Dou Wang!

Su Zhao lowered his head slightly, looking at his hands as he felt the Dou Qi within him surging like a river, several times stronger than before.

"So this is a Dou Wang!"

More than several times stronger than a Dou Ling!

Whether it was the quality and quantity of his Dou Qi, his body's perception of the energy of heaven and earth, or the solid wings behind him, everything made him feel a qualitative leap.

With a flash, he shot into the sky like a crimson meteor, speeding through the high air!

"Even faster than using Purple Cloud Wings as a Dou Ling!"

The wings behind him were now condensed directly from Origin Flame. Not only were they incredibly fast, but they consumed far less Dou Qi than ordinary Dou Qi wings. They moved at his will, as naturally as his own limbs!

As his realm rose, the Origin Flame became increasingly terrifying. Now, even the scorching heat released when his wings spread would burn an ordinary Dou Wang if Su Zhao did not deliberately restrain it.

He circled through the sky for a while, savoring the entirely new experience brought by the Dou Wang realm, before folding his body and landing steadily in the courtyard.

"Congratulations on breaking through to Dou Wang, Young Master!"

Su You stepped forward first and spoke respectfully.

"Congratulations, congratulations!"

Xiao Yi Xian also came forward with a smile.

Su Zhao waved his hand with a spirited expression. "Now that I've broken through to Dou Wang, the Dou Qi reserves in my body should be enough to refine a sixth-grade pill!"

He turned to Su You. "Go invite Hai Bo Dong."

Su You nodded and vanished in a flash. Moments later, the courtyard gate was pushed open, and Hai Bo Dong strode in.

Hai Bo Dong was still in shock. The moment he entered, he saw the surging aura around Su Zhao that had yet to completely dissipate. His pupils shrank sharply as he blurted out, "So it was you who just broke through to Dou Wang!"

He looked Su Zhao up and down, disbelief written all over his face. "The last time we met, you were only a mere Dou Shi. How long has it been? And you actually..."

Before he could finish, his gaze swept toward Xiao Yi Xian standing nearby, and he was jolted once more. "You... a Dou Ling?!"

Hai Bo Dong felt that he had used up all the surprise of his entire life in this single moment.

He looked at Su Zhao, then at Xiao Yi Xian. His lips moved for a long while as his mind buzzed.

What was going on? What in the world was going on? Was cultivation really this easy? One Dou Zhe had become a Dou Ling in such a short time, while the other had gone directly from a Dou Shi to a Dou Wang! He couldn't help recalling how old he had been when he broke through to Dou Wang. How many years ago had that been?

Seeing Hai Bo Dong's worldview collapsing, Su Zhao chuckled and waved his hand. "Elder Hai need not be so surprised. Xian'er and I have somewhat unusual constitutions, so we cultivate much faster than ordinary people."

Hai Bo Dong did not know Qing Lin yet. If he had, then seeing that little girl advance from having no cultivation at all to the eighth stage of Dou Qi in a single year would likely have left him shocked all over again.

Su Zhao's smile faded as he said seriously, "I invited Elder Hai here today for an important matter. Now that I've broken through to Dou Wang, it is time to refine the Break-Evil Pill for you. I hope Elder Hai still remembers his promise."

Upon hearing this, Hai Bo Dong was first delighted, then hesitant. "You can refine a sixth-grade pill already? This is a sixth-grade pill. As far as this old man knows, throughout the entire Jia Ma Empire, only Pill King Gu He can refine sixth-grade pills."

Su Zhao's lips curled slightly. "Heh. Elder Hai can simply watch."

Hai Bo Dong nodded solemnly and cupped his hands in salute. "As long as you help me restore my cultivation, I, Hai Bo Dong, will certainly keep my promise without a word of objection!"

"Hahahaha! Good!"

Su Zhao laughed loudly. Without wasting words, he turned and walked toward the broad open space that had long been cleared in the center of the courtyard, then sat down cross-legged.

With a wave of his hand, a massive purple-black cauldron flew out of his storage ring and crashed onto the ground!

Dim metallic light flowed across the cauldron's body. It had three legs and two handles, ancient and heavy—the Heavenly Abyss Cauldron!

As he poured in Dou Qi, the Heavenly Abyss Cauldron expanded in the wind under the force of his Dou Qi until it stood over two meters tall, firmly planted in the center of the courtyard.

"Everyone, guard me."

Su Zhao spoke in a low voice.

The others immediately moved away and stood on alert.

Su Zhao closed his eyes and adjusted his breathing for a moment. Once his mind had settled, he suddenly opened his eyes!

He struck the cauldron with one palm, and Origin Flame surged forth in response, pouring into the bottom of the cauldron.

Then he flipped his wrist, and dozens of medicinal ingredients flew from his storage ring at once. As if guided by an invisible hand, they dropped into the medicinal cauldron one after another.

Sand Mandala, Seven-Leaf Green Lotus Fruit, Century-Old Stone Milk, Red Sun Grass, Ice Marrow Fungus...

The timing for each ingredient, the heat for refining it, and the temperature for purification were all vividly clear in his mind.

His hands moved in rapid succession. Under his control, Origin Flame was violent one moment and gentle the next, precisely enveloping each medicinal ingredient and gradually removing its impurities, leaving behind only the purest essence of medicinal power.

Time passed bit by bit.

A dense medicinal fragrance gradually spread through the courtyard, lingering without dispersing.

Hai Bo Dong stood in a corner of the courtyard, watching Su Zhao's entire pill-refining process without blinking. His hands unconsciously clenched into fists.

Half a day passed quietly.

Suddenly, the Heavenly Abyss Cauldron shook violently. Dense spiritual energy of heaven and earth shot from within the cauldron into the sky, forming a visible pillar of light that pierced the heavens!

The vast fluctuations from that pillar spread in all directions, nearly reaching the entirety of Desert City. No matter where one stood in the city, one could clearly sense that immense disturbance.

Immediately afterward, an incomparably rich medicinal fragrance spread from the courtyard. The scent was deep and potent; merely taking a breath of it invigorated the spirit.

The instant Hai Bo Dong smelled that fragrance, his aged body trembled sharply. It was finished!!

A sixth-grade pill—the Break-Evil Pill!

His entire body trembled faintly. The restoration of his cultivation was right before his eyes. The shackles that had sealed him for more than a decade finally had hope of being broken. This expectation, suppressed for far too long, had finally glimpsed the dawn of fulfillment today!

How could he not be excited!

Su Zhao slowly withdrew the flames, and the Heavenly Abyss Cauldron fell quiet. With a soft "click," the lid popped open on its own, and a perfectly round pill emitting a faint glow slowly floated out. A sixth-grade pill—the Break-Evil Pill—was complete!

Su Zhao beckoned the pill into his palm, feeling the warmth and abundant energy coming from it. A satisfied smile touched his lips.

He rose to his feet and walked toward Hai Bo Dong, who was too excited to contain himself, then held the pill out before him.

"Elder Hai, I have not failed you."

Hai Bo Dong stretched out both hands and carefully accepted the Break-Evil Pill, as though receiving an incomparably precious treasure.

He opened his mouth, only to find that he could not speak for a moment. Countless words caught in his throat, ultimately becoming a single incomparably solemn murmur: "Thank you!"