Breaking the Masked Man

"Wow, it's huge!" Zi Yan exclaimed, her eyes wide as she leaned over the edge of the boat.

"Isn't it magnificent? When I first came here, I was just like you. This city has been expanded over a thousand years and is now comparable to some countries." Yao Lao looked at the familiar city in front of him and said softly to Yao Yan.

Yao Yan nodded. He was also somewhat surprised by the scale of the Pill Tower's grand gesture, but the scale before him was obviously normal. The Pill Tower was located in the most central area of ​​Zhongzhou and was a top-tier power, gathering the most outstanding alchemists in the Dou Qi Continent. It was only natural that countless people would flock to it.

Therefore, Danta established several spatial pivots in the outer realms as transit points to facilitate the flow of this massive population.

"Xuan Yi, you make arrangements for them. I still need to go and check on things. The Three Thousand Burning Flames have been quite unstable lately." Xuan Kongzi said softly, then looked at Yao Lao and Tian Huo Zun Zhe, nodded slightly, and then his figure disappeared from the spot without emitting the slightest spatial ripple, as if he had merged with the space itself.

This exquisite control over spatial power far surpasses that of Venerable Tianhuo, demonstrating his unfathomable strength.

"Let's go straight to the Pill Realm. I'm sure you don't want too many old friends to see you in your current state," Xuan Yi said gently, looking at Yao Lao with great consideration.

"I'll listen to you," the old medicine doctor said softly.

Xuan Yi smiled, and her face, weathered by time, seemed to become much younger in that instant. Love is always the most nourishing thing for a woman.

With Xuan Yi's control, the space around the spaceship moved like a fleeting moment, instantly shifting from a height of ten thousand meters to the center of Saint Pill City, where the massive black tower was also within reach.

A sense of time and weight washes over you.

"Let's go."

Xuan Yi said softly, and then led everyone into the Black Tower.

As one of the three giants of the Dan Tower, she naturally has the power to control the Black Tower. The Black Tower in front of her is not as simple as it looks on the outside. It has long been transformed by a Dou Sheng powerhouse into a small world full of energy.

This small world is the true core of the Pill Tower, the Pill Realm!

Only seventh-grade alchemists recognized by the Pill Tower are qualified to enter.

"As expected of the Pill Tower." Yao Yan took in everything along the way and thought to himself.

At the Dou Zong stage, one comprehends the power of space; at the Dou Zun stage, one utilizes the power of space… while at the Dou Sheng stage, one manipulates the power of space. Upon reaching the Dou Sheng level, one can freely condense the power of space, and creating a small world is an extremely easy task.

"Yao Yan, don't use your soul power to sense your surroundings. There are many people in seclusion here. If you use your soul power to sense things and disturb them, it would be impolite," Xuan Yi gently reminded him.

As she spoke, she glanced at the old doctor with a smile in her eyes, clearly indicating that the old doctor had done such an impolite thing back then.

The old apothecary said helplessly, "You still remember?"

I've always remembered what happened to you.

Xuan Yi nodded slightly and softly expressed her feelings.

Upon hearing this, the old apothecary seemed to recall something, a hint of sadness flashing in his eyes, and slowly said, "...After running away for so many years, he has finally returned."

He looked at every blade of grass and every tree before him with a complex expression. The old apothecary had spent the happiest years of his life in the Pill Tower, with a master who treated him like his own child and countless pill formulas for him to study...

"Shall we go take a look?" Xuan Yi asked softly, her eyes gentle.

Yao Lao nodded.

He then raised his hand and waved it gently, causing ripples to spread across the surrounding space. In a few breaths, the group arrived at a sea of ​​flowers, covered with countless precious herbs. Upon closer inspection, they discovered that this sea of ​​flowers was actually composed of numerous rare medicinal materials.

Medicinal herbs that are rarely seen elsewhere grow like cabbages here, thriving with great promise.

The old man's soul bowed respectfully to the 'sea of ​​flowers,' his eyes filled with reminiscence, and said softly, "Teacher, I'm back."

Yao Yan patted Zi Yan's little head, telling her to stop making a fuss and stand quietly to the side. He knew that Yao Lao's former teacher was from the Pill Tower, but he died in the end to protect Yao Chen. This matter was also closely related to Elder Mu Gu.

Speaking of which, the old doctor's life is really terrible; he always seems to run into some traitors.

The medicine clan was harmed by Yao Wangui.

In the Dan Tower, he was betrayed by his fellow disciples.

She adopted Han Feng, but was then betrayed by him.

It's as if he's spent his entire life in betrayal and deception. Only this old guy has such a magnanimous and carefree nature; anyone else would probably have gone mad by now.

Soon, Yao Yan thought of himself. If in the future, Yao Lao knew his true identity, he wondered what he would think... Unfortunately, he had no choice. In such a broken world, weakness was the original sin.

A gentle breeze rustled through the sea of ​​flowers, as if in response to the old doctor.

He stood there for a long time before slowly turning around.

"Let's go." The moment Yao Lao turned around, he had already returned to normal. He cherished the memory of his teacher, but he would not dwell on the sadness of the past, because life must go on, along with the hopes of the dead.

……

……

After paying respects to the old master's teacher, the group followed Xuan Yi to a secluded courtyard surrounded by rustling bamboo groves, clearly Xuan Yi's own courtyard.

"Give me a list of the missing medicinal herbs and items, and I'll go get them for you." Xuan Yi was clearly not the type to fuss over things. As soon as she had settled everyone in, she looked at the old doctor and asked.

Without any pretense, Yao Lao said directly, "Yao Yan possesses four different kinds of flames within his body, and he can wield them with ease. Therefore, I plan to use the method of tempering with different kinds of flames for his resurrection."

There are many methods of resurrection in the Pill Tower. Most of them use pills and physical bodies to revive the soul. This method of resurrection has too many flaws, which need to be remedied later. It also has many side effects. Even if one is resurrected, one's strength will not be able to return to its peak state, let alone seek a breakthrough.

Back then, the old master had studied these things. Later, after obtaining the Bone Spirit Cold Flame, he was inspired and created a method to perfectly revive using three different flames.

In terms of talent and skill in alchemy alone, Yao Lao is definitely one of the top figures in the Dou Qi Continent.

All he lacks is a powerful force.

After all, the profession of alchemist requires a large amount of medicinal materials and pill formulas. How can one person withstand such consumption alone, not to mention the need for cultivation?

"The original plan was to use the body of a Dou Zong as a vessel, revive the life force with the essence blood of a seventh-order magical beast and the peak seventh-grade bone-regenerating and blood-fusion pill, and finally temper it with three kinds of strange fire to achieve a perfect harmony between the body and soul..." Yao Lao said with some hesitation.

The man in black robes said inhumanly, "There are some remains of a Dou Sheng, and also some blood essence of a ninth-order magical beast. As for the peak seventh-order Life Bone Fusion Blood Pill... use the peak eighth-order Life and Death Reincarnation Pill instead. Since you want to use this to break through that barrier, then do everything to the extreme... I'll find a way to make it a Heaven-rank technique!"

As the words fell, Venerable Tianhuo couldn't help but pinch himself, looking at the old man Yao Lao with a hint of envy. He suddenly wanted to be a kept man, but back then he had no interest in women... and no rich woman had ever taken a fancy to him.

Being good-looking has its advantages... Yao Yan touched his handsome and flawless face. He suddenly felt that he could be good-looking too. Then he thought of Xiao Yan. In the original story, Xiao Yan was the richest man in the Dou Qi Continent who lived off his wife.

Even if Xiao Yan hadn't met Yao Lao, he would probably still have grown up.

It really doesn't work.

Once Gu Xun'er grows up to the Dou Sheng stage, does she really intend to let her 'Brother Xiao Yan' continue to fall into poverty?

At that point, even those old fogies from the ancient clans probably won't be able to stop it.

The thought of Gu Xun'er making that old geezer Gu Yuan explode with gold coins inexplicably amused him.

Yao Yan watched the show with great interest, while Old Yao on the side felt a little embarrassed. He could persuade Yao Yan to accept being a kept man, but to do so in front of Yao Yan, a junior, was quite uncomfortable. Men have some pride, especially older men.

"...Wouldn't that be a bit too much?"

"This was originally my share in the Pill Tower, I just took it out in advance. You can return it to me when you break through to the Dou Sheng realm." Xuan Yi said directly, not allowing Yao Lao to refuse, and then his figure disappeared from the spot, leaving Yao Lao alone with a bitter smile.

Unfortunately, the voices of an old man, a young man, and a little girl came from the side.

"Why didn't I have a soulmate back then?" Venerable Heavenly Fire said with a look of envy.

"It's great to be a kept man," Yao Yan said in a serious tone.

"Brother, what does 'living off a woman' mean?!"

Zi Yan blinked her big eyes, staring at Yao Yan with a cute and curious expression.

"Just like Aunt Xuan, she has money, and most importantly, she's willing to spend it on her man," Yao Yanshan instructed, acting like a teacher.

"When I have money in the future, I'll give it to my older brother too!" Zi Yan patted her chest with a sense of loyalty and said very seriously. To her, Yao Yan was family, and what was hers belonged to Yao Yan.

The old apothecary glared at the group of onlookers, his beard nearly flying off in the wind, and said irritably, "For whom am I doing this?"

If it weren't for Yao Yan, why would he have come to Danta?

"But this is not bad either~" Yao Yan said with a smile. He felt that this path was more suitable for Yao Lao than the original path, and with the Pill Tower, even if they really turned against each other one day, he would not have to worry about the old man getting into trouble.

As his strength and vision grew, Yao Yan gradually discovered the special nature of the Pill Tower. Its existence might not only be due to the old ancestor from back then, but also to the tacit approval of several major imperial clans.

The Soul Palace needs a balance of power, and the Pill Tower is undoubtedly the most suitable.

Without the major imperial clans having to send anyone, the Soul Palace could be restrained. This deal was clearly acceptable to all the major imperial clans.

"Young man, remember this: debts of gratitude are the hardest to repay..." Old Yao sighed softly and said in a deep voice.

But I am a member of the Soul Clan.

Yao Yan muttered to himself, the Soul Clan never cared about human relationships. Since he couldn't repay the favor, he would just kill him. That's what his master, Soul Void, did. He could even kill the teacher who taught him.

It’s an old tradition.

……

……

Jia Ma Empire, Utan City.

Xiao family.

In the quiet night, only the occasional chirping of insects could be heard.

Suddenly, a small figure appeared in the backyard. He looked around to make sure no one was there before sneaking into the courtyard. His bright eyes held a hint of apprehension as he muttered to himself, "If I get caught, will people think I'm a pervert?"

He immediately thought of his age and calmed down. He was no longer a big brother in his twenties; he was now just a boy under ten years old.

"It's alright. I was just trying to help Xun'er. She was abandoned by her family in our Xiao family, and she must be feeling terrible. She's also so weak... I hope my third-level Dou Qi can help her."

Having lived in this world for so many years, how could he not be interested in battle qi? Now, after refining it for several years, he has achieved some success and can also feel the nourishing effect of battle qi on his body. According to his father, the battle qi at the battle qi stage is extremely gentle and has the best nourishing effect on the body.

Xiao Xun'er's body was so weak. If she could be nourished with the Qi of Dou Qi, perhaps her pain could be alleviated, and she wouldn't always be so withdrawn and always stay alone on the side.

Xiao Yan liked this cute little girl very much, so he decided to give this lonely girl a little help, at least to prevent her from being bullied.