573 Chapter 572: Lin Dong and Qing Tan

"How could two Ancestral Symbol Imprints appear in the small Great Yan Empire?"

Ying Huanhuan asked in surprise as her dizziness subsided. She was well aware of the significance of the Ancestral Symbols as the daughter of the Dao Sect leader.

"Why didn't the creator of the Symbol Master Tower go after the Ancestral Symbols themselves? They should be highly attractive to Symbol Masters, right?"

"Who knows..." Xiao Ming, who was in the middle of studying the symbols, replied in a low voice.

Ying Huanhuan was momentarily at a loss for words. How could her Master find this place so precisely if he didn't know?

"The imprinted Ancestral Symbols don't have much use, do they?" She asked instead.

"Indeed, they are not very useful, but the things inside them are."

As he spoke, Xiao Ming extended a finger that gradually emitted strands of Spiritual Strength that shone like rays of light onto the imprinted Ancestral Symbol on the wall.

With the illumination of the rays of light, the imprinted Ancestral Symbol on the wall also reflected some light rays. Those rays of light converged in the air in front of them, faintly outlining what looked like a map.

"Is this... a map of the Great Yan Empire?"

Ying Huanhuan was slightly surprised as she looked at the map congealed with spiritual energy. Just as she finished speaking, her gaze focused on a certain part of the map where a bright red dot was located.

"This is a map indicating the location of the Ancestral Symbols. It seems that the original creator of this tower must have seen the Ancestral Symbols at the locations marked on this map," Xiao Ming said calmly.

"Two Ancestral Symbols... If this information leaks out, the Great Yan Empire will probably be razed to the ground. I wonder where you got this information from, Master..."

Ying Huanhuan blinked her big eyes and closely examined the mental map. Besides one red dot within the Great Yan Empire, another red dot was located in an unfamiliar area on the map, presumably outside the borders of the Great Yan Empire.

"By the way, Master, do you know which two of the Eight Ancestral Symbols these are?"

"The Devouring Ancestral Symbol and the Thunderbolt Ancestral Symbol. The one in the Great Yan Empire is the Devouring Ancestral Symbol."

Xiao Ming actually knew the locations of the two Ancestral Symbols without the map. However, having the exact coordinates saved some effort.

He withdrew his hand after memorizing the specific spatial coordinates. The mental map dissolved back into light and faded away.

"Let's go!"

"Are we going to get the Devouring Ancestral Symbol now?" Ying Huanhuan asked with excitement. She had never seen an Ancestral Symbol before!

"No, we'll go somewhere else first."

"Somewhere else? Is that more important than obtaining an Ancestral Symbol?" Ying Huanhuan felt a bit disappointed.

"We're just going to meet an old acquaintance of the Great Desolation Tablet."

...

In the Great Yan Empire, Qingyang Town was a small town located near Yan City in Tiandu Province. The town was primarily home to three martial families – Lin, Lei, and Xie – as well as a martial arts school known as the Raging Blade Dojo.

The Lin Family of Qingyang Town was a branch of the larger Lin Clan, one of the eight major factions in the Great Yan Empire. However, this branch had not yet gained official recognition from the main clan. It was originally founded by Lin Zhentian, but its status remained somewhat precarious.

The Lin Clan had many branches, but only those who were officially recognized during the clan gatherings were considered part of the inner circle. The Lin Family of Qingyang Town was once in a period of considerable growth, but then they were crushed and suffered a major setback at the last clan gathering.

During that gathering, Lin Xiao, the most promising member of the Lin Family, was shockingly defeated in the first round of the competition. While his opponent was the top genius from the main family, the defeat was still a bitter pill to swallow.

This loss not only shattered the dreams of the Lin Family of Qingyang Town but also left Lin Xiao severely injured, with his internal organs ravaged by his opponent's violent Yuan Power. As a result, his cultivation stage plummeted from the Heavenly Yuan Stage to the Earthly Yuan Stage.

Lin Xiao and his family now lived on a small, desolate hill in the farthest reaches of the Lin Family territory.

He was once the second strongest Heavenly Yuan Stage practitioner in the Lin Family of Qingyang Town, after the head of the family, Lin Zhentian. He had access to almost all the resources second only to the family head.

However, after his defeat at the last Lin Clan gathering and his fall from the Heavenly Yuan Stage, he moved out of the Lin Family's inner district and took his family to live in seclusion in the mountains.

...

In the early hours of the morning, a dense fog enveloped a desolate hill, shrouding everything in a blurry white haze.

"Huff... Huff..."

Intense panting sounds suddenly echoed from a dense forest behind the hilltop.

If one looked closer at a clearing within the forest, one would spot a small figure hanging from a thick tree trunk. A boy was engaged in a rigorous exercise, repeatedly lifting and lowering his body with the strength of his arms. Every muscle in his body was used in this unusual exercise posture.

In addition, he had several hefty iron blocks tied around his arms and ankles, their surfaces soaked with the sweat that permeated through his clothing.

Near the clearing's edge stood a young girl, dressed in simple and light-colored attire.

Her features were delicate and captivating, her skin as fair as freshly fallen snow. Her long hair was a dazzling silver color that contrasted perfectly with her honey-colored eyes. Although the girl was quite young, her small face was rather elaborate, and her huge eyes glittered, making her look extremely adorable. She watched the boy exercising with her eyes full of vitality.

Suddenly, her porcelain-like face turned deathly pale. Thin wisps of visible chilling air began to seep from her body. This caused tiny ice crystals to form on the nearby ground.

"Oh no… Qing Tan's chilling cold has flared up again!"

Lin Dong, who was in the middle of his training, felt waves of chilling air and couldn't help but shiver.

When he looked up, he saw that Qing Tan was biting her lip, her small body shaking uncontrollably, and her face contorted in pain. The expression on Lin Dong's face turned anxious at this sight.

"I'll go call father!" Lin Dong rushed over to Qing Tan's side.

"Don't go," Qing Tan quickly grabbed Lin Dong's sleeve when she heard this. Immediately, the chilling air quickly formed a thin layer of frost on his sleeve. "It's useless. I can handle it."

She had often suffered from this chilling cold since she was young. After a certain period of time, an extremely dense chilling air would explode from within her body. Under the effects of this chill, her insides would be tormented by extreme pain.

However, even their father, Lin Xiao, could not find a solution to alleviate her condition. He had once tried to use Yuan Power to forcefully expel the chilling cold, but in the end, he had to spend nearly half a month in bed to get rid of the chilling cold that had entered his body.

Therefore, every time the chilling cold flared up in her body, they could only watch helplessly as Qing Tan suffered while their hearts were cut to pieces inside.

Lin Dong ignored Qing Tan's words and quickly ran in a certain direction. Qing Tan, who was in pain, couldn't hold him back and could only watch helplessly as he disappeared into the dense forest.

A minute later, footsteps were heard in the woods. Qing Tan bore the pain and looked up, but instead of seeing her parents, she saw a young man accompanied by a little girl.

"Master, this sister seems to be in a lot of pain!"