Refusal, Lost Xiao Yan

"I'm in a good mood today. State your request." After Xiao Xian fell silent for a moment, just as Hai Bo Dong thought he would refuse, he spoke calmly.

"Thank you, Senior." Hai Bo Dong was overjoyed and hurriedly said, "It's like this. I'm sure you've already noticed that I'm seriously injured. The reason I was injured was because I ventured deep into the Tagor Desert and was wounded by Medusa Queen. Although I was fortunate enough to escape with my life, a strand of flame energy invaded my body. I could suppress it with my profound cultivation before, but as my realm has continued to decline over the years, I've found myself increasingly unable to cope. Your cultivation is unfathomably deep, Senior. Could you remove this flame energy from my body?"

Hai Bo Dong was known as the Ice Emperor, so the power he cultivated was naturally ice-attributed. Yet a flame was now raging within his body. Ice and fire were fundamentally opposite forces, and they could hardly coexist within one body. They were bound to clash.

Those two forces had been fighting inside him for decades, leaving Hai Bo Dong physically and mentally exhausted. Every day was worse than death. His waist had bent, his back had hunched, and his face had aged to the point where he looked almost ready for the coffin.

One had to know that a Dou Huang Expert had a lifespan of over a thousand years. Hai Bo Dong had only lived a few hundred years and should have had at least half his life left. It was impossible for him to have aged to the point where he looked as if he might die the very next second.

The only possibility was that those two forces had drained all his energy, leaving him unable even to maintain a youthful appearance with his power.

It was clear that this old fellow had reached the end of his rope. No one could say whether he would climb into a coffin the next second.

Hai Bo Dong was still young, with at least several centuries left to live. He did not want to die so early, which was why he had begged Xiao Xian.

"Such a matter would take no more than a flick of my finger, but why should I help you?" Xiao Xian flicked his fingernail and spoke expressionlessly.

He was no saint. Just because some stranger came begging to him did not mean he had to lend a hand. What the hell did a stranger's life or death have to do with Lord Xiao? Lord Xiao was very busy, earning hundreds of thousands every minute.

"If Senior is willing to help, Hai Bo Dong will be eternally grateful. If you have any requests, Senior, please name them. As long as I possess it, anything is yours." Hai Bo Dong pondered for a while before speaking.

In his view, he had some treasures stored away. As long as Xiao Xian took a liking to them, he would not mind giving away however much Xiao Xian wanted. He would even owe him a favor.

Xiao Yan's heart stirred. This was a favor from a Dou Huang Expert. There were only three Dou Huang Experts in the Gama Empire on the surface. If he had a Dou Huang Expert backing him, others would have to think twice before making a move against him. So long as he did not court death himself, he could swagger across the Gama Empire.

"Heh. Do you think someone like me would value a favor from a Dou Huang ant? Besides, what could the collection of a mere Dou Huang possibly contain? Some things may be priceless treasures in your eyes, but to me, they are no different from dust by the roadside. Do you really think you can offer me something that would move me?" Xiao Xian gave a disdainful laugh.

Hai Bo Dong seemed to have stayed in this backwater for too long, to the point that his horizons had narrowed by who knew how much. How much of a collection could a mere Dou Huang have? In the eyes of a Dou Emperor, a favor from a mere Dou Huang probably was not even worth a copper coin.

After all, if even a Dou Emperor could not solve a problem, what use would it be for every Dou Huang on the continent to join forces?

This fellow thought far too highly of himself. If he had been more straightforward and traded his freedom for a chance to receive Xiao Xian's aid, perhaps Xiao Xian might have had the slightest bit of interest. Yet this man still seemed immersed in the glory of the past, utterly unwilling to lower himself.

Heh, did he think Lord Xiao valued him that much?

Xiao Xian had a servant at the Dou Sheng Ninth Layer Peak. What was a mere Dou Huang worth? Such an existence could be killed with a casual wave of his hand. Lord Xiao did not even have the slightest desire to take him in as a dog.

Seeing Xiao Xian's utterly dismissive attitude, Xiao Yan was stunned at first, then quickly came to his senses.

That was right. His uncle was an existence countless times stronger than a Dou Huang. In his eyes, a Dou Huang was already beyond reach, but in Xiao Xian's eyes, such an existence was not even worth making a move for.

At that thought, Xiao Yan's excited heart immediately calmed. When he looked at Hai Bo Dong again, there was no longer any reverence in his eyes, only faint contempt.

If you were asking someone for help, you should at least act like it. You wanted someone else to heal you, yet refused to lower yourself. Did you really think everyone was your dog, there to be summoned and ordered around as you pleased?

How boring!

Seeing Xiao Xian preparing to leave, Xiao Yan inwardly muttered that it was dull before hurrying after him.

Hai Bo Dong watched the two leave, wanting to speak but stopping himself. In the end, he could not let go of his pride. He sighed and did not follow them.

What Hai Bo Dong did not know was that with this moment of hesitation, he had lost his final opportunity. Even if he knelt before Xiao Xian now and agreed to become his servant, he likely still could not persuade Xiao Xian to help him again.

"Little Yanzi, what are you doing here? This damn place is barren as hell, far worse than the inland." Xiao Xian feigned confusion as he asked.

Xiao Yan did not hide anything and answered frankly, "I came here to search for a different flame. The cultivation technique I practice is very special, Uncle Xiao Xian. I need a different flame to assist me if I'm to master it fully. I heard that a different flame had appeared in the Tagor Desert, so I came to try my luck."

"I see. But your luck is not very good. There is indeed a different flame in the Tagor Desert: the Azure Lotus Core Flame, ranked nineteenth on the Different Flame Ranking List. However, that flame has already fallen into the hands of Medusa, the Snake-People Queen of the Tagor Desert. With your strength, trying to seize it would be no different from courting death." Xiao Xian wore an expression that said Xiao Yan had come too late.

"What? There really is a different flame? And it was taken by Medusa, the Snake-People Queen?" Xiao Yan was delighted at first, but his expression immediately turned grim.

He had learned a little about Medusa Queen over the past few days. She was the universally acknowledged queen of the Snake-People Tribe throughout the Tagor Desert, and her realm had reached the Dou Huang Peak. She was unbelievably powerful and invincible, with virtually no opponents in the surrounding region.

Now that the thing had fallen into the hands of such an existence, Xiao Yan felt a measure of despair.

If some other expert had taken it, even if the other party were a Dou Wang, Xiao Yan would still dare to rush forward and confront them head-on. But a Dou Huang Expert was already beyond what he could handle now, even with Yao Lao's help.

Yao Chen was, after all, only in a soul state. Having lost his body, his strength had been greatly reduced. Furthermore, Xiao Yan's realm was too low to fully withstand all the power of a Dou Zun. He was no match for the ruler of an entire tribe.