Word Count: 2,799 Words
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Xiao Yan naturally wouldn't fight alone. Besides the Inner Academy's Dou King elders and First Elder Su Qian at the Dou Ancestor realm, the four newly-advanced Dou Kings—Lin Yan, Lin Xiuya, Liu Qing, and Yan Hao—also planned to go to Feng City to avenge the previous battle!
In addition to these Dou Kings, more than a dozen Inner Academy students and enforcers at the peak or advanced Dou Spirit stage would also join them.
Although Jia Nan Academy had many elders, they were all at the Dou King realm. Students with the potential to reach Dou Emperor typically left to forge their own paths in the outside world.
In contrast, the strong experts Han Feng had previously gathered from the Black-Corner Region were leaders of various factions, all of whom were Dou Emperors.
Even though the First Elder Su Qian was a Dou Ancestor, the Gold Silver Elders could join forces to hold him back. Otherwise, Jia Nan Academy would have gone to eliminate Han Feng long ago.
"First Elder, is everything arranged?" Xiao Yan looked at the nearby First Elder Su Qian and revealed a hint of a cruel smile.
A cold light flashed in the First Elder's eyes upon hearing this. Xiao Yan had refined eight Mighty Huang Pills over the past two months, which he and Jia Nan Academy split fifty-fifty. The academy used three of these pills to hire three Dou Emperor experts from the Black-Corner Region.
You think you're impressive, Han Feng, using Mighty Huang Pills to hire Dou Emperors from the Black-Corner Region? Then we'll use your own methods against you!
We'll also hire a few Dou Emperors to besiege your Feng City!
This was precisely why the First Elder had initially agreed to let Xiao Yan refine the Mighty Huang Pills.
Su Qian nodded and said, "Old Yin Gu, the Sect Leader of the Dark Sky Sect; Wu Tie, the Gang Leader of the Wild Lion Gang; and Su Mei of the Luo Sha Gate—these three have had grudges with Han Feng before, so they didn't respond to his call back then. Moreover, they are all Dou Emperors."
"Tomorrow, when we besiege Feng City, besides us from Jia Nan Academy, these three factions will jointly blockade Feng City from all directions. We won't let a single person from Feng City or any faction that attacked Jia Nan Academy escape!"
Total annihilation!
As the First Elder of Jia Nan Academy who could survive in the perilous Black-Corner Region, Su Qian naturally understood the principle of eliminating threats at their roots.
Xiao Yan was very satisfied with these ruthless words.
"Then I'll go back and rest for the night. Leave Han Feng to me tomorrow," Xiao Yan said decisively.
In the Xiao Hall, Xiao Yu and the others had long been waiting in the main hall for Xiao Yan's return.
Four people from the Xiao Hall would join tomorrow's battle to besiege Feng City: Hu Jia, Wu Hao, Xiao Ning, and Xiao Yu.
After several months of cultivation, both Hu Jia and Wu Hao had reached the Dou Spirit realm. Xiao Ning and Xiao Yu, after receiving Xiao Yan's Spirit Ascension Pills, had also broken through to Dou Spirit. Now, their cultivation levels were even higher than that of the Clan Head, Xiao Zhan.
"Remember, be careful in tomorrow's battle. Leave those Dou Kings and Dou Emperors to the Academy's elders. You're responsible for dealing with the guards of Feng City," Xiao Yan instructed.
"Understood! Little Clan Leader!" Xiao Ning shouted loudly.
"Do you think I'm stupid? Don't worry, I'll avoid anyone whose cultivation surpasses mine," Xiao Yu pouted.
Xiao Yan nodded. Finally feeling at ease, he returned to his room. Each time he returned, he would pass by the room where Xun Er had once lived, and each time, a sense of loneliness would well up in his heart.
The beauty was gone; seeing her belongings made him think of her.
Xiao Yan slowly shook his head and composed himself. After this battle, he would return to the Jia Ma Empire to visit his father and check on the development of the Yan Alliance.
He had left the Jia Ma Empire for a year and a half. It was time to see how the Yan Alliance was progressing. If he had to face the Gu Clan in the future, having a strong Yan Alliance wouldn't be a bad backing.
Afterward, his goal would be to visit Burning Flame Valley to seek the complete Three Changes of the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change. Also, as his ancestor had mentioned, the Yin-Yang Twin Flame could guide him to find the other two Heavenly Flames he had released through self-detonation previously.
Heavenly Flames!
These would always be what Xiao Yan pursued. With Heavenly Flames, he could have everything!
After returning to his room, Xiao Yan lightly flicked Venerable Tian Huo's snow-white storage ring. With a buzzing sound, a wisp of white light emerged from the ring, and the somewhat weakened soul body of Venerable Tian Huo floated out.
Xiao Yan took out two items from the storage ring. One was a tier 5 spiritual liquid called Soul Cultivating Saliva. Although only tier 5, this spiritual liquid could nourish a soul body.
The other was a medicinal pill called the Little Soul Black Purple Pill that Xiao Yan had obtained before. This kind of pill could increase Spiritual Strength and strengthen the soul body.
Xiao Yan had spent quite a few soul points to exchange for the pill recipe of the Little Soul Black Purple Pill from Hun Lao Gui. Fortunately, the Inner Academy had abundant medicinal ingredients. Otherwise, it would have been difficult for him to refine this pill.
Not only did he obtain the Little Soul Black Purple Pill recipe, but Xiao Yan also exhausted his remaining soul points and several tier 6 pills to exchange for a low-grade tier 7 pill recipe called the Great Soul Black Purple Pill.
From the name, it was clear that this was an advanced version of the Little Soul Black Purple Pill. Its effect was similar, except that it could increase the Spiritual Strength of someone at the Great Perfection of the Mortal State.
There was no other way! The drawbacks of Xiao Yan's low-level Soul Training Method had been fully exposed. His Soul Training Method provided little help now; even though he had cultivated the Spirit Heart Gathering Soul Technique to perfection, the effect was still minimal.
He had to rely entirely on the special spiritual fluctuations emitted by the Soul Command Token to slowly increase his Spiritual Strength.
Relying solely on the nourishment of the Soul Command Token, it would take him at least three to four years to reach the Great Perfection of the Mortal State, only then would he possibly be able to use the Soul Gathering Burst of the Spirit Heart Gathering Soul Technique to break through to the Soul State.
Three or four years!
This made Xiao Yan feel quite troubled, so he had to resort to pills to increase his Spiritual Strength.
Of course, if other alchemists knew that Xiao Yan could increase his Spiritual Strength this much in just four years, they would probably be so envious they'd grind their teeth.
Not appreciating the blessings one has!
However, even though Xiao Yan could refine the Emperor Heaven Pill, refining a tier 7 pill was not something that could be achieved overnight.
When Venerable Tian Huo emerged from the storage ring and saw Xiao Yan taking out the Soul Cultivating Saliva and the Little Soul Black Purple Pill, what shocked him most was how young Xiao Yan was!
"You... you... you're only a Dou King?!" Venerable Tian Huo was stunned, staring at Xiao Yan, who was only a 6-star Dou King and appeared to be about twenty years old. He was dumbfounded.
Has the world changed while I was hiding in the magma world? Do Dou Kings now possess the strength of Dou Ancestors?
Otherwise, how could he have entered the magma world!
When Venerable Tian Huo sensed that the Little Soul Black Purple Pill Xiao Yan had produced was a high-grade tier 6 pill, and smelled the medicinal fragrance on him, he was even more astonished.
Good heavens! This guy is actually a 6th-tier alchemist???!
Venerable Tian Huo knew Xiao Yan was an alchemist, but if he were a Dou Ancestor or Dou Venerate, then being a 6th-tier alchemist would be very normal.
But now! This was not normal at all!
Venerable Tian Huo felt that the world had indeed changed!
Xiao Yan saw Venerable Tian Huo's expression of disbelief, opened the cap of the Soul Cultivating Saliva, and said, "Venerable Tian Huo, my strength doesn't matter. What's important is that I can help you resurrect."
Venerable Tian Huo came back to his senses. Indeed, Xiao Yan's cultivation didn't matter; what mattered was achieving his goal.
He slowly absorbed all the Soul Cultivating Saliva, and his somewhat illusory soul body immediately became more substantial. The moment the Little Soul Black Purple Pill touched his soul body, the medicinal pill instantly transformed into a powerful spiritual force that enveloped him.
Venerable Tian Huo let out a sigh of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted. Although his Spiritual Strength hadn't fully recovered to its peak, he only needed to gradually absorb all the medicinal strength of the pill to recover sufficiently.
"Heh heh, such great kindness need not be expressed in words. By the way, I still don't know how to address you," Venerable Tian Huo said.
Even though he saw that Xiao Yan was only at the Dou King realm, Venerable Tian Huo didn't dare underestimate the young man before him. He knew that Xiao Yan was proficient in Soul Skills and possessed extremely strong Spiritual Strength. Most importantly, he needed Xiao Yan's help.
"Xiao Yan. I won't be presumptuous either; I'll address you as Elder Yao." Xiao Yan raised his hand slightly. He understood propriety. This wasn't like when he had negotiated with Venerable Tian Huo before; after all, the other party was the soul body of a Dou Venerate.
"Very well. If you wish to cultivate the Five Ring Flame Expelling Technique or need assistance, just call me. I'll return to the storage ring to continue refining the medicinal strength," Venerable Tian Huo said before slipping back into the storage ring.
With tomorrow's confrontation with Han Feng approaching, Xiao Yan naturally prepared backup plans.
"Han Feng... you covet my Flame Mantra, but don't I also desire your Sea Heart Flame? I've heard that the Hall of Souls has a method to extract Heavenly Flames. Hopefully, the soul of a peak 6th-tier alchemist will be enough to exchange for such a method."
A fierce glint flashed in Xiao Yan's eyes. Whether for public or private reasons, he had no intention of letting Han Feng go.
The Flame Mantra was now at the quasi-Tian Class level, and the Sea Heart Flame ranked 15th among the Heavenly Flames. Although not ranked very high, it should be enough to push the Flame Mantra forward another half-step, right?
Xiao Yan took out the Soul Command Token from the Bone Flame Ring. In tomorrow's battle, this Soul Command Token would likely collect quite a few souls. The soul bodies of Dou Kings and Dou Emperors were worth quite a number of soul points.
…
Early the next morning, before dawn had even broken, Jia Nan Academy was already shrouded in a murderous aura. A large number of Griffins awaited at the landing area, and all the students at the Dou Spirit realm who couldn't fly were seated on them.
Everyone had already gathered at the landing area. Although there weren't many people from Jia Nan Academy this time—only a few dozen—they were all at least Dou Spirits, and half of them were Dou King elders. This force was certainly not weak.
"The Dark Sky Sect and the other two factions have secretly mobilized their forces to surround Feng City from three directions. We will attack from the main gate," Su Qian said to all the elders.
Su Qian had conducted all of this in secret. Even when Xiao Yan was refining pills, it was done in a sealed chamber with barriers to prevent any information leaks.
A cold smile appeared on Xiao Yan's face, his eyes flashing. "Today, we must catch Han Feng completely off guard!"
Moments later, the First Elder suddenly waved his hand and took the lead, striding toward the gate. All the elders and students followed behind him with fervent expressions.
Such a large-scale mobilization within the Inner Academy naturally caused quite a stir, but even if Han Feng found out now, it would already be too late.
Ignoring the various gazes around them, Xiao Yan and his group headed straight for the Inner Academy's exit. After passing through the dense forest, they saw that the hidden spatial gate had already been opened. The low roars of Griffins sounded continuously as they flew through the gate.
The massive Griffins flew toward Feng City like a black and dense cloud.
…
At the same time, in Feng City of the Black-Corner Region...
Feng City had undergone significant changes in just these short four months. Because Han Feng had previously attacked Jia Nan Academy, several Dou Emperor-level factions fearing retaliation had established their headquarters here one after another. This transformed the small city into the most renowned in the Black-Corner Region, and present-day Feng City was gradually revealing its prosperity.
In the vast area at the very center of the city stood a magnificent manor. Its grand and domineering aura surpassed any other building in the city. It served as both Han Feng's residence and the meeting place for several major factions.
Inside the manor, numerous figures were seated in an extremely spacious hall. The person occupying the highest seat was none other than the Medicine Emperor, Han Feng!
Not far from Han Feng's sides were the Gold Silver Elders, the strongest experts in the Black-Corner Region. Below them were the leaders of various factions participating in the Black Alliance. Any one of these leaders was a formidable figure whose stomp could make the entire Black-Corner Region tremble. However, in such a setting, these powerful individuals could only sit in the lower seats.
The atmosphere in the meeting hall was somewhat joyous, and even Han Feng, seated at the head, wore a happy expression.
"I won't waste words on certain matters. All of you responded to my call back then and joined me in attacking Jia Nan Academy. If we don't unite, we risk being defeated one by one by Jia Nan Academy."
"I, Han Feng, shall naturally shoulder some responsibility. Besides the pills I promised you before, here are some tier 6 healing pills as welcome gifts for joining the 'Black Alliance.'"
Han Feng nodded to a subordinate beside him, and trays holding medicinal pills were brought out.
All the faction leaders revealed greedy and joyful expressions. Although they were initially reluctant to join any Black Alliance and be constrained, if a peak 6th-tier alchemist would refine pills for them, they were more than willing.
"Jia Nan Academy has been throwing its weight around for many years. I, Han Feng, hereby promise that any Dou Emperor who joins my Black Alliance and kills an elder of Jia Nan Academy will receive a Mighty Huang Pill refined by me!"
"If anyone can capture that Xiao Yan, I, Han Feng, guarantee to give them a satisfactory reward."
The Dou Emperors in the hall couldn't remain calm upon hearing these words.
Mighty Huang Pills—these were deadly temptations for Dou Emperors!
"Haha, just a mere Dou King brat relying on the advantage of a Heavenly Flame. Don't worry, if we join forces, we will definitely capture him."
Seeing everyone nod, Han Feng understood what they were thinking but did not refute them. He indeed coveted Xiao Yan's Heavenly Flames, but what he cared about most was actually the complete version of the 'Flame Mantra' Qi Method that Xiao Yan cultivated!
However, what Han Feng didn't realize was that while he was plotting against others, others were also plotting against him—and today was the day!
At this moment, Feng City had been silently surrounded from all directions.
…
Meanwhile, as Xiao Yan, the First Elder, and the others flew away from the Inner Academy toward Feng City, a streak of purple light rapidly approached from afar, flying into the sky above Peace Town, intending to go directly to Jia Nan Academy.
"Halt! Flying is prohibited in Peace Town. Entering Jia Nan Academy requires proper procedures," Jia Nan Academy's law enforcers blocked the way.
"I'm here to find someone. May I ask if Xiao Yan is here?"