the fleeing figure.
"Lion Mountain Split!"
Golden-azure Dou Qi blasted out in fury, but failed to catch him. The strike crashed into the bamboo grove, leaving nothing but a deep crater.
Seeing this, Xiao Yan also forced himself to muster another breath. He activated the Flowing Cloud and Water Movement Technique, darting in the opposite direction like a phantom.
The Thousand Illusion Mask gleamed eerily beneath the moonlight. Together with the soul fluctuations surrounding him, it kept his face and aura completely concealed.
At the sight, Yao Chen, who had been watching from inside the Storage Ring, gave a soft sigh. He poured in his soul force, helping Xiao Yan swiftly leave the area.
Half a month later, in the Xiao Clan's main hall.
Xiao Yan placed a Storage Ring before Xiao Zhan. It was filled with the many first- and second-tier pills he had refined over the past half month-Might Pills, Qi Recovery Pills, Hemostatic Powder, Fire Condensing Pills...
There were several hundred in all.
"Father, these pills can be given to the clan's younger members, or sold for gold."
Xiao Zhan picked up the Storage Ring and swept his gaze over its contents. A trace of shock crossed his aged face.
"Yan'er, these... you refined all of these?"
"That's right."
Xiao Yan nodded, then took several jade bottles from inside his robe. "This is a Qi Gathering Powder refined by my teacher. Its quality is quite good, too. There are also a few other third- and fourth-tier pills."
Aside from Xiao Zhan, Xiao Yan had told no one that he was an alchemist.
He had a feeling that the Xiao Clan in Wutan City was now very likely receiving special attention from the Misty Cloud Sect or the Nalan Family.
If his identity as an alchemist were exposed, he might draw extra attention, or even be targeted, when he traveled to the Imperial Capital in the future.
True to his usual style of playing the pig to eat the tiger, Xiao Yan disliked making a grand spectacle or showing off before others.
"If the Xiao Clan can't use all these pills, Father, you can work with the Mittel Auction House to auction them."
"Ya Fei and I have become quite familiar in private. She has probably guessed that I'm an alchemist, too. After I leave the Xiao Clan tomorrow, we can also ask the Mittel Auction House to look after our clan a little."
Xiao Zhan pondered for a moment. Seeing Xiao Yan's rather earnest expression, he finally nodded. "All right!"
At the auction house, in the reception room.
"You're planning to leave the Xiao Clan for two or three years, little brother Xiao Yan? No wonder you asked your big sister to help gather so many supplies for living in the wilderness."
Ya Fei sat elegantly in her chair, her right leg crossed over her left, revealing an enticing stretch of snowy-white skin beneath her long qipao.
"Have they caught the intruder who broke into the Xiao Clan a while ago? Can you really leave without worrying, little brother Xiao Yan?"
"Thank you for your concern, Sister Ya Fei. That intruder was probably afraid of my father, a mighty Dou Ling. Unfortunately, after fleeing in a panic that day, he never showed himself again."
Xiao Yan drained the tea in his cup and answered quite casually.
After his battle with Xiao Zha that day, Xiao Yan had returned and told Xiao Zhan what he knew and suspected about Xiao Zha.
Of course, he had not revealed that he was the one who had fought Xiao Zha. Instead, he had attributed all his assessments of the situation to his mysterious teacher.
Besides asking his father to keep an eye on the matter, he had also begged Yao Lao to leave Xiao Zhan a few means of dealing with it. Only then could he leave with peace of mind.
"Oh, so that's how it is." Ya Fei smiled faintly, her red dress swaying, every movement brimming with allure.
"Then may I ask what brings Clan Leader Xiao and little brother here together today?"
"To discuss a partnership, naturally."
He took out the jade bottles he had prepared beforehand, one by one, and arranged them before Ya Fei.
"My teacher and I refined all these pills. We'll entrust them all to the Mittel Auction House to sell, and split the proceeds thirty-seventy: seventy percent for the Xiao Clan, thirty for your auction house."
"This is only a portion. We can supply more pills each month."
Xiao Yan raised his head and smiled at the enchanting woman before him, a beauty who could truly be called irresistible.
"After I leave, I hope the Mittel Auction House will look after the Xiao Clan. If you ever need help in the future, Sister Ya Fei, I certainly won't refuse."
A succession of bright glints flashed through Ya Fei's eyes.
Knowing how powerful the alchemist behind Xiao Yan was, Ya Fei did not doubt his words.
She picked up a jade bottle and gently sniffed it. The pill fragrance was so rich that it actually condensed into a faint mist in the air.
"Deal!"
After a moment's consideration, she smiled beautifully and extended her slender, delicate hand. "Here's to a fruitful partnership."
Xiao Zhan smiled as well and extended his right hand, just about to shake hers-
Boom!!
A deafening explosion erupted from deep inside the auction house. The entire reception room shook violently, overturning teacups and spilling tea all over the floor!
"What's happening?!" The color instantly drained from Ya Fei's beautiful face.
Xiao Yan abruptly rose and immediately shielded Ya Fei behind him, the Heavy Xuan Ruler already in his grasp.
Azure Dou Qi Armor covered Xiao Zhan's entire body, and a phantom lion's head appeared behind him. He frowned toward the window, his gaze sharp as lightning.
Several dark figures burst through the walls near the treasure vault deep within the auction house!
They all wore loose robes and bamboo hats, their Dou Qi black as ink. Each carried scrolls, jade bottles, spiritual herbs, or other valuables in their arms. Wherever they passed, guards were sent flying, coughing blood. Not a single one could stop them!
The three in the lead possessed formidable auras, with Dou Qi Armor manifested around them. They were clearly Da Dou Shi!
"Those are..." Xiao Yan's pupils abruptly contracted at the sight.
Of those three strongest dark figures, one was fat, another elderly and hunched, while the third also possessed an overpowering aura.
Utterly fearless of death, they led several Dou Shi-level figures straight through the encirclement of the auction house guards, sweeping away a great haul of gold and treasures as they raced out of the city!
"Dou Shi... Da Dou Shi..." Xiao Zhan's face turned ashen. "Since when did Wutan City have so many unfamiliar experts?!"
Xiao Yan stared fixedly at the three retreating figures. Though loose robes covered their entire bodies, those builds, those auras... were exactly the same as what he had seen when he investigated Xiao Zha's courtyard that night!
Xiao Zha's puppets...
Xiao Yan's brows knitted tightly, his mind full of bewilderment.
After disappearing for so long, he actually... robbed the Mittel Auction House?!
Ya Fei stepped out from behind Xiao Yan. As she looked toward the wreckage of the treasure vault, her delicate body trembled.
"That was..."
"The entire year's revenue!"
"And three scrolls of Xuan-Tier Dou Techniques, a fourth-tier pill, and... that blood fiend flower!"
Her formerly gentle, seductive voice grew shaky and shrill.
"Everything I worked for during my training!"
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