Chapter 290: Latent Rivals

In the quiet room, Xiao Yan, who was sitting cross-legged on the bed, slowly opened his eyes. A sharp gleam flashed in his dark pupils, and a mouthful of turbid air was expelled through his throat. A faint glow radiated from Xiao Yan’s face, indicating that his inner Dou Qi had significantly advanced after this cultivation.

“The energy contained within these branding toxins is truly massive. Even after several purifications, such a considerable amount of energy still remains,” Xiao Yan murmured softly, feeling the increasingly robust Dou Qi within his body.

“However, although the energy is substantial, it comes at a cost,” he said with a wry smile. With a flick of his right hand, a green flame rose up, and around the flame, indistinct black patterns faintly churned. Finally, they were fully compressed onto his middle finger, instantly turning his slender finger as black as ink, appearing rather eerie.

“Alas, the branding toxin is getting thicker and thicker…” Xiao Yan shook his head with a wry smile as he looked at his finger, which had turned even darker. He pointed his finger at the bedpost, and the sturdy wooden post was immediately corroded, leaving a hollow space.

“Well, as long as I can get the Seven Phantom Blue Spirit Saliva, I can wake up my teacher. By then, these problems should have a solution,” Xiao Yan mused, staring at his finger for a long time. “Although this thing is very dangerous, the energy I’ve absorbed from these branding toxins over the past two days is quite substantial. At this rate, once I completely absorb the branding toxin from Nalan Jie, it might be enough to elevate me from a six-star Dou Shi to a seven-star Dou Shi.”

Shaking his head slightly, Xiao Yan curled his fingers, and the black color quickly faded, returning to its normal appearance.

With a creak, as Xiao Yan withdrew his hand, the tightly closed door was gently pushed open. Hai Bo Dong sauntered in lazily, glanced at Xiao Yan, and, noticing his unwell complexion, couldn’t help but laugh. “What’s the matter? Did you have a bad experience at the Nalan Family? Want me to go with you next time?”

Xiao Yan shook his head helplessly, leaping down from the bed. “It’s still about the branding toxin. My Flame seems to be unable to handle it. Every time I purge the poison from Nalan Jie, the branding toxin in my body becomes more concentrated.”

“More concentrated?” Hearing this, Hai Bo Dong was taken aback and then frowned. “If that’s the case, why bother purging it for him? I don’t believe you’re that kind of saint. Besides, you seem to have some grudge with Nalan Yanran from the Nalan Family.”

“If I want the Seven Phantom Blue Spirit Saliva, do you think we should just forcibly take it?” Xiao Yan shrugged and said lightly.

“That’s not possible. The Nalan Family has a special relationship with the Yunlan Sect due to Nalan Yanran, and their family holds significant weight in the imperial government. If anything happens to them, I’m sure that old monster in the royal family will intervene. Do you think we can resist these two forces?” Hai Bo Dong laughed awkwardly.

“Then there’s no other way. To get the Seven Phantom Blue Spirit Saliva now, I have to cure Nalan Jie. Although this branding toxin is very dangerous, it hasn’t harmed me yet,” Xiao Yan said with a helpless shake of his head.

After Hai Bo Dong’s analysis, he felt a bit more serious. The Nalan Family was indeed one of the three major families of the empire, with far too many forces behind it.

“Do as you wish. Just don’t get yourself into trouble. I’m still waiting for you to refine the Rebirth Purple Pill for me,” Hai Bo Dong said, shrugging his shoulders.

“Don’t worry, as long as you collect all the herbs, I’ll refine it for you. Although my soul power is somewhat damaged due to the Buddha’s Fury Lotus, refining the Rebirth Purple Pill shouldn’t be a problem,” Xiao Yan said, walking slowly to the table, moving aside the clutter, and taking out the medicine cauldron from his ring, casually deflecting the conversation.

“Haha, I have confidence in you,” Hai Bo Dong nodded with a smile. Looking at Xiao Yan’s actions, he asked in surprise, “What are you doing?”

“I think you should continue to go out and wander. I’m going to start practicing alchemy,” Xiao Yan said with a smile, taking out various herbs from his ring.

“Eh… I just came back not long ago.” Hai Bo Dong shook his head with a bitter smile. After a moment, seeing Xiao Yan’s sideways glance, he could only roll his eyes and say, “Alright, go ahead and practice. I’ll go for a walk…”

With that, he turned and staggered to the door, reluctantly stepping out. He knew that alchemists didn’t like being disturbed while refining pills.

As he watched the door slowly close, Xiao Yan turned his gaze to the medicine cauldron in front of him, slowly stroking the herbs on the table, and pondering with a slight frown. After nearly a year of arduous training in the desert, especially with the recent increase in compatibility with the Green Lotus Heart Flame due to consuming the Fire Lotus Seeds, he was confident that obtaining the title of a third-grade alchemist would not be too difficult. This was because a third-grade alchemist’s most important skill was the ability to control flames, and in this aspect, Xiao Yan was even confident enough to compare with a fourth-grade alchemist.

“Still, even so, it won’t be easy to win first place in the Alchemist Conference. Those opponents are no pushovers…” Shaking his head with a sigh, Xiao Yan thought of Liu Ling, the disciple of Gu He he had met today. Although he hadn’t seen him in action, given Gu He’s abilities, his disciples naturally couldn’t be weak. And when facing him, Xiao Yan had indeed felt the confidence in Liu Ling’s demeanor.

This confidence wasn’t forced; it was something that could only be possessed by someone who genuinely had certain capabilities.

Rubbing the cool medicine cauldron, Xiao Yan suddenly shrugged and said with a light smile, “Of course, I’m no pushover either. If I lose to Liu Ling in the Alchemist Conference, wouldn’t that mean my teacher is inferior to Gu He?”

“That won’t do…”

Letting out a slow breath, Xiao Yan pursed his lips and, after a while, smiled faintly. He lightly tapped the fire channel of the medicine cauldron, and a thread of green flame quickly darted in. With a soft thud, the green flame began to burn and rise in the medicine cauldron.

“Let’s start with a third-grade pill…” His hand slowly moved over the herbs on the table, finally stopping at a few medicinal plants. Curling his palm, a slight suction drew them into his hand, and he casually tossed them into the medicine cauldron.

Watching the herbs wrapped in the green flame, Xiao Yan nodded slightly. In his mind, the formula for a third-grade pill automatically appeared. These formulas were ones that the Old Medicinal Master occasionally infused into his soul during training, and using them now was naturally very simple.

“Awakening Pill, a third-grade pill, can make the user more sensitive to the energy of the outside world during cultivation, thereby increasing the speed of energy absorption. Ingredients: thirty-year-old Clear Heart Three-Leaf Grass, mature Buddha’s Heart Fruit, ten-year-old Soul Absorbing Tree… one third-grade magical beast core.”

Slowly savoring the ingredients recorded in the formula, after a while, Xiao Yan’s long fingers gently plucked, and the flame in the medicine cauldron surged and roared. As Xiao Yan began to refine the pill, the temperature in the room gradually increased. A faint mist seeped out of the cauldron, enveloping the room in a misty cloud.

Since it was his first time refining this pill, the first two attempts resulted in the herbs being burned. However, this did not discourage him. Even the Old Medicinal Master himself could fail. After summarizing the reasons for the failure, Xiao Yan quickly mastered the necessary heat control and, in the third attempt, after over two hours of effort, a round and lustrous Awakening Pill was finally produced…

Staring at the Awakening Pill quietly resting in the jade bottle, Xiao Yan wiped the sweat from his forehead and smiled contentedly. Then, he lit the fire again and continued refining…

After an afternoon, Xiao Yan’s success rate in refining the Awakening Pill steadily increased. When the herbs on the table were almost exhausted, three Awakening Pills had already appeared in the jade bottle.

Carefully putting the jade bottle containing the three Awakening Pills into his ring, Xiao Yan’s face showed a fatigue that was hard to hide. After clearing the table, he walked with unsteady steps and fell onto the bed.

When Xiao Yan woke from his deep sleep, he found it was already the next morning. Shaking off his drowsiness, he got up from the bed and, with a wry smile, looked at the empty room. Refining pills was indeed exhausting, and the drain on his spirit was enormous.

After a quick wash, he headed out towards the Nalan Family, ready to continue the purification for Nalan Jie.

Although he hadn’t seen Hai Bo Dong for a day, Xiao Yan wasn’t worried. With the old man’s strength, there were few in the Jia Ma Empire who could cause him trouble, except for those old monsters and the leader of the Yunlan Sect.

The purification today went much like the last time, with nothing special happening. After purifying Nalan Jie, Xiao Yan was invited to stay and chat in the family residence for a while.

During the chat, Nalan Yanran, for some reason, seemed to show interest in Xiao Yan and asked him some questions about himself. However, Xiao Yan coldly and vaguely deflected all her questions. Despite her apparent change, he still found it hard to feel any goodwill towards her.

With Nalan Yanran present, Liu Ling naturally followed. During the conversation between Nalan Yanran and Xiao Yan, Xiao Yan could feel Liu Ling’s glances. Though he maintained a smiling silence, Xiao Yan could sense his slight displeasure and subtle hostility. But he merely shrugged, unconcerned. You’re unhappy? What’s it to me…

I dared to snatch the Flame that Gu He coveted, what’s there to fear from an apprentice who hasn’t even left his teacher’s side?

Under Liu Ling’s slightly cold gaze, Xiao Yan sat in the living room for nearly half an hour before standing up to leave. He was escorted out of the Nalan Family by Nalan Jie and others, gradually disappearing from their sight.

Squinting as he watched Xiao Yan disappear, Liu Ling turned to Nalan Jie and smiled, “Elder, do you know anything about the background of this alchemist named Yan Xiao?”

“Why?” Nalan Jie was taken aback and then frowned. “Mr. Yan Xiao is a distinguished guest of the Nalan Family. I only care if he can rid me of the branding toxin. I don’t care about his identity.”

“Young man, broaden your heart. Don’t bear enmity over trivial matters. Although you are Gu He’s disciple, I can assure you that Yan Xiao’s master is likely no weaker than Gu He. Making an enemy of such a person is not a good idea,” Nalan Jie said with a meaningful look, his keen eyes naturally noticing Liu Ling’s intentions towards Xiao Yan.

“Haha, Elder is joking. I’ve never met Mr. Yan Xiao, how could I hold enmity towards him?” Liu Ling’s face changed slightly, but he quickly composed himself, casting a glance at Nalan Yanran, whose eyebrows were also slightly furrowed, and said with a smile.

“If that’s the case, that’s for the best. This Yan Xiao may not match you now, but his potential is immense. If given the chance, I’d like to bring him into the Nalan Family,” Nalan Jie smiled faintly and, without looking at Liu Ling, turned and walked back into the house.

Nalan Yanran glanced at Liu Ling, who was helplessly shrugging, and said softly, “You’d better not do anything rash. Grandpa said he is a distinguished guest of the Nalan Family.”

With that, she swept away the strands of hair from her forehead and followed Nalan Jie.

“Yan Ran, after all these years, you should know how I feel about you,” Liu Ling couldn’t help but say, gazing at her graceful back. Before he could finish, Nalan Yanran, with her back to him, waved her jade-like hand casually, and sighed, “You should know I don’t want to talk about these things now. You are one of the few men who can be my friend. Perhaps, someday, you can move me. But for now, I still see you as just a friend. I don’t deny your excellence, but it’s not enough for me. The man for Nalan Yanran cannot be ordinary.”

With that, she didn’t linger, and walked into the house with a graceful step.

“I know you set high standards. This time, I’ll use the championship to prove to you that I, Liu Ling, am worthy of you,” Liu Ling’s eyes flashed with fervor as he stared at her charming back. As the future leader of the Yunlan Sect, Nalan Yanran’s status in the Jia Ma Empire was even higher than that of the princess. With Liu Ling’s pride, he naturally needed to conquer such a woman to prove his excellence.

“Wait until you win the championship,” a soft, pleasant voice drifted out from the door.

“Wait and see…” Shrugging, Liu Ling turned around, fixing his gaze on where Xiao Yan had disappeared, and whispered with a sinister smile, “I’ll make him ashamed at the conference. The disciple of the Dan King is the most outstanding person in the Jia Ma Empire.”