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**
"Xiao Cai, did you find a safe cave?"
Lin Feng sat under the shade of a tree, looking at the Heaven Swallowing Python that suddenly appeared beside him and asked.
Hearing this, Xiao Cai nodded its small head and pointed its tail toward the side of the mountain.
"Alright, let's go."
Seeing that Xiao Cai had found a safe place to heal, Lin Feng stood up and flew in that direction.
Because of his high speed, Lin Feng soon followed Xiao Cai to a dense jungle beneath a cliff.
Looking at the thick vines in front of him, Lin Feng twitched the corner of his mouth. He really had no idea how this little guy found the cave.
Standing at the entrance, he realized that if no one had pointed it out, he wouldn't have known there was a cave here.
Pushing aside the vines, he saw that the plants above the entrance blocked out the sunlight, making it difficult to see anything beyond the entrance.
He slowly stepped inside, and as the vines fell back into place, the interior plunged into darkness.
Lin Feng took out a Moonlight Stone, and its faint glow immediately dispelled the darkness.
The cave's appearance was soon reflected in his pupils.
The cave was fairly spacious, with some stone furniture scattered around, suggesting that someone had lived here for a time.
"Hmm? What's that?"
Scanning the area, Lin Feng's gaze suddenly landed on the stone table in the center of the cave, where some objects seemed to be placed.
"A jade bottle? It looks strange. Could the previous owner have been an alchemist?"
For safety reasons, Lin Feng reached into his sleeve and used his clothing to pick up the slightly unusual transparent bottle.
Bringing it closer for a better look, he saw two blood-red pills inside.
Each pill was about the size of a longan fruit, looking incredibly mysterious, as if filled with blood.
At the center of each pill, a small blood-red light flickered. Looking closely, it almost resembled a tiny eye, giving off an eerie aura.
Lin Feng fixed his gaze on the blood-red pill.
With his sharp soul perception, he vaguely sensed that these pills were different from ordinary ones.
But he couldn't quite tell what the difference was.
As his eyes swept over the bottle's opening, Lin Feng suddenly froze.
He noticed some energy markings etched onto the bottle's cap.
Looking carefully, it seemed to serve as a type of seal.
"Wait a minute… could this pill be… the Life Devouring Pill?!"
Seeing the seal, Lin Feng recalled that high-tier pills, once they gained some intelligence, would often try to escape. That was why they needed to be sealed.
Hurriedly, he gripped the bottle tightly with his other hand and used his sleeve to frantically wipe off the dust on its surface.
"Eh? There's writing on it."
Lin Feng quickly read the label attached to the bottle.
The more he read, the more incredulous his expression became.
After finishing, Lin Feng confirmed that these two pills were indeed peak seventh-tier pills—the Life Devouring Pills!
Years ago, the Life Devouring Pill had shocked the entire continent. It was a peak seventh-tier pill.
Its effect was simple—it could forcibly raise a Da Dou Shi to the Dou Wang realm in an extremely short period!
However, this pill had a severe drawback: after becoming a Dou Wang, the user would only have about three years to live!
After three years, if they wanted to survive, they would have to consume rare treasures to temporarily extend their lifespan.
If they could break through to the Dou Huang realm, the side effects would be permanently removed.
However, the terrifying thing about this pill was its ability to artificially create geniuses in large numbers!
Imagine a seventeen- or eighteen-year-old Da Dou Shi taking this pill.
They would instantly go from being a promising young talent to a peerless genius!
After that, as long as resources were invested in them to extend their lifespan for a few years and push them toward the Dou Huang realm…
Then, decades later, the faction backing them could very well have a Dou Zong-level powerhouse at its helm!
In the Northwestern Region, where old monsters rarely appeared, a Dou Zong was practically the highest level of power.
Even in smaller cities of the Central Plains, if a faction suddenly produced a Dou Zong expert…
They could easily suppress all competitors, dominate the city, and become its undisputed ruler.
Lost in thought, Lin Feng swallowed nervously, his eyes burning as he stared at the jade bottle in his palm.
At this moment, he was even more excited than when he obtained the map fragment.
After all, the map fragment couldn't immediately boost his strength.
But if he swallowed just one Life Devouring Pill, he could skip years of hard cultivation and instantly become a Dou Wang!
"No… I still have to go to Jia Nan Academy."
"If I take this, Jia Nan Academy definitely won't accept me. After all, a Dou Wang with only a few years left to live isn't of much use to them."
Shaking his head, he forcibly dismissed the idea of consuming the Life Devouring Pill.
Then, as if remembering something, he turned to look at Xiao Cai, who showed no interest in the high-tier pills.
He couldn't understand—why was Xiao Cai completely indifferent to such valuable pills?
Thinking of this, Lin Feng held the pill and slowly approached Xiao Cai.
"Ying Ying~"
As the jade bottle got closer, the little creature sniffed it slightly before immediately running to the side, seeming to dislike the pills.
"Is this a magic beast's instinct? Did it sense that consuming the Life Devouring Pill brings no benefits, only severe drawbacks, so it naturally rejects it?"
After figuring this out, Lin Feng stored the pills into his storage ring and then turned his gaze to the blood-red scroll on the stone table.
Picking it up and examining it closely, he noticed that the scroll emitted a faint red glow, and it had no visible openings, resembling a tightly sealed jade pillar.
"This level of prescription is beyond my ability to unlock right now. I'll keep it for later."
Muttering to himself, he placed it next to the Life Devouring Pills.
After handling these things, Lin Feng turned to Xiao Cai, who was swimming through the air, and smiled.
Having obtained such valuable treasures, he naturally wanted to reward the little one who discovered them.
With a swipe over his storage ring, a lotus seed wrapped in dense azure light appeared in his hand.
As soon as the Core-Fire Lotus Seed emerged, an incredibly rich fire-attribute energy spread out.
Even Lin Feng, who possessed fire-attribute Dou Qi, felt his throat move involuntarily, tempted to swallow it immediately to increase his cultivation.
However, reason told him that even though he was now a Da Dou Shi, if he swallowed it, he might not be able to refine its energy, leading to his body exploding.
"Ying Ying~"
Xiao Cai also sensed the overwhelming fire energy. It hurriedly ran over to Lin Feng, rubbing against him coquettishly, clearly wanting the lotus seed.
"You're the hero today. Here, eat it."
Lin Feng gently rubbed the soft Core-Fire Lotus Seed, then flicked his finger. A streak of azure light accurately landed in Xiao Cai's mouth.
The little one had just swallowed it when its body suddenly expanded slightly, then instantly fell asleep in Lin Feng's hands.
Not long after it fell asleep, a powerful light burst from Xiao Cai's body.
The dazzling radiance instantly overpowered the dim glow of the Moonlight Stone in Lin Feng's hand.
The entire cave was engulfed in this light.
Lin Feng instinctively squinted his eyes.
The light disappeared in a flash, but the moment it did—
Lin Feng suddenly felt the Heaven Swallowing Python in his grasp rapidly growing in size.
At the same time, the cool and smooth texture of Xiao Cai's scales vanished.
In its place was a familiar, soft elasticity—
"...Uh, Your Majesty, why are you out?"
Lin Feng quickly looked up and saw that enchanting, flawless face again. He couldn't help but ask softly.
"Hmm? This Queen came out. Do you have a problem with that?"
Medusa took a small step back, putting some distance between them. As she spoke, her gaze was sharp and unyielding.
At the same time, her perfect figure was wrapped in a striking red qipao.
Lin Feng immediately forced a laugh. "Haha, how would I dare have a problem with that? I just fed the little one a meal and thought something went wrong."
"Hmph, what you fed it contained far too much energy. It has now entered a deep sleep to digest it."
Seeing that Lin Feng seemed genuinely concerned about the little creature, Medusa kindly answered his question.
However, as she sensed his Dou Qi level, a look of surprise flashed across her face. "Oh? You've already advanced to a Two-Star Da Dou Shi so quickly? But why are you injured?"
Lin Feng sighed helplessly. "If my Dou Qi level doesn't rise quickly, I'll have a hard time surviving in Black-Corner Region. I was just ambushed by a Dou Ling and a Nine-Star Da Dou Shi. Though I managed to kill them, I still got injured."
"Oh, so you've arrived at Black-Corner Region already? Not bad for a mere Two-Star Da Dou Shi—you actually managed to kill a Dou Ling?"
Suddenly, she seemed to recall something and sharply locked her gaze onto Lin Feng. "From what you're saying, several months have passed already. You haven't forgotten about gathering the ingredients for the Soul Mending Pill, have you?"
Judging by her expression, if he had forgotten, he would be in serious trouble.
"How could I dare forget something important to Your Majesty? I've already collected the Azure Glaze Flower and the Eight Tombs Demon Thorn Fruit."
As he spoke, Lin Feng took out the two medicinal ingredients and tossed them toward her.
"Not bad, at least you remember our agreement."
Medusa caught the two jade boxes, examined them briefly, and, sensing the potent energy within, nodded in satisfaction.
Seeing her pleased reaction, Lin Feng pondered for a moment and decided it was best to explain things in advance to avoid her constantly urging him later.
Glancing at Medusa, who was wearing a faint smile, he continued, "The remaining two ingredients are both soul-related, which makes them incredibly difficult to find. It's unlikely I'll be able to get them anytime soon, so you should be mentally prepared."
Hearing this, Medusa frowned slightly.
Soul-related ingredients were indeed rare—she was well aware of that.
But if the delay was too long, and those four old monsters in her clan died, she feared that the Jia Ma Empire would launch a full-scale attack on the Snake-People Clan. That would be disastrous.
After a moment of thought, Medusa looked at Lin Feng and said, "You have three years to gather all the necessary ingredients."
"No problem."
Lin Feng nodded. He was confident that three years would be enough.
As for where to find the remaining ingredients, he already had a plan—
The Inner Academy of Jia Nan Academy. The missing ingredients should be there.
Seeing Lin Feng's confidence, Medusa nodded slightly. Then, her alluring figure vanished on the spot.
In the cave, only a seductive voice echoed—
"I'm going out to see what Black-Corner Region is like. You just focus on recovering."
"Hey, at least tell me when you're coming back! I still need to go to Jia Nan Academy!"
Seeing Medusa disappear without warning, Lin Feng's mouth twitched slightly.
With no other choice, he swallowed a pill and sat cross-legged to heal.
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