Douluo Dalu: My Martial Spirit is the Worm of Time

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At Hai Bodong's reminder, Xiao Yan brought enough water and iced juice!

This made Xiao Yan's journey in the desert a rare pleasure.

"Old Hai is really thoughtful." After happily drinking a glass of apple juice, Xiao Yan wiped the sweat from his forehead, a look of enjoyment on his face.

He arrived at the central area of the desert without alarming any Snake-People Tribe, safe and sound.

Spreading out a detailed map, his gaze fell on the ferocious snake head symbol in the center, and a few more traces of tension filled his heart.

After all, facing a legendary figure with such a fearsome reputation as Queen Medusa, how could he remain completely unfazed?

In the distance, a magnificent city loomed faintly at the end of the horizon. The patrolling Snake-People teams became more numerous, and the Purple Cloud Wings on Xiao Yan's back vibrated continuously. At Yao Chen's reminder, he swiftly glided close to the ground.

After flying for a long time and consuming many "Qi Recovery Pills," he stopped in a pile of rubble in front of the temple city, panting heavily. Having dodged patrol teams with many twists and turns and continuously using flying Dou Technique to travel, this mere Dou Master of his was truly a bit overwhelmed.

After resting for a while, Xiao Yan got up and froze, cold sweat dripping down his temples.

A magical beast with white rings around its eyes, red pupils, an entirely black body, and emitting wisps of ominous black mist was staring intently at Xiao Yan with its blood-red eyes.

"Teacher, didn't you notice it?" Xiao Yan's eyes showed vigilance, his heart extremely tense.

If the other party were to let out a shout right now, everything would be over. The Snake-People would detect the commotion and swarm over.

With Yao Lao's assistance, escaping with his life would likely not be an issue, but the Heavenly Flame would be out of reach.

"No, it seems to have a special method that can isolate soul detection. Even now, right before my eyes, I cannot perceive its existence." Yao Chen's eyes showed a hint of imperceptible solemnity.

This was Amon, who had Parasite the Corpse Dance Crow, activating his innate ability, "Soul Devour." Soul power would be devoured upon contact with it, unable to provide feedback.

Under Xiao Yan's horrified gaze, the Corpse Dance Crow slowly opened its mouth.

"No, Ya Xiong, no!"

He screamed frantically in his heart.

To his surprise, the crow did not let out a loud cry, but instead spoke in a very calm and gentle tone: "Are you Xiao Yan?"

"Eh?" Xiao Yan was startled, somewhat unsure how to answer.

After a moment of silence, he replied: "That's right, I am Xiao Yan. May I ask who Ya Xiong is...?"

"I was entrusted by Ape Lord to come and lend you a hand," the Corpse Dance Crow replied.

"Ah? Ape Lord?" Xiao Yan was a little confused.

"Here." The Corpse Dance Crow flicked its claw, throwing a space ring to Xiao Yan.

Xiao Yan probed inside and found many medicinal ingredients, mostly third and fourth-tier, with three fifth-tier ones. What surprised him even more was that there were also two fifth-tier demonic cores and one sixth-tier medicinal herb inside.

The fifth-tier demonic cores and sixth-tier medicinal ingredients inside were originally from Yun Yun's ring, which Amon had taken.

"This is..."

"Ape Lord's collection. He asked me to give it to you. One sixth-tier medicinal ingredient and one fifth-tier demonic core have already been taken by me as payment," the Corpse Dance Crow replied.

Xiao Yan was at a loss for a moment. Suddenly gaining such unexpected wealth, he felt a little uneasy in his heart.

His tone seemed a little heavy as he asked, "Is Ape Lord doing well recently?"

The Corpse Dance Crow replied coldly, "Its end is near, not far from death."

Xiao Yan froze, the hand holding the ring feeling as heavy as Qian Jun.

Immense sadness enveloped him. Compared to the helplessness he felt when Nalan Yanran broke off their engagement, this sense of powerlessness was even deeper.

Being ridiculed, mocked, humiliated—just stand up. One can use one's actions, one's effort and struggle, to make all those who mocked, ridiculed, and humiliated them shut up.

But the powerlessness brought by death is unchangeable, irreversible.

In the young man's heart, besides grand ambitions for the future, there was also a hint of another realization—cherish those around you.

Bits and pieces of his time with Ape Lord flashed through Xiao Yan's mind, and his eyes became a little moist.

...

In the shadows of the city, a thin young man in a black robe and a pointed soft hat pinched the monocle on his right eye and chuckled softly:

"The more one cherishes, the greater the pain when it's lost."

...

"Alright, there's no need to grieve for Ape Lord. He himself is so open-minded, why should we be sad for him?" The Corpse Dance Crow's tone remained flat.

Xiao Yan took a deep breath, calming his emotions: "My apologies, I lost my composure."

He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, only determination remained in his gaze:

"Ya Xiong, my goal is Queen Medusa's Heavenly Flame. She needs this Heavenly Flame for her evolution. Do you have any ideas?"

The Corpse Dance Crow replied, "I also have some understanding of the Snake-People. Their evolution is a 'death and rebirth' type of evolution, different from a typical evolution from consuming highly nourishing items. It will consume their existing power.

"Therefore, even if the evolution is successful, they will be in a very weak state for a short period. We can take this opportunity to sneak in and steal the Heavenly Flame... Hiding our tracks is precisely what I am good at."

"Then I'll trouble Ya Xiong. I am deeply grateful that Ya Xiong is willing to accompany me on this journey. If there is anything I can do for you in the future, please do not hesitate to ask," Xiao Yan said solemnly.

He wasn't without doubts about this mysterious crow that suddenly appeared, but the other party threw such precious things at him as soon as they met, making it difficult for him to suspect it further.

Excluding Yao Lao, selling this mere Dou Master of his a few hundred times wouldn't be worth this price!

"No problem, no problem... Since Ape Lord regards you as his successor, treating you like a son, then I will also treat you like my own son... Ape Lord and I are sworn brothers," the Corpse Dance Crow said, patting its chest with its wing.

Ah, this... Xiao Yan didn't know how to respond to that, so he just remained silent and ignored it.

The Corpse Dance Crow activated its innate ability to conceal its aura, and a thick black smoke emerged, enveloping its entire body.

Then, the Corpse Dance Crow's body suddenly expanded, and the light and shadow distorted.

Xiao Yan found that where it had been, only a blurry, transparent shadow remained. If he hadn't already known it was there and deliberately focused on that direction, he wouldn't have been able to perceive its existence at all.

Yao Chen's voice resonated in Xiao Yan's mind: "This is not a simple illusion. I detected a trace of spatial power. Space is distorted to a certain extent, and there's a powerful spirit power."

"No way? Spatial power, Dou Ancestor strongman, seventh-tier magical beast?" A hint of horror flashed in Xiao Yan's eyes.

"No, at most fifth-tier. It should be that it inherently possesses unique spatial talent, so it touched upon these things early," Yao Chen explained.

The Corpse Dance Crow flew over and grabbed Xiao Yan's shoulder with its claw. Xiao Yan found that his own figure had also become just a blurry shadow.

They swaggered through the sky, completely unnoticed by all the guards.

After the initial tension, Xiao Yan also relaxed, feeling a little unreal... Such a stealth mission seemed a bit too easy.

Before, when he was still a considerable distance from the city in the desert, he was half-dead from exhaustion just trying to avoid the patrol teams, and now he was inside the city!

Although there was no external enemy invasion, Queen Medusa still cautiously divided the Heavenly Flame's aura into four parts to confuse any potential enemies.

The auras were placed in four different directions: east, south, west, and north. The eight great leaders of the Snake-People Tribe guarded each direction in pairs.

Yao Chen, relying on his understanding of Heavenly Flame, accurately located the true position of the Heavenly Flame.

Guarding this place were Yue Mei, the leader of the Charm Snake Tribe among the Snake-People leaders, Mo Bas, the leader of the Ink Snake Tribe, and Hua She'er, the captain of Medusa's personal guard.

The command on site was in Hua She'er's hands. Besides the original patrolling guards, even Yue Mei and Mo Bas had to temporarily obey her orders.

With Hua She'er as such a great insider, Xiao Yan and the Corpse Dance Crow's infiltration was naturally exceptionally smooth. They seemed to know the guards' patrol routes, encountering no trouble along the way.

Xiao Yan was a little strange: "How come I haven't seen a single Snake-People?"

The Corpse Dance Crow replied: "Because we are infiltrating, infiltrating! Naturally, we need to avoid all of their personnel."

Is it something that can be avoided just by wanting to...? Xiao Yan muttered to himself. He didn't think too much, taking it as the Corpse Dance Crow's special talent.

"It's right here. Be careful, the Heavenly Flame's aura is getting stronger and stronger. It's very close now," Yao Chen reminded him.

Xiao Yan relayed Yao Chen's suggestions one by one to the Corpse Dance Crow, passing through narrow corridors until they reached a lake.

The Corpse Dance Crow reminded: "You go ahead from here. The lake water is highly poisonous, and there's an energy restriction above, so flying is impossible. This isn't something I'm good at handling."

Xiao Yan nodded. Protected by Yao Chen's Bone Spirit Cold Flame, he swiftly passed through the lake like a swimming fish and arrived at the small island in the center of the lake.

There was a large patch of bamboo on the small island in the center of the lake. Xiao Yan adjusted his breathing before slowly walking forward.

After advancing for a while, Xiao Yan saw a circular open area with a small pool in the center, filled with Ice Spirit Cold Spring.

In the center of the pool, there was a special lotus seat carved from crystal, and a cluster of azure flames was rising from the lotus seat.

Azure Lotus Core Flame!

However, although Xiao Yan yearned for it, he only glanced at it before shifting his gaze away.

Because before the pool, there was an even more noteworthy figure.

That was a beautiful and enchanting woman, dressed in a luxurious purple brocade robe, with long green hair falling naturally. Her eyes were slender and light purple, and her gaze flowed with abundant Charm.

Xiao Yan's eyes were almost involuntarily drawn to her... There was both caution towards this powerful enemy and appreciation for her beauty.

A surge of desire suddenly rose in his heart, burning hotter and hotter, with almost only one thought in his mind: possess her!

After a good while, he circulated his Dou Qi to suppress the desire, regaining clarity.

"What a terrifying woman..." He averted his gaze, not daring to look at Medusa again, fearing he wouldn't be able to control himself and expose their presence.

Yao Chen's voice entered Xiao Yan's ears: "This is the natural Charm that Queen Medusa possesses... Although I also strongly support you in taking her down.

"But right now, we are no match. Once discovered, the only option is to run... Perhaps in the future, you can try to conquer her. Hmm... the more children, the more blessings."

"I don't want to. Yun Zhi's matter is already giving me a headache. I still don't know how to explain it to Xun Er and Xiao Meng."

Xiao Yan said firmly and decisively.

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