74: Chapter 74 I almost forgot something important

When Hun Feng walked out of the Medicine World exit, seven types of Heavenly Flames slowly circulated within his meridians, dispelling the lingering cold from the depths of the earth's veins bit by bit.

Yao Yao followed by his side, vividly describing to Medusa how she had whipped two Medicine Clan elders to the ground. When she reached the exciting part, she even raised her hand to gesture, the bone whip creating a crisp whistling sound in the air.

Medusa maintained her usual indifferent expression, only occasionally nodding slightly in response.

Hun Qian had long been waiting with his team at the Void Ferry. Dozens of Hall of Souls Heavenly Venerables stood in rows on both sides, bowing in unison when they saw Hun Feng and the others appear.

Hun Feng nodded and was about to step onto the teleportation array returning to the Soul Realm when his footsteps suddenly halted.

He remembered something. To be precise, he remembered someone—that White-haired Little Girl who had popped out of the nine-colored light cocoon.

A Grade 9 Profound Pill taking human form. The Grade 9 Profound Pill that Xiao Yan had refined had transformed into a delicate, doll-like little girl on the Yao Emperor Platform.

At that time, Void Swallowing Flame had appeared, the remnant soul of the Medicine Emperor had awakened, and the earth's veins had ruptured—a series of events had occurred one after another. He had been busy subduing the Nine Nether Wind Flame and the Turtle Spirit Earth Flame, and had actually forgotten about this matter.

A Grade 9 Profound Pill; that was a supreme treasure that even a Nine-Star Dou Sheng would covet.

In the original story, after Xiao Yan refined the Grade 9 Profound Pill at the Medicine Ceremony, he consumed and refined it, soaring directly from a Five-Star Dou Sheng to the mid-stage of a Six-Star, forcibly jumping an entire major rank.

Although Xiao Yan had deviated from the original plot, that Grade 9 Profound Pill had already taken form and entered the world, and it was right by Xiao Yan's side.

If he allowed Xiao Yan to find a place to consume and refine that Profound Pill, jumping from a Five-Star to a Six-Star or even higher, then the advantage he had painstakingly built up in the Demon Flame Space, the Northern Region Corridor, and on the day of the grand wedding would be significantly narrowed again.

He absolutely would not allow such a thing to happen.

"Wait." Hun Feng raised his hand, and Yao Yao and Medusa, who were about to step into the teleportation array, stopped simultaneously.

Yao Yao turned back, her peach-blossom eyes filled with a hint of confusion: "What is it, Husband? Did you forget something?"

"I forgot the most important person—that Grade 9 Profound Pill." Hun Feng turned around, his gaze once again cast towards the void at the Medicine World exit that had been sealed off by the Hall of Souls Heavenly Venerables. "We fought for so long on the Yao Emperor Platform, and that Profound Pill has been following Xiao Yan ever since it took form. I was so focused on collecting the Heavenly Flames that I overlooked the most crucial treasure."

Yao Yao blinked, then her peach-blossom eyes widened abruptly: "That little girl with white hair! The one who popped out of the light cocoon and called Xiao Yan 'Daddy'! Yes, yes, yes, I even told Sister earlier that the little girl looked like a delicate doll... She is actually a Grade 9 Profound Pill in human form?"

Her voice rose an octave involuntarily. She really hadn't expected that pill to be able to turn into a living person—during the Medicine Ceremony, she had been dealing with the Medicine Clan elders all the time and hadn't paid much attention to the specific details of the pill refining, only catching a glimpse of a White-haired Little Girl popping out of Xiao Yan's cauldron from afar.

"A Grade 9 Profound Pill that can take human form; you can't find many of them in the entire continent. If Xiao Yan consumes her, his cultivation will jump at least one major rank." Hun Feng did not explain further, simply making a concise decision. "He shouldn't have gone far. Chase him. Cai Lin, Yao Yao, come back with me."

Yao Yao grinned, spinning the bone whip around her wrist, a look of eagerness igniting once again in her peach-blossom eyes.

Medusa did not speak, simply drawing the silver-white longsword from her waist once more, the blade shimmering with a faint nine-colored halo under the dim light of the void.

On the outskirts of the Medicine World, deep within the turbulent void. Xiao Yan supported Yao Chen, while Xuan Yi held the White-haired Little Girl, retreating along a highly secretive spatial crack in the direction of the Starfall Pavilion.

The dozen or so surviving young disciples of the Medicine Clan followed behind. Yao Tian walked at the very front of the group to clear the path, while Yao Ling and Yao Xingji protected a few younger clan members on the left and right.

This remnant troop moved slowly through the turbulent void, the exhaustion of having survived a catastrophe written on every face.

Xiao Yan knew they had to leave as quickly as possible—after the Medicine Emperor's remnant soul dissipated, the spatial blockade of the Medicine World had been lifted, but the Soul Clan's pursuers could catch up at any moment.

He had to bring his teacher and the little girl back to the Starfall Pavilion before Hun Feng realized what had happened.

Once he returned, he would go into seclusion to consume the Profound Pill. His teacher had said that a Grade 9 Profound Pill could cause his cultivation to soar by at least one major rank in a short period.

As long as he broke through to the Six-Star level, the gap between him and Hun Feng would be significantly narrowed. Coupled with the Buddha's Fury Fire Lotus and the Emperor Seal Art, he might not lack the strength to fight the next time they faced each other.

He was just calculating his cultivation plan after returning to the Starfall Pavilion when the void ahead suddenly split open without a sound.

Three figures walked slowly out of the crack, blocking the path directly in front of the remnant troop.

Xiao Yan halted abruptly, the xuan heavy ruler instantly drawn from his back and gripped in his hand.

He stared fixedly at the black-robed figure at the front, gritting his teeth.

"Hun Feng." Xiao Yan squeezed these two words out through his teeth.

Hun Feng stood in the void with his hands behind his back, seven types of Heavenly Flames spreading out around him into a seven-colored fire screen. His aura was even more imposing and powerful than it had been half an hour ago when he left the Yao Emperor Platform.

Yao Yao stood to his left, gently tapping her palm with the bone whip, her peach-blossom eyes filled with the playfulness of a cat toying with a mouse.

Medusa stood to his right, her silver-white longsword pointing diagonally at the ground. Her purple eyes swept calmly over Xiao Yan and the remnant troop behind him, pausing for a moment on the White-haired Little Girl's face before moving away.

"Brother Xiao, don't be in such a hurry to leave." Hun Feng smiled slightly, his tone as casual as if he were greeting an old friend. "I was in a rush when I left just now and forgot to ask you for something—shouldn't that little girl by your side be returned to me?"

The White-haired Little Girl poked her head out from Xuan Yi's embrace, her purple eyes glaring at Hun Feng, her little face filled with vigilance.

She clutched Xuan Yi's lapel tightly and shouted at Hun Feng with a childish voice: "I won't go with you! My daddy is Xiao Yan! You are a bad person!"

Hun Feng was amused by her calling him a "bad person" and laughed, turning his head to say to Yao Yao, "She has quite a temper."

"Hun Feng!" Xiao Yan held the xuan heavy ruler horizontally before him, four types of Heavenly Flames roaring and surging on the ruler's body, burning tiny cracks into the surrounding void. "I refined this Profound Pill with my own hands; it has nothing to do with you. You wanted the Heavenly Flames, and you have already taken them. What more do you want?"

"The Heavenly Flames belong to the Medicine Clan, and the Profound Pill is yours, but—" Hun Feng raised a finger, his tone remaining that slow and unhurried cadence. "You crashed my Soul Clan's grand wedding and abducted my wife; this account must be settled. The last time, at the wedding, I let you go out of consideration for Cai Lin. This time, you came to the Medicine Clan to ruin my affairs again; it is already the height of benevolence that I didn't kill you on the spot. Hand over that Profound Pill, and you can take Yao Chen and leave safely today. Otherwise—"

He tilted his head and glanced at the shivering Medicine Clan remnants behind Xiao Yan, his gaze sweeping over Yao Tian, Yao Ling, and Yao Xingji in turn. "None of these people behind you will be able to leave."

Xiao Yan gripped the xuan heavy ruler tightly, his knuckles turning white.

Of course, he knew he couldn't defeat Hun Feng—seven types of Heavenly Flames, a mid-stage Seven-Star Dou Sheng, plus Yao Yao and Cai Lin by his side, while the strongest combat power on his side was himself, merely a Five-Star Dou Sheng, and injured at that.

He subconsciously took half a step back, completely shielding the White-haired Little Girl behind him.

"Daddy..." The little girl poked her small hand out from Xuan Yi's embrace and tugged at Xiao Yan's sleeve, her voice soft, delicate, and fearful. "Is he going to take me away?"

"He won't." Xiao Yan said in a low voice, his gaze never leaving Hun Feng. "With me here, no one can take you away."

When he said this, his hand gripping the xuan heavy ruler was surprisingly steady, but Medusa, standing opposite him, saw his Adam's apple bob once—that was a reaction he only had when he was extremely angry yet forced to restrain himself.

She understood him too well. Back then in the Jia Ma Empire, when Yan Luotian of the Golden Goose Sect and the Three Elders of Mu Lan led a massive army to the border, he had also shielded the Snake-People Tribe behind him in the same way, and had also promised her that with him there, no one could harm her tribespeople.

Now, the one he was protecting had changed to a little girl who had just taken human form, and among the enemies standing opposite him, there was her.

"Cai Lin, Yao Yao." Hun Feng lightly lifted his chin. "Leave the remnants of the Medicine Clan to you both; leave Xiao Yan to me."

Yao Yao flicked her bone whip, and the seventy-two skulls simultaneously lit up with a ghostly green glow. Her peach-blossom eyes swept back and forth between Yao Tian and Yao Xingji, seemingly choosing which one to strike first.

Medusa did not act immediately; she simply carried her longsword and walked toward the remnants of the Medicine Clan. As she passed by Xiao Yan, her purple eyes met his for a fleeting moment—there was no killing intent or hatred in those eyes, only a faint complexity that even he could not decipher.

The moment they brushed shoulders, she spoke in a low voice that only the two of them could hear: "Give her to me."

Xiao Yan was stunned. Give her to her? Give whom? The Profound Pill? Or something else? Before he could react, Medusa's sword had already left its sheath, and a nine-colored sword gleam struck down toward his side as fast as lightning.

Xiao Yan instinctively blocked with his xuan heavy ruler, and the collision between sword and ruler exploded into a sky full of sparks. He was forced to retreat several steps, and a distance was instantly opened up between him and the White-haired Little Girl.

"Yao Yao!" Hun Feng gave a low shout. Yao Yao's figure flickered as she swept past Xiao Yan from the flank, heading straight for the White-haired Little Girl in Xuan Yi's arms.

Xiao Yan was alarmed and wanted to turn back to help, but his path was blocked by a single strike from Medusa—her sword was fast, so fast that he couldn't even see which direction the blade was striking from.

Her offensive was continuous and unceasing; every strike forced him to block with all his might, yet they were not fatal, as if she were deliberately isolating him from the White-haired Little Girl.

"Cai Lin! That is my daughter!" Xiao Yan roared, and the four-colored Heavenly Flame on his xuan heavy ruler surged wildly.

"Your daughter? You call something you refined your daughter?" Medusa's voice was as cold as the water of the Nine Serene Yellow Springs, yet the sword in her hand did not stop. "What about Mu Xiao? Mu Xiao is also your daughter; when have you ever protected her so desperately?"

Xiao Yan was struck by these words, his movements slowing by half a beat, and he was forced back several zhang by Medusa's sword. He opened his mouth to say something, but found his throat blocked by something—she was right. From birth to growing up, he had spent very little time by Mu Xiao's side. As for this little girl, he had known her for less than an hour.

At that very moment, Yao Yao had already closed in on Xuan Yi. Xuan Yi was an Eight-Star Dou Zun, which was nothing before the Hall of Souls. Her protective Dou Qi was whipped away by Yao Yao, and the White-haired Little Girl in her arms flew out of her grasp.

The White-haired Little Girl tumbled in the air a few times before being scooped into Yao Yao's arms. The little girl struggled desperately, her small fists raining down on Yao Yao's shoulders, shouting with a crying voice: "Let me go! I want to find my daddy! Daddy—!"

"Stop yelling, little thing! Your daddy doesn't want you anymore." Yao Yao's tone was frivolous, but she held her arms very tight, refusing to let go no matter how much the girl kicked and hit. "Be good and come back with big sister; big sister will give you candy."

Xiao Yan watched helplessly as the White-haired Little Girl was snatched away by Yao Yao, and he charged toward Yao Yao as if he had gone mad. Four kinds of Heavenly Flames condensed into an unprecedentedly violent light blade on the xuan heavy ruler. Ignoring the longsword thrust by Medusa, he would rather take the sword with his own body than fail to rush toward Yao Yao.

But Hun Feng was faster than him—seven kinds of Heavenly Flames fused in his palm into a seven-colored fire lotus, which he casually flicked toward Xiao Yan. The seven-colored fire lotus collided with the four-colored light blade in mid-air, and the exploding shockwave tore several cracks in the surrounding void.

Xiao Yan was hit head-on by the shockwave and flew backward, shattering a floating void boulder behind him. Debris scattered, and he knelt on one knee, a trace of blood spilling from the corner of his mouth, yet he still struggled to stand up and gripped the xuan heavy ruler again.

Just then, a cyan figure shot out from the ranks of the remnants. Yao Tian, grandson of Yao Dan and the strongest of the Medicine Clan's younger generation. He knew it was impossible to retreat unscathed today, but he wanted to let the clansmen behind him leave alive. He released all the remaining source of the Turtle Spirit Earth Flame in his body, his figure transforming into a brown meteor as he crashed toward Hun Feng— "Take Yao Ling and go! Quickly!"

"Brother—!" Yao Ling's shrill cry exploded in the void. But Yao Tian had already rushed in front of Hun Feng, and the Turtle Spirit Earth Flame transformed into a giant turtle phantom, enveloping both him and Hun Feng—he intended to use himself as the price to delay Hun Feng, even if only for a few breaths.

Hun Feng lifted his right hand expressionlessly. Dark golden lightning arcs of the Eight Desolation Destruction Flame flashed at his fingertips, transforming into an extremely thin thunder spear that pierced through Yao Tian's chest.

The phantom of the Turtle Spirit Earth Flame shattered with a bang. Yao Tian looked down at the fist-sized hole in his chest, his lips moving twice, seemingly wanting to turn back to look at his sister one last time, but his body had already fallen powerlessly into the void. Yao Ling watched helplessly as her brother's corpse fell into the abyss of the void, letting out a heart-rending cry.

"Who's next?" Hun Feng's gaze swept over the remaining Medicine Clan remnants. Yao Xingji stood in front of Yao Ling, his lips pale, but his eyes did not flinch: "Human Medicine Child Yao Xingji, please, Hun Feng, grant me your guidance." His voice trembled, but every word was enunciated clearly. Yao Yao was about to strike, but Hun Feng raised his hand to stop her.

"Yao Xingji, the former host of the Nine Nether Wind Flame?" Hun Feng looked at him, suddenly remembering something. "After your Heavenly Flame was reclaimed by Yao Wanhuo, you didn't inherit a new one?"

"No." Yao Xingji admitted frankly. "But not having a Heavenly Flame doesn't mean I can't fight with my life."

Hun Feng looked at him and was silent for a moment. Then he turned his head and said to Medusa, "Don't take his life," before immediately raising his hand to strike a soul palm print through the air onto Yao Xingji's chest, stunning him unconscious without killing him.

He turned to face Yao Ling—the little princess of the Medicine Clan, Yao Dan's most beloved granddaughter, who possessed a rare soul-nourishing constitution. It was said that Yao Dan had once hoped she would one day challenge the Emperor Realm Soul. At this moment, she was kneeling in the void, holding her brother's already cold corpse in her arms, her whole body trembling, yet she did not cry out.

"Yao Ling." Hun Feng looked down at her from above. "You have two choices. First, continue to fight me with your life, and then you and the clansmen behind you will all die. Second, come back to the Soul Realm with me and become my personal Alchemist. Your Medicine Clan's heritage will not be broken, and your clansmen can leave safely. Choose."

Yao Ling raised her head, her face covered in tear stains, but the light in her eyes was so stubborn that it made people look twice. She glanced at her brother, who no longer had any breath of life in her arms, and then looked at the trembling clansmen behind her. The time Yao Tian had bought for her with his life could not be wasted like this.

"I will go with you." Her voice was hoarse and resolute. "But what you promised—let my clansmen go."

"I, Hun Feng, keep my word." Hun Feng nodded and turned to walk toward the teleportation array. Yao Yao followed behind him, carrying the still-struggling White-haired Little Girl. Medusa sheathed her sword and took one last look at Xiao Yan, who was kneeling on one knee in the ruins.

Xiao Yan propped himself up with the xuan heavy ruler and wanted to stand, but his legs felt like they were filled with lead. The White-haired Little Girl was carried on Yao Yao's shoulder, her small hands reaching desperately in his direction, crying heart-rendingly— "Daddy! Daddy—!" But Yao Yao's arm was clamped tightly, and she could not break free no matter what.

Yao Ling followed behind Hun Feng. After walking a few steps, she turned back to look at the remaining team of clansmen in the void. Yao Xingji was still unconscious, and a few young clansmen were supporting him as they retreated in another direction. She did not look a second time, turning to follow Hun Feng's footsteps.

Xiao Yan knelt in the void, watching that black-robed figure walking further and further away, watching the crying White-haired Little Girl on Yao Yao's shoulder, and watching Yao Ling following quietly behind Hun Feng, his hand gripping the ruler trembling violently.

He had lost. Lost completely. The Profound Pill he had refined had been snatched away, the granddaughter Yao Dan had entrusted to him had been taken away, and those Medicine Clan remnants he had fought with his life to protect were currently fleeing through the void like stray dogs. He hadn't even been able to last three moves against Hun Feng.

Medusa stood before him, her purple eyes looking at him quietly. There was no pity or apology in those eyes, only a faint calmness, worn very thin by time. She placed a clean handkerchief in front of him, then turned to follow Hun Feng's footsteps.

Xiao Yan knelt on the ground, not picking up the handkerchief, only clenching his fists tightly, his knuckles cracking. The cold wind of the void blew past, picking up the handkerchief and drifting toward the abyss.

PS: Friends who are reading, please leave a comment in the comments section; I want to see how many people are reading! Much appreciated.