Inside Xiao Yan's room at the Xiao Clan residence.
"Yao Lao, you've been asleep for so long. It's about time you woke up!"
Xiao Yan stroked the ring on his finger and murmured to himself.
In truth, he had had countless opportunities to awaken Yao Lao over the years.
After all, he was a Dou Huang expert as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.
Pouring a little Dou Qi into Yao Lao to awaken his soul would have been a breeze, wouldn't it?
However, to keep the plot from falling apart, Xiao Yan had not only refrained from supplying him with Dou Qi, but had even forcibly used the Infinite Plunder System.
He had plundered Yao Lao's energy, plunging him into a deep slumber just as he had been about to regain consciousness.
Now that the time was ripe, Xiao Yan was ready to awaken Yao Lao and let his soul come out for some fresh air.
As Xiao Yan began channeling Dou Qi into the ring, it immediately started trembling gently on his finger.
A faint layer of light flickered over it.
"With my current cultivation as a Dou Emperor, I should be able to awaken Yao Lao soon, right?"
Xiao Yan murmured to himself.
To his surprise, however, the Dou Qi of a mighty Dou Huang expert like himself had nearly been drained dry.
Yet Yao Lao still showed no sign of stirring within the ring.
Xiao Yan could not help finding this utterly baffling.
This shouldn't be happening!
Could the Dou Qi Yao Lao originally absorbed over three years really have amounted to more than everything a Dou Huang expert possessed?
"Damn it!"
"There's something wrong with this world!"
"First Steward Mo, then Nalan Yanran, and now I can't even wake Yao Lao?"
Xiao Yan cursed under his breath and channeled the last of his Dou Qi into the ring.
That was all he could do.
His system was currently integrating Steward Mo's Thousand Transformations System and could not help him plunder the Dou Qi between heaven and earth.
If even the last of his Dou Qi could not awaken Yao Lao, he would truly be out of options.
Of course, he had merely exhausted his Dou Qi. His cultivation realm would not fall because of it.
Given a few hours, he would be a fully replenished Dou Emperor again.
"To think there would still be such a young Dou Huang expert in this later age."
Just as Xiao Yan squeezed out his final wisp of Dou Qi and was about to give up, a voice suddenly rang out.
There it is!
Has Yao Lao finally awakened?
Hearing that aged voice, a glimmer of joy flashed deep in Xiao Yan's eyes.
Although his cultivation as a Dou Emperor had been exposed, it was no great problem.
Yao Lao probably would not reveal his secret. After all, he would still need to rely on Xiao Yan in the early stages!
"Who are you?"
"Why are you hiding in my ring?"
Xiao Yan steadied his emotions and asked with feigned wariness.
"Heh heh, little fellow, since you supplied the Dou Qi that helped me awaken, I suppose I can tell you."
"I am the Medicine Emperor!"
"The founder of the Yao Clan!"
Not long after Xiao Yan finished speaking, words came from the ring that made him shudder and nearly tumble off the bed.
The... Medicine Emperor?
The founder of the Yao Clan?
Was this a joke?
Wasn't he supposed to be Venerable Yao, Yao Chen?
How had the man inside this ring become the Medicine Emperor instead?
Was this really the butterfly effect caused by my transmigration?
Even though I've done everything I could to preserve the original plot.
Have so many unforeseen changes still inevitably occurred?
"Don't be surprised, little fellow!"
"Although even I don't know exactly what happened, I have indeed been reborn in this age from ancient times!"
"What's more, I merged with the soul of Yao Chen, a junior of my Yao Clan."
"You needn't trouble yourself over whether I am the Medicine Emperor or Yao Chen. You may simply call me Yao Lao!"
The Medicine Emperor floated out of the ring. Seeing Xiao Yan's astonished expression, he spoke with a gentle smile.
He was both the Medicine Emperor and Yao Chen!
His soul had completely merged with Yao Chen's. Possessing the memories of both men, this newly born Yao Lao was clearly countless tiers above the original.
For the moment, however, Xiao Yan found it rather hard to accept.
The Medicine Emperor, founder of the Yao Clan, had actually merged with the soul of the original Yao Lao, Yao Chen.
No wonder he had only awakened after draining every drop of Dou Qi from a mighty Dou Huang expert like Xiao Yan.
So this was a soul combining a Dou Di and a Dou Zun!
"Yao... Yao Lao, sir, why were you residing in the ring my late mother left me?"
Xiao Yan glanced at the man who called himself the Medicine Emperor and asked, feeling rather pained.
This man really was unfathomable!
Even with my cultivation as a Dou Emperor, I can't gauge his depth.
He probably wasn't lying to me!
"This ring originally belonged to that junior of mine. Unfortunately, he was a poor judge of character and took in a disciple who betrayed his master and dishonored his lineage."
"That was what led to his tragedy. The ring changed hands until it reached your mother, who later passed it on to you."
"Still, you seem somewhat familiar to me. What is your name?"
The Medicine Emperor sighed with emotion and asked Xiao Yan his name.
"This junior is Xiao Yan!"
Xiao Yan answered.
"Xiao Yan? Xiao?"
"Could you be a descendant of the Xiao Emperor? No wonder you look familiar."
"But why can't I sense even a trace of the Dou Di Bloodline in you?"
"Of course. After so many years, even a Dou Di Bloodline would have run dry!"
"But since you are a descendant of an old acquaintance and have reached the Dou Huang Realm at such a young age, you can certainly be considered exceptionally gifted."
"Would you be willing to take me as your master?"
After speaking to himself for a while, the Medicine Emperor looked at Xiao Yan again and asked.
The era in which the Medicine Emperor had lived was still a golden age for the Dou Qi Continent.
Back then, there had been more Dou Di experts than there were Dou Sheng Experts today.
There had also been far more than eight clans possessing a Dou Di Bloodline.
And the Xiao Emperor of the Xiao Clan had shared a certain friendship with him.
Now that he had met that man's descendant, the Medicine Emperor was naturally willing to lend him a helping hand.
"Your disciple pays his respects, Master!"
Upon hearing the Medicine Emperor's words, Xiao Yan accepted him as his master almost without hesitation.
He had originally been merely Venerable Yao, but now he had been upgraded to the Medicine Emperor. Of course Xiao Yan was willing to become his disciple.
This way, even if something truly beyond his control happened in the future.
The Medicine Emperor would be perfectly capable of sorting it out for him!
This was a thigh to cling to that was countless times thicker than Venerable Yao's!
"Mm, very good!"
"From this day onward, you are a disciple of the Medicine Emperor!"
"There are few rules under my tutelage. Only one: you must never betray your master or dishonor your lineage!"
The Medicine Emperor nodded in satisfaction and stated the rule he had just thought up.
Originally, he had imposed few rules on his disciples, but Yao Chen's experience had served as a warning, so he had devised this rule on the spot.
"Your disciple understands!"
Xiao Yan nodded, then looked eagerly at the Medicine Emperor.
His meaning could not have been clearer. He had already accepted him as his master.
Wasn't it time to hand over some Cultivation Methods and Combat Skills or something?
Before you continue