A Chill in the Air over Qingshan Town, and the Wangs Must Fall

Xiao Yi Xian wanted very much to ask a question.

I'm just a little physician in Qingshan Town. Do I look like someone who would know anything about a Dou Zun expert?

"I know you don't," Lu Yuan said with a chuckle.

"You knew, and you still asked?" Xiao Yi Xian was nearly out of patience, and her teeth itched.

"I was lightening the mood. You're too tense." Lu Yuan smiled breezily and said, "You should know that Qingshan Town is in the Jia Ma Empire, and the Jia Ma Empire barely even registers in the Northwest Continent."

"But even the Northwest Continent is nothing much on the whole Dou Qi Continent. The most powerful factions on the continent are all in the Central Plains. The most renowned among them are One Hall, One Tower, Two Sects, Three Valleys, and Four Pavilions."

"One of the valleys is Ice River Valley. Its valley master, Ice Venerable, is a Dou Zun expert proficient in ice-attribute Dou Qi, but no one knows he also has a Woeful Poison Body."

At those words, Xiao Yi Xian's eyes lit up at once.

According to the senior with a Woeful Poison Body who had written the Poison Scripture, once a Woeful Poison Body reached Dou Zong, it could die at any moment as ten thousand poisons devoured its heart and made its body explode. There was no chance of breaking through to Dou Zun.

But now there was someone with a Woeful Poison Body who had the strength of a Dou Zun. Perhaps there was a solution.

"However," Lu Yuan continued, changing tack, "she only has an Acquired Calamity Poison Body."

"Acquired?" Xiao Yi Xian looked puzzled. "What does that mean?"

"As the name suggests, one possessed from birth is an Inborn Woeful Poison Body, like yours," Lu Yuan explained. "Some people use secret methods to alter their own constitutions to be like a Woeful Poison Body. That's how one is forged after birth."

"There are people like that, and secret methods like that!?" Xiao Yi Xian found it unbelievable.

After learning she had a Woeful Poison Body, she had felt only that her life was bleak and had no future.

Yet now Lu Yuan was telling her that some people deliberately used secret methods to turn their constitutions into Woeful Poison Bodies.

It sounded absurd.

"To neutralize the poison in my body, I've been searching ancient texts and secret formulas."

"I was lucky enough to come across a similar secret method by chance."

Meeting Xiao Yi Xian's disbelieving gaze, Lu Yuan smiled. "As long as I stay in contact with an Innate Calamity Poison Body for long enough, I can obtain an Acquired Calamity Poison Body."

"Theoretically, an Innate Calamity Poison Body can keep growing stronger without bottlenecks as long as its owner eats poison."

"But on the Dou Qi Continent, the higher the grade of a natural treasure, the rarer it is, let alone high-grade poisons."

"Besides, the fate of an Innate Calamity Poison Body, having ten thousand poisons devour its heart, is plain to see. It's a major flaw and limitation."

"With an Acquired Calamity Poison Body, on the other hand, there's no need to worry about the future that awaits someone with an Innate Calamity Poison Body."

"The drawback is that its ability to absorb and convert poison is limited. Both its speed and its upper limit are far inferior."

"But for me, acquired or innate makes no difference, as long as it can neutralize the poison."

Understanding dawned on Xiao Yi Xian. No wonder Lu Yuan had come every day after meeting her.

And he had never done anything else, merely letting her take his pulse for a while.

He had wanted to forge an Acquired Calamity Poison Body to deal with the poison in his body.

So the strange movement she had sensed when taking his pulse just now was Lu Yuan successfully awakening his Acquired Calamity Poison Body, turning the poison from a limitation into a supplement.

"Why are you telling me these secrets?" Xiao Yi Xian was even more puzzled.

Now that Lu Yuan had achieved his goal and knew the flaw in her Woeful Poison Body, he should have kept things brief.

"I told you, it's to repay your kindness." Lu Yuan lied with a perfectly straight face, his words nine parts falsehood and one part truth. "Of course, it's also for myself."

"Thanks to you, I obtained an Acquired Calamity Poison Body and can start cultivating again. That kindness helped me on my path, and I must repay it."

"At the same time, I also want my Woeful Poison Body to grow stronger."

Xiao Yi Xian was exceptionally clever and quickly grasped what he meant. Her heart began to race. "Could it be that you have a way to help me avoid a future where ten thousand poisons devour my heart?"

"Yes." Lu Yuan gave her a definite answer. "This secret method of mine can turn my ordinary constitution into an Acquired Calamity Poison Body, and it can also turn your Innate Calamity Poison Body into an acquired one."

"As long as you stay by my side, both of us will have a bright future."

Lu Yuan was not lying. As long as Xiao Yi Xian was willing, once he could perform an intermediate copy or plunder, he could choose to plunder.

If Xiao Yi Xian lost twenty percent of her constitution's origin, then even if her innate constitution did not become acquired, her rate of growth would surely be affected, and the arrival of the ten thousand poisons devouring her heart would be delayed considerably.

"So, after saying all that, you want me to stay by your side from now on?" Xiao Yi Xian's expression immediately turned strange.

If she had not witnessed the changes in Lu Yuan herself, she would have suspected this was a lecher's ploy to deceive women.

"You can understand it that way." Lu Yuan nodded with complete candor. "But the main reason is to repay your kindness."

"If you want to escape your tragic fate, this is your only chance."

"If you don't believe me, I can prove it before long."

"You can still leave then if you want."

Xiao Yi Xian could feel Lu Yuan's sincerity.

She now knew the truth about this Young Master Lu. If he wanted her, an ordinary woman, he had countless ways to get her and had no need to waste so many words.

"Repaying a kindness, is it?" After a little thought, Xiao Yi Xian broke into a light smile. "Young Master Lu, it seems I have no reason to refuse?"

"Does that mean you're willing to come with me?" Lu Yuan looked straight at Xiao Yi Xian, seeking confirmation once more.

"Yes." Xiao Yi Xian nodded frankly. "I obtained a Seven-Colored Poison Scripture in a cave. It was written by a senior with a Woeful Poison Body, which is how I came to understand this constitution."

"My Woeful Poison Body has already awakened. Every so often, I feel the urge to consume poison, and my cultivation also rises beyond my control."

"If I stay in Qingshan Town, I won't be able to find a solution, so I've been preparing to leave recently."

"Since you might have a way to help me, leaving with you would be a good choice."

Xiao Yi Xian's meaning was simple: she was merely pushing the boat along with the current.

"A wise decision." Lu Yuan rose and nodded slightly. "In that case, don't stay on as a physician at the Myriad Medicine Pavilion. Pack your things and leave with me."

Hearing this, Xiao Yi Xian did not rush to act. Instead, she asked, with a hint of scrutiny and a desire to test him, "You said you wanted to repay my kindness. Shouldn't you do something to prove it first?"

"Of course. How would you like me to prove it?" Lu Yuan agreed readily.

This was Xiao Yi Xian, after all-the Xiao Yi Xian who had cultivated from a Dou Zhe to a Four-Star Dou Zong in six years.

She was willing to follow him, and he also had Qing Lin, who possessed the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils.

Even if he remained a good-for-nothing forever, his future would still be bright.

Xiao Yi Xian did not say it outright. She reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "The Wolf Head Mercenary Group and Mr. Yao of the Myriad Medicine Pavilion both covet what I obtained in the cave."

"Mu Li has wanted me for more than a day or two."

"If I'm going to stay by your side, you'll have to deal with them."

"That's all?" Lu Yuan snapped his folding fan shut in his hand and said evenly, "The weather has turned cold."

Xiao Yi Xian: ?

"It's time the Myriad Medicine Pavilion was bought out."

Xiao Yi Xian: ??

"It's time the Wolf Head Mercenary Group was disbanded."

Xiao Yi Xian: ???