No regrets, Xun'er invites him again

"I finally found it."

Joy lit up Lin Chen's face. He instinctively tried to put the scroll into his Storage Ring, only to discover that he could not open it.

An uncanny force seemed to have sealed this space, making the surrounding spatial power stubbornly immovable, as heavy as a massive boulder. He could not budge it in the slightest.

"This must be a Dou Zun-level spatial seal. What an enviable power."

Lin Chen sighed in admiration. Rather than trying again, he walked toward the spot Hu Gan had pointed out earlier.

Several energy barriers glimmered on the left wall. With every rhythmic pulse, countless streaks of light burst from them and shot in all directions.

Lin Chen waited for a long while, extending his fifth-grade alchemist's soul power to watch the glowing clusters closely. He could roughly sense the likely grade of the items within them.

A short while later,

Whoosh!

A streak of emerald light shot out. Lin Chen caught it and crushed the light in an instant, revealing an exquisite emerald jade bottle. Carved with dragons and phoenixes, the bottle looked lavish beyond compare, a treasure in its own right.

Lin Chen pulled out the jade stopper and sniffed the pill's fragrance. A flicker of emotion crossed his eyes as he thought, It's the Azure Nether Longevity Pill, no doubt about it. Old Hu Gan really did slip me the answers. My godfather!

I'll have to treat the old man better from now on. Sect Breaking Pills, One Beginning Pills, Flame Demon Clear Profound Pills... I'll get him all of them. As long as they don't kill him, I'll stuff him to the brink of death. Sooner or later, I'll feed him into the Dou Zun realm!

After a moment's thought, however, Lin Chen ultimately put the bottle down. Breaking through to Dou Wang within three years was no problem for him at all. Taking the Azure Nether Longevity Pill would serve no purpose.

The Earth Tier Intermediate Grade Ninefold Phoenix Flame Art would greatly help him improve his strength. That was what he needed right now.

The Green Wood Myriad Life Art in the seventh-grade alchemist's ruins he knew about was only Earth Tier Low Grade, far inferior to this Ninefold Phoenix Flame Art.

Moreover, judging by its name, the Green Wood Myriad Life Art likely leaned toward nourishing life. He probably could not expect much combat power from cultivating it.

The Ninefold Phoenix Flame Art was a pure fire-attribute cultivation method. Once he switched to it, the potency and density of his Dou Qi would surely surpass those of the other method by more than a little.

Before long, the energy barriers in the room suddenly blazed with light. Countless streaks that had shot out flew back into them, and the vortex-like barriers began shrinking, clearly about to seal themselves again.

Han Shan's and Han Tie's expressions changed. They immediately chose the items they needed, while Han Zhi quickly took a Xuan-tier Advanced Grade cultivation method.

Only Liu Fei still hesitated, holding a scroll containing a Xuan-tier Advanced Dou Technique and a Fifth-grade Pill, unsure which to choose.

Just then, an aged voice rang out beside their ears.

"Time is up. I will send you out!"

An instant later, before Lin Chen and the others could react, they felt the space around them twist. In the blink of an eye, they were outside the Book Collection Pavilion.

Then a gray-robed man fixed his gaze on them and shifted his sleeve slightly. Lin Chen felt a vast, surging energy sweep over him. After several breaths, it receded like the tide.

"Everything is in order. You may leave."

"Remember, you must not reveal the slightest detail of today's events, including anything inside the Book Collection Pavilion, to any outsider."

The aged, hoarse voice sounded beside their ears.

Lin Chen and the others hurriedly cupped their fists and bowed in respect.

"Ahem, everyone is out, then? Since everything is fine, let's not disturb the two elders' rest."

"Let's go."

Seeing this, Hu Gan, who had been waiting outside, cleared his throat and headed out.

The others hurried after him.

In the spacious, brightly lit study, the fragrance of tea curled through the air.

As deputy headmaster, Hu Gan gave them another round of careful reminders before sending Liu Fei and the others away, keeping only Lin Chen behind.

"Well? Did you get it?"

Hu Gan looked at Lin Chen expressionlessly, though a trace of anticipation slipped into his eyes.

"Ahem, I got it. I took it as soon as I came out. Headmaster Hu Gan, if there's nothing else, I'll be going. The herbs I'm growing at home are waiting to be watered."

Lin Chen cleared his throat and turned with a somewhat awkward expression, preparing to leave the study.

"Ah..."

Hu Gan did not stop him. He merely sighed and earnestly cautioned him, "Chen'er, what is too rigid breaks easily. With this habit of constantly courting danger, you'll suffer a serious loss sooner or later. Forging ahead with courage is certainly a good thing, but sometimes you must work toward your goal slowly."

At those words, Lin Chen stopped, his body trembling slightly.

Then he took another step and walked forward without hesitation.

Only when he reached the doorway did he glance back and wave at Hu Gan with a smile. "I understand, Headmaster."

"Don't you know me by now? I treasure my life!"

"Even if calamity does befall me one day, I won't regret it. To die in pursuit of the Dao—wouldn't that be exhilarating?"

After returning from the Book Collection Pavilion,

Lin Chen headed to his residence in the Outer Academy and returned to his little courtyard.

He sat cross-legged and eagerly took out the Ninefold Phoenix Flame Art scroll, pressing it to his brow. Torrents of information surged into his mind, wave after wave, pouring in without end.

A short while later,

Lin Chen lowered the scroll. Its pale red surface had dimmed considerably; clearly, much of the soul imprint it contained had been consumed.

As everyone knew, cultivation method scrolls, Dou Technique scrolls, and pill recipe scrolls on the Dou Qi Continent were all inscribed by powerful individuals using soul power. With every reading, the soul traces upon them grew a little fainter.

Generally, after five readings, they would gradually become indistinct. Readers could only rely on their own understanding to puzzle out the unclear portions, which undoubtedly consumed a great deal of time and could even lead to misunderstandings.

Thus, a person's comprehension was extremely important. If they failed to grasp the contents after five readings, a teacher would have to guide them step by step and correct their mistakes. Clearly, however, Lin Chen's comprehension made that unnecessary.

Sitting cross-legged, Lin Chen recalled the contents and intricacies of the Ninefold Phoenix Flame Art. He formed the Fire Phoenix Seal with both hands and immediately began circulating his energy along the cultivation method's pathways.

Although an Earth Tier Cultivation Method was indeed profound, his previous experience cultivating Xuan-tier methods made getting started fairly easy.

In just half an hour, Lin Chen steadied his mind and guided a strand of his original crimson Dou Qi along the new pathways.

Once that strand of crimson Dou Qi completed a full circuit and returned to his dantian, it transformed into an entirely new kind of pale red Dou Qi.

Its volume had visibly shrunk by a considerable amount, but it had become extraordinarily condensed. It flowed through his meridians like magma, radiating a heart-quaking glow.

His aura had diminished only slightly, yet it had become even more powerful and domineering.

"It worked."

Lin Chen exhaled softly, then swallowed a Fasting Pill and devoted himself wholeheartedly to switching cultivation methods.

For seven straight days, he neither ate nor drank.

When thirsty, he took a Clear Water Pill; when hungry, a Fasting Pill; when sleepy, a Spirit Awakening Pill.

In the blink of an eye, seven days passed.

Inside the meditation chamber, Lin Chen slowly opened his eyes. A lifelike phoenix silhouette flashed through them, while his aura remained at Peak Dou Ling.

Yet it had become denser and more condensed, and an intensely scorching presence radiated imperceptibly from him.

Vaguely, a fire phoenix seemed to hover above his head, reborn in flames and spreading its wings. Countless fiery feathers drifted down, becoming nine continuous layers of blazing seas cascading beneath it. The phoenix threw back its head and cried to the heavens, poised to burn the sky, boil the seas, and battle through the nine heavens!

He had successfully switched to the Ninefold Phoenix Flame Art!

"From now on, I'm a man with an Earth Tier Cultivation Method too."

Lin Chen rose with a smile and clenched his hand. A crack rang through the air as the surging remnants of his Dou Qi scattered around him, spreading in rings of invisible energy ripples that made the entire meditation chamber hum.

Just then, knock, knock!

A series of knocks came from outside the courtyard, and an aged, resonant voice sounded within it.

"Young Master Lin Chen, my young lady requests your presence."