Breaking the Seal

"Since I can refine the rank six Break-Ero Pill, I can naturally also refine the high-level medicinal pill that will help you break through the Dou Zong barrier that has trapped you at the peak of the Dou Emperor realm for so many years." Xiao Yan stood up and walked to the door, suddenly turning back sharply to lock his gaze firmly onto Hai Bo Dong.

This sudden, familiar, and profound aura clearly reminded Hai Bo Dong of the moment he had just been subdued by a single move. Faced with Xiao Yan's carrot-and-stick approach, Hai Bo Dong ultimately agreed to Xiao Yan's conditions. After all, his life and his hope of breaking the seal were now held in Xiao Yan's hands; he had no other choice.

"Fine, I agree. As long as you can help me successfully break the seal, I agree to serve you for twenty years." Hai Bo Dong finally said, his face ashen.

"That's a good boy." Xiao Yan walked quickly to Hai Bo Dong's side and gave his shoulder a light pat with his right hand. The pale, illusory flames within Hai Bo Dong's body scrambled to surge out, eventually scattering into the air and turning into wisps of thin smoke that slowly vanished.

Hai Bo Dong stood up in silence, stretched his limbs, and then stood wordlessly beside Xiao Yan.

"Don't just stand there like a fool. Prepare two rooms for me and Xiao Yi Xian; we need to rest." Xiao Yan pulled Xiao Yi Xian's hand and walked toward the backyard.

The next day, in the backyard of the "Ancient Map" shop.

Hai Bo Dong and Xiao Yi Xian sat opposite each other. Xiao Yi Xian was calmly eating snacks, and although Hai Bo Dong was also pretending to be calm while drinking tea, the way he occasionally glanced at the tightly shut door at the end of the courtyard and the way his right hand gripped the corner of his robe showed that he was clearly not as calm as he appeared.

I do not know how much time passed, but the energy above the courtyard suddenly began to condense on a massive scale, forming the shapes of various exotic beasts in the sky. Soon after, a pleasant medicinal fragrance wafted from the room.

"Bang!" A powerful burst of energy flew out from the room, scattering the energy clouds that were about to take the form of various beasts in the sky.

Seeing this, Hai Bo Dong stood up excitedly, staring fixedly at the room's door, while Xiao Yi Xian, not understanding the situation, looked at this strange old man with mild curiosity.

"Creak." The long-closed door opened from the inside. Xiao Yan held a jade bottle and tossed it toward Hai Bo Dong, who was looking at him with an excited face, saying, "I have fulfilled my promise."

Hai Bo Dong quickly caught the jade bottle, opened it, and looked at the round, purple medicinal pill inside that was emitting an alluring fragrance.

"That's right, it's it, just as recorded in the ancient texts." Hai Bo Dong trembled all over.

"Alright, go and break your seal." Xiao Yan waved his hand calmly.

"Yes!" Hai Bo Dong said excitedly.

A short while later, Hai Bo Dong's aura inside the room suddenly began to fluctuate violently, then surged and climbed rapidly. One could see his aura changing from the Dou Ling realm, skyrocketing until it reached the seven-star Dou Emperor realm. After hesitating for a moment at the seven-star level, it continued to climb, finally stabilizing at the nine-star Dou Emperor realm.

"This Hai Bo Dong is quite lucky. Thanks to the tempering from Queen Medusa's seal over these two years, his Dou Qi cultivation has been continuously refined. Who would have thought that today, by taking advantage of the opportunity to break the seal with the Break-Ero Pill, he would break through from a seven-star Dou Emperor to a nine-star Dou Emperor in one go." Yao Lao said to Xiao Yan from within the Storage Ring.

At this moment, a powerful aura suddenly overflowed from the room in the courtyard, and a formidable old man with icy-white Dou Qi wings flew out from the room.

Hai Bo Dong flapped his Dou Qi wings, hovering in the sky, and embraced the heavens with both hands, shouting loudly and unrestrainedly: "I, the Ice Emperor Hai Bo Dong, have returned!"

"Do you want to die?" A crisp male voice suddenly came from below.

Hai Bo Dong was in high spirits and feeling triumphant; how could he endure such an insult? Just as he was thinking about how to teach this little bug who kept challenging his Dou Emperor dignity a painful lesson, a mysterious aura, several times stronger than his own newly broken-through aura, locked onto him firmly, leaving him unable to move.

Realizing the situation, Hai Bo Dong finally came to his senses and hurriedly retracted his Dou Qi wings, landing on the ground.

"Hehe, I was just excited about breaking the seal, just excited." Hai Bo Dong, now completely devoid of any Dou Emperor dignity, said with a cautious, fawning smile.

"You seemed quite restless just now." Xiao Yan walked up and patted Hai Bo Dong's shoulder, and several more pale, illusory flames quickly burrowed into Hai Bo Dong's body and vanished without a trace.

"..." Hai Bo Dong's eye twitched as he watched Xiao Yan's movements, feeling that he had truly been a fool—he had just escaped the wolf's den only to fall into a tiger's mouth.

"Alright, since you have already broken the seal, let's talk about business." Xiao Yan said sternly.

"I now need that remnant map you obtained from the depths of the desert years ago, as well as your detailed map regarding the possible location of the Heavenly Flame in the Tager Desert." Xiao Yan said.

Hai Bo Dong looked with some fear at the youth before him, who seemed to know all his secrets, while he only knew that his name was Xiao Yan and nothing else.

What a mysterious and terrifying youth, Hai Bo Dong sighed inwardly, then went to retrieve the two maps he had treasured for so long.

Xiao Yan casually put away the remnant map depicting the trail of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame and opened the detailed map of the Tager Desert.

Looking at the three flames drawn in the east, west, and north on the map, Xiao Yan smiled dumbly, pointed to the flame in the east, and muttered: "Green Lotus Core Flame, in the east of Mo City, is it? Then the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils should be making an appearance soon."

"Hai Bo Dong, I need you to do something for me now." Xiao Yan suddenly turned to Hai Bo Dong, who was standing respectfully to the side.

"Master, please give your orders." Hai Bo Dong said.

"Hmm." Xiao Yan nodded with a relaxed expression, clearly very satisfied with Hai Bo Dong's new form of address for him.

"I imagine that even with your previous Dou Ling strength, you were likely the biggest local tyrant in Mo City." Xiao Yan said.

"Of course. Even when my Dou Emperor cultivation was sealed, the Mo City Lord still had to treat me with great respect." Hai Bo Dong said proudly.

Xiao Yan looked at Hai Bo Dong with slight helplessness, shook his head with a smile, and then said: "In that case, I need you to help me find someone."

"A three-year-old girl, with jade-green pupils and green snake scales on her arms, a half-breed between the Snake-People Tribe and humans. Oh, right, her name is Qing Lin. Within three days, I want you to bring her to see me." Xiao Yan instructed Hai Bo Dong carefully.

"Yes, Young Master, I will go and handle it immediately." Seeing his first chance to impress Xiao Yan, Hai Bo Dong said excitedly.

Three days later.

Hai Bo Dong arrived before Xiao Yan, holding a young girl with jade-green pupils who looked like a beautiful porcelain doll.

"Young Master, I have brought the person." Hai Bo Dong said, seeking credit.