Word Count: 2,644 Words
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"Ancestor!"
Alarm jolted through Xiao Yan's heart. If Xiao Xuan exhausted the last remnant of his Dou God Bloodline, he would ultimately become a slave of the Heavenly Tomb, perhaps even fall to the level of those formless, mindless wandering spirits haunting the first and second layers!
Xiao Xuan slowly raised his hand, a sorrowful smile touching his lips. "On the verge of death all those years ago, I expended every last shred of my strength to preserve an extremely faint trace of the Dou God Bloodline and sealed it away through countless means. All of it was for this day, to await the arrival of a descendant."
"Whether you possess the Hun Clan's Dou God Bloodline or have struck bargains with them matters not. As long as you can truly protect and revitalize our clan, I can die without regret."
An ache filled Xiao Yan's chest as he watched his ancestor's figure grow more withered, even as a last glimmer of light returned to those eyes. He could sense how immense a burden this man whose extraordinary talent had once astonished the entire Xiao Clan had borne for the sake of their people.
"I am the eternal sinner of the Xiao Clan. Let me serve as your warning!" Xiao Xuan's shout rang through the hall. Blood-red radiance poured into the clear water. The pool steadily turned crimson. Before long, a thick, metallic scent spread through the air, and an eerie, terrifying power began to seep outward.
Standing beside the pool, Xiao Yan felt that strange power roiling around him. Rather than discomfort, his own blood surged restlessly in his veins. From somewhere deep within, he seemed to hear ecstatic cries of longing.
"Xiao Yan ge-ge!"
The terrifying energy rippling out from within the stone monument made it impossible for Xun Er to remain outside any longer.
Tension drained from her shoulders when she saw Xiao Yan standing safe by the pool. But sorrow flickered across her gaze as she watched Xiao Xuan peel away his own Dou God Bloodline strand by strand.
Xiao Xuan's strength and aura weakened at frightening speed. He had, after all, been dead for a thousand years. Like Hun Diao, he wasn't even a proper soul body, but a fusion of soul information and the Heavenly Tomb's special energy.
Only the unique nature of the Dou God Bloodline had allowed him to preserve a sliver of power and memory. That bloodline was his very flesh and blood.
Now Xiao Xuan was essentially tearing out his own sinews and flaying himself alive. The agony was unimaginable.
Only after more than an hour did he finally stop. His face had visibly aged, and his soul fluctuations had grown faint and weak.
Xiao Yan looked down at the blood pool. Though it appeared full, the actual amount of Dou God Bloodline contained within was minuscule. During his battle with Hun Tiandi, Xiao Xuan had self-detonated both physical body and soul body. This scant remnant was all he had managed to preserve at the cost of his life.
"The Dou God Bloodline contains some of the Dou Qi I wielded in life, as well as the true cultivation method for the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change. Enter the blood pool and inherit the Xiao Clan's final legacy." Xiao Xuan spoke weakly as he stepped out of the pool.
Xiao Yan drew a deep breath. Determination hardened in his eyes at once. Accepting this inheritance meant taking up a burden that could never again be set down.
A gratified smile touched Xiao Xuan's lips at the resolve blazing in his descendant's gaze. He did not know how much Xiao Yan had endured to reach this point, but that look did not lie.
"Xiao Yan ge-ge, be careful." Xun Er's worried voice was soft at his side. Xiao Yan nodded slightly, then stepped into the blood pool without further hesitation and walked slowly toward its center.
The instant his body entered the pool, the surface heaved. Countless threads of blood-red energy, thin as silk, shot toward him like needles, stabbing brutally through his pores and surging into his body with wild force.
The sudden agony drained all color from his face. A sharp breath hissed through his teeth. Yet he had endured pain like this many times before when refining Heavenly Flames.
Veins bulged beneath his skin as he sat cross-legged in the blood pool, letting the Dou God Bloodline scour his body. He even found the presence of mind to circulate the Flame Mantra and begin refining the Dou Qi contained within the bloodline itself. He knew he could not afford to lose consciousness. If he did, all of this would be wasted.
At the pool's edge, Xun Er bit down on her red lip as she watched him suffer. Her jade-like hands clenched so tightly her knuckles blanched. Her heart ached with every shudder that passed through his frame.
Xiao Xuan caught her anxious expression and nodded inwardly. Though the Gu Clan did not honor their ancient pact, perhaps this is indeed a blessing in disguise.
The excruciating pain dragged on for nearly a month before Xiao Yan finally absorbed every trace of the Dou God Bloodline. But this was only the beginning. He still needed to completely fuse this bloodline into his own and inherit the Dou Qi energy Xiao Xuan had left behind.
Only when Xiao Yan's expression finally eased and his bone-thin body began to recover did Xun Er truly breathe out in relief.
That was when chaos erupted!
A thunderous boom shook the chamber. The churning blood pool went abruptly still. A deep, muffled detonation sounded from its depths. Blood mist exploded outward as a strange purple-gold radiance burst from Xiao Yan's body, spreading out to form a barrier that blocked the invading blood threads!
The sudden change made both Xun Er and Xiao Xuan's eyes snap wide. For a heartbeat, they simply stared.
Xiao Xuan fixed his gaze on that purple-gold light. His jaw clenched before he finally spoke in a low, heavy voice. "So it truly is the Dragon Phoenix Bloodline."
When Xiao Yan had first entered the Heavenly Tomb, Xiao Xuan had never taken his eyes off him. He had noticed the Dragon Phoenix Ancient Armor, but given how absurdly rare such a thing was, even he had assumed at first that it was simply some defensive Dou Technique Xiao Yan had cultivated.
In the most ancient, primordial eras, the Dragon Phoenix had been the unrivaled overlord among magical beasts, even more terrifying than a fully-formed Nine-Headed Heaven Serpent. It sat at the very pinnacle of magical beast royalty, and even then had been so rare that barely any records remained.
More importantly, the Dragon Phoenix was not a stable race; its bloodline could not be passed down normally. Even Xiao Xuan had never imagined Xiao Yan would obtain something so precious, and the Dragon Phoenix Essence Blood within him was extremely pure at that!
"Will that affect Xiao Yan ge-ge?" Xun Er asked, her brows knit tight.
"If we cannot overcome the Dragon Phoenix Bloodline's resistance, the Xiao Clan's bloodline strength will never merge into his body. Forcing the process will only leave him grievously injured." Xiao Xuan frowned, feeling a headache coming on. The Dragon Phoenix Bloodline's power was potent enough to rival a true Dou God Bloodline. Though neither bloodline in Xiao Yan's body was at full strength, a clash between them was not something to be underestimated.
Another transformation unfolded before he could think of a solution.
Xiao Yan's eyes snapped open. He formed a hand seal in an instant and unleashed the Emperor Soul Technique. Terrifying Heavenly State Spiritual Strength exploded from within him. The blood pool churned violently. With a great splash, a pair of demonic claws stretched out of the pool, as if reaching from the depths of some nether abyss.
Nor was it only the demonic claws. A sharp hum rang out as golden light flared, and a pair of arms that looked as though they had been forged from pure gold slowly emerged as well.
Xiao Xuan's heart gave a fierce jolt. His scalp went numb. There was no way he wouldn't recognize the Emperor Soul Technique. It was the Hun Clan's Dou God Soul Training Method! Even if this wasn't the complete version the Hun Clan's peak experts cultivated, that changed nothing.
Xiao Yan not only possessed the Hun Clan's Dou God Bloodline; he had even cultivated the Emperor Soul Technique!
As the three-faced Asura statue loomed into existence and the Hun Clan's Dou God Bloodline erupted, the Hun Clan's Clan Mark surfaced on the Asura's forehead!
The sight drew not the slightest flicker of surprise from Xun Er, as if she had already expected it all!
Boom! Boom! Boom!!
With the Hun Clan's Dou God Bloodline joining the fray, three terrifying forces now contended within Xiao Yan's body. Where two powers would only crash together in mindless collision, he had forcibly constructed a three-way stalemate, each force holding the other two in check!
Xiao Xuan's fists clenched tight. The Hun Clan's Dou God Bloodline… it was the thing he hated most in all the world. Yet now, to save Xiao Yan, he would have to help merge all three forces together.
Merging the Xiao Clan's bloodline with the Hun Clan's… no words could describe what that felt like.
Gurgle, gurgle.
The blood pool churned. The Yin-Yang Twin Flame flew from Xiao Yan's body, transforming into two fish that circled once before swimming to Xiao Xuan's side. The Life Flame then projected a stream of memory images.
[Is my Xiao Clan's Xiao Realm in your hands?]
The Yin-Yang Twin Flame could not record everything about Hun Tiandi. But from that single line, Xiao Xuan needed no more to know who Xiao Yan had bargained with.
Through the Yin-Yang fish's record, he saw the ruined Xiao Realm and watched Xiao Yan sign a Soul Contract with Hun Tiandi to reclaim the Xiao Clan's former ancestral land.
Xiao Xuan let out a long sigh and turned his gaze to the younger man still gritting his teeth to maintain balance.
'Ah, the Xiao Clan of old has already fallen utterly. Some things may truly need to change. I hope that in your hands, the new Xiao Clan will blossom with a different kind of life.'
He formed a hand seal. A surge of powerful Spiritual Strength flowed into Xiao Yan's body. With the ancestor's aid and under Xiao Yan's own control, the three bloodline powers arranged themselves into a triangular pattern, each occupying a corner in mutual restraint.
That tenuous equilibrium held for a full month before the bloodline strengths finally ceased their rampage and once again sank back into Xiao Yan's heart.
Xiao Yan's body shuddered violently as the triangular crystal fused into him. Yet although the structure looked solid, it melted seamlessly into his heart, finally coming to rest in its very center. Threads of violet-red light flowed outward from it, making every heartbeat stronger and more forceful.
'Fate… To think that after a thousand years, I would witness such a scene.' Xiao Xuan shook his head helplessly. 'I cannot say whether this is fortune or disaster.'
Everything lay far beyond his ability to stop. He was already a dead man. He had no way to interfere with the tides of the world. The butterfly had already flapped its wings. The storm it stirred had long since thrown this world into chaos.
With the bloodline powers balanced, Xiao Yan slowly closed his eyes again and continued accepting the inheritance.
…
Time flowed like water. In the blink of an eye, a year and a half slipped by quietly within the ancient hall.
During this period, Xun Er spent most of her time cultivating. The energy here was the densest in the entire Heavenly Tomb. Even without hunting energy bodies, her cultivation rose steadily.
As for Xiao Xuan, he never left the blood pool's side for a single step over that year and a half. He watched as the water gradually cleared under Xiao Yan's absorption. Faint, gratified smiles occasionally surfaced at the corners of his mouth. This was the final inheritance of the Xiao Clan—all he could still give.
"It's coming."
Three days later, Xiao Xuan abruptly turned his head toward Xiao Yan's location. Xun Er rose slowly to her feet as well. Xiao Yan was finally emerging from seclusion!
"His aura is surging rapidly!" Xiao Xuan's expression shifted as he spoke.
His words had barely fallen when Xiao Yan's eyes snapped open. He let out a long, resonant roar. A vast aura exploded from within him and began climbing at a terrifying pace.
"Peak 9-star Dou Venerate… one-change, two-change, three-change, four-change!!"
His cultivation soared at frightening speed. In the span of a few breaths, it shot straight upward!
Yet watching his realm spike this quickly, both Xun Er and Xiao Xuan couldn't help growing deeply uneasy. If Xiao Yan failed to keep his mind clear, he would lose himself. His Dou Qi would become dangerously unstable, and his future attempt to break through to Dou Saint would be heavily burdened!
Without reaching the Dou Saint realm, talk of revitalizing the Xiao Clan was nothing more than empty air.
Xiao Xuan's face tightened. Xiao Yan was the Xiao Clan's final hope. If he failed here, the clan was truly finished!
'Xiao Yan ge-ge… you must hold fast to your true heart.' Worry clouded Xun Er's eyes. Her jade-like hands clenched once more.
'Xiao Yan, you are the hope of the Xiao Clan. Don't lose yourself!'
Perhaps their prayers had some effect, or perhaps Xiao Yan had never intended to greedily seize everything in the first place. Just as his aura reached the level of a six-change Dou Venerate, it suddenly plunged like a roller coaster dropping from its peak!
Five-change, four-change, three-change, two-change, one-change… his realm fell all the way back to peak 9-star Dou Venerate. Then it began to rise again, this time at a far slower, steadier pace.
Xiao Xuan finally exhaled in relief as Xiao Yan brought his power under control. Good… he wasn't overcome by greed and has maintained his foundation.
Yet Xiao Xuan still underestimated this descendant!
Just as Xiao Yan's strength stabilized at the peak of one-change Dou Venerate, the second face of the Asura statue which had been dim for the past year and a half suddenly opened its eyes.
WYAAAAAAAAAAAA!
That originally sacred second face gaped wide and unleashed a piercing shriek. Rows of jagged fangs filled its maw. Its eyes twisted with savage ferocity. Over the past year and a half, it had fully consumed the two Dou Saint energy cores. A blinding radiance erupted from it now, so intense that it was hard to keep one's eyes open!
"What is this?!" Xiao Xuan blurted, shocked. This was completely different from any ordinary Soul Technique!
Xiao Yan wasn't foregoing greed. He was Yan Tianzun, who let nothing slip through his fingers!
He instantly formed a hand seal and directed all the surplus energy to suppress the calamity brought by the second face. Here in this hall, he would complete the second form of the Asura Soul Reaping Technique, cross this tribulation, and fully step into perfected mastery!
"Skyfire Three Mysterious Change—Clan Mark, reveal!"
Xiao Yan's shout rang out. All eleven Heavenly Flames within his body erupted without reservation. The combined heat instantly vaporized the entire blood pool. Even Xiao Xuan's mansion groaned under the pressure of eleven Heavenly Flames, as though it were on the verge of collapse!
"Eleven Heavenly Flames!!" Xiao Xuan's expression changed drastically. The number of Heavenly Flames Xiao Yan possessed far exceeded anything he had imagined!!
Three Heavenly Flames had been Xiao Xuan's absolute limit. They were not, however, the limit of the Flame Mantra!!