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Xiao Yan reached out and unrolled the scroll in his hands. Five large, bright silver characters met his eyes: Nine Revolutions Avatar Art.
Xiao Yan smiled faintly. His Soul Power poured out in full force and entered the scroll. As for what was happening in the courtyard outside his room, Xiao Yan, its master, knew nothing at all.
"Buzz!"
A soul-shaking buzz exploded in the depths of Xiao Yan's soul. He frowned slightly, then gathered his Soul Power and let out a cold snort.
After the sound faded, the body Xiao Yan had formed from Soul Power appeared in a vast expanse of white Void Space.
The entire space looked enormous, stretching far and wide. Not far from him, Xiao Yan saw what looked like a curve that seemed completely out of place in this space, yet also blended perfectly into it.
Indeed, it was a curve that was far from smooth, without the slightest pattern or trace to follow. It looked like a fold in the space itself, but one that seemed to have no end.
Xiao Yan's expression grew grave. He gathered all his Soul Power and sent it probing toward the enormous "fold."
His Soul Power gradually extended along the lines of the fold, but in the end, he had no choice but to withdraw it.
His expression still grave, Xiao Yan looked once more at the boundless white world. Thoughts raced through his mind, but after a long while, he had found nothing. Unable to help himself, he cursed inwardly:
Damn it! What kind of Dou Technique is this? When Yuan Qing gave it to me, he didn't tell me how to cultivate it either. How am I supposed to find the cultivation method in a space this huge?
Xiao Yan frowned, impatience showing on his face as he muttered curses under his breath. But just as he was about to roar in frustration, his eyes suddenly lit up, and the way he looked at the entire space changed somewhat.
Xiao Yan calmed his mind and half-closed his eyes. All his Soul Power spread out, dispersing throughout the entire space.
After a long while, Xiao Yan's eyes snapped open, and a smile appeared on his lips. He raised his head and looked up. There was still nothing but a vast expanse of white Void Space, but Xiao Yan seemed to have seen something and laughed with delight.
"So that's it! No wonder I couldn't figure out how to cultivate the Nine Revolutions Avatar Art. My mind was too small! This seemingly empty space is itself the cultivation method I've been looking for! Heh, I've learned my lesson."
Xiao Yan let out a quiet sigh, and his body shook. His originally normal-sized body swelled rapidly. In just a few breaths, viewed from where he had been standing and in proportion to his former size, he was already several hundred zhang tall.
But Xiao Yan continued to grow. Judging by the look in his eyes, he seemed not to have reached the end yet.
A moment later, Xiao Yan's expanding body finally came to a gradual stop. He looked at what lay before him and smiled faintly, the corners of his mouth curving upward.
In the vast white space, ten figures stood apart. Nine of them were identical, each standing in place with a vacant expression, empty eyes, and arms hanging naturally at their sides, like nine puppets.
A delighted smile appeared on Xiao Yan's face. Indeed, these nine figures represented the cultivation method for the nine avatars of the Nine Revolutions Avatar Art. The nine avatars were the introductory stage of the art. As long as Xiao Yan could cultivate all nine, he would have truly begun cultivating the Nine Revolutions Avatar Art.
Unfortunately, although he possessed two avatar techniques, he knew how to use only one of them. Moreover, as Xiao Yan saw it, the Nine Revolutions Avatar Art was probably quite difficult. At the very least, judging by the fact that Yuan Qing had immersed himself in it for years yet had only reached minor accomplishment, Xiao Yan would need considerable time if he wanted to cultivate it to major accomplishment.
But what could he do? Ever since the matter with Old Ghost Yan Mo, Xiao Yan had always felt that the road ahead would not be smooth. If he relied on the Three Thousand Lightning Movement alone, he would probably find it hard to evade what lay ahead.
"Strength still has to come first!"
Xiao Yan's brows were tightly knitted, a trace of worry in his eyes as he sighed repeatedly. Then his gaze shifted and instantly grew resolute, and he murmured to himself:
"It seems the most urgent thing now is to hurry to the Northern Region and see Elder Hai! Only then can I have enough strength to protect myself!"
With that, his gaze shifted back to the Nine Revolutions Avatar Art in his hands, and he concentrated on cultivating it.
Time passed unnoticed in cultivation. By today, five days had passed since Xiao Yan had shut himself away to cultivate, and the elders in the courtyard outside had obediently knelt there for all five days of his seclusion.
Though they had knelt for five days, the elders did not dare voice the slightest complaint. After all, the fact that they had spent five days kneeling here meant Xiao Yan was only punishing them, not killing them outright.
How could they not seize such a chance? After all, a miserable life was better than a good death; staying alive was what mattered. So as long as Xiao Yan did not kill them, kneeling was just kneeling. The whole clan had seen them anyway, and they no longer cared much.
"Creak~"
The elders quickly straightened their bent bodies into proper kneeling postures. More than ten pairs of eyes fixed on Xiao Yan's wooden door as it slowly opened.
Xiao Yan strode out. He had just let out a long breath when he froze in bewilderment. He blinked several times, his brows rising high, his mouth slightly open and his eyes wide as he stared at the group of Liu Clan elders kneeling in the courtyard.
After quite a while, beneath the elders' anxious gazes, he raised a hand and helped them to their feet. The elders rose with the motion, respectfully lowering their heads and eyes, not daring to meet Xiao Yan's gaze.
Xiao Yan frowned slightly at the sight, his eyes darting around. After a few breaths, he seemed to understand something. His gaze grew indifferent, though a hint of amusement could still be seen deep within it.
Xiao Yan said coolly:
"Go on, all of you! I'm going away to cultivate for a while. You can all leave!"
At his words, a look of relief flashed across the elders' faces. They cupped their hands and bowed to Xiao Yan before withdrawing from the courtyard. However, a few of the weaker ones had endured five days of kneeling as punishment without daring to use their Dou Qi. Although they were Dou Huang experts, they still could not bear it, and had considerable difficulty walking.
Seeing this, Xiao Yan frowned slightly and flicked his sleeve. Several streaks of light shot out. The elders' expressions changed abruptly, and they were just about to retreat with all their strength when their pupils suddenly constricted and they stood still.
The elders opened their hands. A jade bottle lay across each of their palms. Their faces lit up with delight, and their gazes toward Xiao Yan were full of respect. Then they spoke in unison:
"Many thanks for the pills, Senior. We are endlessly grateful!"
Xiao Yan grunted in acknowledgment and said no more. After they had all left, he closed the door. His figure flashed, and he vanished from Qingyang City.
Several days later, in the Ancient Desolate Forest outside Qingyang City.
"Bang!"
A faint figure that looked like an afterimage, yet was more solid than one, gradually dispersed into the air, fading into nothingness.
Xiao Yan frowned slightly. The fine sweat on his forehead gathered into droplets as he frowned, running down past his brows and falling to the ground. They left shallow damp marks before soaking into the soil.
Xiao Yan took a few gentle breaths. His hands once again changed seals with practiced ease. As the seals shifted, waves of spatial fluctuations spread outward, forming rings of ripples like those on water.
Xiao Yan's expression was grave. His Soul Power was intensely concentrated, and his attention was focused to the utmost. His hands rapidly changed seals, and suddenly he let out a shout:
"Condense!"
All of Xiao Yan's Soul Power rapidly gathered before him, and a faint humanoid figure gradually appeared. The seals changing rapidly in his hands abruptly stopped, and he shouted again:
"Transform the soul! Split!"
"Bang!"
The illusory figure scattered once more, finally returning to nothingness. Xiao Yan's brows knitted tightly. The hardest part of cultivating this scroll of the Nine Revolutions Avatar Art was forming the initial nine avatars.
Xiao Yan had originally thought that, with his cultivation of the Three Thousand Lightning Illusory Body as a foundation, taking this first step would not be too difficult. Who could have known that the first step of the Nine Revolutions Avatar Art was many times harder than the Three Thousand Lightning Illusory Body?
The most basic part of the Three Thousand Lightning Illusory Body was to use powerful Soul Power to form an illusory soul body. As long as it could exist between heaven and earth, that was enough. With his control, he could temper it continually afterward, solidify it, and increase its strength, until he reached major accomplishment sooner or later.
The Nine Revolutions Avatar Art, however, was completely different. Although it also required the formation of an illusory soul body, it had one requirement that the Three Thousand Lightning Illusory Body did not: the instant the first illusory soul body was formed, it had to be split, and all nine avatars had to be separated out in that instant.
Only then could it count as formally beginning cultivation of the Nine Revolutions Avatar Art. It was precisely this requirement that left Xiao Yan feeling rather helpless.