Advancing to Dou King

Two and a half years later.

In Training Room No.1 at the very bottom of the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower, a vast concentration of pale red energy hung so thick it could not dissipate, filling the entire room like mist.

All of that energy continuously flowed toward the figure seated cross-legged atop the stone platform. It was none other than Xiao Ling. An immensely powerful aura radiated from his body, steadily growing stronger with the passage of time until it reached its limit.

Time slowly passed. When the Dou Qi within his body reached a certain threshold, it suddenly compressed, raising its quality to an even higher level.

Xiao Ling, seated cross-legged, exhaled a breath of turbid air. After sensing the state of his body, he spoke helplessly, "I've finally broken through to Three-star Dou King. The Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower can no longer help me much. At the very least, I'd need to absorb a Fallen Heart Flame sub-flame for it to have any effect."

Shaking his head and no longer dwelling on it, Xiao Ling leaped down from the cultivation platform and walked out of the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower. As he made his way through the corridors, every student he encountered greeted him. Xiao Ling did not put on airs, merely smiling and nodding in response.

Now fifteen years old, Xiao Ling looked like a youth of seventeen or eighteen at a glance. He stood over 1.8 meters tall and wore a fitted moon-white outfit. His blue-silver hair draped over his shoulders, and his fair features were quite handsome. His blue-gold eyes were calm as water, making it impossible to discern their owner's true thoughts. A faint smile rested on his face, giving him an approachable air.

After leaving the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower, Xiao Ling's thoughts stirred. The energy around him seemed to answer his summons, surging toward his back and resonating with the Dou Qi within his body. It formed a pair of magnificent enormous wings, dominated by crimson flames and wreathed in blue-pink halos.

Circulating the Dou Qi in his body, he leaped into the air. With a light flap of his wings, he soared into the sky.

Upon returning to the academy dormitory, Xiao Ling gathered everyone together, intending to tell them that he would be leaving for training.

Once everyone had gathered in the courtyard, Xiao Ling stopped keeping them in suspense and spoke seriously. "I plan to leave for training tomorrow. I'll leave the Supreme Freedom Gate to you all. I'll come back whenever I have the time. Later, I'll speak with First Elder Su Qian and explain the matter. You can also remain in the Inner Academy for a while longer. Once you reach the peak of the Dou Ling realm and undergo tempering by the Fallen Heart Flame, it will greatly help your advancement to Dou King."

With Xiao Ling's help, Lin Xiuyai, Han Yue, and the others had all improved compared to the original timeline. In the original novel, they would likely break through to Dou King around three years later, but now they were already high-level Dou Lings and should reach Dou King within a year. With Xiao Ling, an alchemist, around, there was no need to worry about the Fire Poison of the Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower. Lin Yan had also avoided the problem from the original novel where Fire Poison interfered with his cultivation. From this alone, it was clear just how valuable the T0 profession of alchemist was in the Dou Qi Continent.

After hearing Xiao Ling's words, everyone wore different expressions. The boys merely felt somewhat reluctant to part with him and had no other thoughts. After all, Xiao Ling had already mentioned in the dormitory that he would be going out.

The three girls felt rather distressed, each looking at Xiao Ling with extremely complicated eyes. Xiao Xun'er and Xiao Ling had grown up together, while Han Yue and Xiao Ling privately treated each other as lovers. Zi Yan regarded Xiao Ling as the one who fed and clothed her. Without Xiao Ling refining pills for her in the future, she did not even know how she would survive. They said it was easy to go from frugality to luxury, but hard to return from luxury to frugality. After eating pills for two and a half years, asking Zi Yan to go back to gnawing on those bitter medicinal herbs would be something she refused even if beaten to death.

Zi Yan dashed over to Xiao Ling, tightly grabbed his arm, and looked up at him with tearful eyes. Her voice carried a hint of a sob as she said, "Xiao Ling, can't you not leave? How am I supposed to eat delicious pills without you? How am I supposed to live on my own?"

Seeing this, Xiao Ling felt a headache coming on. He truly had not considered this matter thoroughly enough, but leaving to train was inevitable. After all, so many opportunities awaited him. Xiao Yan would subdue the Green Lotus Core Flame at seventeen and a half, and in another two years, Queen Medusa would be able to find the Heavenly Flame. Perhaps she had already sent people into the Tagor Desert to search for information on it. To be safe, Xiao Ling had to retrieve the Green Lotus Core Flame before then.

Shaking his head, Xiao Ling answered seriously, "I have to go out for a while. Jia Nan Academy can no longer rapidly improve my cultivation."

Upon hearing Xiao Ling's answer, Zi Yan was so anxious that she was about to cry. Then she suddenly thought of something, and her eyes lit up. "Xiao Ling, can you take me with you to train outside? I've already reached the Fifth-tier Peak. Jia Nan Academy can't help me much anymore either. We can train while looking for medicinal herbs. I'm really strong—even ordinary Sixth-tier Magical Beasts can't beat me."

Hearing this, Xiao Ling stroked his chin and gave it some thought. Zi Yan remaining in Jia Nan Academy would no longer help her cultivation much, and she was a Fifth-tier Peak Magical Beast with the powerful bloodline of an Ancient Void Dragon. Counting her as Dou Emperor-level combat power would not be a problem. The others, however, could stay at the academy for a while longer. The Heavenly Flame Refining Qi Tower was still useful to them, and remaining at the academy before breaking through to Dou King would ensure their safety. Although Xiao Xun'er's displayed strength was currently that of a high-level Dou Ling, even he could not see through her true strength. It was probably no lower than his own. Still, he did not want to drag Xiao Xun'er around everywhere and waste time. As the young lady of the Gu Clan, she only needed to cultivate in peace every day and live up to her talent. Whatever little she might gain by following him around on adventures was likely not even as valuable as the things stored in her Storage Ring.

Nodding, Xiao Ling said to Zi Yan, "You make a good point. The academy can't help you much anymore, so following me out to seek opportunities is a good choice. As long as First Elder Su Qian agrees, I have no objections. But once we leave, you must listen to my arrangements. Otherwise, I won't refine any pills for you."

When Zi Yan heard that Xiao Ling had agreed to take her with him, her eyes gleamed with excitement. She nodded vigorously, patted her flat little chest, and declared with utmost seriousness, "Don't worry. I'll definitely listen to you. Let's hurry and tell that old man Su about this."

Before Xiao Ling could react, Zi Yan grabbed him and dragged him outside. Seeing this, Xiao Ling shook his head helplessly. After giving everyone a slight nod, he left the dormitory with Zi Yan and headed for First Elder Su Qian's office.