BTTH : genius planner

"Don't call me Ice Emperor anymore. Losing so thoroughly to a junior like you makes me feel unworthy of the title. Just call me Haibodong directly," Haibodong waved his hand and said with a hint of helplessness.

"The Ice Emperor is being too modest. In this world, those who surpass me at the same level are certainly strong, but those who lose to me are not necessarily weak; it's just that I am among the strongest of the strong. In the future, many strong individuals will also fall to me, so you need not despair. Since you don't want me to call you Ice Emperor, I will call you Elder Hai from now on!" Lin Yuan comforted, noticing Haibodong's somewhat dejected demeanor.

Upon hearing this, Haibodong glanced at Lin Yuan and then at the young man before him. His expression remained calm, but the gentle words he spoke carried a different kind of sharpness. The confidence emanating from the depths of his heart had a mysterious power that somewhat soothed Haibodong's disheartened spirit.

"So, what do you need me to do? Or how do you plan to deal with me?" Haibodong asked.

"Deal with you? Elder Hai is overthinking it. I said we are in a cooperative relationship. As a gesture of goodwill, I will completely lift the seal I placed on you," Lin Yuan said with a smile. As he spoke, he formed several hand seals in front of him, and a green light flew from his fingertips into Haibodong's body. Soon after, a small dragon-shaped fire spirit flew out from within Haibodong and landed on Lin Yuan's fingertip. Lin Yuan snapped his fingers, and the dragon-shaped fire spirit slowly dissipated in the air.

Seeing the fire spirit vanish, Haibodong sensed his own condition and felt the special pressure within him truly disappear. He let out a sigh of relief; he did not want to experience being sealed again.

After lifting the seal, Lin Yuan looked at Haibodong and smiled, "How is it? Is my gesture of goodwill sufficient? You may not feel it now, but I believe you will realize that meeting me is your greatest opportunity."

"Greatest opportunity, huh? I hope so," Haibodong said, looking deeply at Lin Yuan. His tone had softened considerably after his defeat.

"Can you tell me how you fell from the Dou Emperor level to the Dou Spirit level?" Seeing Haibodong relax, Lin Yuan feigned curiosity and asked. A glint of cunning flashed in Lin Yuan's eyes; he knew that Haibodong had fallen due to being sealed by Queen Medusa during the competition for the fragment of the map. He intended to use this question to test Haibodong and see how effective his approach had been.

"The reason for my drop in strength? It was due to being sealed by Queen Medusa," Haibodong said. When mentioning Queen Medusa, a shudder crossed his eyes, revealing the deep psychological trauma he had experienced.

"After participating in the strongman conference between the empires, I came to the Tagore Desert. By chance, I obtained that fragment of the map—the one you took from me. However, it attracted Queen Medusa, and I was defeated by her in battle. Although I managed to escape, I was still hit by her Serpent Seal. Not only did my body age rapidly, but my strength was also sealed at the Dou Spirit level."

"Indeed, that sounds like a harrowing experience," Lin Yuan agreed, nodding secretly. It seemed that his combination of kindness and authority had not been in vain; Haibodong was trustworthy, and he could be less cautious in their future dealings.

"The seal from Queen Medusa? Interesting. I have a particular interest in seals myself. The sealing technique I used earlier was self-created. If you don't mind, let me take a look and see if there's anything I can help with," Lin Yuan suggested to Haibodong.

"Then, I will trouble you," Haibodong replied, maintaining his usual demeanor, though he was extremely shocked inside. As someone who had been affected by the Ancient Dragon's Spirit Seal, he could sense that the seal was quite unusual. He hadn't expected that it was created by the young man before him. Not only was this person powerful, but his research on combat techniques was also outstanding. This sparked a hint of anticipation in Haibodong's heart.

"Then, without further ado, let's get started. Please sit cross-legged, Elder Hai, and do not resist my probing," Lin Yuan said, making a gesture indicating a plan as he walked behind Haibodong, preparing to study Queen Medusa's Serpent Seal.

Haibodong complied and sat down without resistance. This was the awareness of a defeated person; he couldn't imagine that Lin Yuan would have any malicious intent toward him, especially since Lin Yuan had just restored his strength and life.

Lin Yuan placed his hand on Haibodong's back, first releasing his soul perception to probe the seal within Haibodong's body. Then, he activated his Dou Qi to test the Serpent Seal and used his own Dou Qi to have Haibodong cooperate in various tests, yielding significant results.

"So that's how it works; the Serpent Seal operates like this."

"The seal has been maintained for so many years; how is the energy replenished? I see."

"The method to resist interference is..."

"Hmm? This aspect is somewhat similar to my Ancient Dragon's Spirit Seal."

"This rune is..."

"This method of utilizing bloodline sensitivity and pressure is quite clever."

"These can be referenced and used to improve the Ancient Dragon's Spirit Seal."

Several hours later, Lin Yuan concluded his study of the Serpent Seal and fell into contemplation.

Haibodong watched Lin Yuan with anticipation. During the testing process, he had confirmed that the young man before him indeed had a remarkable understanding of sealing techniques.

After a while, seeing that Lin Yuan had finished his contemplation, Haibodong anxiously asked, "How is it? Do you have any solutions?"

Lin Yuan replied, "I cannot lift this seal for now." After seeing disappointment on Haibodong's face, Lin Yuan added, "However, I can weaken this sealing technique, making it less tight on you, allowing your strength to recover to the Dou Wang level."

Upon hearing this, Haibodong was overjoyed and exclaimed, "If I can recover to the Dou Wang level, I will be very satisfied. At least I can fly freely in the sky again. I haven't experienced the feeling of flying freely in the sky for decades; just thinking about it makes me nostalgic."

"However, I still have some preparations to make to weaken the seal, and I have some urgent matters to attend to, so we can only wait until we meet again. Speaking of which, my urgent matter may require Elder Hai's assistance," Lin Yuan said, casting a meaningful glance at Haibodong.

"Oh, is there anything I can do?" Seeing a glimmer of hope in breaking the seal, Haibodong became more proactive.

"My elder told me that there is a strange fire in the Tagore Desert and asked me to come find and subdue it, as it would greatly help my alchemy. Elder Hai has been in the Tagore Desert for so many years; do you have any leads on the strange fire?" Lin Yuan asked Haibodong.

"Elder? To cultivate such a monstrous figure who even knows about the strange fire here, the power behind this kid is quite extraordinary! It seems that cooperating with this kid could indeed be a great opportunity," Haibodong thought to himself, making a decision in his heart.

"Regarding the strange fire, I do know a bit," Haibodong said, taking out a thin piece of parchment from his storage ring and unfolding it. It was a very detailed map of the Tagore Desert, which not only accurately marked the locations of water sources in the desert but also carefully indicated the locations of the serpent tribes scattered throughout the desert. On the map, there were three very conspicuous flame symbols in the east, north, and west directions.

Haibodong looked at Lin Yuan and smiled, "In my exploration, these three places marked with flame symbols in the Tagore Desert are the most likely locations for the strange fire. I personally suggest we first go to the eastern and northern flame symbols; the western location is close to the depths of the Tagore Desert, where the possibility of encountering Queen Medusa is quite high."

Lin Yuan took the map and looked deeply at Haibodong, "It seems Elder Hai has already recognized our cooperation from the bottom of his heart. That's excellent. Trust me, you will be glad for today's decision in the future."

"I hope so too. Since you are an alchemist, can you tell me what rank of alchemist you are?" After deciding to cooperate, Haibodong's tone became more open.

"Sixth rank. Although I haven't been tested, refining sixth-rank pills is not very difficult for me. If I can find the strange fire this time, my success rate in alchemy will greatly increase," Lin Yuan answered straightforwardly.

"Sixth rank? To cultivate such a young Dou Wang and a sixth-rank alchemist, what a powerful force! Could it be the legendary Pill Tower? It seems that this time I might really have stumbled upon an opportunity," Haibodong thought, becoming increasingly convinced of Lin Yuan's connection to a major power in the Central Continent.

"Then I will give you one more thing. This is a sixth-rank pill formula I obtained over the years that can break seals. It requires strange fire to refine, so consider it a congratulatory gift for your future success in subduing the strange fire," Haibodong said, taking out a scroll from his storage ring and handing it to Lin Yuan.

Seeing Haibodong being so generous, Lin Yuan also prepared to reciprocate, promising, "If I successfully subdue the strange fire this time, I will help you refine this pill. How are the medicinal materials prepared?"

Haibodong replied somewhat awkwardly, "I have gathered the medicinal materials needed for the formula, but I am missing a Sand Mandrake, which can only be found in the Tagore Desert. I have a seal placed on me by Queen Medusa, and as soon as I step into the depths of the Tagore Desert, she will sense me... so..."

"So you want me to help you obtain that medicinal material? That doesn't quite align with the rules of alchemy," Lin Yuan said, glancing at Haibodong.

"I know, but as long as I can refine the pill mentioned, I will be able to recover my strength, which will also benefit our cooperation. After all, the roles that strong and weak can play are different. Moreover, if I can recover my strength, I can make the Mittal family, one of the three great families of the Gama Empire, work for you," Haibodong said, looking steadily at Lin Yuan. Having made up his mind, he was determined to invest all his resources.

"The Mittal family, huh? Yes, that might indeed come in handy later. Since you have such sincerity, I agree. I will help you obtain the Sand Mandrake," Lin Yuan said, seeing that his goal had been fully achieved. Haibodong also completely believed in his words and was ready to invest in their partnership, and Lin Yuan was generous enough to show some goodwill.

"Thank you," Haibodong said, feeling relieved that Lin Yuan had agreed to the matter.

"After preparing for so many years, I finally see hope. I just hope I haven't misjudged the person and placed my bet incorrectly."

"Haibodong, truly an excellent investor."

Under the night sky, the two had different thoughts.

"Then, Elder Hai, we part ways here. I will return within six months. At that time, I will help you break part of the seal or refine the pill to remove the seal."

"Goodbye, I will wait for you in the city."

After the two parted ways, Lin Yuan flew into the sky like a streak of blue light heading toward Shimo City.

"Next stop, Shimo City, Qinglin."

Thank you all for your support. Please follow, collect, vote, and reward. As a newcomer, the early data is quite important, so I hope everyone can support me. Feel free to engage in discussions in the review section.

(End of Chapter)