"This, this is a Soul Body!"
Liu Panlong looked at Xiao Yan with a horrified expression.
As an Alchemist, he had heard that once Soul Power became strong enough, even if the Physical Body perished, the powerful Soul would not dissipate between heaven and earth.
But that would at least require the Soul of a Fifth-Grade Alchemist to achieve, and the vast Soul pressure emanating from this mysterious old man in front of him made him feel as if he was facing a boundless ocean.
He had seen Fifth-Grade Alchemists before, but their Soul Power, compared to this one in front of him, was like a firefly next to a bright moon.
Just a Soul Body was so powerful; how terrifying must this old man's strength have been when he was alive?
"Xiao Yan, what, what do you mean by this?!"
Liu Panlong swallowed hard, looking fearfully at Xiao Yan, who stood beside Xiao Yan with his arms crossed and a slight smile.
He knew very well that for this old man in front of him, killing him would probably be no harder than killing an ant.
"Haha, Great Master Liu, aren't you here to avenge your useless Disciple, Liu Xi?
To tell you the truth, I was the one who killed Liu Xi."
Xiao Yan looked at Liu Panlong with a playful expression, a cold smile appearing on his lips.
"Now, there are only two paths before you: either be burned to ashes by this Bone Spirit Cold Fire, or have me implant a Soul Seal on you, becoming a medicine slave of my Xiao Family, with your life and death controlled by me from now on."
After speaking, Xiao Yan looked at Liu Panlong with an indifferent expression and said coldly, "Choose for yourself."
"Xiao Yan, this old sir, I truly had no ill intentions on this trip; I am innocent!"
Hearing the two choices Xiao Yan offered, Liu Panlong felt like crying without tears. He had only come to the Xiao Family intending to take on a good Disciple; how did he inexplicably end up in a life-or-death predicament?
Becoming a medicine slave meant transforming from a respected Alchemist into an Alchemist tool enslaved by others. This feeling was worse than death.
"Haha, blame it, just blame yourself for discovering my secret. After today, if you don't leave a life-and-death talisman in my hands, I'll have no choice but to burn you to ashes on the spot."
Xiao Yan showed no pity for Liu Panlong's words. From the things Xiao Yan had done in his previous life, it was clear that he was not a good person.
Moreover, he had already met Xiao Yan. Let alone whether he was a good person or not, even if he were a truly kind person, Xiao Yan could not just let him leave without doing anything.
As he spoke, Xiao Yan gestured to Xiao Yan beside him. The latter also nodded slightly, and a cluster of bone-white Bone Spirit Cold Fire appeared in Xiao Yan's palm.
"As an Alchemist, you should know the power of this strange fire.
I'll give you ten seconds to consider, otherwise, you'll only be incinerated into ashes by this Bone Spirit Cold Fire."
Xiao Yan's expression was indifferent, but he had already begun to count.
"Ten, nine, eight…"
As he counted down, a terrifying smile also appeared on Xiao Yan's old face. The Bone Spirit Cold Fire in his hand flickered, drawing closer to Liu Panlong's face.
"Bone Spirit Cold Fire!"
Looking at the flickering bone-white flame in Xiao Yan's hand, Liu Panlong's pupils suddenly constricted. As an Alchemist, although he had never seen Bone Spirit Cold Fire, he was very clear about the terrifying power of this type of flame.
In the past, his first reaction upon seeing this Bone Spirit Cold Fire would probably have been to quickly retreat, and then let greed take over.
But now, Xiao Yan's vast Soul Power was like an impenetrable wall, easily confining him within, rendering him unable to move an inch.
This feeling of utter helplessness was truly despair-inducing.
"Three, two…"
The youth's countdown, like that of the God of Death, echoed in his ears. Looking at the Bone Spirit Cold Fire drawing closer and closer, a chilling cold had already formed a layer of ice on Liu Panlong's face.
Fear intensified, and Liu Panlong finally couldn't help but let out a desperate shriek.
"I surrender! I am willing to become a medicine slave of the Xiao Family!"
At this point, tears even streamed from his eyes in fright.
"Haha, as the saying goes, a wise man submits to circumstances. Xiao Yan, you will definitely thank yourself for today in the future."
Seeing Liu Panlong beg for mercy, Xiao Yan nodded with satisfaction, as he had expected.
To be able to become Xiao Yan's servant was already a tremendous stroke of good fortune for Liu Panlong.
If it were in the Major Thousand Worlds of his previous life, many Earth Supreme powerhouses would have scrambled to become guards by Xiao Yan's side. Let alone a Third-Grade Alchemist, even a Ninth-Grade Alchemist would have found it difficult to secure a position as a medicine boy.
And this was even before Xiao Yan became a Dominator.
Now, for Liu Panlong to become Xiao Yan's subordinate as a Third-Grade Alchemist was indeed a great fortune for him.
However, at this moment, Liu Panlong naturally didn't know what kind of good fortune this was for him. He still looked bitter as he completely released his Soul defenses according to Xiao Yan's instructions, even relaxing his mind.
For a respected Alchemist, becoming someone else's servant was undoubtedly a humiliating thing.
But in the face of the fear of death, he ultimately chose to compromise.
Upon seeing Liu Panlong completely relax his Soul and will defenses, Xiao Yan nodded slightly. He saw his Soul Power suddenly gather at his fingertip, which he then used to outline a strange and profound illusory rune.
This illusory rune was entirely condensed from Soul Power, so it appeared almost transparent. After Xiao Yan condensed it, the rune rapidly shrunk, finally descending into Liu Panlong's glabella under Xiao Yan's control.
The moment this Soul rune entered his glabella, Liu Panlong's Soul instinctively made a defense.
However, with a cold snort from Xiao Yan, his Soul instantly trembled, daring not to offer any further resistance.
A moment later, Liu Panlong felt a sudden sharp pain in his Soul, and then he felt nothing more.
It wasn't until Xiao Yan formed a strange hand seal that a Soul-tearing pain, ten times more agonizing than the tearing of his Physical Body, suddenly surged from his mind.
"Ah!"
Liu Panlong let out a tragic shriek, feeling as if his Soul was about to be torn to shreds. However, this pain only lasted for a moment before dissipating along with the scattering of Xiao Yan's hand seal.
"I have planted a Soul Seal deep within your Soul. With a mere thought, I can inflict terrifying Soul-tearing pain upon you, and can even cause your Soul to explode on the spot."
Xiao Yan's expression remained indifferent as he looked at the ashen-faced Liu Panlong and said faintly, "From now on, your life and death are at my whim."
This Soul enslavement technique, named "Soul Seal," was a method of enslaving subordinates that Xiao Yan had obtained from the Soul Clan after annihilating them back then.
In the past, the Soul Hall had used this method to enslave many Soul Bodies and numerous subordinates. At that time, Xiao Yan only considered this to be an Evil Path and didn't think much of it.
However, since his Rebirth, he had discovered that this so-called Evil Path was surprisingly useful.
Hearing Xiao Yan's words, a desolate expression appeared on Liu Panlong's face. Before coming to the Xiao Family, he had never imagined that he would end up in such a state today.
His lips moved, but he made no sound. His attitude finally became respectful, and he clearly called out to Xiao Yan:
"Master!…"