Inside the cultivation chamber, there was no sense of day or night, and no way to know how much time had passed. The Moonlight Stones set into the walls cast soft white radiance over the two naked bodies entwined together.
"Mmm~"
Xiao Yi Xian, sprawled over Xiao Yan's chest, struggled to open her heavy eyelids. She braced herself with both hands to rise, only for someone's large hand to hook around her and pull her back down.
"Ah! What are you doing? It's already midday outside!" Though the cultivation chamber offered no view of the outside, Xiao Yi Xian could still sense the passage of time beyond it.
"Mmm... I want to sleep a little longer."
"Then sleep. Let me get up first!"
"Stay with me."
"Oh, honestly." Xiao Yi Xian tried to struggle again, but she seemed to have forgotten their current state. One careless movement stirred Xiao Yan's reaction once more.
With a turn, she was held beneath him.
"Ah!"
The pleasures of this moment were not for outsiders to know...
It was nearly sunset by the time Xiao Yan finally emerged from the cultivation chamber, which had been sealed for days.
After giving himself a satisfying stretch, Xiao Yan turned to look at the girl behind him.
Thanks to someone's beastly conduct, Xiao Yi Xian found it somewhat inconvenient to move. Leaning against the doorway, she shot Xiao Yan an indignant glare.
Xiao Yan grinned, feeling rather pleased with his own prowess.
Speaking of strength, refining the Green Lotus Core Flame had brought Xiao Yan tremendous progress. Not only had his cultivation risen from a Seven-Star Great Dou Master to the peak of a Nine-Star Great Dou Master, but the Flame Mantra had also evolved to the Half-Step Earth Tier. Though it was only Half-Step Earth Tier, the density of his Dou Qi, freshly tempered by Heavenly Flames, was comparable even to the Dou Qi cultivated through a Mid Earth-tier technique.
As for why the Green Lotus Core Flame had only raised Xiao Yan's cultivation by two stars, it was because he had deliberately limited his absorption of its Heavenly Flame energy to prevent his cultivation from advancing too quickly. The excess had not gone to waste; all of it had been stored within the seal that had previously contained the Volcanic Rock Flame. Gu Yuan had originally estimated that Xiao Yan would refine the Volcanic Rock Flame within five years, so there were roughly two and a half years remaining.
The reason for restricting himself was mainly to avoid problems with controlling his strength and maintaining his state of mind. Especially the latter—control could be developed after one advanced, but deficiencies in one's state of mind could only be endured and tempered at the current realm.
As for what use one's state of mind truly had, even Xiao Yan could not explain it clearly. But it never hurt to be cautious. More accumulation meant more insight, and perhaps it would yield unexpected benefits in the future.
In any case, based on energy level alone, Xiao Yan's current strength was enough to rival a four- or five-star Dou Ling. Add the Dou Techniques he cultivated and the fused Volcanic Azure Lotus Flame, which could rival the Heavenly Flames ranked around eleventh or twelfth on the Heavenly Flame Ranking, and even a Dou Wang would be worth challenging!
If he encountered Hai Bodong now, it would be hard to say who would win and who would lose!
Speaking of Hai Bodong, now that he had found and refined the Green Lotus Core Flame, perhaps it was time to seek him out.
"What are you thinking about?" As Xiao Yan considered how to meet Hai Bodong, Xiao Yi Xian overcame the ** issue and walked over as normally as ever. Seeing Xiao Yan standing there without moving, she asked curiously.
"Nothing. I was just thinking about Hai Lao." Xiao Yan walked over and naturally drew Xiao Yi Xian into his arms. Young people who had only just tasted the forbidden fruit always seemed tireless in holding each other.
"Hai Lao? Indeed, now that we have obtained the Green Lotus Core Flame, we should fulfill our original agreement. But..." Xiao Yi Xian naturally nestled against Xiao Yan's chest, breathing in his masculine scent as she spoke worriedly.
"But we don't have Sand Mandrake, and we can't refine a Sixth-Grade Pill." Xiao Yan voiced what Xiao Yi Xian had left unsaid.
Xiao Yan was still only a Da Dou Shi. Even with the aid of Heavenly Flames, even if he pushed his alchemy to the limit, he could at most refine Fifth-Grade Pills. There remained an unbridgeable gulf between him and Sixth-Grade Pills. Even if Xiao Yan immediately improved both his cultivation and alchemy, Sand Mandrake was still unresolved. Was he supposed to rush into the Snake-People Clan's lair now? He had no desire to throw his life away.
"It's not as though there's absolutely no solution."
"You have a solution?!" Xiao Yi Xian asked in surprise. "What is it?"
Xiao Yan raised his right hand, and a blue-red flame shaped like a lotus appeared above it. Xiao Yi Xian felt only warmth from it, but she knew that was the result of Xiao Yan's control. In truth, this was a powerful flame that not even a Dou Zong could take lightly!
"This is the Volcanic Azure Lotus Flame, created from fusing the Green Lotus Core Flame and the Volcanic Rock Flame. What Hai Lao truly wants is to restore his cultivation to its peak. If I use Heavenly Flames to burn away the Serpent Sealing Curse that suppresses his cultivation, that will naturally fulfill his requirements. The Calamity-Breaking Pill isn't actually essential."
Though that was true, both Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian knew it would not be so simple. Back then, Xiao Yan had pretended to have a major force backing him in order to make Hai Bodong believe they could produce a Calamity-Breaking Pill. That was also the greatest guarantee that Hai Bodong would not turn hostile after the deal was completed!
No matter how good Hai Bodong and Xiao Yan's relationship might become in the original story, that had nothing to do with the present. They could not neglect the necessary precautions.
Unfortunately, Xiao Yan did not know how to refine the pill that could revert someone's body to childhood, and if they resolved the matter with Heavenly Flames, there was no reason to make someone swallow a pill anyway.
"What do you plan to do? How about setting Hai Lao's matter aside for now? You could fulfill the agreement after reaching Dou Wang—or even Dou Emperor. With your current cultivation speed, even reaching Dou Emperor would not take ten years." Xiao Yi Xian suggested. Though this approach was somewhat immoral, it had to be admitted that it was indeed a solution.
"No. I plan to help Hai Lao solve this problem in a few days," Xiao Yan said.
"You trust this man that much?" Xiao Yi Xian's body tensed as she asked nervously.
Xiao Yan stroked Xiao Yi Xian's soft hair and reassured her, "Don't worry. Since I dare to do this, I naturally am not afraid of him turning hostile."
Hearing Xiao Yan say that, Xiao Yi Xian remained somewhat worried, but she did not continue objecting.
"Fine, then. But I'm going with you when the time comes." Xiao Yi Xian's gaze was firm, her tone allowing no room for negotiation.
"Uh..." Xiao Yan rubbed his nose and looked at Xiao Yi Xian with some embarrassment. "If he turns hostile after recovering his Dou Emperor strength, I might only have the ability to escape alone, so..."
Xiao Yi Xian said nothing. She simply stared directly at Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan had intended to argue further, but he surrendered before long. "All right, you'll come with me. But let's make this clear first: you must stay close to me and absolutely cannot run around recklessly, understand?"
"Of course."
Over the next few days, Xiao Yan continued cultivating in seclusion, mainly to familiarize himself with control over his new Heavenly Flame. After all, he would be helping Hai Bodong burn away the seal. If his control was inadequate and he accidentally damaged Hai Bodong's meridians, that would be troublesome.
Inside the pitch-black giant cauldron, blue-red flames blazed fiercely while dozens of colorful medicinal liquids danced within them.
"Condense!"
The heat inside the Black Demon Cauldron gradually reached maturity. Xiao Yan let out a sharp shout, and the dozens of medicinal liquids condensed into several clusters within the cauldron as the blue-red flames suddenly surged.
Before long, a medicinal fragrance spread from within the cauldron.
"Rise!"
The cauldron lid flew open, and five white pills shot out, dropping into the jade bottle Xiao Yan had prepared in advance.
"Mm, not bad. Smooth color, rich fragrance." Xiao Yan inspected the pills he had refined and nodded in satisfaction.
The pills he had refined this time were improved Fourth-Grade Qi-Recovery Pills. As Xiao Yan's strength increased, the original Third-Rank Qi-Recovery Pills were not unusable, but they truly had shortcomings in emergencies: they restored Qi too slowly. So Xiao Yan had improved the prescription himself. This kind of pill was relatively easy to refine among those of its grade, so Xiao Yan succeeded after only a few attempts.
Even so, this meant Xiao Yan had thoroughly entered the realm of Fourth-Grade Pills.
Furthermore, successfully using the Volcanic Azure Lotus Flame to refine Qi-Recovery Pills proved that Xiao Yan's control over Heavenly Flames had reached an extremely profound level.
"It's time to fulfill my agreement with Hai Lao," Xiao Yan murmured.
After putting away the jade bottles on the floor, the remaining herbs, and the Black Demon Cauldron, Xiao Yan left the alchemy room.
After greeting his two older brothers, Xiao Ding and Xiao Li, Xiao Yan took Xiao Yi Xian and flew west toward Mo City.
On the distant horizon, a golden sunrise was slowly rising. The warm sunlight drove away the desert night's chill and brought the vitality of a new day. The heavy city gates slowly opened, and mercenaries and merchants who had rested through the night streamed out in a disorderly yet orderly fashion.
On the other side, the unlucky people who had failed to enter the city before the gates closed yesterday crawled one after another from the sand dunes outside, making their scattered way toward the city gates.
Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian were also among those unlucky people who had not entered the city yesterday, because Xiao Yan had only arrived outside Mo City late at night.
However, they had no need to bury themselves in the sand like everyone else. It was not because their clothes were thicker, but because Xiao Yan carried Heavenly Flames and was not afraid of the cold at all. As for Xiao Yi Xian? Couldn't she just hide in Xiao Yan's arms? So declared a certain man surnamed Xiao.
"Are you really going to fulfill the agreement with Hai Bodong now?" On a sand dune outside the city gates, Xiao Yi Xian asked Xiao Yan one last time. Once they entered Mo City, there would be no chance to regret it.
"Of course. A man cannot stand without trust. Since we promised him, we must do it. Besides, I cannot give up the remaining half of the fragmentary map in Hai Lao's possession." Xiao Yan smiled beside her. "And I've spent the past few days properly familiarizing myself with the Green Lotus Core Flame. Even if he turns hostile after recovering his strength, he'll only be a Dou Emperor. I can still take you away."
Seeing the confidence in Xiao Yan's eyes, Xiao Yi Xian thought of the trump cards he had shown her on the journey here, and she felt much more reassured. Though using those trump cards came at a great price, it was not beyond what they could bear.
"All right, let's go." Xiao Yan patted Xiao Yi Xian's shoulder and was the first to enter Mo City through its gates.
After entering the city, Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian followed their memories toward the city center. Before long, the signboard reading "Ancient Map" appeared before them.
Perhaps because the sun had only just risen and it was still early, Ancient Map's doors had not yet opened. Of course, it was also possible that Hai Bodong had found hope of lifting the seal and had become too lazy to open for business.
But Xiao Yan was not about to wait stupidly outside for Hai Bodong to wake up and open the door. He directly used a strand of Heavenly Flame to melt the hard lock made of special materials, then gently pushed the door open a crack and slipped inside with Xiao Yi Xian.
Xiao Yan had just casually closed the door when Hai Bodong's voice abruptly rang out, carrying a barely detectable hint of delight. "I didn't expect you two to return so quickly."
Xiao Yan turned around. On the counter that had been empty moments ago, Hai Bodong—aged in appearance and neatly dressed—was sitting there without anyone knowing when he had appeared.
"What? Does Hai Lao think we should have come later?"
"That isn't necessary. But it has only been around ten days since you left. I'm very curious how you obtained Sand Mandrake and refined the Calamity-Breaking Pill in such a short time. By rights, that amount of time would barely be enough even to find Heavenly Flames. Don't tell me you never went looking?" Hai Bodong asked warily. In his view, if they had truly found Heavenly Flames and refined the Calamity-Breaking Pill in such a short time, then the force behind them was far greater than he had imagined, and he could not afford to be careless.
"Well, we did find the Heavenly Flames, but we didn't find Sand Mandrake."
Boom!
Terrifying cold air instantly erupted from Hai Bodong, swiftly freezing the door behind Xiao Yan.
"My young friend, I forgot to tell you that after you left, I spent some effort reinforcing this shop. I dare not boast too much, but anyone below Dou Wang absolutely cannot escape from it." Hai Bodong's icy voice echoed through the shop. A chilling light appeared in his eyes as he looked at Xiao Yan. "My young friend, you did not come here today to toy with this old man, did you?"
The vast amount of cold air caused the temperature inside the shop to plummet. Xiao Yi Xian could not help sneezing. Ignoring Hai Bodong's murderous gaze, Xiao Yan pulled Xiao Yi Xian into his arms. Heavenly Flames circulated through his meridians, dispersing the chill around them.
Hai Bodong's eyes narrowed. Though it was only a trace, the aura Xiao Yan displayed was clearly much stronger than when they had last met, so much so that Hai Bodong vaguely felt unable to suppress him.
"Don't get so worked up, Hai Lao. Since I came today, I naturally have a way to resolve the seal in your body. That is why I came to ask you for the remaining fragmentary map."
Upon hearing that Xiao Yan had a way to lift the seal, Hai Bodong, who had just been so imposing, immediately changed his expression.
"Oh? Hahaha, so that's how it is. Why didn't you say so earlier? This old man misunderstood. You came at just the right time, little brother. I was just about to have breakfast. Judging by when you arrived, you probably haven't had breakfast yet either. How about joining me?"
"No need. We've cultivated for many years, so breakfast is not important. Let's discuss business first," Xiao Yan said with a smile. He showed no displeasure over Hai Bodong nearly turning hostile, because he would most likely have done the same in Hai Bodong's place.
"I see. My young friend truly acts with decisiveness." Hai Bodong laughed. "May I ask what method you mean for lifting the seal?"
Whoosh!
A powerful blue-red flame was summoned from Xiao Yan's body. The endless heat rapidly swept away the cold air Hai Bodong had just released, leaving only faint traces of moisture dampening the maps on the shelves.
"Could this be... a Heavenly Flame?"
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