Hai Bodong's Conditions

"Heh, buying a map? Buying a map got me beaten up like this?"

Hai Bodong wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and said with a suspicious look.

"Didn't you strike first?" Xiao Ming asked with amusement.

Hai Bodong thought about it and realized that it seemed to be true. It was one thing to make the first move, but he hadn't even won yet, and his face immediately became somewhat embarrassed.

"Believe it or not, that's the truth." Xiao Ming stood up and then said, "This Fragment Map I have, you must have cut it up, right? Tell me, where are the rest? I'll buy them all."

After a short while, Hai Bodong was sitting on the ground, recovered considerably.

Looking at the map in Xiao Ming's hand, he sneered and said, "Kid, you have a good eye, able to spot the inconsistencies in this map. However, I went to great lengths to obtain this thing back then, and although I've studied it for over a decade, I still don't know its exact purpose. But I do know that the secrets it contains are definitely significant. You think I'll just hand it over to you for nothing? Dream on!"

"Oh?" Seeing Hai Bodong's tough attitude, Xiao Ming raised an eyebrow.

Just as he was about to speak, Zi Yan walked up to him and clenched her little fist.

"You old bastard, are you looking for death?"

Upon hearing Zi Yan's threat, Hai Bodong's eyelids twitched, somewhat alarmed, but he still calmly replied:

"Little girl, don't threaten me with death. I've lived most of my life, what storms haven't I weathered? When I was rampaging through the Jia Ma Empire, you weren't even born yet! Do you think I'd be afraid of your little threat?"

"Furthermore, if I die, even if you possess Heaven-Reaching Ability, you won't be able to obtain that Fragment Map. If I'm not mistaken, this map should be very important to you, right? Hehe, without that small Fragment Map, even if you piece the map together completely, you won't be able to find the treasure it contains."

As he spoke, Hai Bodong became somewhat smug, feeling that his previous approach of dividing the map was absolutely correct.

"You..." Zi Yan had never been treated like this before, and she was about to step forward and punch Hai Bodong.

"Hey, I'm warning you, don't do anything reckless!"

Seeing that Zi Yan was about to make a move, Hai Bodong quickly retreated.

"Never mind, Zi Yan."

Upon hearing Xiao Ming's voice, Zi Yan wrinkled her nose in displeasure, but still stopped in her tracks.

Xiao Ming stepped forward and said with a smile, "As far as I know, in the Tagor Desert in the eastern part of the Jia Ma Empire, the only person capable of turning His Majesty the Ice Emperor into his current state should be the infamous Queen Medusa of the Snake People Race, right?"

Medusa is not the only Dou Huang Expert among the Snake People Race. There are five other Dou Emperor besides Medusa. However, four of them are Supreme Elder of the Snake People Race and do not usually appear in the world. The third one is not as strong as Medusa, so Xiao Ming is right.

Upon hearing the name Medusa from Xiao Ming, a barely perceptible flicker of fear crossed Hai Bodong's eyes. He then coldly snorted, "You guessed it, that's right. But so what? What does it have to do with this map?"

"Actually, it doesn't matter. However, if my senses are correct, this seal was also placed on you by her, right? This seal has been on you for decades. Don't you want to break it?"

Hai Bodong naturally had such intentions. During the decades he was sealed, he secretly collected a Pill Formula for Sixth Rank- grade pill that could break the seal, as well as a considerable amount of medicinal herbs for refining this Sixth Rank pill.

However, that pill was Sixth Rank pill, and it also required Heavenly Flames to refine it.

Hai Bodong didn't believe that the young punk in front of him could find someone to help him refine pills.

Facing Hai Bodong's gaze, Xiao Ming extended his right hand, releasing a wisp of flame, and said, "I forgot to introduce myself. I am Xiao Ming, a Grade Six Alchemist Alchemist. Perhaps I have a way to remove your seal."

"Grade Six Alchemist! And this is... Heavenly Flames!"

As expected, Hai Bodong's face showed a look of shock.

He'd never even heard of Grade Six Alchemist this young, let alone seen one! What ancient power had produced such a disciple?

"Cough cough." Hai Bodong came back to his senses at Xiao Ming's cough, and a stiff smile appeared on his old face.

"... It originally belonged to Master Xiao Ming. Master Xiao Ming can have the other half of the Fragment Map, but I have a request."

Seeing how quickly Hai Bodong's expression changed after Xiao Ming revealed his identity, Xiao Yi Xian, who was watching the scene unfold, looked on with envy. However, thinking about her own constitution, she sighed.

What request?

Hai Bodong Licked Her Lips and chuckled dryly, "I would like to request that you refine a Sixth Rank pill."

"As long as you can refine that Sixth Rank pill, I will offer you the Fragment Map with both hands. In addition, you will gain the friendship and favor of a Dou Huang Expert. After I recover my strength, I can do one thing for you unconditionally."

"That sounds like a good deal." Xiao Ming looked at Hai Bodong with a half-smile.

Hai Bodong felt somewhat uncomfortable under that gaze.

"I agree, but you should know the rules for Alchemist: you must provide your own prescriptions and ingredients. Hand over the prescriptions and ingredients now."

Seeing Xiao Ming nod, Hai Bodong finally breathed a sigh of relief, and a smile appeared on his aged face.

However... grasping a few wisps of beard with his withered hands, Hai Bodong said somewhat awkwardly, "I've gathered most of the medicinal herbs needed for the prescription, but I'm still missing one."

"This medicinal herb is called Sand Mandara, and it can only be found in the Tagor Great Desert. The higher the temperature, the easier it is to find... But you know, I cultivate Ice Attribute Cultivation Method, and I also have a seal placed by Queen Medusa within me. As soon as I step into the depths of the Tagor Great Desert, she will detect me... So..."

Seeing Hai Bodong's embarrassed expression, Zi Yan beside him said speechlessly:

"Hey, you old codger, you don't expect us to go and find them for you, do you? Xiao Ming has already lost money just making medicine for you, and you want us to find medicinal herbs for you? Isn't that little piece of your broken map a bit too valuable?"

In fact, the Heavenly Flame Remnant Map was very valuable, but Hai Bodong was unaware of this.

Hearing Zi Yan's words, Hai Dongbo gave an awkward smile, hesitated for a long time, and then said somewhat helplessly, "Alright, I might be able to give you some information that you might be interested in."

"Intelligence?" Xiao Ming didn't need to guess; he knew what he wanted to say—nothing more than the Heavenly Flames.

Hai Bodong shrugged and smiled, "Regarding the Heavenly Flames, I wonder if this information could persuade you to help me find the Sand Mandara?"

"Not interested."

"Cough cough..." Hai Bodong was taken aback by Xiao Ming's decisive answer. He didn't expect Xiao Ming to say that. When did the attraction of Heavenly Flames to Alchemist become so low!

Xiao Yi Xian and Zi Yan, who were standing nearby, were also somewhat surprised.

Xiao Ming came to the Tagor Desert specifically to find the Heavenly Flames, so why would he say he's not interested?

Although they had doubts, they didn't ask. But the next moment they understood why Xiao Ming had said he wasn't interested.

"I've heard about the Heavenly Flames, and I roughly know its location. You should trade it for something else."

"This..." Hai Bodong hadn't expected this outcome. He gave a wry smile, then lowered his head to ponder for a while before looking up and saying, "I am the Supreme Elder of the Mittel Family of the Jia Ma Empire. As long as you help me find the Sand Mandara, I can give you a sufficient reward when I return to Mitel. How about it?"