Bone Spirit Fire Talisman, Hai Bodong Returns to Dou Emperor!

"Hehe, to cultivate to the Dou Emperor realm in a remote, barren, resource-starved place like the Northwest, your talent is quite good. In Central Plains, you would have the potential to reach Peak Dou Zong, perhaps even a sliver of a chance to become a Dou Zun."

"I recall that in Central Plains, there is a Dou Zun like you who took ice as his title, known as the Ice Venerable."

Old Yao chuckled warmly, sounding like a kind and benevolent elder. He raised his right hand slightly, and an invisible, irresistible force straightened Hai Bodong, who had been bent in a respectful bow.

"Sir, are you from Central Plains?"

The bits of information revealed in Old Yao's words left Hai Bodong looking surprised.

Central Plains referred to the region at the center of the Dou Qi Continent. Its territory was immensely vast, home to countless tangled factions and strange races that could hardly be seen in a place like this. It could be called the heart of the Dou Qi Continent.

That was the most magnificent place on the Dou Qi Continent...

Most of the continent's peak experts also came from there!

Its lands stretched boundlessly, and experts gathered there like clouds...

It could be said that standing at its summit was equivalent to standing at the summit of the Dou Qi Continent!

Unlike the Northwest Continent, Dou Zongs walked everywhere in Central Plains, Dou Emperors were nothing, and only Dou Zuns could truly make their mark.

After his brief shock, Hai Bodong quickly came back to his senses.

That was right. The Northwest Continent was so remote that even Sixth-grade Alchemists known to the public could be counted on one hand. There had never even been word of a Sixth-grade Alchemist possessing the strength of a Dou Zong.

Even Medicine Emperor Han Feng, whose fame had spread from the Black Corner Region through the many empires of the Northwest, was merely at Peak Dou Huang.

"When Old Man was young, I traveled the continent. Southeast, Northwest—there was nowhere I could not go."

"Enough with the pleasantries. After being sealed for so many years, I imagine you can hardly wait to recover your strength, can you?"

Speaking of his youthful past, even Old Yao fell into a slight daze.

Traveling the Dou Qi Continent with his closest friends—that had been his passionate youth, now gone.

Old friend, Old Man had been missing for so many years. You must have searched until you were exhausted, right? Sigh, if only I had not been blind back then...

Fortunately, this time, Old Man's eyes had finally been opened once. I met a good child.

Shaking his head, Old Yao looked at Xiao Yan beside him, a trace of a smile flashing through his eyes.

A child's character could be seen by the age of three. The Ancient Ring had been passed from Xiao Yan's mother to Xiao Yan, and far more than three years had passed since then. Old Yao approved of this disciple's character.

"Thank you, sir."

As soon as the words fell, the impatient Hai Bodong paid no heed to his surroundings and directly sat down cross-legged on the spot.

Just as Old Yao had said, Hai Bodong had awaited this day of recovering his strength for a long time. Otherwise, he would not have remained in the Tagor Desert for so many years over a medicinal ingredient needed to refine the Po'e Pill—the Sand Mandala—simply waiting for an opportunity.

"Little Yanzi, everyone, move farther away."

With a wave of his hand, Old Yao sent the Xiao father and son, along with the Four Elders of the Xiao Family, down the mountain. Soul Power surged throughout his Entire Body, and his aged eyes instantly turned sharp. Then, with a clenched palm, a strange force that mixed bone-chilling cold with scorching heat erupted forth, Whale Swallowing the surrounding Heaven and Earth Energy as he used the methods of a Talisman Master to forcibly fuse that energy into his Soul Body.

As a result, his Soul Body beneath the black robes became increasingly solid.

"Bone Spirit Fire Talisman, appear!"

Taking a step forward, two flame Runes the color of white bones emerged directly from his eyes. As they slowly writhed, they radiated terrifying destructive power.

The collision and transformation of extreme cold and extreme heat caused the surrounding space to ripple faintly.

"Go!"

With a low shout, one Bone Spirit Fire Talisman entered Hai Bodong's body, while the other hovered outside him. Pressure bore down from within and without as cold and heat alternated.

"Buzz!"

Old Yao, going all out, continuously drew upon Heaven and Earth Power and poured it into the two Bone Spirit Fire Talismans.

Under his actions, massive amounts of Heaven and Earth Energy from all across Wutan City and even the neighboring Monster Beast Mountain Range were forcibly dragged over.

For a time, the Dou Zhes and Dou Masters of Wutan City gained an unexpected opportunity. Amid the active fluctuations of Heaven and Earth Energy, countless experts who had lingered at the same realm for years broke through at this moment.

And the Xiao Family, at the center of it all, benefited even more.

The back mountain had been completely shrouded in mist condensed from Heaven and Earth Energy.

"Eight-Star Dou Zhe. I made it."

At the foot of the mountain, Xiao Yan froze slightly. Closing his eyes and looking inward, he discovered that the realm he had only recently broken through had advanced once more through this opportunity, reaching the Eight-Star Dou Zhe realm!

A fifteen-year-old Eight-Star Dou Zhe!

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

And this was only the beginning.

Compared to the small commotion of Xiao Yan's breakthrough, the three elders in the Distant Place seemed to have agreed beforehand. Powerful Dou Qi fluctuations erupted from them simultaneously as they directly broke through to Nine-Star Great Dou Shi.

"Fortune! Heaven-sent fortune!"

The Great Elder opened his eyes and spoke excitedly.

"Hahahaha! Compared to the growth in strength this year, Old Man truly cultivated like a dog for all those past years!"

The Second Elder burst into laughter, not even sparing his former self as he cursed outright.

"Who could say otherwise? In one year, I soared from Two-Star Great Dou Shi to Nine-Star Great Dou Shi. On average, I advanced one star every month or so. If this had been in the past, Old Man would not have dared dream of such a thing!"

The Third Elder's face was also filled with delight. Nine-Star Great Dou Shi! A year ago, the strongest expert in the Xiao Family had only been a Five-Star Great Dou Shi!

"Hahaha, congratulations to the three elders. Your strength has increased greatly!"

Although Xiao Zhan had not broken through to Two-Star Dou Ling, this tide of Heaven and Earth Energy had made his One-Star Dou Ling realm more stable and closer to perfection.

Compared to the changes in his own strength, what made him happiest was naturally the overall improvement in the Xiao Family's strength.

Even at the foot of the back mountain, he could sense the varying Dou Qi fluctuations coming from all over the Xiao Family.

Among them, two Peak Dou Shi had successfully advanced into the Da Dou Shi realm, bringing the Xiao Family's number of Da Dou Shi experts to a full handful!

The Northwest Continent lacked resources, and Heaven and Earth Energy was sparse. Cultivating under such impoverished conditions, experts had naturally accumulated deep foundations within their bodies.

Now that their accumulated strength had burst forth, not everyone had broken through, but more than ninety percent of the Xiao Family's Clan Members had greatly increased in strength!

Just as Old Yao had told Hai Bodong earlier, if he had been in Central Plains, then with Hai Bodong's talent and the abundance of Heaven and Earth Energy and cultivation resources there, he would already have become a Dou Ancestor Expert.

Time passed second by second. The many experts of the Xiao Family and even Wutan City completed their breakthroughs, yet Hai Bodong, the source of it all, had still not awakened.

The back mountain fell silent once more.

"Boom!"

Thus, after nearly half an hour of silence, the tranquil atmosphere was shattered by a fierce Energy Ripple.