Western Region, Cloud-Hidden Pavilion Branch.
The entire pavilion, both in its exterior design and interior furnishings, was basically the same. At this moment, Xiao Yan and Luo Jin were sitting on the sixth floor of the pavilion, and in front of them stood an old man in a brocade robe with a resolute face.
"Hehe, this must be young friend Yan Xiao. Two years ago, that old man Xuan Ye from the Southern Region already sent me a lot of information about you. I've always been curious about you, and seeing you today, I can say you truly are a dragon among men! Hahahaha."
Hearing the old man's praise, Xiao Yan chuckled and shook his head, then stood up, clasped his hands in a respectful gesture, and said:
"Senior, you flatter me. I've only relied on some tricks; compared to true cultivation and strength, I'm still far behind."
Seeing Xiao Yan's respectful demeanor, the old man nodded inwardly. This composure and humility were the true qualities a cultivator should possess.
Upon hearing Xiao Yan's words, the old man chuckled again and said:
"Heh, so what if you have the means? As long as you possess the power to defeat a strong opponent, it doesn't matter where you got it from. As long as you can control that power, you are a strong opponent!"
"You must always firmly believe one thing: on this continent, only fists matter. Those who judge a person by their cultivation level are nothing but insignificant lackeys."
Xiao Yan nodded slightly, then bowed and clasped his hands in greeting to the old man:
"Thank you for your guidance, senior!"
The old man smiled again, then changed the subject and said:
"Young friend, there's no need to call me 'senior,' it sounds too formal. My real name is Zhang Yi, and I'm the manager of the Cloud-Hidden Pavilion branch in Lengcui City. If you ever encounter any trouble in the future, young friend Yan Xiao, feel free to come to me. As long as it's within my power, I won't hesitate to help!"
"Then, I thank you in advance, Elder Zhang!"
Xiao Yan respectfully addressed Elder Zhang once again.
"Hehe, Elder Zhang, you can't underestimate him. Just now, he forced back a Nine-Star Half-Emperor, and a few days ago, he even beat up another Nine-Star Half-Emperor. In other words, with his current strength, he has no rivals below the Dou Di."
"Oh?!"
Luo Jin's sudden words caused Zhang Yi's expression to change slightly, and a strange light appeared in his eyes as he looked at Xiao Yan.
As far as he knew, two years ago, Xiao Yan was able to fight against Eight-Star Half-Emperor without being at a disadvantage, but that was only under the premise that Xiao Yan used his high-level Dou Technique.
But look at him now, he was actually able to force back Nine-Star Half-Emperor with the strength of Five-Star Half-Emperor. Such a growth rate is truly terrifying!
It's hard to imagine how terrifying Xiao Yan's strength would become given time!
Xiao Yan shrugged noncommittally at this. He didn't want to explain too much about it, nor did he want to reveal his true strength in front of others, regardless of who he really was.
Startled, Zhang Yi slowly withdrew his gaze, then looked at Luo Jin, frowned, hesitated for a moment, and then said:
"Master, there is something I feel is very important to tell you."
Upon hearing this, Luo Jin raised an eyebrow slightly, and seeing the somewhat solemn expression on Elder Zhang, he nodded with a look of suspicion.
Seeing this, Xiao Yan, standing to the side, couldn't help but look at Elder Zhang with some suspicion. Elder Zhang, however, didn't seem to care about Xiao Yan's gaze, and instead nodded, slowly saying:
"Two years ago, I sensed four powerful figures with extremely concealed auras arriving in Lengcui City. Because of their elusive movements at the time, I was unable to pinpoint their exact location. However, after conducting a secret investigation afterward, I suspect that those four individuals were the sect leaders of the Four Great Sects."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan's expression instantly changed, while Luo Jin frowned, pondered for a moment, then looked up at Zhang Yi and asked:
" Elder Zhang, do you know what those guys are here for?"
Zhang Yi frowned slightly and shook his head, expressing his helplessness. He had no idea what the four guys' exact purpose was in coming to Lengcui City. Although he had secretly investigated them later, it was difficult to find any useful information because of their extraordinary status.
Luo Jin was helpless in the face of this, but when he looked at Xiao Yan beside him, his expression faltered slightly.
At this moment, Xiao Yan's face was extremely gloomy, and his expression was also very solemn. In fact, as his emotions fluctuated, the surging Dou Qi in his body also surged, causing invisible spatial ripples to appear in the void around him.
When Xiao Yan heard that the leaders of the Four Great Sects had gathered in Lengcui City, he immediately thought of the Liu Clan in the Southern Region.
After all, if their purpose in gathering in Lengcui City was the Liu Clan, then wouldn't that mean that during the time he was away, the Liu Clan of Qingyang City had already been taken over by them?
"Brother Yan Xiao, has something come to mind?"
Seeing Xiao Yan's gloomy face and the churning Dou Qi within him, Luo Jin finally couldn't help but ask.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan took a deep breath, regained his senses, and slowly withdrew the surging Dou Qi within his body. After a long while, he spoke to Zhang Yi in a slightly low voice:
" Elder Zhang, do you know whether those four people used a teleportation array, or whether they suddenly disappeared in Lengcui City for a period of time and then suddenly reappeared?"
Xiao Yan's words caused Zhang Yi and Luo Jin to pause slightly. They exchanged a glance, raised their eyebrows, and then Luo Jin looked at Xiao Yan with a playful expression and asked:
"What, Brother Yan Xiao, do you think they left the Western Region and went to the Ancient Wilderness City during that time?"
Xiao Yan nodded solemnly, his tone heavy:
"That's not impossible, because the Liu Clan they've been searching for is located on the southwestern border, near the Ancient Wilderness City."
Upon hearing this, Luo Jin raised an eyebrow slightly. He hadn't expected that Xiao Yan's Heavenly Severing Steps were actually obtained from the Liu Clan. However, judging from his expression at the moment, there should be some kind of connection between Xiao Yan and the Liu Clan, otherwise he wouldn't be so concerned about the movements of the Four Great Ancient Sects.
"Ha ha ha ha..."
A moment later, Xiao Yan, whose expression was solemn, heard Luo Jin laughing loudly beside him. When he turned to look at the latter, he found that the latter was also looking at him with a mocking expression.
"Hehe, Brother Yan Xiao, have you forgotten that the headquarters of my Cloud-Hidden Pavilion is still stationed in the Ancient Wilderness City? How dare those four guys show up on my territory so easily?"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan's expression immediately hardened. He quickly came to his senses and remembered that the Ancient Wilderness City was overseen by the Cloud-Hidden Pavilion and Elder Luo. The sect leaders of these Four Great Sects were already wary of them, so they naturally wouldn't easily go to the Ancient Wilderness City. Moreover, even if they did go, given the current relationship between Luo Jin and Xiao Yan, how could he not know?
"Call--"
With this, Xiao Yan was finally able to feel a little more at ease.
Since Xiao Yan obtained the Heavenly Severing Steps, he has unconsciously developed a greater sense of responsibility towards the Liu Clan, whom he was not originally very familiar with.
After all, if the Liu Clan offered the Heavenly Severing Steps merely to bribe Xiao Yan, then Xiao Yan naturally wouldn't have paid much attention to the Liu Clan.
However, after Xiao Yan mastered the Heavenly Severing Steps, the Heavenly Severing Steps played a crucial role in all of Xiao Yan's battles, big and small, and even saved his life several times, rescuing him from life-or-death situations. For Xiao Yan, this could be considered a life-saving grace.
A life-saving grace should be repaid with boundless gratitude; this is the essence of Xiao Yan's character.
Now that Xiao Yan has mastered the Heavenly Severing Steps, he will absolutely not allow anything to happen to the Liu Clan again!
This is similar to the Mittel Family back then...