Accepting Disciples, Ten-Thousandfold Returns: Starting from Battle Through the Heavens

He refined three batches of Fighting Spirit Pills, producing a total of ten pills.

Although the success rate seemed lower than that of the Origin-Recovery Pills, it was not due to Qin Hao's lack of skill. Rather, the success rate of Fighting Spirit Pills themselves was far lower than that of Origin-Recovery Pills.

In this world, the higher the grade of a medicinal pill, the lower its success rate. Especially for seventh-, eighth-, and even ninth-grade pills, most batches could produce no more than a single pill.

Being able to refine ten Fighting Spirit Pills from three batches had already left him very satisfied.

For any other fifth-grade alchemist, successfully refining even one batch from three sets of Fighting Spirit Pill ingredients would already be considered a success.

The moment the pills were completed, Qin Hao and Zi Yan could not resist taking one each, raising their cultivation by one star.

The effect of a Fighting Spirit Pill was to directly raise a Dou Wang's cultivation by one star, though only the first pill had such an effect.

[Why is a pill that raises a Dou Wang's cultivation called a Fighting Spirit Pill? I really don't understand why the original novel was designed this way. It's far too misleading.]

Qin Hao had considered waiting until he reached the eight-star Dou Wang level before taking one, allowing himself to advance directly to nine-star Dou Wang.

Unfortunately, that might work for others, but Qin Hao was an exception.

Because of the Chaotic Heaven-Devouring Art he cultivated, the Dou Qi within his body far surpassed that of those at the same level. The energy he needed to break through was likewise far greater.

The Fighting Spirit Pill Qin Hao took had nearly failed to push him from one-star Dou Wang to two-star Dou Wang. At the critical moment, he devoured several magic cores and barely succeeded.

Thus, the effects of many medicinal pills did not fully apply to Qin Hao.

Over the past few days, aside from refining quite a few fifth-grade medicinal pills, he had also helped Zi Yan refine many pill pellets.

Compared with medicinal pills, refining pill pellets was much simpler.

Qin Hao could even refine dozens or hundreds of them in a single batch without the slightest difficulty.

"Qin Hao, your alchemy skills should be above the fifth grade by now, right? I've watched that old man Huo refine pills before. He's a top-tier fifth-grade alchemist, but compared with you, he's inferior by far! You should be capable of refining sixth-grade medicinal pills now, right?"

After seeing Qin Hao refine another batch of fifth-grade medicinal pills, Zi Yan immediately spoke up.

"Sixth-grade medicinal pills... probably."

After hearing Zi Yan's words, Qin Hao thought for a moment before replying. It was not as though he had never considered trying to refine sixth-grade medicinal pills, but unfortunately, he did not have enough ingredients on hand.

Although he and Zi Yan had gathered quite a few medicinal ingredients during this period, including many materials for sixth- and even seventh-grade medicinal pills, they still lacked enough to make up a complete set of ingredients for a sixth-grade pill.

Even an ordinary sixth-grade medicinal pill required dozens or even hundreds of supplementary ingredients in addition to its main ingredient. Not one could be missing.

Therefore, their gains alone were nowhere near enough to refine sixth-grade medicinal pills. They had to return to the academy and exchange for the necessary ingredients.

Upon hearing their conversation, the light in the Twin-Winged Scarlet Qilin King's eyes grew even brighter. The stronger Qin Hao's alchemy skills proved to be, the more it showed that its original choice had been correct.

"Great! Tell me what ingredients you need. Once we get back, I'll go see Old Su!"

Zi Yan looked at Qin Hao excitedly.

"Uh, let me exchange for them from the academy treasury first. If I still can't gather everything, then you can think of another way..."

Qin Hao said helplessly after hearing her words.

Because of her Ancient Void Dragon bloodline, Zi Yan possessed formidable spatial abilities. From the Grand Elder down to ordinary elders from every department, few had escaped her visits. The greatest victim of all was none other than the Inner Academy's Grand Elder, Su Qian.

"Fine..."

Zi Yan nodded indifferently.

"Crimson Qilin, how are your injuries recovering?"

Qin Hao then turned his gaze toward the Twin-Winged Scarlet Qilin King. Over the past few days, he had refined quite a few healing pills and fed many of them to it.

"Master gave me quite a few healing pills earlier, and my injuries are much better than before. However, a considerable amount of medicinal power has yet to be fully refined. I estimate that I'll need at least three more days to completely refine the medicinal power within my body. By then, I still won't be able to fight at full strength, but I should be able to exert thirty or forty percent of my power. Even against an ordinary Dou Emperor, I would have the strength to fight!"

The Twin-Winged Scarlet Qilin King answered directly.

Its injuries from the previous battle had been far too severe. Although Qin Hao had given it a considerable number of healing pills, the pills he refined were only fifth-grade healing pills.

For the Twin-Winged Scarlet Qilin King, a sixth-rank magic beast, their effects were naturally much weaker. In the end, left with no other choice, Qin Hao increased the dosage and fed it at least ten different healing pills.

As a result, a substantial amount of medicinal power still remained in the Twin-Winged Scarlet Qilin King's body, not yet fully digested and absorbed.

Cultivation! Five-Star Dou Wang! Explosive Increase in Strength!

"Three days... fine! We'll leave in three days. During that time, I need to enter seclusion and cultivate properly. Unless it's something important, don't disturb me!"

After thinking it over, Qin Hao spoke directly.

He had been busy refining pills these past few days and had not had time to cultivate properly. He planned to use this period to thoroughly digest his recent gains.

"Rest assured, Master. With me here, no one will be able to disturb your cultivation!"

The Twin-Winged Scarlet Qilin King said solemnly.

Zi Yan beside it nodded as well.

Seeing this, Qin Hao did not hesitate any longer. He entered a secluded chamber that had been excavated deep within the cave, a place he had created for resting.

After entering the chamber, Qin Hao wasted no words. With a thought, a pile of magic cores appeared around him. Aside from leaving behind some for pill refinement, he took out all the magic cores he had obtained during this period.

Although magic cores were the essence and core of magic beasts, the energy within them was incomparably violent. Almost no one could draw upon that energy for their own use.

However, Qin Hao was clearly an exception. The Chaotic Heaven-Devouring Art he cultivated was indiscriminate in what it consumed. The violent energy in magic cores that other cultivators could neither draw out nor refine was nothing to Qin Hao.

Without hesitation, Qin Hao sat cross-legged on the ground, picked up two magic cores, and placed them in his palms. The Chaotic Heaven-Devouring Art began circulating as he directly devoured and refined the energy within the magic cores.

He immediately entered a state of cultivation.

As time passed, Qin Hao devoured and refined more and more magic cores, while the aura around him steadily rose.

Most of these magic cores came from third- and fourth-rank magic beasts. As for magic cores above the fourth rank, Qin Hao had mostly stored them away because they would be needed for refining certain medicinal pills.

Even so, the energy contained within such a large accumulation of low-rank magic cores was still an incomparably terrifying amount.

The Chaotic Heaven-Devouring Art consumed an enormous amount of energy, and Qin Hao also had to divert a great deal of that energy to temper his body.

Yet even so, after Qin Hao absorbed and refined every last magic core, his cultivation had still risen by a full three stars. Combined with the earlier increase from the Fighting Spirit Pill, Qin Hao had now directly reached the five-star Dou Wang level.

After reaching five-star Dou Wang, Qin Hao's strength underwent an earth-shaking transformation compared with before. It would not be an exaggeration to say that among Dou Wangs, he now had virtually no opponents.

Even if he encountered an ordinary Dou Emperor, Qin Hao would have the strength to fight. His current power was enough to make him a true powerhouse in the entire Black-Corner Region.

"That should do it. It's time to leave!"

By now, nearly three days had passed since Qin Hao began cultivating.

"Qin Hao, you've come out of seclusion. Huh? Your aura... Your cultivation broke through again? Isn't your cultivation speed a little too ridiculous?"

The moment Qin Hao emerged, Zi Yan rushed over. But when she sensed the aura around him, a shocked expression appeared on her face.

At the same time, she felt somewhat depressed. Although she had consumed quite a few medicinal pills and pill pellets during this period, apart from that Fighting Spirit Pill, her cultivation had barely changed and was increasing incredibly slowly.

Compared with Qin Hao's cultivation speed, her feelings were obvious.

"Yes, I made some progress. But Zi Yan, you don't need to rush. I'm only ahead of you for now. Once the bloodline within your body is completely activated, I believe your cultivation will undergo a tremendous qualitative leap!"

Qin Hao said.

Having read the original novel, he naturally understood Zi Yan's situation.

Zi Yan practically never stopped taking medicinal pills. The reason her cultivation speed was so slow was not because her talent was poor. The main reason was that more than ninety-nine percent of the energy from the pills she consumed was absorbed by the bloodline within her body.

It was all accumulating strength for her bloodline's eventual complete awakening.

He remembered that in the original novel, once Zi Yan's bloodline awakened, she practically soared to the heavens in a single step, directly entering the Dou Zun realm. Later, she quickly advanced into the Dou Sheng realm.

Zi Yan was one of the few people in the original novel who could keep pace with protagonist Xiao Yan's growth.

Qin Hao could see the disappointment in Zi Yan's heart and immediately comforted her.

"I hope so. Qin Hao, after we get back, you have to refine sixth-grade medicinal pills as soon as possible. Sixth-grade medicinal pills will definitely be more effective. Then I can grow up faster too!"

After hearing Qin Hao's words, Zi Yan spoke up.

"Alright."

Qin Hao did not refuse and simply nodded.

After that, Qin Hao did not hesitate any longer and prepared to leave the Magic Beast Forest.

Outside the lair, the Twin-Winged Scarlet Qilin King revealed its body over ten meters long. Qin Hao and Zi Yan climbed directly onto its back, while Qin Hao held the little Scarlet Qilin beast in his arms.

Earlier, Zi Yan had wanted to hold the little Scarlet Qilin beast as well. Unfortunately, whenever she approached it, the little Scarlet Qilin beast reacted with intense resistance.

Qin Hao knew very well that this was due to the suppression of Zi Yan's bloodline.

After all, Zi Yan possessed the bloodline of the Ancient Void Dragon Emperor, an existence standing at the pinnacle of the entire magic beast world. Even though her bloodline had yet to be fully activated, it was still beyond comparison to that of the little Scarlet Qilin beast.

The Twin-Winged Scarlet Qilin King could actually sense the pressure emanating from the depths of Zi Yan's bloodline as well. It was only because it was far stronger than Zi Yan that it could resist the suppression of her bloodline.

The next moment, the Twin-Winged Scarlet Qilin King's wings suddenly beat, and its massive body shot into the sky. Under Qin Hao's guidance, it flew directly toward the outskirts of the Magic Beast Forest.

Now that they had such a powerful mount as the Twin-Winged Scarlet Qilin King, its deterrence meant they naturally no longer needed to take detours. Their speed was many times faster than before.

In only half a day, they reached the outskirts of the Magic Beast Forest and entered the region familiar to Qin Hao and Zi Yan.

The group then flew directly toward the Inner Academy of Jia Nan Academy.

Before long, the outline of Jia Nan Academy's Inner Academy appeared in Qin Hao's sight.

However, Qin Hao soon realized something was wrong. More than a dozen figures had appeared within his field of vision, each wearing an incomparably grave expression as if facing a formidable enemy.

Everyone's Shock!

The leader was none other than the Inner Academy's Grand Elder, Su Qian. Behind him stood the elders of Jia Nan Academy's Inner Academy, including Elder Huo from the alchemy department, whom Qin Hao knew best.

"Hm?"

But after noticing their gazes, Qin Hao quickly realized something.