Ice Crane's face was pale as paper, his body motionless, unable to shift even the slightest. He knew that if he so much as made a single movement, his head would splinter like a fallen watermelon—crushing, with a loud *pop*, into four or five fragments. Maintaining the posture of just about to rise, Ice Crane swallowed hard, then slowly shifted his body a little, his voice hoarse: "If you kill me, the Dan Realm will have no place for you to hide." Xiao Yan looked down upon the pale Ice Crane with an air of calm superiority, and smiled gently: "Since I have come to act, I naturally have no fear of your ice river valley." "Hmph! Such bold talk—don’t think that merely possessing an eight-star disciple soul and a puppet gives you the credentials to stand against the Ice River Valley. My own strength, even among the senior monks of the Ice River Valley, ranks only at the very bottom. And even Ice Symbol and Ice Yuan are still only mid-tier. Should any true powerhouse from the Ice River Valley step forward, your very pride will instantly crumble!" Hearing this, despite the somewhat unfavorable situation, the Ice Crane could not help but deliver a cold laugh. Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes. This Ice River Valley was one of the three great valleys, and thus likely no weaker than the Burned Flame Valley. The Burned Flame Valley alone boasted its Third Elder, who possessed strength at the level of eight stars, and its Second Elder, who had reached the pinnacle of the Douzong stage. Of course, the most formidable figure was undoubtedly Tang Zhen of the Burned Flame Valley—someone whose abilities Xiao Yan, with his keen judgment, could only describe as profoundly incalculable. While Xiao Yan often found it difficult to accurately assess the relative strength of Douzong-level masters, his intuition clearly told him that Tang Zhen's strength surpassed that of the Thunder Sovereign of the Wind-Thunder Pavilion. And since Burned Flame Valley possesses such strength, it is certain that Ice River Valley, equally renowned, must also be far from weak. Thus, while Xiao Yan did not dismiss the ice crane’s claim outright, he had already been aware of this fact before arriving at the Dan Domain—he had clearly understood that once he rescued the young healer, he would inevitably come into direct opposition with Ice River Valley. Yet, given Xiao Yan’s nature, could he truly abandon the young healer simply because Ice River Valley was strong? Recalling those days when he was still just a young disciple, barely beginning his journey in Qi cultivation, he had already dared to stand against the mighty Yunlan Sect of the Jiamato Empire. How much more so now! Ice Heron watched Xiao Yan silently, thinking he might have been touched by the prospect. So, her tone softened slightly, saying, "If you willingly hand over that calamitous female, the Lady of Misfortune, to our Ice River Valley, we will surely treat you generously. Moreover, with your talent, you will certainly receive special favor from the Valley Master. After all, our Master greatly values cultivating strong allies from all over." As soon as Ice Heron finished speaking, she noticed the steadily darkening expression on Xiao Yan's face, and a chill surged through her. With a sudden snap of her palm against the ground, she used the force to propel herself backward swiftly. "Thud!" However, as soon as Xiang Yan moved, a cold smile appeared on his face. With a lightning-fast kick, he struck the ice crane squarely on the shoulder. The powerful force sent the latter flying like a kite with the string cut, crashing heavily onto a massive boulder, where faint cracking sounds of breaking bones could be heard. Slowly sliding down the stone, cold sweat dripped continuously from the ice crane's forehead. He lifted his head, his gaze full of venom, glaring at Xiang Yan and roaring, "Little scamp, you'll regret this very moment!" Ice Crane hurried to turn her head, and instantly her eyes filled with shock—there, before her, the form that had once been solid now resembled mud, yet it was clearly Ice Symbol. But now, Ice Symbol was covered in blood, his breath shallow and weak, barely able to exhale more than he could inhale, as if on the verge of death. "Heard this, Tian Huo Master's face also lit up with a hard-to-hide sense of surprise. The matter of his body had always been something he'd been deeply concerned about—now that Xiao Yan mentioned it, it seems that day is not far off... 'Still, you're dependable, young man! Hah! It seems my eyes have indeed been sharp!' At the same time, upon hearing Tian Huo Master's words, Ice Crane's eyes flashed with interest. 'Master, the crafting of bodies is what our Ice River Valley excels at. Moreover, the bodies we produce possess certain special abilities. As long as you do one thing for our valley, you'll receive them completely free of charge.' Xiao Yan's warm smile gradually faded, and cold, determined intent began to emerge in his eyes. Tian Huo Master was momentarily stunned by Ice Crane's words. He glanced at Xiao Yan, then after a pause, a peculiar smile appeared on his face. He slowly walked toward Ice Crane and knelt down, gently patting the latter's shoulder with his hand, smiling warmly, 'What task would you like me to undertake? We can discuss it.' " "Help me capture the Fiendish Poisoness from the Ice River Valley—I shall surely return to you a most satisfactory body." Upon hearing this, Ice Crane's eyes sparkled with exhilaration. The Celestial Fire Patriarch slowly nodded, then gently shifted his palm toward Ice Crane's neck. At that moment, Ice Crane suddenly became aware, his body's hairs standing on end, and he launched a powerful palm strike directly at the Celestial Fire Patriarch. "Crack!" Before the palm even reached the Patriarch, his face grew slightly cold, and with a sudden exertion of strength, a crisp cracking sound echoed as Ice Crane's neck was instantly snapped. "Young one, people like this—don't give them a chance to speak. Otherwise, trouble will inevitably arise..." Shaking off the gradually cooling Ice Crane, the Celestial Fire Patriarch turned to Xiao Yan, and said softly. Xiao Yan gently loosened the fist clenched in his sleeve, nodded respectfully to the Heavenly Fire Master, and bowed, saying, "Thank you, Elder Yao, for your reminder. It's time for this side to conclude..." As soon as he finished speaking, a flash of silver surged from within the mountain gully and materialized before him. Now in the hands of the Earth Spirit Puppet, Ice Yuan was covered in blood. Upon seeing the ice seals reduced to a pile of mud and the ice crane's head twisted and deformed, the Earth Spirit Puppet's eyes flashed with venom, fixing Xiao Yan with a fierce gaze, his voice hoarse as he declared, "Little scoundrel! You won't escape!" Xiao Yan smiled calmly, took the severely wounded ice seal from the Earth Spirit Puppet's hands, and then turned his gaze toward the ice river valley disciples, saying softly, "Kill them all—none will be spared." Immediately, the Earth Spirit Puppet darted forward, charging like a tiger through a flock of sheep, into the group of ice river valley disciples. Instantly, a series of piercing cries of agony erupted along the edge of the mountain gully. Under the wrath of this earth-bound demon spirit, the disciples from the Ice River Valley could only scatter in all directions. Yet their speed paled in comparison to that of the demon spirit, and within mere moments, they were pursued and ultimately crushed—like wheat in a harvest—falling one by one into its grasp. Only after swiftly eliminating all the disciples of the Ice River Valley did the blood-soaked demon spirit return, bringing with it Xiang Yan's soul fragment. Upon sealing the soul fragment within his brow, Xiang Yan turned his gaze to the trembling ice symbol, smiled gently, and said, "I need to know a few things." The ice symbol stared at Xiang Yan with bitter resentment. He had not expected Xiang Yan to be so ruthless—having eradicated not just the disciples, but even the staff and household members. "Little upstart," the ice symbol said, "don't think that by killing these people here, the Ice River Valley will remain unaware of what has transpired. Wait—soon enough, you'll become the prime target of their pursuit. And then, throughout the entire realm of Dan, there will be no place left for you to hide." Xiao Yan furrowed his brow, curled his fingers, and a steady green flame slowly extended, then gently touched the shoulder of Bing Fu. At the point of contact, a series of hissing sounds erupted, and under the intense pain, Bing Fu's face twisted grotesquely. "I'd like to know what you previously described as the 'Ice Sovereign Strength,' " Xiao Yan said, his voice calm as he withdrew his fingers. Bing Fu glared with resentment, completely ignoring Xiao Yan's question. Xiao Yan remained expressionless, silent, and pressed his fingers down again. "The breath of Ice Symbol grew increasingly labored. After a moment, he gritted his teeth and gasped, his voice hoarse: 'The Ice Sovereign Qi is unique to my Ice River Valley and can only be cultivated upon reaching the Sovereign Stage of cultivation. Once it enters the human body, it quietly seeps in, gradually freezing the blood and meridians...' 'How can we counteract this?' 'There is no known remedy—only the Valley Master of our Ice River Valley can intervene. But I suspect you lack the means to reach him.' Ice Symbol spoke with a crisp, stern smile. "This is their essence—take them...” Three jade vials shot from behind, and Xiao Yan caught them, glanced at them briefly, then stored them in his storage relic. He quickly walked toward Xiao Yi, gazing at her pale face, his heart aching slightly. He softly said, "We'll leave first. As for that so-called Ice Sovereign Qi, I'll find a way."