Inner Academy

In the spacious study, Hu Gan watched the study wall slowly close, then turned to Lin Yuan, who stood in the room, and said with a smile, "All right, your reward can be considered claimed. Get some proper rest, and report to the Inner Academy tomorrow. How did Old Man Huo arrange things on his side?"

Lin Yuan replied, "Over the past two days, Fire Master has already handed me some pill formulas and alchemy tasks. Once I reach the Inner Academy, as long as there are medicinal herbs, I can begin refining pills at any time!"

"That's good. Your matters in the Inner Academy have also been arranged. The Great Elder has decided to let you enter the Inner Academy directly as an elder. After all, there isn't much point in making a Dou Wang like you a student. However, you won't be assigned any other miscellaneous affairs. You only need to focus on cultivation and alchemy." Hu Gan relayed the academy's specific arrangements for Lin Yuan.

"Thank you, Headmaster!"

"Go back and prepare. Tomorrow, I'll take you to the Inner Academy."

"Yes."

After bidding farewell to the Vice Dean, Lin Yuan went to the Alchemy Department and observed Elder Huo refining the Fifth-Grade Intermediate Pill, the Essence Returning Pill, for him. Some things he had not quite understood before could now be sensed and understood with ease and clarity through his Soul Perception, which was no weaker than Elder Huo's. This greatly increased Lin Yuan's confidence in refining Fifth-Grade Pills himself.

After the Essence Returning Pill was refined, Elder Huo immediately handed it to Lin Yuan. Under Elder Huo's watch, Lin Yuan consumed the pill and successfully replenished two years of his lifespan. The sense of urgency in his heart also eased slightly.

The next day.

Lin Yuan followed Hu Gan through the vast forest sea behind the mountain, which was filled with all kinds of magical beasts. After arriving at an open space, Hu Gan waved his hand, and a streak of energy shot out violently from his hand before firing into the space before them. Immediately, as that energy shot through a certain empty stretch of space, it stirred up ripples like waves on water. These ripples fluctuated rapidly, and finally, a pale silver gate, fully seventy or eighty feet tall, appeared out of thin air!

"Follow me." With a wave of his hand, Hu Gan was the first to head toward the inside of the silver gate.

After passing through the gate, an old man in black robes stood with his hands behind his back. He turned around, his beard and hair white, his eyes cold and sharp as blades as he gazed at Lin Yuan.

Seeing this, Hu Gan was slightly startled and said, "Great Elder, why are you here?"

The old man before them was none other than the Inner Academy's Great Elder, Su Qian.

The Great Elder stared at Lin Yuan for a few seconds, then looked at Hu Gan. Afterward, a satisfied expression appeared on his face, and he smiled. "I happened to be nearby. I sensed your aura and came over. This must be Lin Yuan, the little genius of our Jia Nan Academy!"

Hearing this, Lin Yuan stepped forward, cupped his fists in salute, and said respectfully, "Student Lin Yuan greets the Great Elder!"

Hu Gan smiled slightly at the side and said to the Great Elder, "Great Elder, since you are here, I'll leave him to you. I still have a pile of matters on my side, so I'll head back first."

The Great Elder nodded. "Go attend to your work!"

Hu Gan said to Lin Yuan, "Kid Lin, do well in the Inner Academy!" Without waiting for Lin Yuan's reply, he turned and flew away.

The Great Elder patted Lin Yuan on the shoulder and said, "Let's go, Kid Lin. We're going to the Inner Academy. I've long heard Hu Gan and the others speak of you. Now that I see you, they did not exaggerate. It seems their work in the Outer Academy has gone very smoothly. This old man is quite gratified."

Saying this, he brought Lin Yuan and flew toward the Inner Academy's student area.

After they arrived at the Inner Academy, the Great Elder explained the specific arrangements for Lin Yuan. The Inner Academy had arranged a courtyard for Lin Yuan in the elders' district, given him an elder's token, and also handed him a Purple Fire Crystal Card, which contained a large amount of fire energy. His task was to complete the alchemy tasks Elder Huo had given him while cultivating. The medicinal herbs for refining pills could be registered and taken from the Medicinal Herb Repository. The Great Elder had already informed Elder Hao, who managed the medicinal herbs, about this.

After leaving the Great Elder's office, Lin Yuan went directly to the "Heavenly Flame Refining Tower" according to the map, intending to experience Jia Nan Academy's specialty for himself.

After arriving at the "Heavenly Flame Refining Tower," Lin Yuan entered directly. The instant both of Lin Yuan's feet landed on the ground beyond the tower gate, a cluster of strange, formless flame appeared inside his body. After this cluster of formless flame appeared, the high temperature emanating from it caused the meridians, bones, muscles, and other organs within Lin Yuan's body to begin feeling a slight stabbing pain.

Immediately, Lin Yuan closed his eyes. First, he used his powerful Soul Power to pin down the formless flame in his body. Then, with great interest, he controlled the Dou Qi in his body to make contact with the formless flame. The Dou Qi burned by the formless flame was indeed much purer. As Lin Yuan's Dou Qi washed over it, this flame rapidly vanished.

"This flame is too weak. The effect it can have on a Dou Wang is too small. I should go straight down." Lin Yuan pondered this, and then he directly stepped downward.

In the end, Lin Yuan chose an empty single-person cultivation room on the lowest level. He sat cross-legged on the cultivation stone platform, inserted his Fire Crystal Card, and, feeling that the heart flame which appeared in his body this time was much stronger than before, smiled in satisfaction.

"This place is not bad. The intensity of the heart flame is much higher. It is enough to temper my Dou Qi and solidify my foundation."

Immediately, he closed his eyes, formed hand seals, and began cultivating.

One month later.

In a cultivation room on the lower level of the Heavenly Flame Refining Tower, Lin Yuan, who was cultivating with his eyes closed, slowly moved his hands through a series of seals. After the final seal was completed, Lin Yuan slowly opened his eyes.

After rising, Lin Yuan moved with a thought, using the Pill Flame Technique to swiftly condense a solidified fire cone. Lin Yuan probed the fire cone with his Soul Perception, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly. "It's much more condensed than it was a month ago. Looks like the improvement in Dou Qi quality boosts the Pill Flame Technique more than I imagined."

Dispersing the fire cone, Lin Yuan sensed his own state. "Spending a month to complete the tempering of my Dou Qi really wasn't a waste of time. The quality of my Dou Qi has improved quite a bit, and my cultivation has also risen a little. I'm a bit closer to Three-Star Dou Wang. Unfortunately, I'm still somewhat short. As expected, leveling up after becoming a Dou Wang is much slower than before."

After sorting out his thoughts, Lin Yuan retrieved his Fire Crystal Card, opened the cultivation room door, and walked out.

As he left and made his way upward, several students saw Lin Yuan, who was clearly not very old and also looked quite unfamiliar, walking up from below. They could not help but feel somewhat doubtful.

A Two-Star Dou Ling raised his hand from behind and grabbed toward Lin Yuan's shoulder while asking, "This classmate looks very unfamiliar. May I ask—" While speaking, his hand passed through "Lin Yuan," and his expression could not help changing. "An afterimage?"

It was precisely an afterimage created by Lin Yuan combining the Roaming Dragon Steps and Instant Step.

In order to further temper himself and polish his Dou Techniques, Lin Yuan would apply many Dou Qi usage techniques from Dou Techniques in all kinds of daily practical activities, strengthening his control over combat techniques, Dou Qi, and Soul Power. Thus, he was also very skilled at using multiple Dou Techniques in combination.

When that student turned his gaze, Lin Yuan's true body had already flickered again ten meters away, leaving behind an afterimage and appearing even farther away. In the blink of an eye, he disappeared from that level.

In the distance, a silver-haired woman saw this and murmured with slight doubt, "Lin Yuan?"