Even after Xiao Mingyuan left, Xiao Yan and the other two were still amazed by the first-place reward he had mentioned earlier. Even Lian'er, who always seemed clueless, couldn't help but show a burning desire on her slightly childish pink face.
Twenty Supreme-Grade Spirit Stone, if placed in the outside world, would be enough to create a second-rate sect, with considerable influence. And if these were to fall into the hands of Xiao Yan and his group...
Looking at Bai Hua and Lian'er beside him, Xiao Yan was slightly moved. Although his strength had improved continuously during this period, they were not standing still either.
With Bai Hua's physique, his cultivation level has already reached the level of Seven-Star Origin King, and there are even faint signs of breaking through to the eighth star. Lian'er's cultivation speed is even more astonishing. The terrifying physique of the Woeful Poison Body is fully displayed on her, and her cultivation level has reached the level of Four-Star Origin King. In addition, with Bai Hua's daily training for her, combined with the Woeful Poison Body, this girl's combat power is quite remarkable among the Origin King Realm.
At this rate of cultivation, if he were to add those twenty Supreme-Grade Spirit Stone, Xiao Yan would be absolutely confident that he could raise their strength to the Yuan Zong within a year!
"What happened? Why are you all standing here?"
While Xiao Yan and the other two were lost in thought, Xiao Xuan had entered the courtyard at some point. He took a few steps forward, looked at the three of them with a slightly puzzled expression, and said...
As soon as Xiao Xuan spoke, the three of them snapped back to their senses, shook their heads, and then gave a general account of what had happened when Xiao Mingyuan came earlier, including the so-called clan gathering.
"Oh? The clan gathering? Judging by the time, it's almost here. If you have the chance, you should all participate and give it a try. It can't hurt to do anything. Even if you don't make the rankings, the clan will still give you some rewards. Of course, if you can get a ranking, that would be the best."
Seeing the burning passion on Lian'er's face, Xiao Xuan couldn't help but smile, but the words he uttered caused the three of them to frown.
"Us? Of the three of us, only Xiao Yan is a member of the Xiao Clan. Lian'er and I are probably not qualified to participate in such a grand family event, are we?"
Bai Hua and Lian'er exchanged a glance and hesitated.
"Hehe, there's no need to worry about that. In the past, you might not have been able to participate in such clan gatherings, but now... as an elder of the Xiao Clan's inner cabinet, I still have some authority, and with Xiao Yan also here, I believe there won't be any problems."
Xiao Xuan waved his hand with a smile, not taking it to heart. Seeing this, Bai Hua and Lian'er nodded and smiled, their eyes sparkling. Xiao Yan also felt a slight burning desire in his heart. To be honest, he was quite curious about Xiao Feng's strength. Yesterday, he saw him unleash the Wind God's Fury's Wrath, which was extremely powerful. He wondered how much of a chance he would have if he faced Xiao Feng head-on with his current strength.
"In six months, I wonder how much my strength will improve?"
Xiao Yan clenched his fists lightly, his expression gradually hardening. After a few more words of laughter and conversation, they took their seats.
"The rules of the clan gathering are all clichés, so I won't go into detail. Someone will explain them to you at the event. I believe you don't need to worry too much about the rest. Remember, the purpose of the clan gathering is not for rewards, but to help you gain rich experience in more practical combat. So, just do your best in the competition, and focus on your own performance. I believe that with your talent, as long as you focus on your training for the next six months, achieving results in the clan gathering will not be difficult."
Upon hearing this, Bai Hua and Lian'er immediately nodded, a burning gleam on their faces. This left Xiao Yan somewhat helpless. These two had become like this after hearing about the reward of twenty Supreme-Grade Spirit Stone, which was truly both funny and exasperating. However, upon reflection, it made sense. Supreme-Grade Spirit Stone were extremely rare and their value was immeasurable. It was understandable that they were excited to have such an opportunity. However, they seemed to have forgotten that the reward of Supreme-Grade Spirit Stone could only be obtained by the final winner of the clan meeting.
"By the way, I wonder if our ancestor successfully refined that cultivation technique?"
Coming to his senses, Xiao Yan suddenly remembered the Origin Return Mantra and quickly asked about it. Upon hearing this, the latter shook his head with a wry smile and slowly said:
"The refining was successful, but my cultivation level didn't break through as smoothly as I had expected. This stagnation has indeed affected my cultivation. I'm afraid it won't be so easy for me to break through to the Yuan Zong now."
Xiao Xuan felt somewhat helpless about this. According to the nature of the Origin Return Mantra, he should have taken this opportunity to break through to the Origin Ancestor Great Realm in one fell swoop. However, after refining that part of the technique's incomplete scroll, he vaguely sensed that barrier leading to the Origin Ancestor Great Realm that shouldn't exist.
"How so?"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan immediately frowned, a look of surprise appearing on his face. Based on his understanding of the Origin Return Mantra, it was impossible to encounter a bottleneck before cultivating each volume to its peak. However, Xiao Xuan had actually encountered such a situation at the Peak Origin Emperor, which was truly unexpected.
"It's probably because the third volume is incomplete, but it doesn't matter. Since you've hit a bottleneck, just break through it. There's nothing to worry about. As for you, improving your strength requires the help of Heavenly Flames. Do you know where to find the other two kinds of Heavenly Flames?"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan shook his head helplessly. Even Ye Honglian didn't know the location of the other two Heavenly Flames, so how could he know? The only thing he could be sure of now was that they were in the Central Region. But the continent was so vast that even in the Central Region, finding the Heavenly Flames was like searching for a needle in a haystack.
At that moment, Xiao Yan suddenly recalled what Huo Zhu had said to him back at the Heavenly Cloud Manor.
As far as he was concerned, the patriarch of the Pill Tower seemed to know where the Heavenly Flames existed in the Central Region. If he had no other choice, this might become a clue that he could not ignore.
Thinking of this, a bright light flashed in Xiao Yan's eyes. Seeing this, Xiao Xuan couldn't help but smile, and he also had some guesses in his heart. Then, as if he remembered something, he flipped his hand, and the Storage Ring on his finger flickered slightly. Then, two Spirit Stone emitting a rich energy aura appeared in his palm. When the three of them looked closely, their expressions suddenly became serious. These were undoubtedly two Supreme-Grade Spirit Stone!