In the final second before his consciousness sank into darkness, Xiao Yan remembered only the silver-white fissures tearing through everything within the Spatial Storm. The barrier formed by the Mysterious Yellow Earth-Core Flame at the last moment had shattered like paper, and violent spatial power had coursed through his meridians, as though countless little knives were slicing his flesh at once. When he opened his eyes again, the glaring sunlight made him instinctively squint. A faint mixture of medicinal fragrance and horse manure lingered around his nose.
"Awake?" A girl's voice, clear as a silver bell, rang beside his ear. Xiao Yan turned his head with difficulty and saw a girl sitting outside the carriage curtains, dressed in a pale purple gown. She looked sixteen or seventeen, with skin fairer than snow and a pendant of mutton-fat jade hanging at her waist. Her clear eyes were studying him. Behind her stood two guards with steady auras, the fluctuations of mid-stage Dou Wang Dou Qi faintly discernible.
"Were you the one who saved me?" Xiao Yan struggled to sit up, only to pull at the wound on his chest and suck in a sharp breath of pain. Only then did he realize that he was lying on a couch inside a luxurious carriage. His wounds had been properly treated and wrapped in clean white cloth, through which faint traces of medicinal energy seeped. The Mysterious Yellow Earth-Core Flame flickered weakly within his dantian. His combat strength, once close to Dou Zong, could now barely hold at Peak Dou Wang.
The girl in purple offered him a cup of warm water. "My father is a steward of the Wang Family in Wang City. When our caravan passed the remnants of a Spatial Storm, we saw you lying among the rubble, still burning with golden flames, so we brought you back." She curiously studied the flame mark on Xiao Yan's chest. "Which faction are you from? How did you get caught in a Spatial Storm?"
"My name is Xiao Yan. Thank you for saving me, miss." Xiao Yan did not explain his origins in detail, offering only a brief account. "I encountered a Spatial Storm and became separated from my companions. I was fortunate to survive." He could sense that, though the girl seemed harmless, the Jade Pendant at her waist emitted subtle fluctuations of spiritual power. Her background was clearly far from ordinary.
A look of understanding flashed through the girl's eyes. "So that's what happened. The Central Plains Continent has been unsettled lately. Spatial Storms keep occurring, and many merchant caravans have suffered. My name is Wang Yue. My father is the younger brother of the Wang Family's current patriarch. We're on our way back to Wang City. If you have nowhere to go, you can travel with us for now and decide what to do once we arrive."
Xiao Yan had been worrying about where in the Central Plains he had ended up. He immediately cupped his hands in thanks. "Thank you for taking me in, Miss Wang. I will certainly repay this kindness." Wang Yue smiled and waved a hand. "It was no trouble. Your flame Dou Qi looks rather special. Perhaps we can help each other." She motioned for a guard to bring over medicine for his injuries. "This is our family's Spirit-Calming Pill. It works wonders on injuries caused by spatial power. Take it first."
For the next three days, Xiao Yan recovered inside the carriage. Wang Yue's caravan was sizable. Besides more than twenty guards, it included over a dozen carriages laden with goods, clearly marking it as a merchant caravan. The guards were well trained, maintaining steady auras as they took turns on watch. Whenever they encountered bandits foolish enough to trouble them, the guards dispatched them cleanly before Xiao Yan needed to act.
"Black Wind Gorge is up ahead. They say a seventh-rank lord-class magical beast, an Iron-Armored Rhino, lives inside. We'll have to be careful." On the morning of the fourth day, Wang Yue entered the carriage with a yellowed map in hand. "When our caravan passed through last year, we lost three carriages before we managed to break through." Xiao Yan looked at the blood-red skull marked on the map and asked, "What level of human strength does a seventh-rank lord-class magical beast match?"
"Early-stage Dou Emperor at the very least." Wang Yue's delicate brows furrowed slightly. "The Iron-Armored Rhino has thick hide and tough flesh, and it can spit acid. Even an ordinary Dou Emperor can't do much against it. We brought a Deterrence Talisman from the patriarch this time. Hopefully it will work." Xiao Yan rubbed his fingertips over the seventh-rank Magic Core the Han Family had given him, and a thought stirred within him. The violent energy in this Magic Core might help me break through to Dou Emperor. This is the perfect chance to try.
That night, the caravan made camp outside the gorge. Using his recovery as an excuse, Xiao Yan went alone to a secluded mountain hollow and took out the seventh-rank Magic Core and the Spirit-Calming Pill Wang Yue had given him. The Magic Core felt cold in his hand. The earth-aspect energy within it was violent yet pure, precisely the power of heaven and earth he needed to break through to Dou Emperor. He circulated the Purifying Spirit Burning Heaven Record, and the Mysterious Yellow Earth-Core Flame slowly enveloped the Magic Core, beginning to draw out its energy.
The damage the Spatial Storm had inflicted on his meridians had already begun to heal under the Spirit-Calming Pill's effects. As the Magic Core's energy washed through them, waves of tingling itchiness arose. Xiao Yan pushed his soul power to its limit, carefully guiding the energy to strike the barrier at Peak Dou Wang. Unlike his previous breakthroughs, advancing to Dou Emperor required not only an accumulation of Dou Qi but also the formation of the Dou Qi Crystals unique to that realm. This was the most dangerous step; the slightest mistake could send his cultivation spiraling out of control.
"Now!" When the Magic Core's energy reached the critical point, Xiao Yan summoned the origin power of the Mysterious Yellow Earth-Core Flame. Golden flames instantly surged, forcibly compressing the violent energy into a crystal the size of a grain of rice. The process was like crushing red-hot iron with his bare hands. Agony drenched him in cold sweat, and his vision repeatedly darkened.
Crack! A faint sound like shattering glass echoed within his body. The first Dou Qi Crystal had finally formed! The second followed, then the third... When the seventh crystal spun into formation within his dantian, the aura of an early-stage Dou Emperor erupted like floodwaters bursting through a dam. Golden Dou Qi shot into the sky, lighting the night as brightly as day.
The caravan outside the mountain hollow instantly erupted into commotion. "What a powerful aura! It's a Dou Huang expert!" "It seems to be coming from Young Master Xiao's direction!" Wang Yue rushed out of her tent and stared at the golden pillar of light rising from the hollow, her beautiful eyes filled with shock. "He was actually hiding his strength... A Dou Emperor his age is rare even across the entire Central Plains!"
As Xiao Yan reined in his aura, he discovered that the seventh-rank Magic Core in his palm had turned to ash. He clenched his fists, feeling early-stage Dou Emperor power surge through his body. The injuries caused by the Spatial Storm had completely healed during his breakthrough, and the Mysterious Yellow Earth-Core Flame had regained its former overwhelming might. More delightfully still, his soul power had grown along with his cultivation, allowing him to barely perform some Dou Zong-level soul techniques.
"Young Master Xiao, have you broken through?" Wang Yue arrived with her guards. Seeing the Dou Emperor aura surrounding Xiao Yan, she spoke with far greater respect. "Congratulations on advancing to Dou Emperor, Young Master Xiao." Xiao Yan nodded mildly. "It was only a fortunate breakthrough. I must also thank you for your Spirit-Calming Pill, Miss Wang." He offered no explanation for hiding his strength, and Wang Yue tactfully refrained from asking.
The next morning, the caravan entered Black Wind Gorge. Steep cliffs rose on both sides, lined with jagged rocks, while a heavy rank stench filled the air. The guard at the very front suddenly stopped, his voice trembling. "Th-there's something ahead!" Everyone looked over. Atop a huge boulder in the middle of the gorge stood an Iron-Armored Rhino more than ten feet tall, staring at the caravan with scarlet eyes. Two streams of white vapor snorted from its nostrils. It had clearly been waiting for some time.
"It's the Iron-Armored Rhino!" Wang Yue's expression shifted, and she hurriedly took out the Deterrence Talisman. "Quick, activate the talisman!" The guards scrambled to unfurl it, and pale golden light formed a screen over the caravan. The Iron-Armored Rhino let out a deafening roar and slammed its enormous head into the barrier. With a crack, the high-grade talisman shattered!
"This is bad! That brute is stronger than last year!" Wang Yue cried out. The guards immediately drew their weapons, their Dou Wang Dou Qi flaring in unison. Spitting green acid, the Iron-Armored Rhino charged toward the foremost carriage. The instant the acid touched its wheels, they began smoking from the corrosion.
Xiao Yan stood beside Wang Yue without immediately making a move. He could sense that, although the Iron-Armored Rhino had reached the seventh rank, its intelligence was low, and it acted mainly on instinct. "Young Master Xiao, please think of something!" Wang Yue shouted anxiously. Two guards had already been tossed into the air by the rhino's horn, their fates unknown.
Rather than use his Dou Emperor Dou Qi, Xiao Yan condensed his soul power into an invisible shock wave and quietly sent it into the Iron-Armored Rhino's sea of consciousness. This was Soul Deterrence, a soul technique he had comprehended after breaking through to Dou Emperor. Though less powerful than a true soul attack, it could temporarily disrupt the minds of lower-order magical beasts.
The Iron-Armored Rhino was preparing to charge again when it suddenly gave a pained cry. Its massive body staggered backward several steps, and confusion flashed through its scarlet eyes. It shook its head, seemingly unable to understand what had just happened. It only sensed instinctively that something within the caravan before it inspired fear.
"Now. Go!" Xiao Yan said quietly. Wang Yue immediately understood and ordered the caravan to speed through the gorge. Watching the caravan depart, the Iron-Armored Rhino tried several times to pursue, but that invisible soul pressure deterred it each time. In the end, it could only roar a few times in frustration before retreating into the depths of the gorge.
Once the caravan rushed out of the gorge, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Still shaken, Wang Yue looked at Xiao Yan. "Was that your doing?" Xiao Yan neither confirmed nor denied it. "I only know a few soul techniques. I was fortunate enough to frighten it off." But Wang Yue was no fool. To drive back a seventh-rank lord-class magical beast with soul power alone required at least Dou Zong-level soul strength. The awe in her gaze deepened.
Over the remainder of the journey, the caravan encountered several more groups of lord-class magical beasts. There were blindingly fast Wind Shadow Leopards, Shadow Wolves adept at concealment, and even a Thunderwing Eagle capable of controlling lightning. Each time, Xiao Yan secretly intervened with his soul power, either deterring or disrupting them. He never revealed his Dou Emperor strength, leaving Wang Yue and the guards marveling in wonder.
"Your soul techniques are truly miraculous, Young Master Xiao." After he drove away the Thunderwing Eagle, Wang Yue could not help praising him. "Even my father might not be able to repel a seventh-rank magical beast without showing any outward sign." Xiao Yan smiled. "Nothing more than trifling tricks. Mainly, these magical beasts aren't very intelligent, so their souls are easily affected."
He could feel his control over the Mysterious Yellow Earth-Core Flame growing increasingly refined as he continued using his soul power. After his breakthrough to Dou Emperor, the Mysterious Yellow Earth-Core Flame, formed from the fusion of three Heavenly Flames, had become even more overbearing. Only the Sea Heart Flame remained sealed; otherwise, dealing with these lord-class magical beasts would have been easier still.
On the evening of the tenth day, the outline of Wang City finally appeared in the distance. The city, named Xuanyang City, was far grander than the imperial capital of the Jia Ma Empire. Its walls, built from pitch-black Black Iron mixed with stone, towered hundreds of feet high. Defensive runes covered the gate towers, faintly radiating Dou Zong-level fluctuations.
"We're finally here." Looking at the familiar city gates, Wang Yue gave a relaxed smile. "Xuanyang City is a major stronghold in the eastern Central Plains, and the Wang Family has some influence here. If you want to find your companions, Young Master Xiao, you might be able to obtain information at the city's Intelligence Pavilion." Xiao Yan nodded. "Thank you for looking after me throughout the journey, Miss Wang. What can I do for the Wang Family to repay you?"
Wang Yue blinked playfully. "There's no hurry. Let's wait until you find your companions. My father always says that the friendship of someone who brings charcoal in the snow is more precious than any repayment." She directed the caravan toward the gates. "Come back to the Wang Family estate with me and rest first. Tomorrow, I'll take you to the Intelligence Pavilion."
The carriage passed through the massive gates and entered the streets of Xuanyang City. People thronged the city, and the cultivators coming and going generally had formidable auras. Occasionally, a Dou Wang expert would pass nearby, and Dou Emperor auras even drifted from luxurious mansions. Xiao Yan lifted the carriage curtain and looked at the tightly packed shops lining both sides of the street and the flying magical beasts occasionally sweeping overhead. Curiosity and resolve flashed through his eyes.
The Central Plains Continent truly was a land of crouching tigers and hidden dragons.
He could sense the seal on the Sea Heart Flame within his Storage Ring trembling faintly, as though drawn by some force. Deep within his soul, a voice seemed to be calling him toward the center of the continent. He did not know where Xiao Yi Xian and Nalan Yanran had ended up, and his father's whereabouts were even more elusive, yet not a trace of panic stirred in Xiao Yan's heart.
Breaking through to Dou Emperor was only the beginning. In this wider world, he would eventually find every answer. The carriage passed through the bustling commercial district and headed toward the Wang Family estate in the center of the city. The golden glow of sunset spilled across its vermilion gates, illuminating two boldly inscribed characters-"Wang Manor." From this moment, the curtain officially rose on Xiao Yan's journey through the Central Plains.
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