"This is Xiao Lan. After we leave, you can summon it with this bamboo flute. There's a valley in these mountains where Xiao Heng and I stayed—it's safe. If you're in danger, let Xiao Lan take you there," Xiao Yi Xian said, handing Xiao Yan a new short bamboo flute.
"Thanks, sister-in-law!" Xiao Yan grinned, accepting it.
"Here's something else. Feed it when you can," Xiao Heng said, passing Xiao Yan a tattered scroll fragment.
"No problem. I'm hunting magical beasts anyway—it's no trouble," Xiao Yan said, taking the fragment.
"Keep it up, Little Yan!" Xiao Heng and Xiao Yi Xian headed toward the Magical Beast Mountain Range's exit near the Chu Yun Empire.
After they left, Xiao Yan ventured deeper into the mountains. "Your second sister-in-law is something else," Yao Lao's voice echoed in Xiao Yan's mind.
"I know, she's stunning—total wife material," Xiao Yan replied quickly.
"I meant her strength. She's a Three-Star Dou Wang," Yao Lao clarified.
"Three-Star Dou Wang? She's barely older than me!" Xiao Yan was floored. Why is everyone so freakish?
This is inhuman, Xiao Yan thought, stunned.
"No need to feel down. Her unique physique lets her cultivate that fast," Yao Lao comforted.
"That's a relief. What physique?" Xiao Yan asked, panting. His unevolved Flame Mantra drained his Dou Zhi Qi too quickly.
"Calamity Poison Body," Yao Lao explained, detailing its traits and solutions.
"Isn't that dangerous for Heng-gege?" Xiao Yan worried.
"No need to fret. Your brother neutralized the risk of it going berserk," Yao Lao said.
"He doesn't know the Poison Pill Method, does he?" Xiao Yan asked.
"He gave your sister-in-law a sub-flame of his unique Heavenly Flame. I tested it—his companion flame is ferocious. It absorbs the excess, uncontrollable energy of the Calamity Poison Body, preventing a meltdown," Yao Lao said.
"Pure luck?" Xiao Yan wondered.
"I don't know, but only he can pull it off," Yao Lao said.
"Must be that companion flame's power," Xiao Yan guessed.
"Smart, Little Yan!" Yao Lao praised.
"So you thought I was an idiot?" Xiao Yan scoffed.
"Not an idiot, just a clueless bumpkin," Yao Lao teased.
"Fine, I'm a bumpkin," Xiao Yan grumbled, too tired to argue.
"Keep an eye out for Poison Pill Method ingredients," Yao Lao suggested.
"It's just like absorbing three Heavenly Flames to revive you—piece of cake!" Xiao Yan boasted.
"Big talk, as if you've already got three flames," Yao Lao jabbed.
"I'm confident!" Xiao Yan shot back.
"Oh, Teacher, what's this scrap you told me to take?" Xiao Yan asked, remembering the fragment.
"A map fragment for a Heavenly Flame," Yao Lao said casually.
"What rank?"
"Third."
"Third? Pure Lotus Demon Flame? My luck's insane!" Xiao Yan exclaimed, then collapsed onto the ground. "I can't handle this!"
___
Xiao Heng and Xiao Yi Xian trekked toward the Chu Yun Empire. Still in the Magical Beast Mountain Range, they avoided flying. High-tier magical beasts might ignore a Da Dou Shi soaring overhead, but a Dou Wang would draw attention.
That night, in a cave, Xiao Heng roasted fish. Xiao Yi Xian's sharp gaze fixed on him. "Am I that handsome?" he quipped.
"You smell like another girl," she said.
"What!" Xiao Heng fumbled, nearly dropping the fish into the fire.
"Feeling guilty? Spill it!" Xiao Yi Xian slid beside him, her delicate hands massaging his shoulders.
"I've been meaning to tell you…" Xiao Heng confessed that Xiao Xun Er was his primary partner, and Xiao Yi Xian was his second.
"Xun Er deserves to be first, but why am I second, not last?" Xiao Yi Xian asked, puzzled.
"Second, third, fourth… Wait, how many are you planning to have?" She grabbed his neck playfully.
"No more, I swear!" Xiao Heng pleaded.
"Then tonight…"
At midnight, Xiao Yi Xian picked up her scattered white dress, glancing at the motionless Xiao Heng. "What's wrong, weakling?"
"I'll show you!" Xiao Heng sprang up.
Slap, slap, slap. The sound of frogs splashing in water echoed all night. The next morning, Xiao Heng limped along, clutching his waist, while Xiao Yi Xian stifled giggles audible from dozens of meters away. She's relentless, he thought.
"When I surpass you, I'll show you the artistry of a master painter!" Xiao Heng boasted. Xiao Yi Xian just smiled silently.
By noon, they encountered fewer magical beasts. "We're at the range's edge. We can fly now," Xiao Heng said.
"Ready, kid?" Xiao Yi Xian teased, her radiant smile laced with mockery.
"A Da Dou Shi's flight Dou Technique can't match a Dou Wang's stamina," Xiao Heng admitted.
"So?" Xiao Yi Xian asked.
"You carry me," Xiao Heng said, wrapping his arms around her slender waist, nestling into her fragrant embrace.
"Hold tight!" Her purple Dou Qi Wings flared, and they soared. Xiao Heng clung to her. The pose was undignified, but he didn't care. Pride's nothing compared to this bliss.
Half a day later, they crossed the Jia Ma Empire's border, entering the buffer zone between the empires—sparse with villages, no cities. They rested in another cave. That night, Xiao Heng played dead, refusing to initiate. Not falling for it again.
The next morning, Xiao Heng absorbed Dou Zhi Qi, conserving energy by lying still. "Ahead is Mo Shui Town in the Chu Yun Empire. Our target, the Nether Poison Swamp, is in the south. The route avoids major cities, so we're unlikely to be noticed," he said, pointing to the town on a map.
"We could check the town for high-tier poisons," Xiao Yi Xian suggested.
"Sure."
"Fly the whole way?" she asked.
"We don't know the Chu Yun Empire's factions. Riding horses to Mo Shui and taking a flying magical beast from there is safer," Xiao Heng said, recalling the empire's power structure. Fortunately, the Nether Poison Swamp wasn't in the Ten Thousand Scorpion Sect's territory. Their grand elder, a Four-Star Peak Dou Zong, was untouchable for now—they'd have to steer clear. Outside their domain, even if they met sect disciples, escaping would be easier.
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