The moment he saw the reward, Dongfang Chen's eyes lit up.
The Crazy System... no, Brother Tong might have been a little face-blind and unable to tell characters apart, but this reward was the real deal!
Dongfang Chen wasn't short on breakthrough pills right now, but he was only a Five-Star Dou Spirit. He wouldn't be able to take one until he reached Nine-Star Dou Ling.
As one of the rare Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures in the Original Work, Earth Core Body Tempering Milk was more than enough to help Dongfang Chen rapidly advance from Five-Star Dou Spirit to Nine-Star Dou Ling!
In the Original Work, Earth Core Body Tempering Milk was hailed as an Earthly Spirit. Produced deep underground, it was a purified concentration of pure Earth Power. It could not only cleanse the marrow and strengthen the bones, but also lay the foundation for a powerful body. Its effects were comparable to those of certain top-grade pills!
In the Original Work, Xiao Yan was at too low a level when he used Earth Core Body Tempering Milk. Absorbing it directly would have caused his body to explode, so he needed to use a special Medicine Liquid to neutralize it.
But Dongfang Chen was different. He was already a Five-Star Dou Spirit, fully capable of absorbing the energy of Earth Core Body Tempering Milk directly.
Before, Dongfang Chen had worried that he might not reach Dou King within a year.
But with Earth Core Body Tempering Milk, he was a hundred percent confident he could advance to Dou King within a year—and perhaps even sooner!
Seeing how happy Dongfang Chen looked, Lingling assumed it was because he had learned her name. Her little face grew even redder.
"Shall we head back?" Dongfang Chen asked Lingling.
He could hardly wait to go back and begin cultivating in seclusion.
"Mm."
Lingling shyly buried her face against Dongfang Chen's back.
The danger had passed, and the medicine had already helped her injured foot recover quite a bit.
Still, Lingling wanted to stay on Dongfang Chen's back a little longer.
After returning to Magic City, Dongfang Chen took Lingling back to the Qingtian Hunter Club under her proud yet reluctant gaze.
Then he went home. After informing Ye Xin Xia and Ding Yumian, he entered seclusion.
Though he called it seclusion, he didn't lock himself away and cultivate day and night.
He simply spent most of his time cultivating.
Whenever he felt bored, Dongfang Chen would set aside some time to take Xin Xia and Yumian out, getting closer to them.
Oh, no, getting closer to Xin Xia wasn't quite right.
Xin Xia was so easy to persuade. She would just blush adorably and then obediently do as he asked.
Xuexue couldn't compare in that regard.
Time passed little by little, and Dongfang Chen's Dou Qi Cultivation steadily improved.
During that time, Mofan also came to Magic City and even joined the Qingtian Hunter Club.
But most of the time, he worked alone instead of teaming up with Lingling.
Lingling was still waiting for a certain someone to become her partner.
But more than half a year passed without a sign of him. Lingling was so angry that even her twin ponytails seemed to stand on end.
If she hadn't still been in contact with Dongfang Chen on her phone, she would've thought a Demon had swallowed him.
Nearly a year passed.
The leave Dongfang Chen had requested was almost over, which meant Mingzhu Academy was about to reopen.
Inside a specially built secret chamber,
Dongfang Chen opened his eyes after meditating.
"Phew..."
He clenched his fists and let out a long breath.
"I finally broke through..."
During this period, the combined effects of Earth Core Body Tempering Milk and the Heart Fire of the Fallen Heart Flame had brought tremendous breakthroughs—not only in Dongfang Chen's Dou Qi, but also in his meridians and physical body.
He was confident that even without using Dou Qi, his body's strength alone would let him go toe-to-toe with a Commander Level Demonic Beast.
And if he used Dou Qi...
His thoughts stirred. The Dou Qi in his body surged like a flood, flowing along his meridians until it reached his back.
With a boom, a pair of Milky White flame wings burst from Dongfang Chen's back.
These weren't the Purple Cloud Wings Flying Dou Technique. They were—Dou Qi Transformation Wings!
Dou Qi Transformation Wings were the hallmark of a Dou King. This meant Dongfang Chen was now a genuine One Star Dou King!
What's more, if he wanted, he still had a Dou Ling Pill that could let him skip the One Star Dou King stage and immediately advance to Two Star Dou King!
But Dongfang Chen didn't do that. A Dou Ling Pill, which could raise a Dou King's level by one star without any conditions, was best saved for when he reached Eight Star Dou King.
"Phew... At last, I've got some ability to protect myself in this world."
With Dou King strength, a Heavenly Flame, and even a Sixth Order Magical Beast,
he wouldn't be afraid even if he had to face a Supreme Lord like the Mysterious Snake.
For all he knew, the Sixth Order Purple Crystal Winged Lion King alone might be a match for the Mysterious Snake.
The outskirts of Magic City.
The area was a deserted stretch of woodland.
Even the nearby Demons had been driven away by Dongfang Chen's overwhelming strength.
He had done this mainly because he wanted to summon the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King.
The Purple Crystal Winged Lion King had been a reward for winning the Three Year Agreement, but Dongfang Chen had never summoned her.
Although Summoned Beasts produced by the system were guaranteed to be one hundred percent loyal to Dongfang Chen,
that loyalty applied to him alone.
Her loyalty was assured, but given the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King's pride, if she were too weak, she probably wouldn't obey Dongfang Chen's orders so easily.
That was why Dongfang Chen hadn't summoned her during this time.
"Little Purple, you'll see your mother soon."
Dongfang Chen rubbed Little Purple's enormous head.
A humanlike joy shone in Little Purple's eyes.
"System, release the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King."
As Dongfang Chen's words fell,
a ferocious lion's roar rang out of thin air.
Along with the roar came a massive Magical Beast!
It looked very much like Little Purple. Purple crystals of all shapes and sizes covered its body, and a spiraling horn protruded from the center of its forehead.
The moment the Magical Beast appeared, an invisible pressure descended from the sky and crashed straight toward Dongfang Chen.
Dongfang Chen smiled and unleashed his own pressure.
His Dou King pressure was far weaker than that of the Sixth Order Magical Beast, the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King, but his aura didn't waver in the slightest!
The two pressures clashed for a long while, until Little Purple let out an affectionate call beside them. Only then did the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King withdraw her aura.
"Has he bullied you while I've been away?"
The Sixth Order Purple Crystal Winged Lion King could already speak. She turned to Little Purple and asked.
Little Purple shook her head, then affectionately rubbed her head against Dongfang Chen's face.
"Good."
The Purple Crystal Winged Lion King looked at Dongfang Chen with her blood-red, violet-glinting beast eyes and slowly nodded.
She had accepted him.
"I'm entrusting my daughter to you. Call for me if anything happens."
With that, the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King returned to the System Space.
Her brisk manner left Dongfang Chen momentarily stunned.
He hadn't expected earning the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King's Approval to be so easy. He'd even been prepared to fight her.
But on second thought, that made sense. Since she had been produced by the system, her loyalty was guaranteed.
As long as he was strong enough, she couldn't possibly refuse to accept him.
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