Nether Poison Flame

Inside an inn, Li Xingluo took out the scroll he had just seized from An Yun.

The scroll, which looked quite aged and carried a sense of vicissitudes, was slowly unfurled. What met his eyes was a swampy landscape, with a peculiar symbol marked in the far west of the marsh; other than that, there was nothing particularly remarkable about it.

Li Xingluo couldn't help but wonder if the flash of intuition he had felt earlier was a mistake.

Li Xingluo stared at the scroll, his fingers tapping lightly against the tabletop as his brows furrowed slightly.

Whether it was back at the auction house or the moment he picked up this scroll, a strange spark of inspiration had ignited in his mind; he couldn't shake the feeling that this scroll held an unknown secret.

Li Xingluo examined it repeatedly, yet he still couldn't find anything on the scroll that seemed to serve any purpose.

Lost in thought, Li Xingluo grew distracted, and his fingers inadvertently knocked over a teacup nearby. The tea spilled instantly, and a few droplets stained the scroll.

Li Xingluo hurriedly picked up the scroll and shook it vigorously, never expecting its absorbency to be so extraordinary.

The tea flowing from the cup was instantly soaked up by the scroll. At a loss for what to do, Li Xingluo held the damp scroll up toward the lamplight.

He intended to use the heat of the lamp to dry it, but this unintentional action left Li Xingluo feeling incredibly excited.

Under the illumination of the lamp, the veins of the scroll became clear, and characters that had been invisible until now began to manifest.

In the upper right corner of the scroll, four large characters were written: Nether Poison Swamp.

Below them was a line of small text: The Nether Poison Flame is born within the Nether Poison Swamp, formed by absorbing the miasma of the swamp and transforming it into the energy of heaven and earth; it possesses the most potent poison.

Nether Poison Flame? The four characters burned into Li Xingluo's eyes—ranked twentieth on the Heavenly Flame Ranking?

Immediately following this, the peculiar symbol from the beginning of the scroll slowly evolved into the shape of the Nether Poison Flame.

A smile remained plastered on Li Xingluo's face; he never expected that an inadvertent act would lead him to a clue about a Heavenly Flame.

According to the scroll, this Nether Poison Flame was located in the northwest of the Chuyun Empire, and it even provided a detailed route.

Li Xingluo slowly set the scroll down and noticed his black ring flickering, emitting a faint red glow.

Li Xingluo realized why he had felt a subtle connection the first time he saw the scroll at the auction house; it seemed to be because of the black ring.

Although he had obtained a lead on the Nether Poison Flame, the scroll also recorded the perils of the Nether Poison Swamp, and Li Xingluo's expression dimmed slightly.

This was the first step toward fulfilling his heart's desire, and he had to take it. He steeled his resolve, though one point still worried him: Xiao Yi Xian would certainly insist on coming along.

To mitigate the risks, Li Xingluo put away the scroll and pushed open his door. He stood outside Xiao Yi Xian's room, his hand raised in mid-air, hesitating as he realized she might already be asleep.

Just as Li Xingluo turned to leave, the door creaked open from the inside.

Li Xingluo scratched the back of his head, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"You can't sleep either?"

Li Xingluo nodded, and Xiao Yi Xian let him into the room.

Seeing that Xiao Yi Xian was wide awake, she seemed to find the answer in Li Xingluo's expression.

"Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Indeed, I..."

"Huh, this doesn't sound like you. You were never this hesitant before."

"Xiao Yi Xian, I want to learn how to use poison."

Li Xingluo knew full well that the Nether Poison Swamp was undoubtedly linked to poison, and while Xiao Yi Xian might be able to use her own methods to get him there, he feared that if she overused her poison, it would trigger the Woeful Poison Body within her. Li Xingluo currently had no way to control it—let alone suppress it.

If he learned to use poison himself, it wouldn't be impossible for him to go alone, though he knew Xiao Yi Xian would surely follow him regardless.

At the very least, he could alleviate some of the pressure on her. Thinking of this, Li Xingluo couldn't sleep at all, which was why he wanted to gain her approval tonight.

In fact, during the month-long journey to the Chuyun Empire, Li Xingluo had expressed his desire to learn poison many times, but Xiao Yi Xian had been reluctant to teach him.

Perhaps it was because she feared Li Xingluo would end up like her.

Now that Li Xingluo brought up learning poison again, Xiao Yi Xian's instinctive reaction remained one of refusal; while poison arts were powerful, they also eroded the practitioner.

If one's cultivation and willpower were insufficient, it was highly likely to result in a backlash.

Li Xingluo seemed to anticipate her refusal and immediately said, "Xiao Yi Xian, have you forgotten today's wager?"

Xiao Yi Xian's slightly parted lips froze at his words; was this guy actually setting a trap for her to fall into?

"I..."

"As long as you haven't forgotten, you can rest assured. I'm not stupid; I won't use myself as a test subject."

Li Xingluo struck at the heart of her greatest concern. Sure enough, at these words, Xiao Yi Xian was stunned, struck by the shock of having her innermost thoughts laid bare.

"I know what you're thinking. You're afraid that I might use myself as an experiment to fulfill my promise to control your Woeful Poison Body. Don't worry, I guarantee I won't do that without your consent."

Li Xingluo spoke with great sincerity, even raising his hand as if to swear an oath.

Xiao Yi Xian understood even better why Li Xingluo had been pestering her to learn poison. Seeing that he was willing to go to such lengths for her, a warm current surged through her heart.

She reached out to cover Li Xingluo's mouth before he could say more, her cheeks flushing slightly.

"Fine, I agree. But you must listen to me, otherwise, I won't teach you."

"Deal!" Li Xingluo replied crisply.

"I can teach you the art of poison, but you must promise me that you will not attempt to absorb even a sliver of poison gas when my Woeful Poison Body erupts. You should know that even a single wisp of the Woeful Poison Body's toxin is enough to cost you your life."

Li Xingluo's guess was indeed correct; Xiao Yi Xian's expression was very serious.

"No problem. I'm not stupid—isn't it better to stay alive? Why would I seek death?"

Li Xingluo acted as if he were heartless and carefree, yet even so, Xiao Yi Xian did not believe his words.

The more time they spent together, the more warmth Xiao Yi Xian felt from Li Xingluo; never before had anyone taken such good care of her.

Xiao Yi Xian shook her head slightly, knowing he was only saying that to comfort her.

"This is an introductory book. Read it first, and come find me when you're finished."

Xiao Yi Xian took out a book and handed it to Li Xingluo. He had gone to great lengths to convince her to teach him.

He took the book and returned to his room with a grin, boasting that he would finish reading and master its contents within three days.

Watching Li Xingluo leave with the book in high spirits, Xiao Yi Xian fell into a moment of contemplation, unsure for a time whether what she was doing was right or wrong.

Yet, her heart was no longer cold, and a happy smile bloomed upon her face.

Inside the main hall of the An Family in Maple Forest City, An Batian had already returned to the clan, only to see the corpse of a family elder lying on the floor.

After scanning the room, his gaze settled on An Yun.

"What is the meaning of this?"

An Yun embellished the story, describing how overbearing Li Xingluo had been, claiming that Li Xingluo had blocked their path on the way back to the family estate and robbed them of their belongings.

At this moment, An Yun still did not know Li Xingluo's name, so he could only refer to him as the man in the black robe, while also reminding An Batian from time to time that it was the same person from the private room opposite the auction house.

The more An Batian heard, the angrier he became; not only had the man killed a family elder and wounded those accompanying An Yun, but he had also robbed them clean.

"Does he really think there is no one left in the An Family in Maple Forest City?"