Departing from the tumultuous shores of the Eastern Sea, Xiao Qi and his Third Senior Sister Liu Yun rode their flying artifacts, racing southward at breakneck speed. At first, the scenery below still resembled the familiar green mountains and lucid waters, with crisscrossing paths between fields. But as days passed, the terrain beneath them began to shift subtly. The mountain peaks grew increasingly steep and jagged, the forests denser and lusher. The originally refreshing spiritual energy in the air seemed to acquire a faint hint of dampness, heat, and complexity.
"We've entered the outer regions of the Southern Frontier," Third Senior Sister Liu Yun said, gazing down at the endless primeval jungle stretching like a green ocean below. Her expression grew grave. "The spiritual energy here leans toward fire and wood, laced with much miasma and toxic qi—utterly different from the balanced, harmonious aura of Qingxu Temple. We must adapt carefully."
Xiao Qi nodded. He had already activated his cultivation technique, attempting to absorb the surrounding spiritual energy, but felt a faint burning and sluggish sensation pulse through his meridians—like drinking warm water mixed with sand, far from the smoothness he was accustomed to. His heart stirred. The jade pendant at his chest emitted a wisp of cool energy that circulated through his entire body, suppressing the discomfort somewhat. This was merely the outer regions; the true depths of the Southern Frontier would be far more harsh.
Several days later, the two officially crossed into the Southern Frontier. A wave of muggy, damp air struck them, as if they had instantly been placed inside a colossal steamer. Towering ancient trees blocked out the sky, vines hung down like giant pythons, and the ground lay covered in thick layers of leaves that had rotted for countless years, emitting a distinctive smell blending earth and humus. All manner of bizarre, colorful insects buzzed about—many clearly venomous.
"Suppress your aura. Try to minimize spiritual power fluctuations," Third Senior Sister advised, her experience showing. "The Southern Frontier teems with venomous insects and strange beasts, many highly sensitive to spiritual energy."
Xiao Qi complied, pressing his presence to its lowest, resembling a mortal. However, the environment's tests had just begun. The omnipresent humidity and heat quickly soaked through their clothes, clinging to their bodies, sticky and uncomfortable. Even more irritating was a nearly invisible pale pink miasma drifting through the forest like gossamer. Even holding one's breath proved useless, as it seeped through skin pores, leaving one slightly dizzy and increasingly irritable.
"That's the 'Peach Blossom Miasma,'" Third Senior Sister identified, quickly retrieving two fragrant anti-miasma pills from her storage bag. She took one herself and handed the other to Xiao Qi. "This vapor can befuddle the spirit and mind. Remaining in it too long easily induces hallucinations. We need to take these pills regularly, or forcibly dispel it with our own spiritual power."
Xiao Qi accepted the pill and swallowed it. A cool sensation spread from his throat to his limbs, clearing his head considerably. He dared not neglect caution, attempting to summon a thread of the Purification Source to form an extremely faint, invisible barrier over his body. When the miasma touched the barrier, a soft sizzling sound emerged—it was being slowly purified and repelled, even more effective than the anti-miasma pill. This reassured him somewhat; the Purification Source truly was the nemesis of all poisons.
The two lowered their flying altitude, carefully navigating through the dense forest. The ground beneath their feet turned soft and muddy, often dotted with brightly colored poisonous mushrooms and venomous snakes coiled on branches, tongues flickering. Unidentifiable beast howls echoed from the depths of the jungle, adding to the gloom and terror.
"Swish!"
A black shadow, swift as lightning, shot out from the side, lunging directly at Xiao Qi's face. It was a spider roughly the size of a fist, covered in black hair, its mandiblesfierce, emitting a foul stench.
Xiao Qi reacted swiftly. Withoutuse spiritual power to avoid drawing more attention, he simply flipped his wrist. The iron skillet he always kept at his waist like a "fire-poker"—he swung it up to block.
"Thwap!"
A dull thud rang out. The venomous spider collided with the impossibly hard skillet and instantly turned into a puddle of flesh and gore. Yet its bodily fluids splashed onto nearby leaves, producing sizzling sounds and wisps of blue smoke as they corroded the vegetation.
"That's a 'Bone-Rotting Wolf Spider,'" Third Senior Sister's eyes sharpened. "Its fluids are highly toxic with extreme corrosiveness. Be careful not to get any on you."
Xiao Qi observed the poison slide off the skillet without leaving even a trace, and his assessment of this unremarkable black pot rose another notch. He was more convinced than ever—this skillet was no ordinary object. He simply hadn't yet fully uncovered its true secrets.
The deeper they ventured, the harsher the environment became. Sometimes they had to cross marshes emitting heavy rotten odors, where the mud beneath seemed to possess suction, threatening to trap the unwary. Other times they had to climb wet, slippery rock faces covered in moss. The toxic miasmas in the air shifted varieties—sometimes the "Soft-Tendon Miasma" that numbed limbs, sometimes the "Scorching Miasma" that induced inner fire.
After several consecutive days of traveling in such conditions, even cultivators felt physically and mentally exhausted. Spiritual power consumption far exceeded normal rates, mostly spent resisting the ubiquitous toxic miasmas, humidity, and hidden threats. Even Third Senior Sister's brow showed perspiration, her elegant brows slightly furrowed—clearly she found it taxing.
One day, the two arrived at a mountain valley. Vegetation was sparse within the valley, the exposed rocks displaying an ominous crimson hue. The ground was cracked and dry, the air thick with sulfur, and the temperature far higher than outside.
"This place has abundant fire-toxin energy. We must protect our bodies with water-attuning methods," Third Senior Sister said, causing a faint blue water light to envelope her, warding off the intense heat.
Xiao Qi's heart stirred. He attempted to draw upon the power of the Azure Dragon Soul Crystal within him. A cool, moist wood-essence spiritual energy rose from his dantian, circulating through his entire body. Not only did it effortlessly neutralize the external fire-toxin, it also calmed his somewhat irritable mood from days of travel. The harmony of water and fire displayed its advantages here.
However, just as he relaxed slightly, the crimson ground before them violently shook!
"BOOM!"
Not far ahead, the ground exploded. A massive beast emerged, resembling a lizard but covered in crimson scales, snout and nose spewing sparks. Its scarlet eyesfirmly locked onto the two uninvited intruders, exuding a berserk aura equivalent to a late Foundation Establishment cultivator.
"It's a 'Fire-Scaled Earth Dragon'! Beware its flames and ground spikes!" Third Senior Sister shouted, her sword already drawn, its blade shimmering with water light.
The Fire-Scaled Earth Dragon let out a hoarse roar, stomped its four limbs, and charged forward with a gust of foul wind. Its massive jaws opened wide, spewing a torrent of searing magma directly at the pair.
Third Senior Sister guided her sword incantation. A condensed blue sword energy, like a ribbon of light, slashed forth, colliding with the magma torrent. Hissing sounds erupted as vast amounts of steam billowed.
Xiao Qithen shifted his form. His "Swimming Dragon Nine Turns" movement technique activated, nimbly dodging the main force of the fire torrent and circling to the dragon's flank. Rather thanuse his Flame Sword, he again raised the iron skillet, pouring spiritual power into it. The pan glowed with black light and,with a whooshing sound, smashed viciously toward the dragon's relatively vulnerable neck joint.
"CLANG!"
A sound like striking a giant bell rang out. The dragon bellowed in pain, its thick tail swinging like a steel whip, accompanied by fierce gusts. At the same time, dozens of sharp crimson ground spikes shot up from the earth with "thu-thu-thu" sounds!
Xiao Qi's form changed again. Like a swimming fish, he wove between the sweeping tail and dense spikes. The skillet deflected or blocked whatever attacks couldn't be dodged, producing continuous "thump-thump-thump" sounds. He discovered this skillet was not only sturdy, but seemed to possess some kind of peculiar shock-dissipating effect against earth-fire attribute attacks.
Seeing this, Third Senior Sister's sword techniques grew even more fierce. Wave after wave of icy sword qi targeted the dragon's eyes, nostrils, and other vitals, occupying most of its attention.
The two's coordination improved steadily. One focused on attacks and disruption, the other on mobile combat and weakening defenses. After roughly the length of an incense stick of close combat, Xiao Qi spotted an opening. His form became a residual shadow as he instantly closed in under the dragon's chin. Spiritual power and physical strength erupted together, all concentrated onto the skillet.
"Mountain-Shaking Skillet!"
This was a crude technique he had developed combining his own power with the skillet's characteristics. The black pot carried a brutish, overbearing momentum as it viciously swept upward!
"BOOM!"
A heavy crash echoed. The Fire-Scaled Earth Dragon's lower jaw scales shattered instantly. The massive head was struck upward by this force, its crimson eyes instantly losing their gleam. It crashed to the ground, twitched a few times, then lay still.
Xiao Qi breathed slightly harder, sheathing the skillet. Though victorious, he could feel that in Southern Frontier territory, both spiritual power recovery and physical stamina depletion occurred much faster than outside. Environmental suppression was omnipresent.
Third Senior Sister approached, examining the dragon's corpse. She extracted from its head a pigeon-egg-sized inner core radiating pure fire-essence energy. "This inner core contains fire-toxin and requires careful handling. However, it can be used to refine some special fire-attribute pills or artifacts."
She stored the core and looked at Xiao Qi, eyes carrying a hint of approval. "You're adapting quickly. We've passed the first major hurdle of the Southern Frontier. However, the dangers only multiply the further we go. Next, we need to find the 'Fire Crow Village.'"
Xiao Qi gazed at the even deeper, seemingly harboring countless unknown dangers,continuous mountains. He took a deep breath of the scorching, unfamiliar air. He knew the long, treacherous journey to find the Vermillion Bird Soul Crystal had truly just begun. He had to fully adapt to this place as quickly as possible to face even greater challenges ahead.