"Hiss!"
On Misty Cloud Mountain, atop the Misty Cloud Sect, Yun Yun sucked in a sharp breath of cold air.
She rubbed her eyes hard to make sure she wasn't hallucinating.
"Our Jia Ma Empire is… this blessed?" Yun Yun felt reality had become utterly fantastical.
The Northwestern Continent was enormous. The Jia Ma Empire was just one among several empires in the southwest corner—not even a particularly prominent one.
Even when compared to its neighboring empires, it was slightly weaker. The Luo Yan Empire and Chu Yun Empire both had Dou Ancestors sitting in town, and though the Mulan Empire had no Dou Ancestors, its three Mulan Elders could join forces to match one.
Yet Xiao Ting had wrote that the Jia Ma Empire had cultivators with top-tier talents like the Woeful Poison Body and the Jade Snake Three Flower Pupils.
Though the Woeful Poison Body came with misfortune, and the Three-Flower Pupils belonged to a human-snake hybrid…
"The Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python should be Queen Medusa," Yun Yun quickly calmed down from her shock and began to think.
Queen Medusa's companion beast was the Quiet Purple Flame Serpent. Yun Yun vaguely remembered Yun Shan mentioning that such a beast, if given sufficient opportunity, could awaken its ancestral bloodline and evolve into an ancient magical beast—the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python.
"As for who has the Woeful Poison Body and the Three-Flower Pupils… could it be Little Fairy Doctor and Qing Lin?" Yun Yun's heart stirred with a guess.
If Little Fairy Doctor possessed the Woeful Poison Body and had a deep connection with the "Child of Fate," then she would be a walking embodiment of "a regret that won't heal."
And just from the name alone, Qing Lin sounded connected to the Snake-People, making her highly likely to be the half-blood with the Jade Snake Three Flower Pupils.
"Should I try to find them ahead of time?" Yun Yun couldn't help feeling tempted.
As far as she knew, while those with the Woeful Poison Body seldom met a good end, they could reach the Dou Ancestor realm in astonishingly little time.
If the Misty Cloud Sect had a Dou Ancestor powerhouse sitting in town, even for just a few years, the benefits would be immense.
The Woeful Poison Body was a born poison master—perfect for dealing with the Chu Yun Empire. A living strategic weapon.
As for the Three-Flower Pupils, its cultivation potential was no less than the Woeful Poison Body—with no "calamity" drawback attached.
"I could have someone quietly search," Yun Yun decided this matter couldn't be done openly.
If Xiao Ting noticed and deduced that she had an Observation Copy, the loss would far outweigh the gain.
…
"Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python…"
Queen Medusa smiled confidently. That was definitely referring to her.
She'd always known she could succeed—using a Heavenly Flame to complete her evolution.
Now that she had obtained the remnant soul and broken demon core of a Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python, this was even more certain.
She wasn't too concerned about this, though. What interested her more was the owner of the Jade Snake Three Flower Pupils.
Everyone knew this rare talent appeared only in children born of a union between Snake-People and humans.
She had once explicitly forbidden the male Snake-People from abducting human women, and had slaughtered plenty of humans to warn them not to prey on the serpent-women. But such things never truly disappeared.
"The one who has this talent should be this 'Qing Lin'." A thought arose in Medusa's mind—to abduct her directly.
The Jade Snake Three Flower Pupils were the natural nemesis of serpent-type magical beasts. With such an eye art, Qing Lin's own future was bright, and she could also enslave innumerable serpent-type beasts.
For the Snake-People to grow, they not only needed a powerful leader, they also needed a constant supply of high-tier serpent-type magical beast souls for their descendants' companion beasts.
The Three-Flower Pupils were, to the Snake-People, a strategic-level asset.
"Looks like I'll have to put some effort into finding her."
Queen Medusa resumed her journey, silently ranking the search for the Three-Flower Pupils and for "Qing Lin" as a top priority.
After all, Qing Lin was the most likely candidate to possess that talent.
…
"Jade Snake Three Flower Pupils?"
In the Tager Desert, within the Manly Steel Mercenary in Rock Desert City—
Qing Lin paused from sweeping the courtyard, her eyes rippling with light. She had a strong hunch that Xiao Ting was talking about her.
But she quickly gave herself a bitter little smile. "Someone like me couldn't possibly have talent that Young Master Xiao Ting would recognize…"
Qing Lin knew nothing about the Jade Snake Three Flower Pupils, so she completely missed the correct answer.
All she could think was: when would Xiao Ting come find her?
If he could take her away from this bitter life…
"Even if I had to be your personal maid for life… I'd be willing."
…
"Just what does this Jia Ma Empire have!?"
Back in the Wind Lightning Pavilion, Feng Qing Er was stunned for a long moment before coming back to her senses.
She didn't think much of the Woeful Poison Body. Her clan had detailed records: its potential capped at the Dou Venerate realm at best. Though it could grow stronger just by consuming poison, the faster it grew, the faster it died—eventually becoming a beast enslaved by the desire for toxins.
But the Jade Snake Three Flower Pupils were different. It was suspected to be related to the ancient Ancient Heaven Serpent and closely tied to the Nine Nether Earth Python—born the master of all serpent-type magical beasts, with essentially no natural cultivation cap. Or rather, the strongest serpent-type magical beast it could control determined its upper limit.
The odds of reaching the Saint realm were very high.
And the Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python—while inferior to the Nine-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python, which could rival the Ancient Void Dragon and the ancient Heavenly Phoenix, was still roughly on par with the current Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan.
"I have to find a proper excuse to go have a look for myself."
Jade Snake Three Flower Pupils, Seven-Colored Heaven-Swallowing Python, Woeful Poison Body, the descendant of the fallen Xiao Clan, and the drifting Yao Lao in that backwater empire—there was definitely something going on there.
…
Cao Ying had similar thoughts. She, too, was pondering what reason she could use to go to the Jia Ma Empire without arousing Xiao Ting's suspicions.
"This Journal copy is so mean. Why can't it let us tell people what we know? At least let us tell Xiao Ting," she pouted.
…
Inside Jade Flower Hall on West Street in Wu Tan City, Little Fairy Doctor suddenly sprang to her feet, the expression on her pretty face changing rapidly.
The instant she saw the words "Woeful Poison Body," she knew they were talking about her.
She'd always been close to poisons, and sometimes released toxic energy unconsciously. That perfectly matched the word "Poison Body."
As for "Woeful"… that was just as fitting.
"Sister Little Fairy Doctor." Xun Er looked at her rapidly paling face and immediately guessed what was happening. She couldn't help feeling a surge of pity.
"Xun Er, how much do you know about the Woeful Poison Body?" Little Fairy Doctor raised her head, looking at Xun Er with eyes full of desperate hope.
"This…" Xun Er hesitated.
If she told Little Fairy Doctor the truth, the girl might not be able to handle it.
"Tell me. Please." Little Fairy Doctor stepped forward and grasped Xun Er's hand. Her voice trembled, her eyes filled with steely determination mixed with pleading.
"The Woeful Poison Body…" After a brief pause, Xun Er began to explain.
With every word, the blood drained further from Little Fairy Doctor's face.
She muttered under her breath, "A regret that won't heal… So that's the kind of regret it is."
"In the story, I probably had a cooperative relationship with the alchemist Xiao Yan because of my Woeful Poison Body… but in the end, I still died from it, right?"
Hearing this, Xun Er hurried to comfort her. "Sister Little Fairy Doctor, that's only your conjecture. It doesn't have to be the 'original' trajectory's fixed ending."
"Besides, we have Brother Xiao Ting now, and we have our own opportunities."
"The future can definitely be changed!"
These words were like a drowning person grabbing hold of a lifeline. Light flared anew in Little Fairy Doctor's eyes. "Xun Er, you must help me."
"Tomorrow, I have to meet Xiao Ting."
If she really was destined to end her life in tragedy—
Then perhaps it would be better to settle things sooner, and suffer less along the way.
Xun Er: "…"
Brother Xiao Ting, look what you've done to poor Little Fairy Doctor…
…