Flames and Dou Skills Combined

"Damn it, this kid is actually using me to hone his sword techniques." By now, the seasoned Mu She had naturally realized that he was being used as a whetstone. The opponent's unpredictable sword techniques might not have been particularly powerful on their own—he could block them casually and even gain the upper hand—but their intricacy was something he had never encountered before. Layered together, they left even him, with his superior fundamentals, feeling utterly exhausted.

With a gloomy expression, Mu She stared at the battle-hungry Xiao Se. The two fought from the courtyard to outside, then back into the courtyard again. Mu She directly abandoned the close-quarters combat he had always prided himself on. Raising his Guan Sword high, he unleashed the vast Dou Qi of a Dou Master from within his body, covering his surface before finally forming a thin gauze-like layer of Dou Qi around him.

"Dou Qi Transformation Gauze?" Seeing that Mu She had finally brought out his true strength, Xiao Se's expression grew several degrees more solemn. He knew Mu She was about to fight him to the death.

He quietly took a Qi Recovery Pill from the Storage Belt at his waist and placed it in his mouth, then gripped the Demon Sword tightly with both hands and assumed his stance.

"Kid, you are indeed strong. Give you another year or two, and I really might not be able to handle you. Unfortunately, you were too impatient. Today, I'll let you taste the price of sticking your neck out."

"Wind Blade Dance."

Exhaling deeply, Mu She suddenly began to wildly swing the Guan Sword in his hand. Dense afterimages of massive blades continuously appeared before him, eventually forming a tightly woven net of blades.

Wind Blade Dance, a Low-Level Mysterious Dou Skills. With this move, Mu She had once firmly held the position of Green Mountain Town's strongest person.

"You think you're the only one with high-level Dou Skills? I have them too."

Watching the dense blade net descend upon him, Xiao Se gave a cold laugh. The Qi Recovery Pill in his mouth quietly slid down his throat, while chilling blue-white flames rose in his hand.

"Mad Lion's Roar."

As Xiao Se shouted inwardly, an enormous energy lion charging at high speed emerged from the tip of the Demon Sword. Blue-white flames covered the lion's entire body. Its savage roar rang through the heavens and earth. The eardrums of several poisoned mercenaries lying paralyzed nearby instantly ruptured, thin streams of blood flowing from their ears.

The surrounding space seemed to blur and distort beneath the scorching heat emitted by the flames around the energy lion. Wherever the lion passed, the soil was scorched away, leaving behind pitch-black footprints.

This was one of the results of Xiao Se's training over the past few months: combining Beast Flame with Dou Skills in pursuit of greater explosive power. Yet everything had its advantages and disadvantages. While its power increased, the Dou Qi it consumed also multiplied. Were it not for the Qi Recovery Pill, with his current reserves of Dou Qi, he could use it only once at most.

The scorching heat and oppressive aura in the air made Mu She's pupils suddenly constrict. He had never imagined that this mysterious youth before him had concealed himself so deeply.

Biting down hard on his lower lip, Mu She knew that at a time like this, whoever retreated would die. It was a contest of who could unleash greater power from their Dou Skills and who could hold out longer. He immediately poured Dou Qi into the Guan Sword without regard for the cost, then struck head-on against the flaming energy lion.

"Rumble!!!"

The gigantic flaming energy lion collided with the blade net and was quickly intercepted, the two becoming entangled. Yet after only a brief moment, the flaming energy lion relied on its violent force and blazing heat to tear the entire blade net apart and annihilate it. Breaking through the net's blockade, it crashed viciously into Mu She's chest.

The lion's head sent Mu She flying, its momentum undiminished as it burst through the courtyard wall. It finally slammed into a thick earthen slope several zhang high outside the compound and came to a stop. Then, with a muffled "Bang," the energy lion exploded. The slope shattered, the deafening blast sending dust flying everywhere.

A light breeze passed through the courtyard, and Xiao Se's figure slowly emerged, Long Sword in hand. A faint smile could be seen at the corner of his lips.

In the sky, Little Fairy Doctor covered her red lips with one jade-like hand as she watched the youth below decisively defeat the Dou Master Mu She. Her beautiful eyes were filled with shock and disbelief.

Looking at the earthen slope, more than half of which had been blown apart, Little Fairy Doctor took a long while to recover. She gently stroked Blue Eagle's feathers and guided it down into the courtyard.

She lightly jumped down from the eagle's back. Seeing Xiao Se's smiling face, though his complexion was somewhat pale, Little Fairy Doctor walked to his side and gently rubbed his back. "Are you all right?" she asked worriedly.

Xiao Se lightly shook his head. "I'm fine. My Dou Qi is just about depleted."

"That's good." Seeing that Xiao Se was unharmed, Little Fairy Doctor finally relaxed. Turning to look at the earthen slope where Mu She had been sent flying, she softly asked, "How is Mu She?"

Xiao Se carefully extended his Soul Power to sense the area, then shook his head. "I can no longer sense any life aura. Still, I need to make sure."

As he spoke, Xiao Se glanced at Mu Li, who lay collapsed on the ground several dozen meters away. The corner of his mouth lifted as he took out five steel needles coated in neurotoxin from his Storage Belt and threw them at an extremely tricky angle, pinning Mu Li's five limbs to the ground.

"Ah!" A miserable scream shot into the sky as Mu Li awoke from the pain. Yet with his five limbs pinned to the ground, he could not move at all and could only cry out and wail in agony.

"I'll leave Mu Li to you. Settle both old and new scores together. I'm going to make sure that old bastard Mu She is dead." Xiao Se pointed at Mu Li before slowly walking toward Mu She.

Little Fairy Doctor nodded lightly, her small face dark as she slowly walked in the direction Xiao Se had indicated.

Not long afterward, Xiao Se finished making sure Mu She was dead and obtained a Jade Card containing one hundred thousand Gold Coins from his body. Mu Li's wailing also came to a stop.

Xiao Se walked over to Little Fairy Doctor's side and lowered his head to look at Mu Li, whose breath had completely ceased. Puzzled, he asked, "What did you do to him?"

"He's already crippled. I only gave him a poison that will make him sleep forever." Little Fairy Doctor sighed softly and smiled helplessly.

"You really are kind. He made you suffer terribly." Xiao Se smiled, sounding somewhat emotional.

"Kind?" Little Fairy Doctor gently stroked her lower abdomen and turned away. Her rosy lips parted slightly as she quietly repeated Xiao Se's words, falling into deep thought.

Seeing Little Fairy Doctor stroking her lower abdomen, Xiao Se frowned and thought, Could Little Fairy Doctor have already awakened the Calamity Poison Body?

He then gently patted Little Fairy Doctor's fragrant shoulder and smiled. "Don't think too much about it. If others do not harm me, I do not harm them. There is no need to blame yourself when dealing with someone who harmed you."

"Mm, thank you, Xiao Se." Looking at the fair hand resting lightly on her shoulder, Little Fairy Doctor's pretty face revealed a gentle smile.

"All right, let's go." Xiao Se smiled, wrapped an arm around Little Fairy Doctor's slender waist, and leapt onto the eagle's back.

Little Fairy Doctor stroked Blue Eagle's feathers and waved her jade-like hand. Blue Eagle let out a cry, circled through the air several times, and flew toward the Demon Beast Mountain Range.

Not long after Xiao Se and Little Fairy Doctor left, news of the defeat and deaths of Mu She and his son quickly spread throughout Green Mountain Town. Everyone was utterly shocked. Who could have imagined that the Little Fairy Doctor, who had always seemed gentle on the surface but kept everyone at arm's length, actually had a friend of such formidable strength?

After Mister Yao, the owner of Ten Thousand Medicines Pavilion, awoke from his coma and learned of Mu She's death, he completely abandoned any thoughts of revenge and accepted his misfortune.

Of course, none of this mattered to Xiao Se anymore. Unless something unexpected happened, even if he returned to the eastern region of the Demon Beast Mountain Range, he would not come to Green Mountain Town again. He would only wait near the Amethyst Winged Lion King Cave.