Xiao Yan’s figure slowly landed on the peak of the mountain at the back. He gazed at the Elder Pharmacist, who was sitting cross-legged on a boulder and smiling at him, and bowed his fist, saying, “I did not fail you!”
Upon hearing Xiao Yan’s words, the Wind Venerable beside him heaved a deep sigh of relief, gave Xiao Yan a thumbs up and said with a smile, “Well done.”
“Are you okay?” the Elder Pharmacist asked with a smile.
“We made it through by the skin of our teeth,” Xiao Yan shrugged and gave a rough account of what had happened in the ruins.
“The Soul Hall again…” The Elder Pharmacist nodded slightly, his eyes brimming with a cold light.
Xiao Yan smiled, flicked his finger, and a wooden box appeared in his hand. Then, the box floated into the air, gently landing in front of the Elder Pharmaiser, and opened automatically, revealing a golden fruit that looked like a baby.
“Indeed, it is the Soul Infant Fruit, and of the highest quality, the Golden Soul Infant Fruit.” Even with the Elder Pharmacist’s calmness, seeing the golden fruit, his eyes couldn’t help but show a hint of surprise and joy.
Xiao Yan nodded and smiled. There were two grades of Soul Infant Fruits, the Silver Grade and the Golden Grade. The former was slightly inferior, while the latter had the strongest medicinal effects. The Soul Infant Fruit that Xiao Yan had found in the ancient forest was precisely the latter.
“With this Golden Soul Infant Fruit, I believe your depleted essence soul qi should be fully replenished,” the Wind Venerable stroked his beard and said with a smile.
“Teacher, you should go into seclusion today, try to recover your essence soul qi as soon as possible. That way, we can start creating a body…” Xiao Yan said.
The Elder Pharmancer smiled and nodded, looking at Xiao Yan, and suddenly said softly, “Boy, do you miss your father?”
Hearing the Elder Pharmacer suddenly mention this, Xiao Yan was stunned. He then fell silent, tightening his lips, and his eyes showed a deep sense of guilt. Xiao Zhan was his biological father, and their bloodline connection was strong. When Xiao Yan was young, his father doted on him, even when he himself was at the lowest point in his life, his love for Xiao Yan never diminished for any reason. Because, they were father and son.
Those two simple words carried a bond that nothing could erase. Calculating the time, his father had been captured by the Soul Hall even longer than the Elder Pharmapist. When he was captured back then, Xiao Yan was still just an angry young man rushing to the Cloud Sect. His father had always placed great hopes on him, firmly believing that Xiao Yan would change the fate of the Xiao family, making the declining clan truly powerful.
Now, Xiao Yan had become a renowned top-notch expert in the Central Plains, reaching the level of a Dou Zun. If placed in the Jia Ma Empire, he would be a legendary existence. In a way, he seemed to have reached the expectations Xia Zhan had for him, but unfortunately, he had never seen his own son soar like a dragon.
“I will save Father. This is my promise to Big Brother and Second Brother. I cannot face them if I fail to save Father,” Xiao Yan said softly, his voice a bit hoarse. The weight of the Soul Hall, a massive pressure, had been on his shoulders since he was a child. Fortunately, he didn’t let it crush him. Instead, he grew rapidly under such pressure, reaching where he was today.
“Your teacher will help you, even if it means sacrificing this old life,” the Elder Pharmacist patted Xiao Yan’s shoulder lightly and said with a smile, “If your father knew that the little boy from those days has grown into a strong, independent man, he would surely be very happy.”
Xiao Yan smiled, blinked his eyes, suppressing the slight bitterness, and then asked, “Does Teacher know where in the Central Plains the Soul Hall is holding my father?”
“He is not being held anywhere in the Central Plains,” the Elder Pharmacist shook his head and replied.
Hearing this, Xiao Yan was taken aback. He frowned, “What do you mean?”
“I’m not entirely sure why the Soul Hall values your father so much. My only guess is that it might be because of the ancient jade you have on you,” the Elder Pharmacist also frowned, saying, “The Gu Clan has the Ancient Realm, and the strength and foundation of the Soul Hall are no less than that of the Gu Clan.”
“Does the Teacher mean that the Soul Hall also has its own world?” Xiao Yan asked in surprise.
“Soul Realm…” The Elder Pharmacist nodded slightly and whispered, “But the number of strong people who know about the existence of the Soul Realm in the Central Plains is very few. And as for the entrance to the Soul Hall, even I don’t know…”
“Father is being held in the Soul Realm?” Xiao Yan said grimly.
“Hmm.” Xiao Yan gripped his fist inside his sleeve, lightly caressing the ring. An ancient jade, exuding an ancient aura, quietly appeared in his hand. It was the Emperor She Jade, the target of the Soul Hall. But despite possessing it for so many years, he had never felt anything special about it, except for the slight disturbance it had caused when he was training deep in the Tower of Jia Nan Academy. It hadn’t moved again since then.
“The Soul Hall, a colossal and mysterious power, after numerous investigations, it is said that, long ago, the Soul Hall had another name,” the Elder Pharmacist narrowed his eyes and spoke softly, “The Soul Clan.”
“Soul Clan?” Xiao Yan’s hand holding the ancient jade trembled slightly. “Could it be, like the Gu Clan, it is also an inheritance from ancient times?”
“I am not entirely sure…but perhaps your girlfriend might know something about it,” the Elder Pharmacist shook his head and sighed. The more he dealt with the Soul Hall, the more he felt the mystery and strangeness of this entrenched power on the continent.
“Xuner, huh…” Xiao Yan nodded slightly.
“I have told you all I can. No matter what happens between you and the Soul Hall in the end, your teacher will always stand behind you, even if it means…risking this old life,” the Elder Pharmacist smiled and patted Xiao Yan’s shoulder. Holding the wooden box, he walked down the mountain.
Looking at the departing backs of the Elder Pharmacist and the Wind Venerable, Xiao Yan smiled and took a deep breath, looking up at the sky. On his face, a firm resolve gradually appeared.
“Father, no matter how strong the Soul Hall is, I will save you. Wait for me…”
After handing the Soul Infant Fruit to the Elder Pharmacist, he chose to enter seclusion at the fastest speed. As long as the essence soul qi was replenished, he could truly regain his peak strength and, in the future, perhaps even have the potential and hope to advance to the Dou Sage level.
While the Elder Pharmacist was in seclusion, Xiao Yan and the others took a few days to rest. During this time, Mu Qingluan and the others hurried back to the Starfall Pavilion. Upon learning that the task was completed, they all heaved a sigh of relief.
After resting for a few days and regaining peak condition, Xiao Yan began to worry again. This time, he was concerned about the poison in Qing Lin’s body.
The Emperor Snake Heart-devouring Poison was one of the most notorious and deadly poisons in the Central Plains. It was said to be incurable, but Xiao Yan believed that there was no poison that couldn’t be cured; it was just a matter of finding the right method. For this, he buried himself in the countless medical texts left by the Elder Pharmacist and even borrowed and studied the Seven-Colored Poison Scripture that Little Doctor Immortal had once obtained.
Despite the headache caused by this deadly poison, fortunately, hard work paid off. After several days of arduous searching, Xiao Yan finally found a way to detoxify.
In a secluded, cool cave at the back of the Starfall Pavilion, there was a small pool made of rocks in the center. Currently, the clear water in the pool was bubbling, looking like boiling water.
Beside the pool, Xiao Yan occasionally took out some medicine powder or liquid from his ring and sprinkled it into the pool. After the water in the pool gradually turned light red, he stopped, flipped his hand, and a small jade bottle appeared. Inside the bottle, pure energy, dense and almost tangible, permeated.
“Whew…”
Seeing the small jade bottle, the snow-white beast in Xiao Yan’s arms whimpered. The little beast now looked extremely listless, even its fur was duller, which tugged at his heartstrings.
“Don’t worry, I’ll make it up to you later,” Xiao Yan said with a bitter smile, and took out a few pills from his ring to feed the beast, which then slightly perked up.
Seeing this, Xiao Yan breathed a sigh of relief. To get this little guy to contribute some blood, he had really gone through a lot of trouble.
“Zzz….”
Tilting the bottle, the silver liquid slowly dripped into the pool, causing a sharp hissing sound. As the liquid dripped, a powerful and pure energy fluctuation spread from the pool.
“Qing Lin, take off your clothes and enter the pool. If you can absorb all this energy, it should stabilize your level at the Dou Zun stage,” Xiao Yan put away the bottle, turned to the side, and smiled at Qing Lin.
Upon hearing this, Qing Lin was first taken aback, then her cheeks turned slightly red.
“I understand…”
Seeing her blushing, Xiao Yan smiled and turned around, “Because I need to add various powders, I won’t be able to leave.”
“Hmm….”
Qing Lin blushed and mumbled, quickly taking off her clothes. With a splash, she leaped lightly into the small pool.
Hearing the sound of water, Xiao Yan turned his head. He saw only Qing Lin’s head above the water. Her long hair, wet with steam, stuck to her cheek, adding a touch of innocent charm.
“Enter your cultivation state and absorb the medicinal energy from the pool,” Xiao Yan said softly.
Hearing Xiao Yan’s gentle voice, the shyness and tension in Qing Lin’s heart gradually faded. She calmed her mind, closed her eyes, and slowly entered the cultivation state.
Seeing Qing Lin smoothly enter the cultivation state, Xiao Yan smiled. Just as he was about to stand up, his gaze suddenly fixed on her back exposed above the water. Through the rising mist, a mysterious tattoo appeared on her back, which, upon closer inspection, seemed to be a coiled giant python. But the python seemed to have nine heads…
As Xiao Yan stared in astonishment at the mysterious tattoo, one of the snake’s tightly closed eyes abruptly opened. Instantly, a fierce, ruthless aura erupted from Xiao Yan’s heart, turning his eyes instantly bloodshot.
“Whoosh….”
Just as the fierce aura appeared, Xiao Yan became alert, and he quickly retreated, tearing his eyes away from the tattoo.
Once his eyes were averted, Xiao Yan’s eyes gradually returned to normal. He swallowed, his heart filled with shock. How could such a fierce presence be in Qing Lin’s body?
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