"Prepare a quiet room for me."
Yang Xiao had no intention of opening the painting in public. He called out, and a disciple of the Carefree Sect immediately came forward.
It was the same young man Cheng Boxuan had trained. If Yang Xiao remembered correctly, his name was Yun Huan.
"Junior Sect Leader, please follow me."
Yun Huan's face was filled with adoration and respect.
Yang Xiao nodded.
As he followed behind, he began to size the young man up.
Compared to their first meeting, the young man, Yun Huan, had improved considerably. He had already reached the sixth or seventh layer of the Innate Realm. Of course, this was thanks to the Carefree Sect's excellent conditions and abundant resources.
But he couldn't have achieved this without sufficient aptitude of his own.
So, Yang Xiao casually swept his Spiritual Power over him and was surprised to discover the young man actually possessed a Mid-grade Wood Spirit Body.
'Mid-grade Spirit Bodies are rare in the Celestial Cloud Region. No wonder he raised his cultivation by several layers in such a short time. It seems Cheng Boxuan has a good eye after all.'
Yang Xiao was quite pleased.
Soon, Yun Huan led Yang Xiao to a quiet room in the deepest part of the Carefree Sect.
The room was perfectly quiet, and Yang Xiao was satisfied.
He dismissed Yun Huan.
After closing the door, he felt a flicker of nervousness.
This was because the painting was related to his previous two lives.
'Huh? It's a painting of a woman's back?'
Upon opening the painting, Yang Xiao was initially puzzled. It depicted only the back of a woman, a figure that bore a slight resemblance to Xue Yi.
Both were dressed in fiery red.
However, Xue Yi's red leaned toward a colder shade.
The red on this woman, however, was filled with a blazing intensity.
Moreover, it exuded a familiar aura.
'Is it... Fire Kite?'
Yang Xiao was uncertain.
But as his Spiritual Power delved deeper into the painting, he gradually became certain.
'It really is Fire Kite! And there's even a Secret Pattern Array set within the painting. It must contain a wisp of her will. But... wasn't she always with Chang Xi? How could a portrait of herâand one showing only her back, at thatâend up in Xuan Tianxin's hands?'
Yang Xiao was puzzled.
Fire Kite was also an Ancient Divine Bird. Though she couldn't compare to top-tier Fire Divine Beasts like the Cyan Simurgh or the Fire Phoenix, she still held a respectable position by Chang Xi's side.
She was one of Chang Xi's four personal maids.
That was precisely why, even after a million years, Yang Xiao had instantly sensed the aura was related to him, and why he had noticed the portrait in the first place.
'But why would she leave this portrait behind?'
By all rights, a million years ago, Chang Xi was just like him, with one foot in the Realm of Great Emperor. 'If she's still alive, she should have reached the Realm of Dominator by now. At the very least, she'd be at the Great Emperor Peak, and might have even become a Saint Emperor.'
'A maid by her sideâand a Divine Beast, no lessâwhy would she come to a small place like this?'
'Should I activate the Secret Pattern Array, trigger the will she left behind, and take a look?'
An idea struck Yang Xiao.
A faint golden light flashed from his body.
A figure stepped out.
It was, shockingly, Yang Xiao himself.
'The Time Dao is truly profound. I can actually turn the seal I left in the river of time into a tangible clone. Even if it gets killed, it won't affect my true self.'
Having lived into his third life, Yang Xiao had become extremely cautious.
Fire Kite may have been Chang Xi's maid, but she certainly wouldn't recognize him now. And even if she did, what guarantee was there that she wouldn't try to harm him?
After all, a million years ago, she had already reached the True God Realm. She wouldn't have become one of Chang Xi's maids otherwise.
Now, a million years later, she was likely at the True God Peak. If she had been fortunate, she might have even stepped into the Divine King Realm.
A figure of that caliber could kill him with a single breath.
Even an insignificant wisp of her will was far beyond his ability to resist.
If she truly intended to kill him, Yang Xiao would have no chance of survival.
It would be the same even if he summoned his Golden Roc True Body or his Fire God Clone. Both contained his Divine Soul Brand, and with the methods of a Divine King, she could easily trace it back to kill his real body.
Besides, he wouldn't be able to fool her.
Only a clone formed from a Time Seal could pass for the real thing.
'If I can wield such power now, what about the Northern Wilderness Divine King? Did he really perish in that great war?'
Yang Xiao was doubtful.
He felt more and more that many of the powers in this world were far too profound.
They were beyond what his current cultivation allowed him to fathom.
Therefore, he could only suppress these doubts for now and consider exploring them once he was strong enough.
As for now...
'Let's see just how marvelous this Time Clone really is.'
Yang Xiao smiled.
His figure vanished.
Meanwhile, inside the quiet room, the Time Clone stepped forward.
With a stir of its Spiritual Power, it touched the Secret Pattern Array on the painting. In that instant, the painting burst into flames. This was the same seemingly ordinary portrait that had refused to change no matter what Xuan Tianxin didâwhether he burned it with fire, doused it with water, or touched it with his own True Qi.
When the canvas had burned to ash, a real figure remained in its place.
The woman from the painting.
Turned around.
As she turned, Yang Xiao, who was watching from afar through the Heart of Time, saw his expression change drastically.
Because the woman was, indeed, Fire Kite.
Moreover, her aura had unmistakably reached the Divine King Realm.
This made Yang Xiao's heart leap into his throat.
'Can my Time Clone fool her?'
'And even if it can, what if she decides to go on a killing spree? How will I protect the Carefree Sect?'
At this moment, Yang Xiao was filled with regret.
'I was too reckless. I should have taken this to the Celestial Cloud Mountain Range before opening it.'
Unfortunately, it was too late for regrets.
Because at this moment, Fire Kite had turned around and was staring at Yang Xiao's clone, her expression a mixture of subtle charm and immense arrogance.
"Why is it you? Where's that little fellow from the Xuan Family? Bah, never mind. Whoever you are, since you've opened the scroll, that means you've found the Nine Yin Body, correct?"
She first frowned, then fired off her questions. Her detached, superior tone made Yang Xiao incredibly tense.
He was also filled with endless questions.
Naturally, his Time Clone's expression reflected his own turmoil.
Fire Kite's wisp of will immediately sensed it.
"Hmph! You still haven't found it? Useless trash. It's been hundreds of years, and you can't even handle a simple task like this. And to think I was the one who guided you to the Immortal Dao. Never mind. Now, you listen to me. From now on, you can stop looking for the Nine Yin Body. Go directly to the descendants of the Profound Sun Emperor, the Ye Family, and have them find a way into the Profound Sun Emperor's Secret Realm to retrieve something."
As she spoke, Fire Kite waved her hand.
A small, unassuming furnace cauldron appeared. Yet, the longer one looked at it, the more mysterious it seemed.
"Memorize it. This is the item. If you fail to find it this time, then your Xuan Family can forget about ever achieving immortality. Understand?"
"Speak!"
She snapped.
The sharp command made Yang Xiao's heart jump.
The Time Clone hurriedly nodded in acknowledgment.
His mind, however, was reeling with questions.
But Fire Kite's will had already grown impatient. She gave Yang Xiao's Time Clone a cold glance, her expression tinged with confusion, for she could see that the person before her was a Martial Cultivator.
But on second thought, she recalled that only a member of the Xuan Family could activate the portrait she had left behind, and she relaxed.
After all, the Xuan Family were the descendants of that person.
'They wouldn't betray me,' she thought.
"Do your job well!"
With a cold snort, Fire Kite's figure flickered and vanished.
And in the void, the painting reappeared, identical to the one before.
It made one wonder if the entire scene had just been an illusion.
But Yang Xiao's face was grim.
Because he had just thought of the worst possible scenario.
'Chang Xi! The Immortal Dao... Could she have been the one who betrayed me back then?'
As the thought surfaced, a sharp, violent pain stabbed at Yang Xiao's heart.
It was as if all the strength had been drained from his body.