Although the two Ice and Fire Immortal Herbs were both extremely poisonous, once their powers neutralized each other, they lost their former dominance.
As soon as Li Chang'an swallowed them, they melted in his mouth like snow, turning into fragrant liquid that flowed smoothly down his throat.
The taste was astonishingly delicious, filling his mouth with a refreshing sweetness that lingered on his tongue.
Right after eating both herbs—and before the medicine could fully activate—Li Chang'an quickly walked forward, stopping beside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
After waiting for a brief moment—his body suddenly trembled violently.
A layer of icy blue light spread upward from his feet, and in the blink of an eye, his entire body turned blue. Almost immediately, a layer of crimson followed, making him look like a freshly boiled shrimp.
At that moment, alternating waves of blue and red light flashed continuously over his body—an eerie and fascinating sight.
From a distance, Dugu Bo couldn't help clenching his fists. Even though he was certain that Li Chang'an had followed the correct process, he couldn't help worrying that something might go wrong.After all, ancient records could always contain mistakes—who could guarantee that everything written in them was absolutely right?
The mingling of ice and fire—it sounded simple, yet the process brought Li Chang'an unimaginable agony.
The collision of the two extreme forces was as if his very body were being torn apart. The pain was so intense that he could barely remain conscious.
Struggling to maintain the last shred of sanity, he staggered a few steps forward, closed his eyes, and fell headfirst into the place where the cold Yin Spring and the blazing Yang Spring met.
With a splash, Li Chang'an plunged into the spring and vanished beneath its surface.
Dugu Bo's eyelids twitched violently. He knew full well how terrifying the Ice and Fire Well truly was.It looked beautiful, but its power was deadly. Even a mere touch of that water could melt flesh from bone.
And yet Li Chang'an had just jumped straight into it!
If Li Chang'an hadn't explained earlier that the medicinal power of the two immortal herbs would protect his body—and that the spring's energy could help refine that power—Dugu Bo would never have allowed such madness. To him, it looked no different from suicide.
Now submerged within the spring, Li Chang'an was enduring agony beyond words—a process of literal rebirth through destruction.
His clothes had dissolved instantly upon contact with the spring water, vaporized in a heartbeat.Fortunately, he had already stored his soul tools and other important belongings safely away beforehand, or they too would have been destroyed.
The two immortal herbs he had eaten—the deadly Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and the fiery Blazing Apricot—were born from the extreme yin and yang energies of this spring.Only they could suppress and balance the spring's dual toxicity.
Only by consuming both could Li Chang'an survive within the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.Even a Title Douluo would be utterly annihilated if they entered without such protection.
Outside the Well
As Li Chang'an plunged into the waters, the surface churned for a moment before quickly settling.The two halves of the spring—milky white and scarlet red—remained distinct and unmixed.
The air was filled with mist once again, and the valley fell silent.
Watching the tranquil surface, Dugu Bo's heart grew uneasy.There wasn't even a ripple now.
"Could it be… that the boy was dissolved completely?" he muttered under his breath, his expression dark.
No—impossible. He must be absorbing the medicinal energy.
Dugu Bo shook his head firmly.He remembered what Li Chang'an had told him before—that the process of refining one's body within the spring could take anywhere from a few days to half a month, or even longer—sometimes a full month or two.
He had only just entered; the lack of movement didn't necessarily mean disaster.Perhaps he was simply in deep cultivation, fully immersed in the process.
Convincing himself of this, Dugu Bo finally let out a slow breath.There was nothing more he could do now. The boy had already gone in—regret was useless.
"Boy, you must survive this…" he whispered, gazing into the steaming mist.
Meanwhile, far away in the vast underground cavern where his Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor clone resided—a strange phenomenon occurred.
The massive serpent's body, once coiled in the darkness, had disappeared.In its place lay a large cocoon, shimmering with alternating white and crimson hues.
Inside, the serpent clone slumbered, undergoing a mysterious metamorphosis.
When it broke free from the cocoon—it would surely be reborn in an entirely new form.
As night fell and darkness blanketed the land,the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well also grew dim.
But Li Chang'an had still not resurfaced.It was as though he had vanished completely within the spring.
Unable to wait any longer, Dugu Bo sighed and returned to the cave to check on his granddaughter's progress with her own immortal herb.
Meanwhile, within the spring—Li Chang'an's consciousness had detached from his body.
He found himself standing in a strange, vast place.
"Where… is this?" he murmured, bewildered.
All around him stretched what looked like an enormous plaza, silent and ancient, filled with a sense of timelessness.
All over the plaza stood countless statues, scattered here and there.
They were exquisitely detailed—so lifelike that they almost seemed alive.Most were shaped like beasts, while a few had humanoid forms.
Li Chang'an approached the nearest statue.It resembled a Chinese dragon, but with a pair of majestic wings on its back.
A name surfaced in his mind—Yinglong, the winged dragon of legend.
"Could this be… the statue of Yinglong?" he whispered.
Still uncertain, he walked to another statue nearby.
This one depicted a fox with nine long, flowing tails covered in lush fur—undoubtedly the Nine-Tailed Fox.
He pondered silently, then moved to the next.
This statue looked like a lion but bore ram's horns and a goatee.
"Is this… Bai Ze?" he wondered aloud.
Descriptions of the mythical beast Bai Ze varied across legends, so he couldn't be sure.
He shook his head and continued onward.
All around the plaza stood hundreds of divine figures:
—Zhulong, the Candle Dragon who opened its eyes for day and closed them for night, ruling over time itself.—Heavenly Dog, who devoured the sun and moon.—Three-Legged Golden Crow, who illuminated the heavens.—Qilin, symbol of good fortune and peace.—Phoenix, reborn eternally from its own ashes.—Kui Niu, the one-legged beast whose roar echoed like thunder.—Kunpeng, who swam as a fish and soared as a bird.
Everywhere he looked were legends made stone—hundreds of statues depicting Fierce Beasts, divine beasts, and mythical creatures from ancient Chinese lore.
"What is going on?" Li Chang'an frowned. "I was refining medicine in the Ice and Fire Well—how did I suddenly end up here?"
As he puzzled over it, one particular statue ahead caught his attention.
He approached quickly and stopped before it, his eyes narrowing in thought.
Unlike the others, which were all dull gray stone, this statue looked… alive.
Its surface had the tone and texture of living flesh. If not for its stillness, he would have sworn it was a real, breathing creature.
It radiated an overwhelming aura of ancient might.
A wave of pressure surged toward him, making his heart pound.
Compelled by a mysterious force, Li Chang'an slowly reached out his hand and touched the statue.
In that instant—
A brilliant burst of light erupted from it!
The lifeless figure turned instantly into a being of flesh and blood—and lunged straight toward him!
Before Li Chang'an could react, the statue merged directly into his body—
And in that moment, his true golden cheat, his greatest power, finally awakened!
(End of Chapter)
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