Battle Through the Heaven: Purple Heaven

Hai Bodong's face lit up at Xiao Bai's swift agreement, his fondness for the youth soaring. Worthy of friendship—young, talented, and principled. Xiao Bai could've coerced him but chose not to. If not for fear of seeming overeager, Hai Bodong might've proposed sworn brotherhood on the spot. Laughing heartily, he said, "Haha, excellent! What's your name, young friend?"

"Xiao Bai."

"No need for 'Ice Emperor'—just call me by name!" Hai Bodong urged.

"Then I'll call you Elder Hai," Xiao Bai said, nodding.

"Xiao Bai, you came to my little map shop today, likely for a Tagore Desert map, right?" Hai Bodong asked, skeptical that the Pure Lotus Demon Fire fragment was the goal. It seemed a chance find. If Xiao Bai sought a map, he was headed for the desert—crucial for securing the final herb.

"Indeed. Do you have a detailed map of the Stone Desert City area, Elder Hai?"

"Stone Desert City?" Hai Bodong frowned, puzzled. Why there? He'd been ready to offer a comprehensive Snake-People territory map to aid the herb hunt, but Xiao Bai wanted a map for a minor locale. Stone Desert City, a desert outpost, was barely a city—more a mercenary hub, no larger than a small imperial town.

Racking his brain, a spark hit. "Stone Desert City…" he muttered, pulling an ancient parchment map from his ring. Unfurling it, he revealed winding lines marked with three flame symbols. Pointing to one, he gasped, "You're seeking a Heavenly Flame there?"

No mistake. Why else would someone of Xiao Bai's caliber visit that backwater? Only something like a Heavenly Flame could draw him.

"Correct. I'm after a Heavenly Flame," Xiao Bai confirmed, unsurprised Hai Bodong guessed it. This map was likely the one given to Xiao Yan in the novel. The novel's flame locations were vague, pinpointed only by Qing Lin's sensing of Medusa's aura in the southeast. Xiao Bai needed a detailed map for reference.

"No wonder you're confident about the sixth-tier alchemist," Hai Bodong said, then hurried, "But that spot's only a possibility, not certain. What if you don't find it?"

The pill was too critical to risk.

"No need to worry, Elder Hai. Your pill doesn't hinge on this flame. Even without it, I can ensure the pill's refining," Xiao Bai reassured, noting his tension.

"Alright then. For a Heavenly Flame hunt, this map's the most detailed. Take it," Hai Bodong said, relieved. As long as the Breaking Calamity Pill was secure, the rest was negotiable.

Xiao Bai stored the map, glancing around with a smile. "Elder Hai, I bet you're tired of hiding. Care to join me on the road?"

"No way!" Hai Bodong nearly leapt, rejecting loudly. Stone Desert City, though in the Jia Ma Empire, was too close to Snake-People territory. He couldn't risk Medusa sensing his seal. Facing that ruthless queen in his current state made his heart quiver.

Xiao Bai stifled a laugh at Hai Bodong's near-panic. Is he that scared of Medusa? How hard did she hit him? Twenty years later, the trauma lingered.

Catching Xiao Bai's look, Hai Bodong grinned sheepishly. "If I go to Stone Desert City, Medusa might sense the seal."

"Can I examine it?" Xiao Bai asked, intrigued. While unfamiliar with Dou Qi seals, he'd studied soul seals extensively. Could he layer a soul seal over Medusa's to mask its aura?

"Go ahead," Hai Bodong said, unguarded. If Xiao Bai meant harm, he'd have struck earlier. His Dou Qi was sealed, but not his soul. Yet Xiao Bai's soul force and crimson thunder-fire outmatched him—restored or not, he'd likely lose. Better to be open than seem petty.

With consent, Xiao Bai's soul force surged, probing Hai Bodong's dantian. A teal energy enveloped it, hissing as Xiao Bai's soul touched it. A snake shadow materialized, shrieking at his intrusion.

Xiao Bai snorted, ready to crush it, but Hai Bodong groaned in pain. Glancing up, Xiao Bai saw sweat beading on the old man's face, a teal snake shadow on his forehead, faintly pulsing outward as if signaling.

"Hm?" Xiao Bai murmured, intrigued. This is how Medusa tracks him? A Dou Qi seal emitting soul fluctuations was ingenious. Seeing Hai Bodong's agony, he held off attacking the dantian's shadow.

"Done yet, young friend?" Hai Bodong gritted out, the seal sapping his vitality more fiercely than usual.

"Hold on, Elder Hai. Let me seal the snake shadow on your forehead first—Medusa shouldn't sense you then," Xiao Bai said, hands swiftly forming seals.

"Good, but hurry!" Hai Bodong rasped, enduring the pain.

"Almost there!" Xiao Bai finished, pinpointing the shadow's pulsing core. His sword finger tapped it, eliciting a piercing hiss that faded into silence. Checking again, the outward fluctuations were gone. Exhaling, mentally drained from two seals in a day, he rubbed his temples. "Done. Unless you're face-to-face with Medusa, she won't sense you."

Hai Bodong, sensing the seal's silence, beamed. For years, he'd been trapped in Mo City, seeking Heavenly Flame rumors while dodging Medusa's reach. Now, he could move freely—his rusty bones ached for action.