Chapter 687

Around the stone statue, numerous light orbs danced through the air, appearing dazzling from afar.

"These are… cultivation methods and Dou Techniques? All Heavenly Rank Advanced Grade?!!"

Gazing at the light orbs, the Four Demon Sages and others narrowed their eyes, their hearts subtly trembling—for they realized each orb contained ancient scrolls, radiating an intense spiritual vitality that rivaled even the most potent Heavenly Rank Advanced Grade cultivation methods or Dou Techniques from the outside world!

Hundreds of Heavenly Rank cultivation methods and Dou Techniques—this kind of treasure, even within the Soul Sovereign, was a supreme relic! Even the Four Demon Sages and Hun Xu Zi could not help but breathe heavier; such rank cultivation techniques were scattered like cabbage.

Though Heavenly Rank cultivation methods and Dou Techniques were alluring, for Hun Tian Di, they held little temptation—there was only one thing he truly coveted!

After a swift glance, Hun Tian Di still found no trace of the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill; not even the faintest Pill Fragrance lingered here.

"This space hasn't been this lively in ages…"

Just as Hun Tian Di frowned over the absence of the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill, a faint, ancient voice suddenly descended from the Sky, echoing in every person's ears.

The sudden ancient voice startled everyone; their gazes snapped around and froze on the shoulder of the stone statue, where a withered figure stood with hands clasped behind his back, calmly observing the crowd below—his gaze as if viewing ants.

"Tuoshe Ancient Emperor!"

At the sight of the old man clad in plain robes, the Four Demon Sages and others cried out in shock—his appearance matched the stone statue exactly! And that unique, dazzling long hair could not be replicated by anyone!

"Is Tuoshe Ancient Emperor still alive?!"

The Soul Sovereign warriors stared blankly at the old man radiating a supreme aura surpassing heaven and earth; a terrifying thought surged into some of their minds.

"What's going on?" Hun Tian Di's expression darkened; he turned to Wu Xu Yan and asked sternly.

From this old man, Hun Tian Di sensed a heart-stopping aura—this aura belonged solely to Tuoshe Ancient Emperor!

"No, Tuoshe Ancient Emperor should have vanished thousands of years ago." Xiao Yan stared at the old man above, something clicked in his mind, and his eyes widened sharply.

Wu Xu Yan lifted his head, fixing his gaze tightly on the old man, then spoke: "He isn't Tuoshe Ancient Emperor… he is the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill!"

"He merely took on this form due to possessing a trace of Tuoshe Ancient Emperor's aura."

Hearing this, Hun Tian Di froze, then his eyes glowed with strange light as he slowly locked onto the old man—unimaginable! After thousands of years of evolution, the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill had mutated into a special Pill like the Dan Tower's Elder Ancestor or Nine Mystical Golden Thunder!

"What are you doing?!" The old man on the stone statue blinked, then roared angrily.

"What am I doing?" Wu Xu Yan frowned in reply, puzzled why the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill was shouting.

"Damn it! Back then, if not for me helping you sever the bonds with Jing Lian Yaohuo, how could you have escaped? You promised me then—you'd rescue me from here too!" The old man—or rather, the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill—snarled.

At his roar, everyone present except Xiao Yan and Hun Tian Di jolted violently, their gazes shifting in shock toward Wu Xu Yan and the Jing Lian Yaohuo on Xiao Yan's neck—what was going on?!

Xiao Yan showed no surprise, his calm gaze fixed on the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill. No wonder Wu Xu Yan and Jing Lian Yaohuo had escaped that peculiar Guang Chang—someone had helped them.

Wu Xu Yan's expression shifted, his brows knitting tightly as he pondered for a long while, yet found no memory of this—he could only speak calmly: "Apologies, I have no recollection of what you speak of… but…"

Here, his voice paused, then he grinned slyly: "But this time, I truly have come to free you—come with me…"

The Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill's face darkened; he stared at Wu Xu Yan for a long moment, then suddenly turned his gaze to the Jing Lian Yaohuo on Xiao Yan's shoulder: "Jing Lian Yaohuo, do you still remember our agreement?"

"Huh?" Xiao Yi blinked, then nervously tugged at Xiao Yan's hair and shook her head: "I've never seen you before…"

Hearing this, the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill's expression flickered between fury and confusion; after a moment, as if recalling something, he glared sharply at the nearby stone statue and muttered through gritted teeth: "So this is your trick…"

"Come with us—I've come now to fulfill my promise." Wu Xu Yan smiled at the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill.

"Hmph. You're not here to fulfill a promise—you want to refine me." The Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill sneered at Wu Xu Yan.

Wu Xu Yan laughed, made no argument, then his expression turned instantly icy: "Attack!"

"Boom!"

No sooner had he spoken than Hun Tian Di struck first, shooting forward with overwhelming Dou Qi that spread like a tidal wave, crashing violently toward the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill.

"Child's play." Facing Hun Tian Di, a Nine-Star Dou Sheng Peak, the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill sneered—his finger flicked lightly, and the onrushing tidal wave of energy was instantly sliced apart by a single fingertip!

Xiao Yan's eyes widened—this Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill's power was this strong!!!

Without hesitation, Xiao Yan quietly retreated to the very back, dragging Jing Lian Yaohuo with him. He was merely a weak Alchemist—he only handled Spirit Refining; capturing Medicinal Materials was not in his contract!

Hun Tian Di's gaze hardened, his face grim—he too had realized the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill's combat power far exceeded his expectations.

After all, Wu Xu Yan had lost some memories of the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill—he could not have anticipated its power had reached such heights!

"Fourth Elder, immediately form the Gate of Death Demonic Array!" Hun Tian Di transmitted his voice to the four living corpses at the front.

How could Hun Tian Di have come unprepared? Those four Eight-Star Dou Sheng were far more dangerous than their own strength—they carried the Stone Gates! The Demonic Array formed by four Gates of Death could annihilate the entire San Zu Lian Meng army—even Gu Yuan could not escape!

"Yes, Clan Leader!"

Hearing Hun Tian Di's transmission, the four Eight-Star Dou Sheng rapidly formed strange hand seals; thick black qi surged from their palms, and the black colossal gates on their backs began radiating eerie energy.

With a thud, the massive gates swung open, revealing a darkness like a black hole—no one knew what strange realm lay beyond.

Xiao Yan naturally did not know what these Gates of Death were, but the aura emanating from them made his skin crawl—within them lay the aura of a Dou Emperor!

Seeing the four Eight-Star Dou Sheng activate the Gates of Death, the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill also showed a flicker of surprise.

These Gates of Death were no ordinary Dou Technique—they were ancient relics created by Dou Emperors of old, Imperial-grade artifacts! The Soul Sovereign was one of the oldest Dou Emperor Families; even the Yao Clan preserved remnants of Dou Emperor souls and Dou Emperor Arrays—the Soul Sovereign's depth was unfathomable!

Undoubtedly, had Xiao Yan agreed to the San Zu Lian Meng's assault on the Soul Realm, the result would have been the deaths of all San Zu and Yan Alliance warriors within this Demonic Array. If anything happened to Cai Lin, Xun Er, or Xiao Yixian in pursuit of becoming a Dou Emperor, Xiao Yan could never bear such a cost.

At this moment, all Soul Sovereign warriors—including the Four Demon Sages, Hun Mie Sheng, and Hun Xu Zi—took up specific positions beneath the Gates of Death, forming identical hand seals.

Then, streams of eerie black Soul Power and Dou Qi surged into the Gates of Death; soon, the colossal gates were wreathed in endless black mist.

Even Xiao Yan, and the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill himself, knew the Death Realm Demonic Array was immensely powerful!

"Hmph! Emperor Pill Palm!" The Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill's eyes hardened, then he slammed his palm downward—upon impact, a brilliant orb, roughly the size of a human head, suddenly erupted!

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

As the brilliant orb appeared, the energy of heaven and earth ignited like hot oil meeting fire—everywhere the Sky stretched, it was filled with roaring flames; heaven and earth had become a furnace!

Seeing the power of this palm strike, even Hun Tian Di and Wu Xu Yan's expressions changed drastically; they immediately mobilized all their Dou Qi.

"Kuang!" Xiao Yan's face paled—how the hell did this guy attack even an innocent Alchemist passing by?!

Even though Xiao Yan had retreated to the very rear, the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill, to prevent completion of the Gate of Death Demonic Array, launched indiscriminate attacks.

Feeling the terrifying residual shockwaves of the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill's Dou Technique, Xiao Yan instantly activated his Ancient Phoenix Wings—transforming them into a Demon Phoenix Bell. With a hum, purple-gold light shimmered over his body as the Dragon Phoenix Ancient Armor shielded him from the shockwaves.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!! Terrifying flames surged like tidal waves; even though Hun Tian Di and Wu Xu Yan absorbed most of the assault, the Four Elders and Soul Sovereign warriors were all blasted backward, and even the Gates of Death trembled precariously.

Of course, Xiao Yan at the very rear was far from safe.

!!!

Suddenly, a warning bell rang loudly in Xiao Yan's heart, a sensation of extreme danger surging into his mind.

"Boy, come here to this Emperor!" A rough voice suddenly echoed from the Space behind Xiao Yan, an aura no weaker than Hun Tian Di's locking onto him.

Xiao Yan whirled around and saw a middle-aged man with a furious expression, his hand shooting out straight for Xiao Yan's heart — that hand resembled a DragonClaw, emitting a Dragon Roar; a massive golden claw tore through Space, striking with world-shattering force, impossible to block.

"A Nine-Star Dou Sheng Peak expert! Damn, there's a guardian here too!" Xiao Yan's scalp went numb — the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Cave Mansion didn't just contain an Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill, it also had a guardian!

This Swallowing Flame really screwed him over! He'd forgotten this crucial information twice!!

Sensing the opponent's target was himself, Xiao Yan's face turned grim — Hun Tian Di was too far to rescue him; he had to rely on himself.

"Clan Mark, manifest!" In this critical moment, Xiao Yan remained calm, instantly activating his Clan Mark — the next second, twenty Strange Fires within him fused instantly, an unbearable heat exploding from his body.

Xiao Yan's Cultivation Realm surged violently, rocketing from Eight Star Dou Sheng Mid Stage all the way to Eight Star Dou Sheng Peak, nearing the Nine-Star level!

But even with his power pushed to the brink of Nine-Star Dou Sheng, the sense of danger did not fade — the middle-aged man paid no heed, a cold smirk curling his lips, as if in his eyes, even a Nine-Star Dou Sheng Early Stage was utterly insignificant.

Facing the golden Dragon Claw's strike, Xiao Yan transformed into glassy crystal, his body encased in the Golden Crystal Body—but that wasn't enough; golden lightning erupted from his right arm, instantly wrapping him in Strange Fire and Golden Thunder.

Roar!!! Xiao Yan bellowed, a Dragon Roar rumbling from deep within his throat, his eyes blazing with fury.

He'd hidden himself at the very end, never struck first — all he wanted was to quietly be an ordinary Alchemist, and yet he was attacked!

How could he not be furious!

"Eight Extremes Shatter, Nine Mystical Golden Thunder!!"

Facing the middle-aged man's DragonClaw attack, Xiao Yan refused to dodge — he realized his surrounding Space had been completely solidified. Since he couldn't evade, he'd meet it head-on!

Roar! Roar! Roar!! Xiao Yan punched forward — the golden dragon tattoo on his right arm instantly came alive, the power of the Nine Mystical Golden Dragon exploding at that moment.

The punch's wind surged, golden lightning flickering — faint Dragon Roars echoed within it; the Space before Xiao Yan shattered into jagged black fissures — this was inside the Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Cave Mansion, yet even Space struggled to withstand it!

As the middle-aged man sensed the power of Xiao Yan's punch, his eyes widened in surprise — he hadn't expected someone with only Eight Star Dou Sheng Mid Stage Cultivation to unleash such a blow!

Boom! Boom! Boom!!! The punch and claw collided instantly — like a golden DragonClaw meeting a golden dragon — Space Power and lightning flooded every eye.

"Strange Fire? That Strange Fire feels familiar…" At this moment, the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill, locked in battle with Hun Tian Di and Swallowing Flame, turned toward Xiao Yan's direction.

When Xiao Yan activated his Clan Mark and fused his Strange Fire, a familiar sensation stirred in the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill's consciousness.

Not just the Imperial Grade Embryonic Pill — even Swallowing Flame now stared at Xiao Yan. After all, besides Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame, Phantom Poison Flame, and Swallowing Flame's own body, Xiao Yan's Fused Strange Fire contained nineteen Strange Fire origins plus Heavenly Emperor Fire.

Of course it was familiar!

Thud! The middle-aged man stepped back two paces to stabilize himself; Xiao Yan was blasted backward by immense force, his feet carving deep grooves over ten meters before he finally stopped.

(End of Chapter)