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

After arriving at the Inner Academy, Xiao Ling's daily life became much more regular. Every day, he cultivated Dou Qi in the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda, practiced Alchemy Art in his own courtyard, and helped students or elders refine pills. Sometimes, he went to the academy's Arena to spar with others, improving his combat experience while earning some Fire Energy. When he was bored, he would stroll around the academy with Han Yue or Xiao Xun'er. His days were quite leisurely.

In the quiet little courtyard, Xiao Ling sat cross-legged on the grass. A medicine cauldron stood before him, and the seals formed by his hands shifted constantly as he controlled the flames nurturing a milky-white pill.

As Xiao Ling's hand seals changed rapidly, the flames inside the medicine cauldron quickly contracted. A pill appeared before his eyes—it was a Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill.

The Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill was a peak fourth-grade pill. It could raise a Da Dou Shi's strength by one star without causing much resistance. In other words, if a Da Dou Shi could obtain two Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pills, they could steadily raise their strength by two stars.

Within Jia Nan Academy's Inner Academy, the vast majority of students were at the Dou Ling or Da Dou Shi level. Thus, the Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill was a pill sought after by most people.

Whenever Xiao Ling had the time, he refined a few and handed them to Lin Xiuyai to sell through the Supreme Freedom Gate, earning some Fire Energy.

You never knew how expensive daily necessities were until you had to manage a household. After coming to the Inner Academy, maintaining cultivation at the lowest level of the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda required no small amount of Fire Energy. Moreover, he had no intention of making Xiao Xun'er and Han Yue waste their time earning Fire Energy. Refining some marketable pills while practicing his Alchemy Art was quite a good choice.

Taking out a porcelain bottle, he lightly activated the Suction Palm, and the Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill fell into it.

Just as Xiao Ling was about to store it in his Ring, he suddenly sensed ripples in space. A fair little hand abruptly appeared in his sight and, before he could react, snatched away the porcelain bottle in his hand.

Xiao Ling was startled by this sight. Although he had not been concentrating on sensing his surroundings just now, he had still been aware of the situation nearby. If the intruder had intended him harm, he could have been in grave danger.

Xiao Ling hurriedly retreated a short distance, focusing his Soul Perception entirely on the spot where the hand had appeared.

There, a little girl in white had somehow silently crouched beside the medicine cauldron. Her tender little hand held the porcelain bottle he had been about to put away. She removed the stopper, stared curiously at the pill inside with her large eyes, then tipped the bottle toward her mouth and swallowed the freshly refined Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill in one gulp. A satisfied smile appeared on her face.

Xiao Ling's eyes flickered. He had more or less guessed this person's identity—the Brute Force King ranked first on the Inner Academy's Power Ranking, the daughter of the old Dragon Emperor of the Ancient Void Dragon race, Zi Yan.

With the answer in mind, the tension on his face eased somewhat. He spoke calmly, "This student, casually entering someone else's dormitory is against the rules. Not to mention that you stole a pill I just refined. According to academy rules, you should be punished."

Hearing this, the little girl's expression did not change. She muttered, "Old Su wouldn't punish me. This auntie isn't under his control."

The girl's eyes shifted as she stared eagerly at Xiao Ling. She asked excitedly, "Are you an Alchemist? Can you refine pills like that one for me to eat?"

Knowing her identity, Xiao Ling no longer bothered over that Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill. Smiling, he said, "Of course I'm an Alchemist. As long as there are sufficient ingredients, I can refine any pill within my abilities."

Upon hearing that, Zi Yan rushed before Xiao Ling in a single step and asked excitedly, "Then can you refine pills for me to eat? I'm really strong. That number one on the Power Ranking is me. If you refine pills for me, I'll protect you in the academy. If anyone bullies you in the future, come find me. I'll teach them a lesson for you."

Xiao Ling took a few steps back and asked curiously, "There are so many Alchemists in the Inner Academy, and the elders can refine pills too. Why did you come to me?"

Zi Yan thought for a moment, then said indignantly, "Those students all look terrified whenever they see me. They can't wait to stay as far away from me as possible. Those old men always try to snatch my medicinal ingredients every time, so I've had no choice but to eat them raw." After speaking, Zi Yan edged closer and asked expectantly, "Can you help me refine pills to eat?"

His doubts resolved, Xiao Ling knew that Zi Yan's medicinal ingredients were not difficult to process. He said, "I can help you refine them, but you'll have to prepare the ingredients yourself."

Xiao Ling had originally intended to establish a connection with the Dragon Emperor's daughter when he came to the Inner Academy.

As long as he handled his relationship with Zi Yan well, she would be of tremendous help on his future path to becoming an Emperor.

Hearing Xiao Ling agree to refine medicinal ingredients for her, Zi Yan was overjoyed. She looked full of energy, as though countless stars were shining in her eyes, making her joy infectious.

Her lively eyes shifted slightly, revealing a trace of cunning.

Carefully, she took a rather strange-looking medicinal ingredient from her Ring. Its surface bore obvious bite marks, as though some creature had taken a bite out of it. It emitted a faint fragrance. Upon closer inspection, its color was slightly dim, as if it had lost some of its original luster. Yet despite its imperfect appearance, it exuded a mysterious and enticing aura.

Zi Yan said with a grin, "Hurry up and turn this into delicious little pills for me."

The moment Xiao Ling saw the medicinal ingredient, he knew what it was—the Sky Jade Fruit, the main ingredient for refining the Dou Ling Pill and one of the rarer sixth-grade medicinal ingredients.

Looking at the tooth mark on it, Xiao Ling's mouth twitched. He could not help asking, "Don't tell me you bit this?"

He casually took the Sky Jade Fruit and gently placed it into the medicine cauldron that had already been prepared. He drew upon the Beast Fire within his body and continuously poured it beneath the cauldron. A blazing ball of Beast Fire instantly surged up, licking the cauldron's bottom. The temperature of the flames was extremely high, yet perfectly controlled. It would neither burn the Sky Jade Fruit nor fail to slowly extract its essence. Once the medicinal essence within turned into liquid, he casually took several candy pellets from his Ring and tossed them into the medicine cauldron. This would make the pills taste better.

"This kind of refinement is really simple. Probably any Alchemist capable of melting medicinal ingredients could refine it."

Xiao Ling took out a porcelain bottle and casually beckoned. Several milky-white pills fell into it. The energies within these pills had not been neutralized, so humans could not consume them directly. At best, the medicinal potency would be greatly reduced; at worst, their bodies would explode. Only a high-bloodline Magical Beast like Zi Yan could disregard such problems.

Seeing this, Zi Yan immediately leaped over and snatched the bottle of pills from Xiao Ling's hand. She eagerly removed the stopper, took out a pill, and tossed it into her mouth.

At once, a pure stream of energy spread through her body, increasing the Dou Qi within her. The faint sweetness left an endless aftertaste, making her feel extremely delighted. Squinting her eyes, Zi Yan cried out excitedly, "It's so delicious! I'll never have to eat those awful pills again!" After saying that, she took out another pill and stuffed it into her mouth, chewing with loud smacks.

Sitting beside her, Xiao Ling marveled at the formidable body of an Ancient Void Dragon. Consuming medicinal ingredients so violently was not something humans—or even ordinary Magical Beasts—could digest.

"Ancient Void Dragons truly are terrifying."

Before long, Zi Yan had eaten those few pills like candy beans.

Patting her flat little belly, Zi Yan felt that she could still eat a little more. Her bright eyes fixed on Xiao Ling. Though she did not speak, the meaning in her eyes was obvious. Any more? I still want to eat.

Spreading his hands, Xiao Ling said helplessly, "If you want to eat, bring me medicinal ingredients and I'll refine them for you. If you don't have ingredients, I'm not using my own stock to make pills for you. You even stole my Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pill earlier."

Scratching her head, Zi Yan said somewhat embarrassedly, "Then I'll go look for medicinal ingredients. When I get hungry, I'll come find you to refine pills. What's your name? It'll be easier to find you next time."

Xiao Ling answered with a smile, "My name is Xiao Ling. I'm a new student this year and also the chief Alchemist of the Supreme Freedom Gate. You can find our gate master, Lin Xiuyai, and join our faction. That way, it'll be convenient for you to find me."

Zi Yan nodded seriously. "Xiao Ling, I'll remember you. That Lin Xiuyai—I'll go find him later and join your Supreme Freedom Gate."

After saying that, she vanished from Xiao Ling's sight in a flash, impatient to search for medicinal ingredients.

Watching Zi Yan's departing figure, Xiao Ling shook his head.

What an adorable thousand-year-old loli.

After getting to know Zi Yan, life gradually became more interesting.

Zi Yan came to play with Xiao Ling every day, bringing medicinal ingredients along for Xiao Ling to refine into pills.

Just as Zi Yan had said before, she joined the Supreme Freedom Gate and became its senior disciple.

A group of older students in the Inner Academy found the news utterly unbelievable.

That was the famous Brute Force King of the Inner Academy. Hadn't everyone always said that this girl was hot-tempered and naturally violent?

Yet she had actually joined a faction founded by new students, leaving everyone greatly astonished.

Some older students had originally intended to cause trouble for the Supreme Freedom Gate, but that thought had now completely vanished. They could not afford to offend the Brute Force King. Getting beaten up and bedridden for ten days or half a month would be considered getting off lightly.

With Zi Yan's addition, the Supreme Freedom Gate entered a period of rapid development. Many students with decent strength and outstanding talent chose to join it. Anyone with eyes could see that this faction had already gained a firm foothold in the academy and possessed a bright future. Once its members became stronger, the requirements for joining might become even stricter. By then, people might not be able to join even if they wanted to.

Xiao Ling was very satisfied with this situation. He now rarely worried about Fire Energy in the Inner Academy. As long as he casually refined a few pills while practicing Alchemy Art, he could earn a large amount of Fire Energy.

Interestingly, when Zi Yan came to Xiao Ling to have pills refined one time, she happened to see Xiao Xun'er feeding Sixth-grade Pills to Void Dragon in Xiao Ling's courtyard. Zi Yan was instantly dumbfounded and green with envy.

It was as though some switch had been triggered. Xiao Ling often saw Zi Yan clinging to Xiao Xun'er and begging to be fed, which amused him greatly.

Xiao Xun'er did not care about such a small amount of pills. Feeding one was feeding, and raising two was raising. After all, she was the Young Lady of the Ancient Clan—she could afford to be lavish.

Zi Yan did not constantly surround Xiao Xun'er either. The main part of her daily diet remained the pills Xiao Ling refined for her. In Zi Yan's words, Xiao Ling's pills simply tasted better.

The days passed quietly, one after another, plain yet adorned with a touch of color.

If Xiao Ling had cultivated alone like an ascetic, he would certainly have become bored after a long time. Having a group of like-minded friends on the road to growth was truly warm.

Within the Inner Academy, everyone's strength improved at a visible pace, all thanks to the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda. Xiao Ling's cultivation speed was greatly enhanced as well. However, as his realm gradually rose, the difficulty of cultivation became increasingly arduous, like climbing a towering mountain. Thus, even with the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda's support, it was impossible for him to absurdly break through an entire realm in just a few days.

Furthermore, Xiao Ling had no intention of using his Extraction chances during this period. Before reaching the Dou Wang level, his strength was in a stable period of growth. Once his body had fully matured and he possessed the ability to protect himself, he would use the Extraction chances. Then, with those treasures, he would be of great help when venturing outside.

While his cultivation steadily improved, Xiao Ling's Alchemy Art also advanced enormously. As he grew older and his body developed further, with the aid of Tai Yi Soul Absolute, his Soul Power improved noticeably. Refining pills became increasingly effortless, and his pill success rate exceeded that of the Inner Academy's elders by quite a bit. Unfortunately, Jia Nan Academy's Alchemy Department truly lacked a deep foundation. The highest-ranked Alchemist in the academy was merely Elder Huo, a Fifth-grade Alchemist. As Xiao Ling's Alchemy Art became more refined, the academy could offer him less and less help. In the end, he could only explore on his own. Xiao Ling did not mind this in the least. After all, a great opportunity awaited him within the Xiao Family of Wutan City. As long as he obtained that opportunity, his Alchemy Art would surely improve greatly.

Time flowed like water. The years passed in haste and silence, as though yesterday. Two years passed in the blink of an eye.

Dong...

Within the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda, the sound of an ancient bell suddenly echoed throughout every level of the tower.

Inside the resting room at the lowest level of the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda, Xiao Ling formed the hand seal ending his cultivation. He exhaled a long breath of turbid air, rose to his feet, and stepped down from the cultivation platform.

After sensing the Dou Qi within his body, Xiao Ling shook his head and sighed helplessly. "After reaching the Dou Ling level, the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda's effect on me has become worse and worse. At this rate, advancing to Dou Wang will take quite some effort."

Xiao Ling had now been in the Inner Academy for two years. After consecutively taking two Purple Heart Barrier Breaking Pills and one Three-patterned Green Spirit Pill, he broke through to the Dou Ling realm on the day he turned eleven.

Xiao Ling was now twelve and a half years old. After cultivating at the Dou Ling realm for a year and a half, he had reached the four-star Dou Ling level. This cultivation speed truly depressed Xiao Ling. After all, apart from the Dou Qi stage, which had taken four years, he had previously broken through a major realm in a little over a year on average.

After he broke through to Dou Ling, the Fallen Heart Flame's effect clearly diminished. It still increased his cultivation speed compared to normal cultivation, but it no longer produced a significant effect. The quality of Fen Jue was only low Mysterious Grade as well, so it was somewhat lacking in power.

This situation was actually more reasonable. After all, the Fallen Heart Flame had been imprisoned by Jia Nan Academy within this Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda. It had already developed intelligence and learned how to think. Furthermore, it only possessed Dou Zong-level cultivation itself. Lower-level cultivators would see a clear increase in cultivation speed by borrowing some of the Heart Flame, but once their cultivation rose, the effect naturally became less obvious. Besides, the Fallen Heart Flame had a poor relationship with Jia Nan Academy. It would not actively release Heart Flame for Jia Nan Academy's students to cultivate with. It still needed to absorb energy through magma and store up strength, waiting for the day it could break free from the Seal.

Xiao Ling shook his head and stopped thinking about such irrelevant matters. Was he supposed to stop cultivating just because his cultivation was no longer as fast as before? He still had to cultivate anyway, so why think so much? Once my wings are full and my strength is sufficient, I'll plunder every one of those opportunities. My advancement speed then will definitely be far faster than staying in Jia Nan Academy.

Walking out of the Heavenly Flame Refining Pagoda along the passageway, he discovered Xiao Xun'er standing there prettily. She wore a purple dress, her temperament cool and detached like a green lotus blooming in the mortal world. Many people around them cast admiring gazes her way.

Xiao Xun'er was now nearly twelve years old. As her body grew, her beauty capable of toppling kingdoms and cities had begun to reveal itself.

Seeing Xiao Ling emerge, Xiao Xun'er walked over with a sweet smile and wrapped her arm around his.

Feeling the envious and jealous gazes from all around, Xiao Ling remained calm. He had experienced such things since childhood and had long become immune to such looks.

After calling Void Dragon awake, the two climbed onto its back amid the crowd's envious gazes and flew toward the dormitories.

As they traveled through the clouds, feeling the wind blowing against them, the two chatted idly.

Suddenly, as though recalling something, Xiao Xun'er asked Xiao Ling, "Brother Xiao Ling, do you remember Xiao Yan from the Xiao Family in Wutan City?"

Hearing this, Xiao Ling frowned. Why was his precious little cabbage bringing up that fellow? His expression remained unchanged as he replied calmly, "Of course I remember him. The Third Young Master of Xiao Family. He had decent talent, but he was a little too flamboyant. Why are you mentioning him, Xun'er? Did something happen?"

Xiao Xun'er nodded and said, "When Instructor Ruo Lin returned from recruiting students this year, she brought back a girl from the Xiao Family in Wutan City. Her name is Xiao Yu. Going by seniority, she should be our cousin."

Hearing Xiao Xun'er bring up seniority, Xiao Ling rolled his eyes, feeling utterly speechless. Young Lady, if we're going by seniority, everyone in the Xiao Family should be calling you great-grandmother. Your father is Gu Yuan—he's from the same generation as my ancestor, Xiao Xuan.