131: Chapter 131 Good news doesn't travel far, but bad news travels fast.

News of Xiao Yan being severely injured by a mysterious expert while attempting to force his way into the Ancient Emperor Cave soon reached the Hun Clan.

The secret agents planted by the Hall of Souls around Jia Nan Academy sent back the intelligence immediately—Xiao Yan had entered the magma world at the bottom of the Heavenly Flame Training Pagoda alone, failed to force open the gate of the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor's Cave Abode, and was severely injured by a burst of dragon might from behind the gate, retreating while vomiting blood.

The wording on the jade slip was concise and restrained, yet every word exuded an irrepressible sense of schadenfreude.

When Hun Qian presented the jade slip to the main hall, Hun Tiandi was reclining on the main seat, flipping through that endless ancient scroll.

Void Swallowing Flame, in human form, sat at the lower right, the black flames at his fingertips dancing listlessly.

Hun Qinger leaned in a corner, playing with a tiny ice crystal, her icy blue eyes half-closed as if dozing.

Hun Feng had just finished reporting the consolidation of his Nine-Star Dou Sheng realm to Hun Tiandi in the hall when Hun Qian hurried in.

Hun Tiandi took the jade slip and glanced at it, a faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth before he casually tossed it to Hun Feng.

Hun Feng caught the jade slip and probed it with his soul power; his brows first lifted slightly, then the curve of his mouth grew wider and wider, until he finally laughed out loud.

He placed the jade slip on the table, leaned back in his chair, and exclaimed, "This piece of trash is truly worthy of being the Child of Luck. Early Eight-Star, condensing a Fire Spirit with six Heavenly Flames, finding the location of the Ancient Emperor Cave—if anyone else had done even one of these things, they could brag about it for a lifetime, yet he managed to do them all. However—" Hun Feng changed his tone, the mockery in his eyes impossible to hide, "—this idiot didn't even figure out how many layers of restrictions the Ancient Emperor Cave had before daring to force his way in. Being slapped back by the Nine-Star peak Zhu Kun, he'll probably have to lie in Starfall Pavilion for a year or a year and a half."

The low voice of Void Swallowing Flame echoed in the hall: "The periphery of the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor's Cave Abode has a seal placed personally by the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor. Without the eight pieces of ancient emperor jade combined, even if I were to take action myself, I might not be able to force it open. Furthermore, there is another restriction behind the cave gate—that door itself is a two-layered structure. For Xiao Yan to want to force his way in relying on a Fire Spirit condensed from six Heavenly Flames is simply a pipe dream."

"Two-layered door?" Hun Feng turned his head to look at Void Swallowing Flame.

The black flames at Void Swallowing Flame's fingertips flickered gently as he said that the design of the Ancient Emperor Cave was extremely ingenious. The outer layer was a seal gate that could only be opened by combining the eight pieces of ancient emperor jade, and behind the seal gate was a barrier condensed from pure Emperor Qi.

Even if someone collected all eight pieces of ancient emperor jade and opened the first door, the second barrier would still require an expert at the Emperor Realm to break through.

Back then, the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor left this barrier to ensure that only those who had truly stepped into the Emperor Realm could obtain his inheritance.

Hun Feng leaned back in his chair, deep in thought.

Void Swallowing Flame continued, adding that Xiao Yan hadn't even touched the first door this time before being blasted away by Zhu Kun's dragon might.

Zhu Kun had been trapped at the entrance of the cave for thousands of years; although he could not break free from the seal, his cultivation was solid Nine-Star peak.

Combined with the physical strength of the Void Ancient Dragon royal family, let alone an early Eight-Star, even a Nine-Star Dou Sheng would be severely injured if they took a hit from him head-on.

That Xiao Yan was able to return alive was already a sign of mercy from Zhu Kun.

Hun Feng chuckled and shook his head.

Xiao Yan's luck was indeed good; to be able to find six Heavenly Flames, condense a Fire Spirit, and break through to the Eight-Star level in such a short time—this kind of destiny was rare across the entire continent.

But his luck ended there—without the ancient emperor jade pieces, without Emperor Realm cultivation, and relying solely on hot-headedness to try and force his way into the Ancient Emperor Cave, the result was being slapped into severe injury by the Nine-Star peak Zhu Kun.

With this severe injury, given Xiao Yan's physique, he would have to lie down for at least half a year to recover.

Half a year was enough time for him, Hun Feng, to advance further in the Nine-Star realm.

Elder Hun Tu, one of the Four Demon Saints, stepped forward. His withered old face was devoid of any expression as he hoarsely suggested taking this opportunity to capture Jia Nan Academy and completely seal off the possibility of Xiao Yan entering the Ancient Emperor Cave again.

Hun Feng waved his hand, saying that Xiao Yan was now at the early Eight-Star stage and had just been severely injured by Zhu Kun, so he could not possibly attempt to break into the cave again in the short term.

Jia Nan Academy itself was not important; what was important was not letting people think the Hun Clan was afraid of Xiao Yan.

Sealing off Jia Nan Academy would instead make it look like the Hun Clan feared him; it was better to let him toss and turn—after all, no matter how much he struggled, he couldn't open that door.

Hun Tiandi nodded slightly in agreement, saying that Xiao Yan did not yet have the capability to open the cave, and there was no need for the Hun Clan to lower their status to seal an academy.

Hun Tiandi put down the ancient scroll in his hand and turned to Hun Feng. His tone remained that unhurried cadence, but there was a deeper meaning in his eyes.

He told Hun Feng not to take this lightly.

Although Xiao Yan was severely injured, his ability to break through from mid-Seven-Star to early Eight-Star in such a short time and condense a Fire Spirit was a talent and destiny that truly could not be underestimated.

The Hun Clan's greatest advantage now was not the number of Nine-Star Dou Sheng, but time.

Hun Feng had already stepped into the Nine-Star realm and was only a step away from the Emperor Realm—before Xiao Yan recovered from his injuries and found a new opportunity, Hun Feng had to improve his cultivation as much as possible, striving to touch the threshold of the Emperor Realm before Xiao Yan's next breakthrough.

By then, even if Xiao Yan gathered all eight pieces of ancient emperor jade, it would be too late.

However! He would not have that chance!

Hun Feng nodded, indicating that he would tell Zi Yan about the matter regarding Zhu Kun in the next few days, so that the Void Ancient Dragon Clan could also be prepared.

After all, Zhu Kun was Zi Yan's father, and if he could obtain the full support of the Void Ancient Dragon Clan on the path to the Emperor Realm, it would only be beneficial and harmless to his assault on the Emperor Realm.

A satisfied smile appeared at the corner of Hun Tiandi's mouth, saying that since that girl Zi Yan acknowledged him as an older brother, this relationship should be used when the time was right.

Hun Feng chuckled, saying that was exactly what he intended.