Success

"So young, yet already a Dou Wang—and your Dou Qi was so solid, without the slightest instability. I thought that with my combat awareness as a Dou Emperor, I could restrain you. Never did I expect that you not only possessed such a powerful strange flame, but also had high-level Dou Techniques emerging one after another!" Hai Bodong, slumped on the ground and too weak to rise, wore a thoroughly dejected expression on his aged face. His hollow eyes stared fixedly at Liu Xi, who was crouching before him, as he spoke unwillingly.

At this moment, Hai Bodong had lost all hope. As one of the Jia Ma Empire's Ten Great Experts, he had once been so high-spirited. He had even held his ground when besieged by a Dou Emperor and a Dou Wang from the Chu Yun Empire.

Later, while pursuing a treasure in the Tagor Desert, he had ultimately been defeated by Queen Medusa of the Snake People Race. She had sealed away most of his strength, leaving him with only the power of a Dou Ling. Left with no choice, he had secluded himself here, only to be humiliated by a junior today.

By the end of it, Hai Bodong's heart had truly turned to ashes. He loosened his clenched fists and said weakly, "Junior, you have captured this old man today. Kill me or carve me up as you please. But this old man wishes to know—which old monster trained a little monster like you?"

Looking at Hai Bodong acting as though he were ready to die, Liu Xi frowned helplessly and said with slight annoyance, "Why are you such a stubborn old man?! When did I ever say I wanted to kill you? I told you from the start—I, Liu Xi, am a Fifth-grade Alchemist. I want this fragment of the map. Name your terms!"

"It was you, old man, who insisted you didn't care about money. You said you were going to bully the young with your seniority, and even told me to get lost! Are you being reasonable at all? Just give me the map, and I'll find a way to remove the seal on you. You regain your Dou Emperor strength, and I get the map. Everyone wins." Had Hai Bodong even listened to him properly?

After hearing this, Hai Bodong looked utterly dumbfounded. His mouth opened, but no words came out. In other words, if he had been willing to trust this young man, none of what followed would have happened. This brat before him had simply exceeded the understanding of a former Dou Emperor by far.

In the end, he could only smile bitterly. "I believe that you are a Fifth-grade Alchemist. But that still won't help. Do you know that my original Dou Emperor cultivation was sealed by Queen Medusa, the ruler of the Snake People Race in this desert and a peak Dou Emperor, using the Snake Seal Curse? To break the seal, I spent years searching for a sixth-grade pill formula, the 'Po E Pill.' The most crucial point is that only a pill refined with a Heavenly Flame can completely remove the seal on my body."

The moment Liu Xi heard the words "Heavenly Flame," his eyes lit up with fervor. "Since you need a pill refined with a Heavenly Flame to break the seal, then after living in seclusion in the Tagor Desert for so many years, you must have discovered some clues about one nearby. Tell me everything you know. If I find a Heavenly Flame, then with one in hand, I'll be confident in refining a sixth-grade pill."

Hai Bodong became uncertain. During his years of seclusion in the desert, he had indeed found several locations where Heavenly Flames might be hidden. But should he trust him? A trace of madness surged into his eyes as he hardened his heart. No! I, Ice Emperor Hai Bodong, cannot hide in this place for the rest of my life. I'll gamble on it. But I still need to test him.

Hai Bodong spoke. "Is that fragment of the map important to you?"

Liu Xi paused, then casually replied, "It's very useful."

Hai Bodong's lips twitched. With a strange smile on his face, he said, "I do know of several places in this desert where Heavenly Flames may be hidden, and I can tell you all of them. As long as, after you find a Heavenly Flame, you help me refine a Po E Pill. Only..."

Liu Xi agreed immediately. "No problem. As long as I obtain a Heavenly Flame, a sixth-grade pill is nothing much. Only what?"

An awkward smile appeared on Hai Bodong's aged face. "Ever since I acquired the formula for the Po E Pill, I have been searching for the ingredients needed to refine it. Over the years, I have collected more than half of them. But one of the most crucial ingredients, Sand Mandara, can only be found within the Tagor Desert."

"Moreover, the hotter the place, the easier it is to find... You know that I cultivate an ice-element technique, and Queen Medusa's seal remains within my body. The moment I enter the depths of the Tagor Desert, she will notice me..."

Liu Xi understood at once. Rolling his eyes, he said, "Do you even understand the rules for an alchemist refining pills? You provide the ingredients. You want me not only to refine pills for you, but also to enter the depths of the Tagor Desert and find Sand Mandara for you?"

"Back then, after going to great lengths to obtain this fragment of the map in the desert, I used my many years of cartography experience to divide it perfectly into two pieces. One piece was the one you took earlier, while the other... Heh heh! I'll tell you the clues about the Heavenly Flame, you help me refine the Po E Pill, and you help me retrieve the Sand Mandara. Then I'll give you the other small fragment of the map. That's fair!" Hai Bodong simply thickened his skin and laid out all his demands. After speaking, he closed his eyes and said nothing more.

Liu Xi felt secretly annoyed after hearing that. He took out the fragment of the map he had obtained earlier from his Storage Ring and examined it. He had actually forgotten such an important part of the plot and been played by this old fellow. Liu Xi shifted his gaze from the map and looked at Hai Bodong, who had shut his eyes and refused to speak, looking completely like a dead pig that wasn't afraid of boiling water.

Liu Xi grumbled inwardly, This rotten old man is bad news! He put away the map, and the more he looked at Hai Bodong on the ground, the more annoyed he became. He directly kicked him again, then formed a hand seal.

"Seal Fire Dharma Seal—Release!"

"Stop sitting there. Hand over the pill formula and the Heavenly Flame clues. I agreed." Liu Xi spoke irritably. All for the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame.

Finally sensing Dou Qi within his body again, Hai Bodong breathed a sigh of relief. He then circulated his Dou Qi to suppress the injuries he had just suffered, only then finding the strength to slowly stand up.

He drew a thin sheet of parchment from a Storage Ring and handed it to Liu Xi. "According to my investigations, these three locations marked with flames in the Tagor Desert are the places most likely to contain Heavenly Flames. As for the pill formula and the other half of the map fragment, once you return, I will certainly present them to you with both hands."

Liu Xi accepted the map and casually flipped through it. Looking at the three Flame Marks on it, he nodded before putting the map away. He glanced at Hai Bodong again. "If I don't find a Heavenly Flame in those places, be careful—I'll come back and tear down your shop!"

Liu Xi then turned and walked out of the shop. Hai Bodong wore a bitter smile as he watched the young man's departing back, his expression turning dazed. Only after Liu Xi's figure disappeared did he begin cleaning up the mess inside the shop.

By the time Liu Xi walked out of Ancient Map, the sky had already darkened. He immediately decided to find somewhere to stay and set out tomorrow to search for the Heavenly Flame.

As Liu Xi slowly walked through the streets, they gradually became deserted as night fell. While walking, a cold smile suddenly curled his lips. Although he had not spread out his Spiritual Power, with his Spiritual Power, he could sense through Spiritual Sense alone that a black figure had followed him from not far behind.

Liu Xi then walked into what appeared to be a relatively secluded area, turned around, and said calmly, "Come out!"

The moment his words fell, a small, thin figure wrapped in a ragged black robe stepped out. A somewhat timid voice came from beneath the robe. "Young Master, where do you wish to go? I can take you there. You only need to give me a small tip."

Liu Xi first looked indifferently at the Black Robe Figure and released his Spiritual Power. Then his expression turned slightly startled. Within his perception, there was not the slightest trace of Dou Qi on this person. Beneath the black robe was a tiny little girl. Perhaps due to malnutrition, her face was only the size of a palm, and several fine green scales covered the corners of her eyes.

A person immediately came to Liu Xi's mind. In an instant, he moved before the Black Robe Figure, pulled off her hood, and looked into her eyes. Deep within each pupil were three petal-shaped jade-green points that seemed to emit an eerie glow.

A smile appeared on Liu Xi's face as he sighed inwardly, The Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils. They can control snake-type magical beasts and devour their Dou Qi to increase one's cultivation—a bizarre constitution that can practically guarantee one's path to Dou Saint. I never expected to encounter it here. Since I've encountered her, I must take her under my wing.

Looking at the thin, dark-skinned little girl before him, whose gaze kept darting away as she struggled after meeting his eyes, Liu Xi came up with an idea.

With a gentle smile, Liu Xi said warmly, "Your eyes are very beautiful! You don't need to care about the way others look at you, because you have done nothing wrong. The chance of snake people and humans producing offspring is less than one in ten thousand, yet you were still born and survived. That means your existence must have meaning."

Liu Xi's warm smile and gentle words temporarily calmed the thin little girl before him. She looked timidly at Liu Xi and softly asked, "Can someone like me have any meaning in living?"

Liu Xi nodded and said slowly, "Fate gives meaning to everything. Perhaps it was destined that you existed so you could meet me today."

At this moment, an eerie light flashed through Qing Lin's originally timid, self-conscious eyes, and the petal-shaped jade-green points in her pupils grew increasingly distinct.

Liu Xi then reached out and stroked her head, asking softly, "What is your name?"

She replied timidly, "My name is Qing Lin."

Liu Xi asked again, "Then do you have a home?"

Qing Lin lowered her head, bit her lip lightly, and shook her head with tears in her eyes.

Liu Xi reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind Qing Lin's ear. With a trace of pity in his voice, he said, "Then would you like to come with me? From now on, wherever I am will be your home!"

Qing Lin stared blankly at the big brother in front of her, whose smile was so beautiful. There was none of the disgust she saw in other people's eyes. His gaze was warm, so warm that it reached her heart. As though possessed, she nodded in agreement.

Seeing Qing Lin nod, Liu Xi's smile became even brighter. He stepped forward, crouched down, wrapped his arms around her knees, and lifted her up. Suddenly suspended in the air, Qing Lin cried out in surprise and wrapped her arms around Liu Xi's neck.

Liu Xi stood up and said with a smile, "Let's go. We'll find somewhere to stay for the night!"