The chaotic Black-Corner Region was a land where violent black storms could erupt without warning, and greedy mercenaries and bandits roamed every corner. But for Liu Xi and his companions, the danger belonged to others now.
They were in no rush to return to the Inner Academy, leisurely traveling through the region's many cities while searching for suitable Dou Techniques and rare medicinal ingredients.
---
Xuan Yin City, Black-Corner Region
Inside a quiet inn room, Xiao Yixian slowly opened her eyes from cultivation. Her grayish-purple pupils glimmered faintly with an emotion that flickered between sorrow and relief.
"It's finally come to this…"
Just moments ago, the gray-black poisonous Dou Qi within her meridians had grown uncontrollably violent. It began to overflow, spreading through her blood and flesh, corroding everything it touched.
And yet—her body didn't reject the invasion. On the contrary, it devoured the encroaching poison hungrily, as though it had found the nourishment it had longed for.
That craving… it grew stronger and stronger, surging like waves within her mind, urging her to consume more—more poison, more venom, until her body was satisfied.
Xiao Yixian understood what this meant. Once that craving was completely fulfilled, even her blood would transform into Woeful Poison Blood—signifying the complete awakening of her Woeful Poison Body. From then on, her touch would mean instant death.
But along with that power would come her doom. The poison saturating her flesh would begin to corrupt her soul, and if left unresolved, she would eventually lose her humanity—becoming a mindless monster that killed everything in its path until she was devoured by her own poison.
"Hungry…"
A faint, instinctive whisper escaped her lips as waves of toxic desire crashed against her mind.
She fumbled through her Storage Ring and hastily retrieved several jade bottles—each filled with deadly poisons, some of her own creation, others looted from Xie Bi Yan. Their potencies varied, but each was lethal enough to kill even a Dou Zong.
Before her consciousness was completely drowned by that poisonous hunger, she sent a hurried Spiritual Transmission to Liu Xi, explaining her situation—then began to refine the toxins, forcing a breakthrough toward Dou Zong.
---
In the neighboring room, Liu Xi was startled awake by her voice. His expression changed drastically. Without hesitation, he jumped from his lotus platform and rushed to Xiao Yixian's quarters.
The moment he pushed open the door, a wave of dense, gray-black poison mist surged out.
Liu Xi quickly flicked his fingers, summoning a wisp of azure flame that wrapped around him like a veil of fire.
He frowned as he surveyed the poisonous haze filling the room. "If this poison spreads unchecked, the entire city will become a dead zone."
With a sweeping motion of both sleeves, torrents of azure flame erupted outward, spreading to the corners of the room. Within moments, he had sealed the poisonous fog inside a burning wall of fire.
The moment the two forces clashed, sharp hissing sounds echoed through the air. The poisonous mist burned into pale white smoke—yet even as it dissipated, his Heavenly Flame dimmed faintly.
"What a terrifying poison… even my Heavenly Flame is being eroded. No wonder she's nearing full mastery of the Woeful Poison Body."
He stayed within the sealed chamber, continuously channeling fresh azure flame into the barrier to replenish its strength.
Drawing up a chair, Liu Xi sat facing Xiao Yixian, his gaze calm yet alert.
"Well, what a surprise. To think she'd attempt to break through to Dou Zong at a time like this…"
The flames in his eyes glowed brighter, allowing his sight to pierce the veil of poison. There she was—still and silent amidst the deadly haze, like a slumbering beauty, her aura swelling by the breath.
Liu Xi could sense her Dou Qi growing and collapsing in cycles, each wave denser than the last. Her aura was rising sharply—and when she awoke, it would surely shake the heavens.
Suddenly, footsteps echoed outside the door.
"Brother! Are you alright? What was that surge of energy just now?" Zi Yan's curious voice called out.
Liu Xi immediately sent back a calm transmission: "I'm fine. Xian'er is breaking through—don't enter. The room is filled with poison mist, and you don't have a Heavenly Flame for protection. Guard the door outside and don't let anyone disturb her."
"Got it!" Zi Yan replied cheerfully, her footsteps fading into the distance as she took her position.
---
Meanwhile, deep within the Black-Corner Region, inside the stronghold of its true overlord—the Demon Flame Valley—the reclusive founder, Old Earth Demon Ghost, a 7-Star Dou Zong, was meditating within a stone chamber.
But that day, an uninvited guest arrived.
A shadowy figure, shrouded in writhing black mist, silently bypassed the valley's guards and entered the chamber.
The meditating old man wore a tattered yellow robe adorned with skeletal patterns. His withered face was pale and thin, skin clinging tightly to bone. When his sunken eyes suddenly opened, ghostly flames flickered within them.
"Who dares disturb this old ancestor's cultivation? Do you have a death wish?"
"Hehehe… and if I do? I'm only afraid you wouldn't dare fulfill it," the black mist figure replied, his tone mocking and strange.
Old Earth Demon Ghost's pupils contracted. "You… you're with them!"
As an ancient monster who'd lived since the same era as Mang Tianchi, he recognized the aura immediately—it belonged to the Hall of Souls.
"You seek me out for what purpose? I've never offended your kind."
The voice within the mist rasped, ignoring his question. "Back then, your peer Mang Tianchi became a Dou Zun. Yet you're still stuck at Dou Zong. Pathetic, isn't it?"
The words sliced deep, and Old Earth Demon Ghost's face darkened. His talent wasn't lacking, or he wouldn't have reached 7-Star Dou Zong—but compared to Mang Tianchi, he fell short. The taunt stung like venom.
"Did you come all this way just to mock me?"
"Of course not." The misty figure chuckled. "I came to offer you a chance… a chance to break through to Dou Zun."
Suspicion clouded Old Earth Demon Ghost's gaze. "You expect me to believe that? You're barely a Dou Zong yourself. What could you possibly give me?"
"I can't," the Hall of Souls Protector admitted, "but my superiors can. They've issued a grand reward. Bring back Xiao Yan, alive—and the prize could be yours."
"Xiao Yan?" Old Earth Demon Ghost frowned. "What level is he, that the Hall of Souls would offer such a bounty?"
"Merely a Da Dou Shi, perhaps a Dou Ling. But he carries within him a fugitive soul our Hall of Souls wants. Deliver him intact, and the reward will be immense."
Old Earth Demon Ghost narrowed his eyes. "If he's so important, why not send your own high elders? Why come to me?"
"The affairs of those above us are not for me to question," the Protector rasped. "But this is our opportunity. And that boy—he's currently in the Jia Nan Inner Academy."
"Jia Nan Inner Academy…" Old Earth Demon Ghost's eyes gleamed coldly. That name—founded by Mang Tianchi—brought back deep resentment and fear.
The voice sneered. "Don't tell me you're still afraid of him. We're not asking you to destroy the academy—just capture a student. Lose this chance, and you'll never touch the Dou Zun realm."
"Hmph. The old man fears no one," Old Earth Demon Ghost growled, though uncertainty flickered beneath his tone. He closed his eyes, calculating the risks.
"Let me think about it…"
The black mist coiled silently, like a venomous serpent waiting for his answer.
(End of Chapter)
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