Encountering Xiao Yan

Xiao Yi Xian subconsciously clenched Xiao Peng's sleeve. Lowering her head, she saw mountains and rivers racing backward beneath their feet, spreading out like an overturned painting.

"So amazing."

Watching the scene below, Xiao Yi Xian secretly thought to herself.

Why ride a sword instead of flying directly?

Because Xiao Peng thought sword flight looked cooler.

Xiao Peng glanced down at the sleeve Xiao Yi Xian had wrinkled in her grip, then quietly tightened his palm, holding her hand more securely.

The Qingping Sword cut through the clouds, and the gusts it raised swept through her hair.

"Hold tight." Xiao Peng's voice was not loud, but it reached Xiao Yi Xian's ears clearly.

The moment he finished speaking, the longsword suddenly accelerated, streaking across the sky like a bolt of green lightning.

Xiao Yi Xian cried out in surprise and instinctively leaned closer to him, quickly grabbing his arm with her other hand as well.

Through the fabric, she could feel the warmth of his arm and his steady, powerful pulse. Each beat was more reassuring than the sword's vibrations in the rushing wind.

Before long, Xiao Peng and Xiao Yi Xian arrived near their destination.

The cliff was steep, covered in scattered rocks, strangely twisted trees growing haphazardly, and things that looked like bones.

Xiao Yi Xian pointed toward the cave entrance. "It's there."

Hearing this, Xiao Peng looked in the direction she indicated.

Through gaps in the trees, he saw the pitch-black hollow in the cliff face.

Xiao Peng opened his mouth and breathed out blazing flames. The tongues of fire licked across the twisted trees growing from the cliff, instantly reducing them to ashes. Even the scattered rocks crackled as they were scorched, revealing the smooth stone walls around the cave entrance.

After clearing away the debris at the entrance, Xiao Peng took Xiao Yi Xian into the cave on his sword.

Before long, a stone door radiating a faint yellow glow appeared before them.

Xiao Peng brought Xiao Yi Xian down from the Qingping Sword and recalled it.

Xiao Yi Xian examined the stone door and said to Xiao Peng, "Wait a moment. I can unlock it."

Having said that, she prepared to step forward and break the mechanism.

But after taking only two steps, Xiao Peng stopped her.

Xiao Peng condensed a giant hand from Mana and fiercely slammed it into the stone door.

With a thunderous boom, the seemingly sturdy stone door shattered on impact. Amid the flying rubble, the scene inside was revealed.

Xiao Yi Xian was shielded behind Xiao Peng, his scent lingering at the tip of her nose.

Her eagerness to crack the mechanism vanished in an instant, leaving only stunned awe at such overbearing power.

Beyond the stone door was a huge stone chamber that looked somewhat plain and empty.

At the center of the chamber stood a seat. A skeleton sat upright upon it, its sunken skull having fallen onto the pale thigh bone.

Before the seat stood a long, broad bluestone table, upon which three locked stone boxes were arranged neatly.

In addition, quite a few glittering Gold Coins and other precious valuables were piled in three corners of the chamber. There were likely no fewer than several hundred thousand Gold Coins.

In the final corner, a small flower bed had been built from earth. All kinds of flowers and plants grew within it, and a strange fragrance permeated the air.

Xiao Peng casually waved his hand. The Gold Coins rose into the air, flew before him, and were all put away.

Xiao Yi Xian was already somewhat used to this sight and walked over to the flower beds.

She carefully picked the Medicinal Herbs growing within them.

Meanwhile, Xiao Peng walked over to the stone boxes and directly shattered them, revealing the items inside.

He remembered that the three items were the flying Dou Technique Eagle Wings, the Seven-Colored Poison Scripture, and the Mad Lion's Roar.

(I looked it up online, and every version says the third one is Mad Lion's Roar, so that's what the author went with.)

After putting away the Eagle Wings, Xiao Peng opened the Mad Lion's Roar to inspect it, then learned it.

The Mad Lion's Roar was not difficult for Xiao Peng. Learning it took only a moment.

Xiao Peng glanced at the scroll hidden within the skeleton and used the Absorbing Palm to pull it into his hand before putting it away.

Looking at the Seven-Colored Poison Scripture, Xiao Peng picked it up and flipped through it. Finding it useless, he closed it.

"Here."

Xiao Yi Xian walked over and handed all the herbs she had picked to Xiao Peng.

She dearly wanted these things, but she knew they belonged to Xiao Peng.

When she saw the Seven-Colored Poison Scripture in Xiao Peng's hand, a faint longing showed in Xiao Yi Xian's eyes.

Seeing this, Xiao Peng put away the herbs and handed the Seven-Colored Poison Scripture to Xiao Yi Xian. "Take it. This is your reward."

The moment Xiao Yi Xian's fingertips touched the cover of the Seven-Colored Poison Scripture, she drew back as though she had been burned. "Th-this is too precious... I can't take it."

Xiao Peng directly stuffed it into Xiao Yi Xian's hands. "Just take it. Consider it payment for bringing me here."

Xiao Yi Xian lowered her head and traced the patterns on the cover. Then she suddenly looked up at Xiao Peng. "Th-this is worth far more than Gold Coins."

Xiao Peng said, "No matter how valuable it is, it's just decoration if you can't use it."

He glanced at the skeleton. "The owner of this stone chamber was probably an expert in poison techniques. Leaving this poison scripture with him would only let it gather dust. You should have the Calamity Poison Body, so it's perfect for you."

Hearing Xiao Peng's words, Xiao Yi Xian stared at him in shock.

She truly had not expected Xiao Peng to discover that she possessed the Calamity Poison Body.

"Y-you... how did you figure it out?" Xiao Yi Xian came back to her senses and asked.

Xiao Peng smiled. "When you looked at the poison scripture, you showed a longing expression. I read the Seven-Colored Poison Scripture, and it mentions the Calamity Poison Body, so I thought you might have it."

It was a pretty far-fetched reason, but it was the only one he could think of right now.

Xiao Yi Xian opened her mouth, then seemed to think of something and whispered, "Aren't you... afraid?"

Even she herself feared the danger when the Calamity Poison Body erupted.

It was poison that could devour all life. At best, it would destroy its host; at worst, it would implicate everything around her, leaving not a blade of grass alive.

There was little change in Xiao Peng's gaze. "Afraid of what? It's just a poison body, not some terrifying monster."

Seeing that Xiao Peng was not afraid, Xiao Yi Xian inexplicably let out a breath of relief. At the same time, she felt immensely happy.

Whenever someone discovered that she had the Calamity Poison Body, they would ignore all the good deeds she had done and simply avoid her. It made her very sad.

Now, she had met someone who knew she possessed the Calamity Poison Body and did not care that she had it. That made her very happy.

"Thank you. By the way, benefactor, what is your name?"

"Xiao Peng."

Upon learning Xiao Peng's name, Xiao Yi Xian instinctively thought of someone named Xiao Yan.

She felt that the two of them might know each other.

But she quickly dismissed the thought. How could it possibly be such a coincidence?

"Well, damn. Who broke this?"

At that moment, a male voice rang out.

Immediately afterward, a young man walked in. Xiao Yi Xian and Xiao Peng recognized him at a glance.

The newcomer was Xiao Yan.

Seeing Xiao Yan arrive, Xiao Peng looked at him in some surprise.