One-Star Dou Zhe

Two months had passed since his negotiation with Xun Er. During those two months, Jia Lie Jun had shut himself away, burying himself in cultivation. Even at night, he tirelessly practiced Dou Techniques within the Ancestral Stone space. The Jia Lie Family's Whirlwind Fist and Absorbing Palm had long since reached mastery. Moreover, under the Ancestral Stone's constant refinement, both Dou Techniques had advanced to high-grade Mystic-tier techniques. His cultivation had also surged forward, skyrocketing from Dou Qi Stage Seven to Dou Qi Stage Nine. Jia Lie Jun could actually have advanced to the Dou Zhe realm half a month ago. As the saying went, a towering building rose from level ground, so he had continued suppressing his cultivation and tempering his foundation. But as more and more energy accumulated within his body, it finally reached its limit.

In his room, Jia Lie Jun sat cross-legged on his bed, circulating the Imperial Fire Scripture within his body. The hand seals formed by his hands continuously changed as Dou Qi from heaven and earth streamed endlessly toward him. The pale-white Dou Qi had even formed a mist that shrouded Jia Lie Jun. In an instant, the abundant Dou Qi continuously poured into his body, flowing and swelling through his meridians, sending waves of stabbing pain through him.

Jia Lie Jun clenched his lips tightly and endured the pain as he continuously refined the pure Dou Qi. Sensing that the Dou Qi gathered within him had reached its limit, he abruptly changed his hand seal. His index fingers and thumbs met, his middle fingers touched, and all ten fingers formed an unusual seal. As his hand seal changed, enormous changes also took place within his body. A powerful suction force emerged from his lower abdomen, drawing in the surging Dou Qi within him. The Dou Qi was compressed, and under Jia Lie Jun's control, condensed into a Dou Qi Vortex. The pale-white Dou Qi continuously transformed into milky white.

"Bang!"

A soft muffled sound quietly rang out within his body...

As the muffled sound rang out, Jia Lie Jun felt all strength drain from his body, and he collapsed backward. His chest heaved violently.

Lying on the bed, Jia Lie Jun sensed the surging, boundless power within him, and a smile appeared on his face. After exhaling a breath of stale air, he closed his eyes and gradually sank his consciousness into his body. Internal inspection was an ability only those at the Dou Zhe level could grasp. The stronger one became, the more thoroughly one could understand the condition of one's own body.

As his consciousness sank into his lower abdomen, he found a milky-white vortex the size of a large bowl slowly rotating there. A layer of milky-white, nebula-like energy gas wrapped around the vortex's exterior. From afar, it resembled the Milky Way. Staring at the vortex, Jia Lie Jun was immensely satisfied, feeling that his efforts over the past two months had not been in vain.

However, when he thought of the crisis his family was about to face, Jia Lie Jun frowned. Xiao Yan was about to study alchemy under Yao Lao, and the Jia Lie Family's pill business would soon suffer an all-around blow. Although Jia Lie Jun possessed fire affinity with a trace of wood affinity, making him suited to become an alchemist, without a master to guide him step by step and without pill formulas, even getting started would be difficult, let alone becoming an alchemist. Although the Ancestral Stone could produce medicinal liquid, the amount was limited—only enough for his own use, with none to spare.

"What should I do? Since I can't compete with the Xiao Family in pills, there's only one option: develop a new business." Jia Lie Jun pondered a solution.

"Right, I can become a Rune Master." Rune Masters were a profession from the Wu Dong Plane. They used Spiritual Power to carve specific runes onto weapons, enhancing their power. There was no such profession on the Dou Qi Continent, and this business could become the Jia Lie Family's exclusive trade. Jia Lie Jun acted as soon as the thought occurred to him. Time was pressing, and he had to return before the family suffered its blow.

"System, I want to travel to the Wu Dong Plane. Coordinates: Flame City."

"This traversal will consume 200 energy points."

A flash of white light passed before him. Jia Lie Jun felt a wave of dizziness wash over his mind, and the next moment, he appeared in an uninhabited area. Looking around, he saw a city ahead of him. After traveling for a while, he arrived before the city gates. Raising his head to inspect the walls, he saw two grand, dragon-like characters carved above the gate: Flame City.

Jia Lie Jun asked for directions along the way and only reached his destination, the Curio Building, near noon. Looking at the three ancient-looking characters hanging above the pavilion, he hesitated for a moment before walking inside. The moment he entered, a great hall appeared before him. Numerous counters stood throughout the hall, displaying a dazzling assortment of goods: spiritual herbs, pills, weapons, Demon Crystals, martial arts manuals, and more. Seeing these eye-catching wares, Jia Lie Jun had wanted to buy anything he liked, but after feeling around in his pocket, he remembered that he had no currency used in the Wu Dong Plane.

"Hehe, young sir, is there anything you need?" As Jia Lie Jun wandered aimlessly through the hall, an attendant dressed in green and wearing a cap approached with a broad smile.

Jia Lie Jun ignored him, allowing the attendant to keep talking and recommending goods to him.

"By the way, does the Curio Building purchase martial arts manuals?" Jia Lie Jun asked. He planned to exchange a martial arts manual for some currency. He had also already confirmed that Dou Techniques from the Dou Qi Continent could be used in the Wu Dong Plane; only the power used to activate them differed. One used Origin Energy, while the other used Dou Qi.

Upon hearing this, the attendant sized Jia Lie Jun up and down, then walked to a nearby counter and gently shook a small bell.

Not long after the bell rang, a middle-aged man who looked like a manager hurried out. Smiling warmly, he said, "Little brother, are you looking to sell a martial arts manual? May I ask what grade it is?"

Jia Lie Jun walked to the counter, picked up a brush, silently copied down a section of the incantation, and handed it to the middle-aged man. The man accepted it and examined it, his expression immediately turning solemn. Having worked in this line of business for many years, he had trained a sharp eye. From this section of incantation, he judged it to be a martial art of no lower than fifth grade. What Jia Lie Jun had brought out was the original low-grade Mystic-tier Dou Technique: Whirlwind Mystic Fist. He was not foolish enough to bring out the martial art after it had been refined by the Ancestral Talisman.

"Little brother, I'm sure you know the grade of the martial art you've brought out. I won't cheat you. One price: eight thousand Yang Yuan Stones." The middle-aged man said, his eyes flickering.

Jia Lie Jun shook his head. "Don't think you can deceive me just because I'm young. I asked around elsewhere long ago. A fourth-grade martial art is worth seven thousand Yang Yuan Stones. The one I've brought out is a fifth-grade martial art. Is that really all it's worth?"

"Little brother, you certainly are shrewd. In that case, what price do you have in mind?"

"Ten thousand Yang Yuan Stones." Jia Lie Jun said, holding up one finger.

The middle-aged manager immediately agreed. Seeing his reaction, Jia Lie Jun knew that he had still named too low a price. But there was nothing he could do about it. He was completely in the dark about the tricks of this trade and understood nothing.

"Here, little brother. These are ten thousand Yang Yuan Stones. Consider this Universe Bag a gift." The middle-aged manager said, taking out a Universe Bag and handing it to Jia Lie Jun.

Jia Lie Jun accepted the Universe Bag and opened it to inspect its contents. At once, he felt a strange suction force emanate from it, while a peculiar fluctuation also arose in his mind. It was Spiritual Power. Invisible Spiritual Power slowly seeped out from his mind, strand by strand.

In a corner of the Curio Building's hall, an elderly man who had seemed half-asleep suddenly opened his eyes. His gaze shifted and settled on Jia Lie Jun. He murmured, "What powerful Spiritual Power."