Chapter 123: Xiao Yan Takes a Master

"What? You, an old man hiding in the shadows, are more formidable than Pill King Gu He?" Xiao Yan said, disbelieving.

"What 'hiding in the shadows'? That was an unintentional act on my part," the old man continued, defending himself. However, he did not forget Xiao Yan's question; he couldn't let such a good seedling slip away!

"What reason would I have to lie to you? Kid, this continent is vast; your horizons are not yet broad enough!" the old man said with a hint of disdain.

"Then what does that have to do with me becoming stronger?" Xiao Yan said, puzzled.

As for the combat power of an Alchemist—which was basically five—he had no interest in it.

"Kid, do you know?" the old man said somewhat mysteriously, "You actually possess the talent of an Alchemist!" His tone was full of temptation; after all, Alchemists held a very high status on the continent, and he believed the latter would surely agree impatiently.

"I know that!" This one sentence from Xiao Yan left the old man bewildered.

"How did you know?" The old man was very puzzled, and besides, your reaction is wrong! Shouldn't you be ecstatic,

and then kowtow to become my disciple?

What is this calmness, as if you were just buying a scallion at the vegetable market?

"My family detected my talent as an Alchemist a long time ago, it's just that I hadn't had the chance to learn,

and then my Dou Qi disappeared." As he spoke, Xiao Yan glared at the old man, making the latter feel somewhat awkward.

"Ahem~"

The old man coughed pretentiously, his thick skin, honed from years of traveling the world, coming into play. "Then, are you willing to take me as your master, learn alchemy from me, and become an Alchemist?"

In order to swindle a disciple, the old man went all out. "Besides, I possess a miraculous Cultivation Method that can help you become a powerhouse!"

"A Cultivation Method?" Xiao Yan was very excited, even changing how he addressed him,

"Old sir,

I wonder what grade this Cultivation Method is? Earth Tier High Grade or Heaven Tier?"

"Uh..." The old man's face flushed, and he said embarrassedly, "Yellow Tier."

"What the hell? Yellow Tier? Are you kidding me?" Xiao Yan immediately bristled,

he had originally practiced an Earth Tier Low Level Cultivation Method,

and you want him to practice a Yellow Tier one?

Are you joking? Wouldn't that just take him further and further away from his goal?

"Great-uncle,

let me go down there and send this old man full of lies to heaven," Xiao Zhan said unkindly. He didn't care about any "number one Alchemist on the continent" right now; to think he would want his precious son to practice a Yellow Tier Cultivation Method—let's see if he doesn't peel a layer of skin off him.

"Wait a moment, keep watching." Xiao Han stopped Xiao Zhan, staring into the distance with slight excitement.

"What is it?" Xiao Zhan calmed down, looking suspiciously at his great-uncle's unusual reaction.

At this moment, the old man began to explain: "This Cultivation Method can grow."

Hm?

Xiao Yan became interested. "What do you mean?" A Cultivation Method that can grow—he had never heard of such a miraculous thing from childhood to the present.

In the distance, Xiao Zhan, who was constantly watching, was also surprised: "There is actually such a Cultivation Method?"

"That's right." Xiao Han nodded and said, "It is said that Venerable Yao obtained a scroll of an extremely strange Cultivation Method in an ancient ruin; it should be this one."

"Old sir, could you explain in more detail?" Xiao Yan said with a grin.

"Why, are you willing to take me as your master now? I am a famous Alchemist on the continent; people longing to be my disciple could line up from the Central Plains to the Northwest Continent. If I had a choice, why would I have taken a fancy to a kid like you?" the old man said with feigned arrogance.

"Take you as my master?" Xiao Yan began to think carefully. Seeing that this old man still had such strength even in his current miserable state,

and was so disdainful of Pill King Gu He, he was likely a truly formidable figure; taking him as a master wouldn't be a loss.

Seeing this,

the old man added more fuel to the fire for Xiao Yan, "Kid, you probably don't have much confidence in winning that so-called Three Year Agreement, do you?"

"This young master was a genius who could break through to a Great Dou Master at twelve; now that my talent has recovered, the Three Year Agreement is just a trivial matter, easily accomplished."

Xiao Yan did not follow the former's lead; after all, in negotiations, one must not fall into the other party's rhythm.

"Hehe~" The old man laughed inscrutably and said, "I can help you break through to a Dou Zhe within one year."

"Are you serious?" Xiao Yan's expression turned serious, and he asked with some excitement.

Just as this mysterious old man said, he had no confidence in his heart regarding the Three Year Agreement. Although Nalan Yanran was far inferior to him, with the full support of the Yunlan Sect, she could at least reach the level of a Great Dou Master in three years.

And he was still forced to start cultivating from Dou Qi; no matter how fast his cultivation speed was, he estimated it would take at least two years to break through to a Dou Zhe again. By the time of the Three Year Agreement, reaching a low-level Dou Master would be the absolute limit!

If this old man could really help him break through to a Dou Zhe within a year, his chances of winning would be much greater!

"Naturally, I am serious. So, do you want to take me as your master?" the old man said with a smile.

Xiao Yan's expression shifted a few times, and he suddenly asked, "What do you need me to do?"

He was tempted now, but he hadn't lost his reason. This mysterious powerhouse suddenly wanting to take him as a disciple must have some ulterior motive.

He wouldn't believe that his talent was so good that the other party would take the initiative to accept him as a disciple, especially given the premise that the other party had absorbed his Dou Qi for three years.

"Good kid, you can actually remain this calm." The old man looked at Xiao Yan with admiration. He did indeed have things he needed Xiao Yan's help with; if not for limited conditions, he wouldn't have lowered his requirements so easily—this was understandable.

"The things I need you to do are beyond your current capabilities, so... kid, cultivate well!" The old man was always very arrogant in front of Xiao Yan.

"Even with my family's help, it's not enough?" Xiao Yan asked, frowning. He was no fool; why not use the ready-made help of his own family? At least within the Jia Ma Empire, there were very few things the Xiao Clan couldn't accomplish.

"A word of advice: it is best not to expose my affairs, otherwise it will bring a catastrophic disaster to your family."

The old man said gloomily. This was not a threat; although this Xiao Clan had decent strength in this backwater, they were still far behind his enemies.

"Fine!" Xiao Yan's heart tightened, but he didn't probe further. He knew well that if one's strength was insufficient, knowing things too early would only lead to death. Even for some of the Xiao Clan's secrets, he was not yet qualified to explore them.

"Old man, how should I address you?" Xiao Yan regained his composure; taking him as a master was the priority.

"My name is Yao Lao. Of course, after becoming my disciple, you should address me as Teacher." Yao Lao stroked his beard and said with a smile.

Just like that, Xiao Yan followed the etiquette, meticulously and respectfully completing the apprenticeship, and called out, "Teacher!"

And Yao Lao, standing to the side, looked at Xiao Yan with much more affection after accepting him as a disciple. On the continent, the bond between master and disciple was sometimes more reliable than that of close blood relatives.

(Han Feng: "Hehehe~ Teacher, long time no see!")

"Since you have called me teacher, I naturally will not go back on my word. You prepare some Medicinal Herbs now. Three stalks of Purple Leaf Orchid Grass, the older the better, plus two portions of Bone Washing Flower, and a First Rank Wood Type Magic Crystal..."

"Old man, why don't I just take you to the Pill Hall? You name them, I'll get them!" Xiao Yan's head was spinning from hearing the names of these Medicinal Herbs, and he said this directly.

"That works too." Yao Lao nodded. He also felt extremely fortunate that this little fellow's family still had some assets; otherwise, even he, the number one Alchemist on the continent, would find it hard to cook a meal without rice!

Just as he was about to say something, Yao Lao's expression changed, "Someone is coming, I'm going back into the Ring first!"

Before long, Xiao Yan saw a certain light and agile purple figure appear in the mountains, rushing toward his direction.

"Let's go!"

"Yes!" The two figures in the distance also vanished without a sound.