Word Count: 2,757 Words
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If he didn't need to search for a pill to repair the soul, then the value of the Five Ring Flame Expelling Technique would indeed surpass selling Venerable Tian Huo's soul body directly to the Hall of Souls. However, adding the need for a soul-repairing pill...
Gently tapping the scroll against his palm, Xiao Yan remained silent for a long while. Venerable Tian Huo didn't urge him and merely watched him calmly.
The silent atmosphere lingered for several minutes. Xiao Yan's bright eyes glanced at Venerable Tian Huo, then he slowly shook his head.
A hint of wariness appeared in Venerable Tian Huo's eyes upon seeing Xiao Yan shake his head, and a faint, obscure energy began to gather around him.
He claimed his soul was about to dissipate, but that was definitely a lie. He just wanted Xiao Yan to lower his guard and take him away.
"To be frank, Venerable Tian Huo, you are the soul body of a Dou Venerate. The cost of helping you repair your soul is very high. Just relying on a High Di Class Dou Technique is not enough." Of course, whether it was enough or not was up to Xiao Yan to decide.
At this moment, one could say that Xiao Yan had Venerable Tian Huo firmly in his grasp.
Xiao Yan's eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at the vigilant Venerable Tian Huo. Then, he unleashed the Asura Soul Reaping Technique. His Spiritual Strength, filled with terrifying killing intent, was like a sharp sword that instantly sliced through the confinement Venerable Tian Huo had cast.
Venerable Tian Huo's eyes suddenly turned sharp upon seeing Xiao Yan's incomparably terrifying Spiritual Strength. The thing he feared most had happened. The black-robed man before him possessed extraordinary strength and had even cultivated a lost Soul Skill!
"You won't gain anything by killing me. I've placed a seal on the scroll. If I die, the spiritual information on the scroll will vanish immediately," Venerable Tian Huo said in a deep voice.
Xiao Yan chuckled and waved his hand. "Venerable Tian Huo, you've misunderstood. While the Five Ring Flame Expelling Technique alone is insufficient, I still very much want it. Why don't we add another condition?"
Venerable Tian Huo was taken aback. Then his eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a smile. "I'm listening."
Xiao Yan's gaze under his hood locked onto Venerable Tian Huo as he softly said, "I have a special refining method that can forge a unique body. This body allows a soul to merge perfectly, achieving resurrection through a borrowed shell."
!!!!!
Venerable Tian Huo's pupils contracted upon hearing this, and even his soul body trembled slightly. To be able to achieve resurrection through a borrowed body!!
He had originally only wanted Xiao Yan to help restore his Spiritual Strength to stay alive and then slowly search for a way to resurrect himself.
But he hadn't expected that Xiao Yan himself possessed a method to resurrect a soul body!!
This was undoubtedly an enormous temptation.
"What do you want?" Venerable Tian Huo quickly calmed down. There was no such thing as a free lunch in this world, and since Xiao Yan suddenly raised the stakes, what he wanted must not be small.
"Then I'll speak plainly. I can take you out of here, help you repair your soul, and refine a body for you to achieve resurrection. But I need you to make a soul contract with me. From now on, you will serve me for ten years." Xiao Yan placed his hands behind his back, his bearing matchless like a true Dou Venerate, and directly requested an elite Dou Venerate to serve him.
"Serve you for ten years?!" Venerable Tian Huo was stunned for a moment, then his face darkened slightly.
"Venerable Tian Huo, don't think you're getting the short end of the stick with ten years. Collecting materials to repair your soul and refining a body also take time. With just your current soul body form, what can you offer me?"
"The sooner I help you resurrect, the sooner I can gain the service of a Dou Venerate. This way, we share a common goal, don't we?"
Xiao Yan revealed a cunning smile and instantly bound both parties' interests together.
You want to resurrect as soon as possible; I also want you to resurrect sooner so you can serve me. In this way, both parties had the same goal and would be more earnest in facilitating the resurrection without employing underhanded means.
Xiao Yan had long understood that the most solid relationships in this world were those based on mutual interest.
How could he possibly let a Dou Venerate's soul body stay by his side without reason? So-called soul oaths were just bullshit.
Only when both parties were in the same boat could the relationship be truly stable.
As the Little Clan Leader of the Xiao Clan, Xiao Yan was well-versed in such matters.
"You really aren't losing out, actually wanting me to serve you. An elite Dou Venerate isn't someone ordinary people can invite, let alone have serve them," Venerable Tian Huo said, but the gloominess in his eyes dissipated significantly.
Xiao Yan's reasoning did make sense. This way, he would feel more at ease that Xiao Yan wouldn't play tricks, deliberately delay the restoration of his soul, or even harm him. Having a common goal indeed put him more at ease.
Xiao Yan smiled and said, "Although you are a Dou Venerate, right now you are not. You cannot bring me enough value; you need to understand that."
In truth, Xiao Yan was lying here. He deliberately said this to make Venerable Tian Huo believe that he was also a Dou Venerate.
If Xiao Yan were a Dou Venerate, then a High Di Class Dou Technique would hold little attraction for him. For someone at the level of a Dou Venerate, only Tian Class techniques would be truly tempting; Tian Class was the standard for the Dou Venerate realm.
Concealing one's true abilities and hidden cards was a key negotiation tactic.
Undoubtedly, Venerable Tian Huo basically believed that Xiao Yan was also a Dou Venerate after this exchange. Using Venerable Tian Huo's own words, it was not easy to invite an elite Dou Venerate, let alone have one help collect materials to restore one's soul.
"Ten years; this deal isn't a loss for you. Moreover, I can even let you achieve resurrection through a borrowed body. Refining such a special body requires three kinds of Heavenly Flames. I think such a body is enough for you to serve me for ten years, right?" Xiao Yan took out a scroll from his storage ring, flicked it lightly, and the scroll flew into Venerable Tian Huo's hand.
A gleam flashed in Venerable Tian Huo's eyes after seeing the contents of the scroll. The Heavenly Flame Body recorded on it was simply miraculous and unparalleled, able to achieve zero rejection, without the problems associated with seizing someone else's body, and without any suppression of his strength.
Moreover, it required three kinds of Heavenly Flames to refine. This condition was extremely harsh. For the current Venerable Tian Huo, such a body was more precious than Heavenly Flames or Tian Class Qi Methods.
"You are quite eloquent, but I can't deny that your terms are very tempting. Serving you for ten years is reasonable. However, with my current Spiritual Strength, I can only last a few more years," Venerable Tian Huo pondered for a moment, then slowly nodded and said seriously.
"Rest assured. Although you are the soul body of a Dou Venerate, I will definitely restore your Spiritual Strength to its peak state within half a year at the earliest or a year at the latest," Xiao Yan said confidently.
Not to mention that he had pill recipes to restore Spiritual Strength in his storage ring. Even if alchemy didn't work, the Hun Clan, as experts in soul matters on the Dou Qi Continent, had countless ways to repair a Dou Venerate's soul body.
At most, it was just a matter of figuring out how to earn soul points.
"I hope this old man hasn't misjudged you." Venerable Tian Huo gave Xiao Yan a deep look, then, without hesitation, tossed the immature Fallen Heart Flame floating in his hand toward Xiao Yan.
Xiao Yan didn't have anything suitable to store this immature Fallen Heart Flame at the moment, so he took out the Black Demon Cauldron and placed the tiny Fallen Heart Flame inside.
He could feel how fragile this little being was at the moment. He forcibly suppressed the joy in his heart and placed the Black Demon Cauldron into his storage ring.
Only a medicinal cauldron ranked on the Heavenly Cauldron Ranking like the Black Demon Cauldron could be used to store Heavenly Flames. Trying to store Heavenly Flames in other items would be nothing but a dream.
Then, under Venerable Tian Huo's watchful gaze, he also stored the scroll of the Five Ring Flame Expelling Technique into his storage ring.
Venerable Tian Huo glanced at the pile of bones and sighed, "Please also collect these remains of mine. The bones of an elite Dou Venerate have some special uses."
Xiao Yan naturally wouldn't refuse this small request. With a wave of his hand, a suction force surged out and collected all the bones into his storage ring.
Then, the two used soul imprints to establish a mutual contract. This kind of soul contract would explode and damage the soul if violated.
Using the same old trick, Xiao Yan wrapped himself in Heavenly Flames and walked out of the barrier. He turned his head to look in the direction of the barrier; this time, he had reaped abundant rewards.
Then, black flames flickered in his eyes as he lowered his head to look further down into the magma world.
He hadn't yet reached the bottom. There were still unknown regions in this magma world. The area below remained a sea of darkness, like an endless abyss.
"Now that I'm serving you, let me give you a word of advice. Even if your strength is immense, don't let curiosity drive you to venture further down. Although I don't know what's down there, I've existed here for a long time and can vaguely sense that there's something extremely terrifying below. The appearance of these Fire Lizards here might even be related to that thing," Venerable Tian Huo said solemnly after taking a deep breath.
Xiao Yan showed a meaningful smile, the black flames flickering in his eyes. However, he didn't say anything, allowing Venerable Tian Huo to enter the storage ring, and then carried the ring as he swam upward.
At this time, the various elders who had been waiting outside for Xiao Yan's return had long since dispersed. The First Elder, upon learning that Xiao Yan had recklessly dived into the magma world, couldn't help but curse him as a madman.
How could someone with only Dou King strength dare to dive into those terrifying magma depths unless they were insane!
Splash!
The quiet surface of the magma sea was devoid of wind and waves. There was only the slight sound of bursting bubbles. The entire magma world was still that quiet. Suddenly, the sound of something breaking through the surface of the magma echoed. Immediately, a human figure, whose entire body was wrapped in flames, rushed out of the magma. Finally, the black-robed figure hovered in midair, panting, with an excited smile of having narrowly escaped death etched on his face.
Medusa sensed that Xiao Yan had returned from beneath the magma and merely cast a cold glance in his direction.
"Finally left that damned place..." Xiao Yan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and involuntarily smiled.
Exploring underground this time around had been really risky. However, it was fortunate that he had obtained benefits completely comparable to the risk. Not only had he obtained a Qi Method that, when cultivated to perfection, could rival a Tian Class Dou Technique, but more importantly, he had acquired the soul body of an elite Dou Venerate. As long as Xiao Yan successfully repaired his soul, he would have a Dou Venerate ultimate fighter by his side in the future.
Xiao Yan lowered his head and glanced at the snow-white storage ring on his finger that belonged to Venerable Tian Huo, and couldn't help but grin broadly.
"Jie Jie Jie, I've really hit the jackpot this time!" Xiao Yan put away his Soul Robe, revealing his true appearance, but the smile at the corner of his mouth couldn't be concealed.
If Venerable Tian Huo were to emerge from the storage ring and see that Xiao Yan was so young, with only the strength of a Dou King, he would definitely cry out that he'd been duped!
"That old man came looking for you just now," Medusa said coolly.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan put away his smile, flew over to Medusa, and somewhat brazenly looked at her human upper body and snake-tail lower body.
Medusa suddenly opened her eyes, and a seven-colored beam of light blasted him away.
"Hey, are you trying to kill someone!" Xiao Yan complained unhappily.
"If you act like that again, I will kill you." Medusa's gaze was icy cold, not sounding like she was joking at all.
"Alright, alright, fine. I was just thinking of checking how your body condensation is progressing and whether you need help, but if not, never mind. Hmph." Xiao Yan was in high spirits, pretended to snort coldly, and then slowly flew toward the cave entrance.
Whoosh!
A dark shadow flew over. Medusa's jade-like hand gently caught it. It was a jade box.
Medusa raised her head, her beautiful eyes looking at Xiao Yan at the cave entrance; her delicate eyebrows slightly furrowed.
"This is the magma world of the earth veins. Inside are some Core-Fire Lotus Seeds of the Green Lotus Core Flame, which can help you better condense your body and strengthen your bloodline." Having said this, Xiao Yan did not wait for Medusa to respond and flew out of the cave.
Medusa's slender fingers gently opened the jade box with a click. Inside lay seven Core-Fire Lotus Seeds that looked like green gemstones. Each seed had been refined by Xiao Yan using the Ten Thousand Beast Flame. They could be said to be heavenly treasures tailor-made for her.
Upon seeing the exquisite Core-Fire Lotus Seeds inside the jade box, her eyes first showed a hint of surprise. Then, a touch of softness appeared, and an almost imperceptible smile graced the corner of her lips.
…
Before long, Xiao Yan, who had just flown up from the depths of the earth, hadn't even had time to catch his breath before arriving at the First Elder's resting chamber.
"This is...!!!" When the First Elder saw the immature Fallen Heart Flame that Xiao Yan took out, his eyes suddenly surged with uncontrollable ecstasy.
"The Fallen Heart Flame sensed that there was another immature Heart Flame beneath the magma, so I dove into the magma to retrieve it," Xiao Yan said with a smile.
Upon hearing that Xiao Yan had ventured into that dangerous magma world for this, the First Elder's eyes became somewhat moist.
"Xiao Yan... you... the academy is truly fortunate to have you." The First Elder sighed deeply. If Xiao Yan weren't planning to leave the academy, he would have considered passing his position as First Elder to him.
He had never seen such a student who dedicated himself so wholeheartedly to the academy. He was moved to the point of tears!
Like a teacher comforting a student, Xiao Yan patted the First Elder's shoulder and said, "Don't cry, First Elder. This time, aside from handing over the Heart Flame to you, there's another matter I'd like your help with."
After hastily taking out a precious container to store the Heart Flame, the First Elder asked, "Tell me. As long as I can help, I certainly will."
"I want to launch a counterattack against Feng City, where Han Feng is." A sharp killing intent flashed in Xiao Yan's eyes. Since he had made a promise, he would see it through.
The First Elder was momentarily stunned. Then his expression turned grim. He took out a few sheets of paper from the table and said, "If the academy hadn't been overwhelmed with affairs lately, we would have taken action long ago. These are the recent intelligence reports about Han Feng."