"Third Brother?"
Xiao Yan had met Huo Zhi several times and still remembered her clear yet seductive voice. He also knew she was Xun Er's close friend and that although she and Xiao Ting seemed to have a bad relationship, they were actually very close.
Why did she start calling him "Third Brother"?
"Third Brother, this is Yao Ling ang Mu Qing Luan from the Yao Clan and Starfall Pavilion in Central Plains." Huo Zhi brought Yao Qing Luan and Mu Qing Luan to Xiao Yan.
"Where did you come from?" Xiao Yan ignored Huo Zhi's form of address and suddenly changed his expression.
"Hello, Xiao Yan. I am Mu Qing Luan from Starfall Pavilion. My master is Feng Zun Zhe." Mu Qing Luan stepped forward and greeted him.
Yao Ling maintained her attitude and stared at Xiao Yan with a critical gaze, not answering any questions.
"Master, she is Feng Zun Zhe's disciple." Xiao Yan spoke to Yao Chen in his heart.
"I heard. I've long expected this day to come. After all, the commotion Xiao Ting caused was considerable, and the talent he displayed is terrifying. If Starfall Pavilion's information-gathering ability has no problems, they will definitely find out." Yao Chen placed a chess piece, nodded at Yao Tian Huo, and left the Bone Flame Ring.
"Disciple of Feng Xian, are you from the Heavenly Luan Clan?" Yao Chen's spirit appeared and observed Mu Qing Luan with interest.
"Master." Xiao Yan bowed to Yao Chen and said to Mu Qing Luan, "My master is the person you were looking for."
"Disciple Mu Qing Luan greets the Pavilion Master." Mu Qing Luan immediately bowed deeply to Yao Chen and looked at him with curious eyes. "Disciple is indeed a member of the Heavenly Luan Clan."
"Feng Xian has deep connections with the Heavenly Luan Clan. Back then, when he broke through to the Dou Venerable realm, I refined pills for him and allowed him to use the forbidden grounds of the Heavenly Luan Clan to succeed. At that time, he promised the clan leader of the Heavenly Luan Clan that he would take someone from the Heavenly Luan Clan as a disciple. It seems that person is you." Nostalgia appeared in Yao Chen's eyes as he said, "As someone who knows him well, if you learned about Han Feng and me, you would definitely rush over immediately. What exactly happened?"
"Pavilion Master, you truly understand Master very well." Mu Qing Luan thought that Feng Zun Zhe's absence was thanks to her persuasion and smiled mischievously. Then she naturally replied, "The Four Pavilion Grand Meeting is approaching, and this time it will be held at Starfall Pavilion. Master cannot return immediately."
"According to our information, a genius named Xiao Ting killed a sixth-rank alchemist named Han Feng in the Black-Corner Region. Master asked us to investigate whether Han Feng was the Pavilion Master's disciple and why he was killed."
"If the news is confirmed, we will reply immediately. He will arrive soon."
"Four Pavilion Grand Meeting, huh." Yao Chen nodded in understanding and smiled. "That's quite a coincidence."
"This is truly a coincidence. I came to the Black-Corner Region to meet Sister Yao Ling and Sister Huo Zhi, but I never expected to meet the Pavilion Master. Han Feng must have done something bad and was killed for it." Mu Qing Luan blinked her lively and intelligent eyes.
"Hmm." Yao Chen no longer wanted to talk about Han Feng, so he lightly nodded and said, "You can send a message to my old friend now."
Now that the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower was providing less and less support to Xiao Yan, it was time for him to find a bigger stage.
Only by going to Starfall Pavilion in Central Plains, where Dou Venerable experts could protect and help him grow, could he go further.
"Yes, Pavilion Master. This disciple will deliver the message immediately." Mu Qing Luan took out a communication jade and wrote a special message on it before crushing it.
The message disappeared into the void and vanished in an instant.
Yao Chen looked at Yao Ling with an expectant light in his eyes. "The relationship with the Yao Clan is special. Do you have any business with me?"
"Yao Chen, you have truly disgraced our Yao Clan." Yao Ling spoke with an arrogant expression and a contemptuous tone. "A peak ninth-rank Dou Venerable and a peak eighth-rank alchemist has actually fallen to such a state."
"What do you mean!?" Xiao Yan's expression changed drastically. He stood in front of Yao Chen and glared at her with anger. "Master did not rely on the power of the Yao Clan to reach that position. What right do you, who only receive support from the clan, have to criticize master?"
"Someone who took in a disciple who was abandoned by the clan is truly an ordinary person." Yao Ling stared at Xiao Yan and said almost disinterestedly, "If you were a member of the Yao Clan, at your age and strength, you wouldn't even qualify to be my disciple."
"What did you say?" Xiao Yan clenched his fists, his eyes shining as he said, "In the future, I will definitely surpass you and help master achieve what he wants to do in the Yao Clan."
"Arrogant and ignorant, like a frog in a well, overconfident." Yao Ling lightly shook her head and looked at Huo Zhi. "Sister Huo Zhi, Sister Qing Luan has achieved her goal, so please take care of her. My brother and I will return to the Yao Realm first."
Xiao Yan was furious and was about to say, "Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river, do not look down on the Xiao Clan when it is weak."
However, before he could open his mouth, Huo Zhi spoke first. "Yao Ling, what you just said was a bit too harsh."
"I'm only stating facts. Why is it so serious?" Yao Ling showed a puzzled expression, as if she couldn't understand why Huo Zhi would say that about Xiao Yan.
"He is the third brother of my Dao partner, so he is also the third brother to me," Huo Zhi said seriously. "I don't think what he said was an exaggeration."
"Eh?" Yao Ling was surprised. "Sister Huo Zhi, is your Dao partner's third brother just a Dou King?"
"Then your Dao partner… No, didn't you say your Dao partner is stronger than you?"
"Wait, Xiao Yan — his surname is Xiao. Could it be that your Dao partner is the Xiao Ting that many people in Central Plains have been talking about?"
"Yes." Having spoken this far, Huo Zhi no longer tried to hide anything and answered clearly.
"Didn't Xiao Ting just reach the Dou Venerable realm recently?" Yao Ling asked suspiciously. "Is he really stronger than Sister Huo Zhi?"
"This is…" Huo Zhi slightly parted her lips, about to explain.
But in the next moment, she suddenly turned her face and looked toward the direction of Purple Sky City.
Yao Chen also seemed to sense something and turned his face with a solemn expression.
…
Yao Tian, who was on a peak in the Black-Corner Region, also suddenly frowned and said, "This aura belongs to a high-level Dou Venerable!"
…
Click!
Black clouds gathered above Purple Sky City. Lightning and thunder roared, and a terrifying pressure spread in all directions.
The cultivators of the Black-Corner Region who witnessed this apocalyptic scene were not only shocked but also felt an urge to complain.
How many times had something like this happened in Purple Sky City?
Powerful experts appeared one after another. Were they some kind of candied hawthorn?!
However, the previous two times, Xiao Ting, who had reached the Dou Ancestor and Dou Venerable levels, had easily defeated them.
This time, Xiao Ting, who had only just reached the Dou Venerable level recently, did he really have the power to resist?
"Boom!"
Countless pale blue raindrops fell from the dark clouds. It looked like a storm, but it was an unremarkable sight.
Yao Chen's expression suddenly changed. "Elder Mo Yu of the Hall of Souls!"
"He was my defeated opponent from decades ago, but I never imagined he would reach the peak of seven-star Dou Venerable."
"His cultivation method is special. By dissolving the power that devours his own soul into water, he can seize the soul power of others."
"If you're hit by the rain he creates, your soul power will be drained away."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan's expression changed drastically. "The peak of seven-star Dou Venerable!?"
….