To Heaven Dou City

Another day passed.

Ji Ye stepped out of the wooden cabin, carrying several jade boxes.

He stood beside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, took a deep breath, then called toward one side of the valley.

"Senior Demon Subduing, it's time to head back."

Demon Subduing Douluo poked half his body out from the wooden cabin beside the cliff. He still had a wild fruit in his hand, picked who knew where, and was chewing on something as he mumbled a reply.

"Coming, coming."

He hurried over in three quick strides, brushed the dirt from his hands, and fixed his gaze on the jade boxes in Ji Ye's hands. His eyes lit up.

"You've made quite a haul, kid. What are all these?"

Ji Ye opened the jade boxes one by one, and Demon Subduing Douluo leaned in to take a look.

The Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass glinted with a bone-chilling light, the Infernal Delicate Apricot sent waves of heat rolling toward them, the Cockscomb Phoenix Sunflower shimmered with a golden-red glow, and the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum stood tall and golden. Every plant brimmed with potent life force and medicinal energy.

The longer Demon Subduing Douluo looked, the wider his eyes grew. He even forgot to swallow the wild fruit he'd been chewing for ages.

"These... all came from the edge of the pool?"

"Mm." Ji Ye closed the jade boxes one by one.

"The Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass is for Senior Guang Ling. It'll be useful to him."

"The Infernal Delicate Apricot is for Senior Lion. His Martial Soul is fire-aligned, so it's a perfect fit."

"The Cockscomb Phoenix Sunflower is for you. It's an Immortal Herb that greatly nourishes pure yang. It'll do you good."

Demon Subduing Douluo opened his mouth, as if to refuse, but when he looked at the fiery-red sunflower, the words died on his lips.

He gave a hearty chuckle.

"Fine, then I won't stand on ceremony."

With that, Demon Subduing Douluo took it and examined it closely.

"How do you eat this?"

Ji Ye thought for a moment.

"You might be able to swallow the whole thing. But its medicinal power is potent. Given your cultivation, seniors, eating it as is probably won't kill you. At worst, you'll be bedridden with severe injuries for a few months. Still, to be safe, you should take it with other medicinal herbs."

"I've also written down which supplementary herbs you'll need. With Spirit Hall's resources, getting them shouldn't be difficult."

Demon Subduing Douluo nodded and put away the note and jade box.

"What about this one? It looks like the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum. Who's it for? Don't tell me it's for that Chrysanthemum Douluo from Pope Hall?"

"It's for Senior Golden Crocodile."

"That's good. We don't let the fat fall into the hands of outsiders."

After putting away the last jade box, Demon Subduing Douluo noticed that Ji Ye still had one left.

"What about that one?"

Ji Ye lowered his eyes to the jade box in his hands.

Inside was the Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid, which he was keeping to give to Qian Renxue.

"I'm giving this one to someone."

Demon Subduing Douluo nodded and didn't press him on who it was for.

After all, he'd already given the Worship Hall so much. He deserved to keep a little for himself.

Ji Ye reached into his clothes and took out a smaller jade box. He opened it a crack, revealing a faint purple glow. A delicate fragrance wafted out, making the air around them feel fresher.

"This Aromatic Silk Beauty—I've already consumed some of it. I'm keeping the rest with me. It'll be useful."

Demon Subduing Douluo glanced at the faint purple light and knew it was no ordinary treasure, but he didn't ask any questions.

"No problem."

Ji Ye put the jade box away, then turned and headed for the mouth of the valley.

"All right, Senior. Just see me as far as the edge of the poisonous miasma."

The two of them crossed the valley entrance and stepped into the pale-green miasma.

Demon Subduing Douluo was about to raise a Soul Power shield when he noticed the faint purple glow around Ji Ye spreading outward on its own, like an invisible barrier.

The miasma parted to either side the instant it touched that glow, as though it were avoiding him of its own accord. Not a trace of it touched Ji Ye.

Demon Subduing Douluo stopped short, staring blankly as the faint purple light flowed over Ji Ye's body. For a long time, he couldn't say a word.

"...Where did you get this trick, too?"

Ji Ye glanced at him, a faint smile on his lips.

"I forgot to tell you. The Aromatic Silk Beauty's effect is that it makes you immune to all poisons."

Demon Subduing Douluo fell silent for several seconds before finally managing to say, "Just how many treasures did you get on this trip?"

Ji Ye didn't answer. He only smiled and kept walking.

The two of them left the poisonous miasma and returned to the ordinary forest of Sunset Forest.

The light grew brighter, and the sharp smell in the air gradually faded.

Ji Ye stopped and turned to face Demon Subduing Douluo.

"Senior, you should head back to the Worship Hall first. I still have something to take care of."

Demon Subduing Douluo furrowed his brows.

"What is it? Can you handle it on your own?"

"I'm going to Heaven Dou City to deliver something." Ji Ye patted the jade box in his hand.

"I'll return to Spirit Hall once I've delivered it."

Demon Subduing Douluo looked at him, then at the jade box in his hand, and pondered for a moment.

"Don't let anyone see the treasures you're carrying. People might start coveting them. Be careful on your own, and don't stay out too long."

"Understood." Ji Ye nodded.

Demon Subduing Douluo gave him a few more reminders, then waved and turned toward the edge of Sunset Forest.

After a few steps, he glanced back at Ji Ye. His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he only said, "Remember to come back soon."

"If you run into an enemy you can't beat, come get me!"

"Got it." Ji Ye replied with a smile.

Ji Ye watched Demon Subduing Douluo's back disappear among the trees.

Then he turned and headed down another path.

Relying on his memory of the way in, he spent most of the day making his way out of the outskirts of Sunset Forest.

He found a small town by the road and hired a carriage.

The driver was a dark-skinned old man in his fifties with an honest face. When he saw Ji Ye standing alone by the roadside to flag him down, he gave him a closer look.

"Little master, where are you headed all by yourself?"

"Heaven Dou City."

"That's a long way. It'll take five days."

"Then five days it is."

The old man asked no more questions. He clicked his tongue at the horse, and the carriage lurched onto the road.

Ji Ye leaned against the carriage wall and gazed out the window at the fields and villages sliding past.

Five days wasn't long, but it wasn't short, either.

It was enough time to think through everything that had happened along the way.

The first time he'd met Qian Renxue was in the cemetery in Spirit City.

Back then, she'd worn a white dress, her golden hair and blue eyes—

She'd been as cold as a block of ice, with her sword tip at his throat, nearly killing him on the spot because she'd mistaken him for a grave robber.

At the time, he'd thought she was an unreasonable madwoman.

Looking back now, if she hadn't caught him that time, he might still be hiding and fleeing outside, with no chance of making contact with the Worship Hall's enshrined elders.

That cold girl, with so much hidden in her gaze, had held the Angel Holy Sword in her hand as she stood before her father's tomb and said, "I'll avenge my father one day."

Ji Ye lowered his eyes to the jade box in his hand and gently rubbed the edge of its lid.

If he could, he wanted to change Qian Renxue's fate.