Breaking the Masked Man

The older you get, the more afraid you become of death. If I had known this would happen, I would have fought to the bitter end back then, at least I wouldn't be in this mess today!

What kind of person dares to laugh like that?

Yao Yan raised an eyebrow slightly upon hearing Xie Biyan's laughter.

Just then, Xie Biyan revealed an extremely cruel smile, staring at Yao Yan with a sinister gaze, and said coldly, "Boy, you have such strength at such a young age, you can be called a peerless talent, and you are also an alchemist. I have always been curious whether my poison skills can be broken by others. Why don't you give it a try!"

As he spoke, his charred body suddenly turned red, and countless blood blisters appeared on his skin, with churning blood inside, creating an indescribably eerie scene.

"Then try it."

Seeing this, Yao Yan's lips curled into a disdainful smile, his gaze becoming even more arrogant. Instead of retreating, he advanced, even beckoning to Xie Biyan. At the same time, he transmitted his soul power to Cai Lin and Yao Lao, saying, "No need to stop him."

"?!"

Cai Lin and Yao Lao were both startled upon hearing this. Looking at Yao Yan, who had suddenly become 'swollen', they were somewhat puzzled, as this was the first time Yao Yan had shown such an expression.

"Kid, you'll pay the price for your arrogance!"

Upon seeing this, Xie Biyan revealed a look of wild joy. Immediately, the blood-red bubbles on his body boiled to their maximum. The next moment, he opened his mouth and spat out a jet of dark blood light, which shot towards Yao Yan like lightning. As this attack was launched, the light in his eyes dimmed rapidly at a visible speed. However, in his last moments before dying, he still stared intently at Yao Yan, wanting to see how the other party would react to the attack.

But what he saw next made his eyes widen, and he almost died with his eyes wide open in disbelief.

The soul beside Yao Yan raised its hand and gently clenched it. The demonic poison spot, which contained all of Yao Yan's life's power, was firmly controlled in mid-air and could no longer move. Even the connection with Yao Yan was severed. This scene made Yao Yan's liver and gallbladder burst. He could hardly hold his breath any longer and collapsed to the ground dead.

No one cared about his death.

"You've been waiting for this?"

Looking at the blood beads floating in his palm, Yao Lao frowned slightly, glanced at Yao Yan beside him, and asked.

During this period of contact, he roughly figured out Yao Yan's personality. The other party was definitely not the kind of arrogant young genius, and would not make such a low-level mistake in a life-or-death battle. In the eyes of those who knew him well, that expression was too exaggerated and fake, obviously done on purpose.

"I heard about the Izumo Empire from Hai Bodong before. It is said that the poison masters of the Izumo Empire have a sinister move. When they are about to die, they will turn the poison fighting energy they have cultivated all their lives into a demonic poison spot and inject it into the enemy's body, so that they will perish together with the enemy. So, I want to see if Xie Biyan can do the same."

Yao Yan looked at the demonic poison spots floating in Yao Lao's palm and explained softly.

Even after most of the impurities have been refined away, the remaining essence of a half-step Dou Zong's life's work is enough to easily elevate Yao Yan to the Dou Huang level.

If Xie Biyan hadn't been so lacking in talent, Yao Yan would have planned to raise him to the Dou Zong level before making any decisions. But that would undoubtedly take time. A few years would have passed, and he might have already become a Dou Zong by then. So, he had no choice but to kill him ahead of time!

"...Are you sure you can handle it?"

Cai Lin was somewhat shocked upon hearing this. Her cold and beautiful eyes stared at Yao Yan as she questioned him.

Xie Biyan is, after all, a veteran powerhouse at the half-step Dou Zong level. Regardless of his character, in terms of strength alone, few people in the combined Izumo Empire and Gama Empire could rival him. Moreover, the deadly poison he has condensed from his life's Dou Qi must be extremely terrifying. Even a true Dou Zong powerhouse would probably not be willing to touch it.

Yao Yan, however, regarded it as a great gift.

If Xie Biyan hadn't died, he would probably have been furious with Yao Yan's idea.

"The others definitely couldn't hold out, but this kid, it's hard to say..."

However, Yao Lao held a different view. Given the unique nature of the Burning Technique, Yao Yan could be said to be the person in the world least afraid of poison masters. In fact, if the other party found the Netherworld Poison Fire, everything in the world related to poison would become a great tonic for him. Even if he couldn't find it, the power of the strange fire alone would be enough to resist most of the world's deadly poisons.

If this demonic poison spot can be refined, Yao Yan's strength will definitely improve by leaps and bounds. As for the aftereffects... the power of the strange fire is enough to solve all the problems for Yao Yan.

Yao Lao suddenly realized that the path Yao Yan was taking was the most suitable for cultivators of the Burning Technique.

There was a pause.

He handed the Demonic Poison Spot to Yao Yan and said, "The choice is yours. However, this item condenses the life's worth of fighting spirit of a half-step Dou Zong level poison master. Its toxicity is extremely high. Even with the protection of the Azure Lotus Earth Core Flame, your body may not be able to withstand it!"

Although the power of the strange fire is domineering, Yao Yan's strength is not enough to unleash the full power of the Azure Lotus Earth Core Flame. It is undoubtedly impossible for him to be completely immune to the demonic poison spots.

As for refining its toxicity outside... Yao Lao felt that he could completely refine the Demon Poison Spot. Every strand of energy in this thing was linked to the deadly poison. Unless he absorbed it into his body and absorbed the essence energy within it while refining it, he simply could not absorb and refine it.

Imagine you're given a pill; do you have a way to remove its medicinal properties while retaining its most essential energy?

At least, that's something that medicine can't do.

"Don't worry, it's just a little bit of poison."

Yao Yan remained extremely calm, reaching out to grasp the incredibly foul-smelling demonic poison spot. The moment they made contact, it clung to him like a maggot, seeping into his body through his pores. His internal fighting spirit couldn't stop it in the slightest, and even the power of the Azure Lotus Earth Core Flame couldn't resist it.

Soon, it spread to most of Yao Yan's meridians and acupoints, began to absorb the fighting spirit within Yao Yan to grow stronger, and at the same time eroded his life.

"you!"

When Cai Lin saw Yao Yan reach out, her expression changed. She wanted to stop him, but it was too late. When she saw him absorb the demonic poison into his body, a strange anger surged into her heart, and she angrily rebuked Yao Yan: "Why are you working so hard? With your talent, you could become a strong person in the future if you cultivated step by step. Why do this? Aren't you afraid of killing yourself?!"

Seeing the menacing Cai Lin, Yao Yan was also stunned for a moment, then chuckled dryly and said, "Don't worry, I wouldn't do this if I wasn't confident."

"...You came out with me. If you die, how can I go back to face Cai Die!"

Seemingly realizing there was something wrong with her tone, she offered a cold explanation.

Seeing this, Yao Lao stroked his chin with a look of amusement, finding it inexplicably interesting. Perhaps Yao Yan, that brat, had already silently left a mark on Cai Lin's heart, but she herself was unaware of it, and even Yao Yan himself was unaware of it.

Perhaps this is what they call being blinded by one's own involvement.

This is what young people are like, an age full of ambiguity, truly something to yearn for... A hint of reminiscence appeared in Yao Lao's eyes. After the atmosphere between the two eased up a bit, he slowly said, "This demonic poison spot is indeed very powerful. It should not be able to be removed by the Azure Lotus Earth Core Flame alone. However, if you can refine the Fallen Heart Flame, and add my Bone Spirit Cold Flame, this thing should be nothing to worry about."

He observed it with his soul power and realized that this Demonic Poison Spot was indeed a technique developed by the poison masters of the Izumo Empire. The stronger the user, the more troublesome this thing became. If Yao Yan had not cultivated the Burning Technique, he might have actually killed himself.

Yao Yan nodded in agreement with Yao Lao's words, then said, "The matter is settled, it's time to go. If we don't leave soon, those powerful figures from the Chuyun Empire will come looking for us."

"Then let's set off for the Black Corner Region..."

Upon hearing this, the old doctor paused in reminiscence, then a shadow of gloom appeared, making his expression darken. He responded in a low voice, then transformed into a wisp of green smoke and returned to the Bone Flame Ring to nourish his soul.

Going to the Black Corner Region meant he would be meeting that traitor, a feeling no one could understand.

For Yao Lao, Han Feng was not only his disciple, but also his son, the child he had raised from childhood. The effort he had put into him was imaginable, yet the other party betrayed him and even conspired with outsiders to kill him!

Yao Yan naturally understood Yao Lao's feelings, but he did not offer any comfort, because he could not truly understand, and comfort would be useless. Besides, this old fellow had lived for hundreds of years, so why did he, a junior, need to comfort him? Anyone can talk about grand principles, but do others need you to say these things?

Cai Lin was unaware of all this. She was still immersed in the emotions she had just experienced. For some reason, seeing Yao Yan's suicidal act, she felt a surge of anger. Perhaps she was worried that if Yao Yan died, her younger sister would be heartbroken.

"Let's go~"

Yao Yan smiled at Cai Lin, and with a slight tremor of his battle aura wings, he transformed into a streak of light and flew away into the distance.

PS: There is one more chapter

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 129 Four-Star Dou King

About half an hour later, several figures appeared in the sky above the Scorpion Mountain Range. Looking at the burned Scorpion Mountain in the distance, everyone present gasped, their eyes revealing a hint of fear and their faces full of disbelief. They seemed unable to imagine that the Scorpion Sect had been wiped out like this. Judging from their appearance, it seemed that not a single person had escaped alive.

An elderly man in a purple robe broke the silence first, glanced at the others, and said in a low voice, "Who has such a grand gesture? Could it be a Dou Zong expert?"

"No need to guess anymore, it must be a Dou Zong expert. A Dou Huang doesn't have such destructive power. Besides, that old monster Scorpion is no pushover either. Are any of you here confident in defeating him?" A middle-aged man looked at the terrifying aura that hadn't yet dissipated in the distance with a look of surprise and doubt, and said in a deep voice.

"What has that old monster Scorpion done this time to provoke such a powerful figure to take action? Heh~"

One of them spoke with a hint of mockery, clearly indicating that his relationship with Xie Biyan was not friendly and that he was happy to see the other get killed.

After all, the Izumo Empire has a large population but limited resources, so the amount of resources available for distribution is limited. Without Scorpion Rock and the Ten Thousand Scorpion Sect, the share that the other party originally possessed will fall to them, enough for them to have a few good meals.

The gray-robed elder standing at the back spoke, his sharp gaze sweeping over the group as he said indifferently, "Go back and investigate. The appearance of an unfamiliar Dou Zong powerhouse in the Chuyun Empire is not a good thing. If it's just someone passing by, that's fine, but if not... I'm sure you all know what that means!"

Upon hearing this, the expressions of the people present became more solemn. They nodded in succession and then transformed into streaks of light and departed.

"Old Monster Scorpion... I've known you for so many years, I never thought you'd fall like this."

The gray-robed elder lowered his gaze and slowly spoke. He was the guardian of the royal family of the Chuyun Empire, and his strength had reached the level of a nine-star Dou Huang. He was a powerful figure of the same era as Xie Biyan.

There was silence for a moment.

He said in a low voice, "Notify the secret guards to investigate, and while they're at it, also go and investigate the Gama Empire to see who exactly is behind this..."

"Yes!"

A dark figure emerged from behind him and bowed in response.

……

……

Night falls.

A bright moon hung high in the sky, its cold light carrying a hint of chill as it fell upon the earth, covering the ground with a layer of frost.

At this moment, inside a mountain cave.

"Papa~"

The firewood crackled and sputtered, sending up a few sparks.

Cai Lin curled her tail, propped her chin on one hand, and idly poked at the firewood with a stick. Her deep purple eyes reflected the firelight, and her expression was somewhat dazed and lost in thought, which softened her beautiful face. However, this softness only lasted for a moment before disappearing as she looked at Yao Yan.

She seemed unwilling to show any girlishness in front of him, always maintaining her aloof and queenly demeanor.

Yao Yan was sitting cross-legged and cultivating, surrounded by cyan flames, which added a touch of eerie charm to his handsome face. Strands of black patterns spread all over his body. Even without getting close, Cai Lin could feel the stench emanating from these things. The aura was full of poison. Even a slight touch would easily kill an ordinary Dou Wang. Yet, Yao Yan's entire body was filled with these things.

"This demonic poison is far more powerful than I thought."

The old doctor slowly floated out from the Bone Flame Ring, looked at Yao Yan who was suppressing the demonic poison spots, his gaze became slightly solemn, and slowly said.

Upon hearing this, Cai Lin's eyes momentarily glazed over, and she couldn't help but ask, "Then he..."

The old doctor glanced at Cai Lin, who was worried about Yao Yan, and a teasing smile appeared on his lips. He said softly, "But this kid is even more strange. Even the Demon Poison Spot can't do anything to him. You don't need to worry about him."

Cai Lin seemed to have her thoughts read, and an unnatural blush appeared on her pretty face. Her red lips moved as if she wanted to explain, but she ultimately held back, because explaining would be superfluous and would only make her look like she was trying to hide something.