Looking at the tightly shut stone door, Medusa sighed softly. She tucked the loose strands of hair hanging over her forehead behind her ear and murmured, "I hope everything goes smoothly for you."
Glancing at the Storage Ring on her slender jade finger, Medusa quickly regained her cold, imposing demeanor. She turned and headed toward the Holy City's council hall.
She had been away from the Snake-People Tribe for several months, and the tribe's affairs had long piled up like mountains. She had to deal with them as soon as possible.
Once she had finished handling everything, she also needed to enter seclusion and make a breakthrough quickly.
After Qin Chen's careful care and feeding over this period, she was already on the verge of reaching Two-Star Dou Zong.
Inside the cultivation chamber, Qin Chen sat cross-legged atop the Green Lotus Seat. Looking at the Earth Core Pearl in his palm, he still felt somewhat reluctant to part with it.
"Forget it. They're all resources anyway. What's there to hesitate over? Once I become strong enough, I won't have to worry about finding good things."
"Two months should be enough for me to advance to Dou Emperor."
Qin Chen took a deep breath and slowly closed his eyes. Then, his hands formed several strange seals as he swiftly entered a cultivation state.
If he relied solely on absorbing the surrounding natural energy to advance to Dou Emperor, Qin Chen conservatively estimated that it would take at least a year.
However, less than a year remained before the Three-Year Agreement began, not to mention that he still needed to head to the Imperial Capital in advance to make preparations.
Gu Xun'er Receives News
As his mind sank into cultivation, waves of pure, vast energy continuously surged from the Earth Core Pearl and frantically gathered within Qin Chen's body.
Qin Chen changed his hand seals, and his soul power spread outward like a tide. He guided the Green Lotus Core Flame to temper and compress the energy entering his body before finally refining it through his cultivation technique.
Time passed second by second, while the aura Qin Chen emitted rose at an astonishing rate.
The Northwestern Continent was vast, with countless nations and tribes rooted within it. The Jia Ma Empire was merely one of them.
However, if one traveled east from the Jia Ma Empire, then farther east, and farther east still, one would witness an entirely different sight.
There was no order here, no restraint. There was only the law of the jungle, where the strong preyed upon the weak, and endless plunder.
The Black-Corner Region was a chaotic land filled with slaughter, violence, and bloodshed. Due to its unique location, countless desperadoes gathered in this region.
Here, human lives were as worthless as grass. Strength was the only pass. Even a Dou Wang expert could meet a miserable end if he was the slightest bit careless.
Over countless years, the Black-Corner Region had swallowed an unknown number of renowned figures. Even if one had already secured a place in this region, one still had to face the covetous eyes and challenges of every faction.
Yet nothing was absolute. When things reached an extreme, they turned around. At the heart of this chaotic region stood a colossal presence entirely different from the surrounding disorder—Jia Nan Academy.
Even the most unruly desperadoes did not dare cause trouble within the academy's territory.
Within the ancient academy, atop a lush green mountain peak, a young woman in a cyan dress stood gracefully.
Her figure was slender and graceful, while her long black hair cascaded to her waist like a waterfall. As the breeze swept past, her robes fluttered lightly, making her resemble a green lotus standing alone beyond the world.
Clouds and mist coiled around the mountain peak. From afar, the young woman looked like a celestial maiden descended into the mortal realm, mysterious and noble.
"Come out."
The young woman's cool voice rang like jade striking jade, ethereal and crisp.
As her words fell, the large tree behind her twisted slightly. A green figure slowly emerged from its trunk, then dropped to one knee. "Miss!"
If Qin Chen had been here, he would have recognized the young woman's identity. Though he had never met her, her unique bearing and demeanor belonged to only one person in all of Jia Nan Academy.
The eldest daughter of the Gu Clan and Gu Yuan's precious daughter—Gu Xun'er.
Gu Xun'er slowly turned around, and a gentle smile appeared on her previously indifferent face. "Tell me, what news has Elder Ling brought this time?"
"Master Ling has investigated the identity of the mysterious expert's soul within Young Master Xiao Yan. He is the Tier 8 Alchemist renowned across the continent, Yao Chen, Venerable Yao."
"Venerable Yao was harmed by Soul Hall back then. No one knows why he appeared beside Young Master Xiao Yan, but Young Master Xiao Yan has already taken Venerable Yao as his master."
"Their relationship as master and disciple is as close as father and son. To help Young Master Xiao Yan, Venerable Yao has paid no small price."
The green figure understood his young mistress's feelings very well, and he also knew how to report things "cleanly and efficiently."
"Venerable Yao?" Gu Xun'er's delicate brows furrowed slightly.
She had heard of Venerable Yao's name, not only because he was hailed as the continent's greatest alchemist, but more importantly, because he was a member of the Yao Clan.
Gu Xun'er lowered her gaze in thought. A moment later, a warm smile appeared on her face. "As expected of Brother Xiao Yan. He actually managed to take Venerable Yao as his teacher. With such an expert guiding him, Brother Xiao Yan's future achievements will surely be limitless."
"..."
The green figure's heart twitched slightly. This Xiao Yan truly made people both envious and jealous. He would always hold a special place in his young mistress's heart.
However, if he learned the truth, he would likely be unable to contain his fury and slap that brat who had secretly sneaked into a girl's room to death.
After laughing bitterly to himself, the green figure spoke again. "Miss, Master Ling discovered traces of those people in the Jia Ma Empire."
"You mean Soul Hall?"
Gu Xun'er's expression first darkened, then her beautiful eyes widened. "Could it be that Brother Xiao Yan has caught their attention?"
"Miss, this is what happened..."
The green figure then explained every piece of information Ling Ying had sent in detail, including Xiao Yan's acquaintance with Qin Chen, their transaction, and finally their agreement to head to the Misty Cloud Sect together.
"Qin Chen, the Misty Cloud Sect, Soul Hall Protectors..." Gu Xun'er's brows knitted tightly after hearing everything.
She looked at the figure not far away and asked calmly, "Have you investigated Qin Chen? Do you think what he said is true?"
She had heard of this person's name shortly after arriving at the Outer Academy, but she had not paid much attention to him at the time.
He was merely a seventeen-year-old Dou Wang. Within her clan, there were plenty of Dou Wangs younger than him. He simply was not worth her notice.
In Gu Xun'er's eyes, no one in all of Jia Nan Academy, or even among those of her generation in the clan, could compare to her Brother Xiao Yan.
"Yes. Qin Chen is praised as Jia Nan Academy's greatest genius. At only seventeen, he cultivated to the Dou Wang realm. He is deeply trusted by the Inner Academy's elders and took leave from the academy roughly half a year ago."
"And there is indeed a Dou Zong-level combatant beside him. He also matches the information we obtained from the academy. Based on this, it is highly likely that he was telling the truth," the green figure said with certainty.
Gu Xun'er's brows remained furrowed. For now, this person seemed to be a friend rather than an enemy, but...
Who could guarantee that Qin Chen's intelligence was completely reliable? Who could say that there were no other members of Soul Hall inside the Misty Cloud Sect?
The Three-Year Agreement was of utmost importance to both Xiao Yan and her, the eldest daughter of the Gu Clan.
Xiao Yan had to go, and he had to win!
Otherwise, not only would the Xiao Clan lose all face, but her hopes of being together with Brother Xiao Yan would become even slimmer.
In truth, Gu Xun'er was overthinking it. With Soul Hall's nature, how could Protector Wu possibly share such immense fortune with anyone else?
"Brother Xiao Yan, this has truly been hard on you..."
Gu Xun'er let out a long sigh, then waved toward the green figure kneeling on one knee. "Leave first. If those old men discover you, it may bring unnecessary trouble."
"Remember, you absolutely cannot let Brother Xiao Yan learn of this. He does not like others monitoring him," Gu Xun'er added in a calm reminder.
"Yes!" The green figure respectfully bowed, then flashed away and swiftly vanished into the nearby trees.
Watching the mountain peak become empty once more, Gu Xun'er slowly turned around. She gazed in the direction of the Jia Ma Empire, her usually clear eyes filled with killing intent.
"Soul Hall... Whether you wish to collect souls or search for the Tou She Ancient God Jade, do not let him suffer any harm."
"If Brother Xiao Yan is harmed because of this, no matter what, I will make you pay a terrible price!"
As she spoke those final words, mottled golden light flashed in Gu Xun'er's eyes, while a blazing aura quietly spread from her body.
Under the shroud of that aura, the green vegetation atop the mountain rapidly turned scorched yellow at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Successful Advancement
In the Chu Yun Empire, atop a desolate mountain peak rarely visited by people.
A young woman dressed in white sat cross-legged. Though she appeared delicate and frail, the powerful aura radiating from her made it clear that she was a genuine Dou Wang expert.
She was none other than Xiao Yi Xian, who had parted ways with Qin Chen.
At this moment, Xiao Yi Xian's beautiful face was full of nervousness as she stared without blinking at the medicinal cauldron before her.
She swallowed and extended a trembling arm.
With a light wave of her jade hand, a smooth, round bead the size of a longan slowly floated out of the medicinal cauldron and hovered before her.
Xiao Yi Xian brought the pill beneath her nose and sniffed it lightly. To her delighted surprise, it no longer emitted the pungent fishy stench of the Poison Pills she had refined in the past. Instead, it carried faint wisps of fragrance.
Overjoyed, Xiao Yi Xian hurriedly took out a prepared jade bottle and placed the pill inside, lest it be contaminated by poison. Finally, she gripped the jade bottle tightly in her hand.
"Qin Chen, it seems you did not lie to me. Even as a poison master, I can still save people by refining pills."
By the end, Xiao Yi Xian's delicate nose had gradually turned sore, and crystal-clear tears silently rolled down her cheeks.
This pill had been refined by Xiao Yi Xian according to the method Qin Chen provided.
During the refining process, Xiao Yi Xian had not used her own Dou Qi. Instead, she relied on soul power along with the natural energy scattered throughout her surroundings to complete the pill refinement.
Xiao Yi Xian possessed the Woeful Poison Body, and her Dou Qi contained extremely terrifying poison.
It was precisely because of these toxins that no matter how she refined pills, they would ultimately become tainted with deadly poison.
As everyone knew, the necessary requirements for successfully refining pills were materials, a flame source, and soul perception.
As long as one met these three requirements, even if one did not possess fire and wood attributes, most people could still refine pills, though only low-tier ones...
Being unable to become an alchemist did not mean one could not refine pills.
Therefore, as long as the problem of Poison Dou Qi was solved, Xiao Yi Xian would also have a chance to refine low-tier pills.
This was why Qin Chen had said that she could only attempt it after reaching Dou Wang.
The scroll he had given Xiao Yi Xian did not record ordinary alchemy techniques, but a special "method" he had improved.
(For example, asking a blind person to independently solve a Rubik's Cube would be nearly impossible. But if an expert guided them step by step, the blind person could ultimately solve it as well.)
Day after day quietly passed, and half a month had already gone by since Qin Chen entered seclusion.
One day, within the Tagore Desert, endless fire-attributed energy surged violently and rapidly gathered toward the secret chamber where Qin Chen was located.
As the energy gathered, the air around the secret chamber began to distort, while scorching waves of heat rolled like something tangible.
In the end, an enormous energy vortex several zhang wide formed in the air above the secret chamber.
Such a magnificent scene naturally alarmed the Snake-People in the Holy City, but because Queen Medusa had issued orders beforehand, no one dared approach to investigate.
The vortex continued spinning as energy continued gathering. The two repeated in an endless cycle, while vast amounts of energy constantly poured into Qin Chen's body.
"What a restless fellow..." Medusa lounged lazily against her throne, her slender fingers playing with the strands of hair hanging over her forehead.
Before you continue