You'd better not ask what I'm looking for. Knowing too much... won't do you any good."
Yan Qingshan retracted the map, and at the end of his words, he deliberately raised his head in a warning.
Although Xue Lan had good intentions, he didn't want this matter to be known too much. He was too weak at the moment. A six-star fighter could be considered a figure in Qingshan Town, but not much more powerful in Stone Desert City.
While great fighters were rare in Stone Desert City, there were still a dozen or so well-known fighters. As a six-star fighter who cultivated high-level Xuan-level fighting techniques, he should be invincible among the fighters of Stone Desert City.
However, if he faced a fighter, he could handle a low-level fighter, but a mid-level or higher fighter would be no match. While he had other means, he couldn't use them too often. He didn't want to get involved in trouble unless necessary, and he didn't want to cause trouble.
"Tsk... What's going on? So secretive?"
Xue Lan muttered in dissatisfaction, but didn't press the issue.
"Master! Sister Xuelan!"
Qingling, in her turquoise dress, returned to the living room after packing her things. This time, she didn't leave. Instead, she stood obediently behind Yan Qingshan, her soft, tender hands gently caressing his forehead, soothing the fatigue he felt.
"You nasty, arrogant brat! Qingling hasn't even treated me this well!"
Xuelan grumbled in displeasure at the sight of Yan Qingshan closing his eyes in relish. Qingling, behind Yan Qingshan, blushed slightly at the words, but her movements remained steady and gentle.
Yan Qingshan leaned back in the soft chair, eyes closed, and replied bluntly, "Qingling is my maid, so of course she has to serve me. How dare you even think of such a thing? You're worse than Qingling. You wouldn't even be a maid, barely fit for a personal guard."
Whether intentional or not, Yan Qingshan's tone shifted when he mentioned the word 'personal maid.'
"You bastard, I've tolerated you for a long time!"
Xue Lan was angry at first after hearing these words, and then found out some other meanings. She stood up angrily and wanted to hit him, and swept her jade leg directly towards his head.
"Sister Xuelan, don't want it!"
Qingling was of course anxious when she saw this. She shouted and jumped forward to help Yan Qingshan block it. When she turned forward, she was not hit hard as expected. When she was about to fall to the ground, she was caught by someone, and she fell into Yan Qingshan's arms.
"You... you are a fighter. That was..."
Xue Lan regretted her impulse just now, but she had already kicked out but could not easily take it back. When Qing Ling went to block it for Yan Qingshan, she was also shocked.
But just when she was about to kick Qing Ling, a burst of green fighting spirit blocked her boot, and then a moderate force just shook her right leg back.
Xue Lan was stunned when she recalled the flash of Dou Qi. She had initially assumed Yan Qingshan was just a foolish, wealthy young master from a wealthy family visiting Shimo City. She'd been puzzled as to why he didn't have bodyguards with him.
But when Yan Qingshan displayed his Dou Zhe prowess, her doubts were resolved. Dou Zhe was merely one level higher than Dou Qi, but its significance was profoundly different.
The Jia Ma Empire was generally peaceful, and Dou Zhe were common. However, a young Dou Zhe, armed with some self-preservation strategies and avoiding suicide attempts, was unlikely to encounter danger while traveling the empire. Therefore, many family cultivators began their journey of training after becoming a Dou Zhe.
Yan Qingshan's display of Dou Zhe prowess truly surprised Xue Lan. He was so young—he looked no more than fifteen or sixteen—and yet he was already a Dou Zhe capable of training. This was unimaginable in tiny Shimo City.
More importantly, Yan Qingshan's Dou Qi confirmed Xue Lan's earlier suspicions. Xue Lan was considered a prodigy in the small city of Stone Desert. Naturally, she understood and yearned for high-level Dou Qi.
A common mercenary like her could only experience Yellow-level Dou Qi. She had felt the Yellow-level Dou Qi of ordinary fighters, but the Dou Qi that made her tremble with a single touch must be Dou Qi even higher than Yellow-level.
Even if Yan Qingshan revealed his true identity to a fighter of her age, she wouldn't believe him. His exceptional qualities perfectly matched the expectations of a warrior trained in his family.
"This is a thank-you gift for you. It's not included in your reward. It should help you improve your chances of reaching the Fighter level. However, this method is only for you. If you give it to others, it may become poisonous. Be careful."
Yan Qingshan swung a scroll, and Xue Lan instinctively caught it. Suddenly, the Dou Qi carried by the scroll in her hand pulled her out of the living room. Before she could even register what was happening, the door slammed shut.
"You little brat, you'll die if you say a few more words!"
Xue Lan shouted indignantly, raising her hand and then lowering it. She turned and walked towards the gate, preparing to leave. On the way, she spread out the scroll, and her screams were heard again, "Golden Cistanche, Yin-Striped Scorpion Powder, First-Level Earth Magic Core...
My God, these things add up to 5,000 gold coins, what kind of method did this little bastard give me..."
...
At the east gate of Shimo City, two camels, a type unique to the desert, swiftly emerged from the city, heading towards the boundless eastern desert.
In the vast desert, raging sandstorms raged. A young man, dressed lightly but barely able to block out the sun, his vitals shrouded in a turquoise-green Dou Qi resembling a Dou Qi gauze robe, walked barefoot through the wind and sand, slowly advancing against the wind.
Behind him, rows of footprints sunk deep into the yellow sand, the five toe prints quickly blurred by the wind and sand.
After a while, these footprints were obscured by the wind and sand, hiding all traces beneath the desert.
The young man was not alone; he was accompanied by two camels, carrying essential supplies such as dry food and clean water. Atop one of the camels sat a girl in a turquoise outer robe.
She was wrapped tightly to protect herself from the wind and sand, her face filled with worry, and her gaze at the young man ahead was filled with a hint of heartache.
The environment of the Tagor Desert was unexpectedly harsh, the yellow sand beneath her feet... , under the scorching sun, it is almost like a small, hot iron particle, making people frown and twitch their lips every time they step on it.
This is still the case with desert boots. If you step on it barefoot without any precautions, you will get blisters soon after you step on it. Walking barefoot like this young man is even more of a suicidal act.
Yan Qingshan is certainly not seeking death, but using the harshest environment to train himself, sublimate and strengthen his own fighting spirit, and make his fighting spirit more condensed and pure.
Wood-type fighting spirit is almost the least advantageous among all fighting spirits. In terms of damage, not to mention thunder, fire, and wind, even the earth attribute is stronger than it. It is not ranked in defense, and its auxiliary treatment is not as good as water. It can be said that except for the extraordinary recovery of wood-attribute practitioners themselves, there are no other advantages.
However, due to its attributes, wood-attribute fighting spirit is easily restrained by fire and thunder, just like delicate plants will be doomed when facing high temperatures. Wood-attribute fighting spirit is too easy to be targeted and restrained, even The same is true for cultivating higher-level Dou Qi.
In this situation, there are naturally wood-attribute practitioners who are unwilling to be defeated, so there are various methods of trial and training. Yan Qingshan is now using a plan tailored to his own situation, using the extreme environment of the desert to condense wood Dou Qi, so that his Dou Qi will not be greatly affected by the high-temperature fire Dou Qi.
Moreover, not only is the environment in the desert extreme, but the emergencies and weather conditions are also quite extreme. Walking barefoot in the desert and practicing in such an environment is definitely an important experience for him.
Yan Qingshan put aside all other thoughts and walked slowly with one mind. The Dou Qi on his body was like a wisp of green candlelight in the strong wind, flickering and lingering, becoming more solid and powerful in this wild wind and sand.
Yan Qingshan walked slowly, and the oncoming strong wind mixed with fine sand hit his face, which was a bit painful. It also hit other parts that were not covered by the clothes. This required him to hold up enough Dou Qi membrane to avoid being disfigured by the wind and sand. After most of the day's journey ,
Yan Qingshan could feel that his Dou Qi was almost exhausted, but the remaining Dou Qi was extremely refined and condensed, and he also felt that his cultivation level, which was at a critical juncture, seemed to have loosened a little.
Yan Qingshan looked at the sky. The scorching sun was hanging high above his head, releasing its scorching heat. The rays of sunlight brought rich yang energy, and the fire attribute energy in the air seemed very active, making him feel as if he was in a furnace.
In this situation, even though he tried his best to practice Dou Qi, and the Dou Qi in his body circulated rapidly, the wood attribute spiritual energy in the outside world was too little. Even if he practiced the technique at full power, the recovery speed was extremely slow.
If the Warcraft Mountain Range is a paradise for wood attributes, with lush branches and leaves that have infinite vitality even in the cold winter, then the Tagor Desert is a purgatory for wood attributes, and even the most basic recovery is very difficult.
This is because Yan Qingshan practiced a high-level Xuan-level technique. If it was a Huang-level technique, he would not be able to recover a trace of Dou Qi after practicing for most of the day.
"Qingling! Yan
Qingshan's dry lips turned pale. When he turned his head and opened his mouth to scream, he almost injured his upper and lower lips from opening his mouth, and his lip skin was also pulled painfully.
"Young Master!!!"
Qingling hurriedly drove the camels to Yan Qingshan's side, and had the two camels sit in front and behind Yan Qingshan. They carefully set up the frame and a large piece of awning skin to form a simple sunshade with little ventilation.
Qingling took out the prepared items from the ring Yan Qingshan gave her, soaked a clean towel, and wiped Yan Qingshan's face and body, carefully helping him reapply the sand and sunscreen ointment.