The sudden turn of events on the field caused Xiao Yan's expression to darken. He flicked his outstretched hand, and an invisible burst of energy shot out, knocking the iron scroll that had just floated into the air back onto the stone platform.
Glancing over, he saw a young man dressed in a blue robe standing with a smile and a nod. Judging from his cultivation level, he was probably a recent graduate of the Six-Star Yuan Zong. However, the soul pressure that emanated from his body surprised Xiao Yan.
The young man strode forward, his otherworldly gaze sweeping over the surrounding crowd with a hint of disdain. He was not annoyed by Xiao Yan's earlier actions. Instead, he flicked his sleeve, and a stream of light landed on the stone platform, transforming into two scrolls that lay quietly.
"Senior, here are two scrolls of high-grade seventh-level pill formulas. Shouldn't that be enough to replace this iron scroll?"
The young man looked at the old man behind the stone platform with a warm expression, and said with a look of certainty.
"I apologize for being late. The goods have already been sold. This matter is none of my concern. This iron scroll has been sold to this young friend. As for yours, you may take it back."
However, to the young man's surprise, the old man merely glanced at the two prescriptions, shook his head slightly, and then leaned back lazily in his chair, his hand under his sleeve gently caressing the jade bottle he had just received.
Right now, he is focused on the Earth Spirit Tempering Fire Pill in his hand. Although the two volumes of seventh-grade high-level pill formulas are precious, they are not worth trading away for the achievements of the rest of his life.
Seeing the old man's indifferent attitude, the young man frowned slightly, then turned his gaze to Xiao Yan opposite him, a smile appearing on his face, and said:
"Friend, I am Yao Shiling of the Yao Clan. May I ask your esteemed surname?"
" Yao Clan?"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan's eyebrows twitched slightly. The Yao clan was one of the ancient clans, and its foundation was considered above average. Now, they lived in the north of the Pill Region, near the far northern Beast Region. In a sense, they were also vassals of the Pill Tower. It's just that these guys were arrogant by nature and refused to admit it.
Taking advantage of their secluded location within the Pill Tower and their proximity to the Beast Region, the Yao Clan has lived a relatively peaceful life for many years, unlike the Northern Remnant Stone Clan which suffered a tragic end. In recent years, the clan has cultivated many talents, attempting to send them into the Pill Tower to consolidate their position. However, whether this is effective or not is not easily known to outsiders.
Seeing the change in Xiao Yan's expression, Yao Shiling's smile deepened, and a hint of arrogance unconsciously crept into his expression. He immediately grinned and said:
"Hmph, young brother, things have come to this point, and I'm sure we both know the details of this iron scroll. Although you offered the price first, I was the one who took a liking to it first. If you're worried about being taken advantage of, I can double your previous offer. Consider it making friends; you won't lose out."
After saying that, Yao Shiling ignored Xiao Yan's expression and walked towards the iron scroll on his own. However, just as his hand was about to land on the iron scroll, a cool hand suddenly landed on his wrist, causing his entire movement to stop abruptly.
His hand movements abruptly stopped, the smile on Yao Shiling's face vanished instantly, and when he looked up, he saw Xiao Yan staring at him expressionlessly, saying calmly:
"Sorry, I have no intention of changing hands over what I've acquired."
The moment the words left his mouth, Xiao Yan's wrist trembled slightly, unleashing tremendous force. Yao Shiling's face immediately darkened, and her body uncontrollably staggered back several steps. Then, with a jerk of her arm, she managed to deflect the force that had been pressing down on her.
"Such formidable physical strength."
Xiao Yan's sudden attack caused a cold glint to flash in Yao Shiling's eyes. Within this Pill Region, there weren't many people who dared to act this way towards the Yao Clan.
After casually repelling Yao Shiling, Xiao Yan acted without the slightest hesitation. He then reached out and grabbed the Soul Stone Iron Scroll from the stone platform. He had seen far too many cases of people using their power to intimidate and seize things by force, and he had encountered countless arrogant and domineering individuals. Unfortunately, he had never been forced to back down by such people.
Seeing that the person in front of him showed no intention of backing down, Yao Shiling's face darkened even more. He immediately waved his sleeve, and an extremely sharp gust of wind burst out, instantly stopping Xiao Yan's subordinate's movements. At the same time, he quickly moved forward, and his other palm landed on the iron scroll.
"What, you want to resort to robbery?"
Upon seeing this, Xiao Yan's face turned cold. He quickly stepped forward, pressed his right palm down hard on the void, and unleashed tremendous force. Then, with a crisp golden sound, he slammed the iron scroll that the young man had picked up back onto the stone platform.
Immediately following the attack from Yao Shiling's hand, Xiao Yan easily deflected the attack with his left hand. With a slight tremor, both of them immediately took half a step back. Then, with a twist of his hand, his palm transformed into a fist, and the Origin Qi within his body rapidly gathered between his palms. In the blink of an eye, they collided heavily.
"Bang!"
A deep sonic boom resounded. Under Xiao Yan's palm strike, his figure remained completely still. On the contrary, Yao Shiling's expression changed drastically upon facing this attack. He staggered back more than ten steps. As he forced himself to regain his footing, he looked up and his eyes, filled with astonishment, instantly locked onto Xiao Yan. He exclaimed in disbelief:
" Nine-Star Yuan Zong?"
Ignoring this, Xiao Yan picked up the iron scroll in front of him and was about to put it into his Storage Ring when a chilling look suddenly appeared in Yao Shiling's eyes. When he first saw the iron scroll, he hadn't recognized it at first, but now that he had returned, he naturally couldn't leave empty-handed. After all, the value of the Soul Stone Iron Scroll was something that even a master alchemist would find hard to resist.
" Bright Fire Slash!"
With a low shout, the young man's hands opened and closed, instantly igniting a raging fire. Then, with a twist of his wrist, a sharp streak of flame shot towards Xiao Yan's wrist like lightning. At the same time, he raised his cold, stern face and shouted at Xiao Yan in a deep voice:
"Boy, provoking the Yao Clan within the Pill Region is not a wise choice!"
Faced with Yao Shiling's ruthless attack, Xiao Yan frowned slightly. He loosened his grip on the iron scroll and swiftly seized the incoming flames in his palm.
"A noisy fellow."
A low, impatient voice slowly escaped his lips, followed by a loud bang. The powerful Dou Technique that Yao Shiling had unleashed was crushed in Xiao Yan's palm by his domineering actions!
The moment he looked up, a cold and fierce look appeared in his eyes. His icy gaze was fixed on Yao Shiling. In the next instant, his figure suddenly turned into a black shadow and appeared in front of him in an instant. He threw a punch straight at Yao Shiling's chest.
Xiao Yan's sudden, thunderous attack startled the young man, who immediately retreated rapidly. However, he was horrified to discover that Xiao Yan's speed was several times that of his own!
At this distance, even if he used all his skills, he couldn't possibly avoid Xiao Yan's attack!
"How dare you, you brat!"
However, just as Xiao Yan was closing in, a sharp shout suddenly rang out from behind the young man. Immediately afterwards, an old man dressed in white robes with a grim and cold face appeared beside Xiao Yan like a ghost. His withered hand, like an eagle's claw, reached straight for Xiao Yan's throat.
" Yuan Zun expert!"
Noticing the person approaching from the side, Xiao Yan's heart skipped a beat, but that was all. He quickly focused his attention back on Yao Shiling in front of him. Before the latter could even show a look of relief, Xiao Yan's heavy fist landed heavily on his chest.
"Bang!"
With a low thud of flesh colliding, Yao Shiling's body drew a perfect arc in mid-air before flying backwards into the crowd behind him. On the spot, Xiao Yan's figure slowly dissipated in the void. The Soul Stone Iron Scroll in front of the stall, which had not yet landed, was once again gently caught by a fair hand. In the blink of an eye, the figure was none other than Xiao Yan.
Meanwhile, on the other side, the moment the Yuan Zun expert behind Yao Shiling made his move, Xiao Ming, who had been standing by the street without moving, appeared opposite the old man at some point. His gray-white eyes stared straight at the old man in front of him. Although there was no killing intent, just one look was enough to make the latter's outstretched hand freeze in mid-air.
"You... you are..."
Looking at the strange, powerful figure before him, whose entire body and eyes were a pale gray, the old man, after a moment of stunned silence, suddenly snapped back to reality and exclaimed in surprise:
"Xiao Ming Xiao Clan!"
"Roll!"
Ignoring the old man's exclamation, Xiao Ming simply gave a cold shout, and the latter's expression changed drastically as he retreated rapidly, eventually reaching the crowd to help the pale-faced Yao Shiling to her feet.
Before the stone platform, Xiao Yan smiled faintly and lightly raised the Soul Stone Iron Scroll in his hand, then put it into his Storage Ring. He turned around and stood side by side with Xiao Ming. The aura they exuded was so powerful that it temporarily blocked the flow of people around the street.
On the other side, Yao Shiling watched as Xiao Yan put away the iron scroll. Her already pale face turned as white as a sheet of paper, and a sinister look appeared in her eyes as she stared at Xiao Yan.
"I'll remember this punch, and when the time comes, I'll repay it many times over!"
"Waiting."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan merely smiled dismissively; he truly didn't take this Yao Shiling seriously.
After uttering those harsh words, Yao Shiling quickly left with the help of the old man beside him. Xiao Siyu, meanwhile, lightly twirled a strand of hair with her jade fingers. After the matter was resolved and she exchanged a few jokes with Xiao Yan, the three of them did not linger and set off towards the teleportation array in Glazed City.
This incident has undoubtedly delayed their journey considerably, and it remains to be seen what the situation will be like once they reach Pill City.