Xiao Yan stood up and began practicing a set of Fist Technique in the spacious hall, loosening his muscles and bones. As his movements flowed, scorching bright-yellow Dou Qi surged around him, faintly carrying the sound of howling wind and dragon roars.
A moment later, he withdrew his fists and stood still. A trace of satisfaction flashed across his eyes.
"Finally, a nine-star Dou Master. I'm only one step away from becoming a Dou Grandmaster now."
"You've gained plenty of experience in human combat through the high-intensity battles in the army during this period. The somewhat unstable Dou Qi caused by your rapid advancement has also been tempered nicely. Not bad."
The aged voice of Yao Lao sounded in Xiao Yan's mind, carrying a hint of approval.
Hearing his teacher's voice, a trace of concern appeared in Xiao Yan's eyes.
"Teacher, how is your recovery?"
Previously, when helping him subdue the Wind and Thunder Fury Flame, Yao Lao had expended quite a bit of strength.
Seeing Xiao Yan's worried expression, Yao Lao laughed.
"Haha, little fellow, no need to worry. Your teacher isn't that fragile. I've mostly recovered. Don't concern yourself with me, focus your attention on preparing for the Alchemist Grand Meeting."
Hearing this, Xiao Yan finally relaxed, though a hint of confusion remained.
"Teacher, why are we participating in the Jia Ma Empire's Alchemist Grand Meeting? The rewards don't seem particularly useful to us. Surely a mere Soul Fusion Pill formula wouldn't catch your eye."
"Of course it's because you need to put more effort into your alchemy," Yao Lao replied irritably. "A disciple I've personally trained for three years is still only a Second-Grade alchemist. If my old friends found out, they'd laugh me to death."
"In the future, you'll have to participate in the Central Plains Alchemist Grand Meeting as well. Since there's already one here, you should take part and gain some competition experience. Besides, once you win first place, the Xiao Clan's development within the Jia Ma Empire will no longer be something you need to worry about. You'll be able to focus entirely on your cultivation outside."
Xiao Yan scratched his head awkwardly.
As the disciple of the continent's number one alchemist, being only a Second-Grade alchemist really was a bit embarrassing.
Soon, however, a confident smile appeared on his face.
"Teacher, you've thought this through perfectly. Don't worry, I won't embarrass you. I'm definitely taking first place in this competition."
"Good. That's the spirit."
Yao Lao chuckled, though his tone grew more serious.
"Additionally, you need to train your fine control over Dou Qi and flames. This will greatly improve your combat strength. And alchemy is the best way to train it."
"You possess a treasure like a Heavenly Flame, yet your method of using it is unbearably crude. Even I can't stand watching it anymore."
Hearing this, Xiao Yan recalled his own rough control over the Wind and Thunder Fury Flame, then compared it to Yao Lao's masterful, flawless control of the Bone Chilling Flame.
He spoke seriously, "Understood, Teacher. I'll work on it."
"Haha! Good that you understand."
Yao Lao laughed again, but this time his voice carried a teasing tone.
"But before that, you should deal with the people outside first. You've got quite the luck with women, kid."
Xiao Yan was puzzled when a servant's voice came from outside the hall.
"Sir Yan Xiao, Princess Yao Ye and Princess Yao Yue have come to visit."
In a Mountain Range Between the Black-Corner Region and the Snake-People Empire
"Overlord Fist — Penetration!"
Zi Yan let out a crisp shout as a flash of purple light flickered through her eyes. Her fist slammed heavily into a massive purple shadow.
Boom!
A burst of purple radiance and strange force exploded outward, sending trees and dust flying within dozens of meters.
The condensed purple energy on her fist shattered the beast's blazing defense like a hot knife through butter. At the same time, the peculiar force bypassed its physical body entirely and struck directly at its heart.
"Roar—!"
With a miserable cry, the creature's heart meridians shattered instantly.
The Purple-Gold Blazing Flame Bear, whose aura rivaled that of a four-star Dou Emperor, collapsed to the ground.
Zi Yan steadied her breathing, then turned and waved toward Lin Yuan, who stood several hundred meters away atop the Winged Serpent King, watching the battle.
"Brother Lin Yuan! Hurry over! I took down this big guy, I want to eat bear paws tonight!"
However, the moment she waved, Lin Yuan's expression changed drastically. A flash of silver light appeared, and his figure vanished instantly.
At the same moment, the dying Purple-Gold Blazing Flame Bear suddenly opened its eyes wide in fury. Gathering its last bit of strength, it swung a claw toward Zi Yan from behind.
But, A silver flash.
Lin Yuan appeared behind Zi Yan. With a spinning kick, he instantly altered the trajectory of the bear's attack, causing it to miss.
Immediately after, several cyan fire spikes formed in an instant, piercing through the beast's vital points.
The Purple-Gold Blazing Flame Bear died completely.
After dealing with it, Lin Yuan turned to look at Zi Yan. His expression was serious, his gaze stern.
Seeing his face, Zi Yan seemed to realize something. She hurried over to his side, tugging at his arm awkwardly.
"Brother Lin Yuan I remember what you said about finishing off enemies after a fight. I just forgot for a moment."
But Lin Yuan did not let this pass so easily.
This was a serious matter.
"Zi Yan," he said sternly, "I've told you before—once a magical beast reaches the sixth rank, its intelligence is no less than a human's. They become far more cunning."
"In battle, you must remain cautious at all times. Until you confirm your opponent is truly dead or completely incapable of resisting, you cannot lower your guard."
Hearing his harsh tone, Zi Yan lowered her head.
She hadn't meant to forget. It was just that the excitement of battle and the joy of victory had made her careless.
"Brother Lin Yuan I know I was wrong," she said softly. "I'll remember. It won't happen again."
Seeing this, Lin Yuan's expression softened. He reached out and rubbed her small head.
"Good. What you did just now is a fatal mistake on the battlefield. It's irresponsible toward your own life."
"If I hadn't arrived in time, you might have been injured or even severely wounded. This is not a mistake you can afford to repeat."
"Mhm!" Zi Yan nodded quickly.
Lin Yuan walked over to the bear's corpse, inspected it briefly, then looked back at her with a smile.
"But your 'Overlord Fist — Penetration' just now was well executed. Looks like you've been practicing seriously."
"So, as a reward—tonight, we eat bear paws."
"Yay~!"
Zi Yan immediately cheered.
"Sixth-rank bear paws I wonder what they taste like!"
Watching her excitement, Lin Yuan also felt a surge of satisfaction.
"In that case, the first version of the 'Penetration Principle' is basically complete. Next, I'll work on the initial version of the 'Shock Principle'—starting with sound-wave Dou Techniques."
The Overlord Fist — Penetration was one of Lin Yuan's recent experiments and achievements.
With the assistance of his clone technique, he now had far more time and energy to focus on something he had long wanted to do.
Summarizing and refining his own cultivation.
At present, he was organizing his understanding of force application techniques.
His initial plan was to integrate the many Dou Techniques he possessed along with his vast combat experience, and compile them into a combat system called the Heaven Origin Eight Character Art.
This system would include various techniques, some suited for close combat, others designed to complement Dou Techniques.
Of course, for now, the so-called Heaven Origin Eight Character Art was only a concept.
In reality, it was currently just the Heaven Origin Three Character Art, since Lin Yuan had only developed three techniques so far.
The Penetration Principle was one of them.
It focused on allowing force to bypass an opponent's defenses and directly attack their internal organs, dealing fatal damage.
In addition, Lin Yuan had also completed:
Break Principle — concentrating power into a single point to strike weak spots and pierce through defenses or attacks.
Rotation Principle — emphasizing rotational force and flow, forming a spiraling vortex of power to wear down enemies or compress one's own strength.
As for "Overlord Fist · Penetration", it was a move formed by combining the Penetration Principal with the Overlord Fist.
After successfully testing it, Lin Yuan taught this technique to Zi Yan, who also practiced the Overlord Fist.
After her advancement, it seemed that all the increase in intelligence gained from evolving as a magical beast had been invested entirely into combat.
Although Zi Yan still retained her childish temperament in daily life, her comprehension and learning ability in combat techniques had improved dramatically.
As a result, she quickly mastered "Overlord Fist · Penetration" and had already begun applying it in real combat.
Afterward, Lin Yuan also planned to teach Zi Yan several notes from the Heavenly Origin Eight Chapters that did not require high soul strength.
For someone like Zi Yan, a member of the Ancient Void Dragon clan, those powerful chapters would be both easy to learn and highly effective.
Lin Yuan took out the magic core and stored away the corpse of the Amethyst Blaze Bear, a faint smile curling on his lips.
"The Purple-Gold Blazing Flame magic core, along with the Sulfur Flame Ganoderma it was guarding that means I'm only missing one ingredient for the Fire Emperor Pill."
Soon after, the two of them flew toward the Winged Serpent King.
Not long later, within a picturesque valley, dishes themed entirely around "bear"—rich in aroma and overflowing with energy, were laid out before Zi Yan and Qing Lin.
In addition, Lin Yuan had specially prepared an entire braised bear paw for Zi Yan, its color glossy and enticing.
The two girls stared at the feast before them, their eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Sorry to keep you waiting." Lin Yuan smiled proudly. "Let's eat."
The moment he finished speaking, the two, who had long lost their patience, immediately began devouring the food.
While enjoying the meal, Lin Yuan answered some of the cultivation problems Qing Lin had encountered and then informed her about matters concerning the "Seven Stars."
"Eh? The Seven Stars?" Qing Lin swallowed a mouthful of magical beast meat, surprise flashing in her eyes.
"You'll be the Tianshu Star Lord, I'll be the Yaoguang Star Lord, Big Sister Little Fairy Doctor will be the Tianxuan Star Lord, and Queen Medusa will be the Tianquan Star Lord?"
"Yes, that's the preliminary plan." Lin Yuan nodded with a smile.
"Qing'er, what do you think? Do you want to switch titles? For example, becoming the Tianxuan Star Lord?"
Qing Lin waved her hands hurriedly.
"No, Young Master. As long as I can help you, I'm already very happy. I don't need to be a Star Lord. The position can go to someone more useful."
"In the Seven Stars organization, you are the most indispensable one."
Lin Yuan looked at Qing Lin seriously.
"The establishment of the Seven Stars cannot do without your Jade Serpent Three Flower Pupils and the Heavenly Network. So as long as you are willing to help build this organization, there will always be a place for you among the Seven Star Lords."
"Qing'er, you must remember this—'Young Master' and 'Qing'er' are merely the unique way we address each other. They do not define our relationship."
"Our relationship has always been that of fellow cultivators Dao companions."
Qing Lin looked at Lin Yuan's serious expression. Recalling the words "Dao companion" he had once spoken, warmth welled up in her heart. She nodded gently.
"Mm."
"What Seven Star Lords? I want to be one too!"
Zi Yan, who had been fully focused on eating, suddenly perked up and shouted excitedly after hearing their conversation.
"Looks like I forgot there's a little troublemaker here who loves joining in," Lin Yuan said, rubbing his forehead.
After thinking for a moment, he said,
"Alright then. Since you're interested, Zi Yan, you can be the Tianshu Star Lord together with me. I'll be your deputy."
"Yay~!" Zi Yan cheered.
After they had eaten their fill, Lin Yuan carefully studied their upcoming route.
Soon after, the three of them mounted the Winged Serpent King and left the energy-rich mountain range, heading toward the next one.
All the rare medicinal ingredients in this region had already been collected by Lin Yuan, thanks to Zi Yan's special treasure-sensing ability.
This time, Lin Yuan did not choose the previous route back to the Jia Ma Empire.
Instead, he selected a path filled with mountain ranges, one that led directly to the Snake-People Empire.
During their journey, whenever they encountered a mountain rich in energy, they would land to rest and search for treasures.
Under Zi Yan's guidance, they gathered many valuable materials.
The ingredients for the Dragon Blood Mystic Spirit Pill and the Fire Emperor Pill were nearly complete. They had even collected several materials for the Yin-Yang Dragon Profound Pill and the Snake-People's Heaven Soul Blood Fusion Pill.
Naturally, this treasure-hunting process brought them into conflict with powerful magical beasts inhabiting the mountains.
Lin Yuan treated this as part of their training.
He led Zi Yan and Qing Lin in selecting suitable opponents, using continuous battles to temper their Dou Qi and combat techniques.
They experimented with various combat styles and refined their coordination under the Heavenly Network.
Thus, as they crossed one energy-rich mountain range after another, they traveled, gathered treasures, and honed themselves through battle.
At times, Lin Yuan would even deliberately explore seemingly dangerous mountain ranges.
From experience, the more dangerous the mountain, the greater the treasures hidden within.
Of course, such a method of travel was not without risk.
They once encountered a seventh-rank magical beast.
Fortunately, it had only recently advanced to that level. Qing Lin deployed the now partially mastered Beast Essence Spirit Gathering Formation, and with Lin Yuan personally controlling the formation core, they successfully killed it, obtaining a seventh-rank magic core in the process.
After that, however, they became much more cautious.
Whenever Zi Yan sensed the presence of a great treasure, Lin Yuan would carefully probe the area with his soul perception, while Qing Lin used her subordinates for reconnaissance.
If danger was detected, they would avoid the area but Lin Yuan would mark its location on a map and record relevant information for future use.
Although this journey took longer due to their constant treasure-hunting, it was far more interesting.
At the Winged Serpent King's speed, aided by medicinal pills, they could have reached the Snake-People Empire in one month if traveling at full speed.
This time, however, it took them nearly two months.
Despite the longer duration, the rewards were equally substantial.
Not only did they obtain a large number of natural treasures, but through continuous battles in the mountains, their auras had become far more fierce and dangerous compared to two months prior. Their combat abilities had also improved significantly.
At the same time, their cultivation had advanced.
Lin Yuan's Dou Qi had been tempered to an extremely solid state through battle, and he had reached the peak of four-star Dou Emperor, only a step away from breaking through.
Additionally, with the help of his clones, he had made considerable progress in various research fields.
Zi Yan, after consuming large quantities of natural treasures, had grown strong enough to rival a three-star Dou Emperor.
Qing Lin had advanced by two stars, reaching six-star Dou King.
With her increased strength, she could subdue more magical beasts. By the end of the journey, she had gained two sixth-rank and three fifth-rank snake-type magical beast subordinates.
She had also completed an iteration of her subordinates, most of them could now contribute to the Beast Essence Spirit Gathering Formation.
Looking at the vast, familiar desert stretching endlessly before him, Lin Yuan's gaze sharpened, a hint of excitement rising in his heart.
"Queen Medusa, Xiao Cai I've arrived."
Meanwhile Deep within the desert, inside a grand palace, a pair of radiant eyes slowly opened.
----
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