Interrupting the Music

Sensing the Heaven-Earth Creation Cauldron, he discovered that the source of its excitement was actually the beast core in his hand!

Holy shit, this thing wants to eat beast cores? Tang Yan was astonished. With a flicker of his will, the beast core vanished into the Creation Cauldron.

The Heaven-Earth Creation Flame, which had remained dormant inside the cauldron, now rose languidly within his dantian. The beast core inside the cauldron was refined by the flames at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Ten seconds later, the beast core, originally brimming with spiritual energy, had vanished completely, becoming a stream of incomparably pure spiritual energy that gathered within the cauldron.

Fuck, I worked my ass off all night, and you swallowed everything I earned? Countless alpacas stampeded through Tang Yan's mind.

Just as Tang Yan was cursing it, an incomparably pure current of energy flowed from the Heaven-Earth Creation Cauldron into every limb and bone of his body.

An indescribably pleasant sensation washed over him, and his dantian stirred. Tang Yan was startled. Could I be about to break through again?

He hurriedly found a tall tree and leaped up, sitting cross-legged on a branch to calm his mind and regulate his breathing.

During those eight hours of running for his life, Tang Yan had absorbed six High Spirit Pills in total.

With the residual Spirit Power from the pills added to the Spirit Power from the third-tier beast core fed back by the Creation Cauldron, Tang Yan felt spiritual energy surge within his dantian, rapidly charging toward the strength of yellow tier third grade.

Pop!

His dantian trembled faintly, as though an eggshell had shattered, and a sensation of unobstructed flow spread through his meridians.

A breakthrough! Yellow tier third grade!

Surging Spirit Power circulated through his meridians. Feeling his increased strength, Tang Yan's heart leaped with joy.

Suddenly, Tang Yan's expression grew solemn.

He sensed that the surging spiritual energy had not stopped. It continued its fierce charge toward the fourth-grade realm.

Pop!

Another faint cracking sound rang out. The barrier to fourth grade shattered as well-yellow tier fourth grade!

Once he reached fourth grade, the surging spiritual energy finally subsided. Tang Yan closed his eyes and regulated his breathing, consolidating his newly attained strength.

When Tang Yan opened his eyes again, it was already broad daylight. Feeling the tremendous strength within his body, a smile touched his lips.

He inspected the Heaven-Earth Creation Cauldron inside him. Although its size had not changed, the Spirit Whirlpool Fruit plant he had planted inside had actually sprouted another shoot!

Tang Yan stared at the new shoot in disbelief. Just as the ancient texts described, it was deep blue-green and shaped like an oval ball. Once he confirmed that this tender seedling was indeed a Spirit Whirlpool Fruit plant, his mind immediately raced with possibilities.

This must have been due to yesterday's third-tier beast core. It seemed the space within the Heaven-Earth Creation Cauldron needed nourishment. As long as he supplied suitable nutrients, he could promote the growth of the spirit herbs inside.

If a mere third-tier beast core had such an effect, what about a fourth-tier or fifth-tier one...? Tang Yan indulged in wild fantasies, unaware that spirit beasts above the fifth tier were exceedingly rare throughout the entire Fragrance-Hearing Kingdom.

Using Phantom Shadow Steps, Tang Yan sped toward Cloud City.

After his advancement, Tang Yan's speed had improved further compared with the previous night. An hour later, he saw the outline of Cloud City.

Returning to the Tang Family, Tang Yan headed toward his courtyard. Before he reached it, however, he heard faint strains of zither music from afar.

Tang Yan followed the music, pricking up his ears to listen.

The zither sang in a hundred trills and a thousand cries, delicate and mournful, as though expressing defiance against fate, anger at its shackles, and bewilderment at life... At last, Tang Yan spotted Zi Yun's slender figure beside the lake.

The morning breeze stirred her hair, and faint tear tracks marked her exquisite profile.

Tang Yan stopped and watched for a while, sighing inwardly. This woman of noble birth also harbored sorrows born of circumstances beyond her control.

Zi Yun was playing with her eyes closed when the lilting melody abruptly faltered, turning into an ugly, grating twang. Her eyes flew open, and she saw Tang Yan's large hand pressing down on the strings.

"What are you doing?" With the music interrupted and its mood utterly ruined, Zi Yun glared angrily at Tang Yan.

"Playing something this depressing first thing in the morning? What rotten luck!"

Zi Yun's delicate brows shot up. "You uncouth brute!"

"A brute wouldn't recognize such an ill-omened tune," Tang Yan retorted lazily.

That's true enough... Zi Yun had no answer to his retort. With a metallic ring, she drew her slender sword and said indignantly, "The Tang Family head asked me to give you some pointers in martial arts. I can't let his good intentions go to waste. Come, let me see whether you've improved! Take this!"

With that, her aura stirred, and she unleashed the strength of origin tier ninth grade.

Tang Yan paused in surprise. In just a few days, Zi Yun had already recovered to origin tier ninth grade? She truly lived up to her reputation as a widely acknowledged genius of the Fragrance-Hearing Kingdom.

Never in her dreams would Zi Yun have imagined that Tang Yan had reached yellow tier fourth grade in a single night.

She had assumed that her exquisite swordsmanship and heaven-tier martial experience would make origin tier ninth grade more than enough to suppress Tang Yan at yellow tier first grade.

This time, however, Zi Yun had clearly miscalculated. Cloud City might have been small, but Tang Yan was a reincarnated Ninth-Tier Alchemist with vast experience. Whether in techniques or comprehension of martial realms, he was no weaker than her-indeed, he surpassed her by a considerable margin.

Thus, Tang Yan used only origin tier eighth-grade strength to meet her.

Sensing Tang Yan's aura, Zi Yun's anger instantly flared.

You brat, you dare look down on me and use only eighth-grade strength? It doesn't hit hard, but the insult certainly does!

Feeling insulted, Zi Yun held nothing back. Her sword radiance blazed as she swore to give Tang Yan a thorough beating this time.

After they exchanged blows, Tang Yan could not help marveling. Purple Bamboo City truly lived up to its reputation; the young lady it had raised was several times stronger than Lin Dongxue. Fighting her with origin tier eighth-grade strength actually took some effort.

Even greater waves of shock surged through Zi Yun's heart. With her comprehension and combat experience, she was confident she could remain undefeated even against a yellow tier second-grade martial artist.

But what the fuck was going on now?

Wasn't this Cloud City? How had such a tiny city produced a freak like Tang Yan? With origin tier ninth-grade strength, I can't even suppress him at eighth grade?

The longer Zi Yun fought, the more alarmed and frustrated she became. She had been ready to teach Tang Yan a lesson, only to find herself firmly suppressed by his eighth-grade strength.

"I'm done!" Zi Yun huffed angrily, sheathing her sword and heading toward her courtyard.

As she walked, she plotted inwardly. Once she recovered a little more strength, she would give Tang Yan a thorough thrashing!

Watching Zi Yun storm off, Tang Yan followed with a wry smile. Truly, petty men and women were the hardest to deal with.

The Mid-Autumn Gathering was approaching.

Although Tang Yan loathed appearing in public, this gathering concerned the Tang Family's reputation, so he had no choice but to step forward.

To secure more resources for his lineage, Tang Yan cultivated with exceptional diligence.

Zi Yun, meanwhile, seemed to have been provoked by Tang Yan during their last encounter and had remained in secluded cultivation lately.

Tang Yan cultivated without pause. In just nine days, aided by various pills, his strength advanced a thousand miles a day, swiftly soaring to yellow tier sixth grade.

Such a pace of advancement could only be called monstrous, yet Tang Yan still seemed to feel it was too slow.

Thinking of tomorrow's Mid-Autumn Gathering, a sharp gleam flashed through Tang Yan's eyes. "Although I'm only at sixth grade, with the Heaven-Earth Creation Flame and Phantom Shadow Steps, I can still put up a fight against anyone within the yellow tier."

While Tang Yan was lost in thought, he heard a door being pushed open. Turning to look, he saw Zi Yun emerge from her room with a broad smile.