"Watch out for the scorpion venom!"
Seeing the lead Yellow Sand Scorpion spray poisonous gas, Huo Wu's pretty face changed slightly, and she hurriedly called out a warning to Xiao Yan.
At her words, Xiao Yan lightly waved his right hand. A green flame surged from his palm and swiftly wrapped his entire body.
The yellow poisonous gas struck this gauzy robe of green fire and was instantly burned into nothingness, its remnants gradually dispersing into the air.
Having weathered the poison attack with an indifferent expression, Xiao Yan stamped hard against the ground and shot forward, appearing before the lead Yellow Sand Scorpion.
He raised the Black Ruler high, then brought it down in a vicious slash.
The lead Yellow Sand Scorpion's pupils abruptly contracted. Its tail suddenly swayed in a strange pattern, accompanied by an odd rustling sound, and its body darted several meters backward, narrowly avoiding Xiao Yan's attack.
"Trying to run?" Xiao Yan roared. "Suction Palm!"
The instant the lead Yellow Sand Scorpion retreated, an enormous suction force gushed from Xiao Yan's palm. The fleeing scorpion leader was immediately dragged toward him, its body flying forward against its will.
Looking up at the hideous Yellow Sand Scorpion flying toward him, Xiao Yan sneered and stamped against the ground again. He sprang high into the air, flashed above the scorpion leader, and smashed the Black Ruler down onto its head.
Bang!
A spray of crimson blood burst from the Yellow Sand Scorpion leader's head. Its body fell from the air and crashed into the yellow sand.
A moment later, a yellow ring of light tinged with violet slowly rose above its corpse. The ring rippled in the air, faint and insubstantial, as though it might drift apart at any moment.
Seeing their leader die, the other Yellow Sand Scorpions being ravaged by the Myriad Beast Spirit Flame also showed fear in their eyes. After several piercing hisses, they turned and fled into the depths of the desert.
Xiao Yan did not pursue them. Instead, he casually slid the Black Ruler into the sheath on his back and slowly walked toward the Blazing Fire Academy team members.
"You're not badly hurt, are you?" Xiao Yan asked with a smile.
"N-no, nothing serious. We've just been poisoned by the scorpions, so we can't gather our Soul Power for a little while." Huo Wu's lovely eyes swept over Xiao Yan, and a rare blush appeared on her face.
"I'll help remove the poison." Crouching down, Xiao Yan casually waved his hand, then held his right hand slightly upright as a wisp of yellow flame curled around it.
With the appearance of the heavenly flame, the surrounding temperature rose another few degrees.
At the sight, Huo Wushuang and Huo Wu first exchanged glances, then both nodded slightly in agreement.
"I'll go first." Huo Wushuang propped himself up and shuffled over to Xiao Yan, exposing his poisoned right leg.
Slowly extending his middle finger, around which a wisp of yellow flame curled, Xiao Yan studied Huo Wushuang's right leg, which had already begun turning purple, and said calmly, "I'll guide the flame in my hand into your right leg and remove the scorpion venom inside. It might hurt a little. You'll have to bear it."
"All right." Huo Wushuang nodded slightly.
Xiao Yan lightly touched a finger to Huo Wushuang's right leg. Spiritual power flowed out of his body, enveloping the wisp of yellow flame before slipping into Huo Wushuang's leg.
Guided by his spiritual power, the yellow flame swiftly passed through the meridians and blood in Huo Wushuang's right leg, devouring and purifying the scorpion venom.
As time passed, Huo Wushuang's right leg, which had turned so purple it was nearly black, gradually regained its normal color.
By now, Huo Wushuang's clothes were soaked through with sweat. His handsome face kept twitching, and sharp intakes of breath hissed through his clenched teeth.
"Y-young brother, are you done? I can't hold on much longer."
His fists were clenched tight, veins writhing along his arms, and his voice was hoarse and trembling.
"Done." Xiao Yan withdrew the heavenly flame and nodded slightly, answering softly.
Next, Xiao Yan used the same method to remove Huo Wu's scorpion venom.
"W-what's your name? I'm Huo Wu, from the Blazing Fire Academy." Huo Wu blinked, then asked Xiao Yan with a light smile.
"Xiao Yan!" Xiao Yan replied with a smile and a nod.
Hearing this name, Huo Wu frowned slightly and mentally ran through the surnames of the leaders of the continent's major sects. Yet she could not think of a single sect whose leader bore the surname Xiao. She shook her head helplessly, then looked up at Xiao Yan and said with a smile:
"Young brother, I can see that your Martial Soul follows a pure fire-attribute path too. Would you be interested in joining our Blazing Fire Academy? Our academy is one of the Five Elemental Academies, with a considerable legacy even by the standards of the entire continent."
"If you have any doubts about our teaching quality, facilities, or environment, you can come take a look at the academy with me before deciding." As though afraid Xiao Yan would refuse, Huo Wu hurriedly added this reassurance.
Xiao Yan smiled and shook his head, declining. "I'm already studying to become a Soul Master at Nuoding Academy. I don't have any plans to transfer for now."
Xiao Yan had his reasons for declining Huo Wu's invitation. During his years studying at Nuoding Academy, he had also learned about the continent's other advanced Soul Master academies through various compiled materials.
The Five Elemental Academies all pursued extreme cultivation paths. They believed a Soul Master's abilities should develop in a single direction as much as possible. Most other advanced Soul Master academies, however, believed Soul Masters should develop in a balanced manner, maintaining a balance between offense and defense.
These two schools of thought had long disputed which cultivation approach was most reasonable.
Through these years of continued study, Xiao Yan had discovered that both approaches had advantages and drawbacks. In terms of cooperative team battles, Soul Masters ought to pursue individual extremes while following a balanced path as a team.
If the sole aim was one-on-one combat, a more balanced approach might still be better.
For Xiao Yan, whose Martial Soul was a heavenly flame, studying at the Blazing Fire Academy might indeed be a good choice. But if the Five Elemental Academies could be integrated, would that combination not be even more flawless?
With this idea already taking vague shape in his mind, Xiao Yan naturally had no desire to place himself beneath others. After all, the Blazing Fire Academy followed the extreme approach. If he went there and tried to establish a balanced team approach, the others might not accept his ideas.
So he simply declined Huo Wu's invitation.
"All right. Since that's the case, I won't insist." Huo Wu shook her head in disappointment and said glumly, "Thank you for what you did today. If you ever need anything in the future, just come find me at the Blazing Fire Academy. If I can help, I certainly won't refuse."
"All right. Until we meet again."
With a casual smile, Xiao Yan looked up at the sky and cupped his hands in farewell.
With that, Xiao Yan turned and walked toward the edge of the desert, gradually disappearing from everyone's sight.
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