In the dark expanse of his consciousness, a dim wisp of awareness drifted aimlessly. In this pitch-black environment, there seemed to be no concept of time, and the awareness wandered like a homeless, solitary spirit, filled with desolation. At one moment, within the inky void, a dazzling azure flame suddenly appeared, gently flickering. The light emitted by the azure flame dispelled the surrounding darkness, and as it moved slightly, it transformed into a lotus seat of azure fire.
After the azure lotus seat took form, it shot through the dark space at incredible speed, arriving beside the dim, wandering consciousness in an instant. A gentle light reached out, enveloping the consciousness…
Once the consciousness was enveloped, the azure lotus began to flash rapidly, retreating from the darkness at high speed. After a while, pinpricks of white light appeared at the end of the darkness. The lotus seat carried the dim consciousness, and it surged out of the endless realm of consciousness…
In a forest, under a giant tree, Xiao Yan sat with his eyes closed, leaning against the trunk. His slightly pale face was gradually regaining its healthy color. Beside him, the Pharmacist Elder, who had been tending to Xiao Yan, breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this change.
After a short while, Xiao Yan’s eyes trembled slightly and finally opened slowly. The bright sunlight streaming from the sky made him squint slightly.
“Awake, are we?” The elder’s gentle laughter sounded in his ear.
Xiao Yan raised his head and smiled at the kindly-looking Pharmacist Elder. He nodded and rubbed his face lightly. After a moment’s hesitation, he asked, “Did the evolution succeed?”
“Haha, why don’t you check for yourself?” The Pharmacist Elder smiled instead of answering directly.
Xiao Yan nodded and crossed his still slightly sore legs. After calming his mind, he quickly entered a state of cultivation. As his mind sank into his body, the intricate network of meridians reappeared in his thoughts.
His mind quickly traversed a few meridians and arrived at the energy vortex above his lower abdomen. With a quick scan, Xiao Yan took a deep, nonexistent breath. At that moment, a feeling of overwhelming excitement filled his body.
The energy vortex in his mind, not only ten times wider than before, also contained deep azure energy that was clearly of higher quality than the previous purple energy. Perhaps due to completely absorbing the Lotus Heart Flame, the deep azure energy also carried traces of azure flame.
With these flames attached, the fighting power of the azure energy would become quite terrifying.
On the Dou Qi continent, the gap between different cultivation methods depended on several factors. First, the capacity of the energy vortex. If two people were of the same rank, but one practiced a Yellow Tier method and the other a Profound Tier method, the latter would have significantly greater endurance in battle.
Second, the quality of the Dou Qi. In the same rank, if a person practicing a Profound Tier method needed to expend a certain amount of Dou Qi, someone using a Yellow Tier method might need to use ten or more times as much Dou Qi to achieve the same result.
Third, the efficiency of absorbing and refining natural energy during cultivation. If both wanted to absorb the same amount of Dou Qi, a person using a Profound Tier method might need only ten minutes, while one using a Yellow Tier method might need a hundred minutes.
Fourth, in battle, a person using a Yellow Tier method would find it far more difficult to channel their Dou Qi as smoothly and quickly as someone using a Profound Tier method.
For all these reasons, the importance of good Dou Qi cultivation methods on the Dou Qi continent was evident. The higher the tier of the cultivation method, the greater the benefits. Therefore, countless strong practitioners sought higher-tier methods, even if they knew it was like a moth flying into a flame, ready to be consumed by the flames.
Staring at the spacious, lake-like energy vortex, Xiao Yan gradually came back to his senses. His mind moved, and a strand of azure Dou Qi flowed out from the vortex, traveling swiftly along the meridians. As the Dou Qi circulated, Xiao Yan could feel the powerful energy in his body rising to a peak never reached before.
Observing the path of the Dou Qi, Xiao Yan found that the route after evolution was more complex, but strangely, it required less time to complete a cycle. After completing the cycle, the powerful energy was already ready within his body, waiting to be unleashed at his command.
“Really… It succeeded?” Feeling the fullness of the energy within, Xiao Yan took a deep breath, still somewhat disbelieving. He slowly opened his eyes and looked at the smiling Pharmacist Elder. Cracking a smile, he murmured, “It succeeded?”
“Yes…” The Pharmacist Elder, looking at Xiao Yan’s slightly amused expression, laughed and nodded, sighing with admiration. He patted Xiao Yan’s shoulder and said, “Congratulations, you’ve proven that the ‘Burning Resolution’ can indeed devour the Heavenly Fire! That means its potential is infinite, truly infinite…”
As the Pharmacist Elder’s words echoed in his ears, Xiao Yan felt a sudden rush of happiness, leaving him dizzy. Leaning against the tree, his joy was hard to conceal.
After a long while, Xiao Yan gradually calmed down, stood up, and closed his eyes. Moments later, azure Dou Qi rose from his body, forming a perfect azure Dou Qi robe. On the robe, the azure flames occasionally flickered, their intense heat causing the air to shimmer and distort.
As the Dou Qi robe fully materialized, a fierce aura burst from Xiao Yan’s body. The azure Dou Qi around him soared, stopping at a height of three feet above the ground.
Lifting his head, Xiao Yan looked at the azure-flamed Dou Qi robe enveloping him, smiling. Clenching his fists, he struck the nearby giant tree.
*Thud!*
With a crisp, muffled sound, Xiao Yan’s arm plunged into the tree trunk. A subtle force radiated from his arm, causing cracks to spread across the tree. Suddenly, the cracks expanded, and the giant tree collapsed with a loud crash.
Smiling, Xiao Yan glanced at the fallen tree and again felt the flow of Dou Qi within him. After a moment, he opened his eyes and looked at the Pharmacist Elder, taking a deep breath, and his face lit up with a radiant smile. “Mid-Grade Profound Tier!”
The Mid-Grade Profound Tier referred to the evolution level of the ‘Burning Resolution’ after devouring the Lotus Heart Flame. It seemed to have jumped from Mid-Grade Yellow Tier to Mid-Grade Profound Tier, a whole tier increase!
Hearing this, the Pharmacist Elder was slightly stunned but then nodded in relief. A heavy weight lifted from his heart, and his tense mind relaxed. He smiled and praised, “Excellent, as expected of the Lotus Heart Flame. Although the energy required for the evolution between tiers is enormous, it seems the Heavenly Fire can manage it…”
Xiao Yan exhaled deeply as the Dou Qi flames on his body retreated. Clenching his fists, he smiled, “Teacher, it seems your concerns were unnecessary…”
“Ts, if it weren’t for the aid of the Heaven Devouring Serpent yesterday, I doubt you could have resisted the backlash of the Heavenly Fire,” the Pharmacist Elder rolled his eyes and said.
“Ah…” Recalling the intense pain of absorbing the Heavenly Fire, Xiao Yan’s smile froze, and his face paled slightly. Swallowing, he nodded bitterly, still shaken. “That pain was terrifying. If the Heavenly Fire had succeeded in its backlash, my soul might have been burned into nothingness.”
“This ‘Burning Resolution’ is indeed bizarre… I wonder who created it. It took us great effort to find it in that wretched place…” The Pharmacist Elder suddenly stopped, clearly hesitant about something.
Ignoring the Pharmacist Elder’s pause, Xiao Yan shrugged, reaching into his sleeve and pulling out the coiled Heaven Devouring Serpent. She seemed to be in a deep sleep, her body surrounded by a faint azure glow, looking rather peculiar.
“The Seven-Colored Heaven Devouring Serpent has several stages: juvenile, growth, maturity, and peak. Each stage requires a tremendous amount of energy. Before, she was in the juvenile stage, but now, thanks to the Lotus Heart Flame, she is undergoing a transformation.”
“How strong will she be after the transformation?” Xiao Yan asked, intrigued.
“Perhaps she’ll reach the Dou Wang level… Once she reaches the peak stage, even a Battle Sect wouldn’t dare underestimate her,” the Pharmacist Elder replied, smiling.
“Indeed, the treasures of the earth and sky are truly enviable,” Xiao Yan exclaimed, marveling.
“Hehe, such creatures are rare. The Seven-Colored Heaven Devouring Serpent you have might be the only one on the Dou Qi continent,” the Pharmacist Elder chuckled.
“If so, that would be wonderful,” Xiao Yan smiled, carefully putting the serpent back into his sleeve. Gazing at the cliff in the distance, he stared at the floating clouds, lazily stretching his neck, and asked softly, “Teacher, how much time is left until the three-year agreement?”
“Two months,” the Pharmacist Elder replied calmly.
“Two months, huh…” Smiling, Xiao Yan summoned the Heavy Black Scale from his Storage Ring, gripping the handle and slashing downward, shattering a large rock beneath his feet.
“Nalan Yanran, for the last two months, have you prepared yourself?”
In the distant forest, a young eagle perched on a treetop, flapping its wings as it struggled to take flight. With a sharp cry, it suddenly soared into the sky, its wings spreading wide.
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