BECOME MY DISCIPLE.

Xie Tianxiao observed the conversation between Xiao Yan and Yao Chen, shaking his head slightly as he thought to himself:

"With Xiao Yan's current level of knowledge, even if he knew Yao Lao's true identity, he would probably just think the old man is a fraud."

The Xiao Yan of today was not the renowned Flame Emperor, Xiao Yan, who would one day be known across the continent. He was just an ordinary young man with only four stages of Dou Qi, completely clueless about cultivation or alchemy.

It was precisely because Xiao Yan was in this state that he had no conflicting interests with Xie Tianxiao, which was why Xie Tianxiao had refrained from interfering in Xiao Yan's decision to take Yao Lao as his master.

"Since you're willing, let's proceed with the disciple ceremony," Yao Lao said, sitting cross-legged on a large, green stone. He gestured to Xiao Yan, making it clear what he wanted.

"A ceremony?" Xiao Yan was momentarily surprised.

"Of course. Do you think you can just say a word and have me teach you everything I know without a proper ceremony? Dream on!" Yao Lao rolled his eyes, clearly someone who valued the traditions of the master-disciple relationship.

"Alright." Wanting to become a respected alchemist, Xiao Yan quickly knelt down, bowing respectfully to Yao Lao as he said, "Master."

"Good, you may rise," Yao Lao nodded in satisfaction. He then added, "I know you were reluctant to take me as your master because you feared I might have ulterior motives, that I might force you to do something against your will."

"And to be honest, I do have something I need you to do."

"Ah? So there really is something!" Xiao Yan's face fell.

"Don't worry. Let me finish!" Yao Lao glared at Xiao Yan before continuing, "But rest assured, now that you're my disciple, I won't ask you to do anything beyond your capabilities or something that would put your life in danger."

"When the time comes for you to fulfil this task, you'll be at least at the level of a Dou emperor."

"So, there's no need for you to worry that I would harm you." Yao Lao patted Xiao Yan's shoulder with a smile as he saw the young man relax a little.

"Alright," Xiao Yan shrugged, not pressing for more details. He figured he would find out sooner or later, so there was no rush.

"By the way, Master, what level of alchemist are you?" Xiao Yan suddenly asked, curious.

On the Dou Qi Continent, alchemists were ranked from one to nine, with the first rank being the lowest and the ninth being the highest. Gu He, the renowned Pill King of the Jia Ma Empire, was a sixth-tier alchemist!

"What's this? Are you planning to look down on me if I'm not highly ranked?" Yao Lao glared at Xiao Yan.

"Uh, no, not at all! I was just curious," Xiao Yan quickly explained, scratching his head. "Now that I'm your disciple, it would be a bit of a failure if I didn't even know your rank."

"I won't tell you my rank now, lest you become too proud and arrogant," Yao Lao shook his head, then added with a faint smile, "But know this: that so-called Pill King you mentioned? To me, he's nothing more than trash."

Whoa, he even calls the Pill King trash. What kind of master have I ended up with? Xiao Yan gulped, too stunned to ask further questions.

…

"Sorry to interrupt your conversation, but Yao Chen, you haven't forgotten who used a Seven-Phantom Green Spirit Essence to help you recover, have you?" Xie Tianxiao's voice suddenly cut in, a hint of amusement in his tone.

The Seven-Phantom Green Spirit Essence was something Xie Tianxiao had found in the storage ring of a Dou king in the magic beast Mountains, a fortunate discovery, but it wasn't something to be wasted. He still had business to attend to.

"Of course, I remember."

"But what puzzles me is how you knew I was inside this ring," Yao Chen turned to Xie Tianxiao, frowning slightly as he continued, "Moreover, you're not an alchemist, yet you knew how to use a special flame to refine the Seven-Phantom Green Spirit Essence to help restore my soul. That makes me wonder, who exactly are you?"

Yao Chen hadn't forgotten about Xie Tianxiao. He had only held back from questioning him earlier because Xie Tianxiao had remained quiet, allowing him and Xiao Yan to converse undisturbed.

Another reason was that Yao Chen couldn't see through Xie Tianxiao's strength. Despite only just awakening, Yao Chen's soul power, after being nourished by the Seven-Phantom Green Spirit Essence, was now on par with a high-level Dou emperor.

Even so, he couldn't gauge Xie Tianxiao's power, which made him suspect that Xie Tianxiao was likely a strong figure from Central Plains, with considerable strength. This uncertainty was why Yao Chen hadn't immediately tried to suppress Xie Tianxiao, even though the latter knew about his presence in the ring.

"Yes, how did you know my Dou Qi was being drained by my master?" Xiao Yan also looked at Xie Tianxiao with a puzzled expression.

"You two sure have a lot of questions." Xie Tianxiao didn't answer directly. Instead, he looked at Yao Lao and said, "Yao Chen, you should have realized by now that I mean you no harm. Otherwise, I wouldn't have helped you recover; I would have simply killed you."

Hearing this, Yao Chen frowned deeply, remained silent for a moment, then said, "So, what is your purpose? I don't believe you helped me out of the goodness of your heart."

"I do have a purpose." Xie Tianxiao didn't beat around the bush, getting straight to the point. "All I want is for you to hand over the Bone Spirit Cold Fire and to assist me in refining some pills when needed."

"Bone Spirit Cold Fire!" Yao Chen's expression changed as he squinted his eyes. "So, you're after my Heavenly Flame."

He hadn't expected Xie Tianxiao to make such a request.

"You could say that," Xie Tianxiao nodded, not bothering to hide his intentions.

"Since you know who I am, you should also understand how important this Heavenly Flame is to me. So, forgive me, but I can't agree to your request," Yao Chen said after a moment of thought. "However, I have no problem helping you refine pills, but it will have to wait until I've spent some time teaching Xiao Yan cultivation and alchemy."

That Heavenly Flame was his lifeline, crucial for both survival and alchemy. He couldn't just hand it over easily. If it weren't for the fact that he couldn't gauge Xie Tianxiao's strength and was worried about Xiao Yan's safety, he might have already tried to deal with this person who wanted to take his Heavenly Flame.

"I'm well aware of how important a Heavenly Flame is to an alchemist," Xie Tianxiao said calmly, a faint smile playing on his lips. "But that has nothing to do with me."

"You're unreasonable!" Xiao Yan interjected. While he was grateful to Xie Tianxiao for revealing the reason behind his Dou Qi's disappearance and for helping him take Yao Lao as his master, he hadn't expected Xie Tianxiao to be so domineering and unreasonable.

"Reasonable? Xiao Yan, you're still too naive!" Xie Tianxiao glanced at Xiao Yan, waving a finger in front of him. "Reason only matters when there's equal strength. Unfortunately, I have it, and you don't, at least not yet!"

"That's just sophistry! It's the logic of a bandit!" Xiao Yan shouted angrily, furious at Xie Tianxiao's shamelessness.

"Think what you like," Xie Tianxiao dismissed Xiao Yan's outburst, turning back to Yao Chen. "So, have you made up your mind, Yao Chen?"

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END