Half a month later, the triumphant trio of bandits returned to their loyal Inner Academy.
Just as no one had noticed when they left, hardly anyone noticed when they returned.
Aside from Su Qian, a Dou Zong powerhouse, who discovered their return since the three-man gang had not deliberately concealed their whereabouts.
After dividing the spoils, the three returned to their peaceful daily cultivation. Zi Yan and Xiao Yi Xian also went back into the Tianfen Qi Refining Tower to continue cultivating.
Although the Tianfen Qi Refining Tower was not much help to them anymore, having it was still better than not having it. Better than nothing.
Besides, they still had so much Fire Energy on hand. Keeping it would only be a waste.
Having gotten his fill of Little Fairy's kisses, the delighted Wu Yong remembered that foolish bird he had left at the academy.
The Blue Eagle, which had now advanced to the second tier, was still not very intelligent. However, it recognized Wu Yong because he often appeared with Little Fairy and fed it.
"I'm in a good mood today, so I'll give you something nice, you silly bird."
Wu Yong took out a sixth-tier Wind Attribute Magic Core, condensed wind into a thin yet tough thread, passed it through the Magic Core, and tied it around the Blue Eagle's neck.
His fingers moved constantly around the Magic Core and the Blue Eagle, tracing something in the air.
Though the Blue Eagle lacked intelligence, instinct told it not to move. This human was arranging an enormous opportunity for it!
Several minutes later, after linking the Blue Eagle's aura to the sixth-tier Magic Core and forcibly establishing the Blue Eagle as the primary side of that connection, Wu Yong stopped.
Watching the Blue Eagle stand quietly on the tree, he smiled and rubbed its small head. "Not too stupid. You can tell what's good from what's bad."
"Caw, caw, caw~"
The Blue Eagle's cry was much gentler this time, rather than the loud squawking it had made before.
Once everything was arranged, Wu Yong returned to his room to continue feeding.
He woke the beautiful little seven-colored snake around his wrist and took out the remaining bottle of Companion Amethyst Source. Just as he was about to take out another serving of food, he suddenly stopped.
"I gave three Earth Fire Lotus Seeds to that brat Xiao Yan. Now all I've got left is the Companion Amethyst Source, the wet stuff. I need to get some dry food for my pretty little snake..."
Scratching his head, Wu Yong poked the little snake, which had just woken up and was still groggy, with a finger.
"Little one, do you eat Magic Cores?"
As he spoke, Wu Yong took out a fifth-tier Water Attribute Magic Core and waved it before the little creature.
The instant it saw the Magic Core, the little Seven-Colored Heaven Swallowing Python hurriedly nodded with great force, afraid Wu Yong would fail to notice.
Seeing that, Wu Yong brought the Magic Core in his hand before it.
"Ah, nom~"
The tiny Seven-Colored Heaven Swallowing Python opened her mouth and swallowed the egg-sized fifth-tier Magic Core in one bite. Then, as though she were full, she immediately returned to Wu Yong's wrist, coiled around it, and fell asleep.
Wu Yong found it rather amusing. He gently stroked the beautiful little snake. She had clearly swallowed that Magic Core, yet her body remained so slender.
"You've finished the dry food, but you still haven't had the wet stuff."
Putting away the remaining bottle of Companion Amethyst Source, Wu Yong glanced at the dozens of fifth- and sixth-tier Magic Cores of various attributes inside his Storage Ring. He had already found the best use for them.
The power within Magic Cores was incomparably violent, so human powerhouses naturally could not use them directly.
But for Magic Beasts, they were the finest resources for growth.
Especially for an ancient Magic Beast like the Seven-Colored Heaven Swallowing Python, famed for her physical body. As long as it was energy, she could swallow it and turn it into nourishment for her own growth, accepting anything without refusal.
With everything at hand taken care of, Wu Yong could finally devote himself wholeheartedly to cultivation.
He had already reached the final level of Three Thousand Lightning Movement, Three Thousand Thunder, and his understanding of this movement-type Dou Skill had deepened greatly.
Having truly mastered this movement-type Dou Skill, Wu Yong had to admit that it really was something special.
Its speed over short distances was on par with his own. Its evasive maneuvers and agile shifts during battle were especially exquisite, benefiting Wu Yong immensely.
After all, not everyone was a Son of Wind. Being able to keep up with his movements simply by cultivating a Dou Skill was already remarkable.
Although its speed seemed somewhat slow once the distance widened, that was only when compared to Wu Yong.
His circumstances were extremely unique. As long as he could react in time, he could theoretically accelerate without limit. Even surpassing the speed of light would not be a problem.
If he truly reached that point and mastered a terrifying speed of three hundred thousand kilometers per second...
That image was simply too beautiful. Wu Yong did not even dare to imagine it.
If he really reached that point, what Dou Zuns, Dou Shengs, even Dou Dis—every last one of them would have to eat Lord Wu Yong's fart!
Even a stone accelerated to the speed of light could easily destroy a mountain.
Unfortunately, the current Wu Yong was still far, far from that point. He still had to cultivate!
In a flash, leaving faint streaks of lightning in the air, Wu Yong arrived at the balcony.
He placed a sixth-tier Fire Attribute Magic Core beneath a small stove. Just as he was about to boil some water, he looked at the arcs of electricity lingering in the air, and an astonishing—perhaps even insane—idea suddenly surfaced in his mind.
Wu Yong extended a hand, Wind-Thunder Power flickering and dancing in his palm.
His amber eyes stared straight at the silver lightning as he muttered, "For anyone else, cultivation like this would be no different from seeking death."
"But I'm different. I am..."
"The Wind-Thunder Power I've already refined won't work. Then I'll gather the sea of clouds again and command thunder and lightning!"
After leaving a letter in the room, the Wu Yong remaining in place gradually faded away amid flickering lightning.
The real Wu Yong had long since appeared dozens of miles away and was racing toward the forest where he had previously cultivated Three Thousand Lightning Movement at a speed of over ten Mach.
Above the dense Magic Beast Forest hung a thick gray sea of clouds that blanketed the sky for hundreds of miles around.
Thunder boomed one after another, growing increasingly violent with the passage of time.
That oppressive thunderstorm within the sea of clouds contained terrifying power capable of destroying everything.
Yet within such dreadful Power of Heaven and Earth, a gust of wind carrying a portion of Wu Yong's soul power was weaving through it.
Wu Yong's main body, seated below, was already bleeding from all seven orifices, looking utterly miserable.
Even with the wind's protection, which kept most of the lightning power outside, lightning was simply too suppressive against the soul. Even the slightest trace of it was enough to make Wu Yong suffer.
If one's soul were not strong enough, facing this heavenly lightning directly carried the constant risk of having one's soul scattered and destroyed.
By comparison, Wu Yong merely bleeding from all seven orifices under the wind's protection was already quite fortunate.
The next moment, [Diode] activated. A faint blue glow fell over Wu Yong, and his mind, which had nearly lost consciousness, regained clarity.
"Continue."
After that wisp of soul power, tempered by the most violent lightning between heaven and earth, returned to him, Wu Yong sensed his soul power becoming more condensed. He simply wiped the blood from his face, separated another portion of his soul power, and continued using lightning to temper his soul.
His face showed neither joy nor sorrow as his soul underwent continuous tempering.
At that moment, Wu Yong was in a state of absolute rationality.
In this state, he could make the most correct judgment in any situation.
Even pain at the soul level could not affect him or prevent him from making the choice most beneficial to himself.
The lightning grew ever more violent, while the wind carrying soul power continued to weave through that Thunder Pool.
Time passed bit by bit, and the soul tempered by lightning was undergoing a qualitative transformation.
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