Battle Through the Heavens: Oh no, I've become the succubus Xiao Yan!

Little Fairy Doctor sat in the backyard of the Ten Thousand Medicines Hall, watching Xiao Yan's figure disappear into the mountains and forests.

He went to the Monster Mountain Range to train again.

Since they met, Xiao Yan has gone to the depths of the mountains to cultivate almost every day. Sometimes he would be gone for most of the day, and when he returned, he would be covered in the bloody stench of magical beasts, but his expression would always be relaxed.

She looked down at her hands.

Fair-skinned and slender, with steady hands for preparing medicine. But that's all she can do.

Xiao Yan is a Dou Wang (Battle King). This is what Xiao Yan told him.

The fifteen-year-old Fighting King.

She knew what reaching the Dou Wang level at this age meant. She always wondered why he was so outstanding, why this prodigy would treat her so well, and whether she deserved his kindness.

Little Fairy Doctor then thought, what about herself?

She wasn't even a Dou Zhe. Although Little Fairy Doctor was very confident in her appearance, she knew that her looks weren't the most outstanding. If Xiao Yan were to speak, countless women in the Jia Ma Empire who were even more beautiful than her would probably rush to become his women.

But Xiao Yan never looked down on her, and never made her feel useless. Every day he helped her suppress the poison, accompanied her in researching medicinal formulas, and held her hand when she was afraid. He was so good to her that she was both moved and heartbroken, and at the same time, very scared.

She feared that one day he would leave her, and that it was all just a dream. Moreover, she didn't want to be just someone who needed protection. She wanted to keep up with Xiao Yan.

She didn't want Xiao Yan to always be the one in danger, while she could only hide behind him. She didn't want to be stuck in the shop waiting for Xiao Yan whenever he went to cultivate. She didn't want to be just a pretty face.

Little Fairy Doctor clenched her fists.

  

She remembered the Calamity Poison Body within her. Xiao Yan had said that this constitution granted the innate ability to absorb poisons to enhance one's strength. To her, poison was not poison, but power.

But she also remembers the fear she felt the first time she secretly took poison.

That was a long time ago. Once, out of curiosity, she secretly took a little poison. The feeling... was like something awakening from her bones, or like the abyss beckoning to her. She was terrified and never touched it again.

But things are different now.

Now Xiao Yan is here.

He had said that the flames of Vulcan could suppress the power of poison. If she took the poison under his supervision, would she be able to safely become stronger?

Little Fairy Doctor stood up and went into the small hut behind the shop where she prepared her own medicine.

The shelves were filled with all sorts of poisons. Serpent's Breath, Bone-Rotting Powder, Frost Spider Venom… these poisons, which she had concocted countless times, were no longer objects of research in her eyes, but rather keys to power.

She reached out and took a small porcelain bottle.

The bottle contained red scorpion venom powder, not too potent, but not weak either. Her hand trembled slightly, but she still poured a little into her palm.

The moment the red scorpion venom powder landed on the tongue, a burning sensation spread from the throat to the limbs.

"ah--"

She bit her lip to stifle a cry. The burning sensation was followed by a stinging pain, like countless needles piercing her veins simultaneously. Then, a strange feeling surged up—the poisonous body was cheering.

The feeling was wonderful. It was like parched land receiving rain, like a drowning person finally breathing air. Her body was greedily absorbing the toxins, every cell screaming, "More!"

She reached for the second bottle.

Then comes the third one.

She lost control. The craving for the poison overwhelmed her reason; like a drowning person desperately grasping at anything she could. Bottle after bottle of poison was poured into her mouth, her consciousness growing increasingly blurred, with only her body frantically absorbing the poison.

"Little Fairy Doctor!"

A furious shout pierced through her confusion.

Xiao Yan appeared at the doorway, his face grim.

He was cultivating deep in the mountains when his soul perception suddenly detected an anomaly coming from the direction of the Myriad Medicines Hall—a surge of poison power. Without a word, he rushed back, so fast that he didn't even have time to retract his battle aura.

When he rushed into the medicine preparation room, he saw Little Fairy Doctor collapsed on the ground, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth, with seven or eight empty poison bottles scattered around her. Her skin was an unnatural bluish-purple, and the poison was rampaging through her meridians, completely out of control.

"Are you crazy?!"

Xiao Yan crouched down and grabbed her wrist. The poison traveled through the point of contact, icy cold, but his Fire God Flame instantly repelled it.

Little Fairy Doctor barely opened her eyes, and upon seeing Xiao Yan's face, tears welled up in her eyes instantly.

"Xiao Yan... I... I can't control myself..."

"Don't speak."

Xiao Yan took a deep breath, and flames ignited in his palm. The warm flames of the Fire God flowed from his palm into her meridians, advancing along the path of the rampaging poison. Wherever the flames passed, the rampaging poison was suppressed, neutralized, and guided, slowly returning to a controllable range.

This process is very slow. Little Fairy Doctor's body contains too much poison: Red Scorpion Poison Powder, Bone-Rotting Powder, Frost Spider Venom... several poisons are mixed together, and her body is frantically absorbing them, but the absorption rate cannot keep up with the rate at which the poison spreads.

While suppressing the poison, Xiao Yan helped her regulate it. The Flame of the Fire God neutralized the excess poison and guided the absorbable portion into her meridians, allowing the poison to be slowly digested.

Little Fairy Doctor trembled all over in pain, but she bit her lip tightly and remained silent. Xiao Yan held her hand with his other hand, the warmth of his palm flowing over her continuously.

"If it hurts, just yell it out."

"It doesn't hurt."

"Liar." Her hand trembled violently in his palm.

A full incense stick's time passed before Xiao Yan managed to calm the poison. The poison within Little Fairy Doctor's body subsided; it had absorbed some of the poison, and the rest was neutralized by the Flame of the Fire God. Her cultivation... seemed to have increased slightly.

Xiao Yan released her wrist, sat on the ground, and looked at her.

His eyes were complex. There was worry, lingering fear, and a little bit of anger.

Little Fairy Doctor dared not look him in the eye.

"How could you be so silly?"

His voice wasn't loud, but every word struck her heart like a stone.

"Do you know that if we had been any later, the poison would have broken through your meridians? Do you know what the consequences would be if the poison got out of control? You would have died."

Little Fairy Doctor's tears fell.

"I was just curious, but I ended up getting addicted. I'm sorry..."

She was telling the truth. The first time she took the poison, she really just wanted to try it out, but her body's craving for it was too strong, and once she started, she couldn't stop. It felt like someone who hadn't eaten for three days suddenly seeing a table full of food; her reason told her she couldn't eat, but her body wouldn't listen.

Xiao Yan remained silent for a long time.

He wasn't really angry. He was filled with lingering fear. If he hadn't rushed back in time, if his spiritual perception had been even a little slower…

He dared not think.

"Poison is okay to eat," he finally spoke, his tone softening slightly, "but I must be here with you. You absolutely cannot do anything reckless on your own. Do you hear me?"

Little Fairy Doctor nodded vigorously.

"Call me whenever you want some, and I'll help you. The Flame of Vulcan can suppress the poison and also help you neutralize excess toxins, allowing you to safely absorb some. But the prerequisite is—I'm here."

"Uh-huh."

Little Fairy Doctor wiped her tears with her sleeve and sniffed.

This was the first time she had ever seen Xiao Yan truly angry. It wasn't the cold indifference he showed to others; he was genuinely angry—because he was worried about her.

She was both scared and touched.

The old apothecary sighed inside the ring.

"This girl is just as stubborn as you."

Xiao Yan ignored Yao Lao and reached out to help Little Fairy Doctor pick up the scattered empty bottles.

"How many kinds of poison did you just absorb?"

"Red scorpion venom powder, bone-rotting powder, ice spider venom... and several others mixed together, I can't remember them all."

"Can't remember?" Xiao Yan frowned again.

"...I wasn't thinking clearly at the time."

Xiao Yan took a deep breath and swallowed back the reprimand that was about to come out.

"Never mind, let's go back and rest first. We'll deal with this tomorrow."

He helped Little Fairy Doctor to her feet; her legs were still a little weak, and she instinctively grabbed his sleeve.

Xiao Yan didn't shake her off, so he let her hold on.

The two slowly walked back to Wan Yao Zhai. The moon hung over the mountaintop, its silvery light spilling onto the bluestone path. Little Fairy Doctor's white hair shimmered in the moonlight, her hand still clutching Xiao Yan's sleeve, as if afraid he would run away.

"Xiao Yan".

"Um?"

"I won't eat whatever I want anymore."

"Hmm." Xiao Yan still felt a lingering fear.

"I'll call you when I want to eat."

"Um."

Little Fairy Doctor lowered her head, not daring to look up at Xiao Yan, her voice so soft it was like a mosquito's hum: "Thank you, Xiao Yan, thank you for being so kind to me."

Xiao Yan didn't answer, but slowed down his pace to make it easier for her to catch up.

The old man muttered to himself in the ring, "You little rascal, you're all bark and no bite, but you're as soft as cotton."

Xiao Yan thought to himself, "Master, please say less."