Nine Dragons Saint Ancestor

”Heh, looks like those people from the Zhao Family really don’t know the value of things. If this Mixed Element One Qi Body were to be presented in the Nine-layered Dragon Cloud... tsk tsk!”

Upon hearing Tan Yun’s tragic narration of Ling Wan’s life, a cold sneer flitted across Yun Xiao’s eyes as he recalled an individual with the Mixed Element One Qi Body physique who had appeared in the Nine-layered Dragon Cloud Realm, sparking a frenzied contest amongst many powers.

Such a Mixed Element One Qi Body physique is seen once in ten thousand years. Obtaining one is like having a guarantee from a Holy Rank Third Realm powerhouse, a potential resource that no sect or family could overlook.

Yet this Mixed Element One Qi Body emerged on the Hidden Dragon Continent, and not only do these people fail to recognize its value, they have turned Ling Wan into a monster. To Yun Xiao, this was utterly laughable.

Yun Xiao’s anger and disdain towards the Zhao Family stemmed from seeing shadows of himself in Ling Wan, feeling a sense of shared suffering.

Back when he was with the Shang Family, wasn’t he treated just the same? Even after displaying a talent stronger than Shang Huiyu’s, people from the Shang Family still called for his head.

From this point on, Yun Xiao made up his mind. No matter what, he had to try. If he could truly control Ling Wan’s Mixed Element One Qi Body, allowing him to wield that formidable energy at will, he might gain a powerful ally by his side one day.

It seemed Tan Yun also held great dislike for the Zhao Family. Hearing Yun Xiao’s sneer, she chimed in, ”I really want to see the day when Ling Wan achieves greatness and then returns to slap the Zhao Family in the face.”

At her words, Yun Xiao felt a surge of motion in his heart, and suddenly asked, ”Since Ling Wan is so despised by the Zhao Family, how did he manage to obtain the status of an Outer Disciple of the Jade Pot Sect?”

As Yun Xiao said, the slots for the Jade Pot Sect, even just an examination slot for an Outer Disciple, are not distributed carelessly. The Shang Family had only ever received one such slot after many years.

Since Ling Wan was neglected by his family just like Yun Xiao had been, he understood that this valuable opportunity would definitely not fall into Ling Wan’s lap. There might be something fishy going on.

Sure enough, upon Yun Xiao’s inquiry, an angry expression surfaced on Tan Yun’s face, and she said indignantly, ”This makes me furious. This time, Family Head Zhao Huan used some underhanded method, and the Zhao Family actually got three Jade Pot Sect slots. Do you know why he gave the third slot to Ling Wan?”

Tan Yun’s companions clearly understood why, and seeing Yun Xiao’s questioning gaze, they angrily said, ”That old man Zhao Huan wanted to use it as an opportunity to send Ling Wan to his death in the Yulin Mountain Range!”

”Damn it!”

Yun Xiao clenched his right fist onto his left palm. Even someone as composed as him felt a flare of rage as he said, ”There’s a saying ’even a tiger wouldn’t eat its cubs’. Is the heart of this Zhao Family Head just too ruthless?”

Tan Yun glanced over at the unconscious Ling Wan and added, ”It’s all because of that bizarre disease. From a young age, the Zhao Family has treated Ling Wan as a monster. They couldn’t take actions against him at home, so they plan to do it here in the Yulin Mountain Range!”

”So, besides the Cao brothers, our enemies now include the Zhao brothers too?” Yun Xiao’s eyes flickered with a cold sneer, apparently reaching the peak of his anger.

”Yun Xiao, did you say ’us’? Do you agree to join our team?” Tan Yun’s face showed a trace of joy, and her three teammates also seemed excited.

”Of course. Those Cao brothers will not let us off easily, and I am indeed curious to meet the Zhao brothers and see what sort of characters they are,” Yun Xiao continued with a sneer, but this smile contained an indescribable chill.

Seemingly becoming harsher after being ravaged by the Three-legged Ice Crystal Toad’s poison, it was now time for Yun Xiao to have a bout with those so-called geniuses of the Xuanyue Empire.

After several hours of rest, they waited until Ling Wan awoke and then proceeded deeper into the dense forest. Along the way, Tan Yun informed Ling Wan about the ”Mixed Element One Qi Body”, earning Yun Xiao much gratitude from him.

Time quickly passed, and during these few days, Yun Xiao and his group noticed young figures all heading in the same direction, as if something in that direction was luring them.

Only after Ling Wan couldn’t resist asking someone did they learn that these young talents participating in the examination were all rushing to a place called ”Medicine Valley”. There, it was said that countless Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures could be found, as well as many medicinal herbs listed in the exam’s Pill Recipes.

Armed with this information, Yun Xiao and his group naturally did not act against the tide. Now a team of six, they had many more medicinal herbs to gather, so they might as well try their luck in Medicine Valley.

”Big Brother Yun Xiao, do you think we will really find the medicinal herbs we need in Medicine Valley?”

Ling Wan’s face bore a trace of curiosity as he asked while walking. It’s worth mentioning that at this point, his way of addressing Yun Xiao had shifted from ”brother” to ”big brother”.

While Ling Wan and Yun Xiao were close in age, Ling Wan’s attitude towards Yun Xiao underwent a fundamental change after the latter defeated Cao Ju and helped him relieve the pain of the Mixed Element One Qi Body.

Especially after learning that Yun Xiao was a Meridian Refining Master, Ling Wan felt it was no longer appropriate to address him as a brother. Furthermore, Yun Xiao’s rich experience had led them to find many of the herbs listed in the Pill Recipes, which made the whole team view him in a new light.

So besides Tan Yun, the other team members all addressed him as ”Big Brother Yun Xiao,” subtly indicating a tendency for Yun Xiao to become the leader of this small team.

Hearing Ling Wan’s question, Yun Xiao smiled slightly and said, ”Since it’s called Medicine Valley, there must be a wealth of medicinal herbs. However, getting those rare herbs might not be so easy!”

”Why?” Ling Wan, simple-minded, didn’t think too much and directly asked. But after he spoke, the other team members looked at him oddly.

”Ling Wan, haven’t you seen? Right now, almost seven or eight out of ten people participating in the Jade Pot Sect examination are heading towards Medicine Valley. When the time comes, cultivators will gather, and it might turn into a fierce battle of dragons and tigers!” Tan Yun kindly explained in detail, finally enlightening Ling Wan, whose expression changed slightly.

”Does that mean the Cao brothers, as well as... my first and second elder brothers, could all possibly be in Medicine Valley right now?” Ling Wan was somewhat panicked and, speaking to the end, he even stopped in his tracks and added, ”Then, should we not go there?”

”Why shouldn’t we go? I’m actually quite interested in meeting your two so-called good brothers!” No sooner had Ling Wan finished speaking than Yun Xiao interjected without a hint of worry in his voice.

”Big Brother Yun Xiao, what you don’t know is that my eldest brother has already broken through to the Meridian Gathering Realm, and... he’s also a low-level Mortal Rank Meridian Refining Master. I’m afraid... we might not be his match!” Ling Wan, anxious, hurried to catch up with Yun Xiao and revealed the situation.

”Oh? Meridian Gathering Realm? Meridian Refining Master?” Yun Xiao murmured, then smiled and said, ”In that case, I’m even more interested now!”

Seeing that Yun Xiao paid no heed to his advice, Ling Wan had no choice but to follow his steps, while Tan Yun and the others beside him didn’t have as many worries. It seemed that having Yun Xiao in the team gave them great confidence.

While Yun Xiao and his team were rushing towards Medicine Valley, centered around Medicine Valley, other young geniuses participating in the Jade Pot Sect examination were also streaming continuously towards this central area, perhaps soon to be engaged in a fierce battle of dragons and tigers.

...

At this time, deep on the outskirts of Yulin Mountain Range, a valley exuding a special aura stood tall in front, and hundreds of young figures stood about several tens of feet away from the mouth of the valley called Medicine Valley, yet none dared to step closer.

Because at the mouth of Medicine Valley, there lay a ferocious Meridian Demon of considerable size, and the aura it emitted had almost reached the low-level of Third Rank.

A Third Rank Meridian Demon, that’s equivalent to a cultivator of the Meridian Gathering Realm of humanity, and with the Meridian Demon’s formidable physical strength, in a battle of the same level, human cultivators generally tend to be at a disadvantage. This unchanging truth has rarely been broken.

Most of the Xuanyue Empire’s young geniuses participating in the Jade Pot Sect’s examination this time were of the Meridian Introduction Realm, with the majority in the Middle Stage of Meridian Introduction Realm.

There were quite a few young geniuses in the Late Stage of Meridian Introduction Realm as well, but cultivators at the Peak of Meridian Introduction Realm were rare. If there were any young genius of the Meridian Gathering Realm amongst these nearly a thousand examinees, they would certainly stand out as the cream of the crop.

Swoosh!

Just as everyone was feeling intimidated by the sight of the giant Meridian Demon, a sudden whooshing sound pierced the air, followed by the addition of a tall, black-clad figure in front of the many young geniuses.

”Meridian Gathering Realm...”

And when everyone sensed the Meridian Qi aura of the black-clad figure, they couldn’t help but collectively inhale sharply, as this person turned out to be a top genius who had reached the Meridian Gathering Realm.

”Hey, isn’t that Cao Luo from Luoxing City’s Cao Family? It truly is better to see once than to hear a hundred times!”

”Heh, I just wonder if this Cao Luo has the courage to fight that low-level Third Rank Meridian Demon?”

”I heard that not only is Cao Luo’s Meridian Qi Cultivation substantial, but he is also a low-level Mortal Rank Meridian Refining Master; I wonder if it’s true?”

”If he indeed has the Fire Attribute Ancestor Vein, he might not necessarily be weaker than that low-level Third Rank Meridian Demon.”

”...”

Upon seeing this black-clad young figure, after a brief moment of silence, there erupted a flurry of intense discussion. It seemed that they were all quite familiar with this young man in black.

”Big brother!” ”Big brother!”

However, just as Cao Family’s eldest, Cao Luo, was enjoying the attention of all around him, two voices imbued with special significance suddenly came from somewhere, capturing his attention in an instant.

But as Cao Luo looked over, the smile on his face suddenly vanished without a trace, replaced by an extremely sullen expression.