Xiao Yan slowly turned around, his gaze calm as he looked at the Yin-Yang Twin Flame in front of him.
He had tried detonating Heavenly Flames himself in the past, but when a Heavenly Flame was detonated, it did not simply vanish, rather, all the energy within its fire seed would be expended. Xiao Xuan's detonation, however, was even more thorough than his method of colliding and merging two Heavenly Flames.
From what Xiao Yan could tell, Xiao Xuan had deliberately detonated his Heavenly Flames in order to hide them from the Hun Clan and secretly send them away, leaving the clan's descendants one final ray of hope.
[I do not know your name, but since you were able to see this scene and hear my voice, you must be a descendant of my Xiao Clan.]
[Heaven has not forsaken my Xiao Clan. That is good.]
A voice transmitted into Xiao Yan's soul.
Though this voice was hoarse and occasionally cut out, Xiao Yan could recognize it as the voice of Xiao Xuan, the last Clan Head of the Dou God–era Xiao Clan.
This was not Xiao Xuan himself, but an imprint he had left inside the Yin-Yang Twin Flame's fire seed in his final battle. Countless years later, that message had finally found its way to Xiao Yan.
[I failed to break through to the Dou God realm. That failure ultimately led to my clan's Dou God Bloodline being completely exhausted. I am ashamed before our ancestors.]
[Though I have perished, I took the final vestige of our clan's waning Dou God Bloodline and hid it within the Life Flame of the Yin-Yang Twin Flame, preserving it.]
Xiao Yan's heart trembled! He had heard of the Dou God Bloodline, but he hadn't expected his ancestor to have left behind such a move!
Knowing he would fail and die in battle, Xiao Xuan had deliberately hidden the last bit of the Dou God Bloodline inside the Heavenly Flame, then detonated the Heavenly Flame to send out this flame of hope!
[I fear that by now our Xiao Clan has completely declined, and our Qi Methods and Dou Techniques have all been lost. Using the final remnant of my Spiritual Strength, I have imprinted within the Death Flame a Secret Technique created by the Dou God of our Xiao Clan.]
'A Secret Technique created by a Dou God?!' Xiao Yan's pupils shrank in shock, and he couldn't help but swallow hard.
A Secret Technique created by a Dou God; what grade would that even be? High Tian Class?
[This technique is part Qi Method and part Dou Technique. Due to the passage of countless years, it's unknown whether it's even complete. At best, I managed to grasp one or two tenths of its true essence. Should a future descendant of my clan comprehend it, they would be invincible among those of the same realm, even up to the Dou Saint realm.]
Xiao Yan's gaze shifted to the black-and-white flames in the air. He never imagined that this would actually be an inheritance left behind by his Xiao Clan ancestors!
[The Skyfire Three Mysterious Change was a Secret Technique jointly created by me and my close friend Tang Fen, the founder of Burning Flame Valley. You should have already learned the First Change. I once agreed with Tang Fen that any future descendant of my Xiao Clan could visit Burning Flame Valley to obtain the remaining parts of this Secret Technique.]
[The true might of this Secret Technique lies in its ability to merge with our clan's Clan Mark. By borrowing the Heavenly Flames of heaven and earth, harnessing the power of the world, it allows the weakened Dou God Bloodline to be replenished, thus temporarily compensating for the deficiency in the bloodline.]
[Remember, the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change must be performed with the power of Heavenly Flames to unleash its true power. Besides this Yin-Yang Twin Flame, you will also need two other Heavenly Flames. The Yin-Yang Twin Flame will guide you to locate the two flames I sent away when I self-detonated.]
[Once you've obtained the three kinds of Heavenly Flames, come to the Heavenly Tomb!]
[Be wary of the Hun Clan!]
[I hope you can restore the Xiao Clan to its former glory and finish what I could not!]
Once the voice faded completely, the Yin-Yang Twin Flame slowly changed shape, splitting into two koi-like fish that circled each other in midair. Their swirling motions resembled a graceful yin-yang taiji diagram.
Xiao Yan closed his eyes, letting all of this sink in. It was simply too much information to process all at once. No matter how sharp he was, he would need time to digest it.
'Sigh, no wonder the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change was found in the Hun Clan's Treasure Hall and was labeled as a High Tian Class Secret Technique.'
'So it really wasn't some coincidence that I discovered the black jade piece of the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change in such a remote place like the Jia Ma Empire. It was something Xiao Xuan orchestrated from the start.'
All the scattered puzzle pieces finally slid into place. Xiao Yan understood why he felt that blood-boiling pulsation when encountering the black jade containing the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change.
Xiao Xuan was a man of great wisdom. He had likely left behind contingencies long ago.
For such a peerless Secret Technique, he had concealed its most crucial segment in Burning Flame Valley.
Because he knew that the Hun Clan would definitely purge all members of the Xiao Clan and seize all their resources.
Moreover, based on Xiao Yan's experience, it wasn't just the Hun Clan coveting the Xiao Clan's spoils. The other six clans claimed to be hostile to the Hun Clan, but when there was meat to be had, they would only come even earlier.
Once the Xiao Clan's bloodline was completely depleted and Xiao Xuan had fallen, they would probably devour the Xiao Clan until nothing was left, perhaps even more thoroughly than the Hun Clan.
Xiao Xuan had foreseen such an outcome long ago and hadn't intended to rely on the other clans. Instead, he abandoned all the clan's resources and had clan members conceal themselves in this remote North-Western Region.
In order to deceive the Hun Clan and the other clans, he had divided the Xiao Clan's real inheritance into multiple parts. If Xiao Yan guessed correctly, there were probably many black jades containing the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change.
Xiao Xuan had been waiting all along, waiting for a genius to appear among the Xiao Clan whose bloodline had been depleted, waiting for this person to embark on the path of cultivation, discover the black jade, and learn the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change.
Xiao Yan even suspected that the reason Yun Po Tian, a Dou Venerate, didn't establish his legacy in the Central Plains but instead came to such a remote North-Western Region to establish the Misty Cloud Sect was possibly because he had accidentally found the Yin-Yang Twin Flame and obtained some of the inheritance left behind by Xiao Xuan.
It was even possible that it was the message from the Yin-Yang Twin Flame that prompted Yun Po Tian to establish the Misty Cloud Sect!
If a true cultivation genius emerged from his own clan, they would naturally join a powerful nearby sect to learn and cultivate, and would inevitably discover the secret of the Gate of Life and Death!
This would allow them to avoid the Hun Clan's watchful eyes, proceed to the Burning Flame Valley to learn the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change, and then go to the Heavenly Tomb to receive the final inheritance.
These seemingly coincidental events actually had a necessary connection!
'A plan that dresses inevitability up as mere coincidence…'
'Indeed, otherwise there would be no way to avoid the Hun Clan's scrutiny. Everything that even hints of a Xiao Clan origin has surely been searched from top to bottom by now.'
Xiao Yan looked at the Yin-Yang Twin Flame before him and couldn't help but admire, 'As expected of a Clan Head, possessing great wisdom. Unfortunately, his luck was a bit lacking.'
'Speaking of which, does this count as me defecting to the enemy now?'
Xiao Yan scratched his head. He seemed to be working for the Hun Clan now. Even though it was a relationship of mutual use, and he hadn't joined the Hun Clan, only the company run by them.
'So, Xun Er's purpose in coming to the Xiao Clan was for that Tou She Ancient God's Jade?'
"Ancestor, oh Ancestor, you've really left me with a huge problem. I feel like I might lose all my hair from the pressure." Xiao Yan let out a deep sigh. This was a heavy burden!
Though enabling the Xiao Clan to live in peace and prosperity was within his current abilities, restoring it to its former glory was another matter entirely.
The reason the Xiao Clan hadn't attracted the Hun Clan's attention now was mainly because it was too weak. It was impossible for the Hun Clan to associate it with that terrifyingly formidable Dou God Clan.
If Xiao Yan hadn't seen those records, the current Xiao Clan and the Xiao Clan in those scenes where every member was a world-destroying existence were completely different things!
Not counting Xiao Yan, the current Clan Head of the Xiao Clan was Xiao Zhan, a mere Dou Grandmaster!
While Xiao Xuan had been a half-step Dou God!
Moreover, the most important thing was that if the Xiao Clan suddenly reappeared and began to grow stronger, let alone the Hun Clan, even the other six Dou God Clans might not be willing to see someone come and snatch resources and territory.
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//Hey everyone! I hope you're all having a fantastic day.
For those wondering, the previous two chapters weren't just invented for this fic. They're actually based on an extra chapter released by the original author Heavenly Silkworm Potato after the OG work ended.
There are some additions to this fic, such as the description of the kinds of flames Xiao Xuan used, and the fact that Xiao Xuan actually had a backup plan for his clan in case of failure...
Since I can't share links here, feel free to check this chapter on my Patreon or on ScribbleHub if you're interested in the original chapter link.
NOTE: The upcoming 24 chapters will be two to three times longer than usual. Also, we're only five chapters away from the end of Volume 2! Stay tuned, and thank you for reading!