BTTH: Demon Emperor Xiao Yan

The reappearance of the Place of Return made the already-chaotic Black-Corner Region even more volatile. Countless sects and factions, both large and small, stirred at the news. Regardless of their strength, any group that received word of the ruin's arrival rushed to its anticipated location, each hoping to snatch a share of whatever treasures lay within.

As one of the most talked-about rising powers in the region, Xiao Gate had already made preparations in advance. But unlike the other factions who charged in with great fanfare, Xiao Yan didn't bring a large entourage. He traveled light, only taking Zi Yan and Qing Lin along. Hai Bodong, meanwhile, was left behind to watch over Xiao Gate.

Having explored many ruins in his past life, Xiao Yan understood one truth clearly—bringing a crowd to such places was more a hindrance than a help. If not for the unique abilities of Qing Lin and Zi Yan possibly playing a key role inside the ruin, he would've preferred to go alone.

Thanks to his current speed, Xiao Yan reached a coastal city near the ruin's emergence point in less than half a day. The city was called Darksea City, and it was under the control of a sect known as the Blackwater Sect. However, the sect master's strength was only at the Six-Star Dou King level—a notable expert in ordinary times, but laughably insufficient for the coming chaos.

"We'll rest here for a few days. The Place of Return should manifest soon," Xiao Yan said as he brought Qing Lin and Zi Yan into a small courtyard estate Xiao Gate had purchased in advance. Looking at the purple-haired girl beside him, he smiled. "Little one, once we enter the Place of Return, I'm counting on you to put your treasure-hunting talent to good use. Find me some good stuff."

"No problem! As long as the pills keep coming, I'll find you all the treasure you want!" Zi Yan patted her chest confidently.

"Young Master, here are the blood samples from the fire-attribute Magical Beasts you asked us to collect." Qing Lin remembered something and handed over a storage ring. Xiao Yan accepted the ring, and his eyes lit up with satisfaction when he saw the hundreds of jade bottles inside. He gently patted Qing Lin's head and praised, "Well done."

Ever since arriving in the Black-Corner Region, he had been having people gather this type of blood in bulk. After almost a year, they had finally reached the required quantity. This last batch from Qing Lin completed the amount he needed perfectly.

"This is just what I should be doing," Qing Lin murmured, blushing slightly.

With her strength gradually increasing, Xiao Yan had slowly started letting her manage some of Xiao Gate's affairs. Thanks to this hands-on experience, Qing Lin's personality had toughened a bit, gaining a hint of decisiveness. But all of that resolve vanished whenever she stood before Xiao Yan—she instantly turned back into the shy, timid girl she used to be.

Part of her change in temperament was due to Zi Yan. Though the two girls looked about the same age, Zi Yan's strength far outclassed Qing Lin's. Because of Qing Lin's naturally meek personality, Zi Yan would often accompany her during administrative tasks, giving her confidence by simply being there. The bond between them deepened quickly, and one day, they swore sisterhood to each other.

From that day on, Zi Yan took it upon herself to act like the bossy older sister.

What left Xiao Yan speechless, however, was when Zi Yan actually tried to rope him into this "sibling gang" and dub him their Third Brother. But before he could say anything, Qing Lin had already objected firmly. No matter what, in her heart, "Young Master is Young Master." Despite Zi Yan's grumbling and repeated attempts to lecture Qing Lin over the next few days, the matter was eventually dropped.

"The next few days, I'll be going into seclusion to refine something," Xiao Yan told the girls after storing the jade bottles. "You two stay put. No going out and causing trouble."

He glanced at Zi Yan and warned, "Especially you. If you get into any mess while I'm busy, don't even think about getting more of those pills for the next few months."

That last line was directed squarely at Zi Yan. He had no worries about Qing Lin, but Zi Yan... that girl was a walking disaster. Back at Jia Nan Academy, she was a terror. After coming to Xiao Gate, she became even more unrestrained. Who knew what kind of trouble she might stir up if he didn't give her a heads-up?

"Got it!" Zi Yan stuck out her tongue and smiled sweetly.

Once he had sent the two girls off, Xiao Yan returned to his room. With a flick of his finger on the storage ring, thousands of jade bottles materialized, filling the small room almost instantly.

Each bottle contained blood from fire-attribute Magical Beasts. He had been gathering this since his time in the Magic Beast Mountain Range, and only now had he finally reached the required quantity. With the Place of Return not yet opened, now was the perfect time to prepare—this was one of the backup plans he had kept hidden all along.

With a snap of his finger, the bottles shattered in unison. Thick, dark red blood poured out, but before it could scatter, an unseen force gathered it toward one point. In the center of the room, a massive sphere of glowing blood formed in midair.

Sensing the immense fiery energy within the blood sphere, Xiao Yan swiftly formed a hand seal. Under his soul force's guidance, the massive orb began to compress rapidly. This process repeated hundreds of times before it stopped. What was once a giant ball of blood now shrunk to the size of a clenched fist.

Xiao Yan took a deep breath. With a wave of his sleeve, he injected a surge of intense fire-attribute energy into the blood. The orb, compressed to the extreme, finally cracked—and from the broken mass, a dazzling flame the color of fresh blood slowly rose into the air.

"Finally... the Bloodfiend Flame," Xiao Yan muttered, exhaling softly.

At the center of the crimson flame, a faint, writhing shadow could be seen—evidence that this unique flame had been successfully forged.

Although born from beast blood, the Bloodfiend Flame wasn't considered a Beast Flame. It was more akin to Xiao Yan's Human Flame—a man-made flame. But compared to the Human Flame, its creation process was far more complex.

Rather than directly forming the flame from existing fire, this one required blood from nearly a thousand fire-attribute beasts. These blood samples were then fused together, and only the fiery essence within them condensed into the shape of a flame.

The formation process was somewhat similar to the Ten Thousand Beast Flame, a flame ranked on the Heavenly Flame Index. Thus, some referred to it as a "budget version" of the Ten Thousand Beast Flame. Naturally, its power couldn't truly compare to the genuine article, but for Xiao Yan right now, it was an excellent substitute.

(End of Chapter)

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