As Xiao Yan and his companions vanished into the spatial rift, the members of the Heaven Devouring Phoenix Clan exchanged glances, but no one dared to speak up to stop them. “Elder Phoenix, are we just going to let them take away the Dragon-Phoenix Origin Fruit like this?” the white-haired man gritted his teeth, his face filled with unwillingness. “Do you have any ideas? Want to charge forward and fight that guy to the death? Even if all of us here die, I doubt we could hurt him!” Phoenix Xuan was seething with anger. The roast duck that was within his grasp had flown away, and not only that, but before it flew, it had also slapped him in the face hard. How could he feel at ease? “I didn’t expect that little girl to be from the Ancient Void Dragon Clan. If she wasn’t there, the Dragon-Phoenix Origin Fruit would have been ours.” Feng Qing’er clenched her silver teeth, “And this time, the clan sent so many strong people. If we return in defeat…” Phoenix Xuan took several deep breaths, trying hard to calm down. After a moment, he turned around and headed towards the corridor. “Elder Phoenix?” Seeing this, Feng Qing’er and others were stunned. “Let’s go and retrieve the Celestial Phoenix’s bones from the beast spirit cover. No matter what, we can’t return empty-handed. With these items, whether they are useful or not, we can at least shut some people up.” Phoenix Xuan’s face was grim as he flicked his sleeve and walked resolutely towards the corridor, with Feng Qing’er and the others following behind. The bones had been through countless years and had long become useless. Even if they brought them back, they might not be of much use.
Watching the hasty retreat of the Heaven Devouring Phoenix Clan, Plucking Star Old Ghost’s face was cold. His gaze fixed on the spot where Xiao Yan and his group had disappeared, he said darkly, “Xiao Yan, wait. We will meet again soon, and then it will be the time for both you and the Falling Star Pavilion to be utterly destroyed.” With those venomous words, Plucking Star Old Ghost did not linger any longer. He turned and rushed outside the ruins.
A hundred miles away from the Bone Mountain Range, on a peak, the space suddenly fluctuated, and a black spatial rift quietly opened. A series of figures emerged from within it.
“Many thanks, Elder Hei Qian, for your assistance,” Xiao Yan bowed to the burly man as he landed on the mountain top, smiling.
“No problem. When I came out, the old farts from the clan asked me to pass on their thanks to you for taking care of Zi Yan over the years. Our Ancient Void Dragon Clan will find an opportunity to repay this debt,” Hei Qian waved a hand and said.
“Elder Hei Qian is too kind. I treat Zi Yan like a sister; it’s only natural to take care of her,” Xiao Yan said seriously. When he first met Zi Yan, he didn’t know about her background. Back then, he thought she was cute and compatible, which led him to look after her attentively.
“Hmm, her identity is quite special and is of great importance to our clan, so nothing can happen to her. You managed to bring her safely to the Central Plain and get in touch with the clan, which is a great favor to us,” Hei Qian glanced at Zi Yan and shook his head.
“Alright, I won’t drag on. Boring chatter is annoying. Anyway, the Ancient Void Dragon Clan will repay you someday. This place is a fair distance from the Bone Mountain Range. You just need to head east to leave the Beast Domain, but Zi Yan has to come back with me this time.”
“What? I don’t want to go back; there’s no fun there at all,” upon hearing this, Zi Yan frowned and shook her head vigorously.
“It’s not up to you. Those old guys gave the order. They say you’ve played enough and haven’t completed the Ancient Dragon inheritance yet. You must complete it entirely before you can come out. And now, with the discovery of the Dragon-Phoenix Origin Fruit, you need to handle it…” Hei Qian spread his hands and said.
Zi Yan pouted, her face full of unwillingness.
“With your current strength, being by Xiao Yan’s side is just a burden. Who knows what disaster might happen to them because of you? You wouldn’t want that, right?” Hei Qian smiled, “Once you complete the inheritance, your strength will skyrocket. Then, no one can stop you from coming out. When that time comes, you can genuinely help Xiao Yan and the others.”
Hearing this, Zi Yan paused, then slumped her head and muttered, “Fine, you win. I’ll go back with you.”
Xiao Yan gave Hei Qian a glance. Despite his rough appearance, he was pretty cunning. A single sentence hit Zi Yan’s weak spot, forcing her to concede.
Hei Qian seemed to sense what Xiao Yan was thinking and grinned at him. Then, turning to Xiong Zhan, he said, “This big fellow should come with me too. The ancient dragon bears were once part of our clan. Follow me, and you’ll benefit a lot… “
“Hehe, I’ll do as you say, Elder Hei Qian,” Xiong Zhan scratched his head and laughed dumbly. In front of a mature Ancient Void Dragon, he couldn’t resist in the slightest.
“Since that’s the case, we’ll part ways here,” Xiao Yan smiled and cupped his hands.
“Zi Yan, practice hard…” Little Healer Immortal patted Zi Yan on the head and smiled. Zi Yan could only nod sullenly.
“Hm… Before we leave, a word of caution—be careful of the Soul Palace. You’re now completely against them, so take care not to fall into their hands,” Hei Qian nodded and hesitated before speaking.
“My father is still in their hands. No matter what, I have to save him…” Xiao Yan said softly.
Hei Qian was startled, then nodded silently. “Given that, I won’t say more. Farewell!”
With that, the space beside Hei Qian twisted, and a spatial rift appeared once more.
“Let’s go,” Hei Qian waved his hand and turned to walk into the rift. Xiong Zhan followed closely behind, and Zi Yan walked last, reluctantly looking at Xiao Yan and the others. She clutched her small fists and said earnestly, “Xiao Yan, next time I come out, I’ll be stronger than you. When that time comes, you better make me pills every day to eat! Haha!”
At the end, Zi Yan giggled, then turned and stepped into the spatial rift without further ado.
Whoosh!
As Zi Yan entered the spatial rift, it whooshed shut and disappeared.
Staring at the spot where Zi Yan and the others had vanished, Xiao Yan felt a bit lost. Without this little girl, it seemed there would be less joy around him.
“Let’s go. This mission is complete. We’ve got the Soul Baby Fruit, and there’s finally a solution to the teacher’s soul problem,” after a moment of wistfulness, Xiao Yan perked up. He waved his hand, laughed, leaped, and soared into the sky, turning into a streak of light, and swiftly flew out of the Beast Domain. Behind him, Little Healer Immortal and the others quickly followed.
This trip to the ancient ruins was far more fruitful than Xiao Yan and his companions had expected. Not only did they successfully acquire the Soul Baby Fruit, but they also, by chance, obtained the extremely precious Beast Pill. Given enough cultivation, it could eventually reach the true ninth rank, allowing it to perform miraculous feats like reviving the dead and altering fate.
Of course, the most significant gain was the three rib bones plucked from the remains of the Dou Saint. These contained a genuine Heaven-rank martial technique, but Xiao Yan didn’t have the time to decipher them now. Everything would have to wait until they returned to the Falling Star Pavilion for thorough study.
Having offended the Heaven Devouring Phoenix Clan and the Nine Underworld Earth Medusa Clan within the Beast Domain, Xiao Yan and the others dared not linger, given the numerous eyes and ears of the clans. After parting ways with Hei Qian, they left the Beast Domain immediately. With their rapid travel, they were out of the Beast Domain in just a day.
After leaving the Beast Domain, Xiao Yan first sent a message to Mu Qing Luan and others who were still there, then set off with the group back to the Falling Star Pavilion.
On the mountaintop in the back of the Falling Star Pavilion, an old figure sat cross-legged on a giant rock. The elder’s form was slightly illusory, but a vast soul pressure emanated from him. In the Falling Star Pavilion, aside from the Medicine Ancestor, who else could wield such power?
“Old man, I’ve secretly contacted some of the old friends. They’ve agreed that if you can regain your strength, you can become a guest elder of the Falling Star Pavilion…” Behind the Medicine Ancestor, the azure-clad Wind Sovereign laughed.
“Yeah, if I can restore my peak strength, the Falling Star Pavilion will have the power to make the Soul Palace take notice. With such security, naturally, they will agree,” the Medicine Ancestor smiled, unsurprised.
The Wind Sovereign nodded and pondered for a moment, “Xiao Yan and the others have been in the Beast Domain for a while. I wonder if they’ve acquired the Soul Baby Fruit. Rumor has it, there were many strong ones drawn to the ruins this time.”
“Rest assured,” the Medicine Ancestor smiled faintly, slowly opening his eyes and gazing toward the entrance of the star realm. The space there began to ripple subtly.
Seeing the Medicine Ancestor’s confidence in Xiao Yan, the Wind Sovereign was taken aback, then followed the former’s gaze. There, the space was slowly cracking, and familiar figures stepped through, looking as if they had rushed back to the Falling Star Pavilion, covered in dust.
“Old man, congratulations. Your wish is finally coming true,” the Wind Sovereign smiled, a hint of envy in his voice, “You found a good disciple.”
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