"Master, what in the world is he doing?"
This strange behavior from Yang Xiao...
...had completely stunned the Purple-scaled Blood Horned Flood Dragon.
Han Ziye's eyes, however, glinted, and he put away the purplish-red fruit in his hand. If Yang Xiao were here, he would have recognized it.
This purplish-red fruit was none other than the Nine Revolutions Rejuvenation Fruit, a Divine Medicine famous even in the Ancient Era. It was the Fruit of Life from the Nine Revolutions Undying Tree.
Consuming it could purge all negative statuses and restore one's physical body to its absolute peak. Moreover, its medicinal properties could bring someone back from the brink of death nine times.
It was precisely because of this terrifying effect that it was called the Nine Revolutions Rejuvenation Fruit.
Of course, there were limitations.
It was only effective for those below the level of a True God.
For those at or above the True God Realm, their Life Aura was already immense, and they possessed effectively immortal bodies. Consuming the Nine Revolutions Rejuvenation Fruit would not have a restorative effect at all, and could, at best, slightly increase their vitality.
Therefore, this kind of Divine Medicine was often collected by top-tier True God Realm experts and gifted to their juniors who had not yet achieved godhood.
Han Ziye was the son of the Heaven-Fighting Divine King.
He naturally had access to such a Divine Medicine.
But now, it seemed he wouldn't be needing it.
He looked at Yang Xiao in the distance.
One moment, large patches of his flesh would rot away; the next, they would be restored to life.
Han Ziye steadied his Heart Spirit. 'It seems Brother Yang has his own method for refining poison.'
And after this incident,
his confidence in Yang Xiao had grown significantly.
Gradually, the Purple-scaled Blood Horned Flood Dragon...
...evidently began to understand as well.
Its cultivation and worldly experience were not on par with Han Ziye's.
But Yang Xiao had been sitting in the pool of poison this whole time. Not only was he unharmed, his aura was actually growing stronger.
It understood.
This master of its...
...was likely anything but simple.
It had really chosen the right person to follow.
'Master is truly a heavenly genius. His performance back at the Inheritance Tower was shocking enough. I originally thought he hadn't made it through at all, since he took so little time. But to my surprise, he actually passed. And now… this terrifyingly potent poison… even I would die in there. But Master!'
Thinking of how Yang Xiao had just plopped right down into it,
the Purple-scaled Blood Horned Flood Dragon's heart trembled.
How utterly domineering.
'Based on this alone, I, this Old Dragon, will follow Master for the rest of my life.'
If, before, the Purple-scaled Blood Horned Flood Dragon had only paid lip service to its submission to Yang Xiao,
thinking he had only suppressed it by borrowing the power of a Divine Artifact,
then now,
Yang Xiao had completely won it over with his own charisma.
After all, a person who knew how terrifying the poison was and still dared to plop his butt right into it…
…that courage alone was enough to earn one's admiration.
Not to mention, from the looks of it now, Yang Xiao even had the ability to neutralize the toxins.
It was simply heaven-defying.
Sure enough, just as the two had expected, it wasn't long before…
Yang Xiao patted his rear and stood up.
He was completely fine.
In fact, his aura had even grown a little stronger.
He seemed to have reached the Martial Grandmaster Peak Sixth Level.
But his face showed a hint of regret as he muttered, "What a shame. I wasted most of the potent properties on restoring my body. If I'd used it all for absorption, I'd probably be approaching the limit of the Mid-stage Yellow Flame by now. With just a little more, I might have even broken through to the Late-stage Yellow Flame. Then I could have undergone the second tempering of my body and spirit."
The first tempering in the Yellow Flame Realm had evolved Yang Xiao's constitution into an Upper-Grade Spirit Body.
His Physical Strength had increased dramatically.
His Spiritual Level had broken through to the Void Observation Realm.
As for the second time,
although the changes wouldn't be as great as the first,
it would still significantly increase Yang Xiao's power, making him even stronger.
This would be beneficial whether he was exploring the Celestial Poison God King's residence or facing the threat of the Golden-winged Roc—especially with the threat of the Golden-winged Roc looming.
Yang Xiao felt that every bit of strength mattered.
Only by being powerful himself could he control his own destiny.
So, in the following days,
Yang Xiao ventured deeper and deeper.
Every time he encountered a new poison, he would first test its toxicity, then refine it.
And the further he went,
the more virulent the poisons became.
However, as Yang Xiao gained more experience, and with the aid of his vast knowledge of medicinal properties from his past life, he grew increasingly adept at converting the toxins.
Although most of the energy he absorbed was used to repair his own body,
his power and cultivation still advanced at a steady pace.
「Three days later.」
After encountering what was either the thirtieth or thirty-first virulent poison,
his cultivation...
...broke through.
'Late-stage Yellow Flame. I'll stop here for now to temper my body and spirit. I need to increase my strength first.'
Yang Xiao stopped in his tracks.
He sat cross-legged and began to cultivate.
Tempering his body and spirit took a long time, and each session was longer than the last. This time, Yang Xiao estimated it would take at least thirty days.
In other words, one month.
If he were outside, even on the 1st Layer of the Northern Wilderness Sword Mansion,
Yang Xiao would never have made this choice.
But this was the third layer.
One day in the outside world was a thousand days here.
A mere thirty days...
...wouldn't affect anything significant.
Having come this far, Yang Xiao was also feeling the strain more and more. Although his understanding of toxins was growing stronger, his overall power was ultimately still too weak.
If he encountered a terrifying poison that killed instantly,
even with his ability to neutralize it,
he wouldn't have the time.
Therefore, Yang Xiao decided...
...to first increase his strength.
And break through in his cultivation.
However, while Yang Xiao felt that thirty days wouldn't change the grand scheme of things,
as time passed,
the Golden-winged Roc, who had been waiting outside the valley, was growing restless.
Although it was bound by the rules and could not enter the valley,
that didn't mean it was out of options.
Moreover, its innate Golden Pupil of Truth, which could see through all illusions, allowed the Golden-winged Roc to monitor Yang Xiao and the others at all times.
Especially from the moment Yang Xiao left the Heaven-Fighting Divine Palace and began to traverse the Poison King Valley,
the Golden-winged Roc's eyes had never left him.
At first,
the Golden-winged Roc thought Yang Xiao was overestimating himself. Daring to trespass into the Celestial Poison God King's residence? It figured he would be dead in the valley in no time.
But to its surprise,
Yang Xiao overcame one venomous trial after another.
Furthermore, his aura was constantly growing stronger.
He was clearly reaping considerable benefits.
Especially now.
He was sitting cross-legged in meditation, obviously breaking through to a new realm.
This made it even more restless.
'If this continues, that brat might actually obtain the Celestial Poison God King's inheritance. What should I do? Am I just supposed to watch him get stronger and stronger?'
'No! Absolutely not!'
The Golden-winged Roc shook its head.
In its entire life, it had only had one relative: the Golden-winged Hairy Roc. They had practically hatched at the same time.
However,
it had been blessed by the heavens, inheriting the pure bloodline of its ancestors.
The other, however, was merely of a mixed bloodline, naturally a step below.
But their bond had been strong.
After they grew up, under the rules of the Northern Wilderness Sword Mansion, they became the overlords of the 2nd Layer and third layer respectively.
'Right... I can't enter because of the rules of the Northern Wilderness Sword Mansion. But if... if those rules were to change...'
The Golden-winged Roc's eyes suddenly lit up.
Then, with a flap of its wings, it ignored Yang Xiao and the others in the valley and flew straight away.
Its destination:
The Core of the third layer—the Nine-Layered Inheritance Tower.