No one spoke, no one moved, and not even their breathing could be heard.
Tie Gu ' Adam's apple bobbed up and down, emitting a soft swallowing sound that was particularly clear in the silence.
Qing Que slightly opened her mouth, her eyes wide open, her pupils reflecting the small jade bottle on the stone table.
The Yao Lao's fingers, which were stroking his beard, froze in mid-air, and for the first time, a noticeable tremor appeared on his usually composed face.
News of the battle in Spirit City had already spread throughout the continent, but the identity of that mysterious powerhouse remained a subject of speculation among various factions.
The Spirit Hall kept the truth of the matter a secret, Bibi Dong even issued a gag order, claiming to the outside world that it was just a "minor accident that occurred during a drill."
But at this moment, this young man casually revealed the truth.
He cleaved the dome of the Pope's Palace. He inflicted Bibi Dong's wounds. He shattered the Martial Soul Avatar of Chrysanthemum and Douluo.
"That mysterious powerhouse who cleaved the Pope's Palace in two with a single sword strike..."
Qing Que's voice trembled slightly, as if she was so shocked by the news that she didn't know how to express her astonishment.
"It's me."
Xiao Yan nodded, his tone as calm as if he were talking about an ordinary little thing.
He reached out and picked up the jade bottle on the stone table, gently uncorked it, and the rich medicinal fragrance immediately intensified.
"But there's nothing to brag about. That sword strike wasn't my own power; it was a trump card lent to me by a senior."
The reason I'm telling you this isn't to make you think I'm amazing, but to let you know...
The Spirit Hall is not some invincible behemoth.
Bibi Dong will be injured, Titled Douluo will be defeated, and the dome of the Pope's Palace can be shattered with a single sword strike.
You must have been terrified after hiding for so long, right?
They were afraid of being discovered by the Spirit Hall, afraid of being surrounded and annihilated by pursuers, and afraid that they would not see the sun tomorrow.
But I want to tell you that from today onwards, we are no longer just passive prey to be beaten.
"What the Spirit Hall owes us, I will collect it all, one by one."
Hearing about Xiao Yan's terrifying achievements, everyone in the Dark Hall revealed a hint of excitement in their eyes.
A being capable of fighting three Titled Douluo, even if that wasn't Xiao Yan's own power.
But was Xiao Yan really that bad?
Such a young Soul Emperor powerhouse has a terrifying record of sweeping through the younger generation of the Douluo Continent.
Such strength was enough to earn the admiration and respect of everyone in the Dark Hall.
Seeing the bright eyes of everyone, Xiao Yan breathed a sigh of relief. He pointed to the pills on the table and said to them:
"This is Blood Coagulation Powder. It stops bleeding from external injuries within three breaths."
You've all seen the batch of Blood Coagulation Powder that Zhu Zhuqing had; you know how effective it was.
But those were stockpiles I made a year ago, and some of their potency had already been lost. This batch is newly made, and its efficacy is at least 30% higher.
"This is Qi Gathering Pill."
Unlike the imitations you used before, this is the original.
For those below the Soul Elder, consuming this product can directly increase their Soul Power cultivation.
While the effects diminish at the Soul Elder and above, it's still better than any commercially available pill for replenishing Soul Power and accelerating recovery.
Xiao Yan placed the pills on the table and addressed the crowd, explaining that both types of pills had appeared in the Star Luo Empire before.
Or rather, based on the supplies he left for Zhu Zhuqing, most of the core members of the Dark Hall should have taken them and were familiar with them.
Xiao Yan then took out another type of pill from the Black Dragon, a slight smile on his lips, and said to everyone:
"This is the Mysterious Yang Pill!"
After Soul Ancestor consumes it, their Soul Power should increase by three levels; if Soul King consumes it, their Soul Power should increase by at least two levels.
There are no side effects because it doesn't forcibly infuse Soul Power, but rather stimulates the potential that already exists within you, releasing all the accumulated resources you've built up.
For more than a year, you have been fighting, training, and pushing your limits in the shadows, accumulating too much suppressed potential within your bodies.
This elixir is the key that unlocks that lock.
Hearing Xiao Yan's words, everyone looked at the jade bottle on the table in shock.
The Soul King stage also grants a two-level increase in Soul Power!
There are no side effects yet; this terrifying potency has never been seen on the market before.
He placed the pills one by one on the stone table, then stepped back, crossed his arms, and leaned against the wall, his gaze sweeping over every face in the stone chamber.
He saw Qing Que's gaze fixed on the pills, unable to look away, and he saw Yao Lao's fingers trembling slightly uncontrollably.
Xiao Yan smiled slightly and continued speaking:
These pills are just a small gift to mark our meeting.
Afterwards, I will set up Pill Hall in the Dark Hall, where all official members can receive pills according to their cultivation progress.
You no longer need to accept dangerous bounties for a little bit of cultivation resources.
From now on, the Dark Hall will be your protector.
Furthermore, once you break through to the Soul Emperor, I have even higher-level pills that can similarly enhance your strength.
As soon as Xiao Yan finished speaking, You Ying and Tie Gu's eyes instantly turned fervent.
The pills Xiao Yan had just taken out were only potent enough to reach the Soul King, and they thought that was all. But they never expected that Xiao Yan would have pills that could even affect the Soul Emperor!
"Rest assured, no one will forget your contributions to the Dark Hall."
Xiao Yan's gaze first fell upon the three elders at the Soul Emperor Realm, and he spoke:
"Three elders, why don't you set an example?"
Xiao Yan stood in the center of the quiet room, looking at the three figures sitting cross-legged in front of him, and clenched the crimson pill in his hand even tighter.
The lingering warmth of the three pills seeped through the jade bottle, warming his palms and the very breath of everyone in the dim stone chamber.
The Moonlight Stone's deep blue light streamed down from the grooves in the stone wall, casting long shadows of the three people onto the rough stone, which flickered gently with the Zhu Huo.
Tie Gu sat on the far left futon; his imposing figure, even when sitting cross-legged, resembled a small mountain.
His bronze skin gleamed with a metallic sheen under the deep blue light.
His fists rested on his knees, his knuckles calloused from years of striking hard objects.
Xue Shou sat in the middle, a dark red broadsword lying horizontally on his lap, the blood-red light flowing on the blade dimmer than usual.
He was gathering all his Soul Power back into his body, preparing for his upcoming breakthrough. His breathing was calm and deep, and with each exhale and inhale, the blood-red light on the blade flickered slightly.
You Ying sat on the far right, still wrapped in the black robe he never took off, the hood pulled low, revealing only half of his thin and pale face.
Her Dark Night Bat Martial Soul was faintly visible behind her, the edges of its wings shimmering with a dark luster under the Moonlight Stone, like two pieces of frozen night.
Each of the three had a thumb-sized, crimson pill in front of them.
The Three Yang Blazing Fire Pill can also enhance the Soul Power of experts at the Soul Emperor Realm!
The surface of the pill has faint flame patterns flowing around it. These patterns are not engraved, but rather are Pill Pattern that are naturally formed after the medicinal power resonates with the energy of heaven and earth.
Each line of the pattern emitted an extremely faint crimson glow, making the temperature in the quiet room several degrees higher than outside.
The medicinal fragrance was rich but not pungent, like the scent of the purest fire element compressed to its limit. Just one whiff made one feel the flow of Soul Power within their body accelerate.
Even the vortex of Soul Power in his dantian began to spin faster on its own.
Xiao Yan sat cross-legged opposite the three of them.
Behind him was the tightly closed iron door of the quiet room, with several simple soundproofing arrays engraved on it.
The edges of the array patterns were somewhat rough, but they were enough to isolate all external sounds.
Xiao Yan's Spiritual Soul Power had spread out, like an invisible spider web, completely enveloping every trace of Soul Power fluctuation around the three of them.
This high-precision soul monitoring was extremely mentally taxing, but Xiao Yan dared not relax his vigilance in the slightest.
When three people take the Three Yang Blazing Fire Pill at the same time, the speed and intensity at which the medicine dissolves in their bodies varies from person to person, and the slightest carelessness may lead to the medicine going out of control.
Zhu Zhuqing stood at the door, saying nothing, simply guarding the place quietly, like a silent guardian deity.
Are you ready?
Xiao Yan's gaze swept over the three of them, sensing their auras that had reached their peak, and he asked.
Tie Gu nodded first.
His fists clenched and unclenched on his knees, his knuckles making a soft cracking sound.
His cultivation level had been stuck at level 63 for two whole years—during which time he had tried countless times to break through the bottleneck, but each time he failed at the last moment.
It wasn't that he lacked Soul Power; his Soul Power reserves had long exceeded the level of level sixty-five.
He suffered a serious injury in his early years, and several key points in his meridians were mostly blocked by blood stasis.
Each time the Soul Power struck that spot, it would dissipate on its own, like a rushing river suddenly encountering a dam.
No matter how strong the river's current is, it will eventually be stopped by that dam.
He looked up at Xiao Yan, his usually calm and steady eyes now brimming with long-suppressed anticipation.
He wasn't good at expressing himself, but his gaze at that moment was more direct than any words.
That was the light of hope that came when someone who had been suppressed for two years finally saw it.
"Your Highness, I have been waiting for this day for two years."
"Please come, I can handle it."
Xue Shou remained silent.
He gripped the blood-stained knife on his lap even tighter; the dark red cloth Entanglement around the hilt was soaked with sweat, making it even darker than usual.
He's been stuck at level 61 for over a year now. Although it hasn't been as long as Tie Gu's, the hidden injuries in his body are more severe than Tie Gu's.
That was an old wound he sustained when he was young, during a feud with the Spirit Hall, when he was besieged by several Soul King.
In that battle, he single-handedly withstood the attack of five Soul King, barely managing to break through the encirclement only thanks to the berserk power of his Bloodthirsty Mad Saber Martial Soul. However, the price was dozens of barely perceptible scar tissues left throughout his body's meridians.
Although those old wounds had healed on the surface, they had formed hidden reefs in his meridians.