While in Battle Through the Heavens, one can pre-appoint oneself as an emperor.

Chapter 154: Pre-payment refresh, wrap-up.

[Advance payment for subsequent completion.]

[Current number of advance payments available: 1!]

On the way back to Zixiao City with Cai Lin in his arms, Chen Xiao finally had time to check the advance information in his mind.

The completion of the advance payment means that the old demon is dead beyond any doubt, with no bones left and his soul scattered.

This surprised Chen Xiao somewhat. His original plan was to kill the Earth Demon Old Ghost and then use his body to refine the Heavenly Demon Puppet to "repay the debt".

Unexpectedly, the old demon has ended up in such a state, and his plan to use his body to create the Heavenly Demon Puppet has completely failed.

Fortunately, the previous follow-up was always to try to kill the Earth Demon Old Ghost and use his materials to refine a Heavenly Demon Kui. There was no mandatory requirement to immediately refine a Heavenly Demon Kui to repay the debt, or to use the Earth Demon Old Ghost's corpse to refine it.

Looking back now, it's clear that there's a lot of room for maneuver.

"What are you thinking about?" Cai Lin's voice rang out.

Chen Xiao snapped out of his daze and tightened his grip on the person in his arms.

"I'm thinking about the old demon. I've always felt that my speed of improvement, even if it can't compare to Little Fairy Doctor's Calamity Poison Body, is definitely not slow."

"I started practicing Qi at five, broke through to Dou Zhe at eight, and am now not even seventeen yet, a two-star Dou Huang. If I take the Huangji Pill, I will become a three-star Dou Huang. But today's battle made me feel that it was not fast enough. If the old demon of the earth were a seven-star Dou Zong, and if you had not evolved into the Seven-Colored Devouring Python, I would have suffered a great loss under his self-destruction."

"There are no 'what ifs' anymore. Isn't a seventeen-year-old two-star Dou Huang enough? When I was seventeen—"

Cai Lin stopped speaking halfway through her sentence.

Although she had fully understood everything when the old demon self-destructed, it didn't mean she liked talking about age with Chen Xiao.

After all, whenever this topic comes up, she can't help but recall the first time she met Chen Xiao many years ago, when he was still a young boy with a youthful appearance.

At that time, she was already the renowned Snake-People Queen of the Gama Empire.

Now that things have developed to this point, upon closer reflection, even someone with her personality feels a little uncomfortable.

"It's enough for others, but it's not enough for me. I have many things I want to do, and there are people waiting for me. All of this requires strength. I want to be able to stand in front of you and shield you from all dangers next time I encounter a strong enemy."

Upon hearing this, Cai Lin's beautiful lips curved slightly, a hint of barely perceptible pleasure flashing in her eyes, but she said disdainfully, "Male chauvinism."

"Undeniably, to some extent."

"It's a pity you're not of the fire element, otherwise, with the few strange flames you've obtained, you'd probably be no less powerful than me now."

Chen Xiao hadn't told Cai Lin about the Burning Technique, but she could keenly detect some problems from Cao Ying's previous changes.

"Not only that, if it's fire attribute, I'm at least a high-level Dou Zong now."

......

Instead of flying over, Chen Xiao walked the entire way back to the city, and took the opportunity to talk to Cai Lin at length.

He no longer concealed his ambitions or his plans, speaking in a way that made Cai Lin feel somewhat unfamiliar with him.

And so, it was half an hour later when the two returned to Zixiao City.

When a series of gazes filled with different emotions fell upon her as if they were real, Cai Lin's half-hour-long quiet posture in Chen Xiao's arms completely broke down.

Her cheeks were burning, and her delicate body twisted slightly, trying to escape this awkward situation.

"Put me down."

"Can you walk?"

"I am merely exhausted; I will not die."

Chen Xiao nodded slightly, as she wished.

They endured all sorts of stares along the way. When the two arrived in front of the Zixiao Pavilion, everyone was there, including Ziyan.

On that open ground, rows of unrecognizable corpses lay scattered about. Apart from the few storage rings given to Qianyaofang, all the spoils of war were gathered and placed aside.

So many powerful figures were killed in one fell swoop. Today is a grand feast for Zixiao Pavilion, and also a grand feast for the Protector of Soul Palace Pavilion. That guy was hiding in the shadows, and his gains today must be considerable.

Shaking his head slightly in his heart, Chen Xiao first looked at Zi Yan.

"I wonder if the old demon's storage ring can still be preserved after the self-destruction. Ziyan, go and check on it—"

Chen Xiao's words came to an abrupt halt. He had already seen Zi Yan's eyes crinkle with a sly smile. She raised her small hand, revealing a black storage ring that gleamed with a cold light in her palm.

She was the first to react when the Earth Demon Old Ghost self-destructed.

Zi Yan originally wanted to check on Chen Xiao and Cai Lin's life or death, but when she arrived at the mountain valley behind, she saw that the two of them were safe and sound, pulling and tugging at each other, and the surrounding space seemed to be filled with an indescribable aura.

Zi Yan was quite perceptive; she didn't disturb them and, feeling relieved, began searching for the Earth Demon Old Ghost's storage ring.

It was probably due to Zi Yan's lucky buff that she was able to successfully find the Earth Demon Old Ghost's storage ring.

"I took a look, and this old guy is ice-attribute. You can use most of the fighting techniques inside."

Zi Yan muttered something to herself and tossed the storage ring to Chen Xiao without a second thought.

As for the portion that was useful to her, she had already taken it in advance.

In this regard, she didn't need to tell Chen Xiao, and Chen Xiao was never stingy. Every time they got spoils, he would never be stingy with anything that was useful to them.

After catching the storage ring, Chen Xiao did not examine it immediately, but instead looked at Hai Bodong beside him.

"Elder Hai, the elite of Demon Flame Valley has been wiped out, and the old demon of the earth has also fallen. You go there yourself, and Zi Yan should go too. Make sure to loot everything."

In Demon Flame Valley, the only things that truly concern Chen Xiao now are the method for crafting the Heavenly Demon Puppet and some of the Earth Demon Old Ghost's secret treasures.

Chen Xiao remembered these things very clearly. The Earth Demon Old Ghost hid them extremely well. In the original timeline, if it weren't for Zi Yan's innate treasure-hunting talent, Xiao Yan wouldn't have been able to find them.

Therefore, you don't need to worry about others searching for it first.

Leave professional tasks to professionals.

No one knows better than Zi Yan how to raid a house.

"Alright! I've been wanting to go to Demon Flame Valley for a long time. Old Man Hai, I'll go first, you can catch up!"

Upon receiving the mission, Zi Yan was in high spirits. She left behind a single sentence and then disappeared from the spot, leaving everyone shaking their heads and laughing.

"I'll go too. Destroying Demon Flame Valley should be easier for me than for Elder Hai."

Little Fairy Doctor glanced at Cai Lin beside Chen Xiao and said softly.

When the Earth Demon Old Ghost self-destructed, Cai Lin's decisive action made Little Fairy Doctor quite envious.

She was certain that she could do it, but her limited abilities left her powerless.

At this moment, she really wanted to do something.

Destroying Demon Flame Valley would be a suitable thing to do.

Chen Xiao nodded slightly: "Leave none alive!"

Little Fairy Doctor and Hai Bodong agreed in succession, and immediately spread their battle qi wings and flew towards the direction of Demon Flame Valley.

"Elder"

"There's nothing going on in the inner courtyard for now. I'll keep watch for you for a few days. You and Her Majesty the Queen can rest and recuperate properly," Su Qian said with a smile.

The destruction of Demon Flame Valley is undoubtedly a great thing for Canaan Academy.

It's not hard to foresee that the power structure of the Black Corner Region will be reshuffled as a result, with the Purple Cloud Pavilion, which has close ties with the academy, becoming the true leader.

How could he not be in a great mood with such a situation?

Chen Xiao nodded his thanks, and then looked at Cao Xi.

"There's no need for formalities between us. You don't need to keep me here. Now that the matter of Demon Flame Valley is settled, it's time for me to retire. Once you arrive in Central Continent, we'll have plenty of time to chat. You should focus on getting yourself back into shape first. It's easy to recover from the consumption of battle qi, but the consumption of soul power is too great. Without special rare and precious materials, you can only rely on time to build it up."

Seeing Chen Xiao looking at him, Cao Xi chuckled and said.

He came to the Black Corner Region to escort the Transformation Pill, and only stayed to help when he learned that Chen Xiao was going to deal with the Demon Flame Valley.

Now that the matter of Demon Flame Valley is settled, Cao Xi naturally won't stay in the Black Corner Region for long.

As for the remaining cleanup, there's no need for a Dou Zong-level expert to intervene.

With his words of gratitude stuck in his throat, Chen Xiao nodded helplessly.

"Then we will send off the Fourth Elder tomorrow."

"Haha, why bother with all that trouble? There's no difference between today and tomorrow. It's just that the people in the family are very eager to see you and are quite curious about you. I'll go back early and satisfy their curiosity."

Cao Xi laughed and shook his head, his mind made up.

Seeing this, Chen Xiao didn't say anything more.

"Within three years, I will travel to Zhongzhou and visit the Fourth Elder again. Also, I will bring her the complete cultivation technique and thank her for her gift."

By today, Chen Xiao has basically finished dealing with the important matters in the Northwest Continent; what remains are just some trivial matters.

Setting a three-year timeframe is already a long-term estimate.

In fact, it would take at least a year, or at most two years, for Chen Xiao to further enhance his strength and gain the ability to protect himself before he set off.

"Well, see you in Zhongzhou. Of course, if you need any help, just let me know."

After saying a few words, Cao Xi nodded goodbye to Su Qian and Cai Lin again. Then, without further delay, he stepped into the sky, waved his hand, and left gracefully.