First, there was the intimidation of the Northern King, and then the temptation of the elixir. The combination of the two did indeed make the middle-aged man behave himself.
Deep inside the cave, once Xiao Yan confirmed that the guy hadn't made any further moves, he finally relaxed and focused entirely on refining the pills within his body.
Meanwhile, outside, the search by hundreds of Half-Emperor was in full swing. This time, the invisible battle between Xiao Yan and this group would be a protracted war, and the final outcome would depend on whether this group could find Xiao Yan before his injuries recovered.
Time slips through one's fingers like sand, and much of it has already passed unnoticed. Inside the cave, Xiao Yan is immersed in refining the pills within his body, while those outside have finally expanded their search to this place.
The mountain wind howled, like the low growl of a wild beast, blowing through the forest. At the foot of the mountain was a huge cave, from which a powerful aura emanated, making people feel solemn. At this moment, three middle-aged men dressed in black robes slowly descended from the sky and focused their gaze on the cave.
Among the three, one was Eight-Star Half-Emperor and the other two Seven-Star Half-Emperor. Such a lineup was more than enough to make them roam freely in this mountain range where they were currently located.
" Huo Yun, do you think it's possible that Xiao Yan is here?"
Among the three, a rather slender Seven-Star Half-Emperor frowned and cautiously asked the middle-aged man in the middle of the group, whose strength had reached Eight-Star Half-Emperor. As he spoke, his gaze also glanced intentionally or unintentionally at the dark cave. The guy inside made him very nervous.
"I don't know, let's search first. Didn't we detect a trace of Xiao Yan's aura earlier? That means he must be nearby. We've already searched the surrounding area, but not this place. We'll find out if he's here or not with a search."
The middle-aged man called Huo Yun shook his head, but his tone was quite firm.
"But that guy inside... seems to be a Nine-Star Half-Emperor, his strength..."
"What's there to be nervous about? Even if he's Nine-Star Half-Emperor, would he dare to harm anyone from the Huo Clan? Besides, with the three of us combined, how could we possibly be afraid of him!"
Before the thin, middle-aged man could finish speaking, he was immediately reprimanded by Huo Yun. The latter lowered his head and dared not say anything more. He scratched his head, his eyes still looking nervously at the cave entrance.
Then, led by Huo Yun, the three of them headed towards the cave.
The three of them arrived at the cave entrance one after another. As they approached, an extremely strong stench of blood emanated from it and rushed towards them.
Upon sensing the overwhelming, almost nauseating stench of blood, the three's expressions immediately changed. With such a strong smell of blood, just how ferocious must this demonic beast be!
Despite this, it did not stop the three of them. Before setting off, Huo Ting had already offered a reward: whoever among them could find Xiao Yan would receive five third-tier pills. Such a temptation was too tempting for them to resist.
However, just as the three of them stepped into the cave, a terrifying roar suddenly echoed from the deep, dark cavern.
"Roar! Where did this human come from, daring to trespass on my territory!"
A furious shout rang out, and in the blink of an eye, an extremely powerful and terrifying aura surged forth from the depths of the cave, forcefully pushing the three of them back.
The three were startled and quickly retreated. As their expressions changed, their fighting Dou Qi surged forth to resist the oppressive aura.
"We are from the Huo Clan family, one of the four Four Great Clans. We are here to conduct our official duties and are only searching for one person. We have no intention of causing any conflict with you. Please forgive us if we have offended you!"
Huo Yun's expression changed drastically. He was surprised. The three of them had only just stepped into this guy's territory. How could he be so fierce and domineering? But then he thought about it. This guy was like a ferocious demon. The heavy smell of blood just now explained his irritable temper. If they stayed in this environment for too long, even they would probably not be able to withstand it.
Little did they know that the reason the guy inside the cave was so agitated was because Xiao Yan had taken over his den. Although Xiao Yan had promised to reward him with a third-grade pill, he was still harboring resentment. The appearance of these three people gave him a perfect outlet for his anger.
"Oh, people from the Four Great Clans."
From deep within the cave came a surprised cry. The middle-aged man frowned. He hadn't expected that Xiao Yan would ask him to defend against people from the Four Great Clans. This was going to be troublesome!
Upon hearing the sounds coming from inside the cave, the three people outside were overjoyed. They thought to themselves that this guy was indeed afraid of the power of their Four Great Clans. Immediately, the three of them smiled at each other, lifted their feet, and were about to go back into the cave.
"Stop right there!"
At that very moment, inside the cave, the middle-aged man shouted an order, causing the three of them to jump and stop in their tracks once again.
"Even if you are from the Huo Clan, you need to understand that this is the Bai Clan's territory. This mountain range belongs to me. What right do you Huo Clan members have to enter the Bai Clan's territory to look for someone!"
"Us..."
"Enough! I don't want to hear any more from you. Out of consideration for your status as one of the Four Great Clans, turn around and leave now, and I can pretend nothing happened. Otherwise, even if you're from the Huo Clan, don't blame me for being impolite!"
Before Huo Yun speak, the middle-aged man inside the cave cut him off with a single sentence. At the same time, a powerful aura swept over them again, causing the three men's expressions to change drastically. They sensed a strong killing intent emanating from this aura, and they had no doubt that if they stayed any longer, they would inevitably attract the attention of this madman, at which point they would truly be doomed.
Faced with this situation, Huo Yun's expression shifted between light and shadow. Who knew that this madman would completely disregard their status as members of the Huo Clan? Although the three of them were all High-Level Half-Emperor, in the face of absolute power, their numbers were useless. Although his previous words sounded bold, Huo Yun himself was actually incredibly nervous. He only pretended to be fearless because of the two people beside him.
"Brother Huo Yun, what do we do now?"
Beside him, the thin middle-aged man was already deathly pale with fright. Helpless, he had no choice but to ask Huo Yun for help.
Hearing this, Huo Yun really wanted to turn around and slap him immediately, but the situation was dangerous, and they had no choice but to work together. Huo Yun quickly thought of a solution, but the one he came up with was to retreat. Unfortunately, with that guy in the cave there, they were destined not to be able to enter. However, after thinking about it again, Huo Yun couldn't help but laugh at himself. Even they couldn't enter the cave, so how could Xiao Yan, who was already injured, possibly get in? Wouldn't he have been killed by that guy in the cave long ago?
Afterwards, the three men respectfully bowed to the dark cave before hurriedly leaving, leaving behind three disheveled figures.
Only then did the middle-aged man inside the cave breathe a sigh of relief. Fortunately, these three guys were not as strong as him. Otherwise, if he hadn't been able to control them today, and Xiao Yan had been awakened, not only would they have been doomed, but he himself would probably have lost his life!
Before arriving at the cave, the middle-aged man looked up at the distant mountains and forests. He saw figures, as small as black grains of rice, flashing by, seemingly searching for something. However, when they passed by his vicinity, they all wisely walked away.
Upon seeing this scene, the middle-aged man secretly rejoiced, but a sense of suspicion arose in his heart. What was the identity of this black-robed man in his cave, that he could attract such a large mobilization from the Huo Clan, one of the Four Great Clans?