The Flame Emperor Reborn
Volume One, Chapter One: Xiao Xuan Lives
Dou Qi Continent, Central Plains, Twin Emperors' Abyss.
Boom!
Heaven and earth trembled, and the void shattered as the energy of heaven and earth streamed toward a milky-white energy vortex in the void.
Countless people on the ground watched everything unfold in silence. Apart from the handful of figures in the air, every person and magical beast between heaven and earth had landed on the ground, gazing in shock at the scene high above.
Only the young man in white in the sky had a fiery light bursting from his eyes. His bright gaze was filled with surging fighting spirit that soared into the heavens, making the entire void hum and tremble.
The space around the man was continuously battered by that heaven-soaring fighting spirit, cracking apart only to mend itself again. It seemed that with just a little more force, the whole of space would fall to pieces in an instant, leaving the two figures standing beside him filled with admiration.
A Dou Di was indeed mighty beyond measure!
Merely the rising fighting spirit within him caused space to tremble and fracture without end. A Dou Di was truly worthy of being a pinnacle existence on the Dou Qi Continent!
Behind the young man in white stood four men, three women, and three children who appeared to be eleven or twelve.
The children had their arms wrapped around the two beautiful women beside them. The two graceful figures bent slightly, each reaching out to draw one of the younger children into her arms.
Only one little girl, who looked thirteen or fourteen, remained standing in the void with her feet suspended in the air. Her presence was astonishing: though she was no more than fourteen or fifteen, her strength had already reached the terrifying level of a Late Eight-Star Dou Sheng!
Even across the whole Dou Qi Continent, those who could match such strength could be counted on one hand.
To possess such terrifying strength at so young an age, it was hard to imagine what frightening heights she might reach in the future!
Even so, the little girl's bright, beautiful eyes were fixed on the back before her, a figure that did not seem particularly tall and straight. A glimmer of tears shone around her eyes...
The same sight could be seen among the other children and the two beautiful women beside her.
Their reddened eyes could no longer bear to look at the back before them, for fear that they really would be unable to hold back their tears.
Yet if they did not look, they were even more afraid that they would never have another chance to see him, afraid that in the blink of an eye, the figure before them would suddenly vanish, never to be found again...
After all, everything that was about to happen today was an unknown, both to them and to him...
The two beautiful women stared intently at the young man in white, their eyes glistening and their rosy lips pressed tightly together. Reluctance shone in their slightly reddened eyes. Though they wanted to say something, the words remained caught in their mouths.
For the man before them, perhaps all they could do was trust him with all their hearts!
They believed in his strength, believed in the power he possessed. Worries had no place in his thoughts; they only had to believe that his strength was beyond question!
"Finally, I've waited for this day. It seems the ancestor's guess was right. Dou Di isn't the end of this world. There really are greater heights beyond Dou Di!"
Xiao Yan stared at the jade bottle in his hand. Brilliant Heavenly Flames churned deep within his pupils, and the expression on his face grew increasingly fervent.
At that moment, Xiao Yan could clearly feel the fluctuations of Dou Qi within him gradually growing more intense. The sensation, one he had not experienced in more than ten years, set his heart ablaze.
"Alas, if only I had been there when Xiao Xuan made his breakthrough back then. Perhaps he would not have vanished from this world."
Beside him, Gu Yuan could not help letting out a long sigh when he heard Xiao Yan's words. A trace of guilt crossed his face as he sighed softly, his voice tinged with sorrow.
When Xiao Yan heard this, however, he laughed heartily and spoke to comfort Gu Yuan:
"Hehe, please rest assured, Father-in-law. Ancestor Xiao Xuan hasn't completely vanished from this world..."
"You... what did you say? Xiao Xuan isn't dead?"
At Xiao Yan's words, Gu Yuan and Xiao Zhan, who stood beside him, both jolted with renewed spirit. Even Zhu Kun's eyes lit up.
Over the years, he had heard much about Xiao Xuan and admired him greatly. Now that he had learned Xiao Xuan was still alive, he was naturally delighted.
Only after a long while did Gu Yuan ask Xiao Yan, his voice trembling slightly with excitement.
All they knew was that Xiao Xuan had burned the remnants of his own soul power to help Xiao Yan break through the constraints of Heaven Realm Great Perfection and enter the Emperor Realm. He had fought the Heavenly Tomb Spirit and then dispersed between heaven and earth.
They had not known that Xiao Yan had gathered his Soul Origin, so the news came as an immense shock. Only after Xiao Yan explained what had happened did the two of them understand.
"Hahahaha! I knew it! He survived those circumstances back then with the help of the Heavenly Tomb. How could he die so easily? Haha!"
Having understood everything, Gu Yuan laughed heartily. He seemed to have grown much younger in an instant, and Xiao Yan smiled faintly as well.
He knew that Gu Yuan had always felt guilty about the Xiao Clan's decline. After all, the Xiao Clan had been an ally of the Gu Clan back then.
Yet when Xiao Xuan died and the Xiao Clan was destroyed, the Gu Clan had offered little of the help it should have given. Gu Yuan had been held back by the elders of his clan, leaving the Gu Clan leader willing but powerless. He felt all the more guilty, believing deep down that the Gu Clan had failed the Xiao Clan.
Although Xiao Yan had become an emperor and the Xiao Clan had risen to power once more, Gu Yuan's guilt toward the Xiao Clan's fallen heroes had scarcely diminished. Now that he had heard Xiao Xuan was alive and could still be revived, the guilt in his heart naturally vanished.
As long as Xiao Xuan was revived and saw that the Xiao Clan still existed, and was even stronger than when he had been there, then naturally none of it would matter. Whatever Xiao Xuan might say, Gu Yuan would at least have ample reason to face him.
"Haha, but Xiao Yan, you brat, really! Why didn't you tell me something this important sooner? You made me feel guilty for all these years for nothing. Were you trying to get back at me on purpose? When you return, I'll make you apologize to me."
Gu Yuan's great palm landed heavily on Xiao Yan's shoulder. He looked Xiao Yan straight in the eyes as he laughed and teased him. Xiao Yan naturally understood the other meaning behind his words, but he could only nod inwardly.
Seeming to sense what Xiao Yan was thinking, Gu Yuan immediately frowned slightly and was about to say more, but Xiao Yan changed the subject and spoke again with a hearty laugh:
"Father-in-law, I didn't do it on purpose. It's just that all these years, I never had the confidence that I could bring the ancestor back to life, so I didn't dare jump to conclusions..."
"But only today, when I sensed a change in that wisp of the ancestor's Soul Origin, did I become confident that I could definitely bring him back!"
"As for this journey, I don't know whether I'll make it back alive, but I'll do everything in my power to return and apologize to you, Father-in-law."
As soon as he finished speaking, Xiao Yan met Gu Yuan's eyes for a moment, then abruptly turned around. Paying no further attention to Gu Yuan, whose face had instantly grown somewhat solemn, he looked toward the strange milky-white vortex in the void, which had stopped gathering the energy of heaven and earth.
With his hands behind his back, Xiao Yan's presence suddenly grew calm, like that of an ordinary man without cultivation. His eyes were as still as an ancient well as he watched the white energy vortex only a few dozen feet away, as though he meant to see straight through it.
Xiao Yan stood quietly in the void, but the imposing presence that arose from nowhere shot toward the heavens like an incomparably sharp treasured sword, cleaving the skies and piercing the void all the way to its end.
In the ten years since becoming an emperor, Xiao Yan had visited many tombs of ancient Dou Di. Though most had already been damaged by outsiders, some had never been discovered by the world. Even so, the information he obtained was but a cup of water on a burning cart of firewood...
Despite that, he had only stopped a year ago. From that time on, Xiao Yan had a strong premonition that the method of reviving Xiao Xuan would appear before long.
Now the premonition in Xiao Yan's heart had come true. The method of reviving Xiao Xuan lay within the milky-white energy vortex before him.
Ancestor Xiao Xuan, I can finally repay your grace in granting me such fortune!
Xiao Yan looked at the milky-white energy vortex before him and thought to himself. He then turned toward Xun'er and Cai Lin. Both women looked at him with reddened eyes, their gazes full of deep reluctance and love.
Xiao Yan reached out and drew both women and the children in their arms into an embrace. Breathing in the faint fragrance of the two women, he spoke, reluctance in his voice:
"Take care of yourselves and the children. Wait for me to come back."
The two women silently closed their eyes and nodded. Xiao Yan then looked at the little girl nestled in his embrace as well. He bent down, a warm, affectionate smile touching his lips, and spoke softly:
"Xiao Xiao, as the big sister, you have to help your mothers look after your two little brothers!"
Hearing Xiao Yan's instructions, Xiao Xiao could finally hold back no longer. Crystal tears spilled instantly from her reddened eyes. She threw her slender arms around Xiao Yan's neck, pressed her little head tightly against his chest, and burst into loud sobs...
Seeing this, Xun'er and Cai Lin's reddened eyes grew redder still. Bright tears were on the verge of falling like pearls...
At the sight, and hearing his daughter crying in his arms, Xiao Yan naturally could not remain at ease. But he also knew that if he could not stay composed now, his whole family would likely spend every day worrying about him after he left.
He quickly gathered his emotions, then scooped Xiao Xiao up from where she nestled against him. A warm smile appeared on his lips as he looked at Xun'er and Cai Lin and teased:
"You two girls, it's not as though we're parting forever. I'm only going somewhere else to have a look around. It's not like I'm never coming back. Why cry? Don't you believe in my strength?"
As soon as Xiao Yan said this, Xun'er and Cai Lin quickly composed the emotions showing on their pretty faces. They exchanged a glance and forced a smile. Xiao Yan then set Xiao Xiao down, wiped the tearstains from her tender little face, and gently placed her between Xun'er and Cai Lin. Turning around, he looked at the two elders not far behind him.
These two elders were unquestionably the two most important people on Xiao Yan's path to adulthood.
The first was his father, Xiao Zhan!
Before he had come to know Yao Lao well, whether before his three years as a good-for-nothing, during them, or afterward, Xiao Zhan had always believed firmly in him as he grew!
Xiao Zhan's capture by the Hun Clan was the event Xiao Yan regretted most in his life. Had he not been young and reckless, bringing ruin upon his entire clan in his anger, his father might not have been captured.
Of course, looked at another way, had Xiao Zhan not been captured, giving Xiao Yan greater motivation and a greater thirst for strength, he might not have grown so quickly.
Whether it was a blessing or a calamity was ultimately hard to say.
The second was the person who had influenced Xiao Yan most along the way, and had been the most crucial...
Yao Lao.
Had Xiao Yan not spent those three years at his lowest, Yao Lao would not have awakened. Had it not been for those three years, Xiao Yan would not have learned patience and restraint. Had it not been for those three years, Xiao Yan would not have laid a solid foundation for cultivation. Had it not been for those three years...
Xiao Yan might not have broken off his engagement with Nalan Yanran, and perhaps he would not have drawn the attention of the Misty Cloud Sect.
Three years as a good-for-nothing earned Xiao Yan the name of trash and exposed him to endless cold shoulders and abuse.
Three years as a good-for-nothing brought Nalan Yanran to his door to break off their engagement, resulting in a letter of repudiation and the Three-Year Agreement.
And because of that, he incurred the wrath of the Misty Cloud Sect...
But...
Had it not been for those three years, Xiao Yan would never have had his moment of domination over the Black-Corner Region!
Had it not been for those three years, Xiao Yan could not have single-handedly forced the formation of the Flame Alliance and dominated the Jia Ma Empire!
Had it not been for those three years, Xiao Yan would never have had any connection to the Central Plains Continent!
And the Xiao Clan would have ceased to exist!
Had it not been for those three years, Xiao Yan could not have joined forces with the powers of the Central Plains to establish the Heavenly Mansion Alliance, much less become the Dou Di he was today!
Thus, everything Xiao Yan now possessed was inseparable from these two men!
It could be said that without Xiao Zhan's encouragement and support and Yao Lao's devoted guidance, Xiao Yan could only have languished in that little corner of the continent...
The magnificent continent could only have remained a place he longed for in his heart!
As for Yao Lao and Xiao Zhan, after all these years, Yao Lao had long since reached the level of a Six-Star Dou Sheng. Though Xiao Zhan was not as strong as Yao Lao, he had reached the level of a Three-Star Dou Sheng. Both were now supreme experts on the Dou Qi Continent.
Of course, even so, there were still many people on the continent stronger than they were. Yet no one would dare disrespect them. With their current standing, even the leader of the Yan Clan could not compare to them.
For no other reason than Xiao Yan, the supreme expert who had saved the entire Dou Qi Continent!
Looking at the two elders, Xiao Yan suddenly bent his knees and knelt in the void. The crowd below watched in admiration, and envied Yao Lao and Xiao Zhan for having such a powerful junior who honored his father and teacher.
When Yao Lao and Xiao Zhan saw this, they wanted to help Xiao Yan up, but he was a mighty Dou Di, a true pinnacle existence on this continent. How could mere Dou Sheng like them stop a Dou Di from doing what he wished? The two elders could only watch as Xiao Yan kowtowed ten times.
"Thank you, Father, for raising me; thank you, Teacher, for your guidance. I have failed in my duty and can no longer attend to you both. I hope you will take good care of yourselves in the days ahead. Don't overwork yourselves, whatever happens, and put your health first."
Xiao Yan suddenly spoke. The two elders' aged faces, marked by the years, were filled with satisfied smiles, and their eyes brimmed with glistening tears.
To have such an outstanding junior, one who respected his teacher and honored his teachings, was perhaps enough to make a life worth living!
Having kowtowed to thank the two elders for raising and teaching him, Xiao Yan turned toward Zhu Kun, whose face was full of envy, and asked him in puzzlement:
"Uncle Zhu Kun, what is Zi Yan doing now? Or is it that she doesn't want to come see me off?"
Xiao Yan naturally understood everyone's reluctance to part with him; the fact that Xiao Yi Xian had not come was enough to show that. Thus, his voice carried a slight note of apology.
"Hehe, Nephew Xiao Yan, there's no need to ask about that. That little girl isn't reluctant to part with you at all. Don't think too much about it. You'll understand in time. Go without worry, hahahaha!"
To Xiao Yan's surprise, however, Zhu Kun's answer was completely different from what he had imagined. When he saw the confidence in Zhu Kun's eyes, he said no more. Instead, he turned to face the relatives and friends who had helped him in the past, his gaze sweeping over them one by one.
Liu Qing, Wu Hao, and the others could be seen among them. After a few breaths, Xiao Yan cupped his hands toward them and bowed deeply. Then he turned without looking back and walked toward the milky-white energy vortex suspended in the void.
The crowd behind him stood stunned for a moment before finally recovering. Seeing Xiao Yan's white-clad figure about to enter the vortex, everyone bent slightly and cupped their hands toward him, shouting in unison:
"We bid farewell to the Flame Emperor! We bid farewell to the Flame Emperor! We bid farewell to the Flame Emperor!..."
The shouts only gradually died down long after Xiao Yan had disappeared.
As they shouted, no one used Dou Qi. They relied only on the full strength of their own voices, as a mark of respect for the one they revered. Even so, their voices shook the entire continent.
As the crowd shouted, not one of them was unwilling, for the person they shouted for was the one who had saved the entire Dou Qi Continent. That person was the Flame Emperor, Xiao Yan!