Ice Emperor Hai Bodong!

Chapter 14

As Xiao Yan studied the damaged map, the white-haired old man in the shop finally finished the work in his hands.

Yet he still did not look up. His aged voice echoed calmly through the room.

"Are you here to buy a map of the Tagor Desert?"

Hearing the old man's question, Xiao Yan turned around and slowly walked to the counter. He smiled and nodded politely.

"Sir, could you give me the most accurate and detailed map of the desert?"

"The goods are on the counter. Pick one yourself."

The old man showed no intention of getting up to introduce them. He merely replied blandly, looking nothing like a businessman.

Xiao Yan was somewhat taken aback by the old man's unusual attitude. However, since he was asking something of him, he could only nod helplessly. He casually selected a map that looked fairly detailed from the counter, then carefully spread open the ancient Map Fragment in his palm and asked softly,

"Sir, do you happen to have any more Map Fragments like this?"

Upon hearing Xiao Yan's question, the old man, who had been intently drawing his map, gave an almost imperceptible tremble of the hand. The carefully drawn route shifted slightly off course.

The old man frowned faintly before finally raising his head. His gaze swept over the damaged map in Xiao Yan's hand, and an inexplicable glint flashed through his cloudy old eyes.

Looking at that aged face, Xiao Yan could not help but pause. A terrifying scar stretched from the old man's left cheek to the corner of his eye. Though the old man's gaze was rather calm, that scar still lent him a faintly visible ferocity.

"You... have seen a Map Fragment like this before?"

His eyes swept over the robe on Xiao Yan's body that signified his identity as an Alchemist, and there was a trace of surprise in the old man's voice.

At that, Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes and smiled as he shook his head.

"I seem to have seen a Map Fragment like this at an auction once. I casually joined the bidding at the time, but the other party's offer became too high, so I gave up. Today, I suddenly noticed that the Map Fragment here looked somewhat like the one I encountered before, so I wanted to ask about it."

"Oh."

The old man's gaze swept across Xiao Yan's face. He seemed to have believed him and replied blandly,

"No more. I only obtained this by chance. Based on my many years of experience in mapmaking, this appears to be merely a fragment of a map."

"Then could you tell me where you found it?"

Xiao Yan frowned slightly and continued asking.

"Dug it up in the desert." The old man's tone was flat, without the slightest ripple.

Faced with the old man's utterly irresponsible answer, Xiao Yan gave a bitter laugh. Holding the damaged map in his hand, he said,

"Sir, could you sell me this map? I'm willing to pay a high price."

"Not for sale." The old man slowly lowered his head and once again focused on the unfinished map. His tone was calm, but it carried an unquestionable resolve.

Though he had been directly refused, Xiao Yan did not wish to give up on this damaged ancient map. It concerned the third-ranked Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame, after all. But how could he get it into his hands...

Just as thoughts churned through Xiao Yan's mind, Yao Lao's calm voice suddenly sounded in his heart.

"Be careful. This old fellow is no ordinary person."

Xiao Yan's heart tightened sharply at those words, and he hurriedly asked in his mind, "Teacher, is there something strange about this old man?"

"Yes. Under my detection, this old fellow's true strength should be at the Dou Emperor level. However, he seems to be suppressed by some strange power. The strength within his body is now only around that of a Dou Ling. Even so, killing you would be as easy as turning his hand."

Yao Lao said with great interest.

"A Dou Emperor?" Xiao Yan was stunned. "How is that possible? Among the Jia Ma Empire's ten strongest experts, only three are Dou Emperor-level experts. Where did this Dou Emperor come from?"

"Kid, stop setting your sights on my map. I have no use for money. Take your things and leave. And don't entertain any thoughts of snatching it by force. That will do you no good."

The old man waved his hand and spoke blandly. He did not seem afraid that Xiao Yan would run off with the fragment in his hand.

Xiao Yan slowly exhaled and shook his head helplessly.

"Indeed. Before someone who may once have been a Dou Emperor-level expert, there's no way I could snatch it by force."

Crack!

The ink brush moving slowly in the old man's hand suddenly snapped with a crisp sound.

The old man stared fixedly at the large black smear of ink on the map. After a long while, he raised his head and gazed at Xiao Yan. A faint chill gradually gathered in his cloudy eyes.

"Who exactly are you?"

The old man lightly tapped a spot on the tabletop. With a boom, the open door slammed shut. He stared sharply at Xiao Yan as a cold, tyrannical aura spread from his body.

"Looks like I arrived at just the right time."

At that moment, a figure dressed entirely in black appeared. Even his head was covered by a black hood, concealing his face.

But how could Xiao Yan possibly forget that voice? It belonged to the Xiao Family's ancestor, his grandfather, Xiao Lin!

A gentle breeze blew from Xiao Lin's body, directly sweeping the old man's aura back.

Removing his hood, Xiao Lin revealed his true face. The corners of his lips lifted slightly as he said,

"You were one of the ten greatest experts in your day. Why are you trying to make a move against a junior?"

"Grandfather, he was one of the ten greatest experts?"

Though Xiao Yan did not know why his grandfather had appeared here, Xiao Lin's words still caught his attention.

"That's right. You should have heard his name before—Ice Emperor, Hai Bodong!"

"It's him!" Xiao Yan's pupils contracted sharply. He turned to look at the white-haired old man in disbelief.

The Ice Emperor, one of the previous generation's ten strongest experts of the Jia Ma Empire!

He had been solitary and arrogant by nature, exceptionally skilled in ice-element fighting qi. In a fit of rage, he had once frozen an entire city.

Among the ten strongest experts of that era, he had been one of the few Dou Emperor-level experts. Later, he had fought the previous Sect Master of the Misty Cloud Sect atop Misty Cloud Mountain.

Although he ultimately lost, his opponent had not won easily either. At the previous gathering of experts held between the Jia Ma Empire and the Chuyun Empire, he had fought a Dou Emperor and a Dou Wang from the opposing side alone without being defeated, astonishing the entire audience with his skill.

After that gathering of experts, the Ice Emperor had gradually vanished from countless people's sight.

By now, the Ice Emperor's name had become that of a powerful expert remembered only by the older generation of the Jia Ma Empire. The current generation's ten strongest experts had already replaced the glory and splendor that once belonged to them.

Xiao Yan had never imagined that this unremarkable old man before him would be the Ice Emperor who had once given the Chuyun Empire's expert class such headaches. The revelation left him utterly stunned.

"Wait. There seems to be something wrong with this grandfather of yours too."

Yao Lao's voice slowly sounded in Xiao Yan's heart. Ever since Xiao Lin had appeared, he had instinctively examined his strength. Yet, to his surprise, he could not see through Xiao Lin's cultivation.

When they first met, he had still been able to discern Xiao Lin's One-Star Fighting King strength. Now, he could not see through him at all?!