Chapter 1: The Yao Clan
Shennong Mountain Range.
This region was located in the extreme south of Central Plains, and to be precise, it had already fallen outside the Central Plains' territory, making it appear rather remote.
However, as the saying goes: "A mountain does not need to be tall; it becomes famous if an immortal resides in it."
Although the Shennong Mountain Range was in a wild region infested with poisonous insects and all sorts of ferocious beasts rarely seen in the Central Plains, it had become quite lively due to being the territory of the Yao Clan. Furthermore, this mountain range produced a great variety of rare medicinal herbs. Many alchemists would travel from afar to seek ingredients for refining pills, making the Shennong Mountain Range a place of high popularity.
Of course, those alchemists only dared to search for herbs in the outskirts. As for the core interior, no one dared step in casually.
Because that was the domain of the Yao Clan.
The Yao Clan was one of the eight ancient clans. Their surname derived from "medicine," and they claimed to be the best in the world in alchemy. Within the clan, even those who were not alchemists could speak knowledgeably about alchemy, and their ability to evaluate pills was unrivaled.
After countless years of development, the clan housed an uncountable number of experts, and high-tier alchemists were too many to list. Their power was enormous.
...
Danding City, one of the cities within the medicinal realm.
In the central plaza stood a bronze cauldron about three meters tall. Detailed alchemy patterns were engraved on its surface, and a faint medicinal fragrance filled the air, making one feel refreshed. Beside it, three figures were standing.
Two of them, elderly men with stern expressions, were closely observing a boy whose palm was pressed against the cauldron.
The boy wore simple, old-fashioned clothes, and his long, jet-black hair was loosely tied behind him. His slightly raised face was quite handsome. At this moment, he had his eyes closed, seemingly sensing something. As time passed, the alchemy patterns on the cauldron suddenly lit up.
A moment later, three pill patterns gradually emitted a glow, like twinkling stars.
Seeing the three patterns light up, the older elder spoke in a calm tone, "Yao Yan, twelve years old, strength: Six-Star Dou Practitioner. Bloodline rank: Tier 3. Potential: Acceptable."
"Pity. He falls short," the other middle-aged man sighed, seemingly dissatisfied with the result.
As a clan with Dou Emperor bloodline, the importance of bloodline went without saying. The Yao Clan had grown over the years to number over ten million. Many were the result of intermarriage, adopted disciples, distant relatives, or external dependents.
Regardless of origin, anyone allowed to live within the Yao Clan's territory was considered part of the Yao Clan, tied by unbreakable kinship, though such people were usually regarded as part of the branch family.
Only those with bloodline rank Tier 4 or higher were considered core clan members, nurtured with key resources and supplied with heavenly materials to nourish their bloodline power.
The boy before them had clearly fallen short of the clan's requirements.
The difference between branch and main family—just one word, yet worlds apart.
"He's still young. By the time he becomes an adult, his bloodline rank may reach Tier 4. Even if it doesn't, if his alchemy skills reach a certain level, it can compensate. Our Yao Clan does not judge solely by bloodline. Boy, work hard. Strive to earn a place on the clan monument when you come of age."
The elder from the clan academy of Danding City, responsible for education and talent selection, gave a serious look to the boy, Yao Yan, and advised him. He had some impression of this talented junior and spoke a few more words because of it.
"Yes, Elder!"
Yao Yan opened his eyes, cupped his hands respectfully, and then glanced at the towering stone monument in the sky, his expression filled with yearning.
That distant stone monument was the Yao Clan's ancestral monument. Only those who had contributed to the clan could have their names engraved upon it. Every Yao descendant viewed it as a lifelong goal and source of pride.
Seeing Yao Yan's expression, the elder nodded in satisfaction. "You may go."
Yao Yan bowed to the two men and then walked toward the edge of the plaza.
Today was the bloodline test, and the plaza was already crowded. Many of them were acquaintances of Yao Yan.
A dark-skinned uncle in armor noticed Yao Yan's dejected expression and quickly called out, "Kid, don't be discouraged. Tier 3 bloodline isn't bad. You could become a squad leader in Uncle Tie's Iron Guard."
The Iron Guard was the Yao Clan's military force in charge of protecting clan territory, driving away beasts and intruders, and ensuring the city's safety.
"Alright, Uncle Tie."
Yao Yan forced a smile and responded, though a trace of disappointment remained on his face.
"Don't say such nonsense. Little Yan's talent in alchemy is outstanding. There are very few in this generation who surpass him."
"Yes, yes! I nearly forgot. Haha!"
...
Yao Yan responded politely to everyone's consolation, his face still showing signs of frustration as he slowly walked home, seemingly disheartened.
Seeing this, the others did not continue to comfort him—after all, they saw scenes like this every year.
Not everyone is born blessed.
The Yao Clan's territory housed many cities, each with hundreds of thousands of residents. Each had academies where all Yao children could study and be exposed to alchemy techniques inaccessible to common folk. This was the foundation of an ancient clan.
Standing out among them was extremely difficult.
Not to mention the existence of core clan members. Compared to such prodigies, the rest were ordinary.
Once Yao Yan left the plaza, the disappointment on his face faded. In truth, he wasn't disappointed at all. In fact, the result didn't surprise him. His deceased parents had been merely a Dou King and a Dou Spirit, and his father didn't even possess Yao bloodline. He had expected this outcome.
He was even slightly surprised by the Tier 3 result.
It was higher than expected.
After all, in the Dou Po world, bloodline in Dou Emperor families was as solid as nails. If your parents didn't have high purity, producing a strong-blooded offspring was like gambling for a rare mutation.
Ordinary Yao children lacked strong bloodlines and weren't nourished from birth with heavenly materials. How strong could their blood be?
Yao Yan never considered himself an exception—even though he had transmigrated.
He had transmigrated into the womb, and shortly after being born, his father died in the Shennong Mountain Range, reportedly killed by a group of Tier 4 magical beasts. His mother passed away soon after, leaving him an orphan. It was as if confirming the saying: "The parents of transmigrators have high mortality."
Yao Yan did feel sorry about that.
He didn't know if it was coincidence or something else.
At one point, he even wondered if he was the protagonist, destined to have a system and rise. But he later realized he had nothing—no system. His only advantages were a soul far stronger than his peers and knowledge of the story, which made learning easier. That's also why he had a knack for alchemy.
After years of effort, at the age of twelve, he was already a Tier 2 alchemist, able to refine over a dozen Tier 1 and 2 pills.
Yes, it was that outrageous.
In the outside world, he'd be considered monstrous. But in the Yao Clan, that was merely "excellent." Nowhere near being called a genius or prodigy.
To Yao Clan children, refining low-tier pills wasn't difficult. They had plenty of herbs to practice with from childhood and direct guidance from skilled alchemists. By adulthood, most became Tier 3 or 4 alchemists—even the guards.
For them, the challenge lay in breaking through Tier 6 and above.
"An average bloodline is good—it doesn't attract attention."
Yao Yan consoled himself. In fact, he had worried his bloodline might be too strong, and the clan would start focusing on him. If that happened, there'd be no escape—he'd even draw the attention of the Soul Clan.
That's right. In recent years, he had already started planning to run away.
Staying in the Yao Clan had no future. Only darkness awaited.
In the original story…
The entire Yao Clan, apart from a few, was refined by Void Devouring Flame—including tens of millions from branch families—all used as soul essence to help Hun Tiandi ascend to Dou Emperor. The scene was described as unimaginably tragic. If not for Xiao Yan, not a single person would've escaped.
When Yao Yan realized he had transmigrated into this world, he started contemplating his future path.
As for changing fate... how could he fight the Soul Clan without Dou Emperor power?
The Soul Clan was the apex of the Dou Qi continent's power.
Especially Hun Tiandi, a ruthless man who plotted for millennia to break into the Dou Emperor realm. In the end, he sacrificed half of Central Plains and several ancient clans, slaughtering billions. If not for Xiao Yan, he would have succeeded.
Compared to him, the other ancient clan leaders were unimaginative, content to live in comfort.
That might be why Hun Tiandi only acknowledged Xiao Xuan—at least Xiao Xuan dared to bet everything and rally his clan in a desperate struggle.
At this thought…
Yao Yan couldn't help but think of the Flame Mantra.
Having transmigrated to the Battle Through the Heavens world, how could he not want it? Even if training with it was as risky as swallowing a gun barrel, it was still the only cheat in the story. Though dangerous early on, the rewards later were heaven-defying—a path straight to Dou Emperor.
As for the Emperor Pill path... if you weren't already a Peak Nine-Star Dou Saint, you weren't even qualified to try.
Thus, years ago, Yao Yan had tried to investigate Yao Chen. Partly because of the Flame Mantra, partly to determine the timeline.
The name Yao Chen was taboo in the Yao Clan. He was a discarded member who had clashed with Elder Yao Wangui of the Clan's Discipline Hall in his youth. Yet, he had made a great name for himself outside, winning the alchemy competition held by the Pill Tower and founding the Falling Star Pavilion.
His strength had reached Dou Zun, and people called him "Medicine Revered One."
These events were shocking to the average Yao clansman. People love gossip—especially when it involves elders.
So Yao Yan easily found news about him.
Roughly over a decade ago, Yao Chen suffered a backlash during pill refinement and died...
Yes—died.
Clearly, his beloved "disciple" Han Feng had betrayed him and stabbed his kind mentor in the back. The wheels of the plot were already turning.
As for Xiao Yan, he had yet to appear.
Unfortunately, Yao Yan couldn't use this to judge the timeline. To figure that out, he'd need to know how old Gu Xun'er was or visit the Jia Ma Empire. Neither was an option for him now.
"Thinking about this is pointless."
Yao Yan sighed softly. For now, what mattered was building up his strength in the Yao Clan. Only with power could he think about the future.
After all, in the world of Dou Po, strength determines everything.
(END CHAPTER)
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