Little Fairy Doctor hesitated for a moment, then quietly put the bag of powder away.
"You made a very wise decision," Xiao Tian turned his head and said with a meaningful smile.
"Let's go. We'll head down now."
"We?" Little Fairy Doctor frowned slightly. "You're still bringing me along? Are you planning to use me as cannon fodder?"
Xiao Tian chuckled. "It's perfectly safe down there. No cannon fodder required. Besides, you showed me kindness back in town. I'll reluctantly share a portion of the treasure with you."
"How surprisingly generous of you," she replied, a trace of suspicion in her voice.
Without another word, Xiao Tian activated his Dou Qi. Behind him, a pair of magnificent pink wings slowly unfurled, glowing with a soft, ethereal light.
"D-Dou… Dou Qi Transformation Wings?!" Little Fairy Doctor's eyes widened in shock, her voice stuttering. "You're… a Dou King?!"
"No," Xiao Tian answered casually. "So, how do you want to go down? Fly with me, or climb slowly with a rope?"
Little Fairy Doctor thought for a brief moment before replying, "I'll go down with you."
"Then come here. Hold on tight later. If you fall, I won't be responsible…"
Before he could finish speaking, a soft, fragrant body suddenly pressed against his chest. Looking down at the beauty in his arms, Xiao Tian naturally wrapped one arm around her slender, alluring waist.
"What are you waiting for?" Little Fairy Doctor's voice carried a hint of shyness and urgency. "Aren't we going down? I'm only coming with you because I'm afraid you'll take all the good stuff if you go first…"
Just as Xiao Tian was quietly savoring the delicate feel of her waist — so slender it seemed it could be encircled with one hand — Little Fairy Doctor's soft, slightly embarrassed voice sounded beside his ear.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Xiao Tian leaped straight off the cliff.
The sudden weightless descent caused Little Fairy Doctor to squeeze her eyes shut and cling tightly to him. The pink wings behind Xiao Tian fluttered gently, stabilizing their fall as he glided smoothly toward the middle section of the cliff.
Halfway down, a dark cave entrance came into view. As they approached, a black shadow suddenly shot out from within — a rock snake lunging toward them.
With a casual flick of his wrist, a long halberd appeared in Xiao Tian's hand. In one swift motion, he sliced the snake cleanly in half, sending its body tumbling down the abyss.
He landed gracefully at the cave entrance and looked teasingly at the young woman still buried in his arms. "We're here. How long do you plan to keep hugging me? Although my embrace is quite warm and comfortable, I can't let you take advantage of me forever."
"Ah~! I-I wasn't… Don't talk nonsense!" Little Fairy Doctor's face flushed bright red as she hurriedly pulled away from his arms. "What was that thing that attacked us just now? It scared me to death."
"Just a rock snake," Xiao Tian shrugged. "Let's go inside."
He took out a fist-sized moonstone, which instantly illuminated the entire passage with a soft, cool light.
After walking for about ten minutes, they reached a heavy light-yellow stone door. Beneath it was a slightly protruding stone block.
"Press that block. The door will open," Xiao Tian instructed.
Little Fairy Doctor looked at him in confusion but followed his words. As soon as she pressed the block, the stone door rumbled upward and slowly opened.
"How did you know that?" she asked, unable to hide her surprise.
"I told you before — I know quite a lot of things," Xiao Tian replied with a faint smile. "I can even read palms. Would you like me to read yours?"
"If you don't want to explain, then don't. And reading palms? You just want an excuse to hold my hand," Little Fairy Doctor huffed.
Xiao Tian didn't argue. He simply walked past her and entered the stone chamber. "Think about it if you want. I'm going in first."
Seeing him enter, Little Fairy Doctor quickly followed.
The chamber was not large. Everything inside could be seen at a glance: three piles of gold coins, a small flower bed filled with rare herbs, three wooden boxes on a bluestone platform, and a withered skeleton seated on a stone chair.
"I have no use for the gold coins. You can take them all," Xiao Tian said, then walked straight toward the flower bed.
"Xuan Tian Grass, Purple Heart Vine, Wood Spirit Flower… Perfect for refining a Mysterious Spirit Pill."
He examined the herbs carefully before turning to Little Fairy Doctor, who had just finished collecting the gold. "I don't need the Ice Spirit Flame Grass, but I'll take two-thirds of the herbs in this flower bed."
Without waiting for her reply, Xiao Tian took out a small jade shovel and swiftly dug up more than half of the medicinal plants, transferring them directly into his system space. Since time was frozen inside the system space, the herbs would retain their full medicinal efficacy.
"Aren't you afraid the herbs will lose their potency if you don't store them in jade bottles?" Little Fairy Doctor asked curiously.
"No need. I have my own methods," Xiao Tian replied calmly.
Seeing that he didn't wish to elaborate, she didn't press further. She simply took out her own shovel and began collecting her share.
While she was busy, Xiao Tian approached the withered skeleton. He bowed slightly out of respect, then gently lifted the skeleton's arm. A slightly yellowed parchment scroll was tucked beneath it. He pulled it out and opened it carefully.
A faint lotus imprint was visible on the scroll.
Little Fairy Doctor finished gathering the herbs and walked over to his side. "What are you looking at?"
"My main goal for coming here this time."
"I see…" She nodded. "Then this parchment scroll belongs to you. May I ask what it is? If it's inconvenient, you don't have to tell me."
"There's nothing I can't say," Xiao Tian replied lightly. "It's a fragmented map that records the location of an exotic flame."
Little Fairy Doctor's heart stirred. The fact that he was willing to share such a dangerous secret showed considerable trust in her. A faint warmth rose in her chest, and her gaze toward him softened with a hint of tenderness.
"An exotic flame? That's extremely dangerous. I've heard that even Dou Emperors can be burned to ashes if they're not careful. It's too risky for you to search for something like that."
"Are you worried about me?" Xiao Tian asked with a teasing smile.
"H-How could I possibly care about you? You're mistaken!" Little Fairy Doctor's face instantly turned red. "Who would worry about a big bad guy like you?"
"Alright," Xiao Tian chuckled. "I'm going to open the boxes now."
He took out the black key he had retrieved from the skeleton's hand and tried it on the first box. With a soft click, it opened, revealing a colorful ancient scroll inside.
Xiao Tian picked it up, recalled the system's reward, and looked meaningfully at Little Fairy Doctor. "This Seven-Colored Poison Sutra is for you. I have no use for it."
"Poison Sutra?" Little Fairy Doctor accepted the scroll in confusion. After opening it and reading a few lines, her eyes widened. "It really is a poison manual that records how to concoct various poisons. Could the owner of this cave have been a physician as well?"
"Perhaps," Xiao Tian replied casually as he moved on to the second box.
Click.
The second box opened to reveal a black scroll. He picked it up and unfurled it.
"Profound High-Rank Flying Dou Technique: Wings of the Eagle."
"This is a flying Dou Technique. Do you want it?" he asked.
"What is a flying Dou Technique?" Little Fairy Doctor asked, puzzled.
"It allows you to fly even before reaching the Dou King realm. This technique was created from the wings of a Tier 5 magical beast and contains a remnant of its soul. When you cultivate it, the remnant soul will attack your own soul."
"So it's dangerous?" She shook her head immediately. "Then I don't want it. You can keep it. With my current strength, trying to cultivate something like this might kill me."