BTTH : Emperor Yang

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**

”Then... could it be that inside this thing is—” Xiao Yan swallowed hard and asked cautiously.

If what was sealed inside was the remnant soul of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint, then...

Danger!

Yao Lao’s eyes also turned wary as he quietly stirred his soul power.

”It shouldn’t be that bad,” Yao Lao said uncertainly. ”According to the records I’ve read from ancient texts, although that Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint acted in strange and sinister ways, he was still considered an upright person. He shouldn’t resort to anything too despicable.”

”Master, that might not be certain,” Xiao Yan said in a deep voice.

”Ancient records aren’t always accurate, especially when they’re describing someone who lived tens of thousands of years ago. And someone who was said to be closest to the Dou Di realm—who could really claim to understand him? Besides, when faced with death, no matter how powerful a person is, they’re still human.”

He couldn’t help but recall the Heavenly Tomb.

All those remnant souls living there—weren’t they once top-tier powerhouses when alive? Yet now, weren’t they all just struggling to survive in that ghostly place? Not human, not ghost.

Even his ancestor, Xiao Xuan, was one of them.

Xiao Xuan had been dead for countless years, yet he still clung to existence in that prison-like tomb as a remnant soul. It showed that even the mightiest would abandon their pride just to keep on living.

Of course, Xiao Xuan had done it to wait for his Xiao Clan descendants.

But wasn’t that still a kind of obsession?

Beings like those near the Dou Di realm—no matter how incomplete they were, their strength was still unimaginably terrifying.

Xiao Yan thought back to that shocking scene in the Heavenly Tomb. Xiao Xuan had merely sent out a distant projection of himself, and with a single casual palm strike, he crushed two One-Star Dou Shengs of the Hun Clan into dust!

Those were Dou Shengs!

Powerhouses of that level were reduced to powder in an instant, not even leaving behind a trace like two insignificant ants. Someone nearing the Dou Di realm was far beyond the limits of normal understanding.

”This doesn’t look like a remnant soul,” Wei Yang said softly. ”It feels more like a residual thought.”

”Residual thought?” Yao Lao and Xiao Yan both raised their brows.

Remnant soul and residual thought were two very different concepts.

If a person left behind a remnant soul, which meant they hadn’t truly died—and there might even be a chance of resurrection. But a residual thought was different. It was merely a trace of willpower left behind by a powerful being.

For instance, if someone like Wei Yang or the others wanted to leave behind a technique, a Dou Technique, or perhaps some message or method for their successors, they could imprint a thought onto an object using a special method to preserve it.

Once that thought was activated, however, it would quickly dissipate. It could not exist for long. Just like how Saint Zhao Hua had left the Great Heaven Creation Palm within his own rib bone—it was a demonstration made through a single strand of will.

”If that’s really the case,” Wei Yang continued, ”then this thing hiding inside the ancient map might be connected to the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame.”

”Hehe, maybe that’s the real reward for gathering all four map fragments,” Yao Lao said with a light smile. ”Perhaps it’s a contingency the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint left behind—to help future generations subdue the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame.”

”That makes sense,” Wei Yang agreed with a nod. ”Otherwise, with a being of that level, there’s no need to go through all this trouble just to leave behind that sentence.”

Xiao Yan also nodded in agreement.

Maybe that explanation was a bit optimistic—but it was the only one that made sense. After all, for someone like the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint, he wouldn’t just waste time creating an ancient map merely to pass on a trivial message.

Moreover, up to this point, they hadn’t sensed any danger from the light sphere. At their level of soul strength, if something was dangerous, they’d feel it immediately just by being near it. Yet until now, that mysterious light orb hadn’t caused them any sense of threat.

Of course, whether their guesses were right—no one could say for sure.

”So what do we do now?” Xiao Yan asked.

”For now, we’ll just watch and wait,” Yao Lao said after a moment of thought.

”Mm. Since it hasn’t been activated yet, we’ll keep it for now. When the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame truly appears three years from now, we’ll bring this thing out then,” Wei Yang added.

Yao Lao patted Xiao Yan’s shoulder and said seriously, ”There’s not much time left. What you should be thinking about now is how to raise your strength to the Dou Sheng level within these three years.”

”The power of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame—though I can’t truly imagine or comprehend it, since I’ve never witnessed it myself—just the fact that it was once controlled by the Purifying Demonic Lotus Saint tens of thousands of years ago already says enough,” Yao Lao said solemnly.

”This kind of Heavenly Flame... let alone you, even Wei Yang and I, if we were to encounter the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame, there would only be one outcome—we’d become its fire slaves.”

Wei Yang shrugged lightly at that, showing no objection.

Xiao Yan’s mouth twitched slightly.

Fire slaves—of course he knew what that meant. It referred to becoming a slave to the flame itself, one whose soul and consciousness were completely taken over by the Heavenly Flame. But only the most terrifying and sentient Heavenly Flames possessed that kind of ability.

According to Xiao Yan’s estimation, perhaps only the ones ranked within the top three or four on the Heavenly Flame Ranking could do something like that. In other words, only those flames with such high intelligence that they could take human form and cultivate or fight like a person.

At that level, there was basically no difference between such a flame and an actual human. Just like the old ancestor of the Pill Tower, who had taken human form from a Tier 9 Mysterious Pill—who could say he wasn’t a person himself?

”I used to wonder what we’d do if we really managed to find the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame,” Yao Lao said with a small laugh, ”But now, at least for the moment, we don’t need to worry about that yet. There are still three years left.”

Then his tone grew serious, ”What you should be focusing on now is your strength. You’re only a One-Star Dou Zun. There’s still an enormous gap between you and a true Dou Sheng. To reach that level in just three years... it won’t be easy.”

”And if you don’t reach the Dou Sheng realm by then, even if the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame really does appear, I won’t allow you to participate in the fight for it. Because that would only be sending you to your death—even with that so-called remnant thought in your possession.”

Xiao Yan could only give a bitter smile and nod.

To put it bluntly, if he couldn’t reach the Dou Sheng level, he wouldn’t even have the right to compete for the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame.

Even with Yao Lao and Wei Yang’s help, it would make no difference. Without sufficient personal strength, everything else was meaningless. But to break through to Dou Sheng in just three short years—how could that possibly be easy?

At least right now, Xiao Yan didn’t have much confidence in himself.

”Don’t you already have an opportunity?” Wei Yang reminded him with a light pat on the shoulder and a grin.

”Mhm.” Yao Lao nodded slightly and smiled, ”At first, it really did seem hopeless, but fortunately, you’ve always had decent luck, kid.”

Hearing this, Xiao Yan froze for a moment before quickly realizing what they meant, ”You’re talking about the Bodhisattva Ancient Tree!’’

Yao Lao nodded, ”Yes. If you can obtain the Bodhisattva Heart, then you’ll have a real chance to reach the Dou Sheng realm within three years. Otherwise, it’ll be nearly impossible.”

”The Bodhisattva Heart...”

Xiao Yan smacked his lips and smiled wryly. ”That won’t be easy either. The Bodhisattva Ancient Tree will appear deep within the forbidden zone of the Ancient Wasteland Region. Not only is it dangerous, but there’ll be countless competitors, making the struggle unimaginably fierce.”

”And besides, with an opportunity like that, those so-called ancient imperial clans surely won’t let it pass them by, right?”

”Indeed, it won’t be easy,” Yao Lao sighed.

He didn’t even need to think about it to know how brutal that fight would be. Even if one or two Dou Shengs fell in that battle, it wouldn’t be surprising at all.

”But if you truly want to subdue the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame three years from now, this is your only chance. So, the Bodhisattva Heart—you must get it!”

Xiao Yan took a deep breath and could only nod. It seemed that this time, he would have to risk everything again. Otherwise, through normal cultivation alone, there was absolutely no way he could reach the Dou Sheng realm within three years.

Even with endless resources, it would be useless—without advancing his soul to the Heaven Realm, he could never become a Dou Sheng.

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/YaoIk