Breaking the Masked Man

"We managed to break through recently by sheer luck."

Yao Yan said modestly, his lowered head and meek demeanor showing no arrogance whatsoever.

“There is no room for luck in cultivating body-refining combat techniques. If you cannot endure the pain during cultivation, it is impossible to cultivate this body-refining combat technique to the second level in just a few months. However, at this level, your current physical condition is already the limit.”

Hun Xuzi's eyesight was incredibly sharp; he immediately saw where Yao Yan's current bottleneck lay.

Yao Yan made rapid progress in cultivating the Vajra Indestructible Body, a high-level Earth-rank fighting technique, by relying on the power of the Dou Di bloodline of the Stone Clan and the Spirit Clan. There were almost no bottlenecks, and he didn't even need to worry about physical damage. However, this potential is not unlimited, and it will eventually be exhausted.

Reaching the second level is already Yao Yan's current limit.

Yao Yan was naturally aware of her physical condition. Upon hearing this, her eyes filled with hope as she asked, "Teacher, is there any way?"

"There are many ways, such as using pills to replenish your qi and blood and increase your body refining speed, or you can use your talent to devour the qi and blood of others to make up for your own deficiencies. However, I advise you not to choose these two methods for the time being. You should focus on cultivating battle qi instead of body refining techniques."

Hun Xuzi paused, his tone becoming more serious, and said in a deep voice, "Remember, combat techniques are all minor paths; battle qi is the foundation!"

He also realized that Yao Yan was a bit unbalanced. His own Dou Qi cultivation was only a six-star Dou Shi, but his physical strength was comparable to a sixth-order magical beast. This was obviously putting the cart before the horse, and even wasting his own talent and the power of his many Dou Di bloodlines.

"Disciple knows!"

Yao Yan frowned, then nodded heavily.

Even if Hun Xuzi hadn't said anything, he already planned to postpone the cultivation of the Vajra Indestructible Body, because his current body was no longer sufficient to support the rapid advancement of the Vajra Indestructible Body. It would be better to focus on the cultivation of Dou Qi. Once his Dou Qi cultivation reached the level of Dou Wang or even Dou Huang, the cultivation speed of the Vajra Indestructible Body would naturally increase.

Hun Xuzi is right. One's own battle qi cultivation is fundamental, while battle techniques are merely to enhance one's combat power. It is obvious which is primary and which is secondary.

He's been a bit too obsessed with his rapidly increasing combat power lately.

in other words.

His strength increased so rapidly that he became arrogant and felt like he could crush everything.

Seeing that Yao Yan had listened to him, Hun Xuzi nodded. He found it very easy to teach Yao Yan in this respect, much easier than teaching some of the genius disciples of the Soul Clan. The Soul Clan was not lacking in geniuses and prodigies, but most of them were extremely arrogant and confident when they were young, even a bit conceited.

For example, Hun Feng, a descendant of Hun Yuantian, an elder of the Hun Clan, is one of the possessors of the divine bloodline of the Hun Clan. He is also the young patriarch of the Hun Clan and a candidate for the next patriarch of the Hun Clan.

His age was not much different from Yao Yan's, but their personalities were completely different.

Perhaps I can train Yao Yan to become the young clan leader, the future clan leader of the Soul Clan... Soul Xuzi looked at Yao Yan and a thought inexplicably arose in his mind. The young clan leader represents not only status, but also the right to speak. In fact, if something happens to Soul Emperor, the young clan leader will become the true clan leader.

However, this thought only lasted for a moment before he suppressed it, because he knew the difficulty involved, and everything depended on Yao Yan's future performance.

If Yao Yan has the ability in the future, I only need to go with the flow and try to help him. If he doesn't, it's useless for me to think about it any further.

What's more.

Hun Feng was able to become the young clan leader not only because of his own talent, but also because of the influence of Hun Yuantian, an elder of the Hun clan.

Yao Yan had nothing; he was merely an 'outsider' with some Soul Clan blood.

Perhaps I should put some pressure on him… Hun Xuzi looked at the obedient little guy in front of him, his eyes flashing with black and red light. After pondering for a while, he slowly said, “Yaoyan, I will ask you one more time. Are you willing to return to the Soul Clan? Although your father is only a descendant of a branch of the Soul Clan, he also contains a trace of the Soul Clan’s Dou Di bloodline power.”

"Teacher, I'm willing!"

Yao Yan's eyes brightened slightly, and he became somewhat agitated. Looking up at Hun Xuzi's eyes, he said in a deep voice, "Without my teacher, how could I be who I am today? In my eyes, my teacher is my only family!"

He spoke with conviction and great emotion.

People say that there is great terror between life and death, and this is not wrong. Under the pressure of life and death, Yao Yan's acting skills have reached a state of perfection.

He's even convinced himself of what he's saying now.

As for the pressure of changing his name in the future, he obviously felt none of it. After all, his name in his previous life was not Yao Yan. The only thing related to his name was the character "Yan". As for what his surname was, he didn't care. After all, this world was no longer the same world as before, and he could never go back.

In this life, he only wants to control his own destiny and do whatever he wants, rather than have his destiny controlled by others, who can do whatever they want!

"...Good boy."

Hun Xuzi looked at the excited boy, raised his hand to pat his head, and sighed softly.

There was a pause.

He said with some helplessness, "Teacher's status in the Soul Clan is not low, but the higher the position, the more one needs to pay attention to one's words and deeds. If it were just an individual, Teacher could completely disregard other influences and find you the essence blood of the Dou Di of the Yan Clan and the Lei Clan, or even the Gu Clan. But Teacher is not like that. Teacher's behavior will affect the entire Soul Clan."

"Master has already done so much for me. I am confident that I can walk my own path in the future. I am confident that I will personally extract the essence blood from various races in the future!"

Upon hearing this, Yao Yan's eyes revealed confidence and arrogance, and he whispered a low snort.

At this moment, he was full of vigor and confidence in his future, just like a young genius!

"Haha, I certainly believe that!"

Upon hearing this, Hun Xuzi laughed loudly and said, "Master, wait for that day. My disciples, Hun Xuzi's disciples, should be like this!"

He was really looking forward to Yao Yan trampling the younger generation of all races under his feet. If he could also trample Hun Feng under his feet, that would be even better. He disliked that arrogant kid who had no respect for his elders and relied on the legacy of his ancestors to act lawlessly. He even killed two of Yao Yan's alchemy apprentices at the slightest disagreement.

Laughed for a while.

Hun Xuzi looked down at Yao Yan and slowly said, "The Soul Clan has its own rules. I can find you the essence blood of a Dou Di from the Soul Clan, but the grade of this bloodline power will definitely not be high. If you want to obtain a high-grade Dou Di essence blood, you have to fight for it yourself. This is an opportunity that the Soul Clan gives to all its young members!"

"In addition, if you make a contribution to the Soul Clan, you will also have the opportunity to obtain a Dou Di's essence blood."

"These Dou Di essence bloods are all left by the ancestors of the Soul Clan. If one day my teacher encounters an accident, his own Dou Di essence blood will remain in them and be bestowed upon future generations."

"Are you sure this is the Soul Clan..." Yao Yan thought to herself, but a serious expression appeared on her face: "Teacher won't encounter any misfortune!"

"The teacher was just saying 'what if'."

"Nothing unexpected!"

Yao Yan said solemnly, because Hun Xuzi's life was his own, and this was one of the goals he had worked hard to cultivate. How could he entrust it to someone else!

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 34 Corporate Culture

Children are just children after all. Give them a little sweetness and care, and they will rely on you.

Little did they know that the only person they could rely on in this world was themselves.

Hun Xuzi's heart remained cold, and he did not change in the slightest because of Yao Yan's words. He had been able to break through to the Seven-Star Dou Sheng in just a few hundred years, and he had long seen through the truth of this world. Everything was fake, and only one's own strength was real. In fact, only if your strength was high enough could your words be true.

He looked at the 'ignorant' Yao Yan, smiled, and said in an even gentler tone, "With your current strength, you are capable of going back to take revenge. But after taking revenge, have you considered what your next step should be?"

"Didn't the teacher say... that I should return to the Soul Clan?"

Yao Yan looked surprised and asked in return.

A strange glint flashed in Hun Xuzi's eyes as he slowly said, "Among the enemies you want to kill, there is one who possesses a sixth-grade bloodline. You should have heard of his name, Yao Ding. He was the genius who emerged from Dan Ding City several years ago. He was the one who ate the Purple Gold Spirit King Ginseng that should have belonged to you. If your father had not been killed and had brought it back for you, perhaps the title of genius would have fallen on you."

"..."

Yao Yan fell silent upon hearing this, his eyes turning sinister and furious. His fists clenched tightly, and his body even began to tremble slightly due to the intensity of his emotions.

Hatred is always the best weapon.

Hun Xuzi narrowed his eyes and continued, "Once you kill him, it will definitely alarm the entire Medicine Clan. If the Soul Clan takes you back at this time, it will inevitably cause a conflict between the two clans. This is not in the interest of the Soul Clan, and the Soul Clan will not go to war with the Medicine Clan for your sake. However, you don't need to worry about anything. I have already arranged everything for you to help you escape."

As he spoke, he waved his hand and used the Void Devouring Flame to distort space, taking out a small jade tablet from it. The jade tablet shimmered with silver light, flickering like breathing.

“This is a teleportation jade tablet that only a Dou Zun can make. I added some extra ingredients to it, enough to interfere with those old guys from the Medicine Clan’s pursuit of your whereabouts. Aren’t you interested in the Black Corner Region? After you’ve taken your revenge, crush it, and it will teleport you there.”

"You can train in the Black Corner Region for a few years. Once this matter has calmed down, I will bring you back to the Soul Clan."

Yao Yan raised his hand to catch the jade tablet, then clasped his hands and bowed deeply to Hun Xuzi: "Thank you, teacher."

"Since you call me teacher, I naturally have to make some plans for you."

Hun Xuzi raised his hand to help Yao Yanxu up, looking every bit the role of a teacher. However, his current state as a soul was sinister and terrifying, completely lacking any semblance of high moral standing.

After saying this, he looked around at the pills and medicinal herbs and smiled:

"Let's not talk about that now. Since I have some free time today, I'll teach you some advanced alchemy techniques. Watch carefully, and even if you don't understand them, just memorize them for now. Once your soul has fully absorbed the spirit crystals and you've entered the Spirit Realm, you'll naturally understand the function of these techniques. The refining of high-grade pills isn't about blindly copying techniques; it requires you to capture the spiritual essence of each medicinal herb..."

He waved his hand and gathered medicinal herbs from all around, then threw them all into the cauldron. As black flames burned, the essence of hundreds of medicinal herbs was extracted in an instant.

Compared to Yao Yan's petty nature, Hun Xuzi was completely behaving like a master alchemist, with a grand and sweeping style.

As the Void Devouring Flame Earth Fire surged, one after another, Grade 5 Deer Essence Strengthening Pills flew out of the cauldron, as if they were being sold in bulk. A rich medicinal fragrance filled the air, and the energy ripples from the refining process of the Grade 5 pills were completely devoured by the Void Devouring Flame Earth Fire.

For Hun Xuzi, there was no difference between fifth-grade pills and low-grade pills, just like an adult doing elementary school problems.

Yao Yan watched with rapt attention. Only an alchemist could know the extent of Hun Xuzi's alchemy skills. Putting aside his character, Hun Xuzi was undoubtedly one of the most outstanding figures in the entire Dou Qi Continent when it came to alchemy alone.

No wonder he is a genius alchemist who studied under the master of the Pill Tower.

At this moment, Yao Yan was like a sponge, absorbing all kinds of nutrients from Hun Xuzi.

This teaching and learning session lasted for more than half a month.

Hun Xuzi had just withdrawn the soul body, seemingly having exhausted all he could teach, because Yao Yan's level was no longer sufficient to comprehend anything beyond that. What he was currently imparting in a cramming manner were the basic alchemy methods and advanced techniques that the former master of the Pill Tower had taught him. These were enough for Yao Yan to reach the eighth-grade alchemist level. As for anything beyond that, it would depend on Yao Yan himself.

A ninth-grade alchemist is never taught; different alchemists follow different paths.

Yao Yan respectfully saw Hun Xuzi off, then closed his eyes and sat down cross-legged to sort out the gains of the past half month. In terms of teaching level alone, Hun Xuzi was absolutely terrible. Fortunately, he was quite talented in alchemy and could withstand Hun Xuzi's cramming teaching method. If an ordinary dull person had to learn from him, he would probably have gone completely mad.

He closed his eyes and adjusted for half a day, organizing all the knowledge he had absorbed. It was only because his soul power was good that he could remember it.

"嘤嘤~"

Ling'er, who had been huddled in a corner for almost half a month, was now curled up in Yao Yan's arms, blinking her emerald green eyes and calling out softly, as if to say: Do you know how I've spent the last half month?

She was practically playing dead when faced with Hun Xuzi's soul form.

"Greedy."