[Ding, fusion successful. Primordial Creation Art has advanced to High-Tier Earth Rank.] [Would you like to learn it?]
"Learn it."
This time, Xiao Yuan didn't hesitate at all.
In an instant, a massive torrent of information surged into his consciousness, forcibly flooding his mind.
If his soul power hadn't already reached the Early Spirit Realm, his soul might have shattered right then and there.
At the same time, a voice rang out in his mind.
"The primordial is one and only."
"One gives birth to two; two are yin and yang. The two principles transform into the three powers, and the three powers give rise to the four manifestations, the five elements..."
The voice boomed like a great bell and drum, yet also flowed like the hushed music of the Great Dao.
Gradually, Xiao Yuan, sitting cross-legged, closed his eyes and entered a state of profound, mysterious enlightenment.
The energy of heaven and earth around him began to roil, as if drawn by some force. It gathered wildly toward him, nearly solidifying into a vortex that surged forward in wave after wave, pouring rapidly into his body.
The Life Spirit Flame within him seemed to sense it too, and immediately surged out.
The azure flames seemed to burst from Xiao Yuan's pores, forming a curtain of fire before merging into the vortex of energy and being drawn back into his body.
It was like a great cycle of the heavens, connected to his body.
And also like reincarnation.
Meanwhile, the milky-white, attribute-less Dou Qi within him began to circulate according to the technique. As it gathered energy tainted by the Life Spirit Flame, it transformed into the technique's attribute-bearing Dou Qi.
Xiao Yuan's cultivation began to climb once more.
Under the impact of the surging Dou Qi, the bottleneck at Three-Star Great Dou Shi shattered with a crash.
He entered the realm of Four-Star Great Dou Shi.
Then Five-Star...
Six-Star...
Seven-Star...
Normally, converting Dou Qi through a cultivation technique didn't take very long. An ordinary Dou Zhe could finish in about an hour.
But Xiao Yuan, a Da Dou Shi, kept at it for three whole days!
Only after three days did Xiao Yuan, sitting cross-legged, slowly open his eyes.
"Phew—"
He let out a heavy breath of stale air.
The Dou Qi conversion had taken a long time, yet his body wasn't the least bit tired. If anything, he felt even more vigorous than before.
He'd gained quite a lot, too.
The irregular Dou Crystal inside him had been infused with the Life Spirit Flame, turning entirely emerald green.
It had also grown to more than twice its original size.
Its shape was beginning to resemble a sea urchin, with nine long, slender spikes evenly spaced across its surface.
It was a sign that he was about to enter the Dou Ling realm.
In other words, he had now reached the peak of Nine-Star Great Dou Master. He was only one step away from becoming a Dou Ling.
"It's about time I took care of some proper business."
Xiao Yuan clambered out of bed, grabbing the Storage Ring pouch from the bedside before heading straight out.
He hadn't forgotten that he still needed to get rid of the loot he'd taken from the Jialie Family.
Perhaps because Xun'er knew he would be going into seclusion to cultivate his technique, she hadn't come to bother him once in the past three days.
That fellow Xiao Yan seemed to have gone into seclusion as well, thanks to the Foundation Building Spirit Liquid Yao Chen had prepared.
With both of them away, it was much easier for him to act.
But the moment Xiao Yuan set foot on that familiar gravel path again, he found himself surrounded by countless gazes.
Every Xiao Clan disciple who passed by greeted him without exception.
He was different from Xiao Yan.
He was usually gentle with people, and despite his extraordinary talent, he wasn't the least bit arrogant. So he got along pretty well with most people.
Of course, that didn't include idiots like Xiao Ning.
A group of giggling girls came toward him, all tossing him flirtatious glances.
Some of the bolder ones even stepped forward to chat with him.
The most prominent among them was Xiao Mei.
She was just like her name: a girl with a rather alluring appearance. Even surrounded by so many girls, she still stood out from the crowd.
When she smiled at him, the bewitching charm she exuded was enough to make the boys around her swoon and the shy girls beside her feel a little inferior.
But Xiao Yuan...
Only returned a polite smile, nodded, and hurried away.
Alas, what a pity. She's my cousin by blood, so I can look but not touch. What a pity...
[Ding, congratulations. You have obtained one dose of Yin-Yang Joyous Union Powder.]
Hmm, Xiao Yuan approved of this reward.
When he left the Xiao Clan and reached the marketplace, people around him were chattering away.
Their conversation was mostly about the Jialie Family's downfall.
The Jialie Clan had been wiped off the map of Wutan City overnight, leaving everyone astonished.
Some people said they'd seen that everyone in the Jialie Family was dead, so they'd planned to sneak over in the middle of the night and scavenge a little.
But then they saw that Dou Wang who'd left return again, and they were so scared out of their wits that they immediately gave up on playing ghouls.
As a result, the Jialie Family's mansion still stood empty to this day, with no one daring to move in. It was said that even their corpses had been collected with help from the Xiao Clan and the Aoba Clan.
But people were even more curious about how the Jialie Clan had managed to offend a Dou Wang.
And who exactly was that Dou Wang named Gu Yue Fang Yuan?
Why were his Dou Techniques so bizarre?
Hearing the chatter, Xiao Yuan simply smiled.
He played the part of a bystander enjoying the gossip, brushed past the crowd, and headed straight for Wutan City's largest Auction House—
the Mittal Auction House.
It wasn't just the largest auction venue in Wutan City. It also belonged to the Mittel Family, the wealthiest family in the Jia Ma Empire.
The Jia Ma Empire's undisputed richest family.
With a history stretching back hundreds of years, the family had tangled connections. Rumor had it that they even had a slight connection to the Jia Ma Imperial Family.
They were also known as the Jia Ma Three Giants, along with the Mu Family and the Nalan Family.
With a powerful backer like the Mittel Family, no one dared target their auction house, no matter how tempting its profits might be.
Xiao Yuan strode briskly up to the Auction House entrance.
Ignoring the guards, he walked straight inside.
A spacious, splendid hall of gold and jade met his eyes. He slowly looked around, and after finding no familiar faces, made his way to an Appraisal Room as if he knew the place by heart.
Inside, a middle-aged man sat idly in a chair beside the table. When he looked up and saw Xiao Yuan enter, he didn't look down on him for his age. Instead, he quickly put on a professional smile.
"Little sir, are you here to have something appraised?"
Xiao Yuan got straight to the point.
"I'm looking for Master Gu Ni."
"You're looking for Master Gu Ni? You..."
The middle-aged man hesitated, so Xiao Yuan added:
"I need a pill appraised."
As he spoke, Xiao Yuan took a porcelain bottle from his Storage Ring and placed it on the table.
The middle-aged man hurriedly picked it up. He sniffed the bottle's mouth, and his expression changed at once. When he looked back at Xiao Yuan, there was a trace of awe in his eyes.
"Little sir, please wait a moment."
With that, the middle-aged man left the Appraisal Room.
Xiao Yuan slumped back in his chair and let out a heavy breath.
"As expected, I'm still not used to places like this..."
Perhaps it was a bad habit left over from his previous life, but he was a little socially anxious.