Ying Xuanzi said helplessly, "Do you think Fang Yi is a normal person? It's just that this cultivation art is rather unusual. Otherwise, I would have let you take a look too."
"How did it go?"
Ying Xuanzi asked. Fang Yi really was a treasure from head to toe. Could even his blood suppress the backlash caused by the Second Origin Art?
"I've finished refining it, and there's still a little power left over. I should be able to try breaking through to the second level."
When Ying Xiaoxiao remembered that what she had refined was Fang Yi's blood, a faint blush flashed across her aloof face.
"I was asking how you are now, not about the blood."
Ying Xuanzi was old and shrewd. He took one look at Ying Xiaoxiao's expression.
He sighed inwardly. Even after he had gone this far, the two girls were still like this.
If it really worked out, all he could say was that the rich water hadn't flowed into an outsider's field.
Alas.
But he had to find a way to sever the father-son connection between himself and Fang Yi.
Otherwise, things would be a little awkward in the end.
Ying Xuanzi suddenly had another thought. Why not sever his father-daughter relationships with Ying Xiaoxiao and Ying Huanhuan instead? How could a son-in-law be as close as a son?
When Ying Xiaoxiao heard Ying Xuanzi, she hurriedly replied, "My origin has increased by a fifth, and my foundation really is stronger."
"And my aptitude has indeed improved somewhat. As for my comprehension, I haven't tried it out yet."
After Ying Xiaoxiao finished answering,
Ying Xuanzi mused, "Do you think we should ask Fang Yi to contribute a little blood..."
"Don't even think about it!!"
Before Ying Xuanzi could finish, Ying Xiaoxiao bristled like a startled kitten and instinctively objected.
Then she seemed to realize that her tone had been a little too fierce.
"Um... too much would probably affect Xiao Yi, and I was probably too impatient."
"If Nirvana disciples cultivate some arts to calm their minds beforehand, and use them together with some medicinal herbs, they should be able to neutralize it gradually..."
Ying Xiaoxiao spoke a little faster, as though trying to dissuade Ying Xuanzi from his earlier idea.
Ying Xuanzi rubbed his forehead. "All right, I was only joking. You really are... right, what was it Xiao Yi called it? Guarding your food."
"What do you mean, guarding my food? I'm thinking of him! And you can't even joke about it!"
Ying Xiaoxiao's tone grew a little sharper. "I'll tell Huanhuan and see if she beats you up!"
"All right, all right, I won't even joke about it. Tell me what medicinal herbs you think you'll need, and I'll have someone prepare them."
Ying Xuanzi shook his head and sighed. Things had only come this far, and she was already so protective of him.
If the rich water really did stay in their own field, he was afraid that he, their father, would have the lowest standing of all.
"I'm going to cultivate. I gained a little insight into the Heavenly Emperor Scripture just now. At the sect exchange later, I definitely won't lose to Ling Qingzhu!"
Fang Yi, however, did not go to the Pill River. Instead, he came to the Desolate Hall.
He wanted to speak with the Tablet Spirit of the Great Desolation Tablet about something.
And while he was at it, could he see whether Supreme Power could help the Great Desolation Tablet suppress the Yimo?
Fang Yi made his way with practiced ease into the depths of the Desolate Hall, where an enormous mountain stood.
The mountain was a withered yellow, without the slightest touch of greenery. Seen from afar, it was steeped in desolation.
Normally, the Great Desolation Tablet would not open before the appointed time, but Fang Yi was no ordinary person.
He had a deal with the Tablet Spirit of the Great Desolation Tablet, so naturally he had no need to worry about such things. As soon as he approached, the presence of the Great Desolation Scripture spread out.
The next moment,
Rays of dark yellow light shot from the tablet and enveloped Fang Yi. He immediately sat cross-legged in the air, surrounded by waves of dark yellow light.
In the shadows, Gu Mo also sat quietly cross-legged. He knew Fang Yi had secrets.
The Great Desolation Tablet ordinarily needed the Pill River's help to open, but for Fang Yi, it was as though he could come and go as he pleased.
Gu Mo would not ask, though. He only needed to know one thing:
Fang Yi would be the person most likely to utterly destroy the Yuan Sect and avenge Senior Brother Zhou Tong.
Gray haze filled the sky, covering it completely without the slightest gap.
It looked like the sky at the birth of heaven and earth, before they had fully separated.
Beneath the gray sky lay a vast, boundless expanse of grayish-yellow earth.
Withered grass appeared here and there, but there was no sign of life. Cracks spread across the earth, stretching to the end of his vision.
"Desolation Tablet, I've come to see you."
Fang Yi appeared there and called out quite naturally. An ancient yellow stone tablet about ten zhang tall immediately appeared.
At the very bottom of the tablet, thin black lines crept upward.
Those black lines were like a demon's tentacles, evil and icy. As they writhed slightly, they continued to eat their way up the tablet.
"You... why have you come back again? Didn't you say... you would bring me an Ancestral Talisman?"
A blurry figure emerged from the tablet's surface and turned its gaze toward Fang Yi.
Then a hoarse voice rang out, so ancient that it seemed to seep into one's very soul.
Fang Yi sat down quite naturally in front of the tablet. "I found Senior Black Eyes, but he said my path wasn't suited to the Devouring Ancestral Symbol."
"He didn't give me the Devouring Ancestral Symbol."
The tablet fell silent for a while.
"So it was the Devouring Ancestral Symbol. A pity. You brat... you do have too many wondrous powers in your body. Otherwise, I wouldn't have given you the Great Desolation Scripture back then."
"In that case, there's nothing to be done. We can only wait until you've grown stronger and see what happens."
"Don't be hasty. Feel this."
Although only his mind had entered the Great Desolation Tablet, Fang Yi could still stir his physical body's presence with a thought.
At once,
The presence of Supreme Power spread from his body. His body was now protected by the Great Desolation Tablet, so naturally the tablet sensed it as well.
As that presence spread,
The black lines coiled around the ancient yellow tablet, each like a venomous snake,
Suddenly began to shrink back slowly, as though they had encountered some utterly terrifying natural enemy.
"What power is this? Although it can't compare to your physique, it's even more formidable than an Ancestral Talisman..."
The Tablet Spirit sounded puzzled. Yimo power feared this power even more than it feared an Ancestral Talisman.
Just what was Fang Yi's background?
Things that could restrain Yimo power were few and far between on this continent. Even its master had needed to refine many divine objects to achieve it.
But this Fang Yi...
How did he have one thing after another?
After all, its master had not been from this world, and the many powers and cultivation arts he possessed stood above those of the people of this world.
Ever since the person who possessed the Space Ancestral Talisman had failed to return, it had thought no one would ever be able to deal with the Yimo King beneath it.
Who would have thought that Fang Yi would suddenly appear?
When the Great Desolation Tablet had opened that time, he had smeared his own blood directly onto it.
The sacred power within it had actually suppressed the Yimo power and driven it back a little.
After entering, he had even revealed its origins and spoken of the Yimo King suppressed beneath it.
Fang Yi had also told it that he knew where an Ancestral Talisman was, and that with its help, he might be able to help it suppress the Yimo beneath it ahead of time.
So it had given Fang Yi the Great Desolation Scripture and allowed him to enter this place whenever he wished.
In its view, Fang Yi had a better chance than Zhou Tong had.
Even without finding an Ancestral Talisman, once Fang Yi grew strong enough, he should be able to eliminate the Yimo as well.
So when the Tablet Spirit heard that Fang Yi had not obtained the Ancestral Talisman, it was not too disappointed.
It could also sense the presence of the Great Desolate Ancient Tablet and the Great Desolate King on Fang Yi.
Things were probably just as he had said: Black Eyes thought that giving Fang Yi the Devouring Ancestral Symbol would instead affect his path.
Yet it had never expected Fang Yi to reveal another power that could drive the Yimo back.