Year after year, day after day, Long Jiuyyao had spent a year tempering his body in Fierce Hurricane Gorge. Since there wasn't a trace of Yuan Power in the gorge, his cultivation hadn't advanced at all. He was still in the Heaven Origin Realm.
His mental strength, however, had grown slightly. He was now a Two-Seal Symbol Master. A Talisman Master who condensed a Natal Celestial Talisman was dozens of times stronger than other Symbol Masters of the same rank. He could even hold his own against those a rank above him. That was the advantage of a Natal Celestial Talisman. However, advancing one's mental strength was also more difficult, requiring several times—or even dozens of times—the mental strength of an ordinary Symbol Master.
As for his Yuan Power cultivation, once he left Fierce Hurricane Gorge and absorbed Heaven and Earth Yuan Power, advancing to the Origin Core Realm would come naturally. It wouldn't be difficult.
Long Jiuyyao's body was now even more upright than it had been a year ago. His black hair streamed in the wind as he stood naked, faint azure light rippling over his body. His gaze was fixed on the azure-and-violet hurricane not far away.
Nearly a thousand zhang tall, the hurricane was azure, with faint streaks of violet lightning flickering within it. From a distance, it looked like a terrifying storm of intermingled azure and violet.
Where the azure-violet hurricane passed, the normally fearsome gales of Fierce Hurricane Gorge trembled like subjects before an emperor, not daring to overstep in the slightest.
The sight surprised Long Jiuyyao. So even the gales that usually ran rampant had something they feared!
Even from afar, he could sense the hurricane's greater strength and destructive power. Naturally, he wouldn't underestimate it.
"Good! You'll be the final step in completing my body tempering and leaving this place," Long Jiuyyao thought with a grin.
Long Jiuyyao walked forward at an unhurried pace. The ordinary gales of Fierce Hurricane Gorge could no longer leave a mark on him, and with the support of his Ancient Dragon Bone, he was ready to test himself against the azure-violet hurricane.
Ten thousand li from Fierce Hurricane Gorge, Yuan Gan stood in the Dragon Clan Grand Hall with one hand pressed to his forehead, his expression tinged with helplessness.
"Jiuyyao, you really are a fearless young calf. Your body tempering has barely begun, yet you dare provoke an Azure Lightning Gale," Yuan Gan muttered helplessly.
Even Life Profound Realm experts would die the moment they touched it, while even Death Profound Realm experts would find it troublesome. Of course, such a gale wasn't found just anywhere. It was exceedingly difficult to form.
Still, for Long Jiuyyao's safety, Yuan Gan stepped in. A Golden-Eyed Giant Dragon flashed through the Dragon Clan Grand Hall.
Long Jiuyyao drew closer and closer to the Azure Lightning Gale. His flesh, which hadn't suffered a new wound in half a year, was now split by one jagged gash after another.
Only then did Long Jiuyyao realize he had underestimated the Azure Lightning Gale's power. When he tried to retreat, he discovered that he was slowly being pulled into its center.
In the blink of an eye, his battered body was covered in blood and wounds. Some gashes were deep enough to expose his bones, which had a dark-gold sheen.
The Dark Gold Radiance surged, protecting his meridians and keeping his body from immediately falling apart.
But Long Jiuyyao's eyes were unfocused. Even the agony of his flesh being torn apart couldn't rouse him.
"Roar!" A dragon's cry, loud enough to shake heaven and earth, rang through Fierce Hurricane Gorge.
The Azure Lightning Gale, nearly a thousand zhang tall, suddenly stopped as if someone had hit pause.
Long Jiuyyao, whose mind had been fading, came back to his senses at the sound of the dragon's cry.
The Golden-Eyed Giant Dragon exhaled a breath of essence. Long Jiuyyao, who had been gravely injured, was instantly restored to his former state. His Yuan Power and mental strength were also completely replenished.
Circling the frozen Azure Lightning Gale, the Golden-Eyed Giant Dragon abruptly shrank it to a height of just a hundred zhang. Its power was no longer what it had been.
The Golden-Eyed Giant Dragon transformed into a phantom identical to Yuan Gan. "You little brat, are you trying to get yourself killed? Do you think you can handle it now?"
Long Jiuyyao knew he'd acted rashly. He offered no excuse, simply gazing at Yuan Gan and accepting the reprimand.
Naturally, Yuan Gan didn't hold back. He scolded him for a full half hour before saying, "You little brat, even the remaining Azure Lightning Gale will be more than enough for you. If you can't endure it, then stay here for another three years."
Then he carried the massive amount of wind-element energy in his hand to the place where the Gale Ancestral Rune was sealed.
The dense wind-element energy contained in the Azure Lightning Gale was hundreds or even thousands of times greater than that in ordinary gales, enough to save several years of effort.
Yuan Gan waved his hand, and the azure-violet wind-element energy flowed into the Gale Ancestral Rune. The rune visibly grew at a remarkable speed.
Yuan Gan didn't linger. After resealing it, his phantom vanished into thin air.
Even at the peak of his strength again, Long Jiuyyao didn't dare underestimate the weakened Azure Lightning Gale.
"Roar!"
A flash of red passed through Long Jiuyyao's eyes. A thin, pitch-black mist swirled around him. The next instant, a majestic dragon's cry burst from within it.
"Boom!"
A shrill whistle sounded. Towering black light surged from Long Jiuyyao's body, and his form rapidly expanded. In a mere dozen breaths, the darkness—black as night—spread over the surrounding hundred meters. A True Dragon dozens of zhang long appeared in the sky, blotting out the sun.
His True Dragon Form was black as night. His wings spread several zhang wide, and the scales on his Black Dragon Wings were diamond-shaped. His pair of eyes, like black obsidian, were filled with savage fury, terrifying to behold.
His slightly curved, forked horns were black, covered in obscure and complex patterns. Dragon Might filled the sky, his offensive power unmatched. A dark Inverse Scale rested at his chest, and even the light seemed to merge with it upon touching its surface.
This was the first time Long Jiuyyao had transformed into his True Dragon Form since birth. Beneath his black, diamond-shaped scales, Dark Gold Radiance pulsed. Long Jiuyyao stretched out his wings and beat them gently.
His True Dragon Form was far more powerful than his transformed human body, so he planned to use his true dragon body and the Ancient Dragon Bone to force his way through the Azure Lightning Gale.
Long Jiuyyao gave his Black Dragon Wings a light flap. The gale immediately wound around him, enveloping him completely, but its terrifying force still made his iron-hard Dragon Scales clatter.
Long Jiuyyao forced his way toward the center in his True Dragon Form. During the advance, countless dragon scales as large as palm fans cracked apart, and blood spattered from the broken scales.
"Even after Dad weakened it by nine-tenths, it's still this powerful. Good thing I didn't get cocky, or this would've turned into another bloody disaster," Long Jiuyyao muttered to himself.
Long Jiuyyao wasn't seriously injured. His condition was still under control. Dark Gold Radiance blazed across his True Dragon Form like a golden sun. As the Ancient Dragon Bone shone, his wounds steadily healed and shrank. With its support, he was slowly drawing closer to the Azure Lightning Gale's center.
His Black Dragon Wings beat violently without pause. His True Dragon Form gradually neared the center. The closer he got, the more powerful the surrounding azure-violet Wind Blades became. The Ancient Dragon Bone's healing power weakened, and countless Azure Split Wind Blades began to slice his Black Dragon Wings, leaving them covered in wounds. New gashes of every size multiplied once more at a visible rate.
At last, after half a day of stalemate, Long Jiuyyao broke through the resistance and reached the center of the Azure Lightning Gale.
The center was filled with azure and violet as far as the eye could see. Countless streams of violet lightning coursed through it. There was no doubt about their terrifying destructive force—they would make anyone pale.
A flash of black light, and Long Jiuyyao transformed back into human form, standing at the heart of the Azure Lightning Gale. Not a single part of him was uninjured; countless tiny cuts and gashes three fingers wide covered his body.
Long Jiuyyao surveyed the center of the Azure Lightning Gale. There were none of the fearsome Azure Split Wind Blades he'd imagined, but the Destructive Purple Lightning was everywhere. As if sensing his presence, it shot straight toward him.
"Crack!"
It moved so fast that Long Jiuyyao had no time to react before it struck him. The spot it hit was charred black, and the air filled with the aroma of roasted meat.
"Ah!"
Long Jiuyyao cried out in pain. The Dark Gold Radiance shining from his Ancient Dragon Bone was brighter than ever, and the charred patch healed in the blink of an eye.
Calming himself, Long Jiuyyao simply sat cross-legged in midair, his gaze resting serenely on the shifting azure-violet world.
Time flew by. After the first bolt of violet lightning fell, nothing happened for a long, long while.
In the silent azure-violet world, a low rumble suddenly broke the quiet.
"Rumble!"
As time passed, the rumbling grew louder until it echoed throughout the entire azure-violet world.
The world abruptly changed. The azure around him faded, leaving only violet, brimming with an aura of destruction. Massive bolts of violet lightning, dozens of zhang long, fell from the sky like thunder dragons, their deafening roars shaking the air.
"So this is what the heart of the Azure Lightning Gale really looks like. Am I supposed to temper my body by enduring these falling bolts?" Long Jiuyyao exclaimed in shock.
And this was after it had been weakened. If it hadn't been weakened, would he even have made it here?
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