Such a sudden turn of events was truly unexpected, even though the herbal elder had been extremely close to Xiao Yan. It was only when that strange radiance swept into Xiao Yan's brow that he suddenly became aware of it, his face instantly turning pale with shock. Ci Lin and Xiao Yi, standing by, also quickly realized what was happening, their cheeks growing slightly pale from surprise. This ancient scroll was so unusual that no one could tell whether it was beneficial or detrimental. Yet, as the unusual luminescence pierced his brow, Xiao Yan was momentarily stunned, then swiftly regained his composure. Closing his eyes, he summoned his soul energy and began intensely scanning the area. Within moments, he discovered a luminous orb, roughly the size of a clenched fist, quietly hovering at the center of his brow. Xiao Yan was certain this orb was not his own—indeed, he had never before sensed such an existence. Clearly, it was the very object that had just been projected into his mind from within the ancient scroll! Xiao Yan cursed and raged in his heart, then took several deep breaths, striving to regain his composure before gradually channeling his spiritual energy and moving steadily toward the luminous orb. Despite Xiao Yan's advancing steps, the orb remained completely unresponsive, and his spiritual energy continued to draw closer, slowly coalescing into a dense, ready-to-deploy force poised to deliver a decisive strike against this strange entity. As their proximity increased, and just as Xiao Yan was about to envelop the orb with his spiritual energy, a brilliant white flash suddenly erupted from within the orb, shooting out like a lightning bolt, directly aimed at Xiao Yan's soul! Faced with this sudden development, Xiao Yan was startled, yet remained calm, swiftly mobilizing all his spiritual energy to form an exceptionally strong defensive barrier. What astonished him, however, was that the seemingly frail white glow penetrated the spiritual defense with no resistance at all, then, under his stunned gaze, directly entered his soul. At the very instant the white glow entered his soul, Xiao Yan's body stiffened abruptly, and a look of pain appeared on his face. "I don't know..." Xiao Yan took a deep breath, shook his head, then pointed to his forehead, saying, "It's here, but no matter how hard I try, I can't move it at all. It simply stays put, showing no further action." "When we first met, how old were you?" the medicine elder stared at Xiao Yan, suddenly asking in an unexpected manner. "Uh... fifteen," Xiao Yan was startled, looking at the elder with some confusion, clearly not understanding his intent. Upon hearing this, the medicine elder slightly exhaled, smiled wistfully, "I was afraid you might be forcibly occupied by someone else. Some ancient masters, though they have passed away, have their souls lingering on. And those with strong power can even directly absorb another's soul and inhabit their body." Xiao Yan opened his mouth, only to shake his head with a wry smile. "Then, what exactly is it?" the medicine elder's expression grew serious, asking. Xiao Yan rubbed his brow and after a moment said, "I don't know either. When I first came into contact with it, I only received a bit of information—four characters." "What?" the Yeold asked. "Jinglian Sheng!" Xiao Yan said, pronouncing each character clearly. "Jinglian Sheng?" the Yeold was slightly taken aback, then fell into thoughtful silence, sitting alone on the stone beside him, as though he had a faint impression of this name. Seeing this, Xiao Yan and Cai Lin exchanged a glance but said nothing, simply waiting in quiet silence. This quiet wait lasted about ten minutes before the Yeold slowly raised his head, his gaze fixed firmly on Xiao Yan, and spoke softly, "If I'm not mistaken, this Jinglian Sheng was one of the top-tier warriors from a thousand years ago, and he was also the master of the Jinglian Spirit Flame!" "The master of the Jinglian Spirit Flame?" "Xiao Yan and the other two were stunned. This Jinglian Divine Saint was surprisingly powerful—how could he have become the master of the Jinglian Divine Flame? That explains his esteemed title. 'This Jinglian Divine Saint was already a renowned figure a thousand years ago. I came across references to him in some ancient texts. It was said that at that time, he was considered the strongest being closest to the Battle Emperor...' Master Yao said slowly. 'The strongest being closest to the Battle Emperor...' Xiao Yan unconsciously tightened his grip on his palm. He never expected the Jinglian Divine Saint to have reached such a level. Truly, that title was no ordinary one. 'Then, is the thing in the center of my brow the very residue left by the Jinglian Divine Saint?' Xiao Yan asked. 'Yes, likely so. This ancient scroll might also have been left behind by the Jinglian Divine Saint.' "The old doctor nodded slightly, gazing at Xiao Yan's puzzled expression and chuckled, "I'm not entirely sure what's going on either. However, based on what I've read in ancient texts, Jinglian, though somewhat eccentric, is generally honorable and wouldn't resort to anything particularly dishonorable. Your mark on the brow should therefore not pose you much harm." Xiao Yan couldn't help but roll his eyes—this explanation seemed rather forced. Yet, at this point, he had no other choice but to hold out hope, praying that the mark on his brow wouldn't bring him any trouble. "This thing is hidden within the ancient maps. I suspect it may be connected to Jinglian's pure lotus flame. Hehe—perhaps this is precisely the advantage of gathering all the ancient maps." The old doctor smiled, now able to offer only such reassurance to Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan shook his head helplessly; by now, no matter how dissatisfied he was, it was all in vain. He could only trust that the matter truly as the Ye Elder had described—the benefits of this item were granted by the complete ancient map. The only thing that gave him a sense of reassurance was that, so far, he had not yet sensed any danger emanating from that luminous orb. As someone with such a powerful soul, he would naturally perceive any threat from anything that posed a danger. Yet at this moment, the mysterious orb had not yet conveyed any sense of peril to him. "Then, let us simply observe and see how this unfolds," said the Ye Elder, gently patting Xiao Yan's shoulder with a slightly serious expression. "Right now, your focus should be on how to elevate your strength to the level of a Battle Saint within the next three years!" "The power of the Pure Lotus Demon Flame, I won't elaborate much on—it's quite straightforward. Honestly speaking, even now, should I encounter the Pure Lotus Demon Flame, my only outcome would be to become its flame slave." Xiao Yan's lips slightly twitched. He naturally understood what a "flame slave" meant—someone whose intelligence was subsumed under the control of a powerful demon flame. However, only the most exceptionally strong such flames possessed this ability. Even the famed Three Thousand Yan-Yan Flames lacked this capability. Based on Xiao Yan's assessment, only the top three among the demon flames could achieve such mastery. "Previously, I was concerned about how you would handle the Pure Lotus Demon Flame once you found it. Fortunately, the time has proven to be longer than I anticipated." The old medicine master smiled and continued, "You are now at the peak of Eight-Star Battle Sovereign rank, still a vast ten thousand eight thousand li away from attaining true Battle Saint status. Even with your steady progress, achieving Battle Saint status within three years remains a considerable challenge." "And if we don't reach the Divine Saint level, even if the Pure Lotus Demon Fire truly descends, I won't send you—because that would simply be a death sentence." Xiao Yan smiled bitterly, not expecting that the Yeold would be so afraid of the Pure Lotus Demon Fire. "So currently, the only way is for Xiao Yan to reach Divine Saint status within three years, correct?" Cai Lin spoke. "Yes," the Yeold nodded slightly, his gaze fixed on Xiao Yan, saying, "This was originally a rather low-probability success, but fortunately, you've had quite good fortune..." Xiao Yan was startled, then suddenly snapped back to focus: "My teacher means the Bodhi Ancient Tree, right?" "Yes." "Master Pharmaceutist nodded and smiled, saying, 'Unless you cultivate the Bodhi heart, it will be nearly impossible for you to reach the level of Battle Saint within three years. Otherwise, the chances are slim.' 'Bodhi heart...' Xiao Yan rubbed his lips, chuckling, 'That's no easy task. The Bodhi ancient tree grows in the Primordial Wilderness Region—a human sanctuary. And with such a vast region, finding the Bodhi tree within it isn't something that comes naturally.' 'If it were easy, wouldn't you have already done it?' Master Pharmaceutist laughed, scolding him. 'You hold a Bodhi seed, though of lower purity, which allows you to sense the Bodhi ancient tree. That's your advantage. Moreover, if you truly wish to subdue the Pure Lotus Demon Flame, this is your only path. Therefore, you must obtain the Bodhi heart!" Xiao Yan sighed and nodded, clearly realizing that this time, he would indeed have to set out for the Wild Ancient Domain—otherwise, based on his normal cultivation pace, he simply couldn't reach the level of Battle Saint within three years. "Let's go," said the Elder Yao, standing up calmly. "Once we return to the Star-Fallen Pavilion and make proper arrangements, if the information is accurate, the Central Plains will begin to stir up due to the trembling of the Bodhi Ancient Tree. Then, the Wild Ancient Domain will truly come alive... As for whether you can reach the level of Battle Saint within three years, it all depends on this journey."