Chapter 394: Chapter 394: Yao Lao Disappears
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Lao was just imagining how, before long, he could finally enjoy the nourishing energy of the lake, soaking in it to restore his soul.
Hmm?
Suddenly, his brow twitched.
With a quick flip of his palm—a jade pendant, its surface already covered in dense cracks, appeared instantly in his hand.
He focused his gaze.
Then, before his very eyes, that jade pendant gave a soft pop and completely shattered, turning into a pile of powder. Holding the powder in his hands, Yao Lao’s expression instantly became incomparably solemn.
This was the jade pendant Wei Yang had left behind as a contingency—a warning signal, meant specifically to alert him when trouble was coming.
Now, with the pendant shattered...there was no need to guess. This was Wei Yang’s way, from the distant Black-Corner Region, of sending a warning—telling him that danger was on its way.
Yao Lao slowly tilted his hand, letting the powder scatter into the air as he murmured in a low voice, "The Hall of Souls... have they already tracked me down so quickly?"
"They really are like hyenas on the prairie... catching even the faintest scent and rushing over!"
He slowly turned his head, his gaze drifting toward the direction of the Black-Corner Region.
From Wei Yang’s actions, there was no doubt—the trouble wouldn’t be small.
With Yao Lao’s understanding of Wei Yang, if it were a minor matter, Wei Yang would’ve handled it easily and wouldn’t have gone to the trouble of alerting him. In fact, he wouldn’t even bother mentioning it.
But now, Wei Yang had triggered his contingency and sent a warning. That meant either—Wei Yang had been held up. Or—he didn’t have time to stop it.
And for something to hold Wei Yang back...
"Is it a Dou Zun who’s coming?" Yao Lao’s eyes narrowed slightly, before a cold smile tugged at his lips. "Hall of Souls... heh."
From the Black-Corner Region to the Jia Ma Empire was a long journey. But if a Dou Zong went all out, they could arrive in ten days or so.
If it was a Dou Zun, they could tear through space to travel—and that would be much faster. Three to five days, at most.
Thoughts flickered rapidly through Yao Lao’s mind before he slowly drew his gaze back, looking once again at the cave dwelling.
It was as if his vision pierced through the stone walls, seeing the black-robed youth within, currently in seclusion.
Xiao Yan was now at a critical point in breaking through to the Dou Huang realm.
After a brief moment, Yao Lao suddenly smiled calmly.
With a wave of his hand, a wisp of pale-white flame slowly emerged from between his brows, finally hovering in the air before him.
"Little one... perhaps your master will no longer be able to stay by your side to watch you grow. From now on, everything will have to rely on yourself."
"Hehe, in the blink of an eye, so many years have passed. You’re no longer that little boy who needed his teacher by his side at all times."
"You are about to become a Dou Huang."
"In the future, I believe you’ll go even farther than I predicted. I hope I can see that day."
"Your master is truly happy... that at my lowest point, I was able to meet you—and Brat Wei."
"The two of you are the greatest pride of my life."
"Hehe, even though Brat Wei is unwilling to admit it on the surface, I know that deep down, he still cares about me."
At this moment, Yao Lao was like a long-winded old man, constantly talking to the wisp of pale-white flame. When he mentioned Wei Yang, he couldn’t help but stroke his beard with pride.
This matter was indeed something to be proud of.
After all, Wei Yang... he had practically gotten him for free.
He had barely invested anything, yet the gains were immense.
If he truly decided to be shameless and claimed Wei Yang as his disciple—who could deny it? Who could oppose it?
Perhaps even Wei Yang himself wouldn’t object.
This... was the greatest satisfaction in Yao Lao’s heart.
Such an outstanding disciple, with both talent and character being top-notch—where else could one find such a treasure?
And as for Yao Chen—he had picked up not just one, but two.
Although he couldn’t deny that he held a trace of regret and pity toward Wei Yang, it didn’t matter. The name, the position, was already there.
From the two young men, Xiao Yan and Wei Yang, he could faintly glimpse a corner of the future—an infinite realm of possibilities.
What he saw in them... was an unparalleled spiritual perception and an exceedingly rare spark of creativity.
This was something he had only ever seen once in his life, even among the so-called geniuses he had encountered.
"Xiao Yan, your personality is rather impulsive and hot-blooded, while that Brat Wei is calmer and more indifferent."
"To some extent, the two of you complement each other perfectly in temperament."
"However, you cultivate the Flame Mantra. Each time you devour a Heavenly Flame, you..."
"...the thing I worry about most... is you!"
"I don’t even know whether letting you cultivate the Flame Mantra back then was right or wrong. To be honest, I somewhat regret it."
"In the future, when your master is no longer around, go to Central Plains and find that Brat Wei—follow him."
"Ahem... and also, the two of you can fool around all you want, but don’t forget to save your master sooner rather than later."
Yao Lao gave a few more instructions to the wisp of pale-white flame. Only then did he cast one last deep look at the cave dwelling where Xiao Yan was in seclusion—and a glance tinged with regret and helplessness toward the location of the energy lake deep beneath the ground.
Then, taking a deep breath, he slipped the ring from his hand and set it to the side. In the next moment, his figure flickered and shot rapidly toward the top of the valley.
The transparent, illusory old figure touched an invisible barrier above, and in an instant, it was like he had merged into water—vanishing completely. The direction in which he disappeared was precisely toward the Black-Corner Region.
The valley once again fell into silence.
Only a wisp of pale-white flame hovered above a massive boulder, silently flickering and burning—and upon that boulder lay a pitch-black, ancient ring, resting quietly.
Time flowed slowly.
With Yao Lao’s departure, the valley became utterly still, a place truly isolated from the world. The spatial seal above ensured that no one could stumble in by accident.
Similarly, Yao Lao’s leaving caused not the slightest ripple in the valley.
The cave dwelling and the newly carved stone chamber remained unresponsive. Even the massive purple cocoon within the valley showed no sign of breaking open.
Yet, if someone with exceptionally strong perception were here, they would notice that within the cocoon, an extremely powerful aura was quietly dormant, waiting for the moment to shatter its shackles.
Thus, as time passed, the valley grew utterly silent.
The many medicinal plants and even the weeds here thrived under the nourishment of the dense energy.
In time, some of the wildly growing weeds even spread directly over the cocoon, forming a green carpet that covered not only the cocoon but also the cave dwelling, wrapping everything within.
This gave the secluded valley an inexplicable touch of desolation.
Only one place remained unchanged—that wisp of pale-white flame, quietly burning above the boulder.
It burned in silence, releasing faint threads of chilling cold, preventing any nearby vegetation from growing close.
Time passed in this isolated valley—day after day, season after season.
Unknowingly, nearly five months had passed since Yao Lao’s departure. By this count, Xiao Yan and the others had been in seclusion for almost ten months. And Yao Lao... ever since he had left nearly five months ago, he had never returned.
His whereabouts were completely unknown.
As for what had happened to him—no one knew.
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