In the blink of an eye, night fell.
After careful thought during the day, Xiao Yi Xian walked lightly toward the back hills of Green Mountain Town, all alone.
"Rustle, rustle..."
The fallen leaves crunched beneath her feet. In the deserted darkness, that faint sound was her only companion.
At first, everything around her was pitch-black, so dark she couldn't see her hand in front of her face. But when she stepped into that particular place—
In an instant, something wondrous happened.
The ink-black darkness was suddenly filled with countless stars. Their dazzling lights shimmered together, dreamlike and illusory.
Xiao Yi Xian had never seen such a fantastical sight in her life. She couldn't help staring, entranced.
Her pink lips parted slightly, making her look sweet and adorable.
"Beautiful, isn't it?"
A faint smile played at the corner of Xiao Fan's mouth as he asked softly.
The starry scene was the result of the Spirit-Gathering and Qi-Absorbing Array he had carefully set up just moments ago.
As the spiritual energy of heaven and earth continually gathered, the stars above seemed brighter and more dazzling, as though they were within reach, ready to be plucked from the sky.
Xiao Fan stood with his back to Xiao Yi Xian, his posture straight and proud, his robes whipping in the howling wind.
He had the air of an otherworldly, inscrutable sage—a hidden master who had withdrawn from the world to heal and save people.
Xiao Yi Xian said nothing. But beneath the starlight and Xiao Fan's silhouette, the taut strings of her heart slowly began to loosen.
Her tension gradually faded into the wind...
"I can cure your Woeful Poison Body..."
Xiao Fan spoke bluntly, his voice full of confidence.
Everyone knew that the Woeful Poison Body could absorb poisons to continually improve its owner's cultivation.
But the price of cultivating so quickly was the immense risk of the poison body erupting at any moment.
That risk was like a sword of Damocles hanging over her head, leaving her terrified.
The old Xiao Fan might have been helpless, but now he had the peerless Heaven-Swallowing Demonic Art. What was a mere poison-body eruption to him?
It was a cultivation resource! And a sustainable, reliable one at that!
Xiao Fan was already making plans in his head.
Come on, my little cultivation-experience baby. Hurry up and release your poison body so I can see.
Xiao Fan narrowed his eyes at Xiao Yi Xian, looking like some villain who wanted to lure a young girl away.
He took out his Storage Ring, which was filled with the poisonous substances he had bought before leaving Wutan City.
"Here, absorb these, and I'll help you solve your problem."
Xiao Fan's voice carried a hint of temptation, as if he were coaxing a little girl into eating candy.
As if afraid Xiao Yi Xian wouldn't believe him, he even summoned Dou Qi wings and rose into the air.
Powerful Dou Qi gathered behind him into dazzling wings, their brilliant light illuminating the dark hills.
But that sight only caused a misunderstanding.
Xiao Yi Xian's pupils shrank. Fear and despair filled her heart.
She had always carefully suppressed her Woeful Poison Body, afraid it would erupt and lead to irreversible consequences. And now he was telling her to let it erupt?
This was Green Mountain Town. If her Woeful Poison Body erupted, who knew how many innocent people would die!
Xiao Yi Xian's face turned deathly pale, as white as paper. She knew she had apparently met the worst possible fate.
He could form Dou Qi wings, his strength was formidable, his behavior was sneaky, and he was asking her to unleash her Woeful Poison Body!
These thoughts flashed rapidly through Xiao Yi Xian's mind. She was already convinced that Xiao Fan was a villain.
Xiao Yi Xian quickly took out a small knife and pressed it to her snow-white neck.
The knife gleamed coldly in the moonlight. Its sharp blade sliced through her tender skin in an instant.
A few drops of blood welled up, like red plum blossoms in bloom.
"I'll never submit to you!"
Xiao Yi Xian glared at him, fury blazing in her eyes.
"As long as I'm dead, you won't get anything!"
Her voice trembled, but she spoke with determination.
She seemed ready to die.
Xiao Fan furrowed his brow, apparently not expecting things to turn out this way.
But it didn't matter...
He merely glanced at Xiao Yi Xian, and the pressure of his Heaven Realm Soul erupted at once.
Xiao Yi Xian felt as though she were looking at an immensely great being, one far beyond her reach.
That invisible pressure crashed down like Mount Tai, leaving her unable to move. Even breathing became difficult.
Xiao Fan approached her with steady steps. Gently, he took the knife away and lightly wiped the blood from her neck with his fingers.
"Don't get so worked up. I really can cure your Woeful Poison Body."
"In my day, I swept across the ages and saw countless special constitutions. Yours is still rather weak."
Xiao Fan was bragging again, but after seeing him summon Dou Qi wings, she found his words a little more believable.
"I have a method that can absorb other people's poisons and turn them into greater strength. But you'll need to release all the poison inside your body."
His voice was low and rich, the kind that naturally inspired trust.
Xiao Yi Xian's eyes widened. Her voice trembled as she asked,
"Really? You can really cure me?"
"Of course..."
Xiao Fan explained in his smooth, resonant voice.
Xiao Yi Xian listened blankly to the boy, who seemed about her age. At last, she was half-convinced.
[ Ding! Xiao Yi Xian believed your bragging. Reward: 500 Bragging Points! ]
The wariness in her eyes gradually softened.
A tiny spark of hope kindled in Xiao Yi Xian's heart. Maybe he really can save me.
"And this array can keep the poison from spreading outside." As if worried she might have other concerns, Xiao Fan patiently explained again.
His gaze was warm and sincere, dispelling the last of Xiao Yi Xian's doubts.
"Don't worry. The poison won't hurt anyone else."
After an intense struggle within herself, Xiao Yi Xian finally decided to trust him.
She bit her lip, nodded, and said, "All right, I believe you. I hope you won't lie to me."
And so... she began absorbing the poisonous herbs.
These herbs grew in the Poison Miasma Land and contained large amounts of poison. To ordinary people, they were deadly.
But for Xiao Yi Xian, if one ignored the risk of her Woeful Poison Body erupting, they were treasures that could improve her strength.
Each herb gave off an eerie aura. Their colors varied, and so did their shapes.
A pungent odor filled the air around them, making it uncomfortable to breathe.
Xiao Yi Xian kept absorbing them, and her aura continued to rise: Two-Star Dou Zhe, Three-Star Dou Zhe... Four-Star Dou Zhe...
A faint purple haze surrounded her, and the force coursing through her body twisted her expression with pain.
Yet she gritted her teeth and endured, thinking, I have to escape the torment of this Woeful Poison Body!
When the herbs had all been used up, Xiao Yi Xian's aura settled at Six-Star Dou Zhe!
Xiao Fan's eyes twitched at the sight. He was secretly astonished; her cultivation speed was downright terrifying.
He couldn't help muttering, "If Xiao Yanzi found out about this cultivation speed, wouldn't he be furious?"
But just then, with a soft groan, Xiao Yi Xian's black hair gradually turned white, as white as snow.
Purple energy appeared around her uncontrollably, so dense it seemed almost tangible.
The grass on the ground withered the instant it touched the energy, crumbling into ash and vanishing into the air.
"Not bad..."
At the sight, Xiao Fan went straight to Xiao Yi Xian and sat cross-legged facing her, palm pressed against palm.
Heaven-Swallowing Demonic Art—absorb!
The poison Xiao Yi Xian had accumulated over the years, along with the poison from the herbs she had just absorbed, poured into Xiao Fan's body.
The poison surged in like a raging flood, endless and unrelenting.
Absorb... transform!
Xiao Fan's aura continued to grow denser.
He nodded to himself. A few more rounds like this, and he'd be able to break through to Dou Zong with an utterly perfect foundation...