Battle Through the Heavens: Obtaining the Extraction System at the Start

The aged voice rang out once more. Amid the sound of rushing wind, figure after figure shot toward the tower entrance like a tidal wave.

Seeing this, Xiao Ling also set off toward the tower. Remembering the discomfort one would experience upon entering for the first time, he took out a Third-grade Clear Heart Pill and popped it into his mouth, intending to take it immediately if he felt unwell.

The instant Xiao Ling's feet crossed the threshold of the tower, his body suddenly stiffened. His fair face turned as red as burning charcoal, while wisps of pale white mist seeped from his body with sizzling sounds like roasting meat.

Sensing the abnormality in his body, Xiao Ling did not hesitate. He swallowed the Clear Heart Pill in his mouth, and the discomfort within him immediately vanished. He felt utterly refreshed.

Although the abnormal reaction had temporarily disappeared, Xiao Ling could still sense a strange flame that had inexplicably appeared inside his body. This flame was formless and colorless; it should be a sub-flame of the Fallen Heart Flame. He needed to find a room and cultivate for a while, allowing his body to adapt as quickly as possible. Otherwise, once the Clear Heart Pill's effects wore off, his body would be harmed. At best, he would need several days of rest; at worst, his meridians would be damaged, leaving him unable to cultivate Dou Qi.

He muttered inwardly, What is the academy thinking? They do not even warn new students about this danger. If I had not read the original story and prepared for it, then without the protection of a Heavenly Flame like Xiao Yan, I might have been seriously injured right away.

Some people around him knew Xiao Ling. They knew that he was the one who had robbed the old students of all their Fire Energy during the Fire Energy Hunt Competition. Noticing his reaction at the entrance to the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda, they had stopped, intending to enjoy his misfortune. So what if his talent was exceptional? He still had to suffer before the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda.

It seemed these people had long known that Xiao Ling would encounter such a situation upon entering, yet they had deliberately said nothing, simply because they wanted to see him make a fool of himself.

However, what they had not expected was that Xiao Ling would break free from the scorching heart fire in an instant. Back then, they had all suffered greatly here before they could enter and cultivate.

Xiao Ling gave those people who wanted to see him embarrass himself a faint glance, then walked straight into the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda.

"How did he recover in an instant?"

"He actually broke free from the heart fire's scorching on his own. How did he do that?"

"Is this the gap between geniuses and us?"

It was Xiao Ling's first time entering the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda, which was deeply buried underground with only its spire exposed. The spaciousness within the tower was somewhat beyond his expectations. As he walked along, Xiao Ling discovered that the space on the first floor alone could likely accommodate five hundred people cultivating at once.

Cultivation rooms of varying sizes had been built throughout the circular tower interior. However, most were already occupied, and small red plaques hung above the doors. The words on those plaques varied. Xiao Ling stopped to look and found that they were marked high-grade, mid-grade, and low-grade. These were likely the ranks of the Cultivation Rooms within the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda.

As he slowly walked from east to south, Xiao Ling discovered that all the high-grade Cultivation Rooms seemed to be near the center of the tower. Mid-grade rooms were distributed around them, while low-grade rooms lay farther out.

Looking at these Cultivation Rooms, Xiao Ling muttered inwardly, The Fire Energy cost on the first floor is the same, yet the academy has still ranked the Cultivation Rooms here. There must be plenty of fights every day over the better rooms. Jia Nan Academy truly displays the principle of the strong devouring the weak to the fullest.

As he walked, Xiao Ling's steps suddenly halted. Following his line of sight ahead, he realized that he had reached the center of the tower...

Xiao Ling stared in surprise at the bottomless Black Hole before him. He slowly took two steps forward and arrived at its edge, carefully looking down. Pitch-black darkness stretched endlessly to the limits of his vision. That strange darkness, nearly devoid of all light, made Xiao Ling's head feel slightly dizzy.

This Black Hole seemed to run through the entire Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda. If not for the tower spire covering it, this dark, deep chasm would likely be clearly visible from the sky.

If one sensed carefully within this dark abyss, one could detect that the air here was far hotter than elsewhere. It felt as though something at the bottom of the chasm was endlessly releasing heat to supply the entire Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda.

This should be the passage to the Underground Magma World. Inside are two Fallen Heart Flames, the soul of a Dou Venerate, countless Flame Lizardmen, an Ancient Void Dragon at the Nine Star Dou Saint level, and the Ancient Emperor's Cave Mansion that countless people long for. Thinking of the opportunities within, Xiao Ling's heart grew heated.

He shook his head and stopped thinking about such things. He was merely a small Da Dou Shi right now. He did not even have the strength to approach those opportunities. For the moment, he needed to raise his own strength as quickly as possible.

After leaving the area around the Fire Well, Xiao Ling headed toward the Cultivation Rooms.

He casually found a low-grade Cultivation Room and entered, intending to first familiarize himself with using the Fallen Heart Flame's sub-flame to temper his Dou Qi.

After closing the door behind him, Xiao Ling began carefully examining the environment of the room.

This Cultivation Room was meant for a single person. At its center was a Black Stone Platform, just large enough for two people to sit cross-legged upon. It stood about two inches above the ground.

Xiao Ling stepped forward and carefully touched the black platform with his palm. A faint warmth traveled through his fingertips. Under this strange warmth, even the circulation speed of the Dou Qi within his body seemed to become slightly more active.

The effect of this Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda is truly obvious. Especially for Fire Attribute cultivators, cultivating in a place like this really does twice the work for half the effort. I wonder what effect it will have once I swallow that larger Fallen Heart Flame in the future. After muttering to himself, Xiao Ling flipped onto the stone platform.

Sitting cross-legged on the platform, Xiao Ling felt the increasingly dense warmth and let out a long breath. With a flick of his finger, an Azure Fire Crystal Card appeared in his palm.

He clasped the Azure Fire Crystal Card in both hands and cautiously inserted it into the groove before him. A soft click sounded, and a faint gleam burst from the groove. As the gleam appeared, Xiao Ling clearly saw that the number on the Azure Fire Crystal Card immediately dropped by one. Evidently, this was the fee for one day of cultivation—one unit of Fire Energy.

Not long after the Fire Energy was deducted, Xiao Ling slowly closed his eyes. His hands formed a cultivation seal, and his body became as motionless as an old monk in meditation.

Within his lonely, tranquil mind, only the long, steady sound of his heartbeat echoed slowly. After entering his cultivation state, Xiao Ling's perception of the energy between heaven and earth grew increasingly sharp. He could sense the astonishingly dense fiery energy in this Cultivation Room. In a place like this, those who cultivated Fire Attribute techniques would undoubtedly achieve far better results than others.

"Puff..."

As his mind grew ever more tranquil, a faint, low sound suddenly rang out. Then, a flame that appeared formless yet gave off strange fluctuations emerged without warning near Xiao Ling's heart. Threads of warmth slowly spread from it, roasting the inside of Xiao Ling's body until it steamed.

His mind focused on the formless flame, and Xiao Ling once again felt apprehensive at the Fallen Heart Flame's elusive nature. Even though he was now on extreme alert, he still had not detected how this flame had appeared...

After sighing inwardly, Xiao Ling stared fixedly at the flame. This cluster was undoubtedly more powerful than the one he had encountered at the entrance to the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda. It was likely due to this Cultivation Room.

As he endured the burning pain within his body, the formless flame rose with increasing delight. Its scorching heat seeped outward, forming something like a furnace within the human body. Every organ and meridian in his body was tempered within that furnace, constantly strengthening through the refinement.

Though the pain caused by the high temperature occasionally made Xiao Ling's meridians twitch ever so slightly, fortunately, whenever his meridians were damaged, the Hundred-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Emperor Torso Bone within his body would automatically release life energy to heal them. Through this constant destruction and reconstruction, his physical constitution gradually strengthened as well. After enduring this for around ten minutes, Xiao Ling's mind stirred. The diamond-shaped Dou Crystal within his Qi vortex suddenly emitted a faint glow, and powerful streams of Dou Qi surged forth from it like floodwaters released through a broken dam.

The Dou Qi sped through his meridians, then, under the guidance of Xiao Ling's Soul Power, arrived at the projection of Fallen Heart Flame that radiated high heat. With a stir of his mind, the Dou Qi that had long been waiting there immediately rushed down. Red Dou Qi poured directly into the formless flame!

The instant the Dou Qi entered the formless flame, Xiao Ling could clearly sense that the latter suddenly became far hotter. The Dou Qi that entered the flame began to boil like water, while something was continuously expelled and stripped away by the intense heat.

This boiling did not last long. That strand of Dou Qi successfully emerged from the flame. Compared to before, the Dou Qi that emerged had shrunk by nearly half, yet the energy it contained was far denser and more condensed than before. Clearly, after being tempered by the formless flame, this strand of Dou Qi had successfully been refined...

After emerging from the flame, the first successfully tempered strand of Dou Qi circulated through Xiao Ling's meridians once more under the pull of his Soul Power before pouring into the Dou Crystal. At once, the glow on the Dou Crystal's surface swelled slightly again.

Seeing this change in the Dou Crystal, Xiao Ling was immediately filled with joy. The Fallen Heart Flame truly deserved its reputation as a cultivation accelerator. This effect was enough to make anyone green with envy. If word of this spread, then even with Jia Nan Academy's status on the continent, it would be unable to avoid attracting covetous eyes. It seemed that even the factions in the Central Plains did not have such a treasured cultivation ground. He wondered how Jia Nan Academy kept this information from spreading.

With the success of the first refinement, Xiao Ling finally set aside the last of his worries. With a flicker of his mind, strand after strand of Dou Qi was continuously drawn from the Dou Crystal, circulated through his meridians, passed through the flame, and finally gathered back into the Dou Crystal.

As he fully circulated the Fen Jue, surrounding Dou Qi gathered around Xiao Ling and entered his body through every pore. After being tempered by the heart fire within him, it became even purer. This feeling was simply wonderful.

There was no precise sense of time during cultivation. Xiao Ling immersed himself in his rapidly growing strength, seeming as though he wished to cultivate in one breath until he broke through.

Within the spacious Cultivation Room, Xiao Ling's body was enveloped in a faint layer of formless fluctuations. Wisps of pale white mist rose from the top of his head, gradually fading until they finally turned into nothingness and disappeared.

Exhaling a breath of stale air, Xiao Ling awoke from cultivation. A flash of crimson passed through his eyes. Feeling the scorching heat in his body, Xiao Ling frowned, somewhat displeased. Without a Heavenly Flame protecting my body, it really is easy to accumulate Fire Poison. Fortunately, I am an Alchemist. Otherwise, even taking pills would consume a great deal of cultivation resources.

He then took out the Jade Bottle containing Third-grade Clear Heart Pills, poured out a milky-white pill, and placed it in his mouth. As the discomfort in his body gradually disappeared, Xiao Ling formed a cultivation seal and resumed tempering his Dou Qi.

Time in cultivation passed like flowing water, silently slipping through his fingers. When an ancient bell toll rang throughout the tower floor at some unknown moment, Xiao Ling, whose eyes had been tightly shut in the Cultivation Room, slowly opened them. A flash of excitement passed through his eyes.

After checking the considerably increased Dou Qi within his body, Xiao Ling was very satisfied. He could not help sighing inwardly, At this cultivation speed, I will soon break through to Five Star Da Dou Shi. The Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda's ability to temper Dou Qi is incredibly powerful. From now on, I will not need to hesitate when taking pills.

Once his cultivation reached the Dou Wang level, he could seek out the opportunities from the original story. The Fallen Heart Flame would no longer have much effect on a Dou Wang. Otherwise, there would not be so many elders in the academy whose cultivation was only at the Dou Wang level.

No longer dwelling on it, Xiao Ling stood from the stone platform, left the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda, and headed back the way he had come.

Watching the dense crowds stream out of the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda, Xiao Ling remembered that he still had dozens of minutes of travel ahead and felt troubled.

He had originally not wanted to reveal Void Dragon before outsiders in the Inner Academy, but to avoid wasting too much time on the road, he still had to send it out for some exercise.

He patted his wrist, and Void Dragon emerged from his sleeve, flying before Xiao Ling and letting out a long roar toward the sky.

Under the envious gazes of the crowd, Xiao Ling leaped up and landed steadily on Void Dragon's back.

He patted the telepathically connected Void Dragon, which then flew into the sky and vanished from the students' sight in an instant.

The surrounding students began discussing among themselves.

"I am so jealous of him. He even has a Magical Beast mount to ride back to the dormitories. Think of all the cultivation time that saves."

"Isn't that the new student Xiao Ling? Does anyone know what kind of Magical Beast that is? I have never seen one like it. If I had ever seen such a handsome Magical Beast, I definitely would not have forgotten it."

"I only entered the Inner Academy last year. When I was in the Outer Academy, I heard that it was called Void Dragon."

"I wish I could raise such a handsome Magical Beast too."

Among the clouds, Xiao Ling felt the wind blowing against his face and felt incomparably carefree. Looking at Void Dragon beneath him, he pondered inwardly, I can still take Void Dragon around the Northwest Continent, but I cannot bring it along in the Central Plains. It would inevitably attract attention and cause trouble. I should let it follow Xun Er to the Ancient Clan, where it can live in luxury.

Shaking his head, he stopped thinking about it. Such matters were still too far off for him. He should simply live each day well for now.

Riding Void Dragon, he returned to the New Student Dormitory Area. Upon arriving at the entrance of his small courtyard, Xiao Ling jumped down, stroked Void Dragon's head, and said with a smile, "Go play with your Sister Xun Er. Ask her for more pills to eat. Her family can afford one more mouth to feed."

Void Dragon nodded and rubbed its head against Xiao Ling's cheek before flying toward Xiao Xun'er's courtyard. It seemed to be planning to have a hearty meal.

Seeing this, Xiao Ling shook his head with a smile, pushed open the courtyard gate, and walked inside.

The moment he opened the gate, he felt the aftershock of battle rushing toward him. With a casual wave, he scattered an energy blast flying in his direction and looked into the courtyard.

On the open ground within the courtyard, Lin Yan and Liu Qing were engaged in a fierce battle.

Seeing that Xiao Ling had returned, Lin Xiuyai, who stood nearby, nodded in greeting.

Xiao Ling walked over to him and asked in confusion, "What is wrong with these two? Why are they fighting here?"

Lin Xiuyai smiled and shook his head helplessly. "Lin Yan took the Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill that he had asked you to refine. His cultivation has caught up to Liu Qing's, so he went looking for Liu Qing, and the two began sparring. In your opinion, which one will win?"

After observing them for a moment, Xiao Ling answered, "Lin Yan definitely cannot beat Liu Qing. He has only just broken through and has not even stabilized his realm, so he cannot perfectly control his own strength. Besides, he is a little younger than Liu Qing. Liu Qing simply has not taken the Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill yet, so there is still a certain gap between their cultivation levels."

No longer discussing that matter, Xiao Ling asked about the Supreme Freedom Gate. "How is the faction's establishment coming along? Have you recruited any new members?"

Lin Xiuyai stroked his chin and answered, "We have already submitted an application to the academy elders, and they have approved it. We have not recruited members yet. Right now, we are preparing faction uniforms, badges, and the like."

Xiao Ling was quite satisfied with this. After all, it was only their second day in the Inner Academy, and the progress was already quite good. After thinking for a moment, Xiao Ling said, "Do not recruit people who like causing trouble, and do not accept those who are too weak either. Otherwise, when they cause trouble or get bullied, they will come bothering us. I am not someone who likes cleaning up other people's messes. We only need to treat the people in our faction well."

Lin Xiuyai nodded in agreement. "Do not worry. I will keep that in mind." On the Dou Qi Continent, strength was supreme. Only those strong enough could earn the respect of others.

Xiao Ling nodded slightly. Remembering the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda, he told Lin Xiuyai about what had happened today...

"Gather more ingredients for Clear Heart Pills, and I will refine them into pills for you. That way, you will have no worries while cultivating in the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda."

"Do not worry. I will take this matter seriously."

Seeing that it was getting late, Xiao Ling planned to practice his Alchemy Art. After saying goodbye to Lin Xiuyai, he headed toward his room.

Back in his room, Xiao Ling took out his Medicine Cauldron, infused it with Beast Fire, and began refining Clear Heart Pills. He would have many uses for this pill in the future, so he could refine some extra.