Xiao Yan and Xiao Huohuo talked for another half an hour in the cave.
The Yao Lao has returned to the nurturing space within Xiao Huohuo's body.
Although this old man always seemed to find fault with Xiao Huohuo on the surface.
However, each battle consumes a significant amount of Spiritual Soul Power, and this time, after saying many words to comfort Xiao Yan, she was already somewhat exhausted.
Before returning, Yao Lao specifically instructed Xiao Huohuo to pay close attention to the old injuries left by the backlash from the Gate of the Mystic Realm in Xiao Yan's meridians.
The damage caused by this spatial force is the most insidious. On the surface, it may appear to have healed, but in reality, tiny cracks invisible to the naked eye remain on the meridian walls.
If it is not thoroughly repaired, it will definitely become a hidden danger when breaking through to a higher realm in the future.
Xiao Huohuo patted his chest and promised to personally refine a batch of Pulse-Protecting Pill for Xiao Yan later. Only then did Yao Lao feel relieved and transform into a wisp of white light to return to his body.
When the two walked out of the cave side by side, the morning light had already completely bathed the entire mountain range.
After the great battle in the Black-Corner Region, this primeval forest returned to its former tranquility, and the ancient trees scorched by the aftershocks of the Heavenly Flames have been mostly covered by new vines and wild grass.
Only a few charred tree stumps remain stubbornly standing in place, as if reminding everyone that the great battle was not a dream.
Xiao Huohuo carried Xiao Yan and flew towards the Jia Nan Academy.
The Inner Academy is currently organizing supplies and construction. To prevent people from the Black-Corner Region from taking advantage of the chaos, deacons have been specially assigned to guard the barrier passages for entry and exit.
The gatekeeper was an elderly deacon with gray hair. When he saw the two of them, his eyes widened in surprise.
"Xiao... Xiao Huohuo?"
The old deacon rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things.
His gaze swept back and forth between Xiao Huohuo and Xiao Yan twice, his mouth opened and closed, and in the end he just mumbled something blankly.
"Both?"
"This is an avatar I created; it's just a means to an end."
Xiao Huohuo told a lie without batting an eye.
Upon entering the Inner Academy, Xiao Huohuo headed straight towards the Pan Gate.
It was during the morning cultivation class, and there weren't many pedestrians on the main road of the Inner Academy.
The headquarters of Pan Gate is now located in a separate area on the east side of the Inner Academy, right next to the back mountain of the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower.
In the two years that Xiao Huohuo was away, Lin Yan, Wu Hao, Hu Jia managed this area very well.
At this moment, they are in the headquarters lobby handling routine matters with several veteran members.
When Xiao Huohuo was away, they had become the de facto heads of the Pan Gate.
Lin Yan, in particular, is always busy with endless official duties as soon as he opens his eyes every morning, from recruiting new members to allocating cultivation resources to the old members.
From notices issued by the Inner Academy to daily interactions with other factions within the academy, he had to personally oversee every single matter.
Over the course of two years, this burly young man, who originally only knew how to fight, has been honed into a skilled administrator, and even his handwriting has improved considerably.
But he knew in his heart that every time he saw the Pan Gate emblem hanging on the wall in the center of the hall, he still wished someone would do these things for him.
When Xiao Huohuo pushed the door open and came in, Lin Yan was looking at a new set of rules issued by the elder guarding the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower, and he was worried about it.
The new rules require that members of each faction cannot spend more than three hours a day cultivating in the tower, because the production of the wisp of Fallen Heart Flame essence left behind by Xiao Huohuo is limited and must be used sparingly.
The number of members in the Pan Gate has increased several times over. They constantly clash with other forces every day in order to compete for cultivation time. Yesterday, they almost got into a fight with the guy ranked fourth on the Strong Ranking.
Lin Yan was pondering whether to simply unify the cultivation time of the Pan Gate when he suddenly heard someone push the door open and enter. He looked up and saw the calligraphy brush he was holding in his mouth fall to the ground with a clatter.
" Huohuo? Didn't you say you were going out for a while...?"
Lin Yan's words trailed off as his gaze fell on the calm-faced young man in black robes behind Xiao Huohuo, and the rest of his sentence caught in his throat.
His gaze swept back and forth between the two men before he slowly stood up.
"What are you doing...?"
Xiao Yan stood behind Xiao Huohuo, his gaze calmly sweeping across the hall.
His gaze lingered on Lin Yan's face for a moment.
This burly young man, who was calm and collected when leading the Pan Gate members to evacuate the new students in the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower Square and fearless when charging on the battlefield, was now looking at him with some curiosity.
Xiao Yan could read a hint of curiosity and scrutiny in his eyes.
Xiao Huohuo sat down opposite Lin Yan in a carefree manner and said:
"This clone of mine was specially crafted using secret techniques and possesses a certain degree of autonomy."
Xiao Huohuo didn't introduce Xiao Yan in much detail, but continued with her previous remarks.
Lin Yan responded, but couldn't help glancing at Xiao Yan again.
Xiao Huohuo noticed his gaze, smiled, and waved her hand:
"You go about your business. Oh, and could you please clear out a quiet cultivation room for me? He's going into seclusion for a while."
The one in the backyard next to the bamboo grove has good sunlight and is quiet.
Lin Yan responded and turned to make the arrangements.
Xiao Yan followed Xiao Huohuo through the hall and along the corridor toward the backyard.
The bamboo grove in the backyard was even more secluded than Xiao Yan had expected.
Morning light filters through layers of bamboo leaves, casting dappled patterns on the flagstone path.
Deep in the bamboo forest is a small, detached stone house. It is well-lit, and you can see the entire bamboo forest and the outline of the distant Cangling Mountains by opening the window.
Several simple soundproofing arrays were carved on the walls of the stone house.
A wooden sign hangs in front of the door, which reads "Closed for Retreat, Do Not Disturb," in Xiao Huohuo's handwriting.
Lin Yan had already had the stone house cleaned in advance.
Xiao Huohuo stood at the entrance of the stone house but did not go in.
"Focus on recovering first. I'll refine the Pulse-Protecting Pill for you later; the ingredients are all ready."
Han Feng, that old dog, actually has quite a few good things in his Storage Ring; he's stored at least three portions of the main ingredient for the Pulse-Protecting Pill alone.
Xiao Huohuo leaned against the door frame, took out several jade boxes from his Storage Ring, and checked the medicinal herbs inside one by one.
"Thousand-year-old blood ginseng, earth core jade marrow, rejuvenating grass... Although this guy's character is terrible, he has a good eye for collecting medicinal herbs."
With these, I can not only refine Pulse-Protecting Pill for you, but also a batch of Calming Heart Pill to help suppress that violent energy.
"Um."
Xiao Yan nodded, without saying anything more.
He walked to the window and pushed open the one facing the bamboo grove.
A gentle breeze blew in, carrying the unique, refreshing scent of bamboo leaves, and lightly lifted a corner of his robe.
Outside the window, Zi Yan was squatting at the other end of the bamboo grove, drawing something on the ground with a twig in her hand.
She drew very carefully, poking and dotting the soil with the branches, occasionally glancing up in the direction of the stone house before quickly lowering her head to continue drawing.
Following Xiao Yan's gaze Xiao Huohuo also saw Zi Yan, and shook her head with a smile.
He paused, his tone becoming more serious, and his voice lowered, as if afraid that Zi Yan on the other side of the bamboo forest would hear him.
"If you need anything, just tell the disciple at the door. I've already given instructions."
If you run out of medicinal herbs, just let someone notify me.
Oh, by the way, I'll have someone send over some medicinal herbs later. Use them as needed and try to get back to your peak condition as soon as possible.
After rambling on and on, Xiao Huohuo stood for a moment, seemingly waiting for Xiao Yan to have something to say.
But looking at Xiao Yan's calm, almost indifferent face, he knew that what he needed most at that moment was not companionship, but quiet.
He patted the door frame, turned around, and walked out of the bamboo grove.
When I passed by Zi Yan, the little girl was lying on a rock pretending to be asleep, still clutching the twig in her hand, her eyelashes trembling slightly.
Xiao Huohuo didn't expose her, but simply ruffled her hair and quickened his pace towards the Pill Hall.
He needed to hurry and refine some Pulse-Protecting Pill for Xiao Yan; time was of the essence.
Inside the stone house, Xiao Yan sat alone on the edge of the bed, closed his eyes, and began to regulate his breathing.
He focused his mind on his body, his Spiritual Soul Power sweeping along his meridians inch by inch, carefully examining every old wound.
The extreme cold power of the Bone Spirit Cold Flame flowed slowly through the meridians, freezing and pulverizing the blood clots and impurities left over from the battle, which were then expelled from the body by the warm medicinal power of the Green Lotus Core Flame.
The Yao Lao was right; the spatial rift left by the backlash from the Gate of the Mystic Realm was indeed insidious.
They are hidden deep within the meridian walls, and normally, when Soul Power flows through them, they do not cause any discomfort.
However, if these cracks cannot withstand the pressure at some crucial moment in the future and suddenly collapse, at best the Soul Power will backfire and cultivation will regress, and at worst the meridians will be completely severed, rendering the person useless.
Xiao Yan dared not be careless in the slightest, concentrating a large amount of Soul Power on these cracks, repeatedly nurturing and repairing them.
At the same time, he was also consciously adjusting his soul state.
Although some of the malevolent energy accumulated in the ruins of the Slaughter City had been released with the defeat of the Gold and Silver Elders and Han Feng.
But the lingering killing intent still clings to the depths of the soul like a thin layer of ice, ready to spread at the slightest carelessness.
He guided that malevolent energy to the core of the Heavenly Flames, froze it with the extreme cold of the Bone Spirit Cold Flame, and then refined it bit by bit with the scorching heat of the Green Lotus Core Flame.
This process is extremely slow, and each refining can only eliminate a tiny wisp of malevolent energy, but it is reliable and will not leave any future problems.
For the next few days, Xiao Yan hardly left his house.
Along the way, Xiao Huohuo gave him some freshly made Pulse-Protecting Pill and Calming Heart Pill.
There were also a few good items that were looted from Han Feng's Storage Ring.
One of the ancient scrolls contains a secret body-refining method called " Vajra Body ".
It is said that when cultivated to its peak, one's physical defense can rival that of a Dou Zong) expert.
Xiao Huohuo gave the scroll to Xiao Yan, saying that it had a miraculous effect on tempering the body after repairing the meridians.
After Xiao Yan took the Pulse-Protecting Pill, the spatial rifts hidden deep within his meridians finally began to show significant improvement.
He could clearly feel the cracks in his meridians gradually healing under the influence of the medicine. Each time the medicine flowed through, it left a thin, light green film that sealed the cracks firmly.
The Calming Heart Pill transformed into countless cool streams that seeped into the depths of his soul, gradually melting and dispelling the thin layer of malevolent energy clinging to its surface.
With the help of the Calming Heart Pill, his state of mind gradually returned to stability.
Although the hatred for the mad old man and the pain of losing Zhu Zhuqing were still etched in his heart, they no longer burned his soul as constantly as before.
As the Yao Lao said, these scars are something he must bear; he cannot escape them, nor can he erase them.
But he can choose how to bear them: whether to be crushed by them or to transform them into the sharpest blade that makes him stronger.
Yao Lao appeared again during the period, carefully checked the recovery of Xiao Yan's meridians, and after confirming that the spatial rift had been completely healed, he showed a rare satisfied smile.
He said that Xiao Yan's recovery speed was faster than he had expected, and at this rate, he would be able to return to his peak condition after a few more days of rest.
However, Yao Lao also reminded Xiao Yan that although the Pulse-Protecting Pill repaired the cracks in his meridians, the newly healed parts of the meridians were still relatively fragile and needed to be tested in actual combat to truly recover to their peak condition.
He suggested that Xiao Yan spar with a few experts from the Inner Academy before leaving, without using his full strength, just to test the ability of his meridians to withstand high-intensity operation.