Three-Colored Dou Qi, Explosion!

Jia Lie Ao's furious charge abruptly halted. His pupils contracted, and the savage rage on his face froze.

He stared fixedly at the dou qi barrier swirling around Xiao Yuan, disbelief written all over his face, and cried out:

"Dou... Dou qi projection?!! You're a Dou Zhe too?!!"

At that moment, he finally understood why his opponent had driven him back with a single palm strike.

From beginning to end, the so-called "little brat" he had looked down on had never been a mere dou qi cultivator he could toy with at will, but a Dou Zhe of the same rank as him!

The clamor of gasps and chatter around them abruptly ceased.

Every onlooker stood rooted to the spot, staring wide-eyed at the clearly visible dou qi barrier, their minds utterly blank.

He had only been at Seventh Stage Dou Qi a year ago!

In just one year, he had crossed several barriers and broken through to become a Dou Zhe?!

What kind of monstrous talent did Xiao Yuan possess?!

The blue-green palm projection of the Raging Wind Palm was already upon him, slamming viciously into the golden dou qi barrier!

BOOM!!!

An enormous explosion erupted. Violent dou qi shock waves swept in every direction, overturning the wooden frames of several nearby stalls.

The golden barrier shuddered violently, ripples spreading across its surface. Fine cracks split the bluestone beneath Xiao Yuan's feet, and his body involuntarily slid two steps backward.

Without the support of a Dou Technique, a defensive barrier formed from dou qi alone had already reached its limit under the fierce assault of a Xuan-tier Dou Technique.

Cracks raced across the barrier, threatening to shatter it at any moment.

Xiao Yuan clenched his teeth. His blood surged, and a faint, metallic sweetness rose in his throat.

At the sight, barely suppressed jubilation welled up in Jia Lie Ao's heart, and he shouted fiercely:

"So what if you're a Dou Zhe? You think dou qi alone can withstand my Xuan-tier Dou Technique?"

Seeing Xiao Yuan still struggling to hold on after his words, he gave a cold snort.

"Hmph! You're courting death!!"

Jia Lie Ao drove his palm forward again, pouring his remaining blue-green dou qi into the palm projection as though it cost him nothing.

The blue-green palm gale swelled once more, its sharp wind pressure cutting painfully against their cheeks as he sought to crush Xiao Yuan's dou qi barrier completely.

Crack—!

Fine fractures covered the entire golden barrier, and everyone could clearly hear it breaking.

The spectators held their breath. Many instinctively closed their eyes, as though they could already see Xiao Yuan being grievously injured by the Dou Technique.

Under everyone's gaze, the golden light on the barrier grew ever dimmer, cracks covering its surface. It looked ready to shatter at any moment.

As he continued pouring out dou qi, Xiao Yuan's vision gradually darkened, and a metallic sweetness surged into his throat. Aching pain kept coursing through the hands he held before him to sustain the barrier.

Thump... thump... thump!

Steady, heavy heartbeats, brimming with power, suddenly rang clearly in his ears.

The heartbeats grew louder and more deafening, like an ancient war drum buried deep within his body, thunderously pounding!

His nearly exhausted dou qi replenished at a terrifying speed, surging wildly!

His depleted meridians filled with power once more. Every trace of aching and stabbing pain vanished, replaced by the comfort of overflowing strength.

Seizing this opportunity, Xiao Yuan's cultivation surged straight to the peak of One-Star Dou Zhe, leaving him only half a step from Two-Star Dou Zhe.

As the dou qi within him replenished, the cracked, tottering barrier abruptly recovered from its failing state.

"What?!!"

Jia Lie Ao was instantly shocked. He could not understand how someone who had been on the verge of death could still unleash such tremendous power.

Xiao Yuan raised his head and gave Jia Lie Ao an ugly grin. Then he actually stopped supplying dou qi and deliberately opened his barrier.

The golden barrier abruptly dissipated, its light scattering into tiny golden motes that drifted through the air.

Jia Lie Ao froze, his heart filled with bewilderment. He had assumed his opponent would keep resisting behind the barrier and had never imagined Xiao Yuan would willingly abandon his defenses.

But with the opportunity right before him, he did not hesitate. A vicious gleam flashed in his eyes as he drove his remaining dou qi forward again. Wrapped in howling winds, the blue-green Raging Wind Palm hurtled unobstructed toward Xiao Yuan's chest!

"Die!!"

The fierce wind tore through the air. Sharp and domineering, the blue-green palm projection was already less than three feet from Xiao Yuan's heart!

At that critical instant, Xiao Yuan's gaze abruptly sharpened!

Bzzzt—!

Blue-violet lightning and crimson flames crawled along his arm to his hand, finally gathering in his palm.

He neither dodged nor retreated. His right arm abruptly sank, his hand clenching into a fist!

The vast dou qi within him, freshly restored to its peak, poured into his right fist without reservation!

This was Xiao Yuan's unique dual thunder-fire attribute dou qi, several times more violent than the single-attribute dou qi of an ordinary Dou Zhe!

Facing the howling Raging Wind Palm, Xiao Yuan gave a low shout, stepped forward, and punched!

It was a simple straight punch, without any Dou Technique's moves, yet it gathered all his strength as a peak One-Star Dou Zhe.

BANG!!!

Fist and palm collided with a thunderous crash!

Blue-green Wind Attribute dou qi, crimson Fire Attribute dou qi, and blue-violet lightning attribute dou qi—the power of all three attributes collided violently in an instant.

In that instant, the three kinds of dou qi reacted with one another, transformed, and erupted!

Wind fed the flames, fire borrowed the wind's might, and lightning clashed with fire.

BOOM!!!

A dazzling blaze of three-colored light exploded, and the deafening blast swept through the entire Market District!

Violent energy shock waves spread wildly outward from the point of impact. The bluestone paving beneath their feet shattered inch by inch, and the raging blast sent broken stone and wood splinters whirling through the air.

Jia Lie Ao felt a terrifying force, mingling scorching heat and numbing paralysis, surge through his palm into every limb and bone. His wind dou qi was torn apart by lightning, his meridians scorched by fire, and the dou qi throughout his body instantly spiraled out of control.

"Aaargh—!!"

Before his shrill scream could fully escape, the tremendous force of the explosion slammed into him.

His entire body flew as though struck by a giant hammer. He doubled over, spewing mouthfuls of scarlet blood, and hurtled backward like a kite with its string cut. Trailing a streak of blood through the air, he crashed heavily onto the ground more than ten meters away.

Thud!

Dust rose.

Jia Lie Ao convulsed, his clothes scorched black in several places by lightning and fire, the meridians in his arm damaged. He struggled several times on the ground but could not get up.

Xiao Yuan was not faring well either.

Forcibly withdrawing his defenses and bearing the explosive collision of three dou qi attributes with his own flesh still placed an enormous strain on him.

The aftershocks of the thunderous explosion coursed straight through his knuckles into his meridians. His entire right arm had gone numb and stiff, his fingertips trembling slightly. Fine red burn marks and faint white patches from the lightning strike covered his skin.

The dou qi that had just surged to its peak was more than half drained by that single head-on clash. His dantian throbbed with a faint, swollen ache, while waves of tearing soreness radiated through his empty meridians.