Word Count: 2,860 Words
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"Xiao Yan ge-ge." Xun Er's face was tight with nervousness and concern.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine." Xiao Yan gently patted her jade-like hand.
Xiao Xuan clasped his hands behind his back and walked slowly toward the stone monument. When his body touched the stele, his figure rapidly turned transparent and then vanished altogether. Xiao Yan followed closely and stepped into the monument as well.
Inside the massive stone stele lay another world entirely. The dazzling radiance that had flooded his vision gradually dispersed. When Xiao Yan opened his eyes, an ancient hall appeared before him. By now, the sight of a Dou Saint opening a small world within the void no longer surprised him.
In the center of the main hall, Xiao Xuan stood with his hands behind his back, facing away from Xiao Yan. Before him lay a pool of crystal-clear water. Green lotuses floated on its surface, exuding a faint, refreshing fragrance.
Soft footsteps sounded behind him. Xiao Xuan stared at the water before him, his own face reflected on the still surface. His voice was low and steady. "You have the Hun Clan's Dou God Bloodline in your body."
Xiao Yan felt no surprise at those words. He had already seen the answer in his ancestor's eyes earlier.
Xiao Xuan knew that he possessed the Hun Clan Mark and the Hun Clan's Dou God Bloodline.
Though he had made a statement rather than a question, an implied inquiry still lingered in his tone.
At the same time, Xiao Xuan was asking him: as the Xiao Clan's Little Clan Leader, why had he joined the Hun Clan?
On the way here, Xiao Yan had already considered how to respond. Should he conceal certain truths and weave a plausible lie? In the end, he had realized there was nothing that needed hiding.
He walked to Xiao Xuan's side and lowered his head to look at the pool. Two silhouettes—one tall, one slightly slimmer—were reflected on the calm surface, as if bridging time itself. The Xiao Clan's Clan Head from a thousand years ago, and its Little Clan Leader a thousand years later.
Staring at the still water, Xiao Yan spoke in an even tone. "Before I joined the Hall of Souls, the strongest person in our clan was my father, a 5-star Dou Grandmaster."
The previously calm water suddenly rippled outward in concentric circles, as if a pebble had been dropped into the pool.
Xiao Xuan's face remained unchanged, but Xiao Yan clearly sensed a disturbance in his ancestor's soul. It was hard to imagine: a man who had been dead for countless years, whose emotions and consciousness had long since begun to fade, someone who had once possessed an Emperor State soul and stood at the peak of the continent, actually showing such an emotional fluctuation.
Xiao Xuan slowly closed his eyes. A single tear formed of soul light slid from the corner of his eye.
A Dou Grandmaster! In Wu Tan City, that was the pinnacle of strength, enough to dominate an entire city. But to the Xiao Clan of old, to Xiao Xuan himself, he had nearly forgotten what a Dou Grandmaster even was.
Below a Dou Saint was a Dou Venerate. Below a Dou Venerate came Dou Ancestor, Dou Emperor, Dou King, Dou Spirit, and only then Dou Grandmaster.
Among the Dou God Clans, those common descendants whose bloodlines had not mutated could casually cultivate any Qi Method. By the time they reached their prime, they would naturally attain the level of Dou Grandmaster. Within the Xiao Realm, such people were the lowest tier of laborers, responsible for tilling medicinal fields, tending herbs, and harvesting ingredients. There were hundreds of millions of them.
And now, a thousand years later, the Xiao Clan that had once stood at the very summit of the Dou Qi Continent had… a Dou Grandmaster as its strongest member!!
Xiao Yan's answer could not have been clearer. In truth, the Xiao Clan of today no longer existed in the sense Xiao Xuan knew. The two Xiao Clans were entirely different entities. He had joined the Hall of Souls by sheer coincidence. Before that, he hadn't even known there had been a grudge between the Xiao Clan and the Hun Clan.
To the current Xiao Yan, the Hun Clan's Dou God Bloodline was like the Dragon Phoenix Bloodline—simply another source of power.
The Xiao Clan could not give him such strength.
Xiao Yan turned slightly and looked at the middle-aged man who had waited alone in the Heavenly Tomb, hoping for a clansman to enter and receive the inheritance. He had no idea what Xiao Xuan was feeling after hearing all this.
To claim he could empathize would have been a lie. Even if Xiao Yan's soul one day reached the Emperor State, he would still be unable to truly share Xiao Xuan's experience.
One year in the outside world was equivalent to six years within the Heavenly Tomb.
Xiao Xuan had waited alone in this place for six thousand years!!
Six thousand years! Waiting in this forsaken land for six thousand years! How could Xiao Yan possibly say he understood what the other party had endured?
Yet Xiao Xuan's emotional fluctuations soon calmed. Whether that was due to the Heavenly Tomb's influence or simply because he was an extremely steady, composed person, it was hard to say.
"I'd already expected that the Xiao Clan would fall to such a state," Xiao Xuan said slowly as he opened his eyes again. His gaze was once more as deep as an unfathomable abyss. "But at least there is still a remnant of our lineage."
"The Dou God Bloodline within the clan has completely dried up. I'm the only anomaly." Xiao Yan's tone remained level. "I've established an organization called the Yan Alliance and allied with various factions across the continent, with the Xiao Clan hidden within it. We are still far from the level of a Dou God Clan, but at least our clansmen can live and work in peace."
"Is that so? Then things have not yet reached the worst possible outcome." Xiao Xuan nodded lightly.
"Ancestor Xiao Xuan, are you truly still… alive? Is there any way to resurrect you? I am an alchemist as well." Xiao Yan hesitated, then finally voiced the question that had lingered in his heart.
If Xiao Xuan could revive like Venerable Tian Huo, it would be earth-shaking. The Xiao Clan's hope of revival would no longer be just a dream.
Xiao Xuan looked straight at him. After a long moment, he slowly shook his head. "What you see now is only my soul information, essentially a fragment of my own soul that I carved into the Heavenly Tomb before I died. Once I leave this place, I will disperse completely. Even the old Yao Clan, with all its countless geniuses and prodigies, could not find a way to resurrect the Heavenly Tomb's energy bodies."
Disappointment flickered across Xiao Yan's eyes. If even the Yao Clan had failed… He could only give a bitter smile. "Then it seems the Xiao Clan can only walk its path step by step."
Xiao Xuan looked at him. "Since you've already obtained the Yin-Yang Twin Flame, you must have seen the soul memories I left behind. You should already know certain things."
Xiao Yan nodded. He knew every detail: how the Xiao Clan's Dou God Bloodline had run dry, and how Xiao Xuan and all the Xiao clansmen had made a desperate, all-or-nothing gamble in the end, ultimately failing to break through to the Dou God realm and being wiped out by the Hun Clan.
"You obtained the cultivation method for Skyfire Three Mysterious Change from Burning Flame Valley?"
"Yes."
Xiao Xuan couldn't help but sigh with emotion. "To think that the first half of the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change that fellow Fen Yan badgered me for so insistently back then would eventually forge such a fortuitous connection."
He had never imagined Xiao Yan would obtain the method from Burning Flame Valley. The inheritance he had deliberately left behind was meant to guide Xiao Clan descendants into the Gu Realm, then into the Heavenly Tomb to find him.
The Xiao Clan and Gu Clan had held an agreement in ancient times. The two clans had been in an alliance. If one side declined, the Heavenly Tomb would fall under the control of the other. However, the side that gained it would bear the responsibility of protecting the other side's clansmen and helping them enter the Heavenly Tomb to obtain the legacies left behind by their clan's experts.
In the distant past, the Heavenly Tomb had already served as a place where some clan's top powerhouses placed their inheritances. If their clans truly declined one day, this would be a backup, an opportunity to rise once more.
The Skyfire Three Mysterious Change in Burning Flame Valley had never been part of Xiao Xuan's plan.
"The Skyfire Three Mysterious Change is a top-tier Secret Technique that I created. Those so-called 'three changes' are merely prerequisites for the true technique. Only after cultivating the three changes can one cultivate the real Skyfire Three Mysterious Change."
Pride flickered in Xiao Xuan's eyes as he continued. "The real Skyfire Three Mysterious Change is not used to raise one's cultivation. It harnesses the power of Heavenly Flames to temporarily increase the grade of one's Dou God Bloodline!"
Xiao Yan's expression grew solemn. The ability to raise a Dou God Bloodline's grade… only such a power could rightfully be called a High Tian Class Secret Technique!
He had thoroughly experienced the might of Dou God Bloodlines in recent days. It was entirely heaven's favor, a completely legitimate cheat! With a Dou God Bloodline of the same grade or one slightly lower than his cultivation, the boost might not be so exaggerated. But if a Dou Venerate possessed a Grade 9 or Divine Grade bloodline, the amplification would be enough to make others seethe with envy, and it came with no side effects whatsoever!
"Once the true Skyfire Three Mysterious Change is mastered, the Xiao Clan's Clan Mark can be drawn using Heavenly Flames. There'll be no need for a Heavenly Dragon Pen."
Xiao Yan licked his lips. The Clan Mark was the key to awakening the Dou God Bloodline. If the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change could temporarily raise the grade of his Dou God Bloodline, then he would be able to wield the power of the Xiao Clan's Clan Mark!
The Hun Clan's Clan Mark enhanced Spiritual Strength. The Gu Clan's elevated the might of Dou Techniques. He was truly curious what special effect the Xiao Clan's Dou God Bloodline possessed!
Sensing his excitement, Xiao Xuan slowly met his gaze. "Xiao Yan, will you protect the Xiao Clan?"
Xiao Yan smiled and locked eyes with him. "Ancestor, revitalizing the Xiao Clan has always been my mission. I can't promise I'll be able to avenge you, because declaring war on the Hun Clan would plunge the current Xiao Clan into certain catastrophe. As Little Clan Leader, I can't gamble with my clansmen's lives. But I, Xiao Yan, promise you this. While I live, the Xiao Clan will flourish! And if I die, I will become a guardian spirit and protect the Xiao Clan's descendants!"
Xiao Xuan saw the sincerity in his eyes, and at last, a smile that had not appeared in six thousand years slowly surfaced on his face.
"Good! You have a greater sense of responsibility than I did." Xiao Xuan laughed heartily and clapped Xiao Yan's shoulder. If he had not chosen to charge for the Dou God realm back then, perhaps the situation would be very different today.
Of course, the final outcome might not have changed. Once the Xiao Clan's bloodline dried up, only two possibilities remained: either being suppressed by the Hun Clan, eventually losing their status as a Dou God Clan, perhaps even being hunted to extinction; or merging into the Gu Clan and gradually fading away in the river of history, becoming merely one of its branches.
Whichever it might have been, neither outcome had been acceptable to the Xiao Clan of that era. That was why they had chosen to stake everything.
"Originally, cultivating the complete Skyfire Three Mysterious Change required three different Heavenly Flames. I left guidance within the Yin-Yang Twin Flame to help you find the other two Heavenly Flames I sent away when I self-detonated. Normally, no one can hold three Heavenly Flames at once, but I left a method on them that would allow for coexistence."
"However, it seems you've acquired a very special Qi Method that lets you merge Heavenly Flames."
Xiao Xuan had naturally seen it. He had originally worried that Xiao Clan descendants without three Heavenly Flames would face great difficulty and be unable to fully unleash the true Skyfire Three Mysterious Change. That was why he had scattered many black jade pieces to guide a Xiao clansman to the Gate of Life and Death to obtain the Yin-Yang Twin Flame, then search for the other two Heavenly Flames, strengthen themselves, and only then come to the Gu Realm.
Yet Xiao Yan's fortune and potential had surpassed his expectations. He had managed to accomplish all of it on his own.
Xiao Yan's brow furrowed slightly. The Yin-Yang Twin Flame had never offered him any guidance on other Heavenly Flames. His search for them had nothing to do with the Xiao Clan's inheritance; it had been purely because the Flame Mantra demanded them.
"Ancestor, may I ask: what were the other two Heavenly Flames you sealed?" Xiao Yan asked, puzzled.
Xiao Xuan's brows drew together. "The eighth-ranked Red Lotus Karmic Flame and the sixth-ranked Eight Wasteland Destruction Flame."
Xiao Yan let out a soft sigh. He had more or less expected as much. With Xiao Xuan's strength and status, only Heavenly Flames ranked in the top ten would be worthy of him. If the Yin-Yang Twin Flame had not been so compatible with the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change, Xiao Xuan might not have used it either.
"Though I can't be certain, I've heard the Yan Clan now possesses the Red Lotus Karmic Flame and the Eight Wasteland Destruction Flame."
"'The remnants of our clan, divided among the seven.'" Xiao Yan looked at Xiao Xuan with a wry expression. The two Heavenly Flames he had left behind had most likely been taken by others long ago, and the Xiao Clan's legacy secret realms had already been thoroughly carved up.
Xiao Xuan's face darkened. Back when he first conceived of the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change, he had scoured the entire Dou Qi Continent for Heavenly Flames, facing countless dangers. He had braved two extremely perilous regions to finally refine the Eight Wasteland Destruction Flame and Red Lotus Karmic Flame.
At that time, he had already traveled the entire continent and roamed the void, yet had never discovered a second flame of either type, not even in its infant stage. For the Yan Clan to suddenly possess two mature flames of the same kinds…
He had discovered the Nine Dragon Lightning Flame in its infant stage, and through that he had come to know Ancestor Fen Yan. Those infant Heavenly Flames, however, he had never claimed.
In the end, having searched the Dou Qi Continent without finding another Gold Emperor Incinerating Heavenly Flame or Nine Serene Golden Ancestor Flame, he had chosen the Eight Wasteland Destruction Flame and Red Lotus Karmic Flame for his Skyfire Three Mysterious Change.
"The Yan Clan might very well have forcibly broken the methods I left behind and taken the Heavenly Flames," Xiao Xuan said after a pause. The Yan Clan was far from weak, and with their Dou God inheritance, they were experts at playing with fire.
"Still, it's fortunate that you've had such great fortune and obtained a Qi Method that allows you to merge Heavenly Flames."
Sometimes, people's plans could not compare to heaven's designs. Xiao Xuan's arrangements had been undone, but Xiao Yan himself had acquired the Flame Mantra and collected even more Heavenly Flames!
"The Skyfire Three Mysterious Change can raise a Dou God Bloodline's grade, but not without limit. It still requires the foundation of a Dou God Bloodline to support it."
Xiao Xuan stepped into the pool before him and walked to its center. He lifted his palm, and the water began to rotate slowly. As it turned, streaks of blood-red light gradually seeped from his body, flowing along his arm and into the water.
"The Xiao Clan's Dou God Bloodline!" Xiao Yan's heart jolted. Hun Diao had possessed a trace of the Hun Clan's Dou God Bloodline. To preserve one's consciousness after death in this Heavenly Tomb, such a bloodline was essential. Without it, after enough time in the tomb, one would eventually become a mindless, walking corpse!
As those strange, blood-colored rays melted into the water, the crystal-clear pool slowly turned crimson, looking like nothing so much as a pool of pure blood. At the same time, Xiao Xuan's black hair began to turn gray, and his face grew visibly older.