Douluo:Peerless Tang Sect: Douluo of Peaceful Heaven

Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan finally emerged from the Bi-Scaled Flower field.

"Nannan, I need to recover some soul power. Stand guard for me," Zhu Ziyang said with visible joy as he withdrew his martial soul.

"Okay, go ahead, Brother," Jiang Nannan replied, nodding seriously.

Zhu Ziyang immediately sat down cross-legged to begin meditation and recovery. After passing through the Bi-Scaled Flower field, his second soul ring had reached 5,000 years, and his third had advanced to 7,000 years.

About half an hour later, once he had fully recovered, Zhu Ziyang stood up and said, "Nannan, let's go!"

Jiang Nannan immediately hugged his waist happily. Zhu Ziyang wrapped one arm around her, holding the Reaping Scythe of Quiet Judgment in the other as they slowly ascended along the steep cliff face.

As they approached the cliff, they discovered that there was less than half a meter of space between the cliff and the miasma clouds. To enter the valley without touching the clouds—and thus avoid alerting the divine sense hidden within them—they had to squeeze through that narrow gap.

So they hugged the rock face tightly, keeping low as they passed through the slit between cliff and cloud. After sliding a few meters down the inner cliff and confirming it was safe to stand upright, they finally rose to their feet.

But just as they stood, a thick vine—deep blue in color with multicolored markings—suddenly shot up from below and lashed toward them. The vine was twenty centimeters thick, its terrifying strength howling through the air.

Without hesitation, Zhu Ziyang swung his scythe. The blade clashed solidly against the vine, blocking its strike. Seizing the opportunity, Jiang Nannan grabbed his arm, activated her martial soul, and used her first soul skill to run down the cliff at full speed. The moment the scythe was pulled away, the vine slammed into the cliff, leaving a deep scar on the smooth, hard surface.

Looking back, Zhu Ziyang couldn't help but take a sharp breath, thankful for his vigilance. If he hadn't acted in time, they would've been seriously injured.

"Nannan, the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well greatly enhances plant growth. After a thousand years of isolation, many of these plants might have evolved into soul beasts—like that vine. We must be extremely careful," Zhu Ziyang warned.

"I understand!" Jiang Nannan replied, not slowing down, eyes fixed straight ahead.

The vine, unwilling to give up, lashed at them again. This time, Zhu Ziyang sneered coldly. It was time to teach it a lesson. His scythe glowed faint gray as he unleashed his first soul skill—Reaping Blade Domain—cutting the vine cleanly in two. Death energy surged along one half, charging toward the main body.

Whether or not the vine's core would be destroyed by the death energy didn't concern Zhu Ziyang. What caught his attention was the scene that unfolded before him.

Just as he struck the vine, Jiang Nannan leapt down, bringing them both to the valley floor.

Once they reached the bottom, the entire valley finally revealed itself.

Above them, thick, multicolored poison clouds swirled. Despite their lethality, they shone with such dazzling beauty that one couldn't help but admire them. The cliff walls were covered in deep blue vines—the same type that had attacked them earlier—now glowing like sapphires under the toxic clouds' shimmering light, a sight that filled Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan with awe.

But what truly left them breathless was the valley floor.

Though not large, the valley floor was dense with vegetation. Flowers of every color, fruits of every shape—it was a living carpet of dazzling medicinal brilliance. Both Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan were skilled in herb recognition, and nearly every plant they saw was a spirit herb—many of them exceedingly rare and precious!

These herbs were arranged in a unique pattern, forming a circular layout. Countless spirit herbs surrounded a central lake like loyal guards.

The moment they saw the lake, Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan immediately understood the origin of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well's name.

The lake wasn't large, but its waters were split in two: one side blood-red, steaming with intense heat; the other as white as jade, radiating a pure, icy chill. Red and white—fire and ice—two opposing forces coexisted in one body of water, filling the valley with powerful life energy and dense elemental essence.

Feeling the overwhelming energy, both were filled with longing. If they could cultivate here, their progress would be phenomenal. Truly, this place deserved the title of "a hidden paradise." In terms of energy richness, neither could think of a single place in their memory that could compare.

"So this is the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well?" Jiang Nannan whispered, her mouth slightly agape, voice trembling in awe. "It's… so beautiful!"

"No doubt about it. This is it!" Zhu Ziyang replied, his voice also trembling—with excitement, exhilaration, and joy.

"Brother, let's go check it out!" Jiang Nannan exclaimed, unable to hold back her inner treasure-seeker. "My intuition tells me there are many immortal-grade herbs near that lake!"

She was about to pull him toward the spring when Zhu Ziyang stopped her. Despite the temptation, he hadn't lost his composure. He had a keen sense that something wasn't quite right about the surrounding herbs.

Seeing her confusion, Zhu Ziyang patiently explained, "Nannan, didn't you notice that many of these herbs are actually soul beasts?"

"What?" Jiang Nannan gasped, looking closer. She realized that several plants were glowing with increasing intensity, their petals and leaves trembling unnaturally despite the lack of wind. She immediately understood and asked, "What's going on?"

"I think it's because of the environment here," Zhu Ziyang speculated. "The life force and elemental energy here are too strong. Combined with the fire and ice energies and long periods without disturbance, these spirit herbs—already filled with special properties—have developed sentience and evolved into soul beasts. It makes sense."

"You're right." Jiang Nannan wasn't naive. After calming down and hearing his explanation, she quickly understood. But then she asked, worriedly, "So what do we do? We don't know how many of these herbs have evolved, or how strong they are. We can't just rush in."

Zhu Ziyang nodded thoughtfully. Plant-type soul beasts were different from animal ones—they couldn't move (at least not below 100,000 years of cultivation), which meant their attack range was limited. If they could identify which plants were soul beasts and which weren't, they could safely avoid them.

But identifying soul beasts among so many spirit herbs was practically impossible. They didn't have that kind of time.

There was only one solution—plant-type soul beasts, at the end of the day, were still plants. And all plants feared death energy.

Zhu Ziyang had already come up with a plan.

"Let's go, Nannan. I have a solution," he said with a smile, pulling her into his arms. "Hold on tight."

Jiang Nannan immediately clung to him. Zhu Ziyang summoned the Reaping Scythe of Quiet Judgment and fully released his death energy, forming a protective aura around them both. With that done, he boldly walked toward the heart of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

Everything went exactly as he expected. The spirit herbs, terrified of the death energy, retracted their leaves and petals, making no attempt to attack.

Zhu Ziyang was also careful not to damage anything. He wasn't here to destroy this paradise—only to benefit from it.

One side meant no harm, the other sought self-preservation—thus, the two walked unhindered into the very center of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

"Hey, human, put that martial soul away! Don't you see you're scaring everyone?" a sudden female voice rang out unexpectedly.

Startled, Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan immediately looked around, tense and alert. "Who's there? Show yourself!" Zhu Ziyang shouted sternly.

"Oh, come on! I'm standing right in front of you!" the female voice replied, with a hint of teasing and excitement.