Word Count: 2,955 Words
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Nalan Yanran's face paled at those words! She pressed her back against the door and stared at him in shock.
Xiao Yan looked every inch the debauched young master right now. When he called her over, could he be planning to...!!
Her cheeks flushed crimson as countless unspeakable images flashed through her mind. Moisture gathered in her beautiful eyes, ready to spill over, while her legs pressed together involuntarily. Panic surged through her heart. No wonder his gaze sometimes made her feel exposed; he'd harbored these thoughts all along!
"Something like this... N-no, we can't! Besides, our engagement is already broken. We shouldn't..." Nalan Yanran lowered her head in shame. Her words trailed off, revealing the conflict churning inside her. Her heart pounded fiercely, threatening to burst from her chest.
Xiao Yan nearly doubled over with laughter. He shook his head helplessly. "What on earth are you thinking? I'm asking you to help your blockhead master. Don't tell me you're a blockhead too!"
He could barely contain himself. What beautiful master-and-disciple pair? They were clearly a pair of blockheads!
Only then did Nalan Yanran snap back to reality. She puffed out her cheeks, rushed over, and grabbed the bedsheets torn by the earlier Dou Qi surge. She wrapped them around Yun Yun's body before helping her stand.
Xiao Yan quickly slid off the bed and turned to face the two women. Their faces glowed so red they seemed about to drip blood. Nalan Yanran supported her master, and both gazed at him with a mix of tender anger and shyness.
He coughed twice and rubbed his nose. "This situation... well, misunderstandings and bad luck played their parts."
Yun Yun didn't know how to face him now. He had touched her in the past and even bitten her. Now he'd seen everything. She was ruined; she would never be able to marry!
"Please don't tell anyone," Yun Yun said, her voice laced with pleading. Her only hope rested on Xiao Yan keeping his mouth shut. Otherwise, her reputation would shatter!
"Of course I won't tell anyone. This is a secret between us two... no, three people."
Even Xiao Yan felt a strange stirring at his own words. A secret among three people… just the sound of it suggested quite a story!
"Nalan Yanran... never mind. You little maidservant can't even handle small tasks properly. I'll gather the materials myself. You just help your master." Xiao Yan glanced at the flowers scattered on the ground and decided to handle things himself. Neither of them seemed reliable.
A soft click echoed as he walked out first and gently closed the door behind him.
"Yanran, it's not what you think. Nothing happened between him and me. This came from tearing Granny Hua's seal," Yun Yun explained hurriedly once Xiao Yan had left.
Nalan Yanran gazed at her master, whose blush lingered, and hugged her tightly. "Master, you like him too, don't you?"
Yun Yun's heart trembled at those words. She wanted to speak but couldn't find the right ones. Though a thousand thoughts swirled in her mind, they dissolved into a gentle sigh.
"I shouldn't have given in to your pestering and agreed to let you break off the engagement. This is all my fault." Yun Yun gently stroked Nalan Yanran's hair, offering comfort.
Nalan Yanran revealed a faint smile. "It's not your fault, Master. Even if I hadn't gone to break off the engagement, that marriage... still wouldn't have happened. His heart already belongs to someone else..."
…
The next day unfolded as if nothing had happened. Xiao Yan needed to help Nalan Yanran improve her strength first. Otherwise, if this Little Sect Leader returned to her sect and couldn't beat anyone, wouldn't that be terribly embarrassing?
He entered her room without knocking. Nalan Yanran, who had been cultivating cross-legged, looked up in exasperation. "Can't you at least knock?"
"I didn't hide my aura. With your sensitive spiritual perception, you noticed me long ago," Xiao Yan said with a smile as he looked around her room.
It differed from Yun Yun's quarters, with a more girlish style. The curtains and decorations leaned toward bluish-green tones, and a fresh fragrance permeated the air, light and invigorating like a spring meadow.
Nalan Yanran's heartbeat quickened as he surveyed her space. She snorted coldly. "How very polite of you."
"Why does this little maidservant have so many complaints?"
"I'm not a little maidservant!"
Nalan Yanran stomped her foot hard, but his expression showed her protests fell on deaf ears.
"Fine, fine, enough chatter. I'll help you improve your cultivation and clear your meridians."
Nalan Yanran glanced at him and turned her head away. "I don't need your help."
Xiao Yan ignored her completely. He took out the Ten Thousand Beast Cauldron and produced various medicinal ingredients. "You've been cultivating for quite some time," he murmured to himself. "Hidden injuries accumulate in the body, and incompletely refined medicine leaves residue that blocks meridians and affects Dou Qi circulation. Combined with this Ancestor Progression Pill, you should advance at least one star."
Nalan Yanran watched him take out his cauldron and begin the refinement process. She abandoned her stubbornness and silently sat down in a nearby chair.
She propped her chin in her hands, her beautiful eyes watching his back thoughtfully. Undeniably, a man focused intently on what he did best held exceptional appeal.
His pill refinement technique flowed with elegance. The Heavenly Flame burned the herbs with a steady whoosh, releasing their rich fragrance from the cauldron. The room's temperature rose gradually, blending the faint floral scent that originally filled the air with the medicinal aroma, creating a heady, soothing haze.
Who knew what thoughts danced through Nalan Yanran's mind? Her beautiful eyes flashed with a strange light again and again, and a shy smile occasionally graced the corners of her lips.
What could Xiao Yan do, being stared at like this? He could only pretend not to notice.
Fantasy time always passed quickly. After about fifteen minutes, he withdrew the flame and produced a large wooden tub. He then used the Sea Heart Flame, transformed into water-attribute Dou Qi, to draw clear water from the air. It poured into the tub before he blended in the refined medicinal liquid.
A tub of precious liquid appeared with a low hum. Though Nalan Yanran didn't understand alchemy, she recognized its extraordinary nature.
"Still staring? Get in yourself. Or should I throw you in?"
Nalan Yanran clutched her clothes. "I don't need to undress, right?"
Xiao Yan smiled faintly. "As you wish. I don't mind either way."
Nalan Yanran's face instantly turned peach-red. Naturally, she wouldn't remove her dress. She slowly bent to unbuckle her shoes, then carefully peeled off her stockings. The delicate silk whispered against her alabaster skin as she drew them down, each movement unconsciously graceful. Her slender fingers traced the curve of her calf as she rolled the fabric away, revealing legs as fair and smooth as polished jade.
Xiao Yan stroked his chin while watching. There really was an art to removing stockings.
With shoes and stockings removed, Nalan Yanran noticed his gaze fixed on her. She quickly stepped to the tub's edge, one delicate foot testing the water's temperature. Then, with fluid grace, she slipped into the medicinal bath. She turned so her back faced him, drew her knees up, and wrapped her arms around them, leaving only the crown of her head and the elegant line of her neck visible above the water's surface.
Even the cool water couldn't ease the heat in her heart. She was too shy to say a word.
She and Xiao Yan were born on the same day of the same month in the same year, and their families had once been close. Yet she had only been alone with him twice before. Once in the Heaven Eye Mountain Range, and now this second time. In the mountain range, they at least ventured through a secret realm out in the open. But now, a lone man and woman shared a private room!!
As an untouched maiden, how could she not feel flustered?
Xiao Yan looked at her back, now dampened by water and revealing glimpses of alabaster skin through the thin fabric. He found her unconscious actions more alluring than any deliberate seduction.
She had piled her hair atop her head, and water droplets slid down her jade-white neck like liquid pearls. From his angle, the water made her pale blue dress cling to her body, outlining the elegant curve of her spine. The fabric wrapped around her willow-thin waist created an entrancing silhouette that could captivate any man.
The room filled with a captivating beauty, stirring the senses with its intimate warmth.
"Xiao Yan."
Xiao Yan's heart jolted at the sound of her voice. "Wh-what is it?"
Nalan Yanran placed her hands on the tub's edge and leaned against it. She turned her head to look at him, her voice quiet with guilt. "I'm sorry."
Xiao Yan naturally understood what she meant. He smiled lightly, then took flower petals from his storage ring and scattered them into the tub.
He walked slowly behind her, his voice calm and gentle. "Those events happened so long ago. I've already forgotten them."
Nalan Yanran's face brightened with a radiant smile at his response.
Whoosh!
Xiao Yan's right hand condensed two small black and white fish. "Take the Ancestor Progression Pill first. When you received Yun Po Tian's inheritance at the Gate of Life and Death, you absorbed some Yin-Yang Twin Flame power. I'll use the Yin-Yang Twin Flame to help you refine the accumulated medicinal energy in your body along with the Ancestor Progression Pill."
Nalan Yanran knew she couldn't be distracted. She focused quickly, took the pill, and sat cross-legged. Then, remembering something, she turned her head sharply. "Wait, did you just say you're using a Heavenly Flame?!"
Whoosh!
The Yin-Yang Twin Flame, like two black and white koi, plunged into the wooden tub with a splash under her dumbfounded gaze.
Then came the classic scene. The terrifying Yin-Yang Twin Flame's two little fish spat out balls of black and white Heavenly Flame underwater, enveloping her in their glow.
A pink blush suffused her face. How could she not know the Heavenly Flame's 'side effects'? She had experienced them at the Heavenly Mountain Blood Pool, and back at the Jia Ma Empire's Alchemist Grand Meeting, Xiao Yan himself had been the first victim!
Why else would he always tell Little Fairy Doctor to remember to remove her clothes first? Because he was the original victim!
"Focus your mind," Xiao Yan said sternly.
What's there to panic about? It's not like I haven't seen it before. Though the person in question doesn't know that.
Nalan Yanran bit her red lips with pearly teeth. She couldn't worry about her clothes rapidly dissolving in the water and began refining the Ancestor Progression Pill. At least he saw Master, too. With her as a precedent, I have nothing to fear!
The exquisite figure beneath the water gradually became visible—the graceful curves, the slender waist that seemed made for a man's hands to span, and the delicate collarbone emerging as the last wisps of fabric dissolved away. Xiao Yan nodded inwardly. The scene matched perfectly with what the Life Flame had shown him. Verification complete!
Those flower petals weren't randomly chosen. The mixed fragrance from the Flower Sect's sea of flowers could produce special illusions, but when properly prepared by an alchemist, it became an excellent natural treasure. It gently enhanced Dou Qi while relaxing one's emotions, wrapping the senses in a dreamy, floral embrace.
Nalan Yanran's shoulders gradually relaxed in the warm water. The Heavenly Flame felt wonderfully warm, like being embraced by strong, protective hands.
If Feng Qing Er were present, she would have cursed in outrage. Why was her experience with the Heavenly Flame so painful???
But this really wasn't Xiao Yan's fault. Nalan Yanran didn't need body tempering. On the contrary, her cultivation method and sword techniques required her body to remain soft and sensitive, her strikes sharp and ethereal rather than forceful. For her, maintaining physical suppleness proved ideal.
Xiao Yan smiled and shook his head when he saw her enter her cultivation state. His fate with Nalan Yanran was indeed ill-starred, yet this twisted fate seemed impossible to avoid. During those days in Wu Tan City, someone else had already claimed a place in his heart.
He looked at the white jade Gu token in his hand and tightened his fingers slightly around it. He planned to spend the rest of his time at the Flower Sect cultivating Dou Techniques. As one of the Two Sects, the natural energy here brimmed with richness.
'Sigh, I'm too pitiful. As the Flower Sect's only male, I don't even have a room,' Xiao Yan complained as he slowly walked out of her room.
With a wave of his hand, his Spiritual Strength enveloped the mountain range. Yun Yun was also cultivating. He used his Heavenly State Spiritual Strength to lay down a spiritual seal that ordinary Dou Venerates would find difficult to break.
He smiled faintly, bowed toward a seemingly empty space, then flew toward a mountain cave.
In the void, two beautiful figures watched him bow and depart.
"He actually discovered us. His Spiritual Strength is very powerful, probably at the Heavenly State already. Truly worthy of being his disciple," the Flower Sect's Great Elder, Fairy Hua, said with a smile.
Venerable Feng had already informed those connected to Venerable Yao of his situation.
Beside her, the previously silent Fairy Qing closed her eyes slowly. A single tear slid from the corner of her eye as memories of days long past flooded back.
She didn't know if what she felt could be called love. She only knew that despite reaching high-level Half-Saint, her heart still ached terribly, ached until she could scarcely breathe.
Fairy Hua could only sigh inwardly. Even though they had cultivated to Half-Saint and viewed life and death with detachment, some feelings for certain irreplaceable people could never be forgotten.
"Let's go."
"Mm."
Xiao Yan naturally didn't know his Master had also been quite the charmer, leaving not only Xuan Yi at the Pill Tower but also a Fairy Qing at the Flower Sect.
Now, he focused single-mindedly on the white bones before him.
'So that's how it is… hiding spiritual information in the bone marrow to preserve it for a thousand years.' His gaze locked onto three ribs of Saint Zhao Hua's skeleton. With his Heavenly State Spiritual Strength, he quickly discovered the key.
He clasped his hands in respect, then transformed the Wind and Thunder Fury Flame into wind scissors. With several deft snips, he cut away those three ribs.
They felt cool yet warm in his hand, like the finest jade. A quick glance revealed strange characters covering them, flickering with faint light. The symbols seemed alive, slowly writhing across the bone.
'The Dou Saint essence blood can wait. First, I'll learn the Dou Technique.' Xiao Yan didn't immediately refine the essence blood. Instead, he stored the skeleton away. He couldn't simultaneously refine essence blood and cultivate a Dou Technique.
He examined the ribs carefully. Tiny, mysterious characters covered them, extraordinarily profound and giving off an abstruse feeling that defied easy understanding.
'These should be ancient characters...'
He memorized all the strange characters but couldn't decipher them.
'It seems these characters aren't the cultivation method itself.' A contemplative expression crossed his face. After a moment, his eyes narrowed slightly. His Asura Spiritual Strength spread out, but upon touching the ribs, it rebounded. He paused, then revealed a faint smile.
'So that's it. There's a seal inside.'
Understanding this, Xiao Yan clenched his hand and smiled. All his Heavenly Flames merged, and a multicolored flame rose from his palm. It surrounded the three jade-white ribs. The terrifying temperature quickly caused the space around them to melt and spontaneously combust.
Sizzle!
Xiao Yan didn't know how terrifying eleven merged Heavenly Flames could be. He only knew that even a Dou Saint's seal, even a Dou Saint's bones, appeared fragile and weak before them.
Almost at once, the white bones showed signs of melting. The fact that even eleven merged Heavenly Flames needed a moment to begin the process confirmed these ribs were extraordinary.
Ordinary objects would have vanished with just a touch!
In less than five minutes, the three ribs transformed from jade-white to a deep, dark gold color. Looking closely, a golden light glimmered within as strange fluctuations quietly spread outward.
In the quiet mountain cave, the sound of flowing liquid echoed softly. Xiao Yan withdrew the flames. A puddle of strange, dark gold liquid floated in midair before him.
'So this must be the body-tempering substance.'
Xiao Yan now understood a great deal. Cultivating Tian Class Dou Techniques required various special conditions. The Emperor Soul Technique demanded a Grade 6 Hun Clan Dou God bloodline, while the Asura Soul Reaping Technique needed a Heavenly State soul plus a Dou God bloodline.
He murmured softly, hesitated briefly, then took a deep breath of the slightly dry air. His hand extended slowly, and after a pause, he inserted one finger into the puddle of dark gold liquid.
Sizzle!
The moment his finger entered, a change erupted. The liquid writhed violently, then wrapped tightly around his finger, enveloping his entire palm.
"Hmm?" Xiao Yan frowned, thought for a moment, then decided not to stop it.
The dark gold liquid covered his entire right palm. An uncontrollable, sharp pain shot from his hand. If his body hadn't been tempered through countless trials, his palm would likely have been crippled on the spot.
Under the dark gold liquid's wrapping, his palm began writhing strangely. Faintly audible were the sounds of bones grinding against each other.
"Hiss... Truly worthy of a Tian Class Dou Technique. This pain... if one's willpower and physical strength were even slightly lacking, they probably couldn't cultivate it at all!"