Breaking the Masked Man

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 7 Old Slave Herbalist

A void, an ancient space, chaotic and without light, where space twists and tears from time to time, spewing terrifying black flames. Wherever it passes, even space itself is silently devoured and destroyed, leaving behind constantly repairing spatial cracks, which are extremely eerie.

Time seems to have lost its meaning here.

In the very center, two figures were sitting cross-legged, their bodies shrouded in black flames. One of them was none other than Hun Xuzi, who had previously 'communicated' with Yao Yan. However, compared to his previous wisp of soul, this body was now clearly his true form.

As the space in front of him cracked open, a soul enveloped in black flames entered his body. Only then did he slowly open his eyes, which were covered by black flames, and a smile appeared on his lips.

"Success?"

Noticing the change in Hun Xuzi's mood, another figure spoke up.

As the man spoke, the black flames in the entire void became docile, no longer violent, and even emitted strange whistling sounds, as if welcoming their master.

The man was surrounded by black flames, and strange black runes covered his body. His eyes were like black holes, filled with a terrifying devouring power. Just looking into his eyes gave one the illusion that one's soul was about to be swallowed up.

This person is naturally the master of this space, and also the Void Devouring Flame, ranked second on the Strange Flame Ranking.

Facing him, Hun Xuzi's attitude became extremely respectful. He stood up and smiled, "Yes, Lord Xuwu, after a hundred years of planning, we have finally succeeded by chance. That little guy has now successfully fused with the essence blood of the Devouring Spirit King. As for whether he can perfectly inherit the talent of the Devouring Spirit Clan, we will have to wait for future tests."

Upon hearing this, Void Devouring Flame remained calm, seemingly unconcerned about the matter, and said in a cold tone: "Behave yourself. Before the plan even begins, don't cause too much trouble."

As one of the most powerful beings in the world, he only cares about topics related to Dou Di. As for Hun Xuzi's hobby, he has no interest in participating. Although the Devouring Spirit Clan is strange, it is ultimately just an ancient family that has been wiped out. In fact, he himself has long since mastered the Devouring Spirit Clan's abilities and knows very well where its 'upper limit' is.

Moreover, compared to his own ability to devour everything, the Devouring Spirit Clan's so-called talent for devouring the bloodline power of other races is really not worth mentioning.

"Please rest assured, Lord Void, I can distinguish between what is important and what is not."

Hun Xuzi nodded in agreement.

Black flames flickered in the eyes of the Void Devouring Flame, and his voice gained a slight ripple as he slowly asked, "Have you been able to find any information about the Xiao Clan?"

The Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade was divided into eight pieces, each controlled by one of the eight ancient clans. To this day, only the piece controlled by the Xiao clan has disappeared without a trace. It was thought that it would fall into the hands of the ancient clans, but according to the information gathered over the years, the ancient clans did not actually obtain the piece of Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade from the Xiao clan.

The Xiao clan was wiped out by the Soul Clan back then. The surviving members migrated to remote areas of the continent under the protection of the ancient clan. Time has passed, and it is conceivable that finding their traces now is like looking for a needle in a haystack.

"The Soul Palace's influence has spread throughout the continent. If there is any news, it will be sent back immediately. However, I think it would be better to focus on the ancient clans rather than searching for a needle in a haystack. The surviving members of the Xiao clan were protected by the ancient clans and escaped back then. I don't believe that the ancient clans do not know the location of the Xiao clans!"

Hun Xuzi's eyes flickered, and he said in a deep voice.

"It's already in the planning stages, but it will take some time. It's a pity that only Gu Yuan knows about this, otherwise it wouldn't be so troublesome."

When Void Devouring Flame mentioned Gu Yuan, his expression turned slightly gloomy. A thousand years ago, he was severely injured by Gu Yuan and almost returned to his original form. To this day, his body still aches faintly. This was the first time he had been beaten to such a state. It was also because of Gu Yuan that he had kept a low profile for the past thousand years.

Seeing the gloomy expression on Void Devouring Flame's face, Hun Xuzi fell silent, for this matter was difficult to comment on.

Everyone has a youthful and impetuous phase, especially a spirit of a different kind of fire, whose temperament is naturally volatile.

The Void Devouring Flame did just that back then, even attempting to devour the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame possessed by the ancient clan. At that time, the host of the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame was Gu Yuan's wife, who was also pregnant. The result was predictable: after Gu Yuan's wife was severely injured by the Void Devouring Flame, Gu Yuan, who arrived at the scene, unleashed his power.

If it weren't for the intervention of the Soul Emperor and several elders of the Soul Clan, the Void Devouring Flame would have been torn to shreds by the enraged Gu Yuan.

This incident almost triggered a war between the Ancient Clan and the Soul Clan.

Fortunately, Gu Yuan was a rational person who was hesitant and indecisive. In the end, he was concerned about the countless deaths and injuries that would result from a war between the two races, so the great war did not break out.

It was only after nearly a century that he figured out such a secret, and no one would have imagined that the Void Devouring Flame would have such a past.

"The Soul Hall will continue the search. As for the ancient clans, I will personally take charge."

"Void Devouring Flame," he said coldly.

"Yes."

Hun Xuzi respectfully responded.

……

On the other side, Yao Yan was already sitting cross-legged on the futon cultivating. He did not want to waste a single moment. Every bit of increase in strength would be the foundation for his confidence to not eat beef in the future. The events of today made him feel insecure, as if his life and death were in the hands of others. He did not want to experience that feeling again.

The feeling of being treated like a lab rat is absolutely awful.

In the world of fantasy, only strength matters!

However, compared to his previous cultivation, this cultivation was much more low-key. Only a thin layer of heaven and earth energy covered his body, far less exaggerated than the previous whale-swallowing. This was naturally because Yao Yan deliberately suppressed it and did not completely unleash it. On the one hand, he was worried about causing an unusual phenomenon that would attract the attention of the Yao Clan elders. On the other hand, he naturally listened to Hun Xuzi's words and was not in a hurry to break through.

Rather than focusing on improving his strength, what he needs to do now is familiarize himself with his current body and the power brought by each wisp of battle qi.

Whether it was Hun Xuzi's words or the words of the elders in the Medicine Clan's academy, they all illustrated the importance of Foundation Establishment. Blindly pursuing cultivation speed will only cut off one's future path. Only by having a perfect foundation can one go further in the future.

Now, Yao Yan's foundation is comparable to those prodigies with divine bloodlines; all he needs to do is completely control him.

Like a Barrett sniper rifle, it is very powerful, but even a strong adult cannot use it perfectly without sufficient experience and physique, and may even injure himself, let alone a teenager who is controlling it.

"Is this what a genius is?"

Yao Yan slowly opened his eyes, a hint of emotion in them. He murmured to himself, "Although I know very well the importance of talent, I only realized how big the gap is between a genius and a good-for-nothing after I actually possessed it."

He wasn't exactly a waste when he had a third-grade bloodline before; in fact, he could be considered above average. But compared to him now... no, the two are incomparable.

When he used to cultivate, especially during the Battle Qi stage, his body had a limit. If he exceeded that limit, his body would not be able to withstand it. Even if he cultivated for too long, his meridians would be overwhelmed, forcing him to stop. But now, his body seemed to be able to withstand the nourishment of Battle Qi indefinitely.

"No wonder those geniuses and prodigies stayed at the Battle Qi stage for so long..."

Yao Yan thought to himself, he knew very well that in the original story, if Xiao Yan had not received Yao Lao's help and been forced to nurture his body for several years, he would have been limited to breaking through to the Dou Huang level in his life. If he had been less lucky, he would have been at the Dou Wang level. This had nothing to do with his vision, but rather with his foundation.

Secondly, there is the uniqueness of the Burning Flame Technique. After Xiao Yan absorbed the strange flame, he was reforged and rebuilt several times, and his talent and foundation had already undergone a qualitative change.

As you can see, even with Na Ran Yanran's talent, she only reached the Dou Zong level in the end, and that was only because her master, Yun Yun, worked hard for her.

"But this excuse won't be easy to come up with."

Yao Yan frowned slightly and said in a low voice.

He currently only possesses the first level of Dou Qi, and will likely remain at this stage for a long time to come. This is impossible to conceal from the elders in the clan school. Once those elders notice him, it will inevitably cause trouble. This makes him want to take out the jade token and negotiate with that teacher.

If he had a choice, he would really like to cultivate with the Soul Clan, since the Soul Clan's talent he inherited was very suitable for a place like the Soul Clan.

With his current talent, his strength will inevitably improve rapidly.

Unfortunately, Yao Yan didn't want to portray himself as someone who only pursued strength. No one likes an ingrate, even if he himself is an ingrate.

Han Feng has perfectly illustrated this point.

"Dong dong."

Just as Yao Yan was having a headache, there was a knock on the door. The sound wasn't loud, but with the soul power of an alchemist, even the slightest movement would be noticeable.

Yao Yan's expression changed slightly. He was wary and did not go out immediately. He didn't even move. He just said, "Who is it? I am refining medicine and it is inconvenient for me to go out."

"This old servant, a herbalist, has been ordered to deal with the young master's troubles."

As a distinct surge of soul power entered the room, a clear voice rang in Yao Yan's ears.

"?!"

A look of surprise flashed in Yao Yan's eyes, because he knew Yao Nong. The other party was the patriarch of a branch of Dan Ding City. His strength was unknown, but it was definitely not weaker than the Dou Zong level. In addition, he was also a sixth-grade peak alchemist. The other party actually called himself an old servant, which meant that his cheap master had already arranged everything for him.

"What a qualified teacher you are! I'm almost embarrassed to hold a grudge against you..." Yao Yan thought to himself with a self-deprecating smile. At the same time, he couldn't help but marvel at the terror of the Soul Clan, which had infiltrated the Medicine Clan to such an extent. He had no doubt that there were other spies within the Medicine Clan, whose identities were even more outrageous than those of the Medicine Farmer.

No wonder Soul Emperor and others looked down on the ancient families and even regarded them as resources for breaking through to the Dou Di realm. There was a reason for this.

Those who lack a sense of vigilance and preparedness for potential dangers will inevitably face destruction.

It can only lead to destruction!

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 8 Beast Fire

The morning sunlight streamed in through the window, illuminating the young man who was meditating cross-legged on the bed. This made the aura surrounding him even more dazzling, highlighting the young man's extraordinary nature.

"Whoo~"

After a night of meditation, Yao Yan slowly opened his eyes. As he took a long breath, the swirling mist around him transformed into several long dragons that flowed into his body through his mouth and nose, nourishing his limbs and bones. A tingling sensation spread throughout his body, allowing him to clearly feel his body gradually strengthening.

"It feels really good to completely let go of cultivation."

Yao Yan got up from the bed, stretched his body, and a satisfied smile appeared on his lips as he muttered to himself.

He could clearly feel the changes in his body, and the feeling of becoming stronger was extremely obvious.

After a moment of contemplation, he touched the area between his eyebrows again.

He was also curious about the Devouring Spirit Clan's innate abilities, but unfortunately, in the Medicine Clan's territory, without Soul Void Child by his side to protect him, he really didn't dare to recklessly activate this bloodline power and could only let it lie dormant in his body.

However, as he cultivated through the night, he could feel this power increasing. Unlike the system of cultivating battle qi, it seemed to increase as his body strengthened.

This was clearly a problem that Yao Yan couldn't figure out at the moment, so after thinking about it for a while, he gave up.

"It's like a dream..." Yao Yan thought to himself, then pushed open the door. A courtyard several times larger than before appeared before him, planted with many precious plants. Of course, the most important thing was the spatial barrier surrounding the courtyard, a power that only a Dou Zong expert could wield.

It is because of its existence that Yao Yan can cultivate without restraint and without worrying about being discovered by others.

"Master."

As the space around them distorted, the herbalist stepped out and respectfully greeted them.

This place is naturally the residence of the herbalist. As the patriarch of a major branch of Dan Ding City, he naturally has his own residence in Dan Ding City. Moreover, his strength has long since reached the peak of Dou Zong, and he is only one step away from Dou Zun. However, it is too difficult to take that step.

Herb farmers have been stuck at this level for decades.