" Lava Fort... What a coincidence."
Looking at the massive outline of the city before him, Xiao Yan couldn't help but grin. He recalled the four people he had killed some time ago, who claimed to be from Lava Fort. He never expected that the two of them would encounter them so soon after arriving at the same place.
After pausing briefly at the city gate, Xiao Yan shrugged indifferently, then started walking into the city. Qin Yan, standing beside him, glanced at the surrounding crowd and suddenly said:
"By the way, on my way here, I vaguely heard that Lava Fort seems to be preparing an auction, apparently related to the Fire Banyan Ruins. I'm afraid quite a few forces in the Central Region have caught wind of it."
"Oh? In that case, we're quite lucky."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan smiled with interest. The image of Bai Zijing inexplicably surfaced in his mind. He had almost lost his life at that guy's hands back then. He wondered if he would encounter him here again. With his current strength, if he were to fight him with all his might, he might be able to.
As they passed through the city gate, sunlight immediately shone on their faces. Xiao Yan subconsciously squinted, and when he opened his eyes again, he saw a cluster of crimson buildings before him. After his eyes adjusted slightly, he looked around. Qin Yan surveyed the area and said awkwardly:
"This place really has a strange feel to it. If it weren't for the attire and aura of the people on the street, I would probably mistake it for some kind of hellish place."
Xiao Yan chuckled slightly, randomly picked a street, raised his chin, and said:
"Let's go, let's find a place to stay first. Now that we're here, we should try to find out more about this auction; we might get some useful information."
The latter nodded slightly, and the two then headed deeper into the street.
A moment later, the two found a place to stay and sat down in a teahouse. Sure enough, most of the passersby were talking about the Lava Fort auction. Even at the next few tables, people were chatting away. Just as Xiao Yan and his companion were trying to decipher the rumors they heard, a young man walked over from not far away.
Upon seeing this person, Xiao Yan was just beginning to wonder when the latter's laughter rang out.
"Judging from your appearance, you two have probably just arrived in the city, and are also here for the Lava Fort Auction?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the young man swaggered to the side, grinning, looking as if he had something on his mind.
"It seems you know?"
Qin Yan flicked his finger, presenting a teacup to the young man, who accepted it steadily, gave a simple fist salute, and said:
"My Wan Xing. I have been staying in this Lava Fort for several months and may know a little about some of the information that outsiders know. Unfortunately, I am familiar with most of the items in this auction."
After speaking, Wan Xing rubbed her teacup with her thumb, as if waiting for something. Xiao Yan did not hesitate. With a slight turn of his wrist, a cloth bag full of Spirit Stone appeared on the table. Almost instantly, Wan Xing put it into her Storage Ring, and laughter followed.
"Haha, you two gentlemen are certainly quick-witted. May I ask which item at this auction is of interest to you?"
Let's talk about the heaviest one.
Xiao Yan spoke calmly, and Wan Xing immediately chuckled as if she had expected it, glancing at the person beside her out of the corner of her eye before whispering:
"The item you mentioned has attracted a lot of attention, even the major families have their eyes on it. Are you sure you don't want to change it again?"
"I'm not interested in anything else."
Upon hearing this, the latter nodded and then said:
"To be honest, I don't know much about this last item up for auction, except that it's a map of the Fire Banyan Ruins..."
"Map?"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan and Qin Yan stared at each other intently. The map of the Fire Banyan Ruins —this was practically laying the entire Fire Banyan Clan before them! If they could obtain it...
As if she could read their minds, Wan Xing chuckled and parted her lips slightly, dropping another bombshell into the ears of the two present.
"Moreover, this map was the only item brought out of the Fire Banyan Ruins by a Yuan Zun Venerable at a great cost. As for what secrets it contains, that's hard to say."
Hearing this, even Xiao Yan, with his composure, couldn't help but be tempted. The value of a map that a Yuan Zun Venerable would go to such great lengths to bring out was unimaginable. This thing was probably related to the entire Fire Banyan Ruins. Whoever could get their hands on it could take all the unclaimed treasures in the ruins into their own pockets!
As Xiao Yan and his companion arrived at Lava Fort, within the Xiao Clan, Xiao Xuan, who had been in seclusion in the ancestral hall for a year, suddenly opened his tightly closed eyes. In an instant, endless sword intent shot out from his eyes, and within the deep secret chamber, the vast energy of heaven and earth immediately stirred, and a powerful aura rapidly rose within Xiao Xuan's body.
His robes billowed, his sword intent blazing. After a long while, his seated body suddenly stood up. In the instant he looked up, an invisible sword above his head materialized under the swirling hurricane. Then, it shot into the sky, soaring straight into the clouds!
Almost simultaneously, an astonishing aura permeated the Xiao Clan. Throughout the clan, several figures were moved by it. In the blink of an eye, a group of high-ranking members of the Xiao Clan, led by clan leader Xiao Yuheng, appeared above the ancestral hall. Looking at the towering pillar of energy before them, everyone's eyes revealed shock.
"This aura... it's Xiao Xuan!"
"This guy actually... broke through to the Yuan Zun!"
Several hoarse, trembling sounds escaped from his throat. Xiao Dingtian and the others stared in disbelief at the astonishing scene before them. The Grand Elder beside the Clan Chief couldn't help but take a deep breath. More than half a year ago, he had already suspected this, but he never expected that Xiao Xuan would actually achieve this in just one year. It was truly shocking!
"Buzz!"
Almost at the same time as Xiao Xuan's breakthrough, outside the Xiao Clan, in the Shuyang City, within the towering black tower standing in the center of the city, a soaring aura suddenly swept out, and a pair of eyes that had been closed for many years slowly opened at this moment. It was none other than Xiao Yitian Xiao Clan!
The Ouyang Clan.
On the cloud-capped peak, Ouyang Yu stood tall, gazing in the direction of the Xiao Clan, a sense of something stirring within him.
" Xiao Xuan's breakthrough has even alarmed you. Well, let's take this opportunity to settle things between us!"
In Tianyang City, a pair of half-closed golden eyes revealed a look of surprise. The gaze slowly turned to the location of the Xiao Clan. After a moment of contemplation, the lips parted slightly, and almost at the same time, a sound like the tolling of a bell resounded in the ears of all the members of the Xiao Clan Xiao Clan.
"Clan Chief Xiao Yuheng, listen to my command! Effective immediately, the Xiao Clan abolishes the positions of the three Grand Secretaries. Xiao Xuan will now lead the Grand Secretaries and govern all levels of the clan!"