Chapter 66: Post-War Epiphany

Hai Bodong laughed. "You revealed your Different Fire, which is why you've earned the chance to bargain with me. Otherwise, I'd sooner take this secret to my grave."

"You want me to help break your seal?" Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes.

"Years ago, I obtained a medicinal formula to dispel seals. Only a Sixth Grade Alchemist possessing a Different Fire can refine it." Hai Bodong glanced at the Second Grade Alchemist badge on Xiao Yan's chest. "Though you're only Second Grade now, given your… peculiarities, I doubt it'll take more than a few years for you to reach Sixth Grade."

Rumor had it that Dan Wang Gu He became a First Grade Alchemist at nineteen. Compared to Xiao Yan's talent, the so-called top alchemist of the Jia Ma Empire paled in comparison.

Xiao Yan chuckled awkwardly. "You overestimate me. Aren't you afraid I'll take your information and vanish?"

"Because I also know the location of another Different Fire," Hai Bodong replied with a sly grin. "With my guidance, you'll find it swiftly in the Tagore Desert."

Different Fires were lethally irresistible to alchemists.

Yao Lao snorted inwardly. This 'Ice Emperor' clearly knows little about alchemists. Normally, one Different Fire is the limit for any practitioner.

Instead of addressing this, Xiao Yan said, "You should seek Dan Wang Gu He. If he obtained a Different Fire, he'd owe you a massive favor. Refining a Sixth Grade pill would be trivial for him."

"Impossible." Hai Bodong shook his head. "My ingredients aren't fully gathered. Even if Gu He acquired a Different Fire, he couldn't refine the pill immediately. Some materials are rare even for him."

There was another reason: Dan Wang Gu He was essentially under the Yunlan Sect's patronage. Him gaining a Different Fire would harm the Miter family's interests.

Hai Bodong's voice hardened. "If you refine my pill, I'll not only disclose the Different Fire's location but also owe you a personal favor—Ice Emperor Hai Bodong's favor."

Yao Lao interjected decisively, "Agree! I once visited the Tagore Desert. A Different Fire does reside there. A lead on one, plus a Dou Huang's favor? We profit either way."

"Fine, I'll try," Xiao Yan sighed. "How do we meet again? Here?"

If he recalled correctly, the Green Lotus Core Flame lay southeast of Stone Desert City.

Hai Bodong surveyed the wrecked shop. "Once ready, seek me at the Miter Auction House. Anywhere in the Jia Ma Empire, I'll arrive within three days."

"You want me to contact you? Quite confident, Elder Hai." Xiao Yan smirked.

"I've spent years gathering the formula's ingredients. I've earned that confidence," Hai Bodong retorted.

After pocketing a map of the Tagore Desert, Xiao Yan and Little Fairy Doctor left the debris-strewn shop.

Watching their departing figures, Hai Bodong lingered silently before exiting.

Hiring a large camel-drawn carriage, Xiao Yan and Little Fairy Doctor headed straight for Stone Desert City. The spacious desert vehicle functioned as a mobile room, allowing undisturbed cultivation.

Exhausted from the battle, Xiao Yan began meditating as soon as the carriage moved.

Though his Primordial Flame God technique had ultimately overpowered Hai Bodong's ice-aligned Dou Qi, the three-second duration revealed critical flaws. The harsh desert environment, rich in fire energy, proved ideal for his training.

The clash with Hai Bodong's frost Dou Qi had unexpectedly deepened Xiao Yan's comprehension of the Yin-Yang Dual Flames. While the ice energy countered his Profound Yellow Flame, it also stimulated its latent potential—albeit minimally.

On the fifth evening, Xiao Yan's aura peaked at the Seven-Star Dou Practitioner threshold.

Retrieving the Ice Spirit Cold Spring from his ring, he swallowed it without hesitation.

A glacial torrent seared his throat, freezing it solid. His body trembled violently, hair crystallizing with icy threads. The frigid current surged through his meridians, coating them in milky frost.

His internal world transformed into a frozen wasteland. The Profound Yellow Flame within his Dou Qi vortex stirred uneasily, spinning the vortex into a frenzied whirlwind.

As the flame's Dou Qi circulated, it clashed against the icy meridians. Though weaker than the wild Green Lotus Core Flame, the Profound Yellow Flame's heat intensified under pressure, slowly melting the frost.

Countless cycles later, the ice dissolved into mist, which the flame-energy devoured voraciously.

Suddenly, Xiao Yan's skin flushed crimson, as if volcanic magma surged beneath. A heatwave erupted, blasting the carriage apart.

The terrified camels bolted, snapping harnesses. The driver abandoned his flaming passenger, chasing after his fleeing livestock. "My camels!"

"Wait—you haven't been paid!" Little Fairy Doctor called futilely before turning to the human torch that was Xiao Yan. "What's happening now?!"

Yao Lao, materializing from a withered poplar, severed the reins with a beam of pale light. "What fresh chaos is this?!"

(End of Chapter)

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