Ye Xiu patted Xiao Yi Xian on the back. "All right, let go."
Xiao Yi Xian released him. "Be careful on the way, Master."
Ye Xiu nodded and pushed the door open.
He didn't delay any longer. With a BOOM, a pair of purple-gold flame wings unfurled behind him. He kicked off and shot into the sky, drawing a steady stream of gasps from the people around him.
Xiao Yi Xian stood by the window, watching the purple-gold streak grow farther and farther away until it vanished on the horizon.
Ye Xiu flew west.
Before long, the greenery below began to thin out. Soon, it had given way entirely to a sea of yellow sand.
As far as the eye could see, there were only a few bare rocks, weathered into bizarre shapes by the wind and sand.
After flying for nearly half a day, he figured he'd gone far enough and descended to avoid drawing too much attention and becoming a target.
Before long, Ye Xiu spotted a small patch of green below.
He folded away his Dou Qi Wings and landed.
The oasis was small, with a little lake in the middle and a few desert poplars and shrubs around it. Several tents stood by the water, smoke curling lazily from their cooking fires.
Ye Xiu watched from a distance. This didn't look like a Snake-Person Tribe settlement. The people here were probably merchants who had set up camp temporarily.
When the merchants saw Ye Xiu flying through the sky, their faces blanched. As if they'd seen a god, they hurriedly prostrated themselves and begged for mercy.
Ye Xiu didn't know why they were acting like that, but he didn't ask. He simply questioned the merchants about the recent situation in the desert.
When he learned that the Snake-People in the Tagor Desert had suddenly become active lately, Ye Xiu didn't linger. He continued flying west.
By dusk, Ye Xiu spotted another city.
Stone Desert City.
Its walls were ochre, and though it was smaller than Mo City, it looked sturdier. People streamed in and out of the gates, mostly mercenaries with weapons slung over their backs and fierce looks on their faces.
Ye Xiu looked down at the city from midair, turning the idea over in his mind.
This was the last stop before entering the depths of the desert. Another half day's flight west, and he'd be in Snake-Person territory. If he ended up fighting Queen Medusa and couldn't beat her, he could flee this way.
He memorized the location and continued west.
Before long, the air grew faintly hot. It wasn't the kind of heat that came from the sun; it seemed to rise from underground.
Ye Xiu narrowed his eyes.
He was close.
He folded away his Dou Qi Wings and landed.
Ye Xiu looked around. Night had fallen, and vague shapes were moving in the distance.
He swept the area with his soul power and discovered that they were a few Snake-People.
They had human torsos and serpentine lower bodies, weapons in hand as they patrolled.
Ye Xiu didn't alert them. He quietly circled around.
After another hour, a vast stretch of light gradually appeared ahead.
It was an enormous city, built entirely of stone. Torches lined the walls, brightly illuminating the surroundings. Two rows of Snake-Person guards stood at the gates, spears in hand, their backs ramrod straight.
The Snake-People Tribe!
Ye Xiu crouched behind a boulder, watching the city from afar.
It was huge—far bigger than he'd expected. Lights glimmered inside, and the sounds of a bustling city carried over. It seemed the Snake-People lived much like humans: eating and drinking as they pleased.
Still crouching behind the boulder, Ye Xiu kept his eyes on the distant Snake-People Tribe.
Torches blazed atop the walls as two squads of Snake-Person guards patrolled back and forth, spears in hand, their backs ramrod straight. Two more stood at the gates. They looked like elite guards, at least Da Dou Shi level.
"The guards are pretty strict."
Ye Xiu muttered to himself, but he wasn't too concerned.
He was now a Four-Star Dou Wang. If it came to a fight, these Snake-People wouldn't be able to stop him. But he wasn't here to fight—he was here to check in. If he made too much of a commotion and drew Medusa out, things could get troublesome.
That woman was a Peak Dou Huang, only one step away from Dou Zong. Better to avoid her if possible.
Ye Xiu watched for a while, then spotted a gap during the shift change. With a flash, he slipped along the foot of the wall and into the city.
Once inside, he found a secluded corner and crouched down to observe his surroundings.
The Snake-People Tribe was much bigger than he'd expected. Rows of stone houses lined the streets, which were quite broad. Night had fallen, so few people were out. Every so often, a Snake-Person passed by carrying something, probably heading home after closing up shop.
Sounds of revelry came from farther away. There was probably a night market or something over there.
Ye Xiu wasn't in the mood to explore. He ducked into a secluded alley, crouched in a corner, and closed his eyes.
"System, check in."
"Ding! The host has arrived at the check-in location: Tagor Desert, Snake-People Tribe."
"Check in now?"
"Check in."
"Ding! Check-in successful!"
"Congratulations, host. You have obtained: Four-Star Dou Emperor cultivation!"
BOOM!
A terrifying aura erupted from within Ye Xiu!
This surge of power was fiercer than the previous two combined. It hit fast and hard, as if Ye Xiu had been thrown into a volcano. Every scrap of flesh and every bone in his body underwent a frenzied transformation!
Dou Qi surged through his meridians like a flood bursting its banks, washing over his body again and again. His already-broad meridians stretched painfully, yet grew tougher with every surge!
The Dou Qi in his dantian kept accumulating, its color deepening from purple-gold to dark gold, until a faint crimson glow emerged!
The whole process sounded long, but it took only two or three breaths.
Ye Xiu opened his eyes.
He looked down at his hand, made a fist, opened it, then clenched it again.
The feeling of power was more than a thousand times greater than before.
"Four-Star Dou Emperor..."
He murmured, a smile slowly spreading across his face.
How long had it been? A few months since he'd transmigrated? He'd gone from a complete loser to a Dou Emperor?
If the chosen one of the plane, Xiao Yan, found out, he'd probably be furious.
And that wasn't all.
A vast flood of information suddenly poured into his mind, nearly bursting his head.
Po'e Pills, Dou Ling Pills, Huangji Pills, Hunyuan Bone-Shaping Pills...
More than a hundred Sixth-grade Pill Recipes flooded his mind in a dense torrent.
Refining methods, control of the flame and heat, ingredient combinations, pill-forming techniques...
It felt as though he'd been refining pills for hundreds of years. He knew it all by heart.
After a while, the information finally settled, remaining obediently in his mind.
He took a deep breath and examined himself.
His soul power had grown substantially, too.
Before, it had been around Late Mortal Realm. Now it had reached Mortal Realm Great Perfection, only one step away from the Spirit Realm.
Ye Xiu stood and stretched his limbs.
His whole body crackled.
"Nice."
The moment the word left his mouth, his expression changed.
Not good.
The commotion from his breakthrough had been too great.
Though the aura had leaked out for only an instant, it had been powerful enough to alarm the entire Snake-People Tribe.
Sure enough—
A furious shout rang out in the distance!
"Who dares trespass on Snake-People territory!"
The voice was shrill and piercing, carrying a terrifying pressure that made the stone houses around them tremble.
Ye Xiu looked up.
A red figure shot into the sky from deep within the tribe. She was astonishingly fast and reached the area in the blink of an eye.
It was a woman.
She had long, beautiful hair, skin as white as snow, and exquisitely delicate features. Yet her brows and eyes held a cold, murderous edge.
She wore a red dress, and a pair of flaming wings beat gently behind her as she hovered in the air, looking down at the people below.
Medusa!
Ye Xiu's pupils contracted.
As the legends said, she was breathtakingly beautiful—but just as dangerous.
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