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**
As the vast surge of soul power poured in—
Before long, within the body of the One-Horned Purple Scale Python, Wei Yang successfully located the source of the Heavenly Flame. It was a purplish-black magic core, about the size of a clenched fist, and attached to it was a wisp of flame roughly three fingers thick.
It appeared as though the flame had taken root on the magic core, swaying and flickering slightly.
Wei Yang's soul power surged forward, completely wrapping around it.
This newly born Heavenly Flame source, still lacking in sentience, was naturally unable to resist the intrusion of Wei Yang's overwhelming soul force.
Moments later, he successfully imprinted his soul mark onto it.
Outside.
The blazing green flames that had been raging moments ago began to slowly withdraw, retreating back into the body of the One-Horned Purple Scale Python.
Wei Yang slowly opened his eyes, the black flames that had covered his body dissipating along with them.
He extended his hand and called out, "Come out!"
Whoosh—
In an instant, a small cluster of green flame, about the size of a palm, was forcibly drawn from the python's magic core.
It hovered in front of Wei Yang, trembling slightly.
Having been separated from the Rank 7 magic core, it instinctively resisted the change, though not very strongly.
Lacking spiritual awareness, it couldn't even form vague or coherent thoughts.
If the Black Sun Burning Heaven Flame had been akin to a newborn infant—blank and barely conscious—
Then this newly born Ghostly Poison Flame was more like a fetus still being nurtured in the womb, devoid of any spiritual intelligence.
"Though it lacks sentience, it's still a Heavenly Flame after all."
Wei Yang's hand, wrapped in a layer of black fire, gently grasped the trembling Ghostly Poison Flame in his palm, sighing with emotion.
"And because it lacks sentience, when Xian'er refines it, the resistance will be much lower. It'll be far less dangerous—much easier."
Even though he had subdued it, Wei Yang still didn't dare touch it directly with his bare skin. He had to keep a layer of flame around his hand as protection.
Even a Rank 7 magic beast had succumbed to it—how could he afford to be careless?
Only someone with the Woeful Poison Body could resist its toxic corrosion.
With a look of admiration, Wei Yang carefully observed the green flame flickering in his palm.
A Heavenly Flame born from a sub-flame that developed sentience—truly a miracle.
The odds of this happening were no less than those of a naturally formed Heavenly Flame from heaven and earth.
Moments later, Wei Yang finally withdrew his gaze, pulled out a jade bottle, and sealed the Ghostly Poison Flame inside.
After storing it away, he looked toward the massive body of the One-Horned Purple Scale Python, which lay coiled nearby—neither truly alive nor dead, its spirit broken and its will erased.
A proud mid-stage Rank 7 magic beast had fallen so far—reduced to the parasite host of the Ghostly Poison Flame, becoming a puppet controlled by flame. It was truly pitiful.
Now that the flame had been extracted, the python had regained control over its own body.
Its massive body trembled slightly, as if instinctively trying to move and reclaim its autonomy.
But its movements were awkward and sluggish. It strained to shift its body, struggling greatly.
Its dull pupils slowly began to focus again, regaining a hint of clarity.
Yet, it still appeared lost, hollow—completely devoid of the intelligence and vitality expected from a Rank 7 magic beast.
"It's done for," Wei Yang said quietly, watching it all unfold. He couldn't help but shake his head and sigh.
This Rank 7 magic beast—its mind was gone.
It was alive, yes, but hardly different from being dead.
It had lost all sense of self, reduced to a mentally crippled husk—a fool.
In truth, the moment it was corrupted by the toxin, it had likely already died.
Its brain and soul had both been ravaged and destroyed by the poison.
All that remained now was a shell, like a walking corpse.
But then—
Wei Yang's eyes flickered.
Even if it was just a husk, it was still the body of a Dou Zong-level magic beast!
Wasn't this a perfect, natural puppet?
One that could still cultivate—and grow!
He had originally planned to end its suffering and extract its magic core, but now, Wei Yang suddenly changed his mind.
It wasn't dead—just mindless.
He could hand it over to Qing Lin, let her tame and form a contract with it.
A half-step mid-tier Dou Zong servant that obeys without question!
With that thought, Wei Yang took out the jade bottle once more and uncorked it.
"Go back," he said, as he sent the Ghostly Poison Flame back into the One-Horned Purple Scale Python's body, where it re-rooted itself onto the magic core.
Very quickly, as the Ghostly Poison Flame took root in the magic core once again, the pupils of the One-Horned Purple Scale Python became unfocused, losing control over its own body.
Through the Ghostly Poison Flame as a medium, Wei Yang now indirectly controlled the body of this Rank 7 magic beast.
With a thought, he gave a mental command through the flame.
At once, the python's massive body erupted with a blinding flash of purplish-black light.
Within that light, its enormous body began to twist and morph slowly.
When the light finally faded, the massive form of the python had vanished entirely.
In its place stood a tall, burly middle-aged man, over two meters tall, with dense purplish-black scales covering his body. A long, thirty-centimeter unicorn-like horn jutted proudly from his forehead, pointing toward the sky. He stood like an iron tower—imposing and unmoving.
"Excellent," Wei Yang nodded in satisfaction.
A Rank 7 magic beast was already capable of transforming into human form. However, as a beast, some of its features remained clearly non-human.
Some of those traits were instinctively retained during transformation, while others were the result of their bloodline.
In general, the higher the cultivation level of a magic beast, the more their appearance resembled that of a human.
Once they reached the Dou Zun realm and beyond, magic beasts and humans looked nearly indistinguishable from one another.
Looking at the burly man before him, Wei Yang flipped his hand and tossed over a black robe.
The man reached out and caught it. His eyes were empty, his face expressionless, and his movements stiff as he dressed, covering his bare body.
"From now on, your name will be… Du Jiao (Unicorn)," Wei Yang declared, naming him.
Shrouded entirely in the black robe, his head covered by a hooded cloak, the burly man stood motionless, offering no response.
Wei Yang didn't mind. Behind him, his black wings unfurled.
"It's time to head back."
Whoosh!
His figure shot into the sky like a black streak.
"Let's go!"
Behind him, the newly named Du Jiao took a step and followed swiftly. His massive body floated upward, as if an invisible staircase supported him in midair. With each step, he moved across the sky effortlessly, easily keeping pace with Wei Yang.
"So this is Dou Zong, huh…" A trace of envy flickered in Wei Yang's eyes.
Walking through the air without any external aid or wings—now that was style.
But he quickly calmed his emotions.
Dou Zong… he was almost there himself—probably just a few years away.
He was already at the peak of Nine-Star Dou Wang, and he could faintly feel the thin bottleneck ahead.
Once this business was finished and after Xian'er refined the Ghostly Poison Flame, he would return to the underground magma world deep beneath the Tagore Desert to go into seclusion and break through to Dou Huang.
The fire-element energy there was abundant—an ideal place for him to achieve the breakthrough.
There were still a little more than six months before the trip to Yun Lan Sect. That should be enough time.
Whoosh!
With a flap of his wings, Wei Yang turned into a streak of black light, cutting through the void at high speed.
Beside him, Du Jiao walked through the air, following close behind.
As he flew, a faint smile curved Wei Yang's lips.
This trip to the Ghostly Marsh had been extremely rewarding.
Not only had he found the Ghostly Poison Flame, he had also gained a mid-tier Dou Zong enforcer.
He glanced at Du Jiao beside him—still with those blank, soulless eyes.
The One-Horned Purple Scale Python had powerful bloodlines. If nurtured properly, there was a good chance it could step into the Dou Zun realm in the future.
It would've been too much of a waste to just let Du Jiao sink into oblivion—reduced to a mindless puppet with all that strength going unused.
After all, a subordinate with intelligence and awareness was far more useful than a brainless servant.
The poison corruption…
Maybe, someday, he could study it properly and find a way to treat him.
Though it wouldn't be easy.
The issue wasn't just the damage to his body—his brain's central nervous system had been destroyed by the poison—but also his soul, which had been eroded by it. That was the real problem.
Du Jiao had completely lost his sense of self.
Healing the body wouldn't be too difficult. Once Xian'er refined the Ghostly Poison Flame, they could draw out the poison from his body and slowly restore it through careful treatment.
Medicinal pills would do the trick.
But the soul—that was another matter entirely.
He wondered if Yao Lao might have a solution, or if there was some kind of pill formula for it.
He didn't need Du Jiao's memories back—just purging the poison and restoring his soul to normal would be enough.
In the original story, how did the Dou Sheng from Burning Flame Valley cure his fire poison again?
"Well, I'll deal with that when the time comes. If there's a way, I'll treat him. If it's too much trouble… then forget it," Wei Yang muttered, shaking his head.
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