This was a vast, crimson-yellow desert where fierce winds howled and carried sand, the wailing sound faintly carrying a chill. In this rather desolate place, it was hard to find any sign of life when one looked around; there was only the endless wind and the screeching sounds. The gusts battered a patch of light yellow grass on the desert, bending it down. Amidst the grass, a dark figure could be seen.
The figure’s clothes were tattered, the body covered in blood, and the breath was extremely weak. If it weren’t for the slight rise and fall of the chest, anyone would have mistaken it for a corpse discarded in the desert. This blood-covered figure, after being silent for a long time, suddenly trembled slightly, and then the closed eyes slowly opened. Hearing the roaring wind, a bitter smile curled at the corners of the mouth. Where exactly had that cursed Spatial Wormhole sent him?
The figure, suspected to be a corpse, was actually Xiao Yan who had escaped from the Spatial Wormhole. When he plunged into the circle of light, he did not immediately appear on the ground, but was instead fiercely abused by the rampaging spatial energy within the silver circle before being spat out like refuse to this place.
Due to the severe damage inflicted by the spatial energy, Xiao Yan’s injuries were very serious, to the point where he couldn’t even muster the strength to stand up. Since he was spat out, almost a day had passed. During this time, he lay there like a corpse, slowly absorbing the energy of the world and carefully nurturing his badly damaged body.
With great difficulty, he moved his Storage Ring, and a pill appeared. Then, with trembling movements, he slowly put it in his mouth. After completing these simple tasks, a sharp pain radiated through his body, causing beads of cold sweat to form on his forehead. If it weren’t for the protection of the Flame inside him, his body would have been torn to shreds by the rampaging spatial energy.
Yet, despite this, he was still unlucky enough to end up severely injured. “As long as I can recover a bit of Dou Qi, I can heal my injuries on my own and start refining pills. That should gradually heal my wounds. I hope that at this moment, I won’t meet any wandering magical beasts. Even a Battle Sect expert couldn’t do much to me, so if I became a snack for a magical beast, it would be truly unbearable…” he muttered to himself, feeling the warmth of the pill dissolve in his body. A wave of drowsiness engulfed his mind, making his eyes close again. Just as he closed his eyes, he thought he heard some commotion and gasps.
Xiao Yan’s next awakening was amidst a violent jolt, the kind that made his bones feel like they were falling apart. The pain drove away the drowsiness in his mind, and he struggled to open his eyes slowly. He saw a large roof, and as he gently rubbed the place he was leaning on, he realized where he was. It seemed he was in a carriage, which meant he must have been discovered in the grass by some passersby. He also noticed that the blood on his body had been wiped away, and even the torn black robe had been replaced with a rough burlap shirt.
Looking at his attire, after a moment of bewilderment, Xiao Yan suddenly remembered something and hurriedly felt his right hand. Seeing that all the rings were still there, he let out a sigh of relief. As he sighed, the curtain of the carriage was suddenly lifted, and blinding sunlight poured in. A sturdy, middle-aged man appeared in Xiao Yan’s line of sight. Seeing him awake, the man smiled, with a somewhat innocent look. “Little brother, you’re awake?”
Xiao Yan scanned the man. Although he was severely injured and lacked Dou Qi, his soul power was still robust. With a glance, he could tell that the man was at the peak of Dou Spirit, just a step away from Dou Wang.
“Ha-ha, our caravan found you in a patch of grass in the northern desert. We thought you wouldn’t survive, but who knew you would wake up,” the middle-aged man said with a smile. “My name is Han Chong, and I’m a steward of the Han family in Tian Bei City. We were on a mission to pass through the northern desert when we found you. You’re lucky; the desert often has wolf attacks. If they had found you, you might have been nothing but a pile of white bones.”
“Thank you for saving me, Big Brother Han Chong. I’m Xiao Yan,” Xiao Yan replied, genuinely grateful. Although he could have recovered a little Dou Qi and summoned the Earth Demon Puppet to protect him if he had lain there for another day or two, no one could predict what might happen in that time. So, Han Chong had indeed saved his life.
“It’s nothing. When traveling, helping others is always good,” Han Chong said, looking over Xiao Yan. “What I can do is limited, and I’m powerless to help with your injuries. If you reach Tian Bei City, you can ask a Medicinal Alchemist to treat you, but it will cost a lot of gold, more than most people can afford. Those Medial Alchemists are quite arrogant, yet no one dares to offend them. Even our family’s clan head has to be polite with them.”
Xiao Yan smiled. His injuries, though serious, were not a big deal for someone who had suffered such injuries many times. Given enough time, he could recover. “By the way, Big Brother Han Chong, could you tell me, are we in the Central Continent?”
Han Chong nodded. “Yes, this is the northern region of the Central Continent.” He added, “Is Little Brother Xiao Yan not from the Central Continent?”
Xiao Yan explained about the Spatial Wormhole incident, to which Han Chong reacted with a realization. “It was a Spatial Storm. No wonder your injuries are so severe. But you’re lucky. Few people survive a Spatial Storm in a wormhole. Our Han family once lost an entire guard squad to a storm in a wormhole.”
“The northern region of the Central Continent… I wonder, where is the Pill Tower?” Xiao Yan pondered, then asked again.
“The Pill Tower, huh? It’s naturally in the central region of the Central Continent. Everyone knows that, but the distance between the northern region and the central region is quite far. Even with a Spatial Wormhole, you’d need to make several transfers,” Han Chong explained.
Xiao Yan nodded slightly. Xiao Yixian and the others were probably safe, and he guessed that the spatial energy became so chaotic when he entered the silver ring due to the earlier spatial surge. Xiao Yixian and her companions had likely already exited safely before that happened.
“Ha-ha, Brother Xiao Yan, you just woke up, so rest in the carriage. We still have a long way to go to Tian Bei City. If you need anything, just call me,” Han Chong said, thinking Xiao Yan was still affected by his injuries, so he didn’t disturb him further and left, lifting the curtain. Xiao Yan could see many carriages around, indicating a caravan.
With Han Chong’s departure, the carriage once again fell silent. Leaning against the wall, Xiao Yan’s thoughts raced. Due to the unexpected separation from Xiao Yixian, his top priority was to recover fully. Otherwise, moving around in this land of many strong practitioners would be dangerous.
“There’s still a long time until the Pill Gathering. If I recover, I might travel around the Central Continent, search for news about the Hall of Souls, and look for my master’s best friend, Wind Elder. I might also try to get the last two transformations of the Three Great Skyfire Changes from the Burning Flame Valley. That would be very useful to me,” Xiao Yan murmured, his eyes brightening. “Also, I need to find out more about Xun’er’s mysterious clan. I’m almost reaching the requirements she mentioned.”
His thoughts flying, Xiao Yan took a deep breath and rubbed his forehead, feeling the emptiness within him. He gritted his teeth and forced his unsteady legs into a cross-legged position, forming a cultivation seal with his hands and closing his eyes. No matter what, regaining his strength was the most important thing, especially in this unfamiliar place.
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