300: Remove slave mark

After delivering a thunderous blow to the Chusheng Sect, Chen Xuan took his three Disciples, Ye Hao and the others, along with several other Half-Demons, and returned to the Guiyan Inn in Yunxi City.

Chen Xuan retrieved an eighth-grade elixir he had obtained from a previous lottery draw from his System space and handed it to Yun Xuanxuan.

He then solemnly instructed, "Although you have successfully refined the medicinal power of the demon transformation pill, your Divine Soul is severely depleted, and your body is too weak. Rest peacefully at the inn these next few days. Take these Medicinal Pills to help you recover sooner."

"Thank you, Revered Master."

Yun Xuanxuan accepted the Celadon Jade Vial from her Revered Master with both hands. When she poured out a pill, she suddenly froze in place, her eyes filled with shock.

"This... this is an eighth-grade soul refining primordial pill!"

She abruptly looked up at the Man in White Robes before her, her tone urgent: "Revered Master, this pill is far too precious. This Disciple absolutely dares not accept it... Please, Revered Master, take it back!"

Before she could finish, Chen Xuan raised his hand to interrupt: "Don't overthink it. Just focus on recuperating."

Ye Hao, standing nearby, added with a smile, "Junior Sister, you should really cherish this vial of pills."

Seeing this, Yun Xuanxuan, with a somewhat uneasy heart, accepted the pills, then nodded very seriously.

"Senior Brother, rest assured. This Junior Sister will definitely not disappoint Revered Master's painstaking efforts."

She thought Ye Hao was reminding her of how rare eighth-grade elixirs are and that she absolutely must not waste them.

Little did she expect Ye Hao to shake his head with a smile, his tone teasing: "Junior Sister, you've misunderstood my meaning."

Yun Xuanxuan looked at him with a puzzled expression, her eyes full of confusion.

Ye Hao then lowered his voice, leaning closer to say, "Our Sect is never short of eighth-grade elixirs. On the contrary, this stuff is something everyone in the Sect avoids like the plague. After you finish this vial of soul refining primordial pills, if you still need pills for your cultivation in the future, you'll only have the Azure Spirit Pill Liquid I took out back in the grotto."

"azure spirit pill?"

Just hearing that name made Yun Xuanxuan shudder involuntarily, even feeling a bit nauseous.

The taste of that azure spirit pill was still fresh in her memory. Not only was it bitterly astringent, but it also had an indescribably fishy and gamey flavor. After swallowing it, it burned her heart and scorched her lungs, leaving her uncomfortable for quite a while.

After hesitating for a moment, Yun Xuanxuan asked softly, "Was that pill refined by the Sect?"

Li Pingan, nearby, heard this and leisurely chimed in: "It was the handiwork of Sixth Junior Sister."

Chen Xuan had been sitting to the side all along, leisurely sipping his tea, watching his three Disciples chat with an amused expression, not interrupting.

But in his heart, he was secretly calculating: After returning to the Sect, if he subtly reveals this conversation to that girl Shu Shichan, she probably won't think about refining pills to offer to her Revered Master anymore. Instead, she'll set her first target on Senior Brother Ye Hao.

Hearing this, Yun Xuanxuan's eyes suddenly lit up, and she quickly pressed: "Sixth Junior Sister can also refine pills that repair the Divine Soul?"

At these words, Ye Hao was taken aback for a moment, raising an eyebrow in confusion: "Junior Sister, do you still need pills to treat your Divine Soul? The soul refining primordial pill Revered Master just gave you is more than enough to fully recuperate your damaged Divine Soul."

A flash of embarrassment crossed Yun Xuanxuan's face, and she quickly waved her hands to explain: "I was just asking for a friend."

Someone else?

Chen Xuan's hand holding the teacup paused slightly. He looked up at Yun Xuanxuan. Hearing that someone's Divine Soul was damaged, he couldn't help but think of Number Four.

That enthusiastic Fellow Daoist who contributed two heaven-rank magic treasures to me!

But Number Four had already received two vials of pill liquid from me, so his Divine Soul should have healed. Probably not the friend Yun Xuanxuan mentioned.

Yun Xuanxuan paused, her gaze dimming slightly as she looked at Ye Hao and murmured, "Senior Brother, since you know what the Chusheng Sect did to us, you must have heard of the Slave Seal, right?"

Slave Seal!

Ye Hao naturally knew. It was the vicious method the Chusheng Sect used to control Half-Demons. Once implanted, one was controlled for life. The slightest disobedience would cause the Divine Soul to shatter, bringing unbearable agony.

Even that Daoist Yun Che initially wanted to use the Opportunity of the ten thousand demon blood quenching pool to imprint a Slave Seal deep within the Divine Souls of himself and Li Pingan, hoping to latch onto the Dao Seeking Sect behind him and seek more paths for advancement.

Meeting Ye Hao's gaze, Yun Xuanxuan continued to explain: "We Half-Demons, each of us actually had a Slave Seal forcibly imprinted deep within our Divine Souls. Although the person controlling the Slave Seal was killed during the attack on the Demon Suppressing Tower, and we have regained our freedom..."

Her voice paused: "But... many still want to completely remove that mark from the depths of their Divine Souls."

Ye Hao instantly understood, frowning slightly as he asked solemnly: "Removing the Slave Seal causes damage to the Divine Soul?"

"It's like using a knife to forcibly carve away the part of the Divine Soul bearing the Slave Seal. The slightest mistake results in severe Divine Soul trauma, endangering one's life. Moreover, only after the person controlling the Slave Seal dies can those of us who were imprinted develop the will to resist and attempt to erase the Slave Seal."

Li Pingan, listening nearby, felt a chill in his heart and clenched his fists: "What a sinister method."

The reason Yun Xuanxuan had inquired about Divine Soul-repairing pills earlier was precisely because Fang Ningyan had used this method to remove the Slave Seal from her Divine Soul, consequently damaging it.

This conversation gave Chen Xuan a new line of thought: When Number Four was willing to exchange heaven-rank magic treasures for Divine Soul-repairing pills, was it really, as he said, because his Divine Soul was damaged while exploring a Secret Realm?

Ye Hao couldn't help but look up again in the direction of the Chusheng Sect.

Beasts!

Li Pingan, meanwhile, recalled the Heavenly Selection Grand Ceremony in the Lesser Exquisite Grotto-Heaven, feeling a wave of fear. Back then, so many people fought for the Heavenly Selection spots, thinking it was an Opportunity to ascend to the heavens. Little did they know such a sinister method as the Slave Seal lurked behind it.

Fortunately, Revered Master has now struck a deal with the other three Sects in the Flame Continent, ensuring that Slave Seals can no longer be used to control Cultivators from the Lesser Exquisite Grotto-Heaven in the future.

If not for meeting Revered Master, with his own lack of skills and background, how long could he survive in this dog-eat-dog world?

Chen Xuan waved his hand and said calmly, "No need to worry about this. After returning to the Sect, I'll have a word with that girl Chanchan."

"Thank you, Revered Master!"

Yun Xuanxuan stood up and bowed solemnly to Chen Xuan, genuinely happy in her heart for those innocent people who wanted to remove their Slave Seals.

Ye Hao then asked, "Revered Master, when do we set off to return to the Sect?"

This question made Chen Xuan lightly tap the table with his fingers as he fell into thought.

After using the teleportation talisman to rescue Ye Hao and the other, he had taken Yun Xuanxuan as his third Disciple. Only then did he learn that Ye Hao and Li Pingan had chosen the Rain God Continent for their trial. Now that the Chusheng Sect matter was settled, logically, he could take his three Disciples back to the Sect at any time, with no attachments.

But Chen Xuan's thoughts involuntarily drifted back to what Number Eight had said within the Chaos Void Jade.

"Within three days at the latest, the Sect will dispatch several Integration Realm experts to rush to the aid of the Rain God Continent."

Number Eight's tone was certain, as if it were a done deal.

But... after exiting the Chaos Void Jade that day, Chen Xuan had taken Qi Yue to the Yin Shen Sect to search for information. Yet, after scouring all the records, he had never heard of another force named 'Dao Seeking Sect' existing on the Nine Provinces Continent.

Moreover, the intelligence capabilities Number Eight had displayed were already considerable, able to mobilize several Integration Realm experts with a single move—with such strength, if such a Sect truly existed, it absolutely could not remain so obscure, without even a single mention in the Yin Shen Sect's intelligence archives.

The sound of his fingers tapping the table gradually stopped. Chen Xuan's eyes darkened.

At this moment, only one guess remained in his heart: Number Eight was lying.