Xiao Yan and Hai Bodong

"Teacher, are we heading straight into the Tagor Desert?"

Xiao Yan raised his hand to wipe the beads of sweat from his forehead, brushed some non-existent dust off his alchemist robes, and strolled through Desert City.

"Without a map and supplies, you could wander in that desert for a year and never find your way out."

Yao Lao's voice sounded playful as he teased Xiao Yan from within his heart.

"If you don't prepare medicine to repel snakes, you might as well wait to be devoured by ten thousand vipers."

"Fine."

Hearing this, Xiao Yan shrugged helplessly and looked down the street, searching for a map shop or a supply store.

Guided by a helpful passerby—Xiao Yan inwardly marveling at how useful the identity of an alchemist truly was—he slowly arrived at a quaint, rustic map shop.

A flag inscribed with the two characters "Ancient Map" fluttered noisily in the wind, and despite the dim lighting inside, the shop was quite crowded with people waiting quietly, appearing very popular.

Are there really so many people heading to the great desert?

A flicker of doubt crossed Xiao Yan's mind, but he didn't voice it. He politely bypassed the surprised onlookers and reached the counter, looking at the white-haired old man who was hunched over, drawing a map.

"Old sir, I need the most detailed map of the desert you have!"

Hai Bodong's hand paused. He looked up at Xiao Yan's youthful face, then lowered his head and pointed.

"They're all on the shelves. Find one yourself."

Xiao Yan cupped his hands in a salute and, ignoring the gazes of others, began rummaging through the shelves on his own.

"Old Hai, my teacher is willing to refine a pill to break your seal, and he is also willing to help you resolve your grudge with the Snake-Person Tribe. Please, I ask you to reconsider."

The young man in fine silk robes at the front of the group spoke respectfully.

Alchemist?

Xiao Yan, who was searching for a map, muttered to himself.

Snake-Person Tribe? A seal? An alchemist?

Unfortunately, Hai Bodong remained hunched over, looking like a man on the verge of death; he neither answered nor stopped the movement of his hand.

"Then I won't disturb you for now. I will come to see you again in a few days."

Seeing that an outsider like Xiao Yan was present, the young man in silk robes found it inconvenient to say more, so he bowed and led his group away.

A moment later, only Hai Bodong and Xiao Yan remained in the shop, standing back to back. The only sounds in the spacious map shop were the rustling of Xiao Yan searching through maps and the soft scratching of Hai Bodong's pen against paper.

Seeing that Hai Bodong still showed no sign of stopping, Xiao Yan, feeling bored, walked over to a dusty, dilapidated shelf, pulled out a scroll, and gave it a casual shake.

"Cough, cough..."

"Clatter!"

Waving his hand to clear the swirling dust, Xiao Yan bent down to pick up a primitive-looking fragment that had accidentally fallen to the floor.

"What the..."

Before Xiao Yan could finish his mutterings, his expression froze. He blinked, then leaned in close to stare intently at the map. A moment later, a flash of wild joy appeared in his eyes.

"Lucky brat..."

Yao Lao's exclamation reached him, noting the strange patterns and the broken lotus on the fragment.

"In such a remote little place in the vast Dou Qi Continent, to actually find three fragments of the 'Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame'... it truly is..."

Xiao Yan also felt an inexplicable sense of fortune. He carefully pinched the map, his mind involuntarily conjuring the image of a handsome face that always wore a gentle smile.

"Old sir."

Xiao Yan walked to the counter and gently placed the map and the fragment in front of Hai Bodong.

"May I ask how much these will cost?"

Hai Bodong glanced at them and said softly, "The map is one silver coin. The fragment is not for sale."

Xiao Yan's smile stiffened, and faint purple flames flickered deep within his eyes.

"Don't be impulsive!"

Yao Lao's voice reached the depths of Xiao Yan's heart.

"He is a Dou Emperor sealed to the strength of a Dou Ling; even if you exhaust all your trump cards, you cannot defeat him!"

Dou Emperor?!

Xiao Yan's fist clenched tightly, but he immediately relaxed it.

"The fragment is not for sale. Don't think about taking it by force; that will do you no good..."

Hai Bodong spoke in a low, quiet voice, not even bothering to look up at Xiao Yan.

That's right... in front of someone who was once a Dou Emperor, I truly cannot take it by force.

Xiao Yan smiled softly, his eyes fixed firmly on Hai Bodong.

Misty Cloud Sect? The Imperial Family? Or...

The low murmur of Hai Bodong echoed through the shop, and the door of the Ancient Map Shop slammed shut.

A sign reading "Closed for the day, no business" was immediately hung upon it.

Reaching out to tuck the fragment of the map into his storage ring, Hai Bodong stood up straight as a thin mist of ice began to permeate the air; his previously hunched frame now appeared tall and imposing, radiating a palpable sense of pressure.

"Ice attribute? A Dou Emperor?"

Xiao Yan suddenly recalled the title the young man in fine robes had used for Hai Bodong, and a piece of information he had once memorized surfaced in his mind.

"He is... the Ice Emperor!"

"I never imagined that the Ice Emperor, who has been missing for over twenty years, would be hiding in this desert, acting as a mere map peddler!"

Xiao Yan thought this, and he spoke it aloud as well.

Hai Bodong felt he might have misjudged the situation, but having been pestered by one group after another, he was thoroughly annoyed and simply wanted to fight.

This brat's aura was strange; he appeared to be only a five or six-star Dou Shi, yet he consistently gave off a dangerous vibe.

"Clang! Clang-clang!"

Countless spiraling ice needles spun rapidly, piercing straight toward Xiao Yan, only to strike the massive, pitch-black Heavy Profound Ruler with crisp, metallic clangs.

Purple flames swirled, incinerating the thick frost covering the Heavy Profound Ruler. Xiao Yan's footsteps turned illusory, and amidst a flurry of afterimages, he arrived before Hai Bodong and brought the ruler down with a heavy strike.

Raising a hand to grasp the air, a snow-blue ice shield the size of a yard appeared from his left arm to block Xiao Yan's massive ruler. As the two collided, waves of energy rippled outward, overturning the counter and sending scrolls flying.

With ice crystals coating his fist, Hai Bodong threw a fierce punch. Xiao Yan's Dou Qi gauze manifested, and with purple flames surging, he crossed his arms to deflect the blow, yet the immense force still sent him flying backward, where he slammed hard against the frigid, ice-blue wall.

Clawing the air to draw the fallen Heavy Profound Ruler back into his hand, Xiao Yan ignited his right hand with purple flames and thrust it forward.

"Fire Blowing Palm!"

Under the powerful wind pressure, the purple fireball instantly transformed into a raging inferno. The temperature in the room spiked, the pervasive ice mist evaporated in the intense heat, and Xiao Yan and Hai Bodong stared squarely at one another.

"Purple flames? A Heavenly Flame?"

Perhaps because he was immersed in the battle, Hai Bodong momentarily forgot his pain, and he appeared a bit more human than usual.

Hai Bodong raised his hand in a hollow grasp, and as ice-blue Dou Qi converged, a weapon resembling a long spear faintly took shape. A moment later, a halberd entwined with an ice dragon appeared in his hand.

"Mystic Ice Dragon Frost Halberd, the signature weapon of the Ice Emperor..."

Xiao Yan's expression turned solemn. Looking at Hai Bodong, who was now encased in ice-blue battle armor, he tightened his grip on the Heavy Profound Ruler.

"When will I finally break through to become a Dou Grandmaster!"

Xiao Yan looked at the cool battle armor on Hai Bodong with a hint of envy; if nothing else, it was truly stylish!

Moreover, its defensive capabilities were far superior to his own thin layer of Dou Qi gauze.

"Brat, if you don't use your full strength, I'll have no choice but to throw you out!"

Hai Bodong offered a warning, then flashed in front of Xiao Yan, his halberd dancing in a blur of afterimages as they engaged in combat.

Xiao Yan spun the Heavy Profound Ruler, and under Hai Bodong's pressure, he too danced through a series of afterimages. They fought and retreated amidst the clanging of metal, the gusts of wind they generated carving deep furrows into the ice walls and shelves.

"It's over."

After several dozen exchanges, a flash of disappointment crossed Hai Bodong's eyes—or perhaps that was just an illusion.

"Ice Seal Storm!"

Ice mist surged within the room, and the ice shells began to radiate a biting chill. Several small whirlwinds mixed with ice crystals rose from the ground, encircling Xiao Yan and wrapping him within.

A bone-chilling cold erupted toward Xiao Yan; the high-speed rotating ice storm suppressed the purple flames, layering ice crystals over him.

As the storm dissipated, a lifelike ice-blue statue holding a massive ruler remained in place.

"Don't come back again, next time..."

Hai Bodong, who had turned to open the door, suddenly changed expression. He fired his ice halberd toward the ice statue, then retreated rapidly, his hands flashing through hand seals.

"Ice Emperor, truly impressive!"

A soft laugh rang out. Xiao Yan, his expression indifferent and his eyes revealing a sense of weariness, vibrated his Purple Cloud Wings to hover in mid-air. The Heavy Profound Ruler flew from his hand, the sonic boom of it piercing the air striking the eardrums.

"Condensed Ice Mirror!"

Several ice mirrors, each a yard wide, appeared before Hai Bodong, but the Heavy Profound Ruler shattered them in an instant and slammed heavily into Hai Bodong's chest, smashing him into the ground.

"How... is this possible?"

Coughing up blood, a disbelieving Hai Bodong tried to rise, but a black shadow flickered, and a sole rapidly expanded in his vision.

The purple and blue figures collided repeatedly within the ruined Ancient Map Shop, occasionally kicking up gusts of wind that cracked the surrounding ice walls.

"Mystic Ice Whirlwind Kill!"

Hai Bodong dodged away from the stalemate, and a storm of ice blades instantly appeared around him. A faint phantom of an ice dragon roared within the tempest, spiraling toward Xiao Yan to shred him.

"Heh."

Xiao Yan's lips curled upward. He planted the Heavy Profound Ruler in front of him and drew his Dou Qi gauze and purple flames back into his body.

Hai Bodong's expression shifted, and the speed of his storm faltered.

"Don't hold back, Your Excellency Ice Emperor!"

Xiao Yan chuckled softly, a cluster of bone-white flames igniting in his palm before he slammed it against the ground. A pillar of white fire erupted, engulfing the ice storm. A series of cracking sounds echoed, and as the flames dissipated, a massive ice pillar was revealed, with Hai Bodong frozen solid inside.

"Snap!"

Xiao Yan raised his hand and snapped his fingers. The ice pillar shattered instantly, and Hai Bodong collapsed stiffly to the ground, a faint voice slowly emerging from him.

"Heavenly Flame?"

"My apologies, Your Excellency Ice Emperor."

The look of world-weariness faded from his eyes as Xiao Yan spoke softly.

"That map fragment is very important to me, so I must ask you to part with it."

He took out a bottle of medicinal pills and placed it gently on the battered floor, then snapped his fingers again to release Hai Bodong.

"I will compensate you for all your losses, and I have purchased the map fragment."

"If we could have traded peacefully, I truly would not have wanted to raise a hand against you."

Xiao Yan said sincerely.

Hai Bodong stood up and stretched his stiff limbs, staring into Xiao Yan's clear eyes as he spoke.

"You... do you hate this kind of life?"

"I do. But unfortunately, there are promises I must fulfill and people I am waiting to catch up to. I cannot stop!"

"Promises..."

Hai Bodong murmured, a gentle face quietly surfacing from the depths of his heart.

"Take it. For the sake of your promises, go and pursue those who care for you and wait for you!"

Hai Bodong suddenly produced two map fragments and tossed them to Xiao Yan, then turned and walked toward the counter. His white-haired, blue-robed back appeared proud, lonely, and desolate.

"Ice Emperor..."

Xiao Yan felt a stir in his heart; this back, filled with stories, reminded him of Brother Yun Yun from the Magical Beast Mountain Range, but he merely raised his hands in a cupped-fist salute.

"Clang, clang, clang!"

A crisp knocking sounded at the door. Hai Bodong raised his hand, the icy shells covering the room receded, and the door swung open in response.

"This..."

Yun Zimo stared at the Ancient Map Shop, which looked as if it had been ravaged by a tornado, and was momentarily speechless.

"Brother Yun?!"

"Eh, Little Yanzi?!"

Yun Zimo was slightly stunned, then he pressed a hand to his forehead; he seemed to realize exactly what had happened here...