The Sunset Forest was nowhere near as vast as the Star Dou Great Forest.
But because it lay in the heart of the Heaven Dou Empire, and a natural poisonous miasma deep in its valleys served as a barrier, few people ever ventured here.
Instead, it was home to many poisonous Soul Beasts rarely seen elsewhere.
There was another reason Qian Anci had chosen this place to hunt his fourth Soul Ring.
The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
He recalled what he knew about the place. One of the three great treasure troves, it was where the Ice Dragon King and Fire Dragon King had fallen.
The two Dragon Kings' remains lay buried at the bottom of the pools, their residual power undiminished after ten thousand years. The two extremes of ice and fire intertwined.
They had transformed the valley into a natural herb garden, brimming with rare treasures.
If he could claim this place for himself, it would greatly benefit both his own future and the development of Spirit Hall.
The mist in the forest gradually changed color.
Threads of dark-green poisonous miasma began to mingle with the gray-white fog.
A faint, sweet, and fishy smell hung in the air, while the plants at his feet had turned an unnatural dark purple.
Qian Anci's expression remained unchanged. Gray-white Death Qi flowed naturally around him, forming a thin film over his body.
The instant the miasma touched the film, it vanished like a mud cow sinking into the sea, silently broken down by the Death Qi.
Death and poison shared a common ground. The deathly aura of his underworld could even corrode life itself; ordinary poisonous fog was no threat to him.
He continued deeper into the forest.
The poisonous miasma grew thicker, and visibility had dropped to less than ten zhang.
Scattered Soul Beast bones began to appear on the ground. Some had shriveled and blackened, as if their owners had succumbed to some kind of poison.
Dark-red vines coiled around the tree trunks, their stems covered in barbs, the tips of which glimmered faintly.
He pressed on for about half an hour.
The poisonous miasma began to thin.
The sweet, fishy smell in the air gradually faded, replaced by two utterly different auras.
One was freezing cold.
The other, scorching hot.
The two auras twisted around each other, waxing and waning, yet eerily maintaining a kind of balance as they enveloped the entire area ahead.
Qian Anci's steps faltered.
Within him, the Shadow of Pollux trembled faintly, then fell silent once more.
It was the aura of the Dragon Clan.
"Looks like the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well is close."
Though that aura had lain dormant for who knew how many years, it still carried an awe-inspiring majesty that brooked no offense.
It was the lingering pressure of Dragon Kings. Even a mere trace was enough to keep ordinary Soul Beasts at bay.
He quickened his pace and crossed the last stretch of poisonous miasma.
The view opened up before him.
A vast, circular valley lay ahead, shaped like a giant bowl. Sheer cliffs towered into the clouds on all sides, separating its interior from the outside world.
Above the valley walls, the poisonous miasma churned like boiling water. But the valley below presented an entirely different scene.
The vegetation was astonishingly dense.
Every flower and plant glimmered faintly, red and blue intermingling to bathe the entire valley in an eerie, fantastical light.
Some of the oddly shaped plants were so unfamiliar that Qian Anci could not even name them. But the spiritual energy they gave off was enough to tell him they were anything but ordinary.
At the center of the valley, a spring was divided into two distinct halves.
One side was snowy white, cold mist rising from it. Even the rocks beside the spring were covered in a thick layer of frost.
The other side was fiery red, waves of heat surging from its surface as thick bubbles rolled and burst.
Where the two springs met, mist billowed and ice mingled with fire, accompanied by a series of hissing sounds.
The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Qian Anci's gaze swept over the edge of the spring.
On a rock face beside the cold spring, an eight-petaled flower of shimmering white bloomed quietly. Fine ice crystals coated its petals. It was the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass.
Beside the hot spring stood an Immortal Herb just as fiery red, its petals flickering like flames. It was the Infernal Delicate Apricot.
His gaze did not linger long on either Immortal Herb.
He knew how to harvest them, but now was not the time.
Qian Anci gathered his thoughts and stepped toward the valley.
"Boom!"
A terrifying pressure suddenly crashed down from above, slamming into his shoulders like Mount Tai.
Qian Anci's body lurched downward, and two deep cracks split the stone beneath his feet.
His knees bent slightly, but he forced himself to hold firm just before they touched the ground.
A Titled Douluo.
He had judged it in an instant.
The pressure was nowhere near as strong as what he had felt from Azure Luan Douluo.
"Boy."
An aged, sinister voice came from within the valley, carrying an unquestionable authority.
"Daring to come to this old man's territory to steal?"
Before the words had even faded, a cloud of inky-green poisonous fog surged out from deep in the valley, sweeping toward Qian Anci like a living thing.
The fog was so dense it was almost liquid. Wherever it passed, the grass withered instantly, and even the surface of the rocks was eaten away, pitted with tiny holes.
Qian Anci's pupils contracted.
This was no ordinary poison.
It was a poison generated by a Soul Skill released through a martial soul.
An ordinary Soul Master would have died from inhaling even a single wisp.
He sprang backward, then swept out his right hand.
The Scythe of Death coalesced in his palm, gray-white Death Qi curling around its blade like mist.
"First Soul Skill, Guidance of the Underworld Path."
The scythe swept through the air. A thin gray-white line streaked with dark red tore through the air and slashed straight at the poisonous fog.
Hiss.
The instant the line collided with the fog, a grating sound of corrosion rang out.
Death Qi and poison gnawed at each other. The line cleaved an opening in the fog, but it did not disperse entirely. Instead, it split into two streams and continued to close in on him from both sides.
Taking advantage of the opening, Qian Anci widened the distance between them and landed on a rise ten zhang from the valley entrance.
He held the scythe across his body and fixed a cold gaze on the depths of the valley.
"You're a Titled Douluo, no less. Don't you feel ashamed to attack a junior?"
Silence fell over the valley for a moment.
Then came a hoarse, low chuckle.
"Interesting."
A figure slowly emerged from the depths of the valley.
He was a stooped old man in a dark-green robe, with a gaunt face and a thin, frail frame.
His eyes were vertical pupils, their deep green glow resembling the gaze of some cold-blooded creature.
Behind the old man, nine Soul Rings slowly rose.
Two yellow, two purple, five black.
A standard Titled Douluo configuration.
Qian Anci's gaze sharpened.
He knew who this man was.
Poison Douluo, Dugu Bo.
At this point in time, the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well was under the control of this Titled Douluo.
Dugu Bo stood with his hands behind his back, his vertical pupils studying Qian Anci. A flicker of surprise crossed his eyes.
"A brat barely into his teens, and you can actually withstand this old man's Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison."
His gaze fell on the Scythe of Death in Qian Anci's hand, and his vertical pupils narrowed slightly.
"No wonder you dared to trespass on this old man's territory. But..."
His tone shifted, and his voice turned abruptly cold.
"This place belongs to me. Anyone who dares to take one step inside can forget about receiving any mercy."
Qian Anci said nothing.
He simply stood there, planted the Scythe of Death into the ground, and rested both hands on top of its haft.
"What if I told you I could solve the problem afflicting you?"
Before you continue