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Yao Chen checked his soul, finding no anomalies.
This wasn't good news, indicating the bizarre creatures parasitizing his soul were incredibly troublesome, making them difficult to locate.
A bitter expression appeared on his face. To think, the esteemed Venerable Yao would be reduced to such a state due to his disciple's betrayal…
And to encounter such a ghastly thing in his weakest state…
In truth, although his soul was weak, it had stabilized and would gradually recover over time…
But unexpectedly…
"Alas, a dragon swimming in shallow water is harassed by shrimp, a tiger fallen on the plains is bullied by dogs…"
Yao Chen sighed heavily again. After a while, he spoke:
"What do you want? We can make a deal…"
The Worms of Spirit didn't answer Yao Chen, only emitting chaotic babblings, from which one could vaguely discern them repeating the same phrase…
"Return… Great… Thousand…"
"Send… Me… Back to the Great Thousand…"
"…"
"Return to the Great Thousand?" Yao Chen revealed a puzzled expression. "Is it a specific location?"
He hadn't been awake for long when the exhaustion from the depths of his soul blurred his consciousness once more…
This was because the Worms of Spirit had severed the connection with his soul. Without that power, he naturally returned to his initial state.
Although Amon parasitized Yao Chen, he couldn't completely control him, only taking advantage of his weakness to merge himself with him.
After all, the difference in souls was too great, with a fundamental difference in essence. If Yao Chen hadn't been so weak, even without resistance, it would have been difficult for the Worms of Spirit to do anything to him.
The black-haired girl walked over and picked up the ring, a smile on her face.
The next moment, her smile froze.
A fist landed heavily on her face, knocking her to the ground. Payne, accompanied by two guards, began to kick and punch her…
"Did you eat a bear's heart and a leopard's gall? You dare steal Young Master Xiao Yan's things?"
"If we don't teach you a lesson, you won't know whose territory this is!"
The girl hugged her head, curled up, appearing as if she didn't dare to resist.
However, the blows didn't hurt much. Only the initial punch truly landed, the subsequent beating merely looking fierce.
Xiao Yan walked over with Xiao Xun'er, saying amusingly:
"Alright, stop pretending… It's enough to get the item back. I'm not so petty as to haggle with a little girl."
"Hehe…" Payne scratched his head, picked up the ring from the ground, and handed it to Xiao Yan: "Young Master, here."
Xiao Yan took the ring, checked it to confirm it was his, and then focused his gaze on the girl.
Looking at her dirty little face, slightly swollen from the punch, Xiao Yan said gently:
"Why engage in such a profession… If this were in the Jia Lie family's market, your fate would probably be unpleasant."
The girl got up from the ground, wiped her face. Because her hands were dirtier, wiping only smeared more dust on her face.
Seeing her silent, head lowered, looking pitiful, Xiao Yan said:
"If you're forced by circumstances, I happen to need a maid to pour tea and water. If it's for other reasons, then pretend I didn't say anything."
"Really?" The girl's face lit up with surprise.
"Yes," Xiao Yan nodded with a smile.
"Young Master," the girl called out in a joyful tone.
"What's your name?"
"Xiao Meng, my name is Xiao Meng."
"Xiao Meng? Quite fitting. From now on, you'll be called Xiao Meng."
The three burly men whose money pouch Xiao Meng had stolen had already followed and were observing from a distance.
Xiao Yan glanced at them and said, "Return the items to them."
"Yes." Xiao Meng took out the money pouch from her bosom and walked over.
The leader of the three quickly shook his head, saying, "No, no, just consider this our apology for offending Young Master earlier."
Xiao Yan chuckled, "You're quite sensible, but there's no need. Take it back… In the future, don't let me see you causing trouble in the market."
"Yes, yes… We will definitely reform." The leader took the money pouch and hurriedly left.
Knowing these were just empty words, Xiao Yan didn't mind, waving his hand to signal them to leave.
After the three men were far away, they opened the money pouch, and were stunned. The money inside was missing more than half.
…
Following behind Xiao Yan, besides the original Xun'er, was now an additional Xiao Meng.
At a corner, two people dressed in ordinary coarse cloth withdrew their gazes.
They communicated using soul force.
One said, "They really infiltrated the Xiao family."
"Heh, interesting… The routine is quite effective." The other pinched the corner of his right eye socket.
The Dou Qi fluctuations on both of them were very weak, not even reaching the Dou Practitioner stage.
"It fits the characteristics of the era, doesn't it?"
They, as well as Xiao Meng, were left behind by Gan Mu after arriving in Wutan City.
Amon specifically reserved a certain amount of volume for them, allowing them to develop freely.
The main purpose was to get close to Xiao Yan.
Because the Soul Clan's millennial plan was about to begin, the time available for development was very tight, only thirty or forty years.
In such a short time, Amon wasn't sure if he could grow to the point of being able to contend with Hun Tiandi.
That was a ruthless person who, in order to become Emperor, could sacrifice the Soul Clan and the entire Central State!
If necessary, he certainly wouldn't mind carrying out an act of world destruction, using all the living beings of the Dou Qi plane as nourishment on his path to becoming Emperor.
Of course, if it were just Hun Tiandi, Amon wouldn't be afraid. He only needed to steal the Tuoshe Ancient God Jade fragment from the Xiao family and hide it to curb Hun Tiandi's steps towards becoming Emperor.
Unable to become a Dou Di, just a peak Nine-Star Dou Sheng, given enough time, Amon could solve him sooner or later.
But the problem was that the crisis in the Dou Qi plane wasn't just Hun Tiandi alone, but also the extraterrestrial evil clans eyeing it covetously.
The time from Xiao Yan becoming Emperor to the Heavenly Evil God breaking out of the seal wouldn't be too long.
If Amon, in order to deal with Hun Tiandi, adopted the method of hiding the Tuoshe Ancient God Jade, causing Xiao Yan to fail to become Emperor as scheduled, then how would they deal with the Heavenly Evil God next?
Without a top powerhouse like "Flame Emperor" Xiao Yan, the situation in the Great Thousand World was likely to collapse!
Amon couldn't leave before he reached a certain level in this universe.
He wasn't sure if he could parasitize extraterrestrial evil clans… wasn't sure if he could survive among the extraterrestrial evil clans after the Great Thousand World fell, and wasn't sure if his parasitism could be hidden in front of a powerhouse like the Heavenly Evil God.
Therefore, he absolutely couldn't adopt the method of delaying, which was the worst choice.
He had to become Emperor!
He had to go to the Great Thousand World!
Under such a premise, Xiao Yan, the protagonist of the original work, was particularly important.
Currently, there were only three known methods to become Emperor: one was the embryonic Emperor Pill in the Tuoshe Ancient God's cave, two was the inheritance of Tuoshe Ancient God, and three was to have someone open the plane channel and attract Origin Qi after someone became Emperor.
If he wanted to take the first path, he had to grow to the peak of Nine-Star Dou Sheng in just over thirty years, competing with Hun Tiandi, Gu Yuan, Zhu Kun, and the Emperor Pill itself.
If he wanted to take the second path, to obtain the inheritance of Tuoshe Ancient God, he had to practice the Flame Mantra, which inevitably meant becoming Xiao Yan's enemy.
The third path was to place hope on others, a slightly worse choice than the first two paths if they couldn't be taken.
The object of hope was only Xiao Yan who was more reliable… As for placing it on Hun Tiandi? Void Swallowing Flame was the best example.
Amon chose the first and third paths.
He wouldn't arrogantly assume that he could definitely stand at the same height as Gu Yuan, Hun Tiandi, Zhu Kun, and the Emperor Pill embryo in such a short time.
Therefore, while mainly taking the first path, he used the third path as a backup.
As for the second path, it wasn't within Amon's consideration at all.
He wasn't fire-attributed, inherently incompatible with the Flame Mantra. Even if he could find a way to change his attribute, not to mention how much time and effort it would take, he might not be able to successfully cultivate after the change.
Cultivating the Flame Mantra was almost always a gamble with one's life! Wisdom, determination, perseverance, and luck were indispensable.
Amon dared to take risks, but his risks were all taken with great certainty or a fallback plan.
Cultivating the Flame Mantra had no cost-effectiveness at all, and it would also block the third path.
The resources needed to cultivate to Nine-Star Dou Sheng were massive, especially for Amon's cultivation method.
If he wanted to develop, it would definitely cause some things to change, greatly affecting the plot of the original work. In order to maintain the third path as a backup, he had to ensure that Xiao Yan's main opportunities weren't missed.
Therefore, he had to make some guidance and arrangements, making up for the "encounters" that were lost by the "butterfly's wings."
In addition, even if Amon succeeded on the first path, he would still support Xiao Yan, because the Great Thousand World needed "Flame Emperor."
Maintaining the balance between the Great Thousand World and the extraterrestrial evil clans was more conducive for Amon to make arrangements, and more conducive for him to better and more smoothly seize benefits.
After making a choice on the path to take, who were friends and who were enemies had already been determined.
Hun Tiandi, Gu Yuan, and Zhu Kun were all enemies, but they were enemies that could be cooperated with. Before the final moment came, they could all serve as temporary "friends."
The Emperor Pill embryo was an indisputable enemy. If he wanted to take the first path, he had to take him down. The other party was also clear about this, with no possibility of reconciliation.
Xiao Yan and Amon had no fundamental conflicts, were not enemies, and were the most suitable allies.
However, the form of cooperation between allies was also a question worth discussing. Amon wouldn't give up the initiative.
If possible, he would prefer that this "ally" completely embark on the path he had arranged.
…
The Soul Clan was still busy with their millennial plan.
The Ancient Clan was immersed in its own glory.
Xiao Yan, whose talent had not yet been "lost," enjoyed the respect and admiration of those around him, full of vigor.
The young miss, enjoying her childhood, was carefree.
In the shadows unknown to anyone, strangeness and terror were spreading…
A small town near the Monster Mountain Range.
…Mu She pinched the monocle made of crystal on his right eye, sitting at the recruitment office, showing a smile to the mercenaries who came to apply:
"Wolf Head Mercenary Group, welcome to join us."
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