Parting

Wutan City

Outside the city gates

Xiao Zhan and the other senior members of the Xiao Clan were all present, as were Xiao Yan and Xiao Xun'er. They had all come to see Xiao Yu off.

After saying goodbye to Ya Fei, Xiao Yu had told Xiao Zhan and the other elders at home about his plans to travel and train. Two days later, he was ready to leave, sharing one last meal with everyone before his departure.

"Yu'er, make sure you take care of yourself out there. Don't trust others too easily. The outside world isn't like the Xiao Clan, so you must tread carefully. Never harbor the intent to harm others, but never let down your guard against them either."

Xiao Zhan gave Xiao Yu these instructions with great solemnity. His nephew had lived in the Xiao Clan for so many years and knew nothing of the outside world. If anything happened to him, Xiao Zhan would not be able to bear it.

Xiao Yu patiently listened to Xiao Zhan's advice. After this farewell, they likely would not see each other for a long time. He had no idea when he would next return to the Xiao Clan, so he found himself thoroughly enjoying Xiao Zhan's nagging.

"I understand, Second Uncle. I'll take care of myself. Two years at most-I promise I'll be back."

Xiao Zhan looked at Xiao Yu with a smile. His nephew handled himself and his dealings with others very well, but he had never experienced much cruelty. Xiao Zhan worried that the scheming and deceit outside would make life difficult for him.

But keeping him confined to Wutan City was no lasting solution. With Xiao Yu's talent, Wutan City was destined to be unable to hold him, nor was it a suitable place for him. The world outside was his true stage.

So, however reluctant he was to part with him, he had not opposed Xiao Yu's decision to travel and train.

He patted Xiao Yu on the shoulder, gave him another reluctant look, then stepped back to make room.

Over the past year, he had also learned how close Yu'er and Yan'er were. It pleased him to see the two cousins getting along so well, so he let them have a few words.

Xiao Yan stepped forward, his expression somewhat grave. "Brother Yu, be careful out there. I hope that the next time we meet, I'll still see my cousin safe and sound."

Xiao Yu smiled and nodded, patting Xiao Yan on the shoulder. "The same goes for you, little brother. I know you'll leave Wutan City too. After all, you can't catch up to Nalan Yanran here."

"Little brother, I hope your name will already be ringing throughout the Jia Ma Empire the next time we meet."

"Goodbye! I'll be waiting for you in the Imperial Capital!"

"Goodbye, Second Uncle!"

"Goodbye, Cousin Xun'er!"

"Goodbye, elders!"

Waving farewell to everyone, Xiao Yu set off on his journey of training.

In the distance, beneath an enormous tree, stood a captivating woman dressed in black. Her bright eyes remained fixed on Xiao Yu's receding figure.

"Ah..."

"Little Brother Yu, goodbye..."

The woman murmured softly, then turned and left.

After this farewell, she had no idea when they would meet again.

When we meet again, will he still be my Little Brother Yu, just as he is now? Will I still be able to call him little brother as freely as before?

After leaving the territory of Wutan City, Xiao Yu followed his map northeast. His destination for this training journey was the largest mountain range in the Jia Ma Empire-the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

It was the Jia Ma Empire's greatest storehouse of medicinal ingredients and magic cores, providing countless mercenaries with their livelihood.

Magical beasts abounded and danger lurked on every side, but it also offered more opportunities than anywhere else in the Jia Ma Empire.

Within it, one could obtain natural treasures and magic cores. With luck, one might even discover the tomb of a powerful expert and come away with Cultivation Methods and Combat Skills, pills, pill formulas, and more.

Every day, an endless stream of people entered the Magical Beast Mountain Range dreaming of striking it rich overnight.

Xiao Yu had chosen it as the first destination for his training journey largely because of its medicinal ingredients and magic cores. There, far from the cities, he would no longer need to conceal his cultivation.

He could let loose and cultivate without restraint, and devote himself to studying his Lightning-Fire Pill Refining Method without distractions.

Whether for researching pill formulas or obtaining medicinal ingredients and magic cores, this was undoubtedly the ideal place.

"I won't leave the Magical Beast Mountain Range until I reach Dou Ling!"

That was the goal he set for himself.

Following his route, Xiao Yu passed through Qingshan Town and officially entered the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

He did not go looking for Xiao Yi Xian or anyone else. He was also unwilling to have too much contact with the people of the Dou Qi Continent.

That was especially true of anyone so deeply entangled with Xiao Yan.

Xiao Yan was his younger cousin. He did not want to steal his opportunities, women, or anything else, as happened in the Battle Through the Heavens fanfiction he had read.

He only wanted to rely on his astonishing cultivation talent to climb upward, step by step. Once he stood at the summit, he would search for that elusive, illusory road home.

Moreover, he and Xiao Yan were very close. He did not want his own actions to prevent Xiao Yan from becoming a Dou Di.

On this Dou Qi Continent devoid of origin qi, he did not dare claim that taking all of Xiao Yan's opportunities for himself would allow him to do better than Xiao Yan.

Even if Xiao Yu had not transmigrated into a member of the Xiao Clan, he would not have used his foreknowledge to seize Xiao Yan's opportunities.

He could not guarantee that he would possess the strength to rival Hun Tiandi when the latter became a Dou Di. If someone's interference prevented Xiao Yan from becoming a Dou Di in the future, leaving no Flame Emperor and no one else who could reach that realm, who would stop Hun Tiandi?

That would mean gambling with the lives of everyone on the Dou Qi Continent. Xiao Yu neither dared nor wished to take that gamble.

If he wanted to become a Dou Di, he did not necessarily have to steal someone else's opportunities. He only needed to wait until Xiao Yan became a Dou Di and opened the passage between planes, allowing origin qi to flow into the Dou Qi Continent. He believed that, with his talent, becoming a Dou Di would be no problem once origin qi was available.

"Phew, finally here."

Seven days later, after traveling at full speed, Xiao Yu finally arrived at the outskirts of the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

Looking at the flowers, grasses, and trees around him, Xiao Yu smiled and walked in.

Trees swept backward as Xiao Yu ventured steadily deeper into the Magical Beast Mountain Range. He did not enter its inner reaches, however. High-order magical beasts lived there, and they were not opponents he could contend with.

Besides, having never fought before, Xiao Yu did not know how strong he was in actual combat. If he ran into a peak third-order or fourth-order magical beast he could not defeat, wouldn't he be screwed?

So he kept his activities to the boundary between the outskirts and the inner reaches.

And so Xiao Yu settled down in the Magical Beast Mountain Range. Every day, he took pills, cultivated, searched for medicinal ingredients, refined pills, familiarized himself with his origin flame and divine thunder, and more. His days were packed full, leaving him almost no free time.

Time flew by, and Xiao Yu collected many medicinal ingredients. He passed up nothing that looked promising or contained abundant energy. Since he had no new pill formulas anyway, he did not need to search for specific ingredients. He gathered whatever he found and would collect more pill formulas after leaving the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

The Qi-Replenishing Pill, the Spring-Rejuvenating Pill, and the Body-Tempering Pill he had developed were all useful in the Magical Beast Mountain Range. In his hands, the relevant ingredients became pill after pill, set aside for unforeseen needs.

As for the Body-Tempering Pills, he ate them like candy. A strong body was the foundation of good health, and tempering the body offered many other benefits as well. Naturally, Xiao Yu would not be careless about it.

Thanks to his pill refining, Xiao Yu's Dou Qi grew a little purer each day. It also circulated faster than usual, making the process equivalent to cultivation, and his strength visibly improved day by day.

With the addition of three fourth-tier Origin Condensation Pills, his cultivation speed became even more astonishing.

Each Origin Condensation Pill he took allowed Xiao Yu to advance by one level. However, he needed time to refine its medicinal power, so he did not take all three in succession.

Common knowledge held that only one pill of this kind, which increased cultivation, could be taken within a given rank. But the Origin Condensation Pills Xiao Yu refined were somewhat different.

The Origin Condensation Pills he refined were exceptionally pure, their medicinal power incomparably refined. They had no side effects, and their chance of raising his level was one hundred percent.

As a result, he could take three of his Origin Condensation Pills during the Da Dou Shi stage. Only after the third would his body develop resistance to their medicinal power, preventing them from increasing his strength any further.

With the help of the Origin Condensation Pills, Xiao Yu advanced three stars in a single month, reaching Nine-Star Great Dou Master!