"Hoo..."
Hun Changqing put away the black stone and exhaled a deep breath. Today's events had been quite stimulating, putting immense pressure on his heart. Fortunately, things hadn't escalated to an unmanageable level.
Upon seeing the black stone, Hun Changqing knew that Xiao Yan could be saved. It was an extremely rare eighth-grade soul material called a "Soul-Protecting Stone." The Soul-Protecting Stone could protect and store a person's soul.
Yao Chen's storage ring was made from this Soul-Protecting Stone, which was why he could barely survive despite being so damaged that even a Dou Zhe's Dou Qi was being absorbed.
Xiao Yan's remnant soul was now protected and contained within this Soul-Protecting Stone before his death. Its aura was extremely subtle; if Hun Changqing hadn't carefully examined Xiao Yan's corpse inch by inch, he wouldn't have discovered it!
Now, all that was needed was to find a corpse with a similar strength to Xiao Yan in life, revive him, and then have Yao Chen refine a "Spirit-Flesh Primordial Spirit Pill."
This elixir will allow Xiao Yan's soul essence to corrupt that physical body, ultimately reshaping it back to the original form of Xiao Yan's soul—his previous appearance.
This would resolve Hun Changqing's crisis, allowing him to continue using Xiao Yan to threaten Gu Xun'er. However, after this incident, Hun Changqing felt he still needed to keep Xiao Yan by his side. This man was too reckless; if he caused another accident while being left to his own devices, and Hun Changqing couldn't arrive in time, he would be completely finished.
He needed to reach at least the level of Dou Sheng, Half-Saint, or even Dou Sheng, to gain the clan's attention before he could be completely unafraid of Gu Xun'er. The Gu clan wouldn't force the Hun clan to hand over a Saint-level expert just because of an outsider.
If it were just an ordinary person, the Hun clan, a group that only cares about the grand scheme and doesn't care about face, might hand over someone to save face for their traitor who could safely steal the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade.
However, any Saint-level expert, regardless of their cultivation level, is a core member of the Soul Clan once they are associated with the Saint. At this critical juncture of upheaval, it's impossible to simply abandon any Saint-level expert.
Hun Changqing let out a long sigh, carefully considering Xiao Yan's situation in his mind. Confirming it was correct, he relaxed completely.
Su Qian, watching Hun Changqing frantically digging at the charred black corpse on the ground as if possessed, couldn't help but feel a pang of pity for this unknown, seemingly Dou Zun-level expert.
Such a powerful figure, and his mind has gone mad. Alas, life is unpredictable.
Just as Hun Changqing was about to leave to prepare for his attack on the Ancient Burning Sect, light footsteps sounded outside the stone chamber.
These footsteps instantly drew the attention of Hun Changqing and Su Qian, who turned to see a little girl standing in the doorway.
The little girl looked no more than twelve or thirteen years old, dressed in a white dress, her long, light purple hair cascading down to her waist like a waterfall.
Her face was extremely fair and delicate, with a beautifully sculpted appearance. Her large, dark, bright eyes blinked at Su Qian in the stone chamber, their power seemingly dispelling the eerie atmosphere of the room.
In her hand, she held a red fruit that had already been bitten, its flesh stuffed into her chubby cheeks.
The crunching sound of her teeth chewing the fruit echoed in the spacious stone chamber, and a trickle of crimson liquid, like blood, spilled from the corner of her mouth, finally sliding down her chin.
"Old man Su Qian, what happened just now? What are you doing here?"
the girl asked, her words muffled and clear as she chewed the fruit.
"Ziyan?! What are you doing here? Go back now."
Su Qian's expression changed immediately upon seeing the little girl's arrival. He scolded her in a stern tone, though a hint of worry was also in his voice. Beside him was a powerful figure of unknown origin, exuding an evil aura. This Zi Yan was extraordinary, possessing many peculiar qualities. Who knew if she might be targeted by this powerful figure? Therefore, he quickly reprimanded her, wanting her to leave.
The little girl named Zi Yan, hearing Su Qian's reprimand, instantly changed her confused gaze to one of grievance. She had come to check on this old man out of concern that something might have happened to him, and instead of thanking her, he was being rude!
Zi Yan was extremely annoyed, her eyes widening in anger as she glared at Su Qian, completely unaware that beside him stood a person dressed in black robes, blending seamlessly into the darkness.
Meanwhile, Hun Changqing, hearing Su Qian's reprimand of the purple-haired girl, sensed the aura of a Dou Wang realm cultivator emanating from her, as well as the almost imperceptible spatial energy. His eyes suddenly lit up.
Zi Yan? Baby Dragon!
"Hehehe..."
After confirming the little girl's identity, Hun Changqing couldn't help but reveal an evil smile, his sinister laughter echoing in the stone chamber.
Hearing this eerie laughter and seeing the burning gaze Hun Changqing gave Zi Yan, Su Qian's heart skipped a beat, realizing something was wrong! He immediately yelled at Zi Yan,
"Zi Yan! What are you standing there for! Go back now!"
Hearing Su Qian scold her again, Zi Yan felt even more aggrieved, baring her teeth in anger, and shouted at Su Qian in her childish voice,
"Hmph! You old geezer! Fine, I'll go! Do you think I wanted to come? I should have just left!"
With that, Zi Yan turned and stormed off.
"Wait!"
A hoarse voice came from the darkness beside Su Qian, causing Zi Yan to pause, turn around, and tilt her head, looking at the darkness with a puzzled expression.
"Old man, who's there?"
Zi Yan only then noticed the other person beside Su Qian, her face full of confusion as she asked.
"Senior, this is a student of our Canaan Academy. And you are...?"
Su Qian ignored Zi Yan's question and asked Hun Changqing, his tone anxious, his voice involuntarily louder. He had picked up Zi Yan from the mountains not far from the academy.
When she first appeared, she was covered in filth, her body only lightly covered by animal hides, looking extremely disheveled. He couldn't help but feel pity for her and brought her back to care for her.
Although Zi Yan was usually very mischievous and often stole medicinal herbs from the academy's stock, Su Qian doted on her, treating her like his own daughter. Now that Hun Changqing had his eye on her, how could he not be anxious?