Departure

"Roar!"

The deafening roar of a lion echoed throughout the cave, causing the tunnel to tremble violently, with dust constantly falling from the ceiling.

Hearing the roar growing closer, Hongkui frowned and hurriedly said, "Brother, that beast has found us."

"It's fine, I'm done here." Having collected the last bottle of the Amethyst Lion Birth Essence , Xiao Se smiled, with a mischievous glint on his face.

He then took out a brush, dipped it in ink, and, recalling Xiao Yan's appearance, leisurely painted his face on the most prominent part of the amethyst platform. Below the drawing, he left the words, "Xiao Yan was here."

Before long, the Amethyst Winged Lion King arrived at the amethyst platform. Seeing the shattered purple sphere, with no Amethyst Lion Birth Essence left inside, the lion was filled with rage. 

When it spotted the mischievous face of Xiao Yan drawn on the platform, it became even more furious, spitting a scorching purple flame that blasted the platform to pieces.

"Xiao Yan! Xiao Yan! I will kill you! I will kill you!" The lion roared furiously at the sky, venting its anger, then stormed off. It was determined to issue a death order in the Magic Beast Mountain Range, calling for the complete pursuit and elimination of Xiao Yan.

In a corner of the cave tunnel, Xiao Se and Hongkui, concealed within the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud protection shield, had not been discovered by the lion from start to finish.

"Brother, you're so bad!" Hongkui covered her lips and giggled.

"Hehe, that brat Xiao Yan is no good anyway. He might as well take the blame for me," Xiao Se chuckled, walking over to the broken amethyst platform. He pulled out a jade bottle, using the fire of the Fire Serpent Beast in his right hand, and carefully collected a small handful of the purple flame into the bottle.

"Brother, why do you want this flame? Without the Amethyst Winged Lion King's Dou Qi to maintain it, it will extinguish in a few hours. Even if you refine it, it won't be worth much," Hongkui asked curiously, slightly surprised to see Xiao Se storing the beast flame.

"Precisely because it's weak, it will be easier to absorb. After I refine it within my body, I'll use the Amethyst Lion Birth Essence to cultivate a new purple flame seed. Then, I can devour it," Xiao Se explained with a smile.

Realizing his plan, Hongkui nodded and wrapped her arms around his neck, praising, "Brother, you're really clever."

Xiao Se humbly accepted the compliment, hiding the fact that he had borrowed the strategy from Xiao Yan in the original story.

With the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud protection shielding their presence and form, Xiao Se and Hongkui successfully exited the cave of the Amethyst Winged Lion King. However, upon seeing the turmoil in the surrounding area caused by the agitated magical beasts, they realized just how much trouble they had stirred up.

Shaking his head in awe, Xiao Se felt little concern, thinking to himself, "Let the chaos reign. It's not my problem anyway." Then, he hurried toward the valley.

Before long, as night began to fall, Xiao Se returned to the valley.

"Little Fairy Doctor, I'm back."

With the Purple Cloud Wings retracted, Xiao Se smiled brightly as he rushed into the wooden house, only to find it empty. Even the room of Little Fairy Doctor was vacant.

"Little Fairy Doctor! Little Fairy Doctor!" Xiao Se called out loudly as he stepped outside, his voice echoing throughout the valley, but no response came.

"Brother, I searched the valley, and it seems Little Fairy Doctor has already left. Could she have gone out for something?" Hongkui's gentle voice drifted from the magic sword, reaching Xiao Se's side.

Xiao Se shook his head in frustration. "At breakfast, I noticed she seemed a bit strange, but I was too focused on the Amethyst Lion Birth Essence to think much of it. She must have left for good, probably not wanting to burden me."

Suddenly, something clicked in Xiao Se's mind. He quickly rushed back into the house and found a letter under a teapot, along with two small bottles, one black and one white, sitting beside it.

Opening the letter, he saw several lines of neat handwriting:

"Xiao Se, by the time you read this letter, I'll probably be gone.

Thank you for the past month. It's been the happiest time of my life.

If I could spend my life with you here in this valley, it wouldn't be so bad.

But it seems I can never let go of poison.

When I was a child, the outbreak of my Woeful Poison Body killed my parents and the entire village. I was destined to be someone who brings calamity.

I don't know when the Woeful Poison Body will erupt again, so I must leave to avoid bringing disaster to you.

Forgive me for being selfish. I'll do my best to search for the materials you mentioned.

The Poison Pill Method might be difficult, but the Soul Bone and Poison-Poison Fruit are probably within reach. If I find one of them, I'll come back to find you. Don't despise me for being a poison master by then!

Oh, and the two bottles on the table: the black one is poison, a lethal toxin capable of threatening a Dou King, from the Xuantian Treasure Record you gave me. The white one is the antidote I concocted. Don't mix them up, or you might poison yourself!

– Little Fairy Doctor"

After reading the letter, Xiao Se felt a complex mix of emotions as he picked up the two bottles. He muttered, "There's no such thing as a Soul Bone or Poison-Poison Fruit in this world. Where will you find them?"

"Brother, has Little Fairy Doctor left?" At some point, Hongkui had appeared at Xiao Se's side, her voice full of concern.

"Yes," Xiao Se nodded slightly and handed the letter to Hongkui. Over the past months, Hongkui had learned to read the Dou Qi Continent's script, so she understood it as well.

After reading the letter, Hongkui sighed deeply. "Little Fairy Doctor is such a kind girl."

"She really is." Xiao Se nodded heavily, stowing away his sadness as his expression turned resolute. "But now is not the time for sorrow. Whether it's to revive you or to help Little Fairy Doctor solve the Woeful Poison Body, I must grow stronger."

Seeing Xiao Se's sudden determination, Hongkui smiled, giving him a thumbs up to encourage him. "Then Hongkui will cheer you on, brother!"

"Yeah." Xiao Se nodded firmly, taking out the bottle with the purple flame, as well as the Meridian Protection Pill and Ice Spirit Pill. He was ready to refine his second beast flame.

A month later.

Atop a steep cliff in the valley, Xiao Se suddenly opened his eyes, and a purple flame danced within them.

"I did it."

Xiao Se was ecstatic. In the center of his Dou Qi vortex, which had turned a pale blue after devouring the Fire Serpent beast flame, a thumb-sized purple flame seed now floated, swirling in the vortex. It resembled a beautiful, miniature solar system.

Just as Xiao Se was about to share his joy with Hongkui, his expression suddenly changed as he felt a surge of energy from the heavens and earth rushing toward him.

"Brother, are you about to break through?" Hongkui's voice rang out, a mixture of excitement and anxiety. Although she had seen Xiao Se break through before, this time it was different—it was a breakthrough to a Dou Shi, which carried significant risks.

"Yes, I'm about to become a Dou Shi," Xiao Se replied, unfurling his Purple Cloud Wings and diving toward the valley. The energy in the valley was dense, making it the perfect place for his breakthrough.

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