Watching the ecstatic Hai Bo Dong tightly gripping the jade bottle, Xiao Yan lightly smiled and said, “Old Sir Hai, I have successfully refined the medicine for you. How about the fragment of the map?”
Hearing this, Hai Bo Dong was slightly stunned, but quickly pulled himself out of his joyous emotions. He licked his lips, his eyes darting, a hint of embarrassment appearing on his face. “Um, little brother!”
“Call me Xiao Yan.” Seeing Hai Bo Dong’s appearance, Xiao Yan’s eyebrows slightly frowned as he indifferently replied.
“Haha, alright, Little Brother Xiao Yan.” Hastily nodding, Hai Bo Dong waved the jade bottle in his hand at Xiao Yan and chuckled, “Little brother, don’t blame an old man for being cautious! *Cough* It’s not that I don’t trust you, but I’ve never seen what the Po E Dan looks like. I only know from the formula that it is purple. So, can Little Brother Xiao Yan allow me to test the pill after I consume it? If it truly breaks the seal, I will definitely give you the fragment of the map and apologize to you, little brother!”
“Old sir, your continuous excuses are not very becoming of a former top ten expert of the Jia Ma Empire,” Xiao Yan remarked, his slender fingers gently flicking off some dust on his sleeve, expressionless. “I used all my strength to help you, old sir. But your actions have made me feel quite cold.”
“Ah, Little Brother Xiao Yan, we did agree that once I got the Po E Dan, I would give you the map fragment! But, can you at least let me verify the authenticity of this pill? To be frank, if you just gave me a random pill, and I didn’t check it, wouldn’t I be the one at a loss?”
Hai Bo Dong’s old face was much thicker than Xiao Yan had imagined, making him look like the biggest victim. Seeing Hai Bo Dong with his pained face, Xiao Yan’s brows furrowed, and he indifferently said, “Old sir, I need to remind you. The formula for the Po E Dan was given to me by you, and I followed it exactly. But whether or not this pill can break the seal, only the ghosts know!”
“So, if the seal doesn’t break after I take the Po E Dan because of the formula, won’t the blame be on me? And all the trouble I went through to find the Sand Mandra and the effort I put into refining the pill will be in vain?”
Xiao Yan crossed his fingers in front of him and smirked, “I’ve done so much, and all I’m getting is a fragment of a map and a favor from a Battle Emperor. Tell me, am I losing or gaining?”
“Uh!” Hearing this, Hai Bo Dong’s face turned slightly embarrassed. After a moment, he chuckled dryly, “Old man also knows that my request is a bit too much, but please rest assured, Little Brother Xiao Yan, I would never do such an ungrateful thing! Let’s compromise: I don’t need the seal broken immediately. As long as the Po E Dan shows even the slightest effect, I won’t go back on my word! Moreover, this Po E Dan is refined by Little Brother Xiao Yan. Don’t you have confidence in it?”
Sighing deeply, Xiao Yan looked up at the dryly chuckling Hai Bo Dong, his brows still tightly furrowed. After a long while, he waved his hand in displeasure and said coolly, “Fine, I’ll give you a chance. This is my last concession.”
“Haha, thank you, Little Brother Xiao Yan, for understanding an old man’s predicament,” Hai Bo Dong’s face lit up with pleasure as he carefully put the jade bottle into his storage ring. Then he said to Xiao Yan, “Follow me to the basement. If the seal is really broken, the basement can contain the energy and avoid unnecessary trouble.”
Nodding, Xiao Yan didn’t even want to say more. With a cold expression, he raised his chin, indicating for Hai Bo Dong to lead the way.
Seeing Xiao Yan’s expression, Hai Bo Dong knew that he was not in a good mood. Smiling awkwardly, he hurriedly led the way. Following Hai Bo Dong, Xiao Yan watched the old man’s brisk steps. After a moment of silence, his expressionless face suddenly twisted into a cold smile. His fist tightened slightly in his sleeve, and a wisp of azure flame danced playfully on his slender fingertips!
Pressing his lips together, Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes and muttered in his heart, “Old man, I hope you don’t disappoint me. Otherwise, no matter who you were, I’ll make you regret it today!”
Though the corridor wasn’t large, its twists and turns were unexpected. Following Hai Bo Dong closely, the repetitive surroundings made Xiao Yan feel a bit tired, but his mental fortitude kept him from feeling too uncomfortable, just a bit suppressed.
The light in the corridor was dim, with lamps every dozen meters. In this gloomy environment, both men remained silent, their footsteps echoing down the long passage, creating a slightly eerie atmosphere.
The corridor was straight, but Xiao Yan could feel they were descending. After walking for nearly twenty minutes, Hai Bo Dong suddenly stopped and turned to Xiao Yan, smiling, “We’re here.”
Looking past Hai Bo Dong, Xiao Yan saw a thick, solid iron door at the end of the corridor. The door was deep and black, exuding a sense of solidity.
Seeing the door, Hai Bo Dong’s pace quickened. Arriving at the door, he turned a black iron lion head, and the iron door creaked open, revealing a bright light.
“After you!” Hai Bo Dong waved his hand, smiling, and entered first.
Pausing slightly, Xiao Yan glanced around the door before stepping into the basement.
Inside, the temperature dropped significantly, and a faint chill enveloped them. Looking around, Xiao Yan was surprised to find that the basement was actually an ice cave. The ceiling and thick walls were covered with white ice, and sharp icicles hung like sharp swords, emitting a faint, cold mist that lingered.
“Hehe, my Dou Qi cultivation method leans towards yin and cold, so practicing here has a better effect. Plus, the distance from the ground, along with the ice and soil, conceals the aura here, preventing other experts from detecting it,” Hai Bo Dong explained, seeming to understand Xiao Yan’s confusion.
“Alright,” Xiao Yan nodded, sitting in a chair in the center of the basement. He looked up at Hai Bo Dong and calmly said, “Let’s get on with it. I don’t particularly like this environment.”
“Sure, sure,” Hai Bo Dong nodded, taking out the Po E Dan from his storage ring and examining it carefully, which made Xiao Yan frown again.
After checking for a while and finding nothing unusual, Hai Bo Dong finally relaxed. He’d learned to be a bit smarter, knowing that his earlier actions had surely upset Xiao Yan. Without looking at Xiao Yan’s sour expression, he stepped onto an ice platform and sat cross-legged, placing the Po E Dan in his mouth and swallowing it.
Sitting in the chair, Xiao Yan played with his fingers, and when Hai Bo Dong swallowed the Po E Dan, a faint, somewhat malicious smile appeared on his face.
In the icy basement, as Hai Bo Dong gradually entered a state of cultivation, the atmosphere became increasingly quiet. Xiao Yan stared intently at his own hand, seemingly unconcerned about Hai Bo Dong’s progress.
The silence lasted for about half an hour before a surge of fierce energy disrupted it. On the ice platform, Hai Bo Dong, who had been silent, suddenly began to tremble violently. Waves of fierce energy surged out from his body, shattering nearby tables and ice columns.
Lifting his head, Xiao Yan watched the approaching energy waves. Acting on instinct, a light green flame Dou Qi shirt appeared on his body, burning away the surging energy.
Hai Bo Dong, unaware of the destruction he was causing, continued to tremble violently. His aged face suddenly tensed, and a strange, dark green energy rapidly condensed on his forehead, forming a small, dark green snake pattern.
The snake pattern coiled around Hai Bo Dong’s forehead, sealing his powerful Dou Qi. As the pattern appeared, a pale purple energy rose around his neck, and in a blink, it began to interact with the dark green snake.
The collision of these two fierce energies caused the energy waves. The purple and dark green energy struggled on Hai Bo Dong’s forehead, creating a bizarre and painful scene.
Crossing his fingers, Xiao Yan watched the two-colored glow on Hai Bo Dong’s face, curious if the Po E Dan could indeed break the seal set by Queen Medusa.
The purple and dark green energies struggled, but after nearly half an hour, the dark green snake pattern faded. Clearly, the Po E Dan seemed to have the unique effect of breaking the seal.
“Wow, this Po E Dan is really good! I should prepare some for myself, just in case I get sealed one day,” Xiao Yan mused, his eyes brightening as the snake pattern dimmed.
“Be careful, his seal is about to be broken,” Yao Lao reminded Xiao Yan in his mind.
Nodding, Xiao Yan prepared his Dou Qi, ready for any sudden accidents. The purple energy, using its advantage, slowly drove out the snake pattern, pushing it to the top of Hai Bo Dong’s forehead and then forcefully expelling it from his head.
As the snake pattern left, it trembled violently, turning into a puff of smoke. At that moment, Hai Bo Dong’s closed eyes snapped open, a fierce aura shooting out like a lion awakening from decades of suppression.
Under this powerful aura, the ice crystals in the basement began to crack.
“Haha, this damned seal, finally gone! I’m a Battle Emperor again!” Stepping on the ice platform, Hai Bo Dong’s body floated in the air, his face filled with wild joy as he laughed loudly.
The loud laughter carried by his Dou Qi shattered the cracking ice. After laughing for a while, Hai Bo Dong’s sharp gaze turned to Xiao Yan, who sat motionless in the chair. His old eyes narrowed.
Feeling the sharp gaze, Xiao Yan’s lips twitched, and he slowly lifted his head, his face calm as a deep well, quietly observing the Battle Emperor who had regained his power.
In the air, their gazes met, subtly radiating a chill.
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