Battle Through the Heavens

The clothes on Xiao Yan body continued to bulge outward for a long time before finally returning to rest on Xiao Yan’s skin. Xiao Yan released a breath foul air before standing up and turning towards the smiling Yao Lao at his side. Opening his mouth and letting out a grin, Xiao Yan could not hide the joy on his face. With a year’s time, he had finally been promoted to a true Dou Shi. During this time, he had put in so much effort and perspiration in order to achieve the success that was like a butterfly breaking from his cocoon.

Becoming a Dou Shi meant that Xiao Yan had left the class that the majority of people belonged to. Although the class of Dou Shi was still considered to be on a lower level in the Dou Qi continent, it was considered to be much stronger and of a much higher class compared to a Dou Zhe which was of the lowest class. Most importantly, Xiao Yan was still young with a lot of time to strengthen himself!

Xiao Yan tightened his fist. A strength that he had never felt before was flowing in every part of his body. Only until today, when he personally stepped into the Dou Shi class, did Xiao Yan truly understand just how big the difference between Dou Zhe and Dou Shi was. Recalling the battle he had with Mu She back then, the current Xiao Yan could not help but rejoice in his heart. If Yao Lao had not taught him the Di class Dou Technique, he would have experienced great difficulty in defeating Mu She regardless of how he leapt around, much less being able to kill him.

Standing in place, Xiao Yan suddenly raised out his right hand and curled it into a fist. Immediately, a purple colored Dou Qi abruptly surfaced on his body. After the Dou Qi appeared, it suddenly withdrew a little. A moment later, it gradually accumulated just outside Xiao Yan’s clothes, seemingly forming a layer of defensive Dou Qi. It was perhaps due to Xiao Yan swallowing the Purple Flame that faint rising Purple Flames could be seen on top of the defensive Dou Qi.

A Dou Qi cloak, the symbol of a Dou Shi, was one of the most practical skills of a Dou Shi. In the fight with Mu She, Xiao Yan had witnessed its immense usage. In the past, Xiao Yan might have been able to bring out a Dou Qi cloak but he could not cover all of his body with it like he did now.

Moreover, the Dou Qi cloaks that Xiao Yan had summoned out in the past did not have any effect on his speed, defence, attack etc. Only after becoming a Dou Shi would the cloak that was summoned out be equipped with these ability to aid in battle, something that all Dou Zhes coveted.

Seeing the mighty looking and beautiful purple colored fire cloak, Xiao Yan’s face filled with joy as he threw a few quick punches that created a fierce wind. After the cleansing and strengthening of the natural energy from before, the current him could actually cause his fist to carry a sharp piercing sound with just his own strength.

Eyeing the excited Xiao Yan who was continuously testing the strength of a Dou Shi, Yao Lao shook his head with a smile. He waited for Xiao Yan to calm down before asking, “See if the ‘Flame Mantra’ had evolved. What level is it? Middle or High Level?”

Yao Lao’s question prompted Xiao Yan to stop his rapid punches. He nodded his head and once again slowly closed his eyes, allowing his mind to descend into his body.

After Xiao Yan’s mind descended into his body, it quickly came to the lower abdomen where his ‘Dan Tian’ was at. At this moment, the originally large pale yellow vortex here was completely transformed into a purple colored vortex that was smaller than Xiao Yan’s palm. His mind swept across the small purple colored vortex and abruptly realized that there were over ten drops of purple colored liquid slowly flowing within that vortex. These drops of purple colored liquid followed the spiraling of the vortex, like small fish in a lake.

Xiao Yan’s mind curiously entered the purple colored vortex and stealthily encompassed a small drop of purple colored liquid. After feeling it for a moment, an unrestrained happiness surfaced in Xiao Yan’s heart; he realized that within these small drops of purple colored liquid was an extremely forceful energy.

Realizing the secret of the purple colored liquid, Xiao Yan’s heart was once again able to better understand the huge difference between a Dou Shi and a Dou Zhe. He instantly let out an emotional sigh.

The vortex of a Dou Zhe was like a balloon while the Dou Qi was like the air that was contained within the balloon. This balloon had a critical point that belonged to it and once the Dou Qi it contained reached the point where it was full, it would no longer be able to contain any excess Dou Qi. If one wanted to forcefully push more in, the vortex would pop like a balloon and explode with a bang.

When promoting from a Dou Zhe to a Dou Shi, the biggest benefit was that the filled Dou Qi in the balloon would undergo a transformation, changing into droplets of liquid energy with far denser, more complex, and purer energy than just simple Dou Qi.

Once the Dou Qi underwent the transformation, the quality and quantity of Dou Qi contained within the balloon would instantly expand tremendously.

Hence, by having this enormous Dou Qi storage, a Dou Shi was naturally far superior; a Dou Zhe could just not compare. In addition, with regards to the class and purity of their Dou Qi, they were entirely different.

Xiao Yan’s mind slowly exited the vortex. After the the earlier probe, Xiao Yan could understand that despite these liquid drops appearing to be only the size of a fingernail, a third of his pale yellow Dou Qi before becoming a Dou Shi would be needed in order to create one of these tiny drops of liquid energy. From this, it was obvious just what kind of energy was contained in this one tiny drop.

As he watched the slowly spinning vortex, Xiao Yan’s mind moved slightly. Threads of purple colored Dou Qi promptly flowed out and began to rush through the Qi Paths determined by the ‘Flame Mantra’ Qi Method.

Following the flow of the Dou Qi in the predetermined Qi Paths, Xiao Yan could feel numerous threads of fire type energy seeping in from the surrounding air in the outside world, penetrating Xiao Yan’s skin and entering his Qi Paths. The purple colored Dou Qi would then carry them and complete a perfect cycle of the Qi Method.

After completing a cycle of the Qi Method, Xiao Yan could feel that the threads of Dou Qi that were released from the vortex were much more powerful and much richer than they were a few minutes before.

Upon completion of a cycle, the Dou Qi which had become more powerful once again entered the vortex. At the moment it did, Xiao Yan’s body trembled slightly. Finally, he opened his eyes slowly and watched Yao Lao’s face that was filled with anticipation. He involuntarily shrugged his shoulders and helplessly said, “Huang Class Middle Level! It only evolved by one level.”

“Huang Class Middle Level? Ha ha, it was expected.”

Hearing Xiao Yan’s words, Yao Lao did not feel any disappointment. He eyed the depressed face in front of him and could not help but laugh, “The evolution of this Qi Method requires the enormous energy of the ‘Heavenly Flame’. From the start, this Purple Flame did not meet the requirement. It is already quite good that it caused the Qi Method to barely evolve by one level. Moreover, by relying on the uniqueness of ‘Flame Mantra’, the Qi Method of only Middle Huang level does not lose to other High Huang Qi Methods. You should be satisfied.”

Hearing this, Xiao Yan could only nod his head with a bitter smile. Although he knew it was impossible, his heart continued to wait for a miracle to happen; maybe the Qi Method could directly jump to a Xuan class Qi Method. However, from the looks of it, this miracle was a little imaginary.

“Ugh, Heavenly Flame… swallowing the ‘Purple Flame’ has already given me tremendous suffering, but the effect isn’t very notable. If I really met a Heavenly Flame, it would be difficult to know who would swallow who.” Xiao Yan shook his head helplessly. Although Xiao Yan had never personally experienced the strength of a Heavenly Flame, he could faintly feel just how frightening that ghastly white colored flame of Yao Lao’s was when the latter was refining medicine.

Shaking his head with all his might, Xiao Yan threw aside the little listlessness in his heart. No matter what was said, his Qi Method had evolved. Moreover, he still had plenty of time. By taking things a step at a time, Xiao Yan believed that one day, he would be able to swallow a real ‘Heavenly Flame’ and evolve the ‘Flame Mantra’ into the Tian class Qi Method that only existed in legends.

Seeing that Xiao Yan was gradually recovering from his depressed state, Yao Lao smiled. “Since you have already become a Dou Shi, our training in the Magic Beast Mountain Range will be over soon!”

“Then let’s go. I am a little irritated looking at these broken mountains.”

“Yes, tomorrow we’ll leave.” Yao Lao nodded his head as he mused out loud, “If we count the time we spent here, there is only eight more months of time before we need to go to the Misty Cloud Sect for the three year agreement.“

Hearing this, Xiao Yan’s body trembled and his gaze swept across the space outside the cave. A long while later, he frowned and said, “I wonder what level she is at now…”

“Hehe. You can relax. In the remaining time, I may not be able to help you become a Da Dou Shi, but being promoted by a few stars within the Dou Shi level should not be too difficult.” Yao Lao said blandly. When his words reached this point, there was a slight pause before he continued with a smile, “Moreover, even if there was some unexpected reason that caused her strength to rise so much that it far exceeds you, you should believe that this old body of mine would not brag. Within this Jia Ma Empire, there hasn’t been many people whom I hold in regard… even if it was that Misty Cloud Sect Leader Yun Yun whose strength is ranked among the top three in the Jia Ma Empire.”

“Haha, I’ve never doubted Teacher’s strength. If you say it is possible, then I’ll naturally believe it.” Being given a reassurance to calm him, Xiao Yan felt much more relaxed as he curried favor with Yao Lao.

Giving the fawning smile on Xiao Yan’s face a supercilious look, Yao Lao waved his hand and said, “Tomorrow, we will leave the Magic Beast Mountain Range. Our next stop is the vast Tager Desert at the border of the Jia Ma Empire. I’ll warn you first, the training there will be much tougher and more dangerous than in the Magic Beast Mountain Range. You should prepare yourself for it.”

“Tager Desert… My two elder brothers seem to be around that area. If I get the time, I can take a look on my way.”

Opening his mouth and grinning, Xiao Yan patted his chest and said to Yao Lao, “As long as I can swiftly strengthen myself without any adverse side effect, you can just throw any difficult training at me.”

“Ha ha. what a strong will!” Yao Lao laughed as the corner of his eyes harbored ill intentions as they glanced at Xiao Yan. “I hope that you will not beat a retreat when that time comes. But by that time, even if you wanted to, I would forcefully kick you back.”

Smiling awkwardly, Xiao Yan smartly remained silent.

“Alright. Go back and rest. Tomorrow morning we will leave.” Just as Yao Lao was about to return into the ring, his body suddenly shook. After musing for a while, he suddenly said, “Back then, I had visited the Tager Desert because I heard that a type of ‘Heavenly Flame’ was hidden in the vast desert. Unfortunately, I did not manage to find it. If you are lucky, you might have the chance to…”

After saying to this point, Yao Lao did not bother to look at the brightened eyes of Xiao Yan. His body swayed and entered into the ring.

“Heavenly Flame…”

With his fist tightened in a somewhat agitated manner, Xiao Yan turned around and walked out of the cave. After testing the strength of the Purple Flame, his hunger for the even more ferocious and frightening ‘Heavenly Flame’ had also increased.

“I must have it!”

The young man’s firm soft voice that carried a little greed reverberated throughout the interior of the cave.