No matter what, the Heavenly Tomb was one of Xiao Yan's trump cards in the Great Thousand World. So unless it was absolutely necessary, he had no intention of exposing it. Earlier, he had brought the girls inside merely because he was concerned the spirit arrays outside might be breached. Now that everything was settled, there was no need to stay hidden.
Inside the Sacred Demon Palace, many rooms remained vacant. Xiao Yan selected a spacious and comfortable one and gently placed the two unconscious women on the bed.
Staring at their sleeping faces, he let out a helpless sigh. Things had really escalated…
Qing Tan was still manageable. After all, they'd already experienced something similar within the illusion of the Eternal Phantom Demon Flower. Now, it had simply turned into reality—she likely had some mental preparation. As for Mandala… she had been caught in the crossfire for no reason at all.
'Heaven have mercy… I brought her along just to help out, and now I'm stuck with a loli complex label I'll never shake off.'
"Hu…" Exhaling softly, Xiao Yan reined in his thoughts and assessed his current spiritual energy. Due to the Dragon Phoenix Art, he had directly reached the peak of the lower Earth Sovereign grade. This kind of rapid progress made even him click his tongue in disbelief—after all, he had just broken through to Earth Sovereign not long ago.
"Seems this dual cultivation technique is actually pretty decent…" Xiao Yan muttered. If this continued, he might very well charge straight to Heavenly Sovereign. Of course, he understood that this boost was likely because it was the first time. Future results would be helpful, but expecting the same explosive gain would be unrealistic.
The peak of lower Earth Sovereign still had a notable gap from upper Earth Sovereign. Normally, it would take time and secluded cultivation to close that gap. However, with the Spiritual Deity Fluid he had obtained from the Sacred Demon Palace treasury, the breakthrough didn't seem far off.
With that thought, he didn't hesitate. With a flick of his finger, one orb of Spiritual Deity Fluid appeared. As he sensed the dense spiritual energy within, he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. As Mandala had said, this essence held more energy than tens of millions of Sovereign Spiritual Liquid. He definitely needed more of this to break through to the Perfected Earth Sovereign grade faster.
If he could reach Perfected Earth Sovereign, then he could rely on the Plane Spirit's help to charge straight toward Heavenly Sovereign. At that point, he could bring his loved ones from the Dou Qi Continent up to the Great Thousand World.
The Spiritual Deity Fluid's potency was immense. For a typical Earth Sovereign, refining even one orb would take time and effort. But Xiao Yan, empowered by the Creation Green Lotus, didn't face such obstacles. Still, even after absorbing one, he could tell it wasn't enough—so he consumed two more in succession.
Vast energy coursed through his meridians and was swallowed up by the Creation Green Lotus. As a column of spiritual light surged upward, his cultivation finally broke through into upper Earth Sovereign. Only at this point could he rightfully take control over the Sacred Demon Palace.
Though Xiao Yan had already defeated upper Earth Sovereigns before, even battling Perfected ones, his actual cultivation realm remained that of a lower Earth Sovereign. This discrepancy made it difficult to convince others to submit. Now that he had broken through, he was on par with the former palace lord Lu Heng. Other factions would think twice before acting rashly.
He was never afraid of trouble. But if he could prevent unnecessary complications, he certainly wouldn't go seeking them.
However, the refinement of the Spiritual Deity Fluid also taught him something: because of the Creation Green Lotus, his spiritual energy was far more refined and abundant than others of the same grade. But this also meant that breakthroughs required far more energy than normal. Without three or more orbs, he wouldn't have made it.
This made Xiao Yan concerned—when he reached the peak of Earth Sovereign and needed to ascend to Heavenly Sovereign, would the Plane Spirit's power alone really be enough? He exhaled sharply. It was clear he needed to prepare early. At the very least, he had to stockpile Spiritual Deity Fluid. Otherwise, his breakthrough would not be so smooth.
After stabilizing his cultivation, the first thing he did was reinforce the defensive spirit array around the Sacred Demon Palace. He had found several intermediate Master-grade array diagrams in the treasury—there was even a high-grade one among them. He used that for the reinforcement.
With this new formation, even a Perfected Earth Sovereign attacking with full strength would struggle to break through.
Once the barrier was in place, Xiao Yan summoned the remaining Sacred Demon Palace members. The palace had already been sealed, and most of the occupants had no idea what had happened. When they saw an unfamiliar man issuing orders, many showed discontent.
Xiao Yan didn't bother explaining. He directly executed a few defiant ones with ruthless efficiency, letting blood-soaked reality demonstrate that the Sacred Demon Palace had a new master. He made it clear—serve him or die. Anyone with sense knew what to choose.
Of course, to ensure control, he didn't stop there. This time, instead of poisoning, he used the curse extracted from Mandala's body. He planted it into the bodies of the remaining high-level members. Most of the palace's top experts had perished in the earlier battle, but a few remained—including two or three Earth Sovereigns. Naturally, Xiao Yan took them under his wing.
This curse also contained a wisp of his Emperor Flame's power. Only pills refined by him could suppress it. With things still in flux, he didn't have time to slowly win loyalty—only dominance could ensure stability. Once the foundation was solid, he could then cultivate trusted subordinates.
Still, he wasn't all stick and no carrot. He handed out some divine abilities and sacred artifacts he had obtained earlier to those who pledged allegiance early, making it clear that loyalty would be rewarded generously.
If Hun Dai'er were present, she'd probably mock him for relying on such clichéd tactics to command subordinates. But she would also have to admit—they might be old-fashioned, but they were effective.
(End of Chapter)
---
This Fanfiction Has Been Completed on Patreon, There is 2 Chapters Ahead of Release for Free Members on my Patreon.
Support me if you like this Fanfiction.
Patreon,com/Fallen_Archangel_
(Remove comma for dot.)
Leave a 5 star Review and a Power Stone.