The eyes of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect disciples below the platform lit up.
Yu Aotian clenched his fists, his gaze burning. Today was the day he would leap through the dragon gate!
Dark Bell raised her wrist and lightly tapped the air a few times.
Blue-green lines lit up across the ground, stretching from the altar to beneath every disciple's feet and converging into a circle of light.
"Direct-line disciples of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect, enter the formation!"
At the sight, the eagerly waiting young disciples scrambled to stand inside the circle of light.
Lilina pressed her small, fair hand against the ground. Accompanied by a delicate chime, the entire formation blazed with light.
"My Soul Power is rising!"
The first disciple to step into the circle cried out in delighted surprise. He could feel his Soul Power surging wildly, and the bottleneck holding back his level was rapidly loosening.
As the saying went, an onlooker saw things clearly. Hidden in the shadows, Yan Qing could clearly see the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect disciples looking like blazing torches.
Their Soul Power was soaring, yet their presence was growing weaker and weaker.
Despite such an outrageous scene, no one came to stop it.
Looking closely at those present, aside from the elder presiding over the ceremony, not a single person was over thirty.
Where had the other elders and the sect master gone?
Wisps of pale blue essence silently peeled away from their bodies and gathered toward Lilina at the center of the altar.
"Ah! Why does raising my Soul Power hurt so much?!"
As time passed, a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect disciple with a weaker constitution finally became the first to collapse.
His cry before falling drew quite a few people's attention.
Seeing their unconscious fellow disciple beside them, the others belatedly realized something was wrong.
"This isn't right. Why am I getting weaker and weaker?"
"This is bad! The ancestor is a fake! She's devouring us! Get out of the circle!"
"Hurry, get the sect master!"
Yu Aotian also realized something was wrong and struggled to escape.
"Only noticing now?"
It was already too late!
Lilina took a step forward.
Four black and five red Soul Rings instantly rose around her. The purple lightning behind her had long since disappeared.
In its place was a green bell as dark as ink.
The pressure of a Titled Douluo swept across the entire venue.
"Your sect master and elders will stay sealed for another hour, you know. Sit tight, all of you!"
Even the disciples who forcibly broke free of the formation core's control were dragged back.
Lilina frowned slightly, her sweet smile fading a little.
"How strange. Why are all these Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect disciples so weak?"
The ritual was more than halfway through, yet the bloodline essence she had actually absorbed amounted to less than a tenth of her estimate.
Even draining everyone present dry would not be enough to let her cross the threshold into Super Douluo.
Yan Qing certainly had not gone to all the trouble of sneaking in just to watch.
Back when Yan Qing read the original Dragon King novel, he had wondered about how the Holy Spirit Cult had sacrificed a pile of puppets to gather enough power to activate the Godslayer Soul Missile.
If someone struck them midway and knocked out a few puppets, could they still activate it without enough power?
The same principle applied to this altar. If he scrubbed away its markings, would it still have its original effect?
Although the toilet brush was a Trash Martial Soul, it at least possessed the most basic cleaning function.
It was just right for scrubbing away the markings on the ground.
The elder presiding over the ceremony desperately unleashed his Martial Soul and barely squeezed out a sentence.
"All Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect disciples, crush your sect-protecting jade tokens!"
"We beseech Ancestor Yu to manifest!"
With that, he took the lead in crushing the purple jade token against his chest.
The surrounding disciples followed suit.
Streams of light from the shattered jade tokens sank into the ground, and runes emerged one after another.
Another formation had actually been buried beneath the altar.
As the formation turned, resplendent purple lightning tore through the sky, and the phantom of an enormous beast slowly emerged.
Hidden in a corner, Yan Qing's breathing quickened. Could it be?!
"Who dares harm my sect's disciples?!"
The voice descended from the sky, rolling endlessly through the mountains.
Lilina had long heard that the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect still had one final move to use when faced with annihilation.
Was this blue-purple, long-eared beast before her the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect's trump card?
A sharp-eyed disciple cried out in surprise:
"There's someone on top of that beast!"
"Impudent villain! Stop at once, or I will destroy Spirit Hall at any cost!"
The black-robed Grandmaster stood with his hands behind his back atop Luo Sanpao. Even as a projection, his presence was tremendously imposing!
Lilina kept weighing her options.
The sect's founder? Probably a Limit Douluo. Projections generally possess a tenth of the original's power.
That would give him at least the combat strength of a Super Douluo. Continuing to fight would cost far too much.
After some hesitation, she chose to summon that dark green doorway and slipped inside.
The instant she left, Lilina's gaze swept over the formation markings smeared away on the ground.
Who was it?!
Her gaze swept over the wailing disciples and settled on Yan Qing in the corner.
Yan Qing's hair instantly stood on end.
This is bad!
Fortunately, the teleportation had already taken shape, and Dark Bell had vanished from the venue.
The Holy Spirit Cult had still suffered for its lack of education.
Who knew what methods the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect had used back then to create that projection?
Yan Qing felt certain that Gangzi and Luo Sanpao together could not defeat Dark Bell.
Once the situation had more or less stabilized, Yan Qing turned and walked out of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect's inner grounds.
At the same time, he silently counted down:
Three.
Two.
"Wait."
Yan Qing turned back, his eyes already filled with reverence.
Sure enough, the Grandmaster's spirit form, which had manifested earlier, stood right behind him.
If the summoned Grandmaster still possessed awareness, he would surely be able to tell that Yan Qing had indirectly saved the entire sect's bloodline.
"I won't ask why you infiltrated my sect. It is a fact that you saved my disciples. You may make one request, provided it is within my power."
Yan Qing looked at the phantom, his eyes blazing.
"Grandmaster! This junior wishes to become your disciple!"
Yu Xiaogang's projection was somewhat surprised. "Become my disciple? Could it be that legends of me still circulate on the continent?"
"Who doesn't know that you are the foremost theorist of the Douluo Continent, the walking dictionary of the Soul Master World, the brains of the Golden Iron Triangle, Tang San's honored teacher, the founder of the Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul theory, and Luo Sanpao's one and only designated human partner?"
Yan Qing spoke sincerely.
To him, the Grandmaster's phantom before him was a walking beginner's gift pack. Saying a few flattering words was no trouble at all.
"Haha! To tell you the truth, I just finished teaching a god!"
"I accept you as my disciple!"
Yu Xiaogang felt thoroughly pleased by what he heard and promptly agreed.
"The core of my ten theories is buried beneath the third tree from the left at the entrance to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect. I hope you won't let our lineage's glory fade."
As the light and shadow dispersed, Yan Qing almost wanted to throw his arms up and cheer.
Finally done!
The system notification sounded at the same time:
Mission to become Yu Xiaogang's disciple complete! Congratulations! You have received one beginner's gift pack. It has been opened automatically. The host receives +1 to all levels and one world map. Soul Power Level +1. Yan Qing's Soul Power has reached level 21. Spiritual power level +1. Yan Qing's spiritual power has advanced from the Spirit Connection Realm to the Spirit Sea Realm. Basic profession ability level +1. Forging level has officially reached level five.
The system panel also changed. The taskbar that had originally occupied the center split into three:
Mission 1: Replace Ma Hongjun and become one of the new Shrek Seven Devils!