Chapter 132: Sky Burial Gorge

Xiao Yan's fiancée—she had heard a little about her from Elder Brother Xiao Ding back when she was cultivating in Stone Desert City.

It was said that she had been taken as a disciple by the sect master of the Yunlan Sect and possessed extraordinary talent.

But from Elder Yao's words, it seemed there was also a childhood sweetheart in the Xiao family with quite an impressive background? What kind of origin could she have? Could she possibly surpass the one from the Yunlan Sect?

Although the Jia Ma Empire's overall strength was relatively weak, the Yunlan Sect was the foremost sect within its borders.

The Little Fairy Doctor couldn't fathom what kind of background Xiao Yan's childhood sweetheart could have.

For a moment, the joy from the fall of the Ten Thousand Scorpion Gate faded, replaced by a swirl of confusion.

Why was Elder Yao bringing this up again? Xiao Yan froze for a moment before tightening his grip on the storage ring. "The battle just ended, and since we've already cleared everything out, let's head back and recover first."

"That Iron Protector from the Soul Palace has been captured by me. I'm sure we can extract some useful information from him." As he spoke, Xiao Yan commanded the Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion to rise into the air, carrying the Little Fairy Doctor and Elder Yao back to their residence outside Sky Poison City.

As for Nalan Yanran, Xiao Yan had so many things to do every day that he had nearly forgotten about her.

Still, even after all these years, he remained firm in his original stance.

Nalan Yanran was practically a stranger to him—the engagement meant little. But the Xiao family would never bear the stain of breaking faith.

After all, paper couldn't wrap fire. Sooner or later, people would learn that he had become the disciple of the revered Medicine Sovereign in his youth.

By then, the Xiao family would be seen by the world as just another example of those who abandoned loyalty for wealth.

Elder Yao's reputation far surpassed anything the Yunlan Sect could offer!

Moreover, after cultivating to this point, Xiao Yan didn't believe Nalan Yanran's annulment would end well for her.

Standing on the back of the Four-Winged Sky Demon Scorpion against the wind, Elder Yao still couldn't let go of Xiao Yan's engagement.

Having experienced life's highs and lows, he harbored nothing but contempt for those who betrayed gratitude.

Unfortunately, the Nalan family—who had severed all ties with the Xiao family after Xiao Lin retreated into seclusion—clearly fell into that category.

Upon returning to the Poison Sect, Xiao Yan and the Little Fairy Doctor each entered seclusion for a day to recuperate before meeting with Elder Yao again.

After a day of adjustment, the Little Fairy Doctor—who had just broken through before the battle—had gained a much better understanding of her Dou Zong-level strength. Xiao Yan, meanwhile, had fully stabilized his new realm.

With a flick of his finger, a jade vial flew out from Xiao Yan's storage ring and landed on the stone table in the pavilion.

Seeing the wisp of black mist inside the vial, both the Little Fairy Doctor and Elder Yao narrowed their eyes slightly. The Soul Palace was no minor faction—hopefully, they could extract some useful information.

Xiao Yan formed a strange hand seal, and the jade vial glowed as its seal loosened.

Whoosh!

The moment the seal was broken, the black mist shot out like an arrow, attempting to flee.

But just as it reached the mouth of the vial, a strange radiance erupted from the vessel, firmly trapping it in place.

The Iron Protector, who had suffered numerous restraints from Xiao Yan, hated him to the bone.

"Brat, I advise you to release me at once! If the Soul Palace's enforcers discover I've been captured, none of you will be spared!"

Xiao Yan casually snapped his fingers, and an invisible bolt of lightning seemed to strike the black mist.

The wisp of darkness writhed violently, its shape shifting like a sea urchin on the verge of exploding—black spikes extending and retracting rapidly, accompanied by sizzling sounds.

Elder Yao couldn't help but look at Xiao Yan with admiration. Though the soul power used wasn't much, the control was exquisite.

Compared to his own method of tormenting the Soul Emissary with Heavenly Flames back then, Xiao Yan's approach was far simpler and more effective.

After a few breaths, watching the now-fading black mist, Xiao Yan spoke coldly, "A prisoner should behave like a prisoner. Answer the next questions truthfully."

"What... do you want to know?" The thoroughly tortured Iron Protector finally submitted, his voice weak.

Elder Yao cut in impatiently, "How strong is the Soul Palace?"

Based on his deductions, for the Soul Palace to rival the Pill Tower as one of the Central Plains' top factions, it likely had at least one Dou Saint—and certainly many more Dou Zuns.

"The Soul Palace's hierarchy is extremely strict. There are countless Soul Emissaries of varying strengths, and above them are the Protectors, divided into Heaven, Earth, and Human ranks. I... am merely a Human-rank Protector."

Hearing this, the Little Fairy Doctor couldn't help but inhale sharply. If a mere Human-rank Protector was already so troublesome, how powerful would an Earth-rank be?

And the Soul Palace commanded many such Protectors—just how terrifying was this organization?!

"Keke~" Speaking of the Soul Palace's might, the Iron Protector regained some confidence. "Above the Protectors are the Venerables, whose strength is unmatched across the entire Dou Qi Continent."

"Don't think your Poison Sect ruling the Chu Yun Empire means anything. In the eyes of the Soul Palace, it's nothing but a fart. So—"

Before he could finish, another crisp snap echoed.

Instantly, the Iron Protector experienced agony akin to being pierced by ten thousand arrows.

After two or three breaths, Xiao Yan smirked coldly. "Still feeling so confident?"

The Iron Protector was in too much pain to speak, only managing a weak shake of his misty form.

Elder Yao coughed dryly. He had once looked down on someone like Pill King Gu He as nothing more than an ant—now, the tables had turned.

Collecting his thoughts, Elder Yao pressed, "Where do you Soul Palace lackeys in the Chu Yun Empire gather?"

After a moment of recovery, the Iron Protector replied weakly, "You're clever, old man. The Soul Palace has countless branch halls across the continent, but the Chu Yun Empire is too insignificant to warrant one."

"The nearest branch hall is extremely far from here, in the Sky Heart Empire—near the border between the central continent and the northwestern region. A place called Sky Burial Gorge."

At this point, the Iron Protector couldn't help but feel dejected.

His earlier threats about Soul Palace enforcers were empty—even if they came, it would take considerable time to reach the Chu Yun Empire.

Given the monstrous cultivation speed of Xiao Yan and the Little Fairy Doctor, by then, they might even be strong enough to kill those enforcers.

"Sky Heart Empire?" The Little Fairy Doctor frowned. The Dou Qi Continent had countless empires, large and small. As the de facto ruler of the Chu Yun Empire, she was familiar with the surrounding powers—but she had never heard of this one.

(End of Chapter)

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